So lovely. 

lovely

I've never before read a story where Snape and Sprout had any kind of a friendship at all, let alone something so meaningful as this. You really made this believable and touching. 

I thought that was brilliant!  Well done

This is such a beautiful story, and meditation on friendship. I have always thought that they must have been friends, if for no other reason than the intersection of professional interest and duties. But this makes the idea even sweeter. Thanks so much for such a great read.

This story warmed my heart. She is such a giving woman. I can understand why she skipped the year he was Headmaster, but I can also understand why she felt so guilty as a result.

And the one night they kissed, in spite of the age difference, made my heart sing. They truely cared for each other. She won his heart the only way she could, slowly and gradually. He would have been suspicious otherwise.

When she returned and the flowers were almost completely white I had tears in my eyes.

But to find him alive! The greatest gift of all.

Truely a beautifully written tale with great character development and pacing. A treasure.

Simply brilliant! This will undoubtedly be one of the few stories I will cherish enough to read again and again.

What a beautiful tale!
You brought tears to my eyes.

beautiful!  I've never quite read a tale like it.  Thanks for all your time and effort

There are no words to tell you how much I cherish this story.  Flawless will need to suffice.

that was superb.  loved the progression of his life thru her eyes.  thanks and mucho smoochies

Oh, Dickie. This was breathtaking. Christev rec'd this to me, and I knew the moment I read the first sentence I would be enthralled and I was. There is something wonderful about these two and their solid, deep friendship that has always appealed to me.  The beautiful flowers, growing dark, then white again, your perfect description of Severus as a young man, so brittle and unloved, Dumbledore's conflicting treatment, both defending and crushing him, and Pomona's big, tender heart, leaden with remorse for breaking her promise. It was an ending that I could only hope for, and I feel enriched by this bountiful, beautiful story. Thank you, Dickie!!

Absolutely lovely, thank you ever so much! I was crying a lot when reading this, didn't dare to hope for a happy end, and then there was one.

Lovely!

oh wow! i love the story! i'ts so wonderful! i got tears in my eyes! and actually, i was shocked when severus kissed pomona! it takes things in a higher level now, that she was so giving to him. and it was really lovely to read again and again.! thanks so much for the lovely story! now, i won't be looking at them the same way again. haha :)

Pomona gets a rare moment in the spotlight -- hurray!  Oh, my gosh, this is beautiful -- I love this unusual lens on Snape's life, and I love the way you capitalized on hints in canon to flesh out this wonderful friendship. The sad, introspective tone and the flower metaphor work perfectly.

It's a wonderful story! I love how the Januis reflects the darkness of his feelings and then brightness of it at the end. And I love even more that he still alive.

this is powerful, and a really good piece of writing.  I like the pacing, the way you flash forward and back.

and do I EVER want to know what happens next!  it's not necessary, I know, but I don't know what version of the battle and the future you're working with, and this is certainly the only sprout/snape I've seen.  I love it :)

What a brilliant way to illustrate the two sides fighting for his soul...  The friendship with Pomona is quite lovely, too.  It's a gorgeous tale.

What a lovely story. Its good to think there was someone else at hogwarts looking after Severus.

Beautiful~

oh this was beatifull, sad and glad in the end. well done

Oh, wonderful. So good to see this up here. This was a really great, perfectly balanced fic for the LJ comm!