Crown of the North
Grace has Victory45 Reviews | 9.27/10 (45 Ratings, 0 Likes, 5 Favorites )
Two years after Voldemort's fall, Remus Lupin plays at teaching, while Ariadne MacDougal prepares for a career in apothecarism. But what is the price of choosing what is right over what is easy? And is Caradoc Dearborn really dead?
Part II of The Moon-Cursers. Now updated to be DH-compatible.
Chapters (21)
About Grace has Victory
Author
Grace has Victory
Member Since 2006 | 10 Stories | Favorited by 23 | 3 Reviews Written | 356 Review Responses
My family became hooked on Harry Potter in 2001, when my son was going through a stage of reluctance to read fiction. Now it is a family hobby. I am a psychology teacher from Birmingham, England. My husband, who is Australian, is a computer programmer and network engineer. We have three teenaged children and two cats. We are all Evangelical Christians.
Reviews for Crown of the North
I can't wait to see who the libeler might be! And poor Remus and Ariadne; hopefully they will both come away without too much sorrow.
Response from Grace has Victory (Author of Crown of the North)
Dear RR,You will know when Ariadne does! But sorrow will increase over the next several chapters.Thanks for reviewing,GhV
I've been looking forward to finding out what happened to Adriane and Remus.Hurray! I can't wait to find out what happens next.
Response from Grace has Victory (Author of Crown of the North)
Hello,
Response from Grace has Victory (Author of Crown of the North)
,Thank you for taking the trouble to keep up with Ariadne's progress. You will find out what happens to them, but don't you want to find out what happened to Caradoc ... just a little bit ...?Regards, GhV
Response from Raira (Reviewer)
Well, yes, but I don't have the same emotional investment in him that I do in Adriane and Remus. :)
"...bashed neeps and bacon stovies." I've no idea what these are, but they sound lovely.Neato chapter, and I do like Ariadne. An OC without too much sugar.
Response from Grace has Victory (Author of Crown of the North)
Dear Livi,"Neep" stands for "parsnip" and "bacon" is what Americans call "ham". So it means mashed parsnips and a bacon-and-potato stew cooked on the stove-top. All standard Scottish fare.Thank you for liking Ariadne. Her personality carries the whole plot.Best wishes, GhV
And now she's doubting herself to an extreme all because of Remus. Whatever was he thinking? Oh, yeah, I know what he was thinking, but he is most unreasonable, isn't he? His self-defeating, self-deprecating attitude is affecting someone he deeply cares about.Remus wake up!! Please!! (How much longer am I going to have to bear this torture? They need to communicate. Someone needs to send an owl. Here, they can use mine: 
)
Response from Grace has Victory (Author of Crown of the North)
Your poor owl was all lost and confused, and it flew in at my window half-starved and with feathers all bedraggled. We know that owls don't lose messages, but yours was only carrying blank parchments. So I think it must have visited both of them, and both of them refused to write...
Response from notsosaintly (Reviewer)
*sob* But I do respect and admire the tenacity you have for keeping Remus on a moral path.
Response from Grace has Victory (Author of Crown of the North)
Your poor owl was all lost and confused, and it flew in at my window half-starved and with feathers all bedraggled. We know that owls don't lose messages, but yours was only carrying blank parchments. So I think it must have visited both of them, and both of them refused to write...
Response from notsosaintly (Reviewer)
*sob* But I do respect and admire the tenacity you have for keeping Remus on a moral path.
Well, that will effectively remove him from Ariadne's "circle" for a while, won't it? And she's thinking he'll be working Muggle farms. But darn it, owls find the recipient. Write! Someone write! This is painful.
Response from Grace has Victory (Author of Crown of the North)
Owls find the recipient, but only if they are sent. When each party is unwilling to impose on the other, no owl will be instructed. You have to admit that Remus has a point. Under Muggle law, Ariadne is still a minor. Wouldn't that make an open romantic commitment between them unacceptable to most HP fiction archives? His restraint might be considered the one factor that saves this story from crossing that line.
Response from Grace has Victory (Author of Crown of the North)
Owls find the recipient, but only if they are sent. When each party is unwilling to impose on the other, no owl will be instructed. You have to admit that Remus has a point. Under Muggle law, Ariadne is still a minor. Wouldn't that make an open romantic commitment between them unacceptable to most HP fiction archives? His restraint might be considered the one factor that saves this story from crossing that line.
I love that she tries so hard in her letters. "Maybe he'll open up if I write more," she seems to think. (Hasn't learnt the mystery of men, I think.) And then, when he sends that final letter, so cruelly almost it seems, she daren't reply because what girl wants to look foolish. The poor girl. I wonder what Remus would think if he knew how much he had devastated her....
Response from Grace has Victory (Author of Crown of the North)
What Remus would think, you'll find out in due course. First you'd have to convince him that it was happening, and at present he doesn't believe it.Of course, he would not have "written more", no matter what Ariadne had done. His decision is about morality, not emotion, and his mind is made up.
Response from Grace has Victory (Author of Crown of the North)
What Remus would think, you'll find out in due course. First you'd have to convince him that it was happening, and at present he doesn't believe it.Of course, he would not have "written more", no matter what Ariadne had done. His decision is about morality, not emotion, and his mind is made up.
Ouch. The way he said goodbye was so ... final. Just that one sentence pulled at the emotional heartstrings more than any other.
Response from Grace has Victory (Author of Crown of the North)
That was the aim - to break hearts. His, hers and yours.
Response from Grace has Victory (Author of Crown of the North)
That was the aim - to break hearts. His, hers and yours.
I was just thinking this chapter must be the lull before something major happens. Remus satisfies his curiosity, goes shopping, watches over Ariadne ... and then ...We're suddenly wondering the importance of a simple asp. I will tell you that I suspected that perhaps she knows Parseltongue and was conversing with it, and she reacted that way out of surprise that they had snuck up on her. I won't ask if I'm right. You probably shouldn't tell me. I'm sure the asp's significance will turn up later. (You could confirm that bit, though?)
Response from Grace has Victory (Author of Crown of the North)
Dear NSS,It's almost eerie how well you are latching onto the important points in this story. You seem to be right there, beside Ariadne.The "major thing" is in those last few sentences. Self-knowledge is not Remus's strong point, but he can't avoid the revelation at this stage.But how shall I break this to you? You don't find out about the snake until the sequel. That is when Remus first remembers to ask Ariadne, and she'll tell you when she tells him!Thanks for reviewing,GhV
Response from Grace has Victory (Author of Crown of the North)
Dear NSS,It's almost eerie how well you are latching onto the important points in this story. You seem to be right there, beside Ariadne.The "major thing" is in those last few sentences. Self-knowledge is not Remus's strong point, but he can't avoid the revelation at this stage.But how shall I break this to you? You don't find out about the snake until the sequel. That is when Remus first remembers to ask Ariadne, and she'll tell you when she tells him!Thanks for reviewing,GhV
It must have been a weight off Remus' mind . . . I had interpreted that he was perhaps concerned that it was he who had killed Caradoc. And equally, it must have pained him to learn another like him had unwittingly done the deed, had been encouraged to even. For someone to take advantage of someone else's condition like that is true evil.And Ariadne. Oh, be still my heart. She thinks she is being selfish by worrying over Remus. She may not realize it yet. What she calls selfishness just because she doesn't worry over what the rest are worrying about is indeed even more UNselfish than if she had been worrying over Caradoc. Well, that and she doesn't realize that she worries over Remus more than she worries over her own self, and we both know what that means. She is a darling girl. The kind no one should ever want to harm. The kind you'd want to aspire to be like.
Response from Grace has Victory (Author of Crown of the North)
Dear NSS,It's demanding a great deal of the reader to remember this kind of detail... But Remus knew what he had been doing on the night Caradoc died, and it is recorded in Chapter 16 of Moons. That little episode had no purpose in the plot except to be his alibi. So he wasn't worried about his own possible guilt; he just had a bad emotional reaction to the idea of werewolf misbehaviour.Of course, it's even worse for him to realise that a well-meaning werewolf was tricked into committing a crime. It could so easily have been himself.Ariadne intuits what is happening between herself and Remus, even if she hasn't yet felt the need to articulate it. She perceives it as "selfish" because she doesn't make a distinction between Remus and herself: her happiness is bound to his welfare. The emotional intensity will be significantly stepped up over the next few chapters. My daughter didn't like it at all at age nine, but she might be more amenable to it now.Thank you for engaging so completely with Ariadne and her story,GhV
Response from Grace has Victory (Author of Crown of the North)
Dear NSS,It's demanding a great deal of the reader to remember this kind of detail... But Remus knew what he had been doing on the night Caradoc died, and it is recorded in Chapter 16 of Moons. That little episode had no purpose in the plot except to be his alibi. So he wasn't worried about his own possible guilt; he just had a bad emotional reaction to the idea of werewolf misbehaviour.Of course, it's even worse for him to realise that a well-meaning werewolf was tricked into committing a crime. It could so easily have been himself.Ariadne intuits what is happening between herself and Remus, even if she hasn't yet felt the need to articulate it. She perceives it as "selfish" because she doesn't make a distinction between Remus and herself: her happiness is bound to his welfare. The emotional intensity will be significantly stepped up over the next few chapters. My daughter didn't like it at all at age nine, but she might be more amenable to it now.Thank you for engaging so completely with Ariadne and her story,GhV
I hope this mysterious face in the castle window will be explained later. You make reference to it I think in a following chapter as well, which makes me think there is something about this we will find out or need to know. I hope I am not disappointed.Of course, it would be nice if Ariadne's friend weren't actually dead, but that's too much to hope for. But if she were being held captive in ghostly form, that would be terrible... I am letting my imagination run away from me. Please tell me you will satisfy my yearning for an answer on this subject?
Response from Grace has Victory (Author of Crown of the North)
Ooh, I've intrigued you. Perhaps I should just refuse to respond to this review! Suffice to say that this apparition will blow up into a major sub-plot.I am actually impressed by how many readers told me how much they liked Veleta. I felt she was only slightly sketched because I had to get rid of her so early in the story. However, the circumstances of her demise are going to be important. You will find out the truth when Ariadne does, and not a minute sooner.
Response from notsosaintly (Reviewer)
Oh, thank you for telling me this. It makes me even more eager to read on (not that I wasn't eager before; you know what I mean).
Response from Grace has Victory (Author of Crown of the North)
Ooh, I've intrigued you. Perhaps I should just refuse to respond to this review! Suffice to say that this apparition will blow up into a major sub-plot.I am actually impressed by how many readers told me how much they liked Veleta. I felt she was only slightly sketched because I had to get rid of her so early in the story. However, the circumstances of her demise are going to be important. You will find out the truth when Ariadne does, and not a minute sooner.
Response from notsosaintly (Reviewer)
Oh, thank you for telling me this. It makes me even more eager to read on (not that I wasn't eager before; you know what I mean).
My apologies for taking too long to post this. I was distracted obviously.What I think is nice is that Ariadne is living up to Remus' dream-Ariadne. He thought that he'd just idolised her, but in fact he was merely remembering her as she was. Her good heart just shines through her every word. I love that about her character.
Response from Grace has Victory (Author of Crown of the North)
This is the best thing you could have possibly said about this chapter! Ariadne's character is the factor that has to carry this whole epic, and it wasn't altogether easy to write about a person who is so morally superior to myself. Thank you so much for telling me that I succeeded in this chapter. GhV
Response from Grace has Victory (Author of Crown of the North)
This is the best thing you could have possibly said about this chapter! Ariadne's character is the factor that has to carry this whole epic, and it wasn't altogether easy to write about a person who is so morally superior to myself. Thank you so much for telling me that I succeeded in this chapter. GhV
Aw. How sweet.I can't read this chapter without knowing that by the time Remus appears in Harry's life, Ariadne is not with him, but I'm really glad they had some happiness together.And I'm very jealous of Ariadne. Remus's wife. *swoon*
Response from Grace has Victory (Author of Crown of the North)
Dear
Response from Grace has Victory (Author of Crown of the North)
,It's alarming how many wives the Fandom has granted Remus, isn't it? But I'm always glad to know that readers can suspend their knowledge of all the others to believe in Ariadne.You have guessed correctly: this is a canon-friendly story. Ariadne always was going to be out of Remus's life by the time he boarded the Hogwarts Express on 1.9.93. Most of the story was written pre-HBP, but I only had to change my plot slightly to accommodate the new information.Unlike her namesake, Ariadne will be a true "crown" to her first lover. The rocky course of their happiness will be charted in the sequel.Thanks for keeping up the reviews,GhV
*laugh* What a series of responses.Poor Ariadne.
Response from Grace has Victory (Author of Crown of the North)
Poor Ariadne? Oh no. She's rid herself of the Malfoys, tamed Snape and kept the love of the Macmillans. Of course, that still leaves the situation with her parents ... but one can't have everything. Thanks for reviewing, GhV
poco a pocoBoth of them are waiting for the other to be ready for more, when clearly both of them are. Another wonderful chapter. No surprise there. :) I especially liked this:he had sacrificed a small corner of his integrity in order to give her a message. She would never ask him to sacrifice any more of it;
Response from Grace has Victory (Author of Crown of the North)
Ariadne understands Remus very well by this stage. It's her own shortcomings that are still lurking in the shadows to devour them. But neither of them is thinking about that right now. Ariadne will respect Remus's integrity, which will include his keeping his promises. Thanks for reviewing, GhV
Remus seems like he is determined not to be miserable; it's almost like he's distancing himself from his feelings. He really is very alone here.
Response from Grace has Victory (Author of Crown of the North)
Men like him specialise in being aloof from themselves. I've lived with such men all my life and self-knowledge is not their strong point. GhV
Aw. Poor Adriane.I wonder why, when she knows so much about how others feel, she can't fathom Remus's feelings?
Response from Grace has Victory (Author of Crown of the North)
She thought she did know. An older woman would have worked out that he might have had a different kind of reason for leaving - but Ariadne can only assume that she was wrong about him. And therefore about so much else too. Thanks for reviewing, GhV
I like that. Especially the hint of romance.I didn't quite get why Adriane felt spied on by her parents.
Response from Grace has Victory (Author of Crown of the North)
Dear
Response from Grace has Victory (Author of Crown of the North)
,Ariadne's parents haven't really spied on her, but they don't allow her much solitude unless she's studying, so she finds it difficult to hide a guilty secret. She is having a rather angry reaction to her frustrations at present - she knows her parents are somewhat over-controlling, but she also knows they mean it for the best and are not seriously over-controlling.Thanks for reviewing. More romance is to follow,GhV
What a poignant ending.
Response from Grace has Victory (Author of Crown of the North)
Thank you - I was certainly feeling for Remus at this point. GhV
Aha. That's what happened to Caradoc. That makes sense. So now, I wonder, what are they going to do now they know?That's a rhetorical question, since I'm sure chapter 4 will answer it. :)I enjoyed the conversation between Remus and Adriane very much.
Response from Grace has Victory (Author of Crown of the North)
Dear
Response from Grace has Victory (Author of Crown of the North)
,I enjoyed the Remus/Ariadne interaction too! There is a real dilemma about what to do about Caradoc, since they obviously don't want to incriminate Connell Dewar.Thanks for reviewing,GhV
Aw *sniff*She's worked it out.I loved this chapter. I couldn't stop reading until the end.
Response from Grace has Victory (Author of Crown of the North)
Thanks,
Response from Grace has Victory (Author of Crown of the North)
. Ariadne has worked several things out, and it's now Remus who needs to catch up!This story has a simpler chronology than the prequel, so I hope you'll be able to dive straight in.GhV