FATHER?! Are you kidding? Boy I never saw that one coming!

I always knew that Bella was suicidal, but I would never thought that she would turn her back to the Dark Lord like that! What did she hear in Severus' sleep? What has Severus reveled? I don't like the idea of her madness aimed at Hermione, especially when Hermione is so vulnerable. My mind is still grasping the whole Dinasty thing. Dizzy here. Ask me about it later, if you want.Excellent chapter, Mia. I love your story! :0)

I don't even know where to begin except to say that the chapter, no this entire work thus far is a brilliant masterpiece.  Bravo!

You MUST be magic, yourself, m'dear, because you keep painting yourself into corners, then pull out your wand (i.e. pen), and simply magic up another entire room behind you (house, castle, universe) to spread out in, to continue your painting away in!Ah, me, where to begin? I wonder if you and I are from a similar (i.e. Southern) backgorund, because of the religious imagery, which forms such a part of the consciousness of those raised in the Bible belt, no matter what our current convictions may be.  The reason I mention that is your description of the scene after Narcissa takers her Vow:"And he watched as she fell backward and was caught by her friends, who eased her to the floor where she writhed in a paroxysm of ecstasy, her sighs and whimpers filling the silent room."This bears a striking resemblance to what I have actually seen, on television, of certain evangelists, who touch people and say the 'Power of God' has touched them, and they fall backwards (supposedly in spiritual ecstasy) and are caught and gently lowered to the floor by those attending.  "Slain the in the Spirit", indeed.I've also loved how other reviewers have brought ideas to the fore--one mentioned that V. didn't understand Hermione's version of "ruthlessness", and it make me think of this quote from C.S. Lewis, where he describes in "Perelandra", the faces of the eldil, the angels, who are beings of pure Love (which he calls Charity):"One single, changeless expression--so clear that it hurt and dazzled him--was stamped on each...he concluded in the end that it was charity.  But it was terrifyingly different from the expression of human charity, which we always see either blossoming out of, or hastening to descend into, natural affection.  Here there was no affection at all:  no least lingering memory of it even at ten million years' distance, no germ from which it could spring in any future, however remote.  Pure, spiritual, interllectual Love shot from their faces like barbed lightning.  It was so unlike the love we experience that its expression could easily be mistaken for ferocity."  And in another place (I think in the same book), he speaks of Love as being "ready to kill, ready to die..."  Even so does V. not understand teh true Power and strength that is Love.Someone else also mentioned Hermione's reaction when she realizes what Severus has done to save her.  I wonder about this in particular:  SHE did this entire, awful, painful thing, to BOTH of them (though unintentionally, as far as its effects on Severus) to SAVE him, from (she thought) certain physical death for disobeying V.  What, then, in this woman who is so QUICK to blame herself for all that goes wrong, will she do when she realizes what she HAS done:  that rather than SAVING him, she has more fully and completely CONDEMNED him to the darkness than ANY other person or event could have done, because he did it to save HER?  Of course, not knowing they were soul-bound, she could not have anticipated the consequences, but surely she should have known he would stop at NOTHING to find and save her.  But then, of course, she thought the D.L. wanted her dead, not alive, as did Severus as well.  But now she has played right into the D.L.'s hands, and placed Severus (inescapably?) into his hands as well.  And what on earth will she do, when she realizes what she's done?Last of all, Severus' choice of Lucius as his deputy to save Hermione----BIG QUESTION:  does Lucius KNOW that Severus and Hermione are Soul-Bound?  And that the death of one will automatically mean the death of the other?  It sounds like Bellatrix knows that ("I can't kill YOU here...but I will find your Mudblood and she will die! ...You talk in your sleep!")  The 64-dollar question is whether LUCIUS knows that, and whether he hates Snaoe enough to take this one chance he's been given (since Lucius has not yet taken the Vow) to free himself forever from ever having to submit himself to Snape.  Or will fear of what the Dark Lord would do to him, and his family, in retribution for such a step, hold him back?PLEASE hurry with the next, and PLEASE---could you reunite the two of them in the next?  I am SO longing to see Severus and Hermione together again, regardless of the fallout that will entail!

Again I have been holding my breath ....how wonderfully drunk my mind is with the driving course of your words....they abduct my mind by sheer will from their formantion ....breathless I await more...thank you thank you thank you!!

Oh good gods! No! The Dark Lord offering to 'heal' his soul? Is he making Severus creat a Horcrux? is that what the crystal is for? EEeeeeeee! and Hermione - her soul is  riven as well.... repent. that's what they sould do - repent!

Good chapter. The anticipation builds... I keep wondering at the Dark Lord's choice of words for his heir. Calling them SOUL heirs. Reminds me of hocruxes. I cannot wait for more! Awesome!

Ah. Lovely. As always.

I am a huge wreck, right now. Apparently, I forgot how to breathe while I am reading. And crying doesn't help, too.I felt a thrill when Severus told Voldemort he won't call him father.I cried reading Hermione's letter.I got ice in my guts when Bella escaped.And I am still so happy this update came sooner than expected...Thank you, thank you for writing magnificent stories!

Amazing and brilliant and i read it 3 times and as usual i can't get enough of your chapters!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!So let me start:i was extremely giddy when the Dark Lord told Bella:"Bella, my sweet," he said, his voice almost a purr. "Is this truly the day on which you choose to die?"Poor Hermione hiding and second-guessing her actions,my heart went out for her!!!!And then i realised that this is the 4th day that they are separated,right? I can't handle their separation,get them together soon!!!!and then :"They would have a someday." broke my heart!!!!And then the fact that the Dark Lord wants to begin a Dark Dynasty and he says he is impressed by Hermione and her actions,i do not know wether to start yelling go girl! or fear for the Dark Lord's designs for them-which i hope will not happen because our formidable couple will have kicked his ass!!!And then Hermione writing letters to feel him closer....once more heartbreaking.....and the part where she writes: But you see, writing to you is like having you here and I need you here, because knowing you’re angry at me and sneering at me makes me feel like I can see you and hear you and touch you. And smell you. And taste you. She closed her eyes for a brief moment and felt her mouth suffuse with moisture and memory…. I need you."left me speechless...................and of course the last letter made me cry-so touching!!!!!!!!and then Severus thinking he does not deserve her anymore but doing everything in order to protect her......and then Bella not taking the vow and threatening to kill Hermione and then the Dark Lord asking Severus who does he trust and Severus answering Lucius stop her-i was staring at the screen with my mouth hanging open and thinking-oh shit! Curtain one: Bella will find her,almost kill her and Lucius will save her by killing Bella and take her to Severus and then i do not know for sure although i have one or two ideas....Curtain two: Bella kills her and since there is no way that i want to thiink of Hermione getting killed i take curtain one.Narcissa then being the first to ensure the Dark Lord that she is eager to please unlike her sister and because her family has failed him a lot lately,a true Slytherin!!Oh my,i can't wait for the next one!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!You have outdone yourself again,such a strong plot!!!!!!Will Bella find Hermione? Will there be a duel? But Hermione is practically defenseless-she cannot perform magic-that's what she wrote... Will her magic return? Or will she have to use Muggle means to defend herself? A gun maybe? she might shoot Bella in the hand so that she drops her wand and then Lucius comes and Hermione portkeys out while Lucius takes Bella back to be punished? that is i think my option three from earlier......i am sorry for babbling but my head will burst from all the questions that have formed from each chapter and i know we will get the answers but i cannot contain them anymore....and then there is the whole Death Eaters vowing to Severus which i am sure will play a major role,it has great potential!!!!and about Hermione's patronus i do not remeber if it had appeared in the story if yes could you point me the chapter?i get the feeling that her patronus will or has changed...so thanx again for sharing!!!!!!!Thanx to GinnyW and Juno Magic,you are brilliant and lucky to be part of this story!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!Mia you should publish,i may be repeating myself but you have a gift here!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!Many kisses and hugs and glomps!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!Have fun writing the next one!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!1P.S. i should tell you that i will have exams for a month from tomorrow and my only pleasure is your amazing story so plz,plz,pretty plz update soon!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

“I hope you don’t expect me to call you Father.”  You tell him, Severus!Oh, my lord.This is horrifying and fascinating and amazing and huge!First of all, your Hermione writes one hell of a love letter, both the smeary, stream-of-consciousness one and the clear, clean, simple declaration. I'm still waiting to see what she's asked of Luna.And how the hell they are going to get out of this! (Get Harry here, get him to kill Voldemort, then tell all the now-loyal-to-Voldemort-Junior followers to just go home and sin no more? And get married again for real and for keeps? Oh, and get her a new wand and give her her magic back?)Looking forward to seeing how Lucius deals with dear Bella--interesting choice of deputy!I love the fact that Voldemort, even Voldie, is in awe of Hermione. Though of course what he sees as ruthlessness is the one thing he will never be able to understand.But Severus does. Oh, boy does he ever.Magnificent work! Can't wait to see how all this plays out!!*applauds, standing*

Bellatrix really stood out to me in this chapter--not just because of the Bella cliffhanger, but because she stuck me as nearly honorable in her defense of the Dark Lord--It's hard for me to explain exactly what I mean, but I guess--the Malfoys...Narcissa...they look out for themselves first--Slytherin to the core, as you so aptly put it--but Bella... her devotion is truly to Voldemort, and she is prepared to die for that. It's... dare I say it? Refreshing to see any kind of honor in a Death Eater. :)Looking forward to the next one, as always! xoxo

HUZZAH--  I kneel before you Goddess, unworthy to even lick the sweat from your keyboard (mainly because I already crack the whip for MORE!)  You Rock as always and may your betas always have the words to shower your creatuve genius.

WHOA!! that was a very intense chapter. the dynamic you have between severus and voldemort was possibly the best in fanfiction even before we found out about the father twist. i absolutely adore the way you write the two of them together, really brilliant and believable. i cannot wait to see what happens next the story is so intense and only seems to continue escalating exponentially. i hope you update again really really soon! marvelous work!

Oh, dear fucking god, I just read this again in preparation for the next chapter, and it's even more of a gut-wrencher the second time around.And I noticed two details that had slipped by me the first time.  One is the obvious, the elfin goblets, the only thing he had of his father's---that's why they struck such a chord when he had seen them in his fevered state!  You bloody well put it out there for us, and we, like everyone in the Dark Lord's court, just went straight into denial!  Clever, clever author!!And the other was the scent of eucalyptus and spearmint that buoyed him up at the critical moment.  I wondered why you gave her the pot of it to get her through writing those letters (which I can't wait to read or read about, by the way!)!I can't believe you're up for Best New Author---haven't you been doing this all your life?  You are just so damn good at it!!!

Quite the setup chapter!  So much is ready to happen that I almost feel like I am standing on the edge of a cliff looking down and not seeing the bottom.  It is both terrifying and exciting.  I can't wait for the next steps.  Thanks for the continuing magic you put into this story, JoAnne

Hee. Bet the DEs weren't that thrilled with the plan, but there's not much they can do... (unless one is Bella, of course, who doesn't really follow proper human logic - even if she happens to be right).Enjoyable as ever! ~Kribu

Oh my, this is sure getting intence. You have a magnificant way to keep us on egde! What runs through my mind now; Does Severus love Hermione so much that he is willing to sacrifice everyone who isn't a follower of Voldidork? One part of me is screaming "yes, of course he does, their love is unik", another part tries to whisper "but if he is willing to sacrifice everyone, will he be the man we love, the one Hermione love?" Her love for him can not be questioned, but will she be able to live, loving him, knowing that he would have a major part in killing her friends, innocent children, muggleborns just like her, whos only crime is to have been born with magic? I should not have to say that I am longing for next update?

Oh my!!!!!!There aren't words, yet I have to try to tell you how amazing this is.Just amazing. Brilliant. Scary. Fabulous! You better be working on another chapter, you're going to kill us with the suspense:){{hugs}}Fizzabella

Once again, you've confounded me with another twist to your story.  Where will you be going next?  I'm curious as to what Hermione is attempting to do with the letters.  Does she think she's going to die?  Is she going deeper into hiding?  What does she have planned?  Add in Lucius and Bella tracking down a wounded Hermione, and Harry and Ron looking for her as well...  And then this fine line that Severus is treading... I'm fascinated with how you're balancing this all together and threading it through the story.  Well done, again!

I have to say that I have found this to be the most exciting chapter in a while, even considering Hermione's drugging of him and breaking of her wand.

A friend said that the most interesting thing about your Severus is that he has always had the capacity to turn, meaning, the Dark in him is almost more powerful. With this chapter, I feel you're ready to exploit the work you've done so far, and I am completely fascinated with Severus and what this means for him. Very, very intriguing, my dear!

Author's Response: Your words are music to my eyes! I'm thrilled that you found the chapter exciting. It was a challenge because I feared it would be a letdown.

I'm really sad for Severus. He doesn't want to be Dark, not at all, yet it seems that everything keeps driving him back in that direction. Sigh.

Very good chapter - but it leaves me with so many questions. About the aura, why she snapped her wand, why drug him, why...

Y'know, when I first started reading this story (and btw TY for letting me!) I was like, oh great- this is fun, the writing is wonderful (of course), it's entertaining, yadda yadda, can't say I'm that much into the concept of fanfic, but hey, this is Mia's writing here, so of course I'll love it, and so forth and so on.But now.Jeebus fucking crispies, woman! This is outstanding! It's one of the most compelling stories I've ever, ever read. I really wish JKR could read this because if ever there was to be a sequel, this should be IT. She always said her story was Dark, but you're taking us on a gut-wrenching archetypal Journey of these two Wanderers (pun intended) through the Universal OverSoul, with all its dangerous glories.Power indeed.

Oh no!  Bella is going to be soorrrry!  I can't wait for Severus's and Hermione's reunion!  More please!

Powerful and elegant. The Severus end of the chapter is just exquisite and chilling - and I so wish he'd taken care of Bella in the first place.I'm having a little trouble with the Hermione side...not really understanding her plan or her mind set at this point. But I trust that is by author design, and that it will all come together soon.

Wherever you take us next, Mia, I'm strapped in for the ride!Thank you!!