The dangers of memory charms and new identities! LOL! Don't worry, though, she'll find them!

The dangers of memory charms and new identities! LOL! Don't worry, though, she'll find them!

Um, given that I only posted this chapter a few hours ago and that I have regularly updated the last few chapters about once a week, I'm afraid you'll have to wait more than a few hours for the next update and you can predict that the next one will hopefully be up in about a week or so. Did you enjoy it?

Um, given that I only posted this chapter a few hours ago and that I have regularly updated the last few chapters about once a week, I'm afraid you'll have to wait more than a few hours for the next update and you can predict that the next one will hopefully be up in about a week or so. Did you enjoy it?

Oh, my, an award for the most awful, wicked, nasty way to end a chapter ever! I like it! Since I don't want any of you to expire on account of it, however, you should be able to breathe freely by sometime this coming weekend, unless something really dreadful happens in RL to prevent it!I take it that you liked the chapter? heheheh!Thank you!

Oh, my, an award for the most awful, wicked, nasty way to end a chapter ever! I like it! Since I don't want any of you to expire on account of it, however, you should be able to breathe freely by sometime this coming weekend, unless something really dreadful happens in RL to prevent it!I take it that you liked the chapter? heheheh!Thank you!

Thank you! And you're welcome! I'm really glad you liked it. I sweated buckets over it. I'm especially glad you loved Snape's Slytherins.Thanks again for reviewing!

Thank you! And you're welcome! I'm really glad you liked it. I sweated buckets over it. I'm especially glad you loved Snape's Slytherins.Thanks again for reviewing!

Thank you! I focussed on the pacing and on Gareth's experience, hoping that it would have that effect of making someone feel they were right in it. I don't like dwelling on gruesome things simply for the sake of the gruesomeness, although I think there's an art to doing it well -- it's just not something I do. (Though I suppose there's a first time for everything! LOL!)I'm glad you appreciated the cliffie! It would be terrible and ironic if she died after all she'd done to try to help others to live. I am not bound by that irony, however, though I might like to play with it a little. Thanks very much for the review! I'm glad you enjoyed the chapter so much.

Thank you! I focussed on the pacing and on Gareth's experience, hoping that it would have that effect of making someone feel they were right in it. I don't like dwelling on gruesome things simply for the sake of the gruesomeness, although I think there's an art to doing it well -- it's just not something I do. (Though I suppose there's a first time for everything! LOL!)I'm glad you appreciated the cliffie! It would be terrible and ironic if she died after all she'd done to try to help others to live. I am not bound by that irony, however, though I might like to play with it a little. Thanks very much for the review! I'm glad you enjoyed the chapter so much.

Thank you very much! I sweated over it.I hate battles, too.I'm glad you liked the chapter so well! Thanks for reviewing!

Thank you very much! I sweated over it.I hate battles, too.I'm glad you liked the chapter so well! Thanks for reviewing!

Yes, it would be horrible for Albus to survive all that, especially since Minerva was responsible for his initial survival, and then lose Minerva in the battle. I think he would be quite lost, especially if he also lost Gertrude and/or Gareth.I'm glad you liked that line of Minerva's. Yes, Voldy suffered a few shocks before he bit the dust. But as Minerva said, he was always overconfident.We'll find out soon how Minerva fared being hit in the head with a piece of the castle!Thanks muchly! (and for the squee! )

Yes, it would be horrible for Albus to survive all that, especially since Minerva was responsible for his initial survival, and then lose Minerva in the battle. I think he would be quite lost, especially if he also lost Gertrude and/or Gareth.I'm glad you liked that line of Minerva's. Yes, Voldy suffered a few shocks before he bit the dust. But as Minerva said, he was always overconfident.We'll find out soon how Minerva fared being hit in the head with a piece of the castle!Thanks muchly! (and for the squee! )

Thank you!First point: you are right about Severus. He will be such a bundle of confused feelings, poor man.Second point: exactly. I found that both disturbing and unrealistic, even if it's fantasy filled with allegory and symbolism, or whatever. Being ambitious and clever might actually lead someone to think that having a Dark Lord was a bad idea! And do something about it. At least Slughorn came back in "the other version."Third point: I'm glad you liked the battle. I remember very little of the other version, but I remember I didn't like the way the younger ones were so conveniently spared having to kill or badly main someone, but they weren't equally conveniently spared being killed. It seemed it was okay to have caged birds killed, new parents mown down, and other innocents die, but not okay to have the loss of innocence include having to fight hard and kill to protect yourself and those you cared about. I was unhappy about that -- either keep them completely clear of the battlefield or let them be there and give them the tools to defend themselves & their world, even if they are fighting adults who are stronger and more ruthless than they are.Fourth point: I wanted to be able to give the battle some shape on the page and to help the reader feel the battle at least a little, and I liked having it through Gareth's eyes because while he could be an active combatant, he wasn't one of the "primaries" (Harry, Minerva, or Albus), so he could witness what they were doing and also witness other aspects of the battle that they wouldn't be able to. I also like Gareth, myself. I'm glad you liked that choice. Fifth point: I like the thought that one of the reasons that the Order & the Hogwarts defenders were successful was because they worked cooperatively. People always talk about survival of the fittest and the value of competition, etc., but I've always believed that cooperation was equally important, from both an ethical and an objective point of view. And here, I thought that the shared responsibility was important on several levels, both in terms of the characters as people and in terms of the story. As for Harry reclaiming his blood, which had been taken from him forcefully, it gave him a right to do what he did beyond just the right of defending the wizarding world. In a way, Riddle was still responsible for what happened to him. (I also really got sick of the Amazing Bouncing Avada Kedavras! LOL!)Sixth: I could see Neville trying to find her and engage her, and then when he sees her fighting his favorite teacher, taking that opportunity.Seventh: I think he was certainly looking on and cheering.Eighth: Yep, no little wuss there. Quite competent. :)Ninth: I'm glad you appreciated the chapter. Writing this sort of chapter takes me a long time and lots of sweat. Glad you liked it!Tenth: I think they all do deserve a holiday!Thanks for the review! I'm very glad you liked the chapter.

I liked it so much that I'm on my way to Hogwarts to sit with Gareth and soothe his fevered brow.Fifth bed against the west wall, right?*snicker*

Yes, behind the white curtains. I'm sure he will appreciate it!heh!

Thank you!First point: you are right about Severus. He will be such a bundle of confused feelings, poor man.Second point: exactly. I found that both disturbing and unrealistic, even if it's fantasy filled with allegory and symbolism, or whatever. Being ambitious and clever might actually lead someone to think that having a Dark Lord was a bad idea! And do something about it. At least Slughorn came back in "the other version."Third point: I'm glad you liked the battle. I remember very little of the other version, but I remember I didn't like the way the younger ones were so conveniently spared having to kill or badly main someone, but they weren't equally conveniently spared being killed. It seemed it was okay to have caged birds killed, new parents mown down, and other innocents die, but not okay to have the loss of innocence include having to fight hard and kill to protect yourself and those you cared about. I was unhappy about that -- either keep them completely clear of the battlefield or let them be there and give them the tools to defend themselves & their world, even if they are fighting adults who are stronger and more ruthless than they are.Fourth point: I wanted to be able to give the battle some shape on the page and to help the reader feel the battle at least a little, and I liked having it through Gareth's eyes because while he could be an active combatant, he wasn't one of the "primaries" (Harry, Minerva, or Albus), so he could witness what they were doing and also witness other aspects of the battle that they wouldn't be able to. I also like Gareth, myself. I'm glad you liked that choice. Fifth point: I like the thought that one of the reasons that the Order & the Hogwarts defenders were successful was because they worked cooperatively. People always talk about survival of the fittest and the value of competition, etc., but I've always believed that cooperation was equally important, from both an ethical and an objective point of view. And here, I thought that the shared responsibility was important on several levels, both in terms of the characters as people and in terms of the story. As for Harry reclaiming his blood, which had been taken from him forcefully, it gave him a right to do what he did beyond just the right of defending the wizarding world. In a way, Riddle was still responsible for what happened to him. (I also really got sick of the Amazing Bouncing Avada Kedavras! LOL!)Sixth: I could see Neville trying to find her and engage her, and then when he sees her fighting his favorite teacher, taking that opportunity.Seventh: I think he was certainly looking on and cheering.Eighth: Yep, no little wuss there. Quite competent. :)Ninth: I'm glad you appreciated the chapter. Writing this sort of chapter takes me a long time and lots of sweat. Glad you liked it!Tenth: I think they all do deserve a holiday!Thanks for the review! I'm very glad you liked the chapter.

I liked it so much that I'm on my way to Hogwarts to sit with Gareth and soothe his fevered brow.Fifth bed against the west wall, right?*snicker*

Yes, behind the white curtains. I'm sure he will appreciate it!heh!

Thank you!

Thank you!

I'm glad you liked the battle scenes.Yes, Minerva first met Scrimgeour back in '45, and she didn't like him very much then, but he was helpful to her. He was shrewd and ambitious even then, but also pretty savvy.I felt worse about killing Molly than I did about the decision to kill her, if that makes any sense, but her death creates a kind of hollow place in the Weasley family.Yes, it is our choices that make us who we are, and even after ambushing Albus w/ the Celebrare, she tried to still give him some options, even though she was clear that she was going to continue to do all she could to proceed w/ her plan and persuade him to participate, even if she was going to be more forcefully persuasive than usual. But Harry knew what he had to do and that if he didn't, it would go worse for everyone. It was good for him to make that choice very explicitly and to articulate it, though, and as you point out, good for Minerva, as well. She really would have done it for him if she could.Yes, that's Grubbly-Plank on the dragon with Charlie. And Minerva's strategy was very effective to surround them on all sides and even from above, and even to use the castle battlements in the early stages, and bring in the various contingents in stages. The DEs were pretty well out-numbered from the beginning, then they were surrounded and attacked by people who fought in pairs and small groups, whereas the DEs had no particular strategy except to eliminate their opposition and take the castle.I think it would disturb Severus greatly, too, if any of those three were to die while he had managed to live. You'll have to wait until the next chapter to see, though!Yes, Minerva is bound to find being hit in the head by a bit of Hogwarts does nothing for her headache. And for Albus to see Gertrude, then Gareth and Minerva almost simultaneously, all being injured like that is not going to do anything to soothe him (BTW, don't you love the word "irenic"? And quite apropos of Albus's temper.) Re: Robbie. Minerva was telling people that he had a secret assignment off the grounds. I wasn't able to get any dialogue in that indicated that's what happened, other than a brief allusion to it in her conversation w/ Harry, though. (And one little wizard was quite unsurprised by either Robbie's disappearance or Albus's return. One person actually did figure it out but was wise enough not to say anything to anyone at all.) Probably some people did put 2 & 2 together when Albus reappeared, as you say, though.Twiskett is an extraordinary fellow -- you'd have to be to serve Severus for more than a decade. (Twiskett also appears in the sequel.) And Gareth finding and gently checking Malfoy over was a good thing, too, particularly as he knew that he had been one of the wizards who had attacked Gertrude all those years ago.Minerva will certainly need time to recover from the stresses of the last several months, as will others, like Severus. Fortunately, Minerva does not mind delegating when appropriate, and she has family and friends to rely on, too.

Yes, "irenic" is a marvelous word.  One of my favourites, right up there next to (guess it....)  "esoteric." I personally hope we (or at least some straggling DEs) get to see a bit of Furious!Albus.  He's had to be even more understated than  usual to impersonate soft-spoken Robbie for 18 mos, and he's watched the 4 people he's closest to, plus scores of others, be wounded w/in the past 12 hrs--w/ the verdict still out on all of the ones dear to him.  Surely he has some emotions he'd like to express!  While I wouldn't want him to do anything his scrupulous conscience would regret later, he is still a very powerful wizard....and (as he once said years ago to Minerva after scaring her and everyone else mightily in his duel w/ Malcolm), it doesn't hurt to remind the world of that occasionally!  Lest anyone of impure motives think to fill the sudden vacuum left by both TR/LV and the MoM being eliminated.  (Of course, coming back from the dead is no mean trick itself, I admit, and should have folks suitably intimidated no matter what else he does!)I went back and re-read the Finding Albus chapters of RaM last night, first to find the first appearance of Rufus, and then just b/c RaM is like potato chips--I can't stop once I've started!  And you've written a very consistent Minerva.  She was just as cool-headed, and able to shut off her emotions and do what needed to be done in very dangerous circumstances even when facing the possible loss of the 2 men she loved, at age 20-something as she is at age 70-something.  Hopefully this time around she'll get more constructive help from those near her in processing those emotions after the fact--and be better about telling folks what she needs and what she's feeling.  You indicate she will, which is good--she has grown in those 50+ yrs, and so has Albus (also a pro at compartmentalizing!), so presumably we will not have a variation of the scene at McGonagall cliffs on either of their parts! 

Oh--and good on Filius for figuring it out but keeping his mouth shut.  A very good Ravenclaw he is!

I think that things ended very quickly once Minerva was injured and Albus had very strong motivation, so to speak!Yes, Filius is a good Ravenclaw. Robbie/Albus was worried that he might have figured it out at one moment, but Filius covered his expression quickly, thought about it a while, came to the conclusion that it was quite likely that Robbie was Albus, and then watched for other signs that would indicate that. He guessed in the autumn, and by Christmas, he was certain.

It just occurred to me that one of Minerva and Albus's first real partnerships was when she worked on the wards w/ him as a student, to strengthen Hogwarts' defences, and now she is responsible for those very wards being deliberately breached, w/ his concurrence.  Sort of ironic, or something--certainly nothing she nor Albus ever imagined during that lovely picnic when he told her of the Special Project.

I'm glad you liked the battle scenes.Yes, Minerva first met Scrimgeour back in '45, and she didn't like him very much then, but he was helpful to her. He was shrewd and ambitious even then, but also pretty savvy.I felt worse about killing Molly than I did about the decision to kill her, if that makes any sense, but her death creates a kind of hollow place in the Weasley family.Yes, it is our choices that make us who we are, and even after ambushing Albus w/ the Celebrare, she tried to still give him some options, even though she was clear that she was going to continue to do all she could to proceed w/ her plan and persuade him to participate, even if she was going to be more forcefully persuasive than usual. But Harry knew what he had to do and that if he didn't, it would go worse for everyone. It was good for him to make that choice very explicitly and to articulate it, though, and as you point out, good for Minerva, as well. She really would have done it for him if she could.Yes, that's Grubbly-Plank on the dragon with Charlie. And Minerva's strategy was very effective to surround them on all sides and even from above, and even to use the castle battlements in the early stages, and bring in the various contingents in stages. The DEs were pretty well out-numbered from the beginning, then they were surrounded and attacked by people who fought in pairs and small groups, whereas the DEs had no particular strategy except to eliminate their opposition and take the castle.I think it would disturb Severus greatly, too, if any of those three were to die while he had managed to live. You'll have to wait until the next chapter to see, though!Yes, Minerva is bound to find being hit in the head by a bit of Hogwarts does nothing for her headache. And for Albus to see Gertrude, then Gareth and Minerva almost simultaneously, all being injured like that is not going to do anything to soothe him (BTW, don't you love the word "irenic"? And quite apropos of Albus's temper.) Re: Robbie. Minerva was telling people that he had a secret assignment off the grounds. I wasn't able to get any dialogue in that indicated that's what happened, other than a brief allusion to it in her conversation w/ Harry, though. (And one little wizard was quite unsurprised by either Robbie's disappearance or Albus's return. One person actually did figure it out but was wise enough not to say anything to anyone at all.) Probably some people did put 2 & 2 together when Albus reappeared, as you say, though.Twiskett is an extraordinary fellow -- you'd have to be to serve Severus for more than a decade. (Twiskett also appears in the sequel.) And Gareth finding and gently checking Malfoy over was a good thing, too, particularly as he knew that he had been one of the wizards who had attacked Gertrude all those years ago.Minerva will certainly need time to recover from the stresses of the last several months, as will others, like Severus. Fortunately, Minerva does not mind delegating when appropriate, and she has family and friends to rely on, too.

Yes, "irenic" is a marvelous word.  One of my favourites, right up there next to (guess it....)  "esoteric." I personally hope we (or at least some straggling DEs) get to see a bit of Furious!Albus.  He's had to be even more understated than  usual to impersonate soft-spoken Robbie for 18 mos, and he's watched the 4 people he's closest to, plus scores of others, be wounded w/in the past 12 hrs--w/ the verdict still out on all of the ones dear to him.  Surely he has some emotions he'd like to express!  While I wouldn't want him to do anything his scrupulous conscience would regret later, he is still a very powerful wizard....and (as he once said years ago to Minerva after scaring her and everyone else mightily in his duel w/ Malcolm), it doesn't hurt to remind the world of that occasionally!  Lest anyone of impure motives think to fill the sudden vacuum left by both TR/LV and the MoM being eliminated.  (Of course, coming back from the dead is no mean trick itself, I admit, and should have folks suitably intimidated no matter what else he does!)I went back and re-read the Finding Albus chapters of RaM last night, first to find the first appearance of Rufus, and then just b/c RaM is like potato chips--I can't stop once I've started!  And you've written a very consistent Minerva.  She was just as cool-headed, and able to shut off her emotions and do what needed to be done in very dangerous circumstances even when facing the possible loss of the 2 men she loved, at age 20-something as she is at age 70-something.  Hopefully this time around she'll get more constructive help from those near her in processing those emotions after the fact--and be better about telling folks what she needs and what she's feeling.  You indicate she will, which is good--she has grown in those 50+ yrs, and so has Albus (also a pro at compartmentalizing!), so presumably we will not have a variation of the scene at McGonagall cliffs on either of their parts! 

Oh--and good on Filius for figuring it out but keeping his mouth shut.  A very good Ravenclaw he is!

I think that things ended very quickly once Minerva was injured and Albus had very strong motivation, so to speak!Yes, Filius is a good Ravenclaw. Robbie/Albus was worried that he might have figured it out at one moment, but Filius covered his expression quickly, thought about it a while, came to the conclusion that it was quite likely that Robbie was Albus, and then watched for other signs that would indicate that. He guessed in the autumn, and by Christmas, he was certain.

It just occurred to me that one of Minerva and Albus's first real partnerships was when she worked on the wards w/ him as a student, to strengthen Hogwarts' defences, and now she is responsible for those very wards being deliberately breached, w/ his concurrence.  Sort of ironic, or something--certainly nothing she nor Albus ever imagined during that lovely picnic when he told her of the Special Project.

Thanks!Yup, no wallflowers in this battle, and everyone doing what they had to do. I'm glad you liked Snape's Slytherins. When I first began to come up with this story over a year ago, The image of Blaise Zabini saying that he was one of Snape's Slytherins just popped into my head even before I had much of an idea of how anything else with the battle on the Hogwarts grounds would go. I had to keep that and give him his chance to shine as a Slytherin leader of a different sort.Go, Gertie! indeed! She took out a DE as soon as she arrived and didn't stop until she was hit by that spell, jumping in front of Alroy much as she flew between him and the Bludger in that pick-up Quidditch game so many years before. She's still devoted to those whom she loves.You're welcome!

Thanks!Yup, no wallflowers in this battle, and everyone doing what they had to do. I'm glad you liked Snape's Slytherins. When I first began to come up with this story over a year ago, The image of Blaise Zabini saying that he was one of Snape's Slytherins just popped into my head even before I had much of an idea of how anything else with the battle on the Hogwarts grounds would go. I had to keep that and give him his chance to shine as a Slytherin leader of a different sort.Go, Gertie! indeed! She took out a DE as soon as she arrived and didn't stop until she was hit by that spell, jumping in front of Alroy much as she flew between him and the Bludger in that pick-up Quidditch game so many years before. She's still devoted to those whom she loves.You're welcome!

Severus will certainly find it more than a surprise and something of a challenge, a series of challenges, really.I'm glad you enjoyed the chapter! Thank you for reviewing!

Severus will certainly find it more than a surprise and something of a challenge, a series of challenges, really.I'm glad you enjoyed the chapter! Thank you for reviewing!

Fortunately, the next chapters, although there should be some drama, will hopefully be calmer . . . no, not calmer, precisely, but they won't be so bellicose.I'm glad you liked it. Blaise and Snape's Slytherins can help make us proud of all four Houses. And yup, Gertie came back, and now you know what little Alroy became when he trained to become an Animagus.Thanks for reviewing! CFR! heh!

Fortunately, the next chapters, although there should be some drama, will hopefully be calmer . . . no, not calmer, precisely, but they won't be so bellicose.I'm glad you liked it. Blaise and Snape's Slytherins can help make us proud of all four Houses. And yup, Gertie came back, and now you know what little Alroy became when he trained to become an Animagus.Thanks for reviewing! CFR! heh!

Thank you! I'm glad you enjoyed it. You'll find out in the next chapter all about what happened to Minerva. Thanks for the review!

Thank you! I'm glad you enjoyed it. You'll find out in the next chapter all about what happened to Minerva. Thanks for the review!

Thank you! I'm glad you liked it. The updates came a bit closer together this time. Hope you enjoy the next!

Thank you! I'm glad you liked it. The updates came a bit closer together this time. Hope you enjoy the next!

I'm glad! I'm happy it was a good reward for making it through the week! We get to see more about the execution of the plan, so I think you'll like that, too. There's a potential scene w/ Robert (only his mother calls him "Robbie," which made it convenient to distinguish the two), but I'll need to see how/if it fits.Speaking of next chapters, the next one will be up this weekend, so you'll have another treat! Thanks much for the review!

I'm glad! I'm happy it was a good reward for making it through the week! We get to see more about the execution of the plan, so I think you'll like that, too. There's a potential scene w/ Robert (only his mother calls him "Robbie," which made it convenient to distinguish the two), but I'll need to see how/if it fits.Speaking of next chapters, the next one will be up this weekend, so you'll have another treat! Thanks much for the review!

I'm glad you're breathing easier! Thank you! I'm glad you liked the bit with Scrimgeour & Co. I enjoyed that bit, myself, when I was writing it. Yay! you got those hints in the last chapter! :-)Thanks for the review!The next chapter is being polished all shiny for you! I hope it won't be too long before the next update.

I'm glad you're breathing easier! Thank you! I'm glad you liked the bit with Scrimgeour & Co. I enjoyed that bit, myself, when I was writing it. Yay! you got those hints in the last chapter! :-)Thanks for the review!The next chapter is being polished all shiny for you! I hope it won't be too long before the next update.

But you did so enjoy finding all those teeny, tiny little crumbs, didn't you? I'm glad you liked the casualness of it.Thanks much for the review -- hope you enjoy the next chapter. It's being all polished and shined for you!

But you did so enjoy finding all those teeny, tiny little crumbs, didn't you? I'm glad you liked the casualness of it.Thanks much for the review -- hope you enjoy the next chapter. It's being all polished and shined for you!

I'm glad you like it! And I'm glad you knew it, too -- but that it wasn't immediately obvious. I was hoping that some folks would pick up on the clues after a while, even though I wanted it to be at least a little bit of a mystery.I hope that the next chapters continue to please you!Thank you for the review!

I'm glad you like it! And I'm glad you knew it, too -- but that it wasn't immediately obvious. I was hoping that some folks would pick up on the clues after a while, even though I wanted it to be at least a little bit of a mystery.I hope that the next chapters continue to please you!Thank you for the review!

What a cute little dance! This Albus is the Albus I got to know in the first five or six HP books, before everyone in Book 7 went delusional on us. LOL! So I'm glad you like him. You would probably like him in Resolving a Misunderstanding, too, if you haven't read that. It's like a series of sequels, but under one title/posted story, and it has a single clear story arc. He and Minerva are both younger there. It's fun, and Death's Dominion is a kind of sequel to it.You're welcome for the update. (I tried to do it early because of the longish wait before the previous chapter and the fact that everyone was so very patient while waiting for it!) And the next chapter certainly is action-packed!Thanks for reviewing!

What a cute little dance! This Albus is the Albus I got to know in the first five or six HP books, before everyone in Book 7 went delusional on us. LOL! So I'm glad you like him. You would probably like him in Resolving a Misunderstanding, too, if you haven't read that. It's like a series of sequels, but under one title/posted story, and it has a single clear story arc. He and Minerva are both younger there. It's fun, and Death's Dominion is a kind of sequel to it.You're welcome for the update. (I tried to do it early because of the longish wait before the previous chapter and the fact that everyone was so very patient while waiting for it!) And the next chapter certainly is action-packed!Thanks for reviewing!

Yes, it isn't too often that someone gets one over on Albus, is it? Of course, she did warn him! She said it would be just like the chess game she won, and she was right. Thanks much for the review! I'm glad you enjoyed it!

Yes, it isn't too often that someone gets one over on Albus, is it? Of course, she did warn him! She said it would be just like the chess game she won, and she was right. Thanks much for the review! I'm glad you enjoyed it!

Hermione has developed a lot of strength over her short life -- an only child, a witch among Muggles, then a Muggle-born in the wizarding world, and then all of her experience with Harry, and having seen evil in many forms -- all of that helped her become the person who could do what needed to be done there. And in the Shrieking Shack, it didn't hurt that she had someone with her who also was a witness suffering.Yup, one heck of a spell. Very benign, especially compared to the spell that hit Severus a few months before that, but also with great potential when drawn on by the participants.I'm glad you liked the way the scene with Severus worked out.Lucky? Unlucky? It's all a matter of where you stand when you look at something, isn't it? ;-)

I also liked seeing Ph. Yaxley.  I liked her brief appearance in RaM.  I hope she survives and she and MM and AD can share stories over un-doctored tea after it's all over.  Scrimgeour also comes across well and consistent w/  your RaM version of him.  Now we just need Egeria to make an appearance!Your mention of Albus was so smooth and subtle I had to go back and re-read to make sure you really did "out" him unambiguously by name this time. I said above I liked the unity of having his and Severus's survival revealed in the same scene, even though AFAIK there was nothing in the scene in the Shack which required he be Albus rather than Robbie.  Might that handkerchief portkey have been a *tartan* plaid? <g>Anxiously awaiting the next installment....

I'm glad you enjoyed Philomena's appearance. She'll be fine. Curious about what Scrimgeour said about them trying to use her against him, but fine. :-) Egeria . . . hmm . . . Albus said there would be help waiting in the Hog's Head. And the same day that Albus visited Aberforth to ask his help, Melina went and talked to Egeria . . . hmmm . . . wonder what all that might mean! LOL!Next installment just being polished up and such. :-)

Hermione has developed a lot of strength over her short life -- an only child, a witch among Muggles, then a Muggle-born in the wizarding world, and then all of her experience with Harry, and having seen evil in many forms -- all of that helped her become the person who could do what needed to be done there. And in the Shrieking Shack, it didn't hurt that she had someone with her who also was a witness suffering.Yup, one heck of a spell. Very benign, especially compared to the spell that hit Severus a few months before that, but also with great potential when drawn on by the participants.I'm glad you liked the way the scene with Severus worked out.Lucky? Unlucky? It's all a matter of where you stand when you look at something, isn't it? ;-)

I also liked seeing Ph. Yaxley.  I liked her brief appearance in RaM.  I hope she survives and she and MM and AD can share stories over un-doctored tea after it's all over.  Scrimgeour also comes across well and consistent w/  your RaM version of him.  Now we just need Egeria to make an appearance!Your mention of Albus was so smooth and subtle I had to go back and re-read to make sure you really did "out" him unambiguously by name this time. I said above I liked the unity of having his and Severus's survival revealed in the same scene, even though AFAIK there was nothing in the scene in the Shack which required he be Albus rather than Robbie.  Might that handkerchief portkey have been a *tartan* plaid? <g>Anxiously awaiting the next installment....

I'm glad you enjoyed Philomena's appearance. She'll be fine. Curious about what Scrimgeour said about them trying to use her against him, but fine. :-) Egeria . . . hmm . . . Albus said there would be help waiting in the Hog's Head. And the same day that Albus visited Aberforth to ask his help, Melina went and talked to Egeria . . . hmmm . . . wonder what all that might mean! LOL!Next installment just being polished up and such. :-)

Heheheh. He'll just about poop himself, I'm sure!There will definitely be some serious kicking of Death-Eater ass, so you do have something to look forward to.Thank you! I'm glad you enjoyed it -- and the little side journey into the RaM side of things!Thanks for reviewing!

Heheheh. He'll just about poop himself, I'm sure!There will definitely be some serious kicking of Death-Eater ass, so you do have something to look forward to.Thank you! I'm glad you enjoyed it -- and the little side journey into the RaM side of things!Thanks for reviewing!

Thank you! I'm glad you liked it. Of course, there's still the attack on Hogwarts to come. I'll be interested to know what you think of that.

Thank you! I'm glad you liked it. Of course, there's still the attack on Hogwarts to come. I'll be interested to know what you think of that.

He was completely befuddled. He thought he was merely having a far less unpleasant death, poor fellow. I don't imagine that waking up will be any less confusing for him, and the confusion is likely to last for a while, just change.Thank you for your reviews! I appreciate them!

He was completely befuddled. He thought he was merely having a far less unpleasant death, poor fellow. I don't imagine that waking up will be any less confusing for him, and the confusion is likely to last for a while, just change.Thank you for your reviews! I appreciate them!