Thank you,

, that was a lovely compliment.  It's weird, but the words sometimes fall together... tintinnabulation and vociferous... they just nestled together in my head when I thought about the chapter, but I do struggle, and there have been some moments of wanting to bang my head against the desk as I deperately try to fit the blasted words in... lol.I'm glad that you're enjoying the story.

Thank you,

, that was a lovely compliment.  It's weird, but the words sometimes fall together... tintinnabulation and vociferous... they just nestled together in my head when I thought about the chapter, but I do struggle, and there have been some moments of wanting to bang my head against the desk as I deperately try to fit the blasted words in... lol.I'm glad that you're enjoying the story.

Not her, but Meadowes.  She has what she wanted: freedom and the knowledge that she needed from his brain.  She doesn't have to stay inside his head, you see, but when she does leave, he'll be thought of as the mad old coot who killed a Healer; even if he screamed out that Bella was free, who would believe him?  Meadowes would be hunted down... she would be 'out of mind and out of sight'.

Not her, but Meadowes.  She has what she wanted: freedom and the knowledge that she needed from his brain.  She doesn't have to stay inside his head, you see, but when she does leave, he'll be thought of as the mad old coot who killed a Healer; even if he screamed out that Bella was free, who would believe him?  Meadowes would be hunted down... she would be 'out of mind and out of sight'.

Thank you for the review.  Of course, now that she knows, or at least feels, that she's not turning to the Dark Side, then she may not need to defend herself as stringently during the task to heal Snape.  She dreaded him uncovering it, as she had known that Harry had worsened after facing Snape through Occlumency lessons.  But thanks to Lucius, she's on the mend.

Thank you for the review.  Of course, now that she knows, or at least feels, that she's not turning to the Dark Side, then she may not need to defend herself as stringently during the task to heal Snape.  She dreaded him uncovering it, as she had known that Harry had worsened after facing Snape through Occlumency lessons.  But thanks to Lucius, she's on the mend.

Thank you for the review.  I'm so glad that you liked it.  It was a tough chapter to write, and not through content, as such; I guess that it was such a shift from thinking from Bella's POV for so long.  Actually most of the words did settle in without any fuss at all, but kitsch!  Oh, that word gave me some grief!Thank you for the review and for reading the story :)

Thank you for the review.  I'm so glad that you liked it.  It was a tough chapter to write, and not through content, as such; I guess that it was such a shift from thinking from Bella's POV for so long.  Actually most of the words did settle in without any fuss at all, but kitsch!  Oh, that word gave me some grief!Thank you for the review and for reading the story :)

Wow!  Thank you.  This chapter was the most awkward to write, and I felt that it was very weak, so your review has really made my day.  Thank you.  I must say that it made a nice change from writing about Bella--she was creeping me out a little.  Thank you for your support throughout this drabble series: most appreciated :) 

Weak? No, not at all! This chapter had its own kind of darkness. Imagine not knowing whether you are capable of evil. I really feel for Hermione.And btw, your Bella was creeping me out a little too. But I like that feeling ;-)

Thank you for the reply,

.You can have a break from Bella for the moment; it is now time to work on curing Snape... but she'll be lurking, like that spider that you knew was in the bathroom, but now can't see :D

Wow!  Thank you.  This chapter was the most awkward to write, and I felt that it was very weak, so your review has really made my day.  Thank you.  I must say that it made a nice change from writing about Bella--she was creeping me out a little.  Thank you for your support throughout this drabble series: most appreciated :) 

Weak? No, not at all! This chapter had its own kind of darkness. Imagine not knowing whether you are capable of evil. I really feel for Hermione.And btw, your Bella was creeping me out a little too. But I like that feeling ;-)

Thank you for the reply,

.You can have a break from Bella for the moment; it is now time to work on curing Snape... but she'll be lurking, like that spider that you knew was in the bathroom, but now can't see :D

Fallen!  Cripes... it is, isn't it?  That's the one with Denzel Washington, yes?  There are some differences to that film, though.  Here, she is not quite limited to the length of a breath, and the proposed strategy for killing her will not work with Bella.However, you have raised a good and terrifyng point... I have no idea HOW to kill her off!  *goes off to ponder logistics* 

Fallen!  Cripes... it is, isn't it?  That's the one with Denzel Washington, yes?  There are some differences to that film, though.  Here, she is not quite limited to the length of a breath, and the proposed strategy for killing her will not work with Bella.However, you have raised a good and terrifyng point... I have no idea HOW to kill her off!  *goes off to ponder logistics* 

Thank you,

.  Yep... she's now a free-range baddie and with access to everything that Meadowes knows... wonder what she'll do with that, eh? :D  Bella's body died when Molly hit her with the Killing Curse--she's something completely different now.

Thank you,

.  Yep... she's now a free-range baddie and with access to everything that Meadowes knows... wonder what she'll do with that, eh? :D  Bella's body died when Molly hit her with the Killing Curse--she's something completely different now.

Thank you,

.  That's an amazing compliment, thank you.

Thank you,

.  That's an amazing compliment, thank you.

Thank you,

.Bella knew that she was tied to her decayed body in some way (she could only occupy a host and walk so far away from her body in the cell), and she wondered if she was tied to it as a whole, or if she could take pieces and be tied to many pieces.  Her plan was to take pieces of herself (fingers) and deposit them somewhere safe so that she had several 'harbours' to which she could return after leaving a host... Bit like a vampire having several coffins dotted around so they have convenient safe places in case of emergencies.  If she was right, then she could also travel wherever she wanted so long as she carried a piece of her body with her... like a Boggart being able to carry the closet/wardrobe he was in... no longer tied to a geographical location, but tied to what he could carry.I hope that helps.

Yes immensely. Thanks

Thank you,

.Bella knew that she was tied to her decayed body in some way (she could only occupy a host and walk so far away from her body in the cell), and she wondered if she was tied to it as a whole, or if she could take pieces and be tied to many pieces.  Her plan was to take pieces of herself (fingers) and deposit them somewhere safe so that she had several 'harbours' to which she could return after leaving a host... Bit like a vampire having several coffins dotted around so they have convenient safe places in case of emergencies.  If she was right, then she could also travel wherever she wanted so long as she carried a piece of her body with her... like a Boggart being able to carry the closet/wardrobe he was in... no longer tied to a geographical location, but tied to what he could carry.I hope that helps.

Yes immensely. Thanks

Thank you for the review.Got to be less than 1,000 words, I'm afraid, and it is a weekly challenge; although, given my diary for the next eight months, it may be that the story becomes more lumped together as I won't get the chance to post once a week.I'm glad that you're enjoying the story--I am too.

My mistake. I didn't realise that the word count was so limited. That does make things difficult.

Thank you for the review.Got to be less than 1,000 words, I'm afraid, and it is a weekly challenge; although, given my diary for the next eight months, it may be that the story becomes more lumped together as I won't get the chance to post once a week.I'm glad that you're enjoying the story--I am too.

My mistake. I didn't realise that the word count was so limited. That does make things difficult.

Thank you for the review,

.  Bella killed the Healer for three reasons: the Healer may have recovered and told someone about his 'possession'; Bella wanted everyone to think that Meadowes had gone crazy so that he would spend the rest of his life as a hunted man/prisoner of Azkaban (she'd have found that to be a fitting punishment for him); and, following on from that, because she wanted Meadowes never to be believed about what she could do.  Meadowes would suffer for the rest of his life.

Thank you for the review,

.  Bella killed the Healer for three reasons: the Healer may have recovered and told someone about his 'possession'; Bella wanted everyone to think that Meadowes had gone crazy so that he would spend the rest of his life as a hunted man/prisoner of Azkaban (she'd have found that to be a fitting punishment for him); and, following on from that, because she wanted Meadowes never to be believed about what she could do.  Meadowes would suffer for the rest of his life.

Thank you for the review,

; your support through this has been amazing, and I thank you for it. 

Thank you for the review,

; your support through this has been amazing, and I thank you for it. 

Yep... she's still creepy and at large.I still think that Lucius was a good father (even in canon) and husband; he was still arrogant and proud, and I doubt that he'd quite ever drop the idea that Purebloods are the one and only type of true wizard, but in my little universe, he just wants to live with his family and create a a lovely haven in a world that hates them.Thank you so much for the welcome back :)  Thank you for staying with it.

Sorry!  I forgot to mention it earlier, but 'pie crust promise' is a term for those promises that people make with no intention of keeping or are easily broken because they either can't be kept or just are impossible to keep--just as a pastry pie crust is easily broken.  Sorry about that; perhaps it's a term that's just used round here. 

Thanks

:)Are you thanking me for it being sad and scary?  :DThank you for looking the story up after all this time.

Once they find the place, then they can brew--two weeks of cauldron stirring and then on to curing Snape--who is in Sub Rosa!  Hmmm... that would cause a few raised eyebrows!  Guess that they'll have to get around that obstacle too... :DThanks for staying with the story... I'm so glad *is really happy*Bella is nasty, and she has a very warped idea about the ends justifying the means.

Thanks for that :)I was enjoying the challenge too, but it couldn't go on indefinitely, and in a way, I'm glad that I can now write longer chapters and get this finished all the quicker.Thanks for the compliment about the story being worth finishing.Thanks for staying with it and the review. 

Yes!  Long chapters!  I'm much happier now.Hopefully, the whole thing will come out quicker, and I can be less vague... sometimes, I had to forsake clarity to keep under the word limit, and that caused a few hiccups.  But!  Lovely, long chapters abound!Next chapter will be up as soon as real life is beaten into submission. Thank you for staying with the story, especially after such a long gap--thank you! 

Back from the deepest depths!  Yeah, she came with me... wanted to come out and play.You may get carried away... lolIn a way, I'm quite sad that the thing is over, but I didn't love it enough to carry it on without it being completely necessary.  I'm very glad that you liked the chapter; it puts me poor mind to rest, it does :DI shall upload as soon as... I've been promising people for ages that this was nearly finished.  *looks sheepish*

Thanks for the review.I'll tell you now.Hardwicke is just trying to expand upon what Slughorn said to Draco at the start of the school term.  Draco spent four months in Azkaban, and I personally feel that the four months should have been enough of a punishment; the subsequent humiliation of being wandless and having that knowledge drummed in at the start and the end of every lesson is a terrible thing.  He is also at the mercy of every student with a grudge as he can't protect himself outside of class because he has no wand.He was seventeen, terrified and trapped.  He knew the lengths that Voldemort would go to ensure the obedience and loyalty of his followers (Narcissa's forced termination--no Dark Lord on the cusp of victory would tolerate his followers being otherwise occupied).  As far as I'm concerned, Draco has done his time.  Hardwicke is telling him that he has a right to move on and do what he feels right, rather than suffer what someone else deems right.I know that this story has been going on for a while and that there are several strands, and I know that it's stretching your patience, but each convoluted turn leads to something... (lol... the end!)  Severus is the key to it, you see.And you're going to want to slap me when you read the next chapter because there's another element, although in my defence, I have hinted at it :DWould it help if I ditched the drabble challenge and just wrote it all down?I really am so very happy and honoured that you're still with me after all these weeks.    

Thank you so much for your kind response. That helps greatly (English is not my native language and sometimes I'm lost). I hope you will continue with the challenge becuse it's an occasion to lear new words in a pleasant way. And last there is no problem siticking with a GOOD story even when there is a bit of time between updates (plus, one week is not that much). Keep up youvery good work.

I love this challenge.  It is extending my vocabulary and giving me something to focus on; the fact that people are enjoying this with me is just fantastic.  I can only speak English (studied French and German at school, but that was so long ago, and oddly, highlighted that I knew so very little about my own language), so the concept of delving into another language is very daunting to me.  So, in short, I'm so thrilled that you're still here, on chapter 12, and even more humbled.  Thank you. 

Thanks for the review.I'll tell you now.Hardwicke is just trying to expand upon what Slughorn said to Draco at the start of the school term.  Draco spent four months in Azkaban, and I personally feel that the four months should have been enough of a punishment; the subsequent humiliation of being wandless and having that knowledge drummed in at the start and the end of every lesson is a terrible thing.  He is also at the mercy of every student with a grudge as he can't protect himself outside of class because he has no wand.He was seventeen, terrified and trapped.  He knew the lengths that Voldemort would go to ensure the obedience and loyalty of his followers (Narcissa's forced termination--no Dark Lord on the cusp of victory would tolerate his followers being otherwise occupied).  As far as I'm concerned, Draco has done his time.  Hardwicke is telling him that he has a right to move on and do what he feels right, rather than suffer what someone else deems right.I know that this story has been going on for a while and that there are several strands, and I know that it's stretching your patience, but each convoluted turn leads to something... (lol... the end!)  Severus is the key to it, you see.And you're going to want to slap me when you read the next chapter because there's another element, although in my defence, I have hinted at it :DWould it help if I ditched the drabble challenge and just wrote it all down?I really am so very happy and honoured that you're still with me after all these weeks.    

Thank you so much for your kind response. That helps greatly (English is not my native language and sometimes I'm lost). I hope you will continue with the challenge becuse it's an occasion to lear new words in a pleasant way. And last there is no problem siticking with a GOOD story even when there is a bit of time between updates (plus, one week is not that much). Keep up youvery good work.

I love this challenge.  It is extending my vocabulary and giving me something to focus on; the fact that people are enjoying this with me is just fantastic.  I can only speak English (studied French and German at school, but that was so long ago, and oddly, highlighted that I knew so very little about my own language), so the concept of delving into another language is very daunting to me.  So, in short, I'm so thrilled that you're still here, on chapter 12, and even more humbled.  Thank you. 

Thank you for the review.  He gets some help in the next chapter which is now in the queue.Yeah... poor Draco :( 

Thank you for the review.  He gets some help in the next chapter which is now in the queue.Yeah... poor Draco :( 

Thank you for the review.Hopefully, it will come together in the closing chapters :)Thanks for reading :)

Thank you for the review.Hopefully, it will come together in the closing chapters :)Thanks for reading :)

Thank you for the review and the stars.There are quite a few going on, but they all sort of converge...Thank you so much for staying with these drabbles.

Thank you for the review and the stars.There are quite a few going on, but they all sort of converge...Thank you so much for staying with these drabbles.

Thank you for the review :D

Thank you for the stars and the review.  Just a few more things to mention, and then you'll see, and I am frantically hoping that it'll be worth the wait.Thank you for your reviews and comments throughout this story :)

Thank you for the stars and the review.  Just a few more things to mention, and then you'll see, and I am frantically hoping that it'll be worth the wait.Thank you for your reviews and comments throughout this story :)

Thank you or the review.I'm confused... are you telling me off for confusing the wrapping for content?  Hmmm... or... hopefully, just hinting that I should get a bloody move on! :DI have two major things to put into the story before I feel that I can start shoving the wrapping in the bin. One is why Draco is in the story, and the second is why Hermione needs to heal Snape.  Once they're all settled, then I can rip furiously at the remaining coloured paper and let everyone see the (hopefully) nice gift.Thank you for staying with the story and the wonderful comments (I see that you were able to fend off the killer ducks :) )

Thank you or the review.I'm confused... are you telling me off for confusing the wrapping for content?  Hmmm... or... hopefully, just hinting that I should get a bloody move on! :DI have two major things to put into the story before I feel that I can start shoving the wrapping in the bin. One is why Draco is in the story, and the second is why Hermione needs to heal Snape.  Once they're all settled, then I can rip furiously at the remaining coloured paper and let everyone see the (hopefully) nice gift.Thank you for staying with the story and the wonderful comments (I see that you were able to fend off the killer ducks :) )