FicWad

"I think you'll find you weren't totally surprised, since you know my other stories so well."

Heh. Yes, I was thinking/hoping that Hermione would pop up as Harry's true partner, but I was wondering how you would do it. I guess the trick is in realising that no-one is called "Mrs. Potter" or "Mrs. Weasley" in the epilogue, as far as I can recall?

I was so bloody angry at the Harry Potter that I read of in DH in the chapters where it was just him and Hermione, during Ron's betrayal. He never comforted Hermione, the best friend who stayed by him, as she wept in (SILLY GIRL!) misery night after night. I've come to realise that the characters in canon aren't as good/noble/'real' as I'd prefer them to be, or how I've read them in some superior fanfics.

So I'm glad that your Harry comforted Hermione. I'm not reading anything sexual in that; just simple comfort and solace is good enough for me. I'm also very pleased that he acknowledged Hermione's help and thanked her for it; something else missing in canon, and that I first really became aware of after reading an early chapter of your "Dumbledore's Army" (one of my favourite parts, where he thanks Hermione).

I think you might be overdoing the anti-Ron thing; 'the Great Prat'? Harry and Ron were still best mates as of the end of the book proper, and that's pretty negative language for his distaff's best friend's boyfriend! You haven't explained that really; unless Harry is now taking the time to go over what happened over the year and is getting angry again over Ron's abandoning them.

The bonding was a big surprise, of course, and a bit far-out, but if it gives us a H/Hr[/???] slant on the epilogue ... :-)

But why was Ginny allowed to remember the ceremony? I don't understand that 'flaw'. Why didn't Dumbledore wipe her memory too?

Liked Molly's reasoning that Hermione can be Harry's, via indirection. Nice!

"winning the wand directly" ... hmmmm. Harry won mastery of the Elder Wand merely by claiming Draco's other wand. It would be so easy for any wizard to waltz up to Harry, take him unawares and overpower him in some manner.

We need Hermione to craft a 'single-master' spell, or a 'protect the master' spell with the Elder Wand, something that only it can do, that no other wand could defeat. But that would be too much a 'super Harry' tale, I guess.

(I'm thinking along the lines of Green Lantern instructing his ring not to leave his finger, the first thing I'd do if I had a power ring!)

Loved the 'proper goodbye' that Luna gave her mother. That was just NICE, so glad you put that in, Luna's mother being a significant part of her characterisation.

Should have said in my review of chapter 1 - good to hear from you post-DH!!