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• A Shockng Discovery

  (#) Great_Writer_Sarah 2007-03-15

  Yours is the first Harry Potter story to ever make me cry, and for good reason. From the very beginning with the 911 call to the end, you had me hooked, sobbing all the way. It's such a disturbing possibility - that the Dursleys could have abused Harry to the point of death - and is 100% plausible given who the Dursleys are. This one's for you - you deserve it. Keep on writing those tragically beautiful fics.

  Author's response

  I thank you so much for your kind words. I grew up abused, and having been a police officer, I have seen far too many children die from such abuse. I know exactly how lucky I was. Most 'Abused Harry' stories begin with such brutality and yet, have him miraculously rescued, or in a few, rescue himself. In the end he forgives everybody who has hurt him, and the world is happy once more. It usually doesn't work that way, and so I wrote a more realistic ending. Fear not, good reader, I have had such positive response from this story, I have promised to do a follow-up, detailing the effects of little Harry's death, on those who condemned him. Alorkin

• A Shockng Discovery

  (#) lordblack 2007-05-11

  Very well done, it so could have happend, and you really described it well, good job!

  Author's response

  Thank you so much. It frequently happens in just this manner (former police officer, here.) and I was aiming for emotional impact. Alorkin

• A Shockng Discovery

  (#) subbia1988 2007-11-22

  Am sorry to hear that u were abused.. It really brought tears to my eyes.. No child shud be exposed to these kind of things..

  Author's response

  I cannot change the past, but I can affect the future. I have been raisinng my daughter since her mother died, and I prommise both her and myself that she never need fear me as I did my father. if I can accomplish that, I'll have done my job.
  
  Your thoughts are very warmly welcomed. Alorkin

• A Shockng Discovery

  (#) FenrisWolf 2007-11-25

  I agree with the reviewers who feel that the end is too abrupt, and that the reader really needs to see both the Dursleys and Dumbledore pay for their crimes. One of the things I found most infuriating about the conclusion of the series was that not only was Dumbledore completely aware of Harry's upbringing and the effect it would have on him, Harry was so conditioned by it that he actually felt grateful for it, enough so that he named one of his sons after two of his abusers. I'm going to read your follow-up to this, but you really should revisit the original.
  
  A version where the Dursleys go on the run and Remus catches up with them wouldn't be bad either. A scene where he confronts them in their remote hideout, where he tells them what scum they were, how they weren't fit to be called human beings, and then when Vernon tries to bluster Remus says, "I'm not going to turn you in to the police, nor am I going to contact Dumbldore. I am simply going to wait here with you until the moon rises tonight."

  Author's response

  Fenriswolf,
  
  I agree. I ended 'Discovery' like that because that's where most cases of severe abuse do end. On the request of almost all my reviewers, I wrote a sequel called 'Discovery: revisited'. It goes into the aftereffects of Harry's death on all those who either had something to do with it or those who were involved in his life. (I also included some who met him at Hogwarts.) Unfortunately, as I wrote one character, another would pop up and I had to put a few words down on them, so it's a bit wordy.
  
  JKR really didn't do her homework when writing SS/PS. Or maybe she did. I've seen cases where the abused child is absolutely convinced, usually by the abuser, that he or she is wholly responsible for his/her abuse. This kind of conditioned response is the most difficult part of treating these kids who do manage to survive. I still think someone ought to slap her, though.
  
  I like your idea for Remus. I'm not sure I could do it justice, though. I usually write him as a tragic soul trying to survive, or a warrior in the heat of battle. His line: "I am simply going to wait here wit you until the moon rises tonight, would instill fear into almost anybody. (On the other hand, Vernon ain't the sharpest tack in the box.)
  
  Thanks for the kind review. Alorkin

• A Shockng Discovery

  (#) Voldemert 2007-11-28

  brilliantly written - i also appreciate how you managed to convey what happened without going into overly horrifying detail.
  
  i find fics that go into a lot of detail about injuries a little too much for me.

  Author's response

  Thanks for your kind words.
  
  Yeah, I didn't go into more detail here than was necessary for the plotline. there are times when I will, but it's art of the story. Violence without plot is like smut without plot...worthless.
  
  There is a sequel to this fic. It's rather lengthy but it cleans up the loose threads I left here. You might want to have a look.
  
  Alorkin

• A Shockng Discovery

  (#) Greensl33ves 2007-12-03

  Beautiful. I wonder if something like this ever came close to happening in Harry's childhood?

  Author's response

  Actually, I think it did. There are references in canon as to 'Harry Hunting', which involved beating him bloody when they caught him. In PS/SS, Vernon said: "...nothing a good beating wouldn't fix!" Implying he's tried. Petunia has struck him with a (presumably hot)frypan at least once. and tey kept a chhild locked in a boot cupboard unnder the stairs!
  
  Since JKR has so downplayed the abuse Harry received at the Dursley house, it's hard to tell but those examples are in the books. Alorkin

• A Shockng Discovery

  (#) dexterz 2007-12-19

  stuff tears are made of....excellent penman ship ....i've got a good idea to tell dumble as to where to put his elder wand[think of some place where the sun don't shine]....if this is what happens to people who dumbles cares for then i hate to see what happens to those he hates....keep writing

  Author's response

  At the request of nearly everybody who read 'Discovery' I have written a sequel called 'Discover: Revisited, (the butterfly effect)' in which the people involved get what's coming to them. The words I had Minerva and Arabella hand Dumbledore are all carefully chosen for their effect.
  
  It deals with many people involved in Harry's life and a few others, and so it's rather long. Please let me know what You think of it.
  
  Alorkin

• A Shockng Discovery

  (#) Kalen_Darkmoon 2008-09-23

  What a terribly sad story but I agree fully with your A/N.
  
  It's one reason why I like some HP stories where Harry goes dark or just outright refuses to save the world. It was very clear in canon that Dumbledore FULLY INTENDED for Harry to suffer the Dursley's abuse and there is NO doubt it was both physical and mental by the quotes from the books.
  
  I feel that there HAS to be consequences for the world if they stand by and allow such cruelties to be inflicted upon a hero. If that is how little they truly care for those they hold in highest esteem, then perhaps they deserve to die.

• A Shockng Discovery

  (#) Kalen_Darkmoon 2008-09-23

  Oh and I don't mean just because he was a hero either. That last paragraph should have read:
  
  I feel that there HAS to be consequences for the world if they stand by and allow such cruelties to be inflicted upon an innocent child much less one who is also a hero that saved them all. If that is how little they truly care for those they hold in highest esteem/importance, then perhaps they deserve to die.

  Author's response

  I agree with both your assessments. I fully believe Harry was supposed to die, taking Voldy along with him. Dumbledore is, in my opinion, the evilest villian in fiction. He has knowingly placed a baby into the hands of child abusers, and done nothing to correct it in the ten years Harry must endure, is far worse that merely criminal. His own statement at the end of Book five, condemns him. "Harry, when you arrived here five years ago, alive and whole as I had planned and intended...well not entirely whole. I knew you had suffered. I knew when I placed you on your aunt's doorstep, that you would have ten dark and difficult years ahead of you..."
  
  That Harry dies before he can properly sacrifice him is probably his worst nightmare. Now he would have to try to recruit Augusta.
  
  I also agree with your statement at the end. The Wizarding world deserves to fall. They have earned their deaths many times over.
  Alorkin

• A Shockng Discovery

  (#) torgrim 2009-09-11

  I have read this one before and for a second reading it was just as good. The story makes quite an impact on me, and is the only one with abusive Dursleys I can remember thinking well of. Honestly I never liked the way JKR glossed over child abuse, even though I understand she was just going with an well used formula.
  Great story, very moving.
  Torg.

  Author's response

  hello Torg.
  
  I absolutely hated the way she marginalized the abuse...you've read why in my notes. Formulaic or not, the abuse is plain for anyone to see in canon. What really inspired that story was the ones that had Harry barely surviving and then getting up and forgiving everybody for the pain they caused him. It don't happen that way.
  
  Being as it was, it was one f the most difficult pieces I have ever written, though it's sequel was a close second.
  
  I'm glad you enjoyed the story.
  
  Alorkin

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