Just read the new chapter.

I think that you've hit the characters personalities just right. Especialy with Molly being the over-protective mother. Nice to see that Harry already knows thathe and Ginny won't be able to last through the war, so it looks like they've broken up.

And i've just noticed something. This is the only way the Trio have broken up without a manipulative!Dumbledore. It seems that they'd be unable to make it through the years and war.

 

Egads the update sucks........



nah. ..not really....love the way Harry handles the order without making it too dramatic.

Also "IN YOUR FACE GINSLUT". That being said I'll edit this later with a more critical view.

 

Good chapter,

Good to get the plot moving, a very cannon-ish attitude Harry.
Reguardless, the soppy H/G scene at the end was needed, as much as I hate to admit it. For the simple purpose of putting that relationship to an end. Looking forward to Ieuru's intro scene, and seeing who you choose to accompany Harry on his trip.

Looking forward to the next chap.

Anyways...

Btw, I just figured out the title meaning as well...

 

That was very good. Everyone is IC in accordance to canon, and you beat down the people that need beating down, i.e. Molly and Ginny. The scene with McGonagall was...intruiging. However, I want Harry to hurry up with his travels! I'm glad that this is going to happen next chapter, maybe we even get a little glimpse into Torres/Ieuru?

No matter what direction this story goes, I'm sure that it will be great...well...maybe not if you go the EFLPREG route, but you get my drift.

And I've got "Sistat Inter" and "pe" but the results I've gotten for "Bitu" and "Marvos" make no sense. Just wanted to show you all how smart I am...

 

Awesome chapter. I loved all the conversations you had, and that you still managed to take out Molly and Ginny, but still keep it canon like for Harry.

Eagerly awaiting the next chapter; I'd love to see whom he is going to first.

I'm pretty sure I have the title right. Won't tell though.

 

Just saw this post, I figured I'd reply since I still disagree.

Errr... Okay. That's almost as bad as "because I said so" when defending something. That means nothing. I'm all for defending what you believe and all that crap, but really... That could mean anything. He's not a normal teenager, so what? Does that mean he can't get angry? I don't understand. Not being a normal teenager has absolutely nothing to do with anything.

*shrugs* He wasn't embarassed about his rant at Number 12. The first time he yelled, he merely calmed down after awhile. He also wasn't embarassed about destroying Dumbledore's office, or if he was it wasn't untill much later, because I certainly don't remember it. Either way, just because he was embarassed sometimes doesn't mean his rants didn't happen. And he certainly wasn't always embarassed about them, meaning when he still felt they deserved it.

Not many, I guess. I don't really remember, but he was very opinionated and stubborn (The whole Malfoy is a DE thing, despite the fact that nobody believed him) so we know he has no problem speaking out about his views, to his friends at least.

....? So that means he can't be angry when his friend scolds him for getting revenge on abusive relatives? I don't understand.

True enough. I still don't see how that helps your arguement though, considering all it proves is that he has no problems yelling/being angry as his friends when they're wrong.


At anyrate, as far as the last chapter goes, I didn't like it. Why? Because it was angsty and sappy, which, sadly is realistic. So, I can't fault you for it, because that's how it probably would have happened, but that still doesn't make me like it any more.

 

There is something I just don't like about stories (including canon) that completely disregard the effects of growing up in an abusive/neglected environment. Harry should have despised Dumbledore as much as he did Voldemort as soon as he found out that Dumbledore placed him there. (And especially so after finding out about Dumbledore's betrayal in OotP over the whole prophecy thing.) Voldemort killed Harry's parents but it was Dumbledore that forced Harry to grow up in, and repeatedly return to, a hateful environment. You tell me how Dumbledore is any better than Voldemort?

And before you claim anything about Dumbledore's "good intentions", I will remind you what the road to Hell is paved with... So, yes, I despise Dumbledore and can't stand that JKR gave him such a hero's death in Harry's eyes in HBP. The old man was given a complete pass for all of his wrongs and mistakes, solely because of his "good intentions". I don't buy it.

 

Quit putting yourself in harry's place,you've said you were in a abusive family so obviously you are predisposed ..........................

WAIT your post's just piss me off quit emoing up this sight with your abuse issues which you've repeatedly stated in 2 others posts.

name 1 family that could have taken him in that would have no underlying reasons
1. purebloods would try to claim him and kill him

2. ministry is corrupt he would end up a poster child for the ministry

3. Weasleys have 7 kids they can't afford another end. of. story.

4. Bones's just lost most of there family I can't imagine them adopting

5 hogwarts proffesors/dumbledore are to busy to take care of a baby

6. orphanage is worse than dursleys period

7. unknown magical family would hero worship him and he'd grow up to be a prick

8. muggle family- no protection whatsoever

who are you left with?

In every way. In a story you always have 2 polar opposites voldemort is evil dumbledore is good deal with it

knock off the abuse, kill dumbledore shit, please

madeyemoody

 

Err... He could have gone to a regular wizarding family? How many students are there at Hogwarts? You're telling me not one of them would have taken him in? No, Dumbledore put Harry at the Dursleys not mainly because of safety, but so he would grow up hardworking, humble, and slightly downtrodden, not because there are no other options.

 

I liked the chapter Cervus did a good job keeping Harry true to his canon self while slowly moving him in a different direction. This is the most realistic post-HBP fics that actually worth reading.

 

1. Not all pureblood families were evil and Voldie supporters. The baby was a hero, I'm sure there were choices available.

2. Agreed.

3. Don't necessarily agree. Harry was wealthy and there was nothing stating that his vault couldn't have been used to help raise him.

4. Disagree. The Bones were a good pureblood family suddenly with no male heir. They would have jumped at the opportunity to adopt Harry.

5. If Harry was so important then he should have been Dumbledore's number one priority as the proclaimed leader of the light.

6. How is an orphanage worse than spending your entire childhood as a slave locked in a cupboard? You obviously need some perspective.

7. An assumption on your part. You have no way of knowing.

8. ANY other loving muggle family would have been preferable to being raised as a house slave. Especially since Voldie was already DEAD as far as the entire world knew and the Death Eaters all went into hiding. The threat was a lot less to Harry w/o the blood protections than with the Dursleys.

Interesting. You actually think it is a "good" thing to do to put a child into an abusive home? (Remember that McGonagall tried to talk Dumbledore out of leaving Hary with them.) And for the record, I said nothing anywhere about killing Dumbledore. Only that he isn't as "good" as everyone so blindly wants to believe. Ever hear the saying "Actions speak louder than words"? Just saying Dumbledore is "good" doesn't make it true when his actions contradict that statement.

 

His actions? Are you fucking serious? Yes, he has made mistakes, but so has Harry. Dumbledore is not some fucking God who has to do everything perfect. He is human believe it or not.

You can't have good actions, or bad actions. You only have action, and your intention. Dumbledore's intentions are good, but that doesn't necessarily mean his actions are.

 

Uhm excuse me, but Harry is how old? Mistakes from a teenager are more so expected than someone who supposedly is as wise and experienced as Dumbledore (150 yrs old, hello?) - especially teenagers who have crucial knowledge intentionally withheld from them. But what Dumbledore did wasn't a mistake, was it? A mistake implies that he would have done things differently. To most sane human beings, a mistake would be hiring a mean hateful person like Snape to teach and terrify small children. But not to Dumbledore. The man is a menace.

Actually I would disagree with Dumbledore being described as human. His callousness was as inhuman as Voldemort. He completely ignored warnings from his own assistant and fellow professor who had OBSERVED the Dursleys ahead of time. There were other options, not the least of which was Dumbledore himself being the Secret Keeper of a Fidelius. He simply chose the easy way (dumping a defenseless child on relatives that didn't want him and hated him) rather than taking any responsibility himself. This doesn't even begin to cover his callous disregard for Harry in other situations either. Need I bring up the repeated raping of Harry's mind by Snape under Dumbledore's orders? Surely he could have found someone who didn't have a personal hatred of Harry in order to teach him occlumency.

Actually, you forgot one other, inaction. Dumbledore made no effort to try and improve Harry's living conditions when he could have. And all the intentions in the world are worthless if you are unwilling to back them up with actions. Besides, if you believe that all that matters are intentions, I will point out that the crusades were started by people with good intentions or what they believed were good intentions. Ditto the Spanish Inquisition and the Salem Witch Trials (and subsequent hangings, burnings, drownings and etc.) were started by people with good intentions or perceived good intentions. Need I continue?

You can't run around wrapping yourself in a mantle of good while you are putting children in a harm's way and brush it all off because you mean well. Every action and inaction has consequences/effects. It is those consequence/effects that are judged good or bad - especially if there is prior knowledge of a situation. It would have been different if it was a tragic accident that wound Harry up with his hateful relatives. But it wasn't. It was a conscious decision by a man who arguably had NO RIGHT to make that decision. (Sirius was Harry's godfather and NOT wanted by the ministry at the time Dumbledore took Harry. A godfather/godmother is the legal guardian of a child in the case of death of the parents.) Even if Dumbledore did have such a right, he KNOWINGLY left Harry in a hateful environment. Not exactly the definition of a mistake but rather a choice - a BAD choice that brought harm to an innocent child. How does that make Dumbledore any better than the man who made Harry an orphan to begin with? They both (Voldie & Dumbles) made choices and took actions they KNEW would bring harm to others. It was only a matter of degrees. Choosing the lesser of two evils doesn't lessen the evil any - especially when there are more than two options.

In all reality, death would have been more merciful.

 

Could we please remember the difference between the canon Dursleys and the fanon Dursleys. In canon, Harry doesn't like the Dursleys, they don't like him, and they favor Dudley outrageously. In fanon, the Dursleys regularly beat Harry to within an inch of his life and/or sexually abuse him and/or engage in ritualistic torture etc.

Also, if we could keep the angst meter turned down to 9, I think the discussion would be more productive.

About the story--I like the first couple chapters, and I appreciate the relatively low key separation of Harry from his friends & Ginny. Although, given the authors other work, I was sad to see a lack of H/M in this piece. It's a tough ship to find, so I was looking forward to an extended work...

Seriously, though, I'm looking forward to updates.

 

Actually, in canon Harry was treated as a house slave, locked in a cupboard, repeatedly reminded how much he was despised/unwanted/inferior and his cousin was allowed to physically assault him w/o restraint. If that isn't abuse then what would you call it? Just because there isn't any mention of Petunia or Vernon specifically striking him doesn't mean he wasn't abused. Abuse comes in many forms - the most damaging actually being mental/emotional scarring.

 

*sigh*

Look, I am a fan of a Fanon! Manipulative Dumbledore because I think that given a particular interpretation of canon it is an interesting plot twist, but you are taking this shit too far and superimposing your own situation onto the Dumbledore/Harry interaction. I dislike Dumbledores character, and I celebrated his death in HBP; however to say that all of his actions in canon were against Harry is a disengenuous falsehood.

I don't know about you, but I expect mistakes from my older relations when it comes to child care than I do from my relatives in their 30's who have toddlers. It's called a generation gap. Or more simply put, Dumbledore is what, 130 years removed from Childhood? That is an awful long time to forget things.

Blood Wards. Being raised by a perfect nuclear family doesn't mean shit if you get dead before you can get educated.

Sigmund Freud would love to meet you... You appear to be living -- breathing -- proof in his theory of Transposition (I think thats the one).

Actually, according to Canon, Occlumency is a fairly rare discipline of Magic. Only in Fanfiction does it seem to be common knowledge for wizards. Also, for using the term mind rape I hereby invoke Godwin's Law. While technically for Nazi Analogies the thesis of the Law is that "Said Person/Word is Evil so if I use it in an argument I win because of the power of the rhetorical device." The term 'mind rape' and all it's derivatives are products of Fanon! and not Canon!

Actually, I am fairly certain that this is incorrect. We know that Dumbledore threatened the Dursley's (or at least Petunia) on at least 3 occasions in canon.

You really need a fucking History lesson son.

*sits you down in a chair*

The Spanish Inquisition was started with anything BUT good intentions. The Religious angle was merely an excuse for the Papacy/Clergy/Church as a whole to rid itself of various undesireable groups. The Crusades were launched because the Roman Catholic Church wanted Christians to control the money made from pilgrimages to the Holy Land. They had also been fighitng the Muslims off and on in Europe for hundreds of years. There were no good intentions within the hierarchy of The Crusades -- European Nobles wanted more land and more fiefdoms. They also needed an excuse to kill someone besides each other. Finally the Crusades were used by the Church to get rid of Barbarossa who had been a thorn in their side for years. They (The Church) knew that if the Army of the Holy Roman Empire was occupied elsewhere it could not invade the Italian Peninsula. Barbarossa drowning and the HRE's Army being decimated on the way to Jerusalem was just an added bonus for the Papacy.

Agreed. However by the same token Dumbledore has made numerous attempts to keep Harry safe in Canon. I see his Canon manipulation extending only to his desire to keep Harry on the Light Side and perhaps prove to himself that Riddle was just a sick sociopath (though this violates Rowlings own writings on choice within the HP series and is the principle thrust of my objection to HBP) rather than someone who because the way he was due to the Orphanage.

Who says he had no right? We have yet to see the Potters will in Canon, most of those who are presumed to be their friends were incapacitated or dead, and for all we know Dumbledore was named the executor of their will. He was after all the leader of a closely knit organization that they belonged to and apparently a fairly good friend.

Actually, he was wanted -- Hagrid just didn't know it yet.

Prove that Dumbledore knew it was hateful. Prove he knew about the abuse, up until the letters. And even still, lets assume he knows all. Abused! Harry is still LIVING! Harry. In the end, that is his first responsibility.

Well thats actually simple -- Dumbledore's choice was an attempt to make the best of a bad situation. Voldemort's choice was a an attempt to kill someone. That makes all the difference in the world, people of good character tend to make choices that they feel will help those affected whereas people with malevolent intentions tend to make choices that they feel will harm those affected.

Your own word says it, Dumbledore Made A Choice -- admittedly a bad one, but still a choice with the best interests of his charge in mind. As I believe this is Rowlings intention for his character -- as much as a like the concept of a Manipulative Dumbledore I find the canon argument for him lacking here.

Look, I am sorry that you were abused/had a shitty life or whatever. But don't let it color your reading of Canon too much. Your last quote implies many options, yet you name none. Your last quote implies that Dumbledore wanted the Potters dead, yet there is no evidence within Canon to imply such an outlandish accusation. Finally it comes back to choice -- Dumbledore probably acted with Harry's survival at heart, Voldemort acted with the intent of murdering him. Neither made a good choice, but I think Harry prefers Dumbledore's to Voldemort's... Just a wild guess as he seems to be quite attached to his life in Canon.

To Summarize: Your abuse does not = Harry's abuse. Your argument is weak. And quite frankly you've made me embarrassed to be a fan of the Manipulative Dumbledore argument. At least throw in something about Harry's treatment in school where you can make a legit case.

EDIT: Lets try and get back on topic, you know, Cervus' AMAZING story. And lets also turn the angst down a little bit.

 

Actually I listed other options in a previous post.

Never said it was. Only pointed out how easy it seems for people to look the other way and pretend something isn't happening. A recurring theme in the HP universe really.

Heh, I guess its just coincidence that Dumbledore hires Death Eaters and people possessed by Voldemort as instructors? I guess its coincidence that the tasks to get the sorceror's stone happened to be tailored to the strengths of Harry, Ron and Hermione - flying/seeking, chess and a logic puzzle? It was a coincidence that the Dementors went after Harry multiple times, even AFTER Dumbledore was warned from the incident on the Hogwart's Express witnessed by a professor? Its a coincidence that Harry's nightmares and scar pains from Voldie get worse during and after Snape's so called training? Hmm... either Dumbledore is not as "good" as some want to believe or he is a senile old fool with no business being in charge of children. His track record isn't exactly stellar.

 

To the Mods/Admins: could we please have this rant-war moved to a seperate thread? Please?

BOT: This is an outstanding story, Cervus, I can't wait for the next chapter.

 

Uh ... right.

A great start, Cervus! There's loads of potential here.

 

Great new chapter. I like it that you let the trio slowly drift apart instead of one big breakup.