By Abraxan
Reviews
Prongs1977 posted a comment on Thursday 3rd July 2008 3:25pm
Great chapter! Can't wait for more! BTW - I'll be ordering Star Sons soon, but pizza delivery only does so much, right?
Abraxan replied:
Glad you liked the chapter! And yeah, pizza delivery doesn't pay all that well, but thanks for wanting to order Star Sons! I hope you enjoy it!
Abraxan
Prongs1977 posted a comment on Thursday 3rd July 2008 3:17pm
I'm not sure if I reviewed this chapter before nor not, but I want to say WOW! I'm not now nor have I ever been a soldier, but I am a firefighter, and I've seen crap that no human should see. I have been slugged by my fire fighter brothers after 10 days of saying absolutely nothing, so I would rant, rave, scream, cry, curse, and so on. I know it may not have been your intention, but your depiction of PTSD is spot on and if it helps someone recognize it in a friend and help them, God bless you for it. I was so close to tears reading this, remembering fallen brothers, victims I couldn't save, and more, but like you said, it's time to forgive yourself and move on. Not forget, never that, but realize that stewing in the memories is not what those gone before you would want. Again, thank you and bravo on a great chapter!
Abraxan replied:
Oh wow. You got me all misty. Thank you so much for your comments, and for your service to your community! My father had PTSD after WWII, so I had some first-hand (second-hand?) knowledge of it and I researched it before writing this fic, as well. I don't honestly see how Harry could go through the war and the childhood he had without getting PTSD and I think JKR shortchanged both Harry and the readers by not dealing with it, which is one of the reasons I wrote "Now and Forever" the way I did. Thanks so much for "getting" what I was doing here!
Abraxan
Deborahsu posted a comment on Thursday 3rd July 2008 11:01am
Now that they're really talking, they're definitely off to a good start on a great marriage!
Abraxan replied:
Yup, they are! Thanks for writing!
Abraxan
DJ posted a comment on Thursday 3rd July 2008 10:49am
grate chapter is this guy Mike going to turn out to not be a Muggle? or just work with an American Wizard Bragade or something? Any way nice work and see ya next time.
Abraxan replied:
He's a Muggle - he's exactly what he says he is, a Navy doc. No wizarding involve with him at all. Glad you liked the chapter!
Abraxan
Carol Layland posted a comment on Thursday 3rd July 2008 7:19am
Aside from the fact that I had a devil of a time getting to the site today, I think the chapter has a very good setup for some comedy in the next chapter. Are you going to allow that hardboiled Navy Doctor to discover Magic or is he maybe a wizard dr in the Navy. Now that would be a turn-around wouldn't? Either way good for a couple of laughs if you play it for comedy.
Abraxan replied:
Sorry you had trouble getting to the site today!! I don't know what's up with it, but I'm sure Tim will have everything running smoothly again soon! Glad you liked the chapter! And what a fun idea you had! Too bad I didn't think of it!!
Thanks for writing!
Abraxan
Wolfric posted a comment on Thursday 3rd July 2008 4:14am
Very nice chapter. Thanks for writing. W.
Abraxan replied:
Thanks!
Abraxan
Wonderbee31 posted a comment on Thursday 3rd July 2008 12:53am
Nice part there, and glad to see Harry and Ginny talking about what happened, instead of the two of them holding it in, as well as to see more of Ginny's inquisitive side come out when they found the plants.
Abraxan replied:
Glad you liked it! Thanks a lot!
Abraxan
kate19 posted a comment on Wednesday 2nd July 2008 10:06pm
good chapter! the story is still going strong. and that's good. bye
Abraxan replied:
Thanks a lot!
Abraxan
hprox92 posted a comment on Wednesday 2nd July 2008 8:33pm
Lol, i loved the comment Harry made about the definition of 'pissed'. :) Over here in Aus, it means both!
Abraxan replied:
An English friend of mine told me that was one of the differences in our language that he found funny, so I used it in the story. Glad you liked it! And I didn't know it meant BOTH in Oz! Thanks for adding to my international education! :D
Abraxan
Patches posted a comment on Wednesday 2nd July 2008 7:52pm
This is really good. Harry and Ginny with the encouragement of their new friend Mike are opening up to each other even more about the things that bother them. It is interesting that they both had trouble with the same memory but for different reasons. Of course they had different views of the whole situation. Harry has always been his own toughest critic and always thought the worst of himself. His friends always saw the best in him when the worst things happened. He saved their lives, healed their injuries and did everything in his power to keep them all as safe as possible. Of course he couldn't save them all when it came to the most horrible battle. It stands to reason that with the great power he has now due to the Refiner's Fire that he is afraid that someday it will go to his head and he will go bad. His friends and family are so important to him and they would never allow him to go that route. I hope someday he will have more confidence in his own sense of right and wrong and relax a little. Talking with Ginny will certainly help them both come to terms with the horrors in their past lives. It would help them both and their friends if they include Ron, Hermione, Remus and Tonks in their talks too. Remus and Tonks have been there for a lot of what happened to Harry and Ginny. They have also fought battles themselves that Harry and Ginny weren't there for. A traumatic event is reduced when shared with those who care and have some understanding of what the other person has gone through. Thanks for writing. I look forward to more of this story and more of the healing of Harry and Ginny as they grow as a couple. pms
Abraxan replied:
I thought it would be useful to the reader to see how Harry and Ginny saw the same event as traumatic, but in different ways. And you hit the nail on the head with Harry's worry that his Refiner's Fire powers might "go to his head" as you said and make him turn to the dark side. That's EXACTLY what he's worried about! Well spotted!!!
If you remember the epilogue from Destiny, you'll know that he and Ginny both get well past these problems and move on to the "happily ever after" they always wanted, which is what I've always wanted for them.
Thanks so much for your very thoughtful review!Abraxan
Evan Mayerle posted a comment on Wednesday 2nd July 2008 5:41pm
*gentle chuckle* Yess, it seems that talking things out has helped both of them. I do like their enjoyment of the gardens. The discussion of language differences does, of course, bring to mind Churchill's line about "two countries, devided by a common language". Mike certainly seems to be a helpful friend and they'll have to do something nice for him.
Abraxan replied:
I'm glad you enjoyed their visit to the garden and the discussion of our "common language"! I have a few English friends who I've had similar discussions with, resulting in some very funny conversations. Thanks for the fun review!
Abraxan
jilumasam posted a comment on Wednesday 2nd July 2008 5:15pm
Progress has been made! Harry has made a start on the long road to healing (emotionally, that is) Yay!!!
Lizzy :)
Abraxan replied:
Yes, progress is being made, YAY! Glad you liked it!
Abraxan
Ray D Elliott posted a comment on Sunday 29th June 2008 12:35pm
this story broght tears to my eyes at the end. keep up the awesome work and i hope more cool stoies in the future, tanx!!
Abraxan replied:
Awwww - that's sweet! Thanks!
Abraxan
Patches posted a comment on Wednesday 25th June 2008 6:18pm
This is really good. What a wonderful but sad at times day. It is great Harry is enjoying driving the great little car. A beautiful winding road is fun to drive in a neat little sports car. The walk to the bridge was good. I loved the "natives" jumping off the bridge even though the park rangers won't let anyone else do it. The ghostly war was sad. I am so glad that Harry found a way to show them they could quit fighting and go on to their loved ones. What a great gift. Then for Harry to have such a bad flashback really put a damper on their day. I'm so glad Ginny found a way to bring him out of it in a positive manner. That was great. For "Uncle Rich" to be there with some really good advice for Harry was great. He really does need to forgive himself for things he had to do and he needs to share his worst memories. A bad memory shared is halved! I love the way you are using this to show reallity in someone's lift who has had a series of horrible experiences. You do suach a good job of it. It makes me think you must have first hand knowledge yourself or know someone who has. Thank for sharing these thoughts. I hope "Harry" takes "Uncle Rich" up on his suggestion to "forgive himself" as well as getting some professional help when they get home. I know the Auror Program professors offered to help him too. Thanks for writing. I am so glad you are adding to your already great story. pms
Abraxan replied:
Thanks so much for the wonderful review! Yes, I do have first-hand knowledge of PTSD - my father had it after WWII. Back then they called it "shell shocked" - my husband had an uncle who wound up in a mental institution for the rest of his life from shell shock. My father rode two B-17's to the ground the hard way (crashing behind enemy lines in one case) and managed to walk away from both crashes and yet had to keep flying. He flew 43 missions, which was a lot back then. When he got home, he had a bad thing about heights - he couldn't drive across a high bridge, for instance, nor go anywhere near a "scenic overlook" in the mountains. He'd stop the car and my mother would drive across the bridge. It took him years and a lot of "nerve pills" to get past it - and he owned a roofing company, so heights were part of his everyday life! He had to go up on the roofs to estimate the jobs. Can you imagine what torture that had to be???? Yikes.
As for Harry - since you've read ToD's epilogues, you know he gets past this stuff. The reason I wrote "Now and Forever" (other than to show Harry and Ginny's wedding) was to deal with Harry's post-war stress and how he managed to work his way into a normal life for the first time ever. I tried to show war as realistically as I could in RF and ToD, and I'm doing the same thing with the aftermath of war. Life goes on for those who survive, but things are different than they were before - and people need to understand that.
I also want people to understand that we're free because of people like Uncle Rich, Mike the Navy doc, and Harry Potter - people who are willing to sacrifice everything to protect the rest of us. If you see a military person, thank them for their service. If you care about them, send them care packages (go to AnySoldier.com or AnyMarine.com or any of the other similar sites where military personnel list their needs and wants while overseas), and contribute funds to the USO, too. We need to thank them every way we can for what they do for us.
Glad you liked the chapter! Thanks for writing - I'll get off my soapbox now! :D
Abraxan
DJ posted a comment on Wednesday 25th June 2008 3:04pm
I'm sure there are families with sons and daughters in Iraq or Afghanistan who have lost more than one child England is the US's ally and has troops in those danger zones right now, and they have casualties just as we do.
Just for the record I do not mean to sound like I am mad or trying to be a jerk but know what it is to have more then one family member in Iraq or Afghanistan at a time and many friends to. Also I know UK forces are up to there necks there to as well as others.
The only reason I asked what I did was because the story is set in the mid 90’s and I was just wondering ware the Muggles thought the UK was that heavily engaged back then. Still Love the Ch and all your stuff I hope I do not sound like I am on my soup box thanks for writing and responding.
Abraxan replied:
This story takes place in 1999, not the mid-90's. There's ALWAYS conflict somewhere in the world, with either our troops and our allies' troops, UN or NATO troops having to deal with it. And if the Americans he met thought Harry was "special ops," they'd know special ops guys do a lot of "secret stuff" so they'd know they couldn't ask him much about what he did. Another thing is that British, American, Israeli and Canadian military personnel (and others of our allies - I'm just giving examples i know of here) often wind up serving with the services of each other's countries. When I worked for the Air Force, we had UK, Israeli and Canadian officers around all the time. Look at NCIS on TV - they have a Mossad agent working with them, which is something that could happen in real life. So there are all kinds of ways for Brits to be involved in military action the general public may not know about - if Harry were in the Muggle military, he might be a specialist in something that got him detailed to help in an American conflict or an Israeli one, who knows?? I didn't want to be specific, so I left it the way I did. Hope that explains it!
Abraxan
Evan Mayerle posted a comment on Wednesday 25th June 2008 1:11pm
Well, the bit with resolving the ghostly battle was a very nice move on their part (as if Harry could do anything else). The second section bodes well to help Harry since he's dealing with someone experienced in dealing with PTSD and knowledgeable in how to help deal with it. It's one of those things where the wizarding world could quite definitely learn something from the non-magical world, though I doubt the arrogance of most of them will allow it. Still, I'm all in favor of Harry getting any help he can in putting his ghosts to rest. Just a thought, does he have enough cachet with the Minister of Magic for said Minister to contact the non-magical government for assitance from within Her Majesty's armed forces?
Abraxan replied:
Interesting question! Yes, Harry has enough cachet with the Minster to do pretty much anything (as you'll see in an upcoming chapter!). But yeah, the arrogance of most wizards will keep them from being interested in stuff Muggles have to offer. I'm glad you enjoyed the resolution of the ghostly battle and Harry's talk with Mike. Thanks for writing!
Abraxan
jilumasam posted a comment on Wednesday 25th June 2008 12:44pm
That was a very interesting chapter...
Lizzy :)
Abraxan replied:
Thanks! Glad you liked it!
Abraxan
Carol Layland posted a comment on Wednesday 25th June 2008 12:33pm
Hi, Another lovely chapter about a honeymoon in Hawaii but Harry in treatment with one of our hard boiled Navy Psychs? That could have some very interesting ramifications and cause some real problems for the magical world now couldn't it. I do love this story. Keep it comming, please.
Abraxan replied:
Navy psychs aren't necessarily hard-boiled. This one was most sympathetic, wasn't he? :) And Harry won't necessarily go into treatment with Mike - Mike just showed him a different way to deal with his PTSD. You'll just have to keep reading to see what happens! I'm glad you're enjoying the story!
Abraxan
Tabi posted a comment on Wednesday 25th June 2008 12:29pm
And Mr. Potter resolves yet another tragedy! He saves again with a fellow veteran! And the honeymoon continues.
Abraxan replied:
:D
Abraxan
Aberbadger posted a comment on Friday 4th July 2008 4:42am
Abraxan replied: