I was really excited that you requested a review from me! I've been wanting to read your stories for a long time, but there are so many, and they all look so promising, that I've only just begun Blunderland. :3

Wow, one sentence in and I'm already hooked. Whether done intentionally or not--and I have a sneaking suspicion that it was--I love that you've taken the "love-at-first-sight" cliche and turned it on its head. (You do the same thing in Blunderland so I believe it's true here, too!) The fact that the only reason he even saw her was because her watch glinted, and even then he only saw the back of her head, is brilliant. The mention of her tweed jacket and the musty bookstore is really wonderful and unique imagery.

You tell us so much about Astoria with so little words. The fact that she probably only owns one jacket, that she bought a book solely because of the typeface. Brilliant. The idea of Draco working in a used bookstore is so unique, too, that I had to double-check that he was really the main character in the story description. Really nice.

My only criticism is that Draco seems to go under a strange transformation that isn't really addressed. We see that he's in a repetitive cycle, filled with ennui, but doesn't feel strongly enough about it either way to change anything. So we get the impression that he's become this passive person, willing to give up the mansion and the Ministry job and whatever his father had lined up for him. (Which is not the criticism; I actually love this very unique characterization of him.) But then he suddenly starts forming these opinions about Astoria (like "avoid at all costs," and that her tweed jacket was stupid) that contrast with his indifference to everything else. As I'm writing I'm beginning to think that maybe this was your intention, and if so then I suppose ignore me? It just struck me as a little jarring.

There are also a few punctuation errors, mostly within dialogue, where you write "hi." he said instead of "hi," he said. (A particularly creative example, I know, haha)

Your description of Draco's and Pansy's breath in the air was beautiful, and I loved that he even said "Whatever, Pansy was a better poet." I love their complicated relationship, and that you aren't portraying her as the pug-faced wench that Harry was only capable of seeing. She obviously had some human qualities if somebody could have feelings for her.

This is such an interesting take on the children of Death Eaters, post-war. Your ending was so haunting and desolate. Beautifully written. Adding to my favorites. :)

Author's Response: And I was really excited to /get/ a review from you! hehe.

To tell the truth, I didn't plan this story very thoroughly before writing it. I think I just had this idea of characterising Astoria from the outside in, if you get me - as Draco sees her. It was good fun. Especially seeing how she turns out...

I'm glad you picked up on Draco! He's fiendishly hard to write, so anything you have to say about him in this story would be much appreciated. Yeah, I think you've got an excellent point there - I'll be sure to focus on that when I edit.

(A teeny confession: I do ship Draco/Pansy. Kind of. A little bit. So I could never cast her as that, ahem, 'pug-faced wench', haha!)

Thank you so much for your review! ♥

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Baww, it was a happy ending. I mean, full of crazy drama and lying and deception and Draco almost marrying that Cathy girl, but you know, happy in the very last sentences. I'm glad you decided to satisfy the Drastoria shippers. I mean, who would ship Draco/Cathy really? Draco and Cathy doesn't have near the ring to it that Draco and Astoria does, amirite?

Anyway, this was a fantastic story, Julia! I super loved it. It's made me want to read more Drastoria. I do rather like the two of them together. I shall have to look into this.

Great work, dear!

ERICA.

Author's Response: ERICA, YOU ARE A CHAMP OF THE FIRST WATER. this truly is a lovely set of lovelies to log into HPFF and find.

heee. it wasn't going to be a happy ending but i caved in. drastoria is my otp and i couldn't really leave it hanging. but i'm a fan of the unhappy ending.

drathy vs drastoria.

thank you oroco! your reviews are rarr wonderful~ ♥ ♥ ♥

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OMG JULIA I CANNOT BELIEVE YOU DID THIS.

Actually, I can. Pretty awesome little plot point you got there. I don't mean awesome in a good way. I mean it in like an.. awesome way. It makes sense maybe. Because like, you suck for doing that to Astoria but it's awesome, so. Yeah.

Only one chapter left! I am somewhat nervous. What's going to happen? Happy or sad ending? Scary thoughts, man.

ERICA.

Author's Response: WELL SHAKE IT UP BABY NOW
(SHAKE IT UP BABY)
plot TWIST AND SHOUUUT

yes. it was a bit...well, it's a bit like the plot equivalent of getting run over, right?

scary thoughts indeed. ♥

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I almost skipped to the next chapter without reviewing - shame on me! Shame!

you continue to impress, my dear! You really have a knack for OCs and characterization in general. Plus your dialogue is like, supa fab. Supa supa fab, even. I mean, Draco and Astoria's interactions are pretty flawless. I love them. They flow so well and it's witty and fun but can still be deep and etc. Basically, you are awesome.

ERICA.

Author's Response: shame be upon thouuu

thank you dear! :D eee that's so nice. deep like the marinas trench?

i would say something meaningful but...it's a wednesday.

BOB.

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OH THEY KISSED. THEY DID, THEY DID, THEY DID. Draco was so awks about it, omg. Haha. Astoria is such a champ. I'm a big fan of her. She's so cool. I have like this perfect mental image of that tweed jacket and her big silver watch, etc.

Also. License of obliviate. That is pretty cool, man. Pretty damn cool.

ERICA.

Author's Response: i imagine draco was actually a pretty awks guy. i mean, did you see the hug in DH2?

when you say fan, you do mean oscillating fan right right

she's like james bond. but magicer.

JIM.

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OMG JULIA YOU TORTURE ME WITH THIS. Although, at least with this story I know it's finished, whereas with Blunderland I sadly did /not/ wait until it was completed to read it and am therefore now in the terrible position of having to wait for updates (which you better do soon).

I really love the flow and style of this story. It's very unique and it flows very easily. Like, some stories seem a bit forced, you know? Doesn't mean their bad, but they just don't have much of a flow to them. But this story just sort of effortlessly trails along but it's still all interesting and fab.

ON TO THE NEXT.

ERICA.

Author's Response: well, it's short and sweet, this one. in that i did not have the energy to, you know, invent subplots. heee.

aww thank you oroco! that's so lovely ♥~

MICHAEL.

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I AM SUPER CURIOUS ABOUT ASTORIA NOW I WANT TO KNOW HER LIFE. WHAT DID SHE DO THAT MADE HER FAMILY DISLIKE HER. WHAT DID SHE DO. WHAT.

I'd leave a longer review (lol like a couple sentences longer) but I pretty much have the need to go on to the next chapter right now, soo..

ERICA.

Author's Response: short story: astoria is actually a lizard animagus. long story: she isnt. OR IS SHE. brrrm.

hee. you know i love you, you honorary spoons player of the raverpuffins ♥

ALAN.

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I have heard so much about Memento from the chattering of the puffins, so I figured I simply must read it. Plus, Drastoria. Amirite? I am.

You are such an awesome writer, dear Juliar, it is not even fair. And I'm sorry that all of my reviews are terrible, but I don't have the time/energy to be deep and thoughtful, as those things require both time and energy.

Anyway. This is supa great so far. I mean, it's beginning to be set up. I'm curious about Astoria and her story. There's just a hint about what's gone down in the wizarding world since the war. I mean, it's all very intriguing so far. Can't wait to read more!

ERICA.

Author's Response: areurite? uare!

awww oroco thank you so much~ i would also say something profound, but i am far too preoccupied with photos of andrew garfield for that. srsly his face does something to my knees.

i'm digressing~ but.

TOBY.

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Apparently, I'm stalking you. ( Don't blame me, blame Snitches. )

I don't read much Draco/Astoria, but this - these two you created - I think the only term would be gloriously disfunctional. I'm still contemplating the line between forgetting the past, simply not sharing it, or outright lying. Nice!

All I can say is POOR Scorpius!

Take care!
~Ty

Author's Response: Ah, no worries! It's good to hear from you.

Gloriously dysfunctional - yes, that fits, haha! Draco/Astoria may be my OTP, but I firmly believe that the two of them would be nothing but dysfunctional. After all, what sort of woman would fall for Draco Malfoy? I always think there's so much potential for this ship. Also, yes, poor Scorpius indeed! A bitter father and an amnesiac mother...

Thank you for another lovely review! ♥

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Brilliant, brilliant ending! I must say I was a little anxious before starting this chapter - when you've read and loved a really wonderful story and then the ending is just a bit meh, it's like the world's ended, but this was just perfect. I can't think of a better conclusion to the story. I'm glad you decided against that inconclusive ending though, but at the same time it's great that you didn't have Draco professing his undying love for Astoria and proposing on bended knee or something in some awkwardly cliche scene. That final section was perfect, though. Loved it.

I may have to go and stalk your author page now to catch up on everything I haven't read. I've read about half your stories, I think (and In Dreams and Starving Artists have been on my to-read list forever), but anyway, there's my afternoon sorted! xD To conclude, I've enjoyed this story a ridiculous amount and am insanely jealous of your writing ability. Thanks so much for writing it :D

Author's Response: Argh, I hate it when that happens! Haha, yeah, when writing this ending chapter I was basically sitting with my fingers hovering over the keyboard, thinking 'oh god, what if I write a rubbish ending? What if everyone hates it?' - so I came up with an inconclusive ending in the idea that people could come up with their own version, kind of like a 'choose whether you ship draco/astoria or not' thing, haha. But that was really lame, so I scrapped that. This was written in such a rush though, I tell you. It was probably the only section of the fic I didn't make a note for. I just sat down and wrote it with no idea of where I was going D:
Thank you so much for your reviews on this story -they've been really lovely and put a smile on my face ♥

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Ok. Wow. The obliviating thing? Best. Idea. Ever. So, so genius. Them having the same argument again and again, her justification of "well-I-love-you-so-I-had-to-obliviate-you"... just wow. When Astoria said, "This always ends with shield charms on your part" I got chills, actually. The whole idea of her being able to manipulate him in that way, to be able to have such control over his life, was just so... chilling. Amazing. A really brilliant idea, one I'm pretty sure I've never seen done before either. Must read the next chapter right now! I'm rather sad it's almost over though :(

Author's Response: Yeah, I know. It's the biggest plot twiiist and shouuut I've possibly ever written and I was so terrified of it going wrong, so, wow, I'm really glad you approve, haha! I really wanted to set Astoria up as such a nice and lovely person, and then have her turn out to be mega manipulative and really actually quite horrible - I mean, this is Draco Malfoy she's going out with. She's got to be a tough one. So I suppose the utter reversal here...yes, chilling is kind of what I was going for. I'm really glad you liked it ♥

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Loved the Draco/Blaise banter at the start - 'What, it's all about kneecaps? Come off it, Draco.' The Draco/Astoria interaction was lovely too - the whole thing with the sunflowers was adorable and the tree-climbing wonderfully Astoria-ish.

I'm rather worried about this "Mount Everest of angst and misery". I think this might actually be as far as I read last time around, though I thought I'd read more. Even though I'm a firm believer than Drastoria's should, on the whole, be angsty and dysfunctional (as you said, Draco = tortuous angst. So true, so true), I think I love your Astoria and Draco too much for that! Oh well, I'm sure I'll manage to keep reading somehow x)

Loved it, again! Very, very excited for the next chapter.

Author's Response: Blaisey Blaise. He is rather fun. He's the light comic relief in this melee of angst.

Ah, yes, the mount everest of angst and misery - with the benefit of hindsight, you should be very worried. It doesn't bode well. But that's just true to form - Drastoria should be, as you said, angsty and dysfunctional. He's a tortured soul of epic proportions with some pretty dodgy views.

Glad you liked it! ♥

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Sooo... I read this a while back, reviewed a few chapters, read the rest of the story but completely forgot to review. My bad. So now I'm reading this all again and actually doing the decent thing and reviewing this time x) Hi again!

Anyway, I'm loving this just as much as I did the first time around, possibly more, and I'm really looking forward to seeing how it ends as I didn't get that far last time. Plus, your new banner is TO DIE FOR. Gorgeous, gorgeous, gorgeous. Did you make it yourself?

Sorry, tangent. Anyway, wonderful chapter, absolutely loved it! 'Yeah, we kind of slept together-' - oh, Draco, Draco, Draco. Think before you speak, man. Pansy's reaction was priceless though, I loved reading that whole bit.

Author's Response: Hi again! I love hearing from you every now and again, your reviews are always lovely ♥

Yeah, I did make the new banner. The old one was so lovely, but I'd taken it from the UFG thread at a time when the story was still in the early stages, and it didn't really suit it anymore. I was revamping a few old banners, so decided to make a new one for this too. Glad you like it (:

Oh, draco - bigmouth strikes again.

Thanks very much for the review! Really glad you enjoyed it (:

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I think I've expressed to you how much I adore you -- from the first I read of you (Nocturne) and from what I now obsessively stalk (SA♥). Now I can say with some confidence that I kind of sort of worship you.

I love a good Drastoria (of which there is a definite dearth on the archives) so when I finally noticed you had a completed one, I ran over (well, not ran. I was bored. So I was trudging, I guess. But mentally.) And I read and I read and as it went on I was thinking to myself "Ooh, pretty and downtrodden!" And then chapter six happened. And I felt like I was hit by a car. Just -- I cannot in 12+ terms express how shocked I was. And then this chapter kind of broke my heart and I remember you saying that this slots into the SA canon and suddenly everything makes sense now. I finished reading on my phone, so I reminded myself to review when I got the chance. But then today I was really very bored, and I couldn't stop thinking about this. So I decided to read it again, the entire thing through. And now I can truly say everything makes sense now.

Somehow when I read chapter 6, the bomb Astoria drops didn't really register to me. It was a shock but, since I'm a quick-ish reader, I thought it was out of the blue. It seemed to fit, but only in a vague "ooh look at this plot twist" way. That's really why I read this for a second time: I could tell that this was put together so very carefully, and I wanted to see how the beginning read knowing what would happen. And now I want to congratulate you for writing one of the tightest, most cohesive, gorgeous/heartbreaking fics I've ever read. I don't know if you've noticed by now, but I don't believe in plotting or pacing, and it really comes across in most of my stories, but this is just like. Plot. It all fits in perfectly and it makes me really jealous of how well-thought-out this is. I wish I could pull this off without the reader ever being the wiser, because I certainly wasn't.

I expected that she had been in Azkaban because of the tattoo -- I agree, it wasn't convincing at all -- but the character of Astoria. Just, eek. What a dynamic person. At first I wasn't sure what to think of her because she seemed put-upon quirky, like what fic writers assume "quirky" is and pair that "quirky" girl with Gaspard Ulliel or something and suddenly it's a "non-typical" romance, you know what I mean? Not that Astoria was shallowly drawn at all, even at the first read. But I was wary of her, always. And with the realization that she's been playing him but "out of love" came my own realization that everything makes sense (I'm repetitive today, aren't I?). Astoria seems shallow because she is playing shallow quirky! SO GENIUS I AM GREEN WITH JEALOUSY (but my fingers are blue with cold).

I noticed in your reviews that people are iffy about your Draco characterization, that it's OOC or exaggerated or something. But I think the point of fic many times isn't about staying necessarily super "in-character" as much as creating an environment in which this version of a character can reasonably exist, and I think you did a marvelous job explaining and showing why Draco is the way he is. It never struck me as OOC or weird. I think I've told you this, but I love seeing a well-written Draco, especially when he's a down-on-his-luck-cynical-downtrodden type, which you do so well. I liked him much more on this second read (THE DRAWER WAS OPEN OMG -- I keep having little realizations like this as I let the story mull in my head) because I was more used to him, but both times I couldn't help but want everything to work out well for him, which is a very rare thing for Draco most of the time. I'll be honest, I don't like that he goes back to Astoria. I understand that he does it, and I can't imagine your Draco doing anything else, but I can't help but think what a self-destructive relationship this will inevitably be. I'm not surprised that he would do this to himself (Does he love her? I hope so, but I'm not sure), but it makes my heart ache that he does it anyway. I wish I could save him. And that is a ridiculously hard thing to do in any fic and now I'm really green/blue.

I could say that I have no more words for this review, but that's obviously untrue. I could go on for days shrieking about how much sense everything makes now. I am, in my head, but these review boxes have a habit of cutting me off when I get super duper verbose, so I'll stop here and say I really really really idolize you right now. Thank you for writing this. ♥

Author's Response: Okay, I've had this review sitting in my unanswered reviews box for about a month, totally unwilling to answer it because I just wanted it to stay there forever - honestly, I don't think I've ever received a better review in my entire life - but now I feel I should really bite the bullet and answer it.

Deep (typing) breath.

Drastoria ♥ my otp. For reals. I have absolutely no idea what sort of person Astoria would be to end up marrying a prat like Draco, so I love coming up with endless ways for them to meet, him to change, endless people she can be, etc. This was an absolutely tiny idea that kind of just exploded into something a lot bigger. Honestly, it was only meant to be four or so chapters, and there was no omg!dark past or drama or anything - it was just going to be a mildly angsty story of love, with the whole car accident thing still happening and then the two of them having to start again with Astoria's memory problems. It was always intended to be downtrodden, but my initial Astoria was a very flat character. There really was no substence to her, which is why I changed the plot totally. I think I'm actually lucky to get away with it being a 'coherent' fic - this version of chapter one is still the one that fits the old plot and the old characters. I think I must have changed my mind around the end of chapter two. I'm pretty indecisive.

I was a little apprenhensive about chapter six, I must say. Everything's revealed at once in one big go - thing is, I couldn't think of another way to do it. I considered going back and rewriting it as a retrospective narrative so that Astoria's dark!past would be known from the start and the accident and everything - but, honestly? Effort. Lowe that. This must have been one of the last stories I didn't extensively plot for. I just had a vague sketch in my notebook - everytime I wanted to reference an earlier chapter (e.g the drawer) I had to go back and re-read to find those references. Honestly, I feel this was such a fluke. I was actually dead nervous about posting chapter six - I thought it would go down really badly. So for you to come along and say that it's cohesive and gorgeous, I'm not even kidding, gubby, it means the world to me. This review put a massive smile on my face for about a week, I tell you.

Astoria's character, haha. Yes, she is very flat in those first chapters - more originally because she was. But as I was writing it it did actually make sense to the plot to make her so shallow. I wanted to sort of portray Draco's...confusion, maybe? Yeah, the way he couldn't make sense of her. Like she was quirky and enigmatic, and then normal and enigmatic, and then criminal and still enigmatic - like a chameleon, haha. You know, Memento #2 (this is #5) had her confessing she'd been a prisoner and him basically saying 'alright, yeah, that's cool. Totally fine with that.' then her losing her memory. But after writing that, I realised it was such a naff reaction - he'd be way more shocked. It hurt to split up one of my favourite pairings in the argument - it was actually a bit painful having to write him having a go at her, I loved writing her character so much - but it felt the most right. If that made any sense.

Oh my word, I'm rambling. I really need to get to the point.

I know what you mean about wishing Draco sort of wouldn't get back with Astoria. I can reveal now that, well, it doesn't end happily. Of course not. I don't do happy endings ;D I'm having writing the SA prequel - the only angsty bits in an otherwise humour fic are when Draco and Astoria are around. I can't help it, I love the pairing too much.

All in all, Gubby, I think I'm slightly in love with you. It's not wrong to say that, right? Right? To get such wonderful praise like this from the person who wrote snow red and lovely - snow red AND lovely!!! - ah, it feels awesome. You really cheered me up with this review, and I'm really glad you enjoyed the story ♥

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Hm, this didn't turned out the way I thought. So sad.

Author's Response: I was kind of hoping that it would be a bit of a twist at the end...yes, it was a little...well, a bit of a drain on the emotions to write. So much angst. Thank you very much for reviewing the story - I hope you liked it!

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"Oh, no way, I reckoned you were an elf all these years". Haha, Blaise is funny.

I like Draco and Astorias relationship - at least for now. Seems like the next chapters won't be just as happy as this. I make myself ready to hate Astoria. Lol.

I'm agree with your last line, that Draco is a sad character. Well, I really like him, regardless how he behaves.. gosh.

Author's Response: Ooh, no, I don't want you to hate on Astoria! Ahha, she's my favourite. Yes, the next few chapters are certainly going to be an angstfest. I'm glad you liked Draco; I feel I kind of got his character a bit wrong here. Too angsty :')

thanks for the review!

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So good! Draco/Astoria is interpret in many ways, and yours is very different. And I like it.

Author's Response: Ahha, it's my favourite ship, and I do like to think of alternative plot bunnies for it. I also always see Astoria as a stronger character than Draco, so a lot of the stories kind of end up based on that. Glad you do like it (:

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I like this, it's different. Your characterization pf Draco, Astoria and Draco is really good. You're a good writer!

Author's Response: Thanks! Glad you liked it (:

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Wow
This was amazing. So beautifully written. I love the tone, it's so melancholy and bittersweet and everything that makes me so happy!!! ironically.
Anyway, this is SO angsty though. I get depressed imagining the rest of their lives together. I really hope Astoria's retrograde amnesia (is that what it's called?) goes away after they get married!!

Author's Response: Thanks very much! Yeah, angst is kind of my thing. There's nothing like a good few hours of writing about insanely bitter and miserable characters who equally bitter and miserable lives.
Truthfully, once I'd finished this, I actually slotted it into another universe of fics I have going - starving artists. It doesn't really work because this is angsty and serious, and that's like crackfic with vague plot, but the Draco and Astoria that appear in that are the ones from this story. And, er, I'm sorry, but, if you wanted a happy ending...I failed you there ^^
I'm just not the type to do fluffy/happy stories or anything like a happy ending, ahha!
Thank you very much for reviewing! Really glad you liked it ;D

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this story was so beautifully written, I have to say. I enjoyed how bittersweet it was, and really how you left it so unanswered. there are still spaces to be filled but I think it's perfect that you left it that way. wonderful.

Author's Response: Thanks! I think all of those unanswered questions probably come from the fact that most of the final chapter was written in the wee hours of the morning and entirely written from scratch, whereas the others had had a bit more meticulous planning. Yay for procrastination |: but I'm really glad you liked it and the story as a whole. Thank you very much for reviewing! (:

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Bravo. I loved this story. Like loved it, your writing style is amazing too.

Author's Response: Thank you very much! Frankly, I'm quite glad I've finished it - first story I've ever completed on this archive. Thank you very much for reviewing (:

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Yay some proper Draco/Astoria time! I loved the mix of tones and themes in this chapter - the angsty but not too angsty complaints about the war, and then the romantic-leaning moments in the second half. What I think I enjoyed the most is how realistic it all is - Draco, Pansy etc are all suitably self-pitying and irritated with their lot, but no one is exactly wallowing in the pits of despair, and so actually that makes it much more emotive, because it's so much more natural and believable. I liked the elements of mystery too - a tattoo? Made up of digits and numbers? Sounds slightly suspicious...

I do love love love Astoria, though. She's brilliantly written and feels very well thought-out, like you really know your character. It's all the little things, like simple snippets of dialogue - I especially liked ('A bunch of effing idiots') and ('Can't see the wood for the trees, any of them') - that make her feel very real, very believable. I know I'm getting a bit repetitive here with my 'realistic's and 'believable's, but it's so rare to find a story that feels that way, where everything fits and makes perfect sense, the characters are all so well-rounded, etc etc. And the fact that I'm only three chapters in and I'm saying this just makes things even better :D

Oh, and as a Tweed-girl fan, I loved (and laughed my head off) at this: she cursed and jumped backwards, hand over her Tweed-coated heart. Genius! xD

Author's Response: Good to hear from you again! Ahha, I'm known for overdoing the angst so I tried to make a conscious effort not to overdo the angst on this one. It's still a bit 'woe, woe, and thrice times woe', though. Self-pitying characters really are more fun to write. & ooh! Elements of mystery. Chapter six, I think, is the big 'here's all the information at once, try and digest it' chapter.

Thank you very much! She's good fun to write. I wanted to make this character that Draco thinks is a complete bumbling idiot who dresses like a weirdo but is actually pretty sharp and witty, thinking along his lines and all. It seemed more appropriate when it came to bringing them together in the story, or something like that. Anyway, thank you very much (:

Thanks for another lovely review! :)

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Another fabulous chapter! I must say, I rather love your Draco, and Pansy was, again, fantastic - 'I'm tired and you're being a prat, that's what's going on.' - and the rest of the Slythies were brilliant as well. I loved their interaction and the little bit of banter they had going on: 'Are we insulting Draco now?' Blaise joined in. 'Oh, good, I like doing that.'

I also have a slightly disproportionate amount of love for the nickname 'Tweed girl'. I sort of grin idiotically every time I see it on the screen. It's just such a Draco-ish thing to say/think, and in an odd way it seems to suit your Astoria down to the ground xP Love it! :)

Author's Response: Ahh, it's good you like Draco in this, I think he's a wee bit OOC or something - more like a doormat than anything, really. Pansy's fun to write. She's slightly mean, but in a kind of sensible and forward-thinking way. I see her as the sort of no-nonsense one who picks up the pieces.

Ah, I love the word banter :')

I think that, yeah, with the nickname Tweed Girl I was trying to get across this Draco-ish attitude of not really liking this girl very much and giving her a kind of mocking name, but then actually wanting to find out who she is but not actually remembering her name so keeping this silly nickname thing going. If that makes sense? Ahha. There's supposed to be a theme of memories and forgetting, so all of Draco's forgetfulness is very deliberate.

Thanks very much for the review! Looking forward to hearing what you think of later chapters (:

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I really love this! Drastoria is one of my absolute favourite ships but I really like how this isn't just a story about their relationship, it's also about life for the Slytherins after the war. That was all portrayed very believably and realistically, I thought. I really enjoyed your characterisation of both Draco and Astoria, and Pansy as well, in fact.

Your writing is fantastic, plain and simple. An absolute pleasure to read, and it all feels so natural as well. I absolutely loved this part, and it's a rather eccentrically long quote to put in but I simply had to include it to show you how much I appreciate its genius: 'I work in the Muggle Liason Office (Draco mentally filed her under the 'weird' category in his mind) and even though it’s really interesting, (he filed her under the 'severely deluded' sub-division) all the overtime I do (he now placed her into the 'avoid at all costs' folder) means that I don't get to see people often.'

I loved how some parts of this chapter, like that, were just so funny and brilliant, and then others were full of simply beautiful description, like those opening few paragraphs about the weather. It really shows you can do anything, and do it pretty-darn-fabulously xD Favourited!

Author's Response: Me too! It's my OTP, not going to lie. Half the stuff I write is Drastoria-centric. I love trying to figure out the whole post-Hogwarts Death Eater/general Slytherin thing too; it's another common story idea I use. Anyway, glad you liked it (:

No quote is eccentricly long :') Yes, I was trying to think how I could portray Draco as thinking of her as weird without saying '"She's weird" Draco thought ponderously' or something.

Anyway, thank you very much! Very glad you liked it :)

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GURL TARQUIN IN THE LAST CHAPTER, LAURA MARLING IN THIS ONE?

But oh oh oh the mystery unravels and I love the angst angst angst and the woobie Draco and the PAST OH WHY DOES THE PAST ALWAYS HAVE TO COME UP. IF YOU ONLY UNDERSTOOD, DRACO. I love the moth description btw. I can totally understand because I ... was not kind to moths as a child. Or now.

But dude, that is messed up and awesome and brill all at the same time. Always using memory charms on him? It took me awhile to understand the having-the-same-argument bit. THIS IS SO DYSFUNCTIONAL I DON'T EVEN.

~Will be waiting

Author's Response: I KNOW I KNOW THE CROSS REFERENCES~

I did say this would kind of be a bit of a prequel to sort-of explain why Scorpius turned out to be such a messed up child in Starving Artists. Astoria is merely foreshadowing. SHE'S GOING TO RUN OFF WITH TARQUIN COUGH COUGH er actually no unless anyone's really desperate for that to be part of the plot. DON'T GET ANY IDEAS.

angst...angst...ANGST! I'm such a sucker for it. I like it when characters don't get their way, it gives me time to write chapters in which they wander around on deserted moors banging their heads off trees and wailing at the skies, possibly wearing breeches and sideburns and the like.

If Draco understood then the world would implode. It's like typing Google into Google or doubling the third in a major triad in music. NO NO NO (actually what my last music homework came back covered in, not bitter or anything~)

It was going to be more messed up. But then I thought it was verging on the point on absolutely unlikely anyway so I toned it down. BUT yes it is still pretty unbelievable. 'Wait wot you're a criminal?' *obliviating you because I love you really*. Par.

Dysfunctional. Yes. Only one chapter to go and then I'll FINALLY have completed something that isn't a one-shot (I AM EXCITED~)

yay, thanks for the review! ;D

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