I like this story, but how would a rat have gotten in and out of the portrait hole? The pink lady would hardly have openend the door for a rat, surely? And how would he have got up the step (the books say you had to "climb" in and out)?
Aida,
This is beautiful! Of all the post-Lily/James death fics I’ve read, this one is definitely the best. You have approached it in a completely different way than most people do, and everything together just felt so right.
I loved how you characterised Peter, a character who suffers from many clichés. I felt like I totally connected with him. He isn’t a whiney, bed-wetting character, but rather, he is a character who truly loves his friends, but who likes his alone time, which I totally get. I love how he gets nervous for the Bloody Baron, yet totally faces his fears, proving the Sorting Hat to be right. And for the first time ever, I totally understand how Peter could turn to the Dark Lord – he simply does not want to die. He has nothing to fight for, and he is too young to give his life for something not immediately effecting him. This was just so believable and so easy to understand, something that I think is hard when writing Peter.
I loved how everything fit together in this story. While the story is clearly divided into four distinct parts, the four parts flow cohesively and are necessary to each other. Everything fits together and everything makes sense. Each part links into the next, which links into the next. I totally bought it, and I think it really helped show consistency between Peter’s character. He has a favourite place, and key moments that have brought him to where he is, and it is beautifully done.
I loved the use of the Bloody Baron. What a very creative idea! It really is who Peter is. He suffers so much for what he has done, and it will always remind him of that moment, a moment where he was scared but faced his fears anyway, a moment where he3 had the best friends in the world. I love how he turns to him form in these times. I love the picture you gave us – Peter staying as a rat, because everything was just so much less complicated that way.
Amazing story, Aida! It really made me think about Peter as a character, and it is truly the best look at the aftermath of James and Lily’s death that I,ve read, even though it occurs nine years later.
Maple.
