This was where Harry found himself thoroughly immersed in the Alternate Universe, and got some nasty shocks (and remembered more than a few things that were presented to readers as flashback passages)
A lot of readers commended me for this. I've never understood time-travel stories where fairly massive changes occurred, yet all of the EXACT SAME CHARACTERS had been born as in previous incarnations of the universe. (This was only ONE of my time-travel/AU quibbles with Misfits.) I suppose I've read enough time-travel stories that this seemed like the logical thing to do, in addition to having some of the students Sorted into different houses.
I agree with the readers who commended you. I read a time-travel fic once where Harry, having gone back to his first year, makes it his mission to ensure that Teddy Lupin is born. Before he'd met Remus and Tonks in the original timeline, and before they'd met each other. With all the other changes that he's also making along the way, it's clear that even if they do get together and have a child, that child won't be the Teddy who Harry knows. I've spent far too many hours on Paradox strategy games to be satisfied with points of divergence that don't diverge.
Somehow, I haven't felt compelled to read Teddy Lupin fics. The Potter kids I could see reading about, but Teddy and Victoire and her siblings, not so much. And I really don't understand the basic premise--if Harry is back in his first year, why does he think there's a danger that Teddy won't be born? The first time he was in that year he didn't even know Remus or Tonks.
When I wrote Replay, Harry had to be memory-charmed before time-traveling, so he wouldn't remember the future and therefore wouldn't be tempted to change the past but just let events roll out the way they already had (and part of that involved making sure that a particular child would be conceived). And then another time-traveler in the same story actually did decide to change some other past events, for a very good reason. But I don't understand this other fic at all.
I think the author just wanted to give Harry a motivation that wasn't completely selfish, since the main premise was him taking revenge on people who he felt had wronged him in the other timeline. Which was almost everyone. It still made no sense. And yes, I share your hesitation when it comes to next-gen fics.
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I agree with the readers who commended you. I read a time-travel fic once where Harry, having gone back to his first year, makes it his mission to ensure that Teddy Lupin is born. Before he'd met Remus and Tonks in the original timeline, and before they'd met each other. With all the other changes that he's also making along the way, it's clear that even if they do get together and have a child, that child won't be the Teddy who Harry knows. I've spent far too many hours on Paradox strategy games to be satisfied with points of divergence that don't diverge.
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When I wrote Replay, Harry had to be memory-charmed before time-traveling, so he wouldn't remember the future and therefore wouldn't be tempted to change the past but just let events roll out the way they already had (and part of that involved making sure that a particular child would be conceived). And then another time-traveler in the same story actually did decide to change some other past events, for a very good reason. But I don't understand this other fic at all.
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