DISCLAIMER: When I started typing this post, it was only going to be 2 or 3 sentences long, but before I knew it, it had morphed into this monstrously long thing. My apologies for the tl;dr. Proceed at your own risk! ;)
It took me a while to reconcile myself to it, but now I'm not really bothered by the fact that he didn't run over to her right after the battle and snog her, since it wasn't really the right time; not with Voldemort have just been finished off, Fred having died, Ginny comforting/being comforted by her mum, and the fact that Harry still had some unfinished business left with the Elder Wand, explaining things to Ron & Hermione, talking to Dumbledore, etc. As much as I would have loved to have seen the H/G reunion, I understand why JKR didn't have it happen right then, because it wouldn't have been in keeping with the tone of the chapter. As much as I ached for Ginny at that moment, I do understand that it was necessary for her to wait just a little longer. I like to believe, however, that Harry did at least seek her out first thing the next morning and take her off for a nice, long talk (not to mention lots of snogging). ;)
In fanfiction, though, it's different, and I find it less excusable for Harry to continue putting her on hold for weeks (or even months, in some fics) after the Final Battle. Ginny wasn't wrong in Chapter 2 of this fic, when she said that people make time for the things that are really important to them, and so I understand why it hurt her that he seemed to have plenty of time for EVERYONE else in the wizarding world, but he couldn't spare even a few minutes for her (even though I do think she was a bit harsh with him in that scene). In fairness to Harry, it was more a result of thoughtlessness on his part rather than deliberate neglect. He made the mistake of assuming that Ginny knew he loved her; it doesn't seem to have occurred to him how his neglect of Ginny might be perceived by her as lack of interest. I feel badly for them both, but I think I feel a bit more badly for Ginny. At least at this point in the fic.
Good God, I am really long-winded on this topic. serendipity_50 should take that as a high compliment, LOL.
*Good God, I am really long-winded on this topic. serendipity_50 should take that as a high compliment, LOL.*
Oh, I do, I do! LOL!
Keep in mind, though, that Harry was TIRED after the battle. The trio had been going full steam for more than two days straight by the time it was all over. I imagined that when the press descended on Hogwarts the morning after, he didn't have it in him to fight the influences that carried him away from Ginny. It wasn't so much that he was deliberately neglecting her or taking her for granted (though he might have been a little), but I thought his life had probably been taken over by Ministry handlers who left him little time to himself (remember the car scene in chapter 2?). He's a war hero -- the wizarding world thinks they own him...they don't think of him as a person with feelings and needs, but as a symbol of victory.
I don't mean to *totally* defend Harry here. He should've at least sent Ginny a letter through Ron. But I think before he goes for his Auror interview and talks to the Mind Healers, he's physically and emotionally spent -- he thinks he's going off the deep end. If you've never suffered from clinical depression (a symptom of post traumatic stress disorder from which he *has* to be suffering) you can't understand how debilitating it is. Just getting out of bed in the morning is a supreme effort. Fighting the will of the wizarding world would be out of the question.
Okay. I'll stop now. :) Thanks for your interest. Hope the rest of the story meets your expectations. I'm actually working on a fairly major rewrite of the next chapter based on some awesome feedback I just got. I'll try to get it done by Monday so I can keep my promise to post then.
One more long post, and then I'll shut up, I swear...pennylane_4March 22 2008, 21:38:49 UTC
Yay, thanks for the feedback! That's the awesome thing about fanfic, being able to have the author herself respond personally to your comments. :D
Oh, I can completely understand his not being able to talk to her in the days after the battle. And I can only imagine how overwhelming and exhausting the Ministry attention must have been. I actually do have a lot more sympathy for Harry than I've probably made it sound.
The funny thing is that on a logical level, I can completely understand where Harry is coming from, but on an emotional level, I understand Ginny better. It would be easy to call her selfish, but she's waited patiently and uncomplainingly for him for over a year... and now that the war is finally over, she's having to watch him expend time and energy on everyone but her. It may have been a harsh thing for her to say, but I don't think she was wrong when she told Hermione that she, Ginny, is always the one who ends up being put on the backburner in Harry's life (that's even true in canon), and I can understand why that would get to her sometimes. Also, during their entire separation, she's never had a single thing from him, not a note, not a message, nothing, to let her know that he still cared or even that he still thought of her. The reader knows that Harry's silence is because of what he's going through, but does Ginny truly know that (seriously, I'm asking, you're her author, lol)? After all, Ginny is being kept on the outside, looking into Harry's world right now; it doesn't seem that anyone really tells her anything about what's going on with him. From what she can see of Harry's actions, I can understand why she might wrongly conclude that she simply isn't high on his list of priorities. And though I suppose one could argue that Ginny should have taken the initiative, it doesn't sound like she would have been able to get through Fleur or the crush of the Ministry handlers to get to him in the first place.
Okay, I'm really going to shut up now because (1) I'm supposed to meet someone and will be in big trouble if I'm late, and (2) I do NOT want to distract you from your writing! :)
Re: One more long post, and then I'll shut up, I swear...serendipity_50March 22 2008, 21:54:47 UTC
YES! You got Ginny *exactly* as I intended. In the beginning she wouldn't have asked about Harry and as time went on she wouldn't be receptive even if someone (Hermione) did try to tell her.
You're not distracting me at the moment. Titanic on TV is. :D I'll get it done by Monday, I promise.
It took me a while to reconcile myself to it, but now I'm not really bothered by the fact that he didn't run over to her right after the battle and snog her, since it wasn't really the right time; not with Voldemort have just been finished off, Fred having died, Ginny comforting/being comforted by her mum, and the fact that Harry still had some unfinished business left with the Elder Wand, explaining things to Ron & Hermione, talking to Dumbledore, etc. As much as I would have loved to have seen the H/G reunion, I understand why JKR didn't have it happen right then, because it wouldn't have been in keeping with the tone of the chapter. As much as I ached for Ginny at that moment, I do understand that it was necessary for her to wait just a little longer. I like to believe, however, that Harry did at least seek her out first thing the next morning and take her off for a nice, long talk (not to mention lots of snogging). ;)
In fanfiction, though, it's different, and I find it less excusable for Harry to continue putting her on hold for weeks (or even months, in some fics) after the Final Battle. Ginny wasn't wrong in Chapter 2 of this fic, when she said that people make time for the things that are really important to them, and so I understand why it hurt her that he seemed to have plenty of time for EVERYONE else in the wizarding world, but he couldn't spare even a few minutes for her (even though I do think she was a bit harsh with him in that scene). In fairness to Harry, it was more a result of thoughtlessness on his part rather than deliberate neglect. He made the mistake of assuming that Ginny knew he loved her; it doesn't seem to have occurred to him how his neglect of Ginny might be perceived by her as lack of interest. I feel badly for them both, but I think I feel a bit more badly for Ginny. At least at this point in the fic.
Good God, I am really long-winded on this topic. serendipity_50 should take that as a high compliment, LOL.
Reply
Oh, I do, I do! LOL!
Keep in mind, though, that Harry was TIRED after the battle. The trio had been going full steam for more than two days straight by the time it was all over. I imagined that when the press descended on Hogwarts the morning after, he didn't have it in him to fight the influences that carried him away from Ginny. It wasn't so much that he was deliberately neglecting her or taking her for granted (though he might have been a little), but I thought his life had probably been taken over by Ministry handlers who left him little time to himself (remember the car scene in chapter 2?). He's a war hero -- the wizarding world thinks they own him...they don't think of him as a person with feelings and needs, but as a symbol of victory.
I don't mean to *totally* defend Harry here. He should've at least sent Ginny a letter through Ron. But I think before he goes for his Auror interview and talks to the Mind Healers, he's physically and emotionally spent -- he thinks he's going off the deep end. If you've never suffered from clinical depression (a symptom of post traumatic stress disorder from which he *has* to be suffering) you can't understand how debilitating it is. Just getting out of bed in the morning is a supreme effort. Fighting the will of the wizarding world would be out of the question.
Okay. I'll stop now. :) Thanks for your interest. Hope the rest of the story meets your expectations. I'm actually working on a fairly major rewrite of the next chapter based on some awesome feedback I just got. I'll try to get it done by Monday so I can keep my promise to post then.
Reply
Oh, I can completely understand his not being able to talk to her in the days after the battle. And I can only imagine how overwhelming and exhausting the Ministry attention must have been. I actually do have a lot more sympathy for Harry than I've probably made it sound.
The funny thing is that on a logical level, I can completely understand where Harry is coming from, but on an emotional level, I understand Ginny better. It would be easy to call her selfish, but she's waited patiently and uncomplainingly for him for over a year... and now that the war is finally over, she's having to watch him expend time and energy on everyone but her. It may have been a harsh thing for her to say, but I don't think she was wrong when she told Hermione that she, Ginny, is always the one who ends up being put on the backburner in Harry's life (that's even true in canon), and I can understand why that would get to her sometimes. Also, during their entire separation, she's never had a single thing from him, not a note, not a message, nothing, to let her know that he still cared or even that he still thought of her. The reader knows that Harry's silence is because of what he's going through, but does Ginny truly know that (seriously, I'm asking, you're her author, lol)? After all, Ginny is being kept on the outside, looking into Harry's world right now; it doesn't seem that anyone really tells her anything about what's going on with him. From what she can see of Harry's actions, I can understand why she might wrongly conclude that she simply isn't high on his list of priorities. And though I suppose one could argue that Ginny should have taken the initiative, it doesn't sound like she would have been able to get through Fleur or the crush of the Ministry handlers to get to him in the first place.
Okay, I'm really going to shut up now because (1) I'm supposed to meet someone and will be in big trouble if I'm late, and (2) I do NOT want to distract you from your writing! :)
Reply
You're not distracting me at the moment. Titanic on TV is. :D I'll get it done by Monday, I promise.
Reply
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