Rising Above the Odds - a gift for alexajohnson

[kalina_blue]

Disclaimer: Harry Potter belongs to JK Rowling and Warner Bros. All fics posted at this community were written entirely for fun, not for profit, and no copyright infringement is intended.

Title: Rising Above the Odds
Author: midnight_birth
Gift for: alexajohnson
Rating: PG-13
Word Count: ~5,450
Pairing: Draco/Hermione
Warnings: Some pretty heavy angst, very brief mention

Comments

[gryff_slytherin]

Ooh, I like how you wrote the ending: We don't tell our story often. It's been written, re-written, and completely twisted by most newspapers and even a few books, but I wanted you to know the unedited truth of it. A story within a story, and it fits so well into the first person perspective.

Their gradual interaction, and just the small things was believable and touching. Especially the scene where she returned his wand to him. Well done and so lovely! =D

[midnight_birth]

Thanks so much! :)

[silvia_elisa]

*sniffs* Beautiful! The gradual happening of everything in Draco's life, so painfully slow as rehabilitation most definitely is, and the begrudging feelings they held for each other... every single sentence in this fic has made an impression on me. I could empathise with Draco and I think both he and I were wearing a small content smile by the end.

Very insightful.

[midnight_birth]

Thanks so much; glad you liked! :)

[alexajohnson]

it's really inexcusable that it's taken me so long to review--please forgive me! i've hardly had any time for reading lately... rl can really suck sometimes!

but this was absolutely GORGEOUS. i was initially skeptical of the first person (i find draco's voice to be especially hard to capture in first person, especially after a failed attempt of my own in which i ultimately returned to third person limited) but you've done a beautiful job here. i adored the way you used my prompt in the title, and the ending (last couple paragraphs, really) was incredibly moving.

and this--

Music had a way of replacing everything in my head with a melodic lull, and even for a few moments, that escape was welcome.

as a pianist, that rings true for me also. beautiful. (i also love the idea of draco as a pianist too. XD)

thank you so, SO much midnight_birth for the lovely gift! at least i can thank you by name now :)

[midnight_birth]

Don't worry about it. I find myself in a similar position right now, but RL happens sometimes, what can you do? :)

I'm really glad you liked it! For some reason, I keep leaning more and more towards first-person, probably because trying to get into the head of a character is one of my favourite things to do, and I find it easier that way. I'm happy it worked for you! :D

And yay! I'm a pianist too, and when I write musician-characters, I often make them pianists because I can describe it more accurately, I suppose.

Thank you so much for the wonderful review, and you're more than welcome! :D

[mytoxicberry]

This story is really beautiful. I was so moved, I didn't know if I wanted to cry or smile.
I also liked the way you presented Draco. I felt like I could hear his voice, and feel his emotions.
Great story!

[midnight_birth]

Thank you so much! :) Glad you liked.