FIC: Grey

[ishonn]

Title: Grey
Rating: G
Characters: Remus, Sirius
Word count: 372
Disclaimer: I disclaim.
A/N: Finally. This fic was starting to burn my computer. Inspired months ago by my favourite His Face Shines in the Gloom of My Parents’ House by

Comments

[paulamcg]

Yes, finally! Having heard something about this a long time ago, I had a vague idea of what to expect. Still, this overwhelms me

[ishonn]

Thank you so much for this comment! As you probably know, I was particularly curious to hear what you think, especially after all this teasing ;-)

It seems that I actually finished writing this fic as early as August. Somehow, though, I kept the notion that it wasn’t finished at all, but still I didn’t dare look at it. And having no time was obviously just a lame excuse; I expect I was just scared. Finally I opened the file a few days ago and discovered it was pretty much finished, I only had to throw out a few unnecessary things. Which I probably wouldn’t have done earlier, so all this waiting paid.

You are so very right about the last paragraph! I reread the Veil scene a few times beforehand, and I absolutely hate it for mentioning the fear. But I also appreciate it immensely - it makes Sirius a human being. Still, it wasn’t easy to include it in my story. I gave Sirius this one sparkling moment when he was all black and white again, and almost immediately I broke it. And I believe this is right, however much I’d rather see and

[paulamcg]

I admire your discipline in throwing away unnecessary things - and your patience, even though it might look like fear. It requires internal motivation to write like this - and this kind of stories… I thought about adding this at the end of my comment on Stolen Time: according to my experience, very few R/S fans can be satisfied with fic without proper slashy touches (kisses etc). Of course, I hope your experience will be different, while I know you’ll write what you want to without worrying about popularity. Are you posting these subtle pieces on ff.net, too

[ishonn]

Oh, I love these thought-provoking exchanges! Whether they refer to your or my fiction, whether we agree or not - they're always wonderful.

… very few R/S fans can be satisfied with fic without proper slashy touches (kisses etc.). I think I'm beginning to know what you mean. I'm not sure if you noticed, but the last two fics (Nightly Light and Grey) I posted on remusxsirius got no or hardly any attention. I've been wondering if it was due to a coincidence (too many fics posted at the same time), lack of proper/good summary or the fics as such - their form, their content. I'm not really worrying, because I don't doubt the stories are what I wanted them to be. But, like you said, they might not be what the reader wants them to be. I'm considering whether to post “In Your Lap” and see what happens; thanks to the wonderful feedback on ff.net I started to believe in this story. However, I was inclined to think that pieces like Nightly Light and Grey would be appreciated on remusxsirius more than nice and pretty pointless fluff. Thus I’m now reluctant to post

[ishonn]

Oh, I can assure you I (almost) never read late OotP/through-the-Veil Sirius. Which means I must be missing some brilliant fics, but I think I can live with that. This time frame is just too painful.

However, I (most fortunately) came across the above mentioned His Face Shines..., which hit me hard, and then Grey just happened to me. I expect it must have taken so incredibly long to work on exactly because it was painful. But I'm happy I did, and even more happy you liked it, particularly while you avoid such fics on principle.

And now let's drink a toast to Sirius, and go back and join him in the living room.

[ekaterin24]

Powerful imagery. You have a real gift for painting pictures and evoking moods.

[ishonn]

Thank you very much for this lovely comment! I must admit I particularly like creating images with my words. If you liked this fic, you might also want to try Nightly Light, my previous story, also R/S and much less angsty... if at all.

[randygrapes]

I said this on FA, but in case you didn't get around to reading (and also because it's nice to leave comments here, too) I'll leave my feedback/constructive criticism here

[ishonn]

First of all many thanks again for reviewing. It took me four months to complete and post this fic, so I can say we have a history ;-) I haven’t got much concrit so far (generally, not just on “Grey”), and I truly appreciate it that you took your time not just to read and review, but to offer some constructive criticism, too, which is more demanding from the reviewer, I think (and I always find just praising much easier).

It’s great to hear you like the general idea of the fic. You might like to read the story that inspired it, namely “His Face Shines In the Gloom of My Parents’ House” by paulamcg. It’s a brilliant piece about OotP Sirius, and I highly recommend it. Coming back to “Grey”, though, it’s reassuring to know that the fic is received as I meant it to be

[randygrapes]

Ah, yes, thinking of this in terms of Remus' retelling (perhaps to Harry) definitely changes the perspective, and in this case I think you got the tone quite right. So, to answer your question, I do find the justification convincing.

It would be interesting to read the same tale in a different time and see how it differs - ie. very shortly after *it* happened... maybe Remus telling the tale to someone who wasn't present/didn't see.

xxx

[ishonn]

I’m glad my explanation makes sense to you.

As for an “immediately after” story, I wrote it once - it was my very first fic, “Promises”, and a pretty bad one ;-P Anyway, I think if Remus were to tell someone about Sirius’s fall shortly afterwards, he’d be much more focused on the incident itself. I believe it was the passing time that allowed him to see and recognise all the signs of Sirius’s turning grey, withdrawing. On the other hand, perhaps that’s exactly what would make it so interesting to write and read Remus’s relation shortly after the fight.