wah.

[reenka]

I have pretty much one thing I need to say now, though I've got tons of comments--

This book, pretty much, is the one thing I've read after OoTP that fully satisfies every single desire or requirement I had in mind for the Big Bang Challenge and sixth year fic in general. Nothing came close, and-- after all-- that is only how it should be.

This is something I should've realized, since I enjoyed the three previous books so much. I should've known JKR wouldn't let me down. I should've trusted her.

This isn't what I wanted as an H/D shipper, because that's way too narrow, way too rigidly 'romantic' a viewpoint. This is because I wanted some real follow-through, some accounting for sins and some facing of truths.

I literally could not have asked for more.

And the funny thing is, at this point, all my shippy glee is pretty much banked. I'm just satisfied that this book answered the questions in my mind, gave me a Draco I can get behind and a Harry I could love, a Luna I smiled self-consciously at, a Dumbledore I learned to trust, a Snape I truly engaged with, a new Potions professor I was intrigued and relieved by, a McGonagall to further admire, a Hermione that finally made me empathize with her, a Ron to cheer for, a Remus to ache for, and a Ginny who is quite starting to remind me of Lily, but not in a bad way.

I love canon.

Comments

[balfrog.livejournal.com]

And the funny thing is, at this point, all my shippy glee is pretty much banked.
Yup, that's what I'm feeling right now - not so much the shipper aspect, but the vindication of Draco as a person, and his interactions with Harry were just enough.
And wow - would be sad, but at this moment the whole "being content with canon" is making me complacent and not that thirsty for fic. Weird, en't it?

[yourpoison.livejournal.com]

I'm pretty complacent too-- that's what I was trying to say, anyway. It -is- enough, and it's a relief-- because I spent the years after the book -aching- for someone to do this, to answer my questions like this, but either no one was asking the same questions I was or (more likely) no one was truly prepared to answer them fully and without either heavy character-bias or overwhelming shippiness-- except JKR. Even the ships in the book didn't detract from the story, I felt, which almost never happens in fic, though I admit I don't read enough (or... any) gen. Even so, I feel a good longfic should have elements of 'gen' or rather, balanced characterization.

So yes, I don't want fic-- am almost put off at the mere idea of fic. I also don't know whom I'd trust to give me what I want, after having all that hope & disappointment I experienced after OoTP.

[ex-ella-bane358.livejournal.com]

Same here. Canon has fulfilled my wishes, so I feel strangely sated as well. I have no desire, at the moment, to write OR read fan fic. It's weird. It's like, huh, well she did it -- I see the Draco I've wanted to see and now it's all good. :D

[balfrog.livejournal.com]

My real life peeps are laughing in their sleeve at me - friend and husband - "oh, just you wait a couple of months." Who knows? maybe...

I wonder what it's like for fen who went through with this with OotP - but I still think it's the seeming resolution, not of the plot, but of character vindication that we're all happy and fumbling around about...

[yourpoison.livejournal.com]

After OoTP, I was driven to write almost immediately, not because of the plot threads dangling (which there are plenty of at the end of OoTP) but because of the unresolved mounds of characters on a collision course with each other (mainly Harry & Draco, but also Snape in a way). And now, the future seems more unpredictable than ever in terms of events (Harry not come back to Hogwarts??!), but the sheer direction of the characters seems... clearer. Not so many holes to patch up in that sense, and that has always been one of the main driving forces for fanfic (especially hated by people like Robin Hobb, say).

There are things that could still happen & change everything, but we pretty much have a solid view as to where things stand with Harry & Draco now; even if they reconcile a bit, it wouldn't be nearly as -important- as the steps taken in this book. It's sort of the reason I'm often satisfied with open endings in fic in general-- when you can tell where something's going, to me it's often as good as having gotten there.

[ex-ella-bane358.livejournal.com]

but of character vindication that we're all happy and fumbling around about...

Agreed :)

And yes, who knows how I'll be feeling in a few weeks.

[balfrog.livejournal.com]

yeah, almost went ahead and said 'bye~thanks for all the fish' AGAIN on the lj, before I stopped myself. Because of all the sniggering from loved ones in real life. er...

but it does feel like a hurricane went through - in a good way, in a Cal way... (okay, shutting up for real now.)

[ex-ella-bane358.livejournal.com]

'bye~thanks for all the fish' AGAIN on the lj

Okay, that just made me giggle :D

[yourpoison.livejournal.com]

I know just what you mean about the hurricane!!! :D :D

...I'm really excited about the last book now, there's that :D