Reviewer: ddot (Signed) · Date: June 08, 2011 11:05 PM · On: Chapter 20 - Interlude, Pt. III

Great chapter

I'm confused as to why Carlisle and Edward's views have switched, with Carlisle thinkging they're damned and Edward saying he didn't agree.

I always thought it was the other way around.

 

anyways...great update!!!

Author's Response:

Many reviewers on ff.net shared your confusion about the seeming switch between Carlisle and Edward's viewpoints. Keep in mind, these two are different now than when we met them in Twilight. They have growing to do. And Carlisle, while currently a bit gloomy in his outlook for their souls, is always looking for reasons to hope. He'll find a very good one soon.

Glad you liked the chapter anyway. :)

Reviewer: ermireallydontcare (Signed) · Date: June 02, 2011 07:08 AM · On: Chapter 19 - Interlude, Pt. II

I've enjoyed these past two chapters greatly :)

I particularly liked how Carlisle wanted to give Edward the choice, no matter how hard it would be for him to lose it.

I also had a good chuckle with the last bit about Milton :D

Author's Response:

Thanks! I'm happy you liked them, and glad the Milton jibe provided a laugh. Carlisle isn't without a sense of humor.

Reviewer: timelessfamily (Signed) · Date: May 24, 2011 08:23 AM · On: Chapter 19 - Interlude, Pt. II

Detailed and compelling as always. Did you decide to change Jane's backstory though? According to the Official Guide, Jane and Alec have been with the Volturi since the 8th century AD, when they were changed by Aro himself. Don't mean to nitpick, just wondered what your thinking was. Keep going!

Author's Response:

Thanks! I'm happy you're enjoying it.

As for Jane-- lucky you! You've stumbled onto one of the quirkier idiosyncracies of the books, and now you get a mini-dissertation about it! *cackles evilly*

You see, canon contradicts itself about Alec and Jane's presence in the Volturi.

From Eclipse (p. 578):

Jane's smile faded, and... she turned to face Carlisle. "It was nice to meet you, Carlisle--I'd thought Aro was exaggerating..."

If Jane hadn't even met Carlisle until Eclipse, wouldn't it mean that she and Alec weren't around during his decades-long stay with the Volturi? It's a little hard to believe that, given their importance, they would've been absent from Volterra for so long, or were around but never met Carlisle while he was there.

Before the Official Guide, the most specific account of Jane and Alec's joining the Volturi came from Steph's personal correspondences on the Lexicon, which related that Aro changed them himself after slaughtering a village of people who had been bent on burning Jane and Alec at the stake for witchcraft. But the personal corresponces didn't include the date that this was supposed to have happened, which left it all in the air. So given what Jane said to Carlisle in Eclipse, it followed that Aro must have acquired them after Carlisle left. Granted, that was still a little nonsensical; burnings-at-the-stake and witch hunts weren't exactly en vogue in the 18th and 19th centuries, after Carlisle's stay with the Volturi. Some of us canon writers were flummoxed by that.

Then again... it wouldn't have been the first time Steph had made a historical boo-boo. Witch hunts and burnings weren't happening in England during the time Carlisle's father was supposed to be conducting them, either, and especially not by Anglicans. Almost none of what was in the books about Carlisle's era of origin was accurate; Steph made a lot of historical oopsies - almost enough to render Carlisle's entire backstory ridiculous (see my author's notes at the end of Ch. 7, An Object Worth Constancy).

But I digress. Since the personal correspondences didn't include the date of Alec and Jane's change, all we had to go on was the books. I elected to overlook the implied historical innacuracy and go with the scenario that they joined the Volturi after Carlisle's time in Volterra, rather than come up with some contrived reason for why they wouldn't have met.

So there ya go. ;) I didn't mean to change Jane's backstory from canon. This story was born before Steph shared the date of Jane's change with us, so...

It's very odd that Jane and Alec were, indeed, with the Volturi, but never met Carlisle. The bottom line is that Steph probably hadn't completely fleshed out Volturi backstories when she wrote Eclipse, and made a boo-boo by having Jane say that. She's said herself that there are plenty of things that she gets caught on sometimes. This is likely one of them.

That said, although this is a canon story, I do take an intentionally divergent liberty here and there, such as with the timing of Edward and his mother contracting the flu.

Anyway, thank you the review, even if you got a heftier response than you probably bargained for.

Reviewer: LivingwithEdward (Signed) · Date: May 21, 2011 06:33 PM · On: Chapter 19 - Interlude, Pt. II

Great chapter! I loved the elves at the north pole line.  I also love your portrayal of Carlisle's and Edward's relationship.  it's so perfect.

Author's Response:

Thank you! I'm rather content with the way their relationship is panning out, too.

Reviewer: scarlet (Signed) · Date: May 21, 2011 08:32 AM · On: Chapter 19 - Interlude, Pt. II

Worth the wait! I'm a little confused about Aro's plans and Carlisle's theories but I'm sure it will come together.

Author's Response:

Thank you, and I hope you do find all the explanations satisfactory. If not, or if you're left confused, please let me know.

 

Reviewer: LivingwithEdward (Signed) · Date: May 20, 2011 04:31 PM · On: Chapter 18 - Interlude

This fic popped into my mind the other day and I was excited for a new update soon and here it is.  Again, loved it!

Author's Response:

Ah, serendipity! So glad the update came at a good time. :) Thanks for the review!

Reviewer: miaokuancha (Signed) · Date: May 20, 2011 06:05 AM · On: Chapter 18 - Interlude

Well, you know my thoughts on this chapter from what I posted on your ff.n thread. Let me just add how marvelous the entire arc has been with this entirely original character you have created in Fletcher. Edward is seriously weirded out by this vampire and his talent, but at nearly every turn he has sought to protect him in some capacity or other. And that protection has been mutual. The essential decency in that is so clear (though perhaps Edward does not see that in himself - even with Demetri right before his eyes to provide a highlighting contrast.)

"It is not our talents that determine who we are, Harry, but the choices we make ..."

I do indeed sincerely hope that the next chapter will be coming soon, as well as the discussion thread to which you alluded in your previous review replies.

As always, thank you for enriching our world with this story of yours.

Author's Response:

You are welcome, and, as always, you blow me away with your reviews.

As for the discussion thread: I've put it on hold for the time being, since this update took so long. I'm not sure I should be posting a discussion thread when chapters are posted so sporadically. But, again, I haven't discarded the idea so much as just put it on hold. We'll see how things go.

 

Reviewer: Laural (Signed) · Date: March 03, 2011 12:19 AM · On: Chapter 17 - There is No God, the Wicked Saith, pt. V

I really do love reading good fics with the Volturi. They're so evil yet refined.

Author's Response:

Thank you for the lovely series of reviews, and a belated welcome to the story. I'm glad you're enjoying it, and apologize for the update infrequency. 

And thanks also for that correction re: pon v. pawn. I don't know why, but I got it stuck in my head a long time ago that the pon (see?) in a chess set is p-o-n, while p-a-w-n is what you do at a hawk shop (or is it hock? :P) But I digress. Thank you for that. I'll fix it.

Reviewer: Laural (Signed) · Date: March 02, 2011 02:10 PM · On: Chapter 5 - The Fire Soul

Ah, Edward hates himself so much.

Reviewer: ermireallydontcare (Signed) · Date: February 08, 2011 02:26 PM · On: Chapter 17 - There is No God, the Wicked Saith, pt. V

I loved the little moment between Edward and Carlisle at the end :D

Author's Response:

Thanks! Glad you liked it.

Reviewer: bethc_88 (Signed) · Date: January 22, 2011 10:57 AM · On: Chapter 17 - There is No God, the Wicked Saith, pt. V

Hey, love! Great chapter! I really enjoyed getting to hear what Chelsea was doing to Carlisle and how he handled it! I'm glad Edward resisted Fletcher's plan to get rid of Demitri - I can't imagine the guilt he would have felt over it if he had conceded to Fletcher. And I love the bond Edward has with Carlisle. I can't help but feel even more that they were meant to come into each other's lives. Cannot wait to see what happens next! Keep up the great work! :)

Author's Response:

Thank you so much, beth. I hope you like what's coming up.

Reviewer: cjmuehlb (Signed) · Date: January 11, 2011 09:30 AM · On: Chapter 17 - There is No God, the Wicked Saith, pt. V

I just love this story and your version of Edward.  He's not so angry as some canon stories I've read.

Author's Response:

Thank you. :) I've always wondered why he seems so angry in fic.  Edward isn't a fundamentally angry person, in my opinion.

Reviewer: miaokuancha (Signed) · Date: January 11, 2011 07:54 AM · On: Chapter 17 - There is No God, the Wicked Saith, pt. V

I have to confess that I kept waiting for Edward to rescue the dog. I suppose he couldn't, given the circumstances ... although, it seems much more likely of a fire scenario that the dog would have escaped rather than have its remains found tethered to a pipe under the porch. That is a detail that, if detected, would have suggested foul play to any humans investigating the fire. And, with all the mind games that have been played here, I wonder what the effect of a compassionate act would have been, on each of those present, given what had just transpired. For Edward, perhaps a shred of salvation: even if he drank the dog and put its body back inside the house, it would have been a much more merciful death than being trapped and burned alive. For Fletcher, one more challenge to his life choices. For Demetri, perhaps nothing other than utter foolishness, and yet -- well, let's just say that his mind is one that I would dearly love to mess with. He likes to see his victims losing their religion in the face of death ... how I would love to serve him a bit of sauce for that goose. Ah, but I digress.

The reunion with Carlisle was so touching. Alas, Edward has been changed. His essential innocence about himself has been shattered, in a way that perhaps Carlisle cannot understand. At this point we do not know if he has ever lost it the way Edward did, ever had a moment when it was someone or something OUTSIDE himself that preserved his abstinence. If indeed Carlisle has never experienced such a fall from grace, then Edward will never be able to completely accept his compassion (just as human kind cannot accept the love of God except through the Son who became human and heir to all the failings of incarnate life. I imagine Carlisle would understand this, but even so, without himself actually having experienced the Fall, he would be powerless to help Edward deal with the guilt.) Edward will not go to Italy this time, but I can so see this whole encounter as one of the seeds that eventually bears fruit in Edward's vigilante hegira ...

About the Volturi: I have adored this account of their visit. You have painted them so wonderfully, as three-dimensional, fully realized, fascinating beings. Under your hand they are not cardboard cut-out antagonists, but each a plausible and essentially sympathetic person, even if their values and actions are not my own. So I have had no feeling at all that this series of chapters has been too long. Far from it. I have reveled in every nuance that it revealed. And seriously, Carlisle teaching them baseball - inspired. Two can play at the 'shake up your world view' game. As small and innocuous as a simple game of ball may seem, yet it is an activity undertaken simply and purely for enjoyment of one's physical being, for fun and for friendship. Who knows what dreams may come?

I love this story so much, and I am so, so grateful that you are persevering in writing it. From the bottom of my heart, thank you!

Author's Response:

And from the bottom of my heart, thank you for continuing your patient readership and reviews.

*cackles evilly* At long last, I have written something you took issue with! And, boy, you were not alone. Yes, I speak of the dog. And yes, I had reasons for the way that unfolded, and I expected there might be some reaction from readers, though not as much as there was. People got upset. *more evil cackling* I'm going to start a discussion thread for the story when the next installment is posted, and I'll be addressing ShepherdGate there.

As for your comments about Edward and Carlisle, and the new dynamic going on there, as always, you hit the nail on the head. Carlisle doesn't know exactly where Edward's coming from, because in my corner of pre-Twilight, Carlisle has never required outside intervention to keep from taking human life. His restraint is completely unique among his kind.  At this point, Edward still isn't too difficult to coax out of self-loathing, but you're right that the glimmer of his shadow has started to take form.

I'm happy you liked the Volturi's visit, and hope you also find the conclusion of their visit to be... worthwhile.  ;)