Oh. Wow. (Spoiler alert)
This is so. So. SO AMAZING!!
You've managed to combine the perfect mix of seriousness and stress with the most brilliant comedic lines, delivered with impeccable timing! From the very beginning to all the way through you had me smiling and giggling, from the way McGonagall looked at Harry and then the interaction with Buttercup (the most preposterous name for a bloodhound), and THEN the Norwegian art film line!! Not to mention Engelbert Humpledinck! (And Harry being called Killer, and James being a trickster, and urinating from the astronomy tower! and I could go on and on and on!) I love the magical, magnificent realm that is your amazing brain! (I've been having a pretty glum time of things lately, and the humor in this story worms its way into all the right places.)
But there's *so* much beyond the shit-I-was-drinking-and-couldn't-stop-laughing-and-now-there's-grapejuice-all-over-everything! All of Harry's becoming comfortable with himself is handled so beautifully, and I love the way you've incorporated Harry's troubles with the Marauders and his mother, yet all of that brings him closer to Severus.
And the interactions between getting-to-know-you Harry and Severus are spectacular - somehow you've gotten them both to sizzle with anticipatory sparks, WHILE ALSO keeping them both in character ("An explanation both laboured and feeble") -> it can't possibly get better than that, except it does when Harry's relationship with his parents makes me feel like all is right with the world - it sounds soppy, but after the Quidditch match, the scene with his dad really gets me.
Towards the end, I got REALLY nervous. I was like, oh no, how are they going to resolve this, Harry has to go home but TRUE LOVE, and in that confrontation between Harry and Severus, I swear my heart stopped when Severus told Harry how he felt - I squeaked and I was like "OH NO!" and you had me so scared for all the possibilities I could foresee until I finally got to the last section and realized that after all that Harry'd *stayed*, and could miraculously live these two lives - exploring his relationship with Severus while still returning to Ron and Hermione. Just wow, the whole thing.
You've incorporated so much into this story, and made me laugh hysterically, and hurt exactly the right amount, and ultimately left me feel amazingly satisfied. Plus the saxophone theme is fucking brilliant.