InsaneJournal

Tweak says, "PALKIIIAAAAAAAA"

snapelyhols_mod (snapelyhols_mod) wrote in snapelyholidays,
@ 2011-12-30 00:35:00

Entry tags:

2011_fic, adult, angst, bondage, bottom!snape, dark_themes, fic4:community, flogging, snape/neville, violence

gift fic for community, Snape/Neville, adult (NWS)

Recipient: snapelyholidays community

Author: eeyore9990
Title: Tensile Strength
Characters: Neville Longbottom/Severus Snape
Rating: NC-17 (NWS)
Content Info: *heavy angst, minor character death, flogging, dark themes*
Summary: Everything—everyone—has a breaking point.
Disclaimer: The world of HP and its characters belongs to Rowling. The author of this fic has borrowed them for the purposes of storytelling. No profit was or will be made.
Word count: ~5440
Author Notes Deepest thanks to my beta and writing partner for all their help with this fic.

( Tensile Strength )

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kelly_chambliss
2011-12-30 01:55 pm UTC (link)

Beautifully-written, painful, grim, achingly-plausible. It's a ruthless story, and I mean that as a compliment -- courageous writing, pitiless in the same way as this world you've created. Both men are so believably damaged, the indifferent world so sadly real. Yet there IS strength here, and caring despite everything, and that tiny thread of hope...well-done. An affecting story that I know will stay with me.

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	gingertart50 2011-12-30 02:23 pm UTC (link)
	Oh boy, this is a very powerful, heart-wrenching story, totally in character for both. Beautifully written and with a hint of hope at the end. Very well done! (Reply to this)

bk7brokemybrain
2011-12-30 05:58 pm UTC (link)

WOW! I loved this very much! The title alone is wonderfully evocative, but the plot! I was not expecting Neville to be the top, even though I can easily believe Snape would allow it to purge himself, so it was a great surprise. Neville is definitely strong, and it was believable to watch him take on stressor after stressor until he'd be ready to comply with Snape's needs. Nicely done and very hot. Yum.

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paean_sf
2011-12-30 08:21 pm UTC (link)

The amount of despair Neville shows in such a short section worked its way into my psyche as I read, and i'm afraid I may not make a lot of sense here. I couldn't imagine from the beginning how the tags could apply, and the grittiness of the evolution was very well done.

The whipping scene was, for lack of a better word, ugly (its a complement). The raw quality of both their emotions, and the implications of Severus' prior violent sexual experiences was uncomfortable in the best possible way. When Neville considers picking the whip back up, I was hit with chills at the implication of real damage. I can only hope the two have the opportunity for a less volitile friendship in the future, as I believe they will still need each other.

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	paean_sf 2011-12-30 08:22 pm UTC (link)
	Somehow I missed saying, I also thought the scene was very hot. (Reply to this) (Parent)

	fluffyllama 2011-12-31 05:53 am UTC (link)
	This is a pairing I enjoy on the rare occasions I've seen it, but I have never seen it done this way before! I absolutely loved it, and I don't think I'd have been able to stop reading if the house was on fire :) Fabulous. (Reply to this)

	snegurochka_lee 2011-12-31 03:33 pm UTC (link)
	Wow, that was fascinating! I really liked Neville and Snape's professional relationship. All the emotions were so real, too. And the final scene seemed perfect for them. :) (Reply to this)

	woldy 2012-01-01 12:10 am UTC (link)
	I love this pairing, & you've developed a really interesting scenario for it. I enjoyed the details about the medical treatment and the plants, and the ambiguity of the ending. (Reply to this)

	atdelphi 2012-01-01 07:06 pm UTC (link)
	Oh wow, this is just stunning. I can't recall the last time I read a piece that was so...unflinching, in the best of ways. Beautiful language, believably merciless, but tentatively hopeful and ultimately incredibly satisfying. Gorgeous work, Mystery Author. (Reply to this)

	torino10154 2012-01-03 03:04 pm UTC (link)
	Wow, I have a soft spot for these two and even though this fic was definitely not romantic, it suits them perfectly, somehow. I think potions and herbology so naturally follow it does make sense for their paths to intersect--the grief they both share, though for different reasons, is palpable. Nicely done. (Reply to this)

caecelia_
2012-01-03 07:24 pm UTC (link)

This left me aching. Like Neville, I was practically raised by a grandparent, and devastated when she began to deteriorate towards the end of her life. Neville's anguish at losing yet another family member to mental illness is so very palpable and oppressive and masterfully evoked. I appreciate that you don't make the post-DH world one of happy endings and flowers, but choose to show reality in all of its depressing shades. That Snape, a natural inhabitant of such a world, flickers into Neville's life only seems natural. The pairing makes an extraordinary amount of sense when written like this, and I find myself craving more of your world.

Battered and bruised, pitiless and overconfident, Snape here has never been more himself. It's so very ironic that the moment Neville trusts him -- the moment anyone chooses to trust him, really -- can lead to a kind of downfall. Here, though, you give us a sliver of hope.

Thank you for such a wonderful story. I've recc'd it over at my journal.

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leela_cat
2012-01-07 11:22 pm UTC (link)

Gah, the ending to this story. It's like the scrape of nails over a blackboard, the idea that this is a circular thing between them and not anywhere near over.

You take so much away from Neville, show us his anguish so very clearly, and yet Snape also gives him one of the things he needs at the end - along with a promise of something.

Such a brilliant and painful story, perhaps even more painful because of the tendril of hope at the end.

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	countesszero 2012-01-11 04:32 am UTC (link)
	What a beautiful piece of writing! I was stunned by your brave move to complicate the story and let Snape not have an easy victory and to let Neville's mother die. It was fitting and real and touching, and for me turned around the entire story. Also the open, hopeful end impressed me. You cut it off at a point not many would have, but it was such a beautiful and perfect moment! (Reply to this)

	Tensile Strength koshweasley 2012-02-01 12:43 am UTC (link)
	This is just awesome. The relationship between the two is very well done. The emotions are perfect and real. At first it was simple satisfaction; the feeling that he was giving pain for pain. It was cleansing. That is just beautifully written. Fantastic imagery. The ending...perfect. I can see Neville sitting there so clearly. Ahhh, I've missed reading from your mind :) (Reply to this)