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snarrymod (snarrymod) wrote in snarry_games,
@ 2008-04-19 20:20:00

Entry tags:

entry, meri_oddities, team dragon

TEAM DRAGON ENTRY: Meri Oddities "Escaping The Paradox"
Title: Escaping the Paradox
Author: meri_oddities
Team: Dragon
Genre(s): Alternate Universe (*Hover/Click for Games Definition of Alternate Universe*) and Romance
Prompt(s): Learning to Dance
Rating/Warnings/Kinks: NC-17; *Adult content*
Word Count: 35,706
Summary: After Harry is thrown back in time to 1971, he has several choices to make.
A/N: For a specific scene in Snape's 5th year, a lot of the dialogue is taken directly (or paraphrased) from The Order of the Phoenix, Chapter Twenty-Eight: Snape's Worst Memory. The description of Tom Riddle when Harry first meets him is taken directly from The Half-Blood Prince, Chapter Twenty: Lord Voldemort's Request.

Many thanks to my betas: Regan_V, Bethbethbeth, Joanwilder, and Snakeling. Any mistakes after all their hard work are all my own.

"Escaping The Paradox by Meri"

Don't forget to review!

Mod note: POLLS ARE NOW CLOSED. THANK YOU FOR PARTICIPATING IN THE SNARRY GAMES.

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qotc
2008-05-22 07:09 am UTC (link)

Let me start off by saying that this fic was wonderful. I love time-travel fics in general, and this has to now be one of my favourites of the genre. It's well thought out and the plot moves along nicely without feeling rushed, which is an achievement considering the story covers seven or so years in just 35,000 words.

I particularly liked that Harry didn't just fall into bed with Snape the moment he showed interest. A lot of fics seem to assume that Harry has no self control at all when it comes to sex (even after he's no longer a teenage boy who, let's face it, would probably have no self control). The Harry of your story was able to take a step back and look at the circumstances - him being Snape's teacher, Snape being only 15, etc - and then stick to his guns, at least for a while. It felt a lot more realistic to have Snape have to keep working at Harry for a while.

Having said all that, one thing about this fic did irk me a little, especially since it was an avoidable error. From my memory of DH (which is based on one reading, so correct me if I'm wrong), the reason Gryffindor's sword was able to destroy Horcruxes was that it was Goblin-made and so was capable of absorbing qualities from things it had touched. In Harry's original timeline the sword sliced up a basilisk and so absorbed basilisk venom, which is one of the only things that can destroy a Horcrux. Since in the past where this story is set the sword had arguably never even been near a basilisk, the sword shouldn't have been capable of destroying the locket or any of the other Horcruxes. You could have used Fiendfyre instead just as easily, so I just thought I'd point out the problem in case you wanted to change those small details after the Games.

Of course, if that's the biggest mistake you made in a fic about something as complicated as time travel, I think you're doing pretty well.

(Reply to this) (Thread)

	meri_oddities 2008-05-26 12:43 pm UTC (link)
	Thanks for the pointer on the detail I got wrong. I have to say that I totally don't remember that detail. Wow. I hate it when I get it wrong. I'm glad you liked the story otherwise. And yeah, I wasn't going to have Harry fall into bed with Snape that young. Severus needed to grow up a bit for Harry to really notice. g (Reply to this) (Parent)

virginie
2008-05-24 09:51 pm UTC (link)

I really enjoyed reading this story. Young Snape is fascinating, and I really admire the careful way you redeem him. The line between a life going so terribly wrong and being reasonably balanced and ordinary is so thin, just a small amount of kindness. I think this theme is really beautifully realised.

The other thing I love is the slow slipping away of the future Harry thinks he can go back to, and his gradual acceptance of it. I think the way you have resolved the time issues, and the quiet sense of loss, the awareness that slowly hits the reader that Harry doesn't even exist in the future, that there is no Harry shaped hole in that universe, is very powerful, and sad.

(Reply to this) (Thread)

	meri_oddities 2008-05-26 12:46 pm UTC (link)
	Thanks. I love the whole concept of younger!Severus and Older!Harry. I think that sometimes it's the small things that will make a big difference in someone's life. Harry had to accept that he wasn't going back, but being the Gryffindor that he is, he wasn't going to do it soon or easily. But he did, eventually because he had to. (Reply to this) (Parent)

	(Anonymous) 2008-05-26 04:41 am UTC (link)
	The best part of this isn't the romance between Snape and Harry but the relationship Harry has with Dumbledore. You made a character many found frustrating and upsetting into someone who could be a great friend and mentor to a Harry we could all admire. Well done. (Reply to this) (Thread)

	meri_oddities 2008-05-26 12:47 pm UTC (link)
	Thanks. Yeah, I had a good time with several of Dumbeldore's conversations with Harry. The whole adult thing gave it such a different dynamic. (Reply to this) (Parent)

	zvi-likes-tv.livejournal.com 2008-05-27 05:52 am UTC (link)
	I liked this story a lot. I liked how you re-worked Snape's growing up enough to massage his personality, but not change him completely. (Reply to this) (Thread)

	meri_oddities 2008-06-03 01:48 pm UTC (link)
	Something must be up with IJ comments. I never got notification about your comment. Thanks for the comment. I'm glad you enjoyed my take on younger!Snape. I thought a lot about how to make him less bitter without making him someone else. (Reply to this) (Parent)

	draconic_girl 2008-06-05 10:19 am UTC (link)
	Loved this story, one of my favourites, especially because of the way you wrote Severus. Enjoyed following Harry’s adventures from the past to the present and seeing how the “the new” past unfolded. Amazing journey :) Thanks for another fantastic story! :D (Reply to this) (Thread)

	meri_oddities 2008-06-22 03:40 pm UTC (link)
	Thanks so much. I'm glad you enjoyed it. It was such fun to write in the Games! g (Reply to this) (Parent)

	szefi 2008-06-08 12:31 pm UTC (link)
	Fantastic story, as always. I developed a great liking for the dynamic of younger Severus and older Harry since the last Games, and you wrote it brilliantly, thanks. It was a very clever way to close the paradox with Lily giving birth to a girl. (Reply to this) (Thread)

	meri_oddities 2008-06-22 03:40 pm UTC (link)
	Thanks so much. I'm glad you enjoyed the story. I love the idea of younger!Severus and older!Harry! g (Reply to this) (Parent)

	angela_snape 2008-06-18 04:08 am UTC (link)
	I'm sorry I didn't get a chance to read & vote while the games were still on ... but this was brilliant. I like that Severus is a Ravenclaw here, and Kingsley as Harry's first male lover, and so many other things I cannot even begin to list them all here. (Reply to this) (Thread)

	meri_oddities 2008-06-22 03:39 pm UTC (link)
	Thanks so much. I'm so glad you enjoyed the story. I liked playing with things to give Severus a happying ending. g (Reply to this) (Parent)

	violet_star7 2008-06-22 01:38 am UTC (link)
	This story has instantly become one of my all time favorite Snarry stories. I love stories that involve mentorship from the beginning turning into love. I absolutely love this story. Thank you so much for writing it. (Reply to this) (Thread)

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meri_oddities, 2008-06-22 03:38 pm UTC

	wyomingnot 2008-06-25 01:43 am UTC (link)
	Okay. So I haven't been reading HP lately. As in, I believe this is only the second HP story I've read in the last year. But I read the whole thing and loved it so very much. Keen work with the pacing and the hotness. All-around yay! (Reply to this) (Thread)

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meri_oddities, 2008-06-25 09:40 am UTC

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wyomingnot, 2008-06-30 09:58 pm UTC

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meri_oddities, 2008-06-30 10:33 pm UTC

Escaping the Paradox
(Anonymous)
2008-07-12 01:41 pm UTC (link)

I enjoyed this story; I have not read any other in which Snape was guided into a better life during his childhood. I was especially happy that you had the plot line resolve without going back to the other lifetime. I love to see my favorite bad boys get redeemed, but I like it best when it makes sense and the old rivalries aren't just swept away as if they didn't matter. You adult Harry was wonderful, kind and just reckless enough to be truly Harry.

A wonderful story, thank you
Flutesong
Flutesong@hegalplace.com
www.hegalplace.com/flutesong

(Reply to this) (Thread)

Re: Escaping the Paradox -

meri_oddities, 2008-07-20 06:53 pm UTC

gatewaygirl
2008-07-19 09:39 pm UTC (link)

If I wait until I have time to do a thoughtful and intelligent review, I'll never get to it. Let me just say that I loved this story, including, but not limited to: Harry fending off young Severus's advances; clever, determined Severus biding his time and stepping in when his affections could protect Harry; Harry's contorted relationship with the Potters; and Severus and Sirius as rival godfathers.

Back to my fic backlog....

(Reply to this) (Thread)

(no subject) -

meri_oddities, 2008-07-20 06:54 pm UTC

	"Escaping The Paradox by Meri" (Anonymous) 2008-08-08 03:44 pm UTC (link)
	Wonderful story, no matter how many times I reread it, I can never get tired of it. Thank you for posting your work and good look with any future undertakings. ^_^ (Reply to this) (Thread)

Re: "Escaping The Paradox by Meri" -

meri_oddities, 2008-08-10 08:52 am UTC

(Anonymous)
2008-09-11 03:42 am UTC (link)

Oh my god, this was probably one of the best HPSS fics I've ever read! o.0 And that's saying something, as I've read.. a lot..^^ Anyway, this is GREAT, there's not ONE THING about it that I DIDN'T like. All if it's AWESOME. And I love that Harry really did stay, and all that. I love a lot of things. This fic is one of those things.

Thanks for writing it, cuz I certainly enjoyed reading it.

(Reply to this) (Thread)

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meri_oddities, 2008-11-12 04:09 pm UTC

	delfeus 2008-11-12 04:05 pm UTC (link)
	This was amazing! Great work! (Reply to this) (Thread)

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meri_oddities, 2008-11-12 04:10 pm UTC

sunsethill
2008-12-05 04:30 pm UTC (link)

I know it's been ages since this was first posted, but I wanted to tell you that this is my absolute favorite time travel fic--and I've read quite a few. I loved how we were so worried that Harry was messing up the future by helping Severus and it took five years to figure out that he wasn't even in the same universe. That was a great twist. I also love how time fixes the paradox for Harry. I've read it about four times now and I'm still not sure how much Severus actually tried to plan. Any hints? I would also love to see another one-shot written where Harry tells Severus more about his childhood, maybe the Halloween that the Potter's don't die.

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meri_oddities, 2009-04-30 04:59 am UTC

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sunsethill, 2009-04-30 08:52 am UTC

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meri_oddities, 2009-05-06 05:02 pm UTC

escaping the paradox

countesszero
2009-02-09 11:13 am UTC (link)

you have been quite gentle with snape. i thought it was well done how you even worked snape's preferences for men into the plot without ignoring the deathly hallows ending. so it seems you literally escaped the paradox :) i enjoyed reading this story: since i expected it to end badly (harry potter dead, snape as a death eater, but this time not for lily but for the future version of harry) the optimistic ending was a nice surprise.

(Reply to this) (Thread)

Re: escaping the paradox -

meri_oddities, 2009-04-30 05:00 am UTC

	elethian 2009-04-30 02:11 am UTC (link)
	I agree with Harry: your young Severus is adorable, by which I mean not cute, but easy to adore, to fall for completely. Yum. (Reply to this) (Thread)

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meri_oddities, 2009-04-30 05:00 am UTC

	(Anonymous) 2009-07-07 04:04 am UTC (link)
	I loved the story. The ending felt a bit abrupt but when a story decides to end, it ends. I think that if you would have forced it, it may not have been as good of a read. 9 of 10 stars (Reply to this)

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