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Tweak says, "And god help me, theodore."

snarrymod (snarrymod) wrote in snarry_games,
@ 2008-05-23 18:37:00

Entry tags:

bethbethbeth, entry, team phoenix

TEAM PHOENIX ENTRY: Beth H "Learning the Landscape "
Title: Learning the Landscape
Author: Beth H / bethbethbeth
Team: Phoenix
Genre(s): Alternate Reality *Hover/Click for Games Definition of Alternate Reality* & Romance
Prompt(s): Tabloid Headlines
Rating: NC-17
Warning/Kinks: * *Strong language, semi-public fellatio, anal sex, references to despicable political allegiances, hate crimes, and other criminal activities.**
Word Count: ~21,000
Summary: Second generation celebrity, pop sensation, rising movie star: Harry Potter is looking for something more meaningful in his life than mere fame. However, when he inexplicably decides to make ex-con Steven Snape part of that "something more meaningful," well...it's too much to expect the press to ignore it forever.
A/N: (a) Apart from setting this story in America in 2006, some additional liberties have been taken with the timeline: Harry's parents (and any other "Marauders" who might make an appearance), have the same birth dates they have in canon. The rest of the characters - including Harry and Snape - were all born approximately five years later than their canon birth dates...and Harry is just over 21 for those of you who care about that sort of thing.
(b) The footnotes, which are dotted throughout the story, are partly educational and partly inserted for my own amusement. If you're easily jolted out of the narrative flow of a story, don't bother clicking on them. I guarantee you won't miss anything too significant.
(c) Most importantly, though...shifting this story away from a magical world and back into the real world means that the story, of necessity, deals with some groups and ideologies that JKR was able to examine by way of metaphors in her novels. Believe me when I tell you I'm taking them very seriously.
Many thanks: to the very patient mods - and to Meri and Regan V for their speedy and exceedingly helpful betas!

"Learning the Landscape by Beth H"

Don't forget to review!

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

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who_la_hoop
2008-06-01 05:03 pm UTC (link)

Oh, I enjoyed that very much! A very touching romance - Harry was adorable and Snape was delightfully IC. I loved the background you built up for Snape - it worked very well for me - and all the little nods to canon.

I have to admit that I did find the change from Severus to Steven a bit jarring, as well as making Harry and Snape American (I took 'American setting' to mean it would be, well, set in America, rather than Harry and Snape actually being American, which is probably why that didn't work so well for me). Still, that quibble aside, this was a very fun read and the ending was delightful :)

(Reply to this) (Thread)

bethbethbeth
2008-06-02 02:00 am UTC (link)

Thank you! I'm so glad that the story worked for you in the end - and particularly that Snape read as in-character.

And you know, I really do understand how the Americanization of the characters (and not just the setting) was problematic. I always have a moment of hesitation when I come across differences like that in stories too, so I definitely thank you for giving this a chance anyway.

(Reply to this) (Parent)

	igtow 2008-06-01 11:01 pm UTC (link)
	I love AR fics and when I saw your name on it, I dove right in. The parallels with canon, the similarities of names, all merged into a wonderful romance. So very well done! (Reply to this) (Thread)

	bethbethbeth 2008-06-02 02:01 am UTC (link)
	Oh, thank you so much! I'm so pleased you liked this story. (Reply to this) (Parent)

	snarry_reader 2008-06-04 04:31 am UTC (link)
	Just a quick comment to let you know that we've added this story to the snarry_reader on our Master List here. If you'd like us to make any changes to the link, please let us know. Thanks, Gaycrow, on behalf of the Reader. (Reply to this) (Thread)

	bethbethbeth 2008-06-04 04:47 am UTC (link)
	Excellent...thanks so much! (and I might change the link location after the Games are over: I'll let you know) (Reply to this) (Parent)

	cluegirl 2008-06-06 05:56 pm UTC (link)
	It's always interesting to read stories like this, where nearly all the serial numbers have been neatly filed off. I loved the Sexual Education of Young Mister Potter, by the way -- entirely too wonderfully Snape. And Allen Dore was a very nice touch as well. Nicely done! (Reply to this) (Thread)

	bethbethbeth 2008-06-06 10:19 pm UTC (link)
	Thanks so much, my dear. I'm really pleased you liked this and that you took the time to let me know (...and yes, I love Bottom!Snape, but I rarely am able to imagine him as submissive g) (Reply to this) (Parent)

trekkiegrrrl
2008-06-06 08:22 pm UTC (link)

No bit surprise really that this was a LOVELY story! It would be, being from the Right Team ;)

It was really wonderful. At first I was a little ..not exactly put off, but surprised at the AU and non-magical setting, but it just shows that love isn't depending on magic to be just that :)

I really liked the DeathEater/NeoNazi parallel. It's of course not so far fetched but I love how you incorporated the Mark, too :)

So all in all, this was a thoroughly enjoyable experience ! Thumbs up!

(Reply to this) (Thread)

bethbethbeth
2008-06-06 10:23 pm UTC (link)

Thank you, thank you! And believe me, I know exactly what you mean about being wary of the AU setting. I feel that way every time I see a warning for AU/AR in the headers of a story (and I admit that sometimes I just scroll past without knowing another thing about it). Given all that, I'm particularly pleased that you persevered with the story...and that you ended up liking it!

(Reply to this) (Parent)

	the_minx_17 2008-06-08 01:00 pm UTC (link)
	Good non-magical ARs are hard to come by. Srsly. This one... this was excellent!! I've printed it out and added it to the reread folder. (Reply to this) (Thread)

	bethbethbeth 2008-06-27 10:01 pm UTC (link)
	Oh, what lovely feedback. Thank you...and many apologies for taking so long to get back to you. Gmail is apparently trying to thwart me. :) (Reply to this) (Parent)

	szefi 2008-06-11 08:10 pm UTC (link)
	This was such a nice story, incorporating lovely details: celebrity Harry, pushy bottom Snape and a backstory how he took the Mark. I loved it. (Reply to this) (Thread)

	bethbethbeth 2008-06-27 10:02 pm UTC (link)
	Thanks so very much. I'm really happy the story worked for you (...and your icon? It's wonderful) (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

	szefi 2008-06-29 08:03 pm UTC (link)
	Thank you! The icon is made by majmunka, she is awesome:) (Reply to this) (Parent)

	venturous 2008-06-27 08:23 pm UTC (link)
	I love this tale. It's such an original AR yet our boys are wholey themselves. The americanisms were a treat, and Harry insisting on a condom was love. I love that he was so philathropic, but still bumbling Harry. (Reply to this) (Thread)

	bethbethbeth 2008-06-27 10:03 pm UTC (link)
	Thank you, both for your kind words but also for taking the time to write. I'm so glad you liked the story - and especially glad that Snape and Harry both felt real to you, even though they'd been transplanted entirely to the U.S. (Reply to this) (Parent)

angelbabecj
2008-07-09 07:03 am UTC (link)

I liked this 'American' take on HP, even though I'm sure I missed a few of the references because of my inherent Britishness. Lol.

I love Snape as an ex-con, however wronged and I do love him as a snarky, demanding bottom. Yay!

Harry's troubles with fame and tendency to turn off his phone made me smile. Also yay for the footnotes, I love those sorts of details, particularly the link to the photos of the Artist's Cemetery, it's just the sort of place I'd love to visit.

Lovely fic. :D

(Reply to this) (Thread)

	bethbethbeth 2008-07-09 09:47 pm UTC (link)
	Thanks so much for the lovely feedback. I'm so happy you liked the story, and especially glad that you liked the footnotes. I started to think in terms of footnotes when I started reading Terry Pratchett's Discworld books, and I was hoping they'd be fun (and educational! g) for this story. (Reply to this) (Parent)

	shinalaris 2008-08-18 12:40 am UTC (link)
	Thank you for the wonderful story. I really liked it. :) (Reply to this) (Thread)

	bethbethbeth 2008-08-18 01:27 am UTC (link)
	Thanks so very much. I'm pleased you liked it and that you took the time to write and let me know1 (Reply to this) (Parent)

	(Anonymous) 2008-12-05 11:00 pm UTC (link)
	My favorite part of this whole story was the footnotes. Really! It gives the tale a well researched feel, which, apparently, I quite like. Of course, the characters were wonderful, etc., but I wonder how often a writer is told their footnotes were spectacular? (Reply to this) (Thread)

	bethbethbeth 2008-12-05 11:13 pm UTC (link)
	Hee! Yours being an anonymous comment, you'll probably never see my response, but I'm actually quite pleased you liked the footnotes! I've spent time in Woodstock, but nowhere near as much as this story required, so yes, the footnotes did actually reflect my research. :) (And I'm really glad you liked the rest of the story, too G) (Reply to this) (Parent)

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