Re: Oops . . too long
What I failed to do with the Cruciatus scene, at least for my own purposes, was to emphasize that Snape's power to cast it arose from his deep, canon-specific capacity for hatred. Because surely a good deal of his magic, and the reason it skews Dark, owes its power to his passionate nature, both good and bad. I think he'd be a consummate destroyer. What I lost in that scene, because I couldn't get it right and I was waaaaaaaay past deadline so I cut it, was Lily choosing Snape over Ginny partly because of that destructive streak. Recognizing it, responding to it, and deciding Harry needed that, as much as he needed everything else Snape could give him.
Anyway, thank you again for reading and for the lavish, wonderful comments. I've always been skeptical of canon!Lily, and I knew from the start that this would be a difficult story to write. It was intended for a Snarry fest, yet the motivation for the story was the chance to bring Lily alive and set her in judgement of, and in harmony with, her betrayer and her son. The boy who had once been hers, together with the child who had once been hers.
Of course, now she has Tom. ;)
I'm delighted that you enjoyed the fic and my version of Lily, and I absolutely rejoice in the fact that you're one of my readers.