Thank you so much for the kind words. I'm thrilled you liked it. That aspect of canon has honestly bothered me since I first read OotP and reading JKR's flippant comments about it since then has only made it worse. (She seems to think that Marietta completely deserved what she got -- and said outright the scars were permanent because she (JKR) "hates a sneak!"). To me, given the circumstances and the situation, there ought to be more to it than just black or white. *sigh*
It was a fun challenge to find a way to make Goyle (who is definitely Not A Nice Guy in canon) likeable and more understandable. Thanks! :)