Once again your imagination and talent with words leave me speechless.
You spun a tale that had me on the end of my chair the entire time and I find the psychology of the characters simply stunning.
While the plot itself was great and the reason why Severus was punished absolutely believable, the Castle very much the child you described, it is still the characters that shine the brightest for me.
The way you described the changes and the mental pressure that each of them goes through is beyond words. The truth is I didn't even realise Harry was going through the stages of bad news - denial, anger, bargaining... - until you said it outright and then I went back, followed his behavior and it was all there, but I had somehow missed it. It had clicked as right, as the thing that would happen under the circumstances, but I hadn't seen it for what it was. I wonder if this makes me an idiot or you brilliant for managing to make something out of a textbook so real and unique and specific to Harry.
I loved every single minute of this story as much as I suffered it. This was not a light read that one can just go through, smile and then leave undisturbed. I fear that I'll need a few days before I'm able to read another fic and be able to actually drown in it, no matter how good what comes next is. And that is what makes your fic stand out even more.
Thank you for the ride. It was worth every word and every second.