Oh, this is a wonderful comment. You touch on so many of the things I wanted to convey, and you're absolutely right about my desire to make this as visceral as possible. You don't know what a relief it is to hear that the descriptions aren't overdone, because of course that's the danger run by this kind of writing. But I wanted to keep the emotional pitch high. And Ron! Very few people have mentioned Ron, but his death really is the final blow to Harry's childhood. The Trio is no more. But when the household dissolves and people start moving on, that's when it becomes possible for Harry to turn to Snape - partly because Snape can't leave him.
And yeah, if I'd had a little more time, I would have focused more on Snape's sacrifice. Because that's the turning point. It's an extraordinary thing for him to do, and I'm not sure I did it justice. That is, I don't think I conveyed exactly what it means for him.
In any case, thank you so much for reading this gigantic fic. You've reassured me that I've succeeded in some of the things I set out to do. What a lovely and heartfelt comment.