VIII. The miracle of Azkaban
What the Daily Prophet coined as “the miracle of Azkaban” is regarded by experts as the most amazing feat of wandless, wordless magic of all times. It is also widely considered the most profound tribute to those who suffered and died during the war against Voldemort.
When Azkaban finally closed as a prison in 2147, public interest led the Ministry to attempt to find the cells in which Severus and Hermione Snape spent the eleven years of their incarceration. While the exact position of Severus Snape’s cell remains a secret, Hermione Snape’s cell could be located—because it held a shocking surprise.
Engraved in the 91 squares of one cell’s floor, the Ministry discovered the list of names Hermione Snape thought she had kept only in her mind.
While she correctly remembered that her frequent caresses had smoothed the tile where she put Severus Snape’s name, she was—no doubt due to the fragile mental state caused by the long years of her imprisonment—never aware of what she had really done.
In a spectacular feat of wandless, wordless magic she carved the names of those she assumed dead into the squares of her cell-floor. Four additional names could be found chiselled into the corners of the room.
All names Hermione Snape mentioned in her probationary diary were found exactly in the square she described.
Something bothered me about the two lists of names, and it took me a while to figure it out. Minerva McGonagall’s name is not on Hermione’s first list of the fallen. There are 95 names listed, but none of them is Minerva’s. With hers on the list there would have been 96.
Please forgive me. I am cursed with an analytical and technical mind. *shakes head* Not good for much else, I afraid. LOL!
Beth
Of course it’s rather sad that you have nothing at all to say besides a rather minor nitpick. However, I am naturally grateful that you pointed this tiny glitch out to me, and I’ve been happy to correct it.
I’m so sorry that I came across as such an asshat. That was never my intention. I have inhaled this story in the last couple of weeks (first on TPP and then finished on OWL today), and I left what I hope were intelligent comments for each chapter.
There were such tantilizing hints in each chapter that kept me going from one to the next, and I love trying to connect all the dots. I am an analytical person by nature and by training, and I let that side of me take over when I came here to see the lists. I had read some of the comments that other readers had made about the Editor’s Notes on OWL, and was interested in combing through the data to see if I would recognize any of the characters missing from Hermione’s first list. I felt like Hemione with her counting.
You are one of my favorite writers, and Prisoners of Azkaban is one of the most compelling and uniquely constructed stories I’ve ever read. I got carried away with my “dot connecting”, and I apologize for my comment here. I feel terrible about this and hope you will accept my apology. I am humbly sorry.
Beth
aka beffeysue
It’s okay, no worries. *hugs* In a way, I’m really thrilled you paid such close attention! I mean, in more than a year (!) of having the story posted here, you’re the first person who noticed! I just had this moment of disappointment when I thought “Wow, someone came all the way to my website for the story, wonder how they liked it” … and then it was only about the missing name. 🙁
I still have to get caught up on replying to comments on the other sites, and I have to admit it’s very difficult for me to keep all names and addies straight between FFNet, OWL, TPP, AO3, and my own site at all times. I guess for you it felt like just one of ALL the comments you left. While for me, I’m sorry to say, it just didn’t connect with all the other comments. Lately I’ve been having an awful time with keeping even the people I interact with more regularly with straight, what with most people having different names on Buzz than on LiveJournal or the archives. I hope that explains my reaction a bit.
And I’m so glad that the counting didn’t put you off. When I set out writing, I wasn’t sure if that “tick” I chose for Hermione wouldn’t drive people crazy. I have to admit, during the writing process, there were times when I felt it was driving me round the bend. (But I promise I never started counting squares.)
Thank you again for reading and noticing my mistake; if you look at the list again, you’ll find the name where it belongs!
Thank you for being understanding, and forgiving the “ticks” we analytical types are apt to have.
I read this story over at least once a year at FanFiction.net, and this time I decided to check out the CSS3 version on your site – I loved it! All the extra little details that you just don’t get over at FF really contribute so much to the story, and the amount of time and attention to detail you’ve put into this is mind-blowing. I’ve always been a big fan of your work, but this story will always be truly outstanding to me.
Wow, thank you! I’m thrilled you enjoyed the story, and it’s really the best compliment a writer can get if a reader comes back to re-read. *beams* And I’m really really happy that you’re also enjoying the web design. Hooray!