Yay! Update! Thank goodness they finally escaped!

Author's Response: For now! >:)

This chapter is one of the creepiest chapters I've ever read in fiction or fandom - in a very good way. I have chills and gooseflesh and I feel all of Ginny's horror.

This chapter reminded me of scenes of old mental hospitals - the patient protesting their sanity and no one believing it or not knowing why they are there. I don't know if you watch Orange is the new Black, but the opening scene of this chapter reminded me very much of Pennsatucky in the mental ward, held down and drugged.

Anyway, brilliant work and I can't wait to get home this afternoon to read the other chapters. Stupid work getting in the way of reading d/g.

Author's Response: Thank you so much! I was definitely inspired by those kinds of situations. The stories of women being institutionalized for depression, sexual arousal, etc. being perfectly normal human beings, you know, have always made me shuddery. The Yellow Wallpaper by Charlotte Perkins Gilman still haunts me years after I first read it. But in this case, Ginny isn't the only one institutionalized. Draco is there for company, and his guess is just as good as hers as to why they are there. So even though she's not alone, she's still in a heap of trouble. And, yes, I do watch OitNB! Pensnsatucky is an awful, awful woman, but you just can't help but feel horrified for what she went through. And then to realize that this probably happens more often than we think in real life, not just in prisons, but in hospitals, in abusive homes... It's a scary thought.

So I'm really glad you thought this chapter was creepy, because I really wanted it to be!

Whoa some of my review got eaten up o.O haha. Well what I said was great bonding moments throughout this chapter :) I especially like that last sentence!

Author's Response: I'm glad you enjoyed the chapter! Thanks so much for leaving a review (or two ;D)!

:( Man, that last part of this chapter seemed pretty grim. Great update though!

Author's Response: Thank you!! I hope chapter six makes up for the grimness of five, and I wish I could say it will be smooth sailing from this point forward... ;)

Oh no, you can't just leave it there. Great chapter by the way. What a wonderful treat. Thanks!

Author's Response: You are very welcome! Thank you so much for reviewing! And don't worry, I won't leave it here for long. I'll be updating again this upcoming week!

Wow! Thanks for this amazing chapter. I loved the more in-depth character development.

Author's Response: Yay! I'm glad! That was definitely one of my goals when writing his story, to explore how D and G were affected after the war, what the consequences were and how they finally overcame their suffering. I'm glad you're enjoying that aspect of the story! Thank you for reading and reviewing!

Great, great chapter! The D/G interaction is just great-- both of their characters are really shown by the actions they take surrounding the wand. Ginny's brave stance; Draco's manipulation, her wild threats, and then the fact that those are enough to scare him into taking her with him. Or does he have other motives? As so often happens with Draco, we really don't know. This is fun to read, and yet there's always a disturbing undercurrent, which is part of what makes it work. They REALLY don't have very good therapeutic technique on that ward. :P But I think that might be the point. Anyway, it's taken me a while to R and R, but I'll move on to the next chapter soon! :)

Author's Response: Thanks so much, Anise! n_n

"In the dark or invisible, he could exist without being beleaguered by anyone else's opinion of him, but now he had to sit in this tiny closet with nothing to look at except the "-present scowl on her face. And just as she was the cause of his headache, Draco knew that he was the cause of her scowl."

The above blew me away. Right there you sum up Draco's character. You've just told me everything I need to know about him and what he cares about most. You did it without beating a horse to death. This is something that can be really hard for a lot of people, and you pulled it off flawlessly, doll!

I love that Draco feels the need to reach out to her, and that Ginny feels comfortable confiding in Draco. They are slowly opening up to each other. It's cute! Even if they were stuck in a closet. I also think it's realistic; how Ginny was treated after the war and how she felt about said treatment. Wars aren't easy, and people do get overlooked.

Honestly I could gush about this story for days. You've come a good, long way as a writer. I'm anxiously awaiting the next chapter. If this has any typos, please forgive me, as i had a seizure earlier, but I wanted to read and review this so badly!

Author's Response: Yes, yes, yes, all the yes. I always wanted to write an epic (relatively speaking) post-war fic that really digs into my headcanon of what could have happened after the war. Everyone handles their trauma in different ways, and it's possible that in the wake of Fred's death, what Ginny went through (which really was horrific for a sixteen year old girl to go through) could have been forgotten. And, Draco, who always loved the spotlight at Hogwarts, maybe he would have shied away from it after the war, when people were filled with pain and hate and wanted to take it out on someone. Would the Malfoys have been deserving of any hate they received? Probably yes. But Draco, too, was only a kid, manipulated into doing this terrible thing to save the lives of himself AND his parents. No one would know or care about that, and they'd try to verbally abuse him anyway, and that's gotta stick somewhere in a man. That Draco and Ginny end up being opposites of each other was a happy accident while writing, but I love the parallel. One hiding from attention, the other craving some. Different ways of handling grief.

Thank you so, so much for the lovely review! I hope you're feeling better after your seizure. D:

Ahhh another awesome chapter! I'm glad they're starting to work together now, though haphazardly. I'm also enjoying their bickering -- I really like your Draco and Ginny :) (hehehe that sexual tension. Hopefully we'll soon see how this affects Draco from his POV?) Can't wait until the next chapter!

Author's Response: Yes! The POVs are going to alternate each chapter between Draco and Ginny. So glad you enjoyed this chapter! n_n

Another great chapter!! What a great idea-- Draco teaching Ginny Occlumency. I'm not sure I've ever seen that before. And what he finds is so interesting... she's not exactly doing it, and yet he can't get into her mind. I wonder if she really is controlling it in any way and just isn't letting him know... if she suspects something about why it's happening, but isn't sure... or if she really doesn't know what's going on at all.

And they finally figured out where they were! You know, I don't think they're using great therapeutic technique in that ward. :P (Hint: TALK to the patients.) Can't wait for the next chapter!

Author's Response: Yes, I can safely say without spoiling anything that these Healers are not the most professional or skilled at their job... which is all the more frustrating for Draco and Ginny, of course. :) I should have a new chapter up today or tomorrow!

LOVE!!!!
I've really fallen behind on reviews because of the NaNo thing... 42,000 WORDS. o.O. Little things like sanity are naturally going to fall by the wayside.

This is such a magnificently mysterious beginning. Very Kafka-esque. They can't figure out where they are, why they're there, what they're supposed to be doing, what they did that landed them there, or anything else-- until the end, when they show some initiative. You really do capture the complete unbalanced-ness of it all. Looking forward to more!

Author's Response: Thank you!! I'm glad you like it! :D

That was more than an interesting start! Thanks!

Author's Response: You're welcome! Thank YOU so much for reading and reviewing! n_n