Anise [Contact]

Real name: It's a big secret, especially when employers can search for your real name on the net...
Registered: Jun 04, 2004
Membership status: Administrator

I am now the new site admin! Yay! Lots of exciting stuff coming very soon. :) Podcasts... challenges... Youtube videos... author interviews... a new linked forum for fanfic authors moving in ofic... lots and lots of stuff. :)
Reviews by Anise

A Fortunate Accident by cherryredxx    (Reviews - 179)

This is the story of what happens when husbands give their wives a hard time.
Category: Long and Completed
Rating: Definitely Naughty
Characters: Draco Malfoy, Ginny Weasley, Harry Potter, Other Characters
Compliant with: Fully compliant
Era: Post-Hogwarts
Genres: Drama, Humor, Romance
Warnings: None
Completed: Yes
Series: None
Table of Contents

Chapters: 12 | Word count: 29732 | Read count: 20598 | Published: Feb 13, 2012 | Updated: Jun 16, 2012
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Reviewer: Anise Signed
Date: Jun 17, 2012 Title: Chapter 12: Epilogue

Epilogue, yay! Sad to see it end, but it was a really, really good end, and I think it was very realistic given who your characters were. It just wouldn't have been natural or right to have Ginny and Draco get together right away. HOWEVER, I hope that he ends up accepting more of his role in the original fiasco, because he wasn't blameless. I do see this as likely to happen after the epilogue. So... hope to see more from you, as always! :)

Author's Response: Thank you so much, and I'm glad you liked how I ended the story. I definitely agree that Draco was in no way blameles in this, and I think he'd be a lot different after getting Ginny back. But anyway, I've got a few story ideas that I've already started to run with that I'm going to begin posting very, very soon! Thanks for reviewing!

Reviewer: Anise Signed
Date: May 07, 2012 Title: Chapter 9: Insults and Allies

Draco's fond of the word "harpy", isn't he? ;)

I don't think I'm as inclined to put all the blame on either Ginny and Astoria as some have been. Maybe both Draco and Harry should have realized in the first place that they weren't really marrying for the right reasons. And as Draco said, he could have seen much more about what was going on if he wanted to. (I suspect that Harry could have done this too.) Still, it's a mess! I look forward to seeing how you're going to resolve it... or not... or whatever ends up happening.

Author's Response: Yes, yes he does like that word. Okay, so maybe that's self-insertion. I love that word, haha. :P

THANK YOU! What a lot of people aren't getting here is that this problem existed long before they ever made the switch, and the fact that Draco and Harry both ignored the obvious signs of their wives acting is also on them. They chose not to, and all four of them let their situations get out of control. Thanks so much for your review and for seeing it from the other side. :)

Of Sleepy Redheads and Twirling Moustaches by Boogum    (Reviews - 5)

All Ginny wanted was to get her paperwork finished ... so what does Draco Malfoy's perfectly formed arse have to do with it? Written for the DG Forum's Fall 2011 Fic Exchange.
Category: Completed Short Stories
Rating: Sorta Naughty
Characters: Draco Malfoy, Ginny Weasley
Compliant with: All but epilogue
Era: Post-Hogwarts
Genres: Humor, Romance
Warnings: None
Completed: Yes
Series: None
Table of Contents

Chapters: 1 | Word count: 6284 | Read count: 2141 | Published: Feb 18, 2012 | Updated: Feb 21, 2012
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Reviewer: Anise Signed
Date: Feb 22, 2012 Title: Chapter 1: Of Sleepy Redheads and Twirling Moustaches

Yay!! (loves fic) I've been very very very uninspired lately. I think I actually got some ideas from this. (Poor Ginny. I hope she gets some sleep, eventually. WHAT made you think of the mustache?? I sincerely hope that she gets revenge on Seamus.) BTW, a reviewer on ff.net said that you'd told them about DDD... very muchly appreciated. :)

Author's Response: Oo, an Anise review. My favourite. ^_^

I really need to catch up on your stories. I'm so, so behind on everything, but I shall get round to it! (that has become my motto of late - you'd think having no job would mean I have more time to read, but somehow I never end up doing it now. Strange). Anyway, I'm glad my little story was able to inspire you. I know I was feeling very uninspired and grumpy about writing this back in October (I was going through some major health issues, so I ended up channelling a lot of my own frustration into poor Ginny), but I actually like how this turned out. I have no idea where the moustache came from. I just thought of blind date with a dumb marketing man and then suddenly the image of turning up with a moustache drawn on her face popped into my head. Poor girl really does suffer in my fics.

I recommended DDD at The DG Forum a while back with much praise and exclamation points, so I'm not surprised people are telling you I've been directing them to your fic. So they should, too. It's about time people develop some taste and read and review the fics that actually deserve it instead of raving about rubbishy fics with rubbishy, cliche plots.

Rolling In The Deep by Rinney    (Reviews - 24)

In order to help end the war after Dumbledore's death, Draco Malfoy is sold out to the Ministry and the public by his love and Secret Keeper, Ginny Weasley. Now, ten years later since the incident, he is a new man; successful and true but with a cold heart. Meanwhile, Ginny suffers for betraying her one and true love with a vicious curse that afflicts both parties. In order to return their lives back to normal, Ginny pulls some desperate moves while trying to maintain her sanity. *song-fic*
Category: Long and Completed
Rating: Definitely Naughty
Characters: Draco Malfoy, Ginny Weasley, Other Characters
Compliant with: Fully compliant
Era: Future AU, Past AU
Genres: Action, Angst, Drama, Mystery, Romance
Warnings: Character Death
Completed: Yes
Series: None
Table of Contents

Chapters: 8 | Word count: 25601 | Read count: 5370 | Published: Feb 25, 2012 | Updated: Mar 23, 2012
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Reviewer: Anise Signed
Date: Mar 24, 2012 Title: Chapter 8: Epilogue.

The companion fic is a one-shot following the events after the last chapter. Okay, I have to admit that I haven't heard the song. But there's something about the question of what happened *after* the inevitable that really fascinated me. It occurred to me that we may not be at the end of the "inevitable" part (can't tell you what it was in the fic that tipped me off-- that would kind of give it away!) But then I also wondered what Draco's choices might be in relation to it, and how to keep that in character with the total basket case he was by the end. So that's where the fic came from. (A SHORT fic. REALLY. Glares at the plot bunny. It's almost Easter... you really can't trust them... ;)

Author's Response: Woot well, definitely can't wait to read it! Post it up as soon as your plot bunny lets you. And trust me, I understand completely what you mean, haha ;D!

Reviewer: Anise Signed
Date: Mar 23, 2012 Title: Chapter 8: Epilogue.

Okay, I have a confession: because I'm a mod, I was able to read the epilogue while it was still in the story queue,and temptation struck, so I did. (Sob!) I feel so much better now... :)

But I really couldn't resist. And I'm glad I did it. GLAD, I tell you! So much to say about this fic; I hope it all will make sense... I don't think that this was necessarily the *only* way that it could have ended. But I do think that it was the way that was the most true to the characters of Draco and Ginny here, the choices that they both made, the events in their past, and the way that those events had trapped everyone.

In the beginning, especially, I think that things *might* have turned out differently.But their choices drew both Draco and Ginny further and further towards this ending. She might have found a way of letting go, but she didn't (she never actually explored other options for taking off the curse, did she?) Between the two, though, Draco was much more at fault, and the longer that the narrative went on, the clearer this became. It's as if he dug a deeper and deeper pit for himself throughout the entire fic, but in the last chapter-- and this was the touch I really liked-- we see that his true turning point had already happened a long time ago.

The key, I think, *is* that scene-- the one where Ginny desperately pleads with Draco to stay with her rather than to continue on to the task given to him by Voldemort, and he just doesn't do it. In a way, he really couldn't have done it, which I think is a big part of the reason why this fic has such complexity. Part of the choice was never even in his hands; I don't think that this Draco ever really could have come back completely from what Voldy forced him to do, no matter what. And I don't think that Ginny's inability to love others came entirely from that curse-- Harry has a huge share of responsibility for that.

So there's something genuinely Greek-tragedy-esque about the ending. Maybe it was appointed to be, and really couldn't have been avoided.

Anyway, after all that rambling... ;)

(ahem)

I just could not help wondering what happened to Draco and Ginny afterwards. Inspiration struck. I outlined a short companion fic. Would you like to see it? I'll flesh it out, if so.

Author's Response:
Whoa, I would love to see it, of course! I'm honored the fic gave you the inspiration to make a companion fic to go along with this one. Will it be multi-chapter? Or a one-shot to follow the events chronicling this decision? Would it show a possible different path that could have been made if Ginny tried a different option to take off the curse? There are many ways it could have been done, true. I tried my best to honestly follow the lyrics to a T with the interpretation of the song and how it goes along with the story at a whole. It seemed that the song did not open any options for true redemption at the end.

Draco, the one who was betrayed and thus the technical "singer", never had any true intentions on forgiving Ginny in the first place by any normal means. He was deeply gone the moment she betrayed him/cast the curse. Ginny, the betrayer and the reason for the song, is pretty much forced to go through Draco's pain of how he feels after the entire ordeal. "Rolling in the Deep" is pretty much what I'd imagine to be a metaphor for going through some intense pain/psychological tribulation due to one person horribly wounding the other, and the other person being unable to forgive and forget so they make them suffer. You're right though, Anise. This was not the only way it could have ended, and Ginny could have done a lot more to assist and eventually help heal, yet since the song didn't appear to open any options to me for that path, we end up with the Greek-tragedy in the end where they were doomed the moment Draco felt betrayed. For the curse, most of it appeared targeted on Harry due to his responsibility for breaking them apart in the first place. Its like, apathy to her family and her sons. HATRED FOR HARRY. If you can understand what I mean =)

So I'm really excited to seeing your companion fic! Email, post it up on the site, anyway would be awesome. I thank you for reading, Anise ^^!

Reviewer: Anise Signed
Date: Mar 20, 2012 Title: Chapter 7: The Song Is Ending. . .

!! They're both so... SO... nuts. Wow. This is one of those fics where... there really could be a very unhappy ending, with no redemption for anyone, and it would make sense. That kind of resolution would fit what has happened between Draco and Ginny up to this point. Um, I didn't mean that I actually wanted to see this kind of ending, or that I'm predicting it, btw. ;)

There's something so very dark in Draco, as if he really could push her over the edge into the kind of insanity he feels-- and glory in it at that moment, even though it would probably kill him later on if she never recovered. He's really not sane here in some very real way. That's kind of what I mean by the miserable!ending seeming so realistically possible.) The curse he cast on her has rebounded on him to an extent that he never could have foreseen, and they've both suffered so much. (Although I do kind of want to see her smack him by now. ;) The way this could all end up... I really don't know exactly what to expect. I think that they'll both always bear the scars. IMHO, it's a lot more intriguing than yet another happy-family fic.

Author's Response: You're on a roll, Anise. Not all fics have happy endings, my dear. This is definitely one of the lessons I've learned in my years of writing/reading fandom and fanon of all sorts of series. As much as I'd love for them to have a wonderful ending. . .well, I don't want to give anything away. ;) Thanks for reading, and I hope you're enjoying!

Reviewer: Anise Signed
Date: Mar 14, 2012 Title: Chapter 5: Chorus

Okay, this fic officially needs more reviews. (peers around) WHERE ARE THEY? Ahem. Anyway.

There's something disturbing and disturbed about your Ginny-- perfectly so for your story, I think. There aren't many Ginnys (Ginnies?) who would participate in a foursome with Draco, especially involving very unsympathetic Greengrass sisters, but this one both would and does. What makes it work is that it's not about the sex; it's all part of this downward spiral she's been sucked into. (I'm very annoyed by that Healer, btw. Hasn't she ever read the NASW Code of Ethics?? Um.. I guess not.)

I have a feeling that it's not going to be easy for Ginny to get out of it, but this is where I could definitely see her after being trapped in a marriage with Harry for this length of time. It's all taken its toll on Draco, too. So I look forward to seeing how you're going to get these damaged two together... ;)

Author's Response: Thanks, Anise! Who knows where those pesky reviews are >=O! Its okay though, I see the read count and I'm glad its being looked at. =) Damaged!Ginny just works perfectly for this story. I can't explain how many times my mind has tossed around with this concept and attempting to put her and Draco in happier situations, but sadly, the song doesn't call for it. The sex had nothing to do with Ginny's mindset at the moment - it was shocking how she felt more doing that piece of debauchery than the ten years she was married to Harry and had her children. I'm sure you got that though. As for Colleen, let's just say she's more driven by greed than any Code. XD We all know that doctor that prides themselves on working with celebrities rather than doing any good job. This story's really fun to write, and I'm glad you're enjoying it!

Reviewer: Anise Signed
Date: Mar 18, 2012 Title: Chapter 6: Decrescendo.

Really, this is one of my favorites Ginnys. (Or Ginnies. Or Ginnae. ;) You've certainly taken that Draco-comes-to-the-Burrow-to-meet-the-Weasleys scenario and turned it inside out. The sense of danger in that scene between him and Ginny is so palpable; he's tearing her away from her normal life, bit by bit, and it can't end any other way. Where it goes to from here is the question... but we'll find out soon, hopefully!

Author's Response: Yes, you shall find out soon, my dear! At this point, we see that Ginny's on a wild train heading for Wreckville and Draco's the conductor. XD All we can do is hold our breaths and wait for the eventual crash. As for the Weasley scene, nothing says "Eff your normal life" than interrupting a family dinner, nearly hexing your husband in front of your children, molesting you next to your infant son, and kidnapping you! <3 Got to love damaged!Ginny and Draco. Please continue to enjoy!

The One You Never Knew by SunnyStorms    (Reviews - 60)

Who you are, whom you love, and where your loyalties lie - Ginny Weasley had never thought all of that could change as a result of a single night. Her postponed wedding to Harry Potter in the aftermath of a mysterious Death Eater prison break was supposed to be a mere set back to the life she'd always dreamed of. But driven by anger and pride, she makes a fateful decision that will upend her entire life.
Category: Works in Progress
Rating: Definitely Naughty
Characters: Draco Malfoy, Ginny Weasley, Harry Potter, Other Characters
Compliant with: All but epilogue
Era: Post-Hogwarts
Genres: Action, Drama, Romance
Warnings: Blood, Character Death, Graphic Violence
Completed: No
Series: None
Table of Contents

Chapters: 11 | Word count: 45511 | Read count: 6840 | Published: Feb 28, 2012 | Updated: Jun 28, 2013
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Reviewer: Anise Signed
Date: Oct 09, 2012 Title: Chapter 8: Chapter 8: A Storm's Eye View

Great chapter! And it sounds like there are more coming soon, which can only be good.

What intrigues me most here is that Draco constantly drops hints about all the things that Ginny doesn't know. I'm not surprised at her inability to figure them out or even wonder about them as much or as effectively as she usually might... she doesn't have much choice but to trust him as much as she can, and it's not a very good time to think deeply about anything. But I have to admit, I think I agree with her when she muses on her tendency to trust people too readily. Draco clearly has other motives, and apparently we're going to find out more about them. Soon, hopefully! :)

Author's Response: Trust is definitely the name of the game for Draco and Ginny, especially in this story. Thank you for the review!

Reviewer: Anise Signed
Date: Nov 17, 2012 Title: Chapter 9: Chapter 9: Bad News

Ah, that's right! He never did know who she was. He may find out rather quickly after that last revelation, though. It kind of makes me wonder if the fact that the Aurors were able to find him had anything to do with Ginny's presence. And I don't know if he's going to turn out to be exactly innocent of those charges against him, either...

You're handling the action/adventure components very well-- they're a treat to read. Overall, hoping for more soon! :)

Author's Response: Really glad to hear that I'm handling the action components well as this is probably the most action I've written in a single story. I'll get a lot of practice for it in this story, that's for sure. As to your speculations, all will be revealed in time...

Reviewer: Anise Signed
Date: May 09, 2012 Title: Chapter 5: Chapter 5: Broken Things

GREAT fic! (Yes, I've been following and not reviewing yet and... um... that means I'm going to Readers-Who-Don't Review Hell. Not a fun place. But I did finally review, so maybe I could be upgraded to purgatory.. ;) Anyway. A VERY action-packed chapter; I kept picturing it as a film. Draco and Ginny are bonded by their mutual need to survive, but I can understand why she'd seriously believe that he might not come back for her. In the context of what she's already seen and heard from him, it makes sense. But he'll come through, right? ...RIGHT???

Author's Response: Upgrade granted. :) I'm so happy to hear you're enjoying the story. As for what will happen, you'll have to read on to find out. ;)

Reviewer: Anise Signed
Date: Mar 19, 2013 Title: Chapter 10: Chapter 10: A Desperate Gamble

A break from finishing the book!!! (well, the first finished version, let's just say...)

Great chapter! You really ramp up the suspense with Ginny. Her courage is brought out so well, but also the stubborn shooting-herself-in-the-foot quality that is so believable for her. God only knows how it's going to turn out. This particular edition of "let me explain" does not look like it will go well. Worried about Draco, too... but hopefully, there will be more soon! :)

Author's Response: Yay! Congrats on the completion of the first draft. Courage plus "stubborn shooting-herself-in-the-foot quality" is definitely very Ginny. Next chapter won't be too long unless the beta gets busy too. Thank you for the review!

The Secret Desire of Pansy Parkinson by Rinney    (Reviews - 14)

Fate decides that best friends Pansy Parkinson and Draco Malfoy are perfect for each other. With the influence of a dark Adonis and a red-haired temptation, free will pushes them to other thoughts and actions, but it is much too late. When two unwilling beings are magically bound, nothing remains private.
Category: Long and Completed
Rating: Extremely Naughty
Characters: Blaise Zabini (boy), Draco Malfoy, Ginny Weasley, Pansy Parkinson
Compliant with: None
Era: Hogwarts-era
Genres: Angst, Drama, Smut
Warnings: Non-consensual sex, Slash
Completed: Yes
Series: None
Table of Contents

Chapters: 1 | Word count: 10451 | Read count: 1596 | Published: Mar 20, 2012 | Updated: Mar 25, 2012
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Reviewer: Anise Signed
Date: Mar 26, 2012 Title: Chapter 1: [Union]

Okay, here's an actual review! :)

Wow! Well, this clearly had a lot of smut, not that I've ever been against that anyway, but I really do think that it was smut with a purpose and a direction. I don't know if this is what everyone else got out of it, but for me, the overwhelming theme of this fic is a real and terrible sadness, and that is where the smut leads. Desire is a dark, dark force here. Draco loses Pansy as his friend (and vice versa), Pansy loses Blaise, Draco loses Ginny as a soulmate... and finally, I think that the three main characters in question are going to end up being destroyed after the ending. Draco can't share Ginny, and Pansy never, ever would have wanted to desire her this way. Ginny's final look of "intrigue" is fascinating, because I could see her becoming the more manipulative one in the relationship, but I think that it would ultimately mean the end of her love for Draco now that she understands what he can really be.

Again, this makes me think of a Greek tragedy-- where people are doomed not only by circumstances, but also by their characters. I kept giving advice along the lines of "Why don't any of you try to find out if there's a way of breaking this!!! Aren't you supposed to be WIZARDS?? Why don't you at least TRY???" (Um... yes... I know that they can't hear you in an online fic... ;) But it's as if all of them reach a point where they're so mesmerized by the oncoming tragedy that they can't really alter it.

So basically, this is one of those really disturbing fics that I'll never get out of my head now! ;) But THAT being said, I think that you write characters who are true to themselves, which is the key. For instance... there was once a fic about which I will give absolutely no identifying details at all, except to say that it was several years ago and I haven't even seen the author in the fandom in forever. It was a very good fic. A lot of people liked it. But it disturbed me deeply, and here's why: In it, Draco found out that Ginny betrayed him, and he wasn't interested in understanding the reasons why. He was a totally evil bastard who kind of destroyed her. HOWEVER, everything suddenly turned all cute and kissy and fluffy, so it was all right. Bunnies and rainbows, the end. Now, that's disturbing. This Draco, OTOH, wasn't going to be redeemed, but he (and we) didn't get an artificial happy ending despite that fact. There was really no way that these characters could have had a happy ending, and this fic doesn't shy away from that. So, kudos to you! (And the next one's going to be fluffy... right? ;)

Author's Response: Yes, its about time that my characters have a little fluff in their lives! XD I can promise you the next D/G that is going into the queue is going to have nowhere near the mature, dark intensity of my other fics. Now that I said that, I -loved- your review and here's why. I am glad that you saw how desire worked within this fic -- a powerful, pulling force that compels people to do things outside of normal, acceptable circumstances or events outside of their control[Union]. If there never was a desire for Ginny, the Slytherins would continue their lives as normal. I'm biting my lip trying to avoid writing any follow-ups to this one-shot due to your interpretation of Ginny towards the end, which was almost hit-mark for what I was trying to portray: By the outcome of the circumstances, I definitely foresaw the "Slytherin" side of Ginny come out and become manipulative due to her power over Pansy and Draco. Its the nobility within her that keeps her the 'good' one in the unfortunate circle, but I wanted to show that she was slowly changing the closer and closer Pansy and Draco were to be wedded. I don't like giving 'false happy endings' in order to satisfy people's beliefs of fandom, where everything should be happy and fluffy and end with a wonderful conclusion. My sort of 'Happy endings' are always a bit warped; I'd like to show that Draco and Ginny remain together in the end, which is what everyone wants anyway, but whatever circumstances they've face leaves an impression. If they're in happier circumstances, then yes, the story is going to involve that. Darker circumstances leaves behind morality stains and questionable characters that can't simply be redeemable right at the 'end' of the fic. In this case, Ginny and Draco are selfish enough to cling to each other out of their love, and Pansy refuses to let her part in it be ignored. We're left with the hint that their lives together are going to be very, very destructive. I like to think that the choices the characters make in the fic definitely lead to the outcome of how it all ends, and none are ever ignored for the sake of rainbow endings. It doesn't mean there won't be happier stories, oh no! I do hope you'll enjoy the next one that I'll give -- lesser smut, lesser angst, more cheese and drama I'd like to think of it. And thanks so much for your reviews, Anise, you're one of my favorite authors!

Reviewer: Anise Signed
Date: Mar 25, 2012 Title: Chapter 1: [Union]

Ahem.

There WILL be an actual review of this fic soon.

Meanwhile... a palate-clearing exercise, for everyone's enjoyment.



“Happy, darling?” Draco asked Ginny as she snuggled in his arms before the crackling fireplace in the ski lodge in Cairngorm.

“Divinely,” she sighed, making a little moue of sheer pleasure as he pressed her more deeply into the bearskin rug. The results that followed were, beyond the slightest shadow of a doubt, inevitable—as well as being rated for all audiences, deeply meaningful, and as tender as a chicken breast beat for several hours by a mallet prior to a fussy recipe gleaned from the pages of *Mastering the Art of French Cooking.*

Afterwards, they made chocolate chip cookies and fed them to one another whilst calling each other by irritating pet names. Draco bundled Ginny up in a peach-colored ermine and told her that she looked like his very own sweet snow bunny, kissing her on the tip of her nose. She blushed becomingly. They frolicked in the snow, skated on a pond by moonlight, and then threw off their clothes with abandon and went skinny-dipping.

“There seems to have been a rather sudden break in the continuity of seasons,” mused Draco.

“Yes,” agreed Ginny, “but it does make this scene much sweeter, don’t you think?”

“Positively saccharine,” said Draco. “How much longer will this last?”

“We haven’t discussed our hopes and dreams by moonlight yet, you know," pointed out Ginny.

“Right,” said Draco, sighing.

They sat on a grassy knoll and did so rather hurriedly. Draco announced that he was utterly devoted to the cause of stamping out his latent evil tendencies, including alliance to Death Eaters, lingering fascination with Dark Spells, and lurking desires to participate in quite naughty activities with Ginny, some involving handcuffs.

“Are you quite sure that you really need to give up that last one, Draco?” Ginny asked wistfully.

“In the interests of strictly PG-rated activities, I’m afraid that I do,” he said. “What about you?”

“I’ve given up all ambition to do anything except bustle round a kitchen and care for our 2.5 children,” Ginny said, with a distinct lack of enthusiasm in her tones. “That’s the average number, you know.”

“I always wondered how that unlucky half child managed to get on,” said Draco.

“Are we done now?” she asked.

He glanced up at the clock, which read “half-past unbearable levels of fluff.” “I believe so.”

“Oh, thank all the gods!” Ginny gave a tremendous sigh of relief and immediately changed into a red leather bondage outfit.

“I rather like that one,” Draco said appreciatively. “Do you have the whip?”

“But of course,” said Ginny, brandishing a blacksnake number in highly suggestive fashion.

“That’ll do nicely,” said Draco, his voice cheerful. “I believe that we’re ready for the new Rinney fic now.”

Author's Response: Oh my God, you're wonderful XD!! Just pure wonderful! <3

Home and Heart by gidge_8    (Reviews - 68)

Sequel to "The Journey Home." Ginny has finally come to terms with her grief, but much of her life remains in turmoil as a new mystery beckons her back to the one place she doesn't want to be, in an effort to free her lover from his family's past mistakes.
Category: Works in Progress
Rating: Extremely Naughty
Characters: Harry Potter
Compliant with: All but epilogue
Era: Hogwarts-era
Genres: None
Warnings: None
Completed: No
Series: None
Table of Contents

Chapters: 8 | Word count: 36731 | Read count: 3347 | Published: Apr 14, 2012 | Updated: Nov 23, 2014
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Reviewer: Anise Signed
Date: Apr 17, 2012 Title: Chapter 1: Chapter 1 - Awakening

So much to like in this first chapter-- Ginny's poignant dream about Fred, her realization that she's becoming much more emotionally involved than she planned to become, Draco's overtures, and a smut scene. :) And about that initial state of no reviews-- I KNOW what you mean. Trust me. I too have had those thoughts: "676,567.pi readers and .000000001% of them are reviewing! There should be a LAW! People should be chained to their computers until they leave a detailed review!" But I don't think you could enforce it. ;)

Author's Response: hahaha. Gotta love the smut scene. :) I must say that writing smut has definitely been something that was very difficult for me to learn to write, and I totally need to know if it works. BTW - thank you so much for the feedback on my conjunction issues. Your explanation was just what I needed to understand it. I look back on my old work and realize that I've come a long way with grammar, and I'm always working to improve on that. :) Best of luck with the reviews! I remember there was one site that would give you "points" for reviews, and would charge you points to download new chapters. :) I kind of liked that.

Reviewer: Anise Signed
Date: Oct 21, 2014 Title: Chapter 1: Chapter 1 - Awakening

YAY!!!!!! Another chapter! I will review very very soon!!!!

Author's Response: My pleasure, my dear! Hugs!

Reviewer: Anise Signed
Date: Oct 28, 2014 Title: Chapter 5: Chapter 5 -Return

YAY!! Oh, I'm so glad this fic is being updated again. (I hope that "back for a bit" ends up being... a long bit, I guess. ;)

I just love this chapter! Your Ginny is such a great character, so subtly handled. She has a mix of emotions that feels very real. I'm going to have to go back and re-read *Journey Home* to see exactly where Draco and Ginny were left in relation to each other when the sequel starts out, but it's easy to see that her feelings are jumbled in a very understandable way. After being convinced for a long time that there was nothing positive to be said about Draco's personality, she adjusted her outlook pretty quickly. But the fact that so much of it was triggered by a physical attraction that overwhelmed them both... I think this necessarily means that she had to pull back a little bit. I don't think that either she or Draco really knew where they were in relation to each other by the time she unexpectedly decided to return to Hogwarts.

So this means that finding Draco as a teacher there does not have a predictable emotional outcome... I can see all the reasons why she'd be very unsettled. After leaving things so unfinished between them, she now knows that she's going to be seeing him all the time and can't express whatever it is that she really feels. So... this is such an interesting situation. I look forward to seeing where you take it! :)

Author's Response: My dear, you are always so thoughtful with your comments. I've struggled with Ginny's feelings with several upcoming scenes - and in part why this fic has taken so long. I love the concept of Ginny being very conflicted and it takes some searching into human insight and fallibility to really get the words right. In this case, she fell into this "relationship" out of a sense of loss and confusion in her life, and now she has to deal with the consequences. Part of me wants to play with that much more. The psychology of this pairing sparks a lot of potential depth - and it's been a great tool fro me as a writer to explore writing these emotions. Anyway, thank you for the lovely feedback.
Hugs
-G

Reviewer: Anise Signed
Date: Dec 03, 2014 Title: Chapter 6: Chapter 6 -Detention

YES! A REVIEW! You're not imagining it. Really. :) It's been pretty nuts lately... and actually, it still is, but I've been keeping this fic in the back of my mind.

Another great chapter! The dynamics are captured so well-- Harry's cluelessness in some ways, his shrewdness in others; Ginny's determination with more than a hint of rash behavior that could get everyone in trouble, and Draco's almost eerie control over himself in the kind of situation that could fall apart so easily.

I think that Ginny has kind of been avoiding much thinking about what would happen if Harry found out a few facts, but that does fit in with her reckless qualities, too. We really see it here:

Her jaw dropped. “You think I came here to be with Harry?”

He looked at her coldly. “Aren't you? One week ago you were telling me that he was pressuring you to come back to school and you were adamant about not even setting foot in this place. Apparently, he managed to change your mind.”

Draco saw what Ginny didn't, and I think a lot of it is that she really doesn't want to deal with even picturing what would happen if Harry found out exactly what was going on. I think a lot of what we see here is how young Ginny really is; even with everything she’s been through, she’s still very much a teenager. But in THAT case...

Okay, I don't do actual critique for many fics here. So if I do, it's a MAJOR compliment... this is such a great narrative. It can be seen as constructive critique, or, well, feel free to totally ignore it, too. ;)

You do have some great NC-17 scenes, both in this fic and in the previous one. But I feel like what happens between Draco and Ginny on a physical level is kind of floating by itself in outer space somewhere rather than being integrated into their interactions, both between each other and within themselves. In particular, I keep thinking this about Ginny. I'm never sure if she was a virgin when she and Draco first ended up in bed, but I would say that I think so. And in that case, I feel like we need to see more of how this decision affected her. , I do think that saving herself for Harry and then giving it up to Draco would be putting her in more turmoil than we see here. "How could I have done this, now I feel incredibly guilty, I never pictured Draco being my first instead of Harry, I've cheated him, well, Harry didn't have the right to expect that from me, NOW what do I do (I don't think they were using birth control either time??)", etc, etc, etc. I really think that what Ginny decided to do with Draco would be affecting her more on an internal level. I could buy this kind of reaction a lot more easily if she were an older and more experienced woman, although, to tell you the truth, I think we'd still be expecting more internal reactions from her. Sex between Draco and Ginny, I think, offers so many opportunities to show the fault lines in their relationships with others, to expose weaknesses and strengths in themselves, and to trigger a lot of self-reflection.

But, again... PLEASE remember that I almost never ever ever do critiques like this for fanfics, because so few of them really merit it. so this is a big compliment... ;) And all just IMHO; maybe some food for thought.

And believe me, a truly wonderful chapter. :)

Author's Response: Hi! And my apologies for being so late in acknowledging your wonderful and thoughtful feedback. It is very, very much appreciated. Sadly, my writing muse has abandoned me and I've diverted my attention to other things. At some point, I do hope to finish this story. It is outlined and roughly written, but I just can't seem to find motivation to work on it. As always, I do want you to know that you are appreciated and thank you again. I did start to incorporate some of your comments. Best and warmest wishes. -G

Reviewer: Anise Signed
Date: Nov 11, 2014 Title: Chapter 6: Chapter 6 -Detention

I WILL!!! write a review for this one. But it won't be until it drops off the "most recent" list, because I just realized that'll be tonight! But it will be here, so watch for it. :)

Of Heartaches and Handshakes by cherryredxx    (Reviews - 8)

Everything that had been left unsaid would be conveyed through the kiss. It would be their last.
Category: Long and Completed
Rating: Definitely Naughty
Characters: Draco Malfoy, Ginny Weasley, Other Characters
Compliant with: None
Era: None
Genres: Drama, Romance
Warnings: Character Death
Completed: Yes
Series: None
Table of Contents

Chapters: 5 | Word count: 7911 | Read count: 2094 | Published: May 13, 2012 | Updated: Jun 18, 2012
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Reviewer: Anise Signed
Date: Jun 25, 2012 Title: Chapter 5: Chapter 5

It took me forever to review, but I love this one. :) Poor Ginny, stuck with nothing but chocolate in the middle of nowhere. (Really... I can't have chocolate, and if somebody did that to me, I would NOT be happy.) But I think she got over it pretty quickly. I always write Lucius as the devil incarnate... sorry, I can't do it any other way and it always turns out like that... but I think that Draco did love his mother, and this is the reaction he would have to her death. And the last one was just cute. :)

Author's Response: Thanks for the review, lovely! I'm glad you enjoyed these. :)

Reviewer: Anise Signed
Date: Jun 08, 2012 Title: Chapter 4: Chapter 4

This was really funny, but I don't think I'd say that it was fluffy. No matter how happy the ending is, this Draco and Ginny have a lot... a LOT... to work out between them. Hopefully, they'll get there! :)

Author's Response: Anyone who disagrees that DG will always have issues should not be writing them, heh.

Reviewer: Anise Signed
Date: May 15, 2012 Title: Chapter 1: Chapter 1

You know what really struck me about this? Part 1 and Part 2 could be the beginning and end of the same story. I wonder if you meant it to read that way... As time went by, Draco could just not admit that he loved Ginny, so she ended up planning to marry someone else.

I think a big part of what makes D/G so compelling is that out of all of the Draco ships in existence (that aren't actually canon), it's the only one that feels realistic. I've read some very well-written D/H, D/Hr, etc., but it just never feels like a pairing that could actually happen, given who these characters are. The thing about D/G is that it always feels as if either would be a spectacular success or a horrendous failure. So these ficlets could be seen as the two halves of that failure, and as readers, we can feel exactly why it would turn out that way. More soon, I hope! :)

Author's Response: I actually did not intend for it to turn out that way; however, I am really glad that they do appear to go together. It does make sense now that I think about it.

I completely agree with you. They are the epitome of "opposites attract," and while that makes for an interesting relationship, it also makes for an explosive one. I can't imagine writing Draco with anyone else, to be honest, because it just wouldn't be that interesting. I'm glad you were able to feel that emotion between these two parts. I am going to submit the next chapter soon, though. I promise :)

Reviewer: Anise Signed
Date: May 20, 2012 Title: Chapter 2: Chapter 2

Oo, I love this chapter! Almost all D/G fights are written with a foregone conclusion-- they're going to make up and get back together. But this one doesn't read that way at all. We really don't know if their relationship can come back from this point. Will Draco ever be able to *show* Ginny that he respects her, rather than just saying it at a crucial point in a fight between them? Can he actually get his feelings out in a constructive way? It's impossible to say.

Author's Response: Thanks! A few people on FFNet criticised that the ending was so open, so I am really glad that you were able to appreciate that I left it that way.

Reviewer: Anise Signed
Date: Jun 03, 2012 Title: Chapter 3: Chapter 3

I loved this chapter... especially the memory involving kisses and broken noses! Intriguing, too, that you never reveal why Ginny is dying. Is it old age? Or is she much younger and did something happen? Does Draco feel guilty about it? What? It's left open, which allows the reader to imagine...

Author's Response: :) I decided on the backstory before writing this, but I decided not to include it because I thought it didn't matter to the story and for this challenge I was on a word limit! I will tell you, since you asked, that she was just very old. There was no guilt, but Draco just never thought that he was really good enough for her. Thanks, as always, for the lovely review!

Mirror, Mirror by cherryredxx    (Reviews - 19)

He touched a gentle hand to her cheek. “You, love, will never be sneakier than me.”
Category: Completed Short Stories
Rating: Not Naughty
Characters: Draco Malfoy, Ginny Weasley
Compliant with: None
Era: Post-Hogwarts
Genres: Humor, Romance
Warnings: None
Completed: Yes
Series: None
Table of Contents

Chapters: 1 | Word count: 1217 | Read count: 2405 | Published: May 22, 2012 | Updated: May 22, 2012
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Reviewer: Anise Signed
Date: May 26, 2012 Title: Chapter 1: Mirror, Mirror

I meant to review this fic earlier, but it's been a crazy week!

It's very cute and sweet. I LOVE Ginny's insecurities, and the D/G relationship is so tender. A great little fluff-fic! :)

Author's Response: Thanks so much for the review! :)