I understand how you feel, but don't forget that Severus is Harry's father in this story, not James, so Harry's appearance was a lie.   Harry's eyes only very slightly changed from before, they are still bascially a replica of Lily's. I wanted Harry to still have something of Lily. 

As far as Severus' feelings towards James goes, don't forget that there is a lot of water uner the bridge between the two men but despite that he has realised despite his grudge against James, that the man sacrificed his life for his sons, and he is actually very appreciative.  Harry has had a lot to deal with, and finding out he is not in fact James' son has been very difficulat for him. I also think that Harry is in shock right now.  It has really hit home that his whole identity was a lie, and it's a lot to deal with. I think that he has showed the proper respect for James, and he is having a hard time dealing with his looks, because he seems very unsure of himself.  Part of this story, is to bring Severus and Harry closer, and I just felt that having Severus actually be able to see that Harry is his son, and not just know it in his heart, will really enforce that closeness and bonding that has been difficult for the both of them. 

 No one is forgetting about James, but Harry really never knew the man, and Severus was not close to him, so it is normal that they will concentrate on their own relationship and not have James Potter on their mind.  There will always be a special place in Harry's heart for the man that sacrificed his life for him, but now he has to move on and put the past behind him.  That doesn't mean that James contribution to his life is any less important, but he has to live his life now, and concentrate on forming a relationship with Severus, which is the focus of this story. I had planned on other ways down the road for Harry to honour James, but I didn't want to focus too much on a ghost. My main goal is to have Harry and Severus grow closer.

 As far as the ritual goes, the premise of the White Magic is that is so strong that, as in the ritual with the Dark Magic, it affects everyone in the room because of the backlasth.  The reason that in the Dark Ritual, Harry was more affected, was because he was the once that actually cast the final spell to extract the soul from the Horcrux. White Magic works on a different principle.  It almost is like a powerful vacuum that reverses negative energy in the air, so Severus was able to benefit from it's stray magical energy.

To be honest with you, in my original draft, I had Harry's eyes go quite a bit darker green, but I changed it because I just didn't have the heart to take the one thing off of Harry that he prized so much and brought him so close to his mother.  So I settled for making his eyes slightly darker!

 It would have been funny to have a big nose like Sev, or more hawk-like, but i figured the poor kid had enough to deal with already!  LOL!

 Actually, I took a page out of your book for taking reviwers suggestions into consideration while writing the story.  One reader asked if Severus would be able to cleanse his soul as well, since he had committed many unspeakable acts in the past, and I thought that it was a brilliant idea.  The change in Harry's appearance was also at the request of a reviewer.  It is very enjoyable to have readers discuss what they'd like to see  in the story, and I always appreciated that about you.

 Well, there will probably be some that will bother Harry about his looks, probably Slytherins--Oh well, on second thought maybe not.  I don't think they'd want to mess with their Head of House.

I wanted it to be a complete surprise, but PG was way too perceptive, and I guess that you were too!! Yeah, Harry was handsome before, but now he's stunning with Sev's fine-boned features and just enough of Lily's features to soten the angles.  He's got the advantage now as well, that he doesn't have the glasses to hide his beautiful eyes, so he's still a handsome young man.  

 I love how Severus and Harry have come a long way in their relationship.  Severus will probably always have a hard time showing physically how he feels, but I think that he is starting to feel a little more comfortable to express to Harry how he feels.  He'll never be a demonstrative man, and he's not suddenly going to be a "nice" man, but I think that Harry's new appearance has made Severus really see that Harry is his son.  Although, he had already grown to care for Harry deeply, I don't think that until now, it's really hit him that Harry is really a part of him.  He, of course, put aside the fact that Harry looked like his archenemy, and was able to look deeper and care for Harry for who he was, it wasn't until he could see  the extraordinary resemblance between the two of them, that the final peice of the puzzle was completed, so to speak.

I think that for the first time in Severus' life, he felt incompetant at something, and that was not a pleasant feeling for him. He felt vulnerable and unsure of himself, and of course he tried to hide it by being gruff and cold.  Thank goodness that Harry has come to understand this about his father, and help Severus overcome his feelings of inadequacy. I think perhaps that it has been very difficult for Harry as well.  He's not used to being a son either. He's never had a real parent to be concerned over his safety or welfare, and is more like Severus in the feelings department, more than he realises.  It's hard for Harry to show emotion as well, because he's been hurt over and over again.  Everytime he gets close to someone, he loses them.  He doesn't want to lose Severus too, so he's been rather defiant and sometimes  downright insolent to hide HIS feelings of insecurity and uncertaintty. Yes, our boys have come a long way.

I appreciate your compliment and that you feel that I've been able to express the characters' emotions and feelings, but I thinkt that about YOU!!!

 No, things are not suddenly going to be smooth sailing, as you put it, from here onward, but I think that they've past a major milestone in their relationship.  I think that they're both happy that they didn't throw in the towel, and took the extra effort to get to know each other, because the rewards are endless.

I hadn't thought of having Severus benefit from the ritual, but a reviewer at fanfiction.net asked me if Severus' soul would be cleansed from the ritual as well, and I thought that it was a superb idea.  Oh, and the idea to have Harry's appearance change, was at the request from another reviewer over there.  My goodness, it's like my reviewers are writing my story for me!!! LOL!  Seriously though, I thought that they were brilliant ideas, and I was happy to incorporate them into the plot because I think that it will add spice to the story line.  At least I hope I can do it justice!

 I'll try to update quickly!

Thanks Kristeh, and I am so so so excited at reading YOUR next chappie.  I'll take an update on either  SC OR APOP!!  

Thanks.  I won't give too many details about the nightmares, because it is an integreal part of the plot line to follow and the dreams are an important lead-in to that.  Severus and Harry have been side-tracked but they will discuss the  dreams at length soon.

 Severus and Harry have a lot to learn about being father and son.  They really have no role models to follow, do they?  Severus' own father was extremely abusive and the Dursleys were never really a family to Harry and his Uncle was definitely not a model father to Harry's cousin, and nowhere near a father-figure to harry.  There is also a power struggle going on here.  Harry is consumed with Dark thoughts and is  at the mercy of his uncontrolllable emotions, and Severus is definitely used to being in control.  They have to learn to meet each other half-way, and there are so many obstacles blocking the way.  Only time will bring them closer.

Yeah, the scene between Harry and Draco was really fun to write. I can't help it, I know it's out of character, but Draco really deserved a little of his own medicince.  Besides, Harry's tired of being a good little boy, and turning the other cheek!  LOL!

The ritual was fun to write too, but I'm sure that my Latin is horribly wrong.  I just hope that anyone who is proficient in Latin is not judging me too harshly. Sorry, never learnt the language! LOL!

"Sorry," she says sheepishly. "I'll do better next time."

 "Thanks for the compliment," she says, and takes a bow! :)  "

"Next one will be up soon," she promises, and crosses her fingers that she can deliver!