Yeah, I lean more towards IndependentHarry--except that word's been co-opted by a lot of writers seem to turn him into a whiny teenage rebel obsessed with blowing off his mentors.  But anyways, I think hurt/comfort fics do serve a purpose--they're supposed to give you a kind of Dickensian coziness--so long as the characters get over their angst afterwards to fight.

Lily's had to deal with losing her firstborn, almost losing her youngest and hiding from the prejudice of her own people towards dark wizards.  Moreover, she's a Healer--and a rather burnt-out one--who deals firsthand with the results of warfare, in a society where you can't trust anyone.  It's like, do I heal this guy when he might stab my husband tomorrow?  She makes some tough calls.

 And, umm, oh.  Oops.

Big grins. 

Thank you so much Alarnia, and I'm really, really happy to hear you're enjoying it--oh, and umm, please do not allow the fact I took four months to reply detract  from the credibility of my delight.  'Hooligan Harry' probably will keep surprising most people, but he's actually going to become quite predictable, once he figures out his priorities... or as predictable as chaos can ever become, I suppose...

Nah, he didn't trick the Hat.  The expectations of other Houses on what being hard-working, loyal, honest, etc. entail cause them to trick themselves... as we'll see.  :)