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[Reviews - 134]

No Bed of Roses by Lady Connor

Summary: Harry met Holly when she was two - abandoned in the park by her mother. Unable to leave her alone, he stayed behind to keep her safe. Over the years, they became as inseparable as brother and sister.
When Harry found out he was a wizard, he was happy to find that Holly was a witch too, and one day, she would enter his new world with him.

Finding out he was a father to a nine-year-old girl, Severus Snape didn't hesitate to bring her home. His daughter belonged by his side, after all. Finding his daughter preferred Harry Potter over him was a travesty the Potions Master was not going to tolerate.

Somehow, Severus had to make his daughter see Harry Potter as he did - worthless, useless, hopeless.

1. Up the Garden Path by Lady Connor [Reviews - 9] (10051 words)

2. Clutching At Straws by Lady Connor [Reviews - 5] (10662 words)

Thank you JAWorley for calling my bluff. If JA hadn't posted her updates I would have delayed posting out my latest chapter. Well played, JA. Well Played!

3. Pushing Up Daisies by Lady Connor [Reviews - 6] (13203 words)

4. A Tumbleweed Moment by Lady Connor [Reviews - 6] (8467 words)

This is where the story will really begin to kick off folks. I feel like the first three chapters were just exposition and thank you all for putting up with it. The scene is set and now it's time to really explore the relationship between all my characters. I hope you all enjoy this chapter.

5. That Old Chestnut by Lady Connor [Reviews - 4] (7902 words)

An early birthday chapter for one of my fave authors, JAWorley. I hadn't intended to post two chapters so close together, so everyone needs to thank JA and please send her many birthday wishes via reviews

6. Grasp The Nettle by Lady Connor [Reviews - 8] (7376 words)

JA didn't even need to cajole this chapter from me ... at least on this occasion

7. Olive Branch by Lady Connor [Reviews - 1] (7120 words)

8. Leave the Field Open by Lady Connor [Reviews - 2] (11157 words)

Holly can so easily wrap those Malfoy's around her fingers if she so chose. Never underestimate the power of a child. You can ask my bratty niece who smiled sweetly at me and ended up walking away with my sketchbook. I'm sure it'll come back to me with various unicorns she's trying to draw on whatever blank page she's got left in that book.

I've recently got into art, whereas my previous attempts could barely manage a recognisable stick figure, after some perseverance I've managed to draw some pretty recognisable "art".

Thank you to those who have continued to read and review my story. Every word means so much.

Anyone who's waiting for Snape and Holly to suddenly get along will have to remain patient for a little while longer. Those two have some issues to work through first.

Harry and Holly are intensely loyal to each and Snape, despite his newfound enthusiasm for fatherhood, has much to answer for in Holly's eyes and hopefully, soon my dear readers will see why.

Don't worry though - they won't be like that forever.

Maybe Snape will even make some *gasp* dad jokes.

Please send me some good ones.

9. Like a Bump on a Log by Lady Connor [Reviews - 0] (13830 words)

10. Lose Your Gourd by Lady Connor [Reviews - 6] (10405 words)

11. Muck and Nettles by Lady Connor [Reviews - 4] (11323 words)

12. Easy as Falling off a Log by Lady Connor [Reviews - 5] (13401 words)

13. Watch Grass Grow by Lady Connor [Reviews - 3] (11769 words)

AN: I know I've been slow with updates with RL doesn't care that I want to finish this story. I will try to keep posts consistent but also don't be surprised at delays.

I know everyone is waiting for a reunion between Holly and Harry, or you're waiting for Snape to realise that Harry is Holly's childhood brother. Also, of course, you're all waiting for our dear Potions Master to reconcile with his darling daughter. Just be patient for a little longer because these things are on the horizon, not too far off. Just not in the next two or three chapters.

When I first started writing this story I didn't expect to switch POVs between so many characters but they all want their voices heard.

As for Draco's foot-in-mouth condition, believe me, I don't plan those incidents. Draco's just like that. Will he learn though? Stay tuned to find out.

14. Garden Variety by Lady Connor [Reviews - 2] (14694 words)

15. Never a Rose without the Prick by Lady Connor [Reviews - 3] (19683 words)

Before anyone reads this next nice, long chapter, I would like to add a brief comment about the conversation that will come up regarding the exchange rate.
JK has already admitted that she is bad at maths – and to be fair, I’m no great shake at it either; however, I have plans to use my version of the pound sterling to galleon exchange rate.
I’ve probably made It more complicated for myself than I need to, and I’ll admit that’s quite normal for me, lol.
My exchange of £69.13 to G1 is based on the weight of a pound coin in 1995 multiplied by the price of gold in the same. No one has to agree to it, but it’s the one I’ll be using.

16. Nip it in the Bud by Lady Connor [Reviews - 3] (11525 words)

Hello all. I’m glad to see you’ve all enjoyed Harry and Holly’s reunion and that it’s lived up to expectation.
Now, of course, we’ll get to see Snape’s reaction. Hope it too lives up to expectation.
Oh, and that little excerpt comes straight from the Order of the Phoenix . It doesn’t belong to me but I hope you enjoyed my little twist on it.

17. Turf War by Lady Connor [Reviews - 3] (8640 words)

18. Wood for the Trees by Lady Connor [Reviews - 4] (11732 words)

Hello all.
Welcome back to another chapter of Severus's disastrous life because that's how it feels.
Alot of you have expressed concerns about Snape becoming Harry's mentor after everything Harry has suffered at that man's hand and I want you all to know that I'm listening.
I completely understand where you're all coming from. Harry forgiving Snape so easily would be as believable as Harry forgiving the Dursleys after everything they've put him through and rest assured - Harry forgiving Snape and accepting his as a mentor won't be happening by the end of 5th year - but I will be showing you the journey they take to get to where they need to be.
However, I would also like to point out that the words might flow out of my mind and onto the pages before you, but I do not control any of these characters, I just tell their stories.

19. Through the Gravepine by Lady Connor [Reviews - 4] (13386 words)

20. Oma's confession by Lady Connor [Reviews - 3] (4356 words)

I've had this letter written for a while. For context, it's the letter briefly mentioned in chapter 15 after Mrs Figg brings Harry some of the contents of Oma and Holly's home.
I've wondering about the placement of this letter as it explain some of the knowledge Harry has in his interactions with Lucius and Severus. At first, I was unsure of the placement of this letter at this point, but given Harry and Lucius's upcoming conversation, I think this point of the story is perfect to shed some light to my readship and the contents will be important in upcoming interactions between the characters.
Harry's in a place where he has more information than most characters, which is unusual for story where Harry's not a time-traveller - in my opinion, at least.
So, here's a letter from Iris - which is effectively, as the chapter title indicates, her confession.

21. Busy as a Bee by Lady Connor [Reviews - 5] (9499 words)

Thanks to animefreak728 for pointing out the formatting issue. Hopefully, this has fixed the issue.

22. Thorn in the Side by Lady Connor [Reviews - 3] (8953 words)

Hellooooooooooo everyone!!!!



I realise it's been a while. I've had some RL issues where, unfrotunately, I lost my desire to write for a while.

However, things have settled as much as they can for the time being and I thought you all deserved a new chapter. I am hoping to post on a regular schedule eventually, but for the time being, enjoy this chapter and hopefully the next one will come along around this time next month.

23. Take Root by Lady Connor [Reviews - 3] (11532 words)

24. Short Straw by Lady Connor [Reviews - 3] (9498 words)

Hello all. I know it's an awful long time. Unfortunately, real life has been unkind, busy and frankly a bit of a bitch. My mental health has suffered quite a bit over the last few months and I'd lost the will to write.

I can't promise chapters will be updated regularly, but I will try my hardest that there's not a long gap again between posting.

I hope you enjoy this chapter and I'll apologise in advance for any mistakes, typos or inconsistencies.

25. Lay of the Land by Lady Connor [Reviews - 5] (11984 words)

Hello lovely readers.

I bet you didn't expect an update so soon. I think I just felt guilty for neglecting the story for so long and after some of the lovely messages I got I just thought everyone deserved an additional chapter.

I'm currently working on getting back into a routine and finding my rhythm again and want to build up the chapters as such that I can at some point continue to post on a regular schedule. The story's nowhere over year and it's not even Halloween in the fic and it'll be a few chapters before that happens.

I just wanted to address some concerns I've received via comments/PMs regarding the characters.

Lucius isn't a good guy as such (though admittedly he is one of faves and 90% of that is due to Jason Isaacs doing such an amazing job)

I've tried to portray him as someone who is willing to do whatever it takes to protect his family and that means switching sides if necessary. The actions he took in the first war when he was on Voldemort's side will come back and bite him in the arse (that is already planned further down the line) but currently, he's making himself seem like he's likeable because he can portray himself as charming. Not everyone will believe him, of course. They've already seen where he hides his daggers (as it were).

My attempts with Lucius is to show the side of Slytherins that was hinted with Slughorn in canon - a favour for a favour but weighted more on one side where possible. My Lucius knows the value of debt, whether that's financial or not. He's the kind of person who would prefer to have people owe him all manner of favours but hold himself above owing anyone else the same.

The scene with Neville isn't about showing Lucius as a good guy because believe me, he's not. He's just a man who would prefer not to be beholden to anyone else but would absolutely hold that power over anyone else. The people he becomes close to, he will protect with anything at his disposal and that includes Snape and Holly.

All my stories are character driven - I don't write the story. They do. I'm just allowed to write an incident report of their actions. My overall theme with this story is to show what redemption means to each character, and God don't they all need to redeem themselves in some way or another.

And before I leave you to read the next chapter I would like to add that I absolutely love everyone's comments on my portrayal of the characters. Especially people who are loving to hate Snape right now and can't see with his current actions why on earth Holly (or Harry) would ever forgive. Your comments make me giggle because I feel like I've fone a good job on Snape's character.

All I'm going to say is that he's got a long journey ahead of him.

26. Mountain to Climb by Lady Connor [Reviews - 4] (12543 words)

Happy New Year to all

27. Boil the Ocean by Lady Connor [Reviews - 6] (13474 words)

28. Dead Air by Lady Connor [Reviews - 7] (8017 words)

29. Get Wind Of by Lady Connor [Reviews - 4] (9658 words)

30. Stem the Tide by Lady Connor [Reviews - 5] (10086 words)

31. On the Rocks by Lady Connor [Reviews - 2] (13615 words)