Name: VaguelyCreativeName (Signed) · Date: 14 Jul 2019 08:06 PM · For: We Will Rebuild.

Hey there, I’m stopping by for the 2019 House Cup Finale!

 

I really liked this insight into what happens in the ministry following the Battle of Hogwarts! I’d never really considered it, but of course there would be a lot of clean-up to do after the war, and with reduced numbers that would put a huge amount of stress on all ministry employees – I can also see how rebuilding must seem like such a daunting task to Kingsley that his immediate reaction to finding out he’s won isn’t elation – even though he presumably campaigned for Minister, and wanted that job – but an overwhelming sense of dread. But I loved how you turned it around in the end, and showed that even though he knows he’s facing challenges he can’t take conquer on his own, and that it will take decades to address all of the ministry’s problems, Kingsley’s got a clear motivation of why he wanted that job, and what he’ll do differently! That ties the story together really well, and gives shows a more hopeful tone, and an optimistic view that fits finding out about “a landslide victory”!

 

I also loved the interaction between Kingsley and Arthur, and how Kingsley promoted him even though they both know he may not be the most qualified, or in the best position emotionally to deal with that responsibility right now – it shows how the war really changed everyone’s priorities, and sowed suspicion so that what Kingsley needs most at the moment are people who he knows he can trust blindly.

 

            Much Love,

            Julia

Author's Response:

Thank you so much for your review. As a history teacher in a relatively young state (our Dáil (parliament) celebrated its centenary last January), the idea of state building is obviously an interest to me.

 

And yes, reduced numbers are bound to be a problem. Our first Taoiseach (Prime Minister) rarely appears in the history books before he becomes Taoiseach, although he was a Minister in that first Dáil, but the leader of that first Dáil walked out in protest over the treaty that led to independence and the man who replaced him died - actually of natural causes, but probably caused by stress - and so many other leaders were killed in the War of Independence and Civil War.

 

Yeah, I was pretty disappointed that the epilogue contained no information on how the wizarding world changed after the war because civil wars in particular cause a lot of chaos. 

 

They say that people who become leaders as a result of wars of independence, etc are usually reluctant politicians. They haven't gone into politics as a career so much as because of their commitment to the cause and I think that also applies to Kingsley in a way. Yes, he was involved in politics even before Voldemort took over but there is no indication that he had any particular interest in the position of Minister prior to Deathly Hallows. In fact, had he been personally ambitious, he probably wouldn't have gotten involved in an organisation like the Order of the Phoenix which was an object of suspicion to the Ministry. Actually one of our politicial leaders declared during the Civil war that as soon as things calmed down he was going to "regain his personal freedom" and let somebody else take over. This was 1922 or 1923. He ended up finally stepping down from politics in the early '70s at which point he was over 90. Admittedly for the last 14 years, he had been president which he jokingly described as "a nice easy job for my old age," as the Irish presidency is essentially a figurehead, but still.

 

And no, I don't think the immediate reaction to realising you have to reorganise the Ministry, ensure the Death Eaters cannot rise again, unite a very divided society and so on is likely to be elation. I think anybody who was elated would be a bad choice as they would probably be focused on personal achievement rather than improving society.

Name: MadiMalfoy (Signed) · Date: 30 Apr 2019 05:47 AM · For: We Will Rebuild.

Hi Margaret! :)

 

I was perusing your AP and saw Kingsley and immediately had to read this fic! Kingsley doesn't get enough love in fics and I'm extremely happy you decided to give him some love here! You've also highlighted a time that isn't written about much from the Adults perspective after the Second Wizarding War is over, and I really like your insights into how you think things went down at the Ministry. Of course everyone would be behind Kingsley, and of course he'd have trepidations about stepping into that role after the disasters that befell the last few Ministers. Arthur becoming Head of the Improper Use of Magic Office?? YES PLEASE! AND we get Percy back at the Ministry too? Ugh, Margaret, this is just too good and you should totally write a companion piece to this featuring Arthur! Anyway, I really really enjoyed this fic and the emotional depth you gave both Arthur and Kingsley in their dialogue scene while also encompassing loose ends plot-wise that needed tying up. Great job with this! :)

 

~MadiMalfoy

 

For the 2019 Nargles Pre-Nominations Review-a-thon

Author's Response:

Hi. Thanks for the review.

 

As a history teacher in a country that is actually now marking 100 years since its parliament was established and still has a few years to go before it will reach the centenary of when it actually won independence, you can see why statebuilding (or rebuilding) would occur to me. There are actually similarities between the war in Harry Potter and Irish wars. Heck, even being led by a headmaster, as 1916 was. It's not THAT long since our country was being created. Our constitution was written in 1937 (admittedly, we had a previous one written in 1922 and basically Dev just wanted to write his own, to be flippant about it).

 

I was really disappointed with the epilogue for a whole load of reasons, but one of them was that it gave no information about what happened at the Ministry and how things were changed/improved or not.

 

Oooh, that is an interesting idea about Arthur. He's quite a difficult character to write, though.

 

Thanks again.

Name: LadyMarauder (Signed) · Date: 20 Dec 2018 07:20 AM · For: We Will Rebuild.

Hi, Tasha here for wishlist gift giving and this one really caught my eye.

This is absolutely brilliant. I liked seeing into Kingsley's thoughts about how he was going to rebuild the Ministry with people he trusted and what a mammoth task it was going to be. A lot of it rested on his shoulders as Minister and I have always been curious about what happened to the Ministry in the days after the battle. 

It was nice to see Arthur Weasley with him too, I liked their dynamic. It was clear Kingsley trusted him after fighting alongside him in the Order and I liked that finally, Arthur got a break. It was a little sad when he told Kingsley he wasn't the smartest wizard out there. I also liked when Kingsley talked about the Muggle government and how he was going to have to work with them too.

I get that it is just a little snapshot of the rebuilding process, but I would be so interested in reading more about your take on this period from Kingsley's point of view. We often read about Harry and his role in the aftermath of the war, but it would be good to read about it from someone else.
Great job, I loved it!

 

Tasha xxx
Happy Holidays!    

Author's Response:

Thanks for the review and apologies for the delay in replying. Been sort of busy with Christmas.

 

I've always been curious as to what happened with the Ministry after the battle too. I really kind of irritated that the epilogue didn't give us any indication about that (or about what happened at Hogwarts or about Harry, Ron and Hermione's careers or if they went back to Hogwarts).

 

Coincidentally, my country is just hitting 100 years since the setting up of our national parliament - like the election that would establish it took place on the 14th of December 1918 and the parliament would sit for the first time on the 21st of January 1919. We had a TV show done as if it were 1918 and they were covering the election.

 

Thanks again and I am so glad you enjoyed the story.

Name: ShadowRose (Signed) · Date: 18 Dec 2018 10:58 PM · For: We Will Rebuild.

Hi Margaret! I wanted to swing by one of your stories with fewer reviews as a way of spreading a little holiday cheer, and this one happened to catch my eye.

 

I think this is such a great moment to have written, and from such a unique perspective. I think we get a lot of flashes of Harry’s experience after the war, and the experience of people close to him, but I don’t think I’ve read a lot of stories about Kingsley, especially during this pivotal time in both his life and wizarding history.

 

I like that you show some of his internal thought processes - where he’s a bit unsure of the state of the Ministry and how to rebuild it - with his external comments to Arthur, which are much more assured and confident. It really captures his character well, because he’s already thinking through all of the intricacies required to re-establish the Ministry and put it back together, but also sounds confident about those things (and about Arthur’s place in all of it) out loud.

 

And speaking of Arthur, I love that he’s the confidant you gave Kingsley in this scene, and I love that he’s gotten a promotion here. Because as much as watching him ask a ton of questions about rubber ducks is, he’s definitely proven during the war that he’s much more valuable that just that, so this promotion makes sense. As well as Percy’s invitation to come back to the Ministry. I especially liked this line - “It's a lot easier to stand up for your beliefs when you're already established, as we are.” - because it really is so true. I know so many people my age that have kept quiet at companies with really toxic work cultures, or not raised issues with certain leadership, purely because to do such could spell death to a career in a close-knit industry - which I feel like the Ministry certainly is as well.

 

This was such an interesting read, and I really enjoyed your take on this pivotal moment after the war.

 

-Taylor

Author's Response:

Hey, this is actually a sort of appropriate week to review this as the election that established Dail Eireann took place a hundred years and a couple of days ago. Now, it was AFTER the establishment of Dail Eireann and the War of Independence it declared against Britain and then the civil war that took place after the split, that the rebuilding had to happen but still this story WAS inspired by the building of the Irish state and I guess that began a hundred years ago last week.

 

Yeah, Arthur may be a little...eccentric, but he does seem to really care about the wizarding world and do his best to protect people (even with the loopholes he writes into the laws).

 

And yes, it is so difficult to stand up for what you believe in when you are the youngest and least experienced. For one thing, it's easy to assume that those who are more experienced than you know best and if they don't believe anything is wrong, then you must be mistaken. And then you have to establish yourself. And nobody really listens to a 20 year old, certainly not in a ministry situation. 

 

Thank you so much for the review.

Name: Dojh167 (Signed) · Date: 11 Aug 2018 08:10 PM · For: We Will Rebuild.

Quadpot review (War)

 

I love Kingsley Shacklebolt, and was excited to see a post-war story from you about him. I extra appreciate that it also features arthur Weasley. Those two characters rarely get the opportunity to shine on their own - normally if you see them it is in a story with more popular characters, so I really like how you showcased their dynamic together here.

 

I don’t think I’ve read anything focused on Kingsley’s Minister election. While I have full confidence in him being a phenomenal minister, now that you mention it, I am curious what the path to get there was like. The fact that it was such a dramatic landslide makes me curious who he was running against.

 

You make a good point in bring attention just how shattered the Auror department was following the war. Rebuilding was already a difficult complicated task, but as you point out it must have been much more difficult than I realized, with the crucial forces so damaged to start with.

 

I am interested in the basis of Arthur and Kingsley’s relationship. While we know they worked together in the Order of the Phoenix and (loosely) in the ministry, this conversation gives me the feeling that Arthur has a closer relationship with Kingsley than we see in the books. It reads to me as if Arthur worked on Kingsley’s election campaign (my first thought was that perhaps he ran as a running mate in the election, but that probably doesn’t apply for minister of magic).

 

I am all for this promotion for Arthur! I think he deserves it, and heading the Improper Use of Magic office seems like a very appropriate step for him, though I also think his personal assessment that he is not a high flyer is in character.

 

Goood point, that you can’t shut out all of the people who have caused problems in the past if that includes death eaters, blood elitists, and Fudge ad Scrimgeour supporters. Yikes! I’m glad they’re specifically giving Percy another chance though. I am very fond of him and his redemption. I appreciate that Kingsley and Arthur both have sympathy for him.

 

What I really like about this story is the people it focuses on, and in the end when you say “with the right people behind him” you aren’t referring to big flashy famous names, but simple hard working dedicated people, like Arthur, Percy, and anyone who fought in the battle, which to me suggests less emphasis on prestige and high NEWT scores.

 

This was a cool story, and I really enjoyed how you focused on aspects of the rebuilding and characters that we don’t see a lot of. I would have loved to see a longer version of this, so that we could really see how all of this was achieved, instead of just a brief overview. Well done!

 

Sam.

Author's Response:

Thank you so much for this review and apologies for the slight delay in replying. It's so detailed that I wanted to give it the time it deserves.

 

I hadn't thought about the fact that Kingsley and Arthur rarely get a chance to star, but you are right. I guess because Harry didn't really know Kingsley and he only really appeared in his professional capacity and Arthur only appears as a "parent" because that is how Harry sees him, they don't seem to have the same vulnerabilities as the characters we get to know better.

 

I am also curious about Kingsley's election and indeed about how Ministers of Magic in general are elected. Fudge says that he is no longer minister as the whole wizarding world has been calling for his resignation. So I wonder does that mean he stepped down by choice or was there somebody who put pressure on him to do so? A political party? The other members of the Ministry? The heads of department? And who decided who would replace him? An election or an appointment? It's not at all clear from canon. In Ireland, making a huge mistake could well lead to the Taoiseach (our equivalent of a Prime Minister) either stepping down or his (or her, but they've all been men so far) whole government collapsing, but our governments are mostly coalitions and they collapse because the coalition partners walk out if a party is too unpopular or the party themselves replace the Taoiseach (actually, we had a situation a bit similar to Fudge's where our Taoiseach was looking like...I guess how the Prime Minister described Fudge as looking and everybody was calling for his resignation and he kept insisting he wouldn't resign and some of the party tried to get rid of him but others supported him...he did eventually step down).

 

Ireland is a relatively "new" state. We are currently having a "decade of centenaries," presumably ending with the handing over of power in 1922. This was followed by a civil war so it's not that long since Ireland was trying to create a state amidst a good deal of conflict. I guess that interests me in state building/rebuilding.

 

I have a lot of sympathy for Percy. After all, the mistake he made was a pretty reasonable one really. A teenage boy who had endured a lot of trauma was insisting a man had come back from the dead - an impossible thing even in the wizarding world. I doubt I would believe it if somebody told me that had happened. And Percy had a vested interest in not believing it. It benefited his career. Which, yes, is a selfish motive, but it's pretty hard, when you are young and starting out, to go against people who have power over you, like your employers, especially when you both really care about your career and also clearly admire your employers, as Percy did. Believing Harry would not only mean putting his career at risk; it would also mean admitting to himself that he was mistaken about the talents of some of his superiors. I've read a theory that "smart" people can be easier to scam than average people because they are so used to being right and have a lot invested in believing they are - their identity is tied up with seeing themselves as the smart one - that when they do get caught, they won't back out or admit they've made a mistake. I think Percy was a lot like that. He idolised Crouch and would have found it very difficult to admit he was wrong and his little brother and his brother's friend knew more about what was going on than he did.

 

And it sounds like most of the wizarding population believed the Ministry in Order of the Phoenix believed the Ministry and thought Harry a traumatised child suffering from hallucinations or flashbacks. It wouldn't make sense to fire all of them.

 

Actually, from Irish history, when the side that lost the Civil war were elected into power in 1932, de Valera (who became Taoiseach as a result of that election) has said how while both he and the previous Taoiseach were not even talking at the time, they were both giving their parties the same message - basically, the outgoing Taoiseach was telling his party to accept the situation and de Valera was telling his party not to take advantage of the fact they were in power to get their own back.

 

Really glad you enjoyed the story and thanks again for the amazing review.

Name: ReillyJade (Signed) · Date: 08 Jul 2018 10:59 PM · For: We Will Rebuild.

Hi, there! I'm stopping in for BvB :)

 

This was wonderful! I love explorations of minor characters, and Kingsley is no exception. He's a character I wish we'd gotten to see more of in the books so I really like that you chose to focus on him for this type of story.

 

I really liked how you focused on the rebuilding of the Ministry for this. When most fans think of the post-war efforts, they think of the rebuilding of Hogwarts. That's obviously important, but what good is the school if the wizarding community doesn't have a strong government leading it? I actually never stopped to think about the amount of work it would take to get the Ministry back on track and what an enormous task that would be for Kingsley. He's the right man for the job, of course, being so strong and intelligent, but I appreciate that you wrote him as an uncertain, doubtful, and worried. I especially liked this line: "Kingsley wasn't arrogant enough to believe he'd eliminated all prejudice from the Ministry or that he would do so." This alone exemplifies why Kingsley is perfect for Minister. Any leader who thinks they can singlehandedly fix anything is likely to ignore problems, so I love how you show Kingsley's got a realistic mindset for the job.

 

Furthermore, I really liked Kingsley's defense of Percy. I have a soft spot for him; yes, he was an idiot, but I feel like he gets far too much hate. As you said, he was just a kid trying to establish himself. I also think people forget that all he had to go on initially was Harry's word; we, as readers, know Harry was being truthful about Voldemort, but I don't blame Percy for having doubts and taking the path he chose. He showed his true colors in the end, and that's what matters.

 

This was great! Well done! :)

 

Cheers,

Reilly

Author's Response:

Hiya. Thank you so much for the review.

 

Maybe it's being from a relatively young state that makes me think about state building and rebuilding. The idea that Cosgrave and the others had some fun taking over a country still divided by civil war, with hardly any money, tied to the UK by a treaty most people weren't too happy with is a well known part of our history. It is also known that they handled things well enough that when they lost power in 1932 and the opposition (who had fought against them in the civil war) came to power, the leader of the party replacing them declared that they did a fantastic job. That party continued to work on greater independence and state building throughout the '30s.

 

I agree with you about people who think their ideas are perfect. Believing this will solve everything is never realistic, especially when the prejudices are as engrained as the pureblood prejudice is in the wizarding world. If it dates back to the Founders, it's been going on for nearly 1,000 years and isn't going to be solved just because they've defeated Voldemort. He's a symptom more than a cause.

 

I have sympathy for Percy too. Without knowing what we do, what WOULD make more sense? That there was a huge conspiracy to cover up the fact that an evil man had returned from the dead or that a teenage boy who has experienced a good deal of trauma had some kind of breakdown after seeing a schoolmate killed and imagined he was killed by the same person who killed the schoolboy's parents? I don't think it makes a person evil or stupid to have believed the latter. In Percy's case, he had quite a lot invested in believing it. Doing otherwise would make him an object of suspicion and yes, it was somewhat cowardly to allow that to be a consideration, but Harry's story DID sound rather unbelievable and going out on a limb to believe it when you'd be risking your job? I don't think that many people would do that in reality.