Name: WriteYourHeartOut (Signed) · Date: 10 Feb 2024 03:28 PM · For: 1

I love your writing here, it's a really beautifully crafted story, almost poetic. Your descriptions are what really shine, and the way Remus's brain works, the way he views himself, the way he hates him self for feeling certain ways about certain things. And I adored that final line with the Pinocchio reference. Beautifully done!

Name: Oregonian (Signed) · Date: 15 Oct 2022 01:50 AM · For: 1

Hi, Catherine.

 

I am here to leave a review for your little story "Ever Waning As We Run" for the October Forum Challenge in which, with a nod to the season, we are reviewing stories tagged as 'Dark'.

 

This is a strange but interesting little story.  In order to grasp it more fully, I had to read it over several times.  We meet Remus as he is waking up on the cold (probably damp) dirt floor of a cave after having trqaansformed back into a human being from his werewolf form, as the dawn breaks and the full moon drops over rhe western horizon.  The year must be 1980 or 1981 because James is in hiding.  It's not like those carefree nights of the full moon when the 4 Marauders were still in school and cavorted in the moonlight in the form of animals.

 

Now the group has more or less falllen apart -- James is in hiding and Sirius is off fighting other people's battles and Peter is, well, Peter is just a rat.

 

But it is comforting for us readers to know that at least Sirius is not fighting other people's battles right now because he comes to the cave to help Remus wake up and get up on his feet and get warmed up by human contact and finally by a fur coat.

 

I like how you develop the idea of the fur coat in all its forms.  First, the fur of the werewolf that keeps him warm without the need for any other covering, and then the loss of the werewolf's fur, leaving Remus naked, hairless and chilly on the dirt floor of the cave, cold (and probably damp also).  Then the warming of the the hairless human body by Sirius's warming spell and massage of Remus's skin, and finally the use of a fur coat that came from some other animal entirely and now belongs to Sirius.

 

Though Remus is inclined to just lie on the cave floor and make no effort, that would not be the human thing to do.  Humans are supposed to be up on their two feet and walking.  So Sirius, as part of his ministrations to his friend, manages to haul Remus onto his feet and get him walking.  Remus will be feeling better in a few days, but deep down inside he knows he's not fully human, not so long as these transformations keep occuring at each full moon.

 

I tried to get sme informtion about when the wolfsbane potion was developed to relieve the worst sykmptoms of the werewolf transformation, but it was difficult to get a precise date.  It existed when Remus began teaching at Hogwarts in 1983, but it must have been quite new then and, like many drugs for chronic diseases, not a cure-all.

 

This is very much a mood piece, a person trying, and not being outstandingly succesful, to come to terms with his life which is wearing him down, with less and less hope for the future.

 

An interesting and thoughtful piece, even though it covers only a brief period, measured in minutes, not hours, of Remus's life.

 

Thank you for writing.

 

Vicki

Name: Felpata_Lupin (Signed) · Date: 23 Feb 2022 06:22 PM · For: 1

I said I'd check out this story (because I can't resist some Remus' angst, so I just had to...) and aww... my poor child (okay, not a child, but you know what I mean...) *hugs Remus tight* *but also shakes him because he should stop thinking of himself that way*

There is so much pain and sadness in this piece. You really give us such a clear and raw picture of what the transformations are like, but also you put focus on how the physical pain is nothing compared to the emotional one... and again it makes me so sad that Remus thinks so low of himself: that he is a liar, that he belongs in the dirt of the ground, that his humanity is just a pretence... :/

Also, his loneliness, and how the war is keeping his friends away, and the envy he feels towards Sirius' exhaustion, and how he feels like he doesn't deserve their friendship in the first place... :(

And yes, Sirius truly is a star in this! I love the care he shows towards Remus, there is so much affection in his gestures, it's just lovely to see! So sweet! <3 <3 <3

Okay, you've made an emotional mess of me... hope you're happy... :P

Lovely work on this! (Also, it's always quite impressive when people manage to write something significant with such a tight word limit... and even more impressive that this was a spur of the moment thing, considering the challenge... so great job! <3)

Big snowball hug,

Chiara

PS this is also for rising through the ranks :P

Name: RogueSlytherin (Signed) · Date: 18 Feb 2022 10:57 PM · For: 1

CAT! WHAT IS THIS MAGNIFICENT HEARTBREAKING STORY?!


I seriously can’t read By Blood without screaming at the screen about Regulus every five seconds because you just GET HIM and now REMUS TOO?!?!?! Seriously. Can we just have a TEDTalk on these two sometime because I could spend hours just dissecting this line: Why is Sirius allowed exhaustion while he can only be grateful they haven’t turned on him? And then this one: On his feet he pretends he is human again.


This self-loathing and internalized rage is gut wrenching, but also so so real for what Remus has to endure and you write about it so beautifully and so effortlessly in this story. Simple lines that just CUT DAGGERS!


And just the start of it, the way you don’t shy away from the physical harm that’s done to him each and every month – the visceral pain that’s caused makes it so easy to understand the emotional trauma he’s feeling. AHHHHH!!!!! You’re writing more of this right? Say yes.

- Jacquelin 

Name: grumpy cat (Signed) · Date: 15 Dec 2021 06:21 PM · For: 1

catherine! i'm here to read entries for my challenge ?

 

i really love what you did with the prompt here - casting remus as the liar and a thief but in a way that i found really original and thoughtful, tying it in with him being a werewolf and almost like...and i may be totally wrong here but almost like he feels true (and not like a liar and a thief) only when he's transformed? i honestly have no clue if that's what you wanted to achieve but i still love the way i'm reading it because it's such an interesting twist to how we usually see/read remus and i love it!

 

also loved the tenderness between sirius and remus - would definitely read ore of this version of them because the drabble is like this perfect little hook!

 

kris

Name: prideofprewett (Signed) · Date: 02 Dec 2021 07:19 PM · For: 1

Wow Catherine! I am utterly blown away by this drabble! I don't even know where to begin this review. The way you strike this delicate balance between vivid description of Remus' bodily transformation from human to werewolf and the anguished emotions he feels throughout it, is an absolute :chef's kiss: 

 

One thing I loved is the imagery of how almost everything is broken in Remus' life during this time. From his body to his most trusted friend group and even maybe, his heart a little.

 

The way you describe healing spells here is brilliant. I understood precisely what was happening, so I think you chose your words wisely there. 

 

And the tenderness between Remus and Sirius is evident. I'm shipping the hell out of them, ok? Congratulations. You did that. :) 

 

Anyway this is such a powerful, little drabble that deserves a "brava!"

 

<3 Courtney