Well, Anne, I posted it rather late! First I sent copies to everyone I quoted for their permissions, and then submitted it to "Mythlore" and then I waited - and waited - and waited. Finally, after having written at least four more essays and several stories on the Potterverse, I decided to put this one up where people could see it, since I'd been waiting for more than a year.

Which means I don't think you came to it late at all. I am so glad you like it. It's interesting to me that certain things (Snape's role as Harry's protector, for example) were absolutely clear to me from my first reading of HBP, and I've never deviated from them even as I've refined my understanding of Snape and his role in the books. Now we have just ten days to find out how wrong I am - Yikes!

(But I don't think I'm wrong, really. I hope I'm not)

Thanks again for your kind words.