Fic #1168: Feathers and Fireballs by Na’hiel
Link: https://www.fanfiction.net/s/12050840
Chapters: 47 (holy fuck! lol)
POV: Harry POV (main), Severus POV (one chapter/interlude), Voldemort POV (one chapter/interlude).
Read on: 1/25-26/2019 (I honestly power read this in like. Less than 12 hours. Read maybe 10 chapters before work, and 37 from 8pm to 5:30am lol. ‘Twas amazing).
Pairings: Harry/Regulus/Severus
Warnings: Potions Accident, Veela!Harry, Bonds, Mating Bonds, One Lime?, Character Death, Psychological, TRIGGER WARNING: Rape, non-con, chan? (Harry is 16),
Summary: The story starts with the Battle at the Ministry. During the battle, stray spells break a vial and it slashed onto Harry. As he stumbles and falls into another shelf, another potion lands on him. He thinks nothing of it, because not long after Sirius dies and everything else that ensues. Then, on his 16th birthday, SOMETHING Happens and Harry CHANGES. The change involves screaming on his part, so Vernon comes in and yells at him... but Harry has changed. So Vernon starts to rape him. Dudley comes in and joins. Harry goes limp and blacks out. When he wakes up, he's in enough pain to know that they... succeeded... but they're gone. All that is left in the room are smoldering bones. Not even corpses, just BONES.
He does take Hedwig with him. The streets are not kind to Harry and he gets assaulted multiple more times. He often blacks out and wakes up to bodies, skeletons, corpses around him. He wonders if maybe Wizards aren't affected, maybe it's muggles, and goes to Diagon Alley. It's a disaster.
Harry is eventually found a Death Eater who doesn't seem to be affected at all. This person turns out to be Regulus Black who is Asexual. Before THAT was revealed, I was like, "Ugh this is just going to be a cliche fic of Harry being a tiny sub in a triad (the fic shows the pairing in the summary) and I was like. GROSS. BUT THEN REGULUS SAID HE WAS ASEXUAL AND I WAS LIKE "I'M SO GLAD I CLICKED ON THIS" and really, truly, I am. Ace (but not aro) representation!
Eventually, they find out that Harry is a veela, somehow, and male veela are very rare and it's VERY Hard for them to control their allure. Severus is brought in because, as a natural occulmens, he is basically immune to the allure. Well, at least until Harry makes a mating bond with Severus too. It's actually quite common for Male Veela to make a mating bond with an Asexual person because they feel safe with them, as the asexual person is, well. immune to the allure and it makes them safe.
There's an OC in the form of Christelle, a representative from the Veela court. We get some exposition from her, but it is needed.
Harry and Regulus relationship is like fucking goals for me. They cuddle, maybe kiss a bit. There's plenty of affection but not ATTRACTION. No, that's for Severus. Regulus and Severus had actually been in a relationship years before, but Regulus couldn't be what Severus needed (probably because of the sex thing) so this is actually perfect for them: having Harry there too. I liked that. Sometimes triads seem to be just about sex, but this one seems so.... healthy and balanced. Again, goals. lol.
My problem with the fic came when Harry developed a third bond with Voldemort. The bond is... cold. And, I mean, it's probably there because of the Horcrux more than anything. There is affection between them, I GUESS, but it's ....... Voldemort is very clinical in his relationships. He does kiss Harry at one point, but Harry doesn't like it at all. Voldemort treats Harry like a possession since he is a Horcrux. Harry is precious to Voldemort... it's just. ... eh. It doesn't seem natural, the way that Severus and Regulus came into being with Harry.
Narcissa is in the story too, as Harry's healer (and Mind healer, hence the psychological tag. They explore therapy and how it can help).
Overall, I really enjoyed the fic. The epilogue takes places 20 years in the future, where Harry has a 5-year-old son named Sirius (who was born through a surrogate). Harry came back into the public eye just long enough to announce his 'marriage' to Regulus, who came back from the dead (after having faked his death). Harry becomes a healer, but he doesn't have a lot of patients. He gets a new wand lol. Voldemort and Bellatrix get married and Bellatrix is pregnant.
The Dark side has won, through Draco becoming Minister of Magic. Harry told Voldemort that "Dictatorships never work" so he changes his approach to taking over the Wizarding World. I liked how the story had a blatantly asexual, but not aromantic character. Representation is very important, and I like being represented lol. I didn't like the bond with Voldemort. That's literally my only complaint.
