Base trivia:
- This story was first imagined when I read The Accidental Animagus by White Squirrel. In the story, Harry end up with the Grangers while he and Hermione are five-years-old and her parents decide to adopt him after asking for Hermione's opinion. I was actually washing dishes when I thought "What would have happened if Hermione had refused her parents' offer to adopt Harry?" And thus this story was born.
- The story wasn't meant as a Harry/Hermione fanfiction at first and was supposed to be much shorter. The very first version of this story (which was never written) was originally imagined as a one-shot which would show Hermione rejecting the idea of Harry becoming her brother and then their heated reunion at Hogwarts. However, being a Harry/Hermione fan, the story rapidly evolved into something else, which became what it is today.
- The title of the fanfiction was almost changed after the first draft since the focus of the story wasn't as much on Harry and Hermione's separation and reconcilliation but on the life Harry and Hermione had until Rose's birth. In fact, there was even another title in mind - "A Short Life and a Merry One" - but it didn't feel that appropriate for the fanfic either and it kinda spoiled the epilogue.
- The story originally took place in 2005 rather than 2006, with Rose born in 2000. (instead of 2001)
- Originally, Hermione was supposed to tell the story to Rose alongside Harry. She hadn't died in childbirth and there was no complications.
- Because of this fact, the original ending was supposed to show Hermione announcing that she was pregnant once again, then say something about how Halloweens have become very good days for Harry. The epilogue would have been a scene with the second child born. (Either months or years later)
- Two ideas for a sequel were originally envisioned for this story. The first idea was to have Rose become a teenage mother and have Harry freak out about it - not only because Rose is pregnant but because he's scared what happened to Hermione could happen to Rose. This idea was scrapped and some of it was reused for the one-shot An Old Pureblood Tradition, published on Feburary 27 2021. The second idea for a sequel was to have a teenage Rose somehow travel back in time to the 1990s with a boyfriend (most likely Frank Longbottom II) to help her parents fight Voldemort and possibly save Hermione from getting hit by that Killing Curse that later took her life when Rose was born. While this idea is not totally off the floor, I don't expect on working on it any time soon. If this idea ever gets off the ground, it would be written as a standalone story, not an outright sequel.
- Crookshanks was meant to be in the story and would have become Rose's pet after Hermione's death. It wasn't added because it's not important to the overall story.
- There was an idea of having Harry and Hermione plan a "proper" wedding ceremony, which would have taken place after Rose's birth. Because of Hermione's death, it would have never happened. In the epilogue, at her own wedding, Rose was meant to wear the dress Hermione had chosen for their new wedding ceremony. The idea was scrapped and Rose's wedding dress was made to reference Hermione's Yule Ball one instead.
Chapter 1: Harry and Rose
- Shipton's Lynn is named after Ursula Southeil, a.k.a "Mother Shipton", a seventeenth century woman believed to be a prophet and a witch.
- Rose Potter's original full name was "Rose Lily Potter". It was later changed to "Rose Hermione Potter" when the idea of having Hermione dead came along. While not explained in the story, Harry and Hermione did want to name Rose after Harry's mother but, after Hermione's death, Harry gave Rose her mother's name instead.
- Luna Lovegood wasn't originally Rose's professor. It was simply a random OC who wasn't mentioned again. Once again, this changed with Hermione's death, as Hermione couldn't take Rose home anymore and I didn't feel like Harry would trust some random teacher to bring Rose back home, hence why Luna became the teacher.
- Rose didn't originally wear glasses. It was a last minute decision to make her share more physical traits with Harry during her youth.
- Originally, Hermione was the one to suggest to tell Rose hers and Harry's story. This changed - no need to specify why - and Rose instead asked about it to Harry.
Chapter 2: Abandonment
- Winky wasn't in the original story. It was only after the decision of killing-of Hermione was taken that she was added. Otherwise, Harry's busy job just wouldn't allow it to take care of his daughter.
- Harry (and Hermione)'s telling of the story originally all took place on Halloween, with Rose going to sleep once it was over. However, an idea developed of having Rose visiting her grandparents after the story was told. Since it didn't make sense for Rose to visit her grandparents in the middle of the week (Halloween 2006 being a Tuesday) meant that the story had to be told on multiple days so that Rose and Harry could visit Dan and Emma at the end of the week, on Friday.
- Hermione Potter Academy of Magic wasn't a thing originally. Rose was supposed to attend muggle primary school. The idea of Rose attending a magical school was a response to Luna becoming her teacher. The school being named after Hermione was a last minute addition when it was first written.
Chapter 3: A Different Path
- This entire chapter didn't exist in the original, uncompleted draft of the story. Harry did tell Rose and Hermione (before she was killed) that he planned on switching jobs but it happening wouldn't have been shown.
- Harry checking Rose's teeth to make sure she brushed them was taken from my own childhood where I often, just like Rose, pretended to brush them and my father had to check them.
- Ron was originally supposed to be married to Daphne Greengrass. However, when writing this chapter, that idea had been forgotten and Daphne was replaced with Susan Bones. It worked better with the story too (Ron and Susan being Auror partners).
Chapter 4: Reunion
- The confrontation between Harry and Hermione was originally envisioned to take place in the Gryffindor common room in front of everyone. It was scrapped because not only did I not believe Harry would ever show scars of abuse to everyone, but it felt incredibly harsh to have Harry yell at Hermione in front of the entire house.
Chapter 5: Friends Again
- The fight with the troll would have been much closer to canon at first. The idea of Harry being gravely injured during the fight only came while I was writing the chapter.
- Ron wasn't originally supposed to be in the fight. It would have been only Harry and Hermione.
- The line '"Hermione!" shouted Harry. "It's a troll! Go! Run! I'll hold it off!"' is a reference to the line '"Lily, take Harry and go! It's him! Go! Run! I'll hold him off!"' which is shouted by James Potter to Lily in Prisoner of Azkaban/Deathly Hallows. This is meant to foreshadow Harry and Hermione's love for each other in a time where they aren't even friends.
- The part where Harry blacks out was originally different. In the first draft, Hermione only shouted his name before the scene ended. The current version (with Hermione sobbing over Harry's body) was inspired by the seventeenth memory "Zelda's Awakening" from The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild.
- James and Lily's picture is somewhat inspired by one seen in either Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone movie or the Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets one (I don't remember which one). It's also seen in Snape's memories in the movie Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2. The location of the picture was changed from Godric's Hollow to Hogwarts.
- Harry's story of what happened the day Hermione was petrified was originally supposed to be shown as a flashback/memory. Instead, since it would have been too short of a memory and not that important to the overall story, I had it written as Harry simply telling it to Rose.
- This chapter was originally divided into two, the cut being after Harry becoming unconscious and before his first visit to the Hospital wing.
Chapter 6: Dawn of a Future to Come
- Rose wasn't sick in the first draft. She wasn't even supposed to be sick in the second draft. It was only added because I wanted Harry to finish his story in one remaining sitting and having Rose stay at home an entire day was a good way of doing so. It was also meant to add another scene showing Harry being a good father.
- Harry apologising to Hermione while they are waiting for the full moon was inspired by the fanfic All Because of an Hippogriff by muggledad.
Chapter 7: The Beginning of a Beautiful Relationship
- The original reason Hermione wasn't in the common room when Harry came back from the Great Hall was because she had gone to her dorm to escape the party Gryffindor was setting-up to celebrate Harry's entry in the Tournament. It was later changed to have Hermione go to the library and look for a way to get him out of it instead, which is a much more logical choice.
- The Yule Ball wasn't mentioned in the first draft. Later, the idea came of having an entire chapter flashback to that part of Harry and Hermione's lives but it was scrapped since there wasn't really anything to say which was worth being an entire chapter. So, just like with Hermione's petrification, it was written as Harry telling it to Rose instead of showing it as a flashback.
- The idea of Rose drinking Hot Chocolate was inspired by multiple Harry/Ginny fanfictions who all have Harry and Ginny drinking that together in the middle of the night, for some strange reason.
- The last line of the chapter "That is when I learned exactly what happened when Hermione said 'No!'" is a reference to the original title of the story.
Chapter 8: The Truth
- Dumbledore confunding the Grangers to explain why they abandoned Harry and left him behind was not originally planned. It was later added to remove any remaining distrust Harry could have felt for Hermione and the Grangers, which brought them all closer together. It also made for an interesting plot point. Yes, it's an easy way out. Sue me. ;)
- Harry originally attempted to break-up with Hermione here, which she refused to let him do so knowing the reasons why. However, the idea was scrapped and instead reused in Chapter 7 where Harry mention he attempted to do so in response to the cursed mail Hermione received thanks to Rita Skeeter's article about their relationship.
- Harry having inherited his grandparents' house in Shipton's Lynn wasn't originally in the story. It was later changed when I decided to keep the Granger parents in Britain and not have them obliviated and sent to Australia like in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. With Shipton's Lynn now being inherited, Harry and Hermione could use it to hide her parents under the Fidelius.
Chapter 9: The Potter Family
- The first flashback of the chapter was inspired by the scene where Harry and Hermione visit Godric's Hollow in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 1.
- The flashback in the Shipton's Lynn house was the last scene written in the first draft. It was almost removed from the second draft.
- A flashback showing the Potter/Granger (and Ron) group meeting the Lupins + Harry and Hermione's wedding was originally planned and even written in part but was later removed and simply told by Harry to Rose.
- A scene was envisioned where the Grangers gave Harry and Hermione a magic set for children as a gift for Christmas. It was scrapped (thought written as a drabble).
- Another flashback that was originally planned was the wedding itself. However, I know nothing about weddings or marriage and I didn't want to write something unconvincing, so I decided to skip it and just have Harry mention it instead. (It's also for the same reasons why Rose's wedding in the epilogue is not written in details.)
Chapter 10: Victory and Death
- The title of the chapter is a reference to the last episode of Star Wars: The Clone Wars Season 7.
- Hermione using the Marauder's Map to find Harry before he entered the forest was originally an idea for a one-shot I had. It was only later that I decided to write it as a chapter for this story instead.
- The ghosts of James, Lily and Sirius were originally meant to follow the couple in the forest like in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. It was later changed to have them disappear before they enter it.
- Hermione wasn't supposed to get hit by the Killing Curse. The original idea was to have Hermione watch from under the Invisibility Cloak as Harry was killed by Voldemort. For obvious reasons, it was changed.
- Harry and Hermione were not meant to meet Death in the original script. Rather, Harry would simply not have told that part of the night to Rose (which meant the reader wouldn't have read about it) and would have moved on to what happened after, which would have been from Hermione's POV.
- Death originally called Harry, Hermione and Voldemort "Mr. Potter", "Mrs. Potter" and "Mr. Riddle". It was changed so that he call them by their full names instead simply because it felt more strange.
- The whole sequence - from when Harry and Hermione meet Death to Voldemort's defeat - was inspired by the fanfiction Death's Embrace by WH Rutledge. Unfortunately, the fanfiction was deleted and can't be read anymore. :(
- Voldemort having sacrificial protection thanks to Bellatrix Lestrange's sacrifice was a last minute addition because I thought it was funny.
- Hermione being hit in the stomach by the Killing Curse is meant as a last clue and a bit of foreshadowing into why Hermione isn't present in the story. Having it affect Hermione's health while she was giving birth didn't come to mind right away. Hermione was simply supposed to have normal complications during delivery.
Epilogue: Departing With an Old Friend
- Before I came up with the idea of decreased life-expectancy because of the Killing Curse, Harry was supposed to die because he couldn't live without Hermione, having lived long enough to 'give' his daughter to a worthy man (Frank Longbottom II) who would have taken care of her and made her happy.
- Two ideas to continue that scene were scrapped: The first one was to see Harry's death from Rose's POV. As she was dancing with Frank, she would have noticed her father sitting on a chair, his eyes closed and a smile on his lips. While she would have smiled at the sight at first, her gut feelings would have told her that something was wrong, prompting her to go see him. It would be only as she approached him that she would realise that Harry was completely still and not breathing. She would have tried to wake him up and failed, which would have made her burst crying. That scene was cut because it didn't feel right to end the story showing a daughter mourning her father rather than a husband and wife being reunited.
- The second idea would have been at the Will reading where Harry would have told Rose somehow about how he couldn't live without Hermione but had managed to do so for so long simply because of his love for his daughter.
- Another scene that was scrapped (one that might have become part of it's own chapter) was one which showed Harry taking Hermione's death REALLY hard and got pissed drunk many times during the following month. The flashback would have shown Winky complaining to the Grangers about Harry. Then, Dan Granger would have stormed into the Potter household and hit Harry in the face before telling him that Hermione would be very disappointed in him. This would have snapped Harry out of his mourning funk and made him put effort into becoming the father he is in the rest of the story. That flashback wouldn't have been brought because Harry would have told Rose. Instead, it would have appeared in the last chapter while the Potters are at the Grangers. Dan and Harry would have been talking alone (while Rose was in Emma in another room) and Harry would have thought back to that scene.
- As stated before, Harry was originally supposed to be talking with Dan while Rose was with Emma. Instead, it was reversed in the draft, with Dan and Rose going to the basement to watch movies, leaving Harry and Emma alone.
- Harry was originally supposed to use the Resurrection Stone with Rose at his daughter's wedding just before their walk down the aisle to talk to Hermione. Harry was supposed to have kept it this whole time but never used it, even if he wanted to many times. That day was supposed to be the only exception. Understandably, this idea was scrapped when it was decided that Harry died that day, because redundancy.
- There was supposed to be a scene taking place at the Granger household where Rose said "I've met someone!" while Harry and Dan were drinking alcohol. Their reactions would have been to spray the walls in shock while Emma would have simply rolled her eyes.
- Harry and Emma originally drank Lemonade during their talk. It was changed later for butterbeer when I remembered that this talk takes place in November, not at all while it's hot outside.