Remain Nameless

Chapter 51

A/N: I did warn you all that this final author's note would be quite lengthy. If you'd like to skip it and get to the good stuff, please scroll on by this block of text, I certainly wouldn't blame you. But I'd be remiss in not telling you all how I owe the D/Hr fandom an immense debt of gratitude. Before this year, I'd been silently reading and partaking in what so many talented authors gave out for free for a very, very long time.

I think a lot of you have heard the origin story of Remain Nameless by now: I thought up Draco's apology in Chapter 8 more than a decade ago. Over the years, I'd add little bits and pieces, then longer bits and bigger pieces to this story in my head until it overwhelmed me so much I unloaded it from my brain onto my computer over a year and some months ago. I honestly did not ever think I would share this with anyone. It was merely an exercise in making space in my brain and indulging my head canons for what a post-war society looked like in the world of Harry Potter and for how a relationship between Draco and Hermione could realistically progress. Thank you for accepting my addition to this world, I remain in this fandom's debt.

As I wrapped up this monster fic I threw two short stories up on the internet just to see if I could handle posting. But as I saw the finish line for writing RN, 2020 turned into a hellscape. I decided that I would do something that I really enjoyed, and that was to finally be an active participant in this fandom. I told myself if just one person liked my story then it would be worth posting. I didn't know a single soul when I began this journey and I didn't think I'd end up on several different platforms, connecting with readers/other writers/and artists. I never anticipated just how much fun this could all be.

I can't properly describe how overwhelmed I continue to feel by the response to this story. To the readers, thank you for jumping on board a fic from a random new writer who came stumbling into this space with claims of "slow burn, but I promise an HEA!" and "uhhh no idea how many chapters, sorry everyone, but this is more than 300k words long so...?"

To anyone who looked at this story, read it, commented, engaged with it in any way at any point in time, thank you. Thank you for letting me play around with characters major and minor and for letting me explore unresolved canon threads and add my own magical lore too. If this insanely long story of mine, which began as a personal catharsis, helped you in any way during this difficult year, then it's truly an honor.

Thank you to the other writers who've encouraged me along the way. I'm happy to call several of you friends now.

Thank you to the ridiculously talented artists who used their time to create original art and moodboards for this story. Each and every piece makes me lose my mind and descend into incoherency for a bit.

Thank you to mrsbutlertron for initiating our lovely friendship with your insanely long, insightful, and hilarious comments. I look forward to pestering you with my panic over minor details and apology fics for the rest of time. It's a pleasure to know you.

At the end of the day, I wanted to tell a story of two people who'd survived unspeakable trauma, who persisted in the aftermath, stumbled a bit, struggled a lot, but emerged from it all to find healing, love, and the strength to define themselves on their own terms. Thank you for letting me tell this story.

-Jude

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Tuesday, August 10, 2010

Hermione looked around her crowded living room. Boxes, bins, and suitcases holding all of her possessions and recollections of her time in the townhome took up almost the entire space, save for her sofa. Her friends had come through in stages throughout the last two evenings to help her pack it all up. She'd officially have everything moved to Franklin House in two days' time.