This is SO GOOD! I swear, it's almost exactly like you picked out the characters from Goblet of Fire as told by J.K. Rowling and just plopped them into a new setting. Karkaroff and Dumbledore's relationship has always fascinated me because they are so different yet occupy the same position of Headmaster. Karkaroff has always struck me as an underrated character with a lot of potential because of his role as a man without a country, taking on the appearance of royalty, accusing everyone of being against him yet terrified of what the future will bring as his former master returns. And the way you write him as a bad guy with a conscience who has very good reason to hate being in Britain is just perfect. He is afraid for his own life yet will go out of his way to lead Voldemort away from the only place he calls home. Damn. Karkaroff's great, Dumbledore's great, you're great, and this is one of the best things I've ever read in my life. фантастическая работа!

This. Is. Excellent.
Well done. You imitated the style and speech of Dumbledore almost flawlessly, and you gave the character of Igor Karkaroff more depth than Rowling ever did. Plus, it fits canon perfectly!
Thank you for this.

I really enjoyed this - I haven't seen much fic relating to Karkaroff, nor have I thought much about him myself, but you take Harry's somewhat one-sided POV of the man and really make him into a living, flawed, but still sympathetic character who regrets what he's done, and has the conviction not to lead Voldemort to Durmstrang in an attempt to buy himself his life back. Dumbledore himself and his somewhat obfustucating good intentions are absolutely spot-on from Rowling, and Phineas's portrait's interjection at the end of the conversation missed the point enough to set everything off nicely.

Whatif whatif whatif whatifwhatif...

Really great writing, even greater concept, Well done!

Very well-written and characterised. As it turns out in canon, Dumbledore surely didn't mean Karkaroff's personal good, but only to use him up as he did others. Still, perhaps he would have lasted longer, and would at least have had the satisfaction of striking a blow against the leader he had misguidedly chosen in his youth.

This was absolutely amazing. The characterisation of both Igor and Dumbledore was very well done. A character such as Karkaroff is much disliked and it is rare to see any Fanfiction about him, let alone one like this. Your descriptions are well chosen and spot on... over all, this is among the best I have read. I love the writing style and everything else as well.

x Smaginn

Oh wow. Characterisation was totally spot on and your writing style is so brilliant. I could totally see this scene fitting in as a missing moment. Great job! )

All hail Durmstrang!

Firstly, I adore the descriptive prowess you've shown here. You've given the whole scene a mood, just by using the small phrases like "claw-footed desk" and "creating Galleon-sized patches of rainbow." Your attention to detail, making sure it's reminscient of JK Rowling's world and not just of two characters, sitting either side of a desk, are brilliant

I also adore the way you've portrayed Igor, with the little we see of him in canon, most of which is from Harry, who's slightly biased when it comes to supposed Death Eaters, writing him is always going to be a challenge. "Nothing capped the anger in his voice now; it frothed over, spilling into his livid countenance and clenched fists." - This line in particular strikes me as very well characterised, Igor's always struck me as an angry person who struggles to control his emotions.

“Lord Voldemort does not qualify as a private matter, Igor.” - Woot, go Dumbles is all I can say here.

"Neither of them remarked on the irony of this." - I'm probably just missing something blatantly obvious here, but I can't really see the irony of this. Care to explain?

The line about handshakes was brilliant, I like the way you've taken such a little gesture and used it to show exactly how much has changed.

*grins*

I'm definately favouriting this, because, like I said, I don't think I've ever seen a Karkaroff fic before, and not only that, but this is amazingly well written and incredibly unique. )

Cuba

Good piece and i liked how Karkaroff is scared of his former master Voldemort comming back. Maybe a conversation like this did take place between Dumbledore and Karkaroff. I liked the ending between Phineas and Dumbledore. Thanks for a well written story.

Wow, that was brillant, if only, if only that could have happened...

I'm embarrassed to say this is the first HP fanfic I've ever read - they certainly can't all be this good, can they? :) I thought your characterizations were excellent and if the books weren't so focused on Harry this would fit in perfectly! Thanks for sharing this lovely piece.

I loved this. I've been searching around the site for some good fanfiction and trying to find refuge from the Mary Sues that seem to be overrunning many of the stores, and I happened to stumble upon this. I was hesitant to read this at first, just based upon the length, but I'm very glad that I decided to click on it and read.

The thorough description you opened the story with was simply beautiful. It was the perfect introduction to draw the reader into the story. I feel that this truly is a 'missing moment' from the series in both its form and content.

Your characterizations were superb and extremely accurate. Dumbledore's dialog, particularly, was amazing. You wrote all the characters with an extreme amount of depth and care which really comes through to the reader. The interactions between characters seemed natural, and the conversations were fluid and didn't seem forced at all.

Your choice of topic was original, as I haven't seen very many pieces about Karkaroff on this site, and I certainly haven't read any as good as this. The premise is plausible, and it was refreshing to read a piece about an often-neglected character.

Your narrative tone was clear and I liked your writing style very much. It's reminiscent of JKR herself. You captured the humor of it very well, while still maintaining the serious tone of the discussion Karkaroff and Dumbledore were having. Diction, syntax, description- it was all superb. Job well done- and I can give no higher praise than that!

Thank you for writing this, I've been hard-pressed to find good Harry Potter fanfiction recently, so I'm very happy I found this story. JK has left so many little holes in time to explore, and I've always wondered about Kararoff's disappeance at the end of book 4. It's a pity he didn't choose to join the Order of the Phoenix in the end...or did he? That might be an interesting follow-up story to this one. I loved your characterization in here, and all the fine details really brought Dumbledore's office to life. A fantastic job overall, I'll be adding this to my favorites. Thank you for sharing!

Reading Dumbledore in here was like reading the actual book. Seriously. You capture the writing style and characterizations so well!