kerry

Once again, I fell behind; once again, I've caught up. (I've been bingeing the new Stranger Things and as much of Supernatural, which I've never seen, as I can watch before Netflix pulls it on Dec 17.) Anyway, as always, I love your story, Sofia. I'm amazed that this one has become more epic than your others! I do have a question or two though: It has become overwhelmingly Carly. It seems to me that she has two escape routes: adoption by Amanda and going back to Earth. I realize that, barring some plan you may have for the remainder of the book, the latter would involve leaving Beth behind, but the danger is so prominent that maybe that is the best option? She's already received the education she came for, and it's not as if she's at Emerson to get a degree. (Would credits there even be valid on Earth?) If she's adopted, the administration can't touch her, and she could still go home if she wishes: Stacy did, after all. I know she's pissed enough at what's going on that she's determined to bring them all down, but honestly the risk is too enormous. I suspect even Beth would totally understand any choice she made to get out of there. All of that said, though, I don't expect either of those choices, at least right now. (No punishment for Shapiro, Chester, and the board would be utterly unsatisfying...and you aren't lostbboybear; you may take danger to extremes and give us all nightmares, but you resolve things positively for your protagonists; love your work, too, LBB, but damn your DD is dark!) Anyway, thanks as always for these wonderful stories and characters!

Oops. 😉

As you can tell, I've fallen behind. I had some surgery in August right after returning from two weeks in Europe, and it is taking me a while to return to things like, well, reading diaper stories. 🙂 But this is one of my favorites, and that twist caught me totally off guard, so I'm glad I'm back. Did the thieves know that Mother's plan is nefarious? If so, why didn't they tell Alfie?

Oh come on! That was obviously a joke. 😉

That can't be right. How did we get Wynonna then? 😝

Maybe it's just because you've been so nice lately, but this feels concerning.

I love this more and more with every chapter!

Can this story even get any cuter?

I admit I missed the foreshadowing, but that might be on me.

Wow. Didn't see this coming. Girls can be so thoughtless and cruel. (Boys can too, but I'm addressing this specific case.)

I suspect you can bet on it!

I love the whole Classification concept, and this seems a worthy entry into the series. I'm happy that, with the mention of the gene thing, you provided a physical explanation that Brutal Ink, for all the greatness of his creation, never did. But I do wish that you had also fixed one other nagging inconsistency—or maybe it's being too consistent?—in the stories: the fact that Classification Day is the same for everyone. Why would it be? Graduation is not a biological phenomenon; it's a societal construct. People both younger and older than 18 graduate high school; in fact, it's clearly rare for anyone to have their birthday fall on the date of their graduation. So what then is the trigger that sets this gene off for so many simultaneously?

Oh, I'm sure he does!

Torgen, I generally don't read stories set in Japan because they always seem to be based on anime with which I am unfamiliar. I did, in fact, think this was one of them, which is why I had not read it until now. (I read "Too Late Magical Girl" a long time ago, and liked it, but others I've started reading have relied too much on tropes.) I am happy, though, that not only is your story not that at all, but the story and the narrative voice are both compelling in their own right. I'm enjoying this one a lot.

OK, I've been thinking this for a while, but I want to put it out there (so you all can laugh in the likely event that I am way off base or heap awe-filled praises on me on the off chance that I am somehow actually right). So here goes: I have noticed a repeated motif here that has Matthew effortlessly blending in with variously aged children and seeming to go pretty much unrecognized by adults. Is it possible that whatever magic is at work in this story changes the way he is perceived? (It could also actually change him bodily for a short time, but I can't see how such changes would/could go unnoticed.) Obviously I know you can't tell me if I'm right or even if this makes any sense at all. But it's fun to guess. 🙂 Ditto!