Dual boot XP/ubuntu and symbolic links from XP to Kubuntu

[Stephen Constantinou]

Dear All

I am trying to bridge the gap between Windows and Ubuntu so as to keep
the wife happy.  My wife uses the default XP boot option.  I am 
intending to boot Kubuntu and use this most of the time.  I am able to 
use my XP programmes that I cannot get in Linux as I use a commercial 
tool called Win4Lin.  It is best to have a wide screen monitor for this.

I do not want to copy all my user files from XP onto the Linux
partition.  To this end I have learned (via this forum) how to mount the
xp/ntfs partition at boot up and now the XP file structure (of C:) is
available to me.  I have from within Kubuntu made a folder and made a
new file with content direct onto the xp partition.  I have booted into
xp read the file and added more content and booted into Kubuntu and seen
the the added content available.  Nice!

But then I got ahead of myself.  I realised that the e-mail boxes
represented a particular problem.  I did not want to copy the e-mail
boxes for my three accounts into Linux because I thought I could do the 
following: make symbolic links from the  e-mail boxes in xp to the place 
in Kubuntu where they should be.  So (after making a new account in 
Thunderbird/Kubuntu) I did and hey presto all the folders appeared in 
Thunderbird.

But of course that is not the end.  This needed to be tested and all the
logical tests you would think of doing, failed.
Test 1) While in Kubuntu/Thunderbird receive a new e-mail into Inbox and
reboot to XP to see if the new e-mail is there.  It was received into
the Inbox but after a reboot into xp it was not present.
Test2) While in XP receive a new e-mail into Inbox and reboot to Kubuntu
to see if the new e-mail is there.    It was received into the Inbox but
after a reboot into Kubuntu it was not present.

Unperturbed and still believing I am Captain Kirk (the man who always
had a plan to get out of trouble) I looked at the file properties and
permissions.
 From within Kubuntu the xp folder containing the e-mails is owned by
root: and all groups can view & modify.  This is also true of the
individual e-mail boxes/files.
 From within Kubuntu/thunderbird the folder containing the e-mails is
owned by stephanos (the only user) and owner can view & Modify.  Group
and Others are forbidden.  The individual e-mail boxes/files clearly
state that they are links and do not have permissions.

Questions
1) Is what I am trying to achieve impossible or have I missed something?
2) Should I be turning those permissions that say Forbidden into Can 
View & Modify?

Any help appreciated

Stephen