What I'd like to see ...

[snorkackcatcher]

... in HP fanfiction, that is. I'm sure someone out there must have written stories like this, but they're proving rather hard to find.

(1) Stories in which senior figures who are usually Harry-focused in the books -- Dumbledore, Sirius, Remus, even Snape or McGonagall at a pinch -- interact one-to-one with either Ron or Hermione, or both together, without Harry there. And no, I don't mean Dumbledore/Ron stories or whatever (with or without use of Time-Turners to make them the same person) -- there's already a huge surplus of ludicrous shippy stories, I'm not really interested in seeing any more.

(2) Conversely ... I would be interested in seeing shippy stories which explore some of the canon (or at least canon-hinted) relationships that never seem to get ficced. Ones I'd like to see someone have a crack at in particular are Michael/Cho, Hagrid/Maxime, and yes, even Dobby/Winky. All would seem to have plenty of scope for interesting character dynamics, not to mention links back to the main series plot. I'll grant you that with the latter two both parties have a dialogue style that's tricky to get right, and with all of them a plug-in-the-names snog/shagfest would be deeply and profoundly crap, but you'd think they were worth a go.

(3) Year 7 stories in which Harry misses Ginny, but doesn't spend endless paragraphs angsting about how much he's missing her, or how he's realised that she's his Twu Wub and wants to marry her, instead just getting on with the job of disposing of Voldemort. Oh, and in which Ginny isn't happy about the breakup, but doesn't throw constant hissy fits about it, because you know she might just have been sincere when she said she knew darn well that he had to go and dispose of Voldemort, and approved of him for it.

This particular trope seems to be the post-HBP version of the Year 6 stories in which Harry spends endless paragraphs angsting how about much he's missing Sirius, and we all know how accurate a prediction that was.

And while we're here, how about stories where there isn't a tacit assumption from all concerned that Harry's going to be finished inside a year? Presumably he is, but he doesn't know that -- at the end of HBP, he was thinking it might take ten years.

Lyrics: The last one was Shakira's Objection (Tango) from 2001, spotted by jellybellys, orchideous1, and sugarannie.

I suppose it's about time for a seasonal song, so try this classic, which topped VH1 polls as the UK's favourite Christmastime hit but never the charts:

(Her) You're a bum, you're a punk
(Him) You're an old slut on junk
Lying there almost dead on a drip in that bed
(Her) You scum bag, you maggot
You cheap lousy faggot
Happy Christmas your arse I pray God it's our last
(Both) The boys of the NYPD choir were singing 'Galway Bay'
And the bells were ringing out for Christmas Day (1980s)

Comments

[dolorous-ett.livejournal.com]

Yay! I got one! The Pogues! Fairy Tale of New York!

Brilliant song, but are you sure it didn't hit the charts? I'm pretty sure I remember seeing it on Top of the Pops...

And your wishes are noted - I keep meaning to write some more fic - perhaps this'll be the push I need...

[melusinahp.livejournal.com]

Oh, okay, I was so confused. I was thinking, "But that's 'Fairy Tale of New York," not a Shakira song."

I need to pay more attention.

[snorkackcatcher]

That's OK. :)

[snorkackcatcher]

Hit the charts, yes, just never topped them (#2 on the original release, #3 on the re-release).

I'll look forward to anything you care to write! (Another one I might have added, now I think about it, is post-war Woeful!Harry in which he's practically ready to Diffindo his wrists in angst over all the people Lost In The War. All right, there are a lot of stories that don't go this route, but it never quite seems right to me when it does -- he's a resilient little bugger really.)

[lls-mutant.livejournal.com]

If you find any of #1, let me know! As I suspect you can tell, I have a weakness for Ron-Sirius friendship fics. I did do another Ron-Sirius ficlet ages ago... I'll have to dig it up. (I have a Remus-Hermione in the works, too, but it's been abandoned for so long... I really should pull it out. It's about them keeping secrets for each other third year, and one of the reasons Hermione never told anyone- even Harry and Ron- that Lupin was a werewolf.)

And the song is "Christmas in New York" by The Pogues :)

[lls-mutant.livejournal.com]

Oops. Fairytale of New York. :P :)

[snorkackcatcher]

Right. :)

[lls-mutant.livejournal.com]

Oops. Fairytale of New York. :P :)

[snorkackcatcher]

Yes, I'd noticed. :) I can remember seeing the occasional McGonagall-Hermione or Dumbledore-Hermione story, but it's rare (and since DD trusted them with the Horcrux secret, he must have developed a pretty good opinion of them somehow).

[sugarannie.livejournal.com]

These ideas you'd like to see are quite interesting, especially the second and the third one. That'd be things I'd like to read as well.

[snorkackcatcher]

I'll keep an eye out for them. :)

[jesspallas.livejournal.com]

That's Fairytale of New york, isn't it? The one with the toothless bloke and Kirsty McColl?

[jesspallas.livejournal.com]

Oh and I'd love to see that too. Mind you I've seen a few short fics by sensible people in which people take their cue from Ginny's apparent understanding at the end of HBP and actually write the couple how you describe but they're generally less significant characters in fics about other people!

[snorkackcatcher]

Yeah. I mean, I'm sure Harry will wise up and get back together with Ginny at some point, probably before the end -- but that's something they can do without all the add-ons.

[snorkackcatcher]

Yep. :)

[lazy-neutrino.livejournal.com]

I think there should be far more angsty Remus gen in the fandom, but I've decided to tackle that one myself :)

If I found a Dobby/Winky I'd click the back button so fast that I'd break land speed records. Sorry! Even imagining the tender dialogue has me cringing and covering my face with my hands.

[snorkackcatcher]

Oh, it would have to be done well or I'd be hitting the back button fast as well -- you'd need someone prepared to concentrate on making the house-elf psychology plausible, and not get distracted by schmoopiness. But if it were done well it could be really fresh and interesting. Unfortunate, really -- you get vampire shippy fic and Ye GODS do you get a glut of werewolf shippy fic, but no-one seems to care much about the elves (sorry, Hermione).

[lazy-neutrino.livejournal.com]

I don't know. It would be like reading Smurf fanfiction - and even if the writing was Booker prize standard, I'm not sure I could move past the, yes, but this is Smurfs thing.

I think Hijja's 'The Art of Wool' is told from the POV of a house-elf, but I also think it's gen. That was OK, and cleverly done.

On the shippy werewolf front, I really think Remus may come third to Harry and Draco in getting his end away. Not bad for a minor character. Haven't read any vampire stuff: I actively avoid it, I'm afraid!

[snorkackcatcher]

Do Smurfs have sex? *ponders bizarre question*

Now I think about it, I have seen one decently done Dobby romance, a plot line in quintaped's loooong story Harry Potter and the Goblin Rebellion (which I read in the original version on CoS Forums under the pen-name Dedalus Diggle and title Harry Potter and the Goblin Tomb Bug -- I read it a couple of Christmases ago to while away a boring evening shift at work, under which circumstances it read like one of the greatest pieces of fanfiction ever written). That was Dobby/an OC goblin (in the story, house-elves and goblins were actually variants of the same species).

[melusinahp.livejournal.com]

Those are all great and inspiring. My fandom new year's resolution is to write a lot more gen and come up with more interesting scenarios and stories that really explore the characters.

"in which Ginny isn't happy about the breakup, but doesn't throw constant hissy fits about it, because you know she might just have been sincere when she said she knew darn well that he had to go and dispose of Voldemort, and approved of him for it."

God yes. WomanScorned!Ginny makes me want to poke my own eyes out. What books are those people reading?

[snorkackcatcher]

My fandom new year's resolution is to write a lot more gen and come up with more interesting scenarios and stories that really explore the characters

Go for it! It would be nice to see something recced in the daily update comms beyond the usual round of interchangeable NC-17 shipfics.

Ginny evidently disagrees with Harry's reasoning about them needing to break up, but respects his feelings, and genuinely seems to support his decision to go Voldy-hunting -- although you could imagine her getting in on the act at some point.

[magnolia-mama.livejournal.com]

I would be interested in seeing shippy stories which explore some of the canon (or at least canon-hinted) relationships that never seem to get ficced.

Last night texasmagic and I were bemoaning the annual parade of "Gift of the Magi" knockoffs that are almost always H/G or R/Hr, and got to discussing how a Filch/Pince version might look. I have to say, the idea is very tempting. ;-)

In general, though, a loud and lusty "Yes!" to all three from me.

[snorkackcatcher]

I had to look up "Gift of the Magi"! -- now I have, I recognise that I've heard of it, just never read it (and from the summary given you imagine that in RL both parties would likely be cursing the crossed wires they'd got themselves into, and resolving to communicate better, however schmoopy they were :D). Filch/Pince would indeed be a version that might rescue it from schmoopiness. :)

[magnolia-mama.livejournal.com]

Sorry about the cultural gaffe -- I keep forgetting that O.Henry was an American author, and thus, while "Gift of the Magi" maybe be ridiculously overdone here, the rest of the world has probably been spared its utter schmoopiness. ;-)

[snorkackcatcher]

No problem -- I had heard the story before (and its the sort of thing you imagine probably has earlier archetypes anyway), just didn't connect it with the name. (That's not to say I'd want to see it forcibly applied to H/G or R/Hr.)

[maple-clef.livejournal.com]

My favourite Christmas song! Pogues, Fairytale of New York (not that everyone else hasn't already said that :D)

And those would be good stories to read. Ron and Sirius friendship genfic would be particularly interesting, I think.

[snorkackcatcher]

I actually betaed a nice Ron-Sirius fic recently for hp_holidaygen -- it hasn't been posted yet, but keep an eye out for it. :)

[snorkackcatcher]

And now the Ron-Sirius fic has been posted -- We Could Be Heroes (just for one day ... :D).

[shiiki.livejournal.com]

Year 7 stories in which Harry misses Ginny, but doesn't spend endless paragraphs angsting about how much he's missing her, or how he's realised that she's his Twu Wub and wants to marry her, instead just getting on with the job of disposing of Voldemort. Oh, and in which Ginny isn't happy about the breakup, but doesn't throw constant hissy fits about it, because you know she might just have been sincere when she said she knew darn well that he had to go and dispose of Voldemort, and approved of him for it.

I really agree with you there! I'm quite annoyed with the way stories like what you described have been popping up, until I've almost lost all compulsion to read H/G. (Fortunately a few gems over at CM saved me.)

[snorkackcatcher]

Yes, it's hit-and-miss on that ship -- the response to losing Sirius is probably a good clue to how he'll react in book 7, getting an occasional sharp jolt of regret when someone touches on the subject but otherwise carrying on regardless. Neither of them have ever actually used the word 'love' about the relationship in the books, after all.