SHIP OBHWF (aka One Big Happy Weasley Family)

[Ebony AKA AngieJ]

No: HPFGUIDX 15452

Darn it, Heidi--I *said* some weeks ago I was not going to 
participate in mainlist shipping debates anymore!  Ah, well... you've 
twisted my arm, so...

--- In HPforGrownups at y..., heidi.h.tandy.c92 at a... wrote:
Ebony & I were talking about this just last night. 
> The Weasley Family seems to be the type of family where, probably 
> under Molly's guide, the "family" expands to include people who 
need to be included. My home, growing up, was much the same. 

Mine was too, Heidi.  Half of the people who I deem "aunt", "uncle", 
or "cousin" are no blood relation.  My mother and grandmother are 
*definitely* matriarchal in nature--they are very strong women with 
mild-mannered, gentle husbands.  They both tend to "envelop" any 
child or person who needs nurturing that we bring around them.  
Friends, enemies (I'm serious), significant others, spouses.  So that 
makes 2 people from Weasley-like families who are not advocating the 
OBHWF ship.

The main problem I have with H/G is its weirdness.  I have no 
brothers, only male cousins who've lived with us, but this is my 
reasoning.  Anyone in our extended family who gets "enveloped in" is 
off limits for romance... it'd be like incest.  Ewwy.

I've actually witnessed the Harry/Ginny thing in real life, but it 
was in reverse.  My favorite aunt's best friend was the "Harry" in 
that situation, being semi-adopted into our family.  I've known her 
all my life... she and my aunt are only 9 years older than me, so 
they were like my big sisters.  I grew up in the house next door to 
my grandmother's, so I was always underfoot.

My aunt's best friend fell head-over-heels for one of our close 
cousins when they were adolescents.  Even as a preschooler 20 years 
ago, I could see this (and embarrassed her a couple of times, I 
think).  Today, this woman is a total package, and she was even as a 
girl--she's one of the prettiest women I know, she's smart and self-
employed, sweet, and has a great sense of humor.  Boys fell all over 
her in middle and high school--in adulthood, men still do.  

But the cousin never looked at her as anything other than a younger 
sister-type.  He dated girl after girl, never really returning her 
interest.

Family legend has it that the reason why my aunt's best friend has 
never married is because she's still carrying that old torch for this 
cousin... who is married with two kids and will never see her as 
anything more than a *sister*.

20+ years of pining.  Do we *really* want something like this for 
Ginny?  Or do we want someone who will appreciate her?  

How many celebrity-fan pairings actually *work*?

Harry's already more at home with the Weasleys than he is with his 
own relatives.  I'm sure this would be the case even if there was no 
such person as Ginny Weasley and Ron was the youngest.

So Harry wouldn't have to marry Ginny, Ron, or anyone else in order 
to be "Uncle Harry" to the next generation of Weasley kids.  He's 
already that.  :-)

 >If Harry was dating Ginny, would Molly be as willing to allow him 
to spend the summer at the Burrow, relatively unsupervised, or would 
she be concerned about those teen hormones? 

I'd think so.  She's conservative... Hermione's sharing a tent/room 
with Ginny in GoF, where some (strange) modern-minded parents would 
have allowed her to crash with her opposite-sex best friends, since 
after all they're just friends. 

> And if nothing happened until they were 17 (we don't know exacly 
how much younger than Harry Ginny is - I'm guessing she's a spring 
baby, like Ron, but then they began dating, it could *so* change his 
> relationship with the Weasleys - he'd move out of the category 
> of "foster son" into the category of "son in law to be", which 
means that in any dispute between Ginny & Harry (what, you don't 
think they'd have any? Hey, Ebony - a new science project!) 

Hey!  You're right!  Mission: Ron/Hermione has been lots of fun... 
why not try Mission:  Ginny/Harry?  <vbeg>

> I want OBHWF - but I want it to come from the love and affection 
all the people involved feel for each other, not from contracts and 
> handfasting, or however witches & wizards get wed.

I read a novel about a handfasting recently, and I'm intrigued by the 
concept.  Think I may borrow it for my own nefarious purposes.  ;-)

--Ebony AKA AngieJ