Hermione as a Prefect (was: Prefect Predictions)

[Zarleycat at aol.com]

No: HPFGUIDX 27731

--- In HPforGrownups at y..., frodoyoda at a... wrote:

snip
 
> >Although I voted for Hermione, she seems almost *too* much of a 
sure 
> >thing.  I'd love to see her as prefect (and then Head Girl), but I 
> >wouldn't be surprised if she isn't chosen as a prefect because of 
> >her 
> >prior history of rulebreaking.  Or she may lose her position as a >
> >prefect (or lose the position of Head Girl) due to some sort of 
> >rulebreaking gone wrong.  I'd expect that since Voldemort has 
> >returned to his full powers, things will clamp down at Hogwarts.  
> >And 
> >infractions will be dealt with harshly.  And as much as I'd hate 
to 
> >see it, that could end up hurting Hermione.
> 
> I'm more concerned with the possibility of a rift in the trio that 
> Hermione's possible Prefect-hood could cause. I can not see Harry's 
> and Ron's trouble-making days ending(and would be very disapointed 
if 
> I did), but I also can't see Hermione slacking in her Prefect-
duties 
> in order to save her friends. We saw in the Firebolt-incident in 
PoA 
> that Hermione does not hesitate to do what she thinks is right, 
> regardless of the consequences for Harry, Ron, or herself(she 
must've 
> known this would upset Harry and Ron).
> If Hermione caught Harry and Ron in some future escapade, and there 
> fore punished them, what effect would this have on their 
friendship? 
> Drawing again on the Firebolt incident, I can see a prolonged fight.
> Much as I would hate to see Hermione in this postion, it would make 
> for an interesting conflict.
> Well, that's my take on it, anyway. What do others think?
 

Hermione-as-prefect would be almost irresistable for me as an author, 
simply because of all the potential conflicts that could arise.  Not 
only is there the probability that Hermione would be forced to decide 
to blow the whistle on some Harry/Ron escapade.  There is also the 
possibility that things could get more tangled should JKR develop a 
case of raging teenage hormones for Hermione and one of the boys.  

I can see Hermione wanting to strictly enforce the rules in 
situations where she thinks that the potential rule-breaking is 
serious or dangerous, but I can also see Harry and Ron wheedling 
their way out of something, especially if they can convince Hermione 
that their intentions were good.  Of course, if they wheedle, she 
lets them off and then discovers that they have lied to her, or only 
told her part of the story, then there is additional fodder for 
conflict among them.

Marianne