Ship predictions(scenarios)

[pippin_999]

No: HPFGUIDX 90740

Neil wrote:
> I can't believe I've let myself be drawn into this discussion, but 
here goes.
> 
> My first question is which came first, ships or fanfiction?  I
can't 
believe  that anyone upon first reading SS or CoS even thinks 
about ships unless they  have been brainwashed by fanfiction.  <

Actually, knowing I was reading a seven part series (the shiny 
big Year One on the cover was a clue) as soon as I read the 
"cute meets" on the Hogwarts Express I expected I'd see  
Ron/Hermione and Harry/Ginny eventually. That's classic 
romantic comedy stuff. And I'd never even heard of fan fiction at 
the time, though I had studied a bit about how romantic 
comedies are constructed.

Neil:
>>These are 11 and 12 year old kids.  They  will be 17 when they 
leave Hogwarts.  What percentage of people in the world 
marry someone from their graduating class?  <<

Well, if they're going to marry another witch or wizard anywhere 
near their own age, it's pretty much a given that it will be 
someone who attended Hogwarts with them, unless they travel 
abroad. It's the only wizarding school in the country.

 Neil:
>> A marriage between Ron and Hermione in the real world 
would never make it.   Some say their fighting is funny in the story 
and it is, but would it be funny  in real life.  Hermione wants to 
free elves, Ron looks down on them and would  dread their 
being free.  Who would do his laundry?   Hermione is a super 
 achiever and Ron is happy to get by.  <<

*Harry* looks down on Elves too--he thinks they're weird. 
Meanwhile, at least Ron cares enough about the issue to argue 
with her about it. As Dumbledore says, opposition is far more 
easy to overcome than indifference. Ron just knows that they're 
happy as they are, a fact Hermione  refuses to acknowledge. 
She'll never free the Elves until she faces that issue and deals 
with it.  Meanwhile Molly does Ron's laundry at home--and 
Harry's too, when he's staying at The Burrow. 

 I don't think Ron and Hermione's arguing is going to be fatal to 
the relationship. They're still learning to relate to one another and 
sometimes their sparring gets out of hand--they just have to 
learn to blunt their claws, is all. 

Neil:
> >In a relationship between Ron and Hermione, they could 
never be equal  partners.  She excels him in every way.  Could 
Ron accept that.<<

 Ron may not apply himself to his classwork, (though I'd be 
surprised if he doesn't get as many OWLs as Harry) but he's 
better than Hermione at  Quidditch, chess, and even a  
classroom subject--Divination! He's proven he can set a goal 
and go after it --that sounds like an achievement oriented person 
to me.

 And I've never really understood why if the female partner is 
smarter, it's guaranteed to torpedo the relationship. There are 
some rare gems out there who think smart is sexy  and Ron, 
IMO, is one of them.

Pippin