Hermione's Reaction to... Was: Re: Harry's first Kiss (is it a smoke screen?)

[anasazi_pr]

No: HPFGUIDX 105934

delwynmarch wrote:
> Hermione wasn't issued to Ron, agreed, but neither was she issued to
> Harry. What I meant was that Ron is always second-best to Harry :
> Harry's got the money, the fame (even if he doesn't want it), the
> talent, the better looks, and he was supposed to get the Prefect
> badge.  But Ron doesn't care most of the time, because he's such a
> loyal friend. However, I think he *would* care very much if Harry
> started dating Hermione. He would hurt a lot and I feel it wouldn't 
> be fair on JKR's part to put Ron through *that*.

My reply:
Ouch. This actually made me cringe. Ron is always second best to 
Harry? Well, it seems to me Ron has much more of what really counts 
than Harry. 

True, Ron is poor... but he happens to have a good home where the 
people that live there love him (and we all know that, even with all 
the teasing, the twins love their little bro). He has a mother and a 
father who love him. He has no money, but I doubt he's ever gone 
hungry to bed. He may not be the brightest boy when it comes to 
school (neither is Harry - the position belongs solely to Draco), but 
he has shown he's a good strategist. He's now able to play his 
beloved Quidditch, and is enjoying the fame and attention that came 
with it.

Now, let's compare what Ron has with Harry... Harry is an orphan, 
both parents murdered by a powerhungry sociopath when he was only one 
year old. Forced to live for 10 years with an abusive family that 
regarded him as less valuable than the poo I stepped on last night 
(and that's pretty low my friend). I mean, we can consider that Ron's 
self-esteem might be a bit low due to the constant comparison with 
his succesful older brothers... but what about Harry, who lived for 
those 10 years in the shadow of Dudley? 

Then he finds he's a wizard and that he has money. Pity that is blood 
money since he only inherited because his parents are dead. Then in 
Hogwarts, he is thrown in the limelight of fame in a way he comes to 
despise (how many people want to have lies written about them in the 
media, raise their hands), finds out that the murdering sociopath is 
still out there, waiting to come back to his full power, in order to 
finish what they started that night in Godric's Hollow (Re: Death). 

He's been close to death not once, not twice, but six times, and has 
witnessed the people he cares about almost losing their lives because 
of their relationship with him. He has gained, and LOST, the closest 
thing he had to a paternal figure (Sirius). And now, he has that 
godforsaken prophecy hanging over his head. Talk about pressure! I 
would have broken down a long time ago.

So it seems to me that Harry was the one that drew the short straw 
here.

Anasazi