SHIP Ron/Hermione: The Bickering Couple

[pippin_999]

No: HPFGUIDX 151626

> Betsy Hp:
> That's something I strongly disagree with.  Ron and Hermione have 
> some major fundamental differences going on.  For example, the house 
> elves: Hermione has a goal she works very hard towards achieving, 
> and Ron comes along behind her and sabatoges her efforts.  That's 
> huge.  It means that Ron totally disagrees with what Hermione is 
> doing, but he knows he can't talk to her about it.  That ain't a 
> good start to a relationship, IMO.  And it's not the way the 
> bickering couple generally works.
> 
Pippin:
Well, no. They're not ready to be a couple yet. Unlike B and B or Han and
Leia, or even Liz and Darcy, they have mucho growing up to do.  Ron has to 
learn to speak to Hermione (not at her)  and she has to learn to listen. I
suspect that will happen in Book Seven, accompanied by the now familiar
howls from the fandom that the characters have changed too quickly or
too much. (I sometimes wonder if these fans have ever  encountered 
any real teenagers.)

> Betsy Hp:
> Ron and Hermione do seem to enjoy hanging around each other.  I 
> think there are also a couple of times that Hermione arrives at the 
> Burrow before Harry.  So yeah, I get that JKR is setting them up as 
> a couple.  But I honestly have a hard time seeing how or why they 
> enjoy hanging around each other.

Pippin:
Oh, I think Ron enjoys a challenge. And Hermione enjoys being
appreciated for something besides her brains. Ron makes it
okay to enjoy a game of gobstones instead of spending all her
time in the library. 

> Betsy Hp:
> Mmm, I disagree with that.  Hermione is definitely intense.  She is 
> from the moment she shows up on the train intensely searching for 
> Trevor.  Ron is much more passive, I'd even say laid back.  Yes, 
> he's very loyal to Harry, and yes, he did do those secret quidditch 
> practices.  But I still wouldn't call him intense.  I think that's 
> part of the reason Hermione dismisses him so easily, because Ron 
> doesn't make a big production over what he does.

Pippin:
Ah, you've missed Ron's intensity because he doesn't make a big
production out of it. The Twins have always made it their business
to see that he doesn't get anything he admits to really wanting, haven't
they. But this is a guy who wanted to be Head Boy and Quidditch 
Captain, and will probably be both next year. You don't
get to be either by being laid back. 

He is also the one who decided which courses he and Harry should
take, as well as which ones should get the most effort and they turn
out to be, lo and behold, just what is needed to become an Auror. I
think he was planning on that long before Moody raised the subject.


> 
> Betsy Hp:
> Exactly.  Both Ron and Hermione were bothered by Winky's treatment 
> at the beginning of GoF, but Hermione sprang into immediate (and 
> poorly thought-out) action.  Ron, without spending a day in the 
> library, recognized that the problem was more complex than Hermione 
> made it out to be.  And when Hermione took her action too far 
> (knitting and hiding the hats in OotP) Ron quietly sabatoged her 
> efforts.  

Pippin:
She was being sneaky to the Elves, and Ron sneakily sabotaged her.
Tit for tat. The more I think about it, the more I think they are both
right about the Elf issue. Hermione is right that the status quo is
unconscionable. But Ron is right that the Elves have grown accustomed
to slavery. Their culture has adapted to it, and so it isn't only wizard
culture that has to change. 

Betsy Hp:
> I think the romance angle would have worked better if Ron and 
> Hermione worked more smoothly together and fought less often.  > 

Pippin:
Well, of course it would! But JKR doesn't want them getting romantic
with each other too soon. From her point of view, her job is to invent
obstacles to keep them apart until they can be joined decently. It
wouldn't do to have *them* behaving like a pair of eels. :)

Pippin