# J.K Rowling regrets Hermione/Ron pairing -Are you rigid or flexible with plots?



## A.A (Mar 30, 2012)

_Rowling says that she should have put Hermione and Harry together in the Harry Potter series instead of Hermione and Ron, according to the publication's headline, which reads, "JK admits Hermione should have wed Harry."

"I wrote the Hermione/Ron relationship as a form of wish fulfillment," she says. "That's how it was conceived, really. For reasons that have very little to do with literature and far more to do with me clinging to the plot as I first imagined it, Hermione ended up with Ron."
_
http://www.hypable.com/2014/02/01/jk-rowling-ron-hermione-relationship-regret-interview/

Do you stick rigidly to your original plot lines, or are you flexible and open to plot changes all the way through writing your books?


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## GearPress Steve (Feb 4, 2012)

Ron and Hermione were together? I never read the books. I saw the first movie and thought it was crap, so that was the end of that. I have ridden the ride at Universal Studios Islands of Adventure with my daughters about 50 or so times.

And regarding your question: My characters usually decide where the story goes, not me. It is rare that I plot out a full story and my characters follow my direction. They usually don't follow my plans at all, which can be frustrating and annoying to me at times, but it seems to work for them.


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## Lionel&#039;s Mom (Aug 22, 2013)

Wait, what?? It was always Ron and Hermione! I would have hated her with Harry. Dies a little.

Anyway, in my one book, it ended up all different from how I first conceived it, but I like it better the way it ended up.


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## valeriec80 (Feb 24, 2011)

Ugh, I *wish* I was rigid.

I can't count the number of times I've wished I could just do what Tolkien did when he rewrote The Hobbit so it would match LOTR better. But I always feel like that's cheating, so I'm forced to contort everything to stay in line with what's already published. Gah.

(And whatever. Ron and Hermione should obviously have been together.)


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## swolf (Jun 21, 2010)

Hermione and Harry would have produced some kick-ass wizard kids.


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## Patty Jansen (Apr 5, 2011)

Harry and Hermione? No way!

I'm still pissed off that Harry didn't end up with Luna Lovegood.


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## GearPress Steve (Feb 4, 2012)

How about Harry and Ron together?


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## C.A. Bryers (Dec 10, 2013)

I generally stick to my outline at the beginning, but things get a lot looser as things progress. By the time I hit the 3/4 mark, I hardly reference the outline anymore. I still  have the ending in mind, but by then, things have steered into different (and often better) directions. 

That said, yeah, Ron and Hermione weren't an ideal pair, and Harry and Ginny was a pretty weak pairing IMO. Tough to imagine how she might have handled Harry and Hermione--might've been boring as mud. But as long as there are writers, there will be writers second-guessing which direction they took at the fork in the road.


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## Monique (Jul 31, 2010)

Ron and Hermione. Ugh.

Not crazy about Harry and Hermione, but it's better than Ron. I like Harry and Luna, too.

Hermione should be with someone older, smarter, more challenging.


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## GearPress Steve (Feb 4, 2012)

How about Harry and that chick who is always moaning and talking and making noises in the bathroom every time I go to the toilets in Potterland at Universal? Anybody know who I'm talking about? Every time I go in the bathroom... she's so annoying.


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## Maria Romana (Jun 7, 2010)

GearPress Steve said:


> How about Harry and that chick who is always moaning and talking and making noises in the bathroom every time I go to the toilets in Potterland at Universal? Anybody know who I'm talking about? Every time I go in the bathroom... she's so annoying.


Um, that would be Myrtle. But she's dead. Not saying it couldn't have worked...

 Maria


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## GearPress Steve (Feb 4, 2012)

Maria Romana said:


> Um, that would be Myrtle. But she's dead. Not saying it couldn't have worked...


Myrtle? Thanks. I just finished watching this season of AHS:Coven and any time I hear the name _Myrtle_ I can only think of is Frances Conroy with flaming red hair.


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## MsTee (Jul 30, 2012)

Monique said:


> Hermione should be with someone older, smarter, more challenging.


SEVERUS SNAPE!!!!!111!111!11111!1!!!!!!

*runs*


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## Patty Jansen (Apr 5, 2011)

MsTee said:


> SEVERUS SNAPE!!!!!111!111!11111!1!!!!!!
> 
> *runs*


This touches on something else that peeves me off about the last book. It would have been much more interesting, story-wise, if somewhere during the final battles a good portion of the Slytherin' house, including maybe Draco Malfoy, had decided "this is BS" and defected to the other camp. The current ending does nothing more than confirm the fairytale default that bad is innately bad and can never be circumstantial. Or that there are rewards for standing up if those immediately around you support a cause that you think is bad.

I think especially Draco would have been an excellent candidate, having been raised by two such prunes, and his "badness" could have been purely circumstantial and peer-induced. I would have loved to have seen him stand up to his parents, actually.

So. Hermione and Draco?


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## MsTee (Jul 30, 2012)

Patty Jansen said:


> This touches on something else that peeves me off about the last book. It would have been much more interesting, story-wise, if somewhere during the final battles a good portion of the Slytherin' house, including maybe Draco Malfoy, had decided "this is BS" and defected to the other camp. The current ending does nothing more than confirm the fairytale default that bad is innately bad and can never be circumstantial. Or that there are rewards for standing up if those immediately around you support a cause that you think is bad.
> 
> I think especially Draco would have been an excellent candidate, having been raised by two such prunes, and his "badness" could have been purely circumstantial and peer-induced. I would have loved to have seen him stand up to his parents, actually.
> 
> So. Hermione and Draco?


Patty, this theory has been explored at length by many fantastic story-tellers in fanfiction. We've seen a lot of great What If? endings and even pairings that you'd never consider. Hermione/Draco is one of the most popular romantic pairings in the HP fandom, as a matter of fact.

But, yeah, to the OP: I think it's dangerous to be rigid with your endings. When in doubt, invite readers to share their thoughts how they think it should end. You don't have to use their ideas, but it's a great way to jumpstart your own. I guess this is where the benefits of serialisation comes in. If you're releasing sections of the work, you'll get valuable feedback from your readers that can help guide you as to the most favourable ending. Satisfy your fans' sense of 'completeness' and you'll definitely maintain a long-lasting devotion.

Funnily enough, I think J.K.R's fanbase increased some through fanfiction. Those who read at the Epilogue after Deathly Hollows and went: "UGH! Let me fix that for you, J.K.R." lol


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## GearPress Steve (Feb 4, 2012)

I feel sorry for the OP. This thread has gone completely off the rails and people aren't answering the rigid/flexible question.


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## JRTomlin (Jan 18, 2011)

I always thought Hermione and Ron were a very weak paring. I kind of agree with Hermione and someone older, more able to deal with her strength and intelligence, alhtough I can't think of a good character who survived as a candidate. Harry and Luna would have been a rather interesting pairing, certainly better than Harry and Ginny for sure. I always thought the ending was very weak, not up to the rest of the series. Harry and Ron... not really. If Harry were going to be with a guy, it should be someone stronger than Ron. 

I have to be somewhat rigid in my HF endings because what happens is what happens. My fantasies, I've frequently changed what I thought would be the ending.

ETA: I'm not sure there's a 'should' because there are so many different genres and writing paths, we all make our own, but it is a good idea to have some flexibility.


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## olefish (Jan 24, 2012)

I have not read Harry Potter, but I'm glad Harry didn't get Hermoine, only because it breaks the mold of the hero getting the main female character at the end. 

I personally don't keep to rigid plots. they change, too often in fact.


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## Monique (Jul 31, 2010)

MsTee said:


> SEVERUS SNAPE!!!!!111!111!11111!1!!!!!!
> 
> *runs*


Works for me. 

As to the actual question. I'm inflexible until I have to be flexible, if that makes sense. I cling go my idea and try to make it work until it either does or doesnt. If it doesn't, I become flexible. I tend to sink my teeth into an idea and massage it until I find the right configuration. I should probably be more flexible.


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## Jason Halstead (Mar 18, 2011)

I'm disappointed Voldemort didn't kick all their butts and make it a moot point. Bunch of pansy kids anyhow...

My stories change as the characters relay them to me. Heck, I don't even consider an outline until I'm about 75% of the way through the book and realize I need to close up loose ends on my way to the finish line.


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## Redacted1111 (Oct 26, 2013)

Hermoine and Luna. Perfect pair. hahaha.


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## Cherise (May 13, 2012)

A.A said:


> _Rowling says that she should have put Hermione and Harry together in the Harry Potter series instead of Hermione and Ron, according to the publication's headline, which reads, "JK admits Hermione should have wed Harry."
> 
> "I wrote the Hermione/Ron relationship as a form of wish fulfillment," she says. "That's how it was conceived, really. For reasons that have very little to do with literature and far more to do with me clinging to the plot as I first imagined it, Hermione ended up with Ron."
> _
> ...


LOL! The comments on the first comment after that article are hilarious!


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## David Adams (Jan 2, 2012)

Honestly, I loved the fact that the central protagonist didn't end up with the central female character in his age bracket. That made me smile a little because otherwise it would have been terribly boring, which is the cardinal sin of books.


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## JRTomlin (Jan 18, 2011)

Cherise Kelley said:


> LOL! The comments on the first comment after that article are hilarious!


LOL OMG!


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## Samuel Peralta (Dec 31, 2013)

Any votes for Hermione ending up with Edward Cullen?


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## Maria Romana (Jun 7, 2010)

Patty Jansen said:


> This touches on something else that peeves me off about the last book. It would have been much more interesting, story-wise, if somewhere during the final battles a good portion of the Slytherin' house, including maybe Draco Malfoy, had decided "this is BS" and defected to the other camp. The current ending does nothing more than confirm the fairytale default that bad is innately bad and can never be circumstantial. Or that there are rewards for standing up if those immediately around you support a cause that you think is bad.
> 
> I think especially Draco would have been an excellent candidate, having been raised by two such prunes, and his "badness" could have been purely circumstantial and peer-induced. I would have loved to have seen him stand up to his parents, actually.
> 
> So. Hermione and Draco?


Yes, yes, and yes! It was totally weak that Draco did not end up helping out the cause, especially after Harry went back and saved his butt from the fire. C'mon, Draco was never that pure evil. He always had a soft spot. To not follow that up at the end was just weak, weak, weak.

And Hermione and Draco--anyone with any sense could see where that should have gone. The little goody-two-shoes girls _always _go for the bad boys. Ron is great fun and comic relief, but a savvy chick like Hermione would never fall for the class clown, especially given that she's known him since she was eleven. He would have gotten the old "but I just don't think of you _that _way..."


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## Rachel Macwhirter (May 29, 2013)

Trinity Night said:


> Hermoine and Luna. Perfect pair. hahaha.


I'd never considered this until now - I was more of a Luna/Ginny girl as a teenager - but it's amazing. Carry on.


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## Becca Mills (Apr 27, 2012)

A.A said:


> _Rowling says that she should have put Hermione and Harry together in the Harry Potter series instead of Hermione and Ron, according to the publication's headline, which reads, "JK admits Hermione should have wed Harry."
> 
> "I wrote the Hermione/Ron relationship as a form of wish fulfillment," she says. "That's how it was conceived, really. For reasons that have very little to do with literature and far more to do with me clinging to the plot as I first imagined it, Hermione ended up with Ron."
> _
> ...


Maybe this explains why the Harry-Ginny relationship felt so underdeveloped -- Rowling was making herself produce what no longer felt right.

Personally, I'm flexible. Things change radically as I go along. The curse/boon of the pantser, I guess.


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## Victorine (Apr 23, 2010)

My characters do what they want. I have an idea of how the story goes, but it always gets thrown out the window. I re-write my outline more times than I rewrite my book. I'm so flexible I can sit on my own head. And yeah, it's painful sometimes. But in the end, I feel I have a better book because I followed where my characters developed, instead of making my characters follow where I wanted.

I never liked the romance in HP. It was underdeveloped and seemed forced. I don't think she's a romance writer.


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## Diane Darcy (Apr 14, 2011)

Patty Jansen said:


> Harry and Hermione? No way!
> 
> I'm still p*ssed off that Harry didn't end up with Luna Lovegood.


Yes! That's who I wanted Harry to end up with too!


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## A.A (Mar 30, 2012)

GearPress Steve said:


> I feel sorry for the OP. This thread has gone completely off the rails and people aren't answering the rigid/flexible question.


Ha! No, I'm flexible 

For me, the romances between Harry/Ginny and Hermie/Ron needed to be shown in a more compelling way to be convincing. Maybe that was why - J.K was wavering. But the story/characters were all fantastic so I think it still works.

I LOVED Luna Lovegood.

I'm not rigid at all with plot lines - the characters lead.


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## timskorn (Nov 7, 2012)

Why doesn't she just change it and reupload?


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## Diane Patterson (Jun 17, 2012)

I'm so flexible that I just redid the middle of my novel -- including tossing the entire sequence that I built Act 2 around (because it no longer worked).

I've had a very hard week being so darn flexible.


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## Vivienne Mathews (May 7, 2013)

cassidycayman said:


> Wait, what?? It was always Ron and Hermione! I would have hated her with Harry. Dies a little.


Yes, this!



timskorn said:


> Why doesn't she just change it and reupload?


*Giggle!* Can you imagine the Lucas-style outrage? 

To the OP -- definitely flexible. My outlines are always very loose.

(Draw as many dirty things from those two sentences as you will, you gutter-minded folk. That's right, I'm onto you!)


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## dianasg (Jan 8, 2010)

GearPress Steve said:


> How about Harry and that chick who is always moaning and talking and making noises in the bathroom every time I go to the toilets in Potterland at Universal? Anybody know who I'm talking about? Every time I go in the bathroom... she's so annoying.


OMG I lol'd so hard at this. That is awesome.

I was a die-hard canon shipper in the HP fandom when I was a teenager. I cut my teeth writing Harry/Ginny and Ron/Hermione fanfic. I still remember that glorious moment before Book 7 when she called H/Hr shippers "delusional." (Or something like that.) I bear battle scars from the shipping wars!!! So obviously, this interview made my inner child weep.

As far as plotting, I am probably not as flexible as I like to think I am. I can usually tell when something's not working, though. But if I've planned something a certain way and it's not working, I can either adapt -- or revisit my original plan and see WHY it's not working. What have I done to throw a wrench in, and how can I get it out?

What I don't understand with JKR is, if there was something she wanted -- like Ron/Hermione ending up together, or Dumbledore being gay (I was always disappointed at the way she revealed that once it was all over) -- then she could have written it so, and convincingly. It sounds like she is saying that in the books R/Hr feels forced (not "credible") because she forced it and it should have been H/Hr, but I guess... I don't buy it?

I don't really subscribe to the whole, "My characters act of their own volition" thing. It might feel that way, particularly as we write organically, but ultimately the writer is the one making the decisions. If she thinks she didn't write R/Hr convincingly or "credibly" (and I think she did), then it's not because the "characters" were pulling her in another direction. It's the author's job to wrangle and write the story that she feels is "right": and if she fails to do so, then that's, well, that's on her. If H/Hr felt right, she could have revised and taken it in that direction. If she wanted R/Hr, but felt it wasn't working, then that's the moment to look inward and see how to fix it so it works. The author calls the shots!

Of course, her situation was particularly odd because she was under an extreme amount of stress and pressure to produce and FINISH those books so the world could know what happened next, and so the publishers/booksellers could please their shareholders.

I will still always love her  She created something amazing, and I have her to thank for becoming a writer.


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## JV (Nov 12, 2013)

Well being that I don't work with an outline, I'm about as flexible as it gets. I still have no idea how my current WIP is going to end.


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## GearPress Steve (Feb 4, 2012)

A.A said:


> For me, the romances between Harry/Ginny and Hermie/Ron needed to be shown in a more compelling way to be convincing. Maybe that was why - J.K was wavering. But the story/characters were all fantastic so I think it still works.
> 
> I LOVED Luna Lovegood.


I don't know anything about these relationships, other than whatever happened in the first movie. I just couldn't get into it. My daughters both read all the books, and years ago I worked with a man in his fifties who would camp out on release night when the new books came out.

I used to feel kind of left out not knowing all the ins and outs of the whole Potter saga, but that faded away since my daughters moved on a few years ago. Then it was _Twilight _and after that I guess it was _Hunger Games_... I don't know, I don't follow that stuff.

Apparently, when I wasn't looking, My Little Pony also came back and is now HUGE among adults (aka "Bronies"). I can't believe me 21-year-old is all gaga for MLP now.


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## kathrynoh (Oct 17, 2012)

I always thought it was strange when people talked about who the characters would 'end up with'.  They were in high school! I'd have much preferred a HFN ending without the epilogue.


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## GearPress Steve (Feb 4, 2012)

DianaGabriel said:


> OMG I lol'd so hard at this. That is awesome.


Yeah, well, they've built a Harry Potterland train that runs between the two parks now. And they've built some kind of a mine car roller coaster inside a bank... not sure what that's about... and they've built a Diagon Alley, too. I guess this Potter fad ain't gonna die anytime soon, at least not in my backyard.

They had to build a second Oliver's wand shop, too, because the one they originally built is so overrun with people waiting to get into it every day.

Oh well. Both my--adult--daughters spent $90 each on a silly robe with a Slitherin patch on them, so it even hits close to home, sadly.

When we went to Edinburgh we had to go to the Chinese restaurant where Rowling wrote the first book (I think). They have a big plaque up in the restaurant. "Here's the booth where JKR used to sit and write her book". And people stand around it and go: "Oooooooooooh!"

LOL! Harry Potter was some kind of phenomenon, I guess.



DianaGabriel said:


> I don't really subscribe to the whole, "My characters act of their own volition" thing. It might feel that way, particularly as we write organically, but ultimately the writer is the one making the decisions.


It's hard for me to feel like I'm making any decisions. I've had a character take my story in a completely WRONG direction once, and I was totally surprised by the developments that took place. Yeah, I know that ultimately it comes out of my own brain, but I don't feel like I'm deciding anything.

Of course I have a friend who is a well-known professional actor. He absolutely HATES method actors. Can't stand them, can't stand to be AROUND them. He says: "Instead of going through all of this stupid crap, just ACT, ok? It's your freaking job".


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## NoCat (Aug 5, 2010)

Eh. I liked that Harry didn't end up with Hermione. I thought Ron had good qualities that helped balance out Hermione's personality.

No, what I'm peeved about is that Sookie didn't end up with Northman. Sigh. Never gonna forgive that one.


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## Gone To Croatan (Jun 24, 2011)

I don't really care about Harry Potter; I never read the books, and thought the two movies I saw were pretty 'meh'. I can see why she made billions, but I'm sure there were plenty of similar series which could have been Harry Potter if the writers had more luck.

But, back on the original topic, I have a habit of writing stories out of sequence, which then means I either have to publish the books as is, or go back and write the earlier ones before I do that so I'm not locked into what happens in the later ones. This is one reason I have so many unfinished and unpublished novels at the moment; 'The Shiny Thing,' for example, is set about four hundred years after Petrina and explains what happened to many of the main characters from that novel between the two books. I keep trying to finish it, because I like the story, but then realize that it will prevent me from changing things in the four or five novels with those characters that I haven't written yet.


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## JV (Nov 12, 2013)

Edward M. Grant said:


> I don't really care about Harry Potter; I never read the books, and thought the two movies I saw were pretty 'meh'. I can see why she made billions, but I'm sure there were plenty of similar series which could have been Harry Potter if the writers had more luck.
> 
> But, back on the original topic, I have a habit of writing stories out of sequence, which then means I either have to publish the books as is, or go back and write the earlier ones before I do that so I'm not locked into what happens in the later ones. This is one reason I have so many unfinished and unpublished novels at the moment; 'The Shiny Thing,' for example, is set about four hundred years after Petrina and explains what happened to many of the main characters from that novel between the two books. I keep trying to finish it, because I like the story, but then realize that it will prevent me from changing things in the four or five novels with those characters that I haven't written yet.


Just have to say, the books are incredible. The movies, imo, sucked. As is the case with most books, they are not to be judged based off of their film counterparts.


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## GearPress Steve (Feb 4, 2012)

All I know is we rode that dadgum Potterland ride as many times as it took to sit in every car just so my daughters could say that they may have ridden in the same ride car that Tom Felton rode in.

"Oh, Tom Felton... he's soooooo HOT!"

My daughters didn't give a crap about Harry or Ron. They both wanted to get down with Draco.

Personally, based on the first film only, since I have no other reference point: as far as characters go, I thought Snape was the best. The rest were pretty "meh" all around.


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## dianasg (Jan 8, 2010)

GearPress Steve said:


> Yeah, well, they've built a Harry Potterland train that runs between the two parks now. And they've built some kind of a mine car roller coaster inside a bank... not sure what that's about... and they've built a Diagon Alley, too. I guess this Potter fad ain't gonna die anytime soon, at least not in my backyard.


Lol! That is awesome (although I can imagine it'd lose its novelty if I had to go all the time). And yep, the bank in Harry Potter is underground, and you have to take a mine car with a goblin to get to your vault. I swear it doesn't feel that absurd when you read the books. 



GearPress Steve said:


> It's hard for me to feel like I'm making any decisions. I've had a character take my story in a completely WRONG direction once, and I was totally surprised by the developments that took place. Yeah, I know that ultimately it comes out of my own brain, but I don't feel like I'm deciding anything.
> 
> Of course I have a friend who is a well-known professional actor. He absolutely HATES method actors. Can't stand them, can't stand to be AROUND them. He says: "Instead of going through all of this stupid crap, just ACT, ok? It's your freaking job".


Hahaha, that's hilarious about the method acting. I know we are supposed to admire it, but all I've ever felt is MAD respect for Daniel Day Lewis' wife, because he must be insufferable about 90% of the time!

I can definitely understand not feeling like you're calling the shots when you write, for sure... but - just out of curiosity - what about revision? To me, that's the moment to clean things up and smooth them over so the story flows, so that all the parts "fit," and so on. Some do it during, some do it after, but still... we do it, you know? And I assume JKR did it. Maybe she could have revised things so R/Hr felt more organic.


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## GearPress Steve (Feb 4, 2012)

Doomed Muse said:


> No, what I'm peeved about is that Sookie didn't end up with Northman. Sigh. Never gonna forgive that one.


Ok, another reference I don't understand. Who are Sookie and Northman?


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## JRTomlin (Jan 18, 2011)

Sookie Stackhouse. A rather popular series but a lot of fans didn't like how it ended.

ETA:


> Dumbledore was gay?
> 
> Oh god.


Someone tell Betsy to come look at me being good.


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## GearPress Steve (Feb 4, 2012)

Vivienne Mathews said:


> *Giggle!* Can you imagine the Lucas-style outrage?


Erm... Lucas-style outrage? Can you explain? I'm not understanding the reference.


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## JRTomlin (Jan 18, 2011)

Drew Gideon said:


> Why would you need to be?
> If you take the whole quote in its context, you'll see I'm not being negative. If you perceived it that way, I apologize.
> It simply throws a new light on things and makes certain dialogue exchanges funny.
> I honestly thought we'd eventually see Dumbledore revealing a secret wife from far back in his past... and then JKR killed him.
> ...


Yes, in context it read to me like a rather unpleasant sneer at gay characters as though a gay character couldn't say an ordinary line without it being somehow dirty, but if you didn't mean it that way, I apologize.

I'm sure quite a few people missed the reveal that he was gay. I thought it was fairly obvious throughout the later novels but apparently a lot of people didn't until she said so.

ETA: "Obvious" is an exaggeration, but I wondered.


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## Nathalie Aynie (Nov 24, 2013)

Sam Peralta said:


> Any votes for Hermione ending up with Edward Cullen?


No! No! NO!
Edward is MINE.


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## dianasg (Jan 8, 2010)

JRTomlin said:


> Yes, in context it read to me like a rather unpleasant sneer at gay characters as though a gay character couldn't say an ordinary line without it being somehow dirty, but if you didn't mean it that way, I apologize.


^ This.

I mean, wands are phallic whether the owner is gay or not.


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## GearPress Steve (Feb 4, 2012)

Nathalie Aynié said:


> No! No! NO!
> Edward is MINE.


You can have him, according to my daughters. Both of them want the werewolf, whatever his name is (not sure). But they also both want Edward's car, which is apparently nice (I'm not familiar with it).


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## Lummox JR (Jul 1, 2012)

A.A said:


> _Rowling says that she should have put Hermione and Harry together in the Harry Potter series instead of Hermione and Ron, according to the publication's headline, which reads, "JK admits Hermione should have wed Harry."
> 
> "I wrote the Hermione/Ron relationship as a form of wish fulfillment," she says. "That's how it was conceived, really. For reasons that have very little to do with literature and far more to do with me clinging to the plot as I first imagined it, Hermione ended up with Ron."
> _


Ulgh. Hermione and Harry would have been a terrible pair. For one thing neither showed much romantic interest in the other right from the beginning. Ron and Hermione, on the other hand, always had a certain odd couple chemistry.


Spoiler



Harry marrying into Ron's family, who were the closest he ever had to a family anyway, made perfect sense. The argument could have been made that Ron and Hermione shouldn't necessarily have ended up together, but I just don't see her with Harry.





> Do you stick rigidly to your original plot lines, or are you flexible and open to plot changes all the way through writing your books?


I haven't yet written a series so this hasn't come up as series go, but I've rewritten shorter works as novels and I've found myself making numerous changes as I go along. My first book in particular diverged greatly from the original in many respects, even while keeping many of the same characters and much of the core of the story. Novel length demands more depth, and sometimes the way that depth manifests can surprise you if you had the story already written or planned at a shorter length or in less detail.


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## Vaalingrade (Feb 19, 2013)

Attn: J.K.Rowling (who I am certain is reading this thread)

I am about to offer you two words that will transform that mountain of money into a money _continent_. I understand completely how you might have overlooked it, but as a fan of comic books, it was thankfully not lost on me. As thanks, all I ask is a small, tasteful dumptruck full of gold coins (when I said comics, I spoke of course of Scrooge McDuck and will be swimming in those bad boys).

Ready for the two worlds:

Alternate. Timeline.

Seriously, you've already introduced time travel into your universe with the time turner. It's time to stop worrying and love the paradox.

Imagine if you will, the loved ones of one of the victims of the final battle deciding to stop it before it even starts by using the time turner to go back to the first rumbles of trouble: the Chamber of Secrets scare. There (er... then) they set in motion events that end with Dumbledore explaining exactly what the book was _then_ and setting up the quest to destroy the other clearly-no-a-lich's-phylacterys then and there.

Of course, this will involve sending his crack team of The Chosen One and plucky sidekicks and will put into play a whole new sequence of plots for a whole other series of books where you can rearrange your pairings however you want (and also let Sirius live).

As a bonus, killing Voldy early will allow the next set of movies to have a Big Bad who doesn't look like The Master from Buffy got it on with a seal.

In conclusion, face-turn Draco and hook him up with Luna. Because I kind of want to see how many megatons a fandom this big exploding would yield.


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## C.A. Bryers (Dec 10, 2013)

GearPress Steve said:


> Erm... Lucas-style outrage? Can you explain? I'm not understanding the reference.


I would assume it meant that, by rewriting and re-uploading, Rowling would be noodling with her already finished product. Star Wars fanboys and girls got in an uproar over George Lucas tinkering, changing, and what have you with his already finished product in Special Editions, Ultimate Editions, Mega-Double-Live-at-the-Budokan-Gonzo Editions, etc. Many Potterheads would undoubtedly do the same, given many are quite satisfied with Ron/Hermione.


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## GearPress Steve (Feb 4, 2012)

C.A. Bryers said:


> I would assume it meant that, by rewriting and re-uploading, Rowling would be noodling with her already finished product. Star Wars fanboys and girls got in an uproar over George Lucas tinkering, changing, and what have you with his already finished product in Special Editions, Ultimate Editions, Mega-Double-Live-at-the-Budokan-Gonzo Editions, etc. Many Potterheads would undoubtedly do the same, given many are quite satisfied with Ron/Hermione.


Ok, thanks for that. I only saw the first three _Star Wars_ films when they came out in the theaters. I never saw any of the others or any other editions of the original ones, either. I wouldn't be considered much of a _Star Wars_ fan.


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## Adam Poe (Apr 2, 2012)

I never thought either of the two relationships were fleshed out enough in the books. Especially the last couple. I can definitely see why, now. It was forced. She didn't feel it should happen the way it did but made it do so anyway.

If I am writing, and something doesn't feel like what the characters would 'really' do, even if I have it plotted down, I will let them tell their own story.


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## Daphne (May 27, 2010)

Harry with Luna
Hermione with Viktor Krum
Ron with Gabrielle (Fleur’s sister) - (for marriage after the books ended)
Snape – well, I wouldn’t have minded....


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## CraigInOregon (Aug 6, 2010)

swolf said:


> Hermione and Harry would have produced some kick-*ss wizard kids.


Erotica reader-alert: Prepare for the next great erotica release by our pal, Swolf: "Harry and Hermoine Produce Some [email protected] Wizard Kids!"

Coming soon to a Kindle near you....


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## Aya Ling (Nov 21, 2012)

NOOOOOOOOOOO! Ron and Hermione belong together! Harry/Hermione doesn't work, their relationship is too best-friendish. Back when Cassandra Claire made it big with her Harry/Hermione/Draco fanfiction, I couldn't finish the story because the romance was just too far-fetched. R/Hr all the way!



GearPress Steve said:


> When we went to Edinburgh we had to go to the Chinese restaurant where Rowling wrote the first book (I think). They have a big plaque up in the restaurant. "Here's the booth where JKR used to sit and write her book". And people stand around it and go: "Oooooooooooh!"


I thought it was an internet cafe? I was hoping to see a picturesque, or quirky little coffee shop, and all I could see was a row of computers sitting under a big picture of Rowling


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## Vera Nazarian (Jul 1, 2011)

Patty Jansen said:


> Harry and Hermione? No way!
> 
> I'm still p*ssed off that Harry didn't end up with Luna Lovegood.


Yes!!! Harry and Luna Lovegood would have been perfect!


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## CraigInOregon (Aug 6, 2010)

Sam Peralta said:


> Any votes for Hermione ending up with Edward Cullen?


EDWARD CULLEN:
Where's Bella?

HERMOINE:
Who?

EDWARD CULLEN:
My one true... umm... why hello, beautiful. Have you met Ed?

HERMOINE:
Who's Ed?

EDWARD CULLEN:
Me, hot stuff. You seem all pouty and disaffected. Didja know I'm a vampire?

HERMOINE:
(rolls eyes) Vampire? Eww, I don't think so. Stop sparkling, fairy.

EDWARD CULLEN:
Fairy? Take that back! I'm SO not a fairy, I---

HERMOINE:
Hey Ed... Have you met Ron?

RON WEASLEY:
*giggles* You sparkle. Cool.

Edward walks off, hand-in-hand, with Ron.

Harry enters.

HARRY:
Umm... hey, Hermoine. I realize I'm kinda-sorta engaged already, and I hope it's not too soon after you just broke up with Ron, him being my best friend and all, but you know what? #)@# the Bro Code... I just have to say this, Hermoine, I---

HERMOINE:
Experiama!

Harry is turned to ash and blows away in a light breeze.

HERMOINE:
Finally. Now... how to get Ginny and Luna to move with me to Miami.

VOICE OVER (by Bob Saget):
...so, kids, Hermoine did get Ginny and Luna to move to Florida with her, along with her elderly mother. And it became this show:


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## cecilia_writer (Dec 28, 2010)

Aya Ling said:


> I thought it was an internet cafe? I was hoping to see a picturesque, or quirky little coffee shop, and all I could see was a row of computers sitting under a big picture of Rowling


There are several cafes around Edinburgh that claim to be the birthplace of Harry Potter. I don't think anyone can remember any more which is the one true cafe.


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## Vera Nazarian (Jul 1, 2011)

Daphne said:


> Harry with Luna
> Hermione with Viktor Krum
> Ron with Gabrielle (Fleur's sister) - (for marriage after the books ended)
> Snape - well, I wouldn't have minded....


Was just thinking of Hermione with Viktor Krum!

And after Harry + Luna pairing, my second favorite would be Harry + Cho Chang....


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## Annette_g (Nov 27, 2012)

Patty Jansen said:


> Harry and Hermione? No way!
> 
> I'm still p*ssed off that Harry didn't end up with Luna Lovegood.


Me too, Luna was made for Harry (even though I tend to write slash fanfic)  Harry/Hermione, no can't see that one really.


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## Daizie (Mar 27, 2013)

I am never rigid. I have a general idea of where my story will go, but I don't outline and my characters usually shape their journeys and the path to get to what they want, often taking me in uncomfortable directions. In their truth, THEY always know best.


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## lynnfromthesouth (Jun 21, 2012)

Lummox JR said:


> Spoiler
> 
> 
> 
> Harry marrying into Ron's family, who were the closest he ever had to a family anyway, made perfect sense. The argument could have been made that Ron and Hermione shouldn't necessarily have ended up together, but I just don't see her with Harry.


This is what I thought as well. I do think Ginny was a very underdeveloped character, though.


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## Lexi Revellian (May 31, 2010)

Vaalingrade said:


> Attn: J.K.Rowling (who I am certain is reading this thread)
> 
> I am about to offer you two words that will transform that mountain of money into a money _continent_. I understand completely how you might have overlooked it, but as a fan of comic books, it was thankfully not lost on me. As thanks, all I ask is a small, tasteful dumptruck full of gold coins (when I said comics, I spoke of course of Scrooge McDuck and will be swimming in those bad boys).
> 
> ...


*This is pure genius, Vaalingrade. JK Rowling should do this, and pay you 10% of the profits.*


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## sarahdalton (Mar 15, 2011)

One of the things I loved about the books was Hermione and Harry's friendship, but I never saw anything romantic in there. I know a lot of people did romance between them, but not me. 

I don't think I've ever regretted a plot line. Not yet anyway... 

I did change the relationships between drafts of my YA series books. And I made two characters gay after a rewrite! 

ETA: before I published it, obvs!


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## John Blackport (Jul 18, 2011)

David Adams said:


> Honestly, I loved the fact that the central protagonist didn't end up with the central female character in his age bracket. That made me smile a little because otherwise it would have been terribly boring, which is the cardinal sin of books.


Yeah, I felt that way too.


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## swolf (Jun 21, 2010)

CraigInTwinCities said:


> Erotica reader-alert: Prepare for the next great erotica release by our pal, Swolf: "Harry and Hermoine Produce Some [email protected] Wizard Kids!"
> 
> Coming soon to a Kindle near you....


 

No, it's already been done. And done and done and done. The Harry Potter erotic fanfic is broad and expansive, covering every possible combination of characters you can think of. The three-way between Harry, Buckbeak, and Lupin as a werewolf was quite interesting.


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## Guest (Feb 2, 2014)

Harry and Hermione? Nooooooooooooooooo! I love Hermione and Ron together. Love, love, love. Love.

When I'm writing a book I'm not really rigid with my plots - if it's not working, I change it, even if I'm near the end of a book. My relationship pairings are pretty set in stone, but if we're talking about plots, especially magical plots, I change them if my original ideas aren't very good. I may have certain things I was going to do but if I find it doesn't make good sense or is too weird or out there, I'll change it. I might have to do that with my current WIP, as the plot is quite weird! But I'll just keep writing for now and see how it goes.


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## Jena H (Oct 2, 2011)

I didn't read all the books (gave up after about #4) but when I heard that Harry would "end up with" Ron's sister I couldn't think of a single scene in which they'd been together.  Wait, one of the movies, where Harry had to defeat a huge serpent or something, and she was there?  Bah, who cares.  they didn't seem googly-eyed over each other.  At least, Harry didn't seem googly-eyed, maybe the girl did.

And I agree that there are other young adult series out there that are every bit as good (at least) as HP, but Rowling just got the magic stroke of luck, somehow.


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## Claudia King (Oct 27, 2012)

I never felt like the romance aspect of Harry Potter was very compelling, but that's mostly because it was never really the focus of the series. I always figured Rowling just stuck it in there as a side story to give the teenage characters some hormones to wrestle with, and in that context it was fine. It was just weird that Ron/Hermione and Harry/Ginny ended up staying together and having families in the epilogue. :s
I bought them as teenage couples dating for the first time, but the romance elements of the HP books never really had enough depth to make me believe they'd still be together and have families years down the line.

I think it's mainly just an issue with the epilogue existing, though. So many things about that series would have been much more fun to speculate about if they'd been left slightly ambiguous at the end of the final book.


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## Zelah Meyer (Jun 15, 2011)

I always wanted to see Hermione and a redeemed Draco get together.  But then, I love redemption as a theme.

When it comes to my own plots, I am flexible.  I normally know how I want my stories to end, but if something else turns up in the middle of things that makes more sense than what I had planned, then I'll go with what the story wants rather than what I want (unless it involves killing off a character that I don't want to kill off - then I go "La, la, la, I'm not listening!")


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## KellyHarper (Jul 29, 2012)

Harry & Luna FOREVER!!


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## BokkenRecord (Nov 17, 2013)

Claudia King said:


> I think it's mainly just an issue with the epilogue existing, though. So many things about that series would have been much more fun to speculate about if they'd been left slightly ambiguous at the end of the final book.


This. As a fan of all things JKR - the Deathly Hallows did feel like it had been guillotined a few chapters too early. The epilogue didn't bother me that much, but it felt like the story ended too abruptly before that. It needed something like the start of the next year at hogwarts, or a way to bring all the satellite characters into the conclusion: Hagrid, Luna, McGonagall . . . something to *show* what happened to them.

To the OP question: My story is fixed. The plot serves as a vehicle for the story, it can travel wherever it wants as long as it tells the story. Above that is a layer of detail to bring flavour and create a sense of place. Some of that is pulled up from story and plot, a lot I make up on the fly.

The only problem with my approach is original outline on my main WIP pegged the word count at 108000. I'm now at 115000 and still going strong. To infinity and beyond . . .


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## Rin (Apr 25, 2011)

On Rigid vs. Flexible: I let my characters do what they want, it seems safer that way.


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## Vaalingrade (Feb 19, 2013)

The problem with Harry ending up with Ginny, in my opinion is that Ginny spent more than half of her appearances not as a character but as a McGuffin. She was a plot device and by her nature, the Source of All Suffering for the characters on at least two separate occasions. If you really stop and think about it, the core conflict of the entire series is directly tied to her.

Unless some awesome things happened between books, Harry and everyone around him should have at least a minor psychological fear of her as a harbinger of ill omen.


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## sarahdalton (Mar 15, 2011)

KellyHarper said:


> Harry & Luna FOREVER!!


They did have a bit of romantic tension, didn't they? I would have believed a Harry/Luna pairing over Harry/Ginny.

The epilogue is what killed the series. JK desperately wanted Harry to have a normal family life, but by doing so, she ruined the romantic story lines. Hermione and Ron are the kind of kids who date each other for a bit, then dump each other and be friends instead. Having them married with children at the end wasn't realistic at all.

Still, I can't talk. I wanted my characters to have a happy ending, and included a slightly indulgent epilogue to make sure they did. It's way too tempting.


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## JRTomlin (Jan 18, 2011)

Drew Gideon said:


> Nah. The only things I sneer at are socks that go into the wash as couples, but come out as singles, and my empty mason jar of Pepsi.
> How dare it be empty so soon? Where has all the Pepsi gone?
> (I'm afraid to ask what's going on with the socks. There might be cannibalism involved, and I don't want to know.)
> 
> ...


I certainly never assumed that Hermione having a wand was some kind of sexual reference, yet apparently it would be for a gay character. Sorry, but that still makes me frown. Moreover, a wand would make at the least an odd looking phallus, but we all bring our own assumptions to such things.

ETA: Borrowers steal the odd socks.


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## heidi_g (Nov 14, 2013)

Harry & Luna would have been so awesome.

Hermione and Ron kind of made my stomach curdle. It felt like: Oh, there has to be romance, but putting Hermione with Harry would be too predictable, so let's put her with Ron.

Harry & Ginny wasn't much better

Reading this post has made me think there were so many ways romance could have been used in the series to awesome effect. I guess, that's some of what's being  done in fan fiction? Kind of cool. I haven't read any of the fan fiction, though.

Anyone have a rec for the Harry <3 Luna?


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## Lummox JR (Jul 1, 2012)

On the subject of alternate timelines: Awhile back I went on a TVtropes binge and learned of the existence of Harry Potter and the Methods of Rationality, a fanfic where Harry was raised by people with a strong scientific bent. Apparently everyone in the series is a million times more awesome. I haven't read it, but I keep meaning to.


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## David Alastair Hayden (Mar 19, 2011)

I plot everything before writing but remain highly flexible throughout and almost always diverge greatly from the plot, especially toward the end. The plot is essentially my first go at telling the story. With that under my belt, the second attempt ends up being more polished and a lot bette, yet still natural because I don't force the plot points. If I don't plot, my creativity runs wild and I end up with a mess.

Harry and Luna.
Hermione and Ron ... enh, maybe. We don't see their interactions when they're not with Harry. We do see his lack of meaningful interactions with Ginny though. That's the forced relationship.


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## Kevis Hendrickson (Feb 28, 2009)

I always thought it was stupid that Hermione got with Ron instead of Harry and it's the one thing that irks me about the series. Glad to see Jo finally come to her senses.


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## DashaGLogan (Jan 30, 2014)

It would have been dreadfully predictable if Harry had got together with Hermione. She should have stayed with the Quidditch Player (romance writer here)


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## CraigInOregon (Aug 6, 2010)

Good night, Harry and Hermoine explored the possibility of the two of them being an "us" in Deathly Hallows and realized that it didn't feel right.

What more do people want? For them to ignore it because that's what people expected of them and end up old, resenting each other, and getting a divorce when their kids finally go off to Hogwarts?

Oh wait... probably... because that's how half of marriages end, right?


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## JRTomlin (Jan 18, 2011)

CraigInTwinCities said:


> Good night, Harry and Hermoine explored the possibility of the two of them being an "us" in Deathly Hallows and realized that it didn't feel right.
> 
> What more do people want? For them to ignore it because that's what people expected of them and end up old, resenting each other, and getting a divorce when their kids finally go off to Hogwarts?
> 
> Oh wait... probably... because that's how half of marriages end, right?


Did you actually read this thread? Apparently not.


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## Vaalingrade (Feb 19, 2013)

Predictable doesn't mean bad though. Sometimes things are predictable because they make sense and them not happening wouldn't make sense.


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## CraigInOregon (Aug 6, 2010)

JRTomlin said:


> Did you actually read this thread? Apparently not.


Did you actually check to see? Apparently not!  I've been participating... third or fourth post by now, I think.

I mean, I at least hoped to inspire some grins with this post.

Thank you for being a friend, JRT!


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## Rin (Apr 25, 2011)

DashaGLogan said:


> It would have been dreadfully predictable if Harry had got together with Hermione. She should have stayed with the Quidditch Player (romance writer here)


*stadium full of people starts chanting KRUM KRUM KRUM KRUM*


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