~~harry is who he is, and draco isn't: a list.

[reenka]

i know what i've said before that what i look for in fic is good writing & decent characterization & surprising twists & all that. but... the more i think about it... the more i long for really really canon harry & draco. i mean, i've been thinking about people's disillusionment with h/d stories, and how people are taking shortcuts & not really proving that these two characters, just the way they are, with no apologies or fumbling with facts, can be together. there's just something delicious about a fic that proves harry and draco, not like an equation, but more like a... philosophical argument, a thesis maybe. a lot-- a lot of my favorite fics don't do this. the only ones i can think of off the top of my head are `the losing side', `irresistible poison', `underwater light', and, from all indications, the Draco Trilogy. they succeed to varying degrees, and indeed there are ficlets that do a good (if incomplete) job too, at pairing canon!harry&draco (like, i think aja's `commencement' is kinda canon-- or at least realistic, but i could be wrong, and recently, weatherby's `red', and i even find maya's `chains' canonical [sort of], so what do -i- know, obviously).
    EDIT: and i'd completely forgotten silviakundera (*sob*), who blows me away with her sexay canon!harry&draco stories.

there are some rules i think i can see-- like, harry doesn't have a crush on draco to start with (i see a very good level of subtle, believable yet not-quite-canonical draco-interest in harry in slightlights' `mirrors'). like, their enmity hasn't waned or built significantly over whatever the span of time since 4th year. like, draco isn't sexually obsessed with harry (though otherwise obsessed is ok), from the get go. some growing up is "ok", but no drastic "maturing" should occur, since that's just another short-cut. i don't think you need to thrust girlfriends at them to make it more "realistic", but on the other hand, there's no reason to shy away from them being interested in girls, although harry is the obsessive sort and if there was anyone other than cho, it was probably yet another quiet, desperate crush, unless he's had adventures with this new girl. draco, i don't see having normal human relationships very easily, so if he does have "experience", he still probably doesn't have a "normal" (not just for appearances) girlfriend. he doesn't seem gregarious and casual enough to sleep around (and probably too careful/stuck in a certain self-image to act on any homosexual tendencies he might have, though this is just a personal belief).

so anyway, for my own amusement, i made a list of the sort of behaviors/characteristics i want my harry & draco to have, in a fic that brings them together and proves their rightness once and for all. mind you, other fics are great, it's just -this- would be actually bringing them together, not them, twisted into something easier to use & mold into a relationship with the other. i prefer a gradual transformation, if it were to occur, into an extra-canonical self. and the question of how much can/does love transform us would have to then be faced.

so, without further ado:

DRACO:
    appears:

- vain
- arrogant
- generally unlikeable
- tactically challenged
- witty, heavily on the snarky side
- temperamental
- cowardly (to an extent)
- competitive
- sneaky (always)
- picky
- pouty
- a liar
- passionate
- selfish
- weak, yet
- strong-willed
- pitiless
- obsessed with lineage/father/Malfoyness
- carries grudges
- obsessive/dogged/stubborn
- vindictive, but not hateful
- petty
- easily antagonistic
- amoral
- underhanded
- immature
- confrontational when unthreatened
- manipulative/controlling
- shameless
- envious
- loud
- insecure
- intelligent - interpersonal; learning
- judgemental

    thinks he is:
- treated unfairly
- a leader [by force]
- right
- unlucky
- sexy.
~~~~~~~~~~~
HARRY
    is:
- reasonably sincere
- stubborn
- reasonably blunt
- obsessed with Voldemort/his parents
- competitive
- sneaky when he needs to be
- rebellious
- lucky
- reasonably stoic
- witty, but not really snarky
- easily likeable/liked
- reasonably honest
- judgemental
- reasonably forgiving
- amazingly sane/together/stable
- highly moralistic
- leader [by example]
- emotional, but not sensitive; often withdrawn
- driven/dogged
- reckless
- strong-willed
- reasonably self-confident
- obsessive
- strangely mature, in ways
- observant
- highly moralistic
- devoted to his friends/cause
- daring, brave, etc
- somewhat secretive

    appears:
- easy going & agreeable, to an extent
- quiet, to an extent
- intelligent - problem-solving, guessing, but not emotionally

    thinks he is:
- responsible for all evil he couldn't prevent
- not that special; average [not being humble]
- good at quidditch but not much else.
~~
in other news, pale green is probably the most canon harry/snape story i've seen-- not that i've seen/read many (and it -would- be flambeau, wouldn't it, heh). i mean really, it's creepy, because i can totally see it, and that is not something i'd ever thought i'd say about harry/snape, trust me. oh well, never say never, all that.

Comments

[yourpoison.livejournal.com]

well, (*wibble*) you -know- i loff your fic muchly, and i'm not sure if you know-- but i haven't -read- (most of) the canon (in the process), so you (yes, you, hee i feel like smokey the bear) are the one (you and ivy and durendal and phatgirl and rhysenn and penguin and altricial and marysia and... um, riddle, i think?) were the ones that -created- harry & draco for me.

you do a very good job, erm. with a -little- eensy weensy bit of cheating ^^;; (*runs away*) mostly, because the chemistry is immediately there, because you presuppose attraction, and that kind of softens things, doesn't it? it's believable, and i certainly swallowed it hook, line and sinker (and it's much much better done than anyone else who used that "i've always had a thing for you" thing-- and i mean anyone-- alex or penguin or ivy, much as i adore them all, all went a bit... too obvious).

but the fic focuses mostly on-- togetherness issues, rather than ``getting-together"ness issues, y'know what i mean? and that's obviously important too, but there isn't much of that... um... actual resentment and fighting and bickering and resisting going on (well, then again, the style defines the content to a degree-- it's not that i think you have some sort of "sappy" style, but it's different than say, antenora, and closer to ivy or maya, y'know? mostly totally your own, though.) what i mean is... you started off, and mostly continued, writing it as a sort of lighthearted drama with flashes of humor and intense emotion rampant throughout. mostly, the over-all "vibe" is positive, and it would seem out of place for there to be all sorts of darkness & anger and stuff.

anytime that -does- happen, they're having a misunderstanding or not really talking. you're bloody -good- at canon draco and harry (as the great hall scene amply shows), but you have all this presupposed -emotion- and (not really canon) character -investment- in the background, which sort of changes the vibe, you know?
     heh, mind you, this is probably the only time i'll even come close to being "critical" of you, so...~:)

as far as -plot-, i think because you want to cover so much, you went a little bit too fast, as far as getting them to bond and whatnot. i mean, they're -completely- dedicated to each other, and like you said, it's been just 6 weeks...
&nsbp;   the emotions, the -validity- of them, the intensity, feels intensely right and real, and unlike some fics, never really -sappy- or over-the-top, just kind of excruciatingly tender.

hee, i guess your gimmick (if you had any), would be their incredible, undeniable, amazing chemistry, which you make the reader believe in, because you so obviously imbue it into the fic, and believe in it.
it's like you have rhyssenn's!draco without even -needing- the potion-- and you've sold me-- i think you've pulled it off-- but as to whether that's canon-- especially considering this is 5th year....

i'd say it's a mix. you're definitely aware of canon-- you have draco act like he's "supposed to", in flashes, but really harry melts him a lot. harry-- harry's very melty, and the only thing keeping him together is pride and a certain nobility (i don't really know where -that's- coming from, but oh well).

everything up till now has been kind of maneuvering them both in a very obvious direction. it's like they've been set up to fall (for each other). it's only now you're starting to challenge their connection, really, and are getting the (yummy plot! --review forthcoming) going-- but the base is solid, and the odds for them are good. not that it's not suspenseful-- it is-- it's just, the reader pretty much knows how both of them feel....

what i mean is-- you have a wonderful grasp on both harry & draco, but i could tell, in the fic their outward behavior is just a mask, and is passionately cast off when they're lost in each other's eyes. you don't necessarily -show- them falling in love, because it just always seems inevitable and kind of -there-, like they've always been in love. which, you know, not that i don't think so, but.....um, if i was going to be a grinch ^^;;

[yourpoison.livejournal.com]

erm. this is getting long enough to be a review (eep! went over limit!). but it isn't. review forthcoming! luw=beloved, you must know that~:) i drew little hearts on many of the printed-out pages. i am fangirl, and your h/d are forever alive in my heart.

sappily,
~~reena