3461: Yule Ball Panic & The Power of Love - Jasmine Dorea Potter & Hermione Granger
It's tme for Tropes Sue Week either. I'm looking for help finding entries for said week. Accepting entries for the Thirteenth Annual Pottersues Contest.
Today's link of the day is Scary yaoi fangirls. It just felt appropriate for today.
TITLE: Yule Ball Banic and The Power of Love
PERPETRATOR: Philosophize
SUE-O-METER: TOXIC
COVER/BANNER ART: It's a picture of a female Harry Potter the writer got permission to use.
SUMMARY:”Jasmine Potter, the Girl-Who-Lived and an unwilling participant in the Triwizard Tournament, learns that she is expected to have a date to attend the Yule Ball. This forces her to confront something about herself that she's been avoiding. What will her best friend, Hermione Granger, do when she learns the truth? Fem!Harry; AU; H/Hr” and ”Yule Ball Panic sequel: Jasmine Potter revealed her feelings to Hermione, who is willing to give dating a try; but wizarding culture won't tolerate witches as couples. How will they navigate love and a relationship while dealing with Voldemort, bigotry, and meddling old men? Includes growing power, new revelations, ancient conflicts, and hidden prophecies. fem!Harry; femslash; H/Hr”
FULL NAME:Jasmine Dorea Potter “Lots of different names have been used for female Harry. On the whole, I think I like "Jasmine" best so I'm using it here.” (Something bothers me though regarding the name choice.) We've also got Hermione Granger.
SPECIES: Female Harry whose a lesbian.
HAIR: I think Jasmine's hair is red.
EYES: Green I think... don't really care to read through this one again.
MARKINGS: None...
POSSESSIONS: The key to the trunk Harry's locked up in. (That's a reference to something the first Pottersues said once, but it was regarding Hermione instead.
CONNECTION TO CANON: The story opens up with Jasmine Potter getting upset because she needs to pick a date for the dance. She proceeds to mentally blame McGonagall for her woes because “McGonagall didn't help us when we came to her about the Stone at the end of first year, so I guess I shouldn't be surprised that she isn't supportive now.” (McGonagall didn't help because a certain trio ran off before she could do anything.) Jasmine proceeds to angst about how alone she is and feels a panic attack coming on. Despite the fact “she hadn't experienced any sort of panic attack since she first started attending Hogwarts, despite having had plenty of good reasons for one; but she still recognized the symptoms.” She keeps thinking of herself as a freak in her head, and the character we're presented with is a female character with not one ounce of the real Harry Potter's confidence. (And yet she's gotten as far as he has.) There is more angst about being dumped on the doorstep, and pretty much a ton of self-pity which only serves to make me hate Jasmine and force me to add the B. Swanitis tag. The entire first chapter is about Jasmine's self-pity and how she's having a panic attack just to add drama. (Sorry Suethor, but if you're going to write about panic attacks please actually DO your research. The fact she says she “had plenty of good reasons for one” means it's a trumped up flaw.) The second chapter is about Hermione mooning over dresses and daydreaming about the Yule Ball despite the fact this is highly out of character for her. She then realizes that Jasmine is having a panic attack and intervenes by comforting Hermione with touch. (Oh, so the panic attack's thereo force the two into each others arms. Even worse.) Jasmine whines about how “I don't want to be asked by dozens of boys. I don't want to be asked by any boys. There isn't a single boy in this castle that I want to go to any ball with!) The third is about Jasmine confessing to Hermione. (By the way Suethor - not liking boys doesn't mean a girl likes the same sex. There is such a thing as asexual. Technically Jasmine also said she didn't like any of the guys at the school as well, which actually doesn't mean she doesn't like boys either.) We also get the line of how “given the sorts of things she and Jasmine had gotten over the past three years, she had had to grow a thick skin. Nevertheless, she really wasn't prepared for an issue like this.” (Baloney. I wish the writer would stop adding unrealistic drama to their story.) There is a long discussion where Hermione openly suggests the idea that Jasmine actually go with a girl. (Why would she do this? Wouldn't suggesting she ask Cedric make more sense as their both TriWizard champions and nobody would think it a date. Actually, why isn't Hermione throwing out names of guys? The assumption that Jasmine is a lesbian is way to quick.) Jasmine then proceeds to talk about whether she's ready to come out. (Not only is Jasmine fourteen this is also the 90's. And sorry Suethor, crushing on Lockhart DOES count.) They discuss who Jasmine likes including Pansy Parkinson and finally confesses at the end of chapter three. The beginning of chapter four starts off with “Hermione yipped in surprise.” It's her turn to panic and she goes into how she doesn't understand (and they end up together despite the fact Hermione's not sure she reciprocates her friends feelings, and she's suggesting her friend come out and face prejudices she may not be ready to face earlier - egads). By the end they're kissing. I decided to try the first chapter of the second story and found myself quiting by the end. The angst ridden tone of the first story quickly turns into a feel good atmosphere. Chapter two has the girls forcing McGonagall to take a secret vow to get their way. In other words they're forcing everyone to take their side.
ORIGIN: “It's quite possible that I've been influenced in this by the fanfiction story "A Long Journey Home" where that name is used. Not only is it one of the best fem!Harry stories, it's probably one of the best Harry Potter fanfics available, period. I think it's the only Ron/Hermione story I like at all. This is due in no small measure to the absolutely superb writing by Rakeesh, who does more to flesh out characters in a couple of paragraphs than most writers manage after several chapters. It's also possible that that story has influenced how I write Jasmine and Hermione here.” Either the Suethor isn't doing the other fanfic justice, or the other fanfic's so called “fleshed out characters” is actually rather bad characterization.
SPECIAL ABILITIES: Jasmine pretty much claims she is prone to panic attacks only to bring up the fact none of the triggers which would normally bring on a panic attack caused her to have one in four years. I also found this on the first chapter of the second story. “Just to get this out of the way, because I expect to have questions and even perhaps complaints in reviews: yes, that was a sort of "soul bond" being started. I know that the concept is overused and even badly used, but I have to confess that even then it can be interesting. I hope I can reassure skeptical readers now, though, before you give up on the story, that I'll be using the concept in a way that is a bit different from most. […] First, the bond is gradual rather than instant. It takes a while to get established and develops in stages as their relationship develops. It is, in fact, based on their relationship rather than the other way around. So, second, it "improves upon" rather than "creates ex nihilo." It encourages and strengthens a relationship, it doesn't create love out of nothing. It doesn't make them magically married by chapter 3. It doesn't mean that a couple won't argue and won't have to put in work to make a relationship work, but it can make the work a little easier. Finally, it's part of a continuum of magical bonds, so it's not some weird "deus ex machina" device. There are similar bonds that are even more common. And, like all magic, it has benefits but also potential costs. If you don't treat it right, it can turn around and bite you. […] Why am I using the concept? As I said, I find it interesting. Also, this is a story about magical people in a magical community learning magic. Inserting magic here as well makes sense to me. The simplest reason is that it is, indeed, a shortcut. A completely realistic story would require showing years of their lives. Jasmine has to overcome some years of repressed sexuality, not to mention more than a decade of abuse and neglect. Hermione is facing difficult questions about her sexuality - what's genuinely "her" and what is a product of social expectations? Is she gay? Bi? Is she simply attracted to Jasmine? Is she perhaps just leaping at the first person making an offer? Yeah, it would take a long time for the two of them to deal with all of that baggage and I would probably never finish. A "soul bond" lets me cut through some of it in order to make the characters' lives a bit easier. […] If I do a good job as a writer, then I'll use this plot device just enough, but not too much. I'll cut out the boring therapy sessions, the long evenings crying over tubs of ice cream, and similar bits that are part of reality, but not often part of interesting stories. What should be left are the more interesting bits - ups and downs that happen in real relationships, but with reduced angst and trauma for the sake of efficiency and short attention spans. If I do a good job as a writer, then it shouldn't detract from the plot and relationship developments. Hopefully you'll let me know if I succeed or fail.” (I guess the best thing to say is doing things like not making them marry by chapter three actually doesn't make it not a “dues ex machina”, nor does it mean you haven't created the story “out of nothing”. Add to this - this doens't really “improve upon”.”
NOTES: Countering what the writer deems to be misogyny with misandry is a rather hypocritical double standard. It's the summary of the second for the series which drew me to this particular series. The writer's got another female Harry running around in a crossover series with Avengers.
I need to add here there is nothing wrong with writer's touching upon the topic of sexism and various bigotries in your story. I think a writer though should be able to do this without outright saying they're doing this in their summaries, and if they can't I find myself suspecting an author's track on the part of the writer. Writer's also need to do this without turning to double standards in their writing. I also feel these issues could be explored without changing Harry to a female character, and coupled with all I've said the character appears more of a self-insert on the writer's part to make themselves a main character as well as push forward number twenty-five on The Universal Mary Sue Test. “Does your character voice political, social, and/or religious opinions or believes which you share?”
I think I should add here that making Harry female doesn't mean you get to strip him of his canon personality. I also have to wonder if the writer actually understands what she's writing about. On one side I think the character is a self insert for the writer, but I also think the only reason Jasmine's gay is because a.) she's copying another story she's read and b.) she's trying to preach her position on slash without actually knowing anything about the subject. Take for example Jasmine saying Lockhart didn't count.
I took a look at the reviews and one reviewer put this in their review for chapter four. “I'm sorry, but one does not simply not think about what sex they're attracted to. Have you not gone through puberty? You simply "start to notice" the sex you are attracted to. Unless Hermione has a hormone deficiency, which is unlikely if she is developing more than Jasmine, then she should be attracted to at least some aspects of some people.”
And another for chapter three, “Eh, I think I'm done here, I'm just not interested in yet another out of the closet angst type fic. Besides, while I appareciate it being AU, obviously, this feels very OoC for Harry/Jasmine.”
SAMPLE:
Stepping out of the Transfiguration classroom, Jasmine Potter looked around the empty stone corridor and realized just how alone she was. McGonagall didn't help us when we came to her about the Stone at the end of first year, so I guess I shouldn't be surprised that she isn't supportive now. Her green eyes narrowed as she reflected on her current situation. There's no one here for me. How...appropriate.
This was an unexpected feeling, despite the problems she had experienced over the course of the past three months. Even when matters were at their worst, when most of the school had turned against her after her name shot out of the Triwizard cup, she at least had the support and help of her best friend.
Hermione Granger. Throughout Jasmine's time at Hogwarts, none of the challenges or dangers she had faced seemed quite so bad so long as her best friend was by her side. Even lying petrified in the hospital wing, Hermione had still managed to give her the information she needed to find Ginny and overcome the basilisk. Merlin, that was an awful month...
Now, though, Jasmine was facing something completely new and unexpected, something that she would have to face without the indomitable Hermione by her side. For more than one reason, that caused Jasmine to start to panic.
Freak.
She hadn't experienced any sort of panic attack since she first started attending Hogwarts, despite having had plenty of good reasons for one; but she still recognized the symptoms. She felt her heart start beating louder while her breaths started coming shorter and faster. Soon she expected her hands to shake and pain to start in her chest.
You were dumped on our doorstep because no one wanted you. No one will ever want you.
She really needed to get control of herself, but that might be tough without a paper bag to breathe into. Unfortunately, paper bags were non-existent in the wizarding world. Maybe a cloth bag would work? At least she didn't have to worry any longer that a panic attack would lead to an extreme display of accidental magic - that had always resulted in a worse-than-usual punishment from the Dursleys...
Freak!
Today's link of the day is Scary yaoi fangirls. It just felt appropriate for today.
TITLE: Yule Ball Banic and The Power of Love
PERPETRATOR: Philosophize
SUE-O-METER: TOXIC
COVER/BANNER ART: It's a picture of a female Harry Potter the writer got permission to use.
SUMMARY:”Jasmine Potter, the Girl-Who-Lived and an unwilling participant in the Triwizard Tournament, learns that she is expected to have a date to attend the Yule Ball. This forces her to confront something about herself that she's been avoiding. What will her best friend, Hermione Granger, do when she learns the truth? Fem!Harry; AU; H/Hr” and ”Yule Ball Panic sequel: Jasmine Potter revealed her feelings to Hermione, who is willing to give dating a try; but wizarding culture won't tolerate witches as couples. How will they navigate love and a relationship while dealing with Voldemort, bigotry, and meddling old men? Includes growing power, new revelations, ancient conflicts, and hidden prophecies. fem!Harry; femslash; H/Hr”
FULL NAME:Jasmine Dorea Potter “Lots of different names have been used for female Harry. On the whole, I think I like "Jasmine" best so I'm using it here.” (Something bothers me though regarding the name choice.) We've also got Hermione Granger.
SPECIES: Female Harry whose a lesbian.
HAIR: I think Jasmine's hair is red.
EYES: Green I think... don't really care to read through this one again.
MARKINGS: None...
POSSESSIONS: The key to the trunk Harry's locked up in. (That's a reference to something the first Pottersues said once, but it was regarding Hermione instead.
CONNECTION TO CANON: The story opens up with Jasmine Potter getting upset because she needs to pick a date for the dance. She proceeds to mentally blame McGonagall for her woes because “McGonagall didn't help us when we came to her about the Stone at the end of first year, so I guess I shouldn't be surprised that she isn't supportive now.” (McGonagall didn't help because a certain trio ran off before she could do anything.) Jasmine proceeds to angst about how alone she is and feels a panic attack coming on. Despite the fact “she hadn't experienced any sort of panic attack since she first started attending Hogwarts, despite having had plenty of good reasons for one; but she still recognized the symptoms.” She keeps thinking of herself as a freak in her head, and the character we're presented with is a female character with not one ounce of the real Harry Potter's confidence. (And yet she's gotten as far as he has.) There is more angst about being dumped on the doorstep, and pretty much a ton of self-pity which only serves to make me hate Jasmine and force me to add the B. Swanitis tag. The entire first chapter is about Jasmine's self-pity and how she's having a panic attack just to add drama. (Sorry Suethor, but if you're going to write about panic attacks please actually DO your research. The fact she says she “had plenty of good reasons for one” means it's a trumped up flaw.) The second chapter is about Hermione mooning over dresses and daydreaming about the Yule Ball despite the fact this is highly out of character for her. She then realizes that Jasmine is having a panic attack and intervenes by comforting Hermione with touch. (Oh, so the panic attack's thereo force the two into each others arms. Even worse.) Jasmine whines about how “I don't want to be asked by dozens of boys. I don't want to be asked by any boys. There isn't a single boy in this castle that I want to go to any ball with!) The third is about Jasmine confessing to Hermione. (By the way Suethor - not liking boys doesn't mean a girl likes the same sex. There is such a thing as asexual. Technically Jasmine also said she didn't like any of the guys at the school as well, which actually doesn't mean she doesn't like boys either.) We also get the line of how “given the sorts of things she and Jasmine had gotten over the past three years, she had had to grow a thick skin. Nevertheless, she really wasn't prepared for an issue like this.” (Baloney. I wish the writer would stop adding unrealistic drama to their story.) There is a long discussion where Hermione openly suggests the idea that Jasmine actually go with a girl. (Why would she do this? Wouldn't suggesting she ask Cedric make more sense as their both TriWizard champions and nobody would think it a date. Actually, why isn't Hermione throwing out names of guys? The assumption that Jasmine is a lesbian is way to quick.) Jasmine then proceeds to talk about whether she's ready to come out. (Not only is Jasmine fourteen this is also the 90's. And sorry Suethor, crushing on Lockhart DOES count.) They discuss who Jasmine likes including Pansy Parkinson and finally confesses at the end of chapter three. The beginning of chapter four starts off with “Hermione yipped in surprise.” It's her turn to panic and she goes into how she doesn't understand (and they end up together despite the fact Hermione's not sure she reciprocates her friends feelings, and she's suggesting her friend come out and face prejudices she may not be ready to face earlier - egads). By the end they're kissing. I decided to try the first chapter of the second story and found myself quiting by the end. The angst ridden tone of the first story quickly turns into a feel good atmosphere. Chapter two has the girls forcing McGonagall to take a secret vow to get their way. In other words they're forcing everyone to take their side.
ORIGIN: “It's quite possible that I've been influenced in this by the fanfiction story "A Long Journey Home" where that name is used. Not only is it one of the best fem!Harry stories, it's probably one of the best Harry Potter fanfics available, period. I think it's the only Ron/Hermione story I like at all. This is due in no small measure to the absolutely superb writing by Rakeesh, who does more to flesh out characters in a couple of paragraphs than most writers manage after several chapters. It's also possible that that story has influenced how I write Jasmine and Hermione here.” Either the Suethor isn't doing the other fanfic justice, or the other fanfic's so called “fleshed out characters” is actually rather bad characterization.
SPECIAL ABILITIES: Jasmine pretty much claims she is prone to panic attacks only to bring up the fact none of the triggers which would normally bring on a panic attack caused her to have one in four years. I also found this on the first chapter of the second story. “Just to get this out of the way, because I expect to have questions and even perhaps complaints in reviews: yes, that was a sort of "soul bond" being started. I know that the concept is overused and even badly used, but I have to confess that even then it can be interesting. I hope I can reassure skeptical readers now, though, before you give up on the story, that I'll be using the concept in a way that is a bit different from most. […] First, the bond is gradual rather than instant. It takes a while to get established and develops in stages as their relationship develops. It is, in fact, based on their relationship rather than the other way around. So, second, it "improves upon" rather than "creates ex nihilo." It encourages and strengthens a relationship, it doesn't create love out of nothing. It doesn't make them magically married by chapter 3. It doesn't mean that a couple won't argue and won't have to put in work to make a relationship work, but it can make the work a little easier. Finally, it's part of a continuum of magical bonds, so it's not some weird "deus ex machina" device. There are similar bonds that are even more common. And, like all magic, it has benefits but also potential costs. If you don't treat it right, it can turn around and bite you. […] Why am I using the concept? As I said, I find it interesting. Also, this is a story about magical people in a magical community learning magic. Inserting magic here as well makes sense to me. The simplest reason is that it is, indeed, a shortcut. A completely realistic story would require showing years of their lives. Jasmine has to overcome some years of repressed sexuality, not to mention more than a decade of abuse and neglect. Hermione is facing difficult questions about her sexuality - what's genuinely "her" and what is a product of social expectations? Is she gay? Bi? Is she simply attracted to Jasmine? Is she perhaps just leaping at the first person making an offer? Yeah, it would take a long time for the two of them to deal with all of that baggage and I would probably never finish. A "soul bond" lets me cut through some of it in order to make the characters' lives a bit easier. […] If I do a good job as a writer, then I'll use this plot device just enough, but not too much. I'll cut out the boring therapy sessions, the long evenings crying over tubs of ice cream, and similar bits that are part of reality, but not often part of interesting stories. What should be left are the more interesting bits - ups and downs that happen in real relationships, but with reduced angst and trauma for the sake of efficiency and short attention spans. If I do a good job as a writer, then it shouldn't detract from the plot and relationship developments. Hopefully you'll let me know if I succeed or fail.” (I guess the best thing to say is doing things like not making them marry by chapter three actually doesn't make it not a “dues ex machina”, nor does it mean you haven't created the story “out of nothing”. Add to this - this doens't really “improve upon”.”
NOTES: Countering what the writer deems to be misogyny with misandry is a rather hypocritical double standard. It's the summary of the second for the series which drew me to this particular series. The writer's got another female Harry running around in a crossover series with Avengers.
I need to add here there is nothing wrong with writer's touching upon the topic of sexism and various bigotries in your story. I think a writer though should be able to do this without outright saying they're doing this in their summaries, and if they can't I find myself suspecting an author's track on the part of the writer. Writer's also need to do this without turning to double standards in their writing. I also feel these issues could be explored without changing Harry to a female character, and coupled with all I've said the character appears more of a self-insert on the writer's part to make themselves a main character as well as push forward number twenty-five on The Universal Mary Sue Test. “Does your character voice political, social, and/or religious opinions or believes which you share?”
I think I should add here that making Harry female doesn't mean you get to strip him of his canon personality. I also have to wonder if the writer actually understands what she's writing about. On one side I think the character is a self insert for the writer, but I also think the only reason Jasmine's gay is because a.) she's copying another story she's read and b.) she's trying to preach her position on slash without actually knowing anything about the subject. Take for example Jasmine saying Lockhart didn't count.
I took a look at the reviews and one reviewer put this in their review for chapter four. “I'm sorry, but one does not simply not think about what sex they're attracted to. Have you not gone through puberty? You simply "start to notice" the sex you are attracted to. Unless Hermione has a hormone deficiency, which is unlikely if she is developing more than Jasmine, then she should be attracted to at least some aspects of some people.”
And another for chapter three, “Eh, I think I'm done here, I'm just not interested in yet another out of the closet angst type fic. Besides, while I appareciate it being AU, obviously, this feels very OoC for Harry/Jasmine.”
SAMPLE:
Stepping out of the Transfiguration classroom, Jasmine Potter looked around the empty stone corridor and realized just how alone she was. McGonagall didn't help us when we came to her about the Stone at the end of first year, so I guess I shouldn't be surprised that she isn't supportive now. Her green eyes narrowed as she reflected on her current situation. There's no one here for me. How...appropriate.
This was an unexpected feeling, despite the problems she had experienced over the course of the past three months. Even when matters were at their worst, when most of the school had turned against her after her name shot out of the Triwizard cup, she at least had the support and help of her best friend.
Hermione Granger. Throughout Jasmine's time at Hogwarts, none of the challenges or dangers she had faced seemed quite so bad so long as her best friend was by her side. Even lying petrified in the hospital wing, Hermione had still managed to give her the information she needed to find Ginny and overcome the basilisk. Merlin, that was an awful month...
Now, though, Jasmine was facing something completely new and unexpected, something that she would have to face without the indomitable Hermione by her side. For more than one reason, that caused Jasmine to start to panic.
Freak.
She hadn't experienced any sort of panic attack since she first started attending Hogwarts, despite having had plenty of good reasons for one; but she still recognized the symptoms. She felt her heart start beating louder while her breaths started coming shorter and faster. Soon she expected her hands to shake and pain to start in her chest.
You were dumped on our doorstep because no one wanted you. No one will ever want you.
She really needed to get control of herself, but that might be tough without a paper bag to breathe into. Unfortunately, paper bags were non-existent in the wizarding world. Maybe a cloth bag would work? At least she didn't have to worry any longer that a panic attack would lead to an extreme display of accidental magic - that had always resulted in a worse-than-usual punishment from the Dursleys...
Freak!