So... I've been lurking around this forum for quite a while now... guess it's time for me to introduce myself properly, like a good girl would do...

My name is Sonia, and I'm from Ravenna, Italy (and as you may guess, english isn't my mother language... so forgive me for my poor language skills, please. ). I'm 25, and currently working as a researcher for the Civic Museum Network of the city of Venice. I'm a bit of a bookworm (my readings span from Jane Austen, Henry James and Dostoevskij to Harry Potter and Twilight) and "Hermionish" in temper (I'm driven and stubborn, to the point that I can be really annoying at times... ) – but I have my dreamy "Luna" moments, which I pride on (Luna is definitely one of my favourite characters in the whole Harry Potter series... )

I am a late comer in the HP internet fandom. I discovered Harry Potter when I was 17, and I immediately got to love it, but was basically fine with reading the books and discussing them with my real life friends who also enjoyed HP. Therefore, I dind't really come to know anything about "Harmony", or the "Interview of Doom" or "Ship wars" (I know... I'm a lucky girl... ) until the release of DH, which is when I started to surf on HP internet communities.

And what finally pulled me on the net was... H/Hr. I admit, Harry Potter didn’t – and will probably never – get me actively involved in shipping like other series did. The things I love most about HP are Hogwarts and the magical world, the friendship between the trio, the unpredictability of the plot, the way most characters are depicted: the importance of the romance plot, as far as I’m concerned, falls behind all that (but, trust me, I can see why so many people invested their main interest in it: in my favorite novel/anime fantasy series, The Slayers, romance, as in HP, is just a subplot, but... I love the relationship between the two main characters to bits. They are my everlasting OTP… ) Still, romance DOES contribute to define the personality of the characters and I considered the romance subplot as an aspect of the Harry Potter world. While reading books 1-5 I caught the hints pointing toward a possible Ron/Hermione ending and was fine with it (actually, I liked their interaction, and still do… mostly. ) I honestly wasn’t hit by any “anvil” about Harry/Ginny, though, and book 6 still perplexes me a bit, in that respect (but that might be because I never cared much about Ginny: it’s not that I dislike her, she’s fine and all, it’s just that she never really stirred my interest as a character) Honestly, at that point, what I saw was a nice foundation for a possible romance between Harry… and Luna. And I still have a soft spot for this ship. I think they could make such a cuter couple than Harry/Ginny, anyway.
But then, book 6 was published and even though I overall liked it, Ron, whom I had loved in previous books, annoyed me to no end. My impression from book 5 had been that he had overcome his insecurities and that he and Hermione were finally going to develop a more mature relationship; I didn’t think they were going to quit all their bickering (which I somehow enjoyed), but I honestly believed that it would develop in a more playful teasing, with no bitter consequences… But all I got was Won Won, canaries and tears from Hermione. On the contrary, I really liked the interaction between Harry and Hermione. In the previous books Hermione had always been there for Harry and I appreciated the fact that, for a change, this time he was the one to soothe and comfort her. Also, I loved their little friendship moments (like their chatting and laughing while coming back from the library). I didn’t see a romantic implication in their interaction, by then: I just enjoyed what I saw as a beautiful friendship.
And then, some days before the release of DH, I was chatting with a friend about what we expected from the new book, and she told me that she hoped that Harry and Hermione would get together in the end. I was a bit taken aback, at first, but when she explained her reasons and why she thought this ending might be a possibility (her vision was pretty similar to the one that most of you people here on Portkey share…^^) she got me wondering: I realized that R/Hr wasn’t actually the only possibility. So, when I picked up DH, I wasn’t really sure about how the romance subplot would turn out anymore. And the impression I got from the book was that the potential for a H/Hr ending was definitely there: it was there in a way that made me reconsider what I saw between Harry and Hermione in book 6. Ron DID manage to make up for the mess he made in HBP, and gained back my liking. But, at the same time, the scene between Harry and Hermione at Godric Hollow was… just beautiful. I cannot consider it in a different way: it was one of the most beautifully written ROMANCE scenes in the Harry Potter series. And it didn’t stand alone: there were lots of hints pointing towards H/Hr, as many as those pointing towards R/Hr. Therefore, while reading the book, I got to really see the reason why BOTH ships could work: they shared the very same, strong foundation, that is a deep friendship, which could turn into love. Needless to say, I didn’t like the epilogue: IMO, it wasted all the potential, all the complexity of the relationship between Harry, Ron and Hermione that was underlined in the course of the book. Rowling did set the final ships, but she didn’t really explain HOW the characters got to them: and being this the case, I would probably have liked an open ending much better.
So, I got curious, and started lurking here and there on the internet to see what other people thought about ships. That’s how I got here on Portkey. And I also ended up following JKR’s infamous advice: I reread books 1-5. Only, I did that looking for clues for H/Hr rather than R/Hr or H/G. What I found, actually, are a lot of hints that point toward Hr --> H. On the other hand, I got the overall impression that Harry somehow took Hermione’s help for granted throughout the first books. I don’t blame Harry too much for that: he had so much on his mind. But the relationship between Harry and Hermione, IMO, somehow lacked balance, and I still like their interaction much better from book 6 onward. Nonetheless, I can easily say that the potential was there from the beginning: I just missed to see it at first reading.

So, I am a bit of an atypical H/Hr fan, I guess. But I’m looking forward to having a lot of good talk here in Portkey… I really like it here. We H/Hr fans might not agree on everything (I still like R/Hr quite as much as H/Hr, and I definitely abhor the Ron and JKR hate), but this seems to me to be really a nice place for civil debate… and I totally agree with the view most of you people share about how love becomes stronger, when founded on friendship. ^^
So… hi, everyone!
(and yes, I do talk a lot… )

Hi and glad to see you finally delurking. That was a long intro but it's quite all right. I see you've already read Padfoot_Lives' "Harry and Hermione in DH" essay. Feel free to add the H/H moments you've read in the other threads here.

haha long intro, but a good one! Hi! I'm new too so I thought I'd take a look at some other n00bs's posts.

I was also a late bloomer in the online fandom, but even though it's been 3 years (almost 4!) since I discovered this site and I'm just now registering, I'm so glad I stumbled on it!

Thanks for the welcome, both of you. (and sorry for my late reply)
HappyHorcrux, I surely agree. Any H/Hr would be happy to stumble on this site. It is very rich, with lots of info, and many wonderful essays. I didn't know anything about alchemy or alchemic couples before reading about them here, and I was surprised to discover that the definition applies to many of the ships I support... Long life to Portkey!

I for one absolutely adored your long intro! I feel bad for not noticing this before *blame real life, that pesky devil* because I love members like this with fantastic views *tackle hugs* I love JKR and Ron too, so don't worry! *claps* Yay! Another agreement that they loved the interactions between Harry and Hermione more in the last two books, because despite the nauseating OBHWF in it *do you see my bias slipping ?* I found the growing budding and caring relationship grow between the two and be carefree and light-hearted, I really adored that. And DH, was by far my favourite book of H/Hr in terms of the shipping, it just had such fantastic moments! Welcome aboard I'd really like to hear more of your opinions, and I would love to see you on the Debate Board I hope you'll pop in sometime.

Thanks for the welcome!
We do seem to have a lot in common... I remember you as one of the active members of the forums I always agree with! Add to that the fact that I totally love werewolves... (and no, I'm not referring to Lupin, right now... )
I'm definitely willing to participate in the debates... even though, right now, I'm not quite finished with reading them all, yet (what where we saying, about devilish real life?) I'll surely pop in soon.

Hey, no problem!
Oh that's so sweet of you to say (about agreeing with me) Werewolves? Do not torture me like this! Do you mean the other side of my heart werewolf? *squeals* *jumps around* You, HAVE to confirm this for me because I'm in agony here! Haha, yes the debate threads are long! Don't be afraid to just jump in some of the more active ones

Yes... that's Jacob! In the italian Twilight fandom he is so underestimated, but I love him to bits. And, as far as I can get from the Twilight and Who do you ship outside HP threads, I'm not the only one!

Dude! You better come join me in the Twilight thread, everyone is all really nice but I am the only Team Jacob there Yes, I seriously get so excited every time I meet a fellow team member. But please come on in and join me in the Twilight thread, just forward to the last post and jump in You should join SortOfBeautiful too a comm just for Jake