Something that somewhat bothers me whenever I'm reading Harry Potter fics and a wizard is confused about muggle appliances is how NOBODY can seem to explain ANYTHING to them. Often times I have the insane need for someone to just sit a wizard down and explain electricity to them and watch as they go "how the fuck did they figure that out" and be curious about it. I want more fics on muggle studies and not just about learning how the current society works but the Culture ! Science ! Geography! Biology ! History !
Now because my favorite character is (unfortunately) Draco Malfoy and I do enjoy Draco redemption fics and I love the idea of Malfoy-Granger friendship (I don't really enjoy them as a ship but having them become friends has always been an entertaining concept to me) I have this urge to write a fic where they're begrudgingly paired as partners for a project only for it to lead to friendship, opening your eyes beyond values instilled on you since you were a kid, and curiosity over eachother's cultures
I'd have to pull a lot of strings to create scenes thar will force draco to face his ideals and have him and hermione bond while not completely mischaracterizing them (especially draco) and I'd have to dump a whole lot research on the culture, education, and science field of the 1990's as well as research on pagan cultures and witchcraft (witchcraft is somewhat of a broad and vague term with so many different cultures having "their own version" of it, lord knows JK Fuckling appropriated every culture ever and just mashed them together to make the wizarding world) and my own headcanons and possibly more world building to make the exchange of education and culture between muggle culture and wizard culture to feel real and solid.
I don't want to have Draco go through the type of abuse most Draco redemption fics usually have him go through, but I don't want his relationship with his parents to be perfect. I want him to whine and be an asshole and struggle to wrap his head around the concept of him and his family being wrong, I want him to struggle with change but I want this partnership to sort of force him to reflect and face that the ideals he believes in are stupid as hell. I think having this set when they're still really young to be a good set-up for this, like maybe 1st or 2nd year, it's the only window of time I can imagine where Draco could be made more flexible (not in the sense that I could bend his characterization completely but in the sense that he'd still be very very young and more likely to be affected by change outside of his circle and communication with people who aren't like him)
I want to add on how the wizarding world have deviated/forgetten their traditions. I want to touch on building wizarding culture without it being inherently racist/classist towards muggles. I really really wanna touch on the history between wizards and muggles and how the conflict started, why it continued, etc. I want the understanding that wizarding culture IS dying but I also want the understanding that the way the purebloods react towards this by being even more prejudiced against muggles to be a bad thing. Which is why I want a kind of information/culture exchange between Hermione and Draco because then they can both see positives and negatives of eachother and their own cultures. I want both of them to become fascinated in eachother's culture and the magical or scientific studies and findings they have, open up their curiosity and opening their view on the world even further.
I want Hermione to not back down from this, I want her to take it in stride and be the bigger person but I also want her to be affected by this. She's a girl trying to prove her worth and belonging, she'll be affected by the bullshit draco will say, but she'll still push through anyways. In all honesty, she doesn't really need this partnership with Draco to improve her character in the same way Draco would need this partnership to improve his ideals and views, this concept doesn't quite benefit her more than the original books would've and certainly wouldn't give her a major change and improvement in behavior like it would for Draco which I fear would make it seem like she'd just be a plot device to make him better which I don't want. I want them to be able to work together and make better solutions, I want them to EVENTUALLY be able to gush together and be curious together. I think Hermione could feel pride from having changed Draco's mind, a sort of confidence from surviving their exchange and having influenced Draco. I also think she'd be particularly interested in learning more about what wizarding traditions are like and how pureblood circles work. She's not going to be seperate from the golden trio, but there are definitely changes happening. I want to add more of what would change for Hermione but a lot of them would happen after Draco's change..
A lot of fics that have draco be smart make him REALLY studious and while I like smart draco.. I imagine he's not actually THAT studious. I imagine him more as a pretty lazy kid or someone who's just not that interested in academia and studies, though I imagine he still has his fair share of private tutoring. Like he's not completely stupid but he still holds onto a lot of childish characteristics and doesn't take academia too seriously, though I still like to imagine him taking potions seriously because he actually enjoys it and looks up to Snape (I am absolutely believing in the Godfather!Snape headcanon). I think he can pick topics up and understand concepts fast but he just doesn't try that hard, which is another variable into why he doesn't question his family's values and ideals and why he follows them so resolutely and struggles to break free from them. Which is why I want him to become more curious and actually TRY after awhile with Hermione, with it starting as him not wanting to lose behind now that he's actually partners with her and also feeling threatened as he notices her presence more but also as a way to show that he's actually changing and trying instead of lazing around the subject.
I dunno, honestly I just thought of this cuz I'm really getting into psychology and neuroscience and thus I'm re-learning biology and chemistry and it made me want to project my joyous curiosity and urge to research on these two LOL. I just loved the idea of Hermione sitting Draco down and telling him that muggles went to the fucking moon and explain electricity to him. The idea of them sneaking research papers and yapping and debating and discussing endlessly about theories to one another through owls during summer break is just a hilarious and wonderful thought to me.
Honestly this concept (for now) sort of ignores the main plots of the series.. yk considering things just keep happening every year to harry... I'd have to find a way to weave through that but oh well.. that's for another time..