Introduction

Here we have another story about what could happen after book seven is finished and our main heroes begin a new life. I will totally ignore „19 years later" as I don't like that chapter at all. Here in the main introduction, I'm going to explain what you can expect of „Against my better judgement".

Usually the short informations given in the stories' overview aren't by far enough to give the reader a hint about what to expect, so if you are reading this, you're about to get some further informations about my story so that you can decide whether it's worth your time to read or not.

"Against my better judgement" starts three years after Lord Voldemort was finished by Harry in the great hall of Hogwarts. Harry afterwards emigrated to the United States as he couldn't stand the wizarding worlds behaviour any more. One time being the nations scapegoat, the next moment their hero proved to be too much for him. Hermione emigrated too, but in her case it's Australia where she found her parents and began university as her parents couldn't afford to go back to Great Britain. Ron wanted to start auror training but instead decided to work for George. Both are quite successful but are far from being happy.

So, you may ask yourself now what you can expect when it comes to the main plot, pairings, action, fluff and all the other stuff that makes the Harry Potter Universe so wonderful. Well, lets take a closer look at what will happen to our protagonists:

The story: Yes, I have one! (Great so far, right?) The main plot revolves around some mysterious events after Harry has returned to England. I'm not going into detail now as that would ruin the eagerness, but something will happen that drastically influences the wizarding world and (as usual) Harry needs to save the day.

Main protagonists:

Harry: We will see him during his final year at Stanford University where he is practically an outcast. Yes, I know, normally in these kind of stories he's very happy and his main problem is the question whether he'll go back to his motherland, but not here. Not too much details now, but he has far greater problems. I will pair him with Daphne Greengrass although according to the books this is quite an extraordinary choice. My reason: After school everybody goes his own way and everybody changes. That happens with everybody and I see no reason why Harry Potter should be different. Furthermore, neither Harry nor Daphne will stick to the usual Gryffindor or Slytherin traits. Yes, some things never change but that doesn't mean that everything stays as it always was.

Hermione: She is and will still be the know-it-all, but that wouldn't suit her at all. I determined that she never had enough time to deal with her teenage issues, so that will be a great part of her story. Even more interesting could be that her memory charm on her parents had far more consequences than she had thought of. So, dealing with her (not so happy) parents will be another part of her story. My intention is to pair her of with another female character, so you will probably encounter some femslash along the way. Her designated partner will probably be some new character whereas I keep the option to go for someone already mentioned in the original books. No idea so far.

Ron: Has never really mourned for his brother Fred who died in the final battle. His dream was always to survive the war, to play for the Chudley Cannons and to marry Hermione Granger. Part A of his wishes came true, but at a high price. The second part is still a secret wish, but one that will probably never come true. Ron hasn't noticed yet that his skills for business are far greater than his goalkeeping skills, although Gringotts could tell him else. Maybe it is high time to be satisfied with what he has... His last wish, a marriage with Hermione, will not happen! I have no idea which idiot came up with the idea of Hr/R, but in MY opinion that would never have happened.

Ginny: With the new found wealth of her parents, Ginny has become what the muggle world would call a party girl. Sex, drugs and Rock'n Roll have poisoned her mind but there is still a small sparkle of the schoolgirl in her that has a huge crush on a boy with sprinkling green eyes. What she needs is someone to take her hand and love her for who she is and not for who she wants to be. Will probably be paired with Neville, nothing too surprising here, but not before she gets some serious bashing. Once again, as this is only a little side plot I keep the option open to pair her up with someone else.

The Malfoys: Yes, they are still out there and as can be expected they have some trouble dealing with the situation at hand. Lucius political power base is gone, Narcissas world of social entertainment has collapsed and Draco had no idea what to do with himself before he decided to try something totally new. Seeing that I like all three characters, my readers will spend some time with them. Although they will neither be the goody two shoes as in other stories nor the evil bastards they usually are. Prepare for a very, very unusual pairing for Draco.

McGonagall, Arthur & Molly, Seamus, Luna, Neville et al.: They will make appearances, of course. In how far they will have an impact on the story is actually uncertain, but it is likely that at least one of them will raise in status to became a semi-protagonist.

Lord Voldemort and his Death Eaters: Are either dead, captured or on the run. Nevertheless, they will show up in one form or another. Be prepared for some deadly fighting!

Some words to the characteristics of "Against my better judgement": First of all, I'm not a native english speaker so I'll do my best to use my rusty school english to give you something you really want to read. I apologize in advance if I write total nonsense. Second, and that is one of the most important things to mention – I'm an adult with over thirty years of age and my intention is to write an adult story. So, to be more precise, you can expect very cruel and bloody parts of the story, you'll encounter explicit parts with hot sex and last but not least you can expect some serious romance, bashing, action and eventually some fluff. Well, certainly some fluff.

OooOOOooo

Update 22/4/2011

Maybe some people have recognized that I reposted that story and I would like to point out my reasons. First of all I had two unfinished stories on ., the first one being a german one, the second being AMBJ. Around christmas last year came the point where I was so overwhelmed by the work of writing that I decided to drop both stories. Now, four months later, my wife has convinced me to finish at least one. I opted for this one. But I will probably need some help because I cannot solve all language based issues on my own. And because of this:

I am looking for a beta reader!

Your profile: 25 – 45 years old, native english speaker from the UK, skilled with patience ;) Not someone new to fanfic, open-minded to adult themes. Open Office necessary as I don't like it to change text formats too often. Click "profile" and "Send message" if you are interested.

Update frequency: That was a problem in the past and I'm willing to admit it. My new timetable leaves me enough writing time for one, maybe two chapters per month if I get a decent beta.

Last, but not least – the legal mumbo jumbo:

I don't own Harry Potter or any other characters from J.K. Rowlings books. In fact, I own nothing in this story except for the small parts of my own invention. Everything that could be claimed as property by JKR is hers and hers only.