Care of Magical Shippers Podcast Episode 1 - All Aboard, Magical Shippers!!

5:26PM Apr 12, 2021

Speakers:

Nathan

Megs

[Music]

Keywords:

snape

harry

characters

ship

people

fanfiction

sirius

read

laughter

fic

fanfic

umbridge

canon

feel

writing

absolutely

world

remus

fun

lives

The following podcast is rated R for Really Filthy. It includes adult themes and explicit content. So if you're an adult who happens to like themes directly targeting your sexy demographic, then get ready to join us as we ship it good. [whipcrack sound]

Due to the themes discussed on this podcast, it may contain potentially triggering content. Please visit our episode description to review the warnings applicable to this episode.

Ronald Weas-- Do you know what this is, actually? This is like when Snape looks inside Harry's potions textbook that he's got from Ron. And he's like, "Who is Roonil Wazlib?" That is our podcast!

"That's my nickname!"

hashtag Justice for Roonil!

Oh my goodness

You're on the canon ground, I'm up in crack ship space . Let's start a shipping war, don't care if I get hate. Don't like my pairings, well, then you can hit the bricks. This is my OTP, I'll go down with this ship! I don't care. I ship it. I don't care. I ship it, I ship it.

Hi, I'm Megs.

And I'm Nathan.

And welcome to Care of Magical Shippers, your Harry Potter ship culture podcast.

So Nathan and I met actually through another podcast Fanatical Fics and Where to Find Them. We're both patrons for them on Patreon so we get access to their Discord. So that started our exposure to tons of different people and their ships and everything that we had no idea existed. Because we were either stuck in what we knew and what we loved. So learning about what other people are obsessed with really got us excited about diving further into what the fanfic culture is all about.

So I was a filthy JKR-only text purist for ages. And I didn't read fanfiction because I was like, 'No, this is destroying the universe. The integrity of it must remain like pristine. Nothing will touch it.' And then JKR did her transphobic things and I was like, 'Okay, maybe these words aren't as sacrosanct as I once thought that they should be.'

So then a friend of mine who was really into fanfic introduced me to the Sacrifices arc, and I read that and I loved that so much that I then found Fanatical Fics. And I was like, do you know what? Fanfiction is for me. Because it's so-- it really broadens the horizons for the world. And I'm like, I want to play in that world. I want to know what happens when you combine Oliver Wood and Marcus Flint.

Oooh! [laughter]

I mean, right off the bat, I'm going with FlintWood. One of my new favorites that I recently discovered, funnily enough, through a fic of yours.

Yes! Yeah, that's right. I can't even remember how I came across FlintWood. It probably was either on Discord or in like a rare pair server or something like that. And I realized, oh my gosh, this is Drarry on steroids. I mean, you have the two Quidditch captains who are rivals and are constantly in each other's faces and then it's just all that conflict and sexual energy and just know that they're meant to be together. And so, yeah. So then I made a thing and you read it and then it-- I mean, then we're best friends. That's ultimately what happened. It's just you read my fic and then we became best friends!

The banging together vigorously of Quidditch muscles really galvanized our friendship.

Yes. Absolutely!

You know, turned us into the the-- Yeah, turned us into the caring magical shippers that we know and love today.

But we're both obsessed with the audio books. And so a lot of our like input from like the characters canonically would have come from that. But I feel like because you're hearing so many different character accents and voices, you kind of want to live in their headspace naturally when you listen. And so fanfic is an extension of that. And that's partly why I love fanfic so much, because it literally-- you know, you're not just living in Harry's world all the time. You're not just seeing things from his perspective. You can literally be seeing an event like the Yule Ball that you've read 100 times before, but see it through completely different characters eyes, and suddenly, events get totally turned on their heads.

So the reason I love reading and writing fanfic so much is kind of like what was discussed. We see the characters from a certain point of view in the books, but it gives us the opportunity to build characterizations and really get to know the characters based on what they say and do within the books. However, there's so much going on. that there are stories that weren't told. So we have certain characters that had like a single line or we know very little about like Luna Lovegood, or Severus Snape or even the Marauders, for example, which we only experienced through either Remus or Sirius or Snape's memory. So we have to kind of build who these characters are. And it gives us a platform to do that and be entirely creative. So we are taking something preexisting, which is beautiful and wonderful. And we are just like throwing glitter, and just like ribbons, and all these fancy things just make it 10 times better. There's-- what hundreds of thousands of us doing this? And there's just so many—too many—that we can't even begin to scratch the surface. And that goes for individual ships themselves. So like I fell down the Drarry hole, and then I, you know, fell into the Snarry hole. And with this podcast, I'm so excited to broaden my horizons to all these things that I might have gone, "What, why?" and then realize, "Oh, my gosh, I ship this so hard." And I'm so excited for that.

Yeah. So for example, recently you wrote a Harry/Bill. And at the start of it, I was like, So what is this? Like, why? Why would I be invested in this? This sounds so cursed. And then by the time I reached the end of this tumultuous emotional roller coaster, I was like, not only am I invested in this, this is now my head cannon! I'm like, of course! Of course Fleur leaves, like of course she does. She knows she's not happy, and she's unfulfilled. And now we get that entire backstory fleshed out in a way that's not just, you know, a few-- in a few throwaway lines at the end of a page somewhere.

And that's what's so fun is like, I've been open to different fests that give you a kind of a prompt or a ship that I'm like, 'I don't know. What the hell, let's do it. Let's see what happens.' And then all of a sudden, I'm like, 'Okay, I know how to make this amazing. I'm going to do this,' and then it ends up amazing. Sorry, I know. I'm just like talking about how amazing I am. But seriously, it just ends up so fun that I can take something that I'm like, 'How the hell would that even happen?' And I'm like, 'Well, I'ma tell you how the hell it happened!'

Yeah, and that happens so much, like I-- one of the reasons I'm so invested in fanfic is it gives me an excuse to do podfics, so reading fanfic aloud. And through that I encountered another fic, which involves Snape being a terrible sex shop owner.

Oh, yes.

Which is fantastic. It is so-- it is fantastic. Because it puts Snape in a position that I would never have envisaged, yet, it feels true to his character. And I feel that this is why Harry Potter fan fiction works so well, because you're starting with characters that you know and love, and that you can relate to, but it's putting them in all of these new situations and in new contexts. So that you can really flesh out their emotional wealth as well as their, you know, already pre-established backstories and stuff. And so, you know, it might not be canon that Snape owns a sex shop--

[laughter]

--but the, but the problems of, you know, coming up against your eighth year Harry, who is still oblivious, and you know, having to live off of Neville's coattails. That is absolutely possible. And I see that being, you know, a possible AU reality for, for Harry so that, you know it-- Fanfic allows me to get invested like that. And that's why I'm so madly in love with it.

So we thought why not make a podcast of our, you know, exuberant enjoyment of the genre, because we love this so much that we were like, you know what, why not make a pod that really delves into what makes ships great. And I can't think of anyone I'd rather be doing this with than you, Megs.

Oh, my gosh, that's so cute. Same to you. Oh, my goodness.

So one of my all time favorite ships is Wolfstar. I didn't even know it was called Wolfstar until recently, but I have always-- I've always sort of thought that Lupin and Sirius were canon anyway, because of the chemistry that they'd had in in Book Three and in the film, and in the--

Oh, the films. 100%.

Yeah, and even in the film, it's even more in your face. Literally. I mean, that hug in the Shrieking Shack, it's right there.

Yeah.

And so your takeaway is not immediately that Remus is gonna go off and settle down with Tonks, you know? And I-- one of the reasons I really love Wolfstar is, I feel like they emotionally compliment each other so well. So Sirius is this emotionally stunted man child, who is essentially still-- he's still a Marauder at heart, you know. He just hasn't grown into being an adult because of Azkaban.

Right. 13 years of no contact, socially? I mean, essentially, he's jumping from 20 to, what, 33 or whatever it is. I mean, goodness, that's just-- that's a lot of growth that he didn't have. I mean, essentially.

Yeah. So it's a lot of physical growth that isn't mirrored emotionally. And in that way, I sort of feel like Remus is the inverse. Where Remus is very emotionally mature, but he's not in control of his body. He is, you know, at the mercy of the elements once a month, and being like, you know, I transform into this dark creature that is essentially, you know, it has put his friendship at risk, it's put other people's lives at risk for years. And he's had to keep this part of himself very close to his chest. And so Sirius is really one of the only people that he's been able to share this with, because of all the, you know, Animagus stuff. And I sort of feel that that sets up a nice vulnerability. So Remus might be more emotionally level-headed, but have this incredible othered side to his personality, which I think Sirius can bring out safely. So they match up well off one another. And that to my mind, makes them absolutely perfect for fanfic. Because where fanfic can take this and run with it is, literally you can be running as, you know, Animagus form and wolf form together in the woods. And then you can take that into very tender emotional moments. You can have silly slapstick moments. We, we get to have all of this story that we wouldn't otherwise have. And it's one of the reasons I love that pairing so much, is you get to see the human vulnerability.

Absolutely. And what I love about that ship is when Sirius is in any ship, normally it means he lives. So we get more Sirius, which is fantastic because no one wants to read a Wolfstar of you know, Order of the Phoenix happenings and then all of a sudden a tragic end to a love story. I mean, some people do, to be fair. I'm not here to, to say what people like or don't like, I just know what I love about when people take that route with Sirius. It's just to get to see a character who's just so-- even having been through Azkaban he's so light-hearted. He's compassionate, he's caring. He's just so fun to be around. I mean, he's a genuine friend and a great kind of older-brother-sort-of-guardian-not-really to Harry, and then you have Lupin who really grounds him. He's like, kind of like the business guy to be like, "Okay, you had your fun. But you know, let's let's reel it back a little bit."

And then on the other side of things Sirius helps Lupin open up, because as you said, He's really reserved. He doesn't want to open up to people. He's scared of what people think of him, because we don't really see him until Book Three. He's got tattered clothing, I mean, where was he living? Who could he rely on? Probably like no one. So to have Sirius back in his life and realize he wasn't the person to betray his friends and just have that reconnection, and potentially rekindle some, like hidden secret love from Marauders era is just absolutely fantastic. So, it's so beautiful. Plus, you can get into some of the Wolfstar stuff when they're kind of quote unquote, pseudo parents for Harry, and he gets that coparent type of situation of like, you have the super fun parent then the other one who's like, 'Okay, you gotta do your homework, and you know. Make your bed, clean your room.'

Yeah, the stern uncle and the fun one. Yeah, absolutely.

Yes. So I definitely feel really good about that. And you brought up the animagus thing, and I would imagine that probably their patronus-- I don't know I'd have to look up, you know, probably in some fandom website, whether they know who, like, what their patronuses are? But since Tonks, had the wolf patronus to match, supposedly, Lupin I'd imagine his patronus is a wolf? So that makes canon with matching Sirius as a wolf. So there you go. Mic drop.

Oh, I never even thought of that until you just brought it up. But that has added a whole other level of intrigue to that ship that I'm-- I now need to read that story of their patronuses and even-- Because patronuses can change, right depending on--

Yes. Yep.

levels of emotional fluctuation and stuff. So I wonder were they always like that?

Right.

Right. Someone needs to write me that fic and send that to me.

Um. Probably me. [laughter]

Let's be real, I can't not be writing. Even though I have two ongoing chapter fics I have to write at least a one-shot every day and ignore those 100% completely, so [laughter]. But no, what I-- What I was gonna say is when you say like, 'Oh did it change?' From the beginning Sirius was-- turned into a wolf. So essentially-- like a big black dog, essentially a wolf so from the get go he had those characteristics to match Lupin. So it, you know it could have shifted via patronus, that can change. But who you become as an animagus? It's like-- it's permanent. It's who you are. So, that's also a thing.

I just-- I am all about that symbolic stuff. Especially because, like I'm a big Snarry fan and a huge part of Snarry is the patronus focus, because what we get into is-- okay at the end of the book slash movie, Snape's patronus is a doe, potentially for Lilly. However—JK Rowling has brought this up in the past that Lily is a doe—However, her soulmate James is a stag, which Harry has. So Snape doesn't have a doe patronus for Lily, he has a doe patronus for Harry. So ultimately he has been growing up with his resentment for not only Harry from the beginning because one, he's the child of his quote unquote thought love of his life—probably more of like an obsession, a best friend lost, because you can have a deep love (like ours) that is platonic and not go to the you know the remote-- romantic side of things. But he sees Lily in him but also his childhood bully. So Harry looks like James. So it's like that conflicting-- usually like it gets into like a soulmate thing because of the patronuses, so Snape is always in denial. He's just like no. Not only one, age difference because of course like oh student, you know, teacher, yeah, blah blah. So he has to like fight back on that, but the patronus is there as proof once he discovers that Harry is a stag and whatnot. It's just why else would Snape be a doe, other than because it's the soul, you know, connection to Harry, so. That's my biggest thing. So I'm all about patronuses. So I-- So that was easy for me to dive into because I was like 'Wait a minute-- patronuses-- wolf star-- what would they be but also animagus-- Ahhhh,' so it just, uh.

So one thing that I wanted to bring up about Snarry is that I am really new to this ship because it's not something that I had ever really looked into. Some ships are sort of thrust upon you and some you search for. And I feel like Snarry, for me, it was one that you search for because I had never really seen the two of them together. But then I feel like your love for this ship has been infectious.

Yeah [laughter].

It's made me want to find out more about why they work and potentially why they don't as well. But like the-- because there's so much potential for conflict and angst and drama.

Oh yes.

I think it can build well to something that is emotionally believable. Like I'm all about the emotion. I'm all about the you know, the fraught tension, the emotion, the the the resolution of like years of built up potentially angst and trauma, but you know, other stuff as well. And

UST! UST! Case you don't know what that means: unresolved sexual tension. So yeah, there's, there's all of that in the background too on top of, yeah, the trauma, the angst all of that.

I imagine it best in scenarios where Harry's aged up or Snape is aged down. But of course there is the sort of the, the-- It's possible to take the the uncle, imagery from you know, Harry and Remus and Sirius and apply it to Snape as well in a-- in a weird sort of distorted mirrory way, in that he wouldn't necessarily look for affection from Snape because let's face it, he's not the most cuddly bear on the planet. [laughter] But I do think there's something to be said for, with Snape, still waters running deep. You know, he is that character of, you know, his heart has literally bled dry for someone and for years we've been thinking it's Lily but it might not be now.

Absolutely, and he's just been going through life waiting for, you know, his someone. Not realizing that you know it would come later, thinking he lost Lilly and all of that but-- and I just, aside from Snarry, I mean I just see Snape as such a compelling character. I mean, as far as canon goes, oh my gosh, he is a-- he is the worst. I hate him. I mean, you get finished with those books, or you reach a point and people are like, 'Oh, he loved Lily!' No, he was creepily obsessed with her.

Yeah. Yeah.

And yes, so, like, mean and like borderline abusive to students, regardless of like, his childhood traumas and things like that. However, when it comes to fanfiction, I build off that. So I toned down how quote unquote abusive he is, because it doesn't have to be canon. No one-- there's no rule. Like they don't-- I don't have to make him as mean as he is. But he is mean, like he has that prickly-- because that is his character. That's who he is. But he is a product of his, his childhood and experiences. Abusive father, bullied, potentially his entire school career. I mean, you know, from the get go, those Marauders singled him out and was like, he's the weird, awkward kid. We don't like him and we're gonna fuck his life up, essentially all of seven years. So that really does a lot to a person.

Yeah, and a lot of it's just seems to be based on the fact that he's in Slytherin, and he has these looks that aren't-- you know, he's not conventionally, aesthetically attractive. He has this sallow skin, and he's constantly described as greasy.

Yup.

I mean, he must just have this constant film of sweat.

Yeah, no, he is like, yeah. You don't-- I mean, of course, my head canon is like, 'Oh, yes. Adam Driver is Snape like, of course,' like, [laughter] it's like, now, you know, I mean, it's like, okay, Snape knows how to shower and take care of himself. And you know, that sort of thing. But yeah, but in the books, yeah, you're just like put off completely. You're just like, who would like this person.

But it's like, in the books, you only ever get that one note, where it's like Ultimate Snape, where he is-- he's really abusive to these kids. And I mean, it's just, because of that you don't really get a lot of modality or you know, in a Snape monologue to play around with because it's just this one level. But it's like Snape, Fanfiction Snape is different from, you know, Book Snape.

And like Draco is another good example. Yeah, because, I mean, all of those tragic villains are what I'm drawn to as far as reading and writing. I want to make the bad guy a human. Like, I want you to empathize with them and realize, 'Oh, my gosh, this person has a heart and I want them to be happy,' and just kind of really convinced you to believe in and love something that you otherwise would have been completely put off by. And I just, I just love that so much.

So I have a question though. Why don't we do that with Umbridge?

I guess I could. Nope, that's fair. That's fair. Because she obviously has to have some sort of backstory to-- Okay, now I'm gonna get into it. So—because this is what my brain does—So I see her as a woman who had to fight her way up to the top. Like she could have started as like, you know, some-- like she's Under Secretary to the Minister. She probably was just some random somebody that maybe could have been an assistant in whatever department doing very little, no, no work whatsoever. Maybe she was looked down upon because of her looks. She's obviously described as toad-like, short, not attractive whatsoever. And unfortunately, in society, we often judge based on our physical appearance. So I can only imagine what her life was like as a child through school. What if she went through the bullying things? What if she went through a bunch of stuff that really tormented and changed her and her character? And so over time as she kind of-- maybe she's a little bit narcissistic and manipulative and so that's how she made her way up, as she somehow was able to walk over some people to get where she was. I believe that probably once she was given the position to essentially have ministry powers. I mean, she was like the Minister of Magic of Hogwarts and when Fudge was like, 'Yeah, do whatever you want.' She's like, 'Oh, hell yeah. Like these are my beliefs and I'm going to push this on everybody,' which could be said by a lot of different-- not just a person, but schools and even with politics and things like that. Like we're gonna do and say what we believe strongly, and she's gonna fight because she has the arsenal to do it. Like she has the power, she's able to do it, as, like, cruel or whatever it is. We see that. That's the thing-- the reason why Umbridge is such a compelling villain is because she's someone we know. She's someone we see on the news. She's someone that in our real life we see and are terrified that have power to dictate our lives.

So in comparison to like Voldemort who's like, "Yeah, I'm just evil and I want to kill people because I just, you know, that's just what I feel like. Because I'm, you know, I have no emotion whatsoever, so why the heck not kill some muggles." I don't see him as scary. I don't see him as intimidating. But with Umbridge, oh my goodness she, there's the, yeah. There's just so many things that could have made her who she was. So there you go. That's me trying to justify who she is. Not that she is a great person or needs to be empathized with. And she's done some terrible things. But here's something to kind of unpack on a lot of bullies. And really terrible people have something that answers 'Why are they the way they are?' There are a ton of reasons that it could be why. Doesn't mean it's okay. It does not mean it's okay, by any means. But here's why.

Yeah. And I also feel like, just to quickly build on that, is that she's codified as this really ambitious, power hungry, ruthless, Machiavellian woman. And the key word there in all of that is woman because we see those qualities in people like Barty Crouch, who, you know, he's guilty of like abusing his own family members and it ultimately leads to terrible things happening. But we don't hold him to the same level of scrutiny as we hold Umbridge. I mean, part of the reason that she is such a hated figure is because she is a Machiavellian woman in power. And I think it's really interesting that she is, consistently I think, in the fanbase seen as more villainous than Voldemort.

Yeah. Exactly.

Even though Voldemort's done much worse things.

Right. Yeah.

But it's like you said, it's because she's relatable. And this is one of the things that fanfic can do so well. And one of the reasons like I think we both love it so much, is that it can put the spotlight on these characters and make you look again and go, 'Oh, wait, you know, these preconceptions I had about them? Based on the-- you know, looking at their life from this angle, I've arrived at a completely new conclusion.' That isn't to say, like you say, that they're completely redeemed, or that it changes who they are. But it does allow you to see their story from an entirely new perspective. And that's one of the reasons I love to play in the world so much and read so much.

And of course, that gets into like the angsty side of things, which not everybody is into, obviously, like we, you know, we get into that, and we love that. But then there's the fluffy side of things, people just love to read about love.

Absolutely.

And they want to take characters that they love and put them together. They just want people to be happy, have that meet-cute moment, or that positive environment or that like domestic post-war situation of like so-and-so got married and had kids and it's wonderful. Or in school, when you have that crush on somebody. And it's like slowly developing and it's kind of awkward. And when it kind of resolves itself, you're just like, 'Oh my gosh, this is just so beautiful.' And people often need that. They need that like light-hearted, uplifting something to make them feel good. Because we don't always, you know, feel the best. We don't always want to get down into angst. A lot of people can't. They don't want to do that. It makes them feel anti what they want to feel. So there's a lot of beautiful, like fluffy stuff out there. That just-- it's just like it's so cute. It's, it's-- I love it.

Yeah. And I think part of the needing that space to have the fluff and have the resolution that we don't get in the books is also catharsis for the reader and the writer, and the whole community. Because you know, life isn't always fantastic. It isn't always you know, all smiles and sunshine. But to know that you're going to get that from a fic that you can sit down and read it and it's just gonna gratify some part of you that needs a conclusion or a release, or, you know, the equivalent of a big warm hug.

Yeah. Absolutely.

You know, this is what fanfiction can do. You know, Dumbledore says at one stage 'words are, in my not so humble opinion, our most inexhaustible source of magic,' and I really feel--

Good Lord. Oh my gosh. [laughter]

And I really feel that, that like fanfiction for us is an extension of that philosophy.

I don't know that there's one ship that I think, 'Oh yeah, that's fluff.'

Yeah, I mean--

Although it might be that there is one but I-- but nothing comes to mind.

We don't know yet!

Yeah. It's like you can make anything fluffy if you really wanted to. You could make a Snape ship fluffy, because you can have him suddenly open up, you know, and let the, let the wall down and then suddenly all this potential for actual human connection comes through. Although I still think it would be really creepy to see Snape smile.

I, yeah, I don't know. He's definitely more of like, kinda like Draco they're like the the sneer, the like quirked corner of the mouth, that little something that might show a little bit of amusement. Maybe the amusement is in their eyes, like, you know you read, it's like, oh, 'something with amusement.' You're just like what does that even look like? Like what happens to the eyeballs that make someone look amused it-- That's another funny thing in fic is how things are described to us. Like, I think one thing that you said to me once was that you're like, "I have yet to be at the point where I've ever thought, 'ah yes, it's time for the deepening of the kiss.' " I mean--

Yeah! [laughter] Yes.

Because we read that! We read it so much, and I write it! I mean, you're just like, oh, they're kissing then it's like, oh, then they just like, you're already kissing. How does that work?

Yeah, but it's never like, 'and then the kiss intensified.' It's always like, 'and then a character takes it upon themselves to deepen the kiss.' And I'm like, how far down someone's gullet are they going? Like this is just so atomically impossible. [laughter]

Oh my gosh. It's just so funny. The things you see over and over again, you read it so much. So then it's everywhere. I write things that I know I've seen everywhere. Because it just, especially if they're focused on specific characters, and you kind of like, blend it into who that character is. And it's like, oh, yeah, they would deepen the kiss or something like that.

Yeah. Yeah.

And then you're just like, Oh, or just like the moment, like the situation of like, now we're getting into smut like, is it really like an aggressive sort of thing? Or is it really like kind and slow and like really loving or whatever. And it's just, there's those, those things to describe to get us emotionally into something, even if it doesn't make sense.

But it's like that, that thing that you always see in fanfic, like, they let out a breath they didn't know they were holding.

Oh, so good. Do you know how many times I have actively avoided using that? I mean, it's like, it's just one of those things that it's like, oh, like, sucked in a breath. It's kind of my like, oh, and let out a breath they didn't know they were holding, I-- I get why people use it. But it's-- Yeah, it's known as that thing that's put into all these fic. And when you read it, you're just like, Where's Waldo? There!

Yeah! [laughter]

I found it. I found it. So that's just, oh, it's so funny. And it just it shows how close-knit the fanfic community is because we're obviously all reading and writing the same things. So everything's bleeding into each other, because we're invested in all all of that. So it's not like we're, I mean, some people are, they're just like, Oh, I'm just gonna write and don't read anything. And then they're only pulling from what they see or feel. But for the most part, we're inspired by others. And it's, it's, it's-- it's amazing.

Well, absolutely. And I think part of what makes fanfiction great is the fact that this isn't a static world, you know. Canon text is finished, that we know of, you know, there have been no announcements yet that more is being written. So canon is is finished—that we know of—but like, because the, like I said, that the characters are there. And because we're all sort of pulling these ideas from each other. And these ways of, you know, engaging and talking about the ships that we know and love. It's this constantly evolving thing of like, if someone has a great turn of phrase, it could completely influence the way we all interpret that. And that to me, is so it's so-- it's not only like, cool, it's powerful as well. Because it has-- you can influence so many people and not even know it, and that sounds really cheesy, but I really, I really believe that.

No, Yeah, no, no no no. We are-- we are touching lives with fanfiction.

Yeah, but, but not in a-- not in a creepy way. We are, we are touching consensually. And only touching minds. Some of the time.

No, no no no. Consensually touching yeah, your hearts your souls your minds. Yeah, exactly. Sometimes your loins. It's just like, [laughter] depends on what you're in to. Ya know, so. [laughter]

Oh, and something else that I love about this fanfiction community, especially today, is there's a lot of different forums, especially like discords and things like that, that you can join and talk and get involved with other people who love what you love and just expand on it and get excited so you're not alone in it. Like you're not just someone at home pulling up your Ao3 page or writing something and putting it out there for who knows who to read or whatever. You have like your family-- like it's a family that's what it feels like. It's very positive. It's very supportive. And I-- even though we-- like I haven't really physically been in a space with like any of my friends regarding the fanfic community I feel, I mean, close if not closer to them than a lot of my previous, like, in-person friends because we're all expressing ourselves through words. So we have to get our, like our thoughts out there. Rarely are we seeing expressions under-- other than, you know, times like this when we can see each other. It's like, we have to get our emotions out in other ways. And so we really dive deep and express ourselves in a, in a safe and supportive way. And it just, it feels so good. I just feel so good. It's makes me feel like a part of something that is just so much bigger than me. But I feel important, because it's great when people read my stuff. But also like you have-- you have your favorite authors. And when you come across them, like in different forums or discords, and you're just like, 'Oh, my gosh, I am fangirling so much right now, because you wrote this thing I love,' and they're just like, 'I'm just some random person who like, lives in a basement just writing things,' like, you know, it's like, we're literally just normal people. It's not like seeing, you know, there's the anonymity of it, which is really great too like, we can open up and be as close to ourselves as we want, or very little, like, we can do whatever we feel is comfortable, but get just as much out of it—still get the relationships without having to break that barrier. Have it be scary, I guess. for some people.

Yeah, and it's a way to connect with humans, that is really, you know. It's on your own terms, the amount that you do is directly proportional to how much you want to invest. And that really works well. Because you get out what you want from it. And I feel like with the, you know, the pandemic happening at the moment, you know, we're all having to renegotiate how we deal with the world and how we, you know, how we have our outlets. And so what this has really done for me, is allowed me to still keep that fun, silly, stupid humor going because it's so like, they're like, I just love I just love taking the piss out of things. And like, for me, like, I can do my silly McGonagall Mrs. Doubtfire voice and it still feels like there are people that are gonna love that. And I love being a part of that. That for me is being true to who I am. And because it's all very well to talk about, like, yeah, who we are as humans. I don't I don't really feel human, unless I'm being really silly.

Yes, absolutely. So on that note, let's hear some McGonagall [laughter].

Uh, I'm gonna have to think of something to say now. You'd have thought that I would have had a line prepared. But, so there's-- so there's, there's all of this stuff in the books what that you don't get in the films, where McGonagall is giving Harry careers advice and she's all like, "Sit down, Potter and have a ginger newt." You know? It's all very, but it very quickly lapses into Mrs. Doubtfire because the boundary between it and Mrs. Doubtfire is very close. So there's that line where it's like, "Oh, it was a run-by fruiting," You know, it's the it's the same voice. It's exactly the same voice. You know, I can picture the space where both of those characters merge. And you just get, "Oh no dear, I don't need a wand, I need a face." [ laughter]

[laughter] I need a face. "Hellooo,"

"Hellooo!"

"Helloooo!" Oh my goodness.

"Oh, you've got your sugar and your cream all in one."

Oh my gosh. Oh, and that's another thing I can't wait is, once we get into like the ships and things like that is like the-- our headcanon, as far as if there's any, like celebrity characters or in-life characters that we're like, 'oh, yeah, that's that person'. And this is who I see when I write. And, or when I'm reading which is like, also really cool because everyone has their perceptions of who they think someone is. Like, some people are like, 'Oh, yeah, Harry is short.' Like, even though in the movies like, Daniel Radcliffe just ended up to be shorter. Like that's just what happened. And so like in Snarry people are like, 'Oh, yeah, I want to have, you know, Snape be so much taller than Harry because it's cute and whatever.' And it just has that, that whatever dynamic or on the reverse. It's like, oh, then Harry makes like someone else feel like, like less or smaller. And he's more of like, the protector sort of thing. And it's just everyone has their own perception and headcanon for everybody.

Harry/Dobby [laughter]

Harry slash- Oh gosh, no! oh my gosh, oh my gosh, oh my gosh, oh my gosh!

Oh, no. Oh, no, no, no, no. Oh, no, no, no. Or Yes. I mean, Dobby would be

Maybe not that small. That's not as small as you were--

that's a size kink that I never would have really. Yeah, so. So it's just yeah, it's really cool to see how people perceive these characters and write them especially based on ship. Like we're gonna dive into different ships of the same characters. So like Dramione versus Romione, or Harry and Ron versus Harry and Neville and their personalities could be completely different or their dynamic is different. And we feel it, like we believe it. And and it feels true to these characters because the situations they're in. And it's just it's amazing what people can do when you are given a base for it. Because I can't imagine really getting into writing from scratch, like, 'Oh my gosh, I have to build a world. Oh my gosh, I can't come up with people.' Like, I can't. Oh, my God, I can't. But I have 20 plus years of knowledge of fake individuals that I can keep writing about. Heck, yeah. Like I mean, it just [laughter]

Well, that is that is a big part of the appeal. And it's not just about how am I going to craft a world that people will engage with. It's like, the fact that we've all come into the same world, we all know these characters, we all, we're all, we all have the same sort of base elements to draw from. And because of that, when you change one or a few, you can really play about with how that world works. And so you're not-- because you're not starting from scratch, and it isn't your own self-contained universe, it is, in a way a lot more relatable, because you already know the characters. And if you love the story, like we do, you've already-- you're already invested. So you want to know where else you can take it. And because it's fanfiction, there are almost a limitless number of combinations that you can pair off. And, you know, and of course, it isn't just about pairings you know, we could talk about different magic systems and things that people come up with, you know, there are, there are incredible things that, that people do with the world. But the point is, is that I am excited to really dive in and start exploring.

I'm also really excited about this and look forward to our next episode, which we're actually going to dive into Harry, Ron, and Hermione first, so the Golden Trio ship, so a multi. So we're really looking forward to doing that. And if you have any recommendations of fics, please send them our way either to our email CareofMagicalShippers@gmail.com or send us a tweet @MagicalShipPod. We'd love to hear why you love it, what we should be reading, and we look forward to diving in with you next time.

[music] Want an easy way to support the pod? then head over to iTunes and leave us a positive review. Be it 3 words or 300, your reviews help us reach other passionate shippers just like you. Make sure to tell your friends and we'll ship with you real soon.

I ship it

Do you remember the world that we escaped into to get away from your rants when we were younger? Well guess what? We've expanded the world and now it includes Harry/Snape and Hagrid/his wand.

[laughter] Oh gosh, does that-- it being broken? Is that a plus or a negative?

Oh, I think you'd have to ask Hagrid.

If it's in two pieces, oh, no. Double-- double the fun.

But it's like-- it's like in the umbrella.

Is it or is it a retractable umbrella? Like does it get more like nubby? Like is it like, you know, like is it like a smaller umbrella?

I feel like it-- I feel like it's like, like Dumbledore's wand you know where the, the little

It's a bumpy umbrella?

I feel-- Well, I feel like if it was a bumpy wand, it would have to be a bumpy umbrella. I mean, and it's bumpy by virtue of it being broken anyway.

That's true. Oh gosh, the splinters.