The canon formula of 10 years doing nothing productive with the Dursleys, the most magical thing encountered being smelly part-kneazles and a few isolated cases of accidental magic that are only there to act as proof that "Yeh're a lizard 'Larry!", then following that we fast track the canon railroad station of PS, CoS, PoA etc. until at some point everything is derailed or we switch to an AU railroad. So to put it bluntly, magic gets stale and repetitive with every retelling of the same formula, it gets treated as a tool, a set of skills to be learned to pass through the exact same obstacles, a scattering of objectives (Diagon,Gringots, Schoolstuff, Wand, Hogwarts) that make things predictable. Magic isn't supposed to be bound to such rigid rules and guidelines.
Something that bothered me while reading canon is the one time wonder of Diagon (turned to a place to get school stuff, instead of a shopping distinct with a variety of wares), Gringots (just money for said school stuff), Knockturn (oops don't go there unless Malfoy's there), Ollivanders (you're just some shopkeeper right? one time meeting. Oh, hi! Oh, hi again!), Hogwarts (it's an ancient castle filled with secrets, but mostly just a school unless people try to kill you), Forbidden Forest (mortal peril here only, and the twins but those two are crazy, nevermind the sentient magical creatures next door), RoR (the most underutilized room because you lack imagination, it's not like this is a nexus leading to everywhere in the ancient magical castle... school), CoS (a snake refrigerator), DoM (open exhibits, free loot). Harry steps there literally entering a new alien world, and he barely explores it. No, he's too busy with schoolwork, Quidditch, or whatever machinations Dumbledore, Voldemort and their followers decide to invlove him in. Does Harry ever even develop interests on his own, without outside factors affecting/forcing him to do so?
Meanwhile his mother was doing magic consciously at 7 while Snape was creepily stalking... I mean admiring her magical talent. Snape and the Marauders were creating their own magical artifacts and exploring the castle, because it was fun, exciting and interesting. Voldemort found the RoR and CoS under his own drive of exploration or whatever obsessions he was under at the time, learned to fly and cheat death.
How about doing magic some justice. Adding more depth to it, it's own will of sorts, another type of sense to perceive it, intuition that leads to it, magical aura's attracting other magic and creatures, more levels at which magic can be perceived only by those that have are gifted/cursed with said sight (thestrals, creatures of other realms). Harry being more sensitive to magic while at a young age, actively exploring his gift, sensing magic around him and seeking it out, seeing creatures that only he can see and interact with, being fascinated by magic and not loosing sight of wonder because of the daily routine. Actually being able to stumble on something new and exciting that no one else knows about, that brings a feel of wonder or horror, guided by a sense of curiosity and adventure instead of being dragged into and molded to fit a role.
Just imagine managing to unlock the horcrux and being manipulated by it at a young age, or finding a magical district without any prior knowledge, meeting another species or befriending a magical creature, obtaining an magical artifact. So many things could have happened to throw the canon plot of course only if Harry decided that magic was real and the coolest thing ever.
TLDR: I'm looking for fics in which from a young age kid!Harry (boy or girl), starts to explore the world of magic, stumbling blindly into it with no preconceived notions of how things are, guided by nothing but curiosity and his own senses and attempt at using magic, finding things that are extraordinary and unbelievable even for the wizarding world, maybe attracting the attention of beings and creatures that only he could sense, or finding places that no one else is aware of existing.
Fics that capture the awe of magic and what it's truly capable of. Magic is supposed to be mysterious, unpredictable, an unquantifiable force that can never be fully explored or known. So when a child becomes aware enough of magic and isn't emotionally stunted and repressed enough to snuff out all of its curiosity and imagination, what wonders or horrors can it run across. Studio Ghibli movies, Magical Shopping Arcade Abenobashi, The Ancient Magus' Bride are examples of how stumbling into the magical world without guidance can go in many directions.
Submitted January 16, 2017 at 11:00PM by randoomy http://ift.tt/2jQY1wv HPfanfiction
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