Top 10 Reasons Harry Should've Ended up with Hermione

You know those friends you have who everyone thinks are a “thing” even when they’re not? Well that’s Harry and Hermione. This is less obvious in the movies than it is in the books, but Cho Chang is incredibly jealous of Hermione when she and Harry start dating. When they go for their date at Madam Puddifoot’s in Hogsmeade, Harry has to meet Hermione part way through the day, and Cho reacts very badly, implying that there’s something going on beyond friendship between Harry and Hermione. That’s not even to mention the jealousy Ron feels of their relationship, which rears its ugly head in “Deathly Hallows”.

It kind of goes without saying that Hermione is out of Ron’s league. She’s smart, she’s talented, she’s got a great sense of humor, and she proves that it’s not hard for her to find guys who want to date her. We get that she and Ron have a great friendship, but he’s also rash, impulsive, not a very hard worker, and can be quite nasty when he’s jealous. Then let’s talk about the movies for a second here. While Ginny is an absolute badass in the books, her character in the films is pretty onenote and to be honest, pretty darn boring. While in the novels Harry and Ginny clearly make a good match, for anyone who has only seen the story play out on screen, it can be pretty baffling.

One of the things that Hermione is most passionate about is House Elf liberation, though this plotline falls by the wayside in the movies. Ron doesn’t share her views on this, and only at the very end expresses interest in securing their safety at the Battle of Hogwarts. Harry on the other hand, respects House Elves on a more human level, though to be fair he also wasn’t very enthusiastic about S.P.E.W. This brings up the point that Harry and Hermione have a shared experience of being discriminated against. While Ron did deal with discrimination from being poor, it wasn’t anything compared to what Hermione had to go through for being muggle born or the prejudice Harry experienced throughout the series for his past.

Things didn’t exactly get out to an easy start for our Golden Trio. In “Harry Potter And The Philosopher’s Stone”, when they all first meet, Ron and Harry are both skeptical of Hermione, who comes off as a bit of a know it all. But Hermione instantly has disdain for Ron, and Ron practically bullies her for much of the first book and movie. Harry is never as cruel as Ron is, and always shows a level of respect for Hermione that Ron doesn’t. Hermione has a lot to teach Harry, and he can acknowledge that. Ron continues to display this attitude at several times throughout the series.

We’ve said a lot of negative things about Ron so far, but he does have his moments. In “Philosopher’s Stone”, when the trio are going through their slate of challenges to rescue the stone before Voldemort can get his hands on it, Ron makes a major sacrifice during the chess game when he lets his player be taken so that his side can ultimately win. It’s a dramatic moment of courage, and it sees him letting Harry and Hermione move forward without him. Many speculated that of the main three characters, Ron seemed most likely to die, and we wouldn’t have been surprised had he somehow sacrificed himself, leaving his friends to be together.

Who better to weigh in on this important question than the very creator of all these characters? In a 2014 interview for Wonderland conducted with Emma Watson, J.K. Rowling admitted that she “wrote the Hermione/Ron relationship as a form of wish fulfillment.” While many news outlets at the time reported that Rowling said Harry and Hermione should have ended up together, that’s a bit of an exaggeration but she did say, “In some ways Hermione and Harry are a better fit”. And certain fans couldn’t agree more! If even the writer of the series is questioning these two being together, it’s no surprise that others have too.

One major thing that Harry and Hermione have in common that Ron does not share with them is the fact that they both grew up with muggles, and both only found out that they had magical abilities when they received their Hogwarts letters. Because they both spent the beginnings of their lives living in the muggle world, they have a shared experience that allows them to be more understanding of non-magical people. Also, when Hermione puts a powerful memory charm on her parents, she ends up essentially becoming an orphan, just like Harry.

One of the things that colors Ron and Hermione’s relationship the most is the jealousy they have about one another. In fact, for several books that jealousy was almost the only indication we had that they even liked each other! Ron overreacted about Hermione’s relationship with Krum and she responded in kind when he started spending time with Lavender. We never see Harry and Hermione displaying jealousy about one another, be it about relationships or about their general achievements. Because they’re in many ways equals, they trust one another implicitly.

Harry/Hermione shippers often point to this scene in “Deathly Hallows (Part 1)” when talking about the chemistry between these two characters. In a low moment, the pair ends up sharing a lighthearted dance together that starts off as silly and funny but ends up being a truly tender moment. Though this exact scene doesn’t take place in the book, the two do experience some moments of tension that could have been read as romantic. J.K. Rowling herself admitted that she was having some unexpected feelings about the situation while penning those scenes.

Interestingly, some of the best moments in the series take place when Harry and Hermione are left alone together. In “Prisoner of Azkaban”, Harry and Hermione are forced to save Sirius together when Ron is injured. In “Half Blood Prince”, the two share some great bonding time together when Ron is off with Lavender. In “Goblet of Fire”, Hermione ends up helping Harry prepare for the Triwizard Tournament when Ron is busy being jealous of Harry’s success. And finally, one of the sweetest moments of the entire series takes place when Hermione accompanies Harry to Godric’s Hollow and they visit his parents’ tombstones. What’s not to love?