Harry Potter and the Niceness and Merriment
is a series of AU one-shot fanfics written in Russian by Кой. A kinder Dursley family raises Harry into a worthy rival for the Weasley twins and an enthusiast who can blow Hogwarts up in his experiments if only given the possibility. Well, he certainly turns the school upside down, sometimes literally… Hilarity Ensues as soon as McGonagall arrives to bring Harry his letter.
Fanfics in the series include:
- A Horrible Childhood
- Troll for Sorting, Mr. Potter!
- Potions-Schmotions
- Hallo, win!
- The Field Diary of Dolores Umbridge
Harry Potter and the Niceness and Merriment contain examples of:
- Adaptational Heroism: The Dursleys (that's what triggers the whole plot), but other unpleasant guys catch on quickly.
- Arson, Murder, and Jaywalking: Quirrell gives a practical lesson on Dark curses, destructive forms, and using Reducto to write foul words.
- Big Eater: Harry. He does a lot of exercise (mostly running) and is naturally thin, so Petunia Dursley doesn't know where to hide the candy.
- Condescending Compassion: When Harry gets Sorted into Slytherin, McGonagall presents Snape with a bottle of valerian.
- Every Scar Has a Story: Harry has a whole collection of scars because he always runs too fast and sometimes forgets to turn or bumps into things. He remembers how he got each one – and is proud of it.
- Love Redeems: Dolores Umbridge gets nicer and nicer as her romance with Quirrell progresses.
- Not What It Looks Like: What McGonagall took for the canon Harry Hunting was in fact a peaceful game of hide-and-seek.
- Reason Before Honor: As she's fed up with the Weasley twins and Jordan already, McGonagall decides to forget her Gryffindor code of honor for a while and plots with all her might to get Harry somewhere else. It works.
- Right for the Wrong Reasons: Just as McGonagall assumed, Harry sleeps in a cupboard under the stairs. Because his chemical lab is there and he is too engrossed in work to leave it.
- Sustained Misunderstanding: Because it's McGonagall and not Hagrid who visits Harry, Harry believes Hagrid to be the troll they have to wrestle to be Sorted.
- Took a Level in Kindness: Everyone, but particularly Umbridge.Entry 4: Trelawney's a horrible charlatan. McGonagall's still the same old hag as before. Ooh, I won't forget that zero for Transfiguration!Entry 24: Sybil predicted I'll soon fall in love. Tomorrow we're going to Hogsmeade with Quirrell, I'll have to loan that hairpin from Minnie…
- Wacky Marriage Proposal: We never know if it was intended as one, but it certainly started as one…Yesterday Quirnie stood on one knee before me and confessed that he's Voldemort. The Calming Draught really helps.
