The Most Embarrassing Things I’ve Done as a “Harry Potter” Fan

People have known me as the Weird Harry Potter Girl™ for as long as I can remember, but I have to admit, I have done some weird things behind closed doors as a Harry Potter fan that make me deserving of that title. The good news? I’ve made a list of all of them solely for your entertainment:

How to Be Luna Lovegood

When I was in middle school, I spent many hot summer afternoons online reading wikiHow. Clearly, I was very normal and good at socializing for my age (not). Believe it or not, a personal favorite wikiHow topic to study during that time was Harry Potter. And I distinctly remember obsessively reading, attempting to implement, and printing out an article called something like “How to Be Luna Lovegood.” After searching through wikiHow as I’m writing this, I don’t think the original article I excessively reviewed is there any longer, but you can just imagine what it said. What may be difficult to imagine, however, is how someone could be as weird as I was at age 13.

The Many, Many Pottermore Accounts

As many Potterheads know, the creation of Pottermore and the additions to it since have provided many hours of excitement and entertainment. When, in 2017, the “Discover Your Patronus” quiz was finally released, I was nothing short of nervous. I was lucky enough to have been properly Sorted into my self-proclaimed House (I’m so glad I didn’t have to deal with that identity crisis), but what would I do if my Patronus were wrong? None of us really knew how many options there were out there, or even what they were, for that matter. Well, I took the Pottermore quiz, and my Patronus was wrong. This was unacceptable, but I was stuck with it. So naturally, as many would, I made an entirely new Pottermore account. The second result was also unsatisfactory, so again, I made a new Pottermore account. This time, I had to make a new email address as well. I finally got an acceptable Patronus, but when I took the Sorting Hat quiz again, it was wrong (I am not a Slytherin). I wish I could tell you that I stopped there, but I made five Pottermore accounts that day. I eventually settled for Ravenclaw (which is correct) and a field mouse Patronus. What do you mean you didn’t make five Pottermore accounts to get a sort-of acceptable Patronus?

Planning My Wedding… to Neville

Long before Matthew Lewis hit puberty or Neville was anywhere near cool, I planned my wedding as the future Mrs. Longbottom. I was in the second grade. I designed my own wedding dress and I knew which of the Hogwarts students would be in attendance and which of my family could come too. I know what you’re thinking, but no, this was not adorable 8-year-old behavior. If you think about it, I was ~in love~ with one of the least desirable characters in the series. But that didn’t stop me! Neville and I were meant to be. It made me feel a little better when Neville got braver and Matthew Lewis got to stop wearing his fat suit for the role. Not a bad choice after all!

What’s the weirdest thing you’ve done as a Harry Potter fan? Let us know in the comments!