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Underwater Light #1
Underwater Light
Underwater Light is a novel-length Harry/Draco slash story by Maya that was posted online in installments between May 2002 and July 2005. Written from Harry's point of view, the story takes place during his seventh year at Hogwarts and imagines how he and Draco Malfoy might become friends. Their evolving relationship is set against the backdrop of the looming war with Voldemort. Because part of the story was written during the Three-Year Summer before Order of the Phoenix was published, it presents a now thoroughly jossed sequence of events leading to the final showdown between Harry and Voldemort.
550 pages, ebook
First published May 8, 2002
31 people are currently reading
442 people want to read
About the author
Maya Mistful
20 books53 followersRetired fanfic author aka Maya or Mistful
Maya was an influential fan in the Harry Potter fandom who was active circa 2001-2008. She is the author of at least two dozen fanfics, most of which center on the characters of Harry Potter and Draco Malfoy (but not exclusively as a romantic pairing). All of her fanfiction was taken off the Internet on November 6, 2008.
Underwater Light was her seminal work, posted over the course of three years at the height of Harry Potter fandom activity and concurrently with parts of Cassandra Claire's epic, The Draco Trilogy. Along with Cassie Claire's LeatherPants!Draco, Maya's interpretation of Draco in Underwater Light and her other early works has had a huge influence on his characterization in HP fanfic at large.
Image link: http://www.deviantart.com/art/Underwa...
Maya was an influential fan in the Harry Potter fandom who was active circa 2001-2008. She is the author of at least two dozen fanfics, most of which center on the characters of Harry Potter and Draco Malfoy (but not exclusively as a romantic pairing). All of her fanfiction was taken off the Internet on November 6, 2008.
Underwater Light was her seminal work, posted over the course of three years at the height of Harry Potter fandom activity and concurrently with parts of Cassandra Claire's epic, The Draco Trilogy. Along with Cassie Claire's LeatherPants!Draco, Maya's interpretation of Draco in Underwater Light and her other early works has had a huge influence on his characterization in HP fanfic at large.
Image link: http://www.deviantart.com/art/Underwa...
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 33 reviews
December 30, 2016
Reeeeeeealy long.
And old enough that Draco's virtually unrecognizable. The later books revealed him to be a selfish prat with a good heart. Here he's just a selfish prat, and that's what Harry likes about him...
Draco's the biggest reason for my Drarry fixation, and this just didn't feel like him.
Plus, there were so many plot-related things I just couldn't suspend my disbelief quite far enough to accept.
Some Favorite Quotes:
But what was familiarity? Familiarity bred contempt. In the case of Harry’s familiarity with Malfoy, it bred contempt like rabbits.
Um. Well. He hadn’t quite worked out that part yet. But say something, definitely.
Words. That was the plan.
The plan was entirely useless.
"Wait," Harry called out. "Won't you have to - I mean, to come into the Gryffindor common room... you'll have to hear the password, right?"
"Undoubtedly."
"Um."
There was a pause. Harry looked wretched. Malfoy looked mildly amused.
"You think I'll sneak up and write graffiti on the common room walls?"
"Something like that..." Harry admitted. "Except a bit more evil."
"He's an interesting person," Dean remarked with a shrug. "Terrifying, but unique."
"Terri-"
At this moment, Malfoy appeared to prove Dean's point. He was running along the fields surrounding the Quidditch pitch, in hot pursuit of Crabbe and Goyle. His hair was blowing wildly in every direction, his eyes were shining madly and he was carrying a heavy bag. His two Beaters were lumbering as fast as their legs would carry them while he pelted them ferociously with shot-put balls.
"You're never going to get anywhere if you're afraid of being hurt by Bludgers! Get back here! Stand and be smacked around like men!"
Neither Crabbe nor Goyle were that stupid. They kept running, howling occasionally as Malfoy got in lucky hits.
"And power-hungry Slytherin loved those of great ambition," Dean quoted, but he was grinning. "Malfoy's determined to wipe the pitch with Ravenclaw again. Like I said, terrifying."
"Mother, don't start interrogating him," Draco drawled, appearing out of nowhere with a blood-flavoured lollipop.
"Where did you get that?" Harry asked suspiciously.
"Researching."
"Researching what?"
Draco's smile was bright. "The phrase 'easy as taking candy from a baby.'"
"Potter! Let me in, or I will break down the door and beat your thick head in with the pieces!"
Draco. Nobody else could sound quite so aristocratic and pissed off at the same time.
"Live." Draco threw up his hands. "I mean really live. I don't mean to exist with or without a purpose, I mean to enjoy existing. I mean - I don't have to explain it. You know it. What else do you feel when you're flying?"
Harry remembered with a sudden vivid power the feeling the first time he had been on a broom. That utter joy - this was easy, this was wonderful.
"Yes, exactly," Draco said, still looking at him fiercely. "That's it. That's the way it can all be. I know that. That's how I live - that's how you can live. And they can't, none of them, not even your oh-so-special friends and that's why they can't be on my level or yours. Because they can't live with the same fury."
"Would I lie to you?"
"Would I accuse you? It's just the whole pulling a sword from a hat business. You pull rabbits from hats."
"I don't think I'd have fancied trying to kill a basilisk with a rabbit."
"Oh, but I would love to see you try it. Imagine it. Imagine the photos." Draco went into a quick but energetic roleplay. "The brave hero brandishes his fluffy and whimpering pet of doom. 'Back, back, foul serpent!' Thwack! Distressed squeak. Th-"
"So what?" Draco asked with spirit. "If I'm awake, everyone should be awake. When I'm not happy, I like to spread it around with a big spoon. Did you never wake up wanting to just kick people?"
Draco looked mildly surprised. "He has a brother? I thought he sometimes looked shorter than other times."
"Now go talk to Ginny. Or I will beat you up. And Fred and George will beat you up, and then Percy will beat you up - though you probably won't notice that - and then Charlie will beat you up. And he'll have dragons, so I don't think there'll actually be much left of you, which will piss Bill off."
And old enough that Draco's virtually unrecognizable. The later books revealed him to be a selfish prat with a good heart. Here he's just a selfish prat, and that's what Harry likes about him...
Draco's the biggest reason for my Drarry fixation, and this just didn't feel like him.
Plus, there were so many plot-related things I just couldn't suspend my disbelief quite far enough to accept.
Some Favorite Quotes:
But what was familiarity? Familiarity bred contempt. In the case of Harry’s familiarity with Malfoy, it bred contempt like rabbits.
Um. Well. He hadn’t quite worked out that part yet. But say something, definitely.
Words. That was the plan.
The plan was entirely useless.
"Wait," Harry called out. "Won't you have to - I mean, to come into the Gryffindor common room... you'll have to hear the password, right?"
"Undoubtedly."
"Um."
There was a pause. Harry looked wretched. Malfoy looked mildly amused.
"You think I'll sneak up and write graffiti on the common room walls?"
"Something like that..." Harry admitted. "Except a bit more evil."
"He's an interesting person," Dean remarked with a shrug. "Terrifying, but unique."
"Terri-"
At this moment, Malfoy appeared to prove Dean's point. He was running along the fields surrounding the Quidditch pitch, in hot pursuit of Crabbe and Goyle. His hair was blowing wildly in every direction, his eyes were shining madly and he was carrying a heavy bag. His two Beaters were lumbering as fast as their legs would carry them while he pelted them ferociously with shot-put balls.
"You're never going to get anywhere if you're afraid of being hurt by Bludgers! Get back here! Stand and be smacked around like men!"
Neither Crabbe nor Goyle were that stupid. They kept running, howling occasionally as Malfoy got in lucky hits.
"And power-hungry Slytherin loved those of great ambition," Dean quoted, but he was grinning. "Malfoy's determined to wipe the pitch with Ravenclaw again. Like I said, terrifying."
"Mother, don't start interrogating him," Draco drawled, appearing out of nowhere with a blood-flavoured lollipop.
"Where did you get that?" Harry asked suspiciously.
"Researching."
"Researching what?"
Draco's smile was bright. "The phrase 'easy as taking candy from a baby.'"
"Potter! Let me in, or I will break down the door and beat your thick head in with the pieces!"
Draco. Nobody else could sound quite so aristocratic and pissed off at the same time.
"Live." Draco threw up his hands. "I mean really live. I don't mean to exist with or without a purpose, I mean to enjoy existing. I mean - I don't have to explain it. You know it. What else do you feel when you're flying?"
Harry remembered with a sudden vivid power the feeling the first time he had been on a broom. That utter joy - this was easy, this was wonderful.
"Yes, exactly," Draco said, still looking at him fiercely. "That's it. That's the way it can all be. I know that. That's how I live - that's how you can live. And they can't, none of them, not even your oh-so-special friends and that's why they can't be on my level or yours. Because they can't live with the same fury."
"Would I lie to you?"
"Would I accuse you? It's just the whole pulling a sword from a hat business. You pull rabbits from hats."
"I don't think I'd have fancied trying to kill a basilisk with a rabbit."
"Oh, but I would love to see you try it. Imagine it. Imagine the photos." Draco went into a quick but energetic roleplay. "The brave hero brandishes his fluffy and whimpering pet of doom. 'Back, back, foul serpent!' Thwack! Distressed squeak. Th-"
"So what?" Draco asked with spirit. "If I'm awake, everyone should be awake. When I'm not happy, I like to spread it around with a big spoon. Did you never wake up wanting to just kick people?"
Draco looked mildly surprised. "He has a brother? I thought he sometimes looked shorter than other times."
"Now go talk to Ginny. Or I will beat you up. And Fred and George will beat you up, and then Percy will beat you up - though you probably won't notice that - and then Charlie will beat you up. And he'll have dragons, so I don't think there'll actually be much left of you, which will piss Bill off."
January 15, 2014
This was REALLY slow burn. So slow that But it was also totally angsty and engaging and funny and sad and I loved it. Just don't expect a hot read, no sex at all in this one, but still, so good.
October 26, 2015
VERY VERY slow UST, a few twists and turns and some alternative ending to the Voldermort problem. I liked the story but for a few problems. Draco was a bit unlikeable and I was never sure of his motives. Talk about sending mixed signals! The mystery itself was quite good, but I think the impact would have been better if the story was a lot shorter. I mean, 550 pages is a big investment, and I don't think this fic produced enough dividents. So, bottom line is I liked it enough, should have been way shorter and sexier.
May 17, 2022
To był pierwszy fanfick, jaki przeczytałam w życiu i choć dzisiaj widzę jego wszystkie wady i tak będzie najważniejszy. 😉
February 21, 2024
Przeczytałam to ze względu na klub książki. Wciąż się zastawiam dlaczego z własnej woli dotrwałam do końca historii.
June 22, 2020
this fic had everything- it had a slow burn and kept me wanting more. it had perfect character development and presence. It had an amazing plot and gave me a happy ending to so many who didn't get it in the real series. I called who the spy was but damn I still didn't really expect to be right. I fell in love with Harry and Draco's love. it broke my heart and put me together again. what an amazing writer. not many can do that to me. I'm sad it's over but so glad to have found it.
March 20, 2015
I liked the love/hate relationship between Harry and Draco. My problem with the book is that some characters did things that made no sense. Why wouldn't Harry interrogate the snakes for information? And Hermione seemed less than understanding than the character I know. What I really enjoyed was the development of Draco's character.
October 17, 2016
Slowest burn ever, to the point where the UST was almost painful. Good but not great characterisation. Interesting twists at the end. Overall not sure if the length of it was worth it in the end.
December 2, 2023
3. Muy buena escritura para un fanfic tan largo y con tantas tramas y subtramas. Sin embargo me molestan varias cosas.
Primero el OOC del Draco del inicio, si bien el fic es un slow burn... muuuy slowburn, la amistad fue demasiado rápida, entonces nunca me pude creer esa conexión instantánea.
Harry se pasaba de denso, que aunque ya sabemos que no es el más brillante, tampoco es el más estúpido, dejado, o inocente. Si el carácter de Draco evolucionó, el de Harry se quedó igual, lo cual me deja muy indecisa con este fic.
Y siempre me ha molestado que las historias terminen cuando empiezan la relación... cuando es un libro de más de 500 páginas!
Primero el OOC del Draco del inicio, si bien el fic es un slow burn... muuuy slowburn, la amistad fue demasiado rápida, entonces nunca me pude creer esa conexión instantánea.
Harry se pasaba de denso, que aunque ya sabemos que no es el más brillante, tampoco es el más estúpido, dejado, o inocente. Si el carácter de Draco evolucionó, el de Harry se quedó igual, lo cual me deja muy indecisa con este fic.
Y siempre me ha molestado que las historias terminen cuando empiezan la relación... cuando es un libro de más de 500 páginas!
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
May 1, 2022
I'm gonna treat this book exactly like what it is: a fanfiction.
And for fanfiction standards, this was really good-
As a typical Wattpad book this would've faired so well. I loved what the writer had come up with, especially since the sixth HP book had just come out by the time she'd finished it. There were some plot holes I couldn't really look past, but the writing was good enough it overlook it. I liked the character built-up the best, 10/10 on that.
4/5!
And for fanfiction standards, this was really good-
As a typical Wattpad book this would've faired so well. I loved what the writer had come up with, especially since the sixth HP book had just come out by the time she'd finished it. There were some plot holes I couldn't really look past, but the writing was good enough it overlook it. I liked the character built-up the best, 10/10 on that.
4/5!
July 14, 2021
Underwater Light is, despite its age, still one of the best fanfiction you'll find of Harry and Draco. It brings everything we love about Drarry: the bickering, the enemies to friends to lovers, the kiss with a fist moments, the pining, and that uniqueness that reassures you they could never be with anyone else, because they're the only ones who understand each other...
It's fucking great.
The only thing I find extremely regretful about it is that it isn't in Draco's POV. Maya's Draco is not only great in general, but the very best character of the entire fic- even though there's entire chunks of text where we don't catch a whiff of him! Maya made me fall in love with him, and with Drarry, all over again. 5/5
It's fucking great.
The only thing I find extremely regretful about it is that it isn't in Draco's POV. Maya's Draco is not only great in general, but the very best character of the entire fic- even though there's entire chunks of text where we don't catch a whiff of him! Maya made me fall in love with him, and with Drarry, all over again. 5/5
July 24, 2017
I'd read this fanfic a few years ago and when the author removed all of her HP writing from the internet, I downloaded the PDF she made available. However, when my hard drive died, so did my access to Maya's (Mistful's) stories. Lo and behold, I found another source for them yesterday and read this 500+ page fanfic straight through until morning.
The plot! The humor! The pacing! The spy--though I knew who it was from previous reading, it still almost came as a shocker in the moment of Revelio.
Top notch.
The plot! The humor! The pacing! The spy--though I knew who it was from previous reading, it still almost came as a shocker in the moment of Revelio.
Top notch.
May 30, 2015
I love this fanfic. It's the fanfic that got me into fanfics.
dropped
December 30, 2013Get fic here = http://fuckyeah-drarry.tumblr.com/pos...
February 10, 2019
A beautiful slow burn. The way Maya writes attraction and lust is still the hottest and most compelling I've ever read and I read this fic years and years ago. Her characters are well-developed and angsty, and the attraction is so well built! There's also tons of suspense, actual laugh out loud moments, and really beauty. And the fucking/fighting tension between Draco and Harry is so intense and so good. Honestly better than the books.
August 26, 2021
It might have just been me but I was very confused on the timeline in the beginning. I only realized what was actually going on about 50 pages in. I LOVE LOVE LOVE Harry and Dracos friendship and overall dynamic in this; it’s rather adorable.
January 18, 2022
i think i've read this twice in my life, and it still holds up as one of the best fanfics i've ever read... i hope i can reread it again soon and see if it stills holds up, and see how i feel about it now that i'm not 16 lmao
May 1, 2023
Abysmal. The characters were so off, the relationship between Harry and Draco was SO TOXIC and had so many red flags!!! Also VOLDEMORT DIED BY A WALL?! That's completely insane! Also didn't rly understand the premis of the timeline... but that might just be me.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
March 22, 2020
Please can someone tell me how to read it :'(
October 12, 2020
not me reading this in like 2 sittings over 24 hours uh-
June 19, 2022
this was so fun to read like seriously JFKSJFJS anyway it’s super old which is crazy but i had fun reading it….. plus it’s such a classic drarry fic likeee
February 17, 2024
3.8
It was good - no smut - but the plot points were weird, Drarry was cute but no time tgt shown
It was good - no smut - but the plot points were weird, Drarry was cute but no time tgt shown
February 25, 2024
DNF couldn’t get to even 10%. I was lost half the time what time to place it and the characters felt dull.
December 15, 2024
Made my heart hurt in a good way 10/10
December 30, 2020
Hilarious. Snarky bastard Draco is gold.
July 24, 2020
Underwater Light has a special place in my heart since around 2015 when I first discovered this ff. It made me love Drarry and Draco the most out of all HP characters and ships, and it inspired me later to write my own fanfics (drarry included, of course).
When I say I had read it over 100 times, it's not exaggerating. There was a time when I used to read it over and over again, both in English and in my native language (Polish) so that I could memorise certain lines in both languages. I cried a lot, I laughed even more and most of all, I fell in love with Draco Malfoy utterly :D
I keep coming back to Underwater light from time to time, every once in a while when I feel like submerging in my favourite ship. The story is very long and sometimes it feels like the story moves too slowly, however, everything that the fanfic is made of makes it only even more perfect in my eyes.
I truly love it dearly and will always cherish it a lot. It's just brilliant, thank you Maya.
When I say I had read it over 100 times, it's not exaggerating. There was a time when I used to read it over and over again, both in English and in my native language (Polish) so that I could memorise certain lines in both languages. I cried a lot, I laughed even more and most of all, I fell in love with Draco Malfoy utterly :D
I keep coming back to Underwater light from time to time, every once in a while when I feel like submerging in my favourite ship. The story is very long and sometimes it feels like the story moves too slowly, however, everything that the fanfic is made of makes it only even more perfect in my eyes.
I truly love it dearly and will always cherish it a lot. It's just brilliant, thank you Maya.
April 9, 2014
Draco and Harry are described like large predators playing at the level of tame house cats, snapping and snarling at each other because they are the only ones at the other's level. Then, one day, they decide to play nice and even as friends, their affections are violent and often crouched in snarls. The house cats look on in bewilderment, utterly confused by the way they relate. And when Draco and Harry finally move beyond friendship, this doesn't change; they are violent and vengeful and understand those traits in each other well enough to accept them in themselves.
November 29, 2023
I had a Harry Potter's itch to scratch so why not read a novel lenght Drarry fic after all. I'm still convinced some of these works are better than the source material, especially now that JKR turned out to be the worst
January 19, 2014
3.5 stars bumped up to 4.
Link: http://fuckyeah-drarry.tumblr.com/pos...
or: https://www.fanfiction.net/u/603705/T...
Link: http://fuckyeah-drarry.tumblr.com/pos...
or: https://www.fanfiction.net/u/603705/T...
September 18, 2014
Very Slytherin-biased, but still quite good. The final pages are almost on par with the Deathly Hallows!
Displaying 1 - 30 of 33 reviews