Dub-con is used describe sexual situations of "dubious consent", where it's not exactly non-con (e.g. rape). This label implies that consent is dubious or hazy, and the reader isn’t sure if the victim is really giving consent or not. In the case of our beloved Harry Potter fanfiction, this would include the use of love potions, Veela pheromones, and the like.
In my real world opinion, if consent was dubious, then it wasn’t given. Period. I don’t believe in the concept of dubious consent. Therefore, I always label any of my fics that would be traditionally considered dub-con as both that and non-con.
It’s hard to answer why people like them, as there so many different reasons. Personally, I enjoy horror fics. I’m an adrenaline junkie, and
