…which is at best a temporary horcrux unless you know a good embalming spell.
Somehow I can’t see that as being much of a problem for ol’ Voldybritches.
I’ll buy that–it’s just getting so irritating.
But, Harry has no problem with trusting Dumbledore and the Weasley’s and McGonagall etc. So, his trust issues can’t be that bad. To me, it is turning into a plot device–IMO, HP and Snape should be a bit further along in their own self-growth. (that he is not makes Snape a tragic figure to my mind)
But that dog won’t hunt. Harry knows how Snape was tormented and mocked–and has even felt empathy for him. So, why doesn’t that stick? Snape is an ass, but that seems to be all Harry sees. Too bad–and I think this may well be Harry’s lesson in the end. To see the good in others, even when it is not packaged nicely.
And why the heck doesn’t Harry EVER think about how his mother may have influenced him? (mother of 2 sons here getting pissy about this one…).
Extraneous side note: WHO was James Potter? A pure blood, but who is he and why do we never hear about his family?
While I don’t think Harry is a horcrux, the argument can be made that Voldemort had already split his soul after killing Lily and he realized that the Killing Curse was backfiring, in that split second, he sent his soul into the only thing he could thing of at that moment, Harry.
I may be way late to chime in on this, but yes he has. At the end of book 5, when he unwraps it, doesn’t he give it a shot and nothing happens? As I recall, he throws it into the trunk or across the room, and it breaks.
I’ve never thought the mirror thing was unresolved. IMESHO it was a pretty straightforward tool for emphasizing Harry’s grief and guilt over Sirius’ death, as well as a way for Harry to know he’s really gone. Sometimes, people leave and don’t come back.
The mirror broke, but repair spells are simple in the Potterverse.
I meant “used successfully”. I’m sure that the mirror will come in handy before the story is over. I seem to remember that JK Rowling has said the same in an interview.
Hmmm.
Dumbly in the mirror, perhaps? I doubt that Sirius could do it, but AD? Seems easy.
Well, Aberforth was part of the Order of the Phoenix, so he can’t be totally useless. He could end up being a character like Luna Lovegood - offbeat but a hero. Or a Mundungus Fletcher type. Anyway I hope to see more of him in book 7.
The part I liked least in this book is how the Ron / Hermione relationship reverted to the insecurities of book 5. Just get it over with and start dating already!
I did like the red herring of Tonks’ behavior - we wonder if she’s acting strange because she’s under the Imperius curse, or for other reasons?
GACK!!!
People, help me with this one:
On page 270-Harry and AD are meeting 11 y/0 Riddle. It says, “Riddle had fozen, his face expressionless, but his eyes were flickering back and forth between each of Dumbledore’s, as thought trying to catch one of them lying.”
Oops. Oh. I thought it said “each of the Dumbledores” and I wanted to know how Riddle could see both Dumblys. I need to go do something else…
[Emily Latella voice]
Never mind
[/Emily Latella voice]
OK I’ve got it. Unbeknowns to us, Aberforth did make an appearance in book 6. In the last scene, when Snape kills Dumbledore - it wasn’t Albus Dumbledore at all, it was his brother Aberforth who had taken some Polyjuice potion! When they return from fetching the Horcrux, doesn’t Harry leave Dumbledore alone for a few minutes after leaving Hogsmeade, running to get help at Hogwarts? I have to re-read that chapter more carefully.
I don’t think Dumbledore would sacrifice his brother just for his life.
Wait a minute… Harry has to go back to Hogwarts, sit the N.E.W.T.s, and become a fully qualified wizard, or he can’t be an auror, right?
PS–any speculation as to what happened to Olivander? Anyone but me think he’s significant enough to make a surprise comeback in the next book?
Also, I’m about a hundred pages into the first re-reading, and it seems painfully obvious that RAB is Regulus–he’s been mentioned three times just in the first few chapters, whereas he was just a peripheral note mentioned once in the last book, as I recall.
Harry is not a Horcrux. Voldemort tried in the Little Hangleton Municipal Cemetery to kill Harry on the evening of June 24, 1996. I can’t see him attempting to destroy 14% of his own soul (so far as he knows), just to make a point to his Death Eaters.
OTOH, I suspect that somewhere in Godric’s Hollow, lying unnoticed in the ruins of what used to be the lovenest of James and Lily Potter, is an object that Voldemort had intended to use as his sixth Horcrux. I suspect that this object may prove to be significant in Book Seven.
So much for speculation. Now, what I REALLY came here to say:
Won-Won???!!???
And, channeling Lenny Bruce:
I’ve been thinking. Regulus has got to be R.A.B. Supposedly, he turned into a Death Eater after drinking a potion of some sort, right? My theory is this: The “evil potion” is kinda like a love potion, except that instead of love, you feel loyalty towards Voldemort. Useful for recruiting people who would normally be inclined to tell the Death Eaters to go screw themselves, like Slughorn (and maybe Ollivander? maybe Zonko?) This is how Regulus became a Death Eater. Unfortunately, the potion’s effects are only temporary, so a loyal Death Eater must serve as a kind of “keeper” for the recruit/victim, and feed him or her the potion on a regular basis. Also, the effect is not instantaneous, but is preceeded by what appears to be a serious illness. (Maybe this only happens the first time you take the potion.)
In Regulus’ case, his keeper got arrested or killed, so Regulus eventually came to his senses. Regulus decided to fight against Voldemort. Somehow, he knew about the locket (maybe he helped set up the defenses around it) so he took Kreacher out to the cave and retrieved the locket. He made Kreacher drink the 12 glasses of potion, and then he took the horcrux and left the other locket in it’s place. Either the basin refilled magically, or Regulus refilled it with the supply of potion that had been meant for him.
Back at 12 Grimmauld Place, he locked Kreacher up somewhere until the effects of the potion wore off (or maybe, because house elves are loyal to their masters, there was never any danger of Kreacher running off to Voldemort against his orders.) By now, the Death Eaters had noticed that Regulus had escaped, so they hunted him down and killed him. However, Voldemort never suspected that Regulus had tampered with the horcrux.
This is why Sirius had to die. He knew that the locket was in his house, although he might not have known it’s significance. Still, he could have saved Dumbledore the trip that ultimately killed him. Also, it’s possible that Regulus might have stolen other horcruxes, and that there’s one or two more up in the attic or in Kreacher’s stash.
Fast-forward to Half-Blood Prince. Snape is on Dumbledore’s side. He knows about the horcruxes, and he knows that Dumbledore is trying to find them. When Dumbledore was cursed by the ring, Snape was able to slow down the progress of the curse, but he could not stop it. Dumbledore was dying. Dumbledore made Snape promise that, if it became necessary, Snape would kill Dumby to protect Snape’s cover. Snape objected (this was the argument that Hagrid saw) but he eventually agreed. When Dumbledore came back from the cave, Snape recognized the symptoms of Voldemort’s “love potion.” He knew that Dumbledore was about to go over to Voldemort’s side. Dumbledore also realized that he was being bewitched, so he begged Snape to kill him before he blabbed everything to the Death Eaters. Snape did it, but he hates himself for it.
Another thing that puzzles me about RAB is how did s/he know which horcrux was in the cave and just happen to have a spare locket with him/her at the time to replace it with? Hmmm. Okay, I need to stop thinking about this book.
Wait, when was it said that Regulus drank some kind of potion?