PoA Chapter Twelve

[sistermagpie.livejournal.com]

Harry knows Hermione means well, but he’s still angry at her because he only had the Firebolt for a few minutes and now he doesn’t know if he’ll ever see it again. So Harry’s smart enough to know Hermione meant well, but too dumb to figure out that he will see his broom again, unless it’s got deadly curses on it, in which case he shouldn’t want to see it. It's a very specific level of smart.

Oh, he’s worried that it won’t be in a good state after anti-jinx tests. Why would that should hurt it at all?

Besides, if it was hurt by the tests it’s not like people wouldn’t buy him a new one. Hell, the Firebolt people would probably give him a replacement gladly.

Ron's mad at Hermione too, because this is one of those times when he's living vicariously through Harry rather than being insanely jealous of him.

Wood comes back, worried about Harry being knocked out by Dementors again. Why don’t they just make sure that Dementors will be kept off the field of play like they were supposed to be anyway? Or resolve to call a time out if that happens?

Think back at all the times we’re supposed to be seeing Slytherin cheating in this game. Like Flint almost knocking Harry off his broom (without the aid of an iron ball) and Malfoy grabbing on to Harry’s broom twigs. That’s cheating, but an army of Dementors rushing the field and knocking out the Seeker is allowed for in the rules?

Wood wants the broom back because having a Firebolt on the team is actually a huge advantage. Gee, ya think?

People will continue to mention this fact in future, but somehow never resent Harry for it at all. The general attitude is usually "Well, I didn’t have a chance against you on that Firebolt, Harry, but I don’t mind since I know you’re so talented you could have beaten me without it!"

CoMC has an unusually good lesson because they get to collect firewood. No, really.

Hermione’s carrying around a heavy bag of books that she can barely keep closed. Of course she could shrink her books to be easy to carry, but then we thickos wouldn’t remember she’s taking too many classes for hours in the day. While also drawing attention to the fact that Lupin’s illness is a MYSTERY that she has solved.

Hermione would have been even more impatient with all the Malfoy-as-werewolf theories after HBP than I was.

Lupin’s found another boggart. The first one was sacrificed so only Gryffindors could learn about them. This one’s for Harry personally.

Lupin announces he’s going to teach Harry the Patronus, which is way beyond OWL level. Even though ordinary teenagers can do them with less effort than seems to go into making a basic Potion and they are constantly finding reasons to use it.

You know how a boggart morphs into the greatest fear of whoever it faces? The Patronus charms gains and loses difficulty depending on the needs of the plot.

Proving my point, Lupin stresses that many qualified wizards can’t do it. Even though we’ll see the whole DA manage it. If only those other wizards were taught by Harry!

For all that build up, the charm’s not that difficult. Harry has more trouble with Accio in the next book.

Actually, I think I just answered my own question there. It's never been that the charm's technically difficult, but it's difficult based on your personality. Many qualified Wizards can't do it--and practically no DEs can. Because evil people don't have happy memories. Umbridge throws people off, but I'll bet that's the real subtext here.

So the boggart actually acquires the powers of a Dementor? It’s weird that Harry learns about most of what happened with his parents from a boggart.

Perhaps in Book eight, the entire wizarding world could have been invaded by an army of boggart!Voldemorts who are far scarier than the real one.

Lupin puts the boggart back in its case, ignoring the silvery orb of the full moon it's become. Which shouldn’t be too difficult since it can't really look like a real moon indoors. Still, I like that little clue.

Funny that this is his greatest fear we're talking about yet he still manages to forget his Potion when it's hours from rising.

Luckily this is Harry Potter so he doesn’t think to ask his teacher wtf that silvery orb is no matter how many times he sees it. He’s not even curious.

I’ll give Harry points for managing to make a basic connection and ask a pertinent question though: if Lupin knew James, did he also know Sirius?

Harry realizes he half enjoys hearing the voices of his parents. Dumbledore would be pleased at Harry’s suicidal tendencies.

Hermione’s got a ton of work to do, some of which is on things like how Muggles lift heavy objects. I lose a sympathy for her if she’s studying for that class.

Ron’s totally figured out Hermione’s taking many classes at once, but politely refrains from saying "What, does she have a Time Turner?"

Harry doesn’t much care about Hermione bending time and space, as it doesn’t affect him personally so far.

I need a moment to laugh at the Quidditch schedule, which has months between games. The entire wizarding world follows a school calendar without thinking about it, because they’re all unconsciously still back in school. Every year in May American wizards probably get an urge to hold a big dance in a gym decorated with crepe paper.

Btw, Harry's talking to Hermione again since he got his broom back. To review, in order to make sure Harry wouldn't be violently killed, Hermione took his broom and gave it back to him in plenty of time for his next Quidditch match. In response Harry and Ron refused to speak to her for all that time.

What's unfortunate to me reading it now is that there's no sense, to me, that Harry and Ron were angry because this behavior struck them as typical. You know what I mean? Like, it really does seem to be about 2 dumb boys being short-sighted and childish about a broom, even though once the broom's returned they can see the wisdom in what she did. IRL for the two of them to be angry like this it would probably tie into some general frustration they had with her for this kind of behavior, which is pretty typical for her.

For instance, that's why the fight with Ron works in the next book up until its non-resolution. Ron isn't just angry that he thinks Harry left him out of his plan to get into the contest, it plugs into all sorts of things that bug Ron about Harry in general. One could say the same thing about Hermione and Ron at the end of the chapter, actually, though the book doesn't really dramatize that idea either.**

Harry definitely thinks some people—like people who betray Harry’s parents and get them killed—deserve a Dementor’s kiss. Lupin isn’t so sure. First clue Lupin’s got some serious character flaws.

Neville’s lost his passwords. This will come up later. Btw, he’s lost a week’s worth because Sir Cadogan gave them to him early. Which you’d think is more on Cadogan than Neville. He could have changed the ones he planned when they went missing.

Again someone points out that the best thing about Harry having a Firebolt is that it gives him an unbeatable advantage against the other team. Which is not unsporting at all.

Hermione is writing an essay on "Why Muggles need electricity." Note the way it’s even phrased to be condescending. Muggles "need" electricity, like they depend on it and couldn’t exist without it. Instead of Muggles discovering how to harness electricity after thousands of years of successful civilization without it and using it to create things beyond the imagination of a wizard.

I’m surprised it even needs an essay. Shouldn’t it just be multiple choice where every answer is d) Muggles need X because they don’t have magic?

We end with what looks like the murder of Scabbers by cat. Naturally the sexual tension between Ron and Hermione is just palpitating throughout! And by sexual tension I mean irritation.

So a little over halfway we’re still keeping up the main themes in the book: animal hijinx, animal's violent tendencies being considered murderous/innocent or the owner's fault/the victim's fault depending on who you are and courage courage courage.

Things that happen more than once:
Harry struggles with a spell that he won't be able to do until it's most dramatic.
First in depth discussion of a soul as a corporal thing that can be sucked, torn, divided, knit into sweaters etc.
Harry produces his Patronus.
Another glimpse of Lupin's boggart.
Another boggart, in fact.
Not the first or last time we'll hear the Potters die.
The first rift in the Trio since they became the Trio, with Ron and Harry vs. Hermione.
Another pet accused of a crime.
Another character framed for murdering Peter Pettigrew when they actually trying to bring him to justice/murder him for being evil.
The boys rely on Hermione to think practically about how to stay alive.
Peter's second alleged "death" that isn't really death.
Escaped prisoner Sirius threatened with kiss, escaped prisoner Barty kissed.

It’s a gun. No it isn’t! It’s Chekov! No it isn’t!

Dementor’s Kiss!
Status: Totally unfired. Nobody gets kissed at all in the whole dang series. ETA: D'oh! Barty Crouch.





Designated Hero
Harry forgives Hermione for caring about him, but only after he’s got his broom back.

Hero’s Death Battle Exemption
For Scabbers, the old, fat, worn-out rat.

Informed Attributes
Patronus charm is reeeealy advanced. You have to point your stick and think of something happy while you say the magic words. This is much more difficult than pointing your stick and thinking of something funny while you say the magic words.

Misdirected Answering
McGonagall isn’t the only one who thinks people around here have their priorities out of whack. Sirius is out there living in garbage cans and avoiding the biggest man hunt in Wizard history while we worry about whether Harry’s got the biggest advantage in Quidditch he can get.

Monster Death Trap Proviso
Nope, no traps to be laid for Sirius Black just because we know he’s tried once to get into the dormitory and presumably might do so again. That kind of evidence of his whereabouts will cause no change of plans whatsoever.

"Watermelon, watermelon, cantaloupe, cantaloupe"
Presumably there was much of this in the "Firebolt reveal" scene.

Jabootu Score: 6

**TL;DR meta on this point:

It's a funny thing about Ron, actually. He's the one member of the Trio who seems to have a deeper level--weird as that sounds. Unfortunately this leads to Ron just getting the same story over and over where he's jealous and inadequate and then apologetic and sheepish. But still, it's there that Ron's insecure and surrounded by super people of whom he's alternately admiring and envious. When he's jealous of Harry's fame or thinks Hermione looks down on him, it's tied to deeper things in his character that make those sore spots.

By contrast Harry and Hermione just don't get that imo. For instance, I was really annoyed with the parallel moments in DH where Ron wryly noted the "surprise" in Hermione's voice when he did well in a battle and Hermione gave that wry surprise back to him when he said she looked nice. Because I buy Ron's insecurity around Hermione. There are moments where she does clearly expect little of him.

Hermione's insecurity about her looks, otoh, doesn't really get played as a genuine insecurity that hooks into her character in a bigger way when it really should. Usually she's just being sassily annoyed at Ron for ogling some other girl noted as beautiful in the text. Even Snape's "no difference" line just doesn't play for me as a big blow outside of that moment, perhaps because she seems to adequately prove to herself via the Yule Ball that she can be hot when she wants to be (and we'll get other confirmations that she's hot elsewhere as well). Again, unlike Ron who has his Yule Ball moment in Quidditch and still remains insecure.

The trouble is that it's not really about looks any more than Ron's troubles are really about Quidditch. Hermione's one vulnerable moment imo is when she runs off crying in PS/SS after Ron says she's got no friends. I never see that insecurity again and I feel like I should. It should inform her character, imo, at least somewhat the way Ron's insecurities inform his, if not in the same way. Ron feels overlooked and less talented and will always feel that somewhat. Hermione starts out feeling lonely and unlikable and then she just stops imo. It's not that her behavior can't imply that insecurity. She continues to keep manically busy, she makes herself needed and useful, she still needs to be the best, and we're presumably supposed to believe that she worries that Ron doesn't like her as a girlfriend. But it doesn't come across the same way imo. There were and are a lot of people who never see Hermione even show any interest in Ron that way, so how much vulnerability could they see on that front?

Comments

[condwiramurs.livejournal.com]

Didn't Barty get Kissed?

Otherwise: A+. :)

"Perhaps in Book eight, the entire wizarding world could have been invaded by an army of boggart!Voldemorts who are far scarier than the real one."

ROFLMAO! Truly. This calls for fanfic.

[sistermagpie.livejournal.com]

Ooh! I think you're right. Guess it must have been a let down to me that I didn't remember it!

[octopuspatronus.livejournal.com]

Maybe because it wasn't shown-- we heard about it later I believe.

[octopuspatronus.livejournal.com]

The Patronus Charm is handled so strangely in a lot of ways. IMO it’s one of the cooler, more interesting bits of magic in the book (if you couldn’t guess from the username), and that’s really unsurprising considering my interests: animals, symbolism, totems, daemons, psychological analysis, etc. The Patronus kind of mixes all of those elements together, and it is one of the more positive spells in the books, so I like it. But as I said, it’s a little weird in places (which you’ve written about before, so I’m not going to echo your observations back at you).

On a related note, the other day I was checking out this project a person was doing on deviantart where she was drawing a bunch of characters and their Patronus forms, but when someone asked if she would do one with Draco Malfoy, she said something like she wasn’t sure she liked the idea of him having a Patronus—I’m guessing because of that thing JKR said a while back about his Patronus. It was one thing if she was just sticking to characters that had produced a Patronus in canon, which I think she was, but the way she worded it suggested something different.

It reminded me of something you’d said about people misconstruing that JKR quote to mean that, because Draco hadn’t conjured a Patronus and so there was no way of knowing what it was, therefore it actually meant that Draco was for some reason *unable* to cast a Patronus Charm (and therefore no one can speculate on what his Patronus form might have been, I guess). It was funny coming from someone who had drawn Snape and Umbridge with their Patronus forms: being emotionally stunted or teh ebil is obviously no hindrance to casting a Patronus.

So Harry’s smart enough to know Hermione meant well, but too dumb to figure out that he will see his broom again, unless it’s got deadly curses on it, in which case he shouldn’t want to see it. It's a very specific level of smart.

Lol. That’s great :D. I actually kind of love when he’s being stupid— it’s endearing as long as it’s not making him hurt people for stupid reasons— I just wish someone would point it out to him in canon.

During last year’s nano I had a main character, Dara, who kind of had her “Potter-stupid” moments, and it was kind of obvious as a writer to have the group’s ‘mean girl’, Bella, become one of her friends so that someone would be able and very willing to point out when Dara was being a doofus or getting up on her high-horse. Of course Dara was smart and funny enough to have snarky dialogue with Bella while still accepting what she was trying to tell her. If she were actually Harry, Bella would have quickly been labeled as an enemy and the universe would have seen fit to smite her.

[sunnyskywalker]

And then after the veeery beginning of OotP, the Dementors really never matter again. All that setting up of horrifying soul-sucking demons for... the possibility that Harry will be late starting school one year? (Because who honestly thought he would really get expelled?) What a waste. They were perfectly poised to suck out the soul of a character we knew, onscreen, in book 6 or 7. Since there was supposedly a war full of awful things going on and all.

[sistermagpie.livejournal.com]

I think we have very similar views on the Patronus. I love it as a charm. It's got so many cool things about it. Not only is it just a neat thing to have but it's one of those personality-test things that the books have so many of--who wouldn't want to know what toten animal their protective spirit would take? Like when Luna's turned out to be a hare and Cho's a swan. They were fitting and said something about it.

But it does often get used weirdly. And yes, I think JKR's response to the question of Draco's Patronus was something like "He has no idea how to produce one" or something like that, which is really just stating the obvious. The Patronus isn't taught at Hogwarts. None of the kids had any idea until Harry taught them either. (You'd think Hermione would have demanded Harry teach her as soon as he learned, now that I think about it, but storywise that wouldn't have been helpful.) Probably the main reason Umbridge produces one is because somebody needs to in that scene, and why not take the opportunity for a sort of "His Dark Materials" moment where we see Umbridge's cat?

Harry and Ron are both very straightforwardly stupid here so it's easy to forgive them. They really are just being straightforward disappointed about not being able to fly on the broom, even while they know it could be cursed. I figure it's probably a bit like that thing people do when they know they can trust someone else to make the hard decisions like that. Whatever they complain about now, they probably both rely on the fact that if something is really dangerous Hermione will look out for it.

Heh. The Dara/Bella relationship sounds a lot like fanon!Harry/Draco at times. A lot of people really siezed on him as an obvious foil because he would blatantly tell Harry when he was being an idiot (while knowing that Harry would also do the same to him).

[violaswamp.livejournal.com]

Wow, Harry's a brat.

That is all.

[oryx_leucoryx]

All the inconsistencies of Quidditch and its refereeing for the sake of 'plot' and Harry's awesomeness!!

Lupin’s found another boggart. The first one was sacrificed so only Gryffindors could learn about them. This one’s for Harry personally.

Since he can owl-order grindilows and the rest, I bet he can order as many boggarts as he wants. Remus is just being a drama queen. Note BTW that Remus packed the boggart and brought it to the room of his choice. Which means it was entirely his choice that the students faced the previous one in the teachers' lounge.

Lupin announces he’s going to teach Harry the Patronus, which is way beyond OWL level. Even though ordinary teenagers can do them with less effort than seems to go into making a basic Potion and they are constantly finding reasons to use it.

You know how a boggart morphs into the greatest fear of whoever it faces? The Patronus charms gains and loses difficulty depending on the needs of the plot.

A better way to write this part would have been for Remus to say that it isn't that hard to learn to produce a Patronus in itself but to be able to do so while under the influence of dementors takes special ability/practice/skill/self-control whatever. And not have Amelia Bones or Professor Tofty falling all over themselves that Harry can produce one but that he could do so while under attack.

So the boggart actually acquires the powers of a Dementor? It’s weird that Harry learns about most of what happened with his parents from a boggart.

Indeed. There is no real reason for the boggart-dementor to bring up *true* memories of Halloween 1981 in Harry. If Harry's greatest fear is facing a dementor that brings up a frightening memory then the boggart could easily bring up the screaming Harry already heard in previous attacks and go off into complete horror fantasy from there. But no, somehow the boggart knows how to bring up the true memory. (Not that the true memory isn't horrific, but the boggart-induced one could have had completely wrong details.)

Luckily this is Harry Potter so he doesn’t think to ask his teacher wtf that silvery orb is no matter how many times he sees it. He’s not even curious.

Well, Harry already knows the answer to that doesn't he? During the Christmas meal Trelawney reported that Remus ran away from her when she attempted crystal gazing for him. Obviously his greatest fear is Divination, or something that could be revealed through it.

Harry realizes he half enjoys hearing the voices of his parents. Dumbledore would be pleased at Harry’s suicidal tendencies.

:P

If it weren't for Quidditch Harry wouldn't have been motivated to try to overcome this fear at all.

Arithmancy overlaps with COMC. I suppose Slytherins don't take this class either. Maybe they don't care about curse breaking because knowing how to curse things is enough, the way they don't feel they need to learn DADA because they will be using Dark Arts themselves.

Why does it look like Minerva's decision to return the broom was based on the time of the Quidditch game rather than how long it took her to be satisfied with the broom's safety? How is she better than Wood?

Neville’s lost his passwords. This will come up later. Btw, he’s lost a week’s worth because Sir Cadogan gave them to him early. Which you’d think is more on Cadogan than Neville. He could have changed the ones he planned when they went missing.

Just like the aftermath is made to be about Neville being supposedly irresponsible instead of about the whole event proving that Sirius had inside help in Gryffindor tower. How was leaving the passwords in a place only accessible to those who already had a way into Gryffindor tower irresponsible?

The return of the Firebolt, Neville's loss of the passwords and Scabbers' 'death' take place on Thursday night. The game followed by Sirius' second attack is on Saturday.

[horridporrid.livejournal.com]

It's a funny thing about Ron, actually. He's the one member of the Trio who seems to have a deeper level--weird as that sounds. [...] When he's jealous of Harry's fame or thinks Hermione looks down on him, it's tied to deeper things in his character that make those sore spots.
By contrast Harry and Hermione just don't get that imo.

I agree with this. And I think it's a reason I see Harry and Hermione as rather psychotic by series end, while Ron strikes me as merely pathetic. Ron at least realizes he has flaws (trapped in them though he may be), but Harry and Hermione doesn't seem to recognize their flaws at all. (Because JKR doesn't see them as having flaws. Well, except for the cool kind that keep one from the horrors of plaster sainthood.)

But I don't think they started out that way. I thought Hermione was a brilliant creation of the girl who tries WAY TOO HARD, and needs to get everything right and is going to work and work and work until she is perfect at everything. I love that kind of character! (There's a Staples ad with a young girl who is exactly that way -- very excited to get back to school -- that I adore for that reason.)

But it never really panned out. Hermione actually achieves perfection and it doesn't bother anyone. (She knows practically everything about practically everything.) In general she should annoy the crap out of at least a few classmates, and be secretly bothered by it and confused about how to fix it or something. Harry and Ron are now her friends, but I'd have thought they'd be about it. So her moment when she turns in the broom and they're furious at her (in their silly-young-boys way) should have been devastating. Because she had friends and now they're gone. Did she do the right thing? Should she do something like that again? This should have stuck with Hermione. It should have had consequences. But I don't think it does.

(I agree, btw, that this idea that Hermione is insecure about her looks doesn't work. For one, at the very age where it'd be hitting her the hardest she lands an international sports star. This was never Hermione's issue. It's having, and keeping, friends that I think began as Hermione's issue, but got dropped, unfortunately.)

With Harry... I suppose a lack of trust? Would that be the big issue that gets introduced and dropped? (I haven't given Harry as much thought for some reason.)

Again someone points out that the best thing about Harry having a Firebolt is that it gives him an unbeatable advantage against the other team. Which is not unsporting at all.

I remember reading a column by a British sports writer (lots of cricket references that I *could not follow*) that basically gave Harry Potter a go (I think she watched the GoF movie) and backed away in horror. Because it was so very unsporting and she could not believe we were supposed to like this Harry Potter guy who got all sorts of unfair advantages and took them.

At the time I think I was still fairly on board with the books. But it did get me thinking about how often unsporting behavior is celebrated in the series. (Starting with the infamous House-cup grab in PS/SS.)

[condwiramurs.livejournal.com]

Or a Voldie-fragment.

[sistermagpie.livejournal.com]

But he's got an awesome broom!

[sistermagpie.livejournal.com]

Ooh. Interesting catch about the boggart in the teacher's lounge.

And yeah, I do think the Patronus should be harder to do under attack--though of course later we have people amazed that Harry can do it in an exam. Without seemingly giving anyone else a chance to demonstrate one even though we know many of them can.

I never thought about McGonagall that way but it would definitely be in character for her to give the broom back before the big game. Another reason Harry really shouldn't have worried about it. He knows she's as obsessed with it as he is. Of course, it doesn't really seem like it should take that long to check anyway. It's not like they're sending it out to a lab.

The way Neville gets blamed entirely for Sirius breaking in is really crazy. Even without the things you pointed out here it's like...your security system sucks. You should be thanking the kid for pointing out the obvious flaws.

[sistermagpie.livejournal.com]

Yes on Hermione. That's what made me think so much about it because her behavior later on could still be interpreted as trying way to hard and being scared to stop and think that people don't like her. In OotP when the boys would come back and find her alone in the Common Room I couldn't help but imagine her trying to stay out of the dorm because she had no friends there. But I never felt canon hinted at this at all. Her brisk confidence in everything seems real and I don't think she is ever really does seem to worry about people not liking her.

Even here she seems more annoyed at the boys and stubborn than she does terrified of having lost the only friends it seems she would ever have had. Hagrid shames them by saying they've turned their back on their friend and I can't remember but he might hint that she's been hurt about it, but I don't really get anything like the devestation of that "she's got to know she's got no friends" line. Not that I don't expect her to have grown in confidence, of course, but she's completely socially secure at all times.

It's one of the things I loved about The Shadow of his Wings!Hermione because Hermione was back to dealing with the consequences of her personality.

LOL! Yup, that's Harry. The guy who got all sorts of unfair advantages and took them--one of those advantages being the permission to claim he actually has no unfair advantages at all because his hard life make up for them.

[sunnyskywalker]

Or both! Or anything at all, really, so long as they had a purpose for existing.

[horridporrid.livejournal.com]

There was enough there for us (or me, anyway *g*) to think JKR was seeing Hermione as having that insecurity, but yeah, canon never fully supported it. It was the sort of nebulous thing that led to overly-long discussions about who Hermione was friends with, exactly, and canon counts on how many girls were in the Griffindor dorms and any examples of Hermione interacting with them. ;)

I saw an icon once with Batman full on face-slapping Robin while yelling, "Harry Potter's parents are DEAD!" That captures Harry's sad life perfectly. ;D

[madderbrad.livejournal.com]

Ron's mad at Hermione too, because this is one of those times when he's living vicariously through Harry rather than being insanely jealous of him.

This is one of the canon events which are used nicely by some H/Hr stories. See, after a couple of days of pouting, Harry would have buried the hatchet and resumed talking to his distaff best friend again ... were it not for that evil Ron Weasley, who kept urging Harry to reject Hermione and egging him on in his anger.

Hermione would have been even more impatient with all the Malfoy-as-werewolf theories after HBP than I was.

What what WHAT?!?!?!??

Lupin announces he’s going to teach Harry the Patronus, which is way beyond OWL level. Even though ordinary teenagers can do them with less effort than seems to go into making a basic Potion and they are constantly finding reasons to use it.

Yeah, that's another small example of Rowling doing a backflip on her original canon, isn't it? They're all doing patronuses by the end.

WAIT A MINUTE ... IT'S ONLY BECAUSE HARRY WAS SUCH A WONDERFUL FANTASTIC TEACHER IN THEIR FIFTH YEAR!!!???

If only those other wizards were taught by Harry!

Ah. See, I wrote the above before I read on and saw your own sarcastic comment. We concur!

It's never been that the charm's technically difficult, but it's difficult based on your personality.

But yet it takes Harry months to learn to do it, doesn't it, months of trying and trying and trying ... all while his personality and experiences stay static. It's not like he fell in love and then found himself doing the spell perfectly the next day or anything. (Hmmm, there must be a fanfic in that notion.)

Nah, the easiest reason is simply that Rowling ignored her own rules as she went along. That's true for so much else, why try and give her a pardon for this one?

Many qualified Wizards can't do it--and practically no DEs can. Because evil people don't have happy memories. Umbridge throws people off --

And Snape. The twisted, dark, bitter ex-DE whose only happy memory is of a childhood sweetheart - sorry, potential possible sweetheart - who ended up totally rejecting him and marrying his worst enemy and bearing him a son. But Snape can cast a Patronus.

Luckily this is Harry Potter so he doesn’t think to ask his teacher wtf that silvery orb is no matter how many times he sees it. He’s not even curious.

Good grief you're right. Jeeze. How much did we let Rowling get away with, even the small stuff, in those early books?

Harry realizes he half enjoys hearing the voices of his parents. Dumbledore would be pleased at Harry’s suicidal tendencies.

HA HA HA!!!

Yes, and bequeath him a magical Stone to do it again one day.

I need a moment to laugh at the Quidditch schedule, which has months between games.

I gather you're talking about the professional league here? I don't recall that from the one time I read the book.

But it's always amazed me that Rowling's school Quidditch tourney consisted of a set of just three rounds, spread over the ten months of the school year. Most boring school sport EVER!

To review, in order to make sure Harry wouldn't be violently killed, Hermione took his broom and gave it back to him in plenty of time for his next Quidditch match. In response Harry and Ron refused to speak to her for all that time.

That poor girl!! That bastiche Weasley!! If it weren't for him Harry would have discovered his soulmate in the bushy-haired girl by now!!

We end with what looks like the murder of Scabbers by cat. Naturally the sexual tension between Ron and Hermione is just palpitating throughout! And by sexual tension I mean irritation.

Sorry Rowling, your 'anvil sized hints' just didn't work for me either.

"Watermelon, watermelon, cantaloupe, cantaloupe"
Presumably there was much of this in the "Firebolt reveal" scene.

Huh? What are you talking about here?

And what's an 'informed attribute' please?

[oryx_leucoryx]

Hermione would have been even more impatient with all the Malfoy-as-werewolf theories after HBP than I was.

What what WHAT?!?!?!??

One of the many theories fans came up with between HBP and DH. We see Draco becoming pale and thin over the course of HBP - very much like Remus' description in POA (never mind that spending hours everyday working on the cabinet and worrying that Voldemort might kill his mother if he fails was enough of a reason to become pale and thin) - ergo Draco was bitten by Fenrir over the summer. When he showed Borgin something to scare him into collaborating with his scheme it wasn't a Dark Mark that he showed him but his fresh werewolf bite. (So why does he need to mention that Fenrir would be around if he can come and bite Borgin himself?)

But yet it takes Harry months to learn to do it, doesn't it, months of trying and trying and trying ... all while his personality and experiences stay static.

And when Harry teaches the DA the kids succeed during the one lesson he does it (including Seamus who wasn't present the previous lessons). See what an awesome teacher Harry was?

[mary-j-59.livejournal.com]

About the Patronus - did you notice how different it is in OOTP, when Harry is fighting the Dementors at Privet drive, and in this book? To me, OOTP explained (to a degree)why the Patronus was difficult. As Jodel has said, producing one has nothing to do with "happy memories" as such. As Harry tries to defend himself and Dudley, he struggles to come up with happy memories, and they do nothing for him. What works? Love. He thinks of Ron and Hermione, his friends whom he (presumably) loves, and suddenly he can produce a strong Patronus. Lupin just didn't teach it quite right.

This, btw, explains how Severus can produce such a strong Patronus in spite of his miserable life. It has nothing to do with Lily's having loved him. (I don't think she ever did.) On the contrary, his Patronus shows that he loved (and loves) her. Lily doesn't save him, if he is saved. He saves himself because of his own capacity for love.

OTOH, this theory of mine doesn't explain Umbridge at all - unless she loves her kitty cats? Nor does it explain how Harry, who's been badly taught, manages to get the entire DA to produce Patroni. But who ever said these books were logical?

On another note, you're entirely right about Hermione. She ought to be a lot more insecure than she is. Somehow, when I read these early books, I was seeing her as socially insecure - but she does actually come across as righteous and confident. Must be that Gryffindor courage-

And I always hated Neville's getting blamed for losing the passwords. I especially hated the way McGonagall punished him. It was worse, by far, than anything Snape ever did to him.

[sistermagpie.livejournal.com]

What what WHAT?!?!?!??

Did you never hear the "Draco's a werewolf" theory from HBP?

I give Snape a pass on his Patronus, though. It's connected to the pure non-DE part of his soul, the one that makes him not be evil. Iow, Lily.

I can't remember what I was referring to with the Quidditch comment now...I think it might have been the school league since there's only 4 teams playing each other once it seems like?

I can't believe I never thought of how crazy the Jabootu scores must be reading! I forgot that I never include the definitions in the list! Okay, for those two, the watermelon/cantaloupe is that thing in movies where the extras in the crowd are supposed to be all chattering amongst each other. Muttering "watermelon, watermelon, cataloupe, cantaloupe" is a common thing to mutter in those scenes. The Firebolt scene would presumably require lots of "excited chatter" in the room."

An informed attribute is an attribute we're told someone or something has, but it doesn't seem to really have. Like if we're told a character in a movie is a great pianist but when they play they don't sound very good.

I'll post the full list and definitions here in a separate post!

[sistermagpie.livejournal.com]

Interesting Patronus question...Harry produces his first one with the memory of finding out he's a wizard, but I guess that could connect to his parents?

[madderbrad.livejournal.com]

I learn more about the fandom's history all the time! Thanks!

[madderbrad.livejournal.com]

I'll post the full list and definitions here in a separate post!

Interesting reading, thanks. This Jabootu thing makes sense to me now!!

[jodel-from-aol.livejournal.com]

It's possible to fanwank the boggart/Dementor connection. ANd necessary as well, because that info delevery really is peculiar.

Harry never encountered a Dementor until September 1 on the train. He sure doesn't remember hearing the murder of his parents after that particular encounter with it. But it is arguable that it has opened up the path to his subconsious where those memories live.

That path is what the boggart is drawing from. The memories are actually there. It's much easier for it to drag them out and replay them than to make up something new. Faster too/ You will notice that once it finds where they are it retrieves them faster, and more of them each tie.

Actually, when you stop and think of it, boggarts and dementors are very similar in effect *anyway*. They are both tapping into memories. Dementors seem to only be able to retrieve true ones, but boggarts can reflect the imafinary ones that our own anxieties slung together as in dreams or misinterpreting of outside data. The Mirror of Erised did much the same kind of thing as well, although it didn't mess with fears and unhappy memories. It went straight for the wishes and dreams.

[jodel-from-aol.livejournal.com]

Not me. I pointed out that Rowling's explanation just flat doesn't work. But I think its one of your other Ljers who tied it to the love angle.

Which does have the virtue of actually holding together if you poke at it. And doesn't seem to require that it be any specific *form* of love, either.

I can readily believe that Umbridge sincerely loves fluffy kittens. Whether the kittens love her back is immaterial.

[oryx_leucoryx]

I can readily believe that Umbridge sincerely loves fluffy kittens. Whether the kittens love her back is immaterial.

Yes, if Aunt Marge were magical her Patronus would have been Ripper. Petunia's would have been an animal representation of Duddykins. If Hagrid could produce one I wonder if it would have been Aragog or Baby Norbert(a).