GOF Chapter 25: The Egg and the Eye
Jun. 24th, 2011 04:43 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
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deathtocapslockHarry plans his excursion to his one recorded bath in great detail. The prefects' bath is deep enough to have a diving board. Now I imagine Percy and Penelope having a great time during their years as prefects. Did Ron and Hermione come here during OOTP? That would be a good way to avoid Harry when he was CAPSLOCKING. OTOH in HBP Harry had the privilege to use the room too but as far as canon tells he did not. (Well, he was following Draco who also had the privilege to use this bathroom, but preferred working on the cabinet). We know portraits can move around in the castle. So any deceased school Head can in principle show up in the mermaid's portrait and spy on prefects having baths. Maybe it isn't such fun then.
I notice Harry is still suspecting the whole thing was some nefarious plot of Cedric's to get him caught by Filch. Harry does have company - Myrtle, the lonely, oversexed ghost, stuck in teenage for over 50 years so far. She berates him for not keeping his word to visit her on occasion - a common theme with Harry towards people who are only useful to him once in a long while. Heck, he only started writing to Sirius when he needed his help. He never wrote to Remus, his admired teacher from last year (and Hedwig is so annoyed that Harry isn't employing her service).
Myrtle can visit this bathroom and spy on prefects. I guess she can visit any bathroom in the castle then? No wonder Harry avoids showering and bathing.
Well, since Harry doesn't figure it out himself, Myrtle tells him what Cedric did with his egg. So Harry gets to hear a riddle in song format. I recall he was never particularly good with those. And Hermione isn't around to think for him. Meanwhile we learn Hogwarts dumps untreated sewage into the lake. Don't the merefolk complain? Why don't they migrate by magical underground network of waterways (like those used by the Durmstrang ship) to cleaner waters?
OK, so Myrtle hints enough for Harry to catch on. And once again Harry makes an empty promise to visit Myrtle. I don't think he realizes it's a nasty habit of his.
The Marauders Map reveals some Bartemius Crouch in Severus Snape's office. Wasn't Crouch too sick to come to work? Or to the Yule Ball? I wonder who this really is... So instead of going back upstairs to Gryffindor tower Harry decides to go downstairs and see what's up with Crouch. And gets stuck in the trick stair, as foreshadowed by Neville in chapter 12. He also drops the egg, that rolls away screaming, and the Map. Harry thinks to attempt to wipe the Map blank but not to summon it. Or the egg. Really, after summoning the Firebolt all that distance in the First Task why isn't summoning one of the first things to try? Well, Filch is here, so now it's too late.
Filch believes Peeves stole the egg and dropped it as a prank. He wouldn't think a school champion would be stupid enough to drop his egg with its clues like that. At least Filch can close the egg and stop the noise. I don't know how long the egg was wailing, but the first person to show up is Severus, all the way up from the dungeons, at least 5 floors down. Was nobody else woken by the noise? Or did nobody else care? The egg sounds like the screams of someone being tortured, like someone in horrible pain. And the only one who cares is Severus? Notice his priorities - he awakes to the noise, and on his way out he notices his office, where assorted restricted and dangerous items are kept, has been broken into. But his top priority is to find the source of the screaming. It is only after Filch shows him the screaming wasn't a person in need that he focuses on investigating the intrusion to his office. (And only later, when he sees the Map that he realizes this involves Harry.) It's one of those moments where Rowling inadvertently shows us the extent of Severus' protectiveness of everyone (especially students) - well beyond his promise to keep Harry alive in order that Lily's death will not have been in vain.
Oops! Someone else managed to make it! It's 'Moody'! (Of course we know he is also coming from the dungeons. So by the time it took him to hobble up all those stairs no other staff member thought to come and see what the trouble was? Or did they all decide that since the noise stopped everything must be under control?) Anyway, Severus attempts to hush Filch - he does not want to involve 'Moody' in anything.
Again we see the power of the magical eye to see through Death's own Invisibility Cloak. (Maybe the maker of the Eye is stronger than Death himself? Who could that have been? Heck, maybe the Eye is that person's Horcrux. S/he may still be around. In the Pensieve scenes in chapter 30 Moody still has both of his natural eyes. If the magical one is a Horcrux he only came under its influence after the first war. Maybe that's the real reason for his paranoia?) As for Mrs Norris, it isn't clear if she actually sees Harry or merely smells him.
'Moody' pretends to take part in Severus' investigation, thus finding out what Severus suspects. At the same time he attempts to provoke Severus by bringing up his history. I really do think the real Moody was involved very directly in Severus' interrogation after VWI, and Severus does not cherish those memories. Meanwhile we learn 'Moody' already searched Severus' office openly earlier in the year. 'Moody', like Hagrid in the previous chapter, promotes Albus' reputation as the one who gives second chances. Except he only does it to have another victim to exploit. Does Severus actually sense something in his Mark when 'Moody' hints about it or was his reaction entirely psychological? Are we to understand the real Moody knew about the Dark Mark but Order members who were not Aurors, such as Sirius did not? Or did Moody only learn of the Dark Mark after the war was over, the Marks no longer visible and Sirius was arrested? Why didn't Albus share this information while it might have been useful?
Oops! Barty nearly lost everything - the Map was open. Severus was very close to seeing whom he really was speaking to! He was also very close to catching Harry. Of course he knows Harry was there. And now Harry is Severus' main suspect as the intruder to his office. 'Moody', OTOH plays up Severus as a red herring for Harry. Dumbledore is very interested to know who is after Harry - and so is Barty? Is this the one time his words as 'Moody' don't match his intent as Barty? Yes, Barty, actually Severus does have Harry's best interests at heart. As hard as it is for Harry to believe. And yes, Harry does have to be stopped for his own safety.
So 'Moody' sends Severus and Argus away and pulls Harry out of the trick stair. While learning what the Map can show. Like his true identity. And that Harry saw his name, but mistook it for his father's. Yes Barty, your dad is even more obsessed with catching Dark wizards than Moody or yourself. Especially the one he held prisoner for some 12 years. But not really any others, or he'd have searched places such as Malfoy Manor during those years for evidence of misdeeds, not leave it to the next DMLE head. But yes, you so hate Death Eaters that walked free, you so do. Except Harry thinks this is Moody talking about Igor. And 'Moody' borrows Harry's map, thus closing off that way of discovering his secret. He also flatters Harry saying he could make a good Auror. Harry would consider it if they're not all as scarred as Moody. Well, he already has a headstart on scars.
Some speculation about Barty's Polyjuice strategy: In COS we learned that to make Polyjuice Potion one needs 2 restricted ingredients (and other non-redtricted ones) - boomslang skin and bicorn horn. These ingredients are added at a late stage in the production. We do not know how much of them is needed. From the exchange between Severus and 'Moody' it seems there were 2 times he had access to Severus' supplies - early in the year and now. It is late January, about the midway point of the school year. Did Barty steal 5 months worth of Polyjuice ingredients at both these times? Did he have enough for the first 5 months when he arrived and just ran out? Is he really brewing his entire supply all the time? An alternative strategy would be to owl order it and keep a batch half-brewed - at the stage when the boomslang skin and bicorn horn need to be added, so he only needs to get those ingredients and complete the brewing if his order doesn't arrive in time. I'm not sure which strategy is riskier. BTW in this book only boomslang skin is mentioned as an ingredient Barty had to steal. Did he bring enough bicorn horn for the entire year? Or has bicorn horn become deregulated over the last year or two? Or perhaps we have here the case of the ever-improving Polyjuice Potion - no longer takes a month to brew and needs only one restricted ingredient. In DH we will see the next improvement - Polyjuice that lasts for more than an hour. Looks like Barty missed his calling as Potioneer. And so did (the real) Moody.
I notice Harry is still suspecting the whole thing was some nefarious plot of Cedric's to get him caught by Filch. Harry does have company - Myrtle, the lonely, oversexed ghost, stuck in teenage for over 50 years so far. She berates him for not keeping his word to visit her on occasion - a common theme with Harry towards people who are only useful to him once in a long while. Heck, he only started writing to Sirius when he needed his help. He never wrote to Remus, his admired teacher from last year (and Hedwig is so annoyed that Harry isn't employing her service).
Myrtle can visit this bathroom and spy on prefects. I guess she can visit any bathroom in the castle then? No wonder Harry avoids showering and bathing.
Well, since Harry doesn't figure it out himself, Myrtle tells him what Cedric did with his egg. So Harry gets to hear a riddle in song format. I recall he was never particularly good with those. And Hermione isn't around to think for him. Meanwhile we learn Hogwarts dumps untreated sewage into the lake. Don't the merefolk complain? Why don't they migrate by magical underground network of waterways (like those used by the Durmstrang ship) to cleaner waters?
OK, so Myrtle hints enough for Harry to catch on. And once again Harry makes an empty promise to visit Myrtle. I don't think he realizes it's a nasty habit of his.
The Marauders Map reveals some Bartemius Crouch in Severus Snape's office. Wasn't Crouch too sick to come to work? Or to the Yule Ball? I wonder who this really is... So instead of going back upstairs to Gryffindor tower Harry decides to go downstairs and see what's up with Crouch. And gets stuck in the trick stair, as foreshadowed by Neville in chapter 12. He also drops the egg, that rolls away screaming, and the Map. Harry thinks to attempt to wipe the Map blank but not to summon it. Or the egg. Really, after summoning the Firebolt all that distance in the First Task why isn't summoning one of the first things to try? Well, Filch is here, so now it's too late.
Filch believes Peeves stole the egg and dropped it as a prank. He wouldn't think a school champion would be stupid enough to drop his egg with its clues like that. At least Filch can close the egg and stop the noise. I don't know how long the egg was wailing, but the first person to show up is Severus, all the way up from the dungeons, at least 5 floors down. Was nobody else woken by the noise? Or did nobody else care? The egg sounds like the screams of someone being tortured, like someone in horrible pain. And the only one who cares is Severus? Notice his priorities - he awakes to the noise, and on his way out he notices his office, where assorted restricted and dangerous items are kept, has been broken into. But his top priority is to find the source of the screaming. It is only after Filch shows him the screaming wasn't a person in need that he focuses on investigating the intrusion to his office. (And only later, when he sees the Map that he realizes this involves Harry.) It's one of those moments where Rowling inadvertently shows us the extent of Severus' protectiveness of everyone (especially students) - well beyond his promise to keep Harry alive in order that Lily's death will not have been in vain.
Oops! Someone else managed to make it! It's 'Moody'! (Of course we know he is also coming from the dungeons. So by the time it took him to hobble up all those stairs no other staff member thought to come and see what the trouble was? Or did they all decide that since the noise stopped everything must be under control?) Anyway, Severus attempts to hush Filch - he does not want to involve 'Moody' in anything.
Again we see the power of the magical eye to see through Death's own Invisibility Cloak. (Maybe the maker of the Eye is stronger than Death himself? Who could that have been? Heck, maybe the Eye is that person's Horcrux. S/he may still be around. In the Pensieve scenes in chapter 30 Moody still has both of his natural eyes. If the magical one is a Horcrux he only came under its influence after the first war. Maybe that's the real reason for his paranoia?) As for Mrs Norris, it isn't clear if she actually sees Harry or merely smells him.
'Moody' pretends to take part in Severus' investigation, thus finding out what Severus suspects. At the same time he attempts to provoke Severus by bringing up his history. I really do think the real Moody was involved very directly in Severus' interrogation after VWI, and Severus does not cherish those memories. Meanwhile we learn 'Moody' already searched Severus' office openly earlier in the year. 'Moody', like Hagrid in the previous chapter, promotes Albus' reputation as the one who gives second chances. Except he only does it to have another victim to exploit. Does Severus actually sense something in his Mark when 'Moody' hints about it or was his reaction entirely psychological? Are we to understand the real Moody knew about the Dark Mark but Order members who were not Aurors, such as Sirius did not? Or did Moody only learn of the Dark Mark after the war was over, the Marks no longer visible and Sirius was arrested? Why didn't Albus share this information while it might have been useful?
Oops! Barty nearly lost everything - the Map was open. Severus was very close to seeing whom he really was speaking to! He was also very close to catching Harry. Of course he knows Harry was there. And now Harry is Severus' main suspect as the intruder to his office. 'Moody', OTOH plays up Severus as a red herring for Harry. Dumbledore is very interested to know who is after Harry - and so is Barty? Is this the one time his words as 'Moody' don't match his intent as Barty? Yes, Barty, actually Severus does have Harry's best interests at heart. As hard as it is for Harry to believe. And yes, Harry does have to be stopped for his own safety.
So 'Moody' sends Severus and Argus away and pulls Harry out of the trick stair. While learning what the Map can show. Like his true identity. And that Harry saw his name, but mistook it for his father's. Yes Barty, your dad is even more obsessed with catching Dark wizards than Moody or yourself. Especially the one he held prisoner for some 12 years. But not really any others, or he'd have searched places such as Malfoy Manor during those years for evidence of misdeeds, not leave it to the next DMLE head. But yes, you so hate Death Eaters that walked free, you so do. Except Harry thinks this is Moody talking about Igor. And 'Moody' borrows Harry's map, thus closing off that way of discovering his secret. He also flatters Harry saying he could make a good Auror. Harry would consider it if they're not all as scarred as Moody. Well, he already has a headstart on scars.
Some speculation about Barty's Polyjuice strategy: In COS we learned that to make Polyjuice Potion one needs 2 restricted ingredients (and other non-redtricted ones) - boomslang skin and bicorn horn. These ingredients are added at a late stage in the production. We do not know how much of them is needed. From the exchange between Severus and 'Moody' it seems there were 2 times he had access to Severus' supplies - early in the year and now. It is late January, about the midway point of the school year. Did Barty steal 5 months worth of Polyjuice ingredients at both these times? Did he have enough for the first 5 months when he arrived and just ran out? Is he really brewing his entire supply all the time? An alternative strategy would be to owl order it and keep a batch half-brewed - at the stage when the boomslang skin and bicorn horn need to be added, so he only needs to get those ingredients and complete the brewing if his order doesn't arrive in time. I'm not sure which strategy is riskier. BTW in this book only boomslang skin is mentioned as an ingredient Barty had to steal. Did he bring enough bicorn horn for the entire year? Or has bicorn horn become deregulated over the last year or two? Or perhaps we have here the case of the ever-improving Polyjuice Potion - no longer takes a month to brew and needs only one restricted ingredient. In DH we will see the next improvement - Polyjuice that lasts for more than an hour. Looks like Barty missed his calling as Potioneer. And so did (the real) Moody.
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Severus and fighting dementors
Date: 2011-06-26 09:55 am (UTC)But Severus' choice of defence against the dementors would certainly be related to occlumency which Severus is proficient in, but did not invent. Dementors would find it hard to sense a mind that is blocking them with occlumency, just as they were unable to sense Sirius properly when he was a dog. And Severus would disagree with Harry's idea - that the patronus charm is most effective.
Re: Severus and fighting dementors
Date: 2011-06-26 12:52 pm (UTC)I think most of us are giving everything in the series more thought than JKR ever did!!
Who can guess whether they served Voldemort or not? Perhaps the Ministry only employed them after VW1.
Actually Severus is telling Lily when they're 9years old that the dementors guard Azkaban so that was back in the 1960-1970s. But I still have a hard time seeing how the ministry can control and indestructable creature that can also breed.
In my own fanfic I have another creature that is able to kill and destory a dementor. I'm just not down with an autor creating a creature that you cannot destroy. By that right the dementors should run the world, not the ministry. So I just believes there has to be a counter balance that can thin the herd. If dementors breed then something has to actually get rid of them right? or they'd just keep mutiplying.
Re: Severus and fighting dementors
Date: 2011-06-27 09:43 pm (UTC)Again, you are giving this very much more thought than JKR ever did. She calls those of us that do "geeks." That's what she calls people who point out that the rules of Quidditch are illogical. I'm not making it up. It was in the papers.
Re: Severus and fighting dementors
Date: 2011-06-26 12:57 pm (UTC)Re: Severus and fighting dementors
Date: 2011-06-26 01:39 pm (UTC)How many damn people do they have locked up in azkaban? Surely they are not enough people there to continually feed a population of creatures that can potentially reproduce.
Though I think the suggestion is that the dementors started breeding after the breakout in Azkaban but the idea and ability has apparently always been there. Wizards also seem to be able to communicate with them. The Ministry clearly must be able to communicate with Dementors and Dementors must be able to understand if they are 'employeed' by the ministry.
I think fudge said in HBP "the dementors are in an uproar, they've never had a breakout before." So I wonder how intelligent Dementores are. THe comment of thembeing in an uproar sounds like like workers going on strike for better pay.
Re: Severus and fighting dementors
Date: 2011-06-26 07:45 pm (UTC)On the other hand, Lethifolds are vulnerable to Patroni as well, and resemble black cloaks - maybe they're the larval form of Dementors?
So I wonder how intelligent Dementores are. THe comment of thembeing in an uproar sounds like like workers going on strike for better pay.
They can be sent on missions and they can cooperate with Voldemort (and presumably understand his offer of terms) - I think they must have the capacity for language at the very least.
Re: Severus and fighting dementors
Date: 2011-06-27 09:45 pm (UTC)