HBP Chapter Twenty-Four

[sistermagpie.livejournal.com]

*I was all excited to read this chapter because it had the bathroom scene, which is awesome, but in fact it’s one of the most bizarre chapters in the book.

*Exhausted and delighted, Harry waits until Charms to tell Ron and Hermione everything that happened. So if he misses anything that Flitwick says while he’s chatting away, he pretty much deserves to die. Good little children never whisper in class. Those who do deserve what they get.

*Ron and Hermione are both satisfyingly impressed with how Harry wheedled the memory out of Slughorn, which I guess means they didn’t point out that the Felix Felicitas did it.

*Ron’s causing it to snow, making them all look like they’ve got horrible dandruff. Which of course they don’t, really. Dandruff is the mark of the damned.

*Ron reveals that Lavender’s crying because she broke up with him. Hermione gets the chance to be both superior by calling Ron a coward, and amused by knowing she’s been instrumental in breaking up yet another Trio relationship. Plus she gets to be all-knowing about Ginny and Dean.

*Btw, note that when Hermione had her own relationship it was naturally Harry that made the other guy jealous and not Ron.

*Dean looks unhappy too. But I’ll bet Ginny doesn’t. We’ve got to be clear who’s the loser in these sorts of relationships.

*They walk back to the common room, with Harry once again showing off his unique ability to think romantically about girls by thinking about a boy.

*Katie’s back, having spent a couple of days at home with her parents before coming back to school. What? She didn’t come back straight from the hospital? What’s a wuss like that doing in Gryffindor?

*Harry mentions that now that Katie and Ron are back Gryffindor’s still in running for the cup. Because around this time of year Gryffindor always turns out to be in the running for the cup.

*Harry’s curiosity about Katie even drives Ginny from his brain. Which was really hard, honestly. She was so dominating it for those two minutes when he mostly thought about Ron.

*Curiosity’s driven Ginny from his mind, but he does take a moment to watch parades of prancing Crabbes and Goyles. That’s our boy.

*Harry says he’s going to have a go at the door to the RoR with FF and Hermione lets him know this would be a complete waste of the Potion. Because if you’ve been trying to hit upon the right random thing to say to open a door, how could luck possibly help?

*Harry still hasn’t gotten a chance to try Sectumsempra, because he hasn’t had a clear shot at MacLaggen without Hermione around. And it’s not like he could try the spell out on his own, like on a pillow or something. Tests without human subjects other than yourself are for cowards.

*Dean and Seamus are muttering mutinously behind Harry’s back when he tells Dean Katie’s taking her place back, implying that the two of them are revolting against Harry’s authority. Which in turn implies Harry believes he has some authority over them. Which in turn implies Harry’s got some serious delusions of grandeur.

*The Quidditch team, meanwhile, is happier than ever to have Katie back, to have lost MacLaggen—aw, who are we kidding? They’re just happy to have Ginny as their heart and soul! She’s a fucking miracle!

*And everyone’s highly amused by her imitations of Harry yelling at MacLaggen before he got knocked out…wait, wouldn’t those be Dean’s imitations? The ones that made her fight with him before? Well, that’s the way it is when you’re the wife of the Chosen One. It’s funny when you poke fun at him, but if anyone else shows something less than respect it’s, well, it’s mutinous is what it is, and must be quashed.

*Harry receives several more Bludger injuries during practice because he’s looking at Ginny and not the Snitch. Which makes no sense, since having his eye on the Snitch would not keep him from being hit by Bludgers. It’s the Bludgers he needs to keep his eye on. Ginny Sue demolishes the laws of logic!

*The battle still rages in Harry’s head: Ginny or Ron? Ron’s the one he cares about, but society pressures him to have a union with Ginny.

*This makes Harry’s conscience ache. Hot conscience-aching passion!

*And if he doesn’t do it soon someone else will ask Ginny out. Someone who doesn’t seem to think he can’t ask a girl out unless the moon and stars align just so, and they’re both invited to a dinner party together while Ron’s kept at a distance. Maybe Prince William will come to Hogwarts and ask her out. Who on earth wouldn’t want Ginny?

*OMG, if I hear one more thing about the fabulous Ginny I will shut the damn book. Even knowing Malfoy’s due to be sliced and diced in this chapter isn’t enough to get me through this like it was the first time.

*Interest is running extremely high in the Gryffindor-Ravenclaw game. Yeah, right.

*I will point out one thing interesting, which is that apparently Slytherin is the one house not in the running in this, the year that Malfoy stopped playing. If he bought his way onto the team, it was the best investment that team ever made.

*"The run-up to the match had all the usual features." So that would be: totally unbelievable suspense, pleas of sympathy for Harry for having to worry about losing, bizarre circumstances that place Gryffindor squarely between coming in first place and losing more completely than any team in the last century, painfully complicated attempts to make it seem like there’s any chance Gryffindor won’t win…the usual features.

*Despite Slytherin not being in the running, everyone is acting like Slytherins in the run-up to the game. Only somehow it’s endearing and funny when non-Slytherins make up chants about individual players to sing in the hallway instead of evil.

*In Harry’s mind, the result of the Quidditch match has somehow become linked to his success or failure with Ginny. Probably because it’s a lot easier to write about Harry caring about Quidditch. God knows Harry would rather think about that. Given the choice, I’m sure we’d all rather hear about Quidditch. Never thought I’d say that about anything in this series, but it’s true.

*Harry still hasn’t forgotten Malfoy. Thank god! He hasn’t forgotten the actual story some of us would like to get back to ASAP.

*Magical physics moment: So if someone’s in the RoR and you ask for a different room, the room won’t appear at all. You can’t get alternate universe rooms at the same time. Nor can Harry walk by the room thinking, "I need a room in which to talk to Draco Malfoy," and have the room do double duty.

*You know, I just realized I had originally assumed that bathrooms were the place everybody went to cry, and that’s why Draco cried in this one. But given he was already in a secret room, the fact that he comes here to cry does rather suggest he comes to talk to Myrtle. Awwwww!

*Malfoy’s tears are streaming down his face into the grimy basin. Does no one ever scrub the bathrooms in this place? No wonder the Prefect’s bathroom is so coveted. It’s like choosing between the Taj Mahal and the men’s room in Washington Square Park.

*"Malfoy gasped and gulped and then, with a great shudder, looked up into the cracked mirror and saw Harry staring at him over his shoulder." And then ten thousand H/D shippers did drop the book and die collectively of squee.

*Malfoy wheeled around, drawing his wand—so apparently in canon this sort of thing doesn’t lead to a rough and tender blow job. Give me a second to rewire my brain. Okay, going on.

*Luckily after the battle at the MoM I am no longer surprised that hexes that go awry blow things up during a fight.

*Challenge for whoever directs HBP: how do you get Harry to say "Sectumsempra" in the time it would take Malfoy to say "—o"

*Totally kidding on that last one. As if Steve Kloves is going to leave this scene in any way intact! Harry will probably walk into the bathroom, find Malfoy with his pants down and save him from a basilisk before Hermione appears and kicks him into a toilet.

*And then Harry kills Malfoy. Best. Scene. Ever. You do not want to know how many of my self-indulgent fanfic daydreams this moment fulfilled. Only I have to give it to Rowling—she made it even more bloody than I did!

*"He fell to his knees beside Malfoy, who was shaking uncontrollably in a pool of his own blood." Awesome. Especially when Myrtle starts screaming MURDER! MURDER IN THE BATHROOM!

*Can you imagine Snape’s face when he heard that, btw? I wonder if he doubted for a second Draco was the murderee?

*We pause our H/D epic fanfic now for a touch of Snape/Draco hurt/comfort, now with I-Croon-For-You!Snape.

*Harry’s barely aware that he, too, is soaked in blood and water. He’s barely aware, but ladies in the audience can take note of how brave he is about it.

*You know one of the weirdest things about HBP? The way that Harry and Draco have this intense storyline without ever making eye contact if JKR can avoid it. In this chapter Draco ceases to be a character the minute Snape appears. Harry just nearly killed him, yet he’s led out of the room without sharing a look with Harry. Nor will they look at each other EVER. AGAIN. FOR. THE. ENTIRE. BOOK. WTF?

*It does not occur to Harry for a second to disobey Snape when he tells him to wait there. It might not have occurred to him for a second, but it occurred to the narrator long enough to tell us he’s not going to do it.

*Snape returns, having basically forgotten about Malfoy the person too. From now on it’s all about Harry and Snape fighting over their special book. Two peas in a pod, these two.

*Though Snape is of course the smarter pod, being able to make the connection to the HBP book. It never occurs to Harry to wonder how Snape knows about the book and whether he’s got any connection to it, it having been in his classroom.

*Funny Snape doesn’t march Harry to Gryffindor Tower himself and watch him take out his schoolbooks. He knows who he’s dealing with. Why give him a chance to pull a switch?

*Then again, that road leads to asking why Snape doesn’t just say, "Accio Potions Textbook" from the bathroom, so forget I asked.

*Harry felt stunned. He’d almost killed Malfoy, whom he’d known since he was 11 and yet never really spoken to, he had…oh wait, sorry, my mistake. He can’t believe that Half-Blood Prince! Why’d he put a spell like that in the book? Didn’t he know that would get Harry in trouble? What if Slughorn lowers his Potions grade? What if they take away Harry’s book?

*There’s a heavy, blood-stained axe in the RoR. I wonder if that’s in any way connected to the Bloody Baron?

*Whoever that axe belonged to he’s got a soul-mate in blood-stained Harry, who’s also come to the room to hide the weapon.

*Harry runs past the broken Vanishing Cabinet where Montague had gotten lost the past year. Gotten lost? Sounds like an unhappy accident, doesn’t it? Montague’s so stupid he must have just accidentally wandered into it or lost his way while exploring. It’s not like two people violently trapped him into it against his will.

*All right, got lost. Montague got lost there last year. Stop looking at me that way, UK Edition.

*Oh look, an animal somebody hid in here and left to die. Hagrid? Is this one of your five-legged friends?

*Harry hands over his bag to Snape panting, a searing pain in his chest. But not quite the same kind of searing pain in his chest as Malfoy presumably had earlier. This is worse.

*Harry does not agree that he is a liar and a cheat who deserves detention with Snape. Funny, whenever someone points out Harry’s lack of remorse in this chapter I could swear fandom claims he does agree he deserves detention.

*And again, Harry deserves detention for being a liar and a cheat. Not, you know, for hurting anybody using a spell that promised to take care of his enemies.

*Well, as hard as it is, I suppose not winning the Quidditch cup every single year of his school career is the heavy, heavy price Harry will have to pay for almost killing what’s his name.

*Can you believe that Pansy Parkinson, vilifying Harry? I wonder what terrible lies she’s made up to make Harry sound bad.

*At least Harry’s still defending the Prince, mostly because at this point the Prince is just an extension of Harry himself.

*Harry doesn’t need Hermione yelling at him, because he feels badly enough for letting the team down by not being able to play Quidditch. I’m sorry, did I dream the scene where Harry almost killed someone in a sea of blood and water?

*Oh, sorry. Harry makes clear he wish he hadn’t done what he did and not ONLY because he’s gotten all these detentions. No, he also regrets losing trust in his book and having Snape find out about it, thank you very much!

*Well, at least they’re not asking Harry to do something crazy like, I don’t know, anything to do with Malfoy.

*Ginny rips open her shirt to reveal the tattoo saying HARRY’S IDEAL GIRL across her chest. Or she might as well do that. What she does is defend Harry’s use of a deadly spells when he sees fit to use them. And then adds an unnecessary remark about Hermione making a fool of herself talking about Quidditch. Naturally, the one time I might get some satisfaction out of Hermione attacking another student, she doesn’t.

*After all, it’s not like Hermione can actually argue the true danger or ethics involved in this incident with Ginny, since nobody in the room really finds anything wrong in the exsanguinations aspect. It all pretty much comes down to: what’s in it for us? How can we avoid losing the most house points?

*The Gryffindor mind works in mysterious ways. Faced with Harry finding Draco Malfoy in the bathroom CRYING over VOLDEMORT and then almost KILLING HIM, they’re arguing about Quidditch.

*And Harry finishes up the evening feeling…unbelievably cheerful. Guess he won’t be getting any unsightly shadows under his eyes!

*Oh no, Harry’s lightheartedness is short lived. Let me guess: Harry just now realized that Malfoy got blood all over his favorite shirt and the House-Elves won’t be able to get it clean before Saturday?

*Oh, just as bad. He’s upset at having to suffer his teammates angry at him for getting himself banned from the last game for something as unimportant as Malfoy’s life and the Slytherins are taunting him.

*Care to tell us just what the Slytherins are saying? Calling him Potty again, are they? Calling his Quidditch skills into question? What could they possibly have to taunt him about? And how does Harry put them in their place? (My girlfriend says it’s lucky I had something good up my sleeve!)

*It was almost unbearable to turn away from everyone going to the Quidditch Pitch to head down to detention. He’s Harry Potter, the sensitive killer.

*Luckily, almost killing Malfoy seems to have finally sated Harry’s interest in him. It’s not like the image of his torn body and bloodied face rises up before Harry at odd moments or anything.

*To review, you can’t knock out a troll with someone without becoming friends. But you can soak yourself in another’s blood without giving them a second thought.

*Harry is forced to copy out lists of punishments for students for the past thousand years. It being Harry, he doesn’t question exactly why Hogwarts needs records of every punishment for the past thousand years. I’ve heard of permanent records, but who keeps files like this? When someone applies for a job in the WW does the employer get told about that time he pantsed someone in Arithmancy? (Which would probably get you the job in this world.)

*Harry then has to suffer through copying out detention cards from his father’s day. It’s a terrible feeling. Much worse than the feeling that one is bleeding to death on a bathroom floor from the large gashes in one’s face and chest.

*And then Harry wins the Quidditch match anyway and he gets the girl. Guess he’s cheerful again. Hurray!

*Ginny runs up to Harry and he kisses her. The entire room goes quiet. Because it’s just that amazing a sight for every teenager in the room. Harry and Ginny just kiss so much better than everyone else. It’s like they invented it.

*On the other hand, maybe they’re just all scared of the hard, blazing look on Ginny’s face. Is that supposed to be attractive? It always makes me picture the look on Linda Blair’s face in The Exorcist when she does the head spin.

*Harry checks over Ginny’s head to make sure everyone’s reacting properly. Romilda Vane properly disappointed for daring to chase Harry? Check. Dean feeling properly inadequate and inferior to Harry in Ginny’s eyes? Check. Hermione showing us underneath she’s got the proper loyalties by beaming at the couple? Check. Ron looking properly foolish and yet respectful of Harry’s obvious rightful place with Ginny? Check.

*I had such good memories of this chapter because of the bathroom scene, but in fact it contains all the worst elements of HBP.





Designated Hero
Our heroes are all in serious top form in this chapter, showing no compassion for Lavender, Dean or Malfoy. You wonder why Tom Riddle ever had to lie about anything at school to hide his total lack of morals. That is, before you remember he was in Slytherin.

IITS
Luck potions can’t help with random guessing. It’s in the script.

Idiot World
After reading this chapter, it’s really not hard to see why the WW is always one step away from being taken over by an evil super villain, is it? They all seem to have a touch of Tom Riddle’s sociopathy.

Informed Attributes
Harry’s the victim here, really. Suffering through his detentions and not being able to play Quidditch because of that thing he did I can’t remember because it was so unimportant. Even being rewarded romantically and with a Quidditch cup doesn’t make up for it.

Hero’s Battle Death Exemption
Harry and Draco are four feet apart in a bathroom, yet still can’t seem to aim well enough to hit each other.

Misdirected Answering
I probably really shouldn’t count this one. Surely I’m the only person wondering what happened to that blond kid from the bathroom who was cracking under pressure.

Final score: 6

H/D Cliché Alert: Pretty much every second Harry and Draco are together on the page in this one.

Slytherin Liquid Count: Charms class teaches turning vinegar into wine. Harry keeps finding reasons to use Luck Potion. Myrtle’s bathroom has exploding toilets, water everywhere, tears, and Draco and Harry both end the chapter soaked in blood. Pools of blood and pools of water. Blood floating in pools of water. More crying. Gurgle gurgle.

Comments

[kaskait.livejournal.com]

The best entry yet!

After reading this chapter, it’s really not hard to see why the WW is always one step away from being taken over by an evil super villain, is it? They all seem to have a touch of Tom Riddle’s sociopathy.

Of course, the whole WW is caught up in the God complex ideas that are blown up their arses daily despite the fact that Muggle society is 10 times better and the wizards live on the outskirts like vermin. Riddle is just the sort of medicine they deserve.


*Ron and Hermione are both satisfyingly impressed with how Harry wheedled the memory out of Slughorn, which I guess means they didn’t point out that the Felix Felicitas did it.

Instead of Hermione's morally questionable plans, Harry is now acting on his own with the help of something like a "date rape" potion.

*Harry’s curiosity about Katie even drives Ginny from his brain. Which was really hard, honestly. She was so dominating it for those two minutes when he mostly thought about Ron.

Ginny is only in his mind when she is within 10 feet. After that, no Ginny thoughts. Hmmmm, I can see Kloves turning the whole Flower Ginny into a B&W spoof of those old Calvin Klein "Obsession" ads. Who could be the sexy whisperer? Malfoy? Yeah!!!!!!

*Harry does not agree that he is a liar and a cheat who deserves detention with Snape. Funny, whenever someone points out Harry’s lack of remorse in this chapter I could swear fandom claims he does agree he deserves detention.

And I was under the impression that Harry turning into a homicidal maniac meant something. Especially because he is in posession of "something" of Tom's own talent. But apparently kids are ripped open everyday at Horny Hogwarts. Bring on that Ideal Reward!!!!

*Ginny runs up to Harry and he kisses her. The entire room goes quiet. Because it’s just that amazing a sight for every teenager in the room. Harry and Ginny just kiss so much better than everyone else. It’s like they invented it.

And just think, Malfoy is practically in critical care. But that kiss is more newsworthy.

*On the other hand, maybe they’re just all scared of the hard, blazing look on Ginny’s face. Is that supposed to be attractive? It always makes me picture the look on Linda Blair’s face in The Exorcist when she does the head spin.

It just screams passion that stare. It also screams "Stalker made good". All girls should start practicing their blazing stares.

[sistermagpie.livejournal.com]

And I was under the impression that Harry turning into a homicidal maniac meant something. Especially because he is in posession of "something" of Tom's own talent. But apparently kids are ripped open everyday at Horny Hogwarts. Bring on that Ideal Reward!!!!

I remember back in OotP when I thought Harry's trying to throw a Crucio was significant. But it's just what you throw at someone when you're really angry. It's like the "Fuck you" of magic.

It just screams passion that stare. It also screams "Stalker made good". All girls should start practicing their blazing stares.

It does seem to be the only romantic lesson of the books. There's no scenes of, like, boys and girls just connecting as people and falling in love. Harry's entire relationship with Ginny is either the two of them privately planning to have the other or having totally shallow interactions. Which, you know, is fine--Tim and Dawn bond through joking on the Office (as do Pam and Jim in the US version), but there's still a lot more to it than Harry ever manages with Ginny.

[trobadora]

The whole Sectumsempra episode makes me want to tear my hair. How depressing is it that even those of us who never really liked Harry and took great pleasure in pointing out all the morally dubious stuff going on in the books thought better of both Harry and the books than this?

[skelkins.livejournal.com]

ITA. It's really being brought home to me, too, now that Mike Smith has decided to do recaps of Prisoner of Azkaban. It's a very depressing nostalgia trip, that. It's like, oh, yeah! Remember when this story seemed to be guided by an only somewhat unreliable moral compass? Wow, those were great days, weren't they?

[trobadora]

Those were the days, indeed.

[sistermagpie.livejournal.com]

Seriously. There are so many ways in which the books surpass some of the weirdest dreams of fandom.

[trobadora]

And that's quite an achievement, isn't it? It's been both better and worse than I'd ever have dreamed.

[merrymelody.livejournal.com]

Harry hands over his bag to Snape panting, a searing pain in his chest. But not quite the same kind of searing pain in his chest as Malfoy presumably had earlier. This is worse.

My absolute, number one favourite part of this chapter, that actually made me truly wonder whether there had to be some kind of resolution to it, because it makes me wonder about JKR's mental state otherwise, is post-Sectumsempra, when Harry goes back to the dorm and is afraid of catching Ginny's eye and seeing how disappointed she is in him (for flubbing up the team, not for flaying someone, naturally. Although he's bang to rights in his assessment of Ginny, of course.) and worried she may get with Dean again, the thought of which is like an 'icy knife.' Really?

Harry waits until Charms to tell Ron and Hermione everything. So if he misses anything that Flitwick says while he’s chatting away, he pretty much deserves to die.

Note that this is the class where there's an exploding glass flask. Thankfully, said class being full of Gryffindors means no-one will ever come to any harm that isn't the fault of others, and which gives them a bad-ass injury to ignore.

Ron and Hermione are both satisfyingly impressed with how Harry wheedled the memory out of Slughorn, which I guess means they didn’t point out that the Felix did it.

I kind of love how satisfying it is to Harry that they're impressed. And the 'awed' looks on their faces - wot, like Pansy's when Draco's bragging about his awesome, important task?

Harry still hasn’t gotten a chance to try Sectumsempra, because he hasn’t had a clear shot at MacLaggen without Hermione around.

I love that he's hoping for a go while McLaggen is next behind and 'unaware'. I guess by the sixth book, we can all drop the pretence that our heroes are in any way, um...brave or chivalrous.

It’s the Bludgers he needs to keep his eye on. Ginny Sue demolishes the laws of logic!

Aren't there supposed to be Beaters who are keeping Bludgers away, anyway? Or are they all in love with Ginny, too? Really, who'd blame them...

And if he doesn’t do it soon someone else will ask Ginny out.

Note the worry here isn't that Ginny is really over him, even though that's what he was told. Or that Ginny will ask someone out herself. Or even the ego-pleasing idea that Ginny might actually be holding out for him and choose not to date anyone else doesn't occur. It's all 'I must get first Dean and then Ron's permission, then piss on my territory before it's claimed by someone else' (since Ginny's too popular 'for her own good'. Which isn't at all as sexist an idea as the two words Ron had earlier that justified him being The Patriarchy in living form. Besides, as we all know, being popular with men just shows what a cool, deserving personality you have. Of course, being popular with girls is a different story.) Harry sees Ginny as totally passive.

Dean looks unhappy too. But I’ll bet Ginny doesn’t. We’ve got to be clear who’s the loser in these sorts of relationships.

Yup, this is the equivalent of Cho being embarrassed to see Harry, who glides past on a cloud of self-righteousness. Know your place, almost-rans!
And no, Ginny's the 'opposite' of sad, which doesn't imply at all that she never really gave a shit about Dean.

On the other hand, maybe they’re just all scared of the hard, blazing look on Ginny’s face. Is that supposed to be attractive?

It brings up associations of 'hard-faced' Pansy to me.

In Harry’s mind, the result of the Quidditch match has somehow become linked to his success or failure with Ginny.

I kinda like the idea that subconsciously, he's connected Ginny liking him with his fame/success. Don't count on this chick still loving you if you go back to Muggletown without the fortune, awesome game skills and Chosen One tag.

[sistermagpie.livejournal.com]

Although he's bang to rights in his assessment of Ginny, of course.) and worried she may get with Dean again, the thought of which is like an 'icy knife.' Really?

Oh god-the icy knife! Either the author wasn't thinking or please let Harry just be in deep denial over what just happened. And here I thought it was odd of him to never have a second thought about beating Draco up in OotP. If only I'd known he was just warming up!

Frankly, I'm surprised Harry isn't doing more justifying here, since Malfoy's a DE and all. But like I said, I think the whole point is to suspend any and all natural thought about Malfoy until Book VII.

I kind of love how satisfying it is to Harry that they're impressed. And the 'awed' looks on their faces - wot, like Pansy's when Draco's bragging about his awesome, important task?

The honest descriptions of Harry's ego would be far more enduring if he occasionally got called on it (without killing the messenger).

I love that he's hoping for a go while McLaggen is next behind and 'unaware'.

But I'm sure if it came to a discussion of the ferret scene it would still be a widely accepted fact that one of the things about Gryffindors is they don't hex people from behind.

Aren't there supposed to be Beaters who are keeping Bludgers away, anyway? Or are they all in love with Ginny, too? Really, who'd blame them...

Hell, I'd bet the Bludgers are in love with her too!

Note the worry here isn't that Ginny is really over him, even though that's what he was told.

Girls have to go out with you if you ask them. Only Chosen Ones get to pick and choose.

And no, Ginny's the 'opposite' of sad, which doesn't imply at all that she never really gave a shit about Dean.

She can barely contain her joy--probably because Hermione's telling her how clear it is Harry's going to ask her out. Sucks to be Dean, eh?

[merrymelody.livejournal.com]

Snape returns, having basically forgotten about Malfoy the person too. Two peas in a pod, these two.

I'm convinced Snape is a literal pod in this chapter - aside from the 'Detention for lying!' part, his 'Who would have thought (Harry) knew such Dark Magic?' is heavy-handed on the scale of Lucius taking a break in the MoM in OotP to praise Harry's intellect. Who wouldn't have thought it?

Despite Slytherin not being in the running, everyone is acting like Slytherins in the run-up to the game.

I love how the players are all swaggering (surely this means all the Ravenclaws, yeah? Gryffindors are modest and hate attention!) or vomiting (Ron!) I'm sure there's an exemption for Ginny and Harry, though,
I also liked that Ginny's playing Cho. It wasn't enough she totally pwn'ed her in OotP (and plucked Harry's heart the Snitch from right under her!), I really feel the need to know who the author finds a better character, and I don't think it's been made sufficiently clear.

Harry’s the victim here, really. Suffering through his detentions and not being able to play Quidditch because of that thing he did I can’t remember because it was so unimportant.

I feel even worse than I did the time he was kicked off the team for trying to beat on another player with two of his biggest mates. :(

At least Harry’s still defending the Prince, mostly because at this point the Prince is just an extension of Harry himself.

I kinda love the argument that the Prince just copied it out. Um, no, Harry, there were words saying 'For enemies', which lessens yours and the Prince's innocence. A moment of shock here that Harry seems to have omitted this from his tale (and what the hell did he tell them about the actual confrontation with Draco? Because Ginny knows that Malfoy was going to whip out a Crucio, but you’d think if he’d mentioned Malfoy had been crying, it would elicite a lot more reaction – can’t see Ron not sniggering over this, and surely Hermione would work out who the ‘he’ Malfoy’s afraid of being killed by is, if not the task that he ‘can’t do’. Plus I’d consider it fairly in-keeping with the style of these books if Harry didn’t reveal something so shameful – a boy! Crying!
But if there’s no background, it’s coincidental that Harry’s story sounds awfully like ‘I walked in, he just flipped out and tried to Crucio me!’

Harry makes clear he wish he hadn’t done what he did and not ONLY because he’s gotten all these detentions. No, he also regrets losing trust in his book and having Snape find out about it, thank you very much!

McGonagall gave him fifteen 'unpleasant' minutes, too. Malfoy couldn't possibly have bleed as much as my heart, right now.
And didn't you catch Harry explain how he wouldn't do something like this normally, 'even' to Malfoy? (Usually he confines his spell use to sedate beatings, jinxing into jelly, and attempting the Unforgiveables, so you can see why Hermione's so shocked - this departure from Harry's caring nature must be the influence of that dastardly Prince!)

Ginny rips open her shirt to reveal the tattoo saying HARRY’S IDEAL GIRL across her chest. Or she might as well do that.

And isn't it pathetic that Harry's ideal girl isn't a girl who loves him even when he's wrong (as a bunch of H/G shippers seem to spin it) but a girl who resolutely refuses to accept he's wrong at all, and in fact seems to view him as the 'winner'? It's like The Stepford Wives, only JKR sees it as a happy ending.

Funny, whenever someone points out Harry’s lack of remorse in this chapter I could swear fandom claims he does agree he deserves detention.

I also love how Harry gradually gets more and more self-righteous - this is his book, dammit! So first he's huffing and puffing, then he's 'defiant', then he's 'firm'.

Care to tell us just what the Slytherins are saying? Calling him Potty again, are they? What could they possibly have to taunt him about?

Notice that when it actually might apply, no-one's talking about what a lunatic Harry is. That's only appropriate when we know he's unjustly accused.
(I hope that Crabbe and Goyle were pissed.)

[sistermagpie.livejournal.com]

I'm convinced Snape is a literal pod in this chapter - aside from the 'Detention for lying!' part, his 'Who would have thought (Harry) knew such Dark Magic?' is heavy-handed on the scale of Lucius taking a break in the MoM in OotP to praise Harry's intellect. Who wouldn't have thought it?

LOL! Good call. It's like Snape has been told he has to take a certain sarcastic position that doesn't really seem to come naturally to him. It's not like even Harry presents himself as a goody-two-shoes. The arbiter of justice and right and wrong, sure, but he's not a pussy.

But if there’s no background, it’s coincidental that Harry’s story sounds awfully like ‘I walked in, he just flipped out and tried to Crucio me!’

This whole scene is ultimately like one big plot hole--I almost gave it that in the Jabootu but I couldn't put my finger on it. What on earth is Harry supposed to have said to these guys? It would actually make sense without Ginny's line about the Crucio, which makes it seem like we should assume they've read the same scene we did. But Harry could just have said they got into a fight and when asked why he threw the curse he could have just said, "I wasn't thinking...Malfoy said Cruci-- and I just did it." Otherwise their conversation is just crazy. No one, not even Harry, is discussing the important element of the bathroom, which wasn't just Harry's curse but Malfoy's breakdown.

I really feel the need to know who the author finds a better character, and I don't think it's been made sufficiently clear.

*snicker* In the director's cut version of the book we'll find out that on the train ride home Michael and Cho broke up because neither of them could stand to be with anyone other than Harry and Ginny.

Notice that when it actually might apply, no-one's talking about what a lunatic Harry is. That's only appropriate when we know he's unjustly accused.
(I hope that Crabbe and Goyle were pissed.)

I so hope Crabbe and Goyle get to make Harry feel shamed and stupid in book 7. Don't ask me how.

[baeraad.livejournal.com]

*"He fell to his knees beside Malfoy, who was shaking uncontrollably in a pool of his own blood." Awesome. Especially when Myrtle starts screaming MURDER! MURDER IN THE BATHROOM!

I love Myrtle. I really do. She's such a completely self-centered, melodramatic, unpleasant person, and she seems to take such a pleasure in it. I bet she became a ghost just to be contrary - people who die are supposed to disappear, so damned if she will. :D

*Harry doesn’t need Hermione yelling at him, because he feels badly enough for letting the team down by not being able to play Quidditch. I’m sorry, did I dream the scene where Harry almost killed someone in a sea of blood and water?

I never quite realised just how freaking disturbing that was before. It's not that the concept of morals is entirely absent, but it's limited to Harry assuring us that he wouldn't have used that spell if he knew what it did. No remorse, no regret, just an admission of having made a mistake so half-hearted that a politician would be ashamed of it.

(*sighs*) Now, I'm sure JKR isn't in fact a sociopath and that if she mistakingly almost disemboweled someone, she'd feel very bad about it. But she just can't put herself in her hero's place except on the most shallow level - Harry wants to play Quidditch, and he can't play Quidditch, so he feels bad about that. By the same principle, Ginny is constantly in his thoughts - whenever she is right in front of him.

The general impression is that wizards are all unbelievably shallow and react only to direct stimuli. No introspection here, that would probably make their heads explode. =]

*Ginny rips open her shirt to reveal the tattoo saying HARRY’S IDEAL GIRL across her chest.

Damn it, teenage Voldemort! Couldn't you have made a homocidal diary thing that actually worked? You could have spared us from all this! I'm holding you personally responsible for every time Ginny saps my will to live!

My girlfriend says it’s lucky I had something good up my sleeve!

You know, was there an actual reason why Expelliarmus wouldn't have worked? Unforgivables are supposed to be pretty hefty magic. Can not-terribly-talented sixteen-year-olds do them without wands? I doubt it.

But then, I don't really see why wizards duelling don't only cast Expelliarmus at each other until one of them succeeds. Surely the ultimate attack is one which cripples the enemy's ability to do, well, anything at all, really.

Dean feeling properly inadequate and inferior to Harry in Ginny’s eyes? Check.

Poor Dean. Mind you, if I were him, I'd be thanking the stars for my near escape... =]

[sistermagpie.livejournal.com]

No remorse, no regret, just an admission of having made a mistake so half-hearted that a politician would be ashamed of it.

Exactly--and I think it probably, or at least hopefully, is as is said elsewhere in the thread, that she's just saving up that whole line of thought for the Seventh book. But it still makes for some weird, disjointed emotions now. But that's happened before--emotions generally follow whatever plot developments need to happen. It's just easier to do that with things like hurt feelings than it is with actual near-death!

[bigmamag.livejournal.com]

In regards to "heart and soul of the team" it's actually "life and soul" and I read that in Brit-speak that doesn't mean the Amercain "heart and soul" like someone who spiritually has impact on those around her, but like a person at the center of attention, making jokes, spectacles, and garnering such attention to the point of being obnoxious. So JKR might just be saying that Ginny's trying to get everyone to look at her (or more specifically, Harry).

Or I could be giving credit where credit is not due. ::shrugs::

[sistermagpie.livejournal.com]

That actually does make a difference--thanks! I probably read "life and soul" and mentally translated it into "heart and soul." So it's probably more like saying Ginny was the life of the party rather than the beloved spiritual center of anything. Though it's still annoying to read about.:)

Re: sistermagpie+ a question+ my recap

[elanor-x.livejournal.com]

* Good little children never whisper in class. Those who do deserve what they get.

LOL. Only if they are in Slytherin!

*Whoever that axe belonged to he’s got a soul-mate in blood-stained Harry, who’s also come to the room to hide the weapon.

LOL.One of my favorites.

*Oh look, an animal somebody hid in here and left to die. Hagrid? Is this one of your five-legged friends?

From mugglenet:
Quintaped XXXXX
Ministry of Magic Classification:XXXXX - Known wizard killer / impossible to train or domesticate.
Legend states that the Quintaped came about as the result of a feud between two wizarding families on the Isle of Drear, Scotland. The McClivert clan are said to have transfigured the whole of the MacBoon clan into hideous beasts in a revenge attack. It is unclear whether this is true or not, but the Quintaped is sometimes known as the Hairy MacBoon, and nobody can get near enough to one without being killed to attempt to untransfigure it. The Quintaped is large, hairy and looks like a five-legged spider. It is extremely aggressive and has a particular taste for human flesh, as the McCliverts found to their cost (if the legend is true).

*The Gryffindor mind works in mysterious ways. Faced with Harry finding Draco Malfoy in the bathroom CRYING over VOLDEMORT and then almost KILLING HIM, they’re arguing about Quidditch.
& Nor will they look at each other EVER. AGAIN. FOR. THE. ENTIRE. BOOK. WTF?

JKR just wants to keep Malfoy's storyline for the last book & decided to simply ignore it here, even if it's highly unrealistic & makes Gryffindors and everybody else seem more than slightly insane.

*On the other hand, maybe they’re just all scared of the hard, blazing look on Ginny’s face. Is that supposed to be attractive?

It is supposed to show that she is a true brave Gryffindor somehow, I am sure.
My own recap is here:
http://elanor-x.livejournal.com/1811.html#cutid1

*What does ASAP mean?

Re: sistermagpie+ a question+ my recap

[sistermagpie.livejournal.com]

Sorry-ASAP=as soon as possible.

I have definitely been hoping for just that reason for the way Harry's written here, that JKR is just planning for that in the last book. Storywise it makes sense given the way JKR usually writes, where emotions are clearly dealt with according to plot instead of in a more natural way. I can easily imagine the outline just not having room for Harry to ever think about Malfoy until it's supposed to be the focus. It still winds up really crazy in this book though, especially when there's no description of Harry even seeing Draco again, like it was no big deal when he came back to class. Unlike the big deal of Malfoy coming back to class in PoA.

[sarahtales.livejournal.com]

Oh now, Sister M, the Liquid Count's missing something. Harry and Ginny swapped a lot of spit in those several sunlit days. How could you have forgotten that?

I wonder if part of the reason Dean's interesting backstory got cut out of the books is because JKR thought we might get distracted feeling sorry for the guy who is getting to see someone he probably considers a friend (since Dean is not retarded like Harry) Frenching the girl he only just broke up with. No, what am I saying, JKR doesn't seem to have considered we might be too busy screaming our heads off about the guy who almost got killed to care in the least who's kissing who.

I also resent the fact I have to fanwank the main characters. Draco and Snape I can leave pretty much as is: yes they do terrible things but they're sorry and both the text and I acknowledge this. I am not living in some sort of moral vacuum down in the dungeons. But here goes: Harry didn't tell anyone about Draco crying, which is a good thing since Draco would have been mortified and his privacy has been outraged enough and anyway Harry would probably feel deeply uncomfy talking about such an outburst, manly man that he is. (Yes, yes, no-one's quick like Gaston, no-one's slick like Gaston, etc.)

Still, it makes me feel better about Ron and Hermione, since as slinkhard said the effect is to make them think Malfoy whipped out Cruciatus unprovoked. In any case, I like the way Ron is decidedly quiet during this scene. I like to think he may actually be overwhelmed by what has happened and unsure of how to react. The time I most recall him speaking is when Harry is like he wouldn't have done it even to Malfoy, the least horrific thing Harry says, and Ron is like Yes wouldn't have done it! And Hermione, well, at least she's protesting. Unlike wildly compassionate Ginny. (Look, she'd be compassionate if he deserved it, OK? i.e., if he was Harry. Damn that Malfoy and that Smith, will they never learn to just be Harry?)

No, no, sorry, I was fanwanking. Ginny is younger than the others and much less used to serious life-threatening situations and raised with the twins to be cavalier about human life (never mind that pre-OotP Ginny seemed to be genuinely nice, no thoughts of pre-OotP Ginny, I'll only cry. [Come now, my love, my own, my only!]) So I can try to forgive her for talking like a thoughtless bitch, but my God, this is the scene that killed H/G for me forever. Haven't liked it since OotP but this scene convinced me they should be with anyone rather than each other. If Ginny is the kind of girl who when she really likes a guy she sees most things he does as godly and perfect, that's kind of cute and lame. Unless the guy is not properly socialised and morally walking the freakin' edge. And the last thing Harry needs is for his behaviour to be validated by his lovebunny, since the wizarding world has been giving him passes for blowing up his aunt etc. since he was eleven and it's doing him no manner of good at all.

[sarahtales.livejournal.com]

(I'm so embarrassed. This never happens to me, honestly, baby.)

Fanwanking Harry: well, as aforesaid, I have to just think JKR is taking the piss about perfect boyfriendage, because I have to believe Harry's messed up to forgive him this one. Not only is he psychotically attached to a book (IT CAN BE DADDY!), he can't see the world as anything but black and white, so when something like this happens that literally can't be painted into Harry's mind as him being Draco's victim he just has to erase it (and Draco!) from existence. Draco may be able to compartmentalise his thoughts. Harry can chuck his down a black hole if they don't suit. He's the good guy and that's the way it has to be. I mean, the fact that Harry goes from stalking him to just playing that he doesn't exist does seem like brutally suppressed guilt to me. I just pray that the message of the books isn't really to agree with Harry's stream of consciousness. I hope there will be consequences. (Of course, Draco is messed up in this chapter too, but JKR knows that and I know that and everything's cool!)

I also fanwank that Draco fainted from the bloodloss pretty much as soon as they left the bathroom, so Snape didn't have to linger. Well, people do faint from bloodloss! I feel fine about my decision! Stop looking at me!

My heart breaks for the Slytherins, though. Snape, who unwittingly put the weapon in Harry's hands (might as well have been called Burnius Snapius, that spell) and Pansy and Crabbe and Goyle. My God, their friend has been falling apart! And then this guy tore him apart! And nobody did anything about it, he hasn't been restrained, STOP POTTER BEFORE HE KILLS AGAIN! Tell you what, at least some of that house who laugh with and get prefected by Draco now definitely have an alternate theory for what happened to Cedric Diggory in that graveyard.

That's all I want, consequences. I don't want to see Harry ripped open, any more than I want to see Draco cursed by a necklace. I just want Harry to realise what he's done, and say 'YOU DON'T KNOW WHAT I'VE DONE TERRIBLE THINGS' instead of 'detention for evisceration? Once again, oppressed by the system!' (Is it pathetic that I'm so grateful McGonagall told the bitch to suck it up?) I just want some Slytherins to say, we joined any side but YOURS, or Dean saying, I'm going back to the Muggle world and you can suck it, you were a creep to me, or Zacharias Smith saying, oh, I'll find that Hufflepuff cup for you as soon as you put that savage bitch of a girlfriend of yours down. Actions! Have! Consequences!

I will end my rant. I just do want to say that this realisation of yours cheered me:

I will point out one thing interesting, which is that apparently Slytherin is the one house not in the running in this, the year that Malfoy stopped playing. If he bought his way onto the team, it was the best investment that team ever made.

He's the heart and soul of the team! And he did the fucking impressions first, damn it! And he shows some evidence of actually having a heart and soul! (he'sHarry'sidealgirl.)

[violaswamp.livejournal.com]

I just want Harry to realise what he's done, and say 'YOU DON'T KNOW WHAT I'VE DONE TERRIBLE THINGS' instead of 'detention for evisceration? Once again, oppressed by the system!' (Is it pathetic that I'm so grateful McGonagall told the bitch to suck it up?) I just want some Slytherins to say, we joined any side but YOURS, or Dean saying, I'm going back to the Muggle world and you can suck it, you were a creep to me, or Zacharias Smith saying, oh, I'll find that Hufflepuff cup for you as soon as you put that savage bitch of a girlfriend of yours down. Actions! Have! Consequences!

A very nice summation. I really don't mind Harry acting like a fucked up little jackass. I just mind that people don't call him on it when he does--and if they do then Ginny Sue puts the righteous smackdown on them, because OMG how could you criticize the Chosen One (*gag*)?

[sarahtales.livejournal.com]

It's so weird - because on one hand after reading HBP Draco I feel like JKR has learned her moral values on my planet, which I haven't really ever felt before. Not that I feel morally offended all the way through the books, I just never thought we were on the same frequency.

But reading the HBP Gryffindors, I'm just left saying 'but... is the message that... morality is only applied to the evil?'

[sistermagpie.livejournal.com]

That's why it's so annoying not seeing the Slytherin pov in this book. Like I know some people have described Crabbe as being, like, mutinous in this book, as if he's finally had enough of Malfoy, but to me it seems like the opposite, that when Crabbe's starting to argue or whatever it's showing us that he's worried about Draco. After all, Crabbe and Goyle aren't much suffering here. Okay, maybe they'd prefer to not be in dresses (or maybe not...) and they want their Seeker back but honestly, they seem like they've always had more normal priorities when it came to Draco's well-being. They might not be Florence Nightingales but they're more Ron-like in their reactions to the suffering of their friend, at least. They all know he's working for Voldemort and think that's a good thing, but now he's turning grey and losing weight and not sleeping or eating and has pink eyes and don't tell me he hasn't been having little breakdowns with them--I mean, not the full crying-in-the-bathroom type but he's going to be showing little cracks.

That post-Sectumsempra scene was the moment on the first readthrough where I knew H/G was about to happen and oh, how depressing that this heralded it. It was just so obvious that was Ginny proving she was the only right person for Harry and...how bad is that? Especially because she doesn't even come across like Pansy, who seems like she just takes on sort of Mummy's role with Draco. Like she's always there to comfort him even when he screwed up. I guess because in Ginny's case there's the whole moral weight behind her. With Draco he's usually been beaten and Pansy would be trying to make up for that. With Harry he's already won and Ginny's there trying to stomp out any impulse to show a little compassion.

THANK YOU!

[flyingskull.livejournal.com]

Thanks, mistful you just said what I could never but never express half as well, which just goes to show you're the writer, not me (but that's so glaringly obvious I feel a bit like Monsieur de Lapalisse).

In a world where actions have no consequences, people fight for the love of it or for the hell of it; they certainly aren't 'fighting evil' in any sense of the expression. If they were, they'd fight themselves like crazy, that they would.

P.S. Agree with Magpie and you about Draco and the Quidditch team. Also about the impressions. That boy has got to have hidden depths!

P.P.S. For the sake of Fantasy and the role of the Hero, I wish JKR's Harry had some hidden depths as well. Oh, well, there's always Maya's fics.

[skelkins.livejournal.com]

Dean looks unhappy too. But I’ll bet Ginny doesn’t. We’ve got to be clear who’s the loser in these sorts of relationships.

Isn't making Dean unhappy what Harry's notorious chest monster was all about in the first place? Growl! Smash Dean! Make him hurt! And then, after nearly killing Draco Malfoy, he's so excited that he kisses Ginny!

I swear, you don't even need any special goggles to read a totally fucked up sadistic version of a slash dynamic in Harry's expressions of sexuality here. His libido doesn't even really seem to have anything to do with girls. It's hurting other boys that really gets him all hot and bothered. He's a little sadist, is our Harry.

If he bought his way onto the team, it was the best investment that team ever made.

And yet, fandom would have it that he's rubbish at the game, even though Harry himself thinks that he's very good. But that's just the "Harry Filter!" Yeah, because Harry's POV is always just steeped in pro-Malfoy bias in these books.

Can you imagine Snape’s face when he heard that, btw?

LOL! Do you think if Draco had died, it would have constituted a violation of his vow to do his best to protect him from harm?' (And on that subject, isn't "to the best of your ability" rather wafflish language for a magical oath?) I somehow doubt that back when Snape made that Unbreakable Vow, he was even considering the possibility that it might cause him to drop dead right in the middle of the school year due to the Malfoy kid getting himself murdered by another student in the bathroom.

Although really, you know, it probably should have.

Harry felt stunned. He’d almost killed Malfoy, whom he’d known since he was 11 and yet never really spoken to, he had…oh wait, sorry, my mistake.

But remember, kids! Harry's great power is the power of Love!

Love is a very ruthless thing, you know.

On the other hand, maybe they’re just all scared of the hard, blazing look on Ginny’s face. Is that supposed to be attractive?

See above. Love is a very ruthless thing. Of course "hard and blazing" is attractive! It shows that Ginny might have what it takes to become a remorseless killer herself someday, which in turn is obviously a signifier of love!

[violaswamp.livejournal.com]

I swear, you don't even need any special goggles to read a totally fucked up sadistic version of a slash dynamic in Harry's expressions of sexuality here.

Heh. I keep wondering: is this deliberate, or is JKR just terrible at writing attraction to girls?

But that's just the "Harry Filter!"

Seriously. I think the HF excuse is getting stretched more than a little thin, to excuse bad writing.

[skelkins.livejournal.com]

Hah! Probably true. I don't get the impression that Rowling's attracted to women at all. She doesn't even write her ostensibly gorgeous female characters in a way that really makes the reader feel that they're genuinely attractive. It's like...they're always just "pretty." Uh, that's nice, but it's not really a description that seems at all appropriate for genuine stunners like Fleur. It could just be one of her blind spots.

I also think she may be overcompensating a bit in an attempt to make Harry seem "believable" as a boy in accordance with her own highly rigid and conservative notions of gendered behavior. I can just imagine her telling herself: "Now, remember, Jo. Male sexuality is competitive! It's really, really competitive, and it's all about combat and certamen and triumph, and other manly stuff like that. So be sure to remember to tie the romantic subplot into Harry's competetive drives all the time, right? 'Cause otherwise, he won't seem enough like a real boy!"

Seriously. I think the HF excuse is getting stretched more than a little thin, to excuse bad writing.

The Harry Filter is like the deus ex machina of HP meta. Can't find a way to support your preferred reading with the actual words on the page? That's okay! Just whip out the Harry Filter! It's a panacea and a dessert topping!

[jollityfarm.livejournal.com]

I have always said that Rowling seems like a real man's woman, and probably heterosexual to the point of not really being able to comprehend attraction to women. She understands that straight men, such as what Harry is suppoed to be, are meant to find ladies attractive and want to sleep with them, but I don't think she comprehends what that's all about :/

As for the Harry Filter, everyone in the books seems to have it.

[sistermagpie.livejournal.com]

I swear, you don't even need any special goggles to read a totally fucked up sadistic version of a slash dynamic in Harry's expressions of sexuality here. His libido doesn't even really seem to have anything to do with girls. It's hurting other boys that really gets him all hot and bothered. He's a little sadist, is our Harry.

It's just too funny because what is that? I figure it is probably at least partly just a blindspot. This is a woman who's very open about how simple and uniform everyone's experiences in this area are: women always like bad boys, you need experience before you get with your true love, all the girls are schemers, all the boys are clueless. Her own attractive girls are obviously attractive just because they're her favorites, unless they're designated pretty girls who are bland and ultimately forgettable but the boys get momentarily distracted by them because they're, eh, pretty.

Although really, you know, it probably should have.

Oh god yes. The only kid whose less of a good candidate for this kind of Vow is Harry Potter himself--and at least he's got the Hero's Battle Death Exemption going for him.

It shows that Ginny might have what it takes to become a remorseless killer herself someday, which in turn is obviously a signifier of love!

Someday? I'd say she's had that locked up since she tranmogrified in OotP!

[skelkins.livejournal.com]

You mean ever since she ruthlessly murdered the real Ginny and buried her out in the forest?

Good point.

::mourns poor lost Likable!Ginny::

[aewyn7.livejournal.com]

Hi, lurker here, I found this community a while ago and I love the comments here! I hope you don’t mind me barging in!

I found this chapter incredibly frustrating - there’s an interesting subplot and intriguing characters, but do we actually get to read about them? No, of course not. Instead, we get dull and dreadfully written Gryffindor drama about Quidditch and who snogs who. Yay, Gryffindor wins the Quidditch Cup - again! Just like in all previous years! Amazing! And Harry and Ginny Sue - the love story of the century! She has a hard, blazing look and Harry kisses her in front of the whole Gryffindor house and it seems like several sunlit days and it’s totally romantic! This is twu wuw!

Why, oh why, couldn’t these books be told from Draco’s or Snape’s point of view!?!

And I have to admit I don’t understand JKR’s idea of an ideal romantic partner at all. Ginny, for all her spunk and sass, doesn’t really have much of a personality, or opinions of her own or anything, really - she’s whatever Harry needs at the time. Harry needs someone to defend him when he nearly killed another person and there Ginny is, embarrassing Hermione for having the gall to criticise her man, and congratulating him for having “something good up his sleeve”. Er, Ginny, Sectumsempra isn’t something good - it’s dark magic. But apparently dark magic is evil only when used by evil people. Since Harry is good, obviously any dark spell he sees fit to use is good too.

And really, is Quidditch really the only thing anyone in these books cares about? Harry eviscerates another human being, he’s totally shocked for a second or two, and immediately after that he’s worried about his precious book and Quidditch, when he’s standing in somebody else’s blood, for heavens’ sake. And we’re supposed to believe that Harry’s amazing powers of love and compassion will save Wizarding World from Voldemort. The Wizarding World is doomed if you ask me.

Oh, and not only is Harry frighteningly cold-blooded and callous about nearly killing someone, he really isn't too smart either. I mean, he’s telling very feeble lies about Roonil Wazlib being his nickname to a competent Legilimens, knowing that’s he’s rubbish at Occlumency. That really wasn’t one of Harry’s brighter moments.

[sunnyskywalker]

Maybe the heavy, bloodstained axe is the one that nearly beheaded Nick. No idea why it would be in the RoR, but why not? It seems like just about everything else is in that room. Mabye one of Nick's friends put it there in hopes that someday, if they had the original axe, they could come up with a spell to chop off Nick's ghostly head completely so he could join the Headless Hunt. (I think even reading about Nick's quest to play polo with his head would be better than reading about H/G's first kiss.)

[sistermagpie.livejournal.com]

I'd probably prefer a whole chapter to the committee that decides who gets to go on the Headless Hunt rather than H/G.

[parenthesised.livejournal.com]

maybe it was the weapon used by new!Ginny on her former self...

[t0ra-chan.livejournal.com]

This chapter makes me so torn; on one hand Draco and Snape (Yay!), on the other hand it's all wrapped in H/G and Harry being an asshole (Boo!).

*Harry still hasn’t gotten a chance to try Sectumsempra, because he hasn’t had a clear shot at MacLaggen without Hermione around. And it’s not like he could try the spell out on his own, like on a pillow or something. Tests without human subjects other than yourself are for cowards.

I think it's rich that Harry doesn't want to hex McClaggen in front of Hermione, when she hexed him in an earlier chapter. Of course it has nothing to do with not hexing people for fun, but because Hermione would get on his case for using spells from the HBP. Not like she said anything about him hexing Crabbe or Filch earlier either.

*And everyone’s highly amused by her imitations of Harry yelling at MacLaggen before he got knocked out…wait, wouldn’t those be Dean’s imitations? The ones that made her fight with him before? Well, that’s the way it is when you’re the wife of the Chosen One. It’s funny when you poke fun at him, but if anyone else shows something less than respect it’s, well, it’s mutinous is what it is, and must be quashed.

Dean didn't even do imitations, he just laughed. Anyway, love how Ginny's imitations are always portrait as hilarious whereas Draco's are just mean even though they sound to be much more acurate and funnier than Ginny's.

*And if he doesn’t do it soon someone else will ask Ginny out. Someone who doesn’t seem to think he can’t ask a girl out unless the moon and stars align just so, and they’re both invited to a dinner party together while Ron’s kept at a distance. Maybe Prince William will come to Hogwarts and ask her out. Who on earth wouldn’t want Ginny?

And Ginny of course would just say yes to any guy who asks her out, not like she has a say in this matter.

*Can you believe that Pansy Parkinson, vilifying Harry? I wonder what terrible lies she’s made up to make Harry sound bad.

Now finally people have real dirt on Harry and hardly anyone uses it. Before that they were ganging up on him for the silliest stuff, but when he almost kills someone with little to no remorse, they all forget about it once he shoves his tongue down Ginny's throat.