HBP Chapter Twenty-Six
Sep. 8th, 2006 11:37 am![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
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deathtocapslock*Harry and Dumbledore seem to have Apparated themselves into an entirely different book. Suddenly we’ve got cliffs and the sea and salty air. It’s so not the kind of place Harry usually goes. I feel like there should be tourists.
*Harry can’t believe the orphanage brought the kids to this place for a day trip because it looks dangerous. How Muggle of him. A wizard would probably be thinking, "Well, the jagged cliffs and the steep drop into the sea is all right, but isn’t there a sea monster that could eat them?"
*Tom’s a pretty badass magician at ten, getting two children and himself down a cliff face. Harry doesn’t seem to have much idea how to do it magically at 17.
*Dumbledore’s tale of how Tom brought the children this way just to scare them because he’s a psychopath makes you wonder why Dumbledore’s brought Harry the same way.
*I’ll bet Harry’s water-logged clothes billowed around him. Swimming in a robe must be really unpleasant.
*I honestly can’t remember where Harry stands on the swimming question at this point. I seem to remember being told he wasn’t allowed to take lessons with Dudley when he had to face the Second Task, but he seems pretty handy at it now. Did the mermaids just give him that kind of confidence that’s a synonym for skill?
*Maybe this is because I just saw the movie Talk to Her, which features a version of this, but damn, Harry and Dumbledore appear to be entering a big rock vagina. No wonder it’s so cold and unwelcoming. Isn’t there a nice pillar Harry could climb instead?
*How can Dumbledore tell this is the place? It has known magic. In that way that lots of fantasy series can have things know magic but has never really been suggested in this one. Luckily I’ve read it enough in fanfic that it’s not too jarring. They’ll be breaking through webs of wards in no time.
*Once Harry hears that he can totally feel the magic too. Mm-hmm. Very sensitive to enchantment, is Harry. Not.
*Dumbledore and Harry are still in the ante-chamber, and must penetrate the inner place, where the real danger lies. It’s like the Cave of H/G metaphor!
*Honestly, this is the second scary, cold, cave full of monsters that Harry’s been in while being connected to his ideal girl in some way. How many more signs from the universe does the boy need? A rain of Judy Garland records?
*Of course, both caves were made scary by the presence of handsome Tom Riddle. He’s the one that makes all this seem cold and barren! Once he’s vanquished all these dark slits and tunnels and inner places will seem cozy and warm! These are Voldemort’s obstacles, not nature-made!
*Harry’s never seen anyone work things out like Dumbledore does here, by running fingers over things and not saying anything. Harry explains this by saying bangs and smoke are really a sign of ineptitude, but that’s not really the point, is it? We’ve seen plenty of people work magic smoothly and quietly before. What we’ve never seen is any hint of being able to work out Braille spell codes or whatever Dumbledore’s doing here. If I were Harry I’d be demanding to know exactly what discipline this was and why it wasn’t taught at Hogwarts, the only school there is.
*Dumbledore apologizes for forgetting the Power the Dark Lord Knows Not that Harry has in spades does not include elementary comfort spells, so he can’t dry himself off after swimming.
*Dumbledore’s all disdainful about Tom’s password protection on his cave. "Oh, blood magic. So crude." This from a guy whose office is open to anyone with half a brain and a sweet tooth.
*Good thing Tom didn’t use the Slytherin method, huh? Stare at the rock and say "Genocide."
*The darkness in the cave is somehow denser than normal darkness. I believe the technical term for this is "scary dark."
*Hold the phone. Harry just asked a logical question about summoning charms.
*Dumbledore wears buckled shoes? Like Ben Franklin style buckle shoes?
*Magic always leaves traces, Dumbledore says again. Also he knows the style of the kids I taught—back when I was forced to deal with non Chosen Ones at Hogwarts. Look Harry, I’ve got like one more chapter to be alive in this series and I’ve got to reveal all my highly advanced wizard powers and magical genius you’ve only heard about before I kick the bucket, so expect a lot of this.
*Harry makes another logical deduction, this time about weight. Apparently any time Harry says something halfway smart he’s going to be wrong.
*Which is probably why Harry doesn’t ask Dumbledore if there’s not some way they can fly over the water.
*Harry’s powers won’t register compared to Dumbledore’s? That sounds like a diss on the Chosen One to me. I think a fight is in order!
*Voldemort’s mistake, says Dumbledore, is that age is foolish and forgetful when it underestimates youth. It’s Voldemort’s mistake because Dumbledore would never make such a mistake. Or…would he? Mwahahaha!
*Dumbledore totally gets off on Harry being freaked out by things that he can then be calm about: Yup, knew that was there. Never occurs to him to just warn Harry. Not that I can fault him too much for that. Dramatically it’s the only choice. But still, it fits his character too, and if Draco Malfoy were the Chosen One (heaven forbid) he’d be making sarcastic comments at him about it.
*Dumbledore continues to drop just enough hints at the dangers they’ll be facing to freak Harry out without calming him down. Again, I know this is dramatically good for the author, but it still says a whole lot about Dumbledore’s style. He’s all about nobody else knowing anything and letting him take care of it. Oh, you don’t have to know about the bodies under the water because I don’t think they’ll be a problem yet. So I won’t tell you what they are and what to do if I’m wrong and one jumps out at you.
*Dumbledore explains there’s nothing to fear in a body or in darkness. Common sense, really. It’s not like the body could be a zombie attacking you in a magical darkness with powers all its own…oh wait, YES IT COULD!
*Harry clicks into his "Woe is me I shall never see the warmth of Hogwarts and my friends again!" At least there’s the small comfort that he didn’t have a good-bye scene with Ginny.
*Harry can’t pretend now that he isn’t scared. Well, given that he’s traveling with the Crypt Keeper, you can hardly blame him. Anyway, they finally arrive at the bird bath of doom, which appears to be filled with radioactive goo.
*The Horcrux is guarded by magic so mysterious it can only be broken through by a super genius powerful wizard mumbling and waving his hands in ways we could never understand. Too bad they didn’t use Voldemort’s Security Firm when they were trying to keep people from that Philosopher’s Stone that was protected by a series of puzzles tailored to the talents of three 11-year-olds.
*Nice little mention of Dumbledore’s "insane" need to see the good in
*Dumbledore’s concluded he’s got to drink the Potion. Doesn’t even try getting rid of it in some other way, like pouring it out, spitting it out or vomiting it back up. Wouldn’t it be funny if Dumbledore was sort of killed by his own confidence that he couldn’t be wrong? Oh wait; he kind of was killed by that anyway.
*Ooh. Listening to Dumbledore explain how Voldemort would want to keep someone alive for a while after they penetrated their defenses makes me really look forward to the Regulus story! How on earth did he manage to leave a note? He’s the best wizard ever!
*Harry wonders: was this why he was brought along? So he could force feed Dumbledore a Potion that would cause him unendurable pain? Well, that’s what the readers are hoping Harry, because it’s the best thing you do on this trip.
*Harry and Snape could have such good bitch sessions about Dumbledore if they didn’t hate each other.
*Harry asks if he couldn’t drink the Potion, which sounds all sacrificial and brave but you know, if I were in Harry’s place I’d want to be the one to drink it because I’d think Dumbledore had a far better chance of getting me out and fixing me than I had of getting out alive once Dumbledore was Potioned.
*Hating himself, repulsed by what he was doing…blah blah, like Snape on the Tower, right? Right.
*Yes, this’ll make it stop lied Harry (as he should). But it doesn’t count cause remember how he told the truth about not having an Apparition license?
*It’s lucky that for all Dumbledore’s horrors as a result of the Potion, he’s quite willing to drink it. What would Harry have done if he’d actually fought him?
*Kill me! Kill me! Kill me! Foreshadowing of the Tower more? You decide.
*Zombies appear and Harry goes for…Sectumsempra? So I guess that bloody scene in the bathroom was just a try-out that got a little out of hand? He goes for the Dark Magic? He seems to have taken to that spell really well.
*Dumbledore comes through with a fire spell. I don’t blame Harry for forgetting what Dumbledore said about fire. Given the way it was delivered, it’s not surprising Harry wouldn’t remember it (note that I’m not claiming Harry deserves to be eaten by zombies for not retaining carelessly given instructions about them. I’M LOOKING AT YOU, HAGRID!).
*Anyway, given that Harry has forgotten fire it’s interesting to see where his own instincts take him. I’m surprised he’s not Crucio-ing, to be honest.
*The zombies, unfortunately, have no blood to spill. Unlike Malfoy. Mmmm. Beautiful pure blood spilling in scarlet rivers over the cracked stone floor. Totally worth a mild twinge of conscience…
*Dumbledore says he is not worried, as he is with Harry. A bit of empty flattery given that Dumbledore just saved Harry’s arse with the Inferi after Harry panicked. If he wasn’t such a consistently smarmy git when it comes to Harry I’d think Dumbledore was being sarcastic.
*Which in turn makes me think how funny this trip would have been if it had been Snape and Harry.
The Cricket Rule
Day-for-Night
Oh, you know these got a big workout.
IITS
Is there a reason we’ve Apparated halfway down a cliff? It looks cool? Okay, that’ll have to do. Mis-en-scene.
Informed Attributes
I am not worried, Harry. I am with you. But more importantly, the danger has passed.
James Bond Exposition Rule
You see, Harry, the green goo can’t be immediately fatal, because Voldemort would need the person to stay alive long enough so he could track him down and meticulously reveal his master plan before leaving him to die alone.
Ken and Andrew’s Rule of Plot Holes
And then Dumbledore found the entrance to the cave by moving his fingers around mysteriously and being an old man with a white beard. Make up your own magical physics to explain what the hell he’s doing.
Final score: 4
Slytherin Liquid count: Swimming, boats, a dark lake, glowing green goo, wet and shivering!Harry, Potion of Bad Dreams and finally, nasty lake zombies driven away by good clean fire!
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Date: 2006-09-08 04:13 pm (UTC)Indeed (http://community.livejournal.com/deathtocapslock/13444.html?thread=349828#t349828)
Harry can’t believe the orphanage brought the kids to this place for a day trip because it looks dangerous.
Dangerous? As compared to giving one of your wards to the strange, flamboyantly dressed man who plied you with drink, with no waiting period or background check? This is the era when cot-death was a cost-cutting measure.
Dumbledore’s tale of how Tom brought the children this way just to scare them because he’s a psychopath makes you wonder why Dumbledore’s brought Harry the same way.
You know, I totally missed that, but in the hands of a GOOD writer that would be an amazingly subtle bit of work. That's the sort of thing that makes me hold out weird little bits of hope for book 7.
It has known magic.
See? Abstinence-only education for caves could have prevented all this!
Dumbledore’s concluded he’s got to drink the Potion. Doesn’t even try getting rid of it in some other way, like pouring it out, spitting it out or vomiting it back up.
It's almost as if he has personal experience in the ways of this particular bit of Dark Magic.
no subject
Date: 2006-09-08 06:26 pm (UTC)I just got a creepy Harry/Dumbledore image seered into my brain. EEEEWWWW!
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Date: 2006-09-08 06:43 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-09-08 06:00 pm (UTC)Tom is super talented,stupendous, a genius and extremely handsome. And Harry has...GINNY! How could Harry lose? You know how he will win? Tom will trip over his super-pimp muumuu wizard robe, thereby causing a spell to go awry and Harry will hit him with the Bat Bogey Hex. Yes, Ginny is the most talented witch of her age. She works the Snot like noone else.
*Dumbledore’s all disdainful about Tom’s password protection on his cave. "Oh, blood magic. So crude." This from a guy whose office is open to anyone with half a brain and a sweet tooth.
But Tonks is still wandering outside his office.
*Harry clicks into his "Woe is me I shall never see the warmth of Hogwarts and my friends again!" At least there’s the small comfort that he didn’t have a good-bye scene with Ginny.
Thank the powers that be for small favors. Sadly this is only a forestalling. Sigh.
*Zombies appear and Harry goes for…Sectumsempra? So I guess that bloody scene in the bathroom was just a try-out that got a little out of hand? He goes for the Dark Magic? He seems to have taken to that spell really well.
Then again maybe H/G will create a new spell to get evil one, the Sectumbogeysempra. The Snot will cover the floors. Horrific scenes of White Magic in action!
*Dumbledore says he is not worried, as he is with Harry. A bit of empty flattery given that Dumbledore just saved Harry’s arse with the Inferi after Harry panicked. If he wasn’t such a consistently smarmy git when it comes to Harry I’d think Dumbledore was being sarcastic.
I thought this comment was a joke when I first read it. But it wasn't, it was way serious. Dumbledore is just another fangirl of the Chosen One.
*Which in turn makes me think how funny this trip would have been if it had been Snape and Harry.
Oh sigh, for what might have been.
no subject
Date: 2006-09-08 06:21 pm (UTC)Vagina dentata, vagina dentata!!
*Dumbledore apologizes for forgetting the Power the Dark Lord Knows Not that Harry has in spades does not include elementary comfort spells, so he can’t dry himself off after swimming.
Hasn’t Hermione done a drying charm at some point in this series? Or is that total fanon?
*Voldemort’s mistake, says Dumbledore, is that age is foolish and forgetful when it underestimates youth. It’s Voldemort’s mistake because Dumbledore would never make such a mistake. Or…would he? Mwahahaha!
Oh, my God, I so never connected that! Ten billion points to Draco.
*Harry clicks into his "Woe is me I shall never see the warmth of Hogwarts and my friends again!" At least there’s the small comfort that he didn’t have a good-bye scene with Ginny.
You wonder if this was maybe because Rowling tried to write a segment of emotional intereaction betwen them and just failed. Because with where Ginny is as a character now, I can see Harry attempting some sort of overly dramatic goodbye speech as she stood by and filed her nails. Coolly.
*Dumbledore’s concluded he’s got to drink the Potion. Doesn’t even try getting rid of it in some other way, like pouring it out, spitting it out or vomiting it back up. Wouldn’t it be funny if Dumbledore was sort of killed by his own confidence that he couldn’t be wrong? Oh wait; he kind of was killed by that anyway.
You know, if Dumbledore was less of an egotist, I’d sorta wonder about his motive here. Seeing his he has yet to figure out Draco’s plot and Snape and Draco’s numbers are up if he can’t.
*Which in turn makes me think how funny this trip would have been if it had been Snape and Harry.
I can see it now, "Potter, summon an Inferi. I don’t think the contents of this bowl would have much effect if you’re already dead." "But that's not brave or noble!" "Should be right up your ally then, Potter." THAT WOULD HAVE BEEN BRILLIANT!
no subject
Date: 2006-09-08 07:10 pm (UTC)There was one in OotP I think she maybe even invented? (Christ, I'm remembering details not connected to minor characters or the Slytherins, maybe it's time I took a break from fandom!)
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Date: 2006-09-08 07:26 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-09-08 07:51 pm (UTC)Take that, Slytherin, eh?
I’m surprised he’s not Crucio-ing, to be honest.
Gotta save something for the next couple of chapters! (In fact, I think he tries it twice. Wow, that pure heart must really be broken.)
It’s Voldemort’s mistake because Dumbledore would never make such a mistake. Or…would he? Mwahahaha!
It is a neat parallel, Voldemort also having underestimated Draco, but of course, Dumbledore is wiser than that, having learnt to exploit rather than underestimate youths.
At least there’s the small comfort that he didn’t have a good-bye scene with Ginny.
Romantically, isn't this his second priority after a longer, better goodbye to Ron and Hermione? Ginny's important and an equal, really!
Harry can’t pretend now that he isn’t scared.
Dear me, Harry really isn't very brave at all in this chapter. (I love the part where he's all keen to avoid pain - not in a 'Did you hear that?!' pussy Malfoy-esque way, though - and the
defence lawyerauthorial voice reminds us this is because he's 'experienced enough'. *emo tear*But don't forget twitching after being bounced against stone walls, slashed by razor-sharp talons, flayed, hexed into jelly twice and beaten up is an unforgiveable sign of cowardice.)
I seem to remember being told he wasn’t allowed to take lessons with Dudley when he had to face the Second Task, but he seems pretty handy at it now.
Checking it, yeah, he's not good (because he's never had much practice! He's actually really fast and athletic, and he can run and play Quidditch! It's not a flaw, hear me!) and having never had lessons, could only manage a couple of lengths. (Me, I always thought people who don't know how to swim struggle just being in the water, let alone getting across a bath the size of a pool, but whatever.) But really, my automatic assumption every time we hear about something Harry isn't good at (looking forward to him Apparating two people back to Hogwarts!) is that it's only a matter of time before he becomes a master.
Kill me! Kill me! Kill me! Foreshadowing of the Tower more? You decide.
It kind of makes me LOL how there's all this lecturing about how awful people who are afraid of death and physical pain are (and apparently Voldemort's afraid of the dark, too, according to this chapter? Jeez, what's the point of a final battle when you can just castrate your hero's nemesis right now?) when of course, Gryffindors are just the opposite - the first sign of trouble, and it's 'I WANT TO DIE' (like Harry in OotP).
I think there was discussion on the chapters mentioning Lily about how her living with a dead son and husband could arguably be braver than sacrificing herself and refusing to live in a world without them, and it really seems to apply, with Snape of course as the counterpoint: the guy who gets no respect for doing the grunt work everyday, and will likely earn it by the standards of this series, by of course, heroically dying.
Dumbledore’s all disdainful about Tom’s password protection on his cave. "Oh, blood magic. So crude."
And the wonderfully ironic 'Your blood is worth more than mine, Harry.' Not that blood's important, of course.
no subject
Date: 2006-09-08 09:12 pm (UTC)You would think that he could have said "Just use fire, Harry. That'll do the trick!" Hell no, instead it's some crap like 'they are dark and fear the light'. You're right, I'd LOVE to see Harry and Snape on this trip:
HARRY: Holy s***, something just leaped out of the water!"
SNAPE: Inferi, you idiot. The Chosen One too special to pay attention in class?
HARRY: Sorry, sir but it's creepy.
SNAPE: Deal with it. Use a fire spell if you can manage it. I don't want to join them down there because you're too stupid to cast first-year magic...
God, imagine them at the bird bath of death! They'd probably both drink, Snape intelligently using a regurgitation charm or something to get it out of his system. Hell, better yet, why couldn't he have gone with Lupin? He'd have gotten the locket with simple intelligence, would teach Harry a fine lesson in DADA and have deduced the R.A.B. mystery before the DEs arrive. But then again, there would be no dramatic demise of Dumledore.
Remus Lupin for Headmaster!
no subject
Date: 2006-09-09 01:25 am (UTC)it's a wonder he didn't have flashbacks. considering what it did to Malfoy i don't know why he would be so keen to use it again
btw, you don't diss the Chosen One
no subject
Date: 2006-09-09 06:14 am (UTC)OMG! Don't you know that Dumbledore is The Expert on security? If he says something is safe, it's safe. I mean look at the Philosophers Stone, the way the castle is protected from werewolves, Dementors, Death Eaters, Sirius Black... Dumbledore knows how to handle the security, I tell you. Nobody could get in or out of Hogwarts while DD is at the helm.....
Dumbledore’s concluded he’s got to drink the Potion. Doesn’t even try getting rid of it in some other way, like pouring it out, spitting it out or vomiting it back up.
He couldn't do something so Slytherin! He was a Gryffindor!
Valuing your life is something only E-ville Slyths do. Pouring it out is too cowardly for Gryffs.
Kill me! Kill me! Kill me! Foreshadowing of the Tower more? You decide
Rule 117 of the Gryffindor Code: After doing something risky/stupid when one finds oneself in a powerless position, one must scream 'Kill Me'* so that appearances of bravery can be retained.**
*Variations include "Kill me, like you killed him.", "Is that the best you can do?" and "I dont want to be human!"
**This, despite the fact that your opponent was going to kill you anyway, and now it just looks like you came up with the idea first.
no subject
Date: 2006-09-10 01:38 pm (UTC)If I were Harry I’d be demanding to know exactly what discipline this was and why it wasn’t taught at Hogwarts, the only school there is.
Perhaps it's seventh year magic. Or perhaps our beloved headmaster had some kind of super-secret training. Or maybe he's that awesome that he invents smarty-pants magic all on his own.
Dumbledore wears buckled shoes? Like Ben Franklin style buckle shoes?
PS says that he wears high-heeled shoes.
He’s all about nobody else knowing anything and letting him take care of it.
It's good for drama, and it's good if the readers are aware that this character isn't someone we're supposed to trust that far (like Lord Vetinari in the Discworld series, who is probably more like Dumbledore than like any other HP character). But it's not really so wonderful when we're supposed to believe that this person is the epitome of goodness and sweetness. One may say "There are certain things one has to do" which is fair enough, but if we know those things aren't nice, we don't really suggest any character who does them anyway is a nice person. Good, maybe. On the side of right, perhaps. But not nice, as Dumbledore is supposed to be.
Too bad they didn’t use Voldemort’s Security Firm when they were trying to keep people from that Philosopher’s Stone that was protected by a series of puzzles tailored to the talents of three 11-year-olds.
I would like it if this was all part of some really big-picture thing that leads back to the whole thing being engineered by Dumbledore in the first place. But it was probably just for plot reasons.
no subject
Date: 2006-10-26 02:36 am (UTC)*Dumbledore says he is not worried, as he is with Harry. A bit of empty flattery given that Dumbledore just saved Harry’s arse with the Inferi after Harry panicked. If he wasn’t such a consistently smarmy git when it comes to Harry I’d think Dumbledore was being sarcastic.
*Which in turn makes me think how funny this trip would have been if it had been Snape and Harry.
Go <a=href"http://professor-mum.livejournal.com/">here for an interesting elucidation of just that theory! Far fetched, but brilliant; her linguistic analysis almost convinces me. The ones to look at are "Severus Stands in, Parts One and Two".
no subject
Date: 2006-10-26 02:37 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-11-16 11:04 pm (UTC)http://wkad-staff.livejournal.com/
Same author, same theory, different Lj.