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deathtocapslock2007-01-19 12:21 pm
sistermagpie.livejournal.com) wrote in deathtocapslock2007-01-19 12:21 pm
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PS Chapter Fifteen
*Those lovable scamp kids must set off to the Forbidden Forest on their own, since Dumbledore warned everyone how dangerous is was. God knows no one from the school would allow them anywhere near it! It’s right there in the name!
*Things couldn’t be worse. Hermione’s trembling and they’re going to get detention. This is so unfair. Why can’t they get the kind of detention that’s funny, like Malfoy gets?
*The tallest Astronomy Tower is out of bounds except for classes and underage sex.
*I guess the fact that I wish Harry would tell McGonagall he was only trying to solve a problem Hagrid the Idiot created makes me a Slytherin.
*You have to love McGonagall for thinking Harry tried to trick Malfoy (using Malfoy’s curiosity etc.) and giving him detention for it. Several teachers would have given him a wink and a smile. Or award him the House Cup in a way particularly galling to Malfoy. Which I’m not ruling out for future.
*Why is Neville looking hurt at Harry? Even if Harry had fed Malfoy the story he obviously didn’t do it to trick Neville. It’s not his fault Neville is afraid of being out of bed in the dark. Nobody’s giving Malfoy points for courage for doing the same thing.
*Four students out of bed! McGonagall’s never heard of such a thing before! How long has McGonagall been teaching? Because the most commonplace things regularly bowl her over.
*Is there some reason why it’s especially dangerous to walk around Hogwarts at night "these days"? (As opposed to the year when Voldemort’s back and there’s a curfew and Dumbledore’s giving Harry special assignments that require it?)
*Harry loses 50 points—the same ones he won during the Quidditch match! Why even pretend this competition isn’t all about him?
*Well, they’ve ruined any chance of Gryffindor winning the House Cup. Really. I can’t see any way they’d catch up now. None at all.
*Snevillus is sobbing again.
*From being one of the most popular and admired people in the school, Harry went to being the most hated. Which pretty much goes with the territory of being the most popular and admired. Not that this makes Harry popular. He’s kind of an outcast. A very popular, admired outcast.
*Ron stands by him, apparently being the only kid in school who’s realized the House Cup really doesn’t matter. Make that the only Gryffindor. It’s hard to believe Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw still care. Or at least Ravenclaw.
*If they gave points for being petty and childish, the Gryffindor Quidditch team alone would win the House the Cup.
*Nobody will speak to Neville and Hermione. Which is shocking, because it suggests people other than Harry and Ron spoke to them at one time.
*A week later, Harry’s resolution to not meddle in things is put to the test. Go Harry! That’s my boy!
*Without the Goblins it appears Wizards would have not only no banking but no history classes.
*Harry sees Quirrel leave a room crying and tying his turban, which all but proves Snape must have just been in the empty room with him. It’s a shame Harry can’t produce theories for his own fandom. He’d fit right in!
*Harry finds Hermione quizzing Ron on Astronomy. This is one of the weirdest things about Ron. Everything about him indicates that he’s a boy who would probably hang out with other boys a lot, yet instead he’s been sentenced to 6 years in school with no hint that he’s ever spent the afternoon in a pickup game, or just spent the day with boys his age. When he’s not with Harry he’s always sitting with a humorless nagging girl doing homework. Don’t buy it. Hermione’s been established as having a reason to not have other friends. Ron should realistically have more.
*Ron reckons Snape’s figured out how to get past Fluffy without asking Hagrid. Hagrid…Hagrid…where have I heard that name? Oh yeah! That’s the guy who’s caused all the misery we’ve been hearing about this chapter! Funny we haven’t heard him mentioned until now, like perhaps in a description of the scene where he apologizes to Harry, or one where he goes to McGonagall and admits it was his fault.
*Hermione suggests Harry go to Dumbledore with his ideas about Quirrel, and Harry says they can’t as they have no proof. Harry doesn’t know much about Wizarding justice if he thinks proof is important.
*Just kidding. I know Harry doesn’t care about proof either. He’s just not letting anybody make him go to an adult with important information. You don’t get to be The Chosen One doing reasonable things like that!
*Harry further explains DD will never believe him about Snape, as it’s no secret Harry hates him, so he might think Harry made stuff up to validate his own hatred. Which Harry would never do. A lot. Or make a hobby of.
*Harry then goes on to smear more reputations in his Quest to Grab The Glory For Protecting the Philosopher’s Stone himself. Filch is too much in league with the evil guy to do the right thing, and also getting random kids expelled is a personal goal of his.
*Still, that’s better than just calling him a sneakin’ Squib.
*Whoa. Minor case of whiplash at the end of the scene. Harry says they should poke around themselves. Hermione says they should go to Dumbledore instead. Harry gives a passionate speech about why they can’t go to Dumbledore. Ron reasonably suggests they poke around just enough so that they can go to Dumbledore. Harry nixes poking around entirely. *shakes head with cartoon noises indicating confusion*
*Harry and Hermione feel they deserve what they got with their detention. Whoa—what? Harry actually thinking he deserves detention (as opposed to fandom just describing him as thinking he deserves detention)? Does someone have a camera to capture this? It’s like a sighting of the Loch Ness Monster.
*Harry had forgotten Malfoy got detention too. But he has remembered Malfoy’s name—or one of them—which is something.
*Well, now that the kids are all in detention together I supposed they’ll bond. Bwahahaha! Just kidding. I meant all except the Slytherin, of course.
*Wait, Hagrid is GIVING the detention? What, is this his reward for so efficiently making other people pay for his dumb and dangerous actions? It’s a good thing Ron was in the infirmary for this caper. I feel sure Ron would have spoken up on this one. ("When Filch leaves, we’ll all have some tea in your hut and when you get back you tell everyone we had our detention. Otherwise you’ll be getting reported to Magical Animal Control, capice?")
*Although Hagrid won’t actually own up to his responsibility for all this and apologize, he will at least show that out of this group he favors Harry and Hermione. That makes it all worth it, I’m sure.
*Oh, and he’ll also put down Filch, accusing him of being late because he was lecturing him. Gee Hagrid, maybe he was late because he was skiving off his job to take care of a new kitten or something.
*Filch will be back at …dawn??
*Sorry, I must have hallucinated for a moment. I thought Hagrid just told Malfoy, the 11-year-old who displayed panic about going into the forest established as dangerous, that Malfoy had "done wrong" and now "had to pay for it." Either I hallucinated that exchange or I hallucinated the entire storyline about Hagrid’s lawbreaking dragon breeding. Which would at least explain how none of the characters involved in that storyline seem to remember it.
*Hagrid then goes on to lecture the rich boy about doing things that are useful, which would be much more effective if a) he didn’t seem to be suddenly channeling some other character; and b) the "useful" stuff they’re going to be doing wasn’t insane.
*Hagrid doesn’t want anyone taking risks. You mean like the risk Harry and Hermione took to save your sorry—I’m sensing a pattern, here.
*I love the way Malfoy and Ron are two characters constantly running afoul of Hagrid because they’ve been cursed with reason when it comes to this sort of danger. A unicorn’s been ripped apart by some unknown beast roaming the forest. Forgive me if I doubt that whatever that beast is, being with you or Fang gives me impenetrable protection against it.
*Seriously, Malfoy’s the only person in this group asking relative questions (as will be the case in CoMC). Lucius would be proud.
*Harry and Hermione have curiously faded away for a large part of this opening. They have no thoughts about this ridiculous situation.
*Hagrid says they’re going to have to split up. Because the situation wasn’t quite dangerous enough already.
*Hagrid offers himself and Fang as guides. Malfoy picks the one with more brains.
*Hagrid warns Malfoy Fang’s a coward…wtf? So now Fang isn’t protection against the wild animals? Why exactly is Hagrid saying that? Is he resentful that Malfoy didn’t pick him? Does he just automatically tease Malfoy because he’s Malfoy? Has he been instructed that part of the detention is scaring everybody?
*Green sparks=found a unicorn. Red sparks=have had throat ripped out by wild beast. Got it.
*Who here wouldn’t trust Hagrid to remember his own color code? *Raises hand*
*Now that Harry, Hermione and Hagrid are alone surely Hagrid’s going to apologize for getting them into this mess. Surely. Any minute now.
*Okay, he doesn’t apologize, but he does basically admit that he has no idea what they’re facing and there’s a good chance Neville and Malfoy especially will be dead by morning.
*When you see Hagrid heroically picking Harry and Hermione up and throwing them behind a tree to protect them, be sure to remember that Neville and Malfoy are bumbling along somewhere on their own.
*Harry meets a centaur, but it’s pretty boring. No hint yet of their violent natures.
*Harry’s Malfoy hatred is wonderfully consistent. They see red sparks and Harry makes sure to mention he doesn’t care if Malfoy has gotten hurt.
*Malfoy sneaked up on Neville as a joke. Exactly as the Twins or the Marauders would have done. But when Malfoy does it it’s incredibly evil (so I’ve heard). After all, he must have done something really dreadful to make Neville send up sparks. It’s not like Neville’s super jumpy and prone to having his wand go off half-cocked. (And people wonder why Neville gets relatively little play in fanfic.)
*Must be hallucinating again. Hagrid just called somebody an idiot.
*Hagrid also complains about the two 11-year-olds dragged into the dangerous forest in the middle of the night making a racket. Because it’s endearing for a 60-year-old man to act like a six-year-old, but 11-year-olds acting their age is right out. (This goes double for 13-year-olds.)
*Hagrid does manage to apologize to Harry for sticking him with Malfoy, because Hagrid not only acts like a child, he acts like a Harry Potter suck-up child.
*Harry and Malfoy walk together for half an hour, doing perfectly well. I’m going to pathetically file this away under Proof That They And Their Houses Can Work Together Fine. Malfoy’s not trying to scare Harry. Come on, the Gryffindors all seem to have admitted to themselves that Neville sends some sort of pheromone that compels people to pick on him.
*Malfoy is actually pretty fine through this whole detention. Neville shooting up panicky sparks was inevitable no matter who he was with, and he shows strange restraint walking along with Harry for a half hour without speaking. Malfoy’s apparently forgotten the whole dragon storyline too. I call Memory Charm!
*Proving just how good the idea of bringing children in to do this job, Harry and Malfoy run into Voldemort. I suppose Hagrid won’t be admitting he was wrong about this one either.
*Malfoy and Fang run away—oh, I guess this was why Hagrid stuck in the word "coward" to describe Fang. All part of trying make reasonable behavior something to be ashamed of. To paraphrase a wiser wizard than Dumbledore he’s saying that simply because they run away from danger, they have no courage. He’s is confusing courage with wisdom.
*Capslock!Malfoy. Much rarer than the Potter version. Reserved for moments like this.
*Harry’s left alone. Somebody walks out of the woods and tells him he’s special. Centaurs only focus on big things. Like Mars and Harry Potter.
*Only when one has nothing to lose and everything to gain would one slay a unicorn. So people do it a lot then? Because I could imagine a lot of Wizards getting to that stage. Perhaps in detention, for instance.
*So when you kill a unicorn you’ve killed something pure and defenseless to save yourself and will have a half life and a cursed life. Any description of how that kind of life differs from a non-unicorn eating life? Because you just described Sirius Black.
*Hermione and Hagrid come running up to see if Harry’s all right. So that’s Hagrid, Hermione and Harry accounted for…um…anybody know what happened to Neville and Malfoy? Particularly Malfoy, last seen running blindly through the forest with the dog? Perhaps he’ll turn up in the toilet in a few days like Montague.
*On the upside, Harry gets to go all emo to Ron describing what the stars say about him and how all the centaurs are against him.
*True to form, he doesn’t think of questioning Hagrid’s judgment just because someone might have died.
*Dumbledore gives Harry back his invisibility cloak, seeing that he used it to such good purpose before. And I guess because he’s seen how well Harry looks after it.
The Cricket Rule
Day-for-Night
Naturally.
Designated Hero
Hagrid’s getting designated up the arse in this chapter.
Foley Work
Slither. Clip Clop. Swish. Suck.
IITS
The official IITS example is "Why is she wandering around when there’s a killer on the loose?" But it might as well have been, "If you see a trail of blood in a forest full of wild animals, why would you follow it—or send two children to do so?"
Idiot World
Yes we need Harry Potter to be alive to defeat the Dark Lord one day, but if he’s found wandering a corridor after midnight what other kind of punishment could we come up with than a potentially deadly one?
Misdirected Answering
Err…what happened to Neville and Malfoy? Did they get sucked into another dimension?
Final score: 7
Signs of things to come: Things that are funny when they happen to a Slytherin are tragic beyond all words to tell it when they happen to Gryffindor. The kids are studying goblin rebellions, as they will be for the next 7 years. Hagrid undermines the anti-Voldemort protections, gets Harry and Hermione into trouble and then screws them over, and comes out as the symbol of innocence and friendship. Everything revolves around Harry. Supporting characters, even when they were important a second ago, can disappear in a puff of smoke if something more important comes along. Foreshadowing of Hermione’s disdain for fortune-telling.
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As if a Gryffindor would ever do something like that to a Slytherin! Hostorically, I mean! Maybe a couple of decades ago!
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Oh, Harry, sweet Harry who knows he deserves detention. Before Dumbledore had him convinced all he did was True and Righteous. *clings*
Seriously, detention together! So many missed opportunities! I've seen the Breakfast Club, I know what I'm talking about!
That evil hypocrite Hagrid should have his intestines dragged out of his no - I mean, ahem! Should see the error of his ways. God, given his penchant for actually terrifying and bullying a scared little kid in a way far outstripping anything Snape has ever done, thank Christ he's not a teacher, am I right?
Haha, it's really funny that there's a creature savagely killing animals and Hagrid told a scared little kid that even the animal he chose is no protection at all against it. Sweet.
I know that I only find Malfoy grabbing Neville as a joke adorable and Hagrid's behaviour atrocious because I have double standards. It's not anything to do with the fact that Hagrid is in a position of authority, or that Malfoy is eleven and probably acting out of sheer bravado. (He's not scared, oh no, Neville's scared!... that is so cute.)
Hagrid is just a Really Big Colin Creevey who's into bestiality and random cruelty.
Oh, little Harry and Malfoy walking around the forest! Draco probably feels a bit better, since Harry at least has a record in defeating evil and is, uh, not Neville or Hagrid. I will now tell myself he was Reassured by Harry's Presence and be happy. I will also remember that Harry called him 'Draco' in the movie at this point. Mockingly, natch, but I liked it.
Since Neville was with Hagrid and Hermione, I'll assume he was right behind them only further back (Exactly where I would have been, personally) but yeah. Looks like they left an eleven year old boy running scared through the forest which contained the Dark Lord.
Well, what was Voldemort going to do to him? Can't drink his blood: he's not pure and good, he's a Slytherin! And I'm sure someone came to collect him eventually. Maybe Filch at dawn, which caused Malfoy to be grateful to him, and explains why the only people we see playing Bully the Squib are of the Noble House of Gryffindor.
... that's cute too.
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Yup, that was my thought as well. Though, like SisterM, I'd like to know why he doesn't spend more time with Dean and Seamus, who probably don't lecture him for being "pathetic" and inadequate and who might actually be fun.
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He'll need them to go to the pub with when he's in his mid-forties and living his father's life, and god knows Harry won't be slumming it in a bar with Regular Folks.
I will also remember that Harry called him 'Draco' in the movie at this point. Mockingly, natch, but I liked it.
I swear I bring up the movie every week in this readthrough, but general dullness of it aside, it is pretty damn cute.
Isn't he pointing out that Draco sounds scared at that point? Talk of projection... (I like it in this chapter how Harry (totally courageously) begins to obsess about the werewolves like Malfoy. ‘Is the werewolf killing unicorns? Something’s here that shouldn’t be? A werewolf?!’, looking all nervously over his shoulder.)
But the movie's adorable - I liked that Draco hears Voldemort hurting the unicorn first (
clevernesscowardice comes in useful sometimes) (although it's pretty cute here where Harry's holding out his arm to stop Malfoy and quietly murmuring 'Look - '); I prefer Ron's presence over Neville's; and in it, we are reassured that Draco doesn't end up dying in the forest! (Apart from that he's in the Hall at the end, of course.)There's a brief shot where you can see he's come back with Hagrid (bet he wished he'd stuck with the unicorn killer) to find Harry.
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Its always Harry winning or losing the same damn points every year. And every year the whole school hates him or loves according to those same points. I wonder who is yanking everyone's chain like that?
*Without the Goblins it appears Wizards would have not only no banking but no history classes.
With all the problems that Goblins have with wizards its a wonder they do anything for the WW at all.
*Harry finds Hermione quizzing Ron on Astronomy. This is one of the weirdest things about Ron. Everything about him indicates that he’s a boy who would probably hang out with other boys a lot, yet instead he’s been sentenced to 6 years in school with no hint that he’s ever spent the afternoon in a pickup game, or just spent the day with boys his age. When he’s not with Harry he’s always sitting with a humorless nagging girl doing homework. Don’t buy it. Hermione’s been established as having a reason to not have other friends. Ron should realistically have more.
Considering that Ron is coming to Hogwarts after a long line of popular brothers, you would think that he wouldn't need to be hanging around with the unpopular kid and doing homework. But most likely he is having Hermione complete his homework for him.
*Wait, Hagrid is GIVING the detention? What, is this his reward for so efficiently making other people pay for his dumb and dangerous actions? It’s a good thing Ron was in the infirmary for this caper. I feel sure Ron would have spoken up on this one. ("When Filch leaves, we’ll all have some tea in your hut and when you get back you tell everyone we had our detention. Otherwise you’ll be getting reported to Magical Animal Control, capice?")
I can't believe that they would put this oaf in charge of young children and let them wander around a hostile area unsupervised. You're right, Ron would throw it back in Hagrid's face. Ron is particularly sensitive to being the one left holding the bag. Its a sensitivity developed while growing up with the Twins.
*Harry’s left alone. Somebody walks out of the woods and tells him he’s special. Centaurs only focus on big things. Like Mars and Harry Potter.
Its so easy to forget! Harry is some kind of wonderful! Even giants and nasty merman have to give it up to shout that around.
*True to form, he doesn’t think of questioning Hagrid’s judgment just because someone might have died.
Hagrid has to stay the innocent. Because his eventual sacrifice must mean something. Remember the Hagrid.
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She wouldn’t have believed it of them. Y’know, the kids she’s already had to tell off for rule-breaking.
Hermione apparently had more sense (even though afaik McG knows, Hermione tries to fight trolls for fun) and Gryffindor meant more to Harry (I guess if you buy him a broom, you do expect some kind of return)?
I especially LOL’ed at her ‘I’ve never been more ashamed of Gryffindor students!’ Really?
I guess this was why Hagrid stuck in the word "coward" to describe Fang. All part of trying make reasonable behavior something to be ashamed of.
And of course Harry’s being too afraid to move (which would indicate he’s more afraid of Voldie than Malfoy, since Malfoy’s not afraid enough to even shut up or pause before running, but whatever) is totally butch and macho, though, as he’ll remember four years later self-righteously.
If they gave points for being petty and childish, the Gryffindor Quidditch team alone would win the House the Cup.
It’s hilarious how the Gryffindors get this fanon reputation for being the supportive, kindly house who foster the trust of the young ones (when they’re not hissing the ones sorted into houses they don’t like.)
The Slytherins appear to adore Malfoy; who never wins against Gryffindor, their big rival; who gets hexed and beaten up every book or so; who loses them points in Wacky Schemes; and who seems to totally zone out sixth year; whereas the Gryffindors are totally unembarrassed about ignoring and picking on this bunch of eleven year olds (interesting that the Twins are apparently included as also ignoring Harry. Their anger overpowered even their desire to make good with the rich famous kid! And btw, I’m totally convinced that Harry’s popularity is down to innate likeability, as evidenced by everyone dropping him once he stops benefitting them all in the Cup stakes.)
I love that part in HBP where Harry’s noticing everyone Questioning His Decisions about the Quidditch team and noting that while they’re pissy now, if he wins they’ll ‘forget that they had criticized him and swear that they had always known it was a great team.’
Harry makes sure to mention he doesn’t care if Malfoy has gotten hurt.
Remember, though, that Harry’s respect for human life makes him different from Malfoy. Malfoy will totally go on to risk Harry’s LIFE and not even care! And is mean about Cedric! Whereas Harry’s hatred is the peaceful innocent childlike style, where in a potentially life or death emergency situation, you make judgements about who you’ll be saddest to see die. (Or like when you nearly kill someone and you worry about your Potions grade. But now I’m getting ahead of myself!)
Why is Neville looking hurt at Harry? Even if Harry had fed Malfoy the story he obviously didn’t do it to trick Neville.
LOL, I guess it shows McGonagall’s opinion of either (didn’t we fanwank in one of pauraque’s readthroughs that maybe she’s pissy here because she’s embarrassed she went off on Neville and Malfoy first and instantly presumed Malfoy was lying about Harry being involved?) Neville’s loserdom or Harry’s mean spirit that her first assumption was that Harry would find it a laugh
There also seems to be more repetition that Malfoy’s going to catch Harry, not tell McGonagall, since Neville and he have continued that weird thing they have of overhearing each other’s conversations (I think it comes up in POA, too?)
I’m more curious as to why Neville is under the impression that Harry is his friend? To the point where he’s bumbling around Confronting His Deepest Fears looking for him to save him from his own mistakes? (Well, Hagrid’s, but anyone who’s willingly friends with Hagrid, rescuer of orphans though he may be, pretty much deserves whatever they get. I’m such a Gryffindor! ;) I mean, to be fair, Harry doesn’t appear to have misled him much here, his only moments of kindness are based around Neville getting in the middle of his rivalry with Draco. Neville just seems creepily needy here.
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Yeah, I was thinking reading it that Harry's actually the one choking here.
I’m more curious as to why Neville is under the impression that Harry is his friend? To the point where he’s bumbling around Confronting His Deepest Fears looking for him to save him from his own mistakes?
I was going to say that because he's Neville he's just supposed to be Doing What's Right, even if that's not exactly right. Maybe he just keeps trying to get through to Harry through the one thing that seems to get his attention?
There also seems to be more repetition that Malfoy’s going to catch Harry, not tell McGonagall, since Neville and he have continued that weird thing they have of overhearing each other’s conversations (I think it comes up in POA, too?)
Okay, somebody needs to write a Draco/Neville theory and fanfic about that. "I heard Malfoy say..."="Malfoy whispered this in my ear..." "I overheard Longbottom say..."="Longbottom shouted this when we were making love..."
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Yeah! The Prank is nothing compared to students being out of bed at night!
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No worries. With five points given for a right answer, it'll take Hermione one lesson to get them back.
*From being one of the most popular and admired people in the school, Harry went to being the most hated.
Those Gryffindors, they're so loyal. Nothing like the slimy Slytherins, who turned against Malfoy the moment his Dad went to prison.
*Nobody will speak to Neville and Hermione. Which is shocking, because it suggests people other than Harry and Ron spoke to them at one time.
Are you suggesting Harry and Ron actually spoke to Neville? Besides from telling him he's worth however many
SlytherinsMalfoys it was.Hermione’s been established as having a reason to not have other friends. Ron should realistically have more.
Can't you just see him trying to learn football from Dean? Awwww.
*Whoa. Minor case of whiplash at the end of the scene. Harry says they should poke around themselves. Hermione says they should go to Dumbledore instead. Harry gives a passionate speech about why they can’t go to Dumbledore. Ron reasonably suggests they poke around just enough so that they can go to Dumbledore. Harry nixes poking around entirely.
Can't have anyone else supporting him. How'd he feel persecuted then?
*I love the way Malfoy and Ron are two characters constantly running afoul of Hagrid because they’ve been cursed with reason when it comes to this sort of danger.
This book makes me want to ship Draco/Ron.
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Starting to see the benefit of a bit of Slytherin tact there, Harry?
Of course, it’s cowardly to not love people 100% and still try and get on with them, though, as we learnt from Percy and Ludo Bagman in GoF.
Harry nixes poking around.
It’s hilarious how it’s then the subject is closed for discussion. Harry’s verdict is cast.
Whoa—what? Harry actually thinking he deserves detention (as opposed to fandom just describing him as thinking he deserves detention)?
Well, after he rejected various lies to get out of it.
But obviously one would feel much guiltier about losing points (which like most events in the series is what this has become about) than about gutting someone. Gryffindors’ feelings were hurt by that points loss, which is way worse than some smelly Slytherin’s skin hurting because it’s been ripped open.
Hagrid goes on to lecture about doing things that are useful, which would be much more effective if a) he didn’t seem to be suddenly channeling some other character; and b) the "useful" stuff they’re going to be doing wasn’t insane.
JKR’s Aunt Marge/schoolmarm side coming out here, I think. What’s the use of this namby-pamby writing? A bit of hard labour never killed anyone!
It’s hilarious how Filch is like this evil sadistic boogeyman yet his approach (pain and hard work are the best teachers! Watch me enjoying telling you how scary this is going to be!) and Hagrid’s are pretty much identical.
I also love the way the tiny piece of authority Hagrid’s been allowed (good job, McGonagall!) goes to his head as he makes this into a big self-absorbed (naturally the issue is that Malfoy’s not showing the proper respect Hagrid’s earned by…well, moving on; rather than counteracting Filch who he apparently thinks is being too cruel and reassuring the blatantly frightened kids. Always more fun for these people to punish than soothe.) threat: ‘If you don’t go along with my deranged punishment, you’ll be expelled!’ (and what is with the expulsion obsession in PS?)
I wouldn’t actually be so confident over that one, I think even Dumbledore might hesitate (for a second, anyway…) at expelling someone for disregarding the groundskeeper’s instructions and refusing to go into the dangerous forest at night to go hunt a unicorn killer.
Of course, at this point if I were Draco, I’d probably go pack anyway, Durmstrang sounds like it could be fun.
Harry and Hermione...have no thoughts about this ridiculous situation.
Harry’s pleased to hear Malfoy’s worried, at least. Even in the bleakest moments, when you could be shredded by a werewolf at any second, and your house’s chances of getting a meaningless shiny cup have been damaged; you can always delight in the pain of one’s enemies. That’s what separates those with pure hearts from the rest of the crowd.
Hagrid manages to apologize to Harry for sticking him with Malfoy, because Hagrid not only acts like a child, he acts like a Harry Potter suck-up child.
It’s sort of funny how he stuck Malfoy with Neville to begin with, anyway. The most obviously frightened kids, Snotty and Pussy sound like a good mix, with the easily scared dog. Bagsy me the cool kids for Team Hagrid!
Also, Hagrid saying that Malfoy will have a harder time frightening the Heroic Harry doesn’t mean that Malfoy doesn’t bully Harry all the time of course.
Forgive me if I doubt being with you or Fang gives me impenetrable protection against it.
One of the most fucked up things here is ‘We might have to put it out of it’s misery’, just for the mental image.
I like that Draco and Fang stick together, though, and that he and Harry are both transfixed by the pretty unicorn (gay, gay, gay.)
When you kill a unicorn you’ve killed something pure and defenseless to save yourself and will have a half/cursed life. Any description of how that kind of life differs from a non-unicorn eating life?
It’s always a high price to save your own life in this series. Death is better than not only a cursed life, but also a life without Quidditch, Hagrid, the house cup, Hogsmeade, Sirius…
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Those evil Slytherins can be expelled for not endangering their lives, whereas almost killing one of them is no big deal.
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They’ve been dying to see Slytherin lose since they’ve had such a long winning streak, but inexplicably support Gryffindor dominating Every Competition Ever for uh, six years.
he’s a boy who would probably hang out with other boys a lot
I’ve gotta say, I do assume it’s down to the other relationships in his life. In GoF he seems to get along well with Dean and Seamus, so logically it would appear to be his friendship with the other two that’s stopping that becoming stronger; either because he prefers Harry and Hermione or because the Trio is so insular and with such a set way of doing things – Hermione’s in charge of thinking, Harry makes the decisions, monster killing at eleven, etc.
Plus Harry seems to piss off the other guys in his dorm, which Ron’s joining in on probably doesn’t help, then he’s bitchy with Dean about Ginny… I think a Ron who didn’t know the other two (since Harry not being around would mean a total difference in Ginny’s personality and no Ginny/Dean) would probably be a lot more popular.
Harry had forgotten Malfoy got detention too.
Remembering Malfoy has detention may threaten Harry’s exalted level of Emo. Or maybe Harry’s power of self-dramatisation have eclipsed even Draco’s.
I like how the pacing here goes from ‘the detention must be cruel and unusual punishment, it’s made Filch happy!’ to ‘You’ll be spending the evening with Hagrid.’ Nuff said.
Nobody will speak to Neville and Hermione. Which is shocking, because it suggests people other than Harry and Ron spoke to them at one time.
Hee!
They weren’t having it as bad as Harry, of course. Because that’s against the law.
Filch will be back at …dawn??
This is such a retarded punishment. Learn not to wander around at night by wandering around at night.
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Do you really think Hagrid would understand that it's his fault? I can see him puzzling over it now:
'Me + Dragon + Kids + my own inadequacy + kids getting punished for my own inadequacy = Rubiks Cube x a thousand!!!!!'
Without the Goblins it appears Wizards would have not only no banking but no history classes.
I have a fondness for the Goblins. I'd like to see them take over, or have it discovered that they're the masterminds behind all of Tommy-poo's plots.
It’s not like Neville’s super jumpy and prone to having his wand go off half-cocked. (And people wonder why Neville gets relatively little play in fanfic.)
As my friend recently said, Freud would have a field day.
Hermione and Hagrid come running up to see if Harry’s all right. So that’s Hagrid, Hermione and Harry accounted for…um…anybody know what happened to Neville and Malfoy? Particularly Malfoy, last seen running blindly through the forest with the dog? Perhaps he’ll turn up in the toilet in a few days like Montague.
Even today in the Forbidden Forest, a sweet and lonely girl called Ginny 1 is roaming through the bracken, lost and alone, wondering why Hagrid never came back for her even though that charming red-haired sexpot she met promised to get help.
McGonagall fairest teacher in the lands
It's like Snape accusing Harry of deliberately not helping Neville in Potions class first day. I'll bet if Snape had caught them, he'd have deducted 51 points from Harry, just to be mean! The bastard!
*Four students out of bed! McGonagall’s never heard of such a thing before! How long has McGonagall been teaching? Because the most commonplace things regularly bowl her over.
Yes, especially considering she's had the twins for three years now and taught during the Marauders era.
*Nobody will speak to Neville and Hermione. Which is shocking, because it suggests people other than Harry and Ron spoke to them at one time.
Reading on, I see that Hermione is so upset that she stopped drawing attention to herself in class. All I can say is, "Go McGonagall!"
But all she needed to do to make it up was answer 10 questions before anyone else. Which means she probably earned more house points every week than Harry did for that Quidditch game.
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*I guess the fact that I wish Harry would tell McGonagall he was only trying to solve a problem Hagrid the Idiot created makes me a Slytherin.
No...that would make you a Ravenclaw. If you had created the problem, you'd be a Slytherin...Aren't they always to blame?
*Four students out of bed! McGonagall’s never heard of such a thing before! How long has McGonagall been teaching? Because the most commonplace things regularly bowl her over.
Well, this does go hand in hand with never seeing such dirty play as that of the Slytherin Quidditch team. Forget Voldemort, he can't compare to this generation of Hogwarts students. They are just that bad!
*Snevillus is sobbing again.
He and Snape should bond.
This is one of the weirdest things about Ron. Everything about him indicates that he’s a boy who would probably hang out with other boys a lot, yet instead he’s been sentenced to 6 years in school with no hint that he’s ever spent the afternoon in a pickup game, or just spent the day with boys his age. When he’s not with Harry he’s always sitting with a humorless nagging girl doing homework. Don’t buy it.
It does seem artificial. The author wanted this trio to be very exclusive and made it so irregardless of what reality might dictate.
*Sorry, I must have hallucinated for a moment. I thought Hagrid just told Malfoy, the 11-year-old who displayed panic about going into the forest established as dangerous, that Malfoy had "done wrong" and now "had to pay for it." Either I hallucinated that exchange or I hallucinated the entire storyline about Hagrid’s lawbreaking dragon breeding.
I'm feeling my own chest monster here and it's neither love nor lust. *growls*
*I love the way Malfoy and Ron are two characters constantly running afoul of Hagrid because they’ve been cursed with reason when it comes to this sort of danger.
"cursed with reason" is just another word for cowardice....luckily Ron can overcome his
*Malfoy and Fang run away—oh, I guess this was why Hagrid stuck in the word "coward" to describe Fang. All part of trying make reasonable behavior something to be ashamed of.
See response above.
anybody know what happened to Neville and Malfoy
Since Neville's worth 12 of Draco and is himself not half the awesome baby Harry was (his mother probably wouldn't have died for him), I don't think we are supposed to care.
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Heh. I'm trying to figure this out as a mathematical equation for how much we should care now, but I seem to have forgotten most of my math since highschool. Alas.
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Now, I could give a rat's ass about Harry. Going by my personal pet rats, I'd say they're about 1/3 ass (excluding the tail.) Ergo, x<.33/24, x<0.0138. So, I believe that we are supposed to care about as much as a rat's penis.
Of course, if you are a rat, that's awfully important. Thus showing that perspective is critical, QED.
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What does the fact that I kind of think Harry deserves the punishment for being too stupid to think of that make me?
*Harry sees Quirrel leave a room crying and tying his turban
Isn't it really careless of Quirrell not to have tied the turban before he left the classroom? Where does Voldie get these minions anyway?
Also, Snape is clearly onto Quirrell and has been for awhile. So why isn't he taking his suspicions to Dumbledore? Or has he, and Dumbledore's just ignored it so that Harry can have the dramatic showdown?
*Harry then goes on to smear more reputations in his Quest to Grab The Glory For Protecting the Philosopher’s Stone himself. Filch is too much in league with the evil guy to do the right thing, and also getting random kids expelled is a personal goal of his.
*Still, that’s better than just calling him a sneakin’ Squib.
I'm surprised Harry didn't start hexing him in the corridors years earlier.
*Wait, Hagrid is GIVING the detention? What, is this his reward for so efficiently making other people pay for his dumb and dangerous actions?
Maybe Hagrid is the evil mastermind behind everything in the series. Manipulating everyone to cater to his childish whims.
This whole detention bothers me to no end. No sane adult would ever say "Oh, there's a creature out there in the extremely dangerous forest that's even more vicious and evil than any of the already vicious and evil things that regularly inhabit it, and it has no qualms about murdering a creature that is a symbol of innocence and purity, of course it makes sense to send a bunch of eleven year olds in there to look for it, with only a man who can't do magic and a cowardly dog." It's one long scene of wtf.
*True to form, he doesn’t think of questioning Hagrid’s judgment just because someone might have died.
Well, presumably it would only have been Malfoy, so why should he kick up a fuss about it, really?
The kids are studying goblin rebellions, as they will be for the next 7 years.
Maybe in book 7, the goblins will take advantage of the WW's distraction in fighting Voldie, and take over. I'm rooting for the goblins.
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Sane?
I'm rooting for the goblins.
I'm half hoping they will take over. They couldn't possibly be more inept than the Ministry, or more sociopathic than Dumbles&Co.
This chapter was mental
I wonder if Dumbledore was trying to give Harry the chance to face Voldemort here, but Firenze thwarted it.
Re: This chapter was mental
Re: This chapter was mental
So it is strange that Dumbledore intends for Harry's life to be risked so much during Philosopher's Stone. I can only assume that he had jumped to a conclusion that Harry and Voldemort could cancel each other out somehow, and that Voldemort would be severely weakened and that Dumbledore would have time to search for the locket Horcrux - which he would have assumed to be the ONLY one - free of hindrance. I suppose Dumbledore would have preferred Harry to go down with Voldemort anyway, since he would have been uncomfortable about the little guy maybe having the potential, as a celebrity, to challenge Dumbledore's authority in the magical world.