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deathtocapslock2007-01-26 11:03 am
sistermagpie.livejournal.com) wrote in deathtocapslock2007-01-26 11:03 am
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PS Chapter Sixteen
*I’m always freaked about by the phrase "In years to come…" in books. It’s like suddenly finding out I’m hearing this story from the future.
*Harry’s scar is hurting and Hermione suggests he go to Madam Pomfrey. Harry’s understandably offended. He’s experiencing a supernatural warning of danger, woman. The Chosen One doesn’t get mere skin irritations!
*Suddenly the Stone is safe when Dumbledore’s around, though they all currently think Dumbledore’s totally unaware of the plot to steal it—a plot that if they told him about he’d be too ignorant to believe anyway. Including the part about the man horse telling Harry about Voldemort.
*Ron says Neville will play Quidditch for England before Hagrid would let Dumbledore down. He’ll let us down, sure, but not Dumbledore. Not intentionally. Or not completely intentionally.
*Speaking of not letting Dumbledore down, Harry thinks Hagrid’s illegally getting that dragon was probably all part of the evil plot.
*Why yes, Hagrid did betray Dumbledore’s secrets to some strange man in a bar he’d just met, come to think of it. Why?
*What’s with Snape’s twisted smile when he surprises the Trio? Is this just the first chance he’s gotten to gloat about their detention? I’m going to decide he’s happy because he’s just finally found Malfoy, who had found a troupe of gypsies in the forest and offered to be their king.
*Ron gets another good moment where he imitates Hermione to illustrate why she should be the one to wait outside the teacher’s lounge. I wonder if Ron himself remembers his first year self and wonders where he lost some of his cool. Some went to Ginny, presumably.
*I love McGonagall’s temper at Ron and Harry trying to stand lookout on the third floor. Go back to your common room, you tiny idiots!
*Meanwhile, Hermione’s stake-out’s been ruined by the unforeseeable problem of Snape actually going to get Flitwick when she tells him she’s waiting for Flitwick. Damn the man!
*So obviously Harry’s got to steal the Stone himself. Obviously. And he’s pale and his eyes are glittering, so you can’t argue with him.
*Hmm…he’s pale and his eyes are glittering? What an odd, never-before-caught-by-me description that makes Harry into Malfoy.
*Look, he’s going to get himself expelled because Snape’s going to get through the super-genius defenses and steal the stone—but he’ll never be able to steal it if I’ve got it in my pocket!
*Sure it’s taken Snape all year to figure out how to get through the high-tech security but I’m sure I’ll be able to do it on the fly. Did you see me catch that Snitch?
*The threat of expulsion is everywhere in this book, but I guess after the kids didn’t get expelled for grand larceny it was pointless to threaten them with it in future books no matter what they did.
* House Cup points don’t matter anymore! But we won’t look askance if anyone insists on awarding them to us for this stupid plan.
*Harry’s only known he’s been the Chosen One for less than a year, but he’s really taken to it like a duck to water, hasn’t he? He’s probably always known deep down he was a Marked Man.
*Hermione is either determined to not get thrown out after getting 112% on her Charms exam, or doesn’t think the school will let her go after getting 112% on her Charms exam, so she’s in.
*The Gryffindors are still all ganging up on the 11-year-old orphan. Yet somewhere, at this moment, someone is arguing that part of the Code of Gryffindor is never picking on anyone smaller than you are.
*Harry takes Hagrid’s flute to use on Fluffy because he doesn’t feel like singing. See, that’s why it would help to bring Malfoy with you, Harry. He’d have worked out an amusing madrigal.
*Neville’s telling Ron not to call him an idiot makes up for his caring if Gryffindor gets in trouble again.
*Ron really wants to kick Filch’s cat while they’re invisible, but at least he doesn’t mildly insult her. That would be really bad. And anyway, only Hagrid’s pets need to be spoken of nicely.
*Awww. Harry pretends to be the Bloody Baron. A Slytherin that everyone seems to depend on to take care of Peeves.
*When they get to the door, the Trio pauses for a moment of nobility where they all agree they’re not going back.
*This dog kind of typifies Hogwarts security in general: lots of show, but really a child can easily get through it.
*Wouldn’t have been half so easy if they’d asked Grubbly-Plank to provide the animal here.
*I’m surprised Harry didn’t break off his flute playing to demand to go first into the trapdoor. As if there was any question!
*Harry tells Ron that if he falls to his death through the trapdoor, he should Owl Dumbledore. He might want to call Madam Pomfrey too, I’d think.
*I’m surprised Harry doesn’t have the note to OWL already. "Dear Dumbledore—I’ve died heroically in the bowels of the third floor. It’s all Snape’s fault. –Courageously, the Late Harry "Chosen One" Potter
*Good thing Hermione was there to kill that Devil’s Snare. Nobody would ever have known what to do except her. And perhaps most any other person who would try to steal the Stone. Thanks Professor Sprout. You’ve been helpful.
*Harry expects the jeweled birds flying around the room to attack him, but they don’t. Don’t tell me he’s not a little disappointed.
*Nice of Hogwarts Security to leave broomsticks in the room for whatever criminal has come to steal the Stone, isn’t it? As opposed to expecting authorized personnel to know to bring a broom?
*Also, thanks to whoever made the key easy to spot, making the other keys a mild distraction rather than a security measure.
*They get through the door to the room of The Thing That Ron’s Good At.
*Unfortunately, Harry and Hermione aren’t very good at chess. Fortunately, you don’t have to be that good at chess to get across. I mean, Ron’s good, but he’s not Bobby Fischer.
*Also Ron’s gift isn’t so much being good at chess as being expendable.
*Good thing Ron was unconscious so didn’t hear Harry and Hermione run out without checking to see if he actually was all right.
*So bringing something to life is Transfiguration rather than Charms. So ends our little bit of Magical Theory.
*Snape has to be responsible for the heavy metal purple and black flames that shoot up when they get to his trap. It’s got Slytherin written all over it.
*As does the poetry, of course. Every Slytherin looks back fondly on the traditional Thursday Night Poetry Slams. That’s how come everybody always forgives Malfoy when he gets in trouble. He racks up the points at those.
*A lot of great wizards haven’t got an ounce of logic, says Hermione. Present company included.
*Luckily she has just the required ounce. Not enough to see this whole plan was a bad idea, but enough to figure out Snape’s junior brain teaser.
*Before Harry goes on his heroic way (GO, HERMIONE! GO! DON’T LOOK BACK!) he and Hermione pause to have an odd little exchange where Hermione explains, if we hadn’t already figured it out, that although she likes getting good marks on tests what really gets her hot is the whole Marauders-type derring do.
*After all, a Ravenclaw might have thought it was stupid to steal the Stone and then where would be be? Curled up in front of the fire with cocoa, that’s where!
*Harry walks through the black Spinal Tap flames and doesn’t find Voldemort or Snape. Though I’ll bet Snape would have liked to have been there just so he could tell Harry what an idiot he was when he arrived.
*Can you imagine how much trouble they’d have been in if Quirrel hadn’t been there and Harry had just taken the Stone and had it under his pillow? Gryffindor would have wound up with, like, negative a million points. (Until the Leaving Feast, of course, when they’d be awarded a million points for cheek and another six million for filing their nails. That plus Neville’s ten would put them in first place.
Designated Hero
Here the Designated Hero breaks through the security guarding the thing he’s trying to protect. Nobody can steal the thing if he’s already stolen it.
Idiot Picture
If this Stone is so valuable, shouldn’t it have a bit more security?
Idiot World
All the Hogwarts teachers leaders in their respective fields, contribute to the Security of the Stone. The result is less challenging than the first year exams.
Informed Attributes
See previous answer.
Final score: 4
Signs of things to come: Harry does something that totally helps Voldemort because he’s the only one who can save the day, dammit! Hermione hexes someone into helplessness because they stand in her way and she really does know best. Harry’s going to do something stupid, so Ron and Hermione have got to be stupid with him. Neville turns out to be a scrapper when pushed, as he will again in future books, a pattern that will be mistaken for character development. The most secure places are easily broken into by children of average intelligence. Ron gets hurt and there’s not a hint of hurt/comfort vibe. Harry must face the final danger alone. Alone, I tell you! Save yourselves! ‘Tis my fate and mine alone! Woe!
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*Ron gets another good moment where he imitates Hermione to illustrate why she should be the one to wait outside the teacher’s lounge. I wonder if Ron himself remembers his first year self and wonders where he lost some of his cool. Some went to Ginny, presumably.
It's the Xander effect. Ron's being Xanderified because JKR was afraid not enough people would like and appreciate Hermione and Ginny, sadly. And yet, the only scary part of the Stone's security was the chess set, IMO. The rest seemed ridiculously easy.
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(...you know, this probably makes Harry Buffy. Which amuses me to no end.)
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LOL, pretty perfect comparison of Harry/Buffy, imho, especially with that S7 episode...Conversations with Dead People? With the whole "My friends, my boyfriends...even though they love me, it doesn't mean anything 'cause their opinions don't matter. They don't know. They haven't been through what I've been through. They're not the slayer. I am. Sometimes I feel...like I'm better than them. Superior."
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*A lot of great wizards haven’t got an ounce of logic, says Hermione.
Possibly the only hint we've gotten so far that Muggles are better than wizards at anything? When you can command the universe to do your bidding, you don't need to use your brain much. =]
Harry does something that totally helps Voldemort because he’s the only one who can save the day, dammit!
Which would actually be kind of fun, if only someone would occasionally point out that Harry's saving-the-day track record is a little spotty. =] Instead, he tends to get praised for his good intentions and courage, with no mention of how misguided they were. Oh well.
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Albus intended for Harry to retrieve the Stone from the mirror, since he probably doubted that he would be able to do it himself. But he intended that to happen *after* all the shouting was over. Not in the middle of the most critical phase of the operation.
If things had worked as he intended the kids would have been safe in theior common room, and Voldy would have been stuck in front of the mirror until they could collect him.
I think he had wanted to be able to rescue Quirrell if he could. But Tom wouldn't take the bait, even with prompting, and once the first unicorn was killed Albus knew it was too late. Voldemort had effectively murdered his hostage.
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Its kind of like book 6. Tommy looks into the Harry mirror and sees what he most wants, Dumbledore dead.
I wonder if he was taken in this time.
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This passage attracted my attention since Harry, oblivious to the prophecy, seems to think he has an option to go "over to the Dark Side". Even without the prophecy this line of thought is very strange. Does he really think Voldemort would let him live, if he offered his services? After almost killing the man, whose cruelty is well-known?
*I love McGonagall’s temper at Ron and Harry trying to stand lookout on the third floor. Go back to your common room, you tiny idiots!
Her behavior is very strange. Harry tells her he knows that someone's going to try and steal the Stone & she doesn't even ask him why he thinks so and just orders them to leave the place. IITS.
* Neville’s telling Ron not to call him an idiot makes up for his caring if Gryffindor gets in trouble again.
This line is wonderful, but for me it immediately got spoiled by "And you were the one who told me to stand up to people!" which sounds a bit pathetic. May be it's only my perception though.
Also love Ron's "Yes, but not to us. Neville, you don't know what you're doing" (said in exasperation). Reminds in a certain way Hermione's attitude towards house-elves: they have to stand up to their cruel masters, except when those masters are us & if they seem to love the families they serve, it's only a pitiful product of brainwashing. Poor things just don't know what they're doing.
*Harry expects the jeweled birds flying around the room to attack him, but they don’t.
They did so in the movie.
*Snape has to be responsible for the heavy metal purple and black flames that shoot up when they get to his trap. It’s got Slytherin written all over it.
No doubt the best obstacle both in the book and the movie. The hardest & most interesting.
*A lot of great wizards haven’t got an ounce of logic, says Hermione.
Did you hear Harry's immediate conclusion "But so will we [stuck in here forever], won't we?"? He seems to be less self-confident & assured of his special powers here than in the latter books (especially sixth) & I find this endearing and refreshing.
*Can you imagine how much trouble they’d have been in if Quirrel hadn’t been there and Harry had just taken the Stone and had it under his pillow?
I prefer the version where Harry hides the Stone under his pillow & Quirrel steals it from there.
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I've heard so much complaining about how Ginny overshadowed Hermione's characterization. But Ron's disintegrating character in the books have been most hurtful. He began as a strong character who gradually turned into the sad sack laughing stock. Ultimately his sister was given all his characterization traits. Disgusting.
*Also Ron’s gift isn’t so much being good at chess as being expendable.
The lost Ron talent and only good for a single book plot point. Oh the humanity.
*Good thing Ron was unconscious so didn’t hear Harry and Hermione run out without checking to see if he actually was all right.
What do you mean? This is an anvil that shows the true extent of Hermione's love for Ron!
*Before Harry goes on his heroic way (GO, HERMIONE! GO! DON’T LOOK BACK!) he and Hermione pause to have an odd little exchange where Hermione explains, if we hadn’t already figured it out, that although she likes getting good marks on tests what really gets her hot is the whole Marauders-type derring do.
Its the obligatory "Harry you're the greatest" speech that every book must have and nobody does it better than Hermione.
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So, to get through the defenses, you have to demonstrate each of the cardinal heroic virtues: mastery of animals, mastery of vegetables, spot-the-difference, learning to delegate, brain-teasers, and passing through fire. I'm looking forward to the symbolic resonances of the horcrux-hunt.
Clearly the threat of "expulsion" is a bogeyman made up to scare children and non-Gryffindors. Sort of like basilisks, mad godfathers, death-defying trials, and Voldemort himself. Nothing to fear but fear itself!
Great catch on "pale-and-glittering!Harry." :) I have high hopes for our boy.
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Lucius would have a FIT. (http://www.citypaper.net/articles/2002-06-20/cb2.shtml)
Hermione’s stake-out’s been ruined by the unforeseeable problem of Snape actually going to get Flitwick when she tells him she’s waiting for Flitwick. Damn the man!
Clearly one of those Snape/Hermione anvils I never caught at first read – that sneaky JKR! Oh, wait...
Snape has to be responsible for the heavy metal purple and black flames that shoot up when they get to his trap.
The right-out-of-a-Ministry-video DADA Class in HBP may well confirm that hypothesis.
Every Slytherin looks back fondly on the traditional Thursday Night Poetry Slams. That’s how come everybody always forgives Malfoy when he gets in trouble. He racks up the points at those.
Hee! You've outdone yourself,
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Also accepting differences. Because there totally is no social cast system in moral Gryffindor.
*Awww. Harry pretends to be the Bloody Baron. A Slytherin that everyone seems to depend on to take care of Peeves.
...I'm going to pretend that this symbolism is meant to be applied to Snape and the Twins in the next book. It gives me a warm feeling inside.
*This dog kind of typifies Hogwarts security in general: lots of show, but really a child can easily get through it.
Appropriate, as it was a child who finally managed to break a whole lot of adult Death Eaters in.
*Snape has to be responsible for the heavy metal purple and black flames that shoot up when they get to his trap. It’s got Slytherin written all over it.
Oh, Slytherin DRAMA, it never gets old. How do more people not love this house? It puzzles me, really.
*After all, a Ravenclaw might have thought it was stupid to steal the Stone and then where would be be? Curled up in front of the fire with cocoa, that’s where!
After having united with Slytherin to get the Gryffindors to do it for them. The Ravenclaws could pitch the idea so that the Gryffindors didn't get suspicious and the Slytherins could be the ones to have no qualms with obliviating said Gryffindors after the stone was safely recovered. And they could all collaborate on the epic ballad while enjoying their eternal life. Really, I wish JKR did more with the houses relationships with each other and not just with Gryffindor because I bet the stories that could be told would be awesome.
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You know all the fanfics with suave!Slytherins? Draco the Slytherin Ice Prince? So totally not canon! *loves drama-queen Slyths*
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Harry: I have a beard.
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It's proof. Dumbles wanted Harry to go there. You've got to start training your pawns early.
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Well, in fairness, it's just occurred to me that Hagrid sent tiny Neville and Draco off into a forest where he and he alone knew there were carnivorous spiders about the place. Compared to that, betraying Dumbledore for a pint and a dragon egg is kind of petty, isn't it?
Well, maybe Dumbledore wouldn't have thought so, but if he'd known how often Hagrid kept risking His Chosen One... oh, still maybe not. Being eaten by spiders builds character, I've heard.
I do not believe anyone has been expelled from Hogwarts since Hagrid. And that, of course, was before Dumbledore was made king. I mean, uh, headmaster.
The Gryffindor motto - as long as they're smaller and less magically talented than us and we outnumber them, a noble victory will be ours!
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No, No, No! It makes Harry into Snape! Remember in GoF when Dumbledore asks Snape to go back and spy for him? The "If you are ready, if you are prepared...", bit? He's described as pale with glittering eyes, yes? So, now Harry = Malfoy = Snape. OT3, baby!
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Doesn't he remind you of Peter Pan here? (Who, by the way, is a creepy and sinister figure in the novel, not the cheery imp of the films.)
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Idiot picture
Since Dumbledore intended for Harry to fight Voldemort, perhaps he truly didn't understand that Voldemort was being kept alive by Horcruxes and hoped that Lily's protection would kill Voldemort if he fought Harry.
The one and only Voldemort proof barrier to the Philosopher's Stone, the Mirror of Erised, would have been sufficient by itself to ensure the Stone's safety. There was no reason for Dumbledore to suppose that Harry could have got the Stone out of it any more than Voldemort or Quirrell could have done. So maybe he intended Voldemort and Harry to get as far as the Mirror and be unable to obtain the stone - with the result that they would fight and Voldemort would be killed or permanently weakened (no matter what happened to Harry in the process).
The other safeguards in the dungeons are obviously designed specifically for the trio to break through. The Devil's Snare is something they teach first years about. Dumbledore knew Harry was a good enough Seeker to catch the winged key. And the chess set and junior brain teaser are clearly geared to Ron and Hermione. However, they are arranged in such an order that only Harry would eventually be able to go through the Spinal Tap flames. Logically Dumbledore must have supposed that the Stone was safe in the mirror, and that Harry and Voldemort would be frustrated in their efforts to obtain it and that Voldemort would attack Harry and bear the brunt of Lily's protection.