Deathly Hallows, chapter 6

[anehan]

The Ghoul in Pyjamas

* Harry is feeling guilt and grief. Harry and Moody were so close that it'll probably take him a long time to get over his death, almost as long as it took him to get over Sirius's death. So, in two weeks he should be all right.

* Lupin and Mr Weasley drop their inquiries the moment they are told that Dumbledore didn't want them to know anything about Harry & co.'s quest. Frankly, I think less of them for it.

* Mrs Weasley, though, isn't giving up. The whole thing is portrayed as if Mrs Weasley is once again being overprotective, but IMO she's just being sensible. Wouldn't you be if three seventeen-year-olds were dropping out of school to go on a mysterious quest, refusing to tell anyone anything about it except that Dumbledore wanted them to do it? But of course, Mrs Weasley is questioning Saint Dumbledore. Can't have that, now can we?

* Why does Harry think he's got to be the one to find the Horcruxes? Mrs Weasley is right: Dumbledore had the whole Order at his command. A group of fully qualified witches and wizards, who'd probably be far more capable of finding the Horcruxes than Harry & co. All Harry has to do is die. The rest can be done by anyone.

* By the way, Mrs Weasley has a manger. So it's not possible to smooth clothes by magic.

* The manger is wringing out one of Mr Weasley's vests. I thought Mr Weasley wore robes.

* Terrible of Mrs Weasley to keep Harry, Ron and Hermione busy with wedding preparations. She should do all by herself, the bitch.

* Ah, so here we have a half-baked explanation as to why the Ministry hasn't prosecuted Harry for soing all the magic he did while escaping the Death Eaters. Scrimgeour doesn't want to admit Voldemort is as powerful as he is.

* So Scrimgeour is as bad as Fudge for trying to keep the truth from coming out. The Wizarding World just has a terrible luck in leaders. If only Mr Crouch would have been able to become Minister.

* "I must not tell lies." Harry Potter, the Tortured Hero™. *gags*

* Mrs Weasley wears reading spectacles!

* "'And are they getting married in my bedroom?' asked Ron furiously. 'No! So why in the name of Merlin's saggy left --'" testicle. JKR is fond of almost-sexual jokes. Remember the Probity Probe?

* Ha! So the wizards do you Merlin's name as a swear word.

* Mrs Weasley calls Fleur's parents Monsieur and Madame Delacour. No, no, and a thousand times no! When speaking English, they are called Mr and Mrs Delacour. I am reminded of the Hercule Poirot adaptations with David Suchet, where people keep calling Poirot Monsieur Poirot in a terrible French accent and where Poirot, in turn, litters his speech with French words and calls everyone mademoiselle or madame or monsieur. Just, no. One speaks the language one is speaking. Besides, why is it always French words one inserts into one's speech and not words in another language? In GoF, Mr Ollivander calls Fleur "Mademoiselle Delacour" but Krum "Mr Krum". (Sorry, I seem to have stumbled on a pet-peeve of mine.)

* Mr Weasley isn't telling his wife that he has Sirius's bike in the coop. It's probably supposed to be endearing how Mr Weasley has his little hobbies, but to me it sounds like a pretty miserable marriage if you can't tell your wife about your hobbies without fear of being scolded.

* What is Ron doing carrying a greasy handkerchief with him? Normal people put dirty handkerchiefs into the laundry.

* From Mad-Eye's death, Ron's learned not to trust Mundungus. Frankly, I think Mundungus did the only sensible things: get away when Death Eaters are attacking, even if Apparating from a broomstick requires advanced acrobatics.

* Hermione coolly tells that she has mind-raped her parents. But that's okay, they are mere Muggles. They have to be protected for their own good. She has truly assimilated well into the Wizarding World, down to adopting their attitudes towards Muggles.

* Hermione is crying over her parents. I guess that makes it all right.

* Ron knows what an uvula is. Is that normal knowledge among English people? The only reason I know what that piece of my anatomy is called is because I've studied phonetics.

* Harry needs Hermione to point out to him that Voldemort might be keeping watch on Godric's Hollow. And Harry is the Saviour of the Wizarding World. If I were a witch, I'd leave Britain as soon as possible, because clearly the Wizarding World has no hope.

* I don't get how Harry & co. haven't realised who R.A.B. is. If I were one of them, I'd start going through wizarding surnames to find out who he is. From that, it's a small leap to Regulus Black. All of the readers probably got it in five minutes.

* I know that as a Headmaster of Hogwarts Dumbledore has a right to remove books from the library, but I still don't like his decision to remove the books on Horcruxes. Almost all forms of magic can be used for harmful purposes, but I don't see him removing books that tell you how to enlarge Muggles' tongues from the library.

* Hermione is feeling guilty for stealing the books on Horcruxes. I say that having entrusted Harry & co. with the task of destroying the Horcruxes, Dumbledore had no right to keep the books from them. Is it only me, or do you think that Dumbledore is deliberately making it as difficult as possible to destroy the Horcruxes? Ordering Harry not to tell anyone but Ron and Hermione about them, not telling Harry how to destroy them, and hiding the books on them. One could almost think that he didn't want them to be destroyed.

* Hermione the exposition machine at work. Topic: Horcruxes.

* Splitting your soul makes it unstable, so Hermione can't believe Voldemort has made six Horcruxes. Um, Hermione, have you ever heard from Harry about what kind of person Voldemort is? Because I think "unstable" describes him quite well.

* Harry wonders why he never asked Dumbledore how to destroy a Horcrux. Just your natural stupidity, Harry.

* The Ministry has placed security enchantments upon The Burrow. So the Weasleys are so important that they deserve special protection, while the likes of Madam Bones can be cheerfully left to their deaths. Also, does this mean the Ministry know Harry's at The Burrow? Oh dear, maths plotholes.

* Oh, I love the Delacours.

* Tell me, why aren't the Death Eaters keeping a watch on The Burrow and attacking Mr Weasley and the Delacours when they are outside the protective spells?

* In my private universe, Gabrielle marries Percy. (Let's forget that Gabrielle is only eleven years old.) None of Percy's family can understand how Percy could have got such a lovely wife and they'll be very rude about it to Percy. (I love it when Percy's family behaves badly against him, because then I can hate the Weasleys in peace.) *ships Percy/Gabrielle*

* The Delacour's are helpful, pleasant guests. I'm sure that if it were the Weasleys visiting the Delacours, the Weasleys wouldn't be nearly as charming. (Like I said, I love it when the Weasleys behave badly.)

* Mrs Weasley says it complicates organising a wedding, having all the security spells in place. Well, who on Earth organises a large wedding in the middle of a terrorist war? Such a gathering is like a come-hither look for a Death Eater attack.



IITS:
Why won't the Ministry prosecute Harry for doing underaged magic? IITS!

Idiot Picture:
No one except Mrs Weasley will try to stop Harry & co. Why? Because Harry says Dumbledore told them to go on a suicide mission!

Informed Attributes:
Only Harry can find and destroy the Horcruxes.

Ken and Andrew's Rule of Plotholes:
Why has The Burrow been warded by the Ministry?

Light Bulb Moment:
Harry realises he never asked Dumbledore how to destroy Horcruxes.

Nut o' Fun:
The Delacours!

Final score: 6.

Comments

[aasaylva.livejournal.com]

Mrs Weasley, though, isn't giving up. The whole thing is portrayed as if Mrs Weasley is once again being overprotective, but IMO she's just being sensible.
I'd agree with you if I could believe Mrs Weasley was motivated by anything but instinctive protectiveness. I mean, normally, her trust in Dumbledore borders on insanity. But then, as you pointed out, she somehow agreed to Hermione and Ron working as decoy Harries, so I presume it's just another characterization bomb gone off.

All Harry has to do is die. The rest can be done by anyone.
OMG yes! After reading HBP and DH just once and never really thinking about it in detail ever since, it's only now that I realized how true that was. Horcruxes - could have been found and destroyed by anyone. Killing Voldy? Ditto, in fact, he WAS not killed by Harry, but by himself, so everybody could have done it. And really - what would have been different, if Harry HAD been killed by him on his first try 16 years ago? Someone else would have offed Voldemort and the Horcruxes and not even needed to bother about Harrycrux. so, in fact, Harry made it all more difficult for no reason at all!

The manger is wringing out one of Mr Weasley's vests. I thought Mr Weasley wore robes.
Naa, Arthur went to a fancy dress party the other week. As Muggle, talking about eckeltricity and waving a battery. So funny!

Terrible of Mrs Weasley to keep Harry, Ron and Hermione busy with wedding preparations. She should do all by herself, the bitch.
What really annoyed me, however, was the reason why she made them do it. To prevent them from talking. Are they four year olds? Is Molly retarded? has got to be either!

What IS a Probity Probe???

* Mr Weasley isn't telling his wife that he has Sirius's bike in the coop.
Any bets as to what Harry will be hiding in his shed in 20 years' time?

* What is Ron doing carrying a greasy handkerchief with him? Normal people put dirty handkerchiefs into the laundry.
Normal people take a bath more often than once every 4 years and clean out their school trunks...

Hermione coolly tells that she has mind-raped her parents.
I don't get what Rowling was driving at there. Hermione could have explained the situation to them. Even the Dursleys who don't trust the wizards one bit, could be convinced to go into hiding. Why wouldn't intelligent parents who supposedly love and support their witch-daughter do the same? But as it's written, it doesn't sound like Hermione even tried to do it.

Dumbledore had no right to keep the books from them. Is it only me, or do you think that Dumbledore is deliberately making it as difficult as possible to destroy the Horcruxes?
It is not only you. In fact, I can't imagine anyone with a brain not coming to the same conclusion. That was one of the major WTF threads in HBP: how CAN you tell someone to accomplish a task which is absolutely essential to get done and not give him the slightest information about it? And how can you accept that task and not ask the simplest question that any kindergarten kid would spout within seconds? I need more aspirin!

Harry wonders why he never asked Dumbledore how to destroy a Horcrux. Just your natural stupidity, Harry.
And an IITS of gigantic proportions. But I understand Rowling didn't want to spoil the big surprise for us. The methods to destroy Horcruxes are the major plot point in DH, weren't they? Took Hermione about three sentences. So, no, couldn't have had that in HBP already, thus allowing the hero an IQ above jellyfish.

The Ministry has placed security enchantments upon The Burrow.
Interesting, as according to Snape, the order did not want to floo Harry out of Privet Drive, because they didn't trust the ministry. So, did Snape lie to Voldemort? If no, why do they trust the ministry with their wards? if yes, why DIDN'T they floo Harry out of there?

Like I said, I love it when the Weasleys behave badly.
Yes! It's so in character!)

[violaswamp.livejournal.com]

I don't get what Rowling was driving at there.

Easy: Hermione is a Brave, Heroic Person who had to make Hard Choices because There's A War On, Don't You Get It, A War!.

Never mind either practicality or morality or plot-sense, of course.

[seductivedark.livejournal.com]

*Hermione coolly tells that she has mind-raped her parents. /
I don't get what Rowling was driving at there.

IMO: The Dursleys were chickens who took the easy way out. Of course they'd run completely out of the book like Zacharias Smith knocking over firsties to get away. The Grangers, however, spawned the Magnificent Goddess of Hellfire and would never leave the battlefield until the last clone was down or they were carried off on a bier. So obviously, Hermione had to protect her foolishly brave parents from themselves. *rolleyes*

[aasaylva.livejournal.com]

Magnificent Goddess of Hellfire
Mwahaha!!! That should be a comic title - although I must say my first associatioon with that name would have been Ginny, I even can see her: blazing eyes, surrounded by bat bogey hexes - why oh why can't I draw to save my life?!?

[(Anonymous)]

"Hermione coolly tells that she has mind-raped her parents."

I don't get what Rowling was driving at there. Hermione could have explained the situation to them.

Not to mention, that I thought that Memory Charm is complicated enough to have a full profession dedicated to nothing else?
And that creating and implanting false memories is something only a genius Legilimens like Voldy could do? Yes, at 16, but after a lifetime of practicing Legilimency? That it is so uncommon that nobody except DD would even look for an evidence of the tampering? Yet, suddenly Hermione can do it perfectly _at a first try_. Yes, symptomatic for the rest of the book, yet still bleah.

[r-ganymede.livejournal.com]

Are we really so certain it's the first try? I can see Hermione practicing such a thing on others. Not that that's what we're probably supposed to be getting from this, though...

Actually, I could see Memory Charms being easier to perform on Muggles and we know that even Lockhart can do it, so I don't think that part's too out there, though it is more annoying Super!Hermione.

[(Anonymous)]

It's not "even Lockhart". Lockhart was very, very good at casting "strong" Memory Charms - it was one area where he shone, while being rubbish at everything else. That's why he was successful - nobody expected a loser like him to be an expert at that bit of complicated magic.
And BTW, there is an evidence of Bertha Jorkins to prove that Memory charms can harm people permanently when a casting is a bit off. There are Obliviators as well - MoM officials that do nothing else but cast Memory Charms. I.e. it must require skill that a normal official doesn't have.

Also, creating and implanting false memories was established as something that only a powerful Legilimens could do and Hermione is no Legilimens at all, even in DH.

about the vest...

[(Anonymous)]

It's been mentioned a couple of times that people find it strange that arthur weasley wears a vest. As far as I understand it, a vest is an item of underclothing, making it perfectly possible to wear a vest under your robes (perhaps useful in winter).

The thing that confused me was that he was wearing a vest in summer... maybe his robes are very thin?

Re: about the vest...

[seductivedark.livejournal.com]

... maybe his robes are very thin?

Maybe the Ministry has the A/C turned up too high.

Re: about the vest...

[mmmarcusz.livejournal.com]

Doesn't "vest" mean jacket in America?

[anehan]

I'd agree with you if I could believe Mrs Weasley was motivated by anything but instinctive protectiveness.

You're right. She's just instinctively protective. She doesn't really challenge Dumbledore's decision. And you're also right, it's really childish of her to try to keep the Trio from talking to each other. Damn, there goes my feeble appreciation for Molly here. ;-)

What IS a Probity Probe???

I have no idea. It's some security measure Gringotts uses in HBP.

I don't get what Rowling was driving at there. Hermione could have explained the situation to them.

That's what I would have done in her position.