deathtocapslock | Deathly Hallows, chapter 11

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Deathly Hallows, chapter 11

The Bribe

* The Death Eaters seem to know where 12 Grimmauld Place is, even though they can't access the place. Which means that Snape must not have told Voldemort that Dumbledore was the Secret Keeper. This alone should have tipped at least Hermione off to the fact that Snape was on their side.

* Oh, come on, Hermione. It's not like Moody's curse could prevent Snape from revealing the information if he had wanted to.

* I wonder why the DEs haven't been standing outside 12 Grimmauld Place since OotP. Why now and not then?

* Hermione and Ron bickering is getting old. I don't see how their marriage can be anything but misery.

* Really, all one has to do to get past Moody's wards is say "it was not I who killed you, Albus". I've said this before, but I can't believe how pathetic this is.

* I wonder, if Snape was truly on Voldemort's side, would Voldemort have won? Because it seems to me that Snape is the only competent adult wizard there is. (Or maybe Voldemort should go to Señor Draco for advice. After all, he seems to be the only wizard whose evil plot worked.)

* Lupin looks exhausted. What, not shabby?

* Even now, when they are no longer teaching colleagues, Lupin calls Snape "Severus". Interrrrresting.

* It's impossible to track anyone who Apparates. One more reason, in addition to mmmfflmmmffflmmmph, for not to Apparate Harry out of 4 Privet Drive.

* Even Lupin doesn't know about Voldemort's name-hearing skill.

* So the Death Eaters only interrogated people who they knew were their enemies. Somehow it doesn't seem like Voldemort's style to leave his enemies alive.

* Even the Tonkses were attacked, even though they are protected by powerful enchantments that are able to stop Voldemort himself.

* Ah, so the Tonkses' house is still protected by the enchantments, but now that the DEs have taken over the Ministry, they no longer fear using illegal spells. That must make sense in some alternate universe, but certainly not in this.

* Lupin hesitates before showing the Daily Prophet to the Trio. Probably wise, considering Harry's power of CAPSLOCK.

* Harry heroically resists using his special power. I am thankful.

* I'm not surprised that the Daily Prophet article hasn't resulted in an uproar. If I were a law officer, and I had to investigate a murder where no one but the people who were present knew the murderer, I too would want to question the witnesses.

* The sudden new Ministry policy concerning the Muggle-born really should have tipped everyone with some kind of deductive power to the fact that Voldemort has taken over the Ministry. Or if not that, then at least that there's something deeply wrong with the Ministry.

* The new policy is kind of heavy handed. Yeah, yeah, we get it. The Death Eaters are powerful masters of dark and evil arts. Or Thatcherian Tories.

* Right, right, sorry. Couldn't help myself. I meant to say that the Death Eaters are like the Nazis. We get it.

* Nevertheless, I kind of like the new policy, or at least I would have liked it if it hadn't appeared out of thin air. The notion that the Muggle-born somehow steal magic could have been one of the prejudices that the Muggle-born face. It's something wizards, with their lack of logical skills, would believe. As it is now, though, it's just something pastede on.

* In an uncharacteristic moment, Ron displays a rudimentary knowledge of logical thinking. Too bad the wizards are not known for their logical skills (see PS/SS). Otherwise they'd see that stealing magic would be impossible.

* Why doesn't Lupin try to persuade Harry to tell him what the mission is?

* For that matter, why doesn't Harry ever ask himself why Dumbledore wanted only Harry, Hermione and Ron to know about Horcruxes? Because there's no earthly reason why a few trustworthy adults shouldn't know. I doubt they'd go off to make a few Horcruxes for themselves.

* How has Tonks managed to become pregnant? It's clear that Lupin didn't want it. Am I supposed to conclude that Tonks stopped taking her contraceptive potion without telling her husband? Because if that's the case, I don't wonder at all that Lupin is a bit miffed.

* How stupid is Tonks for getting pregnant in the middle of a war? Maybe she hopes that her child will be the second Boy-Who-Lived.

* Oh my god, here comes Harry's holier-than-thou act. Brace yourselves.

* Um, Lupin, lycanthropy is an acquired characteristic. Acquired characteristics aren't passed along to the next generation. Though I'm not surprised Lupin not knowing that. I'd imagine that wizards would have very little knowledge about genetics. Unlike us ignorant Muggles.

* I hate what Rowling did to Remus here. Where's the ever-calm Lupin of PoA and OotP? Somehow I don't see that person being badgered into a marriage against his will. Damn you, Rowling. Stop destroying characters I like.

* Okay, Harry, you have gone too far. If I were your mother, I'd send you to your room without dessert until you saw the error of your ways and apologised to Lupin.

* On the other hand, Lupin the Marauder really might have been feeling a little bit of a daredevil. Too bad this Lupin bears no resemblance to Marauder!Lupin.

* Hermione asks how Harry could have done what he did. The answer is: easily. Harry doesn't care about other people.

* Harry feels remorse! Colour me shocked.

* Oh lord, more about the Dumbledore story. It's getting old. And boring. Most of all boring.

* Harry wants to visit Godric's Hollow. The boy just can't keep his mind on his task. Which, by the way, he just refused to share with someone who'd probably have been a great help.

* It seems to me that defeating Voldemort isn't really Harry's priority. His priority is to do what Dumbledore told him to do and to find out the truth about Dumbledore. Hmm, he's really obsessed with Dumbledore, isn't he?

* Kreacher is all "yes, Master, sorry, Master". Nooooooo, don't ruin Kreacher! Damn you, JKR!

* Mundungus is right, Sirius never cared about all the valuable items in 12 Grimmauld Place. In fact, he did his best to rid the house of them. Why shouldn't Mundungus have taken them?

* Oh, I like avenging!Kreacher. "Perhaps just one more, Master Harry, for luck?" *dissolves in giggles*

Designated Hero:
Our hero is characterised by his great ability to ~~rage~~ love.

Foley Work:
Crack! Kreacher apparates.

IITS:
I wonder why the Death Eaters left their enemies alive. I declare IITS.

Idiot Picture:
People don't realise Voldemort has taken over the Ministry. (That was the second time I almost wrote "Dumbledore" instead of "Voldemort". A Freudian slip, I suppose.)

Idiot World:
Dumbledore told us not to tell anyone about our quest, so we don't. Never mind if it means the baddies will win.

McGuffin:
The Horcruxes. Which Harry forgets he should be chasing in his quest to find out the Truth about Bumblebore.

Misdirected Answering:
Dumbledore, Dumbledore, Dumbledore, Dumbledore.

Nut o' Fun:
Kreacher and the saucepan!

Spring-Loaded Cat:
Lupin and his masterful way of getting past Moody extra special wards.

Whooshing Powder:
Whoosh, Lupin is gone. The next time we see him he's an enthusiastic new father. *gags*

Final score: 10. Wow! This chapter really is something quite special. If by "special" one means "sporkable".

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

* How has Tonks managed to become pregnant? It's clear that Lupin didn't want it. Am I supposed to conclude that Tonks stopped taking her contraceptive potion without telling her husband? Because if that's the case, I don't wonder at all that Lupin is a bit miffed.

I find it interesting that Rowling managed to have her way with this sub-plot but the character Lupin fought her every step of the way. Hence the reason why he just runs in and out of the book from time to time. That was the only way she could get him to do what she needs to be done.

It really does seem like the character is fighting its author teeth and nails, doesn't it?

I wish Rowling had listened to him. Maybe then she wouldn't have ruined him as thoroughly as she did.

Shit. The kind of respect that Rowling has for her female characters, Tonks got pregnant in order to pressure Lupin into marrying her.

* How has Tonks managed to become pregnant? It's clear that Lupin didn't want it. Am I supposed to conclude that Tonks stopped taking her contraceptive potion without telling her husband? Because if that's the case, I don't wonder at all that Lupin is a bit miffed.

How sure are we that wizards have or use contraceptives? Because Rowling strikes me as the kind of arch-conservative asshole who considers birth control to be a source of moral decay. I can easily imagine her thinking that wanting to decide if and when to have children instead of just letting them come when they may was a kind of suburban, Dursley-like close-mindedness.

That'd explain the Weasleys. And the Malfoys would be enlightened folk for using contraception.

Not conservative. Asshole, though, yes. I'm conservative, and think people need to manage their childbearing because it's so difficult and counter-productive to have too many and/or too soon.

Quite... You may notice I did specify arch-conservative. I didn't claim that it was a universal belief among conservatives, or even a majority one.

I'm not sure Rowling conforms to any political persuasion known to Man. Her arch-liberal is a manipulating puppet-master while her arch-conservative is a jerk who apologizes to his soon-to-be-deadmeat brother.

Oh, no. Rowling's political inclinations are very common, if not uncomplicated. Her ideals are as conservative as they come, she just doesn't think conservative methods are likely to lead to any good. Which places her in the uneasy position of "liberal, but, you know, within reason."

I have to say I thought at first she might be conservative (small c) because of allowing her child characters to be hurt on the playground and to have some proactivity. I'd been swamped by warm-and-fuzzy kid's stuff with a small child at home. Then, things started going every which way and I wasn't sure if she was a Communist (capital C) or an Anarchist (either type of 'a' will do) and in the end, I came to the conclusion that what is good for her would do for everyone in the Potterverse. Glad I don't live there.

As for ideals, maybe some conservatives think the same. I found her antinomian sentiments toward her hero and his friends to be vomit-inducing. It all became about entitlement no matter what a person does for being who one is, or lack of any saving grace no matter what a person does for being who one is.

BTW, popped into your LJ and have been enjoying your rants about HBP. Nice job. :D

what is good for her would do for everyone in the Potterverse.

I would consider that a fair assessment of Rowling's outlook, yes. I can't help it notice that irrespectively of who she votes for, the only liberal cause she actually seems to like is the one about providing assistance for low-income single parents - which is to say, for people in the same situation she was in before she became an author. Which fits with my general impression of Rowling, namely that she has unlimited sympathy for people who are exactly like her, and none at all for those who are the least bit different.

BTW, popped into your LJ and have been enjoying your rants about HBP. Nice job. :D

Thank you.

...she has unlimited sympathy for people who are exactly like her, and none at all for those who are the least bit different.

Exactly. We are in accord.

I have a frightening vision now that pretty soon she'll turn her back on low-income single parents who haven't become millionaires the way she did. After all, if she can do it...

*rolleyes*

I'm not sure Rowling conforms to any political persuasion known to Man.

Here's a libertarian claiming her as a fellow traveler, based on what he considers to be her trenchant critique of government: http://www.michiganlawreview.org/archive/104/6/Barton.pdf

He has a point, though I don't suppose Rowling is any more capable of a coherent, articulated political stance than she is of writing a logically or morally coherent text. She's a kneejerk traditionalist with a liberal(ish) veneer, no empathy whatsoever as

baeraad points out above, and an amazing capacity for cognitive dissonance.

-L

It reminds me of that Monty Python sketch in The Meaning of Life, where the Protestant father sneers at the Irish poor who have so many children they have to sell them to science labs for experiments. The Protestant tells his wife how much better off they are because he can wear a condom, but that the Catholic have a child every time they have sex.

"That's just like us," his wife says. "After all, we have two children."

So, maybe the Malfoys only ever had sex once.

That could very well be it. Or at least they stopped sleeping together once they had the much-needed heir.

(deleted comment)

I always thought that it was completely implausible and stupid that rabid bloodists in Potterverse only had one child per couple. Magic-backed entailment inheritance, like the one that existed until well into the 20th century in Great Britain could take care of possible wealth dilution and the influence network between the old families would ensure good placement of extra children. Such people would want their ideals propagated and illogical as magical folks are, they still seem able to count to 3.

And it isn't in the least believable that people who can easily re-grow limbs would have problems with fertility.

Re: Draco specifically, I always imagined that the Malfoys perhaps tend to produce squibs frequently (according to the family tree the Blacks don't) and since Lucius and Narcissa were very fond of each other and lucked out with their first child and heir, they decided not to risk hurting their marriage trying to get further offspring. I sort of always imagined that Mrs. Figg was Lucius's crazy squib aunt.
As to Bella, she clearly joined the DEs straight out of school and was more interested in doing DE stuff than in starting a family. She wasn't yet 30 when she was imprisoned.

About Lupin - yes it would make sense that werewolves are generally infertile. After all, very little is understood about the nature of the curse and he also didn't seem to heal as easily as normal people.

About contraception: I always read Lupin's line about how werewolves don't usually breed to mean that he had assumed he was sterile. I know it's not a perfect solution, but so few things in DH are...and at least it lets me clear both him and Tonks of gross stupidity and manipulation.

Word on the absolute craptasticness of the anti-snape-jinxes - and another sign how truly fed up with her own story JKR must have been. It reads like something she came up within three minutes after cook had called to come down for lunch in order to tie up another chapter.

Lupin looks exhausted. What, not shabby?
You don't know how he had to fight to get out of tonks' clutches!

So the Death Eaters only interrogated people who they knew were their enemies.
They are the nicest terrorists ever. Or the silliest. Or they are handicapped by the author's confusion as to how much power they do have. Because, OTOH they seem to need the ministerial facade to pass any laws, OTOH, they teach Unforgivables at school.

Even the Tonkses were attacked, even though they are protected by powerful enchantments that are able to stop Voldemort himself.
The Tonkses were protected when their house served as connecting station between privet Drive and the Burrow for the Chosen One. Harry is no longer there, so why would they need protection?

Re Tonks' pregnancy:
You are totally right - there is simply no way for it to have happened unless at least one of them is a total idiot. But then, I am not sure the author doesn't think of birth control as something evil. Remember how the Malfoys were introduced by sneering at the weasleys for having more children than they can afford?

Somehow I don't see that person being badgered into a marriage against his will.
I must say I could imagine Remus to marry someone out of "politeness", i.e. his general desire to do what is expected of him without confronting anyone if possible. Which is what made me utterly miserable on his behalf in the hospital scene at the end of HBP. It was so obvious he just gave in to public pressure. But I sure as hell don't buy the whole pregnancy against his will stuff. Sirius would have been the type for that, but not Remus. I weep with you for another character casualty.

Yay on Kreacher and the Saucepan of Judgment!

Word on the absolute craptasticness of the anti-snape-jinxes

There's no way they would have worked. And as we see from the theft of Lily's signature and picture, they evidently didn't work. And Moody's supposed to be the best of Aurors. No wonder they need kids to do their job.

You don't know how he had to fight to get out of tonks' clutches!

Yeah. The women are bitches who just want to snare their man. Really, the Tonks-Lupin storyline and the Romilda Vane-Harry one really make me want to gag, they're so anti-feminist.

OTOH they seem to need the ministerial facade to pass any laws

And they won't use super strong spells because they are illegal. Bitch, please.

Yes, the DE MO is completely imbecilic. They had to know where approximately the Black house was and should have staked it out in OoTP. And not killing or at the very less badly torturing their enemies and throwing them in Azkaban?! Are they really the blood-thirsty fiends they were described as? Not even Ted Tonks or the Lupins were killed and that after all the threats.

Re: not telling Lupin. Well, it would have made some sense if there really was the whole "you don't know who they are" atmosphere alluded to in PoA and another spy in the Order. Or 2. And if DD really had been a master planner and set a competent, wholly trustworthy team to work on it, in secret from the trio.

The whole resistance/civil war storyline had _such_ potential and could have made HBP and DH much better books. There would have been more than enough scope for the characters to act and to be heroic even when they weren't dealing with Voldy's annual plot directly. Instead, one was a snog-fest and the other a tent-sitting exercise. Sigh.

Re: Lupin's weakness. He was always a moral coward. He was one as a Marauder and as a teacher, so this is fully in character. A supposedly competent and dedicated Auror acting like Tonks is not, however. In fact, it is totally crazy.

Not even Ted Tonks or the Lupins were killed and that after all the threats.

Clearly Voldemort didn't let Bellatrix to do the interrogating.

A supposedly competent and dedicated Auror acting like Tonks is not, however.

I really hate the Tonks-Lupin storyline for the way it portrays women. Tonks publicly pressure Lupin in a very emotional moment to go out with her, and then she seems to have got pregnant without his knowledge. It's all so anti-feminist that I want to gag.

Tonks publicly pressure Lupin in a very emotional moment to go out with her

And most importantly at the moment when it was her sworn duty to do something else that was very important - namely investigating the murder of DD and/or securing the school and making sure that all the DEs were really gone and not, say, carving up some little Muggleborn in a dark corner. That scene was a character assassination.

Re: Lupin, well, his weakness wasn't only with his friends, was it? He also didn't tell anybody about the multiple ways a supposed mass murderer could get into the school, because it would have made him look bad. And in fact, telling about the secret passages or securing them himself wouldn't even have done that, so... I dunno. If it is dubiousness rather than weakness, doesn't it come rather close to actual evil?

Now, while I think that Lupin's behavior with mutated HBP/DH Tonks monster was in character, it doesn't mean that I was pleased to see it. In fact, I wished and expected to see Lupin the resistance fighter, the hero, and retroactively the redeemer of James and Sirius.
Because if we _saw_ Lupin doing heroic things, it would be easy to believe that _they_ also did, during the first war.

I imagine that he wasn't allowed to come along because a man isn't allowed to overshadow Harry by his competence. Only a woman can be competent enough in a properly subservient way that would still leave all the accolades to teh Chosen One... Again, it would have been different if there was a sign of actual treason within the Order, but no.

Clearly Voldemort didn't let Bellatrix to do the interrogating.

But I thought that he _wanted_ the Tonks and the Lupins to die horribly? Didn't he prattle about it at length at the DE social?

If it is dubiousness rather than weakness, doesn't it come rather close to actual evil?

I like to think so. :D Seriously, I like my Lupin to be a little bit evil, or at least a grey character. Opportunist. Mostly thinking about himself instead of the greater good.

Ron and Hermione’s bickering got old in Book 5. Lavender added a bit of a different twist, but things should have been sorted out completely by the end of Book 6, and Book 7 reserved for the main plot. Still, if their marriage fails, Hermione can just wipe Ron’s memory and move on to the next fool who wants a free will obliterating/cringer to the Boy who Lived/Umbridge Wannabe (wannabe and succeeding, let‘s face it). I’m assured by my statistically accurate survey of one bloke, that as JKR and Hollywood started to push Hermione as this gorgeous young girl, the character became more and more sexless and unattractive. Apparently wanting to be emasculated is a speciality desire, not one for the masses.

As for Moody’s wards, I have to say (again!) why does JKR add these things that add absolutely nothing to the story except make it/her look stupid? Secret Keeping in Book 7 is a steaming pile of Dragon Pucky. Why not say that it was possible to have a Secret Keeper in line, who’d automatically take over if the original one died. Instead of this ‘everyone who knew the secret becomes a Secret Keeper’ B*ll*cks. Then the new Secret Keeper would have to tell people the secret again, Snape wouldn’t be an issue, and we wouldn’t have this embarrassing nonsense which wouldn’t frighten Book One Neville. Also, for the thousandth time, why didn’t she say Bill and Arthur were each other’s Secret Keepers instead of violently kicking in the head of one of her key moments in the entire series (The Potters betrayed by Peter their SECRET KEEPER)!! Arrrrrgggghhhh!

Apparition my arse. That’s lost me too. Why didn’t Harry just call Dobby to apparate him to the Burrow, or wherever? Sorry, I just can’t let that go. When they start dully starving in a tent, (coming soon I fear) the whole issue of House Elves, the non usage of, might well come up again for discussion.

I have a strange and unusual theory regarding Secret Keeping. I suspect that the rules aren’t consistent, but change to fit the story as and when. I know, I know, sounds ridiculous, but think about it. Conspiracy theories aside, I have reason to believe it’s true. See also Fidelius Charms, Enchantments, Any sort of magical protection on a property, Apparition, Polyjuice Potions, Memory Charms, Wandlore, The Trace, Numbers of Pupils at Hogwarts, Moral attitudes towards using Unforgiveable Curses, Voldemort's aptitude as a Dark Lord, Dumbledore's character, Hermione's intelligence, Ron's knowledge of the world he was bought up in, The Enslavement of the House Elves etc . And Secret Keeping.

I know that some people here say that what’s on the page is canon, and I should accept that Lupin is now a whiny cowardly git. As a student he was too easy going, in order to keep his closest friends happy - they'd becom Animagi to care for him. However as a man he was bitter enough to be able to kill Pettigrew in cold blood. I‘m not convinced he‘d go through with a marriage he didn’t want. The good natured Order Member and mentor to the tiresome Harry, would apparently happily abandon said silly wife while she was pregnant? (Don't ask me why she decided that the desperate bundle of weirdos and ratbags that make up the Order could easily spare a fully trained Auror from their ranks, as their world plunged into war, so spent her time chasing Mr Unkeen ) But I refuse to accept it, no-one can make me. JKR doesn’t derive changes naturally from events in her characters recent past, or the natural growing up process. She just randomly and jarringly introduces them to suit her needs at the moment. If she won’t make the effort to keep her characterizations consistent, I’ll do it for her. This *isn’t* Lupin - and don’t try to tell me otherwise.

Maybe lycanthropy *is* inherited in this world, and the changes happen at genetic level - JKR can do what she wants, it‘s all magic! Sadly I fear that if you asked Book 3 Remus, he’d have agreed with you. This is probably JKR indulging herself with yet more new ‘facts’ to add pathos to the crap sub plot she was currently writing. Instead of just dumping it with the rest of the rubbish.

I still wish Kreacher had betrayed them. It’d have been worth his certain death to be able to tell Harry to go swivel.

Oh, absolutely. The Fidelius Excuse changed every time Rowling used it. We got a *major* contadiction in the way it worked between PoA, when it was first explained to us, and OotP when we got a chance to see it in action. To the point that if the Keeper is able to *share* the secret with anyone he pleases, why did Peter's telling Tom about it *break* it?

In fact, if the secret can be limitlessly shared, how does one *release* the secret at all? Do you have the Keeper take out an ad in the Prophet?

For that matter, the way it's set up in DHs directly contradicts the way Rowling explained it on her website when the question of what happens when the Keeper dies won the FAQ Poll.

But that's not any theory on how it works in the story arc. It's just stupid lazy shoddy writing by an author who is convinced that her audience will swallow anything. And it may be one of the worst examples, but its hardly the only one. Rowling doesn't believe in magic, so she doesn't bother to make it consistent. And probably is contemptuous of the readers who expect the rules to make sense. I rather suspect that she was thumbing her nose at us all through HBP and DHs.

For that matter, the way it's set up in DHs directly contradicts the way Rowling explained it on her website when the question of what happens when the Keeper dies won the FAQ Poll.

Really? Do you remember what she said in her website?

Well, there was absolutely not one word about anyone that the former Keeper ever shared the secret with becoming a default secret Keeper themselves.

In fact, iirc, she stated flat out that if the Keeper dies the secret is frozen in that state. The people who have been filled in by the original keeper remember, but cannot tell anyone about it.

I so much hoped that Lavender/Ron would have lasted. I really liked that relationship. It was very believable.

I have a strange and unusual theory regarding Secret Keeping. I suspect that the rules aren’t consistent, but change to fit the story as and when.

Absolutely. And as you note, it's not the only thing that changes according to JKR's whims.

I know that some people here say that what’s on the page is canon, and I should accept that Lupin is now a whiny cowardly git.

I've never seen Lupin as a coward. I know that many people do, because of his inability to control his friends when he was a prefect, etc. To me, his character reads more as someone who just doesn't want to go to the trouble of standing up to his friends. To me he isn't a moral coward, but a morally dubious person. See his ability to plan Pettigrew's murder in cold blood.

I've never seen Lupin as a coward either, and I think I've figured out why. I just don't think he ever had the power, in his relationship with James and Sirius, to stop them from doing anything they wanted to do. To James and Sirius, Lupin was the charity boy, not someone to be listened to. It's like Ron trying to discipline the Twins (and why do I never hear anyone call him a moral coward?). In neither case did a prefect's badge magically grant power/authority to someone who didn't have it to begin with.

I just don't think he ever had the power, in his relationship with James and Sirius, to stop them from doing anything they wanted to do.

ITA.

I know that some people here say that what’s on the page is canon, and I should accept that Lupin is now a whiny cowardly git.

Well, the Bikini Girls are on the page now too, and I don't see a lot of people (who weren't already inclined to do so) accepting Sirius as straight! *evil grin*

I meant to say that the Death Eaters are like the Nazis. We get it.

This will never cease to aggravate me. If JKR had put a little more effort into her WWII research (and more time into her work) she could've had a really chilling story. What she did is so superficial and, in a way, insulting. Having the DEs do the "Heil Hitler!" sign looks nice, but what's the point if there's no meaning behind it? When Hitler came to power, he didn't start to round up the Jews as his first act, he had to use subtle smear tactics to get people to agree with him! Unfortunately, JKR never delves into the larger wizarding world (or even that of Britain), so we never really know why most wizards (aside from the old purebloods like the Blacks, Malfoys, etc.) would care about Muggleborns being in their society.

And I hate what she did to Remus too. FAIL, JKR.

When Hitler came to power, he didn't start to round up the Jews as his first act, he had to use subtle smear tactics to get people to agree with him!

And anti-semitism was alive and well in pre-WWII world. That was something I would have wanted to see in HP as well, concrete examples of anti-Mudblood prejudice. Something that would have made me see the Muggle-born Registry as a natural next step. As it is, anti-Mudblood prejudice is told, not shown, and the Registry is just pastede on.

Sob. Even snarking doesn't make it hurt any less. Lupin used to be one of my favorite characters in the series. I could even live with his HBP subplot, though I considered it far from ideal. But this is where JKR irretrievably ruined him for me. If I accept it, that is; fortunately, I'm finding that the entire seventh book just feels unreal to me, so I might eventually be able to forget about it. Still, I mourn for the much cooler and more likeable character that Lupin started out as. *mourns*

I think this is also the chapter where DH definitively lost all hope of ever redeeming itself in my eyes. I remember rushing through it last year, desperately trying to finish before somebody spoiled it for me, and not really having time to digest and react to what I was reading. But even then, I remember frowning at the general douchebagness of, well, everybody in this chapter.

Come back, my Lupin! I really liked him before, and what Rowling did to him is just cruel. My Lupin was cool and level-headed (see him being able to plan to murder Pettigrew in cold blood), not this travesty of a character.

Really, all one has to do to get past Moody's wards is say "it was not I who killed you, Albus". I've said this before, but I can't believe how pathetic this is.

Upon reading it, I assumed that would only work for someone who was telling the truth about being innocent. So, even if Snape did say "It was not I who killed you, Albus," he'd still trigger the curse or protective spell because he WAS the murderer, and the spell would be able to sense that.

...Of course, I could have just been attributing logic to something that didn't have it to begin with.

I think the enchantments must not have worked for Snape either, because he was able to go to Sirius's room and steal Lily's autograph and photo. Unless that was before Moody put up the enchantments, but somehow I doubt it.

Ì thought that scene with Lupin begging Harry to let him join him in the mission opened for some potentionally interesting and unexpected things to happen, both plotwise and characterwise. So of course Harry had to sent him home again, right away, because we couldn't have anything interesting or unexpected happen in this book.

I would have loved for him to have joined the mission, because then we could have seen more of him and learned more about his character (Lupin is one of my favourite HP characters). But maybe I should be grateful he practically disappeared from the book, considering the shoddy work Rowling did with him.

I agree. While Harry was being a real jerk in this chapter, a large part of my dislike of what he was doing was that it killed off a potentially interesting storyline.

In the two years between HBP and DH, I was away aware that the last book was going to involve an annoying amount of Horcrux hunting. The idea of Lupin being along to help offered some interest. In fact, I could have seen it giving Harry the education in D.A.D.A., he so desperately needed. And I could see Lupin and Harry moving from a teacher/student relationship to a friendship-which would have had a nice reminiscent echo to Lupin's friendship with James and Sirius.

Of course, then we'd miss Lupin on the Death March. Then, again, if Snape had to die, I would have preferred seeing him there. Hehe.

Horcrux hunting could have been done in an interesting manner, too. Re: Lupin, of course anything would have been better than what we got with just the trio, but I wanted a break from the incestuous Gryffindor-Marauder circle of Harry adoration. That's why I wanted Harry to have to work with Snape, "neutral" Slytherins or at worst Scrimgour and learn that people don't need luurve him to be valuable allies against a bloodthirsty tyrant.

I was really hoping there would be some scene where the Trio would be stuck in a bind and they would realize that maybe they shouldn't have sent away the competent adult who had offered to help them. Sigh.

They did get stuck in binds - they just depended on an *incompetent* adult to help them. Luckily for them, she was the Author, so it worked everytime.

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Deathly Hallows, chapter 11

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Where it all broke down

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