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Ah, my first-ever post here at

deathtocapslock! I'm a bit nervous, but writing this post was fun, so...

Molly is still crying over Percy, ever since he "stormed from the house...with his glasses splattered with mashed parsnip (for which Fred, George and Ginny all claimed credit)". You'd think if she cared so much, she could have stopped her teenage kids from acting like toddlers in the presence of their father's boss, eh? (No wonder Arthur never gets promoted.)

I can see Percy working hard and becoming a rich adult, then pulling a Lucius Malfoy by marrying into an old, prestigious family and having Just. One. Child. Wouldn't it be funny if Lucius was once like Percy – the oddball in a huge Pureblood family who broke out and re-invented himself – and he despises Arthur so much because the Weasleys remind him of a miserable childhood?

"He accused me of being 'Dumbledore's man through and through'."

"How very rude of him."

"I told him I was."

Dumbledore opened his mouth to speak and then closed it again. Behind Harry, Fawkes the phoenix let out a low, soft, musical cry. (pg. 357, US hardcover edition) Sorry. I couldn't resist.

Dumbles, of course, returns this unswerving loyalty by basically going "Pfft!" when Harry tells him about Severus and Draco's wee chat. :D

The main thrust of this chapter, however, is devoted to Tom "Marvelous!" Riddle. Dumbledore never discusses the orphanage incidents with the staff or previous headmaster, wanting "to give him that chance" to start fresh. Tom returns the favor by making sure he never gets caught out by Dumbles during his entire stay at Hogwarts, and begins the process of becoming Voldemort:

"As he moved up the school, he gathered about him a group of of dedicated friends; I call them that, for want of a better term, although as I have already indicated, Riddle undoubtedly felt no affection for any of them. This group had a kind of dark glamour within the castle. They were a motley collection; a mixture of the weak seeking protection, the ambitious seeking some shared glory, and the thuggish gravitating toward a leader who could show them more refined forms of cruelty. In other words, they were the forerunners of the Death Eaters, and indeed some of them became the first Death Eaters after leaving Hogwarts.

Rigidly controlled by Riddle, they were never detected in open wrongdoing, although their seven years at Hogwarts were marked by a number of nasty incidents to which they were never satisfactorily linked, the most serious of which was, of course, the opening of the Chamber of Secrets, which resulted in the death of a girl." (pgs 361-362)

This isn't FACT, mind you – this is Dumbledore's conjecture, based on his own opinion and what very few memories he could force out of people. And we find out later in the chapter that memories can be tampered with! Do you hear Fawkes singing again? I sure as hell do.

If Dumbledore is the bestest, strongest, most badass motherfucker in the Wizarding World...why did Tom get away with all this? Why didn't Dumbles deal with him in private? It's not as if Tom had any family to ask after him, for fucks sake! Either Dumbledore ISN'T as powerful as he claims to be, or there's a connection between him & Tom that he's not discussing. Hmmm...

Pensieve Memory One: not for the faint of heart, and best dealt with by those who grew up on a steady diet of crappy B movies. :D (In fact, I'm convinced that Roger Corman would do an admirable job of directing the HPB movie, since Terence Fisher is dead.) It's so over the top, this moment where Tom's Wizarding fantasies collide head-on with the sordid reality of the Gaunts and he...snaps. It should be chilling, or heartbreaking, but instead it's completely ridiculous.

Pensieve Memory Two: Slughorn's tampered memory is slightly easier on the brain, but Rowling completely over-eggs the pudding when it comes to facile Oscar Wilde comparisons. Had Slughorn been more closely modeled on Sebastian Melmoth-era Wilde – haunted by his excessive, decadent past and damaged by bad decisions – he would have more believable (and scarier, I suppose – Ah well).

"No, I think it would be foolish to attempt to wrest the truth from Professor Slughorn by force, and might do much more harm than good; I do not wish him to leave Hogwarts. However, he has his weaknesses like the rest of us, and I believe that you are the one person who might be able to penetrate his defenses." (pg. 372)

With those suggestive words, Dumbledore prepares to whore out his "man" to Slughorn, and I sit here amazed that Scholastic hasn't received more flack for publishing this book!

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I can see Percy working hard and becoming a rich adult, then pulling a Lucius Malfoy by marrying into an old, prestigious family and having Just. One. Child. Wouldn't it be funny if Lucius was once like Percy – the oddball in a huge Pureblood family who broke out and re-invented himself – and he despises Arthur so much because the Weasleys remind him of a miserable childhood?

Awesome interpretation. Thanks.

No problem. :)

Behind Harry, Fawkes the phoenix let out a low, soft, musical cry.

Heh, the soft, musical cry of a phoenix is the WW's equivalent to the world's smallest violin.

Do you hear Fawkes singing again? I sure as hell do.

Hee!

If Dumbledore is the bestest, strongest, most badass motherfucker in the Wizarding World...why did Tom get away with all this? Why didn't Dumbles deal with him in private? It's not as if Tom had any family to ask after him, for fucks sake! Either Dumbledore ISN'T as powerful as he claims to be, or there's a connection between him & Tom that he's not discussing. Hmmm...

Well, students seem to get undisciplined for wrong-doings all the time, at Hogwarts, unless they're caught in the action, or something, so maybe it's just part of the school's education system. ;-)

students seem to get undisciplined for wrong-doings all the time, at Hogwarts...

Harry, Ron and Hermione seem to stay out of trouble often – but is that really true of Hogwarts students in general?

I'm seeing this more as another parallel between Harry and Tom – both of them could do pretty much anything they fucking wanted at Hogwarts with little or no reprecussions. We know that Harry's relationship with Dumbledore plays a large part in why Harry's untouchable – who made it possible for Tom? The previous headmaster, perhaps? Was Dumbles a Snape-like character in Tom's life, the adult who bypassed the hype and saw him as he really was?

Mind you, I wouldn't go so far as to say that Rowling is consciously making this parallel. But it's something that was painfully noticeable during the re-read.

If Dumbledore is the bestest, strongest, most badass motherfucker in the Wizarding World...why did Tom get away with all this? Why didn't Dumbles deal with him in private?

Because he is a deeply, consistently irresponsible man who:

a) lets an orphan grow up in an abusive family for ten years without once checking on him, and then expresses surprise at the fact that this boy is still capable of feeling love,

b) does not interfere with another boy's plans to kill him in spite of the fact that this non-interference on his part means that two pupils nearly lose their lives and,

c) never provides anyone with information that, had they had it, might have saved lives, as when he did not inform Harry that Lord Voldemort might use his access to Harry's brain to trick him.

Seriously, if I had to chose between having Voldie or Dumbles run my world, I'd go over to the dark side so fast you wouldn't see me for dust.

he is a deeply, consistently irresponsible man

Agreed. What I don't quite get about Dumbledore and the "Wise Old Man" archetype he's supposedly portraying in this story arc is...the irresponsibility he shows throughout the narrative isn't usually associated with the omnipotence/omniscience he's claimed to have. Irresponsible people in power often have people behind them who cover up for them and keep the fantasy going. Who's doing this for Dumbledore? No-one that I can see. It's just a given throughout the books that he's the biggest and the best.

If Dumbles is really supposed to be that powerful, it would make sense he'd make sure he stayed that way, usually by getting rid of any competition. Tom/Voldemort is clearly competition, and obviously he was heading in that direction even at school. Why was he allowed to become as powerful as he did? Why did Dumbledore let Tom become Voldemort?

The answer "Because it's a children's book and Voldemort's the bad guy, so if Dumbledore kills off the bad guy before he's the bad guy, there's no story!" just isn't good enough. ;) I can accept "Well, because it's Harry's POV!", but only up to a point; Harry never has direct experience with Tom Riddle. Either it's via the diary in COS or it's through Dumbledore's filter. He only comes face-to-face with Voldemort – who really isn't Tom anymore, is he?

As far as I can understand, Dumbles has a view of the world in which 'personal choices' are really important, and he's prepared to let people go to hell in their own way rather than interfere. Morally speaking, I think it's an atrocious attitude; it's just another name for a cop-out.

Molly is still crying over Percy, ever since he "stormed from the house...with his glasses splattered with mashed parsnip (for which Fred, George and Ginny all claimed credit)".

Tsk..tsk I'm afraid you (and admittedly I as well thankfully) are missing the point. Percy made his mommy cry. He also obviously has no sense of humor since he was unable to appreciate the good-natured hijinks of those spunky triplets.

they were the forerunners of the Death Eaters

Sounds like he could have just said that they were, you know, Slytherin as this seems to be how canon describes them. *sighs*

Sorry...forgot to sign in.

Tsk..tsk I'm afraid you (and admittedly I as well thankfully) are missing the point. Percy made his mommy cry. He also obviously has no sense of humor since he was unable to appreciate the good-natured hijinks of those spunky triplets.

If I were the Momma in that situation, I'd be crying because those dammed kids are wasting perfectly good parsnips! Think of the starving kids in Knockturn Alley!

Wouldn't it be funny if Lucius was once like Percy – the oddball in a huge Pureblood family who broke out and re-invented himself – and he despises Arthur so much because the Weasleys remind him of a miserable childhood?

I would love that. Excessively. Big fat yes to this interpretation. *cheers wildly* Of course that would add some humanity to Lucius and large parts of our fandom would not be able to cope with this insane thing called complexity and the wank would explode. Can't wait!!

Dumbles, of course, returns this unswerving loyalty by basically going "Pfft!" when Harry tells him about Severus and Draco's wee chat. :D

Hahaha, it's things like this one that makes me actually like this old bastard. He's so confident in his own marvellousness that he doesn't EVER consider the fact that anyone could need some crumbs of reason to believe in HIM. Such a generous, caring man, old Dumbly.

Of course that would add some humanity to Lucius and large parts of our fandom would not be able to cope with this insane thing called complexity and the wank would explode.

Ah, but perhaps some smaller, calmer, infinitely more thoughtful segments of the fandom will take immense pleasure in squicking out those larger, wankier segments by writing fic about Lucius teaching Percy how to survive an excessively formal, elite Wizarding dinner party. :D

Ah, but perhaps some smaller, calmer, infinitely more thoughtful segments of the fandom will take immense pleasure in squicking out those larger, wankier segments by writing fic about Lucius teaching Percy how to survive an excessively formal, elite Wizarding dinner party. :D

Please tell me this exists.

Sorry to respond so late! :o

Please tell me this exists.

I can only hope someone will be kind enough to write it, since my fiction skills are negligible. If I find such a gem, I'll let you know! :D

Psst! Read "The Shadow of His Wings" by Mirabella where Lucius - in Azkaban, no less - teaches Percy politics.

Pimping it because it isn't mine, just a v v spiffy fic. :D

Mirabella, eh? I know a couple of people on her flist – perhaps they can hook me up with that specific scene.

Cheers for the rec! :)

IIRC every chapter starts with a Lucius/Percy lovely teacher/pupil scene.

You can read it here (http://theguestroom.houseofhobbits.com/hp/sohw.html). It's a WIP, though, up to chapter 18. Well, if you know Mirabella you know the wuality of her writing, so I don't have to wax rapsodic, do I? ;)

Quality, even. Insomnia is NOT a speller's friend. :) Sorry

Mine is coming soon, really! *laments at crapness of self*

You'd think if she cared so much, she could have stopped her teenage kids from acting like toddlers in the presence of their father's boss, eh?

You'd think. Apparently, though, there is only one way to act in front of a boss that is obviously No Good. See also: the beginning of CoS. We all know Dobby did that one, but Vernon was clearly in the wrong for getting angry about it.

Wouldn't it be funny if Lucius was once like Percy – the oddball in a huge Pureblood family who broke out and re-invented himself

It'd have to be quite an extensive re-invention, considering that Draco seems to have a rather different view of his family. But yeah, that could be interesting in itself. Everything Lucius has told everyone about himself is a lie. Mind you, canon'd balls that up by having this be Proof that Lucius isn't to be trusted, rather than exploring his reasons for it.

Dumbledore never discusses the orphanage incidents with the staff or previous headmaster, wanting "to give him that chance" to start fresh.

In other words, leave him alone and act surprised when that doesn't quite work out for the best. My, how could we have foreseen that the childrearing equivalent of "LALALA I CAN'T HEAR YOU!!!" wouldn't produce the best results?

Either Dumbledore ISN'T as powerful as he claims to be, or there's a connection between him & Tom that he's not discussing. Hmmm...

:O I am suddenly imagining a situation in which Voldemort actually isn't the only descendant of Salazar Slytherin's that Harry's met (I was going to say "still living", but, er...). After all, Salazar Slytherin lived a thousand years ago, he must have hundreds of descendants floating about, inbreeding or no. Perhaps this is how Dumbledore knew all about the cousin-marrying and such. Some rebellious descendant decided to marry a less-than-pure individual and was Cast Out as pennance, and from thence sprung our Laddy Dumbledore. It might also explain a little about Aberforth and his supposed weirdness :/

With those suggestive words, Dumbledore prepares to whore out his "man" to Slughorn, and I sit here amazed that Scholastic hasn't received more flack for publishing this book!

Indeed. Penetrating defences? Harry's a honey trap now.

It'd have to be quite an extensive re-invention, considering that Draco seems to have a rather different view of his family. But yeah, that could be interesting in itself. Everything Lucius has told everyone about himself is a lie. Mind you, canon'd balls that up by having this be Proof that Lucius isn't to be trusted, rather than exploring his reasons for it.

Well, admittedly I'd prefer the "Lucius is a Faker that Cannot Be Trusted – AND HE FOOLED THEM ALL!!!" over the "Lucius is a Dumb Blond With A Penchant for Sadism". And hair conditioner...whoops! That's fanon. ;) Draco certainly wouldn't be the first kid whose world fell out from under him because his Dad was a complete bullshitter!

:O I am suddenly imagining a situation in which Voldemort actually isn't the only descendant of Salazar Slytherin's that Harry's met...Perhaps this is how Dumbledore knew all about the cousin-marrying and such. Some rebellious descendant decided to marry a less-than-pure individual and was Cast Out as penance, and from thence sprung our Laddy Dumbledore. It might also explain a little about Aberforth and his supposed weirdness :/

Yes, there is something slightly Gauntesque about Aberforth's attachment to goats! :D

On a more serious(!) note, both goats (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Horned_god) and snakes (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Serpent_%28symbolism%29) are unfortunately saddled with infernal symbolism. So one has to wonder what Aberforth will contribute to Book 7 in terms of both information and characterization.

Oooh, another tangential thought re: Draco's perception of his paternal lineage.

It's possible that the Malfoy family (i.e. Lucius' parents & siblings) had a similar family dynamic to the Weasleys while not necessarily sharing in their material lack. There could have been the same vibe of "We are a perfect, happy family and if you dare suggest we aren't then you can fuck right off!" Rich families are no strangers to dysfunction!

In which case, Lucius could have decided to fuck right off and do his own thing while still having the manners, background, perspective etc. of an aristocrat. (And if his Mum missed him as much as Molly seems to miss Percy, she may have slipped him some cash on the sly – who knows?) ;)

Molly is still crying over Percy, ever since he "stormed from the house...with his glasses splattered with mashed parsnip (for which Fred, George and Ginny all claimed credit)".

Funny, a chapter earlier, the ~~glorified terrorists~~ twins were complaining about Percy "not showing his ugly face". I suppose they had already planned their attack and were upset that they wouldn't be able to carry it out.

You'd think if she cared so much, she could have stopped her teenage kids from acting like toddlers in the presence of their father's boss, eh? (No wonder Arthur never gets promoted.)

I'm sure the only thought going through the three twins and their supporters' minds was making Percy look like a fool in front of his boss. I doubt it ever occurred to any of them that perhaps Rufus Scrimgeour left the Burrow wondering why Arthur Weasley was such a bad parent as to sit there and allow his 15 and 18 year old children to act like gorillas in a zoo. We know it didn't have any affect on Percy's job. It probably made him look better.

Funny, a chapter earlier, the ~~glorified terrorists~~ twins were complaining about Percy "not showing his ugly face".

Percy just can't win with his family, man. It's so sad. :(

We know it didn't have any affect on Percy's job. It probably made him look better.

Well, one can hope – we'll find out in Book 7, won't we?

(deleted comment)

No, you're definitely NOT alone! I've been lax in keeping up with DTCL due to RL issues (but I'll be back here posting in a month or so).

But to respond to your comment...if Rowling wanted to bring a Wildean character into her fictional world, it's a shame she didn't apply more research and/or awareness of him to the fore. Oscar Wilde is a hell of a lot more than a gay icon – OR a gay stereotype! A Melmothesque Slughorn would have been genuinely creepy, yet with a contrition that could have paved the way for redemption, had she chose it.

Also, I want to give mad props to your Marc Bolan icon. :) I love Bolan & T.Rex!

(deleted comment)

Professor Moriarty, you mean?

Though you could make a case for Snape as a Wildean character, I suppose.

I'd like to hear more about that, actually. Are you thinking in terms of a Basil Hallward-type, or...?

(deleted comment)

Do you mean Mycroft Holmes, possibly? He was fat and as smart as his brother. Not sure about the boys, but I may just have missed that part... =]

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Fake It 'till You Make It, Weatherby.

Re: Fake It 'till You Make It, Weatherby.

Re: Fake It 'till You Make It, Weatherby.

Re: Fake It 'till You Make It, Weatherby.

Re: Fake It 'till You Make It, Weatherby.

Re: Fake It 'till You Make It, Weatherby.

Re: Fake It 'till You Make It, Weatherby.

Late as ever.

Better Late Than Never.

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