Deathly Hallows Chapter 15

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The Goblin's Revenge

This chapter starts promisingly enough with Harry burying Moody’s eye at the base of a tree. It’s such a respectful thing to do that I can’t help feeling that Voldemort is influencing Harry through the locket Horcrux.

When he gets back to the tent, the Trio holds a strategy session about moving camp. Ron’s contribution to the discussion? I wants me a bacon sandwich!

They Apparate to near a town and Harry sneaks into town using the Invisibility Cloak. But, his jolly adventure to shoplift food is interrupted by Dementors descending on the town like a cloud of locusts.

Harry is unable to produce a Patronus, which causes a lot of head-scratching among the Trio until Hermione figures out that it’s the locket’s evil influence that has weakened Harry. To which Dolores Umbridge smugly points out that she wore the locket for months and still managed a very decent Patronus, thank you very much.

Now we get the argument about storing the locket in the tent, instead of getting dragged down by its evilness, but Harry nixes that idea. It would be terrible if the locket were to be stolen! Exactly, Harry. Which is why you ought to destroy it asap. Which is why you were an idiot to turn away the D.A. expert who volunteered to help you—no strings attached.

They take some eggs and bread from a farm (apparently the farmers keep their bread out in the chicken coop) and Hermione worries about the morality of taking it, even though they left money in exchange. So, Hermione, the witch who kidnapped and blackmailed a journalist, tricked school kids into signing a cursed document, and lured a Headmistress out to be gang-banged by centaurs is worried about stealing eggs and bread. Pardon me while I laugh uncontrollably.

There follows a period of time in which the Trio may or may not get three meals a day, depending on their luck in scavenging or stealing. The narrator cannot resist ranking them in their ability to endure this trial by hunger. Harry gets an “O” on his hunger O.W.L., thanks to the Dursley’s feast or famine training. Hermione manages an “E” by maintaining dour silences. Ron, of course, rates an “D” at best.

The narrator faults Ron for not contributing any ideas to either finding new Horcruxes or destroying the one that they have. But then it admits that Harry and Hermione don’t have ideas either. So, actually, Ron is the only one with the sense to stop chatting over the same points again and again.

They recite a list of places they know Voldemort has been, forgetting that he’s about seventy years old and was probably in a lot of places they don’t know about. Hmm. You know what would come in really handy here? A spy familiar with Voldemort’s history and habits. Too bad they don’t have one of those.

But even so, Hermione knows enough about Voldemort to say that his snake Nagini is usually with him. How the hell she knows that is beyond me, unless she was reading all the minutes from the Order meetings.

Harry points out that Borgin and Burkes is unlikely to have a Horcrux, since they are Dark Arts experts and would recognize a Horcrux if they saw it. Hmm. You know what would come in handy in this hunt for random Horcruxes? A Dark Arts expert. Too bad they don’t have one of those hanging around.

When Ron pooh-poohs Harry conviction that Voldemort hid a Horcrux at Hogwarts, Harry is sorely tempted to throttle Ron with the chain of the locket. Don’t you just love how the Trio are such BFFs?

Harry knows that Voldemort didn’t hide a Horcrux in the Orphanage (which no longer exists anyway), because it was too dreary and shabby a place. It lacked the grandeur of a spot for Voldemort’s soul bits. I have trouble with that theory because we know Voldemort hid one of his Horcruxes in a shack.

Also, he basically chucked one of them in the school dustbin. And he gave one to Lucius Malfoy to give to his kid. So, I’m not buying Harry’s theory about grand resting places.

Hehe. But JKR places a clue by mentioning the grand places of the Wizarding World are 1) Hogwarts, 2) The Ministry of Magic, and 3) Gringott’s. Note that Voldemort hid Horcuxes in two of those three places. Apparently even Voldemort hates the Ministry.

Of course, Harry has pretty limited experience of the Wizarding World. If he had asked Hermione, who has undoubtably read The Wizard's Travel Guide to Britain, he might have learned about such grand places as The Celestina Warbeck Opera House, Merlin's Museum of Ancient Artifacts, and the Wizard World's Largest Ball of Twine.

The Trio continues to travel, moving to a new location every day. Harry’s scar prickles—most often when he wears the locket. Aha! Evidence that the locket does intensify the connection! All Harry sees is Voldemort thinking about the Thief from the preceeding chapter.

Which makes a nice parellel, doesn’t it. While Harry is obsessing about Dumbledore, Voldemort is obsessing about Grindelwald. It’s like they’re made for each other.

After several weeks of this aimless wandering, Harry notices that Ron and Hermione are having furtive conversations that stop whenever he gets close enough to hear them. So, basically, the Trio has taken a break from the book to do a season of Survivor. It's a pity they don't have Jeff Probst around. I would enjoy having him ask Harry snarky questions.

During this period they seem to be eating mostly fish and mushrooms that Hermione identifies as edible. I hope she packed a field guide to mushrooms in her bag. Come of think of it, she probably did. In lieu of packing actual food.

An argument about food and how Ron doesn’t do anything is mercifully interrupted by a group of five men approaching the glade where the tent is pitched. These are two goblins (Griphook and Gornuk), Dean Thomas, Ted Tonks, and… Dirk Cresswell!

It’s a bit difficult to visual what’s going on, but I think what happens is that the Trio stays inside the tent and the group of five doesn’t see them because of the wards Hermione set up (which, we are told, contain a disillusionment charm). Therefore, the Trio can hear the men speaking through the extendable ears Hermione packed, but see only shadows cast on the tent wall.

Harry recognizes Ted Tonks by his mellow voice. The process is interesting, as Ted’s voice conjures up an image of Ted to Harry, but he doesn’t actually connect the image of Ted to Ted until someone uses the name. Poor Harry. It must be really embarrassing to forget the name of someone who saved your life. In Harry’s defense, Ted is only one of dozens of people who have done that and shouldn’t expect to be remembered.

Ted’s voice is described as mellow, which is a fine character trait, but it sort of takes away from the angst of the fugitive group. That, and the fact that they have just dined on salmon. It makes their desperate flight seem like a camping trip—a much jollier camping trip than the one the Trio is currently on.

I realize that we’re only seeing this group because they stumbled into the Trio’s proximity, but it brings up all sorts of questions to me. Are the woods now crawling with fugitive Muggle-Borns? Why are these people tramping through Britain’s finite wilderness and not simply leaving the country? I know England’s an isle, but one with airports, ports, and the Chunnel. There’s no possible way for the Death Eaters to guard all these points.

Also, this is a world where people can snap their fingers and instantly transport from one place to another. And they have flying brooms. And invisible flying horses.

Couldn’t that large herd of Thestrals be employed to fly Muggle-Borns to safety? Wouldn’t that be a better use of Hagrid’s time than throwing “I Love Harry” parties?

The goblins drop the interesting tidbit that Severus Snape put a fake copy of Gryffindor’s sword into Bellatrix Lestrange’s bank vault in Gringott’s. This is interesting to the Trio because of Dumbledore’s bequest. It’s interesting to me for a couple reasons. One: Severus Snape doesn’t have his own bank vault. I wonder where he keeps his money, or if he has any at all. Two: Even on the run, the most engaging topic these fugitives can find to talk about is what’s going on at Hogwarts.

Snape put that sword in the bank vault after Ginny, Neville, and Luna tried to steal it. We’re never told why they tried to steal it, or what they planned to do with it. I wonder. Would stealing something be considered fulfilling the requirement for chivalary?

And, although credit for this observation belongs to Mike Smith, I will note that the “Goblin’s Revenge” consists of not informing Snape that the sword is fake. As revenge schemes go, that’s pretty darn lame.

A question of whether Harry or Snape killed Dumbledore comes up and Dean affirms his belief that Harry is indeed the Chosen One. I wonder what it is that gives Dean that belief. From his perspective, Harry’s that arrogant jerk Quidditch captain that barely let Dean play on the team and then stole his girl.

Dirk argues that if Harry were any kind of a hero, he’d be out there fighting, rallying resistance, instead of hiding. Heh. Dirk never studied history either, or he’d realize that real heroes, like Dumbledore, wait at least five years before engaging the enemy.

Ted suggests that Dirk should be reading the Quibbler for the truth, and, to bolster his argument, notes that the last issue had zero mentions of Crumble-Horned Snorkacks. That must be the standard for truth in the Wizarding World. As long as you don’t mention odd creatures that may or may not exist, you’re golden.

Having conveniently dropped all that information, the group conveniently moves up the slope and out of earshot, allowing the Trio to discuss it.

Hermione pulls out the portrait of Phineas Nigellus out of her purse and magically blindfolds the former headmaster when he appears in the frame. There is an exchange of information. The Trio learns that Ginny and the others were punished by working with Hagrid in the Forbidden Forest, and that the sword can be used to destroy Horcruxes. Nigellus learns that the Trio is together in an undisclosed location.

Then, when Nigellus returns to his regular portait with the blindfold still on, Snape will learn that he’s with the Trio. So, it’s good all round.

Harry and Hermione eagerly discuss this news. Harry is cheered when Hermione points out that Dumbledore didn’t trust Snape enough to tell him he switched a fake sword for the real one. Which shouldn’t really cheer Harry at all, since he’s had enough experience of Dumbledore not trusting people he says he trusts to realize that Dumbledore not trusting Snape with something is actually meaningless.

Now we get the moment when Ron revolts. By revolting, I mean that he says all the things that Harry fears and that the reader is thinking. That this quest is the worst quest ever and that, as we all feared at the end of HBP, that Harry is woefully unprepared to find the Horcruxes and that Dumbledore never bothered to give him the slightest instruction in how to destroy them if he did.

Is this a metaphor for the reader? After all, we came into this book believing--trusting--that JKR had a plan. We were told long ago that there would be seven books in the series. We were promised that all these dangling plots and characters and plot holes would make sense in the end. And yet, reading this book that seems to have been made up as she stumbled through it, we're as lost as Harry and Ron.

Also, Ron is worried about his family, which Harry can’t relate to since his family is dead. So, when Ron brings that up, Harry sneers at him for being soft and lazy.

It occurs to me, perhaps because I want to think better of Ron than he’s portrayed here, that there is a disconnect between him and Harry. This is the first time that Ron’s really yelled at Harry, who takes this to heart, feels a “corrosive hatred” toward Ron and thinks that something has broken between them. But… yelling at people is normal in the Weasley household. They yell all the time at each other, and they throw knives and parsnips at each other on very little provocation. That Harry has never experienced that is probably due to their feeling sorry for him and treating him like an emotional invalid.

However, Harry’s experience with yelling and such is based on his family, where such behavior doesn’t signal concern and love, but hatred and cruel indifference. Therefore, he thinks that Ron’s temper tantrum is more serious than it turns out to be.

In any case, Harry and Ron nearly come to blows, er, spells, and only Hermione’s Protego spell keeps them apart. Harry invites Ron to leave and Ron runs out of the tent and out of the story for the next three and half chapters.

Come back, Ron! Come back! Come back and take us with you!



Fan Service:
We finally get a taste of Dean’s extensive backstory.
Griphook the gobin makes his triumphant return to the saga.

Fan Slappage:
Ron? You liked Ron? Behold as he turns petty and evil!
A plan? You thought there was a plan? Joke's on you!

DVD Extras:
INT: DAY – GRINGOTT'S BANK VAULT

We are interior of Bellatrix Lestrange’s bank vault. The door creaks open and Severus Snape is led into the treasure trove by the goblin, GRIPHOOK. Snape, cloaked and gloved, carries a gleaming sword with rubies in the hilt.

GRIPHOOK
(smirking)
And here is the vault.

Snape places his lighted wand in a sconce. It illuminates the cave-like area. Snape turns to the goblin.

SNAPE
Leave me.

GRIPHOOK
Mrs. Lestrange’s letter said nothing about letting you alone in the vault—

SNAPE
Do you want me to complain about your behavior to my master? Begone!

Griphook gives him a nasty look, then, as the goblin’s gaze falls on the sword, the look turns to a smirk. He leaves and shuts the door behind him. A burst of goblin cackling comes from the closed door.

Snape whirls around, keenly aware of the goblin’s ridicule. But, since the door remains closed, he relaxes and looks around for a place to put the sword.

Seeing a spot on a high shelf, he sets the sword upon it. As he steps back to admire the placement, his attention is caught by a small golden cup on an even higher shelf.

CLOSE ON

The golden cup, with a small badger embossed on its side, There is something oddly malevolent about it.

Snape’s eyes narrow at he studies it.

The cup vibrates, almost like a shiver is running through it. Then, suddenly, a spray of yellow liquid shoots out the top of it, spilling down onto the shelf.

Snape frowns, and then his eyes light up with understanding. He takes his wand in one gloved hand and reaches out with the other.

SNAPE
Accio!

Comments

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Should there even be mushrooms to be found in a (muggle) forest in the middle of an english winter?

I wondered about that. And, also, if salmon would actually be in rivers during the late fall/early winter. The time line at this point is uncertain. We know that it's some weeks after September 1st (when the Ministry fiasco took place) and some weeks before Christmas (when Harry and Hermione will visit Godric's Hollow).