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#harry potter theory
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I love your Voldemort analyses! I don't think I've seen anyone approach his character quite like you do.
That's why I'm curious to see what you think of the trope of Voldemort finding out Harry is his horcrux. How do you think he would treat him? Do you think it'll change depending on how many horcruxes he has left?
Actually, why do you think Voldemort was never able to sense that Harry was his horcrux in the first place? I've read your horcrux creation theory too and it was fascinating, so I want to see how you fit it in there.
First of all thank you! I'm glad you liked.
As for the questions, yeah I think Voldemort would change his treatment of Harry if he knew he was a Horcrux. Voldemort doesn't hate Harry personally, especially not at first — he hates failing. Once Harry is his Horcrux instead of his failure there is no reason to kill him but a lot of reasons to keep him alive.
The thing is, Harry being a Horcrux is still Voldemort's mistake, in a way. He's going to see it as such, which would make him quite bitter about it. And if it's after he tried to kill Harry, he's going to blame himself for not realizing Harry is his Horcrux and almost killing his own Horcrux — another mistake he'll eat himself up over. So, Harry still represents a lot of his failings even as a Horcrux, which will definitely color the way Voldemort treats him.
Honestly, it could go a multitude of ways depending on when in the books it happens. Not only due to the different number of Horcruxes he's got lying around, but also his opinion on Harry and the prophecy that changes every time he fails to kill Harry. The thing is, at least initially he's still not really going to see Harry as a person, he's going to see him as a Horcrux, and a not-great one at that.
See, Voldemort hates himself, but he also thinks he's better than everyone else. Harry, in his mind, would not be an exception to that, Horcrux or not. Like, he'd be slightly better than the average wizard since he has a piece of Voldemort in him, but it isn't going to affect how Voldemort sees him too much. At least not on its own.
But the when and how Voldemort discovers Harry is his Horcrux will definitely affect how he treats him. For example, if most of his Horcruxes are destroyed, and he knows it, he'll be more desperate to keep Harry alive, and therefore would be very controlling and want to know Harry is safe at every given moment (like the control freak he is). Kinda like what he did with Nagini in book 7. The problem is that, unlike Nagini, Harry probably isn't going to roll with that.
And that's the other really big factor in this hypothetical scenario — how and when Harry found out. Because Voldemort's treatment of Harry would definitely change depending on Harry's response to the fact he is a Horcrux. And, well, I can't imagine many situations in which Harry takes the fact he is a Horcrux well.
It just really depends on the circumstances of finding out, and when, and if Harry and Voldemort know Dumbledore knew Harry was his Horcrux all along (because he knew, and Harry is going to have a response to that).
Honestly, I think Voldemort might decide to throw the towel in on the whole war if he doesn't need to kill Harry since that's the only motivation he has for the war. But again, it'll depend on when we are at the books, what the Death Eaters are doing, has he already freed the ten that were in Azkaban, is Dumbledore still alive, and what Harry's doing. He might continue the war, but go back to what he was doing in the first war — magical experiments while the ministry is distracted. Because I think he'll still be interested in his magical research and if he doesn't need to kill Harry, he isn't going to obsess over killing Harry.
I don't see him leaving Britain though, at least not if he has a choice. he's sentimental and there's a reason he keeps coming back even when he has no physical ties there. He might make a new identity for himself if he decides he's done with the war, but that will again depend on so many different factors (including opportunities for his new identity, as hardworking as Voldemort is, he isn't going to like going back to square one. He'll want to be in a position of power and control whatever the case, so, he might stick to the war just for that. He enjoys having people bend to his will).
As for the second question, well, Voldemort senses the Horcrux in Harry the same as he senses any of his other Horcruxes. That is to say: barely at all. Like, he can't tell when his Horcruxes are destroyed. I expect it's due to the soul really being separate. As I mentioned in my Horcrux theory, he really takes out a piece of soul, but he still has a full soul. The main connection is between that soul sliver and the item that is chosen to be the Horcrux. Magic, theoretically, works according to the microcosm macrocosm concept that exists in alchemy and occult theories and philosophy in general. What it means is that a small-scale example of something will affect the larger, true-scale version of that thing.
For a Harry Potter example that isn't Horcruxes: you wave your wand and say Wingardoum Leviosa — so you essentially "act out" how you want the feather to levitate with your wand and incantation. Then your magic causes the same to happen to the feather. Your wand and incantation are the microcosm and the feather floating is the macrocosm.
A Horcrux works similarly. The reason they stop you from dying is that a microcosm version of you, the soul shard, is bound to the mortal plain and can't die. So, by the microcosm macrocosm logic, you won't be able to leave the mortal plain and die either since you are the relevant macrocosm.
Essentially binding the soul pieces in the Horcrux to Earth binds you too, to Earth. But you aren't bonded as strongly to the Horcruxes. That's why he can't sense them. They bind him to the world of the living, not so much to each one of them.
The reason I'm saying that he is bonded to them but not as strongly is actually because of Harry. Well, the fact Harry can see into Voldemort’s mind and sense when he's nearby (his scar hurts). Not only that, but Harry could see into Nagini's (another Horcrux) mind. Which proves there is a connection.
And Voldemort does sense Harry is his Horcrux, in a way. He sends visions to him and he possesses him without a spell, both in OOTP. Both are things that are only possible because Harry is his Horcrux. The reason he doesn't realize Harry is his Horcrux is due to his own bias.
Accidental Horcruxes is one of these things that just never happens. Magic is a very intentional thing, so it doesn't even cross Voldemort’s mind that his connection with Harry is that. He sees the odd connection and the weird things it does magically and shrugs it off to Harry surviving the killing curse and the prophecy. Both are unheard-of feats of magic that create an incredibly unique never-before-seen scenario, so these reasons might as well be the cause of all the magical weirdness. The reason he doesn't sense Harry is his Horcrux is because he just doesn't consider it as a possibility.
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viktheviking1 · 2 months
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I am convinced that actor Robert Pattinson is trying (and succeeding) to act in every major fandom
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cursedwithwords · 30 days
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Teddy Lupin picrew dump because I'm in love with him.
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I love to imagine him with pink or magenta eyes because it connects him to Tonks, but I also have this image of him having eyes that are in constant motion, always changing and never settling on one solid color, to show the internal chaos he battles with. I think he keeps his hair generally a solid blue because he likes the way it looks, and because his nan told him that his hair turned blue almost immediately after he was born, so a tiny piece of him is always thinking "well if it's blue my parents will recognize me" even though he knows they're gone and that's not gonna happen.
((Read more to see Cursed rambling about metamorph abilities ᕕ( ᐛ )ᕗ))
I have this theory about Metamorph abilities that's basically summed up as being a mutation of the individuals magic itself. It's born from decades of interfamilial inbreeding of a family that already has extremely powerful magic.
I see Metamorphmagus being in the same family of mutation as Obscurus, that being something uncontrollable that happens due to some form of magical backup. The only difference is Obscurus are psychologically self-made while Metamorphmagus are created genetically.
I've seen theories stating that House Black inter-marries because they're worried about their ancient magic being somehow corrupted by other family's blood. It basically said that the Black family has power/magic that lives up to its name, and I kind of love that, but power like that can't possibly come without consequences, and in their attempt to keep the purity of their magic from being corrupted, they themselves became corrupted by their magic.
I mean the way I see it, ancient magic like that has to be chaotic and untamable, something incredibly feral and wild. The more "pure" it is, the more uncontrollable.
Because of that, I think Andromeda marrying and having a child with a muggleborn more or less stabilized the Black family magic in a body far more capable of containing it. But the magic itself is still extremely volatile, so it manifested as metamorph abilities, and I think that in itself would have some unique manifestations.
I think Teddy is immune to most magical ailments, including hexes and curses. His body kind of just deflects it because his magic is able to cancel it out. I think that's probably why Remus' Lycanthropy also passed him over.
At the same time, I think he's pretty susceptible to Muggle illnesses like the flu or the common cold, and I've always headcanoned that he had chronic migraines because though the Lycanthropy disease was fended off through his mutated magic, it's still an insanely brutal illness in and of itself, and some piece of it lingers in him. So around the full moon he tends to get migraines. Proof that he's not invincible I guess.
I have so many thoughts about Teddy tbh, he's always been outrageously powerful in my mind, and the only reason his magic hasn't consumed him and driven him crazy like so many of the Black family is because he isn't a pureblood. It makes him even more formidable as an enemy, though I don't see him being super aware of his own abilities.
Like he knows he's an alright wizard, he just doesn't realize he's THAT powerful, cuz why would he??
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sofoulandfairaday · 1 year
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A very popular idea in the HP fandom is that Tom Riddle would be interested in sex (and potentially able to love), while Lord Voldemort (as in, the man he became after his resurrection) wouldn't be at all, even going as far as to say he was impotent.
Now, I do admit that the theory of an imperfect post-resurrection body is intriguing - he did go for the Stone first and it does make for good drama if his new body proved to be problematic or faulty (and not because he was missing appendages, mind you).
But I'm also quite convinced of the opposite. I have this semi-headcanon in my mind that Tom Riddle probably looked down upon sex and other worldly pleasures (indulging in food, wine, etc.) as a young man. He tended towards asceticism almost - the pursuit of magic in its purest forms, the idea that one could be indifferent to anything but what made one stronger. It was only after his first "death" that the things he had once seen as lowly, almost beastly, temptations to which one inevitably succumbed by virtue of one's own humanity were actually all reinforcements of his victory over death. Suddenly, food, drink, and lust were the essence of life itself (as they have always been portrayed in both Christian and pre-Christian times) and he was desperately attached to life.
As disgusting as it must be for some fans to hear, I think he enjoyed sex more in his snake body and not in the perfect, human, one he had before.
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firinniee · 1 year
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Does anyone else have the feeling that the Weasley siblings' ages were supposed to be completely different in the beginning? I saw that a lot of people have already discussed this, so I'd like to contribute my share here as well. So in the first part, Harry hears from Fred and George about their brother Charlie and how good he was as a seeker and that SINCE HIS Gryffindor hadn't won... which was just all summer. Charlie left school in 1991 and Harry started school the same year, need we say more? Plus, Charlie and Bill both had pretty serious jobs, I've always had the feeling they wouldn't get them right after Hogwarts (even if they were both very talented). Additionally, it would explain why Percy took on the role of "big brother" so much to his younger siblings. As for Percy and his dorm roommate Oliver, I believe that when they were at school Charlie would have to be in his senior year. Then it would explain why Wood was so fascinated by his playing, he literally saw it as a kid and it stuck in his mind. As for the rest of the siblings age seems to be ok except for Ginny. Didn't you get the feeling that ginny begging and waving her tiny hand was a little younger than 10 years old? Me so, that's why I think the age of the Weasley siblings would be rather:
Bill +-20 y.o Charlie 18yo (last year) Percy 11yo (first year) F&G 9 y.o Ron 7 yo Ginny +-2 y.o
We run into problems here. If Bill gets too much older, his first year at Hogwarts will be in his final year at Marauders, and if Molly and Arthur had stayed their age, they would have been teenagers and parents while still in school. On the one hand, it's a bit hard and on the other, it gives the opportunity to develop the story. Bill could have already had a partner before meeting Fleur so they wouldn't have gotten married. AND Harry wouldn't be in a relationship with Ginny, she would be too young for him. And here comes an interesting thing, I don't know if you know but jkr supposedly wanted Hermione to have a younger sister. What if she had it? And if she was a year younger? And if, for example, she went to Ravenclaw in the same year as Luna? Maybe she would have a crush on Harry? That sounds like a good gateway to an interesting new/old story.
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pickinglilahs · 20 days
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Harry has 'a bit of a saving people thing' because no one was ever there to save him as a kid
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Also, the fact that Harry and Ron introduced themselves to each other by their first name first and then remembered to had their last name ("Ron, Ron Weasley" & "Harry, Harry Potter"), because they were them first and their family last, while Draco presented himself as "Malfoy, Draco Malfoy" because the fact that he's from a pureblood family and who his parents are is more important than how he actually is.
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The Gryffindor's Fat lady definitely remembers every single Gryffindors that enters the house. How could she not when every single day they have to go classes or quidditch practice or go basically anywhere.
The password set is just probabaly a silly thing. Youre telling me She's seen every student going in and out especially exam periods and not remembering them?
She definitely would have let a poor 1st year Gryffindor in who has forgotten the passwords.
She definitely would let Hermione in when she forgot the password due to over studying and Oliver when he's devastated after a loss from quidditch
She would let Remus in after a long night of transformation.
She 100% would have let Neville in knowing he wouldnt remember the passwords
She might have mess around abit with the Marauders and Fred and George but during hard times she definitely would let them in without the passwords
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frog-0n-a-l0g · 1 day
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Is the chamber of secrets guarded by a snake because normally the gossip bitches that know everyone secrets are snakes?
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whatrambles · 5 months
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What would happen in you shot Voldemort with a bazooka? Like I know he's immortal and all sorta because of the horcruxes, but it's a fucking bazooka.
In the same vein, grenades, c4, any explosive really..... Just hit him with a tank.
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thealexanderfiles · 4 months
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me, shooting awake: Dumbledore is a slytherin. He is manipulative and ambitious, and does things for the 'greater good'. he fights the 'bad guys' yes, but that automatically doesn't make him a Gryffindor. Gryffindor and Hufflepuff are the two houses ruled by their hearts and Ravenclaw and Slytherin prefer logic, Dumbledore is ready to sacrifice Harry to defeat Voldemort, which, while cruel is logical. Not saying this is on purpose, but he repeatedly denies a position that, while it will give him more power, comes with the requirement to listen to advisors and have the scrutiny of the wizarding world on him in favour of being the most powerful figure in Britain's only magical school, subsequently solidifying himself, in the eyes of young witches and wizards, as an authority figure that they should defer to, even in adulthood.
as we can see from Harry's sorting, it is incredibly easy to persuade the hat to put someone in a different house. His future best friend Grindelwald is only eight at the time and not in Hogwarts, causing Dumbledore to be free from biases towards houses. He is young and can pick whatever one he want, and therefore he chooses the House with power, one that is known to have good intentions, and people will trust him, rather than the one he had heard dark things about.
Im not saying dumbledore, at eleven, is a mini dark lord of somethin. im just saying that as he gets older, he starts to display some trademark Slytherin qualities.
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hollowed-theory-hall · 2 months
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Harry Potter is Actually Really Clever
So often, I feel like Harry is underrated in his own series and I want to talk about how much I love Harry James Potter. Harry is my favorite character in the books and I want to showcase some moments of Harry proving the Sorting Hat knew what it was talking about when it comes to Harry possibly doing well in Slytherin and even Ravenclaw.
(I have more moments listed in my notes, and I'm in book 6 in my current reread, so I definitely am not covering everything)
Let's start then with the words of the Sorting Hat itself:
“Hmm,” said a small voice in his ear. “Difficult. Very difficult. Plenty of courage, I see. Not a bad mind either. There’s talent, A my goodness, yes — and a nice thirst to prove yourself, now that’s interesting….So where shall I put you?” Harry gripped the edges of the stool and thought, Not Slytherin, not Slytherin. “Not Slytherin, eh?” said the small voice. “Are you sure? You could be great, you know, it’s all here in your head, and Slytherin will help you on the way to greatness, no doubt about that
(Philosopher's Stone, page 88)
The Hat says Harry is brave enough for Gryffindor, clever enough and talented enough for Ravenclaw and has the ambition and thirst to prove himself for Slytherin. And the hat isn't wrong about it's assessment of Harry. Harry is clever and talented and I so often find it underplayed in fics, or ones that do include it, acting like it's fanon characterization when it's really isn't.
Harry Potter is canonically a BAMF.
So, here I'm going to talk about his cleverness and give some moments of Harry being clever from the books.
(I'll have a different post for his magical prowess.)
Harry Has Brilliant Memory
So, Harry James Potter practically has close to an eidetic memory, and no one really seems to mention it.
An eidetic memory is described as an almost perfect recollection of images or events. And Harry actually shows himself as being very capable of it:
Angelina: “…Harry, didn’t you do something to your glasses to stop the rain fogging them up when we played Hufflepuff in that storm?” “Hermione did it,” said Harry. He pulled out his wand, tapped his glasses and said, “Impervius!”
(Order of the Phoenix, page 379)
In thus scene its raining during a Quidditch match and Angelina asks Harry about a spell he used a year before. Harry remembered that moment, remembered Hermione was actually the one who cast the spell, a spell he himself never cast before this moment, and he then casts it perfectly from memory.
Harry remembers the incantation and wand movement perfectly enough to succeed on his first try.
Actually, almost every time we see him cast spells he gets the wand movement and incantation right on the first try (even his first attempt at a patronus worked, the happy memory just wasn't strong enough)
In general, they moments we see Harry fail at casting spells on the first try is when he overthinks it and fails himself like that.
Harry stared at the letters in brackets. Nvbl . . . that had to mean “nonverbal.” Harry rather doubted he would be able to bring off this particular spell; he was still having difficulty with nonverbal spells, something Snape had been quick to comment on in every D.A.D.A. class. On the other hand, the Prince had proved a much more effective teacher than Snape so far. Pointing his wand at nothing in particular, he gave it an upward flick and said Levicorpus! inside his head. “Aaaaaaaargh!”
(Half-Blood Prince, page 239)
Harry tends to fail potions, and nonverbal spells when Snape is breathing down on him expecting him to fail, though, in this example, the moment Harry feels he can succeed the spell and isn't overthinking it, he casts it perfectly and nonverbally on the first attempt.
He is the same with potions:
Snape, meanwhile, seemed to have decided to act as though Harry were invisible. Harry was, of course, well used to this tactic, as it was one of Uncle Vernon’s favorites, and on the whole was grateful he had to suffer nothing worse. In fact, compared to what he usually had to endure from Snape in the way of taunts and snide remarks, he found the new approach something of an improvement and was pleased to find that when left well alone, he was able to concoct an Invigoration Draught quite easily. At the end of the lesson he scooped some of the potion into a flask, corked it, and took it up to Snape’s desk for marking, feeling that he might at last have scraped an E.
(Order of the Phoenix, page 660)
When Snape wasn't breathing down his neck and stressing him, even without the Half-Blood Prince's superior instructions, Harry is good at potions. He accomplishes the potion to a level of Exceeding Expectations easily. The problem is never his skill, memory, or talent; usually, it's stress, being stuck in his own head, or carelessness (did anyone diagnose him with ADHD?)
Another example of his eidetic memory in OOP:
“Well, you know, they do work well on non-magical wounds,” said Hermione fairly. “I suppose something in that snake’s venom dissolves them or something. . . . I wonder where the tearoom is?” “Fifth floor,” said Harry, remembering the sign over the Welcome Witch’s desk.
(Order of the Phoenix, page 508)
When Harry describes St. Mongos for the first time (about a week before the above scene) he reads a sign that describes what is located in each floor of the hospital.
A week later, without reading that sign again, Harry can recall where the tea room is since he has that sign he read once a week ago, memorized.
Harry is Sneaky
Harry is a proper sneaky slythein and actually has more cunning moments than some slytherins in the books. Here are a few examples I have from my notes:
“Should call Filch, I should, if something’s a-creeping around unseen.” Harry had a sudden idea. “Peeves,” he said, in a hoarse whisper, “the Bloody Baron has his own reasons for being invisible.” Peeves almost fell out of the air in shock.
(Philosopher's Stone, page 197)
Harry is a good liar and scared of Peeves like this in his first year.
“…He likes to keep in touch with me, though . . . keep up with my news . . . check if I’m happy. . . .” And, grinning broadly at the look of horror on Uncle Vernon’s face, Harry set off toward the station exit, Hedwig rattling along in front of him, for what looked like a much better summer than the last.
(Prisoner of Azkaban, page 435)
But their attitude had changed since they had found out that Harry had a dangerous murderer for a godfather — for Harry had conveniently forgotten to tell them that Sirius was innocent.
(Goblet of Fire, page 24)
Again, Harry lying and tricking the Dursleys so they won't hurt him. Leveling Sirius as a threat against them.
“Not unless you can answer my riddle. Answer on your first guess — I let you pass. Answer wrongly — I attack. Remain silent — I will let you walk away from me unscathed.”
[the riddle and Harry thinking through it]
“Spy . . . er . . . spy . . . er . . .” said Harry, pacing up and down. “A creature I wouldn’t want to kiss . . . a spider!” The sphinx smiled more broadly. She got up, stretched her front legs, and then moved aside for him to pass. “Thanks!” said Harry, and, amazed at his own brilliance, he dashed forward.
(Goblet of Fire, page 629)
I skipped the sphinx's riddle, now the riddle isn't a hard one, but still, Harry isn't stupid. But he thinks he is. He even tells himself during that scene:
Harry’s stomach slipped several notches. It was Hermione who was good at this sort of thing, not him. He weighed his chances. If the riddle was too hard, he could keep silent, get away from the sphinx unharmed, and try and find an alternative route to the center.
(Goblet of Fire, 629)
But it's just Harry and his low self-esteem. He solves the riddle quickly thinking aloud near the Sphinx and he does solve it, and is amazed by it because he doesn't think of himself as smart, even though he is.
Most of the riddles to the Ravenclaw common room are probably along this line of difficulty too. It just goes to show he isn't stupid.
“There,” she said, handing it to him. “Drink it before it gets cold, won’t you? Well, now, Mr. Potter . . . I thought we ought to have a little chat, after the distressing events of last night.” He said nothing. She settled herself back into her seat and waited. When several long moments had passed in silence, she said gaily, “You’re not drinking up!” He raised the cup to his lips and then, just as suddenly, lowered it. One of the horrible painted kittens behind Umbridge had great round blue eyes just like Mad-Eye Moody’s magical one, and it had just occurred to Harry what Mad-Eye would say if he ever heard that Harry had drunk anything offered by a known enemy. “What’s the matter?” said Umbridge, who was still watching him. “Do you want sugar?” “No,” said Harry. He raised the cup to his lips again and pretended to take a sip, though keeping his mouth tightly closed. Umbridge’s smile widened. “Good,” she whispered. “Very good. Now then . . .” She leaned forward a little. “Where is Albus Dumbledore?” “No idea,” said Harry promptly.
(Order of the Pheonix, page 630)
Harry is clever enough to recognize drinking anything Umbridge gives him is a bad idea, so he doesn't. And he does so without her realizing.
“even if you do cause a diversion, how is Harry supposed to talk to him?” “Umbridge’s office,” said Harry quietly. He had been thinking about it for a fortnight and could think of no alternative; Umbridge herself had told him that the only fire that was not being watched was her own. “Are — you — insane?” said Hermione in a hushed voice. Ron had lowered his leaflet on jobs in the cultivated fungus trade and was watching the conversation warily. “I don’t think so,” said Harry, shrugging. “And how are you going to get in there in the first place?” Harry was ready for this question. “Sirius’s knife,” he said. “Excuse me?” “Christmas before last Sirius gave me a knife that’ll open any lock,” said Harry. “So even if she’s bewitched the door so Alohomora won’t work, which I bet she has —”
(Order of the Phoenix, page 658)
Harry can and does strategies. He planned how to get into Umbeidge's office. He employed his friends and actually led them. Being a leader and a strategist — rules we see him grow more into later.
Harry’s mind was racing. The Death Eaters wanted this dusty spun-glass sphere. He had no interest in it. He just wanted to get them all out of this alive, make sure that none of his friends paid a terrible price for his stupidity . . . The woman stepped forward, away from her fellows, and pulled off her hood. Azkaban had hollowed Bellatrix Lestrange’s face, making it gaunt and skull-like, but it was alive with a feverish, fanatical glow. “You need more persuasion?” she said, her chest rising and falling rapidly. “Very well — take the smallest one,” she ordered the Death Eaters beside her. “Let him watch while we torture the little girl. I’ll do it.” Harry felt the others close in around Ginny. He stepped sideways so that he was right in front of her, the prophecy held up to his chest. “You’ll have to smash this if you want to attack any of us,” he told Bellatrix. “I don’t think your boss will be too pleased if you come back without it, will he?” She did not move; she merely stared at him, the tip of her tongue moistening her thin mouth. “So,” said Harry, “what kind of prophecy are we talking about anyway?” He could not think what to do but to keep talking. Neville’s arm was pressed against his, and he could feel him shaking. He could feel one of the other’s quickened breath on the back of his head. He was hoping they were all thinking hard about ways to get out of this, because his mind was blank.
(Order of the Pheonix, page 783)
This is a bit of a long quote, but I really like it. Harry gets the Death Eaters at an impasse because they can't destroy the prophecy. Then, when they threatened Ginny, he changed tactics and got them talking to buy time.
And even when he says his mind is blank:
“What?” whispered Hermione more urgently behind him. “Can this be?” said Malfoy, sounding maliciously delighted; some of the Death Eaters were laughing again, and under cover of their laughter, Harry hissed to Hermione, moving his lips as little as possible, “Smash shelves —”
...
“NOW!” yelled Harry. Five different voices behind him bellowed “REDUCTO!” Five curses flew in five different directions and the shelves opposite them exploded as they hit. The towering structure swayed as a hundred glass spheres burst apart
(Order of the Phoenix, pages 785-786 and 787)
He's still the one coming up with plans and pulling them out of there.
And if we look at his grades:
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(Half-Blood Prince, page 102)
He is very far from failing academically. Actually considering how little studying Harry actually does, he receives very high grades, even for Hogwarts' abysmal education standards. Harry is naturally smart enough and talented enough that with the bare minimum of effort, he can get almost exclusively Es (his failing being in History, an exam he didn't finish, and Divination, which Harry has only been thought bullshit in).
Makes me wish we saw him put in an active effort. I bet it all would've been Os with his memory.
Even Potions, which Harry is supposedly bad at, he got an E...
I just... Harry is just really smart and it kind of frustrates me how I don't see enough fics that treat Harry being clever and with a cunning streak as if it's canon, even though it very much is.
I don't know, maybe I'm just reading the wrong fics...
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thisthig · 4 months
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Ok ok so I've been thinking alot about remadora annnnnnddddd what if here me out what if tonks was actually like 34 let's say that and because shes a metamorphmagus she wanted to look younger because yknow beauty standards and when people who learned about how they were dating the ones who hated werewolves made it out to be that she was younger because she looked younger nd then everybody hated them (personally I think it was one of the death eaters and after they found out they slipped rita skeeter a message) I mean I'm wolfstar forever but this makes sense in my mind at least
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jeena-says-hi · 1 year
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Is Azkaban the only prison for wizards and witches?
Because imagine if you just shoplift a frog or something and get sent to Azkaban, and your cell is right next to the wizard equivalent of Hannibal Lecter
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regulusandpandora · 2 years
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So.
We all know that Regulus Black, also known as RAB, became a death eater at sixteen, discovered the existence of Tom Riddle's Horcruxes, and then died at age eighteen while getting one of them so it could be destroyed, right?
I honestly think, that if he hadn't died, he could've defeated Voldemort. Maybe not single handedly, since doing it himself got him killed. But he could've done it.
He could've told the Marauders about Peter. He could've destroyed all the Horcruxes. I don't think Dumbledore would've taken him on as a spy though, at least not very willingly, seeing as I don't think Regulus had a single atom in his body that was loyal to Dumbledore in anyway.
Yeah, Dumbledore and him would probably not have gotten along.
Anyways, he could've done it, he would have lived, Sirius would've stayed out of jail, Remus would still have his friends, James and Lily would've lived, Harry would've had a happy life, Regulus would've been potions teacher (not Snape), and overall everyone would've had a happy ending.
(Except Peter) (And Dumbledore, he would be fired from his position as Headmaster and Minnie would take his place because she is a queen)
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Gellert Grindelwald: revealing & admitting love
... or a study of Albus and Gellert's last encounter, revealing Gellert's feelings
In FBtSoD, Gellert Grindelwald appears to be, despite the years and the tragedies, still not over Albus Dumbledore. It is quite a surprise to me, I must admit. I have no doubt that it has already been discussed in the fandom, but I want to write down my observations — especially regarding the end of the film.
[disclaimer : i do not support JKR. english is not my native langage, sorry for the mistakes!]
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The unworded and unwilling admission (a quick description of the end of the fight scene)
The most evident proof of that is, of course, their duel: Albus and Gellert feel under their palm the beating of their former lover’s heart. The troubled expression on Grindelwald’s face enables us to conclude that his heart beats as well, not just Albus’ (and he is a bit distraught by it).
First of all, a quick description of the scene: they are fighting, closer and closer, and they finally find themselves mirroring each other, palm on heart. The shot is Dumbledore’s perspective: he stares at Gellert’s face, then at his own hand, feeling the beat. The countershot reveals his astonishment (or it is again Jude Law’s choice of playing Dumbledore constantly open very widely his eyes)... and his understanding. A beat (pun intended). Then, they finally both lower their wand, giving up, looking at the world around them crumbling.
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I will definitely write a more detailed analysis of that scene, which is very akin to a sex and post-sex scene (it is not a joke, but a quite serious statement based on rather obvious clues). But now, I think that we can agree on the fact that this is at least a revelation scene: Dumbledore understands that Grindelwald’s heart beats and echoes his, ergo, Gellert is still moved by Albus. They both know it. They stop the fight, because neither of them can bring himself to actually fight the other — and there is no solution.
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Before diving on the subject of the heart a bit more, I just want to highlight how powerless Grindelwald seems to be at this moment: he has revealed himself.
The beating of Gellert Grindelwald’s heart
The heart beating, in Harry Potter meta and in literature/movies/art, evokes several things — life, passion, sexuality, love. It is 100% sure it is also that it holds the same meaning in the HP/FB imagery & meta, because The Warlock’s Hairy Heart, Beedle the Bard’s tale, confirms it: the warlock extracts his heart to protect himself from love [1].
This very choice of putting emphasis on the beating heart is so telling — and quite romantic, if you ask me. Let us spot the differences between Grindelwald and Beedle the Bard’s warlock (and Voldemort, because the contrast is always interesting).
Grindelwald and the Warlock are ambitious and proud; yet, the Warlock took drastic measures in order to avoid falling in love – he fears to be submitted & to sacrifice his reason. Voldemort never loved anyone: his snake nature, both thematically and physically, links him to coldness (the snakes are “cold-blooded” animals).
'I regret it,' said Voldemort coldly. He turned away; there was no sadness in him, no remorse. — chapter 32, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows (murder of Severus Snape by Voldemort)
(I think this example is quite telling; he is devoid of what is considered as “human qualities” (here, consequently, of compassion (com-patior, suffer with: he does not this)) in a few systems of morals and, more importantly, in arts (literature, cinema…).)
In a way, both Voldemort and the Warlock abandoned a human quality — love and by extension, empathy and careness; consequently, they both chose animality over humanity and its weaknesses.
On the other hand, a pumping heart evokes heat – the heat of love, of ire [2]. Gellert still has passions: strong ones, mostly destructive. He is not immune to love because he chose not to. That is a very interesting detail of his personality: he knows the pain of having a heart (having experienced love), as he says to Yusuf Kama. Yet, his heart is very most likely what moves him: his hate for muggles is a pulsion and a passion. 
He chose the heart — he chose to not abandon love… and passion.
I bet that his very heart will be why he will hesitate, in 1945 — why Albus will be able to conquer the Elder wand. But I digress.
I think Grindelwald is a very interesting villain, because unlike Voldemort, he is very much human. That fact embraces the morals developed throughout the books — humans are capable of beautiful, and terrible things.
(I am so disappointed by the FB films, because they could be so much better (I really don’t like them), they have such a good raw material)
“Who will love you now, Dumbledore?”
Anyway; regarding our first question, I would like to raise Grindelwald’s — already much discussed — question:
Who will love you now, Dumbledore?
He says this seconds after they lower their hands; after he made a small step towards Dumbledore (as if to… be closer? I can’t help but wonder if he wanted to touch his face, or kiss him, and for a reason I am about to expose, I think he is doing it sincerely). The pendant is slowly falling, and he is a mess — dishevelled, panting, glancing around him with a very expressing face.
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I would like to stress the fact that it is implied that Grindelwald actually loved him (meaning: before the moment Dumbledore started to fight him, several minutes before). Just after that, the pendant breaks, the world appears again, and he adds:
You are all alone.
It is a Albus’ leitmotiv — and a GGAD essential dynamic: only he can truly understand me. Quite toxic, already confirmed since HPDH, I still hesitate if Gellert can understand Albus entirely in 1932. Not the subject. But here is the context of the infamous quote.
Of course, it could be Gellert playing gleefully (cruelly) with Albus’ feelings — just like he did in the diner scene, at the beginning of the movie: he is glad Dumbledore love(d) him. My personal interpretation is that he intended to do just that, but failed miserably: he was losing the battle (not of wands, but of the lethal game they are playing not really willingly) and grasped the most accessible and more deadly weapon he had within reach — out of sheer anguish and, most likely, heartache.
Somehow, I think that this move revealed more of his own despair than Albus’ suffering: he lost Albus and managed to admit, unwillingly, his feelings (a second time in a minute). I think it is a mistake to believe that he is mostly troubled by the loss of his immunity: Grindelwald is moved.
(I want to highlight that I love how Mikkelsen plays Grindelwald, really)
The fact that the world is breaking, the pendant is breaking, while Dumbledore walks away, might refer to both of their (broken) hearts, by the way, both magically and metaphorically (the more I think about it, the more I find that scene actually rather tragic, I must admit). 
Not much more to say about that, except the fact that I will analyse also that part in a future post, and that Gellert’s cruelty is literally deadly — but in a more subtle way that it was in FB2: in FB2, he was killing babies, now he strikes right to his former lover’s (beating) heart, albeit not that efficiently. A way better characterisation, in my opinion, showing several facets of the man at the same time.
The heart and the question have something in commun: they reveal Grindelwald’s emotions. The beating heart states that Gellert is still very human in front of Dumbledore. The question fails to be rhetorical: his desperation shows the fact that he is probably concerned by the answer – that someone will love him, and not nobody, just like he wanted to imply.
“I was never your enemy”
Another (last) moment quite telling about Grindelwald’s feelings is his last speech before disappearing. Dumbledore walks away (you can see him at the bottom of the shot), while the rest of the group (Newt, Theseus, the officials, etc) are approaching and trying to fight him, without success. 
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He speaks one last time. It is clear that his speech has two addressees: the world, and Dumbledore.
“I was never your enemy.” A beat. He looks in the direction of Dumbledore, whose eyes are piercing him. “Then, or now.”
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(the description is written by myself, I am guilty)
“I was never your enemy” is partly addressed to the world, because he seeks support among the wizarding world. But despite the fact that he says this while he looks at the crowd gathered in front of him, I believe it makes even more sense when we consider he says this to Albus.
“Never his enemy” may imply several things considering the context:
not his enemy when they made the blood pact: I am a firm believer that the pact was not just a move to protect himself, but a way to protect Albus as well (I refer to the theory of the 1945 vision Gellert might have had in 1899) and an act of love (which is almost confirmed by Dumbledore, if I am correct) (once again talking about the blood pact, but it is first and foremost a troth, something evoking marriage and bonding)
not his enemy when he sent Credence: he probably knew that Dumbledore would be largely capable of overpowering Credence, or hoped so; even better, saw (thanks to his visions) that Albus would not be defeated.
But even more important: “then, or now”. He says that looking right at Dumbledore. If he is still not his enemy, in my opinion, it means two things:
Gellert does not want to fight Albus.
Gellert still wants Albus by his side.
The former is obvious, we talked about it in the fight and the heart section. 
The latter might seem to come out of nowhere and I must admit we cannot be sure; but the context forces us to at least seriously consider this possibility. Indeed, the pact shattered and their bubble exploded — but Albus walked away before Gellert had been able to talk to him. Thus, it is quite possible that he feels the urge to express what he has to say quite cryptically. In that context, he may have chosen euphemism — not your enemy now, so your ally tomorrow, if you want to.
Dumbledore understands that Grindelwald is talking to him, of course. I am still unsure about how he deals with it, but his melancholy before the wedding (even though he seems genuinely happy for Newt’s team) makes me wonder — he does not enter, after all; he chooses to stay alone, and that is the end of the movie. That is why I tend to believe, for the moment, that Dumbledore thinks Grindelwald is right: despite his relatively close friends and numerous acquaintances, he is… alone — guilty of his past, penitent [3].
Conclusion
I repeat that I am surprised about the film: somehow, I thought the film would be far less talkative about GGAD. I focused a lot on Mikkelsen’s acting here, it surely contributes to the overall experience (the man knows how to play the well-dressed handsome enemy in love with the main morally grey character) (I am referring to Hannibal NBC)
I have not evoked Albus’ very direct (and a bit performative, if you ask me, but still welcomed) declarations of love (the poor man can finally talk about his crush and he does, without filter and to everybody, he is just like me fr); a win for the GGAD nation — even though I am convinced the film itself is quite a disaster, both on a narrative and on a coherence-of-the-universe level (but it is my humble opinion). Anyway, back to the conclusion.
Gellert Grindelwald and Albus Dumbledore’s short but intense encounter has a lot to offer, first and foremost answers: neither of them is over the other, as far as I can tell.
But Albus seems to be healing. He refuses to stay near Gellert and has the upper hand in their last encounter — whereas Gellert has the upper in the very first sequence of the film. It indicates an evolution of the two of them as characters which might be very interesting in the future, especially in a crisis context like 1945…
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Notes:
[1] – It is 100% sure it is also that it holds the same meaning in the HP/FB imagery & meta, because “The Warlock’s Hairy Heart”, Beedle the Bard’s tale, confirms it : it might seem a stretch to give that importance to a tale. Yet, I think it is justified.
Roughly, tales (as literary genres) are meant to:
be a thesaurus of the morals and knowledge of the human heart: they synthesise people’s common knowledge and their brevity enables the author, a moralist (someone having knowledge about the human soul and heart), to convey a lesson.
represent a system of signs the reader has to decipher: works referring to tales refer actually to a system of signs and convey a message thanks to those signs. 
Thus, a work referring to a tale builds a metatextual/metacinematographical level of communication made of correspondences: a scene in a film is thus multilayered — a layer of signs and associations, a layer of knowledge of the human heart (emotions and morals). JKR actually wrote tales in the universe, meaning they are all the more relevant regarding the correspondences of signs, and the morals in the wizarding world (in the UK). That is why, I think, we can affirm that the theme of the heart, in HP/FB, has to be linked to The Warlock’s Hairy Heart and hold a similar meaning (or at least, the tale can inform us on a metatextual level).
[2] – a pumping heart evokes heat – the heat of love, of ire : I don’t want to develop that aspect that much, but throughout literature or arts history, it is quite often linked — just think of Achilles and the Iliad beginning by “ire” as its first word — and artists always look back to what has been made before. 
[3] – he is… alone — guilty of his past, penitent : a Gellert’s word struck me when I watched the film, “sinful”; the religious dimension on a textual level (what the characters think and how they see themselves) and a metatextual level (what religious figures are they embodying?) has to be addressed at some point. (once again, I highly recommend the fanfiction “Illumine” by meanwhiletimely, exploring (among others) the theme of religion)
Anyway, thank you for reading! :)
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