Catching up with Harry, with Stephen Fry's help

I hadn't realized it has been so long since I've updated this blog. In with getting ready for Christmas, I spent time listening to Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire and Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix.


Goblet of Fire, while it is the middle book, is just not my favorite. There are some important things that we learn and clues that are the set-up for the rest of the books. But I'm just not that fond of all the action stuff. And that's a good portion of the book.

The parts that did interest me, especially in the way that Rowling presents it, have to do with all the information about Tom Riddle as Lord Voldemort. I remember when we waited at the midnight release to get Goblet of Fire - it's hard to believe it was really over nine years ago. Laura started reading it on the way home. But we couldn't remember who Tom Riddle was. We had to start back through all the books to refresh our memories to make that crucial connection.

The Yule Ball was a nice distraction from all the action. (And I love the dance lessons added into the movie - some of my favorite scenes.) Moaning Myrtle is priceless as well.

The part that I did like about the three tasks was that Harry showed that he cared more about others than about winning. He was competitive, but not when it came to the safety of others, even those he didn't know. And while being fair to Cedric didn't work the way he thought it would, Harry still made the right choice by recognizing that he couldn't have gotten to the goal without help. It was his sense of fairness that I admired.

This was the only book that gave me nightmares after I read it. I remember dreaming once aobut the scene with Voldemort's rebirth in the graveyard, and was sure that I'd been reading way too much Potter. But more than that, it was that scene that showed that Rowling was really telling a story that was more on young adult or adult level than the children's story that was being marketed.

It was a powerful book, and it still is whether I'm reading it or listening to Stephen Fry read it. The images are intense and lasting. It's this book that tells the reader to prepare for anything to happen. And that might mean the ending of the series won't be as happy as we all thought when we read the first couple of books.


It was nice to be able to go right from book 4 to book 5. Three years was a long time to wait when the books were new. I think that was part of the problem with the reception of Order of the Phoenix when it was released. Readers had waited so long and they had found plenty of forums to discuss any and all theories, not to mention that three years was plenty of time for all the would-be writers to try their hand at adding to the story or writing their own version.

By the time the book came out, readers had a pretty clear idea of where they thought the story was going. And Rowling didn't go there. One aspect of Order of the Phoenix that I particularly like is all the time we spent in Harry's mind. What did he think about Voldemort's return? Why hadn't anyone (Dumbledore) told him what was going on? Why could he see and feel the things that were in Voldemort's mind? Why wouldn't Dumbledore look at him?

Did I like a yelling Harry? No, not really. But I kept feeling that it was the right time for him to finally ask all those questions about his parents and his past. Not getting answers after so many years would make anyone angry - especially a fifteen year old. Stephen Fry's reading of this book brings out all the emotion that is in it - the anger, frustation, infatuation with Cho, tenuous trust with Harry's friends, his grief over Sirius.

And then there is Snape. There is always Snape. But it is this book that gives us more than a two-dimensional look at the man who will be so much a part of Harry at the end. It was rereading and discussing all the bits about Snape that gave so many their first clue that he wasn't the rotten git we were told he was. I wonder if we could have gone from this book to the next, without a break, if we would have figured any of it out. Maybe it was the time lag that allowed us to see through Rowling's clever portrayal of Snape, to see that there was some truth in what he told Harry about his father, and that Dumbledore did have a reason to trust him with his own life and Harry's life.

This book was the longest, and the criticism is always that it needed tighter editing. But what would I want left out? Perhaps the details of "Grawp's Tale", but nothing more. I love all the rest of it.

Now, time to start listening to Half-Blood Prince, if I can get my mp3 player to work. It's been a frustrating day, with one of them dying completely, and the other one just being weird. It shows that there are files taking up space but says everythign is empty. Last time I checked, it would show the files on the external card. I hope that still works, or I'm going to be very unhappy.

Pat

Happy Birthday, Neville, Harry and Jo

I'm a day late for wishing Neville a Happy Birthday and almost too late to wish one for Harry and Jo, but here it is, better late than never.

I saw the Happy Birthday posted yesterday on Rowling's official site for Neville and was reminded that he is one of my favorite Harry Potter characters. He was the one who was bumbling in the first book and seemed to be only there for comic relief, perhaps to make the real heroes look even better. Much to Harry's credit, he didn't belittle Neville, even when others laughed at his misfortunes; Neville was constantly losing his toad, Trevor, falling from his broomstick, receiving a remembrall from his formidable Gran because of his unfortunate tendency to forget just about everything, and was more intimidated by Severus Snape than any other student even when Snape wasn't singling him out for ineptitude.

But even when Neville seemed to be slowing down the trio of Harry, Ron and Hermione, he was a true and faithful friend, always supportive and always trying to do the right thing. We had no idea just how much of a friend he would be until the last book when Neville, as many of us had hoped, finally showed, in the strongest way, that he was indeed a true Gryffindor, properly placed in the house for those who are brave and courageous. To stand up to your friends takes a special kind of courage, as we saw in the first book, Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone. Over time we saw Neville continue to stand up to his friends, but more often, he was standing up for them, especially for Harry. We began to see that Neville was willing to stand up against the evil that threatened Harry in Order of the Phoenix, encouraging Harry to resist giving in to Lucius Malfoy at the Department of Mysteries. That was a courage that none would have suspected from the meek Neville we first met when he was frantically searching the Hogwarts Express for Trevor, with Hermione's help. By the end of Half-Blood Prince, we could see that Neville was loyal, not only willing to help, but also willing to fight, when he and Luna joined in the battle at the end.

The best, however, was learning what Neville had been doing all during their seventh year at Hogwarts, while Harry, Ron and Hermione were on the run and Horcrux hunting, and it was a fantastic surprise. There was Neville, fighting against the evil that pervaded Hogwarts and the wizarding world, spilling over into the Muggle one, in Deathly Hallows, with a courage beyond what any of us might have imagined for him. And at last, he faced the greatest evil of all, Lord Voldemort, and proved once and for all that he had what was needed to survive and to win the battle.

So, in many ways, Neville is my favorite character. He went far beyond what I expected. After all, I had no doubt that Harry, the hero, would survive--well, at least until he defeated Voldemort. And I suspected that if Harry made it through, that Ron and Hermione would as well. At least, that was what I hoped. So in making a list of who might not live, the trio wasn't really on the list, but Neville was. And I was so happy that he not only lived but lived well and heroically. Best surprise of the final book, actually. (There were certainly some sad ones, but this isn't the place for them.)

And then, of course, Happy Birthday to Harry Potter and his creator, Jo Rowling. I'm so glad that we can still wish Harry a Happy Birthday, and that he finally found a happy family life, something that he so clearly wanted and needed for most of his young life.

I remember reading this post last year after my first reading of Deathly Hallows, and I was pleased to see that Beth has posted it in honor of Harry's and Jo's birthdays. So go here, read and enjoy her insightful reflections. Having recently finished reading all seven books in a row, with only a few sidetracks for other books, I really did appreciate remembering how I felt last summer about this time after devouring and then re-reading the last Harry Potter book.

This kind of answers the question that many were discussing earlier--how did I celebrate the one year anniversary of the last book of my favorite book series. I celebrated by doing what I've been doing for the last nine years, by reading and listening to Harry Potter. Again and again, and probably something that I will continue to do, even as I read and listen to all kinds of other books. The Harry Potter books, and especially the last one, will always hold a special place on my book shelf--and a special place in my heart.

So, thanks, Jo Rowling, and Happy Birthday to you and to Harry.

Pat

Snape and. . . no, it's mostly Snape

Over at the Leaky Cauldron, there is a post about a recent interview by J.K. Rowling in which she says that Dumbledore and Snape are the most important characters, aside from the trio. It was nice to hear her say that, as so many of us have thought just the same thing. The ensuing "conversation" however has turned into the silliness that prompted me to stop posting on several forums where I had once been very active. So I won't provide a link. If you want to wade through all of it, you'll have to find it on your own.

However, it did get me started on posting some of my thoughts about the series. My current reading is in Order of the Phoenix, a little more than half-way on. (Harry has just seen the initial response to his interview published in the Quibbler.) So, the following is what I wrote, which intentionally doesn't respond to the poster who is only interested in irritating people and in arguing.

***


Rhiannon said: "Eeyore It is good to see you again. I thought you had left us."

Thank you and no, I haven't left. I actually check for news here every day. I don't comment much anymore, but sometimes read through the comments. In reading through the comments on this one, I'm reminded of the reason that I am not active on the forum any longer. After I finished Deathly Hallows, it was so complete for me, and I found the ending so satisfying, that I had to stop reading all the criticisms from others. Yes, I had my little nitpicks, but they weren't important enough for me to ruin the feelings I had at the end of my favorite series of books. And I read all the time, and have all my life.

I think that one of the things that bothered me the most was Harry's use of the Unforgivables toward the end of DH. But when I started thinking about it, it was a vivid picture of the horror of war. They were fighting for their lives and watched others being tortured or senselessly killed, and they reacted in whatever way they could think of. War has a way of dehumanizing even the best of people. Was the use of Unforgivables right? No. But that does happen in war; good, moral people make bad choices that they would ordinarily never consider. At the very end, though, in facing Voldemort, Harry did not use an Unforgivable Curse. Instead he didn't even use a curse that was intended to harm, but used a defensive spell. A spell that would protect him, and interestingly enough, it was a spell that he had first learned from Snape. Nice touch, that one.

I found Snape to be one of the most fascinating of Rowling's characters, because he was the most complex and his story unfolded so slowly for us. But the clues were there from the beginning. If there wasn't something hidden in Snape's past concerning Harry, why would Snape hate him from the first book. It was in rereading POA, though, and especially in OP that I started to see that people who saw that Snape loved Lily were right. Snape always raged against James and Sirius, sometimes against Lupin by association, but never once said a word against Lily. Harry was the one who made those jumps, assuming that Snape also hated his mother.

Snape very much resembles the character of Sydney Carton in "A Tale of Two Cities" by Dickens (another literary character who is rather nasty to others and not very likeable), and once I saw that, I knew that Snape was on some sort of sacrificial path because of his love for Lily, just as Carton willingly sacrificed himself to save Lucy and her family. That book has the best redemptive ending of any book I've ever read.

Lily befriended Snape when he was younger and looked a bit odd, when Petunia saw him as "that awful boy" (the other thing that convinced me that Snape loved Lily). I was glad to see that Lily returned his friendship, and that it wasn't completely one-sided. She tried to stand up for him, and was called a horrific name (the wizarding version of a racial slur), and she did listen to him later. But in the end, she chose her own path in life just as Snape did. She saw her childhood friend getting in deeper and deeper with dark wizards that she saw as being on an evil path, and even after she talked to Snape and tried to warn him , he refused to veer from his own chosen path.

It was one of the saddest things in the books for me. Snape, with his unhappy childhood, ended up being influenced by those in his house who were happy to use his considerable talent to their own purposes. I can't imagine that they really liked him as a person, given that he was from a poor family and was not a pure-blood. But people who have been bullied for so long and pushed out sometimes will follow anyone who gives them the promise of power. And those who are bullied sometimes become the bully, which is just what we saw with Snape. Like Dumbledore, I have to wonder, would Snape have turned out differently had he been sorted into Gryffindor or Ravenclaw? (yeah, I can't see him in Hufflepuff at all. LOL) I think it could have made the difference because he might have been more influenced by Lily and wouldn't have had the opportunity to spend so much time with the Lestranges and future Death Eaters.

Once he knew that he was the one responsible for Lily's death, he did repent (just as Sydney Carton did), and then Snape spent the rest of his life trying to atone for his part in the death of the only person he ever loved or respected. But he was still the solitary soul he had been as a child and he'd never learned how to reach out to others. He still saw any emotional vulnerability as a weakness because he knew how Voldemort would use it.

And what does Snape have every day of the term for seven years (well, six really)? He sees the face of the student who bullied him just because he could, and the eyes of the one person he loved. Instead of seeing that Harry was much more like Lily than like James, Snape is stuck in that adolescent hatred. Sirius was no better, as he was never able to let go of his hatred against Snape. Neither of them had the chance to "grow up" because of the circumstances surrounding the death of Lily and James. Because of that one tragedy, Sirius ends up in Azkaban for twelve years and then in hiding for two more; Snape ends up truly regretting the part he played and repents and does what is right in trying to protect Harry. But Snape was never really able to forgive himself.

Are there any perfect characters in Harry Potter? No. That is the brilliance of the books. Jo gave us heroes and villains who are all flawed and so very human. Just as we are all flawed and very human. Jo gave us something much better than cardboard cut-outs of good guys and bad guys. In giving us realistic characters, she has also given us the opportunity to explore how people in real life interact. And she has pointed the way for seeing the wrongs in our own world through not resolving all the issues in hers.

Sorry to run on so long. I promise I won't do it again. Well, I'll try to refrain from it anyway. ;-)

Pat

Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix: Part III

As I've said before, Occlumency and Legilimency are the two ideas that I find most intriguing. It may well be that Rowling is done with them, but even so, the idea that one wizard can have access to another's mind, see what memories of thoughts and past actions lurk there, and also have the ability to plant false visions is such an incredible notion. It goes way beyond the idea of mind control, of the usual sort. As Snape tells Harry, Occlumency is very subtle, and not easily learned or understood.

Up to this point, Snape has given Harry a lot of information about the lessons he is about to teach him, but as they are ready to begin, Snape starts by first removing three memories from his mind and placing them in Dumbledore's Pensieve (which, just as an aside, because I've been re-reading Voyage of the Dawn Treader, by C.S. Lewis, is a neat anagram for Pevensie--the name of the children who venture to Narnia).

Harry has no idea what memories Snape has placed there, but that really is the least of his worries, as Snape faces Harry with his own wand, and tells Harry to stand and take out his wand. Snape tells Harry that he may use his wand to disarm him or to defend himself in any way he can think of. When Harry asks what Snape is going to do, Snape tells him:

"I am about to attempt to break into your mind," said Snape softly. "We are going to see how well you resist. I have been told that you have already shown aptitude at resisting the Imperius Curse. . . . You will find that similar powers are needed for this. . . . Brace yourself, now. . . . Legilimens!" (US, Chapter 24, p. 534)

Fascinating, but just who told Snape all of that about Harry being able to resist the Imperius Curse? Did that information come from Barty Crouch, Jr, when he was the fake Moody? Doesn't seem likely, as the two of them were barely civil to one another. Did Dumbledore know that? Maybe. Or did one of the Death Eaters who were in the graveyard mention it to Snape--possibly Lucius Malfoy or Peter Pettigrew? That seems more likely than the information coming from Barty Jr, who had no use for Snape, and no reason to share classroom antecdotes as they sat around the staff room. Of course, the other explanation is that Dumbledore who seems to somehow know about a lot of things that are happening around Hogwarts learned that information from one of the students who saw Harry resist the Imperius Curse in fake Moody's class, and I rather hope that is the explanation for Snape's knowledge of Harry's abilities.

Harry didn't feel ready for the mental attack, even though Snape did give him warning. He was plunged into his own memories--humiliations at the hands of Dudley and the Dursleys and Aunt Marge's stupid dog, Ripper, his memory of the Sorting Hat telling him he would do well in Slytherin (I wonder if Snape knew that before), Hermione in hospital with evidence of Polyjuice gone bad, a hundred dementors closing in by the lake. Finally, Cho floats into his mind under the mistletoe, and Harry fights back, feeling that that particular memory is private and he won't allow Snape to see it.

He finds himself on the floor, after he stopped Snape with a Stinging Hex, unknowingly. These lessons, while they could have been so useful to Harry, seem doomed from the beginning. Rather than encouraging Harry, Snape criticizes with "You let me get in too far. You lost control." (US, p. 535)

Harry, as would anyone, wants to know just what Snape saw of those memories. Snape saw flashes of them and asks about the dog, a subtle way to focus on something he knew was humiliating for Harry.

But then Snape gives Harry an almost-compliment:

"Well, for a first attempt that was not as poor as it might have been," said Snape, raising his wand once more. "You managed to stop me eventually, though you wasted time and energy shouting. You must remain focused. Repel me with your brain and you will not need to resort to your wand." (US., p. 535)

This is probably the most instruction Snape gives about how to do Occlumency. But Harry isn't listening, he's frustrated by the process, and that it's Snape who is breaking into his mind. This really is the first time that Harry is presented with the idea of non-verbal and wandless magic, which are crucial in Half-Blood Prince. It's a new concept for Harry, and it might have helped had Snape taken the time to explain it in a calmer, friendlier manner. Yes, well, not likely, considering that it's Snape and Harry, eh?

These lessons are so different than the Patronus ones that Harry had with Lupin, who was kind, encouraging, and supportive. But then, we often see that teaching styles reflect the teacher; Lupin is kind and supportive, and his gentleness shows in his teaching style, making the students want to learn. Snape, on the other hand, has never been nice to anyone, except his favored Slytherins. I've always wondered whether he is as nice to them when no one else is around. My guess is that he can turn on them, just as easily, if they step out of line or fail to meet his high expectations.

It's just hard to know whether this really indicates that Snape is an all round nasty git, going out of his way to torment Harry, or whether he doesn't have the ability to impart his considerable knowledge to students, which isn't likely, in that most of the 5th years do fairly well on their Potions O.W.L.s, so they must have learned something from him, as Slughorn says later. I don't think we can even consider that the problem at the beginning of the Occlumency lessons is due to Snape's hatred of James and Sirius, not yet anyway--Snape is just as nasty to other students as well, and had the reputation for being so before Harry and company arrived at Hogwarts. There are teachers who seem to think that by being harsh they will force the students to toughen up, to learn the subject matter, and for some I suppose that does work. For most people, however, a little kindness goes a long way towards a student working harder in order to please a teacher. Hermione is probably the only one who works hard at Potions in spite of Snape being mean to her. The main problem at the beginning of the Occlumency lessons is really Harry's attitude.

Snape tells him to clear his mind, and he can see that Harry is not doing it. Harry's anger is front and center, blocking any chance of his understanding how rare magic works. Snape has another go, and this time memories of the dragon, his father and mother waving at him from the Mirror of Erised, and Cedric lying dead flash through his mind. It's at that point that he yells NO! and stops the process.

The use of Legilimency is really disturbing, when I think about it. It is forcing Harry to relive the worst memories of his life, or the saddest ones, the ones that cause him sorrow and regret. Yet instead of giving him a break, as Lupin might have done, Snape allows his own frustration to enter in:

"Get up!" said Snape sharply. "Get up! You are not trying, you are making no effort, you are allowing me access to memories you fear, handing me weapons!"

Harry stood up again, his heart thumping wildly as though he had really just seen Cedric dead in the graveyard. Snape looked paler than usual, and angrier, though not nearly as angry as Harry was.

"I --am --making --an --effort," he said through clenched teeth.

"I told you to empty yourself of emotion.!"

"Yeah? Well, I'm finding that hard at the moment," Harry snarled.

"Then you will find yourself easy prey for the Dark Lord!" said Snape savagely. "Fools who wear their hearts proudly on their sleeves, who cannot control their emotions, who wallow in sad memories and allow themselves to be provoked this easily--weak people, in other words-- they stand no chance against his powers! He will penetrate your mind with absurd ease, Potter!"

"I am not weak," said Harry in a low voice, fury now pumping through him so that he thought he might attack Snape in a moment.

"Then prove it! Master yourself!" spat Snape, "Control your anger, discipline your mind! We shall try again! Get ready, now! Legilimens!" (US, p. 536)

Snape was paler than usual. Why? Because he is reliving these memories, right along with Harry. If Harry weren't so blinded by his anger, it might occur to him to wonder just how Snape knows all that about Voldemort using a person's saddest memories against them. It doesn't seem likely that Snape would be so passionate about this particular reason for learning Occlumency if it were only an academic lesson he himself had learned. It seems entirely possible that he was the victim of Voldemort penetrating his mind, seeing sad memories and his emotions, regrets over past choices and mistakes. When Snape talks about weak people who allow themselves to be easily provoked, I'm reminded that that's a very appropriate description of Snape at the end of Harry's third year when he learns that Black had escaped and he wouldn't have his revenge after all. It turns out Snape isn't as good at hiding his own emotions either. But in this particular instruction, he is giving Harry the reason to learn Occlumency, just not the proper incentive.

The third attempt proves even more interesting. Harry still isn't able to block Snape at the beginning, and they both see Uncle Vernon hammering the letter box shut, the dementors approaching across the lake (should have been quite a revelation to Snape, as he was still knocked out at the time and missed all that), and then Harry is back in the passageway with Arthur, who leads him down a flight of stone steps before Harry can go through the plain black door. Snape has actually, it turns out, stopped the memory. But now Harry's scar is prickling.

So what was going on there? Harry now knows where that door is--but is it because Harry found his way into Voldemort's mind, or did Voldemort find his way into Harry's at that moment. The fact that Harry is with Arthur and they detour down the steps seems more likely that Harry is making the connection be intruding into Voldemort's memories.

Rather than answering Snape's question about what happened in that memory, Harry asks one of his own--"What's in the Department of Mysteries?" Not at all what Snape expected.

"And why," said Snape slowly, "would you ask such a thing?"

"Because," said Harry, watching Snape's face closely, "that corridor I've just seen --I've been dreaming about it for months --I've just recognized it --it leads to the Department of Mysteries. . . and I think Voldemort wants something from --"

"I have told you not to say the Dark Lord's name!" (US, p. 537)

Does Snape suspect that the "Dark Lord" might be watching the exchange betweent the two of them or that he might see this scene later in Harry's mind? By stopping Harry, Snape ensures that Voldemort will only see that Snape stopped Potter from saying his name, and that he, Snape, showed the proper reverence.

Harry's scar "seared again", and Snape composes himself before continuing. If Voldemort is indeed able to see any of these lessons, then Snape, as a spy, must be extremely cautious; it's all right for him to appear to teach Harry per the instructions from Dumbledore and Voldemort would understand that, but it's never all right for a loyal follower to show any sign of irrevernce or to allow it from anyone else.

If Snape actually tells Harry what is there, then Voldemort would have access to that revelation as well, more likely through Harry's mind than Snape's. So Snape tells him nothing. Rather than being seen as secretive, this might well be meant to protect Harry.

"There are many things in the Department of Mysteries, Potter, few of which you would understand and none of which concern you, do I make myself plain?" (US, p. 538)

Harry's scar is still prickling as Snape tells him to return on Wednesday, and to rid his mind of emotion every night--empty it, make it blank and calm. . . And be warned, Potter. . . I shall know if you have not practiced. . ."(US, p. 538)

Harry rushes off to find Ron and Hermione in the library. (As an aside, we once again have mention of Madam Pince in close proximity in the book to Snape--is that a connection that we are to make? Another subject, entirely.)

With this new information about where that corridor and door are located, Hermione figures out that was the reason Podmore was there, though they don't yet know that he was trying to prevent Voldemort's entrance.

Typical of Hermione she asks again if he is all right, and he admits that he doesn't much like Occlumency. Well, who would really. It's an invasion of one's private thoughts, memories that might be so painful a person hasn't thought of them for years, or of memories that are so private one would not even write them in a journal for fear that someone else might find them. And here Harry has to stand, in front of the one man he resents and hates the most, letting him have access to those very thoughts. Hermione describes it as having one's mind attacked over and over again. A mental attack is presented as being much more invading and cruel than a physical attack would be.

After going back to the common room and seeing Fred and George with their headless hats, Harry decides he's had enough and goes to his dormitory for some much needed sleep. But he immediately is plunged into a waking vision, with his scar feeling like it is splitting. This one however, isn't something frightening, but one in which Voldemort is jubilant. Now, has Voldemort planted this in Harry's mind? I don't think so. I think in Harry's heightened state of mind after the session with Snape, Harry has once again entered Voldemort's mind by using Legilimency, something he doesn't even know that he can do.

Ron has come to check on him because Hermione was worried about him. "She says your defenses will be low at the moment, after Snape's been fiddling around with your mind. . ." (US, p. 542)

Evidently, in usual Hermione fashion, she has reserched Occlumency, and this isn't a result of Snape doing something that he shouldn't, but a normal, and even, expected result of learning the process.

Harry, however, feels that his mind has been weakened rather than strengthened, as he wonders what it is that has made Voldemort happier than he has been in fourteen years.

It's a good question, but I wonder if Harry would have the same concern if he were being taught by Dumbledore, whom he trusts, rather than by Snape. The connection that Harry has to Voldemort's mind has been opened even more, as this happened while he was awake. It never occurs to Harry, because it was Snape doing the teaching, that the lessons were Dumbledore's in the first place and that Dumbledore must think the benefits of learning Occlumency outweigh the risks.

One very good thing did come out of that first lesson, well several, actually. Harry was able to block Snape part of the time; Snape now knows that Harry is gaining access to Voldemort's thoughts and knows where those thoughts are focused. We learn later that he had passed that information along to Dumbledore. If Snape weren't loyal to Dumbledore, wouldn't he just keep that information to himself? Knowing that Voldemort is intent on gaining access to the Department of Mysteries confirms what Dumbledore suspects--Snape could easily have left that out, or could have changed it to some other place, had he wanted to misdirect Dumbledore.

If it really is Legilimency on Harry's part that is opening the mental door between him and Voldemort, then Dumbledore and Snape are approaching it from the wrong direction, it would seem. Yes, Harry should learn to block Voldemort from entering his mind, but they should also be teaching Harry how to stop himself from entering Voldemort's mind, or how to recognize what he is doing.

* * * * * * *

As the Occlumency lesson continue--at least two times a week, it seems, Harry thinks they are getting worse rather than better. His scar prickles all the time, he senses Voldemort's emotions of annoyance or cheerfulness. Harry traces this increased connection back to the first Occlumency lesson. That could be the reason, but we have so much experience with Harry jumping to the wrong conclusion, that I always think there must be something going on that is just under our radar. The first lesson Harry had with Snape was shortly after the time that Harry saw Arthur being attacked--it could be that's the reason the mental connection is stronger and more evident. Hermione encourages Harry to work harder. Ron, however, thinks that Snape isn't really trying to help Harry.

One thing here--with all that Snape saw in that first lesson, think how much more of Harry's private thoughts he has now seen after at least several weeks of lessons. Hermione reminds Ron of his track record on assessing Snape's loyalty, which is zero, and Ron brings up Snape's Death Eater past.

Several months after the start of his Occlumency lessons, Harry, once again letting his hatred of Snape and Umbridge prevent him from clearing his mind, falls into his odd dreams, ordinary at first, but then turning towards that corridor with the black door at the end. Rather than wanting to stop the vision, Harry was keen to get through that door, and was interrupted this time by Ron's loud snores.

He knew he should not have seen the door, but at the same time, felt so consumed with curiosity about what was behind it that he could not help feeling annoyed with Ron. . . . If he could have save his snore for just another minute. . . (US, p. 577)

After the interview in The Quibbler, and Umbridge's ban on it, which results, as bans often do, in everyone in the school reading it, Harry heads off for a night's sleep, wishing that his headache would subside.

He is at once plunged into Voldemort's mind, as though he is Voldemort. It's Rookwood who is kneeling at his feet. Voldemort now knows he was given faulty information from Avery that Bode would be able to remove it. Rookwood, having worked at the Ministry, knew that was not possible.

"You have done well to tell me this," said Harry (who is really Voldemort). "Very well . . . I have wasted months on fruitless schemes, it seems. . . But no matter. . . We begin again, from now. You have Lord Voldemort's gratitude, Rookwood. . ." (US, p. 585)

So, this is another time that Harry seems to have initiated the connection, rather than the other way round. Voldemort wouldn't want Harry or the Order to know that he hadn't been making proper progress on whatever his scheme is. Rookwood promises to help Voldemort, presumably with more information about how to "remove it", and Avery, the one with the faulty information, is summoned. As Harry/Voldemort waits, he turns towards a cracked mirror (there are a lot of those throughout the books), and sees "A face whiter than a skull. . . red eyes with slits for pupils. . ."

That's enough for Harry to be horrified and break the connection. Harry tells Ron "I was You-Know-Who," After explaining the rest of the vision to Ron, it's Ron who says that Harry should tell someone. Harry, though, is now completely annoyed with Dumbledore for ignoring him, and doesn't feel there is anyone else he can tell. And as he tries to go back to sleep, he know that Avery is being punished, so the vision apparently continued.

A few weeks later, Harry is once again in an Occlumency lesson with Snape, and things are not going well. By now, he should have made some progress; Harry knows that, but having Snape point it out is even more aggravating.

Harry has had to yet again relive a memory of being bullied by Dudley and his gang, when Snape asks what that last memory was. But it's not the memory of Dudley that has caught Snape's attention.

"No," said Snape softly. "I mean the one concerning a man kneeling in the middle of a darkened room. . . ."

Harry tries to avoid Snape's eyes but Snape persists:

"How do that man and that room come to be inside your head, Potter?" said Snape.

"It --" said Harry, looking everwhere but at Snape, "it was --just a dream I had."

"A dream," repeated Snape.

(Harry once again tries to avoid making eye contact with Snape.)

"You do know why we are here, don't you, Potter?" said Snape in a low, dangerous voice. "You do know why I am giving up my evenings to do this tedious job?"

"Yes," said Harry stiffly.

"Remind me why we are here, Potter."

"So I can learn Occlumency," said Harry, now glaring at a dead eel.

"Correct, Potter. And dim though you may be" --Harry looked back at Snape, hating him --"I would have thought that after over two months' worth of lessons you might have made some progress. How many other dreams about the Dark Lord have you had?"

"Just that one," lied Harry. (US, p. 590-591)

Of course Snape know that Harry is lying. And he doesn't need Occlumency for that one. But this confrontation goes from bad to worse. At this point, it's important to note that if the two of them had a better relationship, one based on trust and cooperation, Harry would probably be doing better, or might have gone to Snape earlier after the dream of Rookwood and Avery. It's also evident later that Snape did tell Dumbledore about this particular vision of Harry's.

And then Snape makes it worse. He's not yelling at Harry, but he does lose control in that he allows himself to taunt Harry in a way that he knows will result in less effort on Harry's part. This is one of those points where Snape really needs to be the mature adult, but reverts to using school boy tactics to attack his opponent where he is most vulnerable.

"Perhaps," said Snape, his dark, cold eyes narrowing slightly, "perhaps you actually enjoy having these visions and dreams, Potter. Maybe they make you feel special --important?"

"No, they don't," said Harry, his jaw set and his fingers clenched tightly around the handle of his wand.

"That is just as well, Potter," said Snape coldly, "because you are neither special nor important, and it is not up to you to find out what the Dark Lord is saying to his Death Eaters."

"No --that's your job, isn't it?" Harry shot at him.

He had not meant to say it; it had burst out of him in temper. for a long moment they stared at each other, Harry convinced he had gone too far. But there was a curious, almost satisfied expresion on Snape's face when he answered.

"Yes, Potter," he said, his eyes glinting. "That is my job. Now, if your are ready, we will start again. . . ." (US, p. 591)

This time, the memories are of dementors coming towards him, but Harry, concentrating hard, can still see Snape's face, and manages a shield charm--"Protego!" Harry's mind is now filled with memories that are not his:

-- a hook-nosed man was shouting at a cowering woman, while a small dark-haired boy cried in a corner. . . A greasy-haired teenager sat alone in a dark bedroom, pointing his wand at the ceiling, shooting down flies. . . . A girl was laughing as a scrawny boy tried to mount a bucking broomstick--

"ENOUGH!" (US, p. 592)

Snape's reaction here is amazing to Harry. Snape has repelled him, but rather than further lashing out at Harry, he says:

"Well, Potter. . . that was certainly an improvement. . . " Panting slightly, Snape straightened the Pensieve in which he had again stored some of his thoughts before starting the lesson, almost as though checking that they were still there. "I don't remember telling you to use a Shield Charm. . . but there is no doubt that it was effective. . ."

Not at all what Harry expected, since he's fairly certain that those memories were Snape's childhood memories.

it was unnerving to think that the cring little boy who had watched his parents shouting was actually standing in front of him with such loathing in his eyes. . . (US, p. 592)

Is the loathing because Harry saw the memory or because of the memory itself? Or is it a combination of both? The last thing Snape, who admonished Harry about controlling his emotions, would want is to be reminded of a time when his own emotions might have been out of control. In one way, he's likely pleased to see that Harry has made progress--it had to be frustrating to keep working with him, knowing that nothing was happening. But now Snape, whether he controls his emotions or not, must feel that he has handed weapons to Harry--his own humiliating childhood memories that Harry could use against him. James certainly would have done; Snape thinks that Harry is just like James so he must expect him to be delighted with something he can spread to the other students.

Harry knows that he's in for retaliation, and Snape doesn't disappoint. This time Harry is immediately in the corridor, but the door opens and he's in the circular room, looking for the door he needs to take.

Snape is now irate and demands that Harry explain. Harry, finding himself unceremoniously thrown to the floor, honestly tells Snape that he has no idea what just happened. That's a vision that he has never seen before.

"You are not working hard enough!"

For some reason, Snape seemed even angrier than he had done two minutes before, when Harry had seen into his own memories.

"You are lazy and sloppy, Potter, it is small wonder that the Dark Lord --"

"Can you tell me something, sir?" said Harry, firing up again. "Why do you call Voldemort the Dark Lord, I've only ever heard Death Eaters call him that --" (US, p. 593)

Oh, how we'd like the answer to that question, but that's the unfortunate moment that Umbridge is in the process of sacking Trelawney, and Snape rushes off to see what's going on, followed by Harry.

So, why is Snape so angry over this vision? If Harry hasn't seen it before, then it means that he is sharing that mental connection with Voldemort right at that moment. It's still not clear whether it's because Voldemort is using Legilimency on Harry or whether it's Harry who is invading a mind. Snape most likely thinks that it's Voldemort's doing, and is understandabley angry with Harry. Not only is Harry's mind at risk, but so is Snape's. If it's Harry making the connection, then it's still undesirable. The point of the Occlumency lessons is for the mental connections to be blocked, so that Harry's mind is not so connected to Voldemort, and Harry is clearly not working hard enough. He wanted the door to open, and he wanted to go further, and now Snape has seen that desire first hand.

Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix: Part II

I intended to do this all as one post, but the first was so long, I thought it best to break it into two parts.

After Molly's run-in with the boggart, the trio headed back to Hogwarts, with Ron and Hermione, newly appointed prefects, riding in a separate car from Harry, for the first time since Harry and Ron first met. Harry ends up with Neville and Ginny in a car with Luna Lovegood. Luna, sometimes called Loony by other students, is a bit, well, odd. It's obvious, and Luna seems to know and accept that she is different.

Luna seems like nothing more than comic relief, and she does make us laugh, and Harry as well. But Luna is so much more. She is sometimes the one person who is able to calm Harry's fears and sooth his grief. When they arrive at Hogwarts, Harry sees the thestrals that have always pulled the "horseless" carriages--something he could not see before because he had not seen death.

Chapter Twenty-Four: "Occlumency"

This chapter begins with a note that it turns out that Kreacher had been lurking in the attic, where Sirius had found him:

no doubt looking for more relics of the Black family to hide in his cupboard. Though Sirius seemed satisfied with this story, it made Harry uneasy. Kreacher seemed to be in a better mood on his reappearance, his bitter muttering had subsided somewhat, and he submitted to orders more docilely than usual, though once or twice Harry caught the house-elf staring avidly at him, always looking quickly away when he saw that Harry had noticed. (US, Chap. 24, p. 516)

This is one of those brilliant misdirections from Rowling. We are, by this time, fairly used to Harry not being right about what he sees, but he's dead on with this one. Kreacher may have been found in the attic, but he certainly, it turns out, wasn't there the whole time. Instead, he'd been off to visit another Black family member--one that he respected, which may be why he was able to disobey Sirius--or at least not to stick to the strict letter of the law regarding house-elves and their masters.

After Harry's foray into Voldemort's mind, when he sees the snake attacking Arthur at the Ministy, and feels that he WAS the snake, some of Harry's fears are calmed by talks with Sirius and with Ron, Hermione and Ginny. And then comes the big blow, shortly before they return to school--Snape arrives at twelve, Grimmauld Place and tells Harry that he will be taking Occlumency lessons when he returns to Hogwarts--and his teacher for these private lessons will be none other than himself, Professor Snape.

We haven't heard about Occlumency before this, but I think we have seen it used. Snape makes a lot of eye contact with Harry, and Harry usually stares right back, feeling that it's like making and maintaining eye contact with a hippogryff. Harry has the feeling several times with Snape and with Dumbledore that they know what he is thinking. Just how much they are getting by using Occlumency and how much they get because Harry isn't good at masking his emotions, isn't clear, even by the end of the sixth book.

Here's what we learn from Snape as he tells Harry about his upcoming Occlumency lessons, all the while observed by a glowering Sirius:

1. Dumbledore has ordered that Harry study Occlumency this term.

2. It is "the magical defense of the mind against external penetration. An obscure branch of magic, but a highly useful one." (Snape, US, p. 519)

3. Why? Because Dumbledore thinks it's a good idea.

4. Snape: "You will receive private lessons once a week, but you will not tell anybody what you are doing, least of all Dolores Umbridge." (US, p. 519)

5. Sirius voices what Harry is thinking--why can't Dumbledore teach him? Snape replies:

"I suppose because it is a headmaster's privilege to delegate less enjoyable tasks," said Snape silkily. "I assure you I did not bet for the job." (US, p. 519)

This scene then disintigrates into Snape goading Sirius, and the two of them squaring off, ready to end their feud, and only prevented from doing so by Harry's intevention and the entrance of the Weasley family.

We learn later that Dumbledore does have a different reason for not giving Harry the lessons, but Snape just couldn't pass up the chance to take more pot shots at Sirius. I have to wonder if the explanation might have been delivered and received better had Sirius left the two of them alone.

Harry, of course, does tell Ron and Hermione about the lessons, even though Snape told him to tell no one. Once back at school, though, Harry does obey and tells the rest of the students that he has to take extra potions lessons--Remedial Potions, as Zacharias Smith points out, adding:

"Good Lord, you must be terrible, Snape doesn't usually give extra lessons, does he?" (US, p. 527)

And Harry realizes that that's what everyone is going to think, that he's really stupid.

Cho, the great distraction in Harry's life in Order of the Phoenix, shows up, and after a bit of stammering, Harry manages to ask her out--Hogsmeade on Valentine's Day.

Harry goes to Snape's office at 6 o'clock. It's the same except for Dumbledore's Pensieve on the desk. Now, it seems to me that a Pensieve would be a very personal item, and I think seeing it there for Snape to use, is one more clue that Dumbledore trusts him. And does this mean that Dumbledore takes all his thoughts out of the Pensieve so that Snape doesn't have access to any of Dumbledore's memories?

There are a number of things I thought about with this particular Occlumency lesson. I think it's simpler to just go through them. Snape indicates that Harry should sit down in a chair across from his desk, and when he does so:

so did Snape, his cold black eyes fixed unblinkingly upon Harry, dislike etched in every line of his face. (US, p. 529)

This is the first opportunity that Snape has to harm Harry. They are alone, and the lessons, it turns out, are quite disturbing and invasive, yet Harry does come out of them, albeit not without being mentally shaken. Harry sees dislike on Snape's face, but is it dislike for Harry or for the task that Dumbledore has set him? Is Snape even able to see Harry as anyone other than James? I think so much of the time that Snape automatically sees James that Harry just gets lost to him. It's also possible, that if Snape and Lily were friends, that every time he looks into those eyes that everyone says are Lily's, that Snape is once again painfully reminded that she is dead and Harry survived, all at the hands of Voldemort, and all because of some involvement on Snape's part. I think we still only know a portion of this, even after Half-Blood Prince.

The lesson begins with Snape telling Harry what Occlumency involves, but only because Harry keeps asking questions, after Snape establishes that Harry is still to afford him the respect that is his due as Harry's teacher.

"And why does Professor Dumbledore think I need it, sir?" said Harry, looking directly into Snape's dark, cold eyes and wondering whether he would answer.

Snape looked back at him for a moment and then said contemptuously, "Surely even you could have worked that out by now, Potter? The Dark Lord is highly skilled at Legilimency-"

"What's that? Sir?"

"It is the ability to extract feelings and memories from another person's mind--" (US, p. 530)

Dark Lord? Hmmm, why does it take Harry so long before he finally asks Snape about the use of this term? Distracted, I suppose, by all the new information he's finally getting. So it turns out that the "Dark Lord" is adept at Legilimency, but what's easy to miss is that Harry is also. He has been unintentionally doing Legilimency for a very long time--every time, in fact, that his scar hurt. He just hasn't known what was happening.

Harry likens it to mind reading, and Snape says it's not the same at all. Even with all his barbs aimed at Harry, Snape does give him a lot of information. But it's often hard to hear information when it's delivered with sarcasm and insults, which is exactly what Snape does.

There might be something else going on, but this is definitely a guess. I can't quite get to the Scar-Horcrux idea, but tend to think that Harry has a distinctly unique mental connection to Voldemort as a result of the rebounded curse--that it is a mental connection and not a soul connection. Part of the reason for my thinking that is that Rowling, as I said before, makes a clear distinction between the soul and the mind; they are not the same and interchangeable. She makes that differentiation with what happens to a person on the receiving end of a Dementor's Kiss, and in HBP with what has happened to Voldemort--even though he has mutilated his soul beyond repair, and even if Harry destroys all the Horcruxes, Voldemort's body and magical abilities will live on. That, to me, points to Harry's scar not needing to be a Horcrux for there to be a connection forged between Voldemort and Harry at the time of the rebounded Avada Kedavra curse. (This may very well be one of those ideas that will need adjustment once we read Deathly Hallows, but until then, I'm following the line that it's all mental and not some sort of joining of Harry's and Voldemort's souls.)

Whatever Dumbledore and Snape think is going on, it's clear that this mental connection isn't behaving normally. Legilimency usually requires eye contact, but with Harry and Voldemort, it happens over great distances. They are in uncharted waters with this one, but they can no longer ignore it after Harry's incursion into Voldemort's mind before Christmas; now Voldemort is aware that Harry has access to his thoughts, which means that Voldemort might chose to intrude into Harry's mind.

Caution is required to ensure that what Harry sees and thinks does not give away any secrets of the Order of the Phoenix. Much later, Harry learns that was precisely the reason that Dumbledore didn't teach Harry Occlumency, or spend much time with him, or even make eye contact with him most of the year--it would have given Voldemort too much possible access to Dumbledore's mind.

So Snape is tapped for the job instead. As a spy, however, he is now walking a tight rope. One misstep, one show of any friendship to Harry would destroy his credibility with Voldemort. That may also be the reason for the look of dislike, and certainly for the rather cryptic answers, that Snape gives about what Occlumency is. It seems that this puts Snape at great risk of having his own thoughts, thoughts he may have previously hidden from Voldemort, layed bare for the "Dark Lord" to see. Hence, the reason for the Pensieve--Snape needs a safe place for any thoughts that might show he is not as loyal to Voldemort as he'd like Voldemort to think. Nor does he want to give Voldemort any memories of his own that could be used against him later.

Snape tells Harry:

"It is true, however, that those who have mastered Legilimency are able, under certain circumstances, to delve into the minds of their victims and to interpret their findings correctly. The Dark Lord, for instance, almost always knows when somebody is lying to him. Only those skilled at Occlumency are able to shut down those feelings and memories that contradict the lie, and so utter falsehoods in his presence without detection." (US, p. 531)

Harry thinks it still sounds like mind-reading, and it does, except that it's not just seeing what a person is thinking right now; rather, it gives an accomplished Legilimens access to past actions and thoughts and emotions, in some cases things the person may have forgotten on a conscious level. But more importantly, what Snape is actually telling Harry is that he, Snape, has mastered Occlumency to the point that he is able to lie to Voldemort undetected. As a spy, that is probably the only thing that has kept Snape alive so long.

Harry wonders if Voldemort knows what they are thinking at the moment. Not under the normal rules of Legilimency, according to Snape. Hogwarts is guarded by ancient spells and charms to protect those within the school (possibly another reason for Snape to stay at Hogwarts--it's likely one of the very few places where he is safe from Voldemort).

We finally get to some of the reason Harry needs these lessons, when Snape tells Harry that "Time and space matter in magic, Potter. Eye contact is often essential to Legilimency." (This seems to foreshadow Harry's visit to the Department of Mysteries where one of the rooms is "Time" and one is "Space", but how and why those are important are some of those loose ends that still need tying.)

Snape looks at Harry, seeming to be intent on not giving him information, but it's possible that he needed to think of a way to word the information so Harry doesn't know so much that he inadvertantly tips off Voldemort to what they are doing.

"The usual rules do not seem to apply with you, Potter. The curse that failed to kill you seems to have forged some kind of connection between you and the Dark Lord. The evidence suggests that at times, when your mind is most relaxed and vulnerable--when you are asleep, for instance--you are sharing the Dark Lord's thoughts and emotions. The headmaster thinks it inadvisable for this to continue. He wishes me to teach you how to close your mind to the Dark Lord." (US, p. 531)

In case we missed it the first time, Snape has now used that particular name for Voldemort four times in just two pages.

This is where I wrote several thoughts in the margin of my book. Snape who is apparently quite accomplished at hiding his thoughts and memories from Voldemort might just be better at it than even Dumbledore. If Snape is able to close his mind to Voldemort, then why doesn't Dumbledore just do the same and teach Harry himself? Because he isn't as accomplished as Severus, or perhaps it is an issue of Dumbledore not having the time for the lessons.

Most of Snape's explanation works well, except that Harry has had visions or experienced Voldemort's emotions while awake, specifically when he was in detention with Umbridge and he had that jolt when she touched his hand. Harry didn't recognize what it was until later, but he clearly wasn't asleep, nor was he relaxed. Apparently Snape and Dumbledore don't know the full extent of Harry's mental incursions into Voldemort's mind.

And for the moment, as Snape explains to Harry, Voldemort isn't aware of the connection either--until recently. Now that he is, Dumbledore understands the risk, but chooses not to explain it to Harry. Here is the real possibility of Voldemort using this connection to his advantage, just as it was to Harry's advantage when he was able to save Arthur's life by seeing the attack and alerting Dumbledore and the Order.

Harry once again asks a question about "Voldemort", and is severely reprimanded by Snape for using the name. When Harry points out that Dumbledore says his name, Snape's response is quite interesting, given that Dumbledore isn't the only one who uses Voldemort instead of one of the common euphemisms, though it is only other members of the Order of the Phoenix--and not all of them at that.

"Dumbledore is an extremely powerful wizard," Snape muttered. "While he may feel secure enough to use the name. . . the rest of us. . ." He rubbed his left forearm, apparently unconsciously, on the spot where Harry knew the Dark Mark was burned into his skin. (US, p. 532)

Every word that Snape utters is now in Harry's memory, and potentially available to Voldemort. Snape has to be doubly cautious about what he says, how he refers to Voldemort, which is just what he is doing here. There's no sign of disrespect towards Voldemort in what Snape says. And the gesture of rubbing his arm where the Dark Mark is could be a direct clue to just how that works. We have learned that Voldemort can touch the Dark Mark on any Death Eater's arm and it will summon the rest of them, but what happens if one of the Death Eaters dares to speak Voldemort's name? Does that somehow alert Voldemort to their actions or thoughts? It seems it is the sort of thing he would build into this system of total control that he has once someone becomes a Death Eater.

Harry still wants more definite answers, but when he persists, Snape only tells him that "we know".

"The important point is that the Dark Lord is now aware that you are gaining access to his thoughts and feelings. He has also deduced that the process is likely to work in reverse; that is to say, he has realized that he might be able to access your thoughts and feelings in return--" (US, p. 533)

Is Snape guessing? It sounds like he and Dumbledore are fairly certain of what Voldemort now knows. After Voldemort's return at the end of the Triwizard Tournament, Dumbledore sent Snape on a mission, one that was never clearly spelled out, but which Harry and we, the readers, assumed meant that he went to Voldemort to resume his status as a loyal Death Eater, at the instructions of Dumbledore. During that time, he must be having contact with Voldemort and the other Death Eaters, otherwise he would have nothing useful to report to the Order.

All of this revolves around what we believe of Snape's actions and loyalties. If Snape is a spy, working for Dumbledore, then Harry is not at risk. Snape seems intent on not giving Harry too much information, or at least not more than Harry might work out on his own. If Snape is actually loyal to Voldemort, then he could be setting him up so that his mind would be more open.

Is Dumbledore that bad at judging the character and the loyalty of someone he has known since the age of eleven? We tend to think of their relationship as teacher and headmaster, but Dumbledore first met Severus Snape when Snape came to Hogwarts as an eleven year old. He seems to know everything that goes on in the castle, but prefers not to interfer, giving the students the opportunity to work out their own problems.

It seems to me that if Dumbledore weren't 100% convinced of Snape's loyalty and trustworthiness, he would be putting Harry at great risk by having Snape teach Harry something so potentially dangerous, alone and unsupervised. I can't believe that Dumbledore would make that kind of error in judgement. It's one thing to say, and Dumbledore himself says it, that he has made mistakes, but this kind of error would make Dumbledore foolish beyond belief. That's just not something that I believe Rowling intends with the wise mentor figure.

It's now time for the actual Occlumency lessons, but I'll come back to that at a later time.

Pat

Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix: Part I

With only eighteen days left until my favorite (at least by a slight margin) Harry Potter book becomes the fifth Harry Potter movie (and it looks like it might be my favorite as well), I've been re-reading Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix and making notes as I read. As I'm also re-reading Half-Blood Prince, which is only 28 days and a few hours from being in my hot little hands, I'm trying to keep things straight. I've found with both that there are certain chapters that just seem to hold the most information, the crucial information, that we need before we begin the last and final book of this amazing series.

With the other books, I've made some attempts to do a chapter by chapter entry, guided by the Reading Groups at The Leaky Lounge, but I've fallen behind, and I've decided that it's more feasible to just go by my notes that I've made while reading these last two books. Notes, mind you, in the margins, and on the blank pages at the end of the books, making these last two books look like something that would make the Prince proud. Of course, the Prince would likely find my notes boring and tedious or not worthy of his time. But they are my way of trying to sort out some of the details of the books.

So.....

One of the things that I like best about Order of the Phoenix is the thing that many Harry Potter readers liked least. Finally, I thought, as I got past the first few disturbing episodes of Harry yelling at everyone and being grumpy and feeling misunderstood, unappreciated, ignored and sometimes even bullying (or thinking of it) his awful cousin Dudley, we have Harry who has at last realized that life has dealt him a rotten hand and he isn't happy about it. To me, even if he had not seen Cedric killed in the graveyard and had not seen the rebirth of Voldemort and been betrayed by Moody (fake one, it turns out), Harry still should have been saying "Why has all this happened to me? Why hasn't anyone told me about my parents? Professor Lupin, please tell me what my parents did for a job; what they were like; were they funny, talented, serious, nice?" But no, for four years we had a Harry who was patient, who didn't keep questioning Dumbledore about why this insane maniac tried to kill him as a baby, and who didn't really ask the other adults many questions about his parents either, not even their best friends.

Yes, of course, after all the years of the Dursleys making his life miserable and telling Harry not to ask questions, that has become a way to survive at their home, where he is stuck, nearly imprisoned, every summer. But not at school; there are people who like him there and who knew his parents. Like Harry, I was adopted, which was one of the things that appealed to me early in the books. Unlike Harry, my birth parents, whom I never knew, weren't murdered by a lunatic wizard, and my adoptive parents were wonderful and loving--and no Dudley or nasty Aunt Marge. But still, even I, who was happy living where I did with parents who loved and cared for me, asked questions, and wondered who was a part of my past. So Harry's lack of curiosity and willingness to accept such unhelpful answers from Dumbledore, and even Lupin, always struck me as being highly unrealistic. After all, look at all the times you hear stories about people who have searched for their birth families--it's something that naturally comes into the mind of any child who is raised by people who are not their birth family. It's normal to ask "What would my life have been like if. . . " (As an adult, I no longer felt the need to search or ask a lot of questions, but as a teenager, it was still something that I occasionally thought about. If I'd been unhappy, I'm sure it would have turned into a quest to find those answers.)

And, old as I am (57 until September), I still remember being fifteen. It's not an easy age, even if your life is comfortable, safe, happy, loving, as mine was. At times I was irritable, for no particular reason; was snappish with my mom; moody and isolated; silly and thoughtless; selfish and self-absorbed. It goes with the age. Throw in all the things that Harry has dealt with as well, and I thought it was refreshing, if sometimes difficult to read, to see him behave in such a normal way. Refreshing, not because I would have wanted to be in the same room while he was yelling, but because it shows the depth of the character that Rowling has created. She's done a marvelous job showing the kids growing up. With each book, we get teens that are less of the children that we met in Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone and more of the adults they will become. Well, we hope that they all make it to adulthood.

It's in Order of the Phoenix that we learn more about Sirius and his family, but I'll come back to that later. While it's important and I loved learning about it and about the Order itself, there were other things that seem more important at the moment.

Harry gets through the hearing at the Ministry, which, truth be told, would have been a huge surprise had he not. The surprises there were Percy being such a git, and Fudge still being so unbelievably dense, and of course, we get our first glimpse of Dolores Umbridge, whose own brand of evil is sometimes even more chilling than Voldemort's.

While Harry and Ron and Hermione are still at twelve, Grimmauld Place, with others of the Order, we see Harry head off to bed early, still disturbed by the photo that Moody, the real one, showed Harry of the original Order, including his parents. Harry finds it horrible to see all those people, many of whom are now dead, or in Saint Mungo's (Neville's parents), who had not a clue that horrible things were just waiting to happen. And of course, there was Peter Pettigrew, who betrayed his parents to Voldemort, a betrayal that resulted in their deaths, and the attempted killing of Harry. Like Harry says, why would Moody think it's a treat for Harry to see those photos? And so at the first opportunity, he heads off to bed, side-tracked by the sound of someone crying.

It's in Chapter Nine, "The Woes of Mrs. Weasley", that we see what terrifies Molly. She has gone to take care of the boggart hiding in a desk. It, as boggarts do, turns into her worst fear, which is seeing all of her family dead, including Harry. As a mother, I fully understood her feelings and her fears. It doesn't take the threat of an evil wizard for those thoughts to go through the mind of every mother. Harry, who knows how to get rid of a boggart, is unable to cope either, once the boggart turns into "dead Harry". He tells Mrs. Weasley to get out of the room, to let someone else take care of it. The commotion gets the attention of Remus Lupin, followed by Sirius and Moody. Lupin dispatches the boggart and then comforts Molly, assuring her that it was only a boggart, not anything real.

"I see them d-d-dead all the time!" Mrs. Weasley moaned into his shoulder. "All the t-t-time! I d-d-dream about it. . ."

Sirius was staring at the patch of carpet where the boggart, pretending to be Harry's body, had lain. Moody was looking at Harry, who avoided his gaze. (U.S. OotP, p. 176)

Harry, and we, the readers, know that this book is going to have some very serious things for all of us to handle. It's not easy for Harry, nor will it be easy for us. For any parent reading about Molly's fears, this scene strikes way too close to home. For any teen or adult who doesn't yet have children, it's a glimpse of what their parents fear--a huge dose of reality in Rowling's fantasy world. If we hadn't figured out that these books aren't just for children after the scene in the graveyard in Goblet of Fire, we should know it now.

Molly doesn't want them to tell Arthur--he has enough on his plate already without dealing with his wife's fears. She's worried that Harry will think she's silly and foolish, not even able to get rid of a boggart. But her fear is real and it's based on her family's involvement in the Order, which puts all of them at greater risk, so she's not being foolish at all, really. And of course, there's Percy, who has chosen Fudge's and the Ministry's side of pretending that Voldemort hasn't returned, or at least of trying to cover up what they do know is real. What if they don't reconcile with Percy, and something awful happens to the Weasley family? Again, a normal fear of any parent. As if that's not enough, Molly still has two children, not adults, who need her watchful care and guidance. What happens to Ron and Ginny if she and Arthur are killed? And here is one of the reasons that Lupin is one of my favorite adults in the whole series:

"Molly, that's enough," said Lupin firmly. "This isn't like last time. The Order are better prepared, we've got a head start, we know what Voldemort's up to--"

Mrs. Weasley gave a little squeak of fright at the sound of the name.

"Oh, Molly, come on, it's about time you got used to hearing it-- look, I can't promise no one's going to get hurt, nobody can promise that, but we're much better off than we were last time. . ." {OP, US version, p. 177)

No sugar coating from Lupin, but honesty, at a time when it's an honest look at the situation will be much more reassuring than what Fudge is trying to put over on everyone. Lupin's acknowledgement that they are dealing with real danger gives Molly the assurance that he takes her fears seriously, and in that, he gives her the courage to find that strength within herself. Ignorance, in the case of Voldemort's return, is not going to be bliss, and Lupin understands that as well as anyone.

Sirius tells Molly not to worry about Percy:

"He'll come round. It's a matter of time before Voldemort moves into the open; once he does, the whole Ministry's going to be begging us to forgive them. And I'm not sure I'll be accepting their apology," he added bitterly.

"And as for who's going to look after Ron and Ginny if you and Arthur died," said Lupin, smiling slightly, "what do you think we'd do, let them starve?" (OP, US version, p. 177)

Well, nothing like tackling the hard issues, is there? Yet, that's exactly one of the reasons I really liked Order of the Phoenix. There is a real threat that Rowling has created with the return of Voldemort and the resurgence of the Death Eaters. These are issues the characters would be thinking about and dealing with; to not have it in the book would minimize the threats she has created. By the same token, to have the characters never doubt or fear would lessen their humanity, so vividly portrayed by Rowling.

Molly, calmed down for the time being, by Lupin's reassurance and honest appraisal of what they face, says she was being silly. Harry heads off to bed, but doesn't think she was at all silly. He keeps thinking about the image of the boggart turning into each of the Weasley family before Mrs. Weasley's eyes.

Without warning, the scar on his forehead seared with pain again and his stomach churned horribly.

"Cut it out," he said firmly, rubbing the scar as the pain receded again.

"First sign of madness, talking to your own head," said a sly voice from the empty picture on the wall.

Harry ignored it. He felt older than he had ever felt in his life, and it seemed extraordinary to him that barely an hour ago he had been worried about a joke shop and who had gotten a prefect's badge. (OP, US version, p. 178)

We'll learn later that the sly voice is Phineas Nigelus, who seems to be sharing information about Harry with Dumbledore, even though Dumbledore spends little time with Harry for most of this year, and almost always refuses to look at him, something that is understandably irritating and frustrating for Harry. With just a phrase, Rowling has told us that Harry is no longer a child--feeling "older than he had ever felt in his life". By the end of the book, even Dumbledore no longer refers to Harry as a child, but as a man. This is the book that takes Harry from the child to a man, fully aware by the end of what he faces and what his responsibilities are.

At this point, however, Harry is still in the early stages of shock over what he saw at the end of his fourth year (Goblet of Fire) and of grief over having seen a fellow classmate, and friend, killed. Now the one person on whom Harry has come to depend won't talk to him. Of course he is angry with Dumbledore. Harry needs some serious grief counseling, and the person to whom he wants to turn, refuses to spend time with him or even to look at him.

But this last scene is a huge set up for what's coming for Harry when he sees the vision of Arthur being attacked in what turns out to be the Ministry of Magic. It's that connection that Harry seems to have, and has had for a while, to Voldemort's thoughts and emotions. For whatever reason, Voldemort wasn't aware of the access Harry had to his mind until Harry saw the attack on Arthur.

It's this connection that I find most interesting. Many think this is the proof that Harry or his scar is a Horcrux. And they might be right. I'm just not fond of the idea. If that's where Rowling goes, then I'll go along, but I will always think there is a better alternative. I guess I want their connection to be more subtle, more along the lines of something that could occur without the magic of a Horcrux. Something that we, as real people, have to fight against.

I'll digress for a moment. When I was in junior high, I had a friend who, for whatever reason, was always interested in just this sort of thing--seeing into the mind of others. We would spend time concentrating on a particular card, trying to get the other person to chose the one we had picked. Sometimes it worked, sometimes not. But our favorite, and quite successful, endeavor was at the movie theater. While we waited for a movie to begin, we would choose one person, at least four or five rows in front of us. Then we would both stare at the back of that person's head, while thinking "turn around". It's very eerie, and still seems odd to me, but it almost always worked. The person, someone we didn't know, would turn and look right at us, not just randomly looking around the theater, but AT us in particular. The more we did it, the quicker the response time of our intended, erm, victim, for lack of a better word.

So, no magic needed, I think there are ways that one mind can connect with another. How? I've not a clue. I don't really even care. My husband and I often come up with the same idea for dinner, without having discussed it; the other day, we each picked the same movie (I, during the day, and he, in the evening while I went to a meeting), to watch On Demand. Truly weird, as neither of us had ever heard of that particular movie before and it was in a long list. Of course, we've been married for thirty-three years, but still, it is an odd connection that happens between two minds.

But I think that when Voldemort "put some of himself" in Harry when he tried to kill him and the curse rebounded, it wasn't a part of Voldemort's soul, but a part of his mind. The mind and the soul are not the same thing, the way Rowling tells it, in Half-Blood Prince, to jump ahead a bit, when Dumbledore explains about the Horcruxes. He tells Harry that even if all of Voldemort's Horcruxes are destroyed, Voldemort will still exist, because his body and mind can live on without his soul. It's Voldemort's body and mind that are doing all the evil things that Harry sees and feels, not Voldemort's soul, of which only a fragment remains in Voldemort's body.

And that leads me to one of my favorite chapters: Chapter Twenty Four, "Occlumency". As it's well after midnight, I'm going to take a break before continuing with the chapter that really explores how Harry's mind and Voldemort's are connected.