Loose Ends

Loose Ends and Random Thoughts

- I am THRILLED about Snape. I knew it, knew it, knew it - the whole thing. I knew Snape loved Lily. I knew he was good. I knew he killed Dumbledore because Dumbledore made him promise because Dumbledore knew he was dying anyway & didn't want Draco to have to live with that - that's why Snape made the Unbreakable Vow with Narcissa in book 6. He struggled so much with Harry because, while he hated James with a flaming passion, he also loved Lily the same way. I'm so happy I was right and my Snape is exactly what I thought he was. And I cried when he died & when his memories were revealed.

- Molly's  "NOT MY DAUGHTER YOU BITCH!" was simply made of awesome. I love that she took on Bellatrix & proved that a mom can be more than just a mom.

- In that same vein, I love how she kept proving the power of a mother's love is more powerful than anything. Molly, Lily & even Narcissa (betraying Voldemort for love of her son). That rocked.

- I love that she gave the middle aged/older women tons of fierce, vicious, warrior scenes. I love Minerva & her army of charmed desks going to war, her grey hair flying behind her as she shouts, "CHARGE!!!". I love Trelawney chucking crystal balls like cannonballs over the balcony. I love Molly kicking stupid Bellatrix's behind like a lioness. I love Sprout figuring out what plants to attack the Death Eaters with. I love Neville's Grandmother going all medieval on their behinds. Older women KICK BUTT.

- Neville Longbottom wins everything. I prayed that Neville would be totally rocking in this book & I wasn't disappointed. He is HARDCORE, y'all. Sticking it out at Hogwarts, getting the crap kicked out of him every day, figuring out how to OWN the Room of Requirement? He became the Hero of Hogwarts.

- When Ron & Hermione totally start mashing in the RoR, I died laughing. I totally expected Harry to go, "Seriously? SERIOUSLY??? Right now, you're doing this? We're at war & you're MAKING OUT??? SER. I. OUS. LY????????"

- Ginny pulling the "for your birthday, I'm giving you a kiss!!!!" scene was hysterical. If only she had put on Marvin Gaye's "Let's Get It On", I would have peed my pants laughing.

- I must have a Handbag of Holding. That is the best name of anything, ever, in the whole world. "Hold on, let me check in my 'handbag of holding'. I know I had a tent in here........"

- I cried when Dobby died. Yes, he was annoying, but he totally kicked butt at saving them all - because he WANTED to, not because he had to.

- Harry better thank God all the time, every day for Hermione. Because Harry is kinda stupid. He would have been dead about 275 times if it wasn't for Hermione's planning, ability & intelligence. All the times she carefully & complicatedly apparated them somewhere quickly & while trying to lose people hanging on, super-fast charms to change appearances, saving Harry from Nagini in Godric's Hollow - without her, he would have been so toasted.

- I could not believe that she killed Fred. ONE of the twins. That was HARSH.

- I knew Tonks & Lupin were going to bite it when they had Teddy and asked HARRY to be the godfather. There had to be another orphan, y'know? But, "Teddy Lupin"??? C'mon. All I could think of was those old Teddy Ruxpin bears - the creepy ones that talked to you.

- WHAT HAPPENED TO LUNA???? I love Luna & really want to know what happened to her. Did she hook up with Neville? Or Dean? Did she finally see a Crumple-Horned Snorkack?

- I was sure Hagrid was going to bite it when the spiders carried him off. I'm so glad he didn't. I'd also like to know what happened to him. Did he finally hook up with Madame Maxime & have little giant babies? He'd be a great dad.

- I find it hysterical that Snape's Patronus is a doe. I know he loved Lily with a deep & abiding love & all that, but a DOE??? That's just funny.

-Speaking of Patronuses... did anyone else snicker when Aberforth's patronus turned out to be a GOAT?

- Favorite line- "'Look... at... me..." So... Snape's dying wish is for Harry to look at him. With his green eyes. His green eyes that are totally his mother's eyes. Lily's eyes. I'm, like, 35% touched and 110% creeped the f*** out."

- Did Rowling actually imply that a group of Muggle boys went there in an assault of Dumbledore's sister, Ariana? Seriously?? That's just.......whoa.

- I laughed at the use of the Sorting Hat again. How funny that, in a jam, another character just pulls Gryffindor's sword out of the hat again. I think that Harry put a protective curse on everyone after he sacrifices himself and that's why Neville wasn't hurt by the burning Sorting Hat or held by the Binding Curse.

- Are they really going to film seven naked Harrys? How very.......ew.

- I do not envy the job the director of this film is going to have. The Battle of Hogwarts is going to be a major pain to film. Because every character/creature ever even MENTIONED in any of the books fights in this scene. Big, huge, hairy spiders? Check. Grawp fighting big, huge, hairy giants? Check. Centaurs? Check. House elves with kitchen implements? Check. Plus every forgotten character comes crawling out of that RoR hole. Keeping track of everyone & getting all those important & poignant moments on film is going to SUCK.

Just a few questions to ponder while reading the last installment of Harry Potter. (questions from Muggle.net, thoughts by me) Leave me comments if you can add to this or correct anything.

• Will Hogwarts reopen?  And, if so, will Harry, Ron, and Hermione attend for their seventh year?   Yes, Hogwarts reopens. Snape is Headmaster, Defense of the Dark Arts is simply Dark Arts, and attendance is compulsory. Harry, Ron and Hermione do not attend. They are busy completing Dumbledore's last assignment and saving the world.

• Is Snape good or evil?  Where do his loyalties lie? Snape, as I always believed, is good. He was always loyal to Dumbledore. Harry discovers this when Snape transfers his memories to Harry right before he is killed by Voldemort.

• What is the significance of Harry having his mother's eyes? I'm not sure, but I think it gives Snape something of Lily to lesson his dislike of Harry.

• What caused Dumbledore trust Snape so much? They have history and Dumbledore is a good judge of character. He knows that Snapes love of Lily is a redeeming quality.

• Why was Voldemort going to allow Lily to live after he killed James at Godric's Hollow? Because Snape asked him to. Snape loved Lily.

• Who is R.A.B.? Regulus Arcturous Black is Sirius' brother. He was killed getting the locket Horcrux away from Voldemort.

• Are Dumbledore and Sirius actually dead? Update: JKR confirmed in New York that Dumbledore is in fact dead - but we still don't know about Sirius! Yes, both are completely dead.

• What "worst memory" did Dudley experience when he was attacked by dementors in Order of the Phoenix? I don't think that was answered in this book. Whatever it was, it caused Dudley to be more sympathetic to Harry at the end.

• Where are the remaining Horcruxes? And furthermore, was Dumbledore right about what the remaining Horcruxes are? If he wasn't, what are they? There were seven Horcruxes- the diary, the cup from Hufflepuff, the diadem from Ravenclaw, the ring from the Black family, Nagini the snake, the locket from Slytherin, and Harry Potter.

• Who will lead the Order now that Dumbledore is dead? I'm not sure, but it's either Mr. Weasley or Lupin.

• Is Bill Weasley a full werewolf? I didn't see any evidence of him being a werewolf, although at the end of the book it seemed that Bill and Fleur's daughter is attracted to Lupin and Tonk's son Ted. Interesting.

• Did Voldemort go to Godric's Hollow alone the night he tried to kill Harry?  If so, how do people know the events of that night? Good question.

• Will the two-way mirror that Sirius gave to Harry come up again? Absolutely. Aberforth, Albus' brother has the "other end" of the mirror. Harry sees a blue eye that turns out to be Aberforth. He is the one who sent Dobby to help them when they were in the dungeon. He also helps Dumbledore's Army by having an entrance to Hogwarts behind a picture in his bar.

• Is the relationship between Ginny and Harry really over?  Will they get back together in the end? Ginny and Harry are totally together. She gives him a kiss for his seventeenth birthday. They end up married with three kids.
  

• What was the "gleam of triumph" in Dumbledore's eyes at the end of Goblet of Fire? This is where he realizes that Harry is a Horcrux and that Voldemort cannot kill Harry without killing himself.

• Is there more behind Voldemort wanting the DADA teaching position so badly, or is it just because he simply wanted the job? There was more to it. He was collecting relics from the founders and stashing Horcruxes that he made from them.

• How will Peter Pettigrew repay his life debt to Harry? Wormtail (Peter) kills himself with his silver hand.

• What lies beyond the veil in the Department of Mysteries? No idea.

• If Dumbledore and Petunia were in contact before Harry was taken to Privet Drive, then what were they discussing in their letters? I'm not sure. I know that Petunia wanted to attend Hogwarts with Lily, but was denied admission.
  

• Who was "that awful boy" who Petunia referred to in OOTP? Was it James, or was it somebody else? "that awful boy" was Snape.
  

• Will Ron and Hermione's relationship finally come to be, or will something happen to prevent it? Ron and Hermione end up married with children as well.

• What were Lily and James' occupations? I don't know.

• Will Dumbledore's portrait be of any use to Harry? I don't think it helped that much.

• What will Percy do now that the Ministry has been proven wrong and Dumbledore is dead?  Will he return to his family? Percy does return to his family and fights in the final battle.

• Where did Fawkes go at the end of Half-Blood Prince? I don't know.

• What did Dumbledore see or experience after he drank the potion in the cave in HBP? I think he saw the battle between himself and Grindewald that led to the death of his sister. He was filled with such remorse.
  

• How exactly did the Potters and the Longbottoms "thrice defy Voldemort"? Not sure. I'll have to reread.
  

• Assuming Hogwarts will open in Book 7, who will be the DADA teacher? It's one of the Carron? siblings, a Death Eater.

• Again, if Hogwarts remains open in Book 7, who will teach Transfiguration if Professor McGonagall becomes headmistress? And will Slughorn remain to teach Potions for a second year, even though he said he would only be there for one? I'm not sure. Professor McGonagall wasn't headmistress that year. So I guess she taught Transfiguration.
  

• Will the terms of the Prophecy be fulfilled?  If so, will Harry kill Voldemort, or will Voldemort kill Harry? Yes, Voldemort tries to kill Harry and in the end his spell backfires and is killed.
  

• On her website, JKR stated that "there IS a significant - even crucial - answer" to the following question: How and why did Dumbledore have James' invisibility cloak? What is the significance of this? The Invisibility Cloak is one of the three Deathly Hallows (the stone and the wand are the other two). Dumbledore had it because he was checking to see if it was one of the Deathly Hallows and it was.
  

• What happened to Ollivander? And since there was no sign of a struggle when he disappeared, whose side is he on? And what about Florean Fortescue - are their disappearances linked? Ollivander is kidnapped by Voldemort and tortured for information. Harry finds him in the Malfoy dungeon and rescues him.
  

• Will Ron and Harry pass their Apparation tests? I'm guessing that they don't have to take the tests, but they Apparate just fine.
  

• What about Dumbledore's family? (JKR said in her interview with MuggleNet/TLC that Dumbledore's family would be a "profitable line of inquiry.") Dumbledore's family history is very important. His father is sent to Askaban for attacking three Muggles who assault Ariana, the sister of Albus. She is so damaged that she can't control her magic so the family moves someplace where she can be sheltered. She accidentally kills their mother Kendra. Albus has to return home to care for Ariana, but resents it. He meets Grindewald and they talk about finding the Deathly Hallows. They argue about it and Ariana is accidentally killed. Albus and his brother Aberforth have a falling out and go their separate ways. That's why we don't hear much about Albus' brother who is a bartender and has a fondness for goats.
  

• If Voldemort lost his body at Godric's Hollow, then who retrieved his wand? Good question.
  

• What's behind the locked door in the Department of Mysteries? Again, I don't think we know.
  

• Why did Regulus choose to leave the Death Eaters? He became disillusioned with Voldemort's ideas of muggle impurity.
  

• Will we learn any more about Dumbledore's brother Aberforth?  Will he have an important role to play in the book? Yes, he plays an important role. He has the two way mirror and an unguarded way into Hogwarts behind the bar.
  

• What happened to Dumbledore's wand after his death? It was buried with him. It also turned out to be one of the Deathly Hallows. Voldemort digs up Dumbledore's grave and takes the Elder Wand from him. After Voldemort is killed with that wand, Harry uses it to repair his own wand.
  

• What did Dumbledore actually see in the Mirror of Erised in the first book? He says he sees a pair of warm woolen socks, but I think he sees his family whole again.
  

• Who will reinstate the protective barriers around Hogwarts that Dumbledore removed so he and Harry could fly to the tower? Not just anybody could have taken them down or Hogwarts would be constantly attacked. Is Dumbledore the only one who knew how to perform those charms? Nobody reinstates them since the Ministry of Magic is controlled by Voldemort. He can come and go as he pleases. This leads to a big battle.
  

• How did Dumbledore know the details of Lord Voldemort's murder of Lily - how LV offered to spare her life and how the charm that protects Harry was formed - if no one else was there to witness it? Was Dumbledore actually there to witness it? I think he learned this from Snape. ?
  

• What happened in the period of time between baby Harry's rescue from the ruins of Godric's Hollow and being left the NEXT DAY at the Dursley's doorstep? I'm not sure.
  

• What were Dumbledore and Snape arguing about that Hagrid overheard at the edge of the forest in HBP? Was it about spying on Draco, or was it something else? They argued about Draco and the plan. I think.
  

• What will become of the Malfoy family? Specifically, will Draco remain loyal to Voldemort, or will he change his mind and fight for the other side? Draco and his family lives, but I'm not sure why.
  

• Where did Snape and Draco go at the end of the sixth book? They went to Malfoy's house.
  

• Are we going to see the Ford Anglia in the Forbidden Forest again? I don't think so.
  

• In Chamber of Secrets, Lockhart says that he transformed a werewolf back into a man using the "immensely complex Homorphus Charm." Now we know that Lockhart didn't actually do this, but he did steal the story from another wizard. So, is there a way to cure Lupin? Lupin is killed, so I don't think there was a cure. Not sure about Bill.
  

• Did Dumbledore mean anything significant when he said that the Dursleys had "mistreated Dudley"? I'm not sure.
  

• Will the giants and goblins take a firmer position about the war?  Will they ever choose a side? They choose the side of good and join the big battle.
  

• Are we going to see SPEW again? Will the house-elves' rights be improved by the end of the series? And what will become of all of the house-elves that we know so far in the series? SPEW is not formally addressed. Dobby is killed, but Harry gives him a proper burial. Kreacher is treated well and responds to it.
  

• What happened to Sirius's motorbike while he was in Azkaban? And where is the motorbike now? The motorbike is used in the getaway from Privet Drive. It's been "modified and enhanced." However, it is crashed into the Tonks' property.

• Do we know the whole story behind Dumbledore's hand injury in HBP? Yes, he injured it trying to use the Stone in the ring. The Stone is one of the Deathly Hallows and it can resurrect the dead, but Voldemort put a curse on it when he turned the ring into a Horcrux. This caused Dumbledore's hand injury, and terminal illness.
  

• Assuming Hogwarts stays open, will the curse that Voldemort presumably placed on the DADA position ever be lifted? Well, this year's teacher only lasted one year...
  

• What are the twelve uses of dragon's blood that Dumbledore discovered? Will these discoveries be important to the story in any way? It was mentioned, but the uses were not listed and nobody used dragon's blood for anything.
  

• Who helped R.A.B. retrieve the locket from the cave? (Dumbledore made it clear that two people were needed to get past Voldemort's enchantments.) And where is the locket now? Kreacher helped his master Regulus Black get the locket. Mundungus Fletcher stole the locket, but it was confiscated by Dolores Umbridge. Ron, Hermione, and Harry got it back. Ron destroyed the locket with Gryffindor's Sword after Harry opened it using Parseltongue.
  

• What significance is the fact that Mundungus Fletcher has been stealing things from Grimmauld Place going to have to the plot of the next book? Did he take the locket from Grimmauld Place, and if so, who did he sell it to? Will Mundungus be playing an important part in the next book? Yes, Mundungus stole the locket. He also gave away the plan to move Harry from Privet Drive and left when things got scary, partly leading to Mad Eye Moody's death.

• JKR said that someone will manage magic very late in life in Book 7: who will it be?  Filch, perhaps? Not sure. Aberforth does a bunch of magic in the book. So does Neville's grandmother. Who else?
  

• Did Dumbledore have a will or anything equivalent to a will? Yes, there is a will. Ron gets the Deluminator, Hermione gets the book of fairy tales, and Harry gets the snitch with the ring in it.
  

• When Harry was taking Occlumency lessons from Snape in OOTP, he put more than one memory into the pensieve. What other memories did he want to hide from Harry?

• Is there any significant reason that wizards come of age at age 17?

• When Snape is about to kill Dumbledore, Dumbledore says, "Severus... Please..." Was Dumbledore asking Snape to kill him or was he asking for mercy?

• What was the potion that Dumbledore had to drink in the cave?

• How did Dumbledore become such an "extraordinary magic user, even at a young age" (a quote from an OWL examiner in OOTP)? Was it just study and hard work, or is there something different about him?

• If Hogwarts is opened again in the seventh book, who will be Head Boy and Head Girl?

• How will Harry find his parents' home in Godric's Hollow? After all, Wormtail is the secret-keeper, and as far as we know, the only way to find the home would be for Wormtail to tell Harry its location.

• Will Luna have a prominent role in Book 7?  Will she live through the war? Yes, and yes. :-)
  

• Is there a connection between Godric's Hollow and Godric Gryffindor? Yes- Gryffindor is from Godric's Hollow.
  

• Do we know the full reason that Voldemort decided to try to kill Harry instead of Neville?

• How did Hagrid retrieve Harry from the ruins of his parents' house if he was not told the location by the secret-keeper?

• Now that Dumbledore is dead, who is the secret-keeper of the Order of the Phoenix? Is the spell broken? When Dumbledore died, everyone who knew the secret besides him became secret-keepers.

• Is there more to the curtain that Sirius fell through in Order of the Phoenix?

• Where did the Potter family's wealth come from?

• Why did Dumbledore give Snape the DADA job if Dumbledore suspected there was a jinx on the position?

• Will Voldemort be angry that Snape killed Dumbledore rather than allowing Draco to do it himself?

• What truly determines whether or not someone becomes a ghost? Is there more to it than what Nearly Headless Nick said there was?

• What is Grawp's role going to be in Book 7?  Will he even have a role?

• When Dumbledore is explaining to the Dursleys that the magic protecting Harry will cease to operate on his 17th birthday, each of the Dursleys reactions are given, and the book says that Aunt Petunia "was oddly flushed." What is the significance of her reaction? Does she know something more?