POA 21-22 questions

[dfrankis at dial.pipex.com]

No: HPFGUIDX 22331

Q: Had Black really meant to kill Snape then? It was a very dangerous 
prank, but was it cruelty on Black's part or thoughtlessness?

Ahem!
 My Theory:  Snape is a vampire, (or in some other way special 
and well able to defend himself against werewolves).  Sirius found 
out and decided to play a prank which he knew would not be fatal (or 
possibly he is prejudiced and thinks vampires should be stamped out, 
see Percy's remarks about Rita Skeeter at the Burrow just after the 
World Cup – IMO the single most important statement about vampires in 
canon to date and worthy of a separate essay).  Sirius does not tell 
James, (whom he may regard as a bit soft on non-wizarding part-
humans) and Snape does not know that Sirius has seen through him.  
James goes to save Snape's life, as he sees it.  Dumbledore realises 
the full truth, so although in fact J didn't really save S's life, he 
knows it was effectively so from J's POV.  Hence D can truthfully 
tell Harry that J saved S's life; Snape's version is also true from 
his POV (he thinks Sirius was trying to kill him as an ordinary 
wizard); and Sirius can plausibly say `Snape deserved it'.

Q (very nitpicky): Buckbeak is described as "tied to the fence around 
Hagrid's pumpkin patch." When Harry goes to free him, he "vaulted the 
fence into the pumpkin patch and approached Buckbeak". From this it 
would seem that Buckbeak is inside the patch. But - how did Harry 
then get him over the fence? Harry is described as simply leading him 
several steps into the forest - from which it would seem that 
Buckbeak was tied to the fence on the outside of the pumpkin patch. 
In or out?

Yes, I feel that there is a sentence missing or something.  I quite 
well remember the first time I read this, thinking that surely Harry 
would be caught because he hadn't got far enough, and rereading to 
get the picture.

Q: "Harry looked up at the sky. Clouds were obscuring the moon 
completely." (435) SO WHAT? The question we have written ourselves 
hoarse on - why didn't Lupin transform before? Surely the 
transformation isn't dependent on being hit directly by the beams of 
the moon, or else why hadn't Lupin simply stayed in a closed room at 
the time of the full moon to prevent transformation?

You could argue that there is a psychosomatic element to the magic, 
so that the transformation takes place (or is accelerated) when Lupin 
realises the moon is now full.  If he'd been indoors, a few more 
minutes or hours might have elapsed before the inevitable happened.  
However, I am wary of all physical, physiological and even 
psychological explanations of magic.  I prefer to think of a sort of 
imaginary referee who decides when the time has come, and blows his 
whistle.  (There is an element of `thinking without a brain' to *all* 
magic, despite what Arthur Weasley says – see what Steve says in the 
lexicon about the role of intention.)  The moment the moon comes out 
of the clouds seems to me to be right for this magic.

 Q: Is there some rule as to what shape a Patronus takes? If so, what 
is the rule? What can we conclude about it from Harry's Patronus? Did 
anybody read this bit without tears in her/his eyes?

(443-4) Hermione comes rushing along. Harry explains to her what had 
just happened and she is extremely impressed: "you conjured up a 
Patronus that drove away all those Dementors! That's very, very 
advanced magic...". (443) Harry explains that this time he could do 
it because he knew he had already done it. [Q: Why, though? This 
point has always rather confused me. A "single, very happy memory" is 
not the same as self-confidence, is it?] 

See message 18959 for my take on how the Patronus works.  Holding on 
to a happy memory is, I believe, the `rote method' for beginners.  
Once you have decided to hold onto your happiness, you are resisting 
the Dementors, and the Patronus will come.  Confidence assists this, 
and you start to just `do the spell' – if you are a wizard, that is.

Q: Why?? How can he hate him so much as to want him to receive the 
Kiss? Is it reasonable for a boy's grudge to be taken to such an 
extreme?

See above.  He does, of course, genuinely believe that Sirius 
murdered the Potters, Pettigrew and 13 Muggles.  We know this is a 
genuine belief because he threatens Sirius with Dumbledore too.

Q: If werewolves are only dangerous at the time of the full moon, why 
are people afraid of them all the time? I can understand the fear 
when you don't know who the werewolf is, but when you know who he is, 
it should be easy to take precautions against him, no? Doesn't it 
remind you of another prejudice against a different disease?

The magic of Lycanthropism is stronger than the human ability to 
resist, and there is no known cure.  Lupin carries that magic around 
with him at all times, and this inspires fear, although there is no 
known way for the magic to act outside full moon.  Since many people, 
including wizards, do not understand their own fears, they just want 
to keep themselves and their children away from werewolves.

C: is there a book that doesn't end with Malfoy being foiled?

GOF.  He can say `They may have jelly-legsed and furnunculused me, 
but I know that Voldemorrt is back and he's going to win.'  A few 
hexes won't dampen his mood for long.  Seeing V in his Dad's study 
might.

David