[HPforGrownups] Re: New Contest: Write your own last sentence.

[Horst or Rebecca J. Bohner]

No: HPFGUIDX 18561

"Wondering, Harry put a hand to his forehead.  There was no longer any trace
of a scar."

----

My rationale?  Harry's scar is the mark of Voldemort's curse, the first and
last thing that links them together.  We've already seen how the scar reacts
to the Dark Lord's presence, causing Harry pain and giving him troublesome
dreams and visions of You-Know-Who.  But if Voldemort were finally and
utterly defeated and destroyed, the ultimate proof would be that Harry no
longer had a scar.

Losing his scar would also make Harry blessedly and gloriously ordinary.  No
longer would he be identified on sight just by one quick glance at his
forehead.  And I suspect that by the time it's all over, Harry might be glad
for the opportunity to retreat to some quiet corner and enjoy a taste of
anonymity, much as Frodo does at the end of LOTR.

I know some might find it hard to believe that Harry could ever be a private
individual after defeating Voldemort -- certainly most post-Hogwarts fanfic
seems to assume he'll be some kind of internationally known celebrity.  But
I suspect that won't be the case.  We always seem to assume that the final
showdown will be some big public event, and that Harry's role as Voldemort's
destroyer will be obvious to everyone:  it might well be quite the opposite.
After all, every one of Harry's confrontations with V. so far has been
fairly private.  GoF, with the Death Eaters in attendance, was the most
public showdown yet -- and even that wasn't exactly common knowledge in the
wizarding community.  Fudge flat-out refused to believe there was a word of
truth in it, which I think may well be foreshadowing for how others will
react to the news of Voldemort's rebirth -- let alone his final defeat.  So,
Harry might very indeed be able to gain anonymity by losing his scar.

I'll stop blathering now.
--
Rebecca J. Bohner
rebeccaj at pobox.com
http://home.golden.net/~rebeccaj