[HPforGrownups] Re: Why NOT Lily?

[Richelle Votaw]

No: HPFGUIDX 42002

Jackie writes:

> There's no way that Lily can possibly be an heir of Slytherin. In CoS
> (at least, I think it's CoS) it is definitely said that Tom Riddle is
> the LAST SURVIVING ANCESTOR (whoops, no, sorry, we meant descendant) of
> Salazar Slytherin. Now, I know that at this point Lily isn't still
> alive, but if she was an Heir, so is Harry, and from Dumbledore's
> lengthy explanation at the end of CoS, he isn't.

As far as Dumbledore knows.  Suppose for a moment that Lily and Petunia's
mother was raped. It's something Tom Riddle might do, if he were bored, say,
and it's not like she'd advertise it.  She just had the baby as if it were
Petunia's father's.  Petunia probably didn't know the difference.  Her
father may have not known the difference.  If he did, he wasn't about to
devulge that bit of gossip.  Dumbledore would know nothing of this.  He is
NOT all knowing.  Or else he'd have known that Moody was Crouch Jr. and that
Voldemort and Wormtail were waiting for Harry as soon as he touched the
Goblet of Fire.


> (and possibly others who were descended from the Gryffindor line? There
> could be more!) in an attempt to prevent the prediction from coming to
> fruition.

I've got my own little pet theory that Dumbledore himself is an Heir of
Gryffindor.  Probably the last one that Voldemort planned to go after.  He
was probably hoping he'd die of old age so he wouldn't have to.

> So, why *not* Lily? This is a good question. Perhaps he didn't kill her
> outright because he had other plans for her - we've all heard how good
> she is with Charms, I bet she could probably manage a stunning Crucio,
> if she could have been recruited to the Dark Side. Or perhaps she knew
> something that he needed to get out of her.

And in Harry's flashbacks she very clearly said "Not Harry, please.  I'll do
anything."  Anything, mind you!  That's offering quite a bit.  If I were
Voldemort, and had a use for her, I'd have said, okay, we'll spare him.
Then killed him as soon as her back was turned after I'd made use of
whatever she could do.  But then, I'm not Voldemort.  Thank goodness.

Richelle