Still Life with Memory Charm, Magic

[finwitch]

No: HPFGUIDX 36929

--- In HPforGrownups at y..., "Amanda" <editor at t...> wrote:
> Pippin said
> 
> > Well, *I* think Neville charmed himself, too. It gets rid of all 
those
> > messy questions, like a) why would the good guys do something
> > so damaging and b)  wouldn't the bad guys just knock off Neville
> > instead, since they, unlike Lockhart,  have enough power to do
> > an AK. (Lockhart, as we've seen, can't duel his way out of a
> > bathtub.)
> 
> But he can't have Memory Charmed himself, because that is a 
specific charm,
> and we're talking about a child who maybe would be able to say a 
couple
> words, maybe two-word sentences if he's precocious. If Neville did 
unto
> himself, it's just a suppression, albeit with a magical aspect to 
it. I'm
> iffy about this, because Neville's behavior is to typical of people 
who
> actually have the real Memory Charm cast on them.

Little Kevin (about Neville's age) - did a charm that enlarged the 
slug - not incantation, only Daddy's wand. Later, Mr. Crouch-as-Moody 
enlarges a Spider - using incantation and wand. Ms. McGonagall is 
able to return transfigured Malfoy into his true shape using wand 
only - Sirius/Lupin use an incantation.

The Magic Harry did without knowing - well, it is all pretty 
specific: Jump onto school roof, turn teacher's hair blue...

Wand-waving and incantation help to *control* (Dumbledore is able to 
control without both) that magic, but is not necessary to perform it. 
Neville, with his uncontrolled magic -- well, he *does* tend to harm 
himself when in stress by magic. So Neville, or his uncontrolled 
magic, did the memory charm. And Neville's innate magic is very 
strong - it's just that he keeps hurting himself with it.

And on the theory about Snape... Yes, it is *necessary* that Snape 
was somehow involved with Neville's worst experience to become his 
*worst* fear. I believe it also has to do with *why* Dumbledore 
trusts Snape. Yes, he may have been the double-agent, keeping both 
Voldemort and Dumbledore in the belief that he's on their side. Not 
yet enough to trust, though. Perhaps Snape was trying to save the 
Longbottoms? It could be another matter, though - involving a life-
debt. It *would* be interesting plot-twist to find that a)Dumbledore 
owes Snape a life-debt and trusts him because of that, BUT b) Snape 
only saved AD to get that and is really on Voldemort's side!

Also.. *why* is Snape's hair so dirty? Does it have something to do 
with the un-paid life-debt? Would he melt like Evil Witch of the East
(or was it West) in the Wizard of Oz if he was exposed to *pure* 
water? Life-debt doesn't seem to prevent killing (if we presume that 
bond holds between Father&Son Crouch).

"Finwitch"