Fourth Man Variants & Life Sentence

[cindysphynx]

No: HPFGUIDX 38386

The Fourth Man Hovercraft has been drifting aimlessly for weeks, the 
mini-bar long depleted and the S'mores quaffed by a certain 
allegedly Redeemable Minor Character with a voracious appetite.  No 
one is doing maintenance, despite the many leaks that have sprung 
up.  The place is filthy mess.  Bystanders are openly heckling 
Fourth Man.  There is a most unfortunate and embarrassing Lack of 
Discipline among the crew.  The sad truth is that the crew has, for 
the most part, gone to seed now that they needn't actually *row* The 
Fourth Man Kayak and can simply baste in the Hovercraft Hot Tub 
instead of doing any real work.

Well, I don't want to be the one to say "I told you so," 
but  . . . "I told you so."  The upgrade to the hovercraft was a 
Mistake.  Fourth Man has gone *Soft*, if you ask me.  

How do I know the Hovercraft has gone to heck?  Well, for one thing, 
now we have unthinkable slander like this:

Judy wrote:

> Yep, I can't accept that Avery was the Fourth Man in the Pensieve 
> scene, either.  In fact, I've been dying for ages to ask whether 
> people *really* believe that the Fourth Man was Avery, or if the 
>whole "Fourth Man is Avery" thing is just a joke.  
 
OK.  That *really* hurt.  A joke?  Fourth Man is just a *joke*?

Is Ever So Evil Moody a Joke?  Is Trapezoid a Joke?  Is ToadKeeper a 
Joke?

Why.  I.  Never!  For your information, Fourth Man is the sole 
reason JKR is taking so darn long with OoP.  The delay isn't due to 
the new husband or the relentless upkeep on JKR's many mansions.  
No, Avery is going to be the whole plot twist in OoP, so JKR has to 
get it just right.  No, Fourth Man Believers (and I'm sure they 
won't mind if I speak for them without their permission) are *dead* 
serious about how canon leads to the inescapable conclusion that 
Avery is the Fourth Man in the Pensieve.  

There.  I'm glad we cleared *that* up.

Judy:

> Why don't I think Avery is the Fourth Man?  Simple.  First of all, 
>the 
> Fourth Man, whoever he was, was sentenced to *life* in Azkaban.  

Yes, that's true.  Fourth Man did receive a life sentence.  But that 
doesn't mean he's actually going to *serve* a life sentence in 
Azkaban, though, does it?  I mean, Sirius got a life sentence, and 
there's now doubt in Sirius' mind that if he can apprehend 
Pettigrew, Sirius won't be dumped back in Azkaban just because he 
once had a life sentence.

So, there exists the possibility that one who receives a life 
sentence in Azkaban can have that sentence reversed.

Now, if Avery is the Fourth Man in the Pensieve and received a life 
sentence, then how does he get out under the Fourth Man theory?  
Well, it depends on who you ask.  ;-)

My view is that Avery sat quietly in the Pensieve scene and let Mrs. 
Lestrange shoot her mouth off, wondering if she was *ever* going to 
learn when to Shut Up.  The whole time, Avery is staring into space 
thinking about the Imperius defense he plans to make on appeal.  
Sure, Avery probably raised the Imperius defense with Crouch Sr. at 
the trial of the Lestranges/Crouch Jr./Fourth Man, but that Crouch 
Sr. is a wild man who wasn't about to listen to any sorry Imperius 
defenses.  Crouch Sr. realized that once Voldemort fell, everyone 
else came out of trances, so any Imperius defenses for post-
Voldemort crimes won't fly.

So Avery bides his time in Azkaban.  And then his old buddy Fudge 
makes Minister of Magic.  Oh, that was a glorious day for Avery in 
Azkaban!  Now Fudge (who is either dim or Ever So Evil or both) is 
top dog, and Avery is free to try again with his Imperius Defense on 
appeal with Fudge.  It works, and Avery/Fourth Man wins a release in 
the form of a pardon or reversal or whatever.  Avery probably taunts 
Mrs. Lestrange on his way to Freedom; I mean, who wouldn't?

So yeah.  The puny canon that Fourth Man is supposed to be wasting 
away serving a life sentence doesn't put so much as a dent in the 
Fourth Man hovercraft.  Avery can be the same guy who was sentenced 
to life in the Pensieve.

Judy:

>And, Sirius 
> said that *almost* all of Snape's "gang" were Death Eaters.  The 
only 
> one not convicted of being a Death Eater was Avery, who got off by 
> pleading Imperiatus.  I take this to mean that Avery was *never* 
> convicted of being a Death Eater and *never* was sent to Azkaban.  

Eloise wavered:

>Sirius doesn't *have* to have been right, does he? And given the 
>imprecise 
>manner in which we've just seen legal procedings described, this 
>*could* be a 
>similar sort of thing. 

Oh, ye of little faith!

Ah, look at the exact quote:

"Avery -- from what I've heard he wormed his way out of trouble by 
saying he'd been acting under the Imperius Curse -- he's still at 
large."

"Wormed his way out of trouble" is certainly consistent with the 
idea that Avery/Fourth Man was in trouble (life sentence in Azkaban) 
and got out of it (a successful appeal based on Imperius and having 
friends in high places).  Sirius, who is sitting on the floor of a 
cave gnawing on chickent bones, can't be expected to use terms 
like "convicted" and "pardoned" and such.  After all, Sirius also 
says Karkaroff "got released" and "did a deal."  "Wormed his way out 
of trouble" is probably as precise as Sirius gets when he is talking 
about the wizarding justice system.  

So Sirius is right (although imprecise because he has is reporting 
rumor and isn't a Detail Man), and Avery could well be Fourth Man.  

Charis Julia wrote (about 8 Sparkling New Fourth Man Variants):

> Fourth Man With Serious Perversion.
 
 
1)  In FMWSP Avery is in fact a real sicko with 
> a twisted appetite for Cruciatus Blasts. You know. . . pain and 
> pleasure are all the same and all that. . . In the graveyard he 
put 
> himself forward actually * hoping* for a stint of Crucio. 


Oh, we seem to have a 4-way ownership dispute for rights to "Fourth 
Man With Serious Perversion."  Davewitley claims it is his Baby, 
although Charis Julia has given it a delightful name.  And I raised 
it in Message 36,676.  But Elkins mentioned it in Message 36,664, 
many weeks before these latest mentions.  I think Elkins wins.

Sorry Dave.  Nice try, though.  ;-)

> 2)Fourth Man In Cruciatus Contest:
<snip>
> 3) Suicidal Fourth Man:

OK, this one is not bad.  Really, maybe Avery has a death wish.  
Serving even a tiny bit of his life sentence is probably enough to 
mess with his mind, so he decides to End It All In Dramatic Fashion 
in the Graveyard.  And he can't even get *that* right.  Very, very 
Bangy.

> 4) Fourth Man, With Slashy SHIP:
<snip> 
> 5) Fourth Man, With Teenybopper Crush:
<snip>
> 6) Fourth Man, With Relief: 
<snip> 
> 7) Backstabbing Fourth Man:
> 
> 
> Now. How do you think the Longbottom's Cruciators were caught, 
huh? 
> Ahhh, that's right. Clever Grownup. Got it in one. Avery pulled a 
> Pettigrew. He turned them in. That's how he got off light, you 
> understand. Cut a deal with the Ministry.

OK.  Now you're speaking my language.  See, the whole point of 
reviving Fourth Man was to see if there's any way he can be made 
sufficiently Tough to satisfy me.  Each of the previous variants 
Charis and Elkins have devised keeps Avery trapped as a hopeless 
SYCOPHANT (is that redundant?).  So I was looking for something like 
Backstabbing Fourth Man.  

I say he's a winner.  Just keep him away from me, 'kay? ;-)

> 8) Fourth Man As Seer:

<snip>
>What he's * really* doing in the graveyard, see, is 
> Answering the Beckoning of Fate. That's why he gives in so easily. 
> He's playing along, right. The fates have informed him that his 
> chances of resisting are * nil* and he just wants it all over as 
> quickly as possible. 

This raises some tough questions.  I mean, if one is Tough, does one 
challenge fate or submit?  I don't even know if Fourth Man As Seer 
is Tough or Soft.  I'm getting rather confused, to be honest with 
you.  I need someone with training in Philosophy to straighten this 
out for me.

Charis Julia:

> So there you go. Eight brand new Fourth Man variants For You To 
Enjoy 
> And Collect. And feel free to pick n' mix too if you wish. I would 
> note however that personally, I'm standing strong by In Over His 
Head 
> Fourth Man. He makes better sense.

Aw, Charis Julia.  I'm touched.  ::sniff:: In Over His Head Fourth 
Man was my *Baby* <eyes Dave warily>, and you have endorsed him.  

You know, we should have a little talk about Ever So Evil Moody. ;-)
 
Cindy

****************
Messages 34,911, 35,062, 36,473, 37,745, 34,911, 36,829, 35,657, 
35,318, 35,533