Protecting Privet Drive/witches'menopause/Animagi/RiddleLust/Hagrid Fan Club

[Catlady (Rita Prince Winston)]

No: HPFGUIDX 55724

Sheena "Mors mordre" <JuliusSalt at h...> wrote:

<< Did dumbledore place any other protection spells on Number 4? If 
so, he would not have had the time to do it before (at least not what 
we saw of it) Harry arrived with Hagrid. And then Harry is left 
unprotected for hours alone on Number 4's door step. >>

It is an accepted Mystery that there were 24 hours between the time 
Hagrid picked up baby Harry in the ruins of the Godric's Hollow house 
and the time Hagrid dropped off baby Harry at Four Privet Drive. That 
gives Dumbledore 24 hours to set up protections.

It has been suggested that the balls of orange light that flew from 
his Putter-Outer to the light posts on Privet Drive were not mere 
light, but were protective spells or monitoring spells to guard baby 
Harry.

Pat Gruenke wrote:

<< As a nearly-forty year old, I would shudder to think about another 
20 years of childbearing! The WW doesn't age slower than the rest of 
the world, they live longer. Harry and co. seem to go through puberty 
at the correct time, not in their 30's. >>

The wizarding folk DO age slower than the rest of the world, once 
they reach adulthood. McGonagall is "a spritely 70" according to a 
JKR interview, but she still has black hair and doesn't look anywhere 
near as cold as Dame Maggie Smith (nor as me, a Muggle of 45). My 
theory of wizarding aging is in: 
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/HPforGrownups/message/41510

JKR's own drawing of McGonagall looking like she's 30 in Muggle years 
is in the HPfGU Yahoo!Group Photo Section 
http://photos.groups.yahoo.com/group/HPforGrownups/lst , click on 
"Harry Potter and Me" which is the second folder, click on "dursleys" 
which is the fifth pic.
 
http://www.scholastic.com/harrypotter/author/transcript2.htm
Q: How old is old in the wizarding world, and how old are Professors 
Dumbledore and McGonagall?
JKR: Dumbledore is a hundred and fifty, and Professor McGonagall is a 
sprightly seventy. Wizards have a much longer life expectancy than 
Muggles. (Harry hasn't found out about that yet.)

http://www.comicrelief.com/harrysbooks/pages/transcript.shtml
Q: How old are Professor Dumbledore and Professor Snape? 
JKR: Dumbledore's about 150 years old... wizards have a longer life 
expectancy than us Muggles, Snape's 35 or 6. 

<< Pardon me for not quoting chapter and verse, but IIRC Ron once 
said something about "If we hadn't married Muggles, we would have 
died out." If you could have babies for over forty years, I don't 
think dying out would be a problem! >>

I believe that the purebloods have more deaths than births, possibly 
because their fertility is lowered by in-breeding, or possibly 
because they just don't like babies much, and I believe that the 
wizarding folk have Excellent magical contraception, so they don't 
have babies they don't want.

Jazmyn wrote:

<< I do not believe that one has a set pre-determined form that 
is 'their form'. I believe that the wizard CHOOSES the form and 
practices that one form for a long time till they perfect it. Like 
Krum chose a shark due to the Tri Wizard Tournament, but didn't 
practice long enough to get the whole form. It would be too great 
a coincidence to think that his 'form' would just happen to be 
aquatic. >>

Tammy Rizzo and Taryn Kimel are right about the JKR interviews and 
about Krum having TRANSFIGURED himself rather than being a shark 
Animagus. Here are the interviews in which JKR confirmed that the 
Animagus doesn't get to choose his/her animal form, but instead the 
animal form is a reflection of his/her personality.

http://www.geocities.com/aberforths_goat/October_2000_Live_Chat_Americ
a_Online.htm
Q: Does the animal one turns into as an Animagi reflect your 
personality?
JKR: Very well deduced, Narri! I personally would like to think that 
I would transform into an otter, which is my favorite animal. Imagine 
how horrible it would be if I turned out to be a cockroach! 

http://www.scholastic.com/harrypotter/author/transcript2.htm
Q: If you were Animagus, what kind of animal would you be?
A: I'd like to be an otter -- that's my favourite animal. It would be 
depressing if I turned out to be a slug or something.

<< I believe the Marauders chose their forms. James and Sirius 
picking forms that were common enough that they could study the 
real animals first and fast enough to keep up with a werewolf. Peter 
likely was not brave enough to want to run with a werewolf and picked 
a form that allowed him to sneak into places easier. Again, it being 
too much a coincidence that they have such 'useful' forms for them to 
not have picked their own. Otherwise they might have been 3 totally 
useless animals for the purpose they were using the forms for.. say.. 
a sloth, a goldfish and a white rabbit? >>

I'm inclined to agree that a goldfish would have been pretty 
useless, but a sloth and a white rabbit would have been fine for 
their original intention, which was simply to hang out with their 
friend while he was in werewolf form. They couldn't be with him as 
humans, because werewolves (except with Wolfsbane Potion) have a 
total compulsion to attack any human in their presence, but they 
would be with him as animals, because the werewolf is able to control 
himself from attacking non-humans, even ones that are normal wolf 
prey animals.

Later, when they became Animagi, having such useful forms was a piece 
of luck which enabled them to make a new plan, to go run around at 
night with the werewolf. 

Here's the quotes from PoA: "They couldn't keep me company as humans, 
so they kept me company as animals," said Lupin. "A werewolf is only 
a danger to people." and "highly exciting possibilities were open 
to us now that we could all transform. Soon we were leaving the 
Shrieking Shack and roaming the school grounds and the village by 
night."

Erin wrote:

<< Who exactly is Riddle supposed to be feeling lust FOR? (snip) 
there has never really been an appropriate moment for Riddle to 
express any other "feelings" he might have. >>

You're right about the context, but he *might* have mentioned it 
during his rants,such as, when Riddle boasted: "No, Harry - I 
fashioned myself a new name, a name I knew wizards everywhere would 
one day fear to speak, when I had become the greatest sorcerer in the 
world!", he might have thrown in something about "and desired by all 
the most beautiful witches." Many people would, not just 16-year-olds.

Darrin wrote:

<< After all, besides the HRH trio, how many students actually 
interacted with Hagrid before he became the Care of Magical Creatures 
teacher? >>

The ones who wrote the letters: "Living proof of what I've been 
telling you, Hagrid," said Dumbledore, still looking carefully up at 
the ceiling. "I have shown you the letters from the countless parents 
who remember you from their own days here, telling me in no uncertain 
terms that, if I sacked you, they would have something to say about 
it --"