[HPforGrownups] Are Parselmouths immune to the Basilisk's stare? WAS: Colour theory, eyes, and Gryffindor Voldemort

[Sherry Garfio]

No: HPFGUIDX 49357

Sometime last year (29 Dec), Sushi wrote:
> I don't know if LV would count as all that 
> brave, but Tom Riddle might have.  He certainly took some major risks, 
> confronting a beast that could have killed him with a glance (the Basilisk) 

Tying this in with the earlier discussions about lenses, I wonder if maybe
Parselmouths would have some sort of resistance or immunity to the Basilisk's
stare?  We pondered long and hard about whether Harry's glasses would have
saved him in the Chamber had he accidentally looked it in the eye before Fawkes
blinded it, leading to a long discussion about whether Myrtle would have
removed her glasses to cry or whether she died despite seeing the Basilisk
through them.  But what if there is more to being a Parselmouth than just the
ability to speak to snakes?  Maybe a Parselmouth has a much greater connection
to snakes.  Maybe Slytherin was the first Parselmouth, and he invented it with
a potion that had Basilisk venom as an ingredient.  Or he was bitten by a
Basilisk and saved somehow (Phoenix tears?) and this gave him the ability. 
Either way, the ability transformed him in such a way that his decendents also
inherited it.  Or maybe I'm just rambling (wouldn't be the first time).

One connection I see is that Harry was bitten by a Basilisk in CoS (perhaps the
very same Basilisk that bit Salazar Slytherin in my ramblings above) and saved
by Phoenix tears.  Granted, he was a Parselmouth before that, but this could be
yet another connection between Harry and Sally.  What if Harry becomes the next
Salazar Slytherin?  Look at what Hitler accomplished in the name of evil and in
the face of world opposition; imagine what he could have accomplished if he had
instead taken up the cause of good and had the support of the whole world! 
Slytherin may have been a horrible bigot who wanted to rid the school (and by
extension, the WW) of muggle-borns, but he was one of the most powerful wizards
of his age, and he cofounded a school that 1000 years later is still regarded
as one of the best in the WW.  Likewise, Voldemort, his heir, also accomplished
great things for the cause of evil.  If Harry has similar abilities but chooses
to use them for good, and he has the support of other powerful good wizards,
what great things could he accomplish?

Just some post-holiday ramblings.

Sherry


=====
"The one thing that unites all human beings, regardless of age, gender, religion, economic status or ethnic background, is that, deep down inside, we ALL believe that we are above-average drivers."

      -Dave Barry, "Things That It Took Me 50 Years to Learn"

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