Polyjuice!Arabella and other Polydoubts

[Devika <devika@sas.upenn.edu>]

No: HPFGUIDX 53184

--- In HPforGrownups at yahoogroups.com, "Morgan D." <morgan_d_yyh at y...> 
wrote:

> 
> 
> And Pippin suggested:
> 
> > There'd be no need for polyjuice if the women are twins. As for 
> > the cabbage-y smell...aging potion? 
> 
> Then why didn't Fred and George smell of cabbage when they tried to 
put
> their names in the Goblet? (GoF ch16) 
> 


Well, they did only take a few drops each... ;)



> 
> But that is the point: why are we so sure that Mrs Figg is anything 
BUT
> an old woman? The only hint that she might be something else that I
> could find was the cabbage smell (arguably implying the use of
> Polyjuice), and even that doesn't seem to make much sense. 


Yes, I've always found this interesting.  I actually came up with the 
possibility that Mrs. Figg might be a younger witch in disguise by 
myself, and then I was surprised that so many other people thought so 
too.  I think that, for me at least, it was not so much a prediction 
as some wishful thinking.  I would like to believe that Arabella Figg 
(or whomever she may actually be) is the same age as MWPP.  That's 
just because we know so little about the members of that generation, 
especially Lily, and I wanted to have a character that would provide 
some means of finding out more about them.  I also think it would be 
nice to have an eligible lady for my favorite fugitive (or werewolf, 
for that matter) <g>.

Basically, my wish came first, and the evidence followed after.  I 
would venture to say that a lot of theories arise in this way.  
Someone might think, "Wouldn't it be nice if so-and-so happened?" and 
then realize, "Oh, maybe it *could* happen!  Here's the evidence..."

...and thus a theory is born :)

Devika