[HPforGrownups] Re: Harry's Jaunt to Hogsmeade

[Kelly Grosskreutz]

No: HPFGUIDX 57401

> --- In HPforGrownups at yahoogroups.com, "Eric Oppen" <oppen at m...> wrote:
>
> > For that matter, it was quite a jump for the MoM to _assume_
> instantly that
> > Sirius Black was after Harry Potter specifically.  "He's at
> Hogwarts?"  That
> > could refer to _anybody_ who is currently "at Hogwarts" in any
> capacity.
>
Marianne wrote:

> Yes, but since they thought that SIrius was responsible for betraying
> the Potters, only to have that dratted infant defeat his lord and
> master, Voldemort, I don't think it's a stretch to think that Sirius
> had evil thoughts about Harry.
>
> On the other hand, if they truly thought Sirius was a madman (and
> Fudge can't seem to make up his mind about that), then why would they
> assume Sirius would even be aware that Harry was of age to be at
> Hogwarts?
>

This is just fascinating.  I had always looked at it as the former, which is
the same way everyone else viewed it, that Sirius was coming after Harry at
Hogwarts.  But Fudge does seem to be telling two stories here.  I personally
have wondered for awhile just how trustworthy he is on the whole Sirius
Black incident, since he was also conveniently first on the scene and was
responsible for Sirius not getting a trial in the first place.  I really
wonder if the DE's have something on Fudge that would make him more
sympathetic to their cause.
>
> >
> > Come to it...if they thought that Sirius Black _was_ Voldemort's
> right-hand
> > dude, why didn't it occur to anybody that what SB was talking about
> was his
> > Lord?  "He's at Hogwarts" could have meant that SB had figured out
> that
> > _Voldemort_ was hidden in the school somehow, and had nothing to do
> with
> > Harry Potter.  The Big V had been there before, after all.
>
> But, the official line is that V is virtually helpless, if not
> actually dead.  Again, if Sirius was indeed muttering about
> Voldemort, the MoM would put it down to the ravings of a madman.
>
See above.  Sirius Black is whatever Fudge needs him to be.  Also keep in
mind that people are willing to give more concessions and are more
manipulable when they are afraid.  Sirius makes a good bogeyman.  And to
cover all bases, Voldemort does not because he is *too* scary.  Voldemort,
either overtly or through showing the MoM is unable to protect the people,
could undermine Fudge's power base.  Sirius Black, right now, cannot.
However, if he were no longer the perfect scapegoat, could, and I'm not sure
if Fudge has realized that.
>
> > I think that the MoM was jumping to conclusions, and that this is
> another
> > example of Ministry corruption and ineptitude.  Putting Dementors
> around
> > Hogwarts, after the Dementors had slipped up already and let SB get
> loose
> > somehow, is yet another example...I'd have used Aurors, who can
> tell the
> > difference between a student and an escaped convict, and aren't too
> likely
> > to try to suck anybody's soul out of them.
>
> You know, I don't think I've ever thought about that.  Why not use
> Aurors?  They'd be easier to communicate with.  They are trained to
> fight the Dark Forces.  They can have the sense of sight, which the
> Dementors do not have.  And they don't give everyone the heebee-
> jeebees when they're around.  Nor would they suddenly take it into
> their heads to attack a student.
>
> Just why wasn't there a contingent of Aurors at Hogswarts?  Who was
> around to control the Dementors if they got out of hand, other than
> the professors?  What kind of Ministry simply dumps a bunch of soul-
> suckers around a school, apparently with no one charged with
> controlling them?
>
Excellent point about the Aurors.  As I said above, I have wondered if the
DE's have something on Fudge that would make him more amenable to working
with them.  This could be another example of this.  He has always supported
the dementors' role at Azkaban.  Granted, the majority of his constituents
probably support them, too.  Is there some reason he supports the dementors
so much?  Again, Aurors could guard Azkaban, but Fudge keeps the dementors
there, even though there is a chance they would support Voldemort if he ever
came back.  On this note, though, it doesn't even have to be that the DE's
control him in such an overt way, but perhaps something a little milder,
such as Lucius making it worth his while to keep them there (you know how
Lucius is on those generous contributions).

Kelly Grosskreutz
http://www.idcnet.com/~ivanova