JKR's cryptic answer: "Who sent the Lestranges to the Longbottoms?"

[nkafkafi]

No: HPFGUIDX 119786


> dcgmck:
> 
> Barty, Jr. sprang to mind for me as well when I first read JKR's 
> latest teasers. <snip>
> I like Barty for it, far better than Lucius or some other as yet 
> unnamed DE.

Neri:
The Barty Jr possibility again raises the "something rotten in the
Ministry" scenario. The Longbottoms were NOT attacked because of the
prophecy, so why were they attacked? My guess is that there's a whole
backstory behind this, or JKR would have been much more careful with
her words. Here is one possibility: The Longbottoms were both aurors,
and they must have known something about the Ministry security
operations. Maybe Crouch Sr had some big secret plan. Say, bringing
the ancient death arch to the DoM in order to trial and execute
Vapormort (which is why the death room has spectator seats). Fudge is
in the know, but probably isn't trusted with the details. The
Longbottoms are appointed to the job of finding Vapormort and bringing
to justice. Crouch Sr has some brilliant plan how to achieve this,
which possibly involves some questionable Dark Arts, but it's all for
a good cause, so it's OK, isn't it? DD is very much against this, of
course, because he knows only Harry can vanquish Voldy, but Crouch
doesn't listen to his advice. Then Crouch Sr lets slip a word about
this plan to his son.

So young Barty contacts Bella. They don't know much about the
operation, but Barty realizes the Longbottoms hold the key to this
whole thing, so they attack them and torture them, trying to find what
is going on and how to reach Vapormort. Young Barty and the Lestranges
are caught (my guess: this was the battle in which Moody lost his eye
and foot) but the whole Ministry plan is wrecked. Crouch Sr realizes
the DEs could only know about this through his slip to young Barty,
and this is why he is so sure his son is guilty.

After the trial Crouch Sr is shunted to a side office, and Fudge, the
new Minister, tries to cover the Ministry's blunder. Covering includes
the hurried execution of Barty Jr in the end of GoF, and keeping the
Longbottoms sedated in St. Mungo's (they must know something
critical). In the HBP they will somehow manage to let Neville and the
trio know about this, and Fudge will lose his job.

The bubblegum puzzler suggests that the big mystery about the attack
is not necessarily WHO dunnit, but WHY. As I wrote here before, the
secret that the Longbottoms try to pass to Neville must be something
critical and new, or it will be an anticlimax when it is finally
revealed. It might be the way to get rid of Voldy. And after the
demise of the Crouches, possibly the Longbottom are the only people
who still know the details.  

Neri