The eagle owl

[Berit Jakobsen]

No: HPFGUIDX 88207

This might have come up in an earlier post (tried to search the 
archive, but couldn't find anything):

In GoF, there is this seemingly uninteresting little detail observed 
by Harry. He is leaning on the window sill in the Owlery, looking out 
at the grounds. P. 469 UK Ed:
Quote: "An eagle owl flew through the coil of smoke rising from 
Hagrids's chimney; it soared towards the castle, around the Owlery 
and out of sight."

Reading on a few pages (and several weeks later), we meet another 
eagle owl, in Harry's dream about Voldemort:
Quote: "He was riding on the back of an eagle owl, soaring through 
the clear blue sky towards an old, ivy-covered house set high on a 
hillside..." (GoF p. 500 UK Ed). The dream goes on telling how the 
eagle owl delivers a message to Voldemort, informing him someone is 
dead. We know this someone was Mr. Crouch Sr.

To me it seems likely it is the same eagle owl appearing in these two 
scenes. In the first scene it is flying towards Hogwarts but not to 
the Owlery which would have been its natural destination had it only 
been on its way back from a regular hunting trip. It flew past the 
Owlery, around the castle and out of sight, clearly carrying a 
message to someone in another part of the castle. I think the eagle 
owl was sent by Wormtail on Voldemort's command, alerting Imposter!
Moody of Mr. Crouch's escape (p. 599: "My master sent me word of my 
father's escape. He told me to stop him at all costs."). Several 
weeks later old Crouch turns up at Hogwarts. Imposter!Moody manages 
to save the situation, and sends the owl back to Voldie with 
the "good" news that his father has been successfully disposed of. I 
think it would be just like Rowling putting in that little detail 
about an eagle owl, and then mentioning it several pages and several 
weeks later :-)

Anyone noticed any more eagle owl acticity in the books, apart from 
the owl that brings Draco a fresh supply of treats every week (that's 
an eagle owl if I remember corrrectly)?

Berit
http://home.no.net/berjakob.snape.html