My take on the identity of the HBP...

[RLD360 at aol.com]

No: HPFGUIDX 103833

Greetings all!  :)

I'm new to the list and loving it, just wanted to say HI! before I start to 
ramble.  In a weird me-ish kinda way....

Harry or Voldemort....JKR already says no-way to this.  And the idea that it 
could be TR, it would make the title lame when you substitute TMR for HBP.  :P

Neville as the HBP...while it would be cool, Neville is a pure blood.  Ron 
says so in CoS when he's recovering from the slugs in Hagrid's hut.

JKR has said that HBP was a working title for CoS and that the two books are 
closely related.  So I think it stands to reason that the character in 
question was either introduced in the book or expanded upon.  With that in mind, 
here're my best guesses in no particular order....

Hagrid...We know he's a half-blood, even if it's giant blood.  The title 
doesn't specify wizard or not, so he's a possibility.  I'd say a good one since 
there don't seem to be kings or princes in the human wizarding world, but 
perhaps there are for other cultures.  Also, Hagrid's on a mission to bring his 
people into the fight, having a title among them might help to bring that about as 
he'd essentially be a bridge between both worlds.  That'd tie in nicely to 
the idea that people should be united by purpose not prejudice that started in 
CoS and that Dumbledore makes reference to when he says that the wizards have 
long taken their fellows for granted and that it could be a fatal mistake in 
the coming war.

Lockhart...I know this one's far-fetched, but what the heck!  Lockhart could 
be a failed prince.  One could speculate that he did what he did because he 
was a magical disappointment, ergo he had to find another way to make himself 
shine.  The books certainly describe him as you might imagine a prince, looks 
wise anyway.  :P  And he does show up again in OotP, for what appears to be no 
particular reason.  <shrugs>  Now, how he would be important as an HBP, who 
knows?

Colin Creevy...Another far-fetched in my mind, but still a possibility.  In 
CoS it talks about his father but not his mother.  I don't remember if she's 
mentioned in the following books, which would tell us if he's pure or half.  He 
and his brother seem to be doing good in the DA, though not what I would call 
central characters.  He was in CoS though, so that's why I threw him in.

And last, but not least, Goddric Griffyndor...it could very well be that 
during GG's time, there were titles used and that was one of his.  We know that he 
and SS differed on the matter of half-bloods, pure bloods.  And one might 
speculate that it was because of their backgrounds.  So the HBP could be GG 
though not necessarily referring to just him...could be his legacy of integration 
of the wizard world and perhaps an item he might've left behind to help, such 
as Fawkes (which I think belonged to him though it's not been stated) or his 
sword.

Whew!  All done!  Lemme know what y'all think of my mad ramblings, and sorry 
if this has been repeated elsewhere.  It's hard to play catch up on a list 
like this!  :)

Laters,
PKO


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