Introduction, and thoughts regarding HPL:Puzzles and Mysteries

[James Lawlor]

No: HPFGUIDX 104767

Hello! I decided to join HPFG and wanted to jump right in with an
introduction and some thoughts about some questions mentioned on the
HP Lexicon's page on Puzzles and Mysteries.

I'm looking forward to being part of this group, being both a fan of
Harry Potter and mature discussion. *grin* Although I don't know about
growing up. You know, that reminds me. Something that struck me about
the Harry Potter books recently: They can be pretty silly at times. I
didn't think this was a bad thing, really, but maybe it got on my
nerves a bit from time to time. But then I thought, you know, there's
nothing wrong with being silly. Perhaps that's one reason they're so
popular. J.K. Rowling isn't afraid of being silly, and we all could
use some silliness after all. Just look at Dumbledore!

Anyway, without further ado, my thoughts:

- Why change the Triwizard Cup into a Portkey?

(Spoilers for GoF and OotP)

After having read this question a short while back (on Mugglenet, I
believe) it didn't make sense to me either - it was a lot of trouble
just to get Harry to the churchyard. But then I thought about it, and
if you keep certain things in mind, it makes perfect sense. While
Trina Gabbard's explanation at HPL works, I think of things a bit
differently.

First of all, from Order of the Phoenix, we know that after his
return, Voldemort does not want to make himself known to those outside
his Death Eaters. If he wanted to, it would have been much simpler to
get the prophecy himself, instead of luring Harry to the Department of
Mysteries. But as secrecy was one of Voldemorts most powerful weapons
at that point (which we can see from the divisiveness caused against
Harry and Dumbledore) he could not afford to show himself, especially
in the Ministry of Magic, except as a last resort.

If we consider the plan involving the Triwizard Tournament it is the
best, and really the only way to keep anyone (and in particular,
Dumbledore) from finding out that Voldemort had returned to power. It
would have been easy enough for Crouch-as-Moody to turn Harry's
toothbrush or pillow into a portkey. But if Harry had disappeared from
his bed or the bathroom never to be seen again, it would have caused
quite a stir. When Harry could not be found, people would obviously
begin to wonder if Voldemort had anything to do with it. There would
be no proof, but the Order would be suspicious, and would naturally
redouble their efforts to keep tabs on him.

The Triwizard tournament is the perfect cover - it's dangerous. Not so
dangerous that it would be obvious that it was a setup to trap Harry,
but dangerous enough that it would work. If things had gone precisely
to Voldemort's plan, Harry would have taken the cup, and found himself
in the graveyard to witness Voldemort's return. He would have been
killed, and transported back to the maze. There, Crouch-as-Moody would
only have to make sure that Harry's body was sufficiently mangled, and
perhaps dispose of any witnessess, and it would be finished. Voldemort
revived, and Harry dead with a perfectly logical reason. Crouch goes
back into hiding, Moody is released or killed as the situation
requires, and Voldemort is free to build his power in hiding.

An almost perfect plan, except for a few details. Mainly, of course,
that Harry made it out alive. Snape could have also caused a problem.
If Voldemort knows that Snape is working for the Order, and could or
would not stop the Dark Mark from summoning Snape, he would have to
assume that the Order could possibly be tipped off.

- How did Sirius order that Firebolt without giving himself away? How
did he get the money out of his vault? And for that matter, how did
Mrs. Weasley get money out of Harry's vault?

As for the first question, I thought of a couple answers, but if you
think about them too much they begin to fall apart, so I offer the
easy explanation: The Goblins didn't care to inform anyone that Sirius
Black had been making large withdrawals. As for the Weasleys, it could
easily have been arranged so they have permission. Or possibly there's
magic at Gringotts that would prevent someone dishonestly taking money
out of someone else's vault.

 - James Lawlor