[HPforGrownups] Alice Longbottom

[K G]

No: HPFGUIDX 102208




I am rereading OotP.  I just finished Ch 23 "Christmas on the Closed Ward".  At the end we see:

     ....She did not seem to want to speak, or perhaps was not able to, but she made timid motions toward Neville, holding something in her outstretched hand.

     "Again?" said Mrs. Longbottom, sounding slightly weary.  "Very well, Alice dear, very well - Neville, take it, whatever it is..."

     But Neville had already stretched out his hand, into which his mother dropped an empty Droobles Blowing Gum wrapper.

     "Very nice, dear," said Neville's grandmother in a falsely cheery voice, patting his mother on the shoulder.  But Neville said quietly,  "Thanks Mum."

<snip>

"...Neville, put that wrapper in the bin, she must have given you enough of them to paper your bedroom by now..."

I have tried accessing this in the Lexicon and came up with nothing, so sorry if this has already been discussed.

The first time I read this scene, I took the whole thing at face value.  On the outside, it looks like a poor, pitiful woman trying to give away pieces of paper.  We see this and things similar in the mentally ill and feeble all the time.  

But is it?  Could this be signs of Alice trying to come out of her stupor?  Could she be trying to communicate with her son?  Is there anything on the papers?  Could she have recovered that far?  Does she know of a danger to her son that is helping her to fight to regain her right mind in order to warn him?  We had to have seen that scene for a reason.  We could have just seen the two of them leaving, maybe even with his mother looking out, but to add in the giving of the wrapper.  It just feels..... I don't know.... like there is more to it than meets the eye.

Any ideas?

Moonmyyst (who has finally gotten most of the white paint out of her black show dog's coat without loosing too much fur or temper!!)


		
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