[HPforGrownups] 24 hours again

[manawydan]

No: HPFGUIDX 103454

Kneasy speculated:
> Personally I don't favour the 'artifact' approach - if there was
> something that plugged into DD's study (the most obvious and logical
> place) how did the news get out to the Diggles of this world so early?
> Owls were flocking all over the place by breakfast-time, just a handful
> of hours after the event.

Nor I. I'd add to your original list of things that we know happened

- the local Muggles are attracted to the scene (Hagrid and Harry just exit
in time)

Clearly (being Muggles and not privy to the Fidelius) they haven't witnessed
what happened, but their arrival in response to an irruption of the WW into
their reality means that

- a clean up squad from the Ministry arrives next, perhaps with journalists
from the Prophet and the WWN in tow.

_Someone_ saw sufficient of what happened to be able to confirm that

- Voldemort has been vapourised, and
- Harry was responsible

Were they perhaps standing outside, and saw/heard enough through the bedroom
window to be able to give a report to the media?

>   An aside - if, as we are informed in OoP there are so few of the WW in
> the neighbourhood of Privet Drive, why did Vernon see so many that
> morning?

It's a very interesting passage, that. The only time that we see the Muggle
and Wizard worlds side by side. I conclude (given that the descriptions we
have of wizard houses don't suggest that they move about much) that Vernon
has a sufficiently long commute to work to pass through an area/areas
outside Little Whinging.

> No, I tend towards the 'Third Party' scenario, that there was somebody
> else at GH. The odds are against it being a DE - or there would be no
> reason to question the Longbottoms about the where-abouts of Voldy.

And indeed, if other DEs had been there,

- Peter (whom I surmise was also there, to show Voldemort the house) would
not have made his getaway ("Where do you think you're going, rat boy? We
want a _word_ with you about this...")
- one of them would have gone into the ruins to see what had happened,
scooped up the wailing Harry, and carefully disposed of him by non-magical
means. End of story.

> Though if it was someone close to DD, it still seems odd that the news
> spread so fast. But if it was a betrayer, then spreading the news would
> be a good way to warn the DEs to keep their heads down, especially if
> this individual expected to  be fully occupied or in hiding for a
> while. The favourites seem to be Peter, Lupin or Snape, with Sirius or
> the Longbottoms as outside chances.

One could make the opposite case on the spreading the news bit, breaking it
to the media would have spread alarm and despondency among the DEs and made
them easier to round up.

My question if there's anyone else there from your list is: why didn't they
rescue Harry themselves, rather than leaving it for Hagrid to do?

> So, the house at GH blows up (why?)

I wonder if the effect of the "ancient magic" was to wipe out _all_ magical
spells in the vicinity when it's triggered, including the ones holding up
the house, which in turn promptly falls down.

> and Sirius arrives, or says he did.
> (If he's the 'Third Party' he never left), Hagrid arrives, sent by DD.
> When did Hagrid arrive? The natural assumption would be that it was
> quite late in the day - he'd want to hand over Harry to DD as fast  as
> possible, not hang around a ruin for hours with a toddler on his hands.
> Not so, it seems. (See below.)

Indeed not, on his own admission. He just got out in time, before the
Muggles started swarming around, or words to that effect. There was only a
very short time between the bang and all hell breaking loose for him to go
in, rescue Harry, have a conversation with Sirius, and depart on the motor
bike, leaving the Third Party to tell the tale.

Here, by the way, is another argument for the "Third Party". When
Dumbledore, Hagrid, and McGonagall have their conversation on the corner of
Privet Drive, it's obvious

- Dumbledore knows the full details of what's happened
- McGonagall doesn't
- Dumbledore and Hagrid haven't spoken since the rescue

which means that someone else has briefed Dumbledore on what happened.

> Conversely Minerva, on her own initiative, arrives at Privet Drive
> early in the morning and waits for something to happen. Very  strange.
> It was term-time (Halloween), but she leaves her teaching duties and
> chooses to sit in a cold street for 16 hours or so on the basis of what
> she calls rumours, rumours she can only have heard very  early that
> morning.

Just suppose that she's been sent there to protect _Petunia_ from a possible
counterstroke by what's left of the DEs. After all, if Harry no longer has
any blood relatives, Dumbledore's plans for his upbringing are left looking
pretty shaky.

This may also be why Hagrid and Harry have disappeared for the day, just in
case of a second attempt. Hiding out in a safe location somewhere.

> DD, with no teaching duties, disappears from the radar. He's certainly
> not at GH, so what was he doing? Where was he? At Hogwarts? But if he

He _may_  have been out and about rounding up stray DEs, of course.

> time of the news breaking. I sniff forward planning here. That  he knew
> (or suspected) what might happen to the Potters in advance and made
> plans accordingly. But I would, wouldn't I?
> It adds credence to my interpretation of the Prophecy.

> It's almost as if he's spent the day interviewing witnesses or
> debriefing  an agent. Now  who would that be, I wonder?

Would you take the idea of a "Fourth Party", perhaps? The one who forewarned
Dumbledore that the attack would be coming? At great personal risk?

Cheers

Ffred (who is also fascinated by this particular bit of backstory)

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