Arthur is dead on JKR's page

[bluesqueak]

No: HPFGUIDX 103696

--- In HPforGrownups at yahoogroups.com, "kneazelkid" <afleitas at b...> 
wrote:
> Assuming that JKR's Web page is cannon (and I think it is), I 
> believe Arthur dies in the 6th book and that JKR has already 
> written his death. If you look under the information on the 
> Weasley family (under the tea cup) it says "Arthur Weasley WAS one 
> of three brothers" -- not "is," but "was." All othe characters 
> on site are referred to in the present tense (with the exception 
> of those we know are dead).
> 
> Now, of course, another explanation could be that one or more of 
> his brothers has died, but as we haven't been introduced to them, 
> they are not very likely to be killed in books 6 or 7 (although 
> anything is possible). If they died in the previous war, there    
> really is no reason for JKR not to give us this information, 
> as she does regarding Molly's realtives that were killed.
> 
> Anyone?

Pip!Squeak:
There's the scene in Goblet of Fire, Chapter Nine, where Arthur 
Weasley talks about coming back and finding the Dark Mark hovering 
over your house, and knowing what you'll find inside.

Also Ron's Uncle Bilius has died (PoA), though I can't remember 
whether that was Molly or Arthur's brother.

But the Goblet of Fire scene suggests that *someone* in Arthur's 
family was killed by Death Eaters. It would be pretty surprising if 
someone hadn't been, actually, as one of the things we learnt in 
Order of the Phoenix was that the death rate in the First Voldemort 
war was pretty high on both sides.

So I'd reckon the past tense is simply because Arthur lost one or 
both of his brothers, details not yet given because either the 
*family* of one/both brothers may become important in book six or 
seven, or we may get a moving scene in which Arthur Tells All, and 
it wouldn't be half so moving if we already knew it anyway. ;-)

Pip!Squeak

You have been summoned: Accio 2005, the first Harry Potter 
conference in the UK

http://www.accio.org.uk/