Confusing and Befuddlement Draughts

[justcarol67]

No: HPFGUIDX 93176

> anne (Silverthorne) wrote: I have to agree with Alshain here. We 
> tend to forget that Sirius had a few very predominant traits (ones 
> that proved out in the past as well as the present--and I doubt he 
> was being 'poisoned' at school. 
> >snip<
> 
> Potioncat:
<snip>
> I am not a Sirius fan.  In fact, I didn't like him at all in OoP and 
> wasn't upset that he was the one who died. <snip>
> 
> So it is very surprising to me to re-discover the friendly, likable 
> Sirius from GoF. In fact one of the differences that I see is that 
> he frequently warns Harry to be careful and scolds him for taking 
> risks in GoF.  In OoP as I recall, he actually taunts him for not 
> taking risks! I'll be re-reading OoP with an eye for other 
> differences after I finish GoF.
> 
> Another point is that we read often about potion making.  We, Harry, 
> and Neville hear in painful detail what was done wrong in class or 
> what a potion could do.  
> 
> In GoF, Snape goes to great lengths to determine if Harry is 
> stealing potion supplies from his office. It seemed odd to us as 
> readers at the time because the polyjuice episode had happened so 
> long ago. It becomes very important later in GoF when we find out 
> that Crouch/Moody was stealing polyjuice ingredients. It would make 
> sense, as a previous post said, that if so much was written about 
> befuddlement draughts in OoP, we would see them used in the plot.
> 
> On the other hand, I find it difficult to work out how Kreacher 
> could be the one poisoning Sirius unless he is taking instructions 
> from someone he considers a more rightful master.  Which leaves us, 
> if this is correct, with  the question "Who poisoned Sirius?"
> 
> Potioncat


I agree with Anne that Sirius's basic personality was the chief source
of his "poisoned" mental state, combined with a constantly escalating
anger and depression fueled by the contrast between a cheerful
Christmas surrounded by friends and the approaching time when he'd be
alone again with Kreacher, Buckbeak (another wanted fugitive who
shared his imprisonment), and his mother's screeching portrait. If
anything was needed to further darken his mood and cloud his thinking
(beyond his loss of Harry's companionship, the memory of Azkaban, and
the resentment of Snape's freedom in contrast with his entrapment), it
was the house itself: Jars of blood, cloaks that try to suffocate
people, heads of Kreacher-like house-elfs decorating the hallway--all
the signs of the Dark Wizard background that he had tried to leave and
now could not escape. A Grim Old Place, all right--and exactly the
wrong place for a reckless and hot-tempered man like Sirius to regain
a firm grip on sanity.

Carol