Happy ending? (was: Sirius' influence on Harry)

[ohneill_2001]

No: HPFGUIDX 99142

Melanie:

> My reply:  I still think it's going to end with Harry dying and 
going to the other world.  Of course, it will be happy because then 
Sirius can introduce him to his parents.  That just makes me happy!  
> 

I've thought this before too, but at the end of OoP I saw a different 
theme emerging.  When Sirius died, Harry went into denial; he refused 
to believe it at first.  Then he was possessed by Voldemort, and his 
thoughts were "Dumbledore, just kill me; then I can see Sirius 
again."  Finally, at the very end, he found his mirror, and he was 
convinced he was still going to be able to talk to Sirius in it, but 
alas, he could not.  In the end, he was forced to accept that Sirius 
was really, truly gone.  (I apologize for not giving page or chapter 
cites; I am in the process of moving and my books are still packed.)

My point in all of this is that this has been part of Harry's 
development throughout the series.  He had to accept that he could 
not bring his parents back by seeing them in the Mirror of Erised, 
and now he's had to accept the fact that Sirius has gone.  Learning 
to deal with the loss of his loved ones has been a major part of 
Harry's development as a character, and having taken him so far down 
that path, I doubt JKR is going to end the series by killing him and 
reuniting him with them.  

I think it more likely that Harry will lose more of those he cares 
about, and the lesson learned is that losing loved ones is a part of 
life, and he has to go on living.

--Cory