Mommy can’t protect you forever

[nkafkafi]

No: HPFGUIDX 99315

When LV used Harry's blood for his resurrection, he did it in order 
to have for himself the protection that Lily's sacrifice gave Harry. 
But did LV indeed get this protection?

Well, he demonstrated that he can touch Harry without feeling pain. 
This proves that he indeed got the protection, doesn't it?

No, it does not. There is a very simple alternative explanation to 
account for this: The protection wasn't working in the first place. 
It was not protecting even Harry anymore.

I already commented here once that Hermione's observation, according 
to which "some of the greatest wizards don't have an ounce of logic", 
applies very well to Voldy (it must have been Quirrell, not him, who 
solved Snape's poison bottles puzzler). If Voldy had the logic of a 
scientist or a car mechanic, he would have done a simple test in the 
graveyard: touch Harry for one second BEFORE the resurrection, just 
to make sure it still hurts, then touch him again after the 
resurrection.

Had Voldy done this simple test, I think he would have found that he 
can touch Harry without feeling pain even before the resurrection. Of 
course, he didn't bother to check it, but we have another proof, 
almost as good: Wormtail DID touch Harry. He was dragging him several 
feet and tying him to the gravestone. And he was not showing any pain 
at all.

Well, you might say, Wormtail isn't Quirrell. He didn't drink unicorn 
blood and he wasn't sharing his body with Voldy. But still, Wormtail 
is quite a baddie by his own right. He betrayed Harry's parents to 
their death. He murdered 12 muggles. Only seconds before he had used 
an Unforgivable to kill an innocent boy, and now he is dragging Harry 
and binding him to what should be Harry's torture and death by LV, 
even though he owes Harry a life-debt. If the protection isn't doing 
anything to him, it doesn't take a security expert to realize that 
some wires are disconnected. Or, more likely, the batteries are 
expended. Voldy had bought himself a non-working system, and he 
doesn't even realize it.

Is this why DD had that fleeting gleam of triumph in his eyes when he 
heard about it?

The protection that Lily's ancient magic gave Harry was probably 
strongest immediately after Lily's sacrifice. It was then strong 
enough to stop an AK curse, something that was thought to be 
impossible. Ten years later, in SS/PS, it probably couldn't have 
stopped an AK anymore, but it was still strong enough to hurt 
Quirrelmort. A year later it was not, apparently, protecting Harry 
from the Basilisk's poison. By the time of GoF it had probably waned 
almost entirely, except only in the Dursleys where it is reinforced 
by Petunia's continuing decision to have Harry in her house. This 
makes not only scientific sense, but also magical sense: You're 
mother can't protect you forever. She protects you the most when you 
are a baby, and she still protects you a lot when you are 11, but 
after that, you increasingly have to take care of yourself.

But if so, what about the power that Harry has in such quantities and 
Voldy knows not at all? The power that saved Harry from possession by 
Voldy? This is NOT the protection of Lily's sacrifice. This is the 
power that Harry has by his own right. This is the power that he 
earned when he let Wormtail live, or when he risked everything to 
take Cedric's body back to Hogwatrs, or when he went to save Sirius. 
It may have originated from Lily's sacrifice (as many good qualities 
in people originate from what they learned from their parents) but 
when you are fifteen, you are already a person by your own right.

And what about Voldy? Well, it would be just fitting if he'll 
continue to walk around thinking he's bulletproof, and then someone 
score on him at the most critical moment.  

Neri