DD's agenda (was LV's survival )

[carolynwhite2]

No: HPFGUIDX 112137

--- In HPforGrownups at yahoogroups.com, "Jen Reese" <stevejjen at e...> 
wrote:

Jen: Ah, yes, FAITH is still alive and well in TBAY! There *are*
some incredible minds in this group and they have convinced me of
many things, including the fact that Dumbledore certainly does have
a plan. But as to how far that plan goes and to what extent DD has
control of the situation...well, I still have my doubts. 

Carolyn:
Indeed, I am glad to hear it, but rumour had it a while ago that 
FAITH had been 'spotted walking down the promenade arm in arm with 
George, and .. occasionally been caught eyeing a speculation badge 
with an expression of hopeless longing'. 

Personally, I would have thought that George's many unusual 
acquaintances might have given the silly girl pause for thought by 
now. If not worse. As it is, I continue to worry for her fresh-faced 
innocence in this big bad world, and think her mother should have 
been just a tad clearer about a few things at some point in her 
upbringing.


Jen: Take the wands, for instance. Carolyn said this:

> Fawkes is his phoenix, and only gave the second feather to
> Ollivander at Dumbledore's request, once DD realised the weapon
> would be required in the coming fight with Voldemort.

Jen: Yes, I believe Dumbledore requested Fawkes to give the feather. 
But that's where the certainty ends. First, Fawkes had to agree to do 
this, something DD could not control or force. Then, Ollivander had 
to use his skills to make the wand--choosing the wood, the length, 
the pliability, etc. Again, DD & Ollivander can make their best guess 
as to what wand would best suit Harry, but that's the extent of it.

Carolyn:
Fawkes readily does whatever DD asks - look at the alarm system the 
bird provides, alerting them to Umbridge's approach when DD needs 
time to send the Weasley's and Harry back to GP. And look at the role 
he plays in carrying DD out of the office when Fudge comes to arrest 
him, and then in the MoM he swallows an AK to save DD's life. Plus 
the numerous services he has performed for Harry. I think Fawkes' 
allegiance is pretty clear.

Many posts have been written on the nature of wand wand, suitability 
of wands to people etc, but firstly, I think that having the same 
core as Voldemort's was the most important element, and that DD could 
control. Secondly, the length suitable for Harry could be guessed at 
by comparing him with James, and what height he eventually grew to. 
Thirdly, Ollivander would surely be the expert on the wood - and he 
chose the ancient holly, emblem of hope and joy (but also, worryingly 
for Harry, of death on the cross), to oppose yew, symbol of 
immortality, resilience and magic. Perhaps he knew they were of equal 
strength, and that was the best protection his skill could offer.


Jen: *Then* and yes, I still believe this, the wand chooses the 
wizard. We see in PS/SS that when that particular wand was placed in 
Harry's hand, "He felt a sudden warmth in his fingers. He raised the 
wand above his head, brought it swishing down through the dusty air 
and a stream of red and gold sparks shot from the end..."(Ss, chap. 
5, p.85).

In addition to being the correct wand for Harry, thus making him
more powerful, this sequence was further evidence for DD that Harry
is indeed the One, Voldemort's equal. To tamper with the wand or
force Harry to choose a wand that didn't choose him would be to
Dumbledore's detriment, not his strength.

Carolyn:
Only two wands that we know of have phoenix cores, Voldemort's and 
Harry's [although I'd bet quite a bit that DD's wand does as well]. I 
think it was inevitable that Harry's wand would choose him, because, 
as you say, Harry has a power to equal Voldemort. DD already guessed 
this would be the case from the prophecy, and from his knowledge of 
Voldemort's powers; he didn't have to force or risk anything.


Jen: So, yes, I believe Dumbledore has gone to great lengths to 
safeguard Harry, using every opportunity to his advantage. As in all 
endeavors though, a certain percentage must be left for Fate to 
decide.

Jen Reese, keepin' the Faith

At the risk of shocking FAITH's sensibilities yet further, is it 
worth asking why DD might have set all this up?

The MD team asserted (post 40044) that Voldie gave Harry back his 
wand at the graveyard simply to try and tire him out, hoping that a 
child would become exhausted duelling with a wizard of Voldie's 
ability using a wand that he had not yet learned how to use properly. 
Voldie hoped he might be softening Harry up for death by AK - except 
that the rare priori incantatem effect intervened. 

How sure are you that DD had not anticipated this? Maybe he had no 
knowledge of where and when it might be useful, but he must certainly 
have known that the second wand would not work against its brother? 
Even Sirius had heard of the reverse spell effect, so I am sure 
Voldie knew too, but what he didn't know was that he was facing such 
a wand - how could he? 

Finally, having hopefully induced further feelings of disquiet, I 
would like to ask a further wand-related question. Does Voldie know 
where the core of his wand originated? And if he does, what 
implications does that have?

To speculate on the answer to this, I return yet again to what I 
think really makes the WW tick (see post 108963). I detailed there 
numerous examples of how magical ability drives the heirarchy in the 
WW, and whether it is possible that the role of Hogwarts down the 
ages has been to nurture and train that power, carrying out the 
original four founders' wishes.

I speculated that for many years DD has been the most powerful wizard 
in the WW, but (because he has rejected immortality following his 
work with Flamel .. 'its your choices' etc) he has to look for a 
successor to carry the baton. He thought he had found that person in 
Tom Riddle, and his clue was Tom being able to claim his particular 
wand (containing the Fawkes feather core). 

Unfortunately, it appears that Tom concluded that immortality sounded 
rather a good idea, once he realised he had the necessary magical 
ability to claim it. Maybe he was possessed by essence of Slyth as 
Kneasy thinks, whatever. The situation went critical at this point, 
and DD has been struggling for many years to think of a way of 
dealing with him - and then along comes the prophecy, and the rest is 
history, or possibly toast, as far as Weapon!Harry is concerned.

JKR said at the recent Edinburgh chat that the reason that DD gave 
Voldie for not killing him at the MoM ('your failure to understand 
that there are things much worse than death') was: 'not the real 
reason..Dumbledore knows something slightly more profound than that'.

The betting has to be that some sort of wand-less magic, raw magic 
power, is going to win the day in the end, though who will be left 
standing is anyone's guess. 

But Jen, going waaaay back to your post  81106 (everything catches up 
with you in the end!), would you really be any happier with one 
wizard's power winning out over the other? What does that solve?

Carolyn
Hoping that JKR will leave us with that kind of problematic moral 
ending, and actually not caring very much whether Harry is dead or 
alive as result. FAITH, poor love, will, like truth be one of the 
first casualties of the war. RIP.