Trevor -- similarity to Scabbers

[Hannah]

No: HPFGUIDX 113213

Agie wrote:
> Trevor's attempts to get away from Neville in SS made me think of 
> Wormtail trying to get away from Ron in POA.  As I recall, Trevor 
was a gift from Trevor's Uncle Algie, the same person who nearly 
killed him a couple of times, and who gave him the plant in OOP.  
I'm not sure yet if I approve of Uncle Algie.  His motives aren't 
clear to me.  But I digress.
Of course, frogs, by nature, jump from one place to the next.  Maybe 
the whole thing was just set up to establish that Neville was 
absentminded.  But I don't remember him losing Trevor after SS (did  
he?).  So I guess he got better at looking after Trevor?
How long do frogs live, anyway?

Hannah now:  There are a couple of theories floating around in the 
bay about Trevor the toad.  Go to hypothetic alley to read about 
them and find posts relating to them.  They suggest that Trevor is 
possessed either by evil, or by Neville's parents (I'm simplifying 
and paraphrasing here).

But I personally don't think that Trevor has any significance.  
We've already had the 'innocent pet turns out to be an animagus' 
storyline. JKR is a very inventive author - she isn't going to do 
the same thing twice. She's also indicated there may be something 
significant about the cats in later books.  I doubt there'd be a 
great toad revelation as well.

Trevor is still around in later books, though I get the feeling he 
is rather superceded by the Mimbulus mimbletonia in OotP.  Not sure 
how long toads live... that's a good question.  Perhaps toads in the 
WW live longer (the pet shop witch in PoA seems to indicate that WW 
rats do).

I think that Trevor is a prop, for describing Neville's character.  
We're told (by Hagrid) that they're unfashionable.  And as soon as  
Neville is introduced, you think 'oh, dear, this boy's got an 
unfashionable pet *and* he keeps losing it.'  It sort of sets the 
scene for Neville's character, and provides a bit of humour too.

The Houdini tendencies of Trevor also serve a plot purpose in 
PS/SS.  Neville has been looking for him in the common room, and is 
out of sight of the trio as the come downstairs on their stone 
rescue mission.  He then gets to perform his heroic 'you're not 
leaving the tower' that ultimately wins the house cup. 

Of course, all this is just my opinion...
Hannah, who's going to look very silly when Trevor turns out to be 
the half-blood prince...