The Dark Mark

[snow15145]

No: HPFGUIDX 124573




I've been thinking lately of what experiments Voldemort could have 
used that saved his sorry self. I'm thinking the dark mark could be a 
fine possibility. Voldemort is connected with every deatheater 
through the dark mark, when he touches any mark all the deatheaters 
are summoned, physically feeling scorching pain. The deatheaters 
acknowledged his bodily existence through the dark marks change in 
color and appearance before they were ever aware that he was back. 

"There. The Dark Mark. It is not as clear as it was an hour or so 
ago, when it burned black
[  ]  It was a means of distinguishing one 
another, and his means of summoning us to him. [  ] This mark has 
been growing clearer all year." GOF pg. 710 (all canon is U.S. 
version)

Could Voldemort be aware of his deatheaters non-allegiance to him via 
the dark mark and the reason as to why, even though they are not 
physically present?

"And here we have six missing Death Eaters
[  ] One, too cowardly to 
return
[  ] One, who I believe has left me forever
[  ] and one, who 
remains my most faithful servant
" GOF pg. 651

I suppose you could argue that Voldemort had been informed of these 
particular deatheaters but what about Regulus or Karkaroff?

"Well, you don't just hand in your resignation to Voldemort. It's a 
lifetime of service or death." OOP pg. 112

Why cant you just hand in resignation or run like the dickens to a 
far off place
the U.S. perhaps. Could it be that Voldemort had a more 
physical attachment to his deatheaters through the dark mark? 
Voldemort wouldn't have gone to all the trouble of burning an 
insignia just for a summoning tool. I like to think of Hermione here 
when she said she used the same type of charm (Protean Charm OOP pg. 
398) on the galleons as Voldemort did with the dark mark but also the 
contract that unbeknownst to all parties who signed it had an 
attachment of loyalty. Sounds quite familiar. (That little bitch
oops 
I mean witch
what all Does she know about Voldemort's magic and the 
dark mark) If you think about Hermione's DA contract as a physically 
binding agreement (i.e. if you don't abide by the contract there are 
physical consequences) and then apply it to the dark mark I think 
you'll see my connection. 

Hermione used a piece of paper with a binding signature as the 
connection but what if Voldemort used himself as the connection in a 
way that he is informed through the dark mark of non-allegiance. If 
you take that connection one step further, could it be possible that 
it was through this dark mark on his followers that may have kept him 
alive? Voldemort himself tests the dark mark in the graveyard 
immediately to make sure it is still activated after his rebirth. 

"It is back," he said softly. "they will all have noticed it
" GOF 
pg. 645

Ahuh! What comes next is quite interesting:

He pressed his long white forefinger to the brand on Wormtail's arm. 
The scar on Harry's forehead seared with a sharp pain
 pg. 645

Voldemort was not touching Harry he was touching the scar on 
Wormtail, so why does Harry's scar sear with pain? At the same time 
deatheaters everywhere also felt a searing pain in their scar
 
connection? 

Is the dark mark a scar? I never really thought of the dark mark as a 
scar but Harry in OOP refers to it as such:

"You know what these remind me of?"
"No, what's that?"
"The Death Eaters' scars. Voldemort touches one of them, and all 
their scars burn
" OOP pg. 399

What do we know about scars? Dumbledore tells McGonagall in the first 
book "Scars can come in handy."  Fudge in GOF claims that he 
has "never heard of a curse scar acting as an alarm bell before" But 
we have heard of a scar that acts like an alarm bell before, the dark 
mark with its searing pain
ding-a-ling Voldy calling
this is not a 
test you must apparate instantly or else. 

Could it be possible that Voldemort was kept alive by the physical 
bond he shares with his deatheaters through the dark mark? If 
Voldemort's `being' can be looked at like Hermione's contract, when 
each deatheater signed the contract by accepting the dark mark they 
unknowingly accepted all conditions to it. The deatheaters became 
physically bound to the contract, which in this case is Voldemort. I 
think this may be why it is a life sentence to be a deatheater; you 
can never just turn in your resignation. Each deatheater is bonded 
for life to the contract, which is Voldemort. Voldemort owns their 
very lives, literally. The only escape for a deatheater is to break 
the bond when that deatheater dies or is killed. But Voldemort is the 
opposite of this; he could not die completely as long as he had his 
follower's lives indebted to him. Voldemort speaks to his deatheaters 
about this bond.

"
We are still united under the Dark Mark, then! Or are we?" GOF pg. 
647

(The definitions of unite as a transitive verb means to combine 
qualities or traits and the "Latin past participle stem of unire, 
literally "to make one," according to the Encarta Dictionary.)

To make it a bit clearer, the deatheaters have a bit of Voldy. We do 
know that Tom Riddle had already used this same type of preservation 
before by leaving a memory of him in a diary. Voldy again may have 
used some essence of himself with each deatheater through the 
insignia of the dark mark. 

How did Dumbledore know that Voldemort was not completely gone? My 
answer is Snape's insignia. (Remember Snape traded sides before the 
downfall of Voldemort) Why did Voldemort expect one of his faithful 
deatheaters to try and find him, how would any of the deatheaters be 
expected to know that he was not vanquished? Again the dark mark was 
an indicator to the deatheater. The scar grew clearer as Voldemort 
became more corporeal, so when Voldemort became babymort they would 
have had some indication of this through the dark marks appearance. 
Snape and Karkaroff were both aware via the dark mark that Voldemort 
was growing in strength. This to me is an indication that the dark 
mark is more than just a summoning tool but a clear connection to 
Voldemort.

There could be a definite drawback to this proposal; Voldemort could 
never be killed as long as any deatheater remains alive. Then again 
there is always the Harry factor. No one is absolutely certain what 
part or parts of Voldy were transferred to Harry at Godric's Hollow 
but there appears to be some connection between Voldemort touching 
Pettigrew's scar and Harry feeling pain in his at the same time in 
the graveyard. There is also a hopeful statement from Voldemort to 
his deatheaters that can be construed as Voldemort being mortal after 
his rebirth. 

"But I was willing to embrace mortal life again, before chasing 
immortality." GOF pg. 656

Voldemort may have lost that particular portion of the dark mark's 
original connection. The reason he may still be alive is more Harry 
now than the deatheaters. Voldemort is still alive so why would he 
have reason to question it beyond that point. I can feel myself 
heading back to the Satellite!Harry theory so I think I'll stop for 
now. 

Snow