JKR answering fan concerns/some half-baked theories

[demetra1225]

No: HPFGUIDX 133498

Lupinlore wrote: 
 > It seemed to me that large segments of HBP were written to  
please/placate/pacify certain sections of the fandom. I don't mean 
>  that as a criticism, by any means, since I think any author 
>  ignores their fans to their peril. Still, it was striking how 
>  things worked out. [snip} 
 
> SSSusan:
> Just picking this one little bit of Lupinlore's post to respond 
to.  I also felt this, to some degree.  Chapter 2, especially, and a 
> couple of other places in the book felt to me like JKR crossing 
> items off a list.  "Fan complaint #1?  Yes, took care of that.  Fan 
> misinterpretation #2?  Yep.  Fan concern #3?  Got it."  [snip]


Demetra:
I agree with both Lupinlore and SSSusan.  The scene with Dumbledore 
and the Dursley's, "extra nice" Molly, McGonagall offering to 
intervene for Neville by writing to Gran, even Neville mentioning 
that Gran was proud of him after the DOM all seemed like responses to 
various fandom rants. And I can't help but wonder if Remus/Tonks was 
thrown in as a counter to the Remus/Sirius shipping.  Of course, 
maybe Tonks was so depressed because Lupin kept asking her to morph 
into...no, no, not going there.  

After completing my first read of HMP, here are a couple of things 
that made me go hmmm....

The Vanishing Cabinet:  
Interesting concept - this portal between two places.  
It made me wonder if the Veil in the DOM is such a portal, between 
the place where the living dwell and where the dead dwell. If in 
fact, this room in the DOM was used to study death, the veil as a 
portal makes more sense than the veil as an execution device.  
Perhaps Sirius is not dead but trapped in the portal - like 
Montague.  Or better yet, back to my Sirius sacrificed himself 
theory, what if Sirius will be a go-between, gathering information 
from LV's victims to determine the remaining horcruxes?  

Snape is a Horcrux:
Conventional wisdom is that Harry, or his scar, is a horcrux.  My 
twisted mind wondered if Snape is a horcrux and he knows it.  
-He knows that he must die so that Harry can kill LV.  
It explains why he is such a nasty bastard, he knows that he is 
toast.  And he hates himself for being weak enough to let LV use him 
in this way.  
-It explains why he saves Harry's life.  
-It explains why he hates Harry.  Harry will be the hero.  Snape will 
die.  
-It explains why he keeps trying to teach Harry, even when Harry is 
throwing hexes at him at the end of HBP.  Because Snape wants LV 
dead.  He wants LV dead more than he wants to live himself.  And he 
knows Harry is the only one who can do it.  But he wants to make sure 
that when Harry makes his attempt on LV, that Harry will be 
successful.  Snape may be willing to die in order to bring down LV, 
but he wants to make darn sure that LV is good and dead at the end.  

Demetra (who cannot believe that she wrote another pro-Sirius post)