JKR's FAQ poll -- Neville's potential as prophecy boy (spoilers for FAQ)

[justcarol67]

No: HPFGUIDX 129049

Nora wrote:
> > This seems to kill the Lily was special/Lily did something special
and specific Charms wise to defend Harry idea. It also kills the idea
that only *maternal* love could do it, as Frank could have sacrificed
himself as well. <snip>
> 
GEO responded: 
> However it doesn't kill the theories of why Voldemort didn't kill
Lily considering that he could have killed her and then went for Harry
and saved himself quite a bit of trouble in comparison to what
actually happened where he told her to step aside and tried to kill
Harry first. Still that does set us back to square one apparently.


Carol notes:
Voldemort would certainly have killed Lily if she had been holding a
wand or seemed in any way to pose a threat. Instead she was merely a
hindrance. He had no reason to kill her, whereas he had very good
reason to kill James--and even more reason, so he thought, to kill his
real target, Harry. So I don't think we're back at square one in that
regard.

But the mechanism of the Ancient Magic is still, IMO, problematic. For
one thing, just any self-sacrifice can't protect against an AK or
Harry would not be the only known survivor. While, as Nora says, the
protective charm theory *seems* to have been destroyed (there is still
canonical evidence for it, however), her self-sacrifice seems to have
been a deliberate act, not a mere coincidence or lucky accident (lucky
for Harry and the WW, obviously not for Lily). Even if she didn't
perform a Charm, I think she knew exactly what she was doing and why:
she was aware of the Ancient Magic and knew that it could be achieved
only if she was a willing victim, not fighting for her own life or
even for Harry's. 

For Frank or Alice to have saved Neville in a similar fashion
(assuming that Voldemort went after Neville first as JKR postulates in
her FAQ), they would have had to know that same secret. I think that,
being aurors, they would have instinctively chosen to fight, and died
fighting (as James did) without saving their child. Lily didn't have
to die in *Voldemort's* view (though he might well have killed her for
good measure after he had murdered Harry), but she did have to die in
her own view. 

To return to GEO's point, I don't think Voldemort had any ulterior
motive in originally sparing her (she's not a relative or the promised
bride of Wormtail and he certainly wasn't showing her mercy or
kindness). He just had no reason to kill her and every reason (so he
thought) to kill Harry. I repeat, if she'd been armed with a wand, he
would have considered her dangerous and fought with her just as he did
with James. Without a wand, she was only a "silly girl" who happened
to be in his way. He's constantly underestimating Harry. He did the
same with Lily.

Carol, still hoping there's a Charm associated with Harry's protection
but inclined to doubt it now