Harrycrux again (was: Why can't Harry?)

[nkafkafi]

No: HPFGUIDX 142438

> Elfundeb:
> >  I'm not going to give chapter and verse here on how this connection
> > supports the Harrycrux theory, because I'm sure it was done over 
> the summer
> > while I was away, but will do so if asked.
> 
> Potioncat:
> Please do.
> To be honest, I skimmed over the Harrycrux threads and the missing 
> horcrux threads. So I'd like to see a good post about the ideas. You 
> know, a couple of scolls of parchment...by Monday morning? :-)
>

Neri:
Don't look at me, I ain't volunteering <g>. But I thought I'll make
Debbie's homework easier by organizing my own thought in this matter,
which are currently hopelessly scattered across many posts, and add a
few new ideas (or new to me, at any rate).

OK, so why Harrycrux?

1. Thematic reason: the series starts with Lily defeating Voldemort
with the ultimate sacrifice. The end of the series should top that,
and it should be the hero who vanquishes Voldy himself. Ergo, the hero
is likely to sacrifice himself. As Debbie wrote, this doesn't
necessarily mean that Harry must be dead by the end of the series. JKR
may be planning on a way to save him (see my idea below) but before
that he must be ready for the ultimate sacrifice himself.

2. Another thematic reason: since the very first book (the sorting
scene) JKR has been playing the theme of the similarity between Harry
and Voldy, with only their different choices to make them opposites.
Sharing a soul would be the logical way of bringing this theme to its
natural culmination. 

3. The suspense factor: JKR hints all the time that she might kill
Harry. Again, this doesn't necessarily mean that she will, but that
she wants us to be very unsure what's going to happen when Harry
finally reaches the moment of truth. We are all sure that Voldy *will*
be vanquished by the end of the series, but we must not be sure Harry
will come out of it alive. We see this well-calculated ambivalence
also in the prophecy words "either must die by the hand of the other". 

4. Plot reason: According to Dumbledore in CoS, Voldy "transferred
some of his powers" to Harry" when he failed to kill him. This was an
extremely unlikely occurrence that, as Valky mentioned, must be
explained by the end of the series. Until now we weren't given any
possible mechanism for transferring magical powers, neither by a
failed AK nor by any other means, so JKR can supply this mechanism
only in Book 7, and this would be slightly deus-ex-machina. It
wouldn't be good mystery writing. OTOH, JKR did supply us with a
mechanism for *soul* transfer, and this mechanism seems to include the
powers in the bargain (Diary!Riddle can speak Parseltongue). This
*would* be good mystery writing.

5. Another plot reason: Same as 4, but with the mind link. This also
happened as if by miracle at Godric's Hollow, and no mechanism was
ever supplied in the series for such a mind link to be created. In
addition, until now JKR has kept the mind link completely separated
from the powers transfer, and yet it defies logic that *two* such
unexplained miracles would happen independently at GH. We probably
need one reason to explain both the mind link and the power transfer.
Again, sharing souls would do that.

6. Canon clue: when Harry first sees the name T.M. Riddle in the
diary, we are told: 

********************************************************
CoS, Ch. 13, pp. 233-234
Harry couldn't explain, even to himself, why he didn't just throw
Riddle's diary away. The fact was that even though he knew the diary
was blank, he kept absentmindedly picking it up and turning the pages,
as though it were a story he wanted to finish. And while Harry was
sure he had never heard the name T. M. Riddle before, it still seemed
to mean something to him, almost as though Riddle was a friend he'd
had when he was very small, and had half-forgotten.
********************************************************

Big clue there, IMO, and there's also the fact that Harry destroys the
diary by stabbing it with the basilisk fang "without thinking, without
considering, as though he had meant to do it all along" (ibid, Ch. 17,
p. 322). It seems that a part of Harry knows about T.M. Riddle and
destroying Hxs much than it should. 

7. Speculation developing thematic point 2: many list members
(including myself) wondered in the past why Dumbledore could never be
bothered with teaching Harry any useful skill (the only exception for
that were the occlumency lessons, which were given by Snape, not
Dumbledore himself, and were a "fiasco"). This seems unbelievable to
me. If you were the greatest wizard in the world, and you had in your
hands the boy who is the only one who can vanquish the Dark Lord,
wouldn't you personally make sure to teach him any skill that might
prove important? Even Ron and Hermione wonder in HBP what advanced
magic will Dumbledore teach Harry in those "private lessons", but
Dumbledore never taught Harry any magic. Was this because Dumbledore
took the prophecy words "mark him as his *equal*" seriously? Perhaps
Dumbledore suspected that Harry already has all of Voldemort's powers.
Dumbledore wasn't afraid that Harry will find himself powerless and
weaponless against Voldemort. On the contrary – he was afraid Harry
has *too much* power, and not only the powers, but the soul to use
them. As any LotR fan knows well, the greatest danger in vanquishing
Dark Lords is becoming a Dark Lord yourself.

8. Which brings us to the talk at the end of OotP. "Harry, suffering
like this proves that you are still a man! This pain is part of being
human," says Dumbledore. Why would Dumbledore seek a proof that Harry
is still human? Was Harry in danger of turning into something inhuman?

9. Perhaps Dumbledore was suspecting that there's a war inside Harry.
If the Voldy soul piece gets the upper hand – Game Over, You Loose.
But if, as Valky (I think) suggested, Voldy's soul part is "redeemed"
by being assimilated into Harry's soul, it might lose its connection
with its original master, and thus stop being a functioning Hx. Which
brings me to the disturbing words JKR chose in HBP to describe Harry's
new crush on Ginny: 

********************************************************
HBP, Ch. 14, p. 286 (US)
It was as though something large and scaly erupted into life in
Harry's stomach, clawing at his insides: Hot blood seemed to flood his
brain, so that all thought was extinguished, replaced by a savage urge
to jinx Dean into a jelly. Wrestling with this sudden madness, he
heard Ron's voice as though from a great distance away. 
********************************************************

In case we miss the "something large and scaly", JKR makes sure to
call it a "monster" several lines later:

********************************************************
Ibid, p. 287:
Dean was looking embarrassed. He gave Harry a shifty grin that Harry
did not return, as the newborn monster inside him was roaring for
Dean's instant dismissal from the team.
********************************************************


and again, just in case you still haven't got it:

********************************************************
Ibid:
"He doesn't mean anything, Ginny —" said Harry automatically, though
the monster was roaring its approval of Ron's word.
********************************************************

This "monster" is not only jealous of Dean, it also likes Ginny. And
it can purr too, which is good news, and yet it's still a "monster": 

********************************************************
Ibid, p. 289:
But unbidden into his mind came an image of that same deserted
corridor with himself kissing Ginny instead... The monster in his
chest purred...
********************************************************

When Harry's chances with Ginny improve, this "monster" is downgraded
to a "creature":

********************************************************
HBP, Ch.20, p. 423 (US):
Hermione even escorted them down to breakfast, bringing with her the
news that Ginny had argued with Dean. The drowsing creature in Harry's
chest suddenly raised its head, sniffing the air hopefully.
********************************************************

Which would have been more reassuring if "sniffing the air" didn't
remind me of that part in OotP when Harry rides Nagini's mind into the
DoM and plans his attack on Arthur:

********************************************************
OotP, Ch. 21, p.462 (US):
Harry put out his tongue... he tasted the man's scent on the air...
*******************************************************

And back to HBP, here's the "creature" within Harry again:

********************************************************
HBP, Ch.24, p. 534 (US):
The creature in his chest roaring in triumph, he grinned down at Ginny
and gestured wordlessly out of the portrait hole. A long walk in the
grounds seemed indicated, during which — if they had time — they might
discuss the match.
********************************************************

No, the creature word isn't reassuring at all. It was also used
several times when Voldemort tried to possess Harry in the MoM. For
example:

********************************************************
OotP, Ch. 36, pp.815-816 (US):
He was locked in the coils of a creature with red eyes, so tightly
bound that Harry did not know where his body ended and the creature
begun. They were fused together, bound by pain, and there was no escape. 
********************************************************

This choice of words to describe Harry's crush is slightly disturbing,
especially remembering Diary!Tom's history with Ginny. And yet,
wouldn't it be appropriate if it's love that will redeem Voldemort's
soul part?

10. Unintentional Hx: I agree that it wouldn't be very logical for
Voldy to make Harry a Hx and immediately trying to kill him. As a
whole, it appears Voldy isn't aware at all that Harry is his Hx. But I
see a very good scenario for unintentional Hx: when he went to GH,
Voldy was planning to use Harry's murder to rip his soul, and turn
*Lily* into his Hx. This is why he tried to spare her, which JKR
recently confirmed. So maybe Voldy actually conducted the whole Dark
Hx spell just before raiding the Potter's house, with only the murder
and the living Hx itself still required. Then Lily proved too
difficult to control and he AKed her, deciding he'd better use Nagini
instead. His soul was thus nicely ripped when the rebounded curse hit
him, and when he lost his body the extra soul part found its way
through the open gash on the baby's forehead. This scenario would
explain about half a dozen big mysteries in one swoop.

11. The Gryffindor Hx: This is one of the mysteries the scenario above
would solve. Dumbledore thought that Voldemort would like to "complete
the set" (as Slughorn would put it) of the Four Founders Hxs, and yet
Dumbledore was very sure that the only known Gryffindor relic – his
sword – is safe. So if Voldy didn't manage to find a Gryffindor relic,
maybe he settled on a Gryffindor student – namely Lily - instead? 

12. Some people argued against the above scenario that Lily would be
much too dangerous and unreliable a Hx for Voldy. But we already
hypothesize (or at least Dumbledore did) that Voldy wanted a living
Hx, and he probably imagined Lily Imperio'ed and well controlled by
his soul part, the way Ginny was controlled by the Diary.
Theoretically a Dark wizard should have a lot of control over his
living Hx. At least, Dumbledore used Voldy's control over Nagini to
support his theory that she is a Hx, so Voldy was probably expecting
to have complete control over Hx!Lily. When he realized that she won't
be easy to control, however, he did change his mind on the spot and
killed her.

13. The seventh Hx: like zgirnius I've been suspecting for some time
that Harry was originally correct: there are indeed *seven* Hxs and
*eight* soul peaces total. Voldy believed the soul part that was
ripped at GH was lost forever, and his 7Hxs project thus left
unfinished. In the graveyard he says he decided to settle on his old
body before "courting immortality again". Maybe courting immortality
again included making Nagini a living Hx. Now he is perhaps weaker
because he divided his soul once too many, and Eight isn't nearly
magical a number as Seven (well, unless you are Chinese).  

14. As Jen wrote, the most problematic part of Unintentional Harrycrux
is what Dumbledore knew and why didn't he tell Harry about all this.
But there are many possible explanations. Most of the Hxs story was
after all a one big theory of Dumbledore. While *we* have JKR's word
that "Dumbledore's guesses are never far off the mark", perhaps he
wasn't that sure of himself. Maybe he felt he should not kill Harry's
hopes to finish his quest alive because of a mere speculation. Perhaps
he thought Harry's chances to assimilate Voldy's soul piece are better
if he doesn't know about it. Perhaps he meant to tell Harry all along
but was killed before he had time to do that. Perhaps he left some
record for Harry in case he'd die, which means Aberforth is likely to
visit Harry in the beginning of Book 7 with a sealed letter or a
swirling memory inside a small bottle. I think this doesn't constitute
a big problem for the theory.


Now, I believe I've contributed my share towards a Hx!Harry
three-parts symposium <g>. I'll leave the job of cataloging all the
different theories to somebody else.

Neri