What saved Harry?

[ornadv]

No: HPFGUIDX 142912

>Jen: I read Riddle's thoughts upon learning Merope died as somewhat
>removed from any personal connection. Instead of perhaps
>internalizing his mom's death as being his fault, or externalizing
>it and blaming her, he chose instead to focus on the power of 
magic, 
>his obsession and downfall. His interpretation was that magic gives
>one the ultimate power to defeat even death, and therefore his mom
>could not be magical. Even if he was covering up for deep hurt (and
>by then I think his ability to feel such a thing was almost
>completely removed) it was buried quite far below any conscious
>thought.

Orna:
Agree. But exactly because it was buried so far below, he had no 
means of dealing with it, and found himself enacting the mother-love 
issue, instead of comfortably thinking it over in his saloon <g>. 

>Jen: Oh, how I love this idea! Voldemort *would* have learned the
>power of love magic if it happened this way, a crack in his core
>belief that dark magic is always more powerful than love magic. 

Orna:
I think he can have a crack, but fails to acknowledge it, and really 
learn from it. It just leaves some inward trace in him. When Harry 
talks to Riddle in CoS, Riddle gets the point, but immediately plays 
it down. That's essentially Voldermort – he is unable to learn from 
experience, in this domain. So it might be possible, or even 
probable, that he is shattered in a way, but fails to grasp the 
point. He just goes back to "more of the same" – meaning – more 
magic, more accurate hearing of the prophecy, perhaps more wand-
manipulation to prevent the priori incarnatem (I guess, that's why 
Ollivander was kidnapped, perhaps), etc. 

>Jen:
>And I take it you are saying there was a magical consequence for 
that >as well? Perhaps some weakness that will help bring him down 
later on?

Orna:
Haven't thought about it that far, but very happy to follow this 
point. Thank you. And having bursts of loose ideas:
 It makes room for some reasonable place, where Voldermort's 
vulnerability can be located in himself. Can imagine some moment, 
when confronted with himself being mortal, and something else which 
has to connect somehow to this mother-love-issue, he will be in some 
way vulnerable to death.  I don't see him aware or able to accept 
it, but I can see him less powerfully magic, or even unable to 
enforce his magic – like he got forgetful of this ancient magic, 
like when in GoF he dueled with Harry, he looked afraid when the 
connection was established. I'm sure JKR will have some colorful way 
of putting it.

In Gof, there is some trace revealing, IMO. When Voldermort rises, 
he tells Harry, that his father left his mother, when she told him 
she was a witch. And then he says "
He left her
before I was ever 
born, Potter, and she died
leaving me to be raised in a Muggle 
orphanage
but I vowed to find him
I revenged myself upon him, that 
fool who gave me his name
Tom Riddle "
That's a very emotional outburst, he's not devaluating his mother as 
a witch, but stressing the abandonment (his mother's, his), and 
nearly(?) saying that Riddle sr. was killed, not only because 
Voldermort is ashamed of his muggle father, but as a revenge, for 
leaving him to be raised in a muggle orphanage. You can focus on the 
muggle, but the orphanage is mentioned, his father's (and mother's) 
abandonment is said aloud. And more so – he mentions his name as Tom 
Riddle. (Quite a nice step towards mortality). No wonder, he gets 
uncomfortable, and adds "Listen to me, reliving family history
Why, 
I'm growing quite sentimental" and then he composes himself, and 
turns to his "real family", the DE, as if detaching himself from 
what he found himself saying. 

I think it can go with the crack in his core belief theory, and with 
magical consequences, beginning to show themselves. 


>KJ writes:
>This is an interesting suggestion and may have something to do with
>the ending along with the fact that he is now sharing blood with 
>Harry.
>This must have some kind of effect for Dumbledore to be pleased 
over >it.

Orna:
I looked it up in GoF, and was struck by Voldermorts hunger (can't 
think of a more appropriate word) to share Harry's mother. That's 
how it jumped to my eyes, now. "I wanted the blood 
for the 
lingering protection his mother once gave him, would then reside in 
my veins, too
"
As Dumbeldore said in the cave, it's very crude, and completely 
misunderstanding the ways love enters the veins, but magically 
speaking, Voldermort might "contaminate" his smooth power-
functioning in some way.


Feels like the more I look at it from this point of view, the less 
powerful and more human (evil, but human) Voldermort becomes as an 
entity. Perhaps the Weasly-twins got it right – fighting Voldermort 
with humor, might be also a way of mortalizing him.  

Orna