Scar connection between Harry and Voldemort and the "gleam of triumph"

[Peggy Wilkins]

No: HPFGUIDX 151883

I would like to continue on from one of my earlier posts, because
after further thinking on it, I think it goes a long way toward
explaining Dumbledore's "gleam of triumph".

The original message is in the "Voldemort as a Ghost?" thread, here:

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/HPforGrownups/message/151547

To begin (quoting my own message):

> Voldemort fires an Avada Kedavra at young Harry, but it cannot kill
> Harry because of Lily's sacrifice and rebounds on Voldemort instead;
> however, it can't kill Voldemort either, because of his Horcruxes.
>
> This is what makes Harry and Voldemort equals as stated in the
> prophecy: Voldemort can't kill Harry because of Lily's protection, and
> Harry can't kill Voldemort because of his Horcruxes.  This forms a
> kind of symmetry that is unique between them (AK will kill anyone
> else, but they can't use it to kill each other--this makes them exact
> equals, no one else can equal them in this regard).  The mark of this
> symmetry ("mark him as his equal") is Harry's scar.
>
> What happened to the failed Avada Kedavra, did it simply dissipate?  I
> don't think so.  I think that since the Avada Kedavra was unable to
> complete its job, it (or rather, the energy of it) has been hanging
> around, held between Harry and Voldemort and making an active
> connection between them.  Both Harry and Voldemort can travel along
> this connection: this is what enables Harry to feel Voldemort's
> emotions and be Voldemort in his dreams, and it is what enables
> Voldemort to plant ideas in Harry and see out of his eyes.  It gives
> Harry his special knowledge and his connection to the Heir of
> Slytherin that enables him to open the Chamber of Secrets.

To summarize, the important point here is that the failed Avada
Kedavra curse forms a connection between Harry and Voldemort; the scar
is its mark; it didn't go away, it is still active; and it is energy
that is held between Harry and Voldemort.

Here is some evidence, from PS/SS, that the connection is active:

>>>> Begin quote, SS/PS, pp.294-295, US paperback:
... Harry felt Quirrell's hand close on his wrist.  At once, a
needle-sharp pain seared accross Harry's scar; his head felt as though
it was about to split in two; he yelled, struggling with all his
might, and to his surprise, Quirrell let go of him.  The pain in his
head lessened--he looked around wildly to see where Quirrell had gone,
and saw him hunched in pain, looking at his fingers--they were
blistering before his eyes.
  "Seize him!  SEIZE HIM!" shrieked Voldemort again, and Quirrell
lunged, knocking Harry clean off his feet, landing on top of him, both
hands around Harry's neck--Harry's scar was almost blinding him with
pain, yet he could see Quirrell howling in agony.
  "Master, I cannot hold him--my hands--my hands"
  And Quirrell, though pinning Harry to the ground with his knees, let
go of his neck and stared, bewildered, at his own palms--Harry could
see they looked burned, raw, red, and shiny.
  "Then kill him, fool, and be done!" screeched Voldemort.
  Quirrell raised his hand to perform a deadly curse, but Harry, by
instinct, reached up and grabbed Quirrell's face--
  "AAAARGH!"
  Quirrell rolled off him, his face blistering, too, and then Harry
knew: Quirrell couldn't touch his bare skin, not without suffering
terrible pain--his only chance was to keep hold of Quirrell, keep him
in enough pain to stop him from doing a curse.
  Harry jumped to his feet, caught Quirrell by the arm, and hung on as
tight as he could.  Quirrell screamed and tried to throw Harry
off--the pain in Harry's head was building--he couldn't see--he could
only hear Quirrell's terrible shrieks and Voldemort's yells of, "KILL
HIM!  KILL HIM!" and other voices, maybe in Harry's own head, crying,
"Harry! Harry!".
  He felt Quirrell's arm wrenched from his grasp, knew all was lost,
and fell into blackness, down... down... down...
>>>> End quote

I interpret this pain Harry feels in his scar when he touches
Quirrell, and the way it destroys Voldemort-bound-Quirrell's body, as
direct evidence that the energy that is held between Voldemort and
Harry is still active and flowing between them.  It flows from Harry's
touch to Voldemort, for as long as Harry can hold on to him.

It is interesting that the original, backfiring Avada Kedavra
destroyed Voldemort's original body.  It appears that the same
situation still obtains: when Harry touches Quirrell/Voldemort in
PS/SS, his body is destroyed.  It would seem that if Voldemort can
make a new body (as he had partially done in his merger with
Quirrell), Harry can destroy it simply by touching him: the physical
contact makes the curse energy flow.

This situation changes in Goblet of Fire, when Voldemort uses Harry's
blood to make his new body.  Here is the quote:

>>>> Begin quote, GOF, p.696, US paperback:
  "... [Voldemort] said the protection my--my mother left in me--he'd
have it too.  And he was right--he could touch me without hurting
himself, he touched my face."
  For a fleeting instant, Harry thought he saw a gleam of something
like triumph in Dumbledore's eyes.  But the next second, he was sure
he had imagined it, for when Dumbledore had returned to his seat
behind the desk, he looked as old and weary as Harry had ever seen
him.
  "Very well," he said, sitting down again.  "Voldemort has overcome
that particular barrier.  Harry, continue, please."
>>> End quote

This seems to be a clear indication that Dumbledore saw significance
in this new state of affairs.  So what is he seeing?  I think a couple
of things:

1. He sees that Voldemort understands what happened to him at Godric's
Hollow, and that Voldemort's understanding matches his [Dumbledore's]
understanding.  This is confirmation that the understanding is
correct.

2. It directly confirms the nature of the connection between Harry and
Voldemort: the failed killing curse is hanging around and holds
energy.  The energy can no longer destroy Voldemort's body through
Harry's touch because it "recognizes" Voldemort's new body as if it
were Harry's.

I think point 2 is very important.  Voldemort altered his being by
making all his Horcruxes, he altered it enough that not only did the
killing curse not kill him, but it destroyed his body.  This new body
which has part of Harry's being in it has changed the balance.  I
would now predict that since the curse can no longer destroy
Voldemort's body, it is closer to being able to kill him like a normal
AK: it won't destroy his body.  (Normally the AK does not harm the
body.)  All that is stopping it now is Voldemort's Horcruxes.

Voldemort thinks that having Harry's blood protection is enough, but
it isn't.  If he loses his Horcruxes, he loses all: he will die.  He
doesn't know that Harry is Horcrux hunting.

Continuing with my old post:
> The connection is active and holds energy.  Its emblem is Harry's
> lightning bolt scar.  This is very interesting because a lightning
> bolt is a sign of power (as in, High Voltage in the context of
> electricity).  So my proposition is this: when Voldemort's final
> Horcrux is destroyed, Harry and Voldemort will cease being equals
> because Voldemort will again be mortal.  This will break the symmetry
> between them, and the energy that has been held between them all these
> years from the failed Avada Kedavra will then be able to complete its
> job: it will rebound on Voldemort, from Harry.  If Harry is physically
> near Voldemort when this happens (either must die at the hand of the
> other), it will probably kill Voldemort.

And this time it will leave his body behind.

I can only guess that this process will be extremely difficult and
painful for Harry, judging from the pain he experienced when the
energy flowed in PS/SS.  It could possibly kill him (again, either
must die at the hand of the other).  How will he overcome this risk?

--
Peggy Wilkins
enlil65 at gmail.com