A fate worse than death

[Geoff Bannister]

No: HPFGUIDX 152859

--- In HPforGrownups at yahoogroups.com, "Randy" <estesrandy at ...> wrote:

Randy:
<snipped>
> Sloane cannot die, but cannot move to escape.
 
> I immediately thought of Dumbledore's statement that "there are 
> worse things than death".  I must confess that trapping Voldemort 
> for all eternity in an undead state with no horcruxes and no helpers 
> to find him would prevent Harry from having to actually kill 
> Voldemort.  I think this may be a possible ending for Book Seven.  A 
> dead Voldemort forces Harry to be considered a murderer, but an 
> eternally trapped Voldy is much more effective.  Harry will not have 
> become a trained assassin as his legacy from Hogwarts.
> 
> What do you think?

Geoff:
I do not know the programme to which Randy has referred to, but 
while I was reading this post, another example crossed my mind. And 
it's our good friend Tolkien again.

If you are only famliar with LOTR and not the earlier events in 
Middle-Earth, let me just outline that when Ilúvatar created Middle-Earth 
the greatest of the angelic beings (Ainur) was Melkor (He who arises in 
might). He rebelled and came to Middle-Earth to try to make it his 
domain and became Morgoth (The black enemy), who took Sauron to 
be his greatest lieutenant.

At the end of the first age, the Valar came to the assistance of the 
peoples of Middle-Earth and the gerat fortress of Thangorodrim was 
captured:

"There Morgoth stooad at last at bay and yet unvaliant. He fled into 
the deepest of his mines and sued for peace and pardon; but his feet 
were hewn from under him and he was hurled upon his face. There he 
was bound with the chain Angainor which he had worn aforetime and 
his iron crown they beat into a collar for his neck and his head was 
bowed upon his knees..." 
(Silmarillion "The Voyage of Eärendil")

...and when things had been sorted out after the battle...

"But Morgoth himself the Valar thrust through the Door of Night 
beyond the Walls of the World, into the Timeless Void; and a guard is 
set for ever on those walls and Eärendil keeps watch upon the r
amparts of the sky."
(ibid.)

To me, this would seem to be something worse than death,

On the subject of the prophecy - yet again!

I do not think that one of the two dying is absolutely 
necessary because the prophecy - like the Delphic utterances - is vague.

The phrase over which so much bandwidth has been used in the last 
couple of years or so says...
"...and either must die at the hand of the other for neither can live while
the other survives..."

but...

What are Voldemort and Harry both doing at the moment and have been 
since Sybill said her piece some fifteen years before?

Both are alive and surviving.

So. What will cause the prophecy to become true? At the moment it hasn't 
been fuflilled and its requirements are being shown to be wrong day by day. 
Is it referring to some unspecified future date?

Something akin to Morgoth's fate overtaking Voldemort would get Harry off 
the hook of becoming a murderer. Short of this, there must be fates worse 
than death which could rise up to frighten Voldemort - a Dementor's kiss
maybe? Or would there be spells a strong as those surrounding Morgoth 
to keep Tom well and truly under wraps for good?