The Bloody Baron

[Hagrid]

No: HPFGUIDX 153182

--- In HPforGrownups at yahoogroups.com, "jelly92784" <jelly92784 at ...> 
wrote:
>
> Kim wrote:
> The ghosts still fascinate me, especially the Bloody Baron.  
Doesn't 
> he look a bit like Snape?  Of course, if they're related that 
blows 
> my theory that he's Slytherin since Snape wasn't the heir.  ...
> Scholastic US Paperback, page 124:
> Harry looked over at the Sytherin table and saw a horrible ghost 
> sitting there, with blank staring eyes, a gaunt face, and robes 
> stained with silver blood.  
> 
> Janelle:
> I read this and my eye immediately stuck on the word "gaunt", as 
> in "The House of Gaunt".  Any possibility that JKR is giving us a 
> clue and that the bloody baron has some relation here?  This fits 
> with Kim's idea about the possibility of the Baron being Salazar 
> Slytherin himself as the Slytherin family became the Gaunt 
family.  
> 
> An interesting side note, I decided to look up the word gaunt and 
> one of the definitions was "Bleak and desolate; barren", drawing 
> another connection to the Bloody Baron.
>
Aussie
 
I agree with the "gaunt" clue, but think the Baron is more 
emotionally connected with Salazar - his Father. The BOLLD is from 
muggle attacks which turned Salazar so resentful against muggles. 

The Baron was also frequenting the Astrology Tower in HBP. The same 
place predicted to be "Lightening struck" by Trelawney's Tarot cards 
and finally DDs last stand where the Death Head hovered above. The 
Bloody Baron, however, was there before all this. Nearly Headless 
Nick commented on it to Harry when he mistook Harry asking for where 
DD was.

That made me suspect the Bloody Baron a bit more on my 2nd read.

**Canon backing for this - (COS 9) They built this castle together, 
far from prying Muggle eyes, for it was an age when magic was feared 
by common people, and witches and wizards suffered much 
persecution. ... Slytherin wished to be more selective about the 
students admitted to Hogwarts. He believed that magical learning 
should be kept within all-magic families. He disliked taking 
students of Muggle parentage, believing them to be untrustworthy. 
Slytherin wished to be more selective about the students admitted to 
Hogwarts. He believed that magical learning should be kept within 
all-magic families. He disliked taking students of Muggle parentage, 
believing them to be untrustworthy. **