I would have kept the Elder Wand

[nirupama76]

No: HPFGUIDX 176076

Niru wrote:
> > He is using his own holly and phoenix feather wand.
> > Harry's plan to break the power of the Elder Wand has a
> > much higher probability of success, his career as an auror
> > notwithstanding. He cannot be defeated whilst using the Elder
> > Wand because he does not use and never intends to. Furthermore
> > he doesn't use Draco's hawthorn wand either. Harry's own holly
> > and phoenix feather wand was never involved in duels with the
> > Elder Wand. Even if he is defeated whilst weilding it, I don't
> > think it will affect the Elder Wand's allegiance. The power of
> > the Elder Wand is as good as broken.

 
Dana wrote:

> I don't think this is a correct observation. Draco was not using 
the 
> Elder Wand either when Harry defeated him. Still Harry became its 
> rightful owner so I think Harry using his own wand does not 
eradicates 
> the risk of being defeated and the Elder wand changing ownership. 
> The only thing is that the one defeating Harry will not directly 
get 
> access to the Elder Wand or know about it but he would 
nevertheless be 
> its rightful owner and its power would then not be lost with 
Harry's 
> death (neither natural or otherwise). Well I think we can probably 
> conclude that you discovered another major plothole or at least 
the 
> author getting confused by her own imagination LOL.
> 
> JMHO

Niru again:

It is quite possible that it is plothole. And I can really see how 
one can get tied up in knots by this issue. But please bear with me 
while I explain my basic understanding of wandlore. This is one of 
my top 3 favourite issues to mull over post-DH. :-)

Draco used the hawthorn wand to disarm Dumbledore and thereby 
unknowingly won the allegiance of the Elder Wand. Or in other words, 
Draco's hawthorn wand mastered the Elder Wand and Draco mastered it 
as a result of being the master of the hawthorn wand.

Harry mastered Draco's hawthorn by snatching it from him physically. 
Nevertheless he took the hawthorn wand by force and against Draco's 
wishes. 

On the night of Dumbledore's death, the Elder Wand granted its 
allegiance to the wizard who was the master of the hawthorn wand. 
This wizard is now Harry. Harry probably already knew or was fairly 
certain that the Elder Wand would answer to him when he was 
questioning Ollivander in 'The Wandmaker' chapter. 

Anyway... back to the matter on hand which is Harry's plan to break 
the power of the Elder Wand.

Harry isn't using either the Elder wand or the hawthorn wand. The 
fact that he gave up using BOTH wands and went back to his own is 
probably the most important thing. 

Dumbledore is defeated while using the Elder Wand.
Draco is defeated while using the wand that defeated the Elder Wand.
Assume that Harry is defeated while using the holly-and-phoenix-
feather wand. How would the Elder Wand know? It never had any 
duels/conflicts with the holly wand. It probably won't see any 
reason to change allegiances.