duelling/flooding/RAB/Snape killing/Snape killing/Prophecy!Neville

[Catlady (Rita Prince Winston)]

No: HPFGUIDX 163774

Pippin wrote in
<http://groups.yahoo.com/group/HPforGrownups/message/163485>:

<< Harry's strength is not as a duellist. (SNIP) As Snape demonstrated
at the end of HBP, without occlumency, one can only be a mediocre
duellist. >>

I disagree with the syllogism (altho' not with the conclusion that
Harry cannot duel LV). It seems to me that Legilimency is a rare skill
(we've met 4 Legilimenses = DD, LV, Lupin, Snape - because this story
has a concentration of remarkable people, like Animagi all over the
place). I think it is so rare that a person could rise to at least a
lower level Duelling Champion without having encountered a
Legilimentic opponent.

Pippin wrote in
<http://groups.yahoo.com/group/HPforGrownups/message/163544>: 

<< I have to wonder if Dumbledore had a similar rationale for leaving
Harry to be overwhelmed by his feelings after Cedric's death. Harry
has received so little comfort in his life that to have it given to
him after Cedric's death might have set up an undesirable association.
As it was, Harry went through a miserable six weeks at the Dursleys,
but he does seem to have become somewhat desensitized to survivor
guilt, enough so that he could deal with the loss of Sirius without
plummeting into the severe depression he experienced after losing
Cedric. >>

That was a risky strategy. He risked losing his unique weapon, Harry,
because even the strongest person can be destroyed by PTSD in some
circumstances. 

A much bigger risk is apparent to one who cares more about Harry the
person than Harry the weapon: that what Harry learned was not
desensitivation but repression, pushing all the horror and grief and
whatever down below his consciousness, where it can fester, and
someday burst out, destroying his peaceful future (if he lived to have
a peaceful future). 

(The repression-festering theory is widely but not universally
accepted. I vaguely recall a study of some elderly WWII veterans who
had gone through horrors in the war, which found that, among them,
former high-school athletes who used the 'put it out of your mind'
strategy had the least mental health problems in the rest of their
lives. It could be argued that DD replied on this study in deciding
how to deal with Harry (who is, after all, a Quidditch player);
however, I don't think DD attended to any studies or theories relating
to Harry's future mental health if he survives.)

Colebiancardi summarized Chapter 28 in
<http://groups.yahoo.com/group/HPforGrownups/message/163570> and asked:

<< if RAB is not Regulus Black, who is it? >>

I used to theorize that RAB is an uncanonical Ronald Arthur Bilius
Weasley, who had three sons, one named Arthur (our Arthur Weasley),
one named Bilius (Ron's Uncle Bilius, who saw a Grim and died), and
one named Ronald. Evidence: JKR's website said our Arthur Weasley is
one of three brothers, and that Ron's middle name is Bilius. Also, I
believe that Bill Weasley is named Bilius after his late uncle. 

Ceridwen wrote in
<http://groups.yahoo.com/group/HPforGrownups/message/163603>:

<< No matter which Alphabet!Snape is imagined, killing is not
something routine for him. Bellatrix said he got out of doing things
with the Death Eaters, so it's possible that this was his first
killing. >>

Considering that DD counted on Draco not being able to bring himself
quickly to kill a human because "Killing is not nearly as easy as the
innocent believe," I don't think he should make a plan that depends on
Snape quickly committing his first murder while getting the DEs out of
Hogwarts without giving them suspicions. That is, I think Snape must
have murdered before, and carries the guilt around with him.

Chancie wrote in
<http://groups.yahoo.com/group/HPforGrownups/message/163643>:

<< if Snape's true goal was to kill Dumbledore, wouldn't that have
gone against the curse? He would have gotten what he wanted-that's not
a curse that's a blessing! >>

If Snape's true goal had been to kill Dumbledore in some discreet way
like a poison that seemed as if he had died in his sleep, then it
would not be a blessing for him to kill Dumbledore in front of
witnesses, especially Harry, who will tell everyone, so that Snape is
now number 2 on the Wizarding Ten Most Wanted list (LV is number 1).

Geoff wrote in
<http://groups.yahoo.com/group/HPforGrownups/message/163741>:

<< Would Alice have had the same love for Neville as Lily had for
Harry which would have enabled her to stand in the way and be killed
to save Neville and would he now have the scar? >>

I think JKR said somewhere that of course Alice would have given her
life to protect her baby, but it's not enough to give your life, you
also have to have been given a choice about it, as in LV telling Lily
to stand aside. [see Carol's
<http://groups.yahoo.com/group/HPforGrownups/message/163759> for
related quotes]