The Effect of the Prophecy

[Charmed Force]

No: HPFGUIDX 169163

I will fully admit that I am definitely a skimmer, and I tend to be
very selfish and insensitive and completely incapable of understanding
why people focus so much on one point, so I guess I need help figuring
this out.

What's the big deal with the second half of the Prophecy? I mean,
really, we already knew it was kill or be killed.



The first part:
"The one with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord approaches
 born to
those who have thrice defied him, born as the seventh month dies
and
the Dark Lord shall mark him as his equal, but he will have power the
Dark Lord knows not
"


The second part:
"and either must die at the hand of the other for neither can live
while the other survives
the one with the power to vanquish the Dark
Lord will be born as the seventh month dies
"




Once Voldemort marked Harry as his equal, I assumed one would have to
kill the other. I never thought that it could be anyone else. Not just
because Harry is the main character and Voldemort attempts to kill him
almost every year, but because Voldemort is supposedly one of the most
powerful wizards out there and is only afraid of Dumbledore, yet he
marked Harry as his EQUAL. That screams out to me that only Harry or
Dumbledore would have the power to defeat Voldemort, and as Dumbledore
had yet to do it and was openly pushing Harry toward that task, I
assumed that meant Harry is the only one who can defeat Voldemort.

>From posts I've read here and at other boards and lists, it seems that
people are caught up in that one part of the Prophecy that was hidden
from Harry until the end of OotP. Was there something I missed or am
currently missing that would make that last bit so critical and important?


Charmed Force