Re: CHAPTER DISCUSSION: DH - Chapter Twenty-One – The Tale of the Three Brothers

[Jayne]

No: HPFGUIDX 183024

-
Goddlefrood wrote


 Chapter Twenty-One – The Tale of the Three Brothers
`The Deathly Hallows?'
> 
> Take a sip of Gurdyroot tea with Xenophilius and dig out yon Tales 
of 
> Beedle the Bard Hermione; once you're sitting comfortably you may 
> begin.
> 
> Once upon a time, not so long ago, there lived three brothers. 
These 
> brothers were wizards who, on a certain occasion, were travelling 
> together when they reached a stream. Being wizards they conjured a 
> bridge. This upset Death who stopped them half way over the magical 
> bridge due to his being piqued at being denied three further 
victims 
> from the dangerous river they were traversing. Death offers the 
> brothers each a gift. The first chooses a wand that can not be 
> defeated in a duel. The second a stone to bring back the dead and 
the 
> third, being more ingenious than his brothers, chooses to take 
> Death's own invisibility cloak.
> 
> The first brother, who was inclined to be a bit of a braggart, went 
> to the nearest hostelry, boasted of his wand, killed another wizard 
> and was himself killed and lost his unbeatable wand.
> 
> The second brother went home and continued yearning for his lost 
> love. With the stone he had acquired he conjured her up, although 
> only in a diminished and non-tangible form. Her presence made 
matters 
> only worse and after a while he killed himself to save further 
> distress.
> 
> Thus, Death had achieved a measure of vengeance on the first two 
> brothers who had cheated him of themselves and their other brother 
at 
> an earlier time.
> 
> Now, the third brother used the cloak to hide himself from Death 
> until an advanced age, at which age he greeted Death warmly, but 
not 
> before passing on the cloak to his son.
> 
> Here ends the paraphrased and précised version of the Tale of the 
> Three Brothers.
> 
> The chapter has some way to go once the tale has been read, not 
> without minor interjections from both Harry and Ron. Xenophilius 
> expands on the tale, saying that the wand is the Elder Wand, the 
> stone is the Resurrection Stone and the cloak is actually Death's 
> Cloak of Invisibility. Together their symbols form the sign of the 
> Deathly Hallows.
> 
> There follows further discussion of the Hallows and those who seek 
> it, during the course of which Mr. Lovegood makes out he is waiting 
> for Luna to return from collecting Plimpies. Interestingly, once 
> Xenohilius describes the Cloak of Invisibility in detail, the trio 
> simultaneously realise that he could be describing Harry's own 
cloak. 
> Then, after a brief exchange about the Resurrection Stone the group 
> discusses the Elder Wand. Of the hallows, says Xenophilius, this is 
> the most notorious. He uses the word 'capture' when describing how 
> ownership of the wand can pass and narrates the known history.
> 
> Hermione throws the Peverell family into the discussion, a name 
that 
> causes momentary pause to Harry. She does this due to having seen 
the 
> symbol of the Hallows on the grave of Ignotus Peverell at Godric's 
> Hollow. Before leaving to ostensibly go downstairs to check on the 
> Freshwater Plimpy soup, Xenophilius states that the Peverell 
brothers 
> are integral to the legend of the Hallows, naming them as Antioch, 
> Cadmus and Ignotus. He retires leaving the trio alone.
> 
> HRH continue talking of the Hallows and whether they believe there 
> might be any truth in the legend; they are back on the same terms 
as 
> usual, with enmity between Ron and Hermione now forgotten, as noted 
> by the narrator. They each say which Hallow they would want at the 
> same moment, Ron naming the cloak, Hermione the wand and Harry the 
> stone. The wand, the wand, the wand – many different wands are 
> discussed and a theory propounded that perhaps all the powerful 
> legendary wands are in fact the Elder Wand. Harry briefly wonders 
if 
> his wand could be it, but puts the idea aside due to his wand being 
> of holly rather than elder wood.
> 
> At this point Harry explains why the stone would be his choice, he 
> would want to see his dear departed – `Sirius 
 Mad-Eye 
 
Dumbledore 
> 
 my parents 
' Hermione pooh poohs the idea that the stone could 
> really exist, suggesting that Beedle possibly adjusted the legend 
of 
> the Philosopher's Stone to fit into his tale. Briefly the cloak is 
> touched upon once more, with Ron stating that Harry's cloak fits 
the 
> bill of the description by Xenophilius closely, iow Harry's cloak 
is 
> exceptional.
> 
> Harry is gazing around while this part of the discussion proceeds 
and 
> he notices himself looking down from above. This him, he realises, 
is 
> a painting and upon this realisation he goes upstairs into Luna's 
> room. There, on the walls, are a series of murals showing 
> five `beautifully painted faces', those of himself, Ron, Hermione, 
> Ginny and Neville intertwined with a golden thread reading: 
`friends 
> 
 friends 
 friends 
' However, Harry notes that there is a 
distinct 
> unlived in feel to the room and that there is dust all over it at 
> which point they descend and Xenophilius reappears. Shortly after 
his 
> reappearance he breaks down and confesses that he is helping to 
trap 
> Harry because Luna has been taken. The trio are barred from leaving 
> the room and take no action against Xenophilius notwithstanding his 
> betrayal.
> 
> Two figures on broomsticks now make their appearance at the same 
> moment as Luna's father's stunning spell blasts the room containing 
> the trio and himself to smithereens. Mr. Lovegood is blasted out of 
> the room and away from the trio. The room is a mess, with rubble, 
> paper and other detritus everywhere. The printing press blocks the 
> door. Voices are heard below, the two interlopers being named as 
> Travers and Selwyn, who interrogate and taunt Xenophilius, 
> disbelieving him that Harry is in the house. One casts Hominem 
> Revelio, which soon shows that people are present. Mr. Lovegood, 
> after threats from the Death Eaters, begins to come upstairs, 
> severely hampered by the debris.
> 
> Exit HRH after first ridding themselves of whatever bits of rubble 
> they are encumbered by, Obliviating Xenophilius and burying the 
Death 
> Eaters in much of the remains of the Lovegood abode. Hermione 
> Disapparates all of them away, making sure the Death Eaters see her 
> and Harry, but not Ron before doing so.
> 
> Questions:
> 
> snip earlier questions>

 8. Were you relieved to find normal relations amongst the trio 
> restored?
> 
Yes. I always believed the friendship was too strong for them to fall 
out for good


> 9. Are the trio's choices of which Hallow they would like to have 
> representative of their personalities?

Not sure about that

> 
> 10. Did you, as I did, find the order in which Harry named his dear 
> departed notable?

> Yes. I was surprised that he put Sirius before his parents, but not 
that he put DD before them



> 11. By this stage, the trio having being at the Lovegood house for 
> some time, were you expecting Xenophilius to betray the trio? Did 
you 
> feel some sympathy with Xenophilius and his reasons for being a 
> Quisling or not given the status of the WW at the time?
> 
No. i was really surprised to learn of the trap, and I had no 
sympathy with him. I felt he could have told them at the beginning 
and worked something out for them to get away without harm to himself 
and Luna


> 12. Was it just the stunning spell that blasted the room apart or 
was 
> something else also involved?> 

Not sure

> 13. Were you able to make the link between Selwyn and Umbridge at 
the 
> time or did it not occur until later, or perhaps not until you read 
> this question?
> 

What Link ?

> 14. What is Deprimo, had it been previously heard of, and was its 
use 
> necessary?
> 
Don't know

> 15. Any further questions arising.

Not from this chapter
> 
>Jayne
Replying for a change