Dumbledore

[Joey Smiley]

No: HPFGUIDX 190879

Nikkalmati:
[snip]
> He also was unable to resist the Resurection Stone.  Recall that he had the Elder Wand (which he used in the MOM against LV), he knew where the Invisibility Cloak was, and with the Stone, he would have all 3 Hallows in his grasp.  Was that the temptation, not just to see Arianna, but to have the power to live forever?  Was that why he could not trust others - because he could not trust himself?

Joey:

I do think he was tempted by the stone only to see Ariana and his parents because he did carry a huge guilt with him. 

As for trusting others, he did seem to give second chances to people. The way he spoke to Draco in HBP climax. I think he feared the power of temptations more than the peoples' reactions to it.

Nikkalmati:

> I wonder why DD drank the potion in the cave.  He seemed to know the potion would kill him.  Didn't he see it in Kreacher's mind when he performed Legimancy on him in OTP?  If so, why didn't he know Regulus had taken the necklace?  Was that s missed opportunity or did DD not see anything about the cave at that time?  

Joey:

When he performed Legilimency on Kreacher in OoTP, he meant to find about Sirius's whereabouts, didn't he? Had he known about the cave even then, that would have been one of the memories he would have shared first with Harry. He found the cave himself - not with Kreacher's help. 
 

> Nikkalmati
> But he took terrible chances that way.  Things could have turned out very differently without him around.  What if Harry and the Trio had rushed into the Shreaking Shack and attacked LV and Nagini, as they planned?  Even if they killed them both (not a sure thing), there was still Harry the Horcrux and LV could have returned.  Also, as Snape suggested to LV, Harry could have been accidentally killed in the battle or by FiendFire or any number of ways. He could have left a message or told someone else to tell him.  Harry and his friends certainly went through a lot of suffering to find the truth.  Maybe JKR wanted the resder to understand that suffering is part of doing the right thing?

Joey:

True. In fact, Hermione and Ron could have been killed too! It was really annoyingly crazy of him to have trusted his "grand plan" so much. I agree with the points shared by some of our group members - secrecy was the key to success and yes, it was important not to take a risk in Snape's case given his interaction with Voldy. However, the extent of his secrecy seems to be as risky and dangerous. He could have updated a chosen few who are not emotionally attached to Harry? 

Cheers,
~Joey :-)