[the_old_crowd] Sale of Peruvian Darkness Powder

[ewe2]

On Sat, Aug 06, 2005 at 09:08:45PM -0000, Lyn J. Mangiameli wrote:
> Two, OOTP began to show that F&G's "joke" materials can be used as weapons as well as 
> for harmless pranks. HBP seems to take us a step farther in suggesting mechanisms for 
> "humor" can have a dark side. Hermione getting hurt, though accidentally, by F&G's 
> mechanisms for humor may have been foreshadowing of something more serious later.  

Good point, because I've always seen G&F as quitessential tricksters, and
tricksters are dangerous fun. JKR even makes the connection obvious with
Peeves, so it is not surprising that Wizard Wheezes can be "weaponised". 

> Three. A new person has entered the picture in the form of F&G's assistant. Might she have 
> been the one to sell Draco the powder (even inform him specifically of it), and might she 
> not be a future means to have F&G's magical inventions become available for abuse. It 
> seems to me that there was little need to introduce this new character in such a seemingly 
> minor role, unless that person will play a bigger role later. 

This is possible, but if G&F are classically irresponsible, they would not
care even if they knew, except to keep their "jokes" for themselves. I get a
hint of Carnaby Street about that section of the novel, all rushing headlong
into the future without a care about the consequences. 

Then again, there are hints of hard-nosed business acumen about the Twins, so
might they not be aware of such a "channel" and use the double-edged nature of
their creations to their advantage? Backfiring "weapons" for DE's perhaps?

There is no further explaination, but I doubt Draco would turn up at the shop
himself if he could help it, and their assistant appears too frazzled by her
job to properly pay attention to suspicious customers...

> I don't like the looks of this for F&G's future well being.  
 
I don't worry about them at all, it's rare to have a trickster (of the
non-Rumplestiltskin type) come a cropper. I'm still waiting for Harry to cop
it for financing them.

-- 
"I reject your reality and substitute my own!" - Adam Savage