The AK that was (or wasn't)

[bluesqueak]

> > Pip!Squeak wrote about AK's in canon:
> 
> > Nobody *who dies* is blasted off their feet by the AK. They 
> > drop/fall  where they're standing/flying.
> >  
> Kneasy writes:
> With  what we can deduce from canon that seems to be so,
> but see below.
> 
> But it's possible that Jo has been indulging in a little poetic 
> licence, a little judicious fiddling to match portent and event.
<snip>
> 
> Could all be a double-bluff to confound us, but it's not the only 
> instance where we can find markedly different effects from the 
> same spell. Expelliamus! for example; it can vary from blasting 
> Lockhart off his feet and into a wall to simply removing someone's 
> wand fom their hand.
> 

Pip!Squeak
True, but in that case, it's the first time we've seen Expelliamus. 
The apparent problem with Expelliamus is *not* hitting the opposing 
wizard with the force of several tons of bricks, instead learning to 
control the force of the spell so that you only remove the wand. 
Expelliamus throws people around on several occasions, not just the 
once.

Of course, throwing people against walls is always a handy skill to 
have{g}.

Giving markedly different effects from the Killing Curse on one 
notable occasion, in the third book since it was introduced, is - 
um. Well, I'd prefer to think 'deliberate clue to *something*' 
rather than 'lousy writing' or 'downright cheating'.

Kneasy:
> So far we have seen two AKs cast with an intent to kill a person 
> by mature wizards/witches using their own wands (assuming Sevvy did
> in fact throw an unchanged AK at DD). Bella at Sirius in the 
> Ministry, where Sirius goes sailing backwards through the Veil and 
> DD sailing off the tower. 

Pip
Don't you mean 'two AKs cast that are successful in killing a 
person'? (Rather than, say, a bleedin' great bird)

Granted that Voldemort might not have used his own wand in GoF when 
he killed Frank Bryce, still he casts several AKs in the Battle of 
Pelannor Fields ... oops. I mean Battle of the Ministry ... And none 
of the little darlings blast anything off its feet. Not even Fawkes 
soars into the air on receiving his AK, and he's flying at the time!

Nope, everything just drops. Sorry. Occasionally they drop in a 
rolling sort of way, for a bit of variety. But the amazing 
levitating Dumbledore is - amazing. {g}

Kneasy:
> Always open to persuasion, of course.


If I start vaguely hinting 'conspiracy between Snape and 
Dumbledore', will you feel happier?

Pip!Squeak

"Where do you think I would have been all these years, if I had not 
known how to act?" - Severus Snape