[the_old_crowd] Re: What's in a Patronus?

[silmariel]

Kneasy:
> Admittedly Narcissa!Tonks is a tempting construction, all sorts of
> entertaining repercussions could flow from it - SHIPs (if you're into that
> sort of thing), BANGs, devious doings among the DEs and DD doing a
> touch of the Nelson's by turning a blind eye to a dyed-in-the-wool DE
> supremacist hausfrau clomping round his beloved Hogwarts.
>

Touche. But she started it, spreading ships all around the book (actually a 
friend of mine asked me if it was a fake book, she didn't accept easily it 
was Jo's work).

> See, this is what Jo wants you to think, so one should sniff the breezes
> for the subtle tang of Clupea harengus radiating light at 650 nm.

I don't know what we are supossed to think, seeing at the discussion flow on 
tol and the general lack of theorising. With Tonks may look simple, but has 
been a Tonks->Bill => Tonks->Sirius =>Tonks->Lupin => Tonks is not her, and I 
feel the vast majority left at stage 3. But I prefer having clues of possible 
diversions and red herrings, indeed. 

There's something from the giggling interview, with all that redemption and 
slytherin are not all bad, only a small fragment of them are, that makes me 
think this is not out of bounds thematically.

> So, a few questions -
> How come Cissy is hugger-mugger with the inner-most circle of the
> Order? She'd have to be if Molly, Snape and DD are aiding and abetting.
> They'd know that all she cares about is Draino, Harry comes nowhere on
> her list of priorities. She'd happily wipe out Hoggers and all who sail in
> her to keep her obnoxious offspring safe.  She's shown no indication of
> repudiating Voldy's masterplan of "Me for King!"
> Why should they trust her?
> Snape is already irrevocably bound by the UV. What could Cissy do that
> Sevvy can't?
>

That she's related to the inner circle, well, I suppose she would have gone 
directly to Dumbledore or Snape, but after that meeting, it would have been 
quite extrange for Tonks to hang near those two, so Molly's the perfect 
candidate, considering Tonks and her already had a sort of friendship, iirc, 
because I don't reread OoP except for especific things or when point to it...

To be depressingly simple, being anti-Harry doesn't equal to being 
anti-everyone, and of course we are not to be shown her true loyalties. It's 
not as if we knew how she thinks, but to keep it simple, Fawkes could read 
her heart, no problem here.

For a less magic-makes-all-easy approach, there was a time when on his 
own!Lucius was considered as the surviving nobility archetipe (hope the 
wording makes sense), but it can be applied to Cissy here. The key is she can 
trust Voldemort to be ruthless (remembering your cousin helps) and she can 
trust DD to be merciful (remembering Snape helps), so a true change of sides 
based on interest is not out of bounds. She can be sincere in her belief that 
the dark side will help her no more so she'll do anything to remain in the 
safest side, or at least for his son to remain so. Purely egoistic mother 
love, but veritaserum-proof.

I know discussing this line when it only appears in the USA edition is 
stretching it, but I'd like to comment on DD telling Draco he can protect his 
family, deaths can be faked... I didn't though about it first time, I just 
though Draco and only Draco was being offered mercy, but, exactly how is DD 
so sure Cissy is going to cooperate, or even believe him? With a plain -she's 
evil/she hasn't been around in all the book- reading, I imagine Cissy 
choosing paths here is something not to be taken so easily for granted.

Snape can't hang in Hogsmeade at will, not because he lacks the skills, but 
because he is too visible and expected to follow certain timetables as 
teacher and Head of house (I was surprised to learn he actually sleeps), he's 
not the right tool to use here. He doesn't have enough time to cover for the 
fact there's a metamorphmagy on the loose, you need a lot of free time to do 
so, and if Narcissa has something, is spare time. With his husband jailed, 
she has the perfect excuse for turning down social life, she can be almost 
invisible. 

Three sisters. Andromeda is DD's woman from the start, Bellatrix is LV's woman 
from the start, Narcissa is... should be something different from option A 
and B.

> I agree that Tonks looks dodgy, but IMO it's worth bracketing Cissy with
> a couple of other suspects.
> First - Andromeda Tonks; Nympho's mother, married to a Muggle and so
> anti-Voldy and pro-Harry. There'd probably be a family resemblance too,
> so  Polyjuice,  with all its drawbacks (time-limited) may not be required.
> IIRC Jo said (yet more of those bloody hints) that in book 7 we would
> meet a member of the Order that  we'd 'sort-of' met before.
> Andromeda would be a logical possibility; Cissy I'd rate as, well, maybe
> the author had a funny turn.
>

That's precisely the point, the funny turn. I didn't expect such a lot of cool 
or, cheap or not, bangy revelations (I was left with the feeling she was 
using the kind of bangy cheap tricks I use to do when directing in roleplay) 
in this book, the DADA curse, Snape as DADA, the multi Tuppers, the vow, the 
tarot cards being right, Snape as HBP, Draco shipped with a ghost(!), Lily 
the potion maker, the list gets interminable.

Andromeda is a common sense imposter, agreed, but as logical as she is, what's 
the dramatic or bangy point? The black family avenger? (because with cissy we 
get enough ooos and aaas, but andromeda's character is still a kind of a 
sketch)

> Secondly - just because Tonks is of the lumpy-front persuasion, it does
> not automatically follow that whoever is impersonating her can't be a
> bloke. Grabbe and Coyle have used the trick, maybe there's someone
> else who wants to show their feminine side. Now who do we know who
> has already trod the transvestite path in OoP, who Apparates out in HBP
> only for 'Tonks' to appear from round the corner shortly after?
> Dear old Dung. A replay of his 'watch over Harry' assignment perhaps?
> "He's probably in London already" says 'Tonks'.
> Ha! Pull the other one, Harry. He could be standing right in front of you.
>

I like this one, it's that surname of him, Fletcher, what rings a bell.

But doing exactly what? What's the point on asigning Tonks and then asigning 
Mundungus to replace her? Is he covering Tonks operations in wich case we 
should be looking for her activities? Is he ESE?

Is the 'shock and anger' in her face something likable in him as reaction to 
Snape's remark? Why an order member asks for letters, when he already should 
know he can't use his patronus, well, because they are unique? I mean, 
precisely Mundungus should know how to be sneaky.

Too much screen time only for watching over Harry, it may have something to do 
with future Hxs, but it's a bit dissapointing to find clues to a plot coupon 
instead of finding clues to character insights. 

Silmariel
loving twisted theories, too