Sectumsempra

[nathan_r]

I finished Half-Blood Prince last night. Now that the shock has subsided (and for what it's worth, I even dreamt about it; I don't think that's ever happened to me with a novel before) I'm ready and eager for some discussion and debate.

Comments

[nathan_r]

I'm glad you like the Polyjuice idea. It struck me as obvious around page 73 or so, since we'd seen Snape behaving in a manner that struck me as completely out of character, since we've never seen him acting outwardly Dark before. He and Narcissa clasp "right hands," as Rowling goes out of her way to mention, and he makes the Unbreakable Vow, which causes tongues of flame to wrap around the hand of the Vower "like a rope, like a fiery snake." Very shortly thereafter, at the Dursley's, Dumbledore's hand is described as "blackened and shriveled...as though his flesh had been burned away" (emphasis mine). Precisely which hand is not immediately identified, but several pages later Dumbledore asks Harry to take his arm, specifying, "My left, if you don't mind-- as you have noticed, my wand arm is a little fragile at the moment." So there you have it. Snape makes an unlikely promise with surely dreadful results if broken (as Ron mentions much later, "You die"), and we know that even though Snape probably isn't truly evil, he'd never

[mother_of_many]

You've got a good theory going...I did think that the random cauldron full of polyjuice potion was a little convenient to just have lying around the castle...

Beyond that...if you don't mind substituting some good mead for Felix Felicitas, I think it would be cool to make our own candied pineapple. Doesn't seem too hard. And I've got a list of about 10 other things I've been itching to try making, but have no intention of doing so without someone else to help 1. put out the inevitable kitchen fire, and 2. help get tipsy and laugh about said fire when the slightly seared food and goodies emerge.

We can all compare notes, stuff our faces, and try our hand at muggle-potion making. *winks*

Interested?

[nathan_r]

Sounds like fun.

[aeliakirith]

Wow. That's a hell of a theory on the polyjuice potion. You may be onto something there. I initially suspected that Snape was the half-blood prince, but then decided that he wasn't when it was mentioned that the book was 50 years old, and Snape wasn't the right age for that to fit. The book having belonged to his mother first, though

[nathan_r]

I'm sure Ginny will go along, as will (I hope) Neville and Luna. I mean, they're all part of the gang now.