Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows reaction post
I spent so much of the book crying. I caught some things early... I figured out the doe, but probably because of fandom speculation about Snape and Lily. I can't remember what else, but I remember whispering stuff at the book (what? It's the middle of the night!) and crying through a lot of it.
I think I was spoiled for most of the deaths (but not Hedwig!), though I wasn't sure whether to believe them. At least of the people we were close to. Scrimgeour's and the manner of it were a surprise, but the manner was... welcome, as much as it could be.
Rita Skeeter's level of accuracy was unusual in that she got a few things right, though her spite was not. You'd almost think publishing Harry's tale the previous year (much as she presumed on it) had left a mark.
Percy. Oh, Percy. FRED! I'm glad she made him the one to welcome Percy back, first.
Molly swearing. Molly after everything before, all her half-comedy terrified fussing, dueling, better than the three half-trained girls, better than Bellatrix, Molly fighting to kill, and Harry seeing a second ahead of time that Bellatrix would die the same way Sirius did.
I am impressed that Mary GrandPre drew the final battle for the cover art and... well, some people guessed, but it didn't really give anything much away. Sweet merciful heavens, the dragon ride on the "Deluxe" cover does not hold a candle for mattering.
Harry's willing death protecting everyone Voldemort attacked afterward. I didn't realize it when the Silencing Spells failing was mentioned. That was... eerily breathtaking.
I am left wondering about the sword. That it returned to the Sorting Hat (which seems to be rather hard to destroy). Did Godric steal it? Take it in battle? Buy it (from the goblins or another owner) and not return it when he died?
But GO NEVILLE! Only a true Gryffindor could have pulled that out of the hat. ;)
Kreacher's change and devotion....
The Taboo on Voldemort's name was clever.
I still wonder if goblins do Legilimency or an equivalent. Alan and I were basing that bit on something, I think. I mean, in PS. I just can't remember what exactly it was.
We didn't find out nearly so much about the Founders as I'd sort of expected. The basilisk kind of goes two ways; either Salazar gave Harry his last weapon in the end, or his own efforts turned on him. The idea that the sword can destroy Horcruxes because it has basilisk venom in it kind of cracks me up, though; I was assuming Harry could use it for that, but all by itself.
...It's weirdly fascinating that Parseltongue can be imitated. I was never sure whether it was really quite sound-based.
I guess I was hoping for something more positive about Slytherin, but this is certainly more than it could have been. And unless I misread it and missed them coming in on Voldemort's side earlier, when what looked like the families of all the students who'd left came charging in, that wouldn't leave them out. I'm not sure whether that's what Phineas was talking about, or Snape's contribution as described by Harry.
I am glad Snape was on Dumbledore's side. Or, well, Lily's, I guess. Although it occurs to me that it must have been somewhat maddening to have his Patronus's reflection of Lily also reflect the sign that she was Potter's mate!
Try for some remorse, indeed. Somehow I doubt he bothered, even given that chance -- I think Harry found some pity after all, or at least a sense of obligation not to do worse than necessary -- but I can't really see Voldemort taking the advice, so I suppose he is spending the afterlife as a malformed, flayed baby-thing shoved under a bench like abandoned luggage... since that's how he treated his soul.
And she did have Voldemort killed by his own spell after all, and Harry's hands clean of that -- I notice that even after all the stuff about killing Nagini, they never actually speak of killing Voldemort -- although I also notice he was throwing around the other two Unforgivables without any particular sign of remorse, and McGonagall used Imperius.
Dumbledore chose a very fitting verse to place on his sister's tomb, considering the... realignment of his priorities with her death. I found it interesting (but unsurprising) that Harry didn't recognize it and that Hermione did. (I keep trying to connect this, mentally, to Harry's explaining that the Dementor wouldn't kill you but take your soul, as if this was supposed to be comforting, versus Hermione's passing mention that it ought to cheer Ron up that his soul would go on after his body died.)
I'll admit it. I am glad I got spoiled for fragments, because it made the deaths a little easier to bear, but also that it wasn't for the whole thing. I don't think rereading this one is ever going to be the same. Right now I'm not quite sure I want to, but that may pass. I'm trying to remember if it's happened to me before with other exhausting stories. Probably.