Deathly Hallows - no spoilers

[tapas]

Behind the cut are my speculations and predictions regarding the upcoming seventh Harry Potter book. I have not read any of the online spoilers so this is free of outside influence. Discussion on whether you do or don’t agree with my predictions and speculations of your own are welcome, if they are similarly free of actual knowledge. If you have

Comments

[metasilk]

Hey there -- I'm in the same position as you -- no inside clue, don't want spoilers. So ... My comments on your thoughts are in the box below -- white text on white background; select the box to read 'em.

Voldemort: I agree.

Others: I could see Harry, plus various other casualties (Tonks? Luna? Arthur? Draco?). Not Ron & Hermione. I sure as hell hope not Ginny. Which probably means her... but if Harry survives, Ginny had better. C'mon, someone he loves should! Love the idea of other traitors... plus many confused/Imperioused people scattered within...

Snape: Yes, plans within plans. I've been wondering about the layers inside Snape, and what his backstory is re relationships with Dumbledore from before Riddle, and during Voldemort Era I ... was Snape a spy during Era I also? I think Snape knew Draco's task; certainly AD guessed/knew and I can't imagine he wouldn't discuss this with Snape. I would be extremely unsurprised to discover AD had planned it in some fashion, and you know the phoenix familiar means something. (I justify

[tapas]

Let's see if I've got the hang of the white-on-white ...

... was Snape a spy during Era I also?

I think there's evidence that he was. Somewhere we're told that he was tried for being a Death Eater and Dumbledore testified for him, explaining that he had turned to the side of good and been a spy. But I wonder if he was a spy from the start and actually joined the Death Eaters under Dumbledore's orders. Dumbledore asking that of Snape would be very consistent with the somewhat cavalier way he's treated the sacrifices Harry has had to make. But maybe that's what you had in mind?

[tapas]

Another thought - why do we know absolutely nothing about Harry's father's family? Were they magical or muggle? Was James Potter an only child? I assume Harry has no living relatives on that side, or someone would have mentioned it by now, but it seems suspicious that we know nothing about them at all.

And, possibly relatedly, where did all that gold in Grigots come from?