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I must be the slowest reader in Britain; I've been reading for two hours now and have just finished chapter... four. I bet most of the kids up at the castle will be half-way through by now. I blame it on the mind-scattering effects of the antidepressants, combined with bouncy excitement at actually being led into Harry's world again. An experience I want to savour... :)
Much as I'd like to SQUEE, I'll refrain from spoilering except to say that... no, not even that. Just that from the evidence of the first few chapters this book could be all I was hoping OotP to be.
There will be spoilers behind the cut, though: I've decided to keep a note of my thoughts as I go along - it might be interesting (for me) to look back once I know what's really happening.
Chapter 1
Awesome, awesome, awesome. And FUDGE gets to act all superior, and actually show an area of competence! (He seems to have a much better idea of how to communicate with the Muggle PM than does Scrimgeour.) I LOVE JKR. And why the hell has no one written fanfic of this scene before? I guess because we didn't know the exact nature of magical/Muggle liason.
At this, Fudge had actually laughed (yay for Fudge!)
'My dear Prime Minister, are you ever going to tell anybody'
Brilliant. :))
I was laughing aloud all the way through this - goodness knows what the neighbours must think. And oooh, the foreboding, right from the second paragraph. Rock on!
It's interesting to contrast this with the actual start of PS. It must have been really hard for JKR to choose how to start. Certainly Dumbledore and McGonagall, representing more stock wizarding stereotypes, would appeal to kids more, especially younglings with no concept of government bureaucracy. Starting with this chapter might have helped more adults to take the books seriously from the start - but those of us who made it here anyway have been richly rewarded. The first line has to be the best starting line so far: It was nearing midnight and the Prime Minister was sitting alone in his office, reading a long memo that was slipping through his brain without leaving the slightest trace of meaning behind. Not a mention of magic - like, interestingly, the eventual start of PS. I wonder if all the postulated starting chapters began from a Muggle PoV?
Love the end too - heck, I love all of it which is why I'm squeeing instead of reading chapter 4. The trouble is, the other side can do magic too. Yes, completely sums up Muggle incomprehension. These words so need an icon.
Am disappointed to note that one chapter in I've already missed a clue (the feeling of gloom) but thrilled to see that JKR has again confounded expectations in her choice of Minister. I'll have to be on a better lookout from here on in.
Chapter 2
And the emotional rollercoaster begins. 'There is nothing I wouldn't do any more!' cries Narcissa, and my heart jumps into my mouth. I thought I'd be able to handle it if Lucius died, but tears (yes, really) are forming as I get a few pages on. She can't, she can't kill him offstage??!! (Though some would say it served him right, I suppose. He's giving me a nasty look for that.) Oh, the tension! And oh, the evidence at last that there is love between the Malfoys! Yes!
And oh! Snape's house!! So much for Snape Manor. It fits, it so fits. I love the Bella/Snape snarking. And yet more foreboding at the end, though I can't shake the feeling that I've read fanfic very similar to this. But this bodes well for Draco being a little more serious this time round?
I thoroughly approve of JKR cementing Snape's ambiguity here. I'm convinced that this is something that she's going to keep going right till the end. I'll be interested to see if we find out why Dumbledore trusts him.
Chapter 3
Oh yes. This is the way to handle Vernon Dursley. Way to go, Albus!
(And again, I'm amazed that I've never seen anyone write this sort of scene, though if everyone finds Dumbledore's attitude as difficult to capture as I do....)
The Grimmauld Place bit, though, makes my memory of a certain fanfic scream. It's been a while, so I can't remember who wrote it, but I'm having fun imagining that person's reaction to this.
Chapter 4
At last - a non-evil Slytherin. JKR, I salute you. My hopes for the rest of the book - and series - have been considerably raised. Now i'd better go read it! :)
And no, I'm not assuming that Slughorn is safe - this is JKR we're talking about, I don't trust anything! But Dumbledore isn't going 'oooh, evil dark wizard', and his desire to hide seems genuine, and he liked Lily, which counts for something
Fave line: he prefers the back seat - more room to spread out
Chapter 5
Not read it yet, but I love the title. Ron would approve, I feel.
Another hour, another two chapters. 30 to go - at this rate I might finish by tonight...
Now that I know the context for the title, maybe Ron wouldn't approve after all. :)
Molly/Arthur snuggliness - I laughed at Ginny's outing of their elopement. Seems like the young Weasleys are chips off the old blocks, contrasting Molly's disapproval of Fred and George's school exploits and her own willingness to trip around the school at 3am.
But.... Mollywobbles?! How, erm, erotic. I'd like to know more about their elopement, but I don't think I want to know anything about their sex lives. Good thing Harry Potter isn't R-rated.
Or maybe he woudln't
The females ganging together against the Veela in their midst is amusing, especially Hermione's exasperation with Ron.
Chapter 6
So. The mystery starts...
1/6 of the page count already, and we aren't even at Hogwarts yet. And I'm wondering what the mystery will be - after the first two pages I reckoned the book is going to be generally about who can be trusted and who can't, but I'd forgotten Draco's mysterious task. I'd brushed it aside, thinking the 'what' was obvious, but I realise after his 'detour' that it's not - what is JKR trying to make us assume? I'd thought it was something to do with Harry, but what if it's something to do with the HBP? Or the Chamber of Secrets? And even if it is Harry-centric, there's still the question of how. What is Draco trying to fix? And why is he hiding it from his mother? Is this part of his task - in which case does he not know that she knows, and does that mean that Voldemort is setting her up, getting his revenge on Lucius that way? Or is he striking out on his own with Lucius' Dark Arts collection? Maybe he's going to try for a rescue mission.
And I'm really curious about Ollivander. He's one of the series' ambiguous characters, and they're rare enough that I hope we see more of him.
The only prediction I can make for certain is that I'll look back on my wibbling here and kick myself for not spotting something really obvious. :)
Actually, no. I confidently predict that slashers will put that Probity Probe to some very creative uses.
And... U-NO-POOH?! JKR sure knows her target audience. :)
*waves to Fred and George from a safe distance*
But... speaking of Narcissa... Wow. That woman's even more indiscreet than Lucius (though to be fair, the family's allegiance isn't exactly a secret now). And what a prize bitch! I wonder if Draco gets his attitudes more from his mother than his father? He's always been close to her, after all.
A capable bitch she is, though. And I've just twigged that Chapter 2 means that she is a Death Eater. Hopefully this will scupper abused!Narcissa once and for all.
Well. Nothing that scuppers Invictus yet - fingers crossed. Not like OotP doing for Bitter Road to Hell pretty much as soon as Harry got to Sirius' house.
Right. Back to the book. It's very light outside now. I guess at some point I'll drop with exhaustion for a (hopefully very) few hours, but that point isn't yet.
Chapter 7
Hmmm. So Lucius did get Draco a Hand of Glory, though goodness knows how Ron knows about it. I'm sure it's not been mentioned before - a continuity error, perhaps? Or else not sufficiently relevant to mention earlier? Perhaps JKR's hoping that we'll forget what it does and it will be relevant to Draco's plan in this book.
Okay, maybe I shouldn't try to read these books on no sleep. I completely missed the thing about Draco's arm in Madam Malkins. And I've even used a similar clue myself! Bah...
Is that a touch of Harry/Ginny I see before me?
Is it relevant that Neville got Ollivander's last wand?
Finally Blaise gets a gender! But what the heck is his ethnicity supposed to be?
Great to see Malfoy falling from his perch. And also to see him attack Harry on the train for a change. He seems to be getting more effectively nasty and even more indiscreet. I hope he isn't going to end up being too 2-dimentional, but to be honest this is an improvement on last year.
But - Harry? Wouldn't it have been easier to use Extendable Ears?
Chapter 8
Ah yes, reason #3 for JKR not to have to create another Sorting Hat song. I hope she doesn't bottle it for Book 7.
Hmmm. So Tonks has a new, Sirius-shaped Patronus? What was between those two, I wonder?
And Snape gets his wish at last. Interesting... I had figured this might happen to allow Harry to take potions without an 'O', but does this mean Snape is toast this year? He's such a central character and such a tantalising enigma that it would feel weird to have him gone. Clever of JKR to have him get the post now instead of 7th year, though - this way everyone will be expecting him to snuff it at the end of the year, and she can either surprise us by bucking that trend, or surprise us by killing him off.
In the meantime, with Snape doing DADA, maybe they'll need to revive the DA.
And will the vow he made to Narcissa play a part in his demise? My guess is that JKR is trying to make us expect his death. But I don't trust my guesses overmuch.
Chapter 9
Bah. So I looked at the title of the chapter and thought we'd find out who the HBP was. Silly of me.
So, I guess HBP can't be one of the Founders, unless wizarding textbooks have been around a very long time. But who the hell refers to himself as a Half Blood Prince? Before the last line in the chapter was revealed I was tempted to think it was Hector Dagworth-Granger... but giving Hermione wizarding blood would weaken JKR's arguments on race.
But at least we have two interesting new potions. I wonder what the third thing is that Hermione can smell in the Amortentia? ;)
And what's with all this Harry/Hermione subtext? Looks as if JKR is having fun with the shippers. :)
Chapter 10
Okay, so what the heck did happen to Dumbledore's hand? Are we supposed to be guessing? And what does this have to do with the prophecy? Yeah, yeah - I wanted a return to a more complex plot, and I guess I've got it. If it was easy enough for me to work it out I'd be disappointed. So I can't think of the relevance of this backstory, but the glimpse into the illustrious inbred house of Slytherin was enjoyable, especially Morfin's insane little song the Gaunts despising the 'filthy' Muggles while the Muggles despised them as filthy tramps. :)
I was happy to catch on to who they were - and to recognise the scene as the artwork-with-magnifying glass - pretty quickly. Bit of a climb-down from the glories of TWIB for ol' Marvolo, though.
The ring, though - that's interesting. Did Dumbledore have to fight someone for it, or was it cursed? Was it one of 'Voldemort's old things' that Lucius had? Does it bear any relationship to what Malfoy was doing in Borgin and Burkes?
Hmmm...
I'm sure I'm missing something here. I'm sure I'll find out what it is eventually. And I'm sure I'll kick myself when I do.
Chapter 11
Erm, Hermione?!
"You've never been more interesting and, frankly, you've never been more fanciable."
*speechless*
Will sexual jealousy within the trio be significant to the plot? Fractured Triangle eat your heart out.
Anyhow, I had a similar reaction to Ron, and this seemed a suitable point to feed the cat so she'd stop waving her bum in my face. And to make a pot of tea, which should be brewed by now so I'm off back to bed with tea and marked-down chocolate fingers.
"If [Stan] was under the Imperius Curse, he'd hardly stand around gossiping about their plans, would he?"
Er, yes he might, Hermione, if they're using him to spread misinformation. Or just to see how credulous the Ministry is.
Hmmm. Aragog. Is this significant? Voldemort knows about the relationship, after all, or at least what relationship there was in 1942. If Aragog dies, will the Acromantulas come under his control?
Too many questions. I shouldn't even be trying to speculate.
Chapter 12
Hmmm. Aberforth and Mundungus meet up shortly before Katie is presented with the necklace. Co-incidence?
And despite what Ron says, if Snape has the necklace the Curse did make it into the castle.
Chapter 13
Oooh, Tom backstory. Lovely. Reminiscent of fanfic, but of the best sort of fanfic.
I still can't figure out how it's relevant though.
Chapter 14
One question: How can a team member be commentator?
And yeah, Harry had me fooled too. Nice one, JKR.
Chapter 15
I like the irony of 'The Chosen One' - the hero-worshippers have no idea how right they are. I'm not sure they'd be so enthusiastic if they knew that Voldemort had done the choosing.
I don't think you should be an Auror, Harry. The Aurors are part of the Rotfang Conspiracy...
Yep, Harry is right - it really was worth bringing Luna just for this. I really want to see Luna in one of Snape's Potions classes now.
Draco's conversation with Snape rather scuppers my idea that the attack on Katie was part of a plan to get the opals to him. And I assume that Auntie Bella has been giving Draco lessons on distrusting Snape, as well as Occlumency. I have the impression that JKR is trying to get us to mistrust Snape too, which makes me suspicious.
Could there be a Hagrid link with the opals? IIRC Madam Maxine wore some.
So, halfway through and it seems that the main questions so far are:
*What has Draco been told to do?
It has to be something to do with Hogwarts, if it's so important that not be expelled. I guess is that he's targetting Harry (the obvious choice, and therefore maybe too obvious) or Dumbledore, or else that it's something to do with Tom Riddle's unfinished business with the Chamber of Secrets.
*What is his plan?
Something to do with his frequent disappearances. Is he being Summoned by the Dark Lord? Taking the opportunity to explore the castle when everyone else is at Quidditch? Learning a new spell that he's finding draining? I wonder if he's trying to become an Animagus - that would be a neat reversal of all the fannish speculation about Harry & co trying that.
*Where does Dumbledore disappear to?
Using his Animagus bee form to slip into places unnoticed, perhaps? Harry isn't supposed to know _yet_, for whatever reason. Nope, my mind is drawing a blake on that one. Given that it's been almost 12 hours since I walked in with the book, perhaps that's not surprising.
*Who is the HBP, yada, yada, yada
Judging by Lupin's 'there are no wizarding princes' in the next chapter, perhaps it's an anagram? But if that were the case, surely someone more able with anagrams than I would have worked it out by now.
Synapses firing blanks here too. It's definitely time for some sleep.
Much as I'd like to SQUEE, I'll refrain from spoilering except to say that... no, not even that. Just that from the evidence of the first few chapters this book could be all I was hoping OotP to be.
There will be spoilers behind the cut, though: I've decided to keep a note of my thoughts as I go along - it might be interesting (for me) to look back once I know what's really happening.
Chapter 1
Awesome, awesome, awesome. And FUDGE gets to act all superior, and actually show an area of competence! (He seems to have a much better idea of how to communicate with the Muggle PM than does Scrimgeour.) I LOVE JKR. And why the hell has no one written fanfic of this scene before? I guess because we didn't know the exact nature of magical/Muggle liason.
At this, Fudge had actually laughed (yay for Fudge!)
'My dear Prime Minister, are you ever going to tell anybody'
Brilliant. :))
I was laughing aloud all the way through this - goodness knows what the neighbours must think. And oooh, the foreboding, right from the second paragraph. Rock on!
It's interesting to contrast this with the actual start of PS. It must have been really hard for JKR to choose how to start. Certainly Dumbledore and McGonagall, representing more stock wizarding stereotypes, would appeal to kids more, especially younglings with no concept of government bureaucracy. Starting with this chapter might have helped more adults to take the books seriously from the start - but those of us who made it here anyway have been richly rewarded. The first line has to be the best starting line so far: It was nearing midnight and the Prime Minister was sitting alone in his office, reading a long memo that was slipping through his brain without leaving the slightest trace of meaning behind. Not a mention of magic - like, interestingly, the eventual start of PS. I wonder if all the postulated starting chapters began from a Muggle PoV?
Love the end too - heck, I love all of it which is why I'm squeeing instead of reading chapter 4. The trouble is, the other side can do magic too. Yes, completely sums up Muggle incomprehension. These words so need an icon.
Am disappointed to note that one chapter in I've already missed a clue (the feeling of gloom) but thrilled to see that JKR has again confounded expectations in her choice of Minister. I'll have to be on a better lookout from here on in.
Chapter 2
And the emotional rollercoaster begins. 'There is nothing I wouldn't do any more!' cries Narcissa, and my heart jumps into my mouth. I thought I'd be able to handle it if Lucius died, but tears (yes, really) are forming as I get a few pages on. She can't, she can't kill him offstage??!! (Though some would say it served him right, I suppose. He's giving me a nasty look for that.) Oh, the tension! And oh, the evidence at last that there is love between the Malfoys! Yes!
And oh! Snape's house!! So much for Snape Manor. It fits, it so fits. I love the Bella/Snape snarking. And yet more foreboding at the end, though I can't shake the feeling that I've read fanfic very similar to this. But this bodes well for Draco being a little more serious this time round?
I thoroughly approve of JKR cementing Snape's ambiguity here. I'm convinced that this is something that she's going to keep going right till the end. I'll be interested to see if we find out why Dumbledore trusts him.
Chapter 3
Oh yes. This is the way to handle Vernon Dursley. Way to go, Albus!
(And again, I'm amazed that I've never seen anyone write this sort of scene, though if everyone finds Dumbledore's attitude as difficult to capture as I do....)
The Grimmauld Place bit, though, makes my memory of a certain fanfic scream. It's been a while, so I can't remember who wrote it, but I'm having fun imagining that person's reaction to this.
Chapter 4
At last - a non-evil Slytherin. JKR, I salute you. My hopes for the rest of the book - and series - have been considerably raised. Now i'd better go read it! :)
And no, I'm not assuming that Slughorn is safe - this is JKR we're talking about, I don't trust anything! But Dumbledore isn't going 'oooh, evil dark wizard', and his desire to hide seems genuine, and he liked Lily, which counts for something
Fave line: he prefers the back seat - more room to spread out
Chapter 5
Not read it yet, but I love the title. Ron would approve, I feel.
Another hour, another two chapters. 30 to go - at this rate I might finish by tonight...
Now that I know the context for the title, maybe Ron wouldn't approve after all. :)
Molly/Arthur snuggliness - I laughed at Ginny's outing of their elopement. Seems like the young Weasleys are chips off the old blocks, contrasting Molly's disapproval of Fred and George's school exploits and her own willingness to trip around the school at 3am.
But.... Mollywobbles?! How, erm, erotic. I'd like to know more about their elopement, but I don't think I want to know anything about their sex lives. Good thing Harry Potter isn't R-rated.
Or maybe he woudln't
The females ganging together against the Veela in their midst is amusing, especially Hermione's exasperation with Ron.
Chapter 6
So. The mystery starts...
1/6 of the page count already, and we aren't even at Hogwarts yet. And I'm wondering what the mystery will be - after the first two pages I reckoned the book is going to be generally about who can be trusted and who can't, but I'd forgotten Draco's mysterious task. I'd brushed it aside, thinking the 'what' was obvious, but I realise after his 'detour' that it's not - what is JKR trying to make us assume? I'd thought it was something to do with Harry, but what if it's something to do with the HBP? Or the Chamber of Secrets? And even if it is Harry-centric, there's still the question of how. What is Draco trying to fix? And why is he hiding it from his mother? Is this part of his task - in which case does he not know that she knows, and does that mean that Voldemort is setting her up, getting his revenge on Lucius that way? Or is he striking out on his own with Lucius' Dark Arts collection? Maybe he's going to try for a rescue mission.
And I'm really curious about Ollivander. He's one of the series' ambiguous characters, and they're rare enough that I hope we see more of him.
The only prediction I can make for certain is that I'll look back on my wibbling here and kick myself for not spotting something really obvious. :)
Actually, no. I confidently predict that slashers will put that Probity Probe to some very creative uses.
And... U-NO-POOH?! JKR sure knows her target audience. :)
*waves to Fred and George from a safe distance*
But... speaking of Narcissa... Wow. That woman's even more indiscreet than Lucius (though to be fair, the family's allegiance isn't exactly a secret now). And what a prize bitch! I wonder if Draco gets his attitudes more from his mother than his father? He's always been close to her, after all.
A capable bitch she is, though. And I've just twigged that Chapter 2 means that she is a Death Eater. Hopefully this will scupper abused!Narcissa once and for all.
Well. Nothing that scuppers Invictus yet - fingers crossed. Not like OotP doing for Bitter Road to Hell pretty much as soon as Harry got to Sirius' house.
Right. Back to the book. It's very light outside now. I guess at some point I'll drop with exhaustion for a (hopefully very) few hours, but that point isn't yet.
Chapter 7
Hmmm. So Lucius did get Draco a Hand of Glory, though goodness knows how Ron knows about it. I'm sure it's not been mentioned before - a continuity error, perhaps? Or else not sufficiently relevant to mention earlier? Perhaps JKR's hoping that we'll forget what it does and it will be relevant to Draco's plan in this book.
Okay, maybe I shouldn't try to read these books on no sleep. I completely missed the thing about Draco's arm in Madam Malkins. And I've even used a similar clue myself! Bah...
Is that a touch of Harry/Ginny I see before me?
Is it relevant that Neville got Ollivander's last wand?
Finally Blaise gets a gender! But what the heck is his ethnicity supposed to be?
Great to see Malfoy falling from his perch. And also to see him attack Harry on the train for a change. He seems to be getting more effectively nasty and even more indiscreet. I hope he isn't going to end up being too 2-dimentional, but to be honest this is an improvement on last year.
But - Harry? Wouldn't it have been easier to use Extendable Ears?
Chapter 8
Ah yes, reason #3 for JKR not to have to create another Sorting Hat song. I hope she doesn't bottle it for Book 7.
Hmmm. So Tonks has a new, Sirius-shaped Patronus? What was between those two, I wonder?
And Snape gets his wish at last. Interesting... I had figured this might happen to allow Harry to take potions without an 'O', but does this mean Snape is toast this year? He's such a central character and such a tantalising enigma that it would feel weird to have him gone. Clever of JKR to have him get the post now instead of 7th year, though - this way everyone will be expecting him to snuff it at the end of the year, and she can either surprise us by bucking that trend, or surprise us by killing him off.
In the meantime, with Snape doing DADA, maybe they'll need to revive the DA.
And will the vow he made to Narcissa play a part in his demise? My guess is that JKR is trying to make us expect his death. But I don't trust my guesses overmuch.
Chapter 9
Bah. So I looked at the title of the chapter and thought we'd find out who the HBP was. Silly of me.
So, I guess HBP can't be one of the Founders, unless wizarding textbooks have been around a very long time. But who the hell refers to himself as a Half Blood Prince? Before the last line in the chapter was revealed I was tempted to think it was Hector Dagworth-Granger... but giving Hermione wizarding blood would weaken JKR's arguments on race.
But at least we have two interesting new potions. I wonder what the third thing is that Hermione can smell in the Amortentia? ;)
And what's with all this Harry/Hermione subtext? Looks as if JKR is having fun with the shippers. :)
Chapter 10
Okay, so what the heck did happen to Dumbledore's hand? Are we supposed to be guessing? And what does this have to do with the prophecy? Yeah, yeah - I wanted a return to a more complex plot, and I guess I've got it. If it was easy enough for me to work it out I'd be disappointed. So I can't think of the relevance of this backstory, but the glimpse into the illustrious inbred house of Slytherin was enjoyable, especially Morfin's insane little song the Gaunts despising the 'filthy' Muggles while the Muggles despised them as filthy tramps. :)
I was happy to catch on to who they were - and to recognise the scene as the artwork-with-magnifying glass - pretty quickly. Bit of a climb-down from the glories of TWIB for ol' Marvolo, though.
The ring, though - that's interesting. Did Dumbledore have to fight someone for it, or was it cursed? Was it one of 'Voldemort's old things' that Lucius had? Does it bear any relationship to what Malfoy was doing in Borgin and Burkes?
Hmmm...
I'm sure I'm missing something here. I'm sure I'll find out what it is eventually. And I'm sure I'll kick myself when I do.
Chapter 11
Erm, Hermione?!
"You've never been more interesting and, frankly, you've never been more fanciable."
*speechless*
Will sexual jealousy within the trio be significant to the plot? Fractured Triangle eat your heart out.
Anyhow, I had a similar reaction to Ron, and this seemed a suitable point to feed the cat so she'd stop waving her bum in my face. And to make a pot of tea, which should be brewed by now so I'm off back to bed with tea and marked-down chocolate fingers.
"If [Stan] was under the Imperius Curse, he'd hardly stand around gossiping about their plans, would he?"
Er, yes he might, Hermione, if they're using him to spread misinformation. Or just to see how credulous the Ministry is.
Hmmm. Aragog. Is this significant? Voldemort knows about the relationship, after all, or at least what relationship there was in 1942. If Aragog dies, will the Acromantulas come under his control?
Too many questions. I shouldn't even be trying to speculate.
Chapter 12
Hmmm. Aberforth and Mundungus meet up shortly before Katie is presented with the necklace. Co-incidence?
And despite what Ron says, if Snape has the necklace the Curse did make it into the castle.
Chapter 13
Oooh, Tom backstory. Lovely. Reminiscent of fanfic, but of the best sort of fanfic.
I still can't figure out how it's relevant though.
Chapter 14
One question: How can a team member be commentator?
And yeah, Harry had me fooled too. Nice one, JKR.
Chapter 15
I like the irony of 'The Chosen One' - the hero-worshippers have no idea how right they are. I'm not sure they'd be so enthusiastic if they knew that Voldemort had done the choosing.
I don't think you should be an Auror, Harry. The Aurors are part of the Rotfang Conspiracy...
Yep, Harry is right - it really was worth bringing Luna just for this. I really want to see Luna in one of Snape's Potions classes now.
Draco's conversation with Snape rather scuppers my idea that the attack on Katie was part of a plan to get the opals to him. And I assume that Auntie Bella has been giving Draco lessons on distrusting Snape, as well as Occlumency. I have the impression that JKR is trying to get us to mistrust Snape too, which makes me suspicious.
Could there be a Hagrid link with the opals? IIRC Madam Maxine wore some.
So, halfway through and it seems that the main questions so far are:
*What has Draco been told to do?
It has to be something to do with Hogwarts, if it's so important that not be expelled. I guess is that he's targetting Harry (the obvious choice, and therefore maybe too obvious) or Dumbledore, or else that it's something to do with Tom Riddle's unfinished business with the Chamber of Secrets.
*What is his plan?
Something to do with his frequent disappearances. Is he being Summoned by the Dark Lord? Taking the opportunity to explore the castle when everyone else is at Quidditch? Learning a new spell that he's finding draining? I wonder if he's trying to become an Animagus - that would be a neat reversal of all the fannish speculation about Harry & co trying that.
*Where does Dumbledore disappear to?
Using his Animagus bee form to slip into places unnoticed, perhaps? Harry isn't supposed to know _yet_, for whatever reason. Nope, my mind is drawing a blake on that one. Given that it's been almost 12 hours since I walked in with the book, perhaps that's not surprising.
*Who is the HBP, yada, yada, yada
Judging by Lupin's 'there are no wizarding princes' in the next chapter, perhaps it's an anagram? But if that were the case, surely someone more able with anagrams than I would have worked it out by now.
Synapses firing blanks here too. It's definitely time for some sleep.
