A Few Last Words Before We Go...

In about 17 hours from now, I will have the Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows in my hands, or at least be surrounded by people who have it in theirs. If all the copies at Otto's Bookstore haven't been reserved already, I'll snag one; otherwise, I'll wait out the weekend and get my copy back home. Either way, I'm pretty sure this will be the last post this side of the big release, so a few thoughts on what the final volume might hold are in order...

I can't imagine Harry going back to Hogwarts at this point. The final showdown is imminent, and Harry has some idea of what he needs to do in order to secure Voldemort's downfall. He can't be hanging around worrying about tests and Quidditch and such - and indeed, I recall reading that Rowling said we wouldn't be seeing any Quidditch matches in the seventh book, though I suspect the skills he honed in all those years of swift flying and sharp vision will probably aid him at some point in the novel. Seems to me that Ron and Hermione will stand alongside Harry most of the way; I think he's not going to have much more luck shaking them off than Frodo did with Sam. Frankly, I find it hard to imagine Hogwarts being open in the midst of all this turmoil, but on the other hand, it still is probably one of the safest places in England, despite the security breaches, and maybe it would be best to continue to educate and maintain as much of a sense of normalcy as possible. If the school remains open, no doubt many students will not return. What about Ginny? She could be the eyes and ears of Hogwarts, along with Neville and Luna. Somehow or another, I think those three will be very involved. Meanwhile, keeping Hogwarts open would allow Harry to return and try to receive some advice from Dumbledore through the portrait on McGonagall's wall - though I suppose there are portraits of Dumbledore in many other places as well that could guide him.

As soon as I first learned of the Horcruxes, I was reminded of Susan Cooper's The Dark is Rising. It's been too many years now since I've read it to have a clear recollection of its contents, but I know the first book involved the young protagonist having to secure these magical talismans hidden in various places. Harry's looking for five, and considering the trouble the first two presented, he's really got his work cut out for him. I wonder, however, if any are in the possession of someone who could turn out to be an ally. Maybe they aren't all so remote as the locket and ring. Who is R.A.B.? My guess is Regulus Black, and I like that idea because then it turns out Sirius's brother wasn't really so bad after all, that he reformed, which in turn makes me more hopeful about other notorious Slytherins. The Snape question will be answered once and for all, and I really hope that Snape comes out on the right side of things, and that Malfoy, as obnoxious as he's always been, turns over a new leaf. It's a very good sign, I think, that he did not kill Dumbledore when he had the chance, and it looked like he wasn't planning to go through with it at all. It also might be worth considering that Draco's first conversation with Harry, however obnoxious it was in many ways, was in fact on some level an overture of friendship, one that he repeated on the train and Harry rejected. (Not that I blame him, but just thought it was interesting...)

Peter Pettigrew will have a major part in things, I think. That conversation with Dumbledore at the end of Prisoner of Azkaban reminds me so much of Gandalf's words to Frodo in Moria about Bilbo's decision to have mercy on Gollum. Wormtail also makes me think of Wormtongue, who ultimately turns on his master Saruman. Somehow I think that he will repay the life debt to Harry; Dumbledore really seemed to emphasize his belief that sparing Wormtail would ultimately be a good thing for Harry, and that certainly hasn't been the case yet.

Rowling has said that Petunia will be very important, and that's something interesting to consider. We keep getting more insight into Lily, given to us very gradually and generally in reverse order. We learned a lot about the teenage Lily in the fifth and sixth books; what if we get some childhood recollections of Petunia of the girls as sisters? That could be really interesting. Maybe Petunia will recall moments in the distant past when the two shared tender moments, and it will have an impact on how she views her nephew. There seems to be a lot of jealousy in her; evidently she felt like an also-ran, not blessed with the unusual abilities of her sister, and perhaps she also felt abandoned when Lily suddenly was whisked off to a secret school. I think there's definitely a lot of room for exploration.

It's interesting that the sixth book ended with a funeral while the seventh will presumably include a wedding early on. There's something very hopeful about the fact that a new beginning should so quickly follow such a devastating end. Dumbledore's funeral seemed to be a state funeral, with little room for personal reflection; it was very interesting to see how this sacrament was celebrated in the wizarding world, but I think we will glean much greater insight from the very personal, intimate affair of the Weasley-Delacour wedding. Something tells me that Rowling's religious beliefs will make their presence strongly felt there. And I have a hunch we're going to find out something more about Harry's christening.

I suspect that all sorts of old faces will pop up in surprising places. I wouldn't be at all surprised to see Lockhart again; his appearance in Order of the Phoenix seemed to me like a hint at future involvement. We'll probably see many magical creatures and peoples joining in the resistance, from merfolk and giants to house elves and centaurs, and I bet Buckbeak will show up at some point too. And what is the deal with the dragon? Very intriguing indeed. Could it be Norbert? Does it lend its aid because of Hagrid or Charlie? Will we ever get to see a crumple-horned snorkax?

There seems to be a lot wrapped up in the Department of Mysteries, particularly with that veil. Will we be learning more about it? My guess is yes, and the ghosts may have compelling roles of their own to play in all this. I don't see how the series can fail to end with Voldemort out of the picture, but there are so many ways in which it could happen... Must Harry go the last mile alone, or will he have allies to help him all along?

I think McGonagall will prove to be a formidable leader in this tumultuous time, whether or not students return to Hogwarts, and Hagrid will find a way to be just as important to this last step in Harry's journey as he was in the first. Fred and George will hopefully pop up now and then to add some levity and to toss in some unconventional help, and maybe we'll get to see a bit of Lupin and Tonks as a couple, to say nothing of Harry and Ginny, Hermione and Ron and perhaps Neville and Luna. This book is going to be so different from the others, and there's going to be so much darkness, yet I can't see her not including moments of light and laughter, and in the end, so much of the conclusion will come down to love, I think, that no matter how dire the circumstances there will be a real beauty to it.

I hear the book is somewhere around 750 pages. I wish it was twice that long! But really, that is quite a decent length, and while I don't see how Rowling can possibly tie up every conceivable loose end, no doubt she has crafted a conclusion worthy of ten years of anticipation. I'm sure there's more I could say about this, but I think I'll stop now. Counting down the hours now... See you on the flip-side!