<p>I can't wait until Book 7, and then it will be all over :(. I'll be well into college by then (as well as the rest of you). I am planning to read ALL books 1-6 a soon as I hear Rowling announce a date for the release. Does anybody else plan to do that? hahaha [/hp nerd talk]</p>
<p>I have a friend who, in the few weeks before Half-Blood Prince, re-read every book TWICE. And then he read Half-Blood Prince twice in a row. And then all the books again in a row. Now THAT's hp nerd talk ;)</p>
<p>sheer boredom is what i'd call it</p>
<p>wait i think i know who RAB is!</p>
<p>isnt it the same initials as Sirius's brother..regulus black :)</p>
<p>Yes, I'm almost positive that the barman at the Hog's Head is Aberforth.</p>
<p>But how do you know? ... I definitely missed that.</p>
<p>Did anyone else find the black lake chapter/scene utterly horrifying? I had a quite vivid picture of it in my head while reading and it was frightening. Imagine seeing a dead body float quietly below your boat...Ah! And that Inferius that jumped up from the water for a second when Harry tried to Accio the Horcrux. Wow. If I'd been there, I would've screamed like a girl and ran away right then :-P</p>
<p>It's horrible that Dumbledore had to die. I think he really is dead; how else could his portrait have appeared instantly in the headmaster's office? The symbol of the realness of his absence (Fawkes flying around, singing, and leaving the grounds) was the saddest thing I've read in a long time. I hope JKR doesn't pull a Gandolf and bring him back to life, more powerful than ever, in the 7th book. That would be too cheap. If she does, she might as well slap a pair of Nikes on him...</p>
<p>And I think all the little occurrences that happened in this book aren't to be taken lightly. Like when Harry saw Mundungus with all those trinkets from Grimmauld Place, I think that silver trophy could've been the same one Harry and DD saw in the memory of Tom Riddle and that fat woman, probably making it a Horcrux (though, I could just be insane).</p>
<p>I certainly hope they re-open Hogwarts. I can't imagine what a Harry Potter book would be like without Hogwarts.</p>
<p>With this being CC, I hope it's understandable that I was slightly angry when Harry and the gang didn't get to take their N.E.W.Ts. Also, I was actually excited to read about their scores on the O.W.Ls :-P</p>
<p>Argh, dark times lie ahead in book 7. I'll probably cry my eyes out after reading it.</p>
<p>I was also upset they aren't taking NEWT's! Insane, isn't it? Talking about little occurances...if R.A.B. IS Regulus Black, there is a hint in OotP as to where the locket could be. In 12 Grimmauld Place, when everyone is cleaning it, they find a locket that wouldn't open. Maybe it's THE locket! If Regulus had gotten it, he may have brought it home and was killed before he could destroy it. I think there is potential there...</p>
<p>Funkyspoon:</p>
<p>Could Aberforth have taken Polyjuice Potion to look like Dumbledore and vice-versa? I don't want to accept the fact that he died...lol.</p>
<p>Before the 6th book came out I promised myself that I would take my time reading it, instead of plowing through it like the other 5. Didn't work. I did find this one to be a quicker read than the others. I finished it the same day I received it. </p>
<p>I agree with some of the previous posters when they say that Dumbledore and Snape planned DD's death scene. Dumbledore must have frozen Harry in place because he knew that Harry would have interfered. If Dumbledore wanted to live, he definitely wouldn't have gone down that easy. I refuse to believe that Snape is disgusting enough to do something like that. Plus I can't see DD making a mistake that big (trusting Snape), especially when his decision to trust Snape was so scrutinized in the first place.</p>
<p>I also agree that DD is really dead. (Working with the assumption that Snape and DD were talking about DD's death) why would Snape be so opposed to the idea if he wasn't really killing Dumbledore?</p>
<p>I'm so sad. I loved dumbledore.</p>
<p>Oh, and I'm gonna read all of the books over again, too.</p>
<p>oh yeah, I don't know if I believe that Harry is a Horcrux. I initially thought that he might be, but I was under the impression that Harry had to find and destroy all of the horcruxes before he and Voldemort had their final battle. If he kills himself before he finishes off voldemort's body, who will finish the job? Or maybe you don't have to destroy the one in the body last...I don't know anything anymore. I don't see the seventh book ending with a happily ever after.</p>
<p>Just finished it this morning! Great book, but talk about a disappointing ending! I can't understand how DD was so stubborn and naive in his trust in Snape. Even when Harry expressed his fears about it, DD didn't believe him! DD's always been so perceptive of things that nobody else ever seemed to know, so how could he have been so wrong!!?? Seems like HP was way more clued-in than anyone else... I kind of want to believe the "staged death" thing, but it doesn't quite make sense. It's really great and admirable the way DD sees the good in everyone, but it's ultimately his downfall when he sees good where there isn't any-in Snape. </p>
<p>I don't really see any redeemable qualities in Snape- just look at the way he killed DD, there was no emotion and certainly no remorse. Under no circumstances would he kill DD if he were really faithful and just pretending to side with Voldemort. Another thing I found weird was how reckless HP was with the half-blood prince's spells. I thought he was smarter than to try out unknown spells from a shady old book! I actually thought that the half-blood prince was voldemort when we learned that he was actually half-muggle. Anyway, I'm betting there's more to Snape than we know yet...</p>
<p>Another thing - is it a good idea for HP to quit Hogwarts now? I mean, does he possess all the skill and knowledge he needs to defeat Voldemort? I think he could do with some more schooling... If he couldn't hinder Snape with a couple of jinxes, how is he going to kill Voldemort? DD said HP will defeat him with love, but doesn't it really require a combination of love and skill?</p>
<p>I don't know how Rowling is going to do the next book. It'll just seem so odd if they aren't in school and without dumbledore. It sounds like she has known what will happen the entire time so hopefully she has enough left to make the next book just as good as (or possibly even better than) the rest of the books.</p>
<p>I don't really like the idea of the next book being out of school. But theres nothing I can really do about it.</p>
<p>Ok I am pretty sure Dumbledore will return. He left too abruptly without any final word to Harry... JK Rowling isn't that cruel.</p>
<p>Come on... all the phoenix imagery? Rebirth? Harry said he thought he saw a phoenix when the light engulfed Dumbledore's body as it went into the white tomb... but recall how people can change into animals? We have never been told yet what Dumbledore can become, no? I think perhaps he shifted into a phoenix... </p>
<p>There was also another line saying that Dumbledore has ironclad trust in Snape or something... ironclad. Not breakable... do you think perhaps they have a sort of Unbreakable Vow in exchange for Snape's leakage of information to Voldemort as a sort of psuedopunishment? Perhaps an Unbreakable Vow would be enough to force trust... if they didn't, they'd die. </p>
<p>I think Dumbledore was not only faking his death to give the enemies a false sense of security, but he was saving Malfoy too, who was in an unfortunate position and was probably pitied by Dumbledore. It seemed all too strange that Dumbledore would make Harry run for the door and then freeze him as it opens while he's still in his cloak. I think it was all set up. Snape and Dumbledore were scheming... Oh, Snape's "I AM NOT A COWARD" rants provide backup as well.</p>
<p>What do you think the potion did anyway? Some of the stuff Dumbledore said was really unusual...</p>
<p>I really doubt that it was staged. But that doesn't mean they won't talk. He could possibly talk to the portrait of him in the office?</p>
<p>In case you guys haven't read the interview w/ Rowling (MuggleNet): </p>
<p>Half-Blood</a> Prince</p>
<p>What do you guys think will happen to Harry after Book 7 (assuming he lives and kills off Voldemort)?</p>
<p>Personally, I think he'll be made the youngest DADA teacher in Hogwarts history, and since Voldemort will be gone by then the curse on the job will be lifted. Either that, or maybe he could even become Headmaster, but I think the DADA post would be such a condign role for him at Hogwarts.</p>
<p>And yes, I really hope he returns to Hogwarts next year.</p>
<p>i think rowling might write 3 more books...3 years in auror school</p>
<p>Jo Rowling has sworn up and down in interviews that book 7 is the end of the line for the Harry Potter series, other than perhaps a concordance that could include some back stories that never made it into the novels. While anything is possible, she seems pretty resolute on this point.</p>