(#) BenRG 2009-01-20
There are several interesting little nuances in this particular chapter.
The first is that Luna was able to resist Tom's mind arts attacks. I find myself concluding that Ginny's mind was forced open by Tom playing on her maternally-imposed obsession with Harry. Without that leverage, Tom was at a disadvantage against Luna, especially given her... er... unique mindset. Even so, the fact that she recognises that the Diary is a danger shows that she could feel Tom wearing down her resistance. A formidable foe indeed.
Secondly, I liked the flashback scenes.
It is clear that Dumbledore had no backup plan for a Harry that was not desperate to get away from his carers. What little leverage he had was swept away by the fact that Strange and Harkness had already got Harry quite far into his magical training, so he couldn't even play on Harry's curiosity. He literally could not come up with a good reason for Harry to attend Hogwarts (which is a bit back-woods in this AU).
I wonder if he will now attempt some kind of coercion. Alternately, Harry will volunteer to attend in an attempt to work out exactly what game is being played.
I wonder exactly what Harry is planning for his project? Something technomagical, of course. A magical computer? An attempted arithmantic deconstruction of the charms on a Wizarding Portrait in an attempt to create a general template for magical AIs? Whatever it is, I'm sure it will surely set the Wizarding World on its ears.
As always, this is a well-written and well-executed story that keeps the reader fully involved.
BenRG's Rating: 8/10