Chuckle, I always loved the Pink Panther movies! Those stealth ambushes were great! Besides, Moody would be the first to say that "it's not paranoia when someone's really out to kill you!" At that point it's just proper precaution and preparations!(snicker) Actually, I started thinking about the whole phoenix companion = good person: since the relationship is rare to begin the information must be extremely limited. Dumbles might be the first "fallen" companion and that lack of information helps preserve his image. A sucessful bond between Fawkes and Luna might help other phoenixes if they were caught in a similar situation. Did Dumbles take out Grindlewald and decide to apply similar ideas with a bit more sutblety? Having a phoenix would be convincing in that case, and poor Fawkes would be trapped! I wonder if being in Hogwarts and the students helped him resist Dumbles' poison all those years? Is Harry going to use that blood sample in a mixture of current and future technology to add something to Dumbles' lemon drops? Something that might block his ability to use his magic without other effects? I remember a few things in Star Wars that could block force ability. Then again, if he sent Dumbles a bright and shiny dodad that might work too! Dumbles does have a taste for such things! As for Harry and the owls, the Gringotts owl bit him too, that's why I think his true rep is making the rounds everywhere! By the way, wouldn't Dumbles' lose not only Harry's jedi, but their siblings if they were attending Hogwarts? All that lovely money gone.......poor Dumbles!(snicker) I'd love to be a fly on the wall at the next board meeting! With McGonagall and Flitwick whispering their concerns into parental ears his rep is going to tank even faster! Who knows, Dumbles might eventually look back at those interviews with the Queen and Dak Grawswold as "the good old days!" I can't wait for the next chapter of Dumbles' torture.....er, reeducation! I'm looking forward to more Voldy torture as well! Many thanks! :)
Author's response
The Pink Panther was always one of my favorites too. My daughter prefers Martin, But for me, it's Sellers all the way!
I intend to follow through with something like that in a few chapters just to ensure the students stay on their toes.
Phoenix=light: I can't say why, Perhaps he's the one who spread the rumour. Mr Ollivander makes his wands from three basic kinds of cores, so Phoenixes can't be all that rare, or none of them would work against each other. In this story, I've implied there are many others throughout the world, though being bonded to one would be somewhat more rare.
Dumbles might be the first "fallen" companion and that lack of information helps preserve his image.
I doubt he'd be the first to fall, but he might well have been able to 'edit' any references to that. He is, after all, a successful politician, and that's the lowest, most underhanded form of criminal life on Earth.
A successful bond between Fawkes and Luna might help other phoenixes if they were caught in a similar situation. I hadn't considered that. But you have a valid point. Still, unless a phoenix bashes through my window, I think I'll let it alone...in this story, at least. (Damn! You and Cateagle give me such great idears!)
Did Dumbles take out Grindlewald and decide to apply similar ideas with a bit more sutblety?
Basically yes. I won't be going into their history, but IMO, Dumbley killed Grindelwald, because Gellert threatened to expose him. (I don't know if it's true but it would be a great plot-bunny.) He's also threatened to both have Euwings killed, and his granddaughter raped. Not exactly the epitome of the light, there!
Having a phoenix would be convincing in that case, and poor Fawkes would be trapped!
In both cases, yes. Luna is his escape, because of the weakness of the bond to Dumbledore.
I wonder if being in Hogwarts and the students helped him resist Dumbles' poison all those years?
An intriguing thought. That the castle has aided him at least once, would tie into that. Hmmm...
Is Harry going to use that blood sample in a mixture of current and future technology to add something to Dumbles' lemon drops?
Basically, yes. Remember, it's from 'Beyond the outer rim.'
It can't be a doodad, because those can be lost, or broken. It has to be something that cannot be affected by environment.
Gringotts owl: The goblins don't like him either! I figure the owners' feelings as have a lot to do with how the bird reacts.
Money: It's not just that. Since the Mugglebornes pay three times the tuition a pureblood would, then the school would actually be losing a disproportionate amount of money.
The Board of Governors ain't gonna like that!
Fortunately there are so few families with more than one child, Harry's got pretty much all of them mentioned in canon or the infamous 'list'.
Still, given that two thirds of Harry's crew are mugglebornes with less than a dozen being purebloods, Dumbledore stands to lose up to 50% of his funding. He's gonna have some 'splainin' to do!
And standing to the side with a smile on his face, and a huge bag of gold in each hand.....
Speaking of flies, I think it's time I got Rita involved again.
I have to be very careful with Minerva and Filius. Dumbledore is anything but stupid. There are only so many avenues of information into or out of the castle. If they start a whispering campaign, and the parents started to complain about things that shouldn't be known outside the castle, he'd be certain to trace it back to them.
Dumbledore is definitely going to wish for the old days! After all, education prepares one for the future!
The headaches are going to continue but for the time being, Voldy's laying low...ish. Every time he send his death eaters out to do some mischief, he ends up needing some replacements.
He'll resurface in the middle of September though.
As always its been a great pleasure.
Alorkin
A little request. While I love your reviews, could you please double space between paragraphs, or ideas? It's so difficult to wade through such a large block of text. Thanks.