I've played a bit of the game but I can never finish due to needing long breaks for some reason. I really can't explain it. I think this weekend I am just gonna power through it and play a lot of a Hufflepuff playthrough.

I am curious though. My interactions with this subreddit have been pretty pleasant. What do you guys think of the game? I really wanna play a lot of it this weekend but I can't work up the motivation for some reason.

In DH Voldemort discovers Harry is hunting + destroying horcruxes following the break in at Gringotts. I had always assumed the reason Harry could not tell the other OOP members about the horcruxes was so that Voldemort would not find out that he was hunting them if he questioned someone else. Why then could Harry not tell them when he got to Hogwarts that he was searching for the diadem as it may be a horcrux or that he believed Nagini to be a horcrux?

Not sure if this has been asked before so I apologize for the redundant question but I'm genuinely curious as to why they just followed him.

Did they not know or were they just manipulated or cursed to believe he was? Was it because he was the heir of Slytherin and that was enough?

CoS has gotta be one of my most favourite HP films, it had a strong plot, powerful executions, Along with A handful of useful Flashbacks, Basilisk and many more, it also tells us abt how the diary interacts and is actually a living manipulation device onto using others to open the chamber, it is highly engaging and interesting, i understand it is a bit long and has slow pacing along with heavy exposition and A similar manner/way of things happening in general to the first film (Sorcerer’s stone) I will never understanding why it is one of the least favourite hp films and is underrated

Clocks and wristwatches still work, but in GoF, Hermione says things like videos and certain recording devices would fail, when Harry posits Rita having wiretapped her.

I know how he did it like he got crookshanks to go in with a note saying to take money out of his vault.

But 1.
Can shop keepers just do that ? Go in say a person said it was okay and the goblins just take them to the vault ?

1. It’s Sirius black.
   He’s a wanted criminal can he just write a letter to buy something and the shop keeper is like “ the famous murderer reached out to me and asked to buy a firebolt using a cat…..nothing to report here “

I'm watching the Chamber of Secrets and just realised that when Harry goes into the Pensieve in Dumbledore's office and sees Hagrid getting expelled, he sees Tom Riddle use Arania Exumai on baby Aragog, and then when they're in the forest he uses it when they're attacked by Aragog's children.

This feels super obvious but I've never noticed before. Makes sense that he trusts Riddle because the spell helped save him and Ron.

The more I watch the more I think it's wild that Harry doesn't know Voldemort was Tom Riddle all along...why did no one tell him, and why isn't Voldemort's past more well know? Did the wizarding world just think "this is a bad guy, let's not look into him at all."

After rewatching a the fantastic beasts movies Grindelwalds feats are unbelievably impressive and it gives you such a good bench mark into seeing how much more powerful he is than everyone else and you really do feel it would be hopeless trying to face him for our hero’s whereas for Voldemort you don’t really see him do something that impressive. they reinforce he’s the greatest dark wizard ever everyone’s terrified of him won’t speak his name etc but you never really see it backed up. I probably articulated this poorly as English isn’t my native language but I’d basically feel more terrified to come up against grindewald than I would Voldemort from what I’ve seen and read which I find sad considering voldemorts meant to be the strongest dark wizard ever everyone's terrified

I know I'm late to the game talking about this, but I'm almost done listening to all of the full cast audiobooks.

I absolutely love the sound effects of spells being cast! Especially that they made avada kedavra a different sound and it's very sinister.

It gives so much more life and color to the story and I absolutely love it.

I’m rewatching Order of the Pheonix after a few years (I love the book) and honestly, the ministry was objectively entirely valid to interfere at Hogwarts. What they did in OOTP was obviously for their own benefit rather than of the students, so I don’t mean Umbridge, but let’s recount what goes on. Trolls, attempted robbery of Philosophers stone, death of a professor, kids getting petrified, signs of a basilisk/mythical creature, professor losing his memory, Sirius black mass murderer breaking in repeatedly, death of a child, honestly the list is kinda insane. In real life, this school would’ve been shut down or at least had a change of staff / government intervention at some point. Umbridge was just not playing for the right interests

So we know why Harry didn't want to use the mirror to talk to Sirius. Mostly because he wasn't thinking straight in the moment and he didn't know what it was because he never opened the package.

But why didn't Sirius ever try to use his mirror to talk to Harry? The man was bored as all hell, basically on house arrest. The canonically "reckless" Sirius Black who stuck his head in the Gryffindor fire every hour just for a chance to see Harry never tried to reach him on the mirror?

I love these books so far and I'm only on the first one, but I have a Hatred towards Snape. I just wanna lock Snape and Malfoy in a huge cooler and let them freeze then perform Wingardium Leviosa! on both of them. Not to mention he cursed Harry's broom and many other things

Let's pretend the same Quidditch stakes that were in Prisoner of Azkaban like Oliver's last chance and his total desperation to finally win the Quidditch Cup, were actually in The Goblet of Fire. How do you think Oliver would have reacted to the no-Quidditch news due to the Triwizard Tournament.?

So the scenario in question that I have in mind is that, as I said in the title, instead of starting boxing as a teenager Dudley Dursley plays rugby the moment he started to attend the Smelting Academy, thus starting right at the age of 11. I wanted to know from you if this would change his character in any significant way or if he would remain the same for the most part.

I'm personally sure that one of the things that would definetly change would be that the physical transformation that Dudley underwent in the books due to boxing would happen a lot earlier, given the nature of the sport of rugby and the fact that he started a lot earlier.

I’ve never seen Harry Potter before. So I spent the past few days watching each one and now I feel like ranking them. It’s definitely the case that I may have missed some lore or nuances along the way. This ranking isn’t too substantiated with deep analysis, it’s just an honest reflection on how much I enjoyed each one as a first-time viewer. Let me know how it compares to your ranking. From favorite to least favorite:

1. Prisoner of Azkaban
   
2. Chamber of Secrets
   
3. Deathly Hallows Pt1
   
4. Goblet of Fire
   
5. Sorcerer’s Stone
   
6. Deathly Hallow Pt2
   
7. Half-Blood Prince
   
8. Order of the Phoenix

I tried to search this subreddit for a thread mentioning this, but I couldn't find anything.

As stated in the title, this is what I think the Chamber of Secrets was originally built for.

It is said multiple times in the books that Salazar Slytherin believed that the school should only teach children who came from pure blood families. I don't know if it's headcanon (can't be bothered to look it up atm), or if it is explicitly stated, but if I remember correctly at one point in ancient times, there was conflict between muggles and the Wizarding World that basically resulted in them going into hiding. I personally think that it was for this reason that Salazar Slytherin distrusted allowing Muggles into their world for fear of losing magical lives, and regarding Hogwarts, those of its students.

It takes humanizing him to discover his motives.

When I was a kid, the one thing that struck me odd about the chamber was why on earth would there be a giant statue of Salazar Slytherin in the middle of it that no one would likely ever see?

I think the reason is tongue-in-cheek pettiness.

It is my theory that Salazar Slytherin created the Chamber of Secrets in case he was proven right! In the event that something horrific happened, and the castle was attacked by muggles, or any other group while he was alive, he would be ready to save the day. I bet he counted on the other founders sending a distress call asking for his and others' help. He would arrive at the castle, get everyone into the chamber while protecting them from the Basilisk, and then he and his slithery friend would go take care of business and take care of everyone who was attacking the castle. All the while, all those who couldn't fight would be stuck inside the chamber with a giant statue of the vindicated man who was out there saving their skin.

Anyway, that's my take, let me know what you think!

[ Removed by Reddit on account of violating the content policy. ]

I've never read the books only watched the movies while growing up.

Recently I started to watch the films again and got up to the Chamber of Secrets.

Obliviate feels like it should be considered as one among other things like love potions that ket steak a person's free will away.

I understand Obliviate being used by Ministry employees using it on muggles to hide the wizard world.

But i feel like it should be forbidden especially after Gilderoy Lockhart used the spell on many wizards and witches stealing their stories while erasing them.

Also Lockhart destroys his entire identity which makes me wonder what would stop a death eater from using Obliviate on someone and making that person forget whoever they are.

Like i feel like more of these spells should be considered Unforgivable

I've been thinking about Hogwarts subject choices lately, especially how much changes after the O.W.L. exams. Students are still pretty young when they have to decide which subjects to continue, and those choices can affect what they do later in life. Was the system actually sensible, or could it have been a lot better?

I get why some subjects need to be compulsory. You probably shouldn't leave Hogwarts without knowing basic Transfiguration, Charms, Potions, and Defence Against the Dark Arts. Magic can be unpredictable, and having a broad foundation seems important. But at some point, shouldn't students have more room to focus on what they're actually interested in?

Hermione is a good example of how demanding things can get. She took on an unusually heavy workload with the help of the Time-Turner in her third year, while Harry and Ron generally kept a more manageable selection of subjects. Neither approach is automatically wrong, but it makes me wonder how much guidance students actually got when making these decisions.

And what about careers? Someone hoping to become a Healer might need a different combination of subjects from someone interested in magical creatures or working as an Auror. We know some careers have specific subject or grade requirements, but I wish we'd seen more of Hogwarts helping students understand their options before they had to make those choices.

Personally, I'd keep a small set of core subjects compulsory and let students choose more electives based on their interests and future plans. Maybe regular career guidance would help too. On the other hand, magical education might be complicated enough that limiting choices early on is necessary.

How would you redesign the system? Which subjects would you make compulsory, and which would you let students drop? And if you were a Hogwarts student, what would your own subject choices look like? I'd love to hear different opinions, especially if you think the existing system was actually better than I'm giving it credit for.

I’ve seen a bit of John Lithgows work and some of his roles I feel like is the epitome of Dumbledores character.

He can be very mischievous and cheeky and naturally charismatic and has that twinkle in eyes at all times but he can also switch up and be intimidating and powerful like my man has range and should not be slept on and he is seemingly investing a lot of time to delve into the lore of Harry Potter and I think that bodes well

What do you all think?

During the battle, when the acromantula burst in and Hagrid tries to intervene and is swept away by them he shouts “Don’t hurt them”

Is he trying to protect the offspring of his old friend and trying to get the defenders and the death eaters to leave them alone?

Or is he pleading with the giant spider’s not to attack the students as he has accepted that they are not his friend like Aragog was?

HARRY POTTER AND THE DEATHLY HALLOWS: THE ALTERNATE ENDING

SCENE 1: THE GREAT HALL - DAWN

The air is thick with dust and static magic. The ruins of the Great Hall are silent. VOLDEMORT stands at the epicentre, surrounded by a tense circle of Death Eaters and bruised, defiant Hogwarts defenders. Across from him stands HARRY POTTER, eyes locked onto his enemy.

VOLDEMORT
(Voice echoing, cold, triumphant)
"It is over, Harry Potter. The boy who lived has run out of miracles. Look upon the weapon of your undoing—the Deathstick, the Wand of Destiny! Stolen from your precious Dumbledore’s cold fingers!"

He raises the magnificent, notched Elder Wand high above his head. The Dark Lord inhales deeply, channeling every ounce of his hatred into the final strike.

VOLDEMORT
"AVADA KEDAVRA!"

A blinding flash illuminates the hall. But there is no green light. Instead, a loud, high-pitched SQUEAK echoes through the stone walls. From the tip of the wand, a tiny, bright pink flag pops out. It unrolls to reveal bold, gold lettering: "PRODUCT OF WEASLEYS' WIZARD WHEEZES — MADE YOU LOOK!"

Simultaneously, a high-pressure nozzle inside the transfigured trick wand ruptures. A massive, violent jet of thick, steaming, foul-smelling yellow custard blasts directly into Voldemort’s face. The Dark Lord stumbles backward, completely blinded, spitting thick vanilla pudding from his snake-like slits of eyes.

VOLDEMORT
(Gargling, spitting, furious)
"What—what is this sorcery?! CRUCIO! AVADA KEDAVRA!"

He frantically waves the wand. Because he is aggressively trying to bypass the safety limits on a dark spell, the wand's internal transfiguration matrix triggers a high-level Emergency Retaliation Charm. A massive cloud of bright pink smoke erupts around Voldemort. Inside the smoke, there is a loud, comical POP, followed by a tiny, panicked "Meow."

The smoke clears. Standing in a heap of the oversized black cloak is a tiny, hairless Sphynx cat, completely drenched in yellow custard, shivering violently.

VOLDY-CAT
(High-pitched, furious)
"MEOW!! MEOWWW!!"

The Great Hall goes dead silent. LUCIUS MALFOY looks at AVERY, then down at the sticky, pudding-covered feline.

LUCIUS MALFOY
(Whispering, voice cracking)
"We... we skipped family dinners for this?"

HARRY
(Stepping forward, smiling calmly)
"You never had its allegiance, Tom. Because Albus Dumbledore knew you’d look for power... but you'd completely ignore a good joke."

Harry casts a gentle Expelliarmus. The trick wand flies through the air, and Harry catches it effortlessly, tossing it to a beaming FRED and GEORGE WEASLEY in the crowd. Harry walks over and picks up the scruffy, angry Voldy-cat by the back of its neck. The cat's tiny legs flail wildly, dripping custard. Harry turns to the circle of stunned Death Eaters.

HARRY
"Lads, a bit of help here? He’s making a right mess of the floor."

Eager to please the winning side and run away from the embarrassment, five burly DEATH EATERS instantly step forward. They form a rapid bucket-brigade line alongside Harry, stretching all the way from the center of the Great Hall, out the shattered oak doors, and right down to the edge of the Black Lake.

Harry tosses the hissing Voldy-cat to the first Death Eater.

DEATH EATER #1
"Pass it on! Pass it on! It's sticky!"

They rapidly hand the flailing Dark Lord down the line like a hot potato. With one final, synchronized heave at the bank of the lake, they launch the hairless Voldy-cat high into the air.

SPLASH!

The Dark Lord lands dead-center in the freezing waters. A second later, the giant tentacles of the Giant Squid casually break the surface, pick up the custard-covered cat, and dunk it right back under to wash it off. The remaining Death Eaters aggressively dust off their hands, turn to Harry, and drop their wands in total surrender. The war is over.

**\*

SCENE 2: THE GRYFFINDOR COMMON ROOM - THREE HOURS LATER

HARRY, RON, and HERMIONE sit by the roaring fire, nursing large mugs of hot butterbeer. Across from them sit FRED and GEORGE, completely covered in soot and tiny bits of confetti, looking thoroughly pleased with themselves. FRED is twirling a normal-looking wooden stick between his fingers.

HARRY
(Shaking his head, laughing)
"I still don't believe it. How did you two actually pull this off without the entire Order finding out?"

FRED
"Well, Harry, mate, it all started about a week before the Astronomy Tower. Old Dumbledore strolls into our shop in Diagon Alley. He walks right up to the counter, looks me dead in the eye, and says..."

FRED
(Imitating Dumbledore's serene whisper)
"’Mr. Weasley, I find myself in need of a profound favor. Would you be so kind as to point your wand at me and loudly state 'Expelliarmus'?’"

HERMIONE
(Gasping, dropping her butterbeer)
"He asked you to disarm him?! On purpose?!"

FRED
"Exactly! I pulled out my wand and blasted his wand right into a bin of Skiving Snackboxes. Just like that, the true allegiance of the real Elder Wand shifted to me. I've been the Master of the Deathstick for an entire year!"

GEORGE
"Then Dumbledore pulls out a standard, top-of-the-line Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes Deluxe Trick Wand from his pocket. He casts a brilliant Transfiguration charm on it so it looks exactly like the Elder Wand. He tells us he’s putting the fake one back in his pocket for a 'rainy day' with Malfoy."

HERMIONE
"But wait a minute! If Voldemort had a fake joke-shop wand the entire time... how did he cast the Killing Curse on you in the Forbidden Forest? You still went to King's Cross station!"

GEORGE
"Ah! You see, Hermione, you are underestimating the craftsmanship of Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes. Our Deluxe Trick Wands are embedded with a strict Magical Data Plan."

FRED
"Right. We designed them so they mimic real, high-level spells for a limited number of charges. It’s like a free trial! It lets the buyer trick their friends into thinking they’ve got a real wand before the gag drops. Here is how Voldemort unknowingly burned through his subscription plan:

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
SPELL TYPE         | ENCODED LIMIT | HOW VOLDEMORT WASTED THE CHARGES
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Crucio             | 10 Charges    | Spamming it on random Death Eaters at meetings.
Imperio            | 10 Charges    | Keeping Ministry officials under his thumb.
Fiendfyre / Dark   | 10 Charges    | Blasting through Hogwarts protective shields.
Avada Kedavra      | 3 Charges     | Capped at 3 for strict Ministry legal liability.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

GEORGE
"He used Cast #1 to kill Charity Burbage at Malfoy Manor. He used Cast #2 during the sky battle. And he used Cast #3—the very last real charge in the wand—on you, Harry, in the forest. Which is why you survived!"

FRED
(Grinning, leaning forward)
"Which means, when he marched into the Great Hall to fight you for the final time... the free trial had officially expired. The wand locked down its core and defaulted directly into Prank Mode: Vanilla Custard Emergency Protocol."

RON
(Mouth wide open, staring at his brothers)
"You literally defeated the most dangerous dark wizard of all time... with a bad subscription plan."

FRED
(Winking, tossing the real Elder Wand—disguised inside a bright pink plastic tube—up and catching it)
"And when that wall collapsed outside the Room of Requirement tonight? The real wand felt the danger to its master and blew the stone wall right away from me and Percy. Alive, well, and ready for business."

GEORGE
(Raising his mug)
"To Albus Dumbledore. A man who truly appreciated a proper execution of a gag."

FRED
"And to the Dark Lord. May he rest in pudding."

HARRY POTTER AND THE DEATHLY HALLOWS: THE ALTERNATE ENDING

SCENE 1: THE GREAT HALL - DAWN

The air is thick with dust and static magic. The ruins of the Great Hall are silent. VOLDEMORT stands at the epicentre, surrounded by a tense circle of Death Eaters and bruised, defiant Hogwarts defenders. Across from him stands HARRY POTTER, eyes locked onto his enemy.

VOLDEMORT
(Voice echoing, cold, triumphant)
"It is over, Harry Potter. The boy who lived has run out of miracles. Look upon the weapon of your undoing—the Deathstick, the Wand of Destiny! Stolen from your precious Dumbledore’s cold fingers!"

He raises the magnificent, notched Elder Wand high above his head. The Dark Lord inhales deeply, channeling every ounce of his hatred into the final strike.

VOLDEMORT
"AVADA KEDAVRA!"

A blinding flash illuminates the hall. But there is no green light. Instead, a loud, high-pitched SQUEAK echoes through the stone walls. From the tip of the wand, a tiny, bright pink flag pops out. It unrolls to reveal bold, gold lettering: "PRODUCT OF WEASLEYS' WIZARD WHEEZES — MADE YOU LOOK!"

Simultaneously, a high-pressure nozzle inside the transfigured trick wand ruptures. A massive, violent jet of thick, steaming, foul-smelling yellow custard blasts directly into Voldemort’s face. The Dark Lord stumbles backward, completely blinded, spitting thick vanilla pudding from his snake-like slits of eyes.

VOLDEMORT
(Gargling, spitting, furious)
"What—what is this sorcery?! CRUCIO! AVADA KEDAVRA!"

He frantically waves the wand. Because he is aggressively trying to bypass the safety limits on a dark spell, the wand's internal transfiguration matrix triggers a high-level Emergency Retaliation Charm. A massive cloud of bright pink smoke erupts around Voldemort. Inside the smoke, there is a loud, comical POP, followed by a tiny, panicked "Meow."

The smoke clears. Standing in a heap of the oversized black cloak is a tiny, hairless Sphynx cat, completely drenched in yellow custard, shivering violently.

VOLDY-CAT
(High-pitched, furious)
"MEOW!! MEOWWW!!"

The Great Hall goes dead silent. LUCIUS MALFOY looks at AVERY, then down at the sticky, pudding-covered feline.

LUCIUS MALFOY
(Whispering, voice cracking)
"We... we skipped family dinners for this?"

HARRY
(Stepping forward, smiling calmly)
"You never had its allegiance, Tom. Because Albus Dumbledore knew you’d look for power... but you'd completely ignore a good joke."

Harry casts a gentle Expelliarmus. The trick wand flies through the air, and Harry catches it effortlessly, tossing it to a beaming FRED and GEORGE WEASLEY in the crowd. Harry walks over and picks up the scruffy, angry Voldy-cat by the back of its neck. The cat's tiny legs flail wildly, dripping custard. Harry turns to the circle of stunned Death Eaters.

HARRY
"Lads, a bit of help here? He’s making a right mess of the floor."

Eager to please the winning side and run away from the embarrassment, five burly DEATH EATERS instantly step forward. They form a rapid bucket-brigade line alongside Harry, stretching all the way from the center of the Great Hall, out the shattered oak doors, and right down to the edge of the Black Lake.

Harry tosses the hissing Voldy-cat to the first Death Eater.

DEATH EATER #1
"Pass it on! Pass it on! It's sticky!"

They rapidly hand the flailing Dark Lord down the line like a hot potato. With one final, synchronized heave at the bank of the lake, they launch the hairless Voldy-cat high into the air.

SPLASH!

The Dark Lord lands dead-center in the freezing waters. A second later, the giant tentacles of the Giant Squid casually break the surface, pick up the custard-covered cat, and dunk it right back under to wash it off. The remaining Death Eaters aggressively dust off their hands, turn to Harry, and drop their wands in total surrender. The war is over.

**\*

SCENE 2: THE GRYFFINDOR COMMON ROOM - THREE HOURS LATER

HARRY, RON, and HERMIONE sit by the roaring fire, nursing large mugs of hot butterbeer. Across from them sit FRED and GEORGE, completely covered in soot and tiny bits of confetti, looking thoroughly pleased with themselves. FRED is twirling a normal-looking wooden stick between his fingers.

HARRY
(Shaking his head, laughing)
"I still don't believe it. How did you two actually pull this off without the entire Order finding out?"

FRED
"Well, Harry, mate, it all started about a week before the Astronomy Tower. Old Dumbledore strolls into our shop in Diagon Alley. He walks right up to the counter, looks me dead in the eye, and says..."

FRED
(Imitating Dumbledore's serene whisper)
"’Mr. Weasley, I find myself in need of a profound favor. Would you be so kind as to point your wand at me and loudly state 'Expelliarmus'?’"

HERMIONE
(Gasping, dropping her butterbeer)
"He asked you to disarm him?! On purpose?!"

FRED
"Exactly! I pulled out my wand and blasted his wand right into a bin of Skiving Snackboxes. Just like that, the true allegiance of the real Elder Wand shifted to me. I've been the Master of the Deathstick for an entire year!"

GEORGE
"Then Dumbledore pulls out a standard, top-of-the-line Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes Deluxe Trick Wand from his pocket. He casts a brilliant Transfiguration charm on it so it looks exactly like the Elder Wand. He tells us he’s putting the fake one back in his pocket for a 'rainy day' with Malfoy."

HERMIONE
"But wait a minute! If Voldemort had a fake joke-shop wand the entire time... how did he cast the Killing Curse on you in the Forbidden Forest? You still went to King's Cross station!"

GEORGE
"Ah! You see, Hermione, you are underestimating the craftsmanship of Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes. Our Deluxe Trick Wands are embedded with a strict Magical Data Plan."

FRED
"Right. We designed them so they mimic real, high-level spells for a limited number of charges. It’s like a free trial! It lets the buyer trick their friends into thinking they’ve got a real wand before the gag drops. Here is how Voldemort unknowingly burned through his subscription plan:

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
SPELL TYPE         | ENCODED LIMIT | HOW VOLDEMORT WASTED THE CHARGES
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Crucio             | 10 Charges    | Spamming it on random Death Eaters at meetings.
Imperio            | 10 Charges    | Keeping Ministry officials under his thumb.
Fiendfyre / Dark   | 10 Charges    | Blasting through Hogwarts protective shields.
Avada Kedavra      | 3 Charges     | Capped at 3 for strict Ministry legal liability.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

GEORGE
"He used Cast #1 to kill Charity Burbage at Malfoy Manor. He used Cast #2 during the sky battle. And he used Cast #3—the very last real charge in the wand—on you, Harry, in the forest. Which is why you survived!"

FRED
(Grinning, leaning forward)
"Which means, when he marched into the Great Hall to fight you for the final time... the free trial had officially expired. The wand locked down its core and defaulted directly into Prank Mode: Vanilla Custard Emergency Protocol."

RON
(Mouth wide open, staring at his brothers)
"You literally defeated the most dangerous dark wizard of all time... with a bad subscription plan."

FRED
(Winking, tossing the real Elder Wand—disguised inside a bright pink plastic tube—up and catching it)
"And when that wall collapsed outside the Room of Requirement tonight? The real wand felt the danger to its master and blew the stone wall right away from me and Percy. Alive, well, and ready for business."

GEORGE
(Raising his mug)
"To Albus Dumbledore. A man who truly appreciated a proper execution of a gag."

FRED
"And to the Dark Lord. May he rest in pudding."

The five friends clink their mugs together, their laughter echoing up into the castle, sealing the most iconic victory in wizarding history.

I’m currently rereading the Order of the Phoenix for the tenth time (at least) and just now only realised that the code to enter the Ministry of Magic through the visitors entrance (6-2-4-4-2) spells out magic on an old mobile phone keyboard.

Apologies if this was posted before, but thought it was a funny little Easter egg.

I'm rereading Deathly Hallows and got to the scene where Lily and Snape are being dropped off at Platform 9 3/4. Lily's parents are right there, and the description of James possessing that intangible quality of being well cared for and adored, indicates he wasn't an orphan himself.

The Potters were in their 20s when Voldemort killed them. This would have, going by average demographics for the time and place, put all four of Harry's grandparents in their late 40s or 50s when he was orphaned. That's pretty young for regular muggle humans to be dying, but tragedies can happen, so let's assume something awful happened to the Evanses. But wizards routinely live past 100, appear to have solved most major medical issues, and the Potters were an affluent pure blood family.

How is it that Harry doesn't have a single living grandparent by the time he turns 11?

Vampires are hinted at as early as the first book, when Quirrell mentions needing a new book about them. In Order of the Phoenix, Hagrid tells Harry about a disagreement he had with a vampire in Minsk. Then, in Half Blood Prince, Harry actually meets Sanguini at Slughorn’s Christmas party. There are several references to vampires throughout the series, but we never really learn much about their lives or their place in wizarding society.

J.K. Rowling explained that vampire mythology had already been explored extensively in books and films, so she felt she had little new to add. Still, I think there was a lot of potential for a bigger storyline. We know from Lupin’s experiences that magical beings can face serious discrimination, so I wonder whether vampires face similar struggles. Do they have the same rights as witches and wizards? Can they use wands, attend Hogwarts and hold normal jobs?

Are they considered people or more like magical creatures? They seem human enough that I would love to know how they fit into the wizarding world.
One detail that particularly interests me is Sanguini’s relationship with Eldred Worple. At Slughorn’s party, Worple tells him, “Sanguini, stay here!” when the vampire starts moving towards a group of girls,
and then gives him a pasty to distract him. It is a brief scene, but Worple almost seems to be managing Sanguini’s behaviour. Is he simply a friend looking after him, or does their relationship suggest something more complicated like slavery…?

It makes me wonder whether some vampires depend on wizards to participate in society, or whether they have the same independence as everyone else. Could they face restrictions similar to those imposed on house elves, or is that reading too much into one scene?
I also wonder whether vampires can live forever, whether half vampires exist?