Vindicated, at last!
I haven’t written a full-blown entry about the Deathly HallowS, so here goes.
I personally think that spoiler alerts are not needed here anymore but since I respect those other HP addicts who have not read the book yet for whatever reasons (I really know the feeling of not wanting the thrill to be spoiled before you read it firsthand), I have cautiously labelled when and where the spoilers start and end. So, if you have not read the seventh and the final, it’s your choice to invoke your magical powers for the magic ink to appear. You have been warned!
And to those who have not been baptized to the Order yet, here’s a friendly guide to read the spoilers: Point your wand to the indicated starting point, focus and concentrate, chant the necessary incantation and voila, there goes my thoughts. If nothing shows, then, better re-learn your magical incantations, or consult Mr. Ollivander for your wand check-up. If neither of these works, I’m so sorry to be the first to tell you that you are either a Squib or an ordinary Muggle. 
[SPOILERS START HERE]
I really feel vindicated by these facts:
1) That Harry is the seventh and the last Horcrux. Everything from Book 1 up to the 6th showed the sign that Harry is indeed, Voldemort’s Horcrux. Afterall, he knows Parseltongue, he has the twin wand as that of the dark Lord, he can read Voldemort’s mind, etc…
2) That R.A.B is Regulus Arcturus Black. Iknew RAB has got to do with Regulus for why else would JKR mention about Sirius’s brother in the Order and later on mentione the initials in Half-Blood?
3) That Harry did not use the Avada Kedavra curse. After the Order of the
Phoenix
, my greatest worry was how would Harry kill Voldy since the prophecy goes "neither lives while the other survives." It would really appear odd if he used the Killing Curse, which is a Dark Art incantation. Thank God for Expelliarmus, his signature spell! And that was the second time Expelliarmus defeated Avada Kedavra!
4) While waiting for the seventh book, my sister and I have discussed about Harry being the last Horcrux. If this was the case, our discussion went, would it mean that he should die? It was a complicated case, of course, and I am glad that JKR was able to pull a good plot to this one! ‘Ear!’Ear!
5) That Luna Lovegood is given another comeback in this book! I was quite sad that her character suddenly was forgotten in oblivion in Half-Blood Prince. Boy, I am just glad she’s back!
6) That Neville Longbottom finally found his true strength and valor and is now making his parents and grandmother proud! Go, Neville!
7) That Percy was going to realize his mistake and come back to his family. This one I was really hoping for because I would really want this to be a good lesson to the younger readers about family values, etc. I know its sloppy but heck, with the kind of teenagers around, we seriously need books that uplift family ties.
The Life and Lies of Albus Dumbledore. I know a lot of fans hate the fact that Albus was inclined to the Dark Arts when he was younger, and he even made friends with Grindewald, I just love this angle of APWBD because it really shows how he was able to shape his character as a great man and wizard. Since he was already exposed to the Dark Arts, he knows how to combat it. And this is really parellel to real life adage that you can always go back to being good even though how bad you have become, or something like it.
And here are the things that made me sad while reading the book…
1) Too many deaths. Well, I know that the final battle was something very dark and a lot of deaths from the good side will be involved but I just can’t accept the fact that Fred Weasley had to die! And he and George are one of my favorite characters! Argh! Perhaps my only consolation was how JKR wrote his death: "and Fred’s eyes stared without seeing, the ghost of his last laugh still etched on his face." This line really wretched my heart; this is really effective. It is an irony but at the same time, it gives justice to Fred’s character. Perhaps, I could say, "You really are joking Joanne!"
2) The Prince’s Tale. Okay, so Severus really loved Lily til the end, but it still didn’t make him a good person. I have no objections to how JKR wrote the story about Snape; I am more concerned on how most readers understood it. A lot of those I know now proclaim Snape to be a hero but heck, for me, he was just doing it for his love of Lily, not for Harry, not for the greater good, not for being good. Beside, we should not forget how he takes pleasure in killing other people, ayt? I’m just glad that in a subsequent interview, JKR clarified the matter to us: Snape was neither good nor bad; he was a complicated man.
3) There was no proper explanation to what really happened to the Malfoys afterwards. Did they continue their inclination to the Dark Arts or were they remorseful?
4) Lupin and Tonks’ death. Poor Teddy. I just hate the fact that no one of James’s friends is left.
And of course, to those wondering who was Victoire that Teddy Lupin was snogging nineteen years later, well, she is Bill and Fleur’s eldest daughter.
And to my earlier question about the sword of Gryffindor, according to JKR’s chat with fans, it now shows that Griphook was wrong, that the sword was really Gryffindor’s, that Godric did not steal it from any goblin, and since ownership really belonged to Godric Gryffindor, it belongs to any true Gryffindor who needs it. Help will always come to Hogwarts to those who need it.
[SPOILERS END HERE]
