Harry Potter And The Methods Of Rationality

Before Hermione got her body back, it can be explained that her mind then couldn't save those memories into the new body, and briefly animated her body remotely until it was over, and it began merging back into her brain afterwards. Hermione might even confirm that science would support what he said.

OR...

The wizards just accept it as something they don't fully understand, and move on. Humans have proven their ability to disregard interesting disagreements like that before.

Wizards do that a lot.

Harry is overegging the plot. Explicitly stating what went down means any discrepancies between his version and the evidence is going to point a gigantic finger right at him. Just leaving the scene as set up and letting people fill in the blanks would have been *much* safer. As would bringing in the order of the pheonix, or heck Lucius - someone with actual practice at coverups.

I blame the coating of Bhal's stupefication on the philosphers stone.

Lucius may now be one of the rolling heads in the graveyard, depending on whether he answered Voldemort's call as he did in the fourth book. Maybe he could have tried consulting Malfoy junior instead. Still, as previously mentioned, three can keep a secret if two of them are dead...even letting one extra person into a secret this big may be more than Harry can afford.

I do agree Harry was probably over-forcing the description though.

edited 4th Mar '15 9:17:48 PM by ashnazg

I'm pretty sure Lucius was "Mr. White"

I think r/HPMOR made some pretty compelling arguments for Harry's story.

• Better to plant a story that you can control then let people come to their own conclusions. The smart people are still going to be suspicious, but Harry's story is probably going to become the accepted legend among the common people.
• People finding out the complete truth would be bad. Really bad. At least this way he can put them on the wrong track and then placate the suspicious with a partial truth.
• Harry's store makes Hermione out to be his equal, finally letting her stand on her own instead of being his sidekick
• Harry could see Voldemort's actions through his scar in canon so it's not like that's implausible
• Dumbledore's out of the picture for the forseeable future and he can cross that bridge when he comes to it.

I suppose Riddles are BAD ACTORS when they're trying too hard. This was on the same level as "Harry... pleaaaase... I'm dying heeere..." and "The resonance! Two spirits cannot exist in the same world! My Horcrux! Noooooooooo!"

That sounds like they're just really bad at coming up with dialogue. For all we know, they're actually really good at selling it with their acting.

Bad dialogue can still kill good acting, though. I think The Handle nailed it with how much the Riddles overstretch the bounds of plausible dialogue. (Perhaps a small concession on this point with Hermione noting back when she first met Harry that he talks like a book, too.)

Just remembered another loose end to tie up - what happened to Bellatrix? Is that arm that Voldemort used in the graveyard from her?

Not sure how I feel about what he's done for Hermione. It does make her his equal, which is nice, but it's based on a lie.

edited 6th Mar '15 7:08:52 AM by DeMarquis

Îndeed, and this is by Mr. I Whish To Believe That Which Is True and What Can Be Destroyed By The Truth Should Be.

As I said, the lies really stuck through my throat. It was nauseating.

I don't suppose the prophecy could be interpreted to be about Harry and Hermoine?

@Handle: Its character development.

To be fair, the legend of Harry Potter is also based on a lie.

Good point, but symmetry should not be a concern.

You're right. Not being connected to the dark rituals used to immortalize Hermione or the prophecy saying he'll end the world are.

So now what's everyone's predictions for the remaining four (?) chapters.

Very soon: Harry meets up with Hermonie in the hospital and has to explain how she's now a alicorn princess.

Soonish: We discover that Malfoy Sr was NOT part of the 36 attending death eaters and in fact reported the dark mark reawakening to the proper authorities (A man can dream, right?)

Less soonish: Harry figures out a way (using the stone most likely) to get Dumbledore out of the mirror

Even less soonish: Source of magic! Goddamn EY, you can't keep dropping hints and lore about The Source and not feature it.

Soon: We discover harry's still in the mirror.

Also, the "I'm not serious" line still doesn't seem to have paid off yet, if it was ever intended as a clue. Why bring back Sirius just to unceremoniously kill him off? It doesn't make sense.

"So now what's everyone's predictions for the remaining four (?) chapters."

I've stated my prediction and I'm holding to it. I admit I dont know how Voldemort could be faking his defeat.

Though I feel rather dissatisfied with Yudkowsky's preferred solution to Harry's predicament along with some nagging mistakes that Voldemort made, the fact that he made it such a big event suggests that it was genuine, so I don't hold out much hope along those lines.

I don't think I really expect the Source of Magic issue to be resolved, though. It doesn't feel to me like Yudkowsky is building towards it in any serious fashion, it feels more to me like an "accept it as part of the setting" issue.

I would have expected Sirius to come into play at some point too, but it seems unlikely there's enough time left.

New chapter. Draco's father is confirmed to have been among the corpses at the cemetery.

I still don't buy that Dumbledore is finished. Not one bit. Dumbledore had to know about Quirrel since long ago, and the mirror Dumbledore didn't act like the real one at all. Dumbledore refusing responsibility for Voldemort's actions, yeah right. Much like Harry, Dumbledore seems to be utterly incapable of refusing responsibility for anything whatsoever.

Plus on the meta level Dumbledore knew the second prophecy long before everyone else did and we have no idea what he thought about it and I find it highly likely that he knows an additional part of the first prophecy too. His plot arc feels unfinished.

Come to think of it, we haven't resolved what happened to Draco's mom yet.

Nihil Supernam.

edited 8th Mar '15 2:03:39 PM by TheHandle

The last time Harry threatened Lucious by claiming he had lost the deontological protection due to innocent people, I thought he was being pendantic. Now I agree- no one could possibly blame Harry for what he did.

Plus, "the Dark Lord killed all the Death Eaters" is pretty much a Death Blow do the Blood Purist faction, if you'll pardon the pun. That, in the long run, is amazingly good.

For instance, once Dumby returns, he can bring back Draco's mum. Now we know where he might have put her with his Pohenix Fire; Outside of Time.

... Is Atlantis Gallifrey?