Was it that that was the age he was when he made it

That's what I assumed, I can't remember now if there was any basis for thinking that. I'm thinking he made that Horcrux by killing Myrtle and only after succeeding there started thinking about further dividing his soul up.

Though it was explictly stated even in the last book that that Tom Riddle was a "memory come to life", so maybe they were two separate operations: investing the diary with a living memory and later making it a horcrux. And then both were undone by the basilisk tooth.

I'm not completely sure when Voldemort was in Albania, come to think of it. That's where he hopped on board Quirrell, but when he found the diadem I don't recall.

Eta: I'm also not sure how fast the physical changes happened after the soul splitting.

I'm not completely sure when Voldemort was in Albania, come to think of it. That's where he hopped on board Quirrell, but when he found the diadem I don't recall.

I thought he was in Albania during the years between leaving the store and coming back to ask for the job. Then he went back there later? He can't have made the Horcrux during the same time period that he got onto Quirrell, could he? I thought they were all made before killing Lily and James.

Actually, now that I think about it, didn't he already have Nagini at the time that he killed his father and grandparents? (I really wish I had more of the books here so I could look this stuff up.)

I thought he was in Albania during the years between leaving the store and coming back to ask for the job.

Yeah, that sounds right.

Then he went back there later?

It's where he fled to when he was all disembodied, iirc, until Quirrell stumbled upon him.

I thought they were all made before killing Lily and James.

Yeah, they must've been. Sorry, I was unclear, that's why I couldn't figure when he'd found the diadem, because I could only remember him being in Albania after. Totally a memory fault on my part.

didn't he already have Nagini at the time that he killed his father and grandparents?

I don't think we know that, even if it's true. He had her when he killed the caretaker, but that was after he was back and embodified. I don't think there was a mention of a snake in the description of the killing of Tom Riddle Sr because I was halfway convinced that the teenager who appeared in the town might be Harry traveled back in time to take out Voldemort before he was Voldemort, and a big snake being with him would have not lent itself to that interpretation.

He had her when he killed the caretaker, but that was after he was back and embodified.

Oh! Right. That's what I was remembering.

I've just started re-reading, so maybe it'll answer the question but did we ever find out the identity of the Smiling Thief?

Re Hedwig's death. While it did shock and sadden me, it didn't surprise me once they'd gone on the run. There was no way they could've taken Hedwig with them, and no way Hedwig would've remained behind. Killing her was the only sensible alternative. Unfortunately.

I quite liked Dobby and was saddened by his death moreso than Lupin's and Tonks'. I really liked Kreacher's turn-around (great lesson for kids too -- JK must've read Dale Carnegie :) and was cheering when he led the Hogwarts' house-elves into the battle.

Would definitely have liked to have heard more about what was going on at Hogwarts. I realise it was meant to be all about Harry but would've been nice if JK could've split up the tent-chapters by devoting one or two chapters to Hogwarts.

I know we'll get tons of fanfic on the subjects but I also would've liked a more thorough epilogue, so we know what JK wanted to happen to Luna, Kreacher, George, etc after Ole Voldie's demise.

Yes yes! The thief was Grundlewold... Grendelwald... Grindle... fuck, can't spell it, you know, Magical Hitler, Dumbledore's Teenage BFF, who tortured D's sister. He won the wand from the fella who had it then by stealing it. Dumbledore won it from him by kicking his ass in a magical duel. Draco won it from Dumbledore when he disarmed D on top of the Astronomy Tower. Harry won it from Draco when he overpowered Draco and removed other wands from Draco - The Elder Wand knew that Harry had made Draco his bitch, even though it wasn't there at the time (perhaps because Harry was now holding Draco's own wand, the one with which Draco had disarmed Dumbledore), and thus it shifted its allegiance to Harry.

Meanwhile, further HP thoughts - God, it does just kill me, looking at Harry's life and Snape's life. Argh. There but for the grace of God, and all that - and back in HPatPS, Dumbledore tells Harry that Snape and James didn't get along, much like Harry and Draco, and Dumbledore's perfectly right - but the heartbreaking thing there is that Harry (and indeed Snape) assume that in that particular parallel Harry=James and Snape=Draco. And of course it's the other way round. Snape is the neglected, lonely and insecure little boy from a miserable home who's thrilled to go to Hogwarts. James is the thoughtlessly cruel, confident, well-loved little wizarding brat of good family who picks on him. There's almost the exact same line in HPatPS, when Harry encounters Draco in the robe shop, as there is in Book 7 when we have the flashback to Severus encountering James - Draco being contemptuous of Hufflepuffs, James being contemptuous of Slytherins. But comparing Draco and James, Draco actually comes out as the nicer of the two - he makes friendly (okay, we're talking Cordelia in 'Welcome to The Hellmouth' friendly, but nevertheless) overtures to Harry when they first meet, and he still tries to strike up a friendship with him on the train, and when he's rude to Ron it's only after Ron has laughed at his name. Whereas James is a total little shit, with the meanness and the mockery and the 'Snivellus' right from the get go.

It kills me. Harry imprinted on the Weasley family and Ron, and was dead set on Gryffindor for that reason, and implored the Hat to send him to the same house as the Weasleys; Snape imprinted on Slytherin and the proto-deatheaters, because (1) his mum was in Slytherin and (2) Lucius was the first person to show him any kindness when he sat down at their table. But if what it takes to be a Gryffindor is courage, daring and chivalry, and what it takes to be in Slytherin is ambition and the readiness to sacrifice others - what the hell was the Sorting Hat thinking?

Argh.

Also - did we all notice that towards the end of Book 7, Harry dashes into the Room of Requirement and encounters a maiden, a mother and a crone? Even the Fates are fighting against Voldemort! Fantastic!

...belatedly I'm supposing that all the Phoenix imagery and mentions really should have been Big Damn Clues that Harry was going to die and then come back again. But it didn't occur to me in the leadup to Book 7.

Snape certainly had courage, without a doubt, but that racism shit that he couldn't ever hide - that had been with him since the beginning - was probably his fatal flaw. Sure he loved Lily, but he didn't like any other muggle. That's probably what the sorting hat had to deal with.

I think Dumbledore's comment about the sorting hat was a nice one to Snape, but I'm not altogether sure the sorting hat made the wrong decision. Slytherin is where Snape wanted to go, so there it is.

Well, Snape's Muggle father was clearly a miserable bastard, whether simply neglectful or outright abusive, and his wizard heritage is the sole hope Snape has to escape his miserable homelife, so I can understand him having a somewhat jaundiced take on Muggles.

Snape called Lily Evans a Mudblood because he was lashing out with the most hurtful word he knew while her friends were dangling him upside down, with his pathetic tatty underwear on display with no provocation. In front of the girl he loved. And he was a teenage boy. He never despised Lily, and although he was parroting the same shit as the proto-deatheaters who'd welcomed him into their ranks, he sure as hell learned his lesson. (And he doesn't stand for Phineas Black calling Hermione a Mudblood even in the privacy of the Headmaster's Study - he's fully aware of how wrong that shit is.)

Slytherins are supposed to be defined by their ruthlessness and their ambition. Gryffindors are supposed to be defined by their courage and their chivalry. I don't see canonical evidence of Snape being ambitious, but I see a hell of a lot of canonical evidence for him being brave, and he does give up everything for love.

Er. Not that I'm overly invested, or anything. No sir.

I noticed also that Voldemort lures Snape to the Shrieking Shack, where he's killed by an animal. Sirius tried to do the same thing in their school days (where animal = werewolf, that time), and it was James who saved him then.

would've been nice if JK could've split up the tent-chapters by devoting one or two chapters to Hogwarts.

No kidding! But I figure by leaving so much "offstage" as it were, it leaves the door open for lots of fanfic!

I felt like the epilogue was bad fanfic, though--it seemed not the same as the rest of the story. Ah well.

When did Draco disarm Dumbledore? Was that in this book and I was reading too fast? Or in a previous book and I should've re-read before picking this one up?