NEW POLL!!!!!

So, Paige and I decided that it was time to try another poll. Last time we didn't get many votes, so we are counting on your participation this time. We are really excited to hear from you guys! You have been reading the posts we put out for so long, we want to hear some of your opinions. So VOTE!!!!! Please, please, please.

Quote of the Week

Hermione drew herself to her full height; her eyes were narrowed and her hair seemed to crackle with electricity."No," she said, her voice quivering with anger, "but I will write to your mother." 

-Hermione, Order of the Pheonix 

I have to admit that of all the characters I identify with Hermione the most. This quote screams Hermione. Not only does it draw out attention to her physical features, i.e. her characteristic bushy hair. It also shows that side of Hermione that reminds us that she will do anything if she thinks it is right. It is that strength that blossomed within Hermione, and aided that transition from the insecure eleven year old to the character we find later in the series. Also I have to admit that I love this quote because she reminds of Mrs. Weasley here. So enjoy the quote, Paige and I both have a lot on our plate at the moment and we hope that soon we will be able to get back to some DoQ's. 

Quote of the Week

Alas! 'Tis time for Quote of the Week!

"We feel our futures lie outside the world of academic achievement."

-Fred Weasley, OOTP

I chose this quote because school (for me) is just around the corner. I only have 6 days of summer, and one more year to go, but I wish that I was done. Obviously, I'm not entirely all that excited to go back to school. I'd rather have more time sleeping than having to study. So, basically, this quote mirrors my emotions to school right now.

I always laugh when I read this quote and at others in the later chapters of this book that Fred and George make about their feelings of being at Hogwarts, especially when Umbridge is around. I've always sort of related to them. Being a Fred and George quote in itself is a reason why I picked it, but I think that others can relate to this quote as well.

Paige Cyrus

Owl Post

One of my favorite things in all of the wizarding world are the owls. I think they are brilliant. The entire system of mail is so intriguing. I have long wondered certain things about the owl mail system, and long marveled at other things. So much that I decided to write an entire post, devoted these feathered friends.

We have talked about Hedwig at length before, so I won't spend much time on her here. I will just say that I love Hedwig, and I think that she is amazing. But one thing that Hedwig emphasizes is that owls are not just for sending letters. Allow me to diverge from the post topic for just a moment here. Owls become beloved pets. Hedwig was a companion to Harry, the thing that helped him get through the long summers at the Dursley's. These animals are cared for, and used just as much as pets as they are mail carriers.

But now back to the post itself. I see mail being split into two categories, sent and received. I see sent as being very straightforward. Basically you give your letter to your owl, or if you don't own one then another owl, and they take your letter to the recipient. It does however have a few elements that I am curious about. I have always wondered how exactly the owls knew where the letters go. Could they read the address? Then can owls, as well as other animals, read? Or did you tell them (if so why write the address)? Did they just know, instinctively perhaps? It has always been something I have wondered. I have also always wondered how they were able to find you, or the recipient of your letter, when you have changed locations. Do owls have some kind of homing beacon that they use to find whoever they are looking for. Once again, I find these kinds of things intriguing.

But there is another question that has always bugged me as I read, this related to receiving letters. How does your owl know that someone else would like to send you a message. Hedwig delivers several letters to Harry from Hagrid, as well as a gift from Hermione. How does Hedwig know that they need to send a letter to Harry?

I love owls. I think that JKR found a really interesting way to make a mail system. It seems to wonderful, and somehow a very fitting way for magical people to communicate. I can't exactly tell you why though. As you can see this post is composed of more answers than questions. I invite you to comment on anything above, I would love to hear what you guys have to say.

Calie Holden

Quote of the Week

"I'll distract them all," she said. "Use your Cloak." And before he [Harry] could say a word, she had cried, "Oooh, look, a Blibbering Humdinger!" and pointed out the window.

-Luna, Deathly Hallows

     Luna is one of my favorite characters; I know, I have a lot of those. But I find her fascinating, she is a very deep person, she thinks on a plane above every other character. This may be my favorite Luna moment of all. You see a very down to earth understanding side of her, in this moment she even in a way recognizes her quirks and uses them to help Harry. You also get a little reminder of all of those odd things that Luna believes. For the last Luna moment of the series, this is great. 

Department of Queries: Portraits

Here is the question that we will explore for the DoQ: What dictates the actions of portraits?
Calie and I had a great discussion over this, including different aspects of portraits, including travelling, communication, purpose, and the 'portrait world'.
We began by talking about what we think the portraits would see on their side of the frame. Would it be like another world back there, where everything is three-dimesional? Would it be two-dimensional since they are painted? Do the same rules apply to the objects if they are present? I think that first off, the frame is like a window to real people; that even if all we see is the person from the waist up, they would still have a body, it's just not shown. Otherwise, how would they travel to their other portrait? I think that the 'world' behind the frame would be three-dimensional to them, and so would the objects. I think that this is proven when the Fat Lady and Violet drink all of the wine in the portrait of the monks.
Another thing to do with backgrounds was the space between the frames (or the walls their hung on) in their background. We both agreed that there would have to be some kind of space between them, but we were stuck on how they would actually move into other portraits. We see in many instances where the portraits visit others. Would there be something in the 'space' between them, like a ladder or stairs, to get to ones higher or lower than them? That's a question that Calie had. I had always imagined something like a hallway on the sides of their frame, where they could choose which way to go, and also a path to go to their other portrait. But as for traveling to their other portrait, it says that they just walk out the side of their frame to go to their other portrait, but when they do, they don't appear in their adjacent frame. We couldn't agree on whether or not the distance between frames on their side was the same as on our side, such as just the length of wall between them, or a simple threshold.
Something we found intriguing was Ariana's portrait. It seems to break a lot of portrait rules. Firstly, all of the portraits in the Headmaster's study that we see travel walk out of the side of their portrait to appear at their other portrait. When Ariana visits her other portrait, she "turned and walked away, not as people in portraits normally did, out of the sides of their frames, but along what seemed to be a long tunnel behind her." Another very odd thing is when Harry asks Phineas Nigellus to bring Dumbledore into his frame to talk to them, he says: "The portraits of Hogwarts may commune with each other, but they cannot travel outside the castle except to visit a painting of themselves hanging elsewhere. Dumbledore cannot come here with me." Maybe this only applies to Hogwarts portraits, but when Ariana goes along the path of her portrait, she is able to bring Neville through. He is also is seen in her portrait when they are travelling back. I don't think he actually travelled through it, since "the [portrait] swung forward on the wall like a little door, and the entrance to a real tunnel was revealed. And out...clambered the real Neville." We know that portraits can be guarding entrances, but how is it that Neville could be shown in the picture when he is inside the tunnel? We never see anyone in the fruit bowl or Fat Lady portraits when they travel.
That is it for this installment of Department of Queries. If you would like to add your opinion or critique, we encourage you to comment and let us know what you think about this query.

Another Update

So just an update...
As you all should know, early registration for Pottermore was completed yesterday after seven days of clues to gain access. Throughout the seven days, one million lucky people around the world got invitiations to 'beta' the site, gaining access about a month before it opens to the public. After staying up until 4 AM for the second clue, and 5 AM the next for the third, we both were able to get invitations; I got the clue the second night, and Calie the third. We are some of the lucky few that will be able to participate in this upcoming experience in October. We are very anxious and excited.
Another thing we would like to let you know is that we will begin working on another Department of Queries question over the next few days, this topic being Magical Portraits. We will begin working on it tomorrow, and it should be out sometime this week.
As always, we encourage you to explore the site and leave us comments. We could really use them so that we can improve the site and incorporate more things that you would like to see. It would help tremendously! Thanks.

Paige Cyrus

Quote of the Week

"My brain surprises even me sometimes."
-Dumbledore, SS 300

I find this quote both humerous and a bit serious. It is humerous obviously because Dumbledore is making a bit of a joke at himself, but it is serious because it is true. Dumbledore is not one to gloat or brag, but when he does, it is often humerous, like this one. He is completely brilliant, and I think that this quote suits him well. All of his little "aha!" moments that we encounter in the series show this quote to prove true as well.

Mischief Managed.

Paige Cyrus