Skip to main content

harry potter - Would the Horcrux Cave Potion Have Killed Dumbledore?


Would the Horcrux cave potion have killed Dumbledore if:




Snape hadn't?



Kreacher survived the potion:



‘There was a b – basin full of potion on the island. The D – Dark Lord made Kreacher drink it ...’ [...] ‘Kreacher drank, and as he drank, he saw terrible things ... Kreacher’s insides burned ... Kreacher cried for Master Regulus to save him, he cried for his Mistress Black, but the Dark Lord only laughed ... he made Kreacher drink all the potion ...'

Deathly Hallows - page 160 - Bloomsbury - chapter 10, Kreacher's Tale



Kreacher crawled to the lake for water and was dragged under by the Inferi who lived there, and Disapparated from the cave back to number 12 Grimmauld Place, per Regulus Black's instructions: ‘Master Regulus told Kreacher to come back,’ he said.


What I'm interested in knowing is whether Kreacher survived Voldemort's potion because he was a house-elf and house-elf magic is different than wizarding magic, or if he survived drinking the potion because while it was a devastatingly horrible potion to drink, it was not lethal -- not lethal to either house-elves or wizards.


Therefore, I'm wondering if




Snape had not killed Dumbledore after Dumbledore and Harry arrived back from the Horcrux cave



whether Dumbledore would have ultimately died from the Horcrux potion?


An answer in the spirit of canon would be very welcome.



Answer



At the entrance to the Horcrux cave, Dumbledore says:



"The idea ... is that your enemy must weaken him- or herself to enter."



Then, when they're discussing the potion in the basin:




"But what if -- what if it kills you?"


"Oh, I doubt that it would work like that," said Dumbledore easily. "Lord Voldemort would not want to kill the person who reached this island."



and:



"I'm sorry, Harry; I should have said, he would not want to immediately kill the person who reached this island," ... "He would want to keep them alive long enought to find out how they managed to penetrate so far through his defenses ..."



and:




"Undoubtedly," he (Dumbledore) said finally, "this potion must act in a way that will prevent me from taking the Horcrux."



I can't recall anything offhand that addresses the issue of how Voldemort expected to be notified of someone getting into the cave, but I think the quotes above make it pretty clear that the potion was supposed to seriously incapacitate whoever drank it, but not kill them.


Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

futurama - How much time is lost in 'Time Keeps on Slippin''

In time Keeps on Slippin' , Farnsworth creates a basketball team which he matures by abusing Chronitons. This leads to time skipping forward by random, but ever increasing amounts. How much time was skipped in this way? Answer Unfortunately, I don't think a good estimate can be made for this, for two reasons: Many of the time skips move forward by an indeterminate amount of time. At one point, the Professor mentions localized regions of space skipping forward much more than others. We then see two young boys on the street below complaining about having to pay social security, only to suddenly become senior citizens and start complaining about wanting their money. Thus, each individual could have experienced a different amount of time skippage.
Post a Comment
Read more

game of thrones - Is Syrio Forel dead?

In the episode 'The Pointy End' (Season 1 Episode 8) when Arya runs from the Lannister guards you hear the sound of a sword being dropped (around 4:56): [embedded content] After that neither Syrio or Ser Meryn Trant is never mentioned or seen in the show again, except when Arya mentions to the Hound that Ser Meryn Trant killed Syrio. Is there any mention in the books that Syrio actually dies?
Post a Comment
Read more

tolkiens legendarium - Difference between elves and dwarves blacksmithing in the Lord of the Rings

Both the elves and the dwarves were famous for their metal work in the Lord of the Rings trilogy, but what is the difference between what they made, and which one had the better skill of making amours and swords? Answer James Christopher's answer sums up the second part of your question well, but as to the difference in what they made, a little more detail is needed. Once the Elves learned to forge with steel, the shape of the sword changed, now being able to take on the form of a great broadsword or a light and agile curved sword. Additionally, they took great pride in decorating their swords. As we see in the Lord of the Rings , some swords like Sting had magical properties such as glowing blue when orcs are near. As far as the use of Mithril, lotr.wikia has two contradictory passages: Thus, Elven blades became renowned as great weapons, capable of performing deeds beyond the skill of their handlers and were even more glorious when the use of Mithril was allowed to the Elves. ...
Post a Comment
Read more

How do Pokemon trainers collect their winnings?

According to Bulbapedia , Prize money is the money that a Trainer pays out at the end of a battle. So we know that the money comes directly from the trainer that just lost, and not some third-party committee or sponsor. But how is this done? It can be easy seeing the random trainers who challenge you along the way wanting to wager and then, after admitting defeat, sticking to their word and handing over their hard-earned pokebucks. Then there are the likes of Team Rocket and Giovanni, who also give money once they lose. This doesn't seem like something people in a criminal organization would willingly do. From this it appears that trainers have no say in whether or not they cough up the dough after losing, but I can't find anything on how exactly the funds are transferred from loser to winner. So how do Pokemon trainers receive their winnings?
Post a Comment
Read more