The Way Forward is the working title of a new
novel upon which I have started to work. It features the
magical world and characters created by J.W. Rowling in her
fabulous Harry Potter books. It focuses, however, on three
of the lesser characters and how they move forward after
the events of Rowling's seventh and final novel, Harry
Potter and the Deathly Hallows. I am writing this
novel purely for my own enjoyment and that of anyone who
should stumble upon it on the web and decide to read it. I
do not intend to attempt to profit from it nor do I intend
to try to find a publisher for it.
I recognise that Ms. Rowling owns the characters and the
magical world she has created. If she or her legal
representatives should contact me and demand that I take
this developing novel down from my website, I will of
course do so. I won't stop writing it since I find myself
enjoying immensely this new, creative way to spend more
time in that magical world but I will stop posting it in
public.
In the meantime, I intend to write new chapters of this
novel on a regular basis and to post them here as they are
written and revised. I welcome your comments and any
corrections you may wish to suggest, should I slip up on
some detail regarding Ms. Rowling's world. Needless to say,
the three characters upon whom my book focuses (George
Weasley, Aberforth Dumbledore and Minerva McGonagall) will
develop throughout this process and I will indulge myself
in some creative license in that development. I trust no
one will be too offended by the decisions I make.
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I want to make note of one area of confusion I have
identified. As part of the research I've been doing to
write this novel, I have been re-reading very closely the
various accounts of the history of the Dumbeldore family
contained in The Deathly Hallows. From what I can
see, there are four major versions of some or all of the
events involving Percival, Kendra, Ariana, Albus, Aberforth
and Grindelwald:
1. Ephias Doge's account contained in his tribute to Albus
printed in the Daily Prophet;
2. Rita Skeeter's version in her biography of Albus;
3. Aberforth's account given when Harry, Ron and Hermione
first appear at the Hog's Head late in the book; and
4. Albus' account, told to Harry in King's Cross Station
after Harry attempted to let Voldemort kill him.
My problem is, I can't seem to get the dates right. In
fact, I think the accounts are contradictory on at least
one point. Let me see if I can articulate my concerns
clearly.
If we use Albus Dumbledore's life as the timeline, we get
this:
Age 0: Albus born. Family living in Mould-on-the-Wold.
Age 3: Aberforth born.
Age 3/4: Ariana born.
Age 9/10: Ariana attacked by Muggles (Ariana was six);
father, Percival, punishes attackers and sent to Azkaban.
Mother, Kendra, moves family to Godric's Hollow.
Age 11: Albus starts school at Hogwarts.
Age 14: Aberforth starts school at Hogwarts.
Age 17: Albus finishes school (June). Prepares to travel
for a year with Doge (June). Kendra killed by Ariana
(June/July). Albus returns to Godric's Hollow (June/July).
Kendra's funeral (June/July). Grindelwald arrives (summer).
Age 17 or 18: Ariana dies.
I find two mysteries there. First, the ages of Aberforth
and Ariana are unclear. Are they one year apart or are
they, actually, born in the same year (perhaps twins?). I
can find no conclusive evidence that Aberforth was older
than Ariana, though everyone seems to accept that to be the
case.
Second, there is a real mystery as to when Ariana died. We
piece together when it happened based on other events but
the information given by Doge (that Ariana died almost a
year after Kendra died) is contradicted by the evidence of
Skeeter, Aberforth and Albus himself.
Here is a breakdown of that fateful summer:
June: Albus and Doge finish their final year at Hogwarts
and prepare to travel around the world. Before they can
leave, however, Albus is informed his mother is dead;
June: Albus cancels his plans to travel to take care of his
younger siblings;
July: Grindelwald arrives in Godric's Hollow (Skeeter
quotes Bathilda Bagshot as saying Grindelwald arrived "that
summer" but, for the other dates to work out, it had to be
early in July that he first arrived);
Late August: Ariana is killed. According to Skeeter,
Grindelwald stays in Godric's Hollow for only two months,
leaving after Ariana dies but before her funeral. Aberforth
confirms this. He tells Harry that Ariana was killed as he,
Aberforth, was getting ready to go back to Hogwarts and we
all know the Hogwarts Express leaves King's Cross at 11
a.m. on September 1;
BUT, in his tribute to Albus, Doge says he was nearing the
end of his year's travels when he learned that Ariana had
died. He returned for the funeral and witnessed Aberforth's
assault on Albus. That would put Ariana's death sometime in
the next spring or summer.
I agree, this is all a tempest in a teapot and we will
accept the version offered by Skeeter and the Dumbledore
brothers but why is Ephias Doge so far off in his account?
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I've just added another scene to the Aberforth/Minerva
story and I'm quite delighted by it: well, the idea,
anyway, if not necessarily its execution. My research
suggests that the Potter books end in the year 1997, since
Harry is 17 at the end and, according to the inscription on
the sign outside his parents' home in Godric's Hollow,
Voldemort's attack on Harry's parents and their
one-year-old son occurred in 1981. That makes him born in
1980.
That means that the story ends approximately the same time
that JK Rowling's first book appeared (1997). So I thought,
what if I posit that the Ministry actually hires a Muggle
to write the official history of Harry Potter and his
battles with Lord Voldemort? What if I incorporate right
into my novel, which takes place immediately following the
events of the seventh book, that the acting Minister of
Magic, Kingsley Shacklebolt, has hired JK Rowling to write
the official history and that many members of the magical
community, Minerval McGonnagall included, are scandalised?
What fun!
