The Dresden Files > DF Spoilers
Was Justin preparing Harry to learn necromancy?
Kindler:
--- Quote from: Froklsnt on September 21, 2017, 07:07:24 PM ---Justin thought he could control a couple of kids, and bend them to his designs over time, leaving them open to enthrallment. And the more I think about it, the more the "enforcers" explanation smells fishy.
--- End quote ---
It never really made sense to me either. If he wanted loyal enforcers, it would've been far easier to manipulate and brainwash than to enthrall them. Hell, if he had just ASKED Harry to help him, he probably would have, right up until he put Elaine in a brainlock. And his move against Harry involves a straitjacket rather than magic for some reason? The whole thing just doesn't make a whole lot of sense, and seems like stupidity on Justin's part—and I never assume stupidity where wizards are concerned.
Froklsnt:
--- Quote from: Rasins on September 21, 2017, 07:09:26 PM ---So, in this case, HWWB WAS the entropy curse?
--- End quote ---
Maybe. We don't know what the ritual looked like when it succeeded, only when it failed and HWWB ate Mag in BR, after which he fled out into the night. Ghost Story seeds the idea that HWWB wanted to test and train Harry, not kill him. And the power dynamics between HWWB and Justin are murky, I've seen theories that HWWB was calling the shots moreso than Justin was in that relationship. Maybe Justin's desire for the star borns was so he could better control HWWB, and without Harry he failed and and the Walker fled out into the world, curious to see what this so-called star born could do.
Froklsnt:
--- Quote from: Kindler on September 21, 2017, 07:12:17 PM ---It never really made sense to me either. If he wanted loyal enforcers, it would've been far easier to manipulate and brainwash than to enthrall them. Hell, if he had just ASKED Harry to help him, he probably would have, right up until he put Elaine in a brainlock. And his move against Harry involves a straitjacket rather than magic for some reason? The whole thing just doesn't make a whole lot of sense, and seems like stupidity on Justin's part—and I never assume stupidity where wizards are concerned.
--- End quote ---
The straitjacket calls to mind Thomas' bonds in BR. Maybe Harry was to be the sacrifice in the ritual? Justin was skilled enough to perform two of the roles in the summoning, with Elaine thralled into doing the third, perhaps.
Mr. Death:
--- Quote from: Froklsnt on September 21, 2017, 07:26:21 PM ---The straitjacket calls to mind Thomas' bonds in BR. Maybe Harry was to be the sacrifice in the ritual? Justin was skilled enough to perform two of the roles in the summoning, with Elaine thralled into doing the third, perhaps.
--- End quote ---
The reason three were needed in BR was that none of the three had full wizard potential. Harry explains that a full-blown wizard could just do the whole thing himself, so Justin wouldn't have needed Elaine for that.
dspringer1:
One reason for the ritual is that Justin is about to go public with Harry and Elaine. They will get introduced to other wizards, learn about the laws of magic, etc. At some point Justin MUST do this as he cannot isolate himself for decades to train them in secret. He is a warden after all and has responsibilities. If Justin was black council, remember they were working towards a war 30 years in the future (during Grave Peril) which means close to 40 years in the future when Justin had Harry as apprentice. That is a VERY long time to go into hiding or retain the blind trust of an apprentice.
While it might be perfectly possible to isolate and brainwash kids to be loyal, such behavior is very hard to instill in a very independent minded and stubborn teenager who you have only worked with for 1-2 years. It might be enough to earn a significant measure of loyalty and trust, but not the level of control Justin might want if he sees Harry (or Elaine) as dangerous weapons even if he trained them for another decade as apprentices.
Keep in mind that Justin did not come across as super charismatic or loving to Harry. Also keep in mind that Harry was willing to walk away fro Eb (who he was much more fond of) in a heartbeat when he realized that Eb was acting contrary to the principles he preached. If Justin was perceptive enough to understand this aspect of Harry's character, then he knew he would not be able to effectively control Harry's behavior while openly doing bad things.
Navigation
[0] Message Index
[#] Next page
[*] Previous page
Go to full version