Who is Aberforth?

[SunsetG|rl]

I agree with Snow_Tiger. I don't think he is jelous at all. After all he was an auror in the older days I believe it was his choice to be the barkeeper. Maybe he thought of it as a bit more adventuouros (?sp) than setteling down, getting one of those uneventfull jobs after being in the middle of the battle field. Though thinking about this now...Were there any great actions of his as a member of the Order?

[Phoenix in the Ashes]

You're completely right, Snow.

Aberforth must pick up an almighty amount of information there.

[Chimera]

After all he was an auror in the older days

If he was he would've worked through the Auror office, yet Moody (an auror) says the photo shoot was the only time he met Aberforth. If they were both working through the auror office they would've known each other better.

[Phoenix in the Ashes]

Depends how you define auror I suppose, really...

You could technically be a dark-magic fighter without being a member of the Auror Office at the Ministry.

[Chimera]

It's the level of training. As an example: a good first aider, skilled as they may be, is not a paramedic.

[Phoenix in the Ashes]

So for example: Could Dumbledore, skilled as he might be, not be more skilled at the job than an auror?

Actually, I'll skip that blatantly ridiculous comment of mine to say something else.

Dumbledore wasn't always a teacher. What exactly was he?

[Chimera]

He was partnered to an alchemist (Nicholas Flamel), so I'd guess he too was probably an alchemist. He taught transfiguration so maybe that's his specialty, in which case maybe Flamel needed a transfigurationist to work with. Either way seems likely.

[Phoenix in the Ashes]

But surely alchemy isn't a... career. More of a hobby I assumed.

[Snow_Crystal]

aaw thanks guys. Nice to know I come up with a novel idea every now and then! Doesn't happen very often!!!

But yeah what did DD do!!!! I remember the transfig teaching but where did he do all his training? Who was his teacher? I agree, about the dark-wizard-fighting-wizard-thing not being linked necessarily with the ministry - just look at Harry, Ron and Hermione. For ages they seemed to be the only ones fighting dark magic that we really saw. Others were just protecting against dark magic!

[Chimera]

But surely alchemy isn't a... career. More of a hobby I assumed.

If I could turn scrap iron into gold that would be my primary source of income.

I remember the transfig teaching but where did he do all his training? Who was his teacher?

Riddle answers that one, he applied to teach at Hogwarts and he wasn't turned down on the grounds of not having been on a teacher training course. He had experience in an area of study and he expected to be considered on that alone. Presumably all the training on things like how to handle the students is taught in-house.

just look at Harry, Ron and Hermione. For ages they seemed to be the only ones fighting dark magic that we really saw. Others were just protecting against dark magic!

True, but up until the fight in the foyer of the Ministry nobody was prepared to accept that the Death Eaters were back in business. Fudge makes decisions as a politician, and to a politician it's all about image, all about front. Fudge would not permit someone to be openly engaged in fighting the dark arts while he's on the podium saying there's nothing to fear, it would be contradictory.

[Phoenix in the Ashes]

Also... what James did.

[Hagger 9003]

DD is an interesting character... remembering that he was transfiguration teacher got me thinking about that NAQ about the invisibility cloak at mugglenet.... what if the cloak is actually something else which has been transfigured.
maybe im reading to much into the book again!

[Snow_Crystal]

Welcome back Hagger, not been here for a while I think?? Not sure I agree about the cloak though I wonder how it came into DD's possession before James died.

[Hagger 9003]

yeh, ive been awol for a while, going to a new school, lots of work, holidays... overdose of real life. but, now i hav time to post, so here i go again!

that cloak is a big mystery... well, i dont think we will know until JKR tells us, because there are far too many possibilities. but back onto aberforth, hes an interesting character. what did he do in all his secret missions? just act as barman at the hogs head? either that place is more important, or he did something else, i reckon.

[Athena Appleton]

Hi! Please accept my belated welcome to B&O!

It's a theory, but there is at least one major question there: Other than the "A" in the middle, how do the other initials match up to Aberforth? Being Dumbledore's brother, his last name would also be Dumbledore. So far we have Aberforth Dumbledore (A.D.), and either way, there's not a "D" in the initials of R.A.B.

I think it's fairly clear that R.A.B. is Regulas Black, the brother of Sirius. I'm not sure, but I do think I remember reading that Regulas got in the Death Eaters group, but wanted to get out, and one doesn't just hand in a resignation letter to Voldemort. That would fit in nicely with what appears to have happened with the necklace. It would make sense that someone in Voldemort's inner circle who wanted out would have known they would be killed rather than just be allowed to walk away. Knowing what the locket represented, he would have done what he could to thwart Voldemort, knowing that he would die regardless. Anyway....

I think it's most likely that Aberforth is the owner and/or barkeep of the Hog's Head. 1. Dumbledore says that he goes there because he knows the owner (okay, I admit, this one I'm not 100% sure of. I'm PRETTY sure, though, that I read that). 2. The Hog's Head smells faintly of goats, and Aberforth once got in trouble for performing unacceptable magic involving a goat (and really, how much are goats mentioned in such odd circumstances???). 3. Harry notices that the barkeep of the Hogs Head seems familiar, but not as someone he actually knows, but more as someone he knew a long time ago, or as in a dream. To be honest, it's been a long time since I've read the books (I'm currently in the middle of something even more intriguing, so after I finish this one, I plan to go back through the Harry Potter books again). I've also somehow lost about 73% of my brain cells when I used to post, so my memory that used to be sharp as a tack is now about as sharp as a lump of clay. I think, though, that my argument about Harry's thinking he'd seen the bartender before was either that he had already seen the picture, or that the fact that he knew Dumbledore so well made him look at Aberforth (who could definately have very similar features of Dumbledore) and feel like he kind of knows him. It's happened often that people have had that kind of feeling looking at me if they know my sister, or vice versa.

Anyway, sorry for the rambling, and for any inaccuracies THAT I DON'T NEED PEOPLE TO POINT OUT. If you've been here long enough to know me, you know that it's rare that I'm totally off on what is said or done in the books (although my point of view can definately be off). I could be right. I could be wrong. I'm okay with either.

And really, welcome to B&O and keep posting!