Pottermore Moments Revisited: Truth Be Told

The truth is starting to come out at last in two very dialogue-heavy chapters.

Chapter 17: “Cat, Rat, and Dog”

Chapter thoughts: This is a whirlwind of a chapter; I always seem to forget that. It seems that every few paragraphs, someone is disarming someone else or getting their own wand back. It’s like trying to picture an intense tennis rally between five people and a cat. In any case, notable moments include the Whomping Willow, the reveal of Sirius Black, and Lupin’s arrival in the Shrieking Shack.

Moment 1: The Shadow of the Whomping Willow

At first glance, this moment is extremely dark, color wise. It’s almost hard to see any of the details at all. However, hovering over Harry causes him to light his wand, making it a little easier to see the Willow and Ron being dragged under it. Still no illustrations of Scabbers, though – odd, considering that the rat is the motivation for what is happening at this moment.

Moment 2: The Man in the Shadows

For the first time in a few chapters, we get some new information, though it’s not all that new; the only thing that we haven’t heard before about Secret-Keepers is that the information they hold cannot be forced out of them. We also get the audiobook reading of Sirius’s description.

Chapter 18: “Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot and Prongs”

Chapter thoughts: The full story comes out. There’s not a lot of action in this chapter since it’s mostly just Lupin telling the Marauders’ story. It never ceases to amaze me, though, that James, Sirius, and Peter were just 12 years old when they decided they were going to attempt a particularly difficult magical transformation into animals. Three years of intense work, all to keep their friend company once a month.

Moment 1: Lupin’s Tale

I actually really like the way they depicted this moment, as a photograph of the Marauders. The illustration itself is absolutely gorgeous, with the stag, dog, werewolf, and rat against the full moon. However, at this point, the reader doesn’t know that James was a stag; that information hasn’t been revealed yet. It spoils the meaning of Harry’s Patronus in a few chapters, I think, and the impact that reveal has.

Now that Harry knows the truth, it’s time to put Lupin’s tale to the test by inviting a certain Animagus to reveal himself…