We all know the famous prophecy that Professor Trelawney gave to Dumbledore back in 1980, the one that essentially sealed Harry’s fate. If you did not spend your childhood memorizing all of the prophecies like I may or may not have most certainly done, let me refresh your memory: Professor Trelawney claims that “either must die at the hand of the other for neither can live while the other survives” (OotP 191).

In the novels, Harry and Dumbledore focus on this idea. Both believe that the two powerful wizards cannot concurrently live in the same world. As a result, one must kill the other. Certainly, this is true since Voldemort needed to be the one to “kill” Harry to destroy the Horcrux within him, but what if this were the only way Harry could die?

Crazy, I know. When I first heard it, I had to stop and think, but then I remembered that this is J.K. Rowling we’re dealing with here; she is the queen of riddles and misdirection. [Even if we hate her] In fact, she has already proven once that the prophecy could have been interpreted differently and still have been correct. Both Neville Longbottom’s and Harry’s parents had defied He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named three times, and both boys were born at the end of July. The only difference was that Voldemort chose to go after Harry, marking him “as his equal” (OotP 191). The crux of the fan theory lies in the line “either must die at the hand of the other” (OotP 191), suggesting that it does not just mean that the other must be the one to administer the fatal blow, but that it is the only way either wizard can die.

Viewpoints?