WHAT HAPPENS

• Harry and Ginny are dating
• Hermione finds out about Eileen Prince
• Harry learns from Professor Trelawney that a boy was celebrating inside of the Room of Requirement and that Professor Snape is the one who overheard the prophecy
• Professor Dumbledore asks Harry to accompany him on a quest for a horcrux, and Harry asks Dumbledore about Professor Snape overhearing the prophecy
• Harry gives Hermione and Ron the Marauder's Map and Felix Felicis; he tells them to assemble the D.A. and to watch over the school while he and Dumbledore are gone
• Harry and Dumbledore apparate to the seaside

Harry and Ginny are dating

A great number of the student body, mainly girls, seems to be very interested in the fact that Harry is now dating Ginny.  Harry doesn't mind all of the gossip because he is happier than he has been in a very long time.  He is also relieved because, for once, he is not being gossiped about because of his battles with something involving the Dark Arts.

Ron, Hermione and Ginny are all sitting around the common room.  Ginny is sitting on the floor, leaning against Harry's legs.  Ginny remarks that she would think that people would have something better to gossip about.   She says that Romilda Vane asked her if it was true that Harry had a hippogriff tattooed across his chest.  Harry asks Ginny what she told Romilda, and Ginny says that she told her that it was a Hungarian Horntail.

Ron and Ginny playfully tease each other after Ginny says that she told Romilda Vane that Ron had a Pygmy Puff on his chest.  Ron tells her that, just because he has given his permission for her to date Harry, he can still withdraw it.  Ginny asks him when he ever gave her permission to do anything.  Ron warns her that she and Harry had better not start snogging in public, to which Ginny replies that Ron is a hypocrite, because he and Lavender were "thrashing around like a pair of eels all over the place."

Hermione finds out about Eileen Prince

Harry is not able to spend as much time with Ginny as he would like because Ginny is studying for her O.W.Ls.  Harry is sitting in the common room, daydreaming about a particularly pleasant time that he had spent with Ginny down by the lake, when Hermione comes into the common room and takes a seat between Harry and Ron.  Hermione tells Harry that she wants to talk to him about the "so-called Half-Blood Prince."  Harry groans and asks her to drop the subject.  Harry starts thinking about his potions book still being in the Room of Requirement, where has hidden it.  Harry has not done very well in Potions class since hiding his book there.  Fortunately, for him, Professor Slughorn attributes this drop in performance to Harry's being lovesick over Ginny.

Hermione tells Harry that she won't drop the subject, and that she's been trying to find out who would make a hobby of inventing Dark spells.  Harry defends the prince by saying that he did not make a hobby of it.  Hermione asks Harry what makes him think that the prince is a he.  Harry says, rather crossly, because his last name is Prince.  Hermione is visibly annoyed, and she slams a very old piece of newspaper in front of Harry.  The newspaper shows a moving photograph of an unattractive skinny girl, around 15 years old, who looks cross and sullen.  Harry observes that the girl has heavy brows and a long, pallid face.  The photograph is captioned:  Eileen Prince, Captain of the Hogwarts Gobstones Team.

Harry doesn't understand why Hermione is showing him this photograph.  Hermione points out that the girl's last name is Prince, and that she may be half-blood, thereby making her a half-blood Prince.  Harry and Ron are both skeptical of this.  Harry, in particular, says that he just knows that the Half-Blood Prince could not be a girl.  Hermione gets offended and accuses Harry of not thinking that girls are clever.  Harry is upset that Hermione would think such a thing, because Harry has hung around with her for five years and could not possibly believe that girls are not clever.

Hermione vows to find out more about Eileen Prince.  She says that she's going to continue to look in the library, because there's a large collection of old Prophets up there.  She leaves, and Ron tells Harry that Hermione is just upset because Harry's potions grades have been better than Hermione's.

Harry learns from Professor Trelawney that a boy was celebrating inside of the Room of Requirement and that Professor Snape is the one who overheard the prophecy

Harry and Ron are in the common room discussing the detentions with Snape that Harry received for having used the Sectumsempra spell on Malfoy.  Snape has been keeping Harry later and later during these detentions, and has hinted that if Harry doesn't get all the boxes done by the end of term, Harry will have to continue the detentions next year.  Harry is reflecting on this, and the lost time that he wishes he could have spent with Ginny, when a student named Jimmy Peakes gives Harry a scroll of parchment from Professor Dumbledore.  The message states that Dumbledore wants to see Harry.  Harry and Ron get excited, because they think that this means that Dumbledore has found a horcrux.

Harry hurries out of the common room, heading for Dumbledore's office.  Enroute, he hears a scream and a crash.  Harry goes to investigate and sees Professor Trelawney sprawled on the floor in a nearby corridor.  There are several sherry bottles lying beside her.  Harry helps Trelawney get up.  She has some of her beads entangled in her hair.  She hiccups loudly as she uses Harry arm to get to her feet.

When Harry asks her what happens, she tells him that she was just strolling along, "brooding upon certain portents…omens I have been vouchsafed…"  Harry interrupts her, because he realizes that they are standing in front of the Room of Requirement.  He asks her if she was trying to get in there.  She looks a little shifty and asks him what he said.  Harry again asks her if she was trying to get into the Room of Requirement.  She says that she didn't know that students knew about the room.  Harry tells her that not all students do and, once again, asks her what happened.  He says that, when she screamed, he thought that she was hurt.  She begins muttering that she was trying to deposit certain items in the room, and something about "nasty accusations."

Harry is confused as to why she could not get into the room.  She says that she did get in; but, there was already somebody in there.  Harry asks who it was.  She says that she has no idea and, after being questioned by Harry, says that she thinks that it was a male who was whooping very happily.  She says that when she asked who was there that no one answered her.  Harry is frustrated that she couldn't just find out who it was without asking.  Professor Trelawney says that the Inner Eye was fixed upon other matters.  She tells Harry that, after asking who was there, everything went pitch-black, and she was tossed headfirst out of the room.

Harry suggests that she tell Professor Dumbledore what happened.  Professor Trelawney, looking haughty, does not want to do this, because she says that Professor Dumbledore would prefer that she pay him fewer visits.  She says that she is not one to force her company upon anyone.  She begins mumbling that Professor Dumbledore chooses to ignore her warnings about what the cards show regarding the lightning-struck tower and the calamity and disaster that is coming nearer all the time.

Harry, not wanting to listen to Professor Trelawney's ramblings, interrupts her and finally convinces her to accompany him to Professor Dumbledore's office.  As they're walking along, Professor Trelawney tells Harry that she misses having him in her class because, even though he was never much of a seer, he was a wonderful Object.  She says that the nag—the Centaur—knows nothing of cartomancy and found it comical when she asked him if he, too, had sensed the distant vibrations of coming disaster.  She continues talking, rather hysterically, and Harry catches a whiff of sherry on her breath.  Professor Trelawney says that she knows that people do not believe that she has inherited her great-great-grandmother's gift and that these people are just jealous.  She says that Dumbledore would not have let her teach at Hogwarts all of these years if she had not proven herself to him.

She then begins talking about how she recalls her first interview with Dumbledore.  She says that Professor Dumbledore agreed to interview her in her room at the Hogs Head, where was staying at the time, despite the bedbugs, because of a lack of funds.  She says that she got the sense during this interview that Dumbledore did not believe in Divination, and that she was feeling a little odd at the time because she had not eaten that day, and then she and Dumbledore were interrupted by Professor Snape.  Harry stops in his tracks at this news.

Professor Trelawney continues walking, and talking, saying that she heard a commotion outside of the door, and then the door flew open.  The barman was standing there with Snape, who was sputtering something about having come up the stairs the wrong way.  She says that she believes that Professor Snape had been listening at the door because he was also seeking a job at that time, and he was probably just trying to pick up tips by listening in on her interview with Dumbledore.  She says that, after this happened, Professor Dumbledore seemed more predisposed to give her a job.

At this point, Professor Trelawney realizes that Harry is not walking with her.  He is standing stock-still, in shock over what he has just heard.  He realizes that Snape overheard the prophecy, and that he must have relayed this information toVoldemort.  Harry thinks that Snape and Pettigrew sent Voldemort after James and Lily.  Harry is seething with rage.

Professor Trelawney tells Harry that she thought that they were going to see the headmaster together.  Harry angrily tells her, twice, to stay where she is.  She looks at him, in alarm, as he runs past her and around the corner, heading for Dumbledore's office.

Professor Dumbledore asks Harry to accompany him on a quest for a horcrux, and Harry asks Dumbledore about Professor Snape overhearing the prophecy

Harry bangs loudly on Dumbledore's door and hastily charges into the room, even before Dumbledore calmly says tells him to enter.  Harry notices Fawkes, who turns to look at him, with his "bright black eyes gleaming with reflected gold from the sunset beyond the windows.  Dumbledore is standing at the window, looking out over the grounds, with his traveling cloak in his arms.  He tells Harry that he promised that he could come with him.  It takes Harry a couple of moments to realize what Dumbledore is talking about because, in his anger over what Professor Trelawney has just told him about Snape, Harry has forgotten about why he was on his way to Dumbledore's office in the first place.

Harry asks Dumbledore if he has found a horcrux, and Dumbledore says that he believes that he has.  Harry is torn between excitement and rage.  When Harry does not say anything, Dumbledore tells him that it is natural to be afraid.  Harry says that he is not afraid and asks which horcrux Dumbledore has found.  Dumbledore says that he is not sure, but believes that they can rule out the snake.  He believes the horcrux to be hidden in a cave where Tom riddle once terrorized two children from his orphanage.

Dumbledore says that he is standing by his promise that Harry could come with him, but warns Harry that this trip could be exceedingly dangerous.  Harry hastily says that he is coming.  He said this so quickly, and he is boiling with such anger, that Dumbledore seems to sense this.  He moves closer to Harry and asks him what happened to him and what has upset him.  Harry lies, and says that nothing has happened, and that he is not upset.  When Dumbledore tells Harry that he was never a good Occlumens, Harry erupts in anger.  He loudly says that Snape is what happened, and Trelawney told him about Snape listening at the door and overhearing the prophecy.

Even though Dumbledore's expression does not change, "Harry thought his face whitened under the bloody tinge cast by the setting sun."  Dumbledore asks him when he heard this, and Harry says just now.  Harry then yells that Dumbledore let Snape teach at Hogwarts, even though Snape told Voldemort to go after his mom and dad.  Harry is breathing hard with anger, and is fighting the temptation to tell Dumbledore that he is a foolish old man for trusting Snape.  He is afraid to say this, however, because he fears that if he does so, Dumbledore will not take him along in the quest for the horcrux.

Dumbledore calmly tries to explain to Harry that Professor Snape made a terrible mistake.  He says that Snape was still working for Voldemort at the time, so it was only natural that he would tell his employer what he had heard.  Dumbledore says that Snape had no possible way of knowing which boy Voldemort would hunt from then onward, or that the people that Voldemort would subsequently kill would be people that Snape knew.  Harry scoffs at this, and tells Dumbledore that Snape hated his father and Sirius.  Harry says to Dumbledore, "Haven't you noticed, Professor, how the people Snape hates tend to end up dead?"

Dumbledore tells Harry that he has no idea how remorseful Snape is, and that he believes this incident to be the biggest regret of Snape's life.  Harry reminds Dumbledore that Snape is a very good Occlumens, and that he could be fooling Dumbledore.  Dumbledore looks like he's trying to make up his mind about something; finally, he says that he trusts Severus Snape completely.  Harry loudly says that he doesn't trust Snape, and that he could be up to something, along with Draco Malfoy, right under Dumbledore's nose. 

Dumbledore sternly reminds Harry that they have discussed this before, and Harry knows his views.

Harry then accuses Dumbledore of leaving the school without even considering that Snape and Malfoy might decide to do something.  Harry is convinced that they are up to something.  When Dumbledore asks what, precisely, Harry suspects them of doing, Harry tells Dumbledore that Professor Trelawney heard Malfoy, in the Room of Requirement, whooping it up and celebrating about something.  He says that Malfoy is trying to fix something dangerous.  Harry accuses Dumbledore of leaving the school vulnerable to whatever Snape and Malfoy are up to. 

Dumbledore calmly tells Harry that that will be enough.  Harry can tell that he has crossed an invisible line with Dumbledore.  He tells Harry that he has never once left the school unprotected during his absences, and that there will be protection in place again tonight.  He sternly tells Harry to not suggest that he does not take the safety of his students seriously.

Harry is ashamed, and is about to apologize, but Dumbledore cuts him off.  He asks Harry if he wants to come with him tonight.  When Harry says yes, Dumbledore tells Harry that he will take him, on one condition.  He tells Harry that he must obey him without question.  Harry agrees.  Dumbledore, however, wants to make sure that Harry understands this.  He tells Harry that he must be prepared to hide, flee and leave Dumbledore and save himself, if Dumbledore asks him to.  Harry is reluctant to agree to leave Dumbledore; but, in the end, he does agree.

Dumbledore then tells Harry to go and get his invisibility cloak and meet him in the entrance hall in five minutes.  Dumbledore turns his back "to look out of the fiery window; the sun was now a ruby red glare along the horizon."  Harry quickly leaves the office, his mind clear all of a sudden.  He knows what he has to do.

Harry gives Hermione the Marauder's Map and Ron the Felix Felicis and tells them to assemble the D.A. and watch over the school while he and Dumbledore are gone

Harry enters the common room and races past Ron and Hermione.  Hermione asks Harry if he is okay, and he curtly says that he is fine.  He runs into the dormitory and retrieves his cloak, and a balled up pair of socks, from his trunk.  Ron and Hermione are staring at him as he comes back down the stairs.  He quickly tells them where is going and why. 

Harry ignores their questions, and urgently tells them that they must listen to him.  He says that he knows that it was Malfoy who was celebrating in the Room of Requirement.   He gives Hermione the map, and Ron the socks.  Ron wonders why Harry is giving him a ball of rolled-up socks, and Harry tells him that the socks contain the rest of the Felix Felicis.  Harry tells Ron to share the Felix Felicis between himself, Hermione and Ginny.  Harry tells them that, even though Dumbledore has protection in place for the school, it would be a good idea to have the D.A. in place also.  He says that neither Snape, nor Malfoy, will be expecting opposition from the D.A.

Hermione's eyes are wide with fear.  She doesn't want to take the map, and tells Harry that he will probably need the Felix Felicis on his trip with Dumbledore.  Harry tells her that he will be fine, because he'll be with Dumbledore.  He says that he doesn't want to have to worry about Ron, Hermione and Ginny while he is away; so, he wants all of them to have the Felix Felicis and the map.

Harry and Dumbledore apparate to the seaside

Harry hurries back through the portrait hole and meets Dumbledore by the front doors.  Dumbledore tells Harry to put on his invisibility cloak, and then they set off down the stone steps.  When Harry asks what people will think when they see Dumbledore leaving the school, Dumbledore says that they will think that he is off to Hogsmeade for a drink.  Dumbledore tells Harry that he sometimes offers "Rosmerta my custom," or else visits the Hog's Head, or appears to.  He says that's as good a way as any of disguising one's true destination.

Harry observes that the air is full of wonderful smells:  warm grass, lake water and wood smoke from Hagrid's cabin.  He finds it difficult to believe that He and Dumbledore are enroute to something dangerous.  Harry asks Dumbledore if they will be apparating.  Dumbledore replies in the affirmative, and Harry tells Dumbledore that he is able to apparate, but does not have a license.  Dumbledore says that he will assist Harry.

When they approach the Three Broomsticks, they observe Madam Rosmerta throwing a grubby-looking wizard out of her pub.  She greets Professor Dumbledore, who tells her that he will not be coming into her place, because he feels like a quieter atmosphere tonight.

Harry and Dumbledore turn the corner onto a side street where "the Hog's Head's sign creaks a little, though there is no breeze."  Harry notices that, unlike the Three Broomsticks, the pub appears to be completely empty.  Dumbledore tells Harry that it will not be necessary for them to enter the Hog's Head.  He says that what's important is that no one sees them go.

Dumbledore tells Harry to place his hand upon his arm, and to not grip too hard, because he is merely guiding Harry.  Harry then experiences the familiar sensation of his entire body being compressed, as if he was being squeezed through thick rubber; and, just when it seemed that he might suffocate, the restrictive sensation ceased, and he found himself standing in the dark, by the cool seaside.

Questions

1)      What do you think the title refers to?  Does it refer to the Seer, Professor Trelawney, being overheard by Snape; o r, does it also refer to Harry overhearing the Seer scream outside the Room of Requirement?  It was Harry's investigation of this scream which enabled him to learn that Malfoy was incredibly happy about something; this, subsequently, made Harry want to leave his map and Felix Felicis with Ron and Hermione.

2)      What do all the golden, fiery, ruby red references mean?  (highlighted in yellow)

3)      Why does JKR tell us that the Hog's Head's sign creaked, though there was no breeze.  Does that mean anything?  Does it mean anything when Dumbledore says that going to the Hog's Head is as good a way as any of disguising one's true destination?  What's the significance of a Hog's Head anyway?  Can you imagine Dumbledore in the Hogs Head having a drink?

4)      Do you find it curious that Eileen Prince, who is Snape's mother, was Captain of the Hogwart's Gobstones Team?  Don't gobstones spit disgusting liquid at their opponents?  Does this remind you of Snape always spewing nasty comments towards Neville, Hermione and Harry?

5)      Hermione says that there is a large collection of old Prophets in the library.  Although this is a reference to the newspaper, the Daily Prophet, do you find it interesting that JKR refers to a collection of Prophets (minus the word daily)?  Is this another reference to the title of the chapter, "The Seer Overheard?"

6)      Just before departing with Dumbledore, Harry tells Hermione that he will be okay, because he is with Dumbledore.  Earlier in the book, Dumbledore tells Harry to not worry about danger because, "you are with me." This sounds like, "I am with you, as you are with me," or "I am you, as you are me."  This vaguely sounds familiar to me.  What does it mean?

7)      I know that Harry was angry, and in shock, after learning that Professor Snape overheard the first part of the prophecy, and that Professor Trelawney is not taken very seriously by most of the students; but, still, she is a Professor.  Do you think that Harry was brazenly disrespectful, and impudent, in ordering Professor Trelawney to stay where she was and not accompany him to Dumbledore's office?

8)      JKR mentions socks a lot throughout the books.  Do you think that it is significant that Harry gives Ron a ball of rolled-up socks, other than the fact that he had hidden the Felix Felicis inside of them?

9)      Why would Romilda Vane want to know if Harry had a hippogriff tattooed across his chest?