Severus Snape died 18 years ago in the Battle of Hogwarts (if you are smart, like me, and realise that the ‘Deathly Hallows‘ is set in 1997–98), but here we are still talking about him, because this is the franchise that – unlike its characters – will literally never die.
J.K. Rowling paused between writing Dedalus Diggle‘s family tree (probably) to answer a fan question on Twitter about the deceased Potions Master and Queenie Goldstein, a character from ‘Fantastic Beasts and Where To Find Them‘.
Both characters are/were skilled in the art of Legilimency, a.k.a. the ability to read minds. Yet where Snape tells Harry that “The mind is not a book, to be opened at will and examined at leisure,” (and thereby acting as the vehicle for Rowling’s many thoughts on the art of mind-reading), Queenie appears to be able to do just that.
A fan asked Rowling to clear up the continuity errors, so she did.
.@jk_rowling Snape says the mind isn’t a book to read at leisure. But Queenie seemed to do just that. Love to know more about Legilimency.
— Marita Tyler (@TheRealMaritaT) December 21, 2016
Snape had to train a slight natural ability. Queenie was born with a great talent, though she’s not infallible. https://t.co/tpieA0P9EA
— J.K. Rowling (@jk_rowling) December 21, 2016
ARE YOU SATISFIED NOW, HARRY POTTER FANS?
There’s a lot you can read into this tweet, if you like to see how far you can stretch.
@jk_rowling @TheRealMaritaT “though she’s not infallible.” I SENSE A FUTURE DEVELOPMENT, JK!!!
??— Charlotte (@CharCharMarr) December 21, 2016
But who bloody knows.
Also, trust Potterheads to come up with these:
@jk_rowling i.e. Queenie = Usain Bolt
Snape = Every other sprinter in the world— (((Tony Solorzano))) (@SoloSportsComms) December 21, 2016
@jk_rowling *Snape’s lip curls* “Slight natural ability?? I fooled The Dark Lord for YEARS.”
— Brian Levenson (@DonMusic) December 21, 2016
Photo: Warner Bros.
