A very striking piece of work, much of whose power lies in the fact that it almost seems to beg for a follow-up at the same time as it leaves us certain that there will not be one. How did Snape survive the nip by Nagini? Why does Hermione bother with him? Why, if the good party won (which seems to be the case), is his heroism and real loyalty not known? We cannot even be sure whether his mind is gone or whether he is actually still pretty much as he was. But the whole thing is shot through with a sense of disaster past and loss present, and one cannot but pay attention.