Character:Justin Finch-Fletchley
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| Character profile | |
|---|---|
| Justin Finch-Fletchley | |
| Birth | between September 1979 and August 1980 |
| Blood status | Muggle-born |
| Appearance | curly hair |
| School | Hogwarts |
| House | Hufflepuff |
| Allegiance | Dumbledore's Army |
| Portrayer in the movies | Edward Randell |
| First appearance in canon | The Sorting Hat (PS) |
Justin Finch-Fletchley is a Muggle-born Hufflepuff in the Trio's year (CS7). In 1992, he was Petrified by Salazar Slytherin's Basilisk (CS11). He is one of the founding members of Dumbledore's Army (OP16). Because of his Muggle family, he was not allowed to return to Hogwarts for his seventh year after the Fall of the Ministry (DH11). Muggle-borns were in great danger under Voldemort's regime; we do not know what happened to Justin.
Contents |
Characteristics
Justin has curly hair. His behaviour is outgoing, talkative, cheerful and friendly. He seems a little naive and easily impressed and influenced by others. For instance, he believed all of Gilderoy Lockhart's fabricated tales and admired him greatly (CS6). He was also among the first to believe in rumours that Harry Potter was the Heir of Slytherin (before it became known that Harry was a Parselmouth) and consequently ran away from him in fright (CS9). He admits himself that he is not particularly brave (CS7). The fact that the Sorting Hat put him in Hufflepuff indicates that he is hard-working, loyal, and just, though maybe not too bright (PS7).
It is likely that he comes from an upper-class Muggle family; he was supposed to go to Eton, a very prestigious school, before his Hogwarts letter arrived (CS6). His best friend at Hogwarts is apparently his house mate Ernie Macmillan, and he is also friends with Hannah Abbott (CS9, GF18, OP16, OP38). He is generally on good terms with Harry and his friends (excepting the brief period when he suspects Harry to be the Heir of Slytherin) (CS7, GF18, OP16).
Life
Family background and first year at Hogwarts
Justin was born at some point between September 1979 and August 1980. Both of his parents are Muggles; presumably, they have a high social standing. They intended their son to go to Eton. However, in the summer of 1991, Justin and his family got a Hogwarts letter and presumably a visit from a staff member to explain that Justin was a wizard and had been accepted at the school. His mother was disappointed about the news at first (CS7).
On September 1, 1991, Justin took the Hogwarts Express to the school and was Sorted into Hufflepuff (PS7). Despite his mother's misgivings, he was glad to go to Hogwarts instead of Eton. In the summer holidays before second year, he gave Lockhart's books to his mother. The stories finally convinced her of the advantages of having a trained wizard in the family (CS7).
Second year at Hogwarts: The Petrification
In the first Herbology lesson of his second year on September 3, 1992, Justin was grouped with Harry Potter, Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger. He cheerfully introduced himself to the Trio and made flattering remarks to each of them, congratulating Harry on his general fame, Hermione on her intelligence and Ron on his father's flying Ford Anglia. The latter did not go over well with Ron, who had just received a Howler from his mother for stealing the car. Justin continued to talk about Lockhart; he was obviously impressed with the new teacher. He also shared that he was initially headed for Eton and how Lockhart's books had impressed his mother. Their conversation then ended because all students had to put on earmuffs to re-pot mandrakes (CS7).
Harry met Justin again in a school corridor a few days after Mrs Norris was found Petrified on Hallowe'en. He opened his mouth to greet him, but before he could say anything, Justin turned and ran off in fright. Obviously, Justin believed a rumour started by Argus Filch that Harry was the Heir of Slytherin, and, being Muggle-born, he saw himself as a potential victim. When Harry told Ron about this, Ron dismissed Justin as "an idiot" an account of his praise of Lockhart (CS9).
Justin attended Lockhart's Duelling Club meeting on December 17. Lockhart paired him with Neville Longbottom to practice Expelliarmus. Apparently, neither of them did particularly well; at the end of the first round, both were lying on the floor and panting. Most other students had not fared much better. Lockhart admitted that it might be good to teach defensive moves first and asked Neville and Justin to demonstrate for the class, but Severus Snape dismissed them on account of Neville's lack of talent. He picked Draco Malfoy and Harry instead. During their duel, Malfoy used Serpensortia to conjure a snake. Lockhart tried to Vanish it, but his spell only let the snake fly up into the air and thud back unto the floor. Hissing angrily, it slithered towards Justin and prepared to strike. Before it could attack the boy, however, Harry instinctively commanded it in Parseltongue to stop. The snake grew peaceful and turned away from Justin to face Harry. However, Justin, who had of course not understood Harry's command and already mistrusted him, thought that Harry had been encouraging the snake. Looking angry and scared, he shouted "What do you think you're playing at?" and ran off before Harry could answer (CS11).
The fact that Harry was a Parselmouth solidified Justin and his fellow Hufflepuffs' belief that he must be the Heir of Slytherin and that he had chosen Justin as his next victim. When their Herbology lesson was cancelled due to a blizzard the next day, Ernie Macmillan told his friend to hide in the dormitory. For some reason, Justin did not follow this advice and left the Hufflepuff common room alone. In an upstairs corridor (most likely on the fifth floor, possibly higher), he met Nearly Headless Nick. Both of them saw the Basilisk there; Justin looked into the monster's eyes through Nick's transparent form which protected him from death. He and the ghost were Petrified.
Meanwhile, Harry wanted to explain to Justin what had really happened the night before. He went to look for him and overheard a group of Hufflepuffs discussing their suspicions in the library. He was unable to convince them that he had not tried to set the snake on Justin and stormed out of the library. After a short encounter with Rubeus Hagrid, he went upstairs and came into the corridor of the recent attack. Peeves saw him, Justin and Nick, and started yelling. So many people burst into the corridor that Justin was almost squashed. Among them was Ernie, who accused Harry of being "caught in the act". Professors Flitwick and Sinistra carried Justin into the hospital wing (CS11), where he stayed until the evening of May 29, when he and the other victims were cured with the Mandrake Restorative Draught (CS16). That night, Harry slay the Basilisk, and a great feast that lasted all night was held in the Great Hall. During the celebrations, Justin came over to Harry from the Hufflepuff table to wring his hand and apologize at great length about suspecting him (CS18).
Third to sixth year at Hogwarts
After his Petrification, Justin and Harry got along well. This changed only briefly when Harry was chosen as the second Hogwarts Triwizard champion on Hallowe'en 1994. Like many Hufflepuffs, Justin and Ernie thought that Harry wanted to steal their house mate Cedric Diggory's glory. Consequently, they did not speak to him during Herbology on November 2, when they were re-potting Bouncing Bulbs at the same tray. When one of the plants smacked Harry in the face, they laughed at him (GF18).
On the first Hogsmeade weekend of their fifth year on October 5, 1995, Justin, Hannah, Ernie and Susan Bones went to the Hog's Head together to listen to Hermione's proposal to found a secret Defence Against the Dark Arts study group led by Harry. When Harry admitted that he had killed the Basilisk with Gryffindor's sword, Justin whistled. At the end of the meeting, Justin and his friends signed Hermione's parchment, thereby agreeing not to tell anybody about the group (OP16). They all came to the first meeting of Dumbledore's Army in the Room of Requirement on October 9. During the meeting, Justin was paired with Luna Lovegood to practice Expelliarmus. Her performance was erratic—sometimes she successfully disarmed Justin, at other times she simply caused his hair to stand on end, and once she made his robes fly up over his head so that he had to disentangle him from them (OP18).
On the journey back to London at the end of fifth year, Justin shared a compartment with Ernie, Hannah, Susan, Anthony Goldstein, and Terry Boot, all members of Dumbledore's Army. Malfoy, Crabbe and Goyle tried to attack Harry right outside their compartment door when he was on his way back from the toilet. They saw this through the glass and immediately came to Harry's aid, using all the curses he had taught them over the year until the three offenders resembled three gigantic slugs. Ernie and Justin hoisted them into the luggage rack where they were left to ooze (OP38).
Voldemort's reign
Nothing is known about what happened to Justin after Voldemort gained control over the Ministry of Magic on August 1, 1997 (DH8). However, we do know that this must have put him and his family in great danger because the new regime accused Muggle-borns of stealing magic. Justin was of course not allowed to return to Hogwarts for his seventh year; it is probable that he left the country or went into hiding (DH11). If he failed to do so or if he was caught by Snatchers, the Muggle-born Registration Commission most likely sent him to Azkaban (DH13).
Justin was not mentioned as a participant in the Battle of Hogwarts (DH31, DH32, DH36). It is possible that he participated in the battle without being noticed by Harry, but it is more likely that he was either imprisoned, dead, or in exile.
Fanon ships
Justin Finch-Fletchley is not engaged in any romantic relationships in canon. This section contains a list of the romantic partners with whom Justin Finch-Fletchley is often paired in fanfiction.
Het
Heterosexual relationships:
Slash
Homosexual relationships:
