I’ve been suspecting for a few weeks now, but I get the impression that Alanza is not who we think she is. My guess, and hopes, is that Alanza is Rowan on polyjuice. Some interactions seem to point to that, or maybe I’m just trying to find reasons to hope
Quite a lot of people suspect that there’s “something” going on with Alanza, actually. I’m seeing different theories ever since she was introduced. Yours is not bad, though. It definitely makes more sense than polyjuiced Rakepick. And you know, when I was thinking about my response to your ask, I remembered one silly fact. One of the interpretations of the name “Alvez” is apparently “guardian”. And what rowan wood is known for in wandlore? Protection and powerful Defensive Charms. Funny coincidence, isn’t it? But, to be honest, I think it’s just that: a coincidence. I believe that Alanza is simply Alanza. I do expect her to be more important for the story, but I don’t see her being a spy, an imposter, someone in disguise, or anything, really. Still, let’s look at the possibility of her being Rowan.
First of all, we have a problem of Alanza being an exchange student. Sure, it’s possible that Dumbledore would make it up, but the thing is that the first time we learnt about someone coming from Castelobruxo was in Y6Ch12 when MC was eavesdropping on McGonagall and Flitwick while using an Invisibility Cloak. Again, it could be that Dumbledore told them to lie (I mean, it was very convenient that they were like: “All right, let’s go again through everything Albus told us”…), but… I don’t know, it feels like a bit of a stretch to me.
Secondly, if there’s indeed a Polyjuice Potion in use, it had to mean that there’s real Alanza somewhere. What about that? Did she sacrifice her exchange for Rowan willingly? Not willingly…? Was she never meant to come to Hogwarts, she’s just someone nice enough to deliver her DNA? I suppose that more likely here would be a scenario where Rowan uses human Transfiguration. We know it’s possible, we even saw it with Fletcher some chapters ago. It’s just very advanced magic. But Rowan is also very smart and talented, plus they can have the help of someone else.
Yet… I’m still not convinced. And the main thing that bothers me is the fact that Alanza is absolutely loved by all creatures. The game puts so much stress on it that it has to be somewhat meaningful. Rowan, on the other hand… Well, they weren’t bad with creatures – that’s for sure. They’re no Andre who seems to like animals, but Transfiguration classes prove that they don’t like him back. Still, Rowan wasn’t exceptional in that matter either. It’d be rather odd if it suddenly changed when they’re under any kind of disguise. For example, I imagine that Mrs Norris might’ve sensed that it’s Rowan AND remember that they drugged her back in Y1. She wouldn’t be purring around them then.
That being said, Rowan still can be alive, even if Alanza has nothing to do with it, so… don’t let your hope die! And frankly, I hope Alanza’s plot will be exciting either way, just on its own.
