Two prescient spoilers (a.k.a. "guesses"):

Hedwig is not just an owl.

Crookshanks is not just a cat.

OK, so did anyone read about the recent J.K. Rowling appearance with Stephen King and John Irving?

One of the things she said was that Dumbledore was definitely dead and not coming back. I was one of those fully convinced that he was going to pull a Gandalf--in part because he had time to prepare for the event.

I eventually found an article (and I can't remember where now or I'd link to it) that talked in greater detail about the fund-raiser. At one point, she told those of us who think that Dumbledore isn't really dead that we really need to go through the stages of grief and get over it. She went so far as to say he wasn't going to "pull a Gandalf."

One of the funnier bits in that article was when someone was asking Stephen King which literary figures scared him. He answered that Rowling's Dementors were pretty creepy. Rowling got a big grin on her face and said, "I scared Stephen King!"

And let's not forget the pensieve. Besides the portrait, I think Harry may still be able to learn a good bit from Dumbledore via memories. I even wonder if Dumbledore won't somehow bequeath some memories to Harry, if that's possible.

I'm looking forward to Harry visiting Godric's Hollow at the beginning of book 7. I'm hoping he may tap into deeper memories of what happened the night of his parents' death, which will give him some much needed insights.

Well, I don't think Hedwig or Cruikshanks are animagi. A couple of themes seem to point to the final outcome...1) Voldemort is primarily obsessed with immortality for himself. He and Harry have wands containing feathers from Fawkes..an immortal bird..and Harry survived the aveda cadavera curse. 2) The prophesy may be understood differently than is commonly described....'neither may live while the other survives' could mean they BOTH have to die simultaneously.
3) There seems to be a distinction between death and going 'beyond the veil'. Is is not possible that Harry discovers that a) he is the 7th Horcrux, b) that his parents, Sirius, and Dumbledore are merely 'beyond the veil' and that c) by killing himself he destroys Voldemort and joins his family beyond the veil. By willingly giving up his life for those he loves and the cause of good, it becomes possible to use the magic of the Phoenix feather in his wand to ressurect himself and the others.
I suspect Neville was the one about whom the prophesy spoke and that Voldemort marked Harry as 'the chosen one' in error. The attempt to kill Harry as a baby made Harry a horcrux and made it impossible for Voldemort to attain immortality...A reality Voldemort does not understand and did not anticipate. When Harry learns this, his choice to kill himself destroys the last horcrux and Voldemort but activates this alternative magical pathway. I wonder what happens when you point a phoenix feathered wand at yourself and cry Aveda Cadavera?

i heard that in the first book the mirror harry was looking in, belongs to ravenclaw the mirror of erised (desire spelled backwords), i have also heard that one of the horcruxes might be one of the founders wands, thats why ollivander was missing.

About the whole thing that cruckshanks might be animagi! I think that she deffinately is, because how did her and sirius form such a close friendship otherwise. It seemed like sirius was giving her orders to get peter in the 3rd book and how would a normal cat be able to follow orders like that. I dont think Hedwig as there hasnt been much evidence that he has many human qualitys and wouldnt he have revealed himself to harry?

Another thought could Dumbledore come back as a ghost?

I missed the Regulus Black part, but then, i had a hard time reading the book with my 4 year old bouncing about the house!

but as for Snape, i think he is on Dumbledores side. Dumbledore told him to do what ever he had to do to keep tabs on Voldemort. But then Snape had to take the oath from his sister to protect Malfoy and then Snape may have had to kill dumbledore as a reaction to the oathe, or dumbledore may have set up a fake death. Will have to wait for the book to see on that one.

anyway, that's my thoughts on it.

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I thought it quite obvious immediately that it was Regulus Black. It fits perfectly.

I'm amazed that anyone could still think Snape is on the good side after that book. That was one of my biggest gripes with the book - that after all that setup of nasty people aren't necessarily on the side of evil she made Snape the bad guy.

I can see only two possible ways out:

1) that wasn't really dumbledore and the real dumbledore's in hiding and the order is all acting right now
2) snape was under a curse and not acting of his own free will

The first scenario requires a great deal of underhandedness I'm not sure I'd accept and a willingness to duplicate a major scenario that's already been used in teh series (Moody in Goblet). The second would require a great deal of suspension of disbelief - Snape is one of the most competent wizards around, he knows who the death eaters are, and he's got to be taking precautions.

Either would be a copout in my book. I hope she doesn't go there.