I wonder what happens to the memories in a Pensieve after a person dies. I would assume that those memories would die along with the person, but who knows?
Memories are not stored in a pensieve. The pensieve is like a dvd player - it shows what you put in it. The memories come from either the person's own mind (as we see Dumbledore and Snape withdrawing memories from their heads) or are stored in bottles. Dumbledore has the memories of Bob Ogden, Hokey, Morfin Gaunt - all in bottles, although those people are long dead.
Assuming that the pensieve Dumbledore has always used is his personal possession, and not belonging to the school, it might be willed to Harry or to Aberforth. Harry might do well to see if he can't withdraw his own memory of the night his parents died - might be useful, although it would be heartbreaking to watch.
I don't know. Death seems to be pretty clear cut in the wizarding world and I can't see the ability to move back and forth. Although, for the sake of the plot, the veil and arch is probably the doorway between life and death. Perhaps Harry will have a near death experience, visit behind the veil, and wake up? That seems almost too cliche for this story, though...
What I meant was that Harry would find a way to, while still alive, travel to the land of the dead, and back. It
is a cliche, but it's the sort of cliche that is found in this type of story. Like the Odyssey, the Iliad, the Epic of Gilgamesh, Prometheus, etc.
I'm sure that JKR can find a non-cheesy way to do it, if that's what she wants to do.
In my sillier moments, I imagine Harry leaping through the veil with a rope tied around his waist, which Hermione and Ron are holding fast to. But a near-death experience is more sophisticated. Or perhaps one of his visionary dreams.
My feelings are that as much as I hate to admit it Snape will turn out to be good in the end. I think his role will be big in the way this whole thing plays out. (possibly giving his life for Harry) It would be way too easy for JKR to make him bad since all evidence seems to point in that direction. I've noticed that she is pretty good at throwing a curve ball.
I think the curve ball will be that Snape will ultimately do good, but he is still a distasteful, nasty man. Whatever his personal demons - and we may find out in Deathly Hallows that he had a tragic past or murdered parents or whatever - they aren't excuses for how just plain vile he is. The easy thing is to have the character confess their sins, and give some tragic backstory, so we feel properly sorry for them, and then they ask forgiveness and we give it.
Snape will, I think, still be resentful and hateful toward Harry, still be lost in the past, nursing a schoolboy grudge. And yet he will help Harry defeat Voldemort. I think Snape will actually be the one to kill Voldemort. I think Harry will have to forgive Snape for Harry's sake - but also so Snape can set down whatever burden he has been carrying, about revealing the prophecy. And then die in peace. I think Snape will die in the end.
