PoA Section Five: In Which Harry Loses For The First Time

How do you think Sirius Black is able to endure and "act normally" at the presence of Dementors?

-I'm not sure but I think its because he used apparate but Hogwarts has not only just have walls but it has a lot of enchantments...But I think is that he used apparate....

The students speculate on how Sirius Black got in. By the time you were first reading this chapter, what were your guesses on how Sirius Black is able escape Azkaban and enter Hogwarts, despite the heavy security the places are in?

-I think he's not just a simple wizard but a wizard who has a lot of knowledge in magics....I think he used a very powerful spell which could made him escape in the Azkaban....

How do you think Sirius Black is able to endure and "act normally" at the presence of Dementors?
I think maybe his determination to endure hardship for the Dark Lord would have helped him to be sane. Maybe, he believed that Voldemort would rise again, and maybe he could finally help Voldemort in taking over the wizarding world in England as what he would have had done if not for Harry. Fudge did say"..give him back his most devoted servant, and I shudder to think how quickly..." (PoA, ch. 10 p. 209), so Black may have had so much devotion to repel the effects of the dementors.

The students speculate on how Sirius Black got in. By the time you were first reading this chapter, what were your guesses on how Sirius Black is able escape Azkaban and enter Hogwarts, despite the heavy security the places are in?
Well, since he is saner than the usual Azkaban prisoner, he might have been able to plan for years his impending escape once he senses the Dark Lord's comeback. Maybe he found out a secret passageway in Azkaban, and maybe he new about the passageways in Hogwarts since he did study there, so he would have been able to go in and out with ease. He is capable wizard after all, so I think he made all means necessary to escape.

The passwords needed to view the Marauders Map are quite unusual to be just guessed. How do you think the twins were able to figure out how to make it work for them?
Now, this is hard to guess... but knowing the twins, and how they would try all sorts of tricks and stunts, they would have tried everything even the kitchen sink to guess the password. The twins aren't mischief makers for nothing. And according to the map, "Messrs. Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot, and Prongs Purveyors of Aids to Magical Mischief - Makers are proud to present the Marauder's Map" (PoA, ch. 10 p. 192), then the twins are in league with the makers of the map. Maybe, there is a trigger that makes the map know and sense that the person (especially not a professor!) in possession of the map intends to use it for some kind of innocent mischief of sorts. Eventually, the map may have revealed its password once it had known that the present owner will be using the map for its intended purpose, magical mischief!

1. How do you think Sirius Black is able to endure and "act normally" at the presence of Dementors?

Maybe he pretended that there was no happiness left in him so the dementors would not feed on his soul. Since Prof. Lupin said to Harry that "if it can, the dementor will feed on you long enough to reduce you something like itself... soulless and evil." (POA, p.187).

2. The students speculate on how Sirius Black got in. By the time you were first reading this chapter, what were your guesses on how Sirius Black is able escape Azkaban and enter Hogwarts, despite the heavy security the places are in?

Powerful magic and wit? Perhaps he already planned his escape before he was imprisoned in Azkaban. As for entering Hogwarts, maybe he also knows about the secret passages to Hogwarts.

3. The passwords needed to view the Marauders Map are quite unusual to be just guessed. How do you think the twins were able to figure out how to make it work for them?

Trial and error? I believe they would have tried everything in their power to unlock it.