To me the guy behind Hermione is Ron. I refuse to believe otherwise till the book is out. Have anyone thought that Ron and Hermione is wearing Head boy and Head girl robes???Maybe both of them are back in school to do research for Harry. Special arrangements will be made for them to be with Harry if and when needed.That is definitely a dragon that they are riding on.

There are four people on the back of the dragon.. Zoom in, Hermione's arm is cradling the fourth persons head... that's why she looks like she's going to fall off or is riding sideways, she's protecting the fourth person.

100,000 copies, for good? i already pre-ordered both the regular and deluxe editions.

WHEN CAN I PREORDER IT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! !!!

I completely agree with someone else on this: the dragon is an Antipodean Opaleye. Come on Potter fans. You should have known this right when you saw the dragons' eyes. Haven't you guys read Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them???? Page 11 . . . the creature we see in the deluxe artwork is that dragon. Not Norbert. No way. Norbert has been described as resembling the Hungarian Horntail but that its tail spikes have "prominent" jet-black ridges. Yep Jo knows her stuff . . . I love how she just pulls this on us and yet we've known about this creature for a long time . . . well at least the true Potter fans have ;)

I TOTALLY AGREE WIT ALL DA PPL WHO THINK ITS NORBERT!!! i totally forgot bout him!! maybe he uses him to travel to where he has 2 defeat voldemort once and 4 all!! personally i think both harry and voldemort are going to die, but thats just my opinion! o ya. or maybe it'll b snape as well. hmmmmmmmmmmmmm... we'll know in 42 days!

This is really exciting, but are we sure that it's Ron on the dragon? That boy's hair looks blonde. If it is supposed to be Ron, his hair sure doesn't look "flaming red" to me.

Hey everybody, it's a freaking dragon! Wow just breathtaking, it's so beautiful. I can't believe Harry gets to ride a dragon! Dragons are one of the first magical things Harry learns about the wizarding world and now he gets to ride one! SOOO Awsome! I believe this is right before the american cover, considerably after the UK cover, and that the town below is somehow significant but I have no idea as to which town it is. I think I see something there that could be the locket and I can't see Harry's scar O_o. It is so curious that his scar is featured in all the Mary Grand Pre covers and now we can't get a clear image of it, hmmm... And that mist ... Im totally obsesing over that mist! There is mist approching Hogwarts in the UK cover and now this. Maybe the it is some sort of weapon used by Voldemort to gain power. And I live in Ecuador so I won't be getting the book until at least August...soooo depresing :(

i just noticed that it's hands look human.and yeah theres no third leg.

But Jo has said MANY times that DRAGONS ARE UNTRAINABLE! How can that be a dragon they are riding? yes, it looks like one, but did anyone consider that it might be a thestral? That would explain why Ron and Hermione look terrified (because they can't see it) and why the wings are tattered and the eyes are blank white!

I meant to spell it that way, no, my mind temporarily collapsed when I saw this. I only just recovered, it just doesn't seem real, but the reality is facing me for the first time. It is the beginning of the end. One reminder to everyone, read the description, as other people said. It's Harry, Hermione, and Ron. It is a dragon, I know you're all excited, as am I, but at least read it before you start popping out theories like mad. I'm convinced I see a hand, it's in the shadow of Harry. Maybe my mind is playing tricks on me, just please tell me you sort of see it, and I'm not losing my marbles.

reminds me of eragon, nice read...but still, i reserve judgement until i have got the book

Wow, very cool! The dragon is fantastic, but I haven't got any teories about it. However, I think it isn't Norbert. The clothes tattered... the village (in my opinion it isn't Godric's Hollow or Hogsmeade).... I can't wait...

why cant they just apparate lol! :p, who am I kidding can't wait!!

I looked at it closer for a long peiod of time, and I realzed there is no arm there. I think my mind is only just recovering from this shock. So pay no attention to what I said.

see http://photo2text.com/

That is so interesting... Sorry if anyone else mentioned it before, but do any of you think that it would have anything to do with the "Draco Dormiens Nunquam Titillandus" (or "never tickle a sleeping dragon) phrase that's on the Hogwarts coat of arms? Maybe there's a literal meaning to it. Also... it looks like the sun is setting, and the sun sets in the west, which could mean they're flying towards Hogwarts, since Hogwarts is in the north... Oh God, I can barely wait for it to come out... but then it will all be over. O_O

OMG OMG OMG!!!! More clues - yay! Can't wait for the Mugglecast discussions!! I was thinking that maybe the villiage below them is Little/Great Hangleton because of the church spire (at least that's what it looks like to me!) One question: why would they need a dragon to take them somewhere, when all three of them can Apparate? Maybe there's some sort of purpose where they're going for which they need a dragon... especially to risk being seen riding a dragon over what appears to be a muggle villiage... Ron and Hermione also look like they're wearing robes, but Harry isn't - just like on the UK children's cover. Oh - and there's also a dragon image on top of the armour helmet on the children's UK cover, too - maybe that's some relation to the dragon! SOOOO EXCITED!!!!!

right lets get some things straight. it is ron hermione and harry on the dragon and no one else. it is a dragon and not a thestral. they are not in eastern europe/australasia as jk said there would be no other countries visited. as impressed as i am with the idea that the dragon is draco, unless hes been practising for a while, i dont think he will learn to become an animagus in the space of a year. finally id just like to point out that of course the mountains are nearly perfect triangles. seeing as how a perfect triangle has three staight sides, the mountains arent far off this simple criterion

Idon't know if this has been said before if Jo has mentiond that dragons are untrainable then could id be an animagus??

Well, I suppose Hippogriffs, Thestrals and (most prominantly) Giants like Grawp have also been considered or mentioned as 'untrainable' before now, so after Grawp, I suppose anything's possible - maybe if it is Norbert then Charlie has managed to make him a little more tame!

Draco Dormiens Nunquam Titillandus litterally means: a sleeping dragon should never be tickled (or even more literally: a sleeping dragon is never tickleworthy). That is translated to the (seeing the Latin, gramatically incorrect, albeit with the same meaning) never tickle a sleeping dragon. Just wanted to point that out:)

@Kamion, J. K. "has" told that we'll learn a new character, when she's been asked "Who is your favourite character?" and she replied "A member of the Order, but you haven't met yet, you'll see in book 7." So in book 7, we'll get to know at least one new character.

It looks like in DH we will see a lot of things and events that we've never even imagined before. I can't wait.

Did any of you "it's a thestral" people read the excerpt given by Scholastic's Vice President? It's a dragon. Also, there is no head Hermione is cradling. There is no hand between her and Harry. It is a piece of Hermione's robe. I think it's Norbert. He's the only dragon we've been introduced to in the series (aside from the NAMELESS dragons in Goblet of Fire) with a given, unique name to identify him by. It could be another dragon, but I think it would be silly for Rowling to introduce just a random dragon and not Norbert. I guess we'll have to wait for the book!

I could also see the animagus theory, but not Draco. The dragon's feet look like hands which sort of give it away? If it is a wizard in animagus form, I'm voting for Krum. Rowling said we would see more of him.

Kid_A: Maybe Jo is trying to trick us with the favourite character thing - maybe it is actually a character we already know, but hasn't yet become an Order member e.g. Harry, Ron, Hermione- because then, technically, we haven't met them as Order members yet! Make sense? I won't blame you if it didn't - I confuse myself sometimes! lol. Just a thought. This is probably unlikely, though - I hope we do meet some new characters!

First, it is only Ron, Hermione, and Harry on the dragon, because the discription named them that way. Second, I don't think Harry's wearing a jacket, he's wearing a ragged robe. You really have to look close to see it as a robe, but considering Harry's wearing the SAME clothes on the regular and deluxe cover, you have to think that he hasn't changed. Thirdly, considering Harry's wearing the same clothes, and it's sun light shinging on both covers, the deluxe may be showing the after battle, since Harry's all tattered in the deluxe, but not really on the regular cover...so that could mean our trio does survive! Maybe?! Fourthly, they are riding a dragon! They are NOT riding a thestral, because thestrals are black skeletal HORSE-like creatures who have leathery skin...since this dragon has no horse-like appearance then it's not a thestral. Fifthly, even though people have pointed out what kind the dragon may be, I really would hope that it's Norbert. It would make since why she introduced Norbert into the series just to send him off in the first book...and maybe since Harry, Ron, and Hermione first saw Norbert when he was a baby, maybe he would recognize them and that would be why it's "tamed." That would explain it, no? But, since people are recognizing the species as different from Norbert's then it's unlikely that it might be him....and Finally, their location may be in Romania? Considering that they're riding a dragon, and Charlie has worked in Romania with dragons, maybe the trio is in Romania...or Albania...BUT not Godric's Hollow. Isn't Godric's Hollow on an island? I could be wrong, but I think I've heard that it was (can't remember myself, so correct me if I made a mistake on that notion). I'm done! :)

suicide can be a possibility for harry if ron and hermione die ...

It's likely to either be an Antipodean Opaleye or Norbert. The Opaleye because of the eyes. Norbert because it's the only dragon we've actually met (in a friendly environment) in the books. It would be logical to be Norbert, but the eyes suggest it's an Opaleye. But that's an Australian dragon, so how could Harry come in contact with it? How will Harry come in contact with it anyway? Norbert already "knows" the Trio, so, since they're on his back which is thought to be impossible, it would also make sense if they already know him.

just the thought of the release date being so close is killing me. now we know that there is actual dragon riding involved its driving me crazy. july 21 can't get here soon enough... i'm beside my self with excitement...

There are definitly only Harry, Hermione an Ron on the back of a (yes, indeed) dragon. If you compare the US-cover of HBP, you will also recognize Ron with similary fair hairs who is looking up to the dark mark. Obviously Ron and Hermione are wearing school robes, which seem to be rather tatterd, may be from a fight or another dangerous incident. I think there is no way that the dragon is an animagus, because they (dragons) are very poweful magical creatures. An Anmigus can only transorm into non-magical beasts. Therefore I believe the dragon on the picture is according to Fantastic Beasts either a Welsh Green or a half-breed between different kind of dragons. It has lush-green colour and we see it is flying in the mountains. It couldn´t be an Opal-Eye, because the eye of the dragon is not multi-coloured as in the description of Fantatstic Beasts and his scales are not pearly. Also it couldn´t be Norbert, because Norwegian Ridgebacks are black and not green. Furthermore the dragon on the art-cover is looking old (he has a white beard) and Norbert could only be 7.

We only have to wait a little over a month to find out what this is all about...

Thank you, people, who have cleared some things up because people are getting wild here. THEY ARE NOT IN ROMANIA, BULGARIA, ALBANIA, OR AUSTRALIA! Haven't you heard JK Rowling say the HP books willonly take place in the UK/England? Also, what's with the Draco is a Dragon theory? I'm pretty sure the person who made that was joking around. And lastly, READ THE DESCRIPTION! It's a dragon! It's ONLY Harry, Hermione, and Ron. THERE'S NO ONE ELSE. Thankies. =)

I think the "Draco is the dragon theory" comes from the fact that Draco means Dragon in Latin or something...

Maybe they are facing dementors, hence the mist.

^^ Or maybe it's just misty...

@K8y: Your theory seems good, too. JK is known as a tricky author, she can trick us anyway. But I hope that's a new character, 'cause I wanna see someone new. :D

Wow, this cover really gets you thinking... As some of you already said the trio is travelling north, obviously on the back of a dragon. But look at the two rivers below them, they seem to meet a bit further north. How exactly I linked this is my mind, is not clear to me, but the 'aber' in Aberforth means "confluence of river mouth', whereas the river Forth is located in Scotland. This is why I like to this the two rivers represent Aberforth and this confluence of the two rivers is where the trio seems to be headed. So maybe they are going to meet Aberforth? In my opinion the dragon might as well be an Animagus, but who is it then? To me it looks like an Antipodean Opaleye (Antipodean beging the word used to refer to Australia/New Zealand and Opal being seen as the national gemstone of Australia, it makes sense the dragons homeland is Australia). But what does this mean??? Also not seeing one hindleg, instead of one...mysterious...

Here's what I think: Harry, Ron and Hermione were sucked out of some sort of treasure chamber, containing gold, rubies and armour, and where thrown into a huge battle with Voldemort, Death Eaters...the works, at the end of which something was thrown up, or fell from above, which Harry was trying to catch and Voldemort was trying to push away with wandless magic. Harry, Ron and Hermione emerged victorious, or at least managed to escape, and a dragon, introduced earlier in the book, was waiting for them or was summoned, and they mounted it to make their way to safety or to a pre-planned destination. Voldemort, having more or less conquered the Dementors, sent them after the trio to stop them...and then the story continues. Therefore, I believe all the covers do NOT depict the ending. Or I could just be trying to summarize everything, and maybe all the situations depicted in the covers happen separately.

Guys we know its Ron cus the guy from Scholastic said so, thank god he did or I would be going pretty mad!

There has got to be something more to this dragon, the trio are all able to (basically) apparate by now so they can't just use a dragon as another form of transport! So why would they be riding one and why would a dragon LET them ride it- theyre meant to be untamable. Yeah and i don't think its Norbert- it doesn't have prominent ridges. And what's with the eye! At first i thought maybe it was the Antipodean Opaleye but aren't they meant to have irredescent scales or something? This dragon doesn't look very 'opaly'. Then i thought maybe it was just old and blind- it does have little beardy things and its wings are all tattered. But maybe the trio have actually managed to put a spell on it so that they could ride it- that would explain the milky eye because maybe the conjuctivitis curse was used. One other thing about dragons- i remember reading somewhere that Jo had a very good reason for not revealing the 12 uses of dragon blood. Is it possible that this dragon is important for its blood or some other magical property? And also- sunset or sunrise?

Yes. It's Harry, Hermione and .... RON RON RON RON! ... and the dragone of course.

Why is Harry the only one not wearing robes?

nic_7, umm.. You can't apparate to/from hogwarts, because there is a spell cast on it, why couldn't there be on other places? Also, you can't just apparate to a place you have no information about. You have to think about the place to apparate there, so, they must be looking for something.

^^ Maybe he doesn't go to hogwarts or it got torn off or something. If this is the scene before the cover of the US edition then how did they get to be so dirty and torn up? And where does the UK cover come in? Are they all connected or just different parts of the book?

I DONT BELIEVE YOU FREAKS!!!!!!!!!!! YOU SPEND EVERY SECOND OF YOUR LIFE THINKING ABOUT THE STORY WITH THE 11 YEAR OLD MIDGET WITH EYESIGHT PROBLEMS!!!!!!!!!!!!YOU ALL ARE SOOOOOOOOOOOOO SAD AND OBSESSED!!!!!!!!!!!! MAYBE if you read THE LORD OF THE RINGS THEN YOU'LL LEARN JUST HOW MUCH j k rowling* HAS COPIED FROM THE LORD OF THE RINGS!!!!!!!! *stupid people who copy from good books like The Lord of The Rings dont DESERVE capital letters on their names

Kill all the retards campaign.

Has anybody thought that maybe the thing Harry is reaching for, on the regular US cover, is the dragon that he is riding on on the deluxe cover? Could that be why Voldemort has a fearful expression? Could a dragon even scare Voldemort?

Hermet_Crab, no, it couldn't. Unless its Dumbledore reborn.