Why believe Sirius? (was What Snape knew and when)

[lupinesque]

No: HPFGUIDX 31720

Cindy wrote:

> > The thing that I can't quite figure out is why Dumbledore is so 
> ready to believe Sirius.  The Shrieking Shack story is quite a tall 
> tale, if you think about it, and there really isn't a great reason 
for  
> Dumbledore to believe the allegedly confunded trio rather than 
Snape.>

Jenny wrote:
 
> Aha!  I can't believe I have something to say about this, as this is 
> one of the threads I often skip (sorry, Amanda).  However, I imagine 
> that Sirius showed Dumbledore his doggy ways.  I'm sure that was 
quite 
> convincing.  Sirius also seems so, so darned genuine and passionate 
> about his convictions.  How could Dumbledore not believe him?  Okay, 
> seriously now (heh heh heh), there were probably details in Sirius' 
> story that are hard to describe if he wasn't there.  

Aside from Sirius's natural charms and willingness to say Voldemort's 
name (without the "t," of course *a wink and a thanks to CMC*), there 
may be odd incidents that his story explains.  "Remember the time in 
my 6th year the House-Elves swore up and down they'd seen a stag in 
the kitchens?"  Dumbledore may even be inclined to believe him, 
despite all the evidence previously given; like Lupin, he may have 
been haunted all these years by the fact that Sirius's apparent crimes 
are so out of whack with his judgment of Sirius's character.  To those 
who know him, as farfetched as it is, his story makes sense in a way 
the official story doesn't.

Amy Z

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 "I thought it sounded a bit like Percy 
 singing.  Maybe you've got to attack him 
 while he's in the shower, Harry."
            --HP and the Goblet of Fire
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