[HPforGrownups] Re: Snape and Slytherin; various redemptions

[porphyria at mindspring.com]

No: HPFGUIDX 37842

I suggested a redemption scenario for Crabbe and Marina replied:

> I don't know about Crabbe or Goyle, but I would certainly like to see
> *some* Slytherin haul him/herself into Snape's office and say
> something along those lines? 

Well, I was being a little tongue-in-cheek when I said that, but joking aside, the point I was trying to make was that it would be interesting if someone *other than* Draco wound up being the redeemed one, especially someone whom we've only been invited to see as semi-human up until now. It would be a welcome twist. Why Crabbe, Eloise asks? Well, Crabbe is the one who rushes in front of False!Moody's wand to try to scoop up his ferret-transfigured friend, and that takes some strength of character. I'm slowly coming around to feeling sympathy for both Crabbe and Goyle since they are so loyal to Draco, and what thanks do they get for it? If the Polyjuice scene in CoS is any indication, they are rewarded with condescension, bullying and insults from dear Malfoy fils. Plus their Dads are just as hulking and cretinous as they are (apparently) and it just seems a shame that both of them would be condemned to mindlessly follow in their fathers' footsteps. At least one of them really !
ought to break type. 

Abigail went on to worry:

> Actually, I've been wondering if that isn't going to be a problem for Snape 
> in the coming books.  If Snape has indeed gone back to spy on Voldemort, 
> he has to maintain the appearance of being a secret Death Eater - there 
> are too many children of DEs in Slytherin house to allow him to show 
> sympathy for Dumbledore's side without jeopardizing his cover. 

I do agree with both you and Marina that it is, or should be, his job to cough up some decent advice for any student-at-risk asking him for it. Assuming he is going to be spying in future books, I think the only way he could help someone would be to swear to secrecy about it. He might even be able hiss something at them to the effect that conversations in his office would never go any further than those walls, and if he said it in a sinister enough way the DE-sympathizers would think he meant them, and the DE-opposition might think he meant them too. Of course he'd have to suss out whether one of them was only pretending to turn against LV in order to suss out Snape's loyalties in turn, but he's perfectly capable of doing that. That's his specialty. 

OTOH, Abigail said:

> I don't happen to be one of the people who believe that Snape secretly 
> hates Draco or that he's trying to weaken the next generation of DE by 
> being soft on the Slytherins. 

Since I've argued just this myself in the past, for the sake of consistency I'll add that I don't see any evidence that he's doing anything *other than* weakening them, whether he means to or not. You all have made me feel very guilty about imagining that Snape intends harm to his own house, but redemption-speculation aside, they do get more hopeless every year, don't they? Meanwhile Harry is the one throwing off Imperius Curses and standing down Voldemort in duels. This takes strength of will, and practice at standing up to antagonism. I'd like to see Draco attempt something like that. 

On the subject of the Malfoys, UNCMark says of Draco:

> Oh? Consider his devotion of his mother.
<...>
> What I can reasonably assume about Narcissa, is that Draco has a 
> devotion to her and she has the same for Draco.

You know, I have high hopes for Narcissa being the Malfoy wildcard. I'd say she's already Not All Bad. The fact that she's sending Draco care packages on a regular basis, Eagle-Owl-of-Death or not, is something we'd consider very sweet if it were somebody else's mother. And I always wonder about her reluctance to send Draco to Durmstrang. If your child is going to a boarding school, what difference does it really make whether it's in Scotland or Scandinavia? Especially with magical transportation! He's gone most of the year, and even on holidays sometimes. Actually, worrying about her little dear being gone so far away is kind of sweet in itself, but I wonder if that's some kind of clue that she's really not totally comfortable with Draco having unimpeded exposure to the Dark Arts. Maybe she'll be the one to rebel against her husband's evil ways?

Then again, Dobby refers to how evil his "masters" (pl) are. Do you think he means just Lucius and Draco, or the whole family? And of course it's unclear whether Narcissa took part in the QWC riot (But she seems too uptight for that! She might break a nail!) or showed up at the graveyard. I'd like to give her the benefit of the doubt. 

However, Uncmark, I kind of hope that LV doesn't go around Crucio'ing DE family members left and right. That's kind of a dumb Evil Villain move; it doesn't do much for loyalty. Of course LV tends to forget the Evil Villain pitfalls, doesn't he....

Abigail also asks:

> ...what makes Sirius so reluctant to believe that Snape was a DE?  Is it just 
> because Dumbledore trusts him?

I didn't get the impression that he was reluctant to believe Snape was a DE; he was just pointing out that Snape had never been *accused* of it, while the other five were. Sirius can't understand why Dumbledore would hire a former DE, but I don't think he feels this way in defense of Snape; he just can't see why a former torturer-murderer would be allowed to teach little kids. 

Silly Sirius.

~~Unredeemed!Porphyria