[HPforGrownups] Snape, Lupin, Shack; was: Dirty!Harry and Stoned!Harry

[eloiseherisson at aol.com]

No: HPFGUIDX 43408

 Porphyria:

> but Snape, when given the opportunity, turns Sirius over to the MoM. 
> And I cannot think of any ulterior motive for him to do so; I think 
> Fudge would have been delighted to take delivery of a soul-sucked 
> Sirius, and Snape himself admits he has no idea why the Dementors 
> were retreating, so it's not like he saw a Patronus galloping around. 

I'd like to agree with this. You know I would. But.........

First of all, the Dementors had been put to flight and Snape may have had no 
means of recalling them. I personally suspect they weren't coming back in a 
hurry.

Secondly, I think Snape may have seen the dramatic potential of bringing in 
Sirius intact, as it were, of personally handing over his prisoner for 
punisment. Sure, Fudge would have been delighted to take delivery of a 
soul-sucked Sirius (that's a tongue-twister!), but it's not like anyone 
important (as far as he was concerned) witnessed the events leading up to it, 
saw his part in it, even knew, beyond, his word, that he had been 
instrumental in bringing it about.

Actually, something has just struck me.
How did Snape know that Sirius *hadn't* already had his soul sucked out? And 
the kids, too, for that matter? As you say, he was knocked out at the time 
and didn't witness what went on.
The others were all unconscious, which I should imagine is just how someone 
who had recently had a soulectomy would appear. Plus the Dementors' retreat 
could indicate that they had completed their task. Isn't that what one would 
automatically think, waking up to find an unconscious criminal and retreating 
Dementors?

Even so, the provision of a stretcher for Sirius, in whatever state Snape 
believed him to be, is a much greater indication of consideration and respect 
than the way Sirius treated him whan unconscious.
And Sirius is the one who talks about judging a man by how he treats his 
inferiors. How about how one treats those who are completely powerless and at 
one's mercy?

Unfortunately I can't check the canon for a hole in any of this as a child 
has had the audacity to remove it for bed-time reading!

Ouch! Just spotted a hole I didn't want to see. 

Appearances, appearances! Snape was taking Sirius up to the castle and would 
want to be seen in a good light - akin to the ever-so-reasonable way he talks 
to Fudge about Harry. See how noble I am in victory, and all that. Sirius had 
no reason to care what anyone thought of his behaviour, except possibly for 
Harry and he may have realised there was no love lost there.

The counter-argument is, of course, that Snape really was being noble in what 
he thought was his victory - which would make subsequent events even harder 
to bear. Phew!

Eloise


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