[HPforGrownups] Prank Theory! (was Re: Marauder's Map)

[alicit at aol.com]

No: HPFGUIDX 48792

Cheryl:

> Not a hole, just a variant. Snape sees one of the four consulting the 
> Map, making sure the coast is clear before joining Moony!Lupin. Since it 
> was 
> Sirius who seems most to blame for the Prank, let's say it was Sirius. 
> Snape 
> pulls a Malfoy, and sets Filch on Sirius. Sirius can't hide it, but does 
> have 
> time to set it to insult mode. Filch confiscates it, and Sirius, furious, 
> tells Snape how to get past the whomping willow, then storms back to the 
> common room and tells Peter and James what happened and what he did. James 
> realizes the potential for disaster and charges off to warn/rescue Snape.

Me:
Excellent variant, and i do think it a very credible one.  In either case, it 
makes a whole lot of sense for the map to have played such an integral part 
in the Prank, especially if it is, in fact, *evil*.

Melpomene:

"A bandwagon!  

Well this is panning out very well, isn't it? No jumping at all! 
Let's do away with the paraphrasing though and move up a step to 
canon. "

Scheherazade hides a sheepish grin:
  Thank you, i was hoping to get some actual quotes, but my copy of PoA is 
lost in the abyss of our storage room. ^_^

Melpomene:
"Snape knows exactly where the map came from.
PoA British ed. Snape calls Lupin to his office on page 212 and shows 
him the map.
"Well?" said Snape.
Lupin continued to stare at the map. Harry had the impression that he 
was doing some very quick thinking.
*"Well?"* said Snape again <tiny snip> "Where do you imagine Potter 
got such a thing?"
Lupin looked up and by the merest half-glance ub Harry's direction, 
warned him not to interrupt. "I imagine Harry got it 
from a joke-shop--"
"Indeed?" said Snape. His jaw had gone rigid with anger. "You think a 
joke-shop could supply him with such a thing? You don't think it more 
likely that he got it *directly from the manufacturers?*" (again, the 
italics are Rowlings.)

Me interrupting the gentlemen: I can't read this any other way. Snape 
knows exactly what the map is and where it came from."

Me:
Yes, i think that this is very important, especially to our theory.  I also 
think this *strongly* implies that Snape does know that the map belongs to 
Lupin, or that he knew it belonged to the other three and, therefore, 
probably to lupin.

Melpomene again:
"So then Lupin pockets the map and is NOT happy with Harry and Ron on 
the way out of Snape's office:

"I don't want to hear any explanations," said Lupin shortly. He 
glanced around the empty Enterance Hall and lowered his voice. "I 
happen to know that this map was confiscated by Mr. Filch many years 
ago. Yes, I know it's a map. " he said as Harry and Ron looked 
amazed. "I don't want to know how it fell into your possession. I am, 
however *astounded* that you didn't hand it in." <snip>"

Me!: Which is also a hint that the map might have been implicated in the 
prank.  I still really like the idea that Map!padfoot told about the knot, 
and that the Map Is Mightily Evil  (MIME)
That would be why Lupin would be "astounded" that they didn't turn it in, 
because he now knows that it is a dark object, even though the marauders 
themselves did not mean it to be. (more on the map to follow in another 
related post!)


Mel again:
"NOW FOR THE GOOD PART:

"Why did Snape think I'd got it from the manufacturers?"
"Because...' Lupin hesitated, "because the mapmakers would have 
wanted to lure you out of the school. They'd think it extremely 
entertaining."
"Do you *know* them?" said Harry, impressed.
"We've met,"....

Now that's quite a jump, don't you think? Snape "knew" he'd got the 
map from the manufacturers because he knew the function of the map 
was to lure it's reader out of the school? The prank thickens."

Yes, and, if Snape knew the map was used by Sirius to lure Snape into certain 
death, then it wouldn't be that much of a leap for him to think that Sirius 
(escaped murderer) was using it to lure Harry into certain death.  Maybe 
Snape's "You don't think it more likely that he got it *directly from the 
manufacturers?*" could have been more likely an accusation of Sirius then 
Lupin?  In the shreiking shack (again, i am going on remembered cannon here, 
so if someone could help me out?)  Severus says something about knowing lupin 
was in league with Sirius.  This would also explain why Snape was snooping 
around Lupin's office while going to give him the Wolfsbane potion.

Everything's falling into place...

-Scheherazade, who has finally devised an acronym!


[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]