Secret Agent Snape

[severusbook4]

No: HPFGUIDX 76892

--- In HPforGrownups at yahoogroups.com, digger <altered.earth at n...> 
wrote:
 bad due to his hatered of Harry, perhaps after DD dies)
> > 
> 
> digger writes:
> 
> I too am still pondering Snape's position.
> 
> He is in an interesting and complex situation. Having (I imagine) 
become 
> a DE when he was full of hate and desiring revenge (never a good 
time 
> for career decisions), some of which was aimed, with good cause, 
at 
> James Potter, something made Snape change his mind about Voldemort 
and 
> turn to Dumbledore instead. I'd just love to know what that 
*something* 
> was, but it must have indebted Snape to Dumbledore. I think this 
is the 
> point at which DD offers him a teaching post at Hogwarts, and that 
part 
> of the deal is that Snape continues undercover as a DE spy.
> 
> Snape, as a member of OotP, must be aware of the complete 
prophecy. If 
> he really wants to stop DeathEating for good, he must realise his 
only 
> chance of escaping from this highly dangerous double-agent spying-
game, 
> without getting caught and dying a traitor's death like Regulus, 
is for 
> him to protect and preserve Harry from any *real* harm, so that 
our 
> TeenageEternalHero can fulfill the prophecy and Vanquish The Dark 
Lord.
> 
> How it must grate on Snape that only Harry can release him from 
this 
> awful situation!  That would account for Snape taking every 
opportunity 
> to be petty and nasty to Harry in school, while also ensuring he 
does 
> not fall off jinxed broomsticks from a great height.
> 
> digger

Severus here:

At first Severus may have been harsh and condescending towards Harry 
in order to goade him into pushing harder at his studies, and thus 
becoming a better weapon.  Snape may be being petty and nasty to 
keep up his image as a evil person as not to compromise his standing 
with the death eaters.  Karkoroff's knowledge of his good side is 
not much to worry about, since he turned in a few DE to save his own 
skin at the prison.  The minute he thought LV was back he took off 
as fast as he could.  There is little chance for him to tell on 
Snape unless he is caught by the DE's and brought before LV to be 
killed. As far as LV knowing that he tried to save Harry from the 
broom incident, Snape could say he had to, so as to keep his good 
standing with DD, he didn't really succeed in saving Harry, Hermione 
is the one to facilitated that when she lit Snape on fire.  So Snape 
could say he was only going through the motions of saving Harry to 
save face in front of DD, but really didn't intend to, so as to 
appease LV.  We could speculate almost any situation as to make 
Snape the good guy in hiding or the DE in hiding, but I think IMHO, 
he is going to be a very important figure in the destruction of LV, 
with taking Harry's back.  He was a DE and he is not unknowledgable 
of the unforgivable curses, he may be able to use the dark arts to 
benefit the OotP.