Potters' House Destroyed, and Dark Marks fading when V. vaporized

[Kelly L. <kethlenda@yahoo.com>]

No: HPFGUIDX 49520

--- In HPforGrownups at yahoogroups.com, "Tammy Bianchi" <
Resqgal911 at m...> wrote:
> ANGELA said:
> 
> <snip>In response to how people were able to assume that LV 
was gone (when they had no proof that he was dead) within 24 
hours of his failed curse, it is a good question.  And canon gives 
us only one concrete reason.  When Hagrid tells that Harry that 
they knew LV was gone because some wizards came "out of 
trances" , presumably when they were freed from LV's imperius.  
But could this realization could have happened so quickly?  </
snip>

And Tammy said:

> I assumed, after reading GOF that when Voldimort was 
vaporizied that the mark on the DE's arms became lighter.  I 
suppose it is possible that there were supporters of V that came 
out of trances, but it seems that the DEs that come back at the 
end of GOF were not just in trances.  
> 
> Tammy

Me:
Snape!  It must have been Snape.  He had gone over to the 
"good guys", but he still had a Dark Mark, and he would have 
noticed it's fading or disappearance.  

Another wild thought:  It is said that Snape turned spy for the 
"good guys" before the fall of Voldemort.  Does canon ever 
mention how LONG before the fall of Voldemort?  The more I 
think about it, the more I think it was probably about an hour.  *
grin*  He was at a Death Eater meeting, and heard the plot to kill 
the Potters.  He was in life-debt to James, so the plot against his 
life would have given him at least some motivation to change 
sides.  I can just see him fleeing to Dumbledore for help, and 
them arriving too late to save James and Lily.  But no doubt 
Snape would have found it surprising that no Dark Mark hovered 
in the sky, and he would have noticed the Mark on his arm 
vanishing, so he was able to figure out that V. was vanquished.  

Right now, this is just a Wild Unsubstantiated Theory.  I need to 
go back and do some rereading to figure out whether it could 
have worked like that.

Kelly L.