how many time can Snape save Harry? (was:Re: Snape's Secret)

[nobodysrib <nobodysrib@yahoo.com>]

No: HPFGUIDX 52981

How many times could Snape have saved Harry?

some of the more obvious ones:

1) potion logic problem in SS ("Those stupid Potters are always 
sticking their nose where it doesn't belong.  I'll make the logic 
problem so difficult that Harry could never master it, and then he 
will never have to face Quirrell!Voldemort")

2) trying to counter Quirrel!Voldemort's knock-Harry-off-the-broom 
spell

(I'm sure there are more here, but I want to get on to the fun 
ones...)

7thsqueal wrote:

It is also possible that it was Snape's doing that saved Harry's 
life the night his parents died. This would explain why Snape is so 
disgusted about Harry getting all of the credit, fame and celebrity 
for defeating Voldemort. 

Me: 

So this is Snape saving/trying to save Harry #3...
So how about a scene that goes something like this:

Snape, with priviliged DE information, finds out that Voldemort is 
going to get the Potters.  He hurries to Godric's Hollow and finds 
the Potters.  Still holding a grudge against James, he turns to Lily, 
knowing she won't leave without her baby (perhaps he helps cast a 
spell to save Harry?), and says:

"'Lily, take Harry and go!  It's him!  Go!  Run!  I'll hold him off-
'/ The sounds of someone stumbling from a room - a door bursting 
open - a cackle of high-pitched laughter [as Voldemort sees one of 
his DEs has come to watch him finish off the Potters.]" - PoA, 
American hardcover, pg 240, in which Harry describes to Lupin what he 
hears when encountering boggart!dementors.  So it was Snape, and not 
James, who Harry heard...

and on to a snape's 4th way of saving Harry...

Brin wrote: 

Because of the anagram, I believe that Snape is a biological brother 
of the Evans sisters. But what happened and why? 

quick note from me:

could someone send me the specifics on this?  (If this has been 
discussed ad nauseum and you don't want to waste board space on it, 
you can email me a link or summation.  Thanks!)

back to Brin:

Could it be possible that Snape was born as Perseus Evans, either as 
Petunia's twin or before her birth (I'm assuming Petunia is older
than Lily). He was somehow stolen from the family either right at 
birth or later - this was done in a way that let the Evanses firmly 
believe he was dead. 
<snip> 
So, Voldemort stole little Perseus or arranged for it. Why did he 
*steal* a child? 
<snip>
Why did he steal a muggle-born wizard baby, if he hated muggle-borns 
so much?

Me:

How about this:  Trelawny's first (accurate) prediction was about a 
boy raised in the muggle Evans family who would be Voldemort's 
eventual doom.  As discussed in a different post, predictions are 
notoriously tricky to read, and Voldemort got it wrong, assuming that 
baby Snape would be the downfall.  He kidnaps Snape to try and thwart 
the prediction and keep himself (Voldemort) from ever reaching that 
final doom.  Of course, in doing so he also ensured that Harry would 
be raised in a muggle-Evans household and, in that Greek Tragedy-
esque way, ensured his doom.

[side thought: It's not until Snape tells his "dad" about the 
blooming love between "that stupid Potter kid" and the Evans girl 
that Voldemort sees where he has gone wrong - he got the wrong kid!  
But he keeps Snape anyways, because it's always good to have a spy at 
Hogwarts.  But V takes out his anger on Snape, which only furthers 
Snape's hatred of James.  (I'm picturing summer vacations where Snape 
is locked in the "cupboard under the stairs" and being punished for 
not being able to break up James and Lily or somehow prevent Lily 
from "breeding.")]

So, Snape took on being raised by Voldemort, sort of in Harry's 
place.  (Snape saves Harry #4.)  Again, Snape takes the bullet for 
Harry - isn't that enough to hate him and also want to protect him 
all at once.  ie if it weren't for Harry/ prediction about Harry, 
Snape would have been raised in a loving home (hatred), but Snape 
also wants to protect Harry to  make sure that his (Snape's) lousy 
childhood wasn't all in vain.  

And Snape has either kept this from Harry because Dumbledore has 
asked him not to interfere with the prediction/ don't tell Harry, or 
Snape doesn't want Harry to feel in debt to Snape (Snape knows what 
this feels like after the shrieking shack incident with James, and 
also doesn't wish to further entangle Snape-Potter relationships 
anymore than already), or Snape just wasn't raised in a loving 
environment and doesn't want to reach out to Harry.

Brin wrote: And it [Snape saving Harry back at Godric's Hollow] would 
make sense of the strange way Lupin reacted to Harry describing how 
he heard his dad's voice in the Dementor incident...

Me: 
Exactly!  Because perhaps it was rumored in the WW that Snape was 
around when V killed the Potters - a rumor Snape did not dispell 
since keeping up with dark/DE relationships would help him continue 
double agent status should Voldemort ever rise again.

side note:

Brin wrote:

Why does Snape still hate the Potters? Mostly because of the 
shrieking shack incident when James saved his life, and established 
a 'deep magical bond' between them. (a very clever way to neutralize  
the son of Voldemort).

Me: 

Could Dumbledore foresee this happening and that's part of his reason 
for allowing a werewolf at Hogwarts?  Also, since HP/JKR seems to 
have lots of parallel themes (ex: lots of father/son trends - or is 
that just all of our theories?) could this one (Snape-Potter) be in 
alignment with the Pettigrew-Potter magical bond?  

- nobody's rib, who was previously in love with Black and Lupin, but 
who is now loving that Snape more and more