[HPforGrownups] Harry Lists D.E. & Malfoy (Re: Clues in GoF)

[SeventhSqueal]

No: HPFGUIDX 53076

This is a continuation of Gina and ggershman77's
exploration of Harry's rattling off of Deatheaters
names that he witnessed at the DE Summoning in the
graveyard at the end of GoF. 
 
Harry is recuperating in the infirmary and the
Weasley's, Fudge, Dumbledore and Snape are all there
around him listening to him recount his traumatic
experience. During Harry's story, Fudge keeps
interjecting with his comments about the lack of
reliability of the story. Preposterous! Fudge is in
complete denial and a state of shock that Voldemort
has returned and acts like someone for whom
Voldemort's return severely compromises him,
personally or politically or both. 

Then there is the passage where Harry names Lucius
Malfoy and Snape twitches and his eyes fly over to
Fudge probably to check out Fudge's reaction to
Harry's news. IMO what might have happened there if
one assumes that Snape and Malfoy are in cahoots is
this:
We see from the text in GoF that Fudge and Malfoy are
developing some kind of relationship. One example is
that Fudge gets the Malfoys great seats to the
Quidditch World Cup because Lucius has given a sum of
money to St. Mungo's. (To guarantee the continued
containment and ill health of the Longbottoms? Maybe.)
Lucius is working on Fudge. He's using the Minister of
Magic to further his own agenda. I suspect that what
Fudge has done or is doing for Lucius can be outed by
the resurrection of Voldemort. I also suggest that
Fudge thinks that Malfoy is genuinely innocent of
having been a Deatheater. So for him to hear that
Voldemort is back, and that the guy he's been helping
or perhaps taking bribes from could make him an
accessory and compromise him professionally. Perhaps
Malfoy assured Fudge that Voldemort is a non-issue he
could never come back.

Snape knows that Malfoy has been working on Fudge. He
is upset that Fudge now knows that Malfoy went back to
Voldemort earlier that night. Fudge doesn't know that
Snape and Malfoy are working together. Snape knows
that Voldemort's resurrection is bad news for Fudge.
But it is in Malfoy and Snape's best interests for
Fudge to commit the resources of the ministry towards
fighting off the resurrected Voldemort. They want
Voldemort out of the way, as well as wanting to
distract the entire MoM with Voldemort hysteria. Snape
tries to break through Fudge's denial by *cough*
baring his flesh and explaining the Dark Mark as proof
of Voldemort's resurrection. (BTW Fudge and the rest
of the WW might know about the Dark Marks they
probably were made common knowledge during the DE
trials, but it's been what? 13 years and details like
that can fade in memory.)



=====
~SeventhSqueal

There's no earthly way of knowing / Which direction we are going / There's no knowing where we're rowing / Or which way the river's flowing / Is it raining? / Is it snowing? / Is a hurricane a-blowing? / Not a speck of light is showing / So the danger must be growing / Are the fires of hell a-glowing? / Is the grisly reaper mowing? / Yes, the danger must be growing / 'Cause the rowers keep on rowing / And they're certainly not showing / Any signs that they are slowing!

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