Did Snape work for Dumbledore from Day One?

[Sharon]

No: HPFGUIDX 118934


In post 118796, Kneasy asked me to give my reasons for why Snape 
could have been a spy for Dumbledore from Day One.  Let me first say 
that it wasn't originally my idea - my friend Noel came up with it 
one day while we were throwing obnoxious ideas back and forth to each 
other in a futile attempt to avoid work.  It's just this particular 
idea had enough merit to stick.  

However, after writing this up I showed it to Noel, and she heartily 
approves of it.  So I feel good enough about it to post it here.

Happy Reading!  (And beware, it's over 10 pages in MSWord...)

*

Uncover!Snape

From GoF, Chp 30:

"Er," [Harry] said, "Mr Bagman
"

"
has never been accused of any Dark activity since," said Dumbledore 
calmly.

"Right," said Harry hastily, staring at the contents of the Pensieve 
again, which were swirling more slowly now that Dumbledore had 
stopped adding thoughts.  "And
er
"

But the Pensieve seemed to be asking his question for him.  Snape's 
face was swimming on the surface again.  Dumbledore glanced down into 
it, and then up at Harry.

"No more has Professor Snape," he said.

Harry looked into Dumbledore's light blue eyes, and the thing he 
really wanted to know spilled out of his mouth before he could stop 
it.

"What makes you think he'd really stopped supporting Voldemort, 
Professor?"
[/quote]

What indeed.

Except the question I would pose to Harry is "What makes you think 
he'd ever really supported Voldemort in the first place?"

Oh, sure – the quick and easy answer is that Snape had joined the 
Death Eaters – but we do not know why he joined them, or when.  Just 
as we do not know at what point he returned to Dumbledore's flock and 
began to use his position to spy on Voldemort.

I am going to attempt to prove that the reason that Dumbledore trusts 
Severus Snape completely is not because Snape turned toward him, 
against the Death Eaters, but that Snape never actually left, and 
went into the Death Eaters for the sole purpose of being a spy for 
Voldemort.

But first, I have to show you that Snape and Dumbledore's association 
goes back far longer than the fourteen years that Snape has worked at 
Hogwarts: in fact, their partnership goes back to before The Prank.

THE PRANK.

The facts, as we know them, about the Prank itself are fairly scanty, 
and come mostly by third person.  We know that Sirius Black sent 
Snape into the Whomping Willow, and that before being dragged back 
out by James Potter, he managed to catch a glimpse of Remus Lupin in 
werewolf form.   Says Remus in PoA Chp 18: "He was forbidden by 
Dumbledore to tell anybody
"

But why would Snape listen to Dumbledore in this instance?  

Sirius himself says that Snape was "trying to find out what we were 
up to
hoping he could get us expelled." (PoA, Chp 18)  Finally, Snape 
has an air-tight excuse to get at least two of the boys expelled from 
Hogwarts: Remus Lupin because he is technically classified as a 
dangerous animal, and Sirius Black for luring him to that animal's 
lair in an attempt to kill him.  

"Your saintly father and his friends played a highly amusing joke on 
me that would have resulted in my death if your father hadn't got 
cold feet at the last moment," Snape tells Harry (PoA, Chp 14).  "Had 
their joke succeeded, he would have been expelled from Hogwarts."

Surely, if a joke that results in the death of a student deserves 
expulsion, a joke that merely puts that student's life in danger 
should warrant some sort of punishment.  And yet –we have no proof 
that any of them were punished.  In fact, James Potter – who Snape 
believed to have been in on the plan – was made Head Boy later in his 
Hogwarts career.  This must have been a hearty blow to Snape's ego – 
the boy he believed had tried to kill him was suddenly laden with 
honor.

We know that Dumbledore favors the Gryffindors now – there is no 
reason to doubt that he would have done so earlier in his career, 
either.  Snape must have seen Dumbledore's protection of Potter and 
his friends as yet another show of favoritism toward a house that had 
always been seen as nobler than Slytherin.  

Therefore, simply forbidding Snape to keep Remus' werewolf status a 
secret would not have had any impact on the boy, unless for some 
reason Snape respected Dumbledore enough to keep silent.  There are 
theories out there which say that Dumbledore may have blackmailed 
Snape into keeping silent – what if it was not blackmail, but a show 
of deference?  

If Snape and Dumbledore had already been working together in some 
fashion, then it would make sense for Snape to be so willing to keep 
quiet about the werewolf.  Even if Snape did not understand why it 
was important to allow Sirius and Remus to remain at Hogwarts, he 
would have been quicker to believe that Dumbledore had the best of 
intentions in doing so.  

As well, if there was a pre-existing partnership between the two, had 
Dumbledore publicly shown that he believed Severus Snape's 
accusations, it would have given their relationship more weight than 
simply professor and student (because such an admission of a werewolf 
at school would certainly be public, not just to the school at large 
who would notice the absence of two of the most popular students but 
to the media who would jump on the story and broadcast it to the 
greater world).  Their names would be forever linked together.

Normally, this would not be a bad thing.  But had their names been 
publicly linked together from that moment, it would have been very 
difficult for Voldemort to trust Snape completely and totally as a 
Death Eater.  

"Sirius Black showed he was capable of murder at the age of sixteen," 
Snape says to Dumbledore (PoA Chp 21).  "You haven't forgotten that, 
Headmaster?  You haven't forgotten that he once tried to kill *me*?"  
("Me" is in italics in the original.)

Snape has every right, of course, to take the previous murder attempt 
seriously – after all, he was the intended victim.  But the emphasis 
on "me" is interesting.  Surely he trusts that Dumbledore remembers 
the events of the Prank – why does he make it so personal again, in 
front of not only the Trio but Cornelius Fudge?  What message is he 
trying to convey to Dumbledore with these words – and more so, what 
feelings is he attempting to kick-start in Dumbledore (for during 
this entire conversation, Snape has been staring at Dumbledore's 
eyes, a key component of Occlumency).  What is Snape looking for?

"He once tried to kill *me*."  Is this simply the pain of the victim 
of a prank that luckily went awry?

"He once tried to kill *me*."  Or is it Snape's way of saying, "He 
tried to kill someone important to you once before, you know.  *Me.* 
Imagine if he had succeeded!  Are you going to take that chance 
again?"

Dumbledore replies, "My memory is as good as it ever was, Severus."  
Dumbledore is essentially telling Severus that not only does he 
remember the events that occurred nearly twenty years previously, but 
he is also asking that Severus remember himself the reasons for why 
he chose to remain quiet about the werewolf.  "My memory is good – 
please make sure yours is as well, and *remember* why I do this." 

The words must have had some sort of effect, because the next thing 
that happens is Snape breaking eye contact leaving the room, without 
another word.

Dumbledore obviously trusts Snape currently in the books – as he had 
done following the Prank.  Whether or not Dumbledore 
actually "forbade" Snape to discuss the werewolf (Remus's words, and 
Remus was likely still in werewolf form when the order to Snape was 
given, and thus would have received this information second-hand, or 
at the very least, after the fact), Snape kept the secret for nearly 
twenty years.  Not only did Snape live up to the trust Dumbledore put 
in him at that time, but his very silence shows a modicum of respect 
toward Dumbledore, in that he was *willing* to keep that information 
to himself.

If Severus Snape had really and truly felt that Dumbledore was doing 
a disservice to him by allowing Remus and Sirius to remain at 
Hogwarts, he would have told about the werewolf.  Had there not been 
a pre-existing relationship between the two, Snape would never have 
been able to reach the level of trust required for him to return to 
Dumbledore as a Death Eater and become a spy.  Why, after being 
betrayed in this fashion, would Snape have ever gone to Dumbledore 
for help?

There must have been some sort of bond between the two before the 
Prank occurred.  Whether this bond was intensified or weakened by the 
events of that night are uncertain – but it had been forged long ago.

OCCLUMENCY

There is no proof that Dumbledore taught Snape Occlumency.  (Trust 
me.  I've looked.)  What's more, there is no evidence for when Snape 
might have learned the art, although the following things are certain:

Occlumency and Legilimency, while they go hand in hand, are not 
necessarily indicators of the other.  Legilimency is the art of 
reading feelings and memories, whereas Occlumency is the art of 
blocking those feelings and memories from someone else.  
Theoretically, if you one know, you can do the other, but there seems 
to be a distinction between the two.

We know that Snape is an Occlumens, and we know that he can perform 
the Leglimens spell.  We also know that Voldemort is a Legilimens, 
and that Dumbledore can teach Occlumency.  

(Whether or not you choose to assume that Voldy is also an Occlumens, 
and that DD is skilled at Legilimency, is totally up to you.  I 
prefer to think both of them can handle whatever.  I would further 
make the argument that Barty Crouch Jr is at least a passable 
Occlumens, because neither Snape nor Dumbledore were able to discern 
that he and not Mad-Eye Moody were teaching at Hogwarts during 
Harry's fourth year.)

As far as we know, Legilimency and Occlumency are not on the general 
schedule for Hogwarts students, so it's probably something you have 
to learn from someone else.  There do not appear to be any books 
about the art (otherwise you can be sure that Snape would have 
assigned them to Harry, along with forty-inch essays on each 
chapter).  Therefore, Snape must have learned it from someone else.  
There are three possibilities:

1.	Snape learned Occlumency from Dumbledore.
2.	Snape learned Occlumency from Voldemort, and told Dumbledore 
about it later.
3.	Snape learned Occlumency from someone else, and told 
Dumbledore about it later.

Dumbledore, on the other hand, is known for teaching Occlumency.  
Sirius's first reaction to learning about Harry's lessons is to ask 
why Dumbledore isn't teaching Harry.  Dumbledore himself poses the 
same question at the end of OoP.  While Snape is described as 
a "suberb Occlumens" (by Remus, Chp 24), when Dumbledore's abilities 
as an Occlumens are mentioned, it is as a *teacher* only.  Even Snape 
admits that had it been his choice, he would rather not be the one 
teaching Harry the skill.  

(Although how much that has to do with his dislike of Harry as 
opposed to who is really the better teacher of the art is really up 
to interpretation.)

No matter who taught who when, there can be no doubt that Snape and 
Dumbledore are comfortable enough with their own skills to use them 
to communicate with each other.  Each of them has a fairly complete 
and total understanding of the other, to the point where often, words 
need not be spoken.

In GoF, Chp 36:

"Severus," said Dumbledore, turning to Snape, "you know what I must 
ask you to do.  If you are ready
if you are prepared
"

"I am," said Snape.

He looked slightly paler than usual, and his cold, black eyes 
glistened strangely.

"Then good luck," said Dumbledore, and he watched, with a trace of 
apprehension on his face, as Snape swept wordlessly after Sirius.

It was several minutes before Dumbledore spoke again. [/quote]

For such an important task as the one Snape is undoubtedly about to 
embark upon, there seem to be very few words spoken.  In his 
conversation with Sirius, Dumbledore is quite clear about what Sirius 
is to do.  He lays out Sirius' destinations and goals, and gives 
instructions on where Sirius is to wait.  There can be no doubt to 
anyone in the room what Sirius' destination is going to be.

Snape, on the other hand, doesn't receive a single word of command, 
instead being told that he already knows the role he should play.

There are a few possibilities to this.  Granted, Dumbledore 
admittedly had very little time to discuss with Sirius the chance of 
Voldemort's return, much less what Sirius would need to do in such an 
eventuality; whereas Snape and Dumbledore have had fourteen years to 
discuss it, in every conceivable situation.  As well, Snape has been 
keeping Dumbledore informed of the Dark Mark's return on his arm, and 
so they are both more than likely prepared to work quickly in that 
eventuality – although likely, neither expected it to happen during 
the Final Task.  Thus, when it happened, there would have been no 
need for words, since both would know what was necessary for each to 
do.

However, there are enough clues in this exchange to imagine that both 
men are reading each other as they speak.  The advantage of being a 
Legilimens is that you can read other people very easily – if not 
their thoughts precisely, then you can at least get an idea of what 
they're feeling.  Therefore, the words you use in speaking to that 
person – no matter what verbal answer you expect to receive – can 
give you a lot of information in how the person initially reacts to 
them.  Dumbledore and Snape both know this – and in fact, Snape has 
used this method before when accusing Harry of stealing from his 
supply cabinet or going into Hogsmeade without permission.

"If you are ready
if you are prepared," asks Dumbledore.  Is this 
concern for Snape's preparedness, or is he attempting to trigger some 
sort of defensive mechanism in Snape's psyche?  Perhaps reminding him 
to empty his mind of thoughts and feelings to prepare for the 
onslaught of Voldemort's rage.

"I am," Snape replies, without preamble and without explanation, and 
certainly without a hint of protest.  And it is evident that the 
impact of what he is about to do has hit him – he is paler, and his 
eyes "glistened strangely."  No matter the discussions from before, 
it is *now* that it hits Snape what is expected of him.  These two 
words are not simply acquiescence of Dumbledore's will, they are a 
pledge of loyalty to Dumbledore, and an acknowledgement of the danger 
of what he is about to do.

In fact, Dumbledore has been reading Snape's feelings for an 
extremely long time.  "Funny, the way people's minds work, isn't it?" 
he says in SS/PS Chp 17.  "Professor Snape couldn't bear being in 
your father's debt."  

And later, after Snape has lost the Order of Merlin for saving Harry 
and his friends from the werewolf: "Oh, he's not unbalanced
He's just 
suffered a severe disappointment." (PoA Chp 22)

Quote:
"I trust Severus Snape," said Dumbledore simply. (OoP, Chp 37) 
[/quote]

Dumbledore understands how Snape feels toward not only James and 
Sirius, but toward Harry and more than likely toward himself.  
Likewise, Snape knows that Dumbledore is self-assured and 
confident.  "While *he* may feel secure enough to use the [Dark 
Lord's] name," Snape mutters, rubbing his Dark Mark (OoP Chp 24).  

There is a certain amount of resentment here.  And in fact, there are 
a thousand reasons why Snape *should* resent Dumbledore – yet this 
resentment shows only now, as Snape rubs his Dark Mark – does he 
resent the Mark itself, or the man who put it there?

And perhaps
was it Dumbledore, and not Voldy, who had done so?

SNAPE THE SPY
FOR WHO?

>From OoP Chp 24:

"Do not say the Dark Lord's name!" spat Snape.

<snip>

"Professor Dumbledore says his name," said Harry quietly.

"Dumbledore is an extremely powerful wizard," Snape muttered.[/quote]

This is an interesting moment for many, many reasons, not the least 
of which is that shortly thereafter does Snape talk about how DD is 
secure enough to use Voldy's full name.  (Chances are pretty good 
that Snape doesn't know that Dumbledore is on a first-name basis with 
Voldy either; such knowledge would probably send the poor Potions 
Master to his grave.)  

Here, we see Snape's bitterness shine through.  We see Snape rub his 
Dark Mark (regretfully?).  We hear Snape admit his own lack of 
confidence in himself.  And we hear Snape call DD "Dumbledore."

This last one is more telling than you'd think.

When discussing Dumbledore with Harry, Snape generally refers to him 
as the "Headmaster."  Even in conversation with Dumbledore himself, 
Snape refers to him as "Headmaster."  In fact, he may very well be 
the *only* person in canon to call Dumbledore by this deferential 
title – every one else calls him Professor Dumbledore.  Why, in this 
one moment of regret and bitterness, does Snape let the title drop?

Again – can we be sure that the regret and bitterness isn't aimed at 
Dumbledore himself?

It's an odd emotion toward someone who seems to be the only one to 
trust Severus Snape – after all, most people in the wizarding world 
still see him as an ex-Death Eater.  No matter that he was a spy, no 
one seems to think that Snape can be trusted.

In GoF Chp 30:
"Snape has been cleared by this council," said Crouch 
disdainfully.  "He has been vouched for by Albus Dumbledore."

<snip>

Harry turned to look at Mad-Eye Moody.  He was wearing a look of deep 
skepticism behind Dumbledore's back.

[/quote]

Here, we learn that Dumbledore gave sufficient proof to the 
Wizengamot to clear Snape of the charges against him as a Death 
Eater – however, it's obvious that Crouch doesn't believe it, and in 
fact may be somewhat annoyed by Snape's release.  Moody more than 
likely feels the same way, judging from the expression on his face.

In fact, Moody may not just feel that Snape could still harbor 
sympathy for the Death Eaters and their cause – he may not agree with 
Dumbledore's decision to use Snape as a spy in the first place.  
Again, we've seen that Moody is extremely vocal about many people, 
both in the trial scenes (in which he has something to say about 
every person who stands up) and about the photograph of the original 
Order in OoP.  The only two people that Moody does not say a single 
word about are Peter Pettigrew and Severus Snape.

Interesting.  Very interesting.

To return to an earlier quote (GoF Chp 36):
"Then good luck," said Dumbledore, and he watched, with a trace of 
apprehension on his face, as Snape swept wordlessly after Sirius.

It was several minutes before Dumbledore spoke again.

[/quote]

That trace of apprehension intrigues me.  Dumbledore seems affected 
by Severus leaving the room in his service, far more than he does 
when Sirius or Bill Weasley had gone – and yet they were going into 
equally potentially dangerous situations.  There is a definite bond 
here between them – more so than simply Headmaster and Professor.  
This apprehension – concern, on Dumbledore's part – seems almost to 
border on parental affection.

"Several minutes before Dumbledore spoke
"  Yes, and when he did, it 
was to excuse himself as quickly as possible, though there was 
certainly a good deal left to say.  Why does Dumbledore leave so 
quickly at this point?  What is going through his mind that is so 
consuming that he cannot speak for fear of it coming out by accident?


TO TELL THE TRUTH


The concept of trust is one that has been brought up in various 
threads over the last few days, specifically in regards to Sirius.  
Much has been made over whether or not the readers should trust 
Sirius, but little has been made of who in canon trusts him or not.  
After all, at the end of GoF, Dumbledore sends Sirius to various old 
Order members to tell them of what has happened and to gather them in 
service again – but according to these very same members, Sirius was 
the traitor who turned in Lily and James.  

Either Dumbledore has already informed these people (Figg and 
Fletcher are mentioned, as is Lupin, who of course already knows) of 
Sirius's innocence, or he is taking on faith that when Sirius Black 
turns up on their doorstep with a fantastical tale about rats and 
fingers, that they will trust him.

And the funny thing is, as far as we know, they do.

Mad-Eye Moody as well seems to trust Sirius – at least, he doesn't 
show any sign of *not* trusting him, and Moody is the king 
of "constant vigilance".  (It really should be engraved on his 
tombstone.)  

One of the few characters who does not trust Sirius is Severus Snape –
 although with very good reason.  Remember that Snape still believes, 
at the end of GoF, that Sirius was the Secret Keeper.  He was not 
awake for Pettigrew's reappearance, and did not believe the story 
that Harry and Hermione told after the fact.  Is it any wonder, then, 
that his first reaction to Sirius's appearance in the hospital wing 
after the Final Task was "one of mingled fury and horror"? (GoF Chp 
36)

Dumbledore replies, "I trust you both
You are on the same side now."

What does Dumbledore mean by "now"?  Haven't they been on the same 
side for at least fifteen years at this point?

Another quote (GoF Chp 30):

"I have given evidence already on this matter," [Dumbledore] said 
calmly.  "Severus Snape was indeed a Death Eater.  However, he 
rejoined our side before Lord Voldemort's downfall and turned spy for 
us, at great personal risk.  He is now no more a Death Eater than I 
am."

[/quote]

There you have it, from the horse's mouth.  Dumbledore says, not in 
merely one place, but in two, that Snape was once upon a time on the 
other side.  He says this before the Wizengamot, about how Snape 
became a spy.  He says this to Sirius, in convincing him to take 
Snape's hand.

Well, gosh.  Because Dumbledore *couldn't* lie, could he?

Could he?

Play with me for a moment.

If Dumbledore was to admit, "Why, yes, I did ask Severus Snape to go 
join the Death Eaters, as my spy, and he did, and isn't it grand that 
everything worked out for the best?"

Yeah, because *that* would have gone over splendidly.

For the *same* reasons that Dumbledore and Snape could not have their 
association known after the Prank, Dumbledore cannot show himself to 
have any predetermined association with Snape now.  He says himself 
that he does not believe that Voldemort is gone forever.  He cannot 
have anyone know that he and Snape had long since planned the 
deception – by allowing Snape the cover of a Death-Eater-Turned-Good, 
he is allowing Snape an escape route with Voldemort, as it were.  
Voldy would be extremely angry with a Death Eater who turned – but if 
a man turns once, he can turn again.  A Death Eater who had joined 
him for the sole purpose of betrayal probably doesn't stand a chance.

And in fact, we don't know that this plan didn't work.  After all, we 
have no proof that Voldy knew that Snape was a spy at the time of the 
graveyard scene in GoF.  The only person who could have told him then 
was Bertha Jorkins or Peter – Bertha probably didn't know, as she 
likely wasn't in the trials, and Peter spent most of that time as a 
rat, either trying to find safe haven or already at the Weasleys, 
where he obtained it.  The Weasleys were unaware of Snape's status as 
a spy, and therefore it is highly unlikely that Peter would have 
learned this information while he was there.

Let's look at what Voldy says, upon reflection of his missing Death 
Eaters: "One, too cowardly to return
he will pay. One, who I believe 
has left me forever
he will be killed of course
and one, who remains 
my most faithful servant, and who has already reentered my service." 
(GoF, Chp 33)

It's a fairly safe bet that Snape is not at this gathering.  He was 
attending the Final Task at the Quidditch Pitch, too far away from 
Hogwarts' borders to easily or quickly Apparate when his Mark began 
to burn.  I'll admit there's an outside chance that he managed it, 
and is one of the nameless Death Eaters which Voldy passes without 
comment, but I sort of doubt it.  So let's look at these three.  

The common interpretation is as follows:

Cowardly – Karkaroff, who ran the moment the Mark burned;
Left Forever, therefore must die – Snape, who turned to DD;
Faithful Servant – Crouch Junior, who waited in the form of Moody.

Makes sense.  All on the up and up.  Fits the profile.  Complete 
rubbish – when you remember that chances are extremely good that 
Voldy doesn't know that Snape has turned to Dumbledore.

In addition, the one thing that Peter *can* tell Voldy about Snape is 
that he's working at Hogwarts.  And if we assume that Voldy's read 
his copy of "Hogwarts: A History", he'll know that you can't Apparate 
from Hogwarts!  Therefore, Voldy *must* realize that it would be 
impossible – not to mention foolish – to attempt to reach Voldy 
immediately.

"Left forever" could easily apply to Karkaroff.  Cowardly could just 
as easily apply to Snape, who has taken refuge under Dumbledore's 
wing for the past fourteen years.



GoF Chp 30:
"What makes you think he'd really stopped supporting Voldemort, 
Professor?"

Dumbledore held Harry's gaze for a few seconds, and then said, "That, 
Harry, is a matter between Professor Snape and myself."
[/quote]

But not for long.


--azriona