No fire in the office

[Berit Jakobsen]

No: HPFGUIDX 87960

Derek wrote:
> Interesting.  It's easy to assume that Snape and McGonagall don't 
much like each other, but I can't think of any canon to support that 
idea. <snip> But I can't recall any indication from McGonagall that 
she dislikes Snape.  (Or any indication from Snape that he dislikes 
McGonagall any more than he dislikes everyone else.)

<snip>
> IMO, that's one of the two most likely possibilities.  (ie., that
> McGonagall knows from past experience that Snape keeps his office 
too
> cold for the students' well-being, either because Snape is a vampire
> or for whatever reason.)  The other is that this was simply a 
literary
> device by JKR to illustrate that McGonagall is concerned about the
> students' welfare (even when she is angry), while Snape is not.

Berit replies:

I can't think of any canon to support that Snape and McGonagall 
dislike each other either. There IS canon evidence for them being 
quite competitive; rivals so to speak. But I get the impression this 
is quite good-natured, and that they respect each other. In SS 
McGonagall tells Harry and Oliver she couldn't look Snape in the eyes 
for weeks after the Gryffindor Quidditch team were flattened by the 
Slytherins :-) Compare this with the Entrance Hall scene in OoP were 
McGonagall is back from St.Mungo's and Snape greets her almost 
affectionately, clearly happy to have her back at Hogwarts... To me, 
the fact that McGonagall just lights Snape's fire without asking 
shows how "close" they are; McGonagall knows Snape won't mind; 
Snape's not offended because it's McGonagall doing it. I really enjoy 
watching their "friendship"; always supporting their own houses 
against each other, very keen to grab the House Cup from under the 
other one's nose, but with a lot of respect and humour :-)

About Snape's fireplace: Snape not keeping a fire in his office when 
Ron and Harry were ushered in there is useless as evidence for him 
being a vampire, simply because we know he has kept a fire going in 
his office at other times. To me, the best evidence for him being a 
vampire is how Lupin makes the class write an essay on vampires not 
long after Snape had made them do one on werewolves... That REALLY is 
fishy :-). Combine this with Rowling's batlike descriptions of 
Snape's appearance and the way he glides through the corridors, and 
you have a case. Personally I am not so sure Snape is a vampire, but 
I am keeping Lupin's vampire essay in the back of my mind...

Berit
http://home.no.net/berjakob/snape.html