Doesn't Voldemort know about Snape's loyalty?

[ariston3344]

No: HPFGUIDX 107455

I (ariston) wondered:
> I'm not at all sure that Snape *has* wormed his way back into 
> Voldy's good graces. 
 
Rebecca replied:
> The best indication that he didn't is the fact that Harry guesses
> he might've. I mean, c'mon, Harry is usually wrong at this stage
> in a mystery.

ariston again:
You know, you're right -- in general -- but I've been rereading CoS, 
and I was struck by just how close Harry and Hermione get in ch. 13 
("The Very Secret Diary"):

--- begin quote ---

  But Harry could tell from the arrested look on Hermione's face 
that she was thinking what he was thinking.
  "What?" said Ron, looking from one to the other.
  "Well, the Chamber of Secrets was opened fifty years ago, wasn't 
it?" he said. "That's what Malfoy said."
  "Yeah..." said Ron slowly.
  "And *this diary* is fifty years old," said Hermione, tapping it 
excitedly.
  "So?"
  "Oh, Ron, wake up," snapped Hermione. "We know the person who 
opened the Chamber last time was expelled *fifty years ago*.  We 
know T.M. Riddle got an award for special services to the school 
*fifty years ago*.  Well, what if Riddle got his special award for 
*catching the Heir of Slytherin*?  His diary would probably tell us 
everything -- where the Chamber is, and how to open it, and what 
sort of creature lives in it -- the person who's behind the attacks 
this time wouldn't want that lying around, would they?"

--- end quote ---

Granted, what Hermione is saying isn't true in the way that she 
thinks it is, nor in the way a first-time reader would think.  But 
it's more or less right!  Certainly it's moving in the right 
direction.

As for Snape, I'm still not sure what's going on.  But that his job 
is spying *somehow* seems likely from OotP.  He says that it's his 
job to "find out what the Dark Lord is saying to his Death Eaters" 
in OotP 26, and that fits in with his giving a top secret report to 
the Order in OotP 4.

-ariston