Spy novel? maybe (was Lupin's secrets )

[Hannah]

No: HPFGUIDX 118696


> Carol wrote:
<snip>
> Regarding your statement that people sometimes choose sides not so
> much on principle as because their friends or personal enemies have
> chosen a particular side, I would not be surprised if this idea was
> one of the reasons why the young Snape joined the Death Eaters. 
After
> three years or so on his own without his Slytherin gang, he must 
have
> felt an intense desire not only to rejoin his seemingly like-minded
> friends but also to oppose whichever side James Potter and Sirius
> Black had chosen. And that would, of course, have been the opposite
> side to the former Slytherins.
> 
> Dumbledore's statement that Snape *rejoined* the good side before
> Godric's Hollow suggests to me that Dumbledore had considerable
> influence over Severus during his Hogwarts years. (We know, for
> example, that he didn't reveal for a very long time that Lupin was 
a
> werewolf. Cf. als the question of what happened to Snape's *first*
> chance.) During those last school years, DD must at least have had
> some hope that Severus would ultimately choose his side over that 
of
> the former Slytherins who had already joined LV.
<snip>
 
Hannah: I see lots of basis for your ideas, Carol!  My favourite 
theory (as written in my fanfic) is that Dumbledore adopted Snape as 
a teenager (probably post 5th year), maybe is a relative of 
Severus', and everything was rosy for a short while... but Snape, 
expecting special treatment, soon got jealous of the Marauders and 
the apparent favouritism shown them by *his* mentor.

I see Snape as very insecure (there were posts on this earlier this 
week).   Constantly coming second place at everything to the 
Marauders, made him more and more bitter about them, and gradually 
began to turn him against DD, who wouldn't side with him against 
them.  The final straw was James being made Head Boy.  Studious, 
ambitious little Snape must have coveted the post, and when it went 
to his arch enemy - the reckless, rule-breaking, not-even-a-prefect 
Potter, he turned against DD.

For Lucius Malfoy, who had already recognised Snape's worth while at 
school, it was an obvious move to get the boy on side once he 
graduated.  All he'd have needed to do, IMO, is butter the boy up, 
tell him how his skills will be appreciated, how he can work his way 
up... Severus, delighted by the chance to be appreciated - and to 
get back at his loathed rivals - signs up without putting too much 
thought into what he'll actually be required to do.  And at this 
point, LV hadn't shown his 'true colours' (he still hadn't when 
Regulus joined, and he's at least a year younger) so Snape may not 
have even realised just how nasty things were going to get.

So Snape joins the DE's, at some point, for some reason, decides 
he's had enough, and goes back to DD to ask forgiveness, ending up 
as a spy.  LV falls, DD vouches for Snape, gives him a job at 
Hogwarts to keep an eye on him and probably for Snape's own safety. 

Then back comes LV, and Snape needs a good explanation for DD having 
claimed him to be a spy.  Easy.  All Snape does is go back to the 
Lord of Darkness and say; 'Yeah, I fed the old fool a lot of 
nonsense about seeing the error of my ways. He didn't want to have 
someone associated with him named as a DE, so he made up the spy 
thing to get me off the hook and protect his own reputation.  Now 
here I am, Lord, back again, and I can keep an eye on DD for you as 
well.  Good eh?'  

LV, proud of his skill as a Legilimens, can detect no lie, and the 
story makes sense to him, and of course old Sev is quite an asset, 
especially now he's working at Hogwarts, so he welcomes him back 
into the fold.

This theory would back up a lot of what Carol said in her post; 
Snape's first chance, him *re*joining the good side, the likelihood 
that DD had strong influence over him at school, how he managed to 
get away with going back to LV after being revealed as a spy, and 
why DD was able to decide to trust him.  

Hannah