Who was with Voldemort at GH?

[juli17ptf]

No: HPFGUIDX 145661


> 
> 
> Alla wrote: <snip>
> "I think that Snape IS a best candidate to be at Godric Hollow, 
> simply because the BANG will be even bigger and IMO you can never 
> have enough hate built up between Harry and Snape." 
> 
> 
> CH3ed:
> I think Snape is indeed a candidate for the biggest BANG. Like Jen, 
> I also think it might be a bit of an overkill tho. It is hard to 
> imagine any more hate is possible between Harry and Snape. I think 
> their mutual hate bond is getting over-saturated. Anymore would 
make 
> it impossible for any reconciliation in the end even if Snape does 
> turn out to be DDM. While I agree with KathyO that Snape's remorse 
> has to do with Lily's death and it might have been on Snape's 
> request that LV tried to spare Lily, I don't think that constitutes 
> conclusive evidence that Snape was at GH when LV attacked. LV 
didn't 
> mention Snape's presence when he was recounting the scene to the DE 
> in the graveyard scene in GoF.
> 

Julie now:
I agree that we don't need any additional reason to stoke Harry's 
hatred of Snape, if Snape is DDM. What we need is reasons for Harry 
to step back from his feelings and take a second look at Snape, and 
to realize that Snape is not the one-note bad guy Harry believes he 
is. 

While I also agree that Snape's remorse is tied to Lily's death more 
than James', if he's DDM I think he didn't want *either* to die, and 
did try to prevent their deaths. I also don't believe Snape was at 
Godric's Hollow with Voldemort pleading for Lily's life, or made any 
deal that Lily would be spared specifically for him. Since I'm firmly 
in the DDM camp, I don't see any way Snape making a deal to spare 
Lily while coldly condoning the deaths of James, and Lily's baby boy, 
can work. If Snape was willing to make that deal, certainly DD 
wouldn't trust him, and it's doubtful such a self-serving Snape would 
bother with 16 years of servitude to Dumbledore's wishes. (Though I 
do think Snape could have pleaded for the lives of the *Potter 
family* by stating or implying his feelings for Lily, and Voldemort 
could have used this knowledge to offer Lily her life, intending to 
present Snape with a "reward" for his good service so to speak.) 

Still, I *do* think Snape is a good candidate for the unknown person 
at Godric's Hollow. But if he was there (and assuming as DDM) then he 
was not there helping Voldemort. Here is my theory:

Snape arrive at Godric's Hollow right *after* Voldemort had killed 
James and Lily. Either he was following Voldemort, suspicious of what 
Voldemort was doing, or he was with Voldemort and waiting nearby for 
Voldemort to finish a task about which he had no knowledge (since 
Snape wasn't the secret keeper, he had no way of knowing Godric's 
Hollow was the Potters hiding place). Once James and Lily died, the 
secret keeper protection was lifted, and Snape would be able to see 
the house (and probably feel through the Dark Mark that something had 
happened to Voldemort). At that point he would have notified 
Dumbledore by Patronus or other means (thus explaining how Dumbledore 
found out so quickly).

At this point Snape may have simply left the scene, knowing 
Dumbledore would send someone. Or he may have gone into the house and 
seen James and Lily dead, and Harry still alive. (The question here 
is whether Voldemort in his vapor form could have known who came in 
the house?). I also wonder if it could have been Snape 
who "destroyed" the house, to hide the evidence of magic, while 
obviously insuring the bodies of the Potters, and the surviving boy-
who-lived were protected from the destruction. (I've frequently 
wondered how Harry remained alive and safe inside the house if it was 
completely destroyed by the failed AK.)

Anyway, I'm certain *if* Snape was the unknown person at Godric's 
Hollow, it was as DDM, not as helper of Voldemort. And I like the 
continued irony of Harry's images of Snape, including seeing Snape in 
PS/SS and hearing the high cold laugh, and the dragon image, if Snape 
*was* at GH, and was in fact working with Dumbledore to help save 
baby Harry after the fact. 

Julie