Snape as the one who won't return (Was: In Defense of Snape (VERY long)

[Tonks]

No: HPFGUIDX 122287


--- In HPforGrownups at yahoogroups.com, "Tammy" <elsyee_h at y...> wrote:
> Tammy:
> 
> Personally I don't believe Snape was at the graveyard, but I love 
to argue to point that he COULD have been there... so here's my 
version of how it could have happened:
> 
> Snape could have been one of the DE's at the graveyard. There is
> approximately one hour missing from the time Harry leaves by 
portkey and arrives by portkey. If you presume that Dumbledore 
suspected something of this magnitude (which he had to, given that 
Kararoff and Snape's marks were getting darker), then he probably 
set up arrangements with Snape to get him quickly outside of 
Hogwarts in case he would need to go to be at Voldemort's side, 
merely to protect Harry.
> 
> You've got to figure that the judges knew rather quickly that Harry
> and Cedric were missing. I'm sure they could see through the maze
> somehow or over the maze, in order to be able to judge the
> competition. Even if not, they probably had a spell of some sort on
> the cup so they would know the moment someone touched it. So Snape
> would have known Harry was missing shortly after Harry was zapped 
to Voldemort. It took a bit for Voldemort to kill Cedric (okay,
> Wormtail), gloat, and be restored. Beyond that, it took a few 
minutes before the DE's started to appear. Thus, we could say about 
15 minutes or so between Harry disappearing and the DEs showing up. 
We know that Hogwarts is bordered on one side by the Forbidden 
Forest. The forest is next to the Quidditch field (read PoA to see 
that). And according to JKR's drawing, the Quidditch field is near 
the gates as well. 
> 
> Thus Snape had plenty of time to get through the forest (hey, he's 
a DADA master too! Stuff in that forest would be child's play for 
him) or the gate to a place where he could apparate to wherever 
Voldemort called him. Even if you presume that he only figured it 
out once the mark started to burn, it says that it took several 
minutes for the DEs to appear. Snape could have conjured up a robe 
and mask instantly (I'm presuming the DEs don't carry it on them all 
the time, so they probably just conjure one up each time), and still 
had time to run through the forest or the gate to a place where he 
could apparate. 
> 
> Voldemort did pass some DEs in silence, Snape could have been one 
of those. (Snip)
> 
> There was also a period of time after Harry returned where we don't
> see Snape (not until they burst into Moody/Crouch Jr.'s office). 
That also gave plenty of time for Snape to get back to Hogwarts, 
virtually unnoticed. 
> 
> And if you remember, when Harry and Dumbledore are trying to 
convince Fudge that what Harry saw was real, Harry starts naming 
names. When Harry first starts, it says this about Snape: "Snape 
made a sudden movement, but as Harry looked at him, Snape's eyes 
flew back to Fudge." Now it could be that reaction was simply 
because his "friend" Lucius had just been named. Or it could have 
been that Snape was afraid that Harry had recognized Snape in the 
graveyard.
> -Tammy.


Tonks here:

Well now I like this theory. I think it fits. Not sure 100%, but it 
is possible. I often thought that of the 3 that were not there, 
Snape was not one of the list. I think that there is another one 
somewhere (not Barty) that we do not know about. Gosh.. I hope it 
isn't Lupin. I am sure it is not. Also Snape is still friends with 
Malfoy, would he be if LV knew that he was the one who *left me 
forever*. He is not the coward. And how could he spy if LV knew he 
was not still one of his DE?

Tonks_op