Contra Severum - quick clarification

[hekatesheadband]

No: HPFGUIDX 134912

Steve: I am saying that the fact that
> Snape took charge, and removed Draco from the scene is the only 
thing
> that saved Draco. Once they are away from the scene, Draco's death 
is
> no longer a matter of DE discretion, but becomes a matter for Lord
> > Voldemort to deal with. With Snape, Mr. Malfoy, and Mrs. Malfoy
> > begging for leniency, I think the Dark Lord may decide that after
> > punishment, he may be able to use Draco in the future. Draco is,
> > afteral, very young and it would be understandable that the task 
of
> > killing Dumbledore might have been more than he was able to do.
> > Certainly, greater men than Draco have wanted to kill Dumbledore 
and
> > failed. <snip>

Carol: the authority to
> influence Voldemort in the matter is Snape.
> 
> I think Snape will point out that Draco did partly accomplish his
> mission. He did repair the vanishing cabinet and link Borgin and
> Burkes to Hogwarts and he did let the Death Eaters in. If Draco 
hadn't
> gone that far toward accomplishing his mission, Dumbledore would 
not
> be dead. i think that Snape, who is still bound to protect Draco
> either by the oath or by his own sense of duty (as shown by his
> escorting him out safely and shouting, "Run, Draco!"), will speak 
for
> him and point this out to Voldemort. 

So many excellent points on all sides of the issue, and so many 
theories to be spun! There's always another two-penny bit to be 
added, and I'll throw mine in here. I'm not necessarily expecting it 
to be borne out by book 7 - in which, seeing how clever and sly 
Rowling is, the whole issue will come down to whether Snape's 
personal cauldron has the professional approval of Helga Hufflepuff, 
who has been launched forward through time and form and is now, in 
fact, Bono. But until then, here goes.

Excellent points, and ones I feel fairly confident will be important 
in book 7. (Even if it's Morgana le Fey who turns out to be Bono. Or 
Phillip Glass; take your pick.;) My own feeling here - which is 
quite likely to be wrong - is that seeking Voldemort's leniency is 
not likely to be successful. Not that I think Lord Thingie will 
murder Draco right off, mind - I agree that he will consider the boy 
highly useful. I'm also disinclined to believe - much as I might 
like to! - that Snape's "logic, persuasion, and Occlumency" (Carol - 
and may I add that's as concise and elegant a summation of Snape's 
considerable intellect as I've seen anywhere; we might all find it 
necessary to quote it rather often) will be of much use. Voldemort 
probably has a rather convoluted plot for Draco in mind already - 
when doesn't he? - and he might toy with Snape. But he can get a 
full version of events from the other Death Eaters, and if motive 
becomes the issue, I suspect that Voldemort is a better Legilimens 
than Snape (or anyone else) is an Occlumens.  

However, what we've seen of Voldemort thus far does not suggest that 
he'll have pity on Draco's use or for his attempts - pity is not in 
his nature. What seems perhaps more likely is that he might amuse 
himself by Cruciating Draco a bit, then remind the boy how lucky he 
is that he (Voldemort) is feeling lenient at the moment, and then 
blackmail him by threatening his mother. While he's at it, he might 
remind Snape that he's done him a personal favour by sparing the 
boy's life (even if he never intended to kill him), and Snape now 
owes him one. And Snape being Snape, I'll hazard a guess that 
there's an ulterior motive on that end.

The parents Malfoy might plead on their son's behalf as well, but I'm
less optimistic about their chances of success. Voldemort is 
presented in HBP as being out to punish Lucius - given that Narcissa 
and Dumbledore agree on this, and for the same reasons, it's 
difficult to dispute - and his background and his interactions with 
and remarks about Lily suggest that maternal love is not, for him, a 
familiar concept. (Although acting to increase his leverage with 
Narcissa would be in his style.)

Carol: > Snape does not join in the attack on Hagrid, nor does he 
fight
the
> Order members in the hallway. I think he is protecting the school 
to
> the last--and protecting Draco for as long as the task requires.
> 
> Someone mentioned leaving Draco at the school. But even if it were
> possible for Snape to get him away from the Death Eaters and hand 
him
> over to McGonagall (who is busy duelling), Draco would not be 
allowed
> to remain at the school. He has committed several crimes: two 
counts
> of attempted murder... Better to take his chances with the Death 
Eaters
> and Voldemort, at least if Snape is with him to keep him silent and
> inconspicuous.

A lot of things here do come down to interpretations too subjective 
to do anything but wait. Nonetheless, I think a bit else is going on 
here as well. Snape knows what happened when four Aurors
simultaneously attacked Hagrid last year - his restraint here is at
least as likely to reflect pragmatism than compassion. (In 
essence: "Why bother attacking Hagrid? It's much more effort than 
the blundering oaf is worth.") And there's a greater factor as well. 
Both the Order and the Death Eaters believe Snape to be their ally. 
The sooner he leaves (and the sight of anyone fleeing would be no 
surprise in such circumstances), the less likely it is that anyone 
will realise anything's amiss and go after him. 

As for the issue of being called a coward... my impression is that 
Snape either considers himself a coward now, or considered himself a 
coward in the past, simply because the most painful insults are 
nearly always the ones their targets feel have the most truth in 
them. No matter what side he's on, Snape's had an extremely 
stressful night - a verbal insult from an unarmed teenager is, at 
most, an excuse to vent largely unrelated frustration. And killing 
an unarmed man, surrounded by opposing groups who both trust your 
loyalty... Snape may have braved any number of dangers in his time, 
or may not have, but Dumbledore's death doesn't really seem to 
qualify within the context of the narrative universe in general and 
Snape's place within it in particular.

And then we come back to Draco. I've lent my mother my book, but if 
I recall correctly - which is not a certaintly at all - all the 
heads of house are being kept up to date on the murder-attempt 
situation, and it's strongly implied that they all know it's Draco. 
(I love Dumbledore in HBP, but what could he have been thinking 
here?) Snape presumably knows the castle better than any of the 
Death Eaters, after 15 years of teaching there, and he knows the 
password to what he had always known as Dumbledore's study. (I'm not 
yet accustomed to thinking of it as McGonagall's.) It's difficult to 
imagine that Draco wouldn't be safer there, or stashed in one of 
Hogwarts' many mystery rooms, or in Snape's heavily guarded private 
quarters, than he would be either in the Death Eaters' presence or 
on the run from them. While I doubt McGonagall would be anything 
like as lenient as Dumbledore, the text gives no indication that she 
would be more likely to cut him loose to join the Death Eaters than 
to try and rehabilitate him (under circumstances she would control, 
no less). And I'd be far more afraid of an ecstatic Voldemort or 
Bellatrix than of McGonagall at her angriest.

That seems to be enough of Snape for the moment, for me; I think the 
original potions master probably needs some rest after all the 
attention he's been getting! (Sorry, Snape, you're out of luck 
there.) I have no doubt that we'll all be proven wrong in 
spectacular fashion when book 7 comes along, but until then, we can 
only keep guessing.

-hekatesheadband
(whose heliopaths are probably getting thirsty)