Lupin is Ever So Evil, Part Two--Replies

[pippin_999]

No: HPFGUIDX 130723

Neri: 
I have always took the "Voldemort's second-in-command" to 
be a complete fabrication, a typical Daily Prophet catch 
phrase. 

Pippin:
Then what do you make of JKR's statement that the 
Lestranges were "sent" after the Longbottoms?

Neri: 
The idea that a fresh student out of Hogwarts would 
become Voldemort's second-in-command in just one year 
sounds pretty absurd anyway, especially if he's a spy. 
Since when are spies made second-in-command? A second-in-
command sits at HQ so he can, well, command, and the 
others should know him so they would, well, take his 
commands. But which DEs knew ESE!Lupin, and that he's the 
Big Boss' second-in-command?

Pippin:
Why "just one year"? Sirius was twenty-two when he was 
sent to Azkaban, so Lupin had been out of school four 
or five years already. Lafayette was commanding American 
forces in the Revolutionary War at a similar age, Joan 
of Arc was even younger. It's unusual but hardly absurd.
 
In a sense *all* the Death Eaters are spies, since it's an 
undercover organization.  Presumably there are code words 
or spells by which  officers can  identify themselves to 
DE's who don't know them. Only DE's know how to cast the 
Dark Mark, for example.

If the DE's only knew Lupin by his code name, then they  
couldn't have spilled the beans on him.

Neri:
Karkaroff apparently didn't know. Snape didn't know 
either. He may have suspected, but apparently not enough 
to tell Dumbledore, and even in the Shack he only accused 
Lupin with helping Sirius, not with being a spy.


Pippin:
Snape could hardly accuse Lupin of spying on the 
order without blowing his cover -- and the Order's too.

It's clear Snape believes that Lupin has been helping 
Sirius all along, though he never had proof. His 
objections date back to when Lupin was hired, before 
Lupin could have helped  Sirius do anything. Snape 
certainly didn't conceal his suspicions from 
Dumbledore.

Bella didn't know her own master was a 
halfblood. She might not know that Remus was a werewolf 
either. He doesn't socialize,and his identity was kept 
secret while he was in school.

A very neat solution is to suppose that Voldemort used 
the codename "Wormtail" for his spy all along, so that 
the DE's never knew that Peter and Lupin were two 
different people.They're physically different of course, 
but the  DE's are quite familiar with the uses of 
polyjuice potion.

Karen: 
just wanted to comment on the above. The fact that Peter 
called LV 'The Dark Lord' was what convinced me that he 
was the spy. Only DEs call him 'The Dark Lord', every one 
else calls him 'You Know Who' or 'He Who Must Not Be 
Named' (apart from the very few who actaully call him 
Lord Voldemort).



Pippin:
Harry is not an accurate observer. Draco Malfoy refers to 
the 'Dark Lord' and so does Trelawney in True Seer mode.

Nathaniel: 

As for Sirius, we don't really know how much he 
entertained the idea that Lupin was a spy. But it does 
seem unlikely that he had had more than just vague 
suspicions, or he wouldn't have so quickly come to the 
conclusion that Peter was the spy.

Pippin:

Sirius didn't tell us his reasoning, but we know he 
assumed that only he, James, Peter and Lily knew about the 
switch, and that Lupin didn't. In that case, only Peter 
could have told Voldemort about the switch, ergo Peter 
was the spy.  But Sirius could have been wrong.

The idea that Sirius only vaguely suspected Lupin loses
credibility once we find out in OOP that there were
others close to Lily and James. Presumably anyone
in Moody's photo, barring the deceased, could have
been the spy. There had to be some reason that Sirius
specifically thought it was Lupin. 


 Nathaniel:

Hermione does not particularly seem to believe that Lupin 
is evil either.

Pippin:

I didn't say she does. What she believes is that some  
werewolves support Lord Voldemort. I was dealing with the 
objection, raised in the past, that werewolves would not 
join forces with the champion of the purebloods.


Pippin