Why leave Harry/Snape and Lily

[Sydney]

No: HPFGUIDX 148471


> Dung:

> Can someone please explain to me why on earth Snape is unable to 
> fake a large bout of remorse and pretend to be in love with Lily? 
> How does it provide a watertight reason for DD to trust him? 

It doesn't.  Harry is mistaken in what Dumbledore was trying to tell
him and inadvertently played a bit of a game of 'telephone' (or
chinese whispers for those across the pond) when he made his
explanations to the order.

Harry says:  

"I'd love to know what Snape told him to convince him," said Tonks.
"I know," said Harry, and they all turned to look at him.  "Snape
passed Voldemort the information that made Voldemort hunt down my mom
and dad.  Then Snape told Dumbledore he hadn't realized what he was
doing, he was really sorry he'd done it, sorry that they were dead."

This is what Dumbledore actually says:

(Harry):  "He hated my dad like he hated Sirius!  Haven't you noticed,
Professor, how the people Snape hates tend to end up dead?"

"You have no idea of the remorse Professor Snape felt when he realized
how Lord Voldemort had interpreted the prophecy, Harry.  I believe it
to be the greatest regret of his life and reason he turned--"

"But HE'S a very good Occlumens, isn't he, sir?" said Harry, whose
voice was shaking with the effort of keeping it steady.  "And isn't
Voldemort convinced Snape's on his side, even now?  Professor... how
can you be SURE Snape's on our side?"

Dumbledore did not speak for a moment;  he looked as though he was
trying to make up his mind about something.  At last he said, "I am
sure.  I trust Severus Snape completely."



Dumbledore's phrasing makes a distinctinction between two things.  He
says he BELIEVES it was the reason Snape turned, but he is
speculating-- he doesn't know. He is offering Harry a mitigation.
However, he says he is SURE that Snape is on his side, he trusts him
absolutely. I tend to think the Snape-trust thing is an event,
hopefully a fabulously dramatic one we can see in Pensive-o-vision. 
And Dumbledore's "I believe" suggests to me that Snape never
explicitly laid out to him what his reasons were.  Which does sound
more Snapey than blubbering about his love for Lily!

If Harry paid a bit more attention, he would have sorted out that the
repentance narrative, and the reason Dumbledore trusts Snape, are two
seperate things, and he still doesn't know why Dumbledore trusts Snape
so completely.  But Harry conflates them, erasing the distinction--
and incidentally, putting the repentance story AFTER the deaths of the
Potters, even though he himself heard Dumbledore testify that Snape
had changed sides BEFORE Voldemort's downfall. 

Of course, JKR is encouraging the audience to go with the flimsy
reason by planting it at the start of the book in "Spinner's End"!

--Sydney