Sectumsempra (was Re: Snape should have kicked James/Sirius' behinds!!.)

[juli17 at aol.com]

No: HPFGUIDX 156202

 
wynnleaf:


Okay,  next... we are told the Impedementa jinx was "wearing off,"
meaning that it  hadn't totally worn off, but Snape was able to crawl
toward his wand.   He obviously wasn't completely in control of  himself
physically.   But he gets his wand, but is still lying on  the ground,
and throws what appears to be a very controlled limited version  of
Sectumsempra at James and cuts his cheek.  James whirls around  and
uses the Leviocorpus on him, turning him upside down.  Snape may  or
may not still have a grip on his wand, but he's upside down.   



Julie:
Asyou know I'm an vowed Snape fan, and I'm quite convinced he's DDM.
But I don't believe Snape was throwing a controlled/limited version of  the
Sectumsempra. I'm not even sure it was a Sectumsempra (after all, he
didn't write those notes in his Potions book until his 6th year, and  the
incident we saw in the Pensieve took place in his 5th year). It could  be
that it was some other spell, and if so, perhaps it was a precursor of  the
Sectumsempra, and Snape had modified or improved upon it (if you  can
consider what Harry did to Draco an "improvement") by the time he  jotted
it down in his Potions book. 
 
And if it *was* a Sectumsempra, then I think the reason it did so  little
damage to James is because Snape was still recovering and not yet
in complete control of himself (as noted above), or of his powers--not 
because Snape *chose* to limit the damage to James. Snape  had just
been humiliated by James, his hated enemy, and laughed at by  bystanders.
He's not a friendly sort, and he's not one to take an insult well. And,  most
importantly of all, he's FIFTEEN! No fifteen year old boy is going to  exert
such rational thought and self-control in that situation ("Hmm, perhaps  I'll
just use a limited version of this potentially deadly spell to teach the  prat
a mild lesson, even though I HATE him and he just totally  humiliated me"). 
Especially not a boy as sensitive to insult and mockery as Snape. He'd  go
for the jugular instinctively, without any forethought or  consideration of 
the
potential consequences. Much as Harry did with Draco in HBP. 
 
IMO,
 
Julie, who is willing to give Snape credit for many good things, but not  for 
holding back on his teenage enemy out of magnaminity. 


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