Another Snape thread

[juli17 at aol.com]

No: HPFGUIDX 151947

 
Carol wrote:

< big snip of Carol's thought-provoking  post>



Ideas, anyone? What do you think Snape will be up to, mostly off  page,
in Book 7? Surely all those revelations about him in HBP don't lead  to
a dead end on the tower.
 
Julie, jumping in a bit late:
First of all, I'm certain Snape will go back to Voldemort. Assuming  
DDM!Snape (as I always do!), Dumbledore wouldn't have forced Snape
to suffer the emotional pain of killing him (not to mention a possible 
torn soul) if there wasn't very substantial gain involved. On the  Tower
Snape set himself up as a DE, and that can be for only one reason--
so he can return with Voldemort's trust in him solidified and work 
to weaken Voldemort's power from the inside.
 
As for whether Snape would be forced to participate in DE raids or
killings, it might not be expected of him. True he can no longer spy,
but he presumably did some things for Voldemort before he started
"spying" at Hogwarts, such as brewing potions. I suspect Snape's
apparent murder of Dumbledore will give him a certain status within 
Voldemort's ranks that will allow him more autonomy than your
average DE. Add to that his natural talents at potions and  healing,
and Voldemort's renewed trust in him, it's entirely possible Snape
will be assigned something to do with making potions, protecting 
Voldemort's horcruxes, etc. Really, any dunderhead DE can torture
or kill, so waste Snape's talents on something so mundane?
 
As for what Snape will be up to, which will almost certainly be
off page for most of Book 7, I think he will find a way to feed the 
Order (and thus Harry) crucial information. The revelation in HBP
that Tonks changed her patronus seemed to be there for no reason
other than to inform us of that capability. Add also JKR's  refusal to 
reveal Snape's patronus because it would give away too much, and
I conclude that we will 1. see a changed patronus in Book 7, and 2.
that it will be Snape's. I suspect it will be a phoenix or something
similarly evocative of Dumbledore. I think Snape will use it to feed
information to the Order, and that information will be accepted as
coming from a reliably loyal source, even if the source is unknown
or incorrectly identified (as Abelforth, for instance). (The bigger 
question pertaining to patronuses is whether they always  reflect 
the TRUE nature or character of a wizard, which is a subject  for
a separate post.)
 
It's also possible Snape will have a direct contact in the Order, 
someone who knows he remains loyal, and Abelforth does 
seem to be a strong contender. Hagrid is another contender.
 
Also, I think Snape may find a way to wreak his own havoc in 
DE camp, perhaps by turning some of the newer recruits (like
Draco) away from Voldemort, or through some other mischief.
I suspect Voldemort will finally catch on very late in the game,
after Snape has done damage by his own actions or by passing
on information. That will mean death for Snape of course (even 
though I'd love it if he survived!), but not before Harry finds out
the whole truth about Snape.
 
Doddie also wrote:
I think children often have great instincts on who to trust and the  
only child we have ever seen appear to trust Snape was Malfoy(and  
perhaps Crabbe and Goyle)...Ron, Hermione, Harry, Neville, the 
Twins,  even Percy don't trust Snape. Most only trust Snape because 
DD trusts  him.  I'd hate to see Harry's trust radar to be so far off.
 
Julie:
Actually, I think the only ones who expressed distrust of  Snape
are Harry (repeatedly) and Ron. Hermione seemed to trust Snape,
and even though Neville, the twins and Percy considered Snape a
git as a teacher, none ever expressed a distrust in him.  (Disliking
Snape and distrusting him are two different things, I believe). 


Julie









[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]