Calling Tonks Nymphadora (Re: The nature of Patronuses (Patroni?))

[houyhnhnm102]

No: HPFGUIDX 152098

zgirnius:

> > Yes, but he is very careful about using last names. 
> > And with female students, even a title. 'Miss Granger', 
> > 'Miss Brown'. The only student I can recall him addressing 
> > by first name is Draco. Because he's in Snape's House? 
> > Because of his relatioinshyip with Draco's family? Who 
> > knows, but it does suggests there is something more with 
> > him and Tonks than just a teacher/student relationship.

Ceridwen:
 
> I thought he was being snide to her, since she doesn't 
> like her given  name.  This is a way to get at Tonks.  
> But it shows that he does know her outside of class, 
> since he can make that sort of dig.

houyhnhnm:

I saw it as a way of putting her in her place, establishing himself in
a one-up position.  Imagine a possible scenario from Snape's point of
view:  Harry doesn't show up at the feast.  Snape would have noticed
right away because, for whatever reason, Harry's safety has been a
primary concern of his throughout the books.  Next a "weak" patronus
shows up, unrecognizable as belonging to any member of the Order, with
a message along the lines of "I've got Harry outside the gates."

Snape heads for the gates in a state that is probably as near to panic
as he ever gets.  When he gets there he discovers, not an abduction of
the Chosen One, but an intact Harry and a lovelorn Tonks.  He's
furious.  A weak person, wearing her heart on her sleeve.  She's an
auror, for Pete's sake; she has no business being lovesick.  He lets
her have it.

But.  A few weeks ago someone brought up the suspicious "ah".
("There's no need to wait, Nymphadora, Potter is quite--ah--safe in my
hands") along with the similarity to the way Snape spoke about Harry
to Fake!Moody ("I merely thought," said Snape, in a voice of forced
calm, "that if Potter was wondering around after hours again...it's an
unfortunate habit of his...he should be stopped.  For--his own safety.")

Now, the hesitation is supposed to suggest that Snape doesn't really
have Harry's best interest at heart.  But we know differently. 
Whatever his motive and however much he despises Harry personally, he
has always been one-pointed about Harry's physical safety.  So, it
suggests to me that he suspected Fake!Moody of being someone other
than he appeared, most likely a DE, and he was anxious to disguise his
loyalty to Dumbledore.  Hence the ironic tone.  ("Crouch!" Snape said,
stopping dead in the doorway. "Barty Crouch!"  You can almost hear him
adding under his breath, "I knew you weren't Moody.")

So to Tonks, at the gate, with Harry, on the night of the
start-of-term feast.  If Snape suspected her of being a polyjuiced DE,
he would again be concerned with concealing his genuine worry about
Harry's safety.  And he would attempt to test her in some way. 
Perhaps calling her by a name he knows the real Tonks detests, in
order to see how she reacts.