And in The End...CoS

[cdayr]

No: HPFGUIDX 165812

--- In HPforGrownups at yahoogroups.com, "justcarol67" 
<justcarol67 at ...> wrote:

<snip down to a bunch of Snape stuff>

 And I wonder if
> Snape really did suspect Harry of Petrifying Mrs. Norris, 
considering
> the Serpensortia spell he apparently suggested to Draco and his 
words
> to Bellatrix in HBP about the DEs wondering if Harry might be 
another
> Dark Lord in the making. (I think he questioned Harry on the first 
day
> of Potions class for the same reason, to find out whether there was
> any truth to the Dark!Harry rumors and, assuming the rumors proved
> false, dispel any delusions on the part of the DE's children that
> Harry was LV's successor. (The last thing the Prophecy Boy needed 
was
> Slytherin hangers on thinking he was the next Dark Lord.) But the
> Petrification of Mrs. Norris, obviously Dark magic, might have 
aroused
> his suspicions again, especially in combination of the "Enemies of 
the
> Heir, Beware" message and Harry's presence at the crime scene. I'm
> assuming DDM!Snape, of course.

Celia:
Of Course!
I agree that Snape does appear to be testing Harry throughout the 
first two books as possibly being the next Dark Lord, and it makes 
Snape much more human to interpret that throughout the books he is 
actually acting on his honest impression that Harry might be evil, 
just like he really thinks Lupin is working with Sirius to hurt 
Harry in PoA. If I try to see this book from the POV of Snape, then 
it would be an obvious choice for him to use his slithery skills to 
probe Harry's abilities and check out his status as the heir.

But here's a thought...doesn't LV go around bragging about being the 
heir of Slytherin to all the DEs? I wonder what genetic pathway 
Snape thinks could lead to Harry also being the heir? Seems like he 
(and DD and pretty much everyone) *should* know that the heir is LV, 
and if they know that Harry is not related to LV, then there is no 
chance of him being his heir. Could LV be more secretive with his 
heritage than I think? Did Snape actually think for a while that 
Harry and LV were directly related?

<snip>

> Carol:
> I do think that Serpensortia is an HBP spell, but Snape seems to 
think
> that Draco already knows how to do it. (Surely, conjuring a serpent
> out of thin air is rather advanced magic for a second-year and must
> require at least as much practice as turning a hedgehog into a
> pincushion? OTOH, this may be a case of plot requirements 
outweighing
> consistency and logic.) Also, we don't *know* that Snape whispered
> "Serpensortia." He may have whispered something else and Draco 
could
> have come up with that spell on his own. (Unlikely, I realize, but
> it's been suggested before.)

Celia:
All true, although if "Serpensortia" is anything 
like "Sectumsempra," perhaps Draco could have performed it by just 
saying the word and pointing his wand, similar to Harry being able 
to perform Sectumsempra with no experience or knowledge of the 
spell. Obviously Harry as a sixth year is a much more advanced 
wizard, but perhaps HBP spells are just so darn fabulous, one can 
perform them with no practice and no idea what you are doing? Ahh, 
Snape...
 
<snip>

Carol: 
> There's another important aspect of this duelling club meeting that
> you didn't mention. It's Snape's first opportunity to teach DADA 
and,
> "assistant" or not, he's very much in charge. <snip> Snape has
> taught Harry two of his most important lessons--Bezoars and
> Expelliarmus. And we get hints here of exactly what DADA would be 
like
> if only he had been allowed to teach it before Harry's sixth year. 
If
> only the position weren't cursed (or jinxed, if you prefer).

This is a great point- and although I just spent time this week 
convincing myself that Snape's real gift is Potions, this is an 
excellent reminder that he truly is a DADA expert as well. It is 
interesting to think about the long term effects of the DADA curse 
on the British wizarding world- really for, what is it, 20 years or 
so, every student who goes through Hogwart's has learned a spotty 
and confused DADA curriculum. What a great and subtle way for LV to 
weaken the population. If Snape had been DADA all along, I agree 
this type of high-content lesson would have been Day 1, and all of 
our characters would be much better prepared for a fight.

<snip>

Carol:
I'm more interested in where Nagini
came from and how Quirrell got Vapor!mort into England before Voldie 
had possessed him, but, oops, wrong book! 

Celia:
Carried him in a well-sealed tupperware? <g> I suppose he could have 
been possessing one of the poor Albanian animals at that point, and 
came along with Quirrell as a pet or something? OOO, wait, maybe 
Nagini is just an unlucky snake from Albania that LV possessed, and 
Quirrell brought him back in her? Then she somehow survived because 
he made her a horcrux? I don't know, I'm grasping at straws...
 
> Carol:
> Not all of these items/people are unique to CoS.

Celia:
Oh, I know, but somehow they all, to me, are most associated with 
this book- I mean Colin Creevey is all over this thing, and then 
definitely fades into the background in his future appearances. I 
feel the same way about all of these items, even those that have 
recurred- by "uniquely" CoS, I just meant "most associated" with CoS.
 
Carol:
The Flying Ford Anglia is probably hanging out with
> Sirius Black's flying motorcycle. I expect both to reappear in DH,
> along with the Centaurs and your beloved Acromantulas. 

Celia:
What a parade that will be, treking out of the forest! 

<snip>

> Carol:
> Thanks for an enjoyable chance to go in a different direction from 
the
> plethora of Snape and Horcrux posts. (Not that I ever get enough of
> Snape.)

Celia:
And now look what I've done, snipping this back down almost entirely 
to Snape...Oh well, I tried.
 
> Carol, who still wants to know how Ron knew (in HBP) that Draco had
> the Hand of Glory, which Lucius does *not* buy for him in CoS

Celia:
This has always driven me crazy! I remember back pre-HBP when we 
were all predicting what from CoS would be important in HBP, and 
many listies were sure it would be Draco's Hand of Glory, and I was 
constantly bugged by that because Lucius had never bought it for 
him! Then when he had it in HBP, I just threw up my hands. Maybe 
Lucius bought it later as a gift... And Ron knowing about it? Who 
knows?

Celia, who will try to write about non-Snape related items whenever 
she can.