'Deathbed Confession' / Ron's H-H insecurity/Did Severus Murder/Did DD Like

[Catlady (Rita Prince Winston)]

No: HPFGUIDX 183176

Steve/bboyminn wrote in
<http://groups.yahoo.com/group/HPforGrownups/message/183120>:

<< The only way was a death bed confession or dying declaration. Snape
would have nothing to gain at the moment of death from lies. Also, we
know the Penseive doesn't lie. Memories can be altered or blocked out,
but they can never be lies; they are fully objective. >>

How Harry could believe Snape -- Pensieve memories, yes. But, as
others have mentioned, Snape didn't have to die to put his memories
into a Pensieve. Deathbed confession, no. A person who is willing to
die for a cause HAS something to gain at the moment of death: success
for his cause.

Harry would have believed anything Snape told him under Veritaserum,
because Harry hasn't read the bit on JKR's website about different
ways to defeat Veritaserum, e.g. Transfigure it (wandlessly) into
something else while it is between lips and throat.

Harry would also believe Dumbledore's portrait telling him: "Severus
killed me at my request. In fact, at my insistence, as he refused when
I merely requested. I had to remind him that I was already dying from
the curse in my hand before he consented to kill me."

happyjoeysmiley wrote in
<http://groups.yahoo.com/group/HPforGrownups/message/183121>:

<< Why did Ron feel insecure of Harry/Hermione's friendship despite
obvious hints (like, say, Hermione being absolutely comfortable about
Harry's love interests in Cho/Ginny or, say, Harry never worrying
about Hermione's letter to Krum)?  >>

Ron is extremely obtuse about relationships and wouldn't have known
that those were 'hints' even if he had noticed them happening.

Zanooda wrote in
<http://groups.yahoo.com/group/HPforGrownups/message/183142>:

<< Just out of curiosity, how do you know that Snape committed 
murder? >>

I don't recall any canon nor even JKR statement that Severus committed
murder, but I am sure he did. I believe Voldemort required all his
Death Eaters to commit a murder (as part of a group of murderers) to
prove they aren't wimps, to earn their Dark Mark, to assure them that
turning their cloaks would not get them in good with the Ministry
(which would want to send them to Azkaban for murder). 

Voldemort being Voldemort, he probably just killed the ones who
refused to do it and the ones who set out to do it but failed. 

There may have been a few serving him who were too valuable to risk
loosing their services in that manner, such as spies or saboteurs who
were valuable because of their position in highly secret parts of the
Ministry. I'm sure he valued Severus as a potions genius, but I don't
think he valued Severus enough to spare him from murdering like
everybody else.

Sandy wrote in
<http://groups.yahoo.com/group/HPforGrownups/message/183147>:

<< I don't think Dumbledore *liked* Snape - (snip) He was a tool to
Dumbledore; nothing more. All my opinion of course. >>

Until we got the garbage with Grindelwald and Arianna, it seemed
possible that DD never cared about a fellow individual human being
until he got to know Harry. (I imagine it's still possible to 'like'
some people without caring about them, in rather the same way one
likes carnations or hardwood floors or Van Gogh paintings - as
something that makes one's own life more pleasant. I think that sense,
DD eventually came to like SS, long long after he came to trust him
completely.)

It could have been an interesting story, how someone who had never
felt any kind of love learned to preach that love is more powerful
than might or magic, and to preach virtues such as helping each other,
and give his own life to protect others.