CHAPDISC: DH30, THE SACKING OF SEVERUS SNAPE

[pippin_999]

No: HPFGUIDX 184509


> Questions!!
> 1.How do you feel about Luna being the one to stun Alecto?  Is it
> notable that one of the "extras" from the DoM battle is the one to
> help Harry out?

Pippin:
Luna was the only one of the DA not hurt in the raid on the Ministry.
It's no surprise to me that she's a clever fighter.

> 
> 3.More interestingly (to me anyway) is the fact that the Carrows had
> to have Professor Flitwick *let* them into the common room. Do you
> think they tried to enter but got Professor Flitwick out of
> frustration, or do you think they thought there was a password?  How
> does the fact that some people, like Professor McGonagall, seem to
> know things about the castle that the Death Eaters don't affect the
> upcoming battle?

Pippin:
I think the Carrows knew  that you have to answer a riddle to get into
 Ravenclaw Tower. Amycus knew that Alecto was there and would be able
to let him in, so he didn't bring someone with him to solve the Riddle. 

Of course it would have done little good for Flitwick to refuse to let
Alecto into the tower. She'd only have  fetched a  Slytherin  to help
her instead, and then she would have made sure that Flitwick's
students paid for his insubordination.

> 
> 4.Do you think Harry would have Crucio'd Amycus if he had not felt
> that rush of affection for Professor McGonagall moments before?  A
> Stunning Spell would have worked just as well and would have had the
> added bonus of not alerting Amycus to the fact that he was, in fact,
> in the Tower. (I'd like to avoid the moral points of the Crucio by
> Harry, but that's like trying to avoid discussing Severus' teaching
> methods!)

Pippin:
I don't know about the rush of affection itself being instrumental,
but certainly it was Harry's personal feelings for McGonagall that
touched Harry off. Otherwise he'd have probably used a stunning spell
like Luna did.


> 
> 5.Why does Harry tell Professor McGonagall that Voldemort is on the
> way to the castle when in reality he is on his way to check on the
> Horcrux?

Pippin:
Voldemort *is* on his way to Hogwarts, by way of the cave.  Nothing he
finds in the cave is going to divert him, quite the reverse. I'm not
sure why you think Harry would want to lie to Professor McGonagall
about this. 

> 
> 6.Has there ever been any outrage about Professor McGonagall using
> the Imperius Curse on Amycus? If not, why not?

Pippin:
The Imperius curse is a tinpot toy compared to the kind of mind
control that Dumbledore and Voldemort  exercise without using any
magic at all. Then there's Hermione's memory modification of her
parents, though there's no canon that she did it without their
consent. In any case those feats of seemingly irresistible persuasion
and mental tampering are  so much more drastic than the Imperius curse
that McGonagall seems relatively benign for using it. It also causes
no pain and seems to have no lasting effects on most people when used
briefly. 


> 
> 7.What do you think is the significance of Professor McGonagall
> *finally* believing Harry about something that is going on at the
> school (Quirrell stealing the Philsopher's Stone anyone?)?  Does it
> have more to do with Dumbledore or more to the fact that Harry has
> managed to survive several months with the Death Eaters trying to
> kill him at every turn?

Pippin:
The Order was instructed to trust Harry Potter. She does.


> 8.Can Severus see through invisibility cloaks?  If not, why does he
> always seem to know that Harry is around?  Severus never catches him
> in the cloak, but he always seems aware that Harry is there.

Pippin:
Hmmm...Voldemort isn't the only master Snape could learn things from.
I'm guessing that Dumbledore taught Snape to see through the cloak
before Harry ever got it.
 
> 9.What do you think would have happened if Severus had found Harry
> alone?  Would Severus have told him everything?  Would he blow his
> cover?

Pippin:
He'd probably have used the silver doe to guide Harry to Dumbledore's
office and let Dumbledore's portrait do the talking. I wouldn't be
surprised if he'd set the password to "Dumbledore" so that Harry could
get in.
 
> 10.Severus leaps out the window and flies away.  Do you think this
> was, at any point, part of the plan?  What do you think his plan was
> before? Do you think he has any idea what's to come?

Pippin:
 Depending on how much detail about the Gringotts raid and Voldemort's
reaction to it had reached Hogwarts, Dumbledore's portrait might guess
that Voldemort had realized that Harry was after his horcruxes. But
the status of Nagini would still be the best confirmation of it. So if
Snape did have a chance to consult with Dumbledore's portrait after he
was told that Harry might try to invade the school, he might have been
told he needed to find out about the snake, ASAP. 

I think Snape could tell when he looked into Minerva's eyes that she'd
attacked the Carrows. There would be no hiding from Voldemort that
Hogwarts was in revolt. Snape and Dumbledore would have had a plan for
that contingency as well. 

I assume that Snape knew that if he left the grounds with the
intention never to return, the magic would consider that he had
deserted his post and strip him of the Headmaster's powers. In that
way,  Voldemort would be forestalled from forcing Snape to disable the
castle's defenses.
 
> 11.Can you even imagine being Ginny at this point?  Your whole
family (and basically everyone you've ever met) is going to fight for
the freedom of your entire world, and they want you to stay behind.
> Would anyone have listened?

Pippin:
I'm sure Lupin figured she wouldn't stay in the RoR for long, and
Ginny realized that as soon as the others left, she'd be able to go
where she wished. 
 
> 12.Oh Percy Weasley.  Where to even begin?  Did you think he would
be back?  Were you secretly hoping that he would battling his brothers
> American Civil War style because he was a Death Eater the entire
> time?  Did you think there'd be any resolution of his storyline? 
I'm interested in what everyone else thought would happen to Percy.

Pippin:
I was hoping he'd turn out to be Dumbledore's spy. But failing that, I
figured he see reason sooner or later. Of course he'd return at the
most dramatic moment possible.

> 
> 13.Why didn't Ron and Hermione tell anyone where they were going?
> Did they just look at each other, say something, and run off?

Pippin:
They did tell Ginny something about a bathroom. I'm guessing they
thought that was a great big  hint, but Ginny didn't get it.

> 
> 14.In my opinion, Harry's realization that Voldemort is outside of
> Hogwarts is one of the most important moments of the book. This is
> when he realizes that, whatever the outcome, the battle for the
> wizarding world is going to end tonight.   What do you think?  Why
> did the Creatrix choose the end the chapter on this note?

Pippin:
Actually, I think Harry made that realization before. 

"You realize, of course, that nothing we do will be able to keep out
You-Know-Who indefinitely?" squeaked Flitwick.
"But we can hold him up," said Professor Sprout.
"Thank you, Pomona," said Professor McGonagall, and a look of grim
understanding passed between the two witches.

Harry knows from that moment that he's in a race against time.
Voldemort cannot be kept out for long and when he enters he will
destroy anyone who offered resistance.

McGonagall said previously that Voldemort will be at the gates, and as
the chapter ends, he's there literally. 


Pippin