Snape flying away

[Carol]

No: HPFGUIDX 187287

Karen wrote:
> 
> Yes he [Snape] didn't have a lot of success with animals did he. JKR seems to have used that to intensify the readers distrust of him. She taps into the idea that animals sense character as most of the major good characters had their pet or familiar, but Snape doesn't and seems to dislike and be distrusted by all the creatures he comes into contact with. Perhaps they sense his potion-making skill and are just showing a healthy sense of self-preservation :)
>
Carol responds:

Then again, he never caused Crookshanks's hair to stand on end, making him act like an animal Sneakoscope (and they are together in at least one scene in PoA). But Buckbeak's attack on Snape definitely serves the purpose you're talking about, intensifying the reader's distrust of Snape (except, of course, for readers who remained DDM! Snapers!). But aside from his relationships with animals, Dark (like Fluffy) or otherwise, he's exceptional at DADA as well as Potions. Harry could have learned a lot about dueling, including the use of nonverbal defensive and offensive spells (and alternate methods of dealing with Dementors), from him if he'd only been willing to listen. And let's not forget his reasonably good Legilimency and exceptional Occlumency. Altogether a brilliant, talented, and powerful wizard who ought to have had an exceptional career.

Carol, wishing that Snape had survived to remain headmaster post-Voldemort, assuming that that's what he would have wanted to do