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rj_andersonI am going to lj-cut the following remarks because they involve an idea I thought of two days ago and have been entertaining in my mind off and on ever since, and even though I have still yet to see or read any of the purported HBP "spoilers", this idea of mine seems awfully like something that might be one of them. So, just in case it is a spoiler, don't click on the following if you want to remain unspoiled, but...
It popped into my head suddenly the other day, while I was cleaning the shower, that Snape might well be the one to kill Dumbledore (note how there is already zero doubt in my mind that somebody will kill Dumbledore in this book, whether it's Snape or not). If this is the case, I can see this being Harry and Snape's last and most terrible misunderstanding (note how there is zero doubt in my mind that it is a misunderstanding). Because unless JKR specifically tells us otherwise (and if she doesn't, I do not want to know, please and thank you, I will read it for myself), there's no way I'm going to believe that Dumbledore and Snape didn't hash the whole thing out together long ago.
If Snape's been acting as a double agent since the end of GoF, of course he would have to face the possibility of being one day put in a position where he'd have to kill Dumbledore as "proof" of his loyalty to Voldemort, and of course Dumbledore would have figured that out as well, and (knowing him) kindly told Severus not to worry about it, please, but to do whatever he felt was necessary for the sake of the Cause. Which, of course, Harry would never accept, and is guaranteed to react to IN ALL CAPS until and unless (I expect it will be merely "until", myself) he hears directly from Dumbledore himself (either in a letter or in some other magical form of communication) that All This Was Planned. So that might take us into Book Seven, because you have to know no way in the world is Snape going to say anything about it or betray his true feelings to Harry, being just as perverse and inscrutable about his personal business as Francis Crawford of Lymond ever was (and didn't some of his actions look awfully damning too?).
And now I'm babbling so I'll shut up -- but I just wanted this down as proof that if it should turn out to be true that Snape kills Dumbledore and it's not just a wacky idea of mine, I not only anticipated it but am not in the least perturbed by it, and it hasn't shaken my conviction that Snape is truly a good guy after all. Unless, of course, JKR unequivocally says that he's evil, but I really don't anticipate that from her, myself. She already dispensed with that in Book One: it's just Harry, who is a sweet boy but such a blockhead sometimes, who can't seem to figure out the point.
Oh, and if anybody tries to post real spoilers or what they have been led to believe are real spoilers in the comments: please don't. Like I said, this is an idea of my own, not something I want to see confirmed or denied by anything outside the text of HBP itself. Thank you.
It popped into my head suddenly the other day, while I was cleaning the shower, that Snape might well be the one to kill Dumbledore (note how there is already zero doubt in my mind that somebody will kill Dumbledore in this book, whether it's Snape or not). If this is the case, I can see this being Harry and Snape's last and most terrible misunderstanding (note how there is zero doubt in my mind that it is a misunderstanding). Because unless JKR specifically tells us otherwise (and if she doesn't, I do not want to know, please and thank you, I will read it for myself), there's no way I'm going to believe that Dumbledore and Snape didn't hash the whole thing out together long ago.
If Snape's been acting as a double agent since the end of GoF, of course he would have to face the possibility of being one day put in a position where he'd have to kill Dumbledore as "proof" of his loyalty to Voldemort, and of course Dumbledore would have figured that out as well, and (knowing him) kindly told Severus not to worry about it, please, but to do whatever he felt was necessary for the sake of the Cause. Which, of course, Harry would never accept, and is guaranteed to react to IN ALL CAPS until and unless (I expect it will be merely "until", myself) he hears directly from Dumbledore himself (either in a letter or in some other magical form of communication) that All This Was Planned. So that might take us into Book Seven, because you have to know no way in the world is Snape going to say anything about it or betray his true feelings to Harry, being just as perverse and inscrutable about his personal business as Francis Crawford of Lymond ever was (and didn't some of his actions look awfully damning too?).
And now I'm babbling so I'll shut up -- but I just wanted this down as proof that if it should turn out to be true that Snape kills Dumbledore and it's not just a wacky idea of mine, I not only anticipated it but am not in the least perturbed by it, and it hasn't shaken my conviction that Snape is truly a good guy after all. Unless, of course, JKR unequivocally says that he's evil, but I really don't anticipate that from her, myself. She already dispensed with that in Book One: it's just Harry, who is a sweet boy but such a blockhead sometimes, who can't seem to figure out the point.
Oh, and if anybody tries to post real spoilers or what they have been led to believe are real spoilers in the comments: please don't. Like I said, this is an idea of my own, not something I want to see confirmed or denied by anything outside the text of HBP itself. Thank you.
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Sucks to be Snape, don't it?
Date: 2005-07-15 03:12 pm (UTC)Well, at the very least, we can get really good Snape-fic out of such a situation.
Weird how -- if this is indeed the case -- Snape, of all the characters in Rowling's world, most embodies the trope "unrecognized (fe)male suffering."
And Rowling is surprised that Snape appeals to a certain type of female reader?
And, heh -- just think of the excuse this gives Snape for his blistering bad temper throughout the novels.
Snape, thinks: Everyone hates me already and I'm going to have to "kill" Dumbledore and everyone will *believe* that I did and that I've been a traitor all along when I've done everything I can to stop the madman -- by which I mean Voldemort, in this instance -- and so I'm going to be even more reviled and loathed and despised, and what did Black ever do besides set up the Potters for their deaths and everyone loves *him* and Lupin, the fool, should have *told* someone what was going on and maybe Pettigrew would be in Azbakan instead of at Voldemort's right hand, and it's NOT MY FAULT!
Snape, says: Longbottom, you incompetent MORON! And Potter, you self-centered brat, 100 points from Griffindor for your incessant mouth-breathing.
Re: Sucks to be Snape, don't it?
Date: 2005-07-15 04:42 pm (UTC)Not to mention that I think both Dumbledore and Snape may have agreed that it would be best if Harry's horrified, furious reaction to D.'s death were absolutely genuine -- and therefore it would be necessary to keep Harry in the dark that D. was going to die and S. was going to kill him, but it would also be preferable if Harry had reason to truly dislike and mistrust Snape. This may be one of the reasons why D. has allowed Snape such free rein in the classroom when it comes to Potter-baiting.
Re: Sucks to be Snape, don't it?
Date: 2005-07-15 05:29 pm (UTC)Meanwhile, I can't help but think about how, if this spec is true, it might impact with that other Snape identity spoiler/spec that's been floating around for, literally, years. I think if this spec is true, however, we won't find out till Book 7.
(I'm sure everyone has heard and dismissed this theory, but I'll link to a post (http://www.livejournal.com/users/hms_yowling/4294.html) in my journal to avoid spoiling anyone.)