(Anonymous)
Your mention of 'both of them' as opposed to 'all' might finally convince me.
I truthfully believe JKR changed her mind on the date of Snape's conversion.
In several interviews the date moved around before she ever put anything in the books. Usually she tied the Potters going into hiding at around the time of Harry's Christening - that they either had the Christening while in hiding or 'rushed' the Christening, going into hiding immediately after. This made a lot more sense - as it meant Snape went to Albus at about the same time Peter became Voldy's spy. Both sometime around Sept/Oct 1980.
This gives what I see as a much more realistic timeframe - with the Potters in hiding for close to a year before Voldy finally attacks alone. It makes a great deal more sense than waiting until the child is over a year old - unless Peter's spying was all about any magic spurts Harry and Neville might have done. And true - that COULD be the case - I suppose Peter could be expected to hear of Neville's accomplishments during 'afters' at Order meetings.
It really plays out as a much more exciting story for the Potters to be hiding for so much longer - with Peter betraying their 'movements' (new hiding places) as Minerva told us. And with forewarnings coming to Albus from Snape in time to move the Potters once again. It also makes more sense of the POA clues where we heard that 1) the Potters went into hiding when Albus was warned by his spy AND 2) that Albus suggested the Fidelius when they found it so very hard to hide from Voldy (Two separate sentences that many used to insist were one - implying the Potters never hid at all until the Fidelius).
This timing also made sense of the arrests of DEs that we learn of at Karkaroff's hearing. Which I still maintain shows the DEs were speaking of Snape as the Double-Crosser that Sirius overheard (not Peter).
This timing even shows James in a better light - as he's 'bored in hiding' in the letter to Sirius, even tho' the Potters were both apparently still going to Order meeting outside their hiding spot as recently as the Order Photo.
And multiple hiding spots that keep being discovered also makes more sense as to how they could realize the spy must be a Marauder, fingering Remus.
Personally - I think JKR was so peeved when many fans stuck by Snape after Bk6 that she decided that scenario placed him in too heroic a light and so she changed the timing - which takes all those lovely clues and turns them into waste.
Instead - the Potters hide apparently in the easily known location of the Potter ancestral home and never even apparently have a close call - but decide a Fidelius is needed anyways - but only because other Order members are being killed. And without close calls, that leaves the suspicion of Remus down to his being a werewolf rather than being forced to realize it MUST be one of their closest friends.
It also downplays Voldy's evil - why wouldn't the worst dark lord in ages just kill the 2 pregnant women so the child is never even born?
Oryx - I know you disagree on this with me. And while you have come up with a scenario that works for you - it doesn't work for me. They know the sex of the child because they presume it based on the Prophecy. However, there isn't any reason to believe magic didn't have a way to know the sex before birth. After all, in the REAL world that was, since the middle ages, one of the main reasons someone might go to see a hedge witch or gypsy fortune teller - to find out whether the child would be an heir or not. And Potterverse IS concerned with heirs.
I'm not trying to convince anyone out of Oryx's timeline - and I agree it might be right. I only say that for me - it is an open question. Snape turned in winter. Either '79-'80 as he turns 20 or '80-'81 as he turns 21. -- Hwyla
I truthfully believe JKR changed her mind on the date of Snape's conversion.
In several interviews the date moved around before she ever put anything in the books. Usually she tied the Potters going into hiding at around the time of Harry's Christening - that they either had the Christening while in hiding or 'rushed' the Christening, going into hiding immediately after. This made a lot more sense - as it meant Snape went to Albus at about the same time Peter became Voldy's spy. Both sometime around Sept/Oct 1980.
This gives what I see as a much more realistic timeframe - with the Potters in hiding for close to a year before Voldy finally attacks alone. It makes a great deal more sense than waiting until the child is over a year old - unless Peter's spying was all about any magic spurts Harry and Neville might have done. And true - that COULD be the case - I suppose Peter could be expected to hear of Neville's accomplishments during 'afters' at Order meetings.
It really plays out as a much more exciting story for the Potters to be hiding for so much longer - with Peter betraying their 'movements' (new hiding places) as Minerva told us. And with forewarnings coming to Albus from Snape in time to move the Potters once again. It also makes more sense of the POA clues where we heard that 1) the Potters went into hiding when Albus was warned by his spy AND 2) that Albus suggested the Fidelius when they found it so very hard to hide from Voldy (Two separate sentences that many used to insist were one - implying the Potters never hid at all until the Fidelius).
This timing also made sense of the arrests of DEs that we learn of at Karkaroff's hearing. Which I still maintain shows the DEs were speaking of Snape as the Double-Crosser that Sirius overheard (not Peter).
This timing even shows James in a better light - as he's 'bored in hiding' in the letter to Sirius, even tho' the Potters were both apparently still going to Order meeting outside their hiding spot as recently as the Order Photo.
And multiple hiding spots that keep being discovered also makes more sense as to how they could realize the spy must be a Marauder, fingering Remus.
Personally - I think JKR was so peeved when many fans stuck by Snape after Bk6 that she decided that scenario placed him in too heroic a light and so she changed the timing - which takes all those lovely clues and turns them into waste.
Instead - the Potters hide apparently in the easily known location of the Potter ancestral home and never even apparently have a close call - but decide a Fidelius is needed anyways - but only because other Order members are being killed. And without close calls, that leaves the suspicion of Remus down to his being a werewolf rather than being forced to realize it MUST be one of their closest friends.
It also downplays Voldy's evil - why wouldn't the worst dark lord in ages just kill the 2 pregnant women so the child is never even born?
Oryx - I know you disagree on this with me. And while you have come up with a scenario that works for you - it doesn't work for me. They know the sex of the child because they presume it based on the Prophecy. However, there isn't any reason to believe magic didn't have a way to know the sex before birth. After all, in the REAL world that was, since the middle ages, one of the main reasons someone might go to see a hedge witch or gypsy fortune teller - to find out whether the child would be an heir or not. And Potterverse IS concerned with heirs.
I'm not trying to convince anyone out of Oryx's timeline - and I agree it might be right. I only say that for me - it is an open question. Snape turned in winter. Either '79-'80 as he turns 20 or '80-'81 as he turns 21. -- Hwyla