First, regarding the Ravenclaw/Hufflepuff alliances. I've always felt that Gryffindor and Slytherin are the big split and that Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff are fairly neutral with Ravenclaw tending to skew more Slytherin and Hufflepuff more Gryffindor. But I'm hard put to back that up, as more individual Hufflepuffs seem be anti-Harry than Ravenclaws. (We have Justin, and Ernie as anti-Harry in CoS, while Zacharias Smith is firmly anti-Harry by OotP.)
Of course, that's all through the Harry filter. If you look at GoF, you notice that Ravenclaws welcomed the Beauxbatons to their table (or perhaps the Beauxbatons students chose their table), while the Durmstrang students sat with the Slytherins. Does mean that Ravenclaw and Slytherin are more welcoming than Hufflepuff and Gryffindor? More continental and less "English"? Or Snobbier (Ravenclaw) and more Slavic (Slytherin)? Or just more attractive in general?
It all gets even odder when you look at the Quidditch rivalries, because Gryffindor (since Harry's second year) invariably trounces Slytherin, gets beaten by Hufflepuff (for whatever unfair reason), and manages to beat Ravenclaw by just enough to snatch the Cup from them (not Slytherin).
So, you'd expect the real rivalry to come between Gryffindor and Hufflepuff (who keeps beating the Gryffindors), or between Gryffindor and Ravenclaw (because they are always playing the last game). That it's Slytherin is very strange.
Now the competition between Slytherin and Gryffindor for the House cup is understandable. But you'd think that Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff would be sick of them both, especially since neither Brains (Ravenclaw) nor Hard Work (Hufflepuff) counts for points nearly as much as Cunning (Slytherin) or Showiness--er--Bravery (Gryffindor).
As for Snape's position in the Order (pre-pissing them all off by killing their leader), he wasn't known at all during the First War. During OotP, we catch a glimpse of Snape at a meeting--a meeting that people are excited about because *he* is coming. He's at the center of the group as they leave, so he isn't being shunned.
The "questions" about him are mentioned by McGonagall. She might be talking more about the teachers at Hogwarts, maybe some parents--Snape as a teacher more than Snape as a spy.
Of course, that's all through the Harry filter. If you look at GoF, you notice that Ravenclaws welcomed the Beauxbatons to their table (or perhaps the Beauxbatons students chose their table), while the Durmstrang students sat with the Slytherins. Does mean that Ravenclaw and Slytherin are more welcoming than Hufflepuff and Gryffindor? More continental and less "English"? Or Snobbier (Ravenclaw) and more Slavic (Slytherin)? Or just more attractive in general?
It all gets even odder when you look at the Quidditch rivalries, because Gryffindor (since Harry's second year) invariably trounces Slytherin, gets beaten by Hufflepuff (for whatever unfair reason), and manages to beat Ravenclaw by just enough to snatch the Cup from them (not Slytherin).
So, you'd expect the real rivalry to come between Gryffindor and Hufflepuff (who keeps beating the Gryffindors), or between Gryffindor and Ravenclaw (because they are always playing the last game). That it's Slytherin is very strange.
Now the competition between Slytherin and Gryffindor for the House cup is understandable. But you'd think that Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff would be sick of them both, especially since neither Brains (Ravenclaw) nor Hard Work (Hufflepuff) counts for points nearly as much as Cunning (Slytherin) or Showiness--er--Bravery (Gryffindor).
As for Snape's position in the Order (pre-pissing them all off by killing their leader), he wasn't known at all during the First War. During OotP, we catch a glimpse of Snape at a meeting--a meeting that people are excited about because *he* is coming. He's at the center of the group as they leave, so he isn't being shunned.
The "questions" about him are mentioned by McGonagall. She might be talking more about the teachers at Hogwarts, maybe some parents--Snape as a teacher more than Snape as a spy.
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