1. He did know, because Voldemort told him as a test of Snape's loyalty. ("I'm ordering Draco to kill Dumbledore...and you'd better not get in the way.")
2. He knew, but Voldemort *didn't* tell him. Either Death Eaters are more loose-lipped than Bellatrix thinks or else Snape legilimensed the info / is a good spy.
3. He didn't know, but had a strong suspicion just from hanging around Voldy for so long. When Narcissa extracted the vow, his suspicions were 98% certain.
But I think he did know. I think the hesitation was because he didn't expect to be asked to finish what Draco started, and because he also believed deep down that he wasn't going to uphold that part of the vow. He made the decision in that moment to sign his own death warrant, not expecting that Dumbledore was going to hold him to his promise.
Except that I think even deeper, he knew Dumbledore *would* make him do it, and he knew he would follow that directive rather than disobey. (So he's both a coward - for choosing his own life and D's last orders over his own conscience - and *not* a coward - for doing the hardest thing D's ever asked him to do. Which, I have to say, is deliciously complex and possibly the only thing I liked about book six. More or less.)
As for the Christmas party thing, I think at that point D's directions to Snape were to foil Draco's plan so that Draco wouldn't have to be directly responsible for D's death (or any other destruction he planned, such as letting DE's into the school). So while he knew Draco's major end point - a dead Dumbledore - he didn't know any of the other way stations, nor any of the methods Draco was employing. I don't see that scene as Clueless Snape at all, rather as a Snape who can see half the cards, but not all of them.
But then, I've always believed that Dumbledore sees Snape's role as a teacher at Hogwarts to be partly a way to keep the DE kids out of their parents' paths. So Snape's purpose has always been in part to protect Draco, and others like him, from their own prejudices. So it's not a stretch for me that Dumbledore would shift Snape's mission to include keeping Draco out of as much trouble as possible, not just to keep him from becoming a murderer.
no subject
1. He did know, because Voldemort told him as a test of Snape's loyalty. ("I'm ordering Draco to kill Dumbledore...and you'd better not get in the way.")
2. He knew, but Voldemort *didn't* tell him. Either Death Eaters are more loose-lipped than Bellatrix thinks or else Snape legilimensed the info / is a good spy.
3. He didn't know, but had a strong suspicion just from hanging around Voldy for so long. When Narcissa extracted the vow, his suspicions were 98% certain.
But I think he did know. I think the hesitation was because he didn't expect to be asked to finish what Draco started, and because he also believed deep down that he wasn't going to uphold that part of the vow. He made the decision in that moment to sign his own death warrant, not expecting that Dumbledore was going to hold him to his promise.
Except that I think even deeper, he knew Dumbledore *would* make him do it, and he knew he would follow that directive rather than disobey. (So he's both a coward - for choosing his own life and D's last orders over his own conscience - and *not* a coward - for doing the hardest thing D's ever asked him to do. Which, I have to say, is deliciously complex and possibly the only thing I liked about book six. More or less.)
As for the Christmas party thing, I think at that point D's directions to Snape were to foil Draco's plan so that Draco wouldn't have to be directly responsible for D's death (or any other destruction he planned, such as letting DE's into the school). So while he knew Draco's major end point - a dead Dumbledore - he didn't know any of the other way stations, nor any of the methods Draco was employing. I don't see that scene as Clueless Snape at all, rather as a Snape who can see half the cards, but not all of them.
But then, I've always believed that Dumbledore sees Snape's role as a teacher at Hogwarts to be partly a way to keep the DE kids out of their parents' paths. So Snape's purpose has always been in part to protect Draco, and others like him, from their own prejudices. So it's not a stretch for me that Dumbledore would shift Snape's mission to include keeping Draco out of as much trouble as possible, not just to keep him from becoming a murderer.