The Wand Theory
an essay by Erin
If Voldemort has his wand back in early GoF (in order to kill Frank Bryce, the muggle caretaker of the Riddle Mansion), and yet, died in the Potter's house, how did his wand make that journey? I'm going to try to prove that it was Snape's work, under the orders of Dumbledore, and meanwhile give some convincing evidence that Snape was good all along. Try not to get too confused!
Theory One:
Someone in the order took it from the house when they came (which would be, according to canon, after Sirius and Hagrid had arrived and left. As soon as anyone from the order arrived they would have snatched it up) and it was stolen by a traitor within the order at some point around the third book (because as far as we know, he didn't have it in the second or first, nor did he have any followers, even Pettigrew).
It makes sense that a deatheater would think that stealing the wand would put him on high standing within the Dark Lord's followers. But, Dumbledore ... is not an idiot. He would never allow something that important to be stolen. Granted, he did allow Quirrel into Hogwarts, but it is directly stated by Harry that he believes Albus allowed Quirrel in, rather than being fooled. Harry on the whole is usually horribly unobservant, so this is probably true if it's that blatantly obvious. Voldemort is not an idiot either, and would be suspicious if someone like Goyle Senior managed to steal something valuable from Dumbledore. Also, the only known 'traitor' in the order is Snape (and if there were others, we would know about them by now - or at least have hints of their existence). According to Albus' actions in canon and the way his character is set out (lying and manipulating for the good of the cause - sorry Dumbledore fans), wouldn't have told the order if he had possession of the wand.
Theory Two:
Someone in the order took it from the house when they came (which would be, according to canon, after Sirius and Hagrid had arrived and left. As soon as anyone from the order arrived they would have snatched it up) and the information about its existence was deliberately leaked to a known traitor in the Order.
Makes sense, when you think about it. Brother wands are useless, and giving Voldemort a useless wand would mean that he wouldn't bother to get one that was useful (Harry used this to save himself in OotP). Dumbledore is a wise man and since only two wands containing Fawkes' tail feathers were made, there is a hint that he knew that they would get brother wands. Proof that it was given back during Harry's third year is further given by the fact that by then Albus would not only suspect, but know that Harry had the brother wand. Once again the only known 'traitor' in the order is Snape. Severus Snape is not an idiot either. He wouldn't be stupid enough to fall for leaked information nor to act on it, putting himself in great risk, to get a wand that he would (unlike the other deatheaters, who would be desperate and are rather stupid compared to him) know would be rather useless. We also go back to the 'Voldemort's not stupid' argument - he wouldn't think even Snape could steal from Albus Dumbledore, The Man Who Can Kick Everyone's Butt.
Theory Three:
Someone took it from the house before Sirius arrived (and remember, after that, there was no empty time period).
Well, they had to have some clue of Voldemort's plans, and if the wand then went to Him, it's most likely it was a deatheater. The law of the simplest solution prevents things like 'Well, Godric Gryffindor's ghost picked it up and then sold it to a rabid pack of Dementors, who then had it stolen from them by a 6-year-old Draco Malfoy.' They had to know Voldemort's targets (and by extension, had to have at least some rudimentary knowledge about the prophecy). The only two deatheaters who would know about this well enough to figure out the targets are Peter Pettigrew (who obviously knew who the prophecy referred to, the dirty traitor) and Snape (who, as you recall, told Dumbledore the prophecy). From the deatheaters' knowledge that there is a prophecy (the taunting in the Ministry of Magic tells us that), we know he told them, but probably not the exact wording or anything specific enough to be leaked. I can't see Peter Pettigrew coming to the Potter's house - he was a coward and had no reason to; in fact, according to the books, he turned tail and ran as fast as he could, leaving just time to put Sirius in Azkaban. My theory is that Snape took it.
What if he realized too late who the prophecy referred to and went to the Potter house (again, too late to help)? This is hinted at in the books. Dumbledore says he has a reason to trust him - what if that reason has less to do with 'coming crying to Dumbledore' as Harry assumes, and more to do with bringing him the wand? This would be a powerful testament to his changed loyalties. Of course, he then would not be able to steal it back from Dumbledore, because they would be the only two who knew of its existence. However, we've already decided it would be an advantage for the Light side if Voldemort had his wand. Taking the wand back would also give him access to the deatheaters again. Claiming to have stolen it would, of course, have raised Moldy-wart's suspicions, but he could get away with saying he'd found and kept it easily.
Two additional proofs: Dumbledore is reluctant to tell Harry what Snape has done to win his trust. This makes sense - telling Harry that Snape had given the prophecy to Voldemort made him angry & bitter enough, but telling him 'Oh, and then he supplied your worst enemy with his wand' would have been too much, making Harry feel betrayed and manipulated by Dumbledore. It also would have put Snape in danger and jeopardized the only spy they had, which would have meant almost certain defeat.
The second proof is this: whoever took the wand did not harm Harry. Most, if not all, of the other deatheaters would have killed a survivor, especially a crying baby, for the hell of it or just because they were annoying; leaving out the defeating-Voldemort issue. However, regardless of Snape's prejudice towards and verbal abuse of Harry, he has never physically harmed him, and has indeed interfered to protect him.
It's not a proven fact, but...
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