Did Dumbledore trust Snape?
That was a difficult question to answer. Even Voldemort, the transmigrator who knew a thing or two about Harry Potter, couldn't give a hundred-percent accurate answer.
Old Deng was a man with a mind of his own, a master manipulator. From his first appearance to his final curtain, he came across as a strategist who had everything under control—and even his death had been planned.
But when it came to trusting people... there was always a certain distance. Just look at this year: he'd rarely spent time alone with Harry, as if he were deliberately keeping his distance.
And yet, if he didn't trust someone... even when faced with a turncoat like Snape, he'd shown absolute faith in him, enough to entrust him with his life.
Dumbledore was so hard to read that Voldemort couldn't tell where his trust lay. Fortunately, there were still clues to follow.
For instance, Voldemort now felt that Old Deng hadn't fully trusted Snape yet. At the very least, he shouldn't have said, "Keep an eye on Quirrell, will you?"
He was so sure because he'd kept his identity well hidden, and when faced with Dumbledore's repeated tests...
The Gringotts robbery...
His behavior in everyday life...
The inspection of his Patronus on the training grounds...
In all these incidents, he hadn't been flawless, but at least he hadn't left behind any clues that could confirm who he was.
In that case, Dumbledore's suspicions of him and Snape couldn't be evenly split; they had to be at least six-four.
After all, Snape had unquestionably been a Death Eater, and the timing of his defection was a major problem—he'd only switched sides after Voldemort fell.
Unless Dumbledore was an idiot, he wouldn't trust Snape right away.
Of course, Snape's Patronus seemed to prove