  In the favored progenitor scenario, Type Ia supernovae arise from a white
dwarf accreting material from a non-degenerate companion star. Soon after the
white dwarf explodes, the ejected supernova material engulfs the companion
star; two-dimensional hydrodynamical simulations by Marietta et. al. show that,
in the interaction, the companion star carves out a conical hole of opening
angle 30-40 degrees in the supernova ejecta. In this paper we use
multi-dimensional Monte Carlo radiative transfer calculations to explore the
observable consequences of an ejecta-hole asymmetry. We calculate the variation
of the spectrum, luminosity, and polarization with viewing angle for the
aspherical supernova near maximum light. We find that the supernova looks
normal from almost all viewing angles except when one looks almost directly
down the hole. In the latter case, one sees into the deeper, hotter layers of
ejecta. The supernova is relatively brighter and has a peculiar spectrum
characterized by more highly ionized species, weaker absorption features, and
lower absorption velocities. The spectrum viewed down the hole is comparable to
the class of SN 1991T-like supernovae. We consider how the ejecta-hole
asymmetry may explain the current spectropolarimetric observations of SNe Ia,
and suggest a few observational signatures of the geometry. Finally, we discuss
the variety currently seen in observed SNe Ia and how an ejecta-hole asymmetry
may fit in as one of several possible sources of diversity.
