Untitled

[luna-azzurra]

Writing taught me that the most interesting thing about a person is never what happened to them. it's what they decided it meant. two people can go through the exact same thing and build completely different selves out of it. the event is just the event. the story they tell about it is who they become. I think about this every time i catch myself retelling something from my own life and notice i've quietly changed what it meant. we are all editing ourselves constantly.

[dufferpuffer]

it's weird to me that the Prank came before SWM Coming after would tie things up nicely:

Remus is pre-Full Moon in the DADA OWLs, looking peaky

Sirius is eager for Full Moon, he wants to do something fun

They pick on Severus - who calls Lily a mudblood

Desperate to do SOMETHING that'll bring her back - Severus goes to investigate why Remus gets sick every month

Sirius does his fun thing: punishing Severus for being nosy

James has a Responsibility Moment and saves him

From then on, NEWT years, James grows up a little, picks on Severus less and impresses Lily with his maturity or whatever.

That flows really well??? am I crazy?

We get to SEE James 'being better' (at least a bit) after getting a scare via Severus' life being put at risk by their antics. He decided he wants to save lives, not just hex people.

We get a bit more motive for Sirius - still a dumb thing to do, but it's an escalation from SWM and perhaps something he has planned.

We get more motive for Severus, too. Doing something dangerous because he fucked up with Lily and wanted to get her back.

Instead we have the Prank where he almost died and James saved his life... and then nearly a whole month later, as Remus was pre-Moon, they attack Severus viciously out of nowhere. As if he wasn't keeping Remus' biggest secret...? This doesn't show James 'getting better', it shows him being an even bigger prick. How are we supposed to believe he got better???

[annabtg]

I remember pre-DH, we were all convinced that was exactly how it had all happened.

DH messed up the timeline for no good reason, but the flipside is that now everyone who writes these events has to dig deep inside the characters' heads and face the fact that the process of growing up is not always linear. You can make it flawed in a human sort of way.

[neverenoughmarauders]

Controversially, I never agreed with it sitting after SWM, long before DH came out. I had always thought it came before. Remus and Dumbledore say James ran after Snape at great risk to his own life, and while, fair, Dumbledore didn't know James was an animagi, Remus would have known. So would it really have been at great risk to his own life if he could turn into Prongs? It would reduce the point of the whole incident in canon, which is for James to risk his own life to save Severus' life, despite the fact that they hate each other.

And I know the tunnel argument, that Prongs isn't small enough for the tunnel, so he would have been at risk the moment he went after Snape. But while that's likely true, I was re-reading the POA and the way Remus describes it, it sounds like they all transformed before going down the tunnel, so I don't think JKR intended for James to be at risk if he could transform.

I am not trying to argue that the incident is definitely before James was an animagi. In fact, a very good counterargument is that there's no reason for Sirius to know how to get past the whomping willow if he hasn't been down the tunnel, and we know Snape was sneaking around trying to catch them. Catch them at what? Obviously, becoming animagi or generally sneaking around is possible, but it could also be him trying to catch them sneaking out to see Moony.

I am merely making the point that I never even considered the possibility that it was after SWM until I read fanfiction.

Personally, though, I quite like the fact that it wasn't a big growth moment, as that fits with canon far more. The weird thing about the whomping willow incident is that no one other than Severus seems to be remotely bothered about it. (I am not saying Remus likely wasn't hurt by Sirius' choice here, but by POA he and everyone talk about it as a thing that happened that made Severus even more furious with James). It was never about Sirius, or Remus or anyone other than James and Severus. It seems to me that it was about the fact that it changed nothing: Severus never thought about it as James doing him any favour, never showed any gratitude, and James continued to bully Severus as if his best friend hadn't nearly killed him.

To me, it shows that James in SWM doesn't see his behaviour as morally wrong, which again is supported by the fact that the boy literally keeps looking over to the girls, wanting them (or Lily specifically) to see him bully Severus. James, who hates the dark arts, doesn't see using Scourgify and Impedimenta or Levi Corpus as anything other than a laugh at Severus' expense. If a spell isn't dark magic, it's not bad. However, murder is bad. So James is willing to go to extreme lengths, risking his life, to prevent his worst enemy, his rival for the girl he has started fancying, from dying, because that's the right thing to do.

It once again tells a story about a character doing something bad, believing it not to be harmful (just James' reaction when Lily says he's as bad as Severus is telling--he is shocked), because we've seen what James is willing to risk if he thinks there's real harm that can be done.

I agree that in a story, it makes narrative sense for the sequence of events to be: James and Sirius are arses >>> SWM >>> Whomping Willow incident >>> Sirius runs away from home >>> James grows up.

Personally, though, I like the messy version where Sirius runs away from home between his fourth and fifth year because he fundamentally disagrees with his family's pureblood stands >>> James saves Severus' life some time shortly after November 3 because he will not let Severus come to what he considers real harm >>> SWM where James and Sirius are arses and then they slowly grow up because A) there's a war and B) they're teenagers so growing up is a natural thing that happens. Sirius running away; James saving Severus' life, it all speaks of two people who have every potential to be great people, if they just mature a little. They don't need big traumatic shifts. They just need time.

And as a side note: Yes, I will die on the hill that "about 16" actually implies Sirius was not 16 (that or he doesn't fully remember, which seems unlikely, given that we're talking about him running away). He's saying about 16 because he was nearly at that age. We know that he can't have been 17, so that leaves 15, nearly 16. He would be nearly 16, but still only 15 between his fourth and fifth year. Furthermore, it's not like he's going to tell Harry, who, though only just about having turned 15 himself, is currently between his fourth and fifth year that that's when he ran away. Plus, it's just the way Sirius talks about holidays in plural. He stayed with the Potters in the holidays until he turned 17. But if we take that literally, he turns 17 in November, then running away between his fifth and sixth year would mean only staying with the Potters in the one holiday he runs away.

Of course, he could have run away shortly after turning 16 during the Christmas break, but if he's willful enough to run away at that age, he's also stubborn enough to insist on staying at Hogwarts that holiday. And again, his reply to Harry would likely have been "16". I love words, but good editing is about removing any unnecessary words. So "about" serves a purpose. Otherwise, it wouldn't be there.

[dufferpuffer]

This is a wonderfully thought out response <3 I live for this shit Fair enough, enjoying the messier version of things, it certainly keeps it spicy B^)

My biggest issue with taking how Remus frames everything in PoA at face value though is that he isn't really saying events as they were. He's an unreliable narrator. For one thing - he wasn't 'there', he was a wolf - he's sharing second-hand information.

But mainly because his goal in that scene isn't to give a clear and factual version of events.

He's desperately trying to get the kids on his side again after losing their trust - but also on Sirius' side. Explaining why things are the way they are in a gentle way. Giving them deeper understanding, sharing secrets and 'opening up' because he 'trusts' them (giving them back their wands in a showy way too), but also framing events to suit his needs.

Which is what Remus does often. He's a serial frame-er, he takes things and twists them a little till they sit how he wants them to. Guilt becomes easier to manage/forget, truth becomes vague, walls are built so he doesn't need to make complicated decisions...

We see him carefully pick his words when explaining things, umming and er-ing, choosing language that's soft on Sirius, elevates Harry's dad and largely dismisses Severus' experiences.

He goes into detail about the emotional impact of things to him but remains vague about what they actually did. James and Sirius were wonderful friends to him, a half-innocent and half-sorry werewolf, and that's the most important thing to get across right now.

He says multiple things that don't make sense:

It cant just be an 'amusing trick' where Severus only 'glimpsed' something from down a tunnel… ...and also have almost killed him, being enough danger to make James heroic. James can't have acted at 'great risk to his life' if he could transform yet wasn't even pushed to do so. It cannot be both. Remus is being disingenuous. (Which he typically is - thats a core character trait)

'if he'd got as far as this house' - we know the tunnel is kilometres long, forced children to walk hunched, ends in a twist and rises upwards into a hole. Severus must have been at the house to see anything. This was detailed just a chapter or so beforehand.

He tells the kids he is safe around animals… then tells Hagrid he didn't eat Buckbeak. He is lying to one of them. (Since Hagrid knows beasts and asked Remus directly, i'd say Remus was lying to the kids. He IS a danger to animals - just less of one. It'd be bloody strange if having a well trained dog was enough to save you from a werewolf after all. He also has reason to lie to the kids: make himself seem safer to gain trust. He gains nothing from lying to Hagrid, who he is leaving behind that day.)

He feigns having no knowledge of Severus' grudges and issues, brushing them off. Even though he describes what Severus went through as 'almost killing him' and he knows very well the entire history of Severus, Lily, James and Sirius. But that history makes him look bad. It makes him feel bad. I don't think he really wants to think about it - it's easier to brush Severus off as making mountains out of molehills. Especially if it further builds James up. It can't be 'he hated us because we were bloody awful to him', it has to be 'I think he was jealous of James' epic skillz or something'. It can't be 'Severus is lashing out so harshly because he still thinks Sirius is a murderer and that I was his accomplice, spending a year secretly training you how to sneak to my Secret Place without dementors following using your fathers old tricks. I did nothing to prevent him thinking this because it'd mean facing more demons than I wanted to' it has to be 'he didn't get a medal, so he revealed me as petty revenge or something. anyway bye don't write'

He twists, re-frames and makes excuses. He dodges truth like a snitch dodges hands.

Once again - he also wasn't there. He didn't witness what happened. The only two people there were James and Severus. (Sirius didn't cut in saying he had helped, nor did Remus even spin Sirius as having a change-of-heart and running in.)

It isn't really surprising Severus is the one who cares most. It was only him and James who experienced it, Severus as victim. To Severus it's 'holy shit I almost fucking died. These bastards want to kill me and Dumbledore is knowingly sheltering them' For Remus and Sirius - James saved them from consequence. 'Phew, thank god it wasn't worse, even if I may or may not have complicated feelings about how bad it was.'

I'd say Remus does care about the prank more than he lets on.

It doesn't suit his needs to be emotional at the prank. What would have being upset by it accomplish? Anguish? Risk losing his only friends? Nah - better downplay it and laugh like its nothing.

He is careful about his language about it. It was '-- er --' an 'amusing' trick. Yeah… a trick. A 'trick that almost got Severus killed, a trick that involved him--' Just like Snape '-- er -- accidentally' let slip about his werewolf condition, and that they and Severus '-- er -- didn't like eachother very much.'

He isn't speaking about it lightly at all. He's picking his words so it sounds like it's less of a big deal (only when it comes to the threat he posed + Sirius' choices - but not Harry's Dad's bravery!) in a scene where he is fighting to gain favour.

I don't think I've ever really thought before about when Sirius ran away… hm… I guess I'd assume it was after his OWLs...? that seems to be one point in society where kids can go and be 'adults' - they can leave school at that age. But either age makes enough sense to me. It's up to taste. Like this is all ultimately up to taste, haha

[remus-poopin]

HP META MASTERLISTS

Hey! Here is a huge master list of all my favorite Harry Potter character analyses and Metas!

I DID NOT write these! Please do yourself a favor and check out some of the wonderful and intelligent writers of these metas as they deserve all the praise for their hard and impressive work!

If anyone of the writers for whatever reason wants me to remove their meta from this list just tell me and it will be done!  

Some of these may be contradictory to each other but that is because I like to hear other interpretations. These may not line up exactly with your view of the characters (not all of them line up with mine) but please try to be respectful.

*Almost all of these are from Tumblr except one from reddit and one from a outside blog.

Enjoy!

Keep reading

[neverenoughmarauders]

The thing we need to understand about Sirius is that his betrayal is worse than just choosing not to continue with the Black ways. He's the one who's meant to put the family back on the map. It's clear that the Black family is not as grand as it used to be, and Sirius, the eldest son, handsome and intelligent, would have been expected to be the one to turn it around. Instead, he (rightfully) abandons them. We know Walburga cries when Sirius leaves, and while that can be because she does care about him, it can also be because Sirius leaving means confronting the continued decline of the Black family.

[neverenoughmarauders]

On this topic, let's talk about Regulus. While I don't think Sirius ought to have taken Regulus with him (why would he? Regulus agreed with the family and wouldn't have wanted to leave), nor do I think he's accountable for his brother's mistakes, it's possible that Regulus, believing everything his parents do, will have felt the disappointment of Sirius leaving keenly. Wanting to step into Sirius' shoes, he might have taken the drastic measure of signing up as a DE to ensure the Blacks take their 'rightful' place in society.

[goldenlionprince]

You're absolutely right and seeing Sirius leaving from the Blacks POV is so interesting.

The Black family name is slowly dying out. And while Druella and Cygnus had three girls, Walburga did her duty to the family with two boys. Two people who will continue the family main line into the next generation.

They will make good matches eventually and hopefully have sons of their own (2 or 3 each) and the family tree can grow again.

Her oldest is powerful and clever and charming (he's absolutely her pride and joy, even if she expects perfection of both of them). He'll go far. Everyone will see what has always been true: why their name is so good, they are basically royalty.

And then Sirius goes and turns his back on them. And Alphard ends up giving him money, preventing him from possibly eventually coming back to them when he sees life out there outside of the family is hard.

Regulus joining the DE might even be a desperate attempt to get his parents to finally see him, and see him as the better of the two all along. He at least has conviction to the right ideas!

And then it all comes crashing down and the name Black dies out, even if it all looked to hopeful at one point. No wonder Walburga got a bit insane in the end.

[annabelle--cane]

worst part everrrrr of being a girl character enjoyer is trying to find enjoyerposts but then it's all "it's so fucked that no one likes The Character and everyone's stupid and evil cause they overlook her for the popular blokes" and no actual The Character posting. 1. you're killing our girl's PR, if you vocally hate everyone who likes the more popular stuff then you're not gonna persuade any of them and no one will want to touch The Character with a ten foot pole because they think her fanclub wants to beat them with hammers, 2. you're still not actually talking about her I'm going to scream and cry

[forestdeath1]

Canon Sirius through quotes

Part 4. How Sirius shows his care for people and animals.

Sirius has a trait that often seems like irresponsibility or excessive harshness.

Sirius really respects another person's free will and choice and even treats teenagers as adults with their own minds. It's a deeply rooted idea of respecting others as agents of free will.

That's why he has no pity for those who make mistakes, including himself. To him, any mistake is always a person's free choice. Sirius will never forgive Peter because, regardless of Peter's circumstances for betrayal, it ultimately was a CHOICE. He even refuses to forgive the Ministry (as if the Ministry cares, oh Sirius):

‘Don’t worry about Percy,’ said Sirius abruptly. ‘He’ll come round. It’s only a matter of time before Voldemort moves into the open; once he does, the whole Ministry’s going to be begging us to forgive them. And I’m not sure I’ll be accepting their apology,’ he added bitterly.

He tells this to Molly after she encounters a boggart. Contrary to popular belief, in this scene, he doesn't really comfort her after their argument. Lupin does most of the work. Sirius just adds this phrase. He's still angry at Molly for what she said, just acting more maturely and not escalating the conflict further. He's angry because he understands Molly said exactly what she meant. Molly is also angry at him, they generally love to get angry at each other because they don't really understand each other.

They were both speaking in carefully light, polite voices that told Harry quite plainly that neither had forgotten their disagreement of the night before.

He even considers Kreacher an agent of free will. 

‘You’d be surprised what Kreacher can manage when he wants to, Hermione,’ said Sirius.

As they say - where there's a will, there's a way. When people say that Kreacher was lower in the hierarchy than Sirius (as any house-elf would be), Sirius himself did not see it that way, and it’s truly paradoxical. He argued with Kreacher, kicked him, engaged in verbal battles, though he could have just given direct orders. Kreacher's insults towards Sirius were similar in style to Walburga's  (otherwise, where would Kreacher learn those insults?), and Sirius... Sirius, instead of direct orders, just yells back or kicks him. When Harry gives Kreacher a direct order to shut up, Kreacher obeys instantly. A house-elf must obey the direct orders of their master. But Sirius doesn't give direct orders. Because for him, Kreacher is also an agent of free will (and also some ‘‘member‘‘ of his beloved and hated family, as Sirius is much more attached to the Blacks than he would like to admit).

Because of his attitude towards equals, Sirius fights for Harry to get the information he needs. For Sirius, Harry is an adult, not a five-year-old child who needs to be looked after in the style of Molly. Molly deprives Harry of his agency, his choice, and his own opinion with her overprotection. We have to understand Molly; she really worries for all of them, as half her family is in the Order and can die. She doesn't want to lose Harry, so she tries to protect him in every way. Plus, they all have orders from Dumbledore. Isn't Molly right? Molly has her point, she works for the Order and thinks Sirius could harm with his too "independent" behaviour, and teach Harry this excessive independence. And what does independence from Dumbledore lead to? Molly knows well (and so does Sirius) – last time such "independence" from Dumbledore cost the Potters their lives. I don't want to judge Molly. She's a member of the newer incarnation of the Order of the Phoenix, and a good one at that. Sirius, however, is still mentally in the era of the Order's original incarnation (as is Lupin, though he is more conforming and softer), a time when the rules of engagement were harsher, with much more focus on the grim realities of war. The newer version of the Order operates with different tactics – emphasizing manipulation, cunning, and caution.

Molly and Sirius have different approaches. Molly is about caution. Sirius is about action.

Sirius treats Harry as a subject, not an object to be shielded from information.

Sirius knows where his area of responsibility is and what he can influence, and where he should not interfere:

‘Not just yet, Molly,’ said Sirius, pushing away his empty plate and turning to look at Harry. ‘You know, I’m surprised at you. I thought the first thing you’d do when you got here would be to start asking questions about Voldemort.’

‘I did!’ said Harry indignantly. ‘I asked Ron and Hermione but they said we’re not allowed in the Order, so –’

‘And they’re quite right,’ said Mrs Weasley. ‘You’re too young.’

‘Since when did someone have to be in the Order of the Phoenix to ask questions?’ asked Sirius. ‘Harry’s been trapped in that Muggle house for a month. He’s got the right to know what’s been happen—’

‘How come Harry gets his questions answered?’ said Fred angrily. ‘We’ve been trying to get stuff out of you for a month and you haven’t told us a single stinking thing!’ said George.

‘It’s not my fault you haven’t been told what the Order’s doing,’ said Sirius calmly, ‘that’s your parents’ decision. Harry, on the other hand –’

He doesn't tell the twins anything because it's not his responsibility. But Harry – that's his responsibility. And Sirius believes it's up to him to decide what Harry is allowed to know and what not (considering Dumbledore's instructions "I don’t intend to tell him more than he needs to know, Molly").

‘He’s not your son,’ said Sirius quietly.

‘He’s as good as,’ said Mrs Weasley fiercely. ‘Who else has he got?’

‘He’s got me!’

In the situation with Molly, you see two opposing views clash. Molly, with the archetype of a guardian, wants to shelter everyone with her care. Sirius, with the archetype of a rebel, respects Harry's wishes and wants to open up new knowledge and opportunities for him to fight.

‘He’s not a member of the Order of the Phoenix!’ said Mrs Weasley. ‘He’s only fifteen and –’

‘And he’s dealt with as much as most in the Order,’ said Sirius, ‘and more than some.’

‘No one’s denying what he’s done!’ said Mrs Weasley, her voice rising, her fists trembling on the arms of her chair. ‘But he’s still –’

‘He’s not a child!’ said Sirius impatiently.

Sirius probably stopped considering himself a child very early on. Maybe it came from his conservative family, where children were expected to grow up earlier, not walk around as "little children" until they were 18. They think about marriage, duty to the family, responsibility early on. Plus, wizards come of age earlier – at 17. So, for Sirius, 15 years old is not a child anymore.

That's why Sirius defends Harry's right "to know".

‘Since when did someone have to be in the Order of the Phoenix to ask questions?’ asked Sirius. ‘Harry’s been trapped in that Muggle house for a month. He’s got the right to know what’s been happen—’

-

‘But as he was the one who saw Voldemort come back’ (again, there was a collective shudder around the table at the name) ‘he has more right than most to –’

Sirius really encourages taking action. His way of caring isn't about coddling. It's about giving knowledge, opportunities, resources, and supporting in the right direction. For Sirius, to live is to act; he can't be without action, doesn't understand life without it:

‘Personally, I’d have welcomed a Dementor attack. A deadly struggle for my soul would have broken the monotony nicely. You think you’ve had it bad, at least you’ve been able to get out and about, stretch your legs, get into a few fights ... I’ve been stuck inside for a month.’

Sirius can't not act and he doesn't understand how you could do otherwise. He knows Harry is the same because Harry is like his dad, meaning James was the same – always acting.

And he encourages this in Harry. But he always teaches to act with thought, not just charging in. In the 4th book, Sirius was telling Harry not to stick his neck out, but in the 5th, it's the opposite. Sirius has his own logic, which he shows here:

‘So, you want me to say I’m not going to take part in the Defence group?’ he muttered finally.

‘Me? Certainly not!’ said Sirius, looking surprised. ‘I think it’s an excellent idea!’

‘You do?’ said Harry, his heart lifting.

‘Of course I do!’ said Sirius. ‘D’you think your father and I would’ve lain down and taken orders from an old hag like Umbridge?’

‘But – last term all you did was tell me to be careful and not take risks –’

‘Last year, all the evidence was that someone inside Hogwarts was trying to kill you, Harry!’ said Sirius impatiently. ‘This year, we know there’s someone outside Hogwarts who’d like to kill us all, so I think learning to defend yourselves properly is a very good idea!’

‘And if we do get expelled?’ Hermione asked, a quizzical look on her face.

‘Well, better expelled and able to defend yourselves than sitting safely in school without a clue,’ said Sirius.

That's Sirius through and through. A true Gryffindor, who won't just sit around when there's danger afoot. You might argue that he shouldn't have encouraged Harry in this way. But what else was he to do? Hand Harry over to Umbridge? Of course not. He trusts Harry, believes in his potential. He treats Harry as an equal, not as a child, and that's why Harry feels so connected to Sirius – at last, someone sees him as mature enough, respects him as a free person. Throughout the series, Harry has been shielded from the truth, kept in the dark, yet Sirius shows him a different kind of respect – he sees Harry as someone who can act, in whom he places his trust and belief. Is Sirius right? When it comes to Harry – absolutely. As for the war, the Order, and following Dumbledore's orders – Molly would definitely disapprove.

He even passes Molly's words on to Ron. In his sarcastic manner, but still:

… anyway ... first of all, Ron – I’ve sworn to pass on a message from your mother.’

‘Oh yeah?’ said Ron, sounding apprehensive.

‘She says on no account whatsoever are you to take part in an illegal secret Defence Against the Dark Arts group. She says you’ll be expelled for sure and your future will be ruined. She says there will be plenty of time to learn how to defend yourself later and that you are too young to be worrying about that right now. She also’ (Sirius’s eyes turned to the other two) ‘advises Harry and Hermione not to proceed with the group, though she accepts that she has no authority over either of them and simply begs them to remember that she has their best interests at heart. She would have written all this to you, but if the owl had been intercepted you’d all have been in real trouble, and she can’t say it for herself because she’s on duty tonight.’

Again – a striking difference between what Molly understands by care and what Sirius understands by it.

Sirius lets Harry feel that he's believed in, respected, that his actions are encouraged. Sometimes Sirius criticises them, because as much as he encourages action, he believes all actions should be reasoned. Act according to logic, not thoughtlessly.

For instance, Sirius sternly reprimands him in the 4th book when Harry, in his opinion, does something foolish. And notice his communication style. Sirius is often blunt in conversation, in his way of talking, he doesn't sugarcoat. And Harry's okay with that. Sirius isn't one for mushiness.

Harry – what do you think you are playing at, walking off into the Forest with Viktor Krum? I want you to swear, by return owl, that you are not going to go walking with anyone else at night. There is somebody highly dangerous at Hogwarts. It is clear to me that they wanted to stop Crouch seeing Dumbledore and you were probably feet away from them in the dark. You could have been killed.

Your name didn’t get into the Goblet of Fire by accident. If someone’s trying to attack you, they’re on their last chance. Stay close to Ron and Hermione, do not leave Gryffindor Tower after hours, and arm yourself for the third task. Practise Stunning and Disarming. A few hexes wouldn’t go amiss either. There’s nothing you can do about Crouch. Keep your head down and look after yourself. I’m waiting for your letter giving me your word you won’t stray out of bounds again.

That's what care means to Sirius. Not forbidding him from knowing information. But actively helping him so Harry is ready to stand up to challenges.

Or like this:

‘Now, listen ...’ he looked particularly hard at Harry – ‘I don’t want you lot sneaking out of school to see me, all right? Just send notes to me here. I still want to hear about anything odd. But you’re not to go leaving Hogwarts without permission, it would be an ideal opportunity for someone to attack you.’

‘No one’s tried to attack me so far, except a dragon and a couple of Grindylows,’ Harry said.

But Sirius scowled at him. ‘I don’t care ... I’ll breathe freely again when this Tournament’s over, and that’s not until June. And don’t forget, if you’re talking about me among yourselves, call me Snuffles, OK?’

At the same time, he provides Harry with emotional support. Just without the mushiness. There's a sort of rough tenderness about it, making these signs of attention and love seem even more important and pleasant.

‘What’re you doing here, Sirius?’ he said.

‘Fulfilling my duty as godfather,’ said Sirius, gnawing on the chicken bone in a very dog-like way. ‘Don’t worry about me, I’m pretending to be a loveable stray.’

-

The post owls appeared, bringing Harry a good-luck card from Sirius. It was only a piece of parchment, folded over and bearing a muddy paw print on its front, but Harry appreciated it all the same.

He also provides Harry with real resources that can help him:

‘I want you to take this,’ he said quietly, thrusting a badly wrapped package roughly the size of a paperback book into Harry’s hands.

‘What is it?’ Harry asked.

‘A way of letting me know if Snape’s giving you a hard time. No, don’t open it in here!’ said Sirius, with a wary look at Mrs Weasley, who was trying to persuade the twins to wear hand-knitted mittens. ‘I doubt Molly would approve – but I want you to use it if you need me, all right?’

-

‘Sirius’s knife,’ he said. ‘Excuse me?’ ‘Christmas before last Sirius gave me a knife that’ll open any lock,’ said Harry. ‘So even if she’s bewitched the door so Alohomora won’t work, which I bet she has –’

Sirius isn't inclined to pity. He respects the choices of others. His care is expressed in this – he knows people's strengths and trusts them to do their job. He thinks Hagrid will be okay because Hagrid is tough. Why worry?

‘Listen, don’t go asking too many questions about Hagrid,’ said Sirius hastily, ‘it’ll just draw even more attention to the fact that he’s not back and I know Dumbledore doesn’t want that. Hagrid’s tough, he’ll be OK.’

And he respects the choice of the twins' father, though many find Sirius's words harsh:

‘We don’t care about the dumb Order!’ shouted Fred.

‘It’s our dad dying we’re talking about!’ yelled George.

‘Your father knew what he was getting into and he won’t thank you for messing things up for the Order!’ said Sirius, equally angry. ‘This is how it is – this is why you’re not in the Order – you don’t understand – there are things worth dying for!’

But it's not cruelty or indifference, it's respect for their father's choice, as an agent of free will.

Sirius even treats animals this way. Look how he got on with the cat. And yet he understands that animals are defenceless and need support. He doesn't expect danger from them and often finds comfort in their company.

‘This cat isn’t mad,’ said Black hoarsely. He reached out a bony hand and stroked Crookshanks’s fluffy head. ‘He’s the most intelligent of his kind I’ve ever met. He recognised Peter for what he was straight away. And when he met me, he knew I was no dog. It was a while before he trusted me. Finally, I managed to communicate to him what I was after, and he’s been helping me ...’

-

Kreacher injured Buckbeak the Hippogriff yesterday, and, at the moment when you made your appearance in the fire, Sirius was upstairs tending to him.’

-

Crookshanks, Hermione’s bandy-legged ginger cat, who wound himself once around Harry’s legs, purring, then jumped on to Sirius’s lap and curled up. Sirius scratched him absent-mindedly behind the ears as he turned, still grim-faced, to Harry.

-

Sirius, who had just entered the room carrying a bloodstained bag of what appeared to be dead rats. ‘I’ve just been feeding Buckbeak,’ he added, in reply to Harry’s enquiring look. ‘I keep him upstairs in my mother’s bedroom

-

Soon, however, he was moodier and surlier than before, talking less to everybody, even Harry, and spending increasing amounts of time shut up in his mother’s room with Buckbeak.

-

He became more and more prone to what Mrs Weasley called ‘fits of the sullens’, in which he would become taciturn and grumpy, often withdrawing to Buckbeak’s room for hours at a time.

Sirius befriended the cat, treated it as an intelligent being, and constantly cared for the hippogriff. Sirius is very closed off from people (after Azkaban, he only opens up to Harry and Remus), he builds a tough armour, but easily opens up to animals and easily cares for them in a nurturing manner – and they love him back.

In conclusion, Sirius respects the free choice of others. For him, pity towards another is demeaning. Sirius hates pity – neither for himself nor for others. To pity = to demean, to pity means to acknowledge the other as incapable and weak. And Sirius doesn't meddle in others' relationships, he well separates his zone of responsibility, and care for him is to give resources and information so the person can act. And he's good with animals, and to animals, he can show a different attitude – nurturing, because acknowledging animals as weaker doesn't demean them, because animals truly are weaker.

This character trait of Sirius isn't for moral judgement, just that's how he is, and it's important to understand that.

[forestdeath1]

Canon Sirius through quotes

Part 3. Harshness and toughness (and how Sirius Black differs from James Potter). It's long. Really long.

Sirius isn't a soft crybaby. His harshness (and even cruelty) goes beyond the silly teenage pranks we usually see in fanfiction. Sirius is often either whitewashed by newer fans or overly demonized by anti-Marauders fans. Sirius has a tough exterior but a heart of gold. He's not childish and had to grow up early, though he can still be quite fun.

‘Do you know, I still have trouble believing it,’ said Madam Rosmerta thoughtfully. ‘Of all the people to go over to the Dark side, Sirius Black was the last I’d have thought ... .’

"Of all the people to go over to the Dark side, Sirius Black was the last I’d have thought" – this shouldn't be taken literally. Rosmerta saw many others regularly, Dumbledore, Lily, Remus, and many others, and out of all of them, Sirius Black was the last who could turn to the Dark side? Seriously? Did Sirius walk around with a halo and angel wings?

One trait that is always emphasized in his appearance is his haughty, bored look.

Rosmerta speaks metaphorically, not literally. She saw Sirius once a month or two when they went out to Hogsmeade to have fun and drink. In those moments, Sirius was lively, funny and noisy (especially lively after running away from home), and perhaps he even flirted with Rosmerta in a childish manner, melting the heart of the adult woman.

Sirius can be funny, although his humor is always edging towards dark:

"Imagine wasting your time and energy persecuting merpeople when there are little toerags like Kreacher on the loose.’ 

Ron laughed but Hermione looked upset. 

‘Sirius!’ she said reproachfully. ‘Honestly, if you made a bit of an effort with Kreacher, I’m sure he’d respond. After all, you are the only member of his family he’s got left, and Professor Dumbledore said –’ 

‘So, what are Umbridge’s lessons like?’ Sirius interrupted. ‘Is she training you all to kill half-breeds?’

Moreover, he interrupts Hermione, not letting her finish her point. He sharply outlines if he doesn't want to listen.

"the stuffed elf-heads on the hall wall wore Father Christmas hats and beards"

Dark humor.

‘Kreacher is cleaning,’ the elf repeated. ‘Kreacher lives to serve the Noble House of Black –’ 

‘And it’s getting blacker every day, it’s filthy,’ said Sirius.

Here he responds with a clear "Black" shade. His mother also loved to talk about filth.

‘Sirius – it’s me ... it’s Peter ... your friend ... you wouldn’t ...’ Black kicked out and Pettigrew recoiled. ‘There’s enough filth on my robes without you touching them,’ said Black.

And again. And here’s his mother:

‘Filth! Scum! By-products of dirt and vileness! Half-breeds, mutants, freaks, begone from this place! How dare you befoul the house of my fathers –’ 

‘Stains of dishonour, filthy half-breeds, blood traitors, children of filth ...’

Sirius desperately wants to be unlike the Blacks, but he is still Sirius Black.

‘I thought it was the perfect plan ... a bluff ... Voldemort would be sure to come after me, would never dream they’d use a weak, talentless thing like you ... it must have been the finest moment of your miserable life, telling Voldemort you could hand him the Potters.’

Sirius's humor isn't the only harsh thing about him. Even though here he has a reason – after Azkaban he met James's traitor – his way of speaking reflects his overall personality. The way one speaks is a mirror of personality, even if Sirius has PTSD, it only exposes even more vividly what he might control in a calm state.

‘Nasty temper he’s got, that Sirius Black.’ (Peeves)

At the same time, yes, he can be cheerful and infect everyone around him with his cheerfulness. If he's in a sombre mood, he creates a quite oppressive atmosphere around him that everyone feels. Just as with a good mood – everyone feels it.

Harry could not remember Sirius ever being in such a good mood; he was actually singing carols, apparently delighted that he was to have company over Christmas. 

-

Sirius tramping past their door towards Buckbeak’s room, singing ‘God Rest Ye, Merry Hippogriffs’ at the top of his voice. 

-

Sirius’s delight at having the house full again, and especially at having Harry back, was infectious. He was no longer their sullen host of the summer; now he seemed determined that everyone should enjoy themselves as much, if not more than they would have done at Hogwarts, and he worked tirelessly in the run-up to Christmas Day, cleaning and decorating with their help.

But the ability to be cheerful is in no way connected to being very harshn at the same time. This is precisely the case with Sirius.

Of all the Marauders, only Sirius is really harsh and can be truly dangerous (the author wrote about him, “The best-looking, most rebellious, most dangerous of the four marauders”). James was also a bully, but he's not harsh, despite the fact that it was he who pulled down Snape's trousers. Why? I think Sirius was already aware of what they were doing. James – not. Without awareness, it's too early to speak of any harshness and cruelty. Sirius had this awareness and still continued to do it.

Let's consider the reactions of Sirius and James in comparison.

‘Who wants to be in Slytherin? I think I’d leave, wouldn’t you?’ 

Sirius did not smile. ‘My whole family have been in Slytherin,’ he said.

‘Blimey,’ said James, ‘and I thought you seemed all right!’ 

Sirius grinned. ‘Maybe I’ll break the tradition. Where are you heading, if you’ve got the choice?’

A small note: Sirius didn't even react to James's "I'd leave", even though he knew his whole family was from Slytherin, and he was likely to go there too.

James lifted an invisible sword. ‘“Gryffindor, where dwell the brave at heart!” Like my dad.’ Snape made a small, disparaging noise. James turned on him.

‘Got a problem with that?’ ‘No,’ said Snape, though his slight sneer said otherwise. ‘If you’d rather be brawny than brainy –’

It was Snape who starts the confrontation on a personal level. James in his insults in this memory refers to moral qualities. "Who wants to be in Slytherin?" Only bad people. He is prejudiced against Slytherin because Slytherin is evil. Voldemort is gaining momentum. The first Muggle-born Minister was recently ousted. Attacks are happening here and there. Dark forces are growing. More and more of the pure-blood society talks about "Mudbloods" not belonging in this world. And "amazingly", they all turn out to be from Slytherin. James sees himself as a noble knight "James lifted an invisible sword", and he is against Slytherin not so much personally as against the moral component of Slytherin.

‘Where’re you hoping to go, seeing as you’re neither?’ interjected Sirius.

James roared with laughter. Lily sat up, rather flushed, and looked from James to Sirius in dislike.

Sirius immediately strikes at Snape's personality. Sirius is sharp-tongued, self-assured, and likely accustomed to considering others below himself. He probably assessed James as his equal right away. Brave, cheerful, sincere.

'Come on, Severus, let's find another compartment.'

'Oooooo...'

James and Sirius imitated her lofty voice; James tried to trip Snape as he passed.

'See ya, Snivellus!' a voice called, as the compartment door slammed...

James tried to trip Snape. James most often uses physical/magical force. He trips Snape, he pulls down Snape's trousers, he uses most of the spells on Snape in SWM. But it's Sirius who goes after Snape's personality. It looks like James has concocted a "noble justification" for his behavior and attitude and punishes Snape for existing just as he is.

Sirius, on the other hand, hardly uses magical/physical force in memories; he finds painful points in Snape's personality – from character to appearance, intentionally demeaning his personal traits.

Moreover, it was Sirius who focused on Snape's appearance. No one, except him, places such an emphasis on Snape's unattractive appearance and his untidiness.

'Snape's always been fascinated by the Dark Arts, he was famous for it at school. Slimy, oily, greasy-haired kid, he was,'

Very vivid epithets. Sirius is very eloquent when it comes to demeaning someone he dislikes.

Moreover, it's James who's the attention seeker. It's James who plays with the snitch, drawing attention, glancing at the girls by the lake, and ruffling his hair to show everyone how cool, strong, brave, and awesome he is.

After five minutes of this, Harry wondered why James didn’t tell Wormtail to get a grip on himself, but James seemed to be enjoying the attention. Harry noticed that his father had a habit of rumpling up his hair as though to keep it from getting too tidy, and he also kept looking over at the girls by the water’s edge.

While Sirius, likely, isn't much interested in societal validation. Sirius is more reserved, with firmer boundaries, he's not as interested in public adoration as James might be.

Lupin had pulled out a book and was reading. Sirius stared around at the students milling over the grass, looking rather haughty and bored, but very handsomely so.

This is a typical expression for Sirius – bored and haughty. He spent nearly five full years in Gryffindor alongside James, and the bored and haughty expression is still with him. It's not just a random trait in his character – it's one of the pillars of his personality, reflecting his attitude towards random people around him.

‘Put that away, will you,’ said Sirius finally, as James made a fine catch and Wormtail let out a cheer, ‘before Wormtail wets himself with excitement.’

As I've said, Sirius cuts with his words without a knife. They've been studying together for five years, been friends with Peter, and he jokes about Peter like this. I think they all joked about each other in the same way, just James's "jokes" are blunt and probably he just says whatever comes to mind, whereas Sirius's are more subtle and hurtful.

Moreover, when people say this is the only episode we know of bullying by James and Sirius and that it's the worst in their history, that's not correct. This episode is the worst in Snape's life. And not because they pulled down his trousers. But because he lost Lily forever that day. This episode, likely, was quite typical for the Marauders. They were in a good mood, had finished exams, Snape just happened to pass by, there were no obvious reasons for this bullying. Harry sifted through their detention records, and there were many, very many, and how many more when they weren't caught?

Sirius got bored, and there they decided to "have some fun."

‘I’m bored,’ said Sirius. ‘Wish it was full moon.’ 

‘You might,’ said Lupin darkly from behind his book. ‘We’ve still got Transfiguration, if you’re bored you could test me. Here ...’ and he held out his book. 

But Sirius snorted. ‘I don’t need to look at that rubbish, I know it all.’

I won't discuss The Prank here, many have written about it. In general, Sirius doesn't show empathy in everyday interactions even with Remus. Sirius has a heart of gold, but his shell, especially as a teenager – tough, harsh, sharp, and cutting. The grown-up Sirius interacts with close people much more politely, though he still occasionally shows his harshness (for example, with Hermione).

‘This’ll liven you up, Padfoot,’ said James quietly. ‘Look who it is ...’ 

Sirius’s head turned. He became very still, like a dog that has scented a rabbit. 

‘Excellent,’ he said softly. ‘Snivellus.’

I don't want to justify Sirius and James, but for context – Snape is fascinated by the Dark Arts, hangs out with future Death Eaters (= fascist), and they have mutual dislike from the first year. No, the act is immature, but James justifies it in his head exactly like this – Snape is bad for him, so anything goes, and anyway, "so what?" Sirius doesn't need justifications. He's just bored.

Even when James uses all the spells on Snape, he still glances at the lake:

Snape lay panting on the ground. James and Sirius advanced on him, wands raised, James glancing over his shoulder at the girls at the water’s edge as he went. Wormtail was on his feet now, watching hungrily, edging around Lupin to get a clearer view.

Why look at the girls by the lake when you're humiliating someone, if you know you're doing something really bad? James genuinely sees himself as a noble knight, deserving of admiration. Moreover, many do admire him (''Students all around had turned to watch. Some of them had got to their feet and were edging nearer. Some looked apprehensive, others entertained. Several people watching laughed''), and Lupin mentioned several times that James was popular at school.

‘How’d the exam go, Snivelly?’ said James. 

‘I was watching him, his nose was touching the parchment,’ said Sirius viciously. ‘There’ll be great grease marks all over it, they won’t be able to read a word.’ 

Again, Sirius harshly targets Snape's personal traits, including his appearance.

‘You – wait,’ he panted, staring up at James with an expression of purest loathing, ‘you – wait!’ 

‘Wait for what?’ said Sirius coolly. ‘What’re you going to do, Snivelly, wipe your nose on us?’ 

And again – Sirius strikes with words.

Snape let out a stream of mixed swear words and hexes, but with his wand ten feet away nothing happened.

‘Wash out your mouth,’ said James coldly. ‘Scourgify!’

And James responds with a spell to what? Snape's insults. He says ‘Wash out your mouth.’ He appeals to the moral side of the issue.

‘I don’t need help from filthy little Mudbloods like her!’

‘Apologise to Evans!’ James roared at Snape, his wand pointed  threateningly at him. ‘I don’t want you to make him apologise,’ Lily shouted, rounding on James. ‘You’re as bad as he is.’ ‘What?’ yelped James. ‘I’d NEVER call you a – you-know-what!’

This also proves that James is sure he's doing everything right. James is like a volunteer in the allies' army against the fascists, a brave Gryffindor, and his sword is to cast spells on anyone he deems not fitting his moral standards.

‘Messing up your hair because you think it looks cool to look like you’ve just got off your broomstick, showing off with that stupid Snitch, walking down corridors and hexing anyone who annoys you just because you can – I’m surprised your broomstick can get off the ground with that fat head on it. You make me SICK.’

And from the outside, it looked like this.

‘What is it with her?’ said James, trying and failing to look as though this was a throwaway question of no real importance to him. 

‘Reading between the lines, I’d say she thinks you’re a bit conceited, mate,’ said Sirius.

And Sirius understands it all too well. Who he is, who James is, and what Lily thinks about it all. Sirius knows about James's crush on Lily and finds it even funny that she rejects him. Likely because Sirius understands that they often cross the line. I don’t think Sirius could have stopped Potter. I don't even think Sirius wanted to stop Potter. He found it all funny. Azkaban, on the other hand, softened Sirius in his interactions with others. It knocked down his pride and arrogance. Showed him that life can be unfair and you don't need to act like a haughty jerk who thinks the world revolves around them.

At school, Sirius was more about psychological bullying, while James was about the physical. Given that James and Sirius were very popular at school and within their house, their bullying was likely directed mostly at Slytherins or at arrogant jerks like themselves who they just "didn't like."

And the adult Sirius understands that they were “arrogant little berks.” And he’s “not proud of it,” but his next words speak for themselves:

“ I think James was everything Snape wanted to be – he was popular, he was good at Quidditch – good at pretty much everything. And Snape was just this little oddball who was up to his eyes in the Dark Arts, and James – whatever else he may have appeared to you, Harry – always hated the Dark Arts.”

Sirius justifies James while simultaneously praising him. Justifications always imply a partial denial of guilt. Someone fully aware of their guilt doesn’t seek to justify or be justified. Of course, Sirius said this for Harry's sake too. To ensure Harry didn’t think his father was just a bully for no reason. His father was actually “on the side of good,” is what Sirius wants to convey. About himself, he remains silent. But he doesn't miss the chance to insult Snape again “little oddball.”

Even Remus, as an adult, sincerely justifies James.

‘She started going out with him in seventh year,’ said Lupin. 

‘Once James had deflated his head a bit,’ said Sirius. ‘And stopped hexing people just for the fun of it,’ said Lupin.

 ‘Even Snape?’ said Harry. ‘Well,’ said Lupin slowly, ‘Snape was a special case. I mean, he never lost an opportunity to curse James so you couldn’t really expect James to take that lying down, could you?’ 

‘And my mum was OK with that?’ 

‘She didn’t know too much about it, to tell you the truth,’ said Sirius. ‘I mean, James didn’t take Snape on dates with her and jinx him in front of her, did he?’

Lupin finds a genuine justification for James. The concept of “violence in any form is bad” isn’t fully grasped by them. They follow an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth. Lupin even was ready to kill Peter, and he insisted that war is not a playground and that killing is sometimes necessary in war. Remus, though gentler and kinder, and preferring not to engage in conflict, genuinely wished Sirius and James hadn't bullied anyone at school, but yet, he still reconciles with all they do and even justifies James.

In Sirius's mind, James may have acted like a fool, but Sirius doesn’t genuinely condemn it. He just thinks they were too arrogant. And Sirius’s behavior after Azkaban (how he became gentler with others) indicates he truly realized – you don't need to belittle everyone you dislike or even like. Yet, Sirius’s harshness, even after Azkaban, didn’t disappear; it was just redirected towards what he genuinely hates.

‘Professor Snape was at school with us. He fought very hard against my appointment to the Defence Against the Dark Arts job. He has been telling Dumbledore all year that I am not to be trusted. He has his reasons ... you see, Sirius here played a trick on him which nearly killed him, a trick which involved me –’ 

Black made a derisive noise. 

‘It served him right,’ he sneered. ‘Sneaking around, trying to find out what we were up to ... hoping he could get us expelled ...’

Remus's reactions are much softer, but Sirius’s reaction, even years later, is harsh and even a bit cruel. ‘It served him right.’ Because it's an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.

However, Sirius’s harshness still occasionally breaks through even towards his close ones when he slightly loses control over himself after Azkaban.

‘You’re less like your father than I thought,’ he said finally, a definite coolness in his voice. ‘The risk would’ve been what made it fun for James.’ 

‘Well, I’d better get going, I can hear Kreacher coming down the stairs,’ said Sirius, but Harry was sure he was lying. ‘I’ll write to tell you a time I can make it back into the fire, then, shall I? If you can stand to risk it?’

Sirius calls themselves “arrogant little berks,” but the peculiarity of Sirius’s arrogance is that it's due to his personal qualities, not external “glamour”.

 ‘I, a spy for Voldemort? When did I ever sneak around people who were stronger and more powerful than myself? But you, Peter – I’ll never understand why I didn’t see you were the spy from the start. You always liked big friends who’d look after you, didn’t you?’

He despises Peter for groveling, for weakness, for the same reasons he despises Regulus, considering him a soft idiot. Sirius’s arrogance was never built on finances or blood purity, on popularity, on playing Quidditch, not on his name, although the family dynamics undoubtedly influenced his pride. But overall, his arrogance is of a different level – that of a rebellious spirit, a very strong person, not like the Malfoys. Lucius Malfoy is intentionally depicted as the complete opposite of Sirius Black (in character – the most rebellious of their pure-blood circle and the most sycophantic, and in appearance – black and white).

Sirius and Kreacher's story demonstrates that Sirius does not forgive those he hated and can carry hatred through the years. People usually soften over time, but Sirius has an excuse – Azkaban. Nonetheless, the behavioral pattern remains unchanged. Azkaban does not change the essence of people, it makes certain traits more vivid and pronounced. Sirius became calmer towards the people around him who help fight against evil, he toned down his arrogance and pride (even towards Snape, he no longer hurls insults first, it’s Snape who insults Sirius first), but Sirius became even harsher towards those he hates.

‘Sirius was horrible to Kreacher, Harry, and it’s no good looking like that, you know it’s true. I’ve said all along that wizards would pay for how they treat house-elves. Well, Voldemort did ... and so did Sirius.’

Harry had no retort. As he watched Kreacher sobbing on the floor, he remembered what Dumbledore had said to him, mere hours after Sirius’s death: I do not think Sirius ever saw Kreacher as a being with feelings as acute as a human’s ...

And he himself demonstrates this repeatedly:

At which Sirius, ignoring Hermione’s protests, seized Kreacher by the back of his loincloth and threw him bodily from the room.

Dumbledore believes Sirius showed cruelty to Kreacher through his indifference and neglect. That is, Sirius could shut off his empathy towards a being, despite generally being friendly towards house-elves.

‘He (Sirius) regarded him (Kreacher) as a servant unworthy of much interest or notice. Indifference and neglect often do much more damage than outright dislike… Sirius was not a cruel man, he was kind to house-elves in general. He had no love for Kreacher, because Kreacher was a living reminder of the home Sirius had hated.’

Sirius was not evil. But the neglect emanating from him was very cruel, harsh, and cold. Sirius can shut away all the good within him towards anyone he despised – “And whatever Kreacher’s faults, it must be admitted that Sirius did nothing to make Kreacher’s lot easier –”

‘– comes back from Azkaban ordering Kreacher around, oh, my poor mistress, what would she say if she saw the house now, scum living in it, her treasures thrown out, she swore he was no son of hers and he’s back, they say he’s a murderer too –’

‘Keep muttering and I will be a murderer!’ said Sirius irritably as he slammed the door shut on the elf.

However, Sirius likely never killed anyone, even while serving in the "Order."

Regarding his family and even Regulus, Sirius is also harsh. Even if he, like any child, deep down loved his family, it doesn’t matter because his real words and actions are very harsh and aimed at severing ties. The possible love for them deep down only further highlights his harshness and readiness for confrontation.

“I hated the whole lot of them: my parents, with their pure-blood mania, convinced that to be a Black made you practically royal ... my idiot brother, soft enough to believe them”

Likely, he’s ashamed of them, and his hatred also builds a wall between them and himself.

‘Does it matter if she’s my cousin?’ snapped Sirius. ‘As far as I’m concerned, they’re not my family. She’s certainly not my family. I haven’t seen her since I was your age, unless you count a glimpse of her coming into Azkaban. D’you think I’m proud of having a relative like her?’

And at the same time Dumbledore about James:

‘I knew your father very well, both at Hogwarts and later, Harry,’ he said gently. ‘He would have saved Pettigrew too, I am sure of it.’

I don’t know how true this is (though likely, the author speaks through Dumbledore here), but considering that Harry himself is a character whose main traits include the ability to understand and forgive others, perhaps James had this to some extent too. But Sirius lacks the ability to forgive, and this is deliberately shown in the book – that he suffered precisely because of his excessive harshness.

In conclusion, Sirius's harshness and toughness is not just teenage arrogance; it's directly a trait of his personality, something that cannot be overlooked when talking about the canonical Sirius, not his sugar-coated substitute in fandom. Sirius had to grow up very early, and all this left its mark on him.

Of all the Marauders, only Sirius is really harsh and can be truly dangerous.

But Sirius was not cruel in a moral-ethical sense, or more precisely – ideologically. There's no reason to believe Sirius is constantly drawn to the dark side or that he's amoral. His constant fight against his family suggests instead that he formed high ideals within himself. No, Sirius is not amoral; he has difficulty with empathy (especially in childhood), a tendency towards aggression and cruelty (mostly in childhood, he controls himself quite well as an adult. Well, for Sirius Black quite well), arrogance, but he very well understands what is right and what is wrong.

‘She’s got the measure of Crouch better than you have, Ron. If you want to know what a man’s like, take a good look at how he treats his inferiors, not his equals.’

[forestdeath1]

Canon Sirius through quotes

Part 2. Intelligence and recklessness. Sirius Black (and James Potter, with a bit of Remus and Peter too)

Or who is the smartest of the Marauders?

Sirius and James are described multiple times as exceptionally intelligent. They didn’t need help from Remus or Lily to pass their exams. James didn’t envy Sirius for being ahead academically, and Sirius didn’t ask Remus for help. They could handle everything on their own.

For example, McGonagall rarely gives praise without good reason. Here are her words about James (often unfairly depicted as less intelligent than Sirius or Remus) and Sirius:

‘Precisely,’ said Professor McGonagall. ‘Black and Potter. Ringleaders of their little gang. Both very bright, of course – exceptionally bright, in fact – but I don’t think we’ve ever had such a pair of troublemakers –’

Being "exceptionally bright" is an extremely high praise for intellectual ability from McGonagall.

As for Peter, she speaks rather average of him:

‘Pettigrew... that fat little boy who was always tagging around after them at Hogwarts?’ said Madam Rosmerta. ‘Hero-worshipped Black and Potter,’ said Professor McGonagall. ‘Never quite in their league, talent-wise. I was often rather sharp with him. You can imagine how I – how I regret that now...’ She sounded as though she had a sudden head cold.

Moreover, Peter "was always hopeless at duelling," according to McGonagall. This means that over 7 years, Peter failed to impress McGonagall with his academic achievements. As the head of his house, she was aware of all his grades. Perhaps he was just an average student, but then it's unclear why McGonagall was "often rather sharp with him." She doesn't seem like the type to be sharp over trivial matters.

Slughorn:

‘Well, anyway, he (Sirius) was a big pal of your father’s at school. The whole Black family had been in my house, but Sirius ended up in Gryffindor! Shame – he was a talented boy. I got his brother Regulus when he came along, but I’d have liked the set.’

While Lupin’s words might be biased, he often speaks quite judiciously about people around him, thus:

"Look, Harry, what you’ve got to understand is that your father and Sirius were the best in the school at whatever they did – everyone thought they were the height of cool – if they sometimes got a bit carried away –"

He confirms that Sirius and James were the best at everything in school. Meaning academically first of all, because school is primarily about studying.

"It took them the best part of three years to work out how to do it. Your father and Sirius here were the cleverest students in the school, and lucky they were, because the Animagus transformation can go horribly wrong – one reason the Ministry keeps a close watch on those attempting to do it."

And a bit more praise from Lupin towards Sirius and James' giftedness. They were both gifted – Sirius and James.

Even Dumbledore acknowledges:

‘Sirius told me all about how they became Animagi last night,’ said Dumbledore, smiling. ‘An extraordinary achievement – not least, keeping it quiet from me.’

So, not only did they become Animagi (Peter wasn’t much help, according to Lupin), created the Marauder's Map, which contained very unusual magic (they, of course, all created the Map together, but based on the description above, I can assume that the main magical component of the map was the responsibility of James and Sirius), excelled in their studies, created a magical FaceTime – an artefact for communication among themselves, they also managed to keep a lot from the school's headmaster and other teachers. Intelligence plus cunning.

Sirius and James' reaction to others' "stupidity":

‘How thick are you, Wormtail?’ said James impatiently. ‘You run round with a werewolf once a month –’ 

‘Keep your voice down,’ implored Lupin. 

‘Well, I thought that paper was a piece of cake,’ he heard Sirius say. ‘I’ll be surprised if I don’t get “Outstanding” on it at least.’ 

‘Me too,’ said James.

Here, I don’t want to dwell on their rudeness, but rather on the reaction itself. Often Lupin is seen studying more than anyone (I too like to see him buried in books), but perhaps Lupin simply needed to study more to pass his exams. He buried himself in textbooks not because he was the smartest, but because it was necessary for him. Remus is clearly not dumb; he became a professor at Hogwarts, he’s also described as intelligent in the canon, but things came much easier to James and Sirius, and they were well aware of how smart they were. Hence their reaction. When a teenager is confident in their superiority, and their intellect is often validated by external factors (grades, teachers' praise), such a reaction from James and Sirius, considering their personalities, is quite expected for their still maturing characters.

‘We’ve still got Transfiguration, if you’re bored you could test me. Here...’ and he (Lupin) held out his book.

But Sirius snorted. ‘I don’t need to look at that rubbish, I know it all.’

Sirius' reaction is unequivocal. He doesn’t need to read anything like Lupin, memorising paragraphs. To him, it’s all "rubbish" that he already knows. Sirius likely had a very good long-term memory.

Sirius' memory and attention to detail even after 12 years in Azkaban are also quite remarkable.

"Congratulations on getting past the Horntail, whoever put your name in that Goblet shouldn’t be feeling too happy right now! I was going to suggest a Conjunctivitis curse, as a dragon’s eyes are its weakest point –"

‘That’s what Krum did!’ Hermione whispered.

Clearly, during his 12 years in Azkaban, he didn’t need this knowledge. It’s unlikely he ever used this knowledge in practice. But he remembered it, ready to mention it right away, not having peeked in any books. Even Hermione didn’t know.

‘My God,’ said Lupin softly, staring from Scabbers to the picture in the paper and back again.

‘His front paw...’

‘What about it?’ said Ron defiantly.

‘He’s got a toe missing,’ said Black.

And this is about his attentiveness. To notice that a rat is missing a toe from a small photograph while sitting in Azkaban… I wouldn’t have noticed even without Azkaban.

As for adult Sirius, the fourth book shows many of Sirius' reasonable assumptions that eventually are confirmed. What people mistake for stupidity is his recklessness, as well as his willingness to die for those he loves, to protect them at any cost. His recklessness is usually related to this.

‘The Ministry’s forced through another decree, which means we’re not allowed to have Quidditch teams –’

‘Or secret Defence Against the Dark Arts groups?’ said Sirius. There was a short pause.

‘How did you know about that?’ Harry demanded.

‘You want to choose your meeting places more carefully,’ said Sirius, grinning even more broadly.

‘The Hog’s Head, I ask you.’

‘Well, it was better than the Three Broomsticks!’ said Hermione defensively. ‘That’s always packed with people –’

‘Which means you’d have been harder to overhear,’ said Sirius. ‘You’ve got a lot to learn, Hermione.’

Hermione is very smart, but Sirius immediately explains their tactical mistake. But it still sounds somewhat condescending.

‘But, Sirius, this is taking an awful risk –’ Hermione began.

‘You sound like Molly,’ said Sirius. ‘This was the only way I could come up with answering Harry’s letter without resorting to a code – and codes are breakable.’

It might seem reckless, but he's right, codes can be cracked. And he really wanted to reply to his godson – it's more about his inability to refuse the only living person he loves now and his desire to protect him.

Sirius repeatedly makes correct deductions in the fourth book, here are a couple of examples, but generally, the fourth book is full of rational remarks, assumptions, and overall, he's ready to provide Harry with information, especially in the fifth book, when Harry is having the toughest time and most people simply refuse to tell him anything.

‘Yeah, and Dumbledore said it happened whenever Voldemort was feeling a powerful emotion,’ said Harry, ignoring, as usual, Ron and Hermione’s winces. ‘So maybe he was just, I dunno, really angry or something the night I had that detention.’

‘Well, now he’s back it’s bound to hurt more often,’ said Sirius.

‘So you don’t think it had anything to do with Umbridge touching me when I was in detention with her?’ Harry asked.

‘I doubt it,’ said Sirius. ‘I know her by reputation and I’m sure she’s no Death Eater –’

‘Now, I’ve been keeping an eye on the Daily Prophet, Harry –’

‘You and the rest of the world,’ said Harry bitterly.

‘– and, reading between the lines of that Skeeter woman’s article last month, Moody was attacked the night before he started at Hogwarts. Yes, I know she says it was another false alarm,’ Sirius said hastily, seeing Harry about to speak, ‘but I don’t think so, somehow. I think someone tried to stop him getting to Hogwarts. I think someone knew their job would be a lot more difficult with him around. And no one’s going to look into it too closely, Mad-Eye’s heard intruders a bit too often. But that doesn’t mean he can’t still spot the real thing. Moody was the best Auror the Ministry ever had.’

And much more.

For Harry in the fourth and fifth books, Sirius became the one who supported him and provided information, and all his attempts to break through to Harry, risking being caught – this is an expression of love and desire to help his godson. It's precisely in such moments that his recklessness is revealed – when he wants to help.

Moreover Sirius often gives Harry good advice, there is just one example:

‘Don’t lose your temper,’ said Sirius abruptly. ‘Be polite and stick to the facts.’

‘Good luck,’ said Lupin.

‘I’m sure it will be fine.’ ‘And if it’s not,’ said Sirius grimly, ‘I’ll see to Amelia Bones for you...’

Here's the interweaving of Sirius' rationality and recklessness. He knows the right way. But he himself is ready to throw himself into the line of fire. He never gave Harry impulsive advice. But when it comes to himself or when someone needs protecting, Sirius has a different standard of normalcy.

In conclusion, throughout the series, Sirius makes a number of insightful remarks, and his intelligence and giftedness are exceptionally highly regarded by Dumbledore, McGonagall, and Lupin. I wouldn’t attribute his pathological desire to help those he loves to stupidity. Furthermore, adult Sirius shows recklessness mainly when it concerns his own safety and life – he doesn't cherish his own life if it means the well-being of someone he loves, thus he readily throws himself into danger.

Sirius was a brave, clever and energetic man, and such men are not usually content to sit at home in hiding while they believe others to be in danger. (Dumbledore)

[untitled31666]

thinking about how in gof, sirius says “ever since i found out snape was teaching here, i’ve wondered why dumbledore hired him” and goes onto explain how snape was famous for the dark arts at school and part of a slytherin gang that all turned out to be death eaters (who we later find out were attacking students with dark magic). so he’s one of the only people to immediately be like “why the fuck is dumbledore letting snape teach children”. then says that as far he knows snape was never even accused of being a death eater but many of them were never caught. but when ron keeps insisting that snape must be a death eater, sirius disagrees and reasons it out, because he doesn’t think it makes sense based on the facts, and also because: “there’s still the fact that dumbledore trusts snape, and i know dumbledore trusts where a lot of other people wouldn’t, but i just can’t see him letting snape teach at hogwarts if he’d ever worked for voldemort.” (so even while questioning dumbles, sirius clearly still has way too much faith in him. which makes everything in ootp extra infuriating). anyways, sirius was willing to give snape the benefit of the doubt on being a death eater, like, he’s perfectly capable of being rational about snape and not jumping to conclusions despite his hatred of him!

and then at the end of gof he finds out that snape WAS in fact a death eater, and sirius has no proof or reason to believe that snape has actually changed, all he has to work off of is that Dumbledore Trusts Snape, even though all sirius knows is that snape literally tried to hand him (and remus) to the fucking dementors and outed remus, and witnessed snape going unhinged at his godson and two other teenagers in the same scene.

and now he has to work alongside snape knowing that he apparently paid no consequences for his death eater past, wasn’t even so much as accused of being one (not unlike lucius malfoy and karkaroff and the others who did deals with the ministry and clearly haven’t changed their ways, who sirius shows bitterness towards in gof) while sirius was branded as one by the ministry and the whole wizarding world and unjustly imprisoned for it for 12 years without even getting a trial.

and snape is constantly taunting him about the fact that he can’t leave the house and help the order because of the world STILL thinking that sirius is a death eater and murderer because of that very same unjust imprisonment that the fascist hate group snape joined directly fucking caused, and snape the actual former death eater is able to do these things and live freely because he got away with it all. and he might complain about it but sirius still puts up with all of that for months along with all the other shit he has to deal with in ootp.

then he’s told that snape has to teach harry occlumency, and makes sure to sit with harry rather than letting snape talk to him alone, and is apparently the ONLY one to question this clearly terrible stupid ass decision and ask why dumbledore can’t teach him instead. yeah sirius starts off with a petty comment or two but harry even looks to sirius to intervene on his behalf, and sirius does. sirius calmly and firmly warns snape not to use occlumency lessons to give harry a hard time, to which snape responds by insulting not only his fifteen year old godson but his dead best friend, that voldemort, who snape WORKED FOR, literally murdered, to sirius’s face. OF COURSE SIRIUS IS GONNA LOSE IT. ANYONE WOULD. and the first thing sirius says is “i don’t care if dumbledore thinks you’ve reformed, i know better” and refers to snape being lucius malfoy’s lapdog bc he knows they were fellow death eater buddies at hogwarts and during the war, like wow i wonder why sirius would have doubts about snape’s loyalties, especially after what he just said??!? this is not an example of sirius’s supposed ~crazy uncontrollable temper~, any normal person would want to throw down at something like that, personally i think sirius showed an impressive amount of self control for managing to wait that long to try to hex snape. AND he makes sure to give harry the mirrors specifically so harry can contact him if snape treats him badly, because that’s all sirius can do at that point when he’s powerless and his input is being completely ignored.

anyways it’s truly a tragedy that sirius never even got to find out that snape was the death eater who told voldemort about the prophecy, i think sirius deserved to know and go completely unhinged at snape!!! as was his right!!!!!

[sparsilees]

the switch from sirius leaning back on the rear leg of his chair, peaceably cheeky, ‘it’s my house, you see’, to when harry instantly looks to sirius for support after the reveal, and he readily activates protective godfather mode—

‘I’ll get to the point, then,’ said Sirius, standing up. He was rather taller than Snape who, Harry noticed, balled his fist in the pocket of his cloak over what Harry was sure was the handle of his wand. ‘If I hear you’re using these Occlumency lessons to give Harry a hard time, you’ll have me to answer to.’

[deerly-departed]

@jilytoberfest || Day 27 Prompt: Accidentally Holding Hands

[i-wanna-kill-odysseus]

I just can't get over nymphadora tonks. Like, your 23/24 and you're essentially joining a paramilitary group to fight fascism. Your cousin killed your other cousin. You're falling in love with a man who hates himself. You're a spy. You're watching little kids get turned into soldiers because like, what the hell else are we gonna do, we're trying to fight fascism. The government is collapsing and you're pregnant and your husband leaves you because he hates himself and your father dies and you're 25 and WEEKS after you give birth you go to battle for your child and your world. And then you die. And your husband dies. And there is just so much potential left on the table. It's the kind of Shakespearean tragedy you'd find in a '40s war movie.

[petalsonparchment]

James at the end of the OWLs incident:

[petalsonparchment]

@oyevans this needs to be not just in the tags 🤣

[oyevans]

You’re right, of course 😂 OKAY but let’s also talk about this:

This scene has always come across to me as Snape giving Lily the side eye because he suspected she either found James fit or admired one of his other traits (e.g., Quidditch)

[petalsonparchment]

ALSO THIS:

James is bleeding and it is Sev’s fault because he was assumingely testing Sectumsempra or something like it, so of course Lily will be disappointed to see with her own eyes that Sev is out for blood. She is not going to find any of it funny, but she almost smirks because she knows Sev deserved the levicorpus after drawing blood on James instead of walking away when Lily distracted James.

Lily was like: “Sev, you literally just cut James open. What did you think would happen?!?! You cannot carve open someone’s cheek and then expect someone as dumb as that hot, idiot with a hero-complex to NOT fight back!!” And her smile is not whole approval of James fighting back so much as a kind of fed-up: “Yeah, Severus, you practically asked for James to retaliate when you MADE HIM BLEED, YOU IDIOT! YOU KINDA DESERVED THAT YOU DUMB FUCKING CUNT.”

Plus like, Lily already knows the rumours about Snape’s obsession with dark magic, already suspects he is keeping company with people she does not trust, and is probably SO tired from years of defending him due to their childhood friendship.

That later line in Deathly Hallows about having made excuses for Snape for years makes perfect sense and helps the context of the entire story of Lily and James Potter. It is hard to keep insisting someone is good when they keep doing things that look like dark magic AKA cutting her housemate open. And reading between the lines, James has to have known Lily liked him (or some semblance of reason to believe she fancied him) or the thought of asking her out would’ve not been added so quickly to the narrative when he was holding Snape upside down after Snape cut his cheek open.

Plus by the end of Snape’s Worst Memory, Sev has crossed a line Lily cannot ignore, while James, for all his bullying, had never crossed the lines between using a spell like sectumsempra and a instead using a spell like levicorpus in a duel…unlike Sev—and Lily was a witch who had LONG BEFORE THESE BOYS chosen her morals and knew who she was.

She chose herself, she never chose between two boys. She just happened to have a crush on James since fourth year (at the very least based on timeline given in Deathly Hallows) and that crush developed into something MORE as time went on.

There was never a question Lily liked James to the people who knew Lily the best: Sirius and Remus.

[dufferpuffer]

~~ Looking at Lycanthropy ~~

~~ the Werewolves of the Wizarding World ~~

Vers. 1 I've tried to collect every relevant description of Lycanthropy or Werewolves in the books, to get a clear understanding of what this condition is, what it does, how it works and how it is seen. There are also some of my own thoughts and theories in here - I'll try to make it clear what is my own thoughts and what is canon.

If I have missed anything please mention it. I'd like this to be a thorough exploration of the topic. I will edit the posts.

Part 1: Physical Symptoms of Lycanthropy Part 2: Social Perception of Werewolves Part 3: Regarding the 'Full Moon'... (^In which I claim POA's transformation didn't happen on the Full Moon^) Part 4: Long-Term Lycanthropy: The Case of Fenrir Greyback Part 5: Wolfsbane vs Wolf - Theories of Treatments Part 6: Pottermore and More Part 7: Collected Summary

Note: Prisoner of Azkaban used is the Australian paperback from 2000. I typed out every quote by hand, it sucked ass. Order of the Pheonix, Half Blood Prince and Deathly Hallows were all from internet sources of American versions so I could copy and paste.

Other 'Meta'

How Powerful is Albus Dumbledore Dumbledore Was Never Mean to Tom Riddle (Part 1)

How friendly were Sirius and Remus? (1971 - 1981) (part 1...?)

Meta I wanna do so I don't forget: - Alastor Moody character study - Centaur - Vampires/Vampirism - Pre-Statue of Secrecy Wizarding World - What the fuck were you doing in book 1, Albus? - Non-Human Spirituous Apparitions - Boggarts, Dementors, Poltergeists... and more...? - Arthur Weasley character study (the best character in the books) - Snape vs Lupin's teaching styles

[lupiniad]

i'm thinking about how the characterisation of the black family tends to be really difficult to get right and one of the reasons that i can think of is that we don't know enough of wizarding culture, so we try to convey the atmosphere and the dynamics through codes that are familiar to us

that's why they are so victorian in so many fics. they act and speak like they're inside a victorian novel, they only ever wear black and dark green, the high society/pure blood circle is also composed by meeting for tea, and having balls, and discussing politics, and arranged marriages

and that's not bad!!! i read and love some fics like that, but i think this is an aesthetic that completely ignores some of the things we know about wizards and about the blacks

first of all, the clothes. wizards wear robes. not late 19th century clothes, robes. and they're most often dramatic and colorful. this is something easily observed in the very first chapter of PS. so i think the blacks should wear deep purple and emerald green and silver and burgundy and turquoise, make outfits fun!!!

second, grimmauld place tells us some things about its inhabitants. the fact that it's a muggle house in a muggle neighborhood shows that they must have some level of cognitive dissonance in terms of what elements of muggle culture and lifestyle they hold (but i don't think that applies to holding the same patterns of views and behaviors of high society, again, it's about how the writers tries to convey "rich and uptight" with codes that are familiar to them). the decoration choices for the house are also very telling, family heirlooms, big clocks, tapestry... troll leg and house elf heads??? that's morbid. that's camp.

and my point is, black family characterisation lacks on campiness. wizards are inherently weird. anything in which they're overly polite and too aristocratic is inaccurate. they are bigots and lobbyists and one of them was literally headmaster of hogwarts. they are into the dark arts but they don't torture their children. make them funnier and messier and weirder and more like real people instead of a bunch of lines from downton abbey glued together

[hollowed-theory-hall]

Since the statute of secrecy is relatively recent, do you think wizards did something to make Muggles forget about their existence after they went into hiding or did the memory fade over time / get dismissed as myth?

I definitely think they did. In Deathly Hallows, Hermione reads out to Harry from A History of Magic that wizards flocked together to the same villages and that the local muggles were often Confunded once the Statute of Secrecy was enacted:

“Upon the signature of the International Statute of Secrecy in 1689, wizards went into hiding for good. It was natural, perhaps, that they formed their own small communities within a community. Many small villages and hamlets attracted several magical families, who banded together for mutual support and protection. The villages of Tinworthin Cornwald, Upper Flagley in Yorkshire, and Ottery St. Catchpole on the south coast of England were notable homes to knots of Wizarding families who lived alongside tolerant and sometimes Confunded Muggles. Most celebrated of these half magical dwelling places is, perhaps, Godric’s Hollow, the West Country village where the great wizard Godric Gryffindor was born, and where Bowman Wright, Wizarding smith, forged the first Golden Snitch. The graveyard is full of the names of ancient magical families, and this accounts, no doubt for the stories of haunting’s that have dogged the little church beside it for many centuries.”

(I want to note about the date the Statute of Secrecy was signed in 1689 but only actually went into effect in 1692)

It's likely some were obliviated, some were Confunded, probably not erasing the existence of the wizards entirely, but twisting it enough so it becomes legend rather than fact. Since believing in witchcraft was seen as heresy by the church, people would've also been encouraged by them to not believe in witches and wizards. Add to that the Enlightenment movement that was already around by that time and muggles moving away from believing in magic to believing in science, making all these old stories of witches and wizards look like old superstition. It's not like all muggles knew magic was real and that wizards existed, so to many, wizards already were some old stories. Over time, the stories would be twisted to remain as myths and legends not dissimilar to what we have irl — tales of magic in folklore that no one really believes.

So it was basically a mix of all of the above working together to over time, erase the existence of wizards from muggle memory.

[dufferpuffer]

~~ Looking at Lycanthropy ~~

Part 1: Physical Symptoms of Lycanthropy.

Words: Approx. 4500

Physical Symptoms (What he feels; what he does; what happens - factual.) Perceived Symptoms (How he seems to others - health focused)

PRISONER OF AZKABAN:

Chapter 5 (I don't think many would argue against this taking place post 'Full Moon' – as he spends the 8.5 hour train trip resting. A descriptive chapter for how others see him and doesn't pull its punches: Remus is in rough shape.)

Notes: Ill-looking, exhausted (rested all day), pallid, thin – 'could do with some food', doubtful ability to teach – 'one good hex could finish him', corpse-like. Secondary Notes: Premature grey hair. Hoarse voice. Remus wouldn't have had any Wolfsbane the week prior.

pg 59 The stranger was wearing an extremely shabby set of wizard's robes which had been darned in several places. He looked ill and exhausted. Though he seemed quite young, his light-brown hair was flecked with grey.

Greyback has a 'face covered in matted grey hair and whiskers' (DH,23,391). Remus' premature grey hair could be a sign that Lycanthropy is a progressive disease that changes ones appearance over time – or it could be unrelated and due to family genetics or stress.

pg 60 'Wonder what he teaches?' said Ron, frowning at Professor Lupin's pallid profile. … … 'Well, I hope he's up to it,' said Ron doubtfully: 'He looks like one good hex would finish him off, doesn't he? Anyway ...' he turned to Harry, 'what were you going to tell us?' pg 63 'D'you think we should wake him up?' Ron asked awkwardly, nodding towards Professor Lupin. 'He looks like he could do with some food.' … … 'I suppose he is asleep?' said Ron quietly, as the witch slid the compartment door closed.'I mean - he hasn't died, has he?' 'No, no, he's breathing.' whispered Hermione, taking the cauldron cake Harry passed her.

Pale, under-fed, doubtful ability to teach... and it isn't just Ron making these judgements. If he were being hyperbolic I feel Hermione's response would be along the lines of 'That's ridiculous, Ron.' or 'Don't be rude!' – instead she seems to understand his concern: Remus looks corpse-like.

pg 65 'Quiet!' said a hoarse voice suddenly. … … 'Stay where you are,' he said, in the same hoarse voice, and he got slowly to his feet with his handful of fire held out in front of him.

Hoarse from howling, perhaps...? Or maybe because he's been snoozing all day. Mouth-open against the window of the train isn't great for your throat. It could also just be a quality of his voice.

Chapter 7 (He energetically teaches the class for the first time and impresses everyone.) (It's unclear how many days this is after the train, the assumed Full Moon. The day after the train is their first subjects: Divination and Magical Creatures. Later chapters say DADA is on Mon. and Thurs. – so their first day couldn't have been Mon. otherwise they would have had Remus for their first day. Perhaps train was Mon., first classes Tue. – giving Remus three days recovery before Thurs...?)

pg 99 He was as shabby as ever but looked healthier than he had on the train, as though he had had a few square meals.

Hogwarts meals have given him energy. :^)

Chapter 8 Severus comes to give him his potion. I go more in-depth on the potion in Part 5.

Notes: Feels off-colour before the Full Moon Secondary Notes: Before the Full Moon is animated, cheerful, attends the feast and looks 'about the same as ever.'

pg 118 'I've been feeling a bit off-colour,' he said. 'This potion is the only thing that helps. I am very lucky to be working alongside Professor Snape; there aren't many wizards who are up to making it.' pg 119 Professor Lupin looked cheerful and as well as he ever did; he was talking animatedly to tiny little Professor Flitwick, the Charms teacher. Harry moved his eyes along the table, to the place where Snape sat. Was he imagining it, or were Snape's eyes flickering towards Lupin more often than was natural?

Despite 'feeling off-colour' he is well enough to attend the feast. That isn't to discredit his claim – just pointing out it isn't as severe. The Full Moon is close: Severus is somewhat anxiously watching him.

Chapter 9 (Severus takes over the DADA class. I would assume post Full Moon, like the train. This is the first, and seemingly only, third-year class he misses. That suggests the amount of time he takes off per Full Moon is relatively small. The longer he takes off per month – the more chance he misses his third-year classes on Mon. and Thurs.)

Notes: Werewolves differ from true wolves in small ways, such as a difference in snout. Secondary Notes: Potentially small time off to rest each Full Moon. Lack of organisation and being behind in work potentially the result of taking time off for health.

pg 127 'He says he is feeling too ill to teach today,' said Snape with a twisted smile. pg 128 'Whats wrong with him?' Snapes black eyes glittered. 'Nothing life-threatening,' he said, looking as though he wished it was. … … 'I did not ask for information. I was merely commenting on Professor Lupin's lack of organisation.' … … 'Which of you can tell me how we distinguish between the werewolf and the true wolf?' said Snape. Pg 129 'Silence!' snarled Snape. 'Well, well, well, I never thought I'd meet a third-year class who wouldn't even recognise a werewolf when they saw one. I shall make a point of informing Professor Dumbledore how very behind you all are...' 'Please, sir,' said Hermione, whose hand was still in the air, 'the werewolf differs from the true wolf in several small ways. The snout of the werewolf-'

As much as I hate it – werewolves look similar to regular wolves. Unless a 'true wolf' is a different magical creature – though I doubt that is the intended meaning.

Chapter 10 (Probably half a week or so since the last chapter. The day after Snapes DADA was Quidditch. Harry was in the Infirmary the 'the rest of the weekend' – suggests Quidditch was on Fri, Snape's DADA on Thurs. Lupin back in DADA on Monday. If Wed. night was Full Moon – then that is a 4 day recovery.)

Notes: Ill-looking, shadowed eyes, loose robes Secondary Notes: Premature ageing

pg 138 Professor Lupin was back at work. It certainly looked as though he had been ill. His old robes were hanging more loosely on him and there were dark shadows beneath his eyes; nevertheless, he smiled at the class as they took their seats, and they burst at once into an explosion of complaints about Snape's behaviour while Lupin had been ill. pg 140 A ray of wintry sunlight fell across the classroom, illuminating Lupin's grey hairs and the lines on his young face.

Chapter 11

Notes: Too ill even to sit at Christmas lunch and eat. :^( At least 2 days off sick for the Full Moon.

pg 166 'And he was away when your Nimbus got smashed, and he might've heard about it and decided to visit Diagon Alley and get this for you-' 'What d'you mean, he was away?' said Harry. 'He was ill when I was playing in that match.' 'Well he wasn't in the hospital wing,' said Ron. 'I was there, cleaning out the bedpans on that detention from Snape, remember?'

Remus was a no-show around the school Thurs. and Fri. – that's at least 2 days off.

pg 170 'I'm afraid the poor fellow is ill again,' said Dumbledore, indicating that everyone should start serving themselves. 'Most unfortunate that it should happen on Christmas Day.'

It's just lunch... he can't even come out for some festive yum yums? Too sick for treats? :^(

Chapter 12 (School starts first week of Jan. Remus was ill Dec. 25. Assuming Full Moon was night of Dec 24. that's min. 7 days recovery.)

Notes: Even with a long time off – he still looks ill to Ron, and tired to Harry.

pg 175 'Still looks ill, doesn't he?' said Ron, as they walked down the corridor, heading to dinner. 'What d'you reckon's the matter with him?' pg 185 - (Harry talking to Hermione about all her homework.) 'Oh, well - you know - working hard,' said Hermione. Close to, Harry saw that she looked almost as tired as Lupin.

I'd say this is a general comment on Lupin rather than a direct comparison for how he was that day. He is known for always looking worn out – Hermione is matching him with all her studies.

NIGHT OF THE TRANSFORMATION – Chapters 17 – 21 I go through these chapters closely in Part 3: Regarding the 'Full Moon'...

Chapter 22 (The morning after.) Notes: Only one missed Wolfsbane Potion – he has had some in his system. No mention of any injuries form Sirius. Seems alert and relatively perky, considering the night he had and how he was at the start.

pg 308 'I was worried this mornin', mind... thought he mighta met Professor Lupin in the grounds, but Lupin says he never ate anythin' las' night'...'

Remus said in a previous chapter (see Part 3; pg260) 'A werewolf is only a danger to people'. This line contradicts that. Remus is not only a danger to Buckbeak – but could have EATEN him. Unless Remus was bullshitting Hagrid and playing along with false stereotypes... for some reason? (More on that in Part 3.)

pg 309 'From what the headmaster told me this morning, you saved a lot of lives last night, Harry. If I'm proud of anything, it's how much you've learned. Tell me about your Patronus.' 'How d'you know about that?' said Harry, distracted. 'What else could have driven the Dementors back?' … … 'Here, I brought this from the Shrieking Shack last night,' he said, handing Harry back the invisibility cloak.

These show his clarity of mind, even after a transformation. He could piece together events from information he was told – and thought to go get Harry's cloak. How much of this is from having some Wolfsbane Potion? He does seem very perky compared to how he was in the train.

pg 310 'Headmaster, there is no need to see me to the gates, I can manage...' Harry had the impression that Lupin wanted to leave as quickly as possible.

There is an assumption that he couldn't manage to get to the gates – but he in fact can. There is also his eagerness to go – but I will go into that more in Part 2 and Part 3.

~~~ ORDER OF THE PHOENIX:

Chapter 3

pg 47 Remus Lupin stood nearest to him. Though still quite young, Lupin looked tired and rather ill; he had more gray hair than when Harry had said good-bye to him, and his robes were more patched and shabbier than ever.

A re-iteration of Remus' general, constant state of being: ill-looking, tired and prematurely aged. This is how he is introduced to potential new readers. It is important to his constant image.

Chapter 22 (Not about Remus – another werewolf, a fresh bite. Or... fresh-ish. 'Two weeks till the next Full Moon' means two weeks since the last. When he was bitten. He is still sick. He is green, staring at the ceiling, stuck in hospital TWO WEEKS after his bite. Being infected with Lycanthropy is nothing to sneeze at. It is more than just a bite.)

pg 488/489 "...But that fellow over there,” he said, dropping his voice and nodding toward the bed opposite in which a man lay looking green and sickly and staring at the ceiling.“Bitten by a werewolf, poor chap. No cure at all.” “A werewolf?” whispered Mrs. Weasley, looking alarmed. “Is he safe in a public ward? Shouldn’t he be in a private room?”“It’s two weeks till full moon,” Mr. Weasley reminded her quietly.

If Molly isn't just having a prejudiced knee-jerk reaction then there might be an element of fresh-bites being less safe for their first Full Moon... but it's more likely she's being a bit bigoted.

Chapter 24

pg 527 “Yeah, all right,” said Harry heavily, looking up into Lupin’s pre-maturely lined face. “See you, then . . .”

Chapter 28 (A teenage werewolf, better fed and looked after than current day.) Notes: Werewolves differ from true wolves in small ways, such as a difference in snout; pupils; tufted tail. Before the Full Moon Remus looks pale and peaky, but has enough clarity of mind to do an exam. Werewolf transformation is ONCE a month.

pg 642 And two seats along from this girl — Harry’s stomach gave another pleasurable squirm — was Remus Lupin. He looked rather pale and peaky (was the full moon approaching?) and was absorbed in the exam: As he reread his answers he scratched his chin with the end of his quill, frowning slightly.

Harry lets us know that being 'pale and peaky' are clear signs of an approaching Full Moon. Thank you, Harry. (Note: Remus can still concentrate on his exam, even with trouble.)

pg 643 Wormtail was the only one who didn’t laugh. “I got the snout shape, the pupils of the eyes, and the tufted tail,” he said anxiously, “but I couldn’t think what else—” “How thick are you, Wormtail?” said James impatiently. “You run round with a werewolf once a month —” “Keep your voice down,” implored Lupin.

Shut the fuck up James, how often do you think Peter's see's a real wolf?!? Rude young man. >:( Chapter 38

pg 867 Next to Tonks was Lupin, his face pale, his hair graying, a long and threadbare overcoat covering a shabby jumper and trousers.

~~~ HALF BLOOD PRINCE

Chapter 6

pg 94 To Mrs. Weasley’s displeasure, Harry’s sixteenth birthday celebrations were marred by grisly tidings brought to the party by Remus Lupin, who was looking gaunt and grim, his brown hair streaked liberally with gray, his clothes more ragged and patched than ever.

Once again, first description: Gaunt; Grim; Liberally Grey... new words for old information.

Chapter 16

pg 281 Meanwhile, Remus Lupin, who was thinner and more ragged-looking than ever, was sitting beside the fire, staring into its depths as though he could not hear Celestina’s voice.

Of course he is going to be thinner in stressful times – but he is also without Wolfsbane and Hogwarts' steady meals (though I am sure Molly helps). Chapter 22 Notes: Transformed Werewolves want to spread the illness – they don't try to kill. Occasionally they can get carried away, perhaps excitement or fear or anger, and end up killing their victims.

pg 400 “Well, their brother was attacked by a werewolf. The rumor is that their mother refused to help the Death Eaters. Anyway, the boy was only five and he died in St. Mungo’s, they couldn’t save him.” “He died?” repeated Harry, shocked. “But surely werewolves don’t kill, they just turn you into one of them?”“They sometimes kill,” said Ron, who looked unusually grave now. “I’ve heard of it happening when the werewolf gets carried away.”

This little boy was bitten young, like Remus was – but died. As previously seen: a Lycanthropy infection is no joke. Harry points out that a Werewolf's natural aim is to spread the infection – and Ron claims that they get so out-of-control sometimes that they can go against that instinct and take it too far.

Chapter 29 (Bill has been bitten by an non-transformed Fenrir Greyback. What's a non-transformed Werewolf? Does this mean Remus is just as contagious? I go through that more in Part 4. Here I'm focusing on collecting descriptions.) Notes: Non-transformed werewolf bites are basically unheard of – they do not bite outside of the Full Moon, when they are contagious. However their bite still has a contaminated; cursed aspect to it: unlikely to heal; give wolfish characteristics. 'Bitten at the Full Moon' is treated as an equal statement to 'bitten when transformed.' Secondary Notes: Possibly connected to the severity of the mauling – a smaller bite might not have been contagious. Fresh bites might have a behaviour/emotional symptom when the victim is infected.

pg 516 “Of course I’m sure... he’s a — a bit of a mess, that’s all. Greyback attacked him. Madam Pomfrey says he won’t — won’t look the same anymore…” Ginny’s voice trembled a little. “We don’t really know what the aftereffects will be — I mean, Greyback being a werewolf, but not transformed at the time.” pg 517 Harry looked over Hermione’s shoulder and saw an unrecognizable face lying on Bill’s pillow, so badly slashed and ripped that he looked grotesque. … … “No charm will work on these,” said Madam Pomfrey. “I’ve tried everything I know, but there is no cure for werewolf bites.” “But he wasn’t bitten at the full moon,” said Ron, who was gazing down into his brother’s face as though he could somehow force him to mend just by staring. “Greyback hadn’t transformed, so surely Bill won’t be a — a real —?” He looked uncertainly at Lupin. “No, I don’t think that Bill will be a true werewolf,” said Lupin, “but that does not mean that there won’t be some contamination. Those are cursed wounds. They are unlikely ever to heal fully, and — and Bill might have some wolfish characteristics from now on.” “Dumbledore might know something that’d work, though,” Ron said. pg 522 ...Bill had been savaged by Greyback...

Bill has been permanently disfigured by Greyback. He has been bitten, specifically. Savaged; Ripped; Slashed – so badly he looks grotesque. However he 'wasn't bitten at the Full Moon', said like it is interchangeable with 'being transformed'. The wounds are described as 'cursed'; 'contaminated' – meaning they are 'unlikely to ever heal fully' and will give Bill some 'wolfish characteristics'.

pg 523/524 “Molly — Arthur —” said Professor McGonagall, jumping up and hurrying to greet them. “I am so sorry —” “Bill,” whispered Mrs. Weasley, darting past Professor McGonagall as she caught sight of Bill’s mangled face. “Oh, Bill!” Lupin and Tonks had got up hastily and retreated so that Mr. and Mrs. Weasley could get nearer to the bed. Mrs. Weasley bent over her son and pressed her lips to his bloody forehead. “You said Greyback attacked him?” Mr. Weasley asked Professor McGonagall distractedly. “But he hadn’t transformed? So what does that mean? What will happen to Bill?”“We don’t yet know,” said Professor McGonagall, looking helplessly at Lupin.“There will probably be some contamination, Arthur,” said Lupin. “It is an odd case, possibly unique... We don’t know what his behavior might be like when he awakens…”

Love that Remus is the werewolf expert. Not because he is a werewolf – but because he is a nerd for magical creatures. At least I hope that's why people are turning to him for his expertise... Anyway, Bill has had his face 'mangled' right up to his forehead. Apparently a non-transformed mauling is basically unheard of. Werewolves have better control and/or no desire to bite when it isn't the Full Moon. 'We don't know what his behaviour might be like' suggests that with regular Lycanthropy infections there is an emotional/behavioural symptom, at least when first bitten.

~~~ DEATHLY HALLOWS

Chapter 4

pg 44 Lupin, grayer, more lined; … … Bill, badly scarred and long-haired;

This is just funny now. First description has devolved to the basics – 'Lupin looks like hot shite;' Bill has healed into being 'badly scarred'. Shows Lupin is not obviously scarred, else it'd be like 'Bill has scars fresher than Lupin' or something. I am so sorry to have to say this.

Chapter 11

pg 178 They ran down the stairs toward him. Wrapped in a thick black traveling cloak, he looked exhausted, but pleased to see them. pg 184 Harry looked into the prematurely lined face, framed in thick but graying hair, and wished that he could return a different answer. pg 186/187 Lupin sprang to his feet: His chair toppled over backward, and he glared at them so fiercely that Harry saw, for the first time ever, the shadow of the wolf upon his human face. … … Lupin kicked aside the chair he had overturned. … … Lupin actually seized handfuls of his own hair; he looked quite deranged. … … “I’d be pretty ashamed of him.” Harry did not know where his rage was coming from, but it had propelled him to his feet too. Lupin looked as though Harry had hit him. … … “I think you’re feeling a bit of a daredevil,”Harry said. “You fancy stepping into Sirius’s shoes –” “Harry, no!” Hermione begged him, but he continued to glare into Lupin’s livid face. “I’d never have believed this,” Harry said. “The man who taught me to fight dementors – a coward.” Lupin drew his wand so fast that Harry had barely reached for his own; there was a loud bang and he felt himself flying backward as if punched; as he slammed into the kitchen wall and slid to the floor, he glimpsed the tail of Lupin’s cloak disappearing around the door. “Remus, Remus, come back!” Hermione cried, but Lupin did not respond. A moment later they heard the front door slam.

Removed most of the dialogue – I'll go through that in Part 2. Remus got very emotional. It was an emotional conversation, at a vulnerable and stressful time – it might have nothing to do with his Lycanthropy. However... I think, this time at least, it might. 'Harry saw the shadow of the wolf upon his human face'... Remus almost always stays calm, acts as a peacekeeper. Here he is violent, deranged, sensitive and livid – he has no buffer. It's out of character for him. Did Remus fly off the handle simply because of stress? Or something to do with his illness? Or are the two so intertwined that they can no longer be separated...? It's a damn good reason for him to keep himself as calm as possible, if it is easier for him to become unhinged...

Chapter 25

Notes: Bill prefers his steaks bloody now – a 'wolfish characteristic' as warned in the previous book.

pg 443 She had just set some knives to work, chopping up steaks for Griphook and Bill, who had preferred his meat bloody ever since he had been attacked by Greyback. pg 446 “Lupin,” muttered Bill, and he ran to the door and wrenched it open. Lupin fell over the threshold. He was white-faced, wrapped in a traveling cloak, his graying hair windswept. He straightened up, looked around the room, making sure of who was there, then cried aloud, “It’s a boy! We’ve named him Ted, after Dora’s father!”

Chapter 33

Notes: Severus, as a child, thought Remus' behaviour odd – not helped by his friends' actions. It doesn't take much to notice its related to the Full Moon... ...But if one doesn't look too hard, it isn't terribly obvious what he is.

pg 578 “What’s Potter got to do with anything?” said Lily. “They sneak out at night. There’s something weird about that Lupin. Where does he keep going?”“He’s ill,” said Lily.“They say he’s ill –” “Every month at the full moon?” said Snape.

~~~ SUMMARY OF THIS PART:

Remus always looks ill. Even on Wolfsbane potion. Even with weeks of recovery. Even when he is well fed and happy. His defining features: shadowed eyes, looks tired and exhausted, gaunt and grim, robes loose-fitting.

It is unclear whether his Lycanthropy directly causes his premature ageing (lined face and grey hair in his mid 30's) but the stress would add to it indirectly, either way. It's also possible his health results in him being disorganised and chronically behind on work.

He doesn't display any signs that would scream 'Lycanthropy' to others... though even a children with a keen eye can notice his symptoms are based on the moon cycle.

Before the Full Moon: Remus feels 'off colour' – and looks pale and peaky, noticeably more than usual. He can eat, chat animatedly, withstand crowded noisy rooms and even concentrate on exams.

After the Full Moon: He is thinner for awhile, even when otherwise well fed. He is pallid – more than usual. He might have a hoarse voice. Without Wolfsbane he spends the whole day resting, exhausted, looking so bad he seems on his deathbed. With Wolfsbane he is still unable to attend a small Christmas lunch - and needs at least 2 days off work to recover. That recovery would be longer without Wolfsbane.

He keeps clarity of mind and good memory in both cases, casting difficult spells and making complex decisions.

Transformed werewolves differ in small ways from true wolves: a difference in snout, in pupils and a 'tufted tail' being some.

Lycanthropy is only passed to others via bites when transformed; aka at the Full Moon. When bitten otherwise a partial contamination is possible – though it is incredibly rare because werewolves typically only feel compelled to bite when transformed. Even then - their goal is to infect, not to kill...

...Though they can get 'carried away'. They supposedly only pose a threat to people - but may still attack and even eat other animals. A wolfish taste for blood leaks into their non-transformed state.

Fresh bite victims are made ill by their bite: green-looking, staring at the ceiling, still in hospitalized after two weeks. Werewolf injuries 'never fully heal'.

It's possible that there is an emotional aspect to Lycanthropy, where it is easier for them to fly off the handle – so they must work harder than others at staying calm. Freshly bitten werewolves may also show this 'shadow of the wolf on their face', a short fuse – and might be more dangerous nearing their first Full Moon.

However: that idea might be a negative stereotype. Both examples referenced above are situations anyone would be upset in and their anger might have nothing to do with their symptoms.

[hollowed-theory-hall]

Fascinating read! I actually forgot werewolves look mostly like regular wolves in the full moons because of the movies!

Hope you don't mind if I note that as I was reading through the quotes you brought up, it seems like on the one night we see Remus after a transformation without Wolfsbane, he is in a better state than with it:

You described him even as relatively perky, and this is the day immediately after a full moon. This is very noticeable when compared to how we usually see him after the full moon, which, as you mentioned, is too tired to even go to the Great Hall for lunch and requiring 2 days to recover:

So, I was wondering if Wolfsbane has a negative effect post full moon. After all, Wolfsbane is a real plant that is toxic to consume and even to touch. A non-lethal dosage is likely to cause headache, nausea, and palpitations. So, perhaps Wolfsbane is good at keeping the wolf at bay, but it also makes the recovery period after the transformation harder?

I couldn't find a scene where we see Remus immediately after a full moon without Wolfsbane other than the one at the end of PoA to help prove or disprove it.

As for why he was sleeping on the train at the beginning of the PoA, well, we don't really know when was the last time he had a decent place to sleep. Werewolves rarely get jobs in the wizarding world, it's possible Remus had nowhere decent to sleep in who knows how long before his job at Hogwarts, so, it doesn't necessarily have to do with the full moon and his transformation.

[bloodonthetracks93]

when people talk about teenage sirius black as some kind of teenage Lothario it really bums me out because that feels like such a disservice of sirius's character, and of teenage boys in general.

speaking broadly and purely anecdotally, every "cool", clever teenage boy i've known (both as a teenager myself, seeing them as a peer, and as an adult, seeing them with a different perspective) has been more focused on himself/his friends than in people who occupy the gender they're attracted to. certainly, there have been and always will be guys who are just trying to Get Laid, but those guys - the pursuers - are never perceived as cool because they're trying, meanwhile sirius is canonically unbothered ("carelessly handsome"; in SWM he's uninterested in the Girls By The Lake while james can't stop fixating on Lily).

sirius as a teenager cares about what challenges him, and that's not girls (or guys, if you read him as queer); he's canonically beautiful (indeed, one of the girls in SWM keeps looking at him longingly and he couldn't care less), canonically wealthy, canonically cool. getting a date or a shag wouldn't be difficult for him, but things like becoming an illegal animagus to hang out with a werewolf and producing the marauders' map would've been a real intellectual engagement.

sirius also isn't stupid. careless, often impulsive, but not stupid. i'd imagine that you'd get a lot of grief at hogwarts - a small school, for all intents and purposes - for sleeping around and taking a different girl out every weekend. and if there's one thing clever teenage boys don't like, it's people interrupting whatever it is they'd rather be doing with admonishments or rumors (sirius canonically hates bertha jorkins, lol). plus, dating girls involves some level of responsibility that i don't think sirius was really interested in during his hogwarts years; CH Darling does a really great job of underlining this in TLE: The Howling Nights when james gets his first girlfriend and realizes that a girlfriend demands time and attention and care, and isn't just someone he can pick up and put down to snog between classes.

it's pretty unlikely that he was a virgin; he was a teenage boy, after all. i just think it's a bit wild that he might've slept with half the school, the way he's depicted in fanon. personally (and this is just my own headcanon/reading at this point) i think he was very selective about the people he brought into his orbit, and was quite commitment-phobic, not to mention hyper-aware of the fact that many people would've been attracted to him for the money or infamy his surname telegraphed. plus, while there's some line in the series about how sirius tended to "get the girls," in a group as (relatively) small and tight-knit as wizarding society, we literally never hear about an ex-lover of sirius black in canon.