How popular Sirius Black Fanon doesn’t actually suck very much at all in my opinion…
@izzythehutt that’s a very interesting post. I like that you do note that everyone is entitled to ship whoever they want with whoever they want. I also wanted to say that I have read/am reading your fics in which you have a very specific take on your idea of canon Sirius’ character. And I do really enjoy your version of him, and your version of the Black family. I can completely see why @giblimort agrees with this post so much as they are a fan of your writing too.
However, I feel like your description of the Sirius character that exists in the Wolfstar fandom is not true. I think you might just be referring to fun, comedy/extremely fluffy fics when you describe him as always being “a hot, happy-go-lucky and/or angsty smart-ass rebel who loves the Sex Pistols and leather jackets” and as “ a boring generic fuck boi”. Yes sure this version does exist, but not in fics where people are writing a more serious (l know) story.
You also mention the “general trend towards making him a victim of an abusive childhood, which also has basically no basis in canon (everything about how that character acts in the flashbacks/in general suggests an upbringing far more like Draco’s than Harry’s… FIGHT ME ON THIS)”.
Now I will fight you on this, because I work in this area, and I also enjoy a good debate!
Firstly, in my opinion, there is definite canon evidence that Sirius Black was verbally/emotionally abused by his family - emotional abuse includes: humiliating or constantly criticising a child, calling them names and or shouting at them, using sarcasm to hurt a child, blaming or scapegoating them, trying to control their lives, rarely saying anything kind or positive, emotional coldness etc. The evidence of Walburga’s portrait screaming horrible things at anyone who disagrees with her pureblood beliefs and Sirius Black having to keep her portrait closed even if he is in the house on his own, and more importantly him saying he was constantly reminded of the fact that he was a disappointment and constantly compared unfavourably with his younger brother by his parents, and how he hated it at home.
Emotional abuse has very negative consequences on children who experience it, as negative, if not more so, than physical abuse. In the short term, signs of emotional abuse include lack of self-esteem, struggle to control emotions/extreme outbursts, difficulty maintaining relationships/making friends, seeming isolated from your parents, acting in a way that is inappropriate for your age.
In the longer term, it can make a person act in a “clingy” manner, not caring how they act/what happens to them ie recklessness, developing risky behaviours such as stealing, bullying or running away. It can affect a child’s emotional development including problems with expressing and controlling emotions, anger problems, difficulty maintaining healthy relationships in later life, higher levels of depression, other mental illness (such as psychosis and eating disorders), addiction issues, and health problems as adults compared to those who experience other types of child abuse (which may sound counter-intuitive).
Any feature of canon Sirius there?
Anyway, Sirius Black ran away from home at age 16 and did not return. This is a huge red flag. Running away from home is something that should be reported to social services in real life as it is a risk factor for all types of child abuse. Nevertheless most kids who run away from home come back pretty quickly i.e less than one week and stay within 50 miles of home. Those who don’t come back are much more likely to have been exposed to some form of significant/serious child abuse, there is a very high rate in this group of kids (especially physical abuse). It is associated with poor relationship with parents, high risk behaviours, co-occurance of mental illnesses especially depression (but also psychosis and substance use) - up to 50%; and substance abuse - up to 2/3.
While physical abuse is never mentioned in canon, it is common to experience both, and let’s not forget that the marauders grew up in the 1960s and 1970s where physical abuse as a form of punishment was relatively common. In addition, JKR said she wanted Harry to have been physically abused but the publishers didn’t like it. So she would not have put that into anyone’s canon backstory even if she imagined it so.
So I would challenge that despite his posh clothes and house, servants etc, Sirius’ upbringing had quite a bit in common with Harry’s. Both had adults/ guardians who did not like them/emotionally abused them. Yes you can be a child abuser and not completely hate your child, you can convince yourself you are actually a very decent, reasonable parent - there are glimpses of some feeling between Petunia and Harry, and I’m sure between Sirius and his mother. Both hated living at home. Sirius ran away and was welcomed into the Potter family who treated him like their own. The Weasley kids broke Harry out of Privet Drive and brought him to the Weasleys who throughout the books also welcomed him into their family and treated him like their own. Sirius wanted to provide that loving home for Harry but unfortunately died before he could do so. Draco in canon is a spoilt, doted-on child who always knows he can rely on Daddy and Mummy to fix everything for him - “My father shall hear about this”. He has a horrible time later on when Voldemort threatens to kill his parents if he doesn’t cooperate etc but in general, I see little resemblance at all to Sirius’ upbringing, aside from both families being bigoted purebloods. Fascists can love their children and still be fascist gobshites, as the Malfoys prove.
You describing Wolfstar fics as “the tragic gay boyfriend of Remus Lupin who was kicked out of his parents house for being such and it’s just…so fucking tiresome.” Well firstly, sadly, nowadays and in the past, being kicked out for being gay is not uncommon, so hardly very unrealistic. This even happens in families where parents could otherwise be described as reasonably decent. Therefore especially if writing an AU, this is a very reasonable way of explaining the fact he ran away. But I have read LOADS of Wolfstar fics, including canon fics, where he runs away due to other reasons (lots of them, mostly just a last straw in the ongoing rows/conflict with his parents), so I am very confused. I think maybe you read a few fics and presumed this applied to all Wolfstar stories?
I think my explanations above are very much in keeping with what you said about Sirius being “ a guy whose response to realizing his best friends have been betrayed and that everyone will probably think it was him who did it IS TO GO REVENGE KILL THE BETRAYER IN QUESTION without stopping to explain what happened” although I think he tried to take Harry and explained that his parents wanted him to care for the baby if anything happened to them, and it is only when this is denied to him, when he feels he has lost everything, that he goes after Pettigrew…
But, that recklessness? That fake nonchalance? That refusing to admit he is wrong? Taking unnecessary risks? That telling Snape about Remus? That emotional instability? All the things you say about canon Sirius are very much exactly in keeping with emotional child abuse.
I see Remus as having emotional issues to do with the trauma he suffered as a young child and then the recurring trauma every month. Could be PTSD, could be the type of emotional issues that children with chronic painful illnesses suffer. I see them as equals. I see them as also understanding each other’s problems unlike the rest of their friends. If you decide to headcanon them as being attracted to each other, I see that as very understandable. Remus is an attractive character. He is kind, incredibly brave, a great friend, funny (remember the way he helps Neville and the chewing gum up the nose stuff) a gifted teacher, attractive in a faded, jaded, tragic secret/past, hoarse voice type of a way. Sirius is an attractive character in a conventionally attractive, troubled past, v brave, reckless, devoted and utterly loyal kind of a way. Why wouldn’t they find each other attractive if they were LGBTQ+??
Personally I don’t like when either Sirius or Remus is too perfect and the other character too dependent on them. I don’t like that in any ships. I don’t agree with all characterisations of Wolfstar. But to each their own!!
If you are interested in reading a canon fic with characterisation of Sirius (with Wolfstar) that would challenge your prejudices about how that ship is written (which you probably aren’t, but for anyone out there who is) I can suggest a few fics:
The Dog You Feed and Strange & Erratic Portents by @january3693 (pre relationship in the first fic part)
Heavy In Your Arms by @mollymarymarie
Or my version of the marauders canon story We Can Be Heroes
@hp-marauders-fics this is also a reply to your post (thanks for tagging me!) and to @decadentmelancholia who you thought might like to see this???
The main thing is, it’s ok to hate a ship or love a ship, absolutely.
But perhaps let’s not assume that there is only one “valid” or “canon” interpretation of a character. There is no absolute truth. These are all opinions, even the interpretation of “canon” Sirius is just an opinion! And having different ones and being able to discuss them politely and without being dismissive is a very interesting thing if you enjoy these characters, so I hope other people join in or add to this…