💜💓VAL💓💜

I mean yeah Peter can clearly be very sneaky and manipulative, he fucks Sirius and James over later. There is so much you can do with that concept without taking away the pretty well established dynamics between these characters. (Re: Snape's Worst Memory where Peter acts like a little James fanboy and the Shack scene in POA where Sirius points out how Peter always wanted to be friends with people who are cooler than him.)

about him being there unwillingly. refusing to unpack his bag. constantly paying attention to adults’ body language. not knowing how to tell if they’re angry. feeling out of place, frustrated and trapped. getting irritated by excessive tactile contact. tensing up when hearing the sound of people loudly talking or footsteps getting closer. being acutely aware of someone else’s presence. the tactics he has been honing for years not working anymore. him being on edge, waiting for a hit what will never come.

as soon as he inherits his uncle’s money he gets his own flat. the first night he opens the window, turns on the crappy telly and curls up on the couch in front of it.

i love ugly regulus

i love that they are all shitty people in one way or another

i love the marauders that were horrible to severus and that severus was just as horrible back

i love arrogant sirius and with that i love sirius 'i wish it was a full moon' black

i love walburga with all the complexity of the black family + how (im pretty sure) she was only a strict parent

i love coward remus

i love rich privileged kid james

i love peter and how he was their best friend and thats why the betrayal hurt so much

i love hope and lyall

i love smart james + sirius

i love all the canon ships

i love deatheater regulus + barty + evan + peter + severus.

i love lily who started dating her ex-friends enemy

i love remus who did not give a fuck about the prank

i love all the complexity of every character

As far as we know, there was little research about werewolves, and most of it was about how to kill them or the dangerous beasts they were. So, probably, the fact that they didn't hurt animals/animagi was not public knowledge, and difficult to find. (Besides, it was probably not 100% verified that it would work).

This means, James, Sirius and Peter had to do real research to discover it. They had to be looking for a way to be with Remus/understand him better/help him and the research had to be thorough to find out a way to be near a werewolf without them hurting you.

Now, we should also remember that the Animagi spell was high-level and very dangerous. We see very few characters being Animagi in the HP series, and they are presentes as very talented wizards. James, Sirius and Peter did it as teenagers.

Of course, they were reckless and find it somehow funny (remember that Remus said they were the best years of his life, so he enjoyed it too even if he couldn't remember those nights), but that doesn't negate the fact that they cared enough to, once again, do the research. Because being reckless and stupid could also mean trying to see Remus-Moony as humans, or flying above the Forbbiden Forest, or whatever three teenagers could have thought of. But they really wanted to find a way to be by his side, with their friend.

All of this when they had been taught, for sure, that werewolves were monsters, untrustworthy, and not worthy at all. But they loved Remus to the point they dismissed all of that, because they saw REMUS LUPIN, their friend, not just a werewolf.

They were stupid and reckles, but it takes deep care to be so stupid and reckles just to help a friend, when the whole word is telling you that you should hate him and be afraid of him.

I also completely agree that there wouldn't be some sort of: How to help your werewolf friend guide available to the boys. But there are a few points I'd like to argue.

Canon supports that Remus and werewolves can remember everything

Nowhere in canon is it suggested that Remus can't remember being a werewolf, and twice it is implied he can.

This is referenced by the OP, so why assume he can't remember when he calls it the best time of his life? In any case, we have this other piece:

"Lupin says he never ate anythin' las' night" suggests that Remus was more than able to account for his movements as a werewolf.

There was information available about werewolves going beyond how to kill them

In the late nineteenth century the great English authority on werewolves, Professor Marlowe Forfang, undertook the first comprehensive study of their habits. He found that nearly all those he managed to study and question had been wizards before being bitten. He also learned from the werewolves that Muggles ‘taste’ different to wizards and that they are much more likely to die of their wounds, whereas witches and wizards survive to become werewolves.

If Professor Marlowe Forfang studied their habits to the point of learning that Muggles 'taste' different to wizards, he probably also studied how werewolves didn't prey on other animals. This is, admittedly, an assumption, but in any case, there was research far above: how to kill them. Another example, how to treat werewolf bites are common knowledge:

The many Muggle myths and legends surrounding werewolves are, in the main, false, although some contain nuggets of truth. Silver bullets do not kill werewolves, but a mixture of powdered silver and dittany applied to a fresh bite will ‘seal’ the wound and prevent the victim bleeding to death (although tragic tales are told of victims who beg to be allowed to die rather than to live on as werewolves).

In fact, it's part of the syllabus in PS/SS:

In 1975, Hairy Snout, Human Heart was published by an anonymous author about his struggle against lycanthropy. Now at this point we know the Marauders were already working on becoming animagi (if not already having succeeded), so this is less relevant for that, but since I was diving into the topic, I thought I should flag it. Particularly because publishing in a way can give an indication of changing times. Obviously, discrimination was still high, but clearly, this author felt there was a market for this book in the 1970s.

Remus would possibly be aware of the fact that werewolves only curse humans from his own transformation

We know Remus does not have visible scars in canon. We know he must have some scars after the attack from Fenrir. But we also know that Remus bites and claws himself. So how come he's been able to avoid any visible scars all this time? Well, the most logical explanation is that those scars aren't cursed because he clawed himself in animal form, and can be removed by magic.

This fits what we know about canon, and so even if it wasn't public knowledge, Remus would be aware of the nuances. We don't know of course. What we know is this: Remus scratches and bites himself. Werewolves' bites/scratches are only cursed on humans. Remus never notes that he had any visible tells that could have given him away as a student.

Right? At no point does he say: my three friends could hardly fail to notice I spent days in the hospital wing with bandages or claw / bite marks.

Now, going back to my initial statement. I agree. And when I write about this in my long fic, I do have them struggle finding out how to help Remus. When they find out they should become animals, they actually first go down the route of transfiguration with a wand (like Draco gets turned into a ferret in GOF), not becoming animagi. I am 100% in the camp: it wasn't obvious from the start, and it took work. I just don't think it was unknown. I think it was known. Just niche knowledge.

'But you said,' started James, eyebrows knitted together, like he was trying to make sense of something, 'that during your transformation, you scratch and bite yourself.' Right. Remus hadn't intended to tell James that, and certainly didn't like the idea of Sirius and Peter hearing it now. But yes, it had slipped out, somehow, while they were both in the Hospital Wing.   'That doesn't leave permanent scars,' explained Remus.  'These scars-,' he pointed to his torso, before deciding they'd seen enough; he pulled on his pyjama top again before continuing, 'they're cursed. But the curse only applies to humans. When I am... transformed... well...' I am not human. I am a monster. And I cannot curse myself any further. 'Of course,' James nodded, eyes wide in understanding. 'I mean, we knew - I just didn't connect the dots.' 'None of us did,' agreed Sirius. The two best friends exchanged yet another look. It seemed charged with energy and understanding. But this time, Remus had no idea what it meant.

Like is that actually James and Sirius’s middle names?😭

Are James parents canon? Did they actually explicitly tell us that that are their names?😭🙏

As far as I am aware, Sirius's and James's middle names have never been mentioned in the books or any supplimental canon. The logic behind choosing those names is probably based on the idea that especially pureblood wizards are big on family lineages and continuing them. There are things in the books or what Rowling has said that back up this:

Harry James (DH CH7) Ronald "Ron" Bilius (DH CH7) Regulus Arcturus (DH CH10) Percy Ignatius (OOTP CH8) Ginevra "Ginny" Molly (Leaky Cauldron article)

@plecotusauritus - I agree. And I totally see the argument for Sirius being Sirius Orion, even if it's certainly not canon. I don't write him with a middle name to make that point, but still.

Of the Weasley's we also know Bill's name: “Do you, William Arthur, take Fleur Isabelle ... ?” who is the oldest son. So the oldest daughter and the oldest son gets the middle names of their parents amongst the Weasleys. The rest gets relations. And given Regulus has a middle name... I think it's fair game to assume Sirius was also given a middle name, and that this was likely Orion.

Nevertheless, the only person with a middle name in my family, of four children, is my younger (and youngest) sister. Final chance to get some names in. She had four names, the rest of us two.

Man’s Best Friend

Something with James and Sirius as Padfoot? Padfoot being jealous of the cat?

“I am so proud of the fact that a character, whom I always liked very much, though he never appeared as much more than a brooding presence in the books, has gained a passionate fan-club.”

This wasn’t the only time she expressed surprise that Sirius became a fan favourite, and it’s honestly baffling to me??? He had an entire book named after and primarily revolving around him, and is canonically the closest thing to a parent that Harry, the protagonist of the series, ever had. Even if we disregard everything else we know about Sirius and his storyline, there’s no way in hell he wasn’t going to be popular. If I didn’t know better, I’d have said that a character like that was specifically designed for fan service (I mean...he's hot, has a flying motorbike, and is literally named after a star, lol). It’s bizarre that Rowling seems to have had no idea, and that she believed he was / intended him to be nothing more than a “brooding presence” in the series – which is at any rate an appalling and deeply unsympathetic way to describe his trauma and depression.

It made me think of how there's such a major disconnect between authorial intent and authorial execution when it comes to his character as well, especially in Order of the Phoenix. Characters like Molly or Hermione call him irresponsible/reckless/immature, claim he confused Harry and James, that he treated Harry like a friend rather than a godson, that he was biased against Snape, etc. Rowling’s interviews confirm that she intended to characterize Sirius in such a way and that Hermione and Molly are meant to be viewed as her mouthpieces. But Sirius’s actual behavior and relationship with Harry does not correspond with any of this and his actions + dialogue are for the most part very reasonable and sympathetic. (There’s also Kreacher’s storyline, which made me dislike Sirius a lot when I was younger, but upon my reread comes across as almost entirely nonsensical, contradictory, and seems specifically designed to paint Sirius in a bad light to the point where he’s compared to VOLDEMORT of all people by Hermione - who, in the process of criticizing Sirius, dehumanizes house elves entirely by claiming that none of them are capable of individual morality or have any ethical agency of their own. It's frustrating because she's 100% right that house elves should be freed but the way she infantalizes them is...pretty shitty and not the way to go about it. But I digress.)

Rowling seems to have done a complete 180 degree turn on how Sirius is presented by the narrative between Goblet of Fire and Order of the Phoenix, and I can’t really understand why.

I get the sense that the creation of Sirius’s character in particular was, at the very least, partly accidental on Rowling’s part. She didn’t expect him to blow up the way he did, and I get the sense that she doesn’t seem to have been thrilled by how much the early HP fandom liked/valorized him. There was an interview where she was asked if she liked him, and she said that she did, only to immediately list down all his alleged flaws and emphasize that “I do not think he was wholly wonderful” (which character in the series is wholly wonderful, lol? Sirius came across as a great deal better than most to me). There have been so many other interviews where she’s done the same thing despite the fact that Sirius's faults or perceived faults had absolutely nothing to do with the questions at hand. It’s such a startling contrast how she talks about pretty much everyone else from his generation, all of whom she seems considerably warmer and more sympathetic towards in varying degrees.

As I haven’t been back in the fandom for very long, this is the first time I’ve come across her interviews - I’m not sure if I’m reading too much into them or not. I wondered if you agree/disagree, as you’ve been in the fandom for much longer and I love all your metas about the series. Thanks :)

You’ve hit upon my personal Rage Point for the entire series, anon.

I want to start by pointing something out about Sirius and Kreacher, which is that in GoF Sirius tells Ron and Harry (and Hermione, though he brings it up to compliment her observational skills) that Crouch Sr.’s mistreatment of Winky is an indicator of his character. (“If you want to know what a man’s like, take a good look at how he treats his inferiors, not his equals.”) This is, somehow, the same man who one book later is egregiously dismissive of and abusive toward his family’s house-elf, to the point that this dismissal causes his death (oh, and Albus blames him for dying, too.) Despite Sirius expressing two wildly different viewpoints from book to book, we’re intended to take that as his true self, as the authentic expression of his beliefs and position.

In OotP, Rowling clearly shifted gears. I think it was during this time, when she realized that Harry had to defeat Voldemort and that she would need to set this up.

This meant that she needed Harry to turn into a character who would go after Voldemort and who couldn't hide behind other characters. So she did The Thing(tm) that is standard for fantasy hero's journey-stories: She decided to remove his parental figures and mentors.

This is why both Sirius and Dumbledore had to die. And it's probably also why the order is so fucking useless.

Additionally, this is also the time when she fell in love with Rickman's version of Snape. While it does start in GoF, she really tried to turn Snape into a more sympathetic character from OotP onwards. She also used OotP and HBP to set up his redemption reveal in DH.

This morphed basically every character around him. Neville - who was a pathetic loser and running joke - got his hero-glow up (which removed the bully-victim-relationship he had with Snape), for example. The relationship between Harry and Snape became more film-like. At the same time, the Marauders - who had been pretty much the good guys up to this point - were turned into the villains of his origin story.

All that said: Yeah, I agree. I would not be surprised, had she changed Sirius (and Remus) to think this ship.

It's pretty obvious that she adjusted her narrative to react to criticism, fans, and trends in fandom. This is probably the reason why we got the house-elf-slavery-plot in GoF. It's her reaction to fans discussing and asking questions about the Dobby-plot and the implications it had for the wizarding world. (And her reaction was: shut up, it's fiiine! House elves want this!!!)

It's also why she destroyed the time turners in OotP - book after fans expected to see them used more widely after PoA.

And it's probably also the reason why Draco starts to have a redemption arc in HBP, just for that redemption arc to come to a screeching halt in DH. She has been pretty outspoken about her general dislike of Draco and how she thought that fans who like him were stupid, naive and misguided. I would not be surprised, had she cut his redemption arc, just to spite Draco-fans.

Additionally, I definitively agree with you on Remadora. I mean, Rowling doesn't have a good track record, when it comes to writing romantic relationships. But that pairing is on a completely different level. To me, it definitively reads like "No. Stop making them queer. They are straight. You hear me? They. Are. Straight! See, here? Straight. They are pining over each other. And now they are married and having a baby! And now they are dead! Shut up about them being queer!"

So yeah. I definitively buy it. It wouldn't surprise me if that was a main motivation behind the shift in Sirius' character in OotP. It would fit irritatingly well into the broader picture.

I think this Snape-cascade effect might also be a reason Lucius and Narcissa Malfoy get more sympathetic after Book 4. I mean, we've already established that Book 1-3 Snape is close with the Malfoys, so if he's going to be Hero Snape they can't be monsters. Lucius goes from threatening to curse the other governors and like, almost killing children to being framed as the less hot-headed voice of reason trying to rein Bellatrix in during Book 5. and then he's just Voldemort's punching back 6-7. Narcissa goes from resting bitch face to uncomplicated heroics.