Sirius in bk 1 ch 1 (was Who should raise Harry)

[Amy Z]

No: HPFGUIDX 11271

Charmian wrote:

> Several questions to ponder while waiting for book five, then. :) 
Did 
> Dumbledore know about the switch from Sirius to Pettigrew? If so, 
> then there would be no need to warn Hagrid about Sirius.

If he'd known, he would've spoken up for Sirius and not let him go to 
Azkaban; instead he told the Ministry that S was the Potters' 
Secret-Keeper.  (Sirius should've told him about the switch after 
their murders even if he hadn't done it before--Dumbledore might've 
believed him, or at least investigated.  But I bet you don't get a 
phone call before you're sent to Azkaban without trial.)

No, I think it's a sure thing he didn't know.  At the time Hagrid went 
to get Harry, and for the next 12 years, Dumbledore thought Sirius was 
the traitor.  I think not telling Hagrid was a real risk; (a) Hagrid 
might have given Harry to Sirius--slim chance, because when Dumbledore 
gives him instructions he follows them, but still . . . and more 
important, (b) Hagrid needed to know who to watch out for.  What if 
Sirius really had been the traitor?  He'd probably have killed Hagrid 
and Harry when he met Hagrid at the ruins of the house.

> If McGonagall did have any idea about the whole Fidelius charm 
thing, 
> wouldn't she say something when Hagrid mentioned Sirius (about the 
> motorcycle)? 

That makes sense.  The reason I thought she might have known was that 
you'd think that if she thought Sirius was a perfectly terrific wizard 
who was James's best friend and Harry's godfather, she'd have said 
something along those lines to Dumbledore in opposition to his 
bringing Harry to the Dursleys.  (AD:  "They're his only relatives."  
MM:  "True, but James and Lily wanted Sirius to be his guardian.")

On the other hand, we have your reasoning, plus the fact that when she 
learns James and Lily are dead she doesn't say what you would think 
would come to mind--"you mean Sirius betrayed them?"

The thing about the motorcycle is the biggest puzzler to my mind.  
Hagrid clearly knows nothing to make him suspect Sirius.  Dumbledore 
lets him take Sirius's bike back to him (another discrepancy with 
what we hear in PA, but we've dealt with that before) without warning 
him, "uh, be on your guard when you go back to Sirius Black," or 
better yet just telling him "Take it from me--don't bring him his 
bike.  I'll explain another time"? Or has Sirius already been arrested 
by then and AD knows it, so he just lets Hagrid go, knowing it's a 
wild goose chase but that he won't come to any harm? 

One explanation for any discrepancy is that JKR herself didn't know 
the Sirius story at the time, but I really doubt this is the case.  It 
is too pivotal for her not to have sketched it out, and she's said she 
had the Scabbers stuff worked out from the beginning so she probably 
had the Sirius part of the story worked out too.

Amy Z

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"This is the weirdest thing we've ever
done," Harry said fervently.
       --HP and the Prisoner of Azkaban
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