[HPforGrownups] Re: Sirius' and Snape's grudges - Lupin's reserve

[Vicky Ra]

No: HPFGUIDX 20990

Monika said:
It seems that he was quite immature at 16 when he told Snape about
the Whomping Willow (but he did *not* drag him into the tunnel,

Catherine added:
I think that sending Snape to the Whomping Willow
was an immature teenage prank, in which the ramifications hadn't
properly been thought through.

Yes, but Sirius knew Snape would take the bait. He may not have wanted him
dead, but it was still pretty mean. Granted, the dementor's kiss is worse,
but if Snape had been bitten, Lupin probably would have felt terribly. As
for the teenager argument, I can't accept it. Both of them are acting out of
hatred, so neither party's actions are excusable. It'll be interesting when
we find out what fuels their fires.

Monika: but I am
still convinced that Sirius' violent outbursts in PoA have
*nothing* to do with overall poor impulse control. (If I bore you,
just don't read on.) They look way more like a pretty classic symptom
of post-traumatic stress disorder. I'd like to see the individual that
would go through what Sirius has gone through and get away
without being traumatized. But then, I might be biased because he
is my favorite. I just can't see him as a violent git, and the fact that
he didn't lose it any more in GoF after recovering for a few months
seems to corroborate the theory that his losing control is more
likely a symptom of PTSD than a character trait.

Okay. I suppose that's plausible.

Monika: He still hates Snape, that's true, but he's not
interested in killing him, he wouldn't go looking for him.

Would Snape really kill Sirius, though? It's hard to say. I doubt either of
them would help each other out if they were in a bind. They hate each other
equally.

(About Sirius)
Catherine: He acts extremely maturely in all his dealings with Harry

Of course, he does. He likes him.

[About Snape]
> What maturation process? He's petty and malicious, but he's on the right
> side.

Monika: I think so, too, but Snape is pretty immature IMO. Look at the way
he always
picks on those who are weaker than him and not likely to defend
themselves. The way he treats Harry, and the way he treats Hermione.
I don't know if I will ever forgive him the comment he made about
Hermione's teeth or threatening Harry with the truth potion. And I
doubt he would have threatened Sirius with the dementor's kiss in the
Shrieking Shack if Sirius had been his equal, I mean if he would have
been able to defend himself with a wand. I always thought that
Snape was being sadistic, he could have just put a full body bind on
Sirius and bring him in. But no, he first threatened to Avada Kedavra
someone who didn't have a wand to duel, and because this still wasn't
enough, he threatened his arch-enemy with the dementor's kiss just
for the pleasure to see the fear on his face.

Okay, I'll give you that. Revelling in someone's fear is pretty immature,
but then Snape could have just killed Sirius. He could have slipped
Veritaserum in Harry's pumpkin juice whenever Harry wouldn't tell everything
he knew. The comment on Hermione's teeth was cruel, though. I guess what I'm
saying is that he doesn't act on his threats. He does have a need to
threaten people, and to control them, but despite his immaturity, I can't
hate him. If I met someone like him IRL, I probably wouldn't like him, and
we'd be at each other's throats, since I have a major temper. But somehow,
his mysterious past keeps me enthralled, and I'm guessing that he has just
as much right to hate Sirius as Sirius does to hate him. I guess what it
boils down to is their mutual hatred for each other. Sirius is obviously
more mature than Snape, but he can't let go of his grudge, and that's what I
can't understand. I can't wait till all is revealed. I wonder if girls were
involved.

Emma: One has to wonder what dear Remus was thinking when all of this went
down.

Yes. Lupin is quite secretive. He doesn't seem to like to show emotion. But
I suppose that comes of not being around people too much, and closing
oneself off. Perhaps he can identify with Snape in the loneliness and being
shunned by society. Maybe they both feel as if they have no one to trust
with their feelings, or that to analyze their lives brings only pain. They
can't trust people, because people don't want to understand them. People
only hurt them. I can identify with this kind of loneliness and sorrow,
being a misfit in high school. I read too many classics, and was the kid who
always knew the answers. These are the things I felt.

Vicky