Magna Carta? - Sirius's delay

[Zarleycat at aol.com]

No: HPFGUIDX 18867

--- In HPforGrownups at y..., "Amy Z" <aiz24 at h...> wrote:
> Dave wrote:
> 
Snip
>   
> > It also occurs to me that his imprisonment without a trial is
> > rendered even more heinous considering all the Death Eaters
> > who got off on the claim they were under the Imperious Curse.
> > Why couldn't Sirius have been under the Imperious Curse too?
> 
> Even if Sirius got the opportunity to make this argument, I bet he 
> wouldn't.  Not out of a sense of honor--even Sirius might not be so 
> noble as to go to Azkaban rather than lie--but out of despair, 
shame, 
> and guilt.  I don't think Sirius gave a damn what happened to him.  
He 
> thought he deserved to rot in Azkaban.  
> 
> Hmm, I just had another thought though.  Wouldn't he have wanted to 
> clear his name, or at least accuse Pettigrew, for the same reason 
he 
> does 12 years later:  to protect Harry?  It seems as if he knew 
from 
> the start that Pettigrew didn't die.  He wouldn't have a chance of 
> finding him, one rat among millions, or of proving that it was 
Peter 
> who was the Death Eater, so I guess I can understand why he 
wouldn't 
> even try to explain it to the MOM--but why wasn't he haunted from 
day 
> one by the thought that Peter would try to kill Harry?  Why did it 
> only start to bother him 12 years later when he saw his picture?
> 
> Amy Z
> 
Perhaps because with Voldemort in a next-to-useless state, Sirius 
knew that Peter wouldn't have the nerve to kill Harry.  Peter had no 
one to provide him with protection or shower him with rewards for 
killing Harry with Voldemort gone.  And with Peter wandering the 
earth in his rat state, how could Sirius hope to convince anyone of 
his innocence?  Add to that his sorrow and guilt over James' and 
Lily's deaths, and dealing with life among the Dementors, and you 
have someone who was probably not operating on all cylinders.

Marianne, who hopes Book VII has a happy ending for Sirius (and 
Remus).