Sirius: Slashing the Fat Lady & Remorse

[kiricat2001]

No: HPFGUIDX 47683

--- In HPforGrownups at y..., "Steve" <bboy_mn at y...> wrote:

> One thing that has puzzle me, is the prank where Sirius sent Snape 
to
> meet the werewolf!Lupin. He was a kid when he did that, teen boys 
can
> be very impulsive, and generally lacking in a lot of forethought. 
So,
> it's understandable that in the 'teen' moment, he would see this as 
a
> joke. Fortunately, James had a little more foresight, saw that this
> was a potentially deadly situation, and stopped it.
> 
> But Sirius is an adult now, surely he must see that what he did as a
> teen was wrong, and that a deadly joke is no joking matter. I would
> think any person, no matter how proud or how much he may still 
dislike
> Snape, would have to see that this was wrong. I don't understand why
> he doesn't offer a simple apology like, 'Snape, I was a kid and did
> something stupid. Now I realize how wrong I was. Sorry.'
> 
> He doesn't have to beg or grovel or anything else, just a simple 'I
> screwed up and I'm sorry'. Or even, 'Snape, I hate your oily guts, 
but
> I was wrong and I'm sorry'.
> 
> Maybe things like this are such minor details that if the author
> dwelled on them all, the story would bog down under everyone hugging
> and saying they're sorry. But this one point has always bothered me.
> He has to see that he was wrong, how could he not? But he has given 
no
> indication that he even acknowledges his mistake.


I'm with Marina on this one.  In the Shrieking Shack, not only was 
everyone at a high emotional pitch, but when Snape makes his 
entrance, he ties up Lupin, and threatens Black with death, perhaps - 
("Give me a reason to do it and I swear I will") or the Dementor's 
Kiss.  Snape may or may not have carried through on his threats. But, 
this is not setting a scene where Sirius will suddenly feel the need 
to apologize for the Prank, "Gee, sorry about that werewolf thing 
back in school - please don't call in the Dementors."

And the scene in the Hospital in GoF comes right after the horror of 
the graveyard battle between Harry and V, and after the revelations 
about Moody and Moody/Crouch.  Again, people were probably a bit 
wound up.  Snape just gets through a fruitless effort to convince 
Fudge that V. truly has arisen, Sirius is fresh from the scene in 
Dumbledore's office...And, Snape's reaction to seeing Sirius is one 
of great antipathy.  Put all this together and again you have a scene 
where I think it would be illogical for Sirius to suddenly want to 
make amends or seek a reconciliation with Snape over something that 
happened so many years ago.  It simply is not a priority at that 
moment. 

And, in either of these scenes, had Sirius sincerely apologized, do 
you honestly think Snape would have believed him?

Having set up the antagonism between these two so nicely, and now 
having them grudgingly acknowledge to each other that they are on the 
same side, (even if Dumbledore had to practically knock their heads 
together to get them to do so), don't you think JKR is planting the 
seeds for some sort of close future interaction between the two? 

Marianne