Harry's dad

[Donna]

No: HPFGUIDX 74854

--- In HPforGrownups at yahoogroups.com, "lucchaser" <lucchaser at y...> 
wrote:
> 
> 
> carlisle32002:
> > If James Potter is supposed to be a decent guy, why do he and his 
> pals (Lupin, Sirius) torment and pick on Snape during their time at 
> hogwarts?  Lily had the decency to tell him to stop. James looked a 
> bit like Malfoy does now. I don't understand. >>
>  
> K (Kathryn): 
> > Then you've clearly never met a 15 year old boy. James and Sirius 
> were popular, good looking, sporting heroes (well James was anyway, 
> not sure about Sirius' quidditch prowess) hence they picked on the 
> unpopular kids. Is it a nice thing to do? No of course it isn't, 
but 
> teenagers are like that.
> At some point after the memory we see they presumably grew up 
> (personally I think it was the Shack Incident that did it). >>>
> 
> Lucchaser:
> I agree with K. I just want to add the to the fact that we don't 
> know the whole story with James, Sirius and Snape. We just got a little 
> glimse of what they were like when they were younger (at that 
> perfect age of 15). There is more to it, so we really can't judge James and 
> Sirius on that one scene. For all we know, judging on how Snape was 
> defending himself, Snape could have done some horrible things to 
> James, Sirius and company too. 
> 


Let's not forget the fact that memories are always subjective.  Harry 
was seeing the incident through Snape's recollection.  Snape may have 
embellished the memory to make James and company seem worse than they 
were.  The incident is valid.  James and Sirius being 15 and popular, 
were most probably arrogant and just a bit bullying.  With each of 
our own memories, when we have experienced difficult times, don't we 
project the worst on to our antagonists?  Doesn't Snape make the 
incident come across as unprovoked?  

Admittedly, Lupin does tell Harry that the incident did happen.  But 
he did not go into details and he also tried to reassure Harry that 
James was really a good person.  He does let Harry know that Snape 
and James were basically enemies since they started at Hogwarts.  Who 
knows what provoked the incident.

This is the first real glimpse of what James and Lily were like.  
Perhaps Harry will get the chance to find out more about James and 
his family.  Seems to me that Remus still has a large part to play in 
this tale.  Perhaps JKR will let Harry and Remus have the time to 
discuss James.  I, for one, am most curious to know more about James' 
family.  Was James a pure blood wizard?  There are clues as to him 
being a very talented wizard.  Is there a possiblity that through 
James, Harry and Voldemort have a familial connection?  Is that why 
Voldemort chose Harry rather than Neville?  Both of their parents 
defeated Voldemort three times.  

I think Voldemort would be concerned with someone from his own family 
line inheriting his own capabilities.  After all, his mother was a 
witch.  Could she have been in the Potter family line?  Wouldn't it 
make sense that when Voldemort transferred some of his own power to 
Harry, that it was because of shared blood lines?  Voldemort chose 
Harry when he could have also picked Neville.  That implies a 
knowledge of James and Lily.  And I think it was more than the fact 
that they were in the first Order of the Phoenix.

And the wands were brothers.  Wizards can use other wizard's wands.  
Look at Ron, his own first wand was a hand-me-down.  I think the 
connection was more than just the sharing of the Phoenix 
feather.      

"Donna"