Wormtail in LURVE! WAS: What is Lily's big revelation in Book 5??? Help!

[ellejir]

No: HPFGUIDX 78035

--- In HPforGrownups at yahoogroups.com, 
Laura wrote:
> It's because Wormtail was MADLY IN LOVE WITH JAMES POTTER! <<snip>> 
> From the pensieve scene in OotP, it is pretty obvious that Peter
> has a creepy fangirl obsession with James. (All that *gasping* 
> and *cheering*.  Honestly.)
> <<big snip -- Laura talking about Wormtail's reasons for 
> hating Sirius, Lily, Harry and the Cause and his taking his chance
> to get back at them all when he is made the Potter's secret 
> keeper>>
> But most of all, his chance to get back at James for not loving
> him.
> And so, wa-la.  I give you, Betrayal.
> After all, if Snape could go over to the Light for love of Lily, 
> who's to say that Wormtail didn't go over to the Dark for love of
> James? *looks pointedly at the LOLLIPOPS crew*
 
Me:
There is certainly canon to support Wormtail's hero-worship of 
James.  Your theory about Wormtail actually "being in love" with 
James is interesting, but I doubt that it is the case (or at least it 
will not ever be *explicitly* stated in the series.)
  
JKR has said in interviews that although she is not writing the books 
for children, she realizes that the series has a large fan-base made 
up of children and that she would not have the characters do anything 
that was inappropriate to the tone of the books (she gave an example 
of Hermione having a teen pregnancy, I believe.)  A subplot of 
unrequited romatic love between Wormtail and James would definitely 
baffle *my* seven-year-old son (I know, I know, he doesn't get to 
watch enough TV, I guess.) I really do not think that JKR is going to 
open that can of worms (ditto to all the "Harry is gay" theorists.) 

That said, I think that your theory about Peter idolizing James and 
feeling rejected by him (for whatever reason) is a valid motivation 
for him betraying the Potters to LV.  Sirius and James certainly had 
no problem with ridiculing Peter ("How thick can you be!" and "Stop 
before WT wets himself." etc. from the pensieve scene.)  Perhaps it 
finally got to be too much for Peter and when LV came calling, he saw 
an opportunity finally to have some *power* over his supercilious 
friends.  

The fact that he wedged himself in between Lily and James in the 
picture of the Order perhaps was meant to symbolize how much James 
and Lily *both* trusted him as a friend (what dummies! <g>) or to 
suggest that WT was forcing himself into a group where he didn't 
really belong (by skills or by allegiance.)

Elle