Sirius/Molly/Lupin as Guardians (Re: Dumbledore, Leader of ...)

[Jen Reese]

No: HPFGUIDX 83985

--- In HPforGrownups at yahoogroups.com, "arrowsmithbt" 
<arrowsmithbt at b...> wrote:

> Molly has her feet on the ground, she recognises just how dangerous
> Sirius would be as a guardian - you might as well hand Harry over 
to
> the Malfoys. Sirius does not listen, he does not think, he only 
feels.
> Molly also  realises the unthinking admiration Harry has for 
Sirius, he
> sees him as a  glamorous figure to be admired and emulated - a very
> dangerous mindset. 

Jen: You inject 'realism', I'll inject canon that gives Harry a 
little credit for contemplating Sirius with more than "unthinking 
admiration":

"All right, all right, I've got the point," said Sirius. He looked 
most displeased. "Just an idea, thought you might like to get 
together--"
"I would, I just don't want you chucked in Azkaban!" said Harry. 
(OOTP, US, chap 14, p. 305)

"He {Harry} had a bad feeling about this parting; he did not know 
when they would see each other and felt that it was incumbent upon 
him to say something to Sirius to stop him doing anything stupid..." 
(OOTP, chap. 24, p. 523)

And this last quote is right after Sirius gives Harry the two-way 
mirror: "Okay," said Harry, stowing the package away in the inside 
pocket of his jacket, but he knew he would never use whatever it 
was. It would not be he, Harry, who lured Sirius from his place of 
safety...." (OOTP, chap. 24, p. 523).


Now maybe someone else sees unabashed hero worship in Harry's view 
of Sirius, but I don't. 

The bottom line is Harry doesn't need a guardian anymore by OOTP, 
Sirius, Molly, Dumbledore, whoever. Yes he needs guidance, support, 
sounding boards, etc. but he doesn't exactly get any of that, now 
does he?  No, the wheels came off in OOTP and none of the adults did 
right by Harry. 

Sirius struggles with his "reckless behavior" and wanting Harry to 
be a friend; Molly struggles with smothering Harry and treating him 
like a child; and Dumbledore struggles with trying to protect Harry, 
thus not treating him as Voldemort's equal, which Harry has proven 
himself to be. They all try to balance their primal instincts and 
fail, IMO.

In fact, I'd say Lupin is the only one who continually shows an 
ability to treat Harry with the dignity and respect of a surrogate 
parent. Lupin exhibits remarkable common-sense when dealing with 
Harry--he alone is able to hold Harry in his mind as both a teenager 
and the One with the Power. He can assist Harry with learning new 
skills and upbraid him for doing stupid things like going to 
Hogsmeade. He is able to withold information that might be hurtful 
to Harry (i.e., POA)and talk to Harry frankly when the situation 
calls for it (i.e, giving limited information on Voldemort in OOTP). 
He is also the one trying to keep the children safe in the MOM 
during the battle over the Prophecy, and restains Harry from 
entering the veil.

Say what you will about Lupin and his inability to make stellar 
choices in his own life; in Harry's life he is a voice of reason and 
restraint, allowing Harry to be who he is. Lupin provides education 
and boundaries, keeps Harry safe when the situation calls for it, 
and allows him to take risks when the situation calls for *that*. A 
model that Molly, Sirius and Dumbledore would have done well to 
emulate in OOTP.