[HPforGrownups] Trusting characters Re: bullies? twins, padfoot and prongs

[Magda Grantwich]

No: HPFGUIDX 118846

--- cubfanbudwoman <susiequsie23 at sbcglobal.net> wrote:
 
> SSSusan:
> Actually, I don't really care what kind of good Sirius could have 
> done or not done; I'm merely spouting off about what I think Sirius
> himself might have been thinking.  Some posters have been arguing 
> that Sirius' case as presented makes no sense -- that he must've 
> been in on a double-cross of James & Lily -- or that he was a 
> coward.  I'm trying to show an alternative way of looking at his 
> actions which might bring us to a different conclusion.


I don't think anyone really believes that he was evil or a
double-crosser or a coward.  And his case as presented does make
sense and all of his actions are very much in character.   

At Hogwarts, Sirius and James were very used to being bright and at
the top of their classes, they were used to going around authority if
not ignoring it completely, they were reckless but rarely (if ever)
suffered for it, and in general had good reason to believe that they
could take care of themselves in any circumstances.  They'd safely
hung out with a werewolf for years, James and Lily had defied
Voldemort three times, they had come up with magical devices to allow
them to circumvent uncomfortable situations (ie, the mirrors) and
were used to going their own way.

So I find it quite easy to believe that Sirius would propose - and
James would accept - the SK switching scheme (the SKSS for short). 
Personally I think the idea was bad from the start even if Peter
hadn't been a traitor: it strikes me as a short-term plan that would
have been unsustainable in the long run since the disappearance of
Sirius and Peter from social circulation for more than a few weeks
would inevitably attract comment and attention.  Not to mention
Voldemort's talents as a Legilimens (which Dumbledore would have
known about through Snape if no other way) which would have got the
truth out of either of them had Voldemort caught either Peter or
Sirius.  

So Sirius didn't think through all the possible ramifications of his
actions - just like he didn't think through all the ramifications of
the Prank with all the bad things that would have happened to Remus,
Dumbledore and Snape had James not intervened.

Then we have Sirius getting worried and checking out Peter's hidey
hole and then going off to GH and finding the wreckage.  And then
going after Peter single-handedly, even though he now knew that there
was more to Peter than he'd at first assumed and that since Peter
knew that he was supposed to meet him, there was every possibility of
a trap.  Ditto what I said above about Sirius not thinking through
all the angles before acting. And add on a description of
recklessness because he had no idea what he'd actually be facing when
he caught up with Peter, as well as not taking the time to stop and
inform his commanding officer what he was up to.  Didn't they have
owls in Godric's Hollow?

These are not signs that Sirius was evil or a double-crosser.  They
are signs that the same traits that made him a fun friend and great
guy to have along on an illicit adventure were the exact same traits
that would take him straight into the jaws of a beautifully executed
trap.

I don't think we've really begun to plumb the depths of Peter's
cunning as revealed in the 24 hours after Voldemort went to GH. 
Peter might have been an average student compared to his friends but
he obviously has more than his share of cunning and he's very
observant.  He read Sirius like a book and knew exactly how he'd
react to finding Peter missing and then finding the wreckage at GH. 
He knew all the buttons to press to send Sirius into an emotional
state where he was incapable of rational thought.  And it didn't
occur to Sirius until he watched Peter disappear into a sewer and
realized he'd been magnificently "pranked" by the loser of the group.

No wonder the MoM thought he'd gone mad.

Magda




		
__________________________________ 
Do you Yahoo!? 
Meet the all-new My Yahoo! - Try it today! 
http://my.yahoo.com