Sirius Laughing

[macfotuk at yahoo.com]

No: HPFGUIDX 113082

--- In HPforGrownups at yahoogroups.com, "kiricat2001" <Zarleycat at a...> 
wrote:
>  Lissa:
> >> > 
> > > 1.) Sirius's mind just broke with grief at that point- he knew 
he 
> > > was framed, he was done for, and James and Lily were dead (and 
> for 
> > > all he might guess at that point, Peter could be on his way to 
> kill 
> > > Remus as well).  He laughed because it was an impossible 
reaction 
> > > to an impossible situation.
> > > 2.) Relief- Absolute proof that Remus wasn't the traitor, and 
> > > laughing at the sheer implausibility that little Peter had 
pulled 
> > > this off.
> > > 3.) (I wish I could claim credit for this, but I can't) Peter 
> > > tossed a Cheering Charm at Sirius- an overdone Cheering Charm 
> made 
> > > Ron laugh like crazy in fourth year.  Nice, simple spell that 
> gets 
> > > Sirius laughing uncontrollably... and unable to protest his 
own 
> > > innocence because he's laughing too hard to speak.
> 
> Nora replied:
> 
> > 4.  Mutation of numbah one--not merely grief, but intense self-
> > loathing...bitter laughter filled with hatred at himself for 
> > everything that he thinks he has been the cause of.  Weeping 
would 
> be 
> > the resort of the 'innocent'.
> > 
> > [Not to mention that there's an interesting literary parallel, 
not 
> > that I think it has *anything* to do with the HP incident.  
> Wagner's 
> > Kundry, who laughed at Christ on his way to the Cross, is cursed 
to 
> > live forever to seek Him again...and she cannot weep, she can 
only 
> > laugh horrible mocking laughter, in both her pain and her 
sorrow.]
> 
> Marianne:
> 
> 5.  Gross exaggeration of what happened at the time, which has 
grown 
> into Wizard legend.  Maybe Sirius was not laughing all that madly. 
> We've only heard about this from people like Fudge, who might have 
> built up the story of the capture of Voldy's Pure Evil Right-Hand 
Man 
> because it makes him, Fudge, look brave and daring.  Or, to give 
> Fudge the benefit of the doubt, maybe Sirius did vent with a few 
> howls of disbelief, grief, or whatever, and, through the passage 
of 
> time, that has been enlarged into great gales of insane cackling.
> 
> Marianne

Aha! I have just thought of a MUCH more satisfying answer to my own 
question than ALL of these except perhaps the cheering charm (which 
however requires Pettigrew to do a lot of fancy simultaneous magic - 
cause explosion, cheer Sirius, sever his own finger, prevent Sirius 
killing him and transform to rat - and everyone knows he's not a 
very capable wizard):

[6] Pettigrew somehow fools Sirius into thinking that he has blown 
himself up (through ineptitude) either just as Sirius was about to 
kill him, or worse as a feigned attack on Sirius just as Sirius is 
asking him to explain himself. Sirius would laugh for three reasons 
(a) the bad guy's attack has backfired (b) the traitor is dead and 
James is avenged, and (c) it would be a typically stupid thing for 
the weakest of the MPW&P axis to do to himself. Sirius never 
explains the laughter, suggesting it wasn't a (malicious) spell, 
otherwise it would be yet another thing for him to list in accusing 
Wormtail in the shrieking shack. The only thing Sirius might need to 
explain might be why he'd laughed when 13 muggles were dead (is the 
number 13 significant btw?).

It strikes me that Sirius goes off with the ministry men not so much 
willingly because he feels guilty but because the good guys have 
turned up and he can now explain himself. Of course, he is never 
given the opportunity. Also, he considers himself guilty of 
Pettigrew's murder (but in his mind entirely justifiably) and to 
take the rap. He also considers himself innocent we *know*, but I 
would read it as meaning innocent of being a death eater (why the 
ministry wants him locked up) and innocent of betraying the Potter's 
secret whereabouts to LV (why even the good guys/OotP want him 
locked up). Why else does he not escape (nor anyone help him) until 
he learns of evidence that Pettigrew is not, after all, dead and so 
the one crime he *IS* guilty of didn't in fact happen and, moreover, 
there's a way to prove his innocence in all three respects. So, he's 
compliant in Azkhaban because while he thinks they got it wrong on 
this and that he has his hands up on Wormtail - " Fair cop! (but the 
rat deserved to die). I'd do it again." And of course this is what 
he attempts to do.