Fic: Five Times a Character I Love Did Something I Didn’t Like
Title: Five Times a Character I Love Did Something I Didn’t Like
Word Count: 850
Summary: Peter Pettigrew does a popular meme.
Warnings: An experiment and a bit of fun for me, but not crack!fic.
Five Times a Character I Love Did Something I Didn’t Like
1. Sirius Black. Sirius, I don’t even know where to start with you. I could fill this list with things you shouldn’t have done but did anyway--big things, important things, life-shattering things--and have dozens left over. I know, I know, your family was cruel to you, and so you’ve been cruel to us. James was always telling me this, but it’s no excuse at twenty-one or twenty-two. It’s not like the rest of us haven’t been there for you--your friends at school, your teachers and headmaster, your uncle, your cousin. We laughed at your jokes and we humored you when you crossed the line, again and again. Even when you humiliated me, the meekest of us, I turned the other cheek. I turned the cheek for years longer than I should have, because James asked me to, because he said you didn’t know any better, because I was a fool enough to believe him. You were my childhood friend and I loved you, but it’s surprising we lasted as long as we did.
Want to know something? I didn't feel that badly when I did what I had to do.
2. Albus Dumbledore. You should have told us. You should have told us about the wolf from the very beginning; you should have told us what we were getting into when we moved into that dormitory with him. We were eleven, for god’s sake. Eleven years old. You were the most important adult in my life, and I trusted you implicitly. I grew up with the lies that you told us--that Remus was one of us, that we were safe at Hogwarts, that we could come to you with our problems and expect a fair hearing. We were so young we didn’t know what lies or werewolves or danger really meant.
You shouldn’t have lied to us. You shouldn’t have taken the moral high ground when your lies were revealed, and you shouldn’t have called us into your office and extracted promises from us that we couldn’t keep. You should have told all Hogwarts when the game was up, when we saw exactly what could happen when something went wrong. You shouldn’t have silenced Snape and excused Sirius and told the school that James was a hero.
Lies are necessary sometimes, but not this kind of lie, Dumbledore. I have reservations about him, but the Dark Lord does tell the truth about us--about the importance of dark magic, about the strength of blood, about the real relations between wizards and magical creatures like werewolves and vampires. You may think that your side has won right now, but this victory is based on lies, and anything based on lies will fall apart, just like our life at Hogwarts fell apart when we moved out into the adult world.
3. Lily Potter. You wouldn’t leave the wizarding world, even when I told you it would be the best option, that silly charms weren’t enough to keep you safe. James was an easy-going bloke; he would have gone; I was working on it. You were the one who had to take a stand, who refused to run when I told you that we were nearing the end. I loved you for your kindness to me, for your humor and good nature, for the way you kept James in line, but I couldn’t respect that final decision to endanger your son’s life. You didn't even try to flee when the Dark Lord found you; you had to stay and fight. You made a decision for Harry and James that I can never accept: that principles are worth dying for. No principles are worth dying for. You could have disappeared, and you should have disappeared--I could have arranged it--but you didn’t. You didn't let me help you.
4. James Potter. Oh, James. James. You should have gone when I told you to go, you should have looked out for yourself. You trusted us, Lily and Sirius and Dumbledore and me, at a time when no one should have trusted anyone else. You were my childhood idol and one of my closest friends, and I wanted to live up to that trust more than anything, but I couldn't do it. It wasn't possible. You shouldn't have asked me to.
5. Severus Snape. You saved my sorry arse more than once over these past few years, and I'm grateful. You’re not the greasy git we thought you were when we were in school. Were we friends? Perhaps. Did I love you? Perhaps. I admired you and feared you and depended on you for information that saved my life. We were a pair, you working from one side, me from the other, trying to strike some compromise that would get us all out of this sorry situation. I thought we were both realists, and I could speak frankly to you in a way I couldn’t to James or my other friends.
But you shouldn’t have gone to Dumbledore, and you shouldn’t have lied to me about it afterward. We talked about this a hundred times: how to make strategic decisions, how to negotiate between the two sides and manipulate the ideologues, how to minimize the impact of the war on our family and friends. We trusted each other. We had plans. We had things under control.
Going to Dumbledore was the beginning of the end. You shouldn't have done it.
Peter Pettigrew, November 1981
*
I love this meme.
Sirius Black's version was transcribed by shaggydogstail.
Tom Riddle's version was transcribed by xellas.
Harry Potter's version was transcribed by clevermonikerr.
Remus Lupin's version was transcribed by aquila_star.
James Potter's version was transcribed by pink_faerie81.
Pansy Parkinson's version was transcribed by liseuse. (A variation on the original idea.)
Lily Potter's version was transcribed by lupinslittlesis.
Bellatrix Lestrange's version was transcribed by ladyblack888.
Severus Snape's version was transcribed by k_marauders.
Other versions of this meme related to the Mauraders? Read the entries by minnow_53, lupinslittlesis, and penknife. Please let me know of any additional entries I could add to this list!
Word Count: 850
Summary: Peter Pettigrew does a popular meme.
Warnings: An experiment and a bit of fun for me, but not crack!fic.
Five Times a Character I Love Did Something I Didn’t Like
1. Sirius Black. Sirius, I don’t even know where to start with you. I could fill this list with things you shouldn’t have done but did anyway--big things, important things, life-shattering things--and have dozens left over. I know, I know, your family was cruel to you, and so you’ve been cruel to us. James was always telling me this, but it’s no excuse at twenty-one or twenty-two. It’s not like the rest of us haven’t been there for you--your friends at school, your teachers and headmaster, your uncle, your cousin. We laughed at your jokes and we humored you when you crossed the line, again and again. Even when you humiliated me, the meekest of us, I turned the other cheek. I turned the cheek for years longer than I should have, because James asked me to, because he said you didn’t know any better, because I was a fool enough to believe him. You were my childhood friend and I loved you, but it’s surprising we lasted as long as we did.
Want to know something? I didn't feel that badly when I did what I had to do.
2. Albus Dumbledore. You should have told us. You should have told us about the wolf from the very beginning; you should have told us what we were getting into when we moved into that dormitory with him. We were eleven, for god’s sake. Eleven years old. You were the most important adult in my life, and I trusted you implicitly. I grew up with the lies that you told us--that Remus was one of us, that we were safe at Hogwarts, that we could come to you with our problems and expect a fair hearing. We were so young we didn’t know what lies or werewolves or danger really meant.
You shouldn’t have lied to us. You shouldn’t have taken the moral high ground when your lies were revealed, and you shouldn’t have called us into your office and extracted promises from us that we couldn’t keep. You should have told all Hogwarts when the game was up, when we saw exactly what could happen when something went wrong. You shouldn’t have silenced Snape and excused Sirius and told the school that James was a hero.
Lies are necessary sometimes, but not this kind of lie, Dumbledore. I have reservations about him, but the Dark Lord does tell the truth about us--about the importance of dark magic, about the strength of blood, about the real relations between wizards and magical creatures like werewolves and vampires. You may think that your side has won right now, but this victory is based on lies, and anything based on lies will fall apart, just like our life at Hogwarts fell apart when we moved out into the adult world.
3. Lily Potter. You wouldn’t leave the wizarding world, even when I told you it would be the best option, that silly charms weren’t enough to keep you safe. James was an easy-going bloke; he would have gone; I was working on it. You were the one who had to take a stand, who refused to run when I told you that we were nearing the end. I loved you for your kindness to me, for your humor and good nature, for the way you kept James in line, but I couldn’t respect that final decision to endanger your son’s life. You didn't even try to flee when the Dark Lord found you; you had to stay and fight. You made a decision for Harry and James that I can never accept: that principles are worth dying for. No principles are worth dying for. You could have disappeared, and you should have disappeared--I could have arranged it--but you didn’t. You didn't let me help you.
4. James Potter. Oh, James. James. You should have gone when I told you to go, you should have looked out for yourself. You trusted us, Lily and Sirius and Dumbledore and me, at a time when no one should have trusted anyone else. You were my childhood idol and one of my closest friends, and I wanted to live up to that trust more than anything, but I couldn't do it. It wasn't possible. You shouldn't have asked me to.
5. Severus Snape. You saved my sorry arse more than once over these past few years, and I'm grateful. You’re not the greasy git we thought you were when we were in school. Were we friends? Perhaps. Did I love you? Perhaps. I admired you and feared you and depended on you for information that saved my life. We were a pair, you working from one side, me from the other, trying to strike some compromise that would get us all out of this sorry situation. I thought we were both realists, and I could speak frankly to you in a way I couldn’t to James or my other friends.
But you shouldn’t have gone to Dumbledore, and you shouldn’t have lied to me about it afterward. We talked about this a hundred times: how to make strategic decisions, how to negotiate between the two sides and manipulate the ideologues, how to minimize the impact of the war on our family and friends. We trusted each other. We had plans. We had things under control.
Going to Dumbledore was the beginning of the end. You shouldn't have done it.
Peter Pettigrew, November 1981
*
I love this meme.
Sirius Black's version was transcribed by shaggydogstail.
Tom Riddle's version was transcribed by xellas.
Harry Potter's version was transcribed by clevermonikerr.
Remus Lupin's version was transcribed by aquila_star.
James Potter's version was transcribed by pink_faerie81.
Pansy Parkinson's version was transcribed by liseuse. (A variation on the original idea.)
Lily Potter's version was transcribed by lupinslittlesis.
Bellatrix Lestrange's version was transcribed by ladyblack888.
Severus Snape's version was transcribed by k_marauders.
Other versions of this meme related to the Mauraders? Read the entries by minnow_53, lupinslittlesis, and penknife. Please let me know of any additional entries I could add to this list!