Prisoner of Azkaban: Chapters 17 & 18

Wizard rock of the week: "Peter Pettigrew"by Hogwarts Trainwreck

By gum, I got it in just under the wire! It's still Tuesday! And so this post is only eight weeks late...

Darlings, as impossible as it might be to believe, I actually forgot about this little blogging adventure for a brief spell. So many other things have been capturing my time and attention for the past two months.

And here we are

(Shameless plug: The Final Battle is gonna be awesome. But we need.... um, money. Check it. Our Livestream show last month raised $1,500 but we still need another $1,500.

Update: Alan of YouTube/DFTBA fame shocked us all with his generosity. Thanks Alan! Wow! We're still looking for another $500, but we are getting so close!)

And because I cannot adequately express my sorrow about my lax blogging, I delegate that to Peter Cetara and the gang:



So without further ado, let's begin! This post will cover Prisoner of Azkaban, Chapters 17 and 18, in which we ride the backstory train and depart at Foreshadowing Station. (Obligatory warning for your own good: if you click the previous link you might never be seen again).

Chapter Seventeen: Cat, Rat, and Dog

What Happens:

In the aftermath of Buckbeak's execution the kids are in shock, especially Hermione. Devastated, they head back up toward the castle but Scabbers leaps out of Rons hands. Ron can't figure out why the rat is wigging, until Harry spots Crookshanks, about to pounce. Scabbers bites Ron to escape and tears off across the grounds. Ron runs after him in the darkness and Harry and Hermione follow. Before they get very far a giant black dog leaps out of nowhere and attacks Ron. It drags a very injured Ron toward the Whomping Willow and down into a secret passage below its roots.

Desperate to save Ron, Harry and Hermione fight their way through the Willow until Crookshanks returns. He touches the tree with his paws and the branches freeze, allowing the kids to get inside without losing any eyes. The tunnel is dark and dank, and not quite tall enough for Harry to stand in. They try to run down the passage but know that they dog is far ahead. Finally Harry sees light and they clamber up into a destroyed house: the Shrieking Shack. They hear movement in the upstairs and sneak up the hall, terrified.

Ron is okay, relatively; he's lying on one of the old bedrooms, injured but alive. He tries to warn them it's a trap but it's too late; the dog is gone, replaced by the gaunt, dirty form of Sirius Black.

A boiling hate erupted in Harry's chest, laving no place for fear. For the first time in his life, he wanted his wand back in his hand, not to defend himself, but to attack... to kill.

Harry lunges forward to attack him, but Hermione restrains him. She and Ron warn Black that he'll have to kill them too. Chaos ensues as they attack each other, but Harry ends up facing a wandless Black. He wants to kill him. He knows he has the perfect chance. But the seconds drag and Harry can't bring himself to do it. As he hesitates the kids hear someone below and Hermione screams for help. It's Lupin. He and Sirius have a strange conversation way over Harry's head, but it ends with the two adults embracing. Harry is shocked but Hermione is the one who screeches and accuses Lupin of treachery... and being a werewolf.

Lupin explains that all the staff knew about him, and that he knew Sirius was here tonight because of the Marauders' Map. Harry is incredulous that he knows how to use it, but as Lupin was one of its creators, he's familiar with it. Lupin and Sirius keep referring to a "he" who is with Ron, until they point at Scabbers and declare him to be not a rat but an Animagus named Peter Pettigrew.


Commentary:

Hoboy. Action chapter! And.... go!

There are two things that leap out right away about this chapter: a huge step forward in Harry's self-awareness and character development and how very close it came to all ending very badly. Or ending worse, rather, since at this point things are still pretty dicey.

The quote above- about Harry's blood rage-- is a big deal. Harry's harmed people before with magic , but it's always been in self-defense (or for fun & profit; ie making fun of Malfoy) and never very seriously. Here he contemplates murder, and contemplates it seriously. He himself is aware of the difference and it doesn't scare him. But, thankfully, when he does get the chance a few moments later, he can't bring himself to do it.

A hero who can't actually bring himself to end anther's life -- even one who might actually deserve it -- is incredibly common in fiction. After all, we're supposed to root for this guy, right? And if he ends another life- even a guilty one -- he drops a few pegs on the integrity ladder. But also, remember that Harry is only thirteen, and it would have been horrible had he gone through with it. The real story would've come out eventually, so had he actually killed Sirius the guilt would have likely driven him round the twist.

{This situation is a rather good example why the death penalty is a horrible idea; ie, the System found Sirius guilty and all the evidence pointed at him. But we don't really ever know the whole story, do we? And you can release a prisoner if his name is cleared, but no spell can reawaken the dead.} *Steps off soapbox*

To wrap up this very long point: Harry's tendency to hesitate killing people might seem like a weakness now, and will again, especially in DH, but in the end, it's usually the right choice. Especially knowing what we know about Horcruxes and how they're made, Harry can't ever kill someone if he's supposed to be the opposite of Voldemort, who kills entirely without remorse.

Also, let's take a second to appreciate Mr. Ronald Bilius Weasley, who, at this point in the story, has endured terrible things all for the sake of protecting his silly pet rat. Even knowing what we know about that rat, it's kind of adorable.

Chapter Eighteen: Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot, and Prongs

What Happens:

Harry protests: Scabbers can't be Pettigrew, because, as everyone knows, Black killed Pettigrew in front of dozens of Muggles twelve years ago. Black wants to kills Pettigrew straight away, but Lupin insists they wait and explain everything to the kids first.

Lupin explains that Sirius didn't kill Peter, but he meant to: at the last second Peter transformed into a rat and escaped, framing Sirius. Hermione cuts in, retorting that Peter couldn't have been an Animagus because all known Animagi are registered at the Ministry so they can be checked on. Lupin agrees with her, except that the Ministry never knew about three teenaged Animagi that used to run wild at Hogwarts about twenty-five years ago.

As Lupin continues his story they all hear something creak in the house. Ron insists the Shack is haunted, but Lupin denies it. He was the reason the house is so feared. As a small child Lupin was bitten by a werewolf. Under normal circumstances he could never have come to school, but Dumbledore made special arrangements, including a place Lupin could come every month and transform, safely away from other students.

Lupin's life was hardly rosy thanks to his condition, but at school he made three wonderful friends- Sirius, James Potter, and Peter Pettigrew. Eventually they figured out why he disappeared every month, and rather than be repulsed they took it upon themselves to study extra Transfiguration and become Animagi to keep him company during his transformations. They had all sorts of escapades while disguised as animals, and their wanderings led them to create the Marauders' Map.

Remus explains that he felt terribly guilty for the risks they were taking, but always squashed the guilt as he and his mates planned their next month's activities. Lupin mentions that Snape fought particularly hard against Lupin's employment at Hogwarts. Sirius is disgusted; he hadn't known Snape was a Hogwarts teacher, too. Snape was in the same year as the Marauders at school, and always tried to figure out where they went. He disliked all four of them, but especially James. One month Sirius tricked Snape into approaching the Willow, and it could have resulted in Snape's death or a werewolf attack. James, however, prevented Snape from reaching Lupin and saved his life.

And speak of the devil, Snape walks in, pointing his wand at the wandless Lupin.


Commentary:

Oh man, I loves me some backstory. This chapter is probably why Prisoner of Azkaban is like #3 on my "Let's Rank the Potter Books" list (behind #1 GoF and #2 HBP, in case you were wondering).

If you weren't already on Lupin's team (what's wrong with you?) this chapter has got to clinch it. Just the sympathy vote alone is enough to melt anyone's heart. Poor Lupin. He's subjected to a horrible circumstance, but rather than become bitter or angry, he's just happy to have friends. And even fifteen/sixteen year-old Lupin feels guilty about the more questionable things he and his buddies do.

We get a small glimpse into Snape's history here too, and a much clearer explanation of the "James saved Snape's life" incident to which Dumbledore alluded back at the end of Sorcerer's Stone. Also, I totally didn't pick up on this the first time, but Lupin notes that Snape had a particular hatred for James, guessing it had something to do with James' Quidditch skills and popularity. Guess again, buddy.

And - yay for Hermione being smart, as usual. That's our girl! But one piece of her information is a little unnerving; after all, I can kind of understand why the Ministry wants a record of Animagi. As Lupin explains, the transformation can go horribly wrong, so maybe it's like Apparation (ie you need a license because it's tricky). But it's still freaking me out a little bit.


With that, I'm out! Time to keep sewing! See y'all soon. Hopefully next week. *crosses fingers*