as someone who only started reading the hp books last year…the more I read, the more I just don’t get wolfstar? why on fucking earth are you shipping these two? everyone is like “uwu they’re perfect for each other”, like no?? I could get behind this ship, if someone actually portrayed them as fucked up, toxic and unhealthy they would actually be? and actually bring up issues like sirius almost exposing remus by attempting to use him as a murder weapon? the issue that remus believed sirius to be a killer for 12 years? why does everyone think they’d be okay after that? it’s not like it was the two of them who were best of friends, as far as I remember it was sirius and james? I just…don’t get the fanon that they’re soulmates and everything is sunshine and sparkles after POA.
I’ll be giving a lecture on this at 4:30pm EST. please tune in later 🙂
(Translation: im in class right now but I will totally answer in full detail later.)
Okay yes, hello my dears. It is I, your friendly neighborhood Wolfstar fantatic, here to explain why it is that the fandom feels so strongly about the romantic relationship between Sirius Black and Remus Lupin.
I have already written out a post about The Facts, outlining the actual canon proof we have that supports a relationship between Sirius and Remus throughout the series, Otherwise Known As: Classic Queerbaiting. Thanks Jo Rowling. However, I am going to make this one less about hard evidence and more about opinions and an in depth analysis of both of their characters, which is also important when trying to understand them as a couple.
I’ll start by addressing some of the OP’s points directly. Most importantly:
“I just…don’t get the fanon that they’re soulmates and everything is sunshine and sparkles after POA.”
Ahh, see that is where you are wrong, my dear. No one is claiming any sort of happy perfection before OR after POA. Wolfstar is a tragic ship that never ends happily unless it’s some sort of Alternate Universe that diverts all canon events. The Marauders as a whole did not end well, as you know, and neither does Wolfstar. It’s never smooth sailing on this ship and no matter when you headcanon them transitioning from friends to lovers, they hit constant road bumps caused by their own mental instabilities. Which brings me to your next point…
I could get behind this ship, if someone actually portrayed them as fucked up, toxic and unhealthy they would actually be?
Any good wolfstar author will portray them as toxic and unhealthy. That’s who these two are. They are both broken and full of self loathing and insecurity. This is what draws them to each other, because no one else understands what its like to have this darkness inside of them that they cannot seem to escape from.
Remus is afraid of himself. He sees himself as less than human, a monster that no one will ever see as special, let alone love him. Sirius is attractive, popular, charming and could have anyone he wanted, really. The fact that Sirius, who’s family prejudices would automatically write Remus off, cares for him in any way makes Remus feel human and normal and he clings to that.
Sirius on the other hand is a loose canon. He’s got a short temper, he’s impulsive and he doesn’t think before he acts. He’s was raised in an abusive household and isn’t use to anyone really loving him. Remus makes him want to be a better person. When Remus speaks, Sirius listens. When Remus is disappointed in him, Sirius feels shame for probably the first time in his life. There’s canon proof of this that I point out in my other post I linked in my opening paragraph.
Here’s the problem: They love each other, but it doesn’t outweigh how much they hate themselves and that is their downfall each and every time. They push each other away constantly because they don’t feel as if they deserve to have each other. They don’t deserve happiness. So they continuously hurt each other.
sirius almost exposing remus by attempting to use him as a murder weapon
Yes. The Prank is a huge deal and a GOOD WOLFSTAR SHIPPER will not ignore it. It’s a major event in the Marauder timeline and it sets up just how truly unstable both Sirius and Remus actually are. We don’t know enough about the circumstances of The Prank to say why Sirius did it, but you can bet he didn’t think before he acted. Sirius has a short fuse, and he admits he did it to scare Snape off when the Slytherin wouldn’t stop asking questions and spying on the Marauders to figure out Remus’ secret. I don’t personally believe that Sirius was legitimately trying to get Snape killed and I really don’t think he meant to use Remus as a murder weapon. I just don’t. Personally, I think Snape provoked him in some way, Sirius lost his temper and just blurted it out not thinking that Snape would actually do it.
Now, from Remus’ point of view. He certainly doesn’t forgive Sirius right away. I don’t think any of the Marauders did and I think Sirius was probably ostracized from the group for at least a few weeks before any of them even spoke to him again. However, Remus considers himself undeserving and lucky to have friends at all, and he does ultimately forgive Sirius. He also knows Sirius and knows how Sirius’ mind and emotions operate. Sirius didn’t do it to hurt Remus. He did it out of anger, because that’s who Sirius is. Remus forgives him, but he doesn’t necessarily forget. Because that’s who Remus is.
Because of all of this insecurity and the fact that they have a history of hurting each other, it’s not difficult during the first war for someone – i dont know, say a close friend or something – would be able to pit the two of them against each other, knowing just how fragile their relationship can be and knowing that the one true way to break both of them would be to make them go after each other. A really great distraction so that someone else can be sneaking around unsuspected if you ask me. *shrug*
Moving on to after POA…How could they just forgive each other after everything that’s happened? Same way they did after The Prank, they can see why what happened happened, and they just move on. They have lost too much already to be dwelling on that, why not try to be happy that they have each other back?
There is some disagreement among shippers about whether or not they get back together post PoA, but I feel that the evidence for it is very clear throughout Order Of The Phoenix. I believe they were trying to mend what had been broken, but it was difficult because they were both even more broken than they had been before. Would they have been able to have a happily ever after if Sirius hadn’t fallen through the veil? Maybe. It’s possible. But we don’t know because SOMEBODY (*looks pointedly at JKR*) killed off Sirius before the poor man could have a chance at putting his life back together.
as far as I remember it was sirius and james
Ahhhhhh, you’ve hit my pet peeve…
Yes. It was Sirius and James. They were brothers. James was Sirius’ best friend. BEST FRIEND.
BESSSSSTTTTT FRIIIEEEENNNNDDDDDD
It’s funny, I myself have a best friend, as I’m sure many of you out there in tumblr land do…Her name is Pammy, and I would take a bullet for her, plain and simple. There’s no one on this planet that means more to me than my best friend…
I’m marrying someone else though.
Yes, yes…I know…so strange that someone could have a platonic best friend who means the world to them and yet still have it somewhere in their hearts to be romantically in love with somebody else.
How come no one ever mentions Sirius when they talk about James and Lily being together?
No one says “But I thought James and Sirius were closer?”
Because having a best friend doesn’t mean you’re in love with them.
Sirius loved James.
Sirius loved Remus
Sirius loved them differently. The same way that James loved Sirius differently than he loved Lily.
For the love of Rowling PLEASE stop using James as an argument against Wolfstar. I’m going to explode.
*Ahem* Anyway…
So you see, OP, there’s a lot that goes into the relationship between Sirius and Remus. We have our reasons. They aren’t perfect, sometimes they can be outright terrible, but they also even each other out which I go into more depth with on my Facts post. You don’t have to ship them, but if you read some really well thought out and as-close-to-canon-as-possible fanfiction from the wolfstar fandom, it’s very easy to understand exactly why and how it works. I hope this helped clear some of that up. 🙂
Fuck JKR 