Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot, and Prongs

Chapter 18 of Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban: Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot, and Prongs

Synopsis

Harry, Ron, and Hermione insist Lupin and Black must be crazy, Scabbers could not be Peter Pettigrew; Sirius Black murdered him twelve years ago. Black says he did try to kill him, but, unknown to him, Peter escaped. Black lunges at Scabbers. Ron, still clutching Scabbers, yells in pain when his injured leg is jostled. Lupin insists that Harry must understand everything before Pettigrew dies. Black acquiesces, but demands Lupin be quick, he wants to commit the murder for which he was imprisoned. When Ron reminds Black there were witnesses who saw him kill Pettigrew and the Muggles, Black contends they were fooled. Hermione points out that Pettigrew is not listed among the seven registered Animagi. Lupin claims there were three unregistered Animagi running around Hogwarts.

Ron, noting a door apparently opening by itself, thinks the Shrieking Shack is haunted, but Lupin claims it is not. The howls the villagers heard were his, not Ghosts. Before there was a potion to allow a Werewolf to retain his mind, the Shrieking Shack was built specifically to confine Lupin during his transformations. The Whomping Willow was planted to guard the tunnel leading to the shack. Terrible as the transformations were, Lupin did have three great friends: Sirius Black, Peter Pettigrew, and James Potter. After discovering he was a Werewolf, rather than shunning their friend, they secretly became Animagi to support him. It took them three years to learn how, perfecting it in their fifth year. James and Black learned on their own, but Pettigrew needed their help. When transformed, they could safely run with Lupin in the Forbidden Forest. Sirius and James were large enough to keep a Werewolf in check, though there were near misses. Their Animagus forms determined their nicknames; Black was Padfoot, James was Prongs. Pettigrew, the rat, was Wormtail.

Harry asks what animal his father was, but Hermione interrupts, saying it was dangerous to allow a Werewolf to run free. Lupin admits it was, but they were young and uncaring. Lupin regrets never telling Dumbledore that Black is an Animagus, but says he was ashamed to admit to him that he betrayed his trust by once roaming the village as a Werewolf. Lupin believed Black was serving Voldemort and convinced himself that Black used Dark Magic to enter the castle, rather than his Animagus form. He confesses that Snape was partially right, that by remaining silent, he was aiding Black. Black demands to know how Snape is involved, and Lupin explains that Snape is now a Hogwarts teacher. Black once tricked Snape after he became curious about Lupin's monthly disappearances. Black told him about the Whomping Willow and how to get into the tunnel. It was James' last-minute intervention that saved Snape from a deadly Werewolf. Dumbledore had, of course, forbidden Snape from revealing anything about Lupin's condition.

Says Harry, "So that's why Snape hates you." Behind Lupin, pulling off the Invisibility Cloak, Snape replies, "That's right."

Analysis

Many questions are answered, but Harry is barely able to digest what is happening. Nothing is what it seemed, and Harry had become so entrenched in his belief that Sirius Black was guilty that he is barely able to consider any other explanation. The revelations concerning Lupin's and Pettigrew's roles only add further confusion. Regardless, Harry learns much about his father and his comrades that he never knew before, and gains some insight into Snape's animosity towards him and James Potter.

Harry, curious, asks what his father's Animagus' shape was, but Hermione inconveniently interrupts before we are given an answer. There have been few Animagi; presumably, mastering the ability is too difficult a feat for most Wizards, and it is mentioned here that Pettigrew succeeded only because James Potter and Sirius Black coached him. Being an Animagus is certainly a useful ability, though it is a skill that can also be used for unethical and illegal purposes. That is why all Animagus Wizards must be registered with the Ministry of Magic, failing to do so is a serious crime. That obviously never deterred James Potter, Sirius Black, and Peter Pettigrew, whose solidarity for their friend, Remus Lupin, outweighed any legal concerns. Of the four Marauders, Pettigrew was the weakest - physically, intellectually, and magically lagging behind the others in ability. Why the Sorting Hat placed Pettigrew into Gryffindor is a mysterious decision and is never explained. Slytherin would seem more appropriate. However, that Pettigrew was able to become an Animagus at all may indicate that he has some noteworthy magical ability, though bravery, loyalty, and nobility, Gryffindor traits, hardly seems to be among his attributes.

An Animagus is unable to choose his animal shape; rather, it reflects that person's inner character. The rat form certainly seems appropriate for Pettigrew (Wormtail), representing that animal's less desirable traits, while Sirius' (Padfoot) dog shape emphasizes amity, courage, and fidelity. It should be noted that in the Western world, the rat is generally associated with unsavory characteristics such as cowardice, treachery, deceit, and filth. However, in other cultures it can represent admirable qualities, and in the Chinese Zodiac the rat symbolizes intelligence, adaptability, and industriousness. Rowling is using the Western characterization here, though some Eastern characteristics could also apply to Pettigrew including edginess, shrewdness, and opportunism, traits often associated with Slytherin. Though it is unknown yet what James Potter's Animagus form was, his nickname "Prongs" no doubt provides a clue.

The door opening, apparently by itself, prompting Ron to comment that the Shrieking Shack is haunted, should be noted. It is reasonably clear that this is when Snape, under Harry's Invisibility Cloak, entered the room, though it is entirely possible that he had been listening from outside. Thus, he will certainly have heard that the Marauders were Animagi, but may have missed that Scabbers is Pettigrew, or, being Snape, he simply refuses to believe it.

Questions

Review

1. Why did Sirius Black, James Potter, and Peter Pettigrew become unregistered Animagi? How did they achieve this?
2. What do Lupin and Black reveal about "Scabbers"?
3. Why does Black want to kill Pettigrew?
4. Why was the Shrieking Shack built? Is it haunted?
5. What is Severus Snape's past connection to Black, Lupin, Pettigrew, and James Potter?

Further Study

1. What might James Potter's nickname (Prongs) indicate about his Animagus animal shape?
2. Why have there been so few Animagi in Wizarding history?
3. Why do all Wizard Animagi have to be registered with the Ministry of Magic?
4. Although Lupin had always believed Black was guilty, why did he never reveal Black's secret Animagus ability?

Greater Picture

"Prongs" refers to James Potter's Animagus form, a stag. Interestingly, it is the same shape as Harry's fully-formed Patronus. This is why Lupin was so shaken after the Quidditch match with Ravenclaw in a previous chapter, recognizing it as James' Animagus shape. With the possible exception of Black, who had been present at an earlier match, and perhaps the supposedly missing Scabbers (Pettigrew), nobody else present understood the shape's significance. Harry, busy catching the Snitch, is unable to see it himself, thus missing the vital clue as to what James' nickname might refer to.

Much of Ron's reluctance to accept that Scabbers may actually be Pettigrew is likely denial on his part. If Scabbers is Pettigrew, then Ron has been sharing his bed, unknowingly, with a grown man for the past three years at least. This prospect, horrifying for Ron to contemplate, is something he is eventually unable to deny and finally revolts him.

Harry is also reluctant to accept what is being revealed, which perhaps stems from the commonly shared belief that Sirius betrayed his parents. He is, however, being convinced by Lupin and Black's precise recounting of events, aided by his personal trust in Lupin. Snape's appearance will actually bolster Black's account as Snape rejects everything Lupin and Black claim, even those events that are immediately provable. Harry's distrust of Snape, combined with Snape's attempted refutation, will do more than anything to convince Harry that Black's intentions are good.

It is mentioned that Pettigrew's inclusion in the Marauders seems odd. The other three befriended Pettigrew because he ingratiated himself into their inner circle, and presumably because he was able to think up interesting mischief for them to do. We will see later that the Marauders, with the possible exception of Lupin, were more than mischievous, and that aspect of Pettigrew's personality may have appealed to them. Pettigrew's weak, cowardly character eventually resulted in his defection to Voldemort and betraying his friends.

As mentioned, based on what has been revealed since he entered the room under the Invisibility Cloak, Snape will have heard that the Marauders are Animagi, but not Black's and Lupin's claim that Pettigrew is alive as Scabbers. However, this hardly seems germane to Snape, and, in the next chapter, Snape forms his own theory about what happened, acting on those ideas, literally stifling any dissent.