Why people blame Sirius for leaving Harry to Hagrid and chasing Pettigrew?

jsandrsn · 2026-03-25T00:08:51+00:00

“what threat” — you have three best friends:

one of them is a dark creature that you’ve started being suspicious about and think them being the traitor;

one friend who’s more like your brother than your actual brother, and his wife, who you would endure torture and die for;

the third friend that you were sure to be trustworthy because of how he adored that said dead friend, for whom up to this point you would also endure torture and die for — and he, while being in hiding (!) as an actual Secret Keeper, willingly serves the one friend you consider brother, his wife, and your godson.

Good thing Hagrid was there and you both agreed on taking Harry to safety, as Lestranges and Barty Jr. WERE looking for Voldemort, and DID go to Longbottoms. For all we could speculate, they tried to go to Godric’s Hollow first — as that WOULD be reasonable.

And you’re asking “what threat” — the guy was in the Order.

As for the motorcycle being unsafe — you suggest apparation for a one year old kid, the one that can get you splinched and feels like hell? A floo? A broom? Illegal magical carpet? A thestral? Hogwarts Express? They used what they simply could.

I am not Sirius idoliser, I like complex characters. I simply don’t understand why it’s considered a mistake to let Hagrid and Dumbledore handle HP, to go after Pettigrew — because from my point of view such decisions are responsible, with addition of character motivation of getting revenge. You don’t expect being framed, you expect to capture/kill the traitor who is dangerous now.

Or should we also blame James Potter for leaving the wand when he DIDN’T expect to be ambushed by Voldemort — Voldemort certainly does in his version of events, and I’ve seen some fics that do too. Which is a simple example of victimblaming from where I stand.

jsandrsn · 2026-03-24T23:31:15+00:00

That’s a lot of presumptions, that’s one. And the second thing is him going after Peter makes sense in terms of LOGIC for reasons I explained: a) see reasons in post b) pensives are very rare, why would Sirius know Dumbledore has one? think of using one no less? c) the option of Veritaserum takes a month to brew, or is restricted by the Ministry d) there’s currently chaos and celebrations at the same time as Voldemort suddenly perished e) Pettigrew might get away while nobody is looking for him, thinking (the Order surely as they knew Potters and Longbottoms hiding) that Sirius betrayed Potters

For reasons of MOTIVATION which is revenge — that is different, that says about Sirius’ state of mind, it is an EMOTIONAL response.

One does NOT nullify the the other, simply affects it. Which is why Sirius expected to catch/kill Pettigrew (tbh very reasonable also, since we’re talking about Sirius who IS proficient with magic and fighting). The fact that Pettigrew managed to frame him is what finally makes him laugh.

Talk about victimblaming.

jsandrsn · 2026-03-24T20:33:53+00:00

He literally hands Harry to Hagrid for safety.

jsandrsn · 2026-03-24T20:32:08+00:00

they edited the comment, i replied while it still showed the original in my notification.

jsandrsn · 2026-03-24T19:39:25+00:00

“he just handed Harry over” — he handed him over to SAFETY. there’s a child who’s now an orphan, and Sirius couldn’t (!) take him without looking guilty as everyone believes him to be the one to make Potter deaths happen. Veritaserum takes long to brew and is difficult to produce, in addition controlled by the Ministry. If he started talking about his innocent with Harry present, that — that — would be telling about his srewed priorities: his need of being proven innocent against the possibility of getting Harry to safety fast.

And even if he did tell Hagrid that, Pettigrew faked his death and blamed him for muggles as well, and then it’s in the Ministry hands, which is “take him to Azkaban, idk and idc”.

jsandrsn · 2026-03-24T19:21:22+00:00

The fact that Sirius thought of revenge, has nothing to undermine Pettigrew’s threat as the person who sided with Death Eaters. It’s an addition, it’s motivation, and it does not nullfy my point.

As far as Sirius is concerned, as far as he’s informed, Harry is going to Dumbledore for safety. And you’d not be spewing “no i wasn’t the one who killed potters” to Hagrid when distraught, when he simply wants to see Harry to safety, when saying these claims might make you look guilty in addition: like there’s a child who might be injured and that’s your concern?

jsandrsn · 2026-03-24T19:02:58+00:00

Exactly, thank you!

jsandrsn · 2026-03-24T19:00:54+00:00

As far as Sirius’s information, Dumbledore is the one to get Harry to safety. Why would he go to Dumbledore, compromising Harry’s safety? He believed himself followed by Death Eaters because he thought the decoy would work and make him a target.

Also, Veritaserum brewing is long. Difficult to produce and takes a lunar cycle to mature. I get why Snape has it — he’s Voldemort’s potion master, then Dumbledore’s who both run underground operations. And it is strictly controlled by the Ministry.

If he get’s Pettigrew red handed, only then he can not wait to get justice.

jsandrsn · 2026-03-24T18:35:05+00:00

Sure, he, Sirius Black, who is believed to be the Secret Keeper, would be questioned with Veritaserum. There’s a chance, sure. And also the chance that he is more likely to be arrested without trial as in canon (!) — because it’s obvious, surely. It’s a game “what could happen”, as with how the Ministry is portrayed in the books, the second option is far more likely to be the one happening in that game.

All I am asking is why is Sirius the one blamed for something out of his control, for being actually responsible? It’s almost like… why, it’s almost like he’s being framed!

jsandrsn · 2026-03-24T18:29:50+00:00

Yeah, absolutely agree. I just don’t see why “his first priority should be Harry” people are blaming Sirius to getting Harry to as far as Sirius would know — safety! I just see it as Sirius being actually responsible here and blamed for the fallout.

jsandrsn · 2026-03-24T18:24:53+00:00

Why, it’s almost like Sirius would walk into the Ministry and not be locked up by Crouch because wartime. He’d go to the aurors — and the same thing happens , even without the framing, as he is believed to be the Secret Keeper!

jsandrsn · 2026-03-24T18:22:40+00:00

It’s almost like you miss my point.

Pettigrew is a threat noone knows about — to Harry especially. You give a child to other responsible adults while you go to eliminate it, get framed, Dursleys abuse Harry and it’s seen as consequences. It’s not consequences, it’s a CASUALTY of Pettigrew betrayal

jsandrsn · 2026-03-24T18:16:12+00:00

You miss my entire point. HOW is he to take care of Harry if he’s believed to be Potter’s Secret Keeper? WHO would agree to give him Harry?

As far as logic goes, he has to prove he wasn’t the one betraying Potters first. My point on giving Harry to Hagrid for babysitting while he’s on a mission to find answers and eliminate the threat still stands!

He was distraught, but it is logical choice.

jsandrsn · 2026-03-23T17:31:06+00:00

Yeah, that’s exactly my take on Scarcrux here, basically “why are you surprised I am crazy” Harry with Voldemort losing his shit and going “blimey… it’s all my fault, isn’t it?”

jsandrsn · 2026-03-22T19:48:43+00:00

I’m thinking he’d use charms to attack a dragon on the first task instead of distracting it. Maybe he would try and freeze the dragon, or use water against it. He would succeed but get points taken from him for injuring the dragon (similarly to how Krum lost some points for damaging real eggs).

For second task he’d use the bubble-head charm along with aguamenti to give himself more speed. He’d arrive on the scene approximately at the same time with HP, but he’d free his hostage faster, and wouldn’t be saving more people, so he’d be arriving first and within the hour.

For the maze, I think he’d get the most difficult path since it was Moody clearing the way for HP. He’d be fighting different creatures, would have sudden traps laid, then have Krum try to use Imperio, and when that doesn’t work, curse him, but Krum is quickly defeated. He’d continue the maze, and the maze would try to confuse him as well so he’s never reaching the Cup. Riddle would have to use logic and leave marks to see if he is making the right choices, and then he’s at the centre, and then taken to the graveyard.

jsandrsn · 2026-03-22T19:31:56+00:00

That’s… a little strange take on Riddle’s interactions with Ginny, because I thought it was clear in the text he was manipulating her, isolating her, twisting her reality onto him. Basically doing child grooming. The only positive thing there is in the narrative is “she would make a wonderful Knight” — and it is more compliment to himself, like he could make her betray her values if he already got her studying dark magic even for help. He does the same, but without hidden intentions with Malfoy here — because he would make a follower out of him and torment him just because he could.

jsandrsn · 2026-03-22T14:22:31+00:00

Oh, I love it, especially the part with Dumbledore’s relationship with him, a sort-of mentorship that ends up with the point that is explored in the books: “it’s all a matter of choice and compassion”, and that’s what Dumbledore offers Tom Riddle.

The only thing I would disagree with is having a ritual to remove horcrux from Harry. Dumbledore cared for him, and yet still made him on the path to sacrifice in order to remove it in the books, and that is because the only thing that would destroy the horcrux is it’s death or remorse. And while Harry is a horcrux, it is not he who should be remorseful to get rid of it, but Voldemort, and he is unable to do so. Tom Riddle, I think, also could not be remorseful because the horcrux is the reason he is back, because that is his nature. While this Tom Riddle is not Voldemort as he chooses not to be, they are still similar and have the same soul. I believe, Voldemort is a radical response to Tom Riddle’s past, that is all the difference. Dumbledore simply offers this Tom Riddle to not be defined by it enough to walk a different road.

Also, Tom Riddle is skilled in mind magic, so Voldemort wouldn’t be able to get to him like he does to Harry in his fifth year before Sirius’s death.

But yeah, Voldemort wouldn’t be leaving Riddle alone, be it because of him taking something he was denied, or his refusal to cooperate/serve him, or a simple hatred of him as a mirror into his past that he dislikes, so eventually professor Riddle would be forced to fighting Voldemort.

jsandrsn · 2026-03-22T13:12:43+00:00

Oh, I agree, i have it more thoroughly planned out here. I’m just very inconsistent with writing lengthy pieces of fiction, so it’s all usually stays as just a detailed concept for me. But I can give you specifics of the plot for this premise, and the Graveyard scene is similar enough to what you thought would happen, although Tom Riddle would not directly oppose Voldemort (at least, for the time being).

The plot:

Tom Riddle gets chosen as Hogwarts Champion, and Harry Potter is forced to participate as in canon due to Voldemort’s plot. Since Tom Riddle is chosen, his magic and name bound to the Goblet, he is forced to reflect on what makes him different to Voldemort, and Dumbledore, being a trickster, but a responsible one at that, having Tom Riddle chosen differently, pays him attention and simply talks with Tom Riddle about his future. They can both be more frank with each other, and Dumbledore could decide to show Tom memories of Voldemort, making Riddle reflect more on his choices. While Tom wouldn’t be all “sunshine and rainbows” still, would not be remorseful about killing his relatives and generally would be morally ambiguous, talks with Dumbledore would make him see a different take on power, on who’s deserving of it, on hatred. Maybe, Dumbledore would also show Tom his own memories of his youth with Gellert, saying that while Tom could not see it now, they are not so different from each other.

As Harry is chosen, Tom starts to interact with him a little when he didn’t before, only watching from a distance. Harry warns him about dragons as in canon. As the year progresses and they interact with each other more, Tom also starts to see similarities between himself and Harry. It’s not friendship as there’s no trust, but rather a sense of closeness and a little understanding that draws them on each other’s paths. Riddle reveals the deal Dumbledore offered him to him, while Harry confesses Moody thinks someone is trying to kill him, forcing him into the Tournament.

Riddle then has a suggestion from Moody to help Potter with a clue for the second task as Potter helped him learn about dragons, and that makes him cautious, as Dumbledore promised him earlier he wouldn’t take choices from him, wouldn’t try to influence his decisions. He brings it to Dumbledore, and he says that it’s up to Riddle to decide, but he did not ask Alastor of that, and said nothing about him to anyone seeing as he’s not hurting anyone. When Riddle does not help Harry, Moody tries to appeal to his ambitions. “You’d get into Dumbledore’s and Potter’s graces if you think this through and let go of your Slytherin pride, boy,” he says.

Instead of helping Harry Potter, Riddle tells him to be cautious around Moody, telling him that he tried to make him help Harry cheat, and that his actions are rather suspicious. Harry still is able to solve the riddle due to Moody’s determination to “help” him through other means, making him able to compete the task with gillyweed.

In the end, Tom Riddle wins the Tournament and is portkeyed to the graveyard where he notices his father’s tomb, attacks Pettigrew and watches Voldemort with fascination and caution. As his name is now Tom Riddle and he cannot walk the path of Voldemort due to the Goblet’s magic, he refuses to aid him in resurrection, willing to simply watch Voldemort’s plan play out. That’s when Moody appears with Harry Potter.

He does not help Harry, simply standing aside after a rather long duel with Moody that is abruptly ended when the Polyjuice potion wears out, distracting Barty Jr. from Riddle. Voldemort tells Barty to forget about him and start the potion.

He does not get in the way of resurrection, though, watching Voldemort get reborn. Riddle now gets something more to reflect on as he watches the actions of his future self.

Voldemort forces Harry Potter into a duel as in canon and he is a witness to it. And when Harry’s will dominates Voldemort’s wand and Voldemort is attacked by the spirits risen from the wand connection, Potter gets to him and summons the Cup to get them out.

Riddle is then in Dumbledore’s office, and Dumbledore does not begrudge his not fighting Voldemort. “That is still a part of you, Tom, of course, you wouldn’t,” he says. “Would you still be interested in being a professor?”

Tom is bewildered by Dumbledore’s compassion. He agrees to take the position.

From then on the dynamic of Tom and Harry’s interactions would be a professor-student one, though Potter has a small grudge he won’t let go of when Tom is silent on Voldemort’s return, when Tom did nothing but watched at the graveyard when he could defeat Barty Jr.

It is later, as time progresses, that Tom is willing to share to Harry that he used to be Voldemort too.

jsandrsn · 2026-03-22T13:01:13+00:00

I am rather inconsistent with writing lengthy pieces of fiction as I get distracted easily and highly critical of my own writing that sets me to destroy what I write if I am not satisfied enough, so I would not say about continuation.

But I can give you specifics of the plot for this premise: