I recently came across this wonderfully written Harry Potter Marauders-era fanfiction called All the Young Dudes. This got me thinking a lot about Peter Pettigrew.
In this fic, Peter has an older sister named Philomena Pettigrew who runs away with her Muggle boyfriend. This serves as a plot convenience for Remus Lupin, but the fic never quite delves into Peter's feelings about his sister leaving. This made me think about Andromeda leaving her own sisters for Ted Tonks—the situation is almost an exact parallel.
Now let's talk about canon. Peter Pettigrew works with the Death Eaters as a spy, similar to Severus Snape. Canonically, Bellatrix Lestrange was deeply mistrustful of Snape because of his association with Albus Dumbledore, despite the fact that he used to be a Death Eater and managed to convince Voldemort, the most powerful Legilimens of all time, of his loyalty. Are we to believe that she never had her doubts about James Potter's best friend? About the man her blood-traitor cousin would trust with his life?
I think she did interrogate him just as she interrogated Snape but eventually resonated with his experience because of what she went through with Andromeda.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Bellatrix wrinkles her nose in disdain upon being introduced to the newest member of the Dark Lord's inner circle, but she dares not utter a word of protest with Him present. When the meeting is over, she immediately accosts the whimpering little rat with a haughty laugh."Since when do you, a Gryffindor who keeps the company of Mudbloods and blood traitors, support the Dark Lord's cause?"Pettigrew inhales deeply, attempting to gather all of his "courage," if he could call it that, before answering. "I didn't always," he says tentatively. "I started to resent Muggles when my sister ran away with one."
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Bellatrix Lestrange was not expecting to hear this, but she does, and suddenly she is Bellatrix Black again- a 21 year old girl sobbing on her knees, begging her younger sister to stay.
Her perfect younger sister, who had always been the ideal Black. Her silent younger sister, who kept to herself apart from the occasional conversation with Sirius and Narcissa. Her mysterious younger sister, who listened to everyone's troubles but told none of hers. Her traitor younger sister, who let her get so excited about them marrying into the same family only to betray her and their entire family for a worthless Mudblood who couldn't possibly offer her anything good. Her precious younger sister, who stood before her with tears in her eyes, beseeching them to come with her, for it was the only way she would ever see them again.
Always her younger sister.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
She looks at Peter and sees, for the first time, almost a mirror of herself, and yet a stark contrast.
His older sister, who laid the first crack. Her younger sister, the straw that broke the camel's back.
His turmoil because he betrayed the people he loved. Her turmoil because she didn’t.
His pent-up resentment. Her pent-up resentment.
His skewed version of love. Her skewed version of love.
Bellatrix Lestrange, the deranged psychopath who looks perpetually ready to kill, softens for a moment- ever so slightly. Peter is slightly less scared for his life.
"I believe you," she says finally. She exhales a sigh she seemed to have been holding in for longer than she realized.
Peter squeaks in relief, and suddenly his guilt eases slightly. If he could get the validation he sought from Bellatrix Lestrange but not from his friends, who claimed to love him, he owed them nothing.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Comments