Hold me while I show you my Lupin feels

[birdsofshore]

I feel like I'm spamming everyone this week, but I need to discuss my overwhelming feels for Remus Lupin. I've been reading Prisoner of Azkaban with my eldest son for a while now (we only get 10 or 15 mins most nights without his brothers, but I love sharing it with him) and I've enjoyed it an awful lot more than I did on the times I've read it alone. I remember a discussion recently on hp_canon_love about what was your favourite book, and LOADS of people picked POA. I was really surprised, as I actively disliked a lot of things about it.

For instance: Dementors *huge shudder*. They are just WAY TOO SCARY after what's at heart been quite a jolly children's series up til then. They really jarred with me the first time I read POA (read: scared the wiggins out of me), and on rereads I still find them too sinister, depressing and basically about the worst thing I can imagine. And to have 13-year-old Harry having to listen to the sounds of his mother dying every time they come close - UGH. 13 is just nothing; he's so young. I find it all very upsetting.

However, my son J loves it all, doesn't give a shit about the Dementors, and thinks Sirius Black is the best thing since sliced bread (although you'll be pleased to hear Lucius Malfoy is still his favourite :DD). That's my other problem with POA - I don't care that much about Sirius - at least not as much as I am meant to, I don't think. BUT. LUPIN, OMG. He's INCREDIBLE.

I've always liked Lupin, I mean, obviously, he's a very likeable character, but I think I underestimated him until now. He is just SO DECENT. This is a quality that's maybe not that sexy until you are in your 40s. I know I've always been more about the bad boys. But now, suddenly, I've got 3 kids who I need plenty of help supporting, and I'm not very attractive or fertile any more, and my sexual organs are going "HELLOOOOO NICE DECENT MEN, you look good to me. You don't seem like you'll run off just because I've got a saggy arse and the baby's keeping us awake every night.". Suddenly decent men are really what it's all about. (although Lupin DOES run off, silly git, but we'll pass over that for now. At least he comes back).

Lupin is such a fabulous teacher, and he's so saucily laidback and in control of everything. I mean, he takes on the Boggart in DADA, because he thinks Harry's Boggart is going to be Lord Voldemort and freak everyone out. The Boggart, of course, turns into the moon in front of the whole class, thereby giving the biggest clue yet that Lupin's a werewolf, and presumably making him feel quite frightened, and yet he just says 'Riddikulus' "almost lazily." ALMOST LAZILY. Yowzers. Basically I want to throw my knickers at him.

Today, my son and I just got to the Shrieking Shack, and it's so exciting and Lupin is a complete and utter BAMF. But all wrapped up in a cardigan-wearing, nice-decent-bloke package. First of all, he gets it virtually straight away when Sirius says Pettigrew has been hiding as Scabbers. He thought he was coming to save Harry and co. from Black, the evil murderer, but when he sees Pettigrew on the map and finds out he's been a rat for twelve years, he takes about three seconds and then goes "ah, so.... Sirius, you changed places as Secret Keeper and didn't tell me? Pettigrew killed James and Lily and faked his own death? You're completely innocent and you've come to rescue Harry from Pettigrew? Right then, I'll just work that all out without any explanation, and completely take it in my stride, without breaking a sweat."

THEN, when everyone is screaming and threatening to kill each other and getting completely over-excited, Lupin is doing things like saying "Certainly, Hermione," courteously and "Not at all, Padfoot, old friend," casually. I love that JKR abuses adverbs almost as much as me, and what delightful adverbs they are. Everyone else is frothing and capslocking like mad, and Lupin is standing there ROLLING UP HIS SLEEVES. This is what awesomeness looks like, and my underwear just flew off all by itself.

So, is Lupin this incredible in all the other books? How did I miss this?

Comments

[birdsofshore]

My worry is that Lupin might tend towards feathery stroking. I need to get this out of my head. Maybe he'd be calm, competent and roll his sleeves up to get the job done. Ack. I need fic. I can't see him in bed, even though I want to rip his cardigan off and set all the buttons pinging round the room ;-)

[omi-ohmy.livejournal.com]

Don't forget the werewolf. I bet he'd have a 'time of the month', when he'd just get that look in his eyes. And then he'd tear your clothes of and give you the fucking of a lifetime.

[omi-ohmy.livejournal.com]

Go write some Remus smut. Then jump your man. :D

[birdsofshore]

Bloo. Dy. HELL.

That's done it. I'm off to bed. And Mr. Birds is coming whether he likes it or not. :DDD

[birdsofshore]

Well, looky who's here (currently second down):
http://menincardigans.tumblr.com/

[icmezzo.livejournal.com]

Hmm. A pair of lovely underwear just landed next to me. I think they might be yours?

I'm impressed, I think. Self-propelled Transatlantic underwear crossings are so rare. Last time I think it happened was when I first read "As the Hand the Glove" and my fav pair ended up somewhere in Slovakia. You must *really* like Lupin's forearms. (Or was it the adverbs that did it?) Regardless, thank goodness JKR didn't go into a description of Remus' trousers at that moment or who knows where your pants would have landed? I'm guessing atop one of those Easter Island head statues, which, incidentally, I've always wanted to visit. I should've tried to hitch a ride...

I swear I'm not drunk.

[0idontknow0]

Lupin. is. a. boss.

[gamma-x-orionis.livejournal.com]

I'm another "PoA-is-my-favourite" person :D I won't go into all my reasons at the moment, but I think I first read it when I was of such an age (read: rather young) that I didn't quite grasp the full horror of the Dementors and Harry hearing his mother's death. Besides that, I remember being really scared by the Basilisk, so perhaps by the time I got to the third book, I was no longer expecting it to be lighthearted. Plus, I love dark, scary things, of course >.> ^_^

I agree with you about Lupin being an amazingly decent person! While I wouldn't exactly call him my favourite character, he's the character I'd most like to know people like in real life. And you're right about what a badass he was in Prisoner of Azkaban - I don't remember him being quite so cool in later books, but he always kept his head more than the rest of the characters, and it might just be that he doesn't have as much 'screentime' in the later books...

(I don't have a Lupin icon. Curses!)

[khalulu]

Yeah, he is a very decent guy and quietly helpful teacher. I have always wondered about the Sirius-in-Azkaban part, though - you would think that Remus would have disbelieved that Sirius had done it back at the time, and gone "somethings not right, Sirius would never have done a thing like that to James and Lily". Nor does it make sense to me that SIrius would have urged them to make Peter the secret keeper.It just seemed like a plot device that wasn't really motivated by the characters/

[birdsofshore]

Hee, it was the forearms AND the adverbs. Thank the lord I was wearing a good pair.

I didn't think for a minute you were drunk. I'm pretty sure you've been HIGH for about 3 days, ever since you wrote those limericks :DD

[birdsofshore]

The basilisk is scary if you are young! I found the change from jolly to dark was too sudden and too severe. I do like the more adult tone in the later books, but it bothered me in POA, I think partly because Harry's still so clearly a child.

Yes yes to knowing Lupin in real life! I adore lots of other characters, but I wouldn't want to actually spend time with them!

[birdsofshore]

Yes, and Sirius thought that Remus was a spy, which is why he didn't tell him about Peter being the Potter's Secret Keeper. The moments when they are reconciled so easily and totally, speak of a deep trust and friendship between them, but their willingness to believe the worst about each other contradicts this. There's obviously some massive backstory that explains it all :D I bet there's loads of R/S stories about it.

[gamma-x-orionis.livejournal.com]

The Basilisk still scares me more than the Dementors, to be honest! I think it's the idea that, if you look at it and it looks back, you're pretty much fucked, so you can't fight it... *shudders* I'd sooner take on a Dementor. I'm pretty sure I could handle conjuring a Patronus more than I could handle being attacked by a giant, sharp-toothed snake I can't look at D: (and I actually like normal snakes...)

Exactly! I love my Slytherins and Death Eaters and psychopaths, but they're much more fun in theory than in practice x)

[birdsofshore]

It's the clinical depression that the Dementors represent, that gives me the chills. The description of how they make you feel is so vivid and I relate to it so much. My Boggart would probably be clinical depression, so I can empathise with Harry's fear of Dementors totally.

I never thought of this before, but I was 13 when I first really started suffering with depression. Hmm. Maybe not such a surprise that this book is not my favourite!

I adore all the Malfoys, but can you imagine having to socialise with them? :D

[daemoncas5.livejournal.com]

POA WAS THE ONE WHO POPPED MY HARRYPOTTER-CHERRY AT 14 JUST SAYING !

i'm prolly someone who is more attracted to badboy types, but Remus Lupin? He rocks my socks. I mean, all those scars, hellooo i had a weakness for scars [and maybe some indecent kinks too <_<] And my imagining him from the book and him from the movie pretty much the same. He was so very laid back and loyal and you get the ROLLIN UP HIS SLEEVES and the calm when life is all shit and then in DH book he got a bit violent with Harry and just...yes maybe he can got wild too {especially wth the wolf factor} *speechless of his awesome* it's sad tough that i never really read some really serious remus-centric fic. you have some? :DDDDD

[dustmouth.livejournal.com]

So nice to hear dear Mr Lupin getting a bit of love for a change :D
I'm with you, he completely owns the third book, I always felt slightly resentful about how he was rather pushed to the sidelines once Sirius entered the picture. If anything he supported Harry a lot more than Sirius did, and it annoys me that they aren't viewed on equal terms. But that's just me being whingy hah-

[dustmouth.livejournal.com]

Just poking my nose in here to warm you not to read any of said stories- they will gut you and make you an emotional wreck as soon as look at you.
Noone does heartbreak quite as well as R/S I'm afraid... (though that may be bias)

[birdsofshore]

am RUNNING AWAY

I can't bear heartbreak :-(

So where would one look to find happy, smutty sleeve rolling up fic then?

[birdsofshore]

*speechless of his awesome* <------ YES YES

My post would have probably been a lot clearer if I had just posted that.

I haven't got any remus-centric fic. We need some. I don't know where to get any that doesn't want to chew my heart up and spit it on the floor, though. Can we just pretend Remus didn't die?

[birdsofshore]

*speechless of his awesome* <------ YES YES

My post would have probably been a lot clearer if I had just posted that.

I haven't got any Remus-centric fic. We need some. I don't know where to get any that doesn't want to chew my heart up and spit it on the floor, though. Can we just pretend Remus didn't die?

[daemoncas5.livejournal.com]

yeah i wished he didnt die too ;__; so sad...

have you read this ficlet yet? the cute will patched our tattered heart quite nicely, but it has bittersweet undertones too, which is very remus lupin wise :D

[birdsofshore]

oh! ♥

lovely and a bit heart-achy

[lokifan]

He is such a nice guy :) And also kind of fascinating. Like, you mention the BAMF-ness of his adverbs, which is totally true. But "lazily" in JKR's idiom usually indicates badness (see: Malfoys) and his particular calm and courtesy when bad things are happening could even be kind of sinister. IDK, I love that he works so well as a red herring of Evil DADA Teacher on first reading while being totally lovely and BAMFy.

POA's my favourite :D I didn't find the Dementors super-scary on first reading (I was 13 or so myself) and now I find them scary but also enjoy them: I like it when depression is acknowledged as a real monster, even through metaphor.

[birdsofshore]

"the BAMF-ness of his adverbs" hee hee!

Yes his calm could be sinister, I hadn't thought of that. The whole scene in the Shrieking Shack does build tension with he and Sirius contrasting ragey threat and calm but almost menacing control.

[dustmouth.livejournal.com]

That is the only problem with them- but at least it's largely well-written angst? haha

Hmmmm I'm a terrible reccer, I won't deny it... the accio RS fic comm is probably your best shot, the only thing I can think of is Ëasy Rider" which has a dominant!Remus. It's a fic by switchknife and is pretty much a fandom staple.
http://pornish-pixies.livejournal.com/285708.html (I can't do fancy links, sorry 'bout that)