Happy (belated) birthday to Remus

[starfishstar]

Happy belated birthday, Remus Lupin!

March 10th is Remus' birthday, and because it's a round birthday this year (born in 1960!) I had the idea of writing a little birthday-related fic about Remus, maybe a series of moments about some good birthdays he's had over the years, despite all the hard times. But my own life has been so intense – I'm in the last flat-out sprint to the end of my dissertation – that I didn't find a free moment even to write this post by March 10th, let alone write a whole fic by then.

But today is my birthday (yes, just 4 days after Remus...well, 4 days and 20-odd years), and I was remembering one time (6 years ago??) when I spent my birthday writing a fic, just because that was what I most wanted to do on that day, as a present to myself. And also because that was back in the days when I tossed off one-shots right and left, instead of pondering and revising things for years before posting them... Anyway, so last night and today I determinedly made time for a tiny bit of writing, so I could at least get started on the first few sentences of a fic. So maybe I'll finish it by, you know, next year or something.

It's hard to feel very birthday-ish right now, as the world hunkers down in coronavirus quarantine. Things are changing fast, over here in the U.S. where we're finally taking the pandemic seriously: over the course of less than two days, my entire town went from "we're concerned, we're taking precautions, but everything's still open" to "SCRATCH THAT, TIME TO PANIC, EVERYTHING IS CLOSED!!!!" I'm really glad we're taking this seriously, but it's hard not to feel like this is the start of the apocalypse. Or, you know, the more visible version of the climate apocalypse that's already been unfolding around us for years.

But anyway.

I hope you all are staying safe, and keeping your loved ones safe.

One last Remus thought:

Yesterday, as I was replying to a reader's comment on AO3, I was struck by this thought: What if Remus had been the one to raise Harry? I mean, in a serious, nearly canon-compliant way. There are lots of fics where Sirius raises Harry, or they both do, or where they're able to step into his life at a later stage and rescue him from the Dursleys (à la Stealing Harry).

But this, I'm thinking, could be a quite plausible canon-divergent-but-nearly-canon AU: Remus raising Harry is something that nearly could have happened, without really having to change the facts of canon. James and Lily still die (not that I'm okay with that), Sirius still goes to Azkaban (not that I'm okay with that), but in this scenario, as in canon, Remus is out there in the world and theoretically could be there for Harry. In my own headcanon, at least, the only thing keeping Remus out of Harry's life is Remus' own self-doubt, his belief that he's a danger to others and the best thing he can do for the people he cares about is to stay away. So what if Remus got over himself (and I say that with love!) and stepped up and demanded of Dumbledore that he, Remus, be the one to raise Harry, not the Dursleys?

Yes, yes, I know there's the whole thing of Harry having to live with a blood relative of his mother's, so that her sacrifice continues to protect him. I think possibly I'd be willing to disregard that, since it's so clearly a plot device created to justify the set-up of canon, of Harry living with the Dursleys and thus never having found out that he's a wizard. (Unlike the more immutable facts of canon, like James and Lily's deaths and Sirius' imprisonment.)

OR, though, this Remus-raising-Harry scenario could be done even keeping that plot element: What if Remus did some digging and was able to find out that he's actually distantly related to Lily? Making him a blood relative and thus an acceptable candidate to take Harry in? It's not totally impossible; certainly it's a little more likely that Remus could be related to James on his wizarding side, since the wizarding world is so small, but it's not impossible that he could be related to Lily on his Muggle side.

So every other thing about canon stays the same, except that Remus raises Harry from the time he's one year old. And then Sirius comes into the picture too, but only later, after he escapes Azkaban in book 3, same as canon. And they all have to figure out what they are to each other then, what that new constellation looks like. Whereas Remus has been raising Harry all along, as a single parent, and holds the role of Harry's go-to father/uncle/mentor figure the way that Sirius does in canon. Has anyone written this? I kind of want to write it. But also I'm deeply aware that this would need to be a big, long story to do the premise justice, and the last thing I have time for right now is a big, long story! (When I already have a big, long Remus/Tonks WIP that I haven't had a chance even to touch in months...)

Comments

[nerakrose]

I would love to read that story as well! I don't know if it's been written - if it has, I haven't noticed. (I do also kind of want to write it, but man I do not have time to do anything of the sort so I'll just send good vibes at the internet instead...)

[starfishstar]

Ooh, I'm so pleased this idea sounds appealing! I didn't know if it would have broader appeal outside my own head, but man, I'm intrigued. But like you said, there's no way to have the time necessary to do it justice. (There's so much to be explored, because this scenario would change everything – not just for Remus (of course) but also for Harry – how might Harry have turned out if he'd been raised by a highly anxious, but also unconditionally loving parent, instead of neglected by the Dursleys...?)

[nerakrose]

no I think it definitely has! and yes I agree - there are so many aspects to consider and explore and I know it can be really beautifully done and I want it in my eyeballs :'''D

Hope you're doing well given *gestures at the world* you know.

[starfishstar]

Aw, I'm delighted it resonates so much. The last couple of days I've been thinking, hey, maybe I could at least write a scattering of one-shots set over the years, as a way to look at some of the interesting facets but without having to craft an entire series-long narrative... But even that, there's no way I can even think about taking on a project like that at the moment.

Hope you're doing well too! These are weird, scary times - plus it sounds like you're in coursework crunch time, too.

[nerakrose]

maybe in future you can revisit the idea? :)

Yeah, this is not a great time to be finishing coursework, but we've been told we can request as many extensions as we want and we'll be granted them, so there's that at least. for now I'm managing to stay on top of most of it.

[starfishstar]

Oh, that's really good, I'm glad the university is being flexible. I've been checking in on my uni back in Scotland periodically, watching everything shut down. These are wild times. Good luck with everything!!

[nerakrose]

good luck to you too! this is not a great time to be finishing a dissertation :''D

[starfishstar]

Thank you! Yeah, these are hard times to concentrate in. (But at least self-isolation is good for getting work done!)

[sanguinity]

Happy birthday! And spending it writing fic -- yes, the last several years I asked for prompts on my birthday, then tried to slam out ficlets for them. Invariably, I'd only get half of them done, because that's my fill rate for solicited prompts, but it was a fun way to spend my birthday week.

And yes, it is hard to feel that this isn't the start of the apocalypse. Although for me, it's a little different: it's like the weeks after 9/11, watching everything change, and suspecting that the world isn't going to change back after.

[starfishstar]

Thank you!

And that's a really interesting comparison, to the period after 9/11. My one hope in this current catastrophe, though, is that the longer lasting changes that come out of it could maybe, maybe be good things this time...? Like that maybe there will finally be a broader understanding of why it matters to have universal health care and social safety nets. And maybe even a little bit of an increased awareness that we're a community, and we're only going to survive all that's coming if we pull together and look out for each other. (Instead of just, you know, xenophobia and a culture of fear, like last time.)

[sanguinity]

Oh, I very much hope so. I really really hope we'll come out of this with a more robust social safety net. I'm afraid I'm pessimistic about it, but I'm watching the people trying to make it happen, and I'm hoping so hard that they succeed.

[rabbitica]

You should def write it! I liked Stealing Harry and I def want more in that vein, but like you said this is a different, really interesting take on it.

[starfishstar]

Right?? Very Stealing Harry, but with a different spin that would totally change the interpersonal dynamics. I'm so pleased the idea piqued your interest. :-)

[scfrankles]

A happy belated birthday to you ^__^ And all the best to you and your family.

[starfishstar]

Thank you! I hope you're holding up well, too. We're living in strange times.

[rachelindeed]

Wishing you all the best for your health, work, and creativity in the coming days! It's a strange time we're all going through, but I'm finding it heartening to see the real effort multiple societies are making to protect their most vulnerable members. It's actually restoring some faith in humanity, for me :)

Oh, I love Remus. It would have been so good for him to have raised Harry, such a healing experience for him, and so good for Harry, too. Throughout the books after Azkaban I kept hoping that he and Harry would get more mentoring time together, but it never happened. Your idea would make a lovely story, short or long!

I haven't really done any reading in the Harry Potter fandom since about ten years ago, but I still remember a few poignant little Marauder stories that really struck a chord with me. Shewhoguard's Platform i is one for Remus that I've always remembered.

[starfishstar]

Hi, and thank you! It's true – I've been pretty panicked and freaked out these last couple of days, but I'm also really, really glad to see the people around me taking it seriously, taking precautions – really getting it, that this isn't about me protecting me (a young, reasonably healthy person) but about me protecting everyone around me.

Aw, I'm so pleased this Remus idea has struck a chord even with people who aren't active Harry Potter fandom folks! Exactly, it breaks my heart that Remus never got to have a closer relationship with Harry, the way Sirius did. So the idea is appealing for that reason, but then it's also intriguing to think about, because that scenario would change so much for both of them, for both Remus and Harry...

Thanks for the rec!

[emily_in_the_glass]

happy birthday!

i came by to see how you were doing, because it's hard not to think of fandom and my favourite fanfic writers as real life turns into something that looks a lot like fantasy. (among other things, i'm reminded of Nedouard the gentle plague doctor in Seraphina, and of Potterwatch.) it's a scary world out there but you're right that we've been teetering on the brink of this for years.

i'm trying to summon up the headspace for writing too. it feels so necessary and so hard right now. prompts help.

and oh, oooh, i love this notion of Remus being a relation of Lily's... something about Remus's mum feels very Lily-ish. I agree it'll be hard for Remus to get over himself unless he's compelled by a strong sense of need/duty, such as maybe accidentally discovering they're related?

[starfishstar]

Thank you! And thanks for checking in!

Ooh, yes, we surely could all use a gentle Nedouard right now. And you're right, there's rather a Potterwatch feeling to this atmosphere of hunkering-down but also trying-to-keep-each-other's-spirits-up-despite-the-hunkering-down. Maybe it'll inspire some writing. (It's true that writing could be a great balm in these times. Do you want prompts? It could be fun to brainstorm prompts!)

And you've given me an additional idea about the Remus scenario... I'd rather that it be Remus' impetus to insist on being the one to raise Harry and/or to do the research to prove their family connection – the whole thing of it making a better story if it's driven by the character's action/choice rather than a passive thing that happens to them.

But then that begs the question, so why does this AU unfold differently from canon? What's the different factor that makes it so that here Remus dares to step up for Harry, where in canon he walked away? So my latest idea is that maybe it came up at some point during their Hogwarts years, just in passing: Lily happened to learn Remus' mother's maiden name and said oh hey, that's funny, I think we've got some of those somewhere in my family tree, too. And that one little suggestion left in Remus' brain is enough that when he hears about James and Lily's deaths, that possible family connection is what springs to his mind, and his feeling of responsibility to Harry is stronger than his desire to run away, and the first thing he does is research the hell out of the thing until he can prove to Dumbledore that he has just as much claim to raising Harry as Petunia does.

Anyway, it's fun to think about. :-)

I hope you're keeping okay! These are scary times.