Sirius Black

Sirius Black was a pure-blood wizard, the elder son of Orion and Walburga Black, and the heir to the House of Black. Rejecting his family's belief in pure-blood supremacy, he was a loyal member of the Order of the Phoenix during both the First and Second Wizarding Wars. He is best known for being the best friend of James Potter and the godfather of Harry Potter. Sirius's story is one of great tragedy and injustice. He was framed for the betrayal of the Potters to Lord Voldemort and the murder of Peter Pettigrew and twelve Muggles, leading to a twelve-year imprisonment in Azkaban without a trial. His escape and subsequent quest to protect his godson are pivotal to the middle of the series. Sirius served as a father figure to Harry, and his eventual death marked a significant and painful turning point in Harry's life.

Born into the ancient and wealthy House of Black, Sirius grew to detest his family's obsession with blood purity. His defiance led to his being sorted into Gryffindor House at Hogwarts, a stark contrast to his family's long tradition of being in Slytherin. At school, he formed an inseparable bond with James Potter, Remus Lupin, and Peter Pettigrew. Together, the four friends became known as the Marauders. The group was known for their talent and penchant for mischief. Upon discovering that Remus was a werewolf, Sirius, James, and Peter secretly and illegally became Animagus to support their friend during his difficult monthly transformations. Sirius's form was a large black dog, which earned him the nickname “Padfoot.” The four also created the Marauder's Map, a magical document showing every corner of Hogwarts and the real-time location of everyone within it. Sirius ran away from home at the age of sixteen and was taken in by James's parents, cementing his place as a surrogate member of the Potter family. He was formally disowned and burned off the Black family tree tapestry by his mother.

After graduating from Hogwarts, Sirius, along with his friends, joined the original Order of the Phoenix to fight against Lord Voldemort. He served as the best man at James and Lily Potter's wedding and was later named Harry Potter's godfather. When the Potters went into hiding under the Fidelius Charm, Sirius was initially chosen to be their Secret-Keeper. Fearing he was too obvious a target for Voldemort, Sirius persuaded them to switch to Peter Pettigrew, believing no one would suspect the seemingly weak and untalented wizard. This decision proved fatal. Pettigrew betrayed the Potters to Voldemort, leading to their deaths. Devastated, Sirius tracked Pettigrew down, but Pettigrew publicly accused Sirius of the betrayal, murdered twelve Muggles with a powerful curse, cut off his own finger, and escaped in his rat Animagus form. Sirius was arrested by Aurors and, under the orders of Bartemius Crouch Sr., was sent to Azkaban without a trial. He spent twelve years there, his sanity preserved by focusing on his innocence—a thought not happy enough for the Dementors to consume.

In 1993, Sirius saw a photograph in the Daily Prophet of the Weasley family in Egypt. On Ron Weasley's shoulder was his pet rat, Scabbers, whom Sirius recognized as Peter Pettigrew due to a missing toe corresponding to the finger Pettigrew had severed. This knowledge gave him the strength to escape Azkaban. He transformed into his gaunt dog form and slipped past the Dementors, who could not as easily sense his less complex canine emotions, and swam to the mainland. He made his way to Hogwarts, intending to capture Pettigrew and protect Harry. His presence near the school caused widespread panic. At the end of the school year, in the Shrieking Shack, Sirius and Remus Lupin revealed the truth to Harry, Ron, and Hermione Granger. Pettigrew was exposed, but he managed to escape once more when Lupin transformed into a werewolf at the full moon. Sirius was recaptured and sentenced to the Dementor's Kiss, but he was saved by Harry and Hermione, who used a Time-Turner to free both Sirius and the Hippogriff Buckbeak. Sirius escaped into exile with Buckbeak.

Following Lord Voldemort's return, Sirius rejoined the reactivated Order of the Phoenix. He offered his childhood home, Number Twelve, Grimmauld Place, as the Order's headquarters. However, being a wanted fugitive forced him to remain hidden inside the house he despised, leaving him feeling frustrated, useless, and reckless. His relationship with Harry deepened through letters and secret Floo Network conversations, though his confinement made him bitter. His mistreatment of the family house-elf, Kreacher, who was loyal to Sirius's mother's ideals, would later have dire consequences. In 1996, Voldemort exploited Harry's connection to his mind by planting a false vision of Sirius being tortured in the Department of Mysteries. Harry, along with several of his friends, rushed to the Ministry of Magic to save him, falling into a trap set by Death Eaters. Sirius, alongside other Order members, arrived to fight them. During a fierce duel with his cousin, Bellatrix Lestrange, he was struck by a spell and fell backwards through a mysterious veiled archway in the Death Chamber, which killed him instantly. His death devastated Harry and served as a catalyst for Harry's understanding of loss and the harsh realities of war.

In his youth, Sirius was described as casually handsome, tall with long, black hair and striking grey eyes. His years in Azkaban took a severe toll; upon his escape, he was emaciated with a waxy, skeletal face, yellow teeth, and matted hair. After recovering some of his health, his former good looks returned, but his eyes retained a haunted quality. Sirius was fiercely loyal, brave, and deeply loving towards his friends and godson. However, he was also reckless, short-tempered, and could be arrogant. His difficult childhood and wrongful imprisonment left him with a great deal of bitterness and anger. He harbored a lifelong, mutual hatred for Severus Snape. At times, his desperation for companionship and action led him to act immaturely, treating Harry more as a replacement for his best friend, James, than as a godson. Despite his flaws, he was a staunch opponent of the Dark Arts and a protective, caring figure in Harry's life.

• Animagus: Sirius was a highly gifted wizard who mastered the difficult magic of becoming an Animagus by the age of fifteen. His ability to transform at will into a large black dog was a testament to his advanced magical talent.
• Duelling: He was a formidable duelist, proven in his ability to fight multiple Death Eaters, including Antonin Dolohov and Bellatrix Lestrange, during the Battle of the Department of Mysteries.
• Non-verbal Magic: Sirius was proficient in casting spells non-verbally, a skill demonstrating considerable magical discipline and power.
• Charms and Transfiguration: His co-creation of the intricately charmed Marauder's Map and his mastery of Animagus transformation indicate a high level of skill in both Charms and Transfiguration.
• Wand: The wood, core, and length of Sirius's wand remain unknown.

• Flying Motorcycle: An enchanted motorcycle capable of flight, which he lent to Rubeus Hagrid on the night of the Potters' deaths. Harry later inherited it from Sirius.
• Two-way Mirror: A magical mirror that allowed him to communicate with its twin, which was owned by James Potter. Sirius gave Harry his mirror shortly before his death, but Harry did not realize its purpose in time to use it.
• Number Twelve, Grimmauld Place: The ancestral home of the House of Black, which Sirius inherited and used as the Order of the Phoenix headquarters. He bequeathed the house, along with its contents, to Harry.
• Kreacher: The Black family house-elf, bound to serve the owner of Number Twelve, Grimmauld Place. He was inherited by Sirius and later by Harry.
• Buckbeak: The Hippogriff sentenced to death but saved by Harry and Hermione. Sirius escaped with and cared for him, leaving him to Harry in his will, at which point he was renamed Witherwings.

• Harry Potter: As Harry's godfather, Sirius was the closest person Harry had to a parent. He offered Harry a home and a connection to his parents he had never known. Their bond was central to Harry's emotional life, and Sirius's death was one of his most profound losses.
• James Potter: His best friend and chosen brother. Their friendship was the defining relationship of Sirius's life.
• Remus Lupin: One of his closest friends from school. Their friendship suffered from Sirius's unfounded suspicion that Remus was a spy during the first war but was mended upon the discovery of Pettigrew's betrayal.
• Peter Pettigrew: A former friend whose betrayal led to the deaths of James and Lily and Sirius's imprisonment. Sirius felt immense guilt for trusting Pettigrew and despised him utterly.
• Severus Snape: The two shared a deep, mutual loathing that began in their school days and never abated. Sirius often bullied Snape, while Snape despised Sirius for his arrogance and rule-breaking.
• The Black Family: Sirius rejected his family's pure-blood supremacy and was subsequently disowned. He held a particular hatred for his mother, Walburga, and his cousin, Bellatrix Lestrange. He had a fondness for his Uncle Alphard, who was also disowned for leaving Sirius gold. His relationship with his younger brother, Regulus Arcturus Black, was strained, as Sirius saw him as a willing follower of their parents' dark ideology.

• Sirius: The name of the brightest star in the Earth's night sky, which is part of the constellation Canis Major (The Great Dog). It is widely known as the “Dog Star,” a clear and direct reference to his canine Animagus form. This follows a naming tradition in the House of Black, where many members are named after stars and constellations.
• Black: This surname reflects both the colour of his dog Animagus form and the dark, sinister reputation of his family lineage.

• In the film adaptation of Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, Sirius is explicitly killed by the Killing Curse (identified by its jet of green light) before falling through the veil. In the novel, he is hit by an unspecified spell that produces a jet of red light, suggesting it might have been a Stunning Spell, and it is the fall through the veiled arch that kills him (film).
• The actor Gary Oldman portrayed Sirius Black in the film series. His prison tattoos in the films were designed to represent his history, with some alluding to his Animagus form and his bond with the Marauders (film featurettes).
• J.K. Rowling has stated that she always intended for Sirius to die and that his death was necessary for Harry's character development, forcing him to mature and face his destiny more independently. She has described his death as the one that affected her the most to write (J.K. Rowling interview).
• Rowling has confirmed that the veiled arch in the Death Chamber is a one-way portal separating the world of the living from the world of the dead, and there is no way to return from it (J.K. Rowling interview).