InsaneJournal

PERSONALITY

LIKES

• His friends
• Potions class
• American muggle cinema
• Being recognized for his efforts
• Being included
• Cold weather
• Charcuterie boards

DISLIKES

• Feeling weak
• Polyester shirts
• Summer
• Photos of himself
• Physical sports
• Being the butt of his friends' jokes
• Himself

FIRST IMPRESSIONS: Painfully average in every way possible

OVERALL PERSONALITY:

ISFJ The "defender" may not be the personality trait one would immediately associate with Peter; if anything he is mostly likely the first to run when things become too dangerous. Being the 'fourth wheel' friend has made him observant to signs that others might not recognize when caught up in the moment, allowing him to make suggestions that will keep his friends safe. He doesn't mind being the scapegoat if it means his friends will be able to escape more severe punishment.

Anxious Peter lives in a constant state of anxiety: Did he study hard enough? Is his mum going to be okay when he is at school? Why were they snickering at him? Will his friends abandon him when school is over and they aren't forced to be together any longer? He jokes that his anxiety is both his greatest strength (it makes him observant and careful) and his biggest weakness.

Crafty While not as quick or clever as his three other friends, Peter has a keen mind for details. He doesn't have the loft dreams or raw courage of his friends, but he can plan. Unlike James and Sirius, he doesn't get caught up in the moment. Instead, he has a backup plan for his backup plan.

Opportunistic Being average has it's advantages. No one ever suspects Peter when things go awry; how could the otherwise unremarkable obvious tag-a-long to the golden trio have a hand in whatever plot or scheme the boys had dreamed up? Peter takes advantage of this odd gift by gaining the trust of others who will often give him a bit of leeway and help him out.

Likable Peter is your 'everyday' guy. Of his friend group he is perhaps the easiest to approach of the Marauders. Peter can talk to and blend in with just about anyone owing to the fact he is otherwise a rather unremarkable person. For some reason people tend to trust him...maybe because they feel a bit sorry for the lad. Due to his agreeable nature he is best at diffusing situations that otherwise might get out of hand quickly.

Selfish At the end of the day Peter wants what is going to be best for him. He cares about his friends, but if their behavior reflects poorly on him and the path of least resistance he's managed to carve out for himself Peter will have no problem correcting the situation.

STRENGTHS

• Self preservation
• Planning
• Average

WEAKNESSES

• Weak willed
• Insecure
• Selfish

APPEARANCE

Height: 5’7”
Build: t h i c c
Hair Colour: Brown
Eye Colour: Dark blue
Usual Manner of Dress: Tries to dress smart but always manages to look a bit sloppy.

HISTORY

Born in Coventry to Lisa and Michael Pettigrew, Peter wasn’t exactly a welcomed accident. Lisa - a baker’s assistant - and Michael - a mechanic - were not in the most stable of marriages. Despite both working full time their wages barely covered their expenses which put a lot of strain on the marriage. With Peter in the picture their fighting increased and Michael became more absent as time went on. At first he interacted with his son when he was home and the baby didn’t require any real effort, but as the years progressed it became apparent the strapping, athletic young man Michael had dreamed of for a son was not the shy, clumsy, a little slow boy with a stubborn layer of pudge that wouldn’t melt off no matter how much they cut out sweets or how many (reluctant) balls thrown were caught. Try as he might, Peter sought approval from his father by attempting to learn about football and cricket, but could never seem to wrap his head around the game and the constant questions annoyed his father further.

Peter had always known he was a little...different. Funny things seemed to happen when he was upset, and more than once he could have sworn he saw his mother make things in the kitchen move without touching them. At the age of seven while being chased by a group of boys from school, Peter managed to jump to the top of a tree and escape the bullies...but had no way down. This incident led to a devastating argument between his parents, with his father shouting he wanted a 'normal boy' and not 'another unnatural freak'. Michael left their home for the last time, leaving Lisa and Peter alone. Despite her best attempts Lisa couldn't locate her husband, and picked up two additional jobs to help cover the bills.

Despite being magical, Peter had attended primary school with the Muggles and Lisa did not have the time or resources to offer her son extra magical lessons. He was cautioned to keep his magical abilities to himself. His mum managed to explain away any accidents that occurred because of the magic, but he wasn't to go boasting about it or using it as a defense against bullies. Peter didn't really have any friends despite getting on well with most of his classmates, but he had the bad luck of getting the attention of kids much bigger than he was. Peter was a small and chubby child, which led to a lot of teasing and the occasional head in the toilet. Because of this, Peter occasionally came home to an empty home hungry with no lunch money and a battered self-esteem.

Peter's Hogwarts letter was like a godsend. At first he thought there must be some mistake; how could someone as unremarkable as him go to Hogwarts? But then another realization set in: this letter meant he would leave Muggle school and be rid of the bullies who often tormented him and cut him down. Of course, Hogwarts meant scarier bullies with wands instead of fists, but at least he would have the same advantages they did. And he could make new friends too. Maybe friends who could protect him. Throughout his years at primary school, Peter had friends, but they were all picked on like him - quiet, unassuming kids would couldn't or wouldn't fight back. Peter's goal was to make at least one friend who could stand up for him.

Stepping off the train felt like a blur: the shouting, the horseless carts (which he tried to enter and was laughed at by some older kids), the boats, the castle and the hundreds of floating candles. But the sorting ceremony threw Peter through a loop the most. The hat whispered in his ear for a solid five minutes bouncing between Slytherin and Hufflepuff. Peter fretted at the idea of being a true hatstall, prompting the hat to ask Peter what he wanted more than anything. I just want to be brave and do the right thing this time. He thought to himself, and the hat screamed out a house name in response. Being sorted into Gryffindor was not something he expected and it came as a giant shock to his mother as well. However, this sorting yielded the group of friends Peter had always desired. Friends he could look up to, but not become just their third wheel. He was useful and they liked him. Peter practically worshiped James and Sirius from the get-go, but it was Remus Lupin who ended up being his closest friend. This wasn't because they were the 'outsiders', as people seemed to believe, but Peter always felt he had more in common with Remus than he ever did with James and Sirius.

Being at school was the best time of Peter's life, but not in class; He quickly learned that he was still in the 'average' category. He wasn't bad at anything in particular, but he also wasn't great. Specifically with wand work, Peter skated by, but he never really excelled except for Potions. While things were alright overall the reason school was so great for Peter was because of his friends. Immediately upon meeting him, Peter had wanted James Potter to at the very least know his name. What he didn't quite count on was James and Sirius taking him in as a friend. He thought he'd be the lackey, like in the movies about the cool kids with the person they begrudgingly befriended. Instead they were the token group of boys from those American buddy films, but beneath the surface they were much more than a trope: They were actually friends, with each boy being useful to the other in their own way.

In their second year the three discovered why Remus disappeared once a month. Peter had once joked about the possibility of their friend being a werewolf, but he hadn't actually thought it was true at the time. Peter wanted to insist that he told them so, but that was neither here nor there, though, since the three immediately chose to make sure their friendship was strengthened, as opposed to what Remus seemed to think. Above all else the three vowed to never let anything happen to Remus. This task seemed easy enough, but soon they were running out of excuses for their absences and exhaustion that seemed to strike like clockwork. The boys all tried to think of what to do to help him further. Somehow they settled on the idea to become Animagi. This prospect terrified Peter; out of the group, he was easily the worst with Transfiguration and Charms, and would need extra work which he feared would cause him to be left behind when he inevitably failed. Even with the reassurances and promises of help, the fear was still there until his friends patiently walked him through the process several times until the fateful day they transformed together. It was an eye-opening experience for Peter, because this solidified that he did, indeed, have true friends...even if they did make fun of his Animagus form.

Throughout school, Peter played the supporter to James and Sirius' pranks in direct contrast of Remus' voice of reason, but his encouragement failed when it came to Severus Snape. It wasn't because Peter liked the greasy haired weirdo! Far from it, actually; he simply knew his friends often crossed from pranks to outright bullying when it came to the Slytherin who seemed to have the same magnetic ability to attract the wrong kind of attention like he had at Muggle primary school. But Peter's desire to fit in won out in the end, and he rationalized away the feelings of guilt: if Snape hated it so much, he could find some anti-bullying friends too, just like Peter.

While Peter was never directly part of the pranks they pulled, and he was kind of grateful for that when Sirius pulled the worst prank of them all: Severus going down through the Whomping Willow. He didn't learn about this until after the fact, but immediately took Remus' side. While he didn't yell or berate Sirius or James he pointed out it was more than a prank and that sometimes, even when teasing Severus, the two could take things too far.

After that, according to Peter, things never quite felt the same. There seemed to be a fair amount of tension that he couldn't shake no matter how much the other three insisted it was in his head. The issue resolved eventually, though, after he expressed to James once that he was afraid their group would be breaking up. He was assured (amidst a fair amount of laughter) that they would always be friends no matter what or how many well deserved telling offs.

Peter's worst fear is leaving school. At this point, Peter really wants to get through his N.E.W.Ts. He's dreading leaving Hogwarts because he will be forced to officially choose a side instead of pretending the world beyond Hogwarts' walls isn't real...and he will get left behind by his friends when they are no longer forced to live together.

PLOTTING/CONNECTIONS

Mention any connections you would like for your characters (siblings, work colleagues etc.) or any game wide plot or plot themes you'd like to see here.

Mauraders: Duh.

Hogwarts: Does Peter have any real friends outside of his group? Or is simply tolerated?

The Order: Do they deem him good enough to join their ranks?