Remus Lupin was one of the best friends of James Potter, Harry’s father. He was once a Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher at Hogwarts.
Lupin was one of the saddest characters in the series, always ostracized for who he was and never really trusted by most of the wizarding society. Remus Lupin got the misfortune of being a werewolf.
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How Did Lupin Become a Werewolf?
Remus Lupin got bitten by a werewolf Fenrir Greyback when Remus was only a four-year-old boy.
Fenrir Greyback was brought into the trial as a suspect in the murder of two children. He lied his way out, but Remus’ father saw through him, and after Greyback was released, voiced his unfavorable opinion.
Greyback, taking offense at Lyall’s words, sneaked up into his house through the window and tried to kill Lyall’s son as an act of revenge for harsh words.
Lyall was fast enough to save his son’s life but not fast enough to prevent the werewolf’s bite. After that event, Lyall and his wife, Hope, tried anything and everything to reverse lycanthropy, but at that time, there was no cure.
How Did Lupin Get His Scars?
In the Harry Potter series, the origin is never explained, but Lupin mentioned to Bill Weasley that the wounds made by a werewolf would scar and never fade or fully heal because they are cursed.
We can assume then that Remus Lupin got his scars during Greyback’s attack or from another werewolf during his transformation.
There was a time when Lupin was living amongst werewolves. As we know, the transformation is painful and usually turns a person into a wild and dangerous beast without control. It is highly possible that Remus got into a fight with other werewolves and got his scars.
The scars could also be self-inflicted. During his school years, Remus was secluded in the Shrieking Shack, away from people to bite, and he admitted to Harry that he directed the werewolf rage on himself.
“My transformations in those days were — were terrible. It is very painful to turn into a werewolf. I was separated from humans to bite, so I bit and scratched myself instead.”
Why Did Greyback Bite Lupin?
Fenrir Greyback was offended by Lyall Lupin, who insulted werewolves, and as revenge, he tried to kill Remus Lupin, Lyall’s little son.
Lyall Lupin was working for the Ministry of Magic and was present during the trial of Fenrir Greyback. He was the only one who realized what Greyback really is – a werewolf. Disgusted by his crimes, Lyall voted for the death penalty for Greyback and insulted werewolves.
Greyback took serious offense against Lyall and tried to kill Lyall’s 4-year-old son, Remus, as an act of revenge. The protective spells prevented the child’s death but couldn’t help against the werewolf’s bite, turning Remus into a werewolf.
Is Teddy Lupin Half-Werewolf?
Teddy Lupin is not a half-werewolf. One can only become a werewolf by being bitten by another werewolf.
When Tonks got pregnant, Remus Lupin was devastated because he thought he might have passed the werewolf gene down to his baby. He didn’t want to be a part of the family and tried to leave Tonks and the baby because he was ashamed of what he was and didn’t want that for his son.
Teddy Lupin is called a half-werewolf by Rita Skeeter, a gossip columnist working for Daily Prophet. As we all very well know, Ms. Skeeter always tries to bring the worst out of people without considering how it may affect the people she writes about.
Surely, everyone can realize that she only called Teddy a half-werewolf because of his father, who, in fact, was bitten by a werewolf.
Conclusion
Remus Lupin was ultimately one of the kindest characters in the series, the best Defense teacher Harry ever had, and a really good friend. He was bitten by a werewolf when he was only four and had to live with the stigma for his whole life.
Despite being shunted by most wizarding society for something he never asked for, Remus was a beloved character of many fans of the Harry Potter series.