Short Stories From Hogwarts of Heroism, Hardship and Dangerous Hobbies

Minerva was the Roman goddess of warriors and wisdom.

Lupin’s condition of lycanthropy (being a werewolf) was a metaphor for those illnesses that carry a stigma, like HIV and AIDS.

Trelawney’ is a very old name, suggestive of Sybill’s over-reliance on her ancestry when seeking to impress.

Early marriage ended in unforeseen rupture when she refused to adopt the surname ‘Higglebottom’

The Black family, for instance, like to name their offspring after stars and constellations

The man in the job before Hagrid – Silvanus Kettleburn – also loved magical beasts. He also, presumably, loved having the full use of all his limbs – something he certainly did not have by the time he retired.

Remus functioned as the conscience of this group, but it was an occasionally faulty conscience. He did not approve of their relentless bullying of Severus Snape, but he loved James and Sirius so much, and was so grateful for their acceptance, that he did not always stand up to them as much as he knew he should.

Remus Lupin was posthumously awarded the Order of Merlin, First Class, the first werewolf ever to be accorded this honour.

Minerva McGonagall was later awarded the Order of Merlin, First Class, by the new Minister for Magic, Kingsley Shacklebolt, and shortly afterwards appeared on a card in the Chocolate Frog Famous Witches and Wizards series, an accolade she admitted she had never imagined receiving.

Known to successive generations of students as ‘Professor McGonagall,’ Minerva – always something of a feminist – announced that she would be keeping her own name upon marriage.