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I also feel slightly sorry for Peter, he was done a disservice in canon by never having any attention to his story. He's seen only as a detail in James & Sirius' life, he's never regarded as an independent being. Everything we know about him is in relation to the Marauders and his betrayal of them.
He was a lackey, that much is evident, and the way Sirius and James talk about him right in front of him is insulting and would have been damaging to a boy who's self-esteem must have been so low anyway. He could've been one of the most interesting characters in the Marauder dynamic, because when you look at the interactions between Sirius/James/Peter, it's no surprise that he would go on to betray them. They treat him like dirt but expect him to be loyal and grateful for their allowing him in their holier-than-thou presence.
It seems from the Snape's Worst Memory scene that Peter is only there because James appreciates the applause, preening like an idiot, and Sirius is openly derisive toward him. Once James & Lily go into hiding, if Peter was still loyal at that time, the only person who ever actually 'protected' him is hiding for his life and in no position to do Peter good. James is HIDING, he is afraid of Voldemort, which means Voldemort is even more powerful than James (which, from James' attitude, might have been easy for Peter to fool himself about). Sirius sure wouldn't be accepting him into the group without James forcing it, so Peter would go to the person who could protect him - Voldemort. Who also appreciates the applause.
In looking at the Marauders more closely, I think it's evident to the readers that "The Marauders" are considered, by James and Sirius, to be just them. It's really The Marauders + Remus & Peter. I think Severus would, from an outside view (and one that is not willing to give them the benefit of the doubt), would be absolutely aware of the huge imbalance in power. What Remus thinks about what James & Sirius do doesn't matter to them at all. He has no say. He can dislike every prank they ever commit, and they obviously knew he did, but they did it anyway because they both wanted to. If James had been against something, you can bet it would be out. Remus, Peter, Sirius, all of them would have ceased any action that displeased him. (And probably the same would go for Sirius).
But Remus still thinks he has some say, because it is obvious he doesn't help them in their bullying. Peter seems to realise immediately that he has no say, and so he conforms everything he believes to align with James. Severus certainly saw that James and Sirius were bullies where others were inexplicably willing to forgive them their cruel and senseless actions in favour of a mysterious "inner goodness" that all the "good guys" can apparently sense somehow (considering how people vouch for it...) but we never actually see.
So while Remus obviously doesn't like what they do and THEY DON'T GIVE A DAMN about that, he has convinced himself that he is on equal level with them, and he believes they regard him as good a friend as they do each other. That deliberate self-fooling might have been clear to Severus if he watched them for long enough, and I agree that Remus remaining friends with them after the Werewolf Prank would have made it that much more obvious that he was living in a fantasy. He thinks they're true friends where, in reality, his friends don't even care enough for him to protect his life and most painful, dangerous secret. And I think Severus, if anything else, tries to make the people most likely to pretend everything is fine realise that everything is NOT fine, in particular when it comes to James & Sirius who enjoy popularity and regard without earning it in an honorable way. He would see Remus' choice to believe in The Good Of The Marauders as idiotic and self-destructive, and I think he would look down on Remus a great deal because of it.
He was a lackey, that much is evident, and the way Sirius and James talk about him right in front of him is insulting and would have been damaging to a boy who's self-esteem must have been so low anyway. He could've been one of the most interesting characters in the Marauder dynamic, because when you look at the interactions between Sirius/James/Peter, it's no surprise that he would go on to betray them. They treat him like dirt but expect him to be loyal and grateful for their allowing him in their holier-than-thou presence.
It seems from the Snape's Worst Memory scene that Peter is only there because James appreciates the applause, preening like an idiot, and Sirius is openly derisive toward him. Once James & Lily go into hiding, if Peter was still loyal at that time, the only person who ever actually 'protected' him is hiding for his life and in no position to do Peter good. James is HIDING, he is afraid of Voldemort, which means Voldemort is even more powerful than James (which, from James' attitude, might have been easy for Peter to fool himself about). Sirius sure wouldn't be accepting him into the group without James forcing it, so Peter would go to the person who could protect him - Voldemort. Who also appreciates the applause.
In looking at the Marauders more closely, I think it's evident to the readers that "The Marauders" are considered, by James and Sirius, to be just them. It's really The Marauders + Remus & Peter. I think Severus would, from an outside view (and one that is not willing to give them the benefit of the doubt), would be absolutely aware of the huge imbalance in power. What Remus thinks about what James & Sirius do doesn't matter to them at all. He has no say. He can dislike every prank they ever commit, and they obviously knew he did, but they did it anyway because they both wanted to. If James had been against something, you can bet it would be out. Remus, Peter, Sirius, all of them would have ceased any action that displeased him. (And probably the same would go for Sirius).
But Remus still thinks he has some say, because it is obvious he doesn't help them in their bullying. Peter seems to realise immediately that he has no say, and so he conforms everything he believes to align with James. Severus certainly saw that James and Sirius were bullies where others were inexplicably willing to forgive them their cruel and senseless actions in favour of a mysterious "inner goodness" that all the "good guys" can apparently sense somehow (considering how people vouch for it...) but we never actually see.
So while Remus obviously doesn't like what they do and THEY DON'T GIVE A DAMN about that, he has convinced himself that he is on equal level with them, and he believes they regard him as good a friend as they do each other. That deliberate self-fooling might have been clear to Severus if he watched them for long enough, and I agree that Remus remaining friends with them after the Werewolf Prank would have made it that much more obvious that he was living in a fantasy. He thinks they're true friends where, in reality, his friends don't even care enough for him to protect his life and most painful, dangerous secret. And I think Severus, if anything else, tries to make the people most likely to pretend everything is fine realise that everything is NOT fine, in particular when it comes to James & Sirius who enjoy popularity and regard without earning it in an honorable way. He would see Remus' choice to believe in The Good Of The Marauders as idiotic and self-destructive, and I think he would look down on Remus a great deal because of it.