The Howler - a spinoff

[Enchanter]

i noticed something while re-reading OOTP. When haryy is laying in the flowers listening to the news. Vernon says something about wizards then Petunia responds something like "the windows open." could this be because she is aware harry is being followed bu wizards

[Centaur Lord]

I dont think so. I always assumed that Petunia was scared that any of the neighbors would overhear something about wizards and Harry's "abnormalty".

[Evil Wizard Petting Zoo]

Hmm...if Petunia truly understood what was more than likely in the letter Dumbledore left for the Dursleys, it seems like she would have been more receptive to the idea of Harry going to Hogwarts seeing as he's the only hope for the world, but then again she had to keep up her act for Vernon. That was one long run-on sentence.

[Athena Appleton]

If Petunia had contact with wizards that would mean that she would know wizards (who all thought of Harry as a hero) could be watching her and how she treats Harry for all of the first 15 years (and after of course). I don't think she'd risk a fury of angry wizards swooping down on her for mistreatment of "The Boy Who Lived", it would disrupt her quiet "normal" life.

Well, you're assuming I'm talking about long, nice, newsy letters... I'm not. I'm talking about Dumbledore (or McGonagall, someone like that) sending her a note once a year or so, maybe two sentences or less, saying "just checkin up on him". Dumbledore really really wanted Harry to be staying at the Dursleys, and he realized he couldn't interfere in the way he was treated. Dumbledore wanted him to stay alive, and that's all he was checking on. Not that they were treating him nice, just that he was still alive. No details.

If Petunia was in contact with wizards, especially Dumbledore she would know have known straight off who was writing to Harry or she would have had a darn good guess and wouldn't look "curious" she'd look angry, or frightened.

Personally, I do think she was putting it on... She knew that Vernon would NOT like knowing that she'd had any contact with any magical folks, so she sure couldn't act like "Oh, I saw that coming"...

Hmm...if Petunia truly understood what was more than likely in the letter Dumbledore left for the Dursleys, it seems like she would have been more receptive to the idea of Harry going to Hogwarts seeing as he's the only hope for the world, but then again she had to keep up her act for Vernon. That was one long run-on sentence.

For those of you who are married, have you ever tried to keep something from your husband/wife? It's hard work. And if it's something you KNEW they'd be really really really upset about, you would work doubly hard to make sure they didn't find out.

We're talking about a secret that could make or break the Dursley's marriage. Uncle Vernon hates everything different from him from people who dress differently to people who perform magic. Petunia is almost as bad, but if she let on that she tolorated even some of those differences in people, Vernon is so stiff about it, he would go ballistic on her. So, when something happens that suprizes him, she has to seem suprized. When something happens that angers him, she has to seem angry.

[Alice I]

Well I hate to disagree with you Athena but I just re read the first chapter of SS and when Uncle Vernon came home after hearing the name Potter mentioned Petunia came into the livingroom with tea for them and Vernon:;


cleared his throat nervously. "Er - Petunia, dear - you haven't heard from your sister lately, have you?"
As he had expected, Mrs. Dursley looked shocked and angry. After all they normally pretended she didn't have a sister.

I don't want to transcribe all of it but the conversation continued with Petunia answering in short clipped and rather angry tones. Once Vernon found out that his nephew was indeed called Harry he dropped the subject and went to bed.
Then she writes that Mrs. Dursley fell asleep quickly while Vernon lay awake worried for a while.

If Petunia had an inkling of what was going on; why did she fall asleep so quickly and dismiss the strange happenings reported on the news and by her own husband so easily?

[Athena Appleton]

If Petunia had an inkling of what was going on; why did she fall asleep so quickly and dismiss the strange happenings reported on the news and by her own husband so easily?

I'm only mentioning this part because I still say that what you put before that was Vernon's interpretation. Also, when I'm lying to my husband about something, and he says something that makes it sound like he knows, I get really rude and defensive (usually the give-away that I'm hiding something). I think her short replies could have been due to this. And I don't think she has warm fuzzy loving thoughts about her sister. I think she is probably insulted when he asks her, because she doesn't like Lily.

Now, about her falling asleep.

I don't think, at that time, that she put two and two together and thought it would affect her at all, since I don't think she heard from the wizarding world in the 24 or so hours between James and Lily's death and the next night. I think she had heard about Voldemort, but didn't think it would affect her because she wasn't magical. That was their problem, it wouldn't enter her world.

I mean, think about it... even if she knew Voldemort was an evil wizard and there's danger...

She wouldn't have thought a lot of owls showing up out of the blue (this, coincidentally, is the only thing I wonder about... maybe she's in contact with the wizarding world not using owls *shrug*)
She wouldn't have thought a lot about the falling stars (meteor shower or something like that)
Of course she would act offended when he asks if she'd heard anything from her sister's lot. First, she's not supposed to be hearing anything from them and she is, so she gets snippety when asked if she does, and second, I think there are some very deep hurts in her regarding the wizarding race. I think she's felt resentment from a young age that she wasn't loved as much because she wasnt' magical.

More than anything else, though, I think Petunia is trying to keep it from Vernon, and, based on how I am, it doesn't seem that odd to me that she acts overly offended (she's defensive... kinda like a "what? you think I talk to them??? how could you suggest such a thing???" when she really does)

[Evil Wizard Petting Zoo]

More than anything else, though, I think Petunia is trying to keep it from Vernon, and, based on how I am, it doesn't seem that odd to me that she acts overly offended (she's defensive... kinda like a "what? you think I talk to them??? how could you suggest such a thing???" when she really does)

I definately agree with that. Most people tend to get defensive when they're lieing about things like that. Good pickup on that!

[pandora315]

I think Vernon doesn't like magic, but he loves Petunia. I don't think him finding out his wife knows wizards would break their magic so I don't think its something she would keep from him. If anything she could blame it on Harry saying "I've got to talk to these abnormal people because of him etc..." Not only that but it means she would have had to keep a secret from Vernon for 15 years which is a bit hard to do, the longest I've ever gone keeping a secret from my husband is 2 days.