Chapter Three: The Dursleys Departing
In chapter three of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Uncle Vernon and Petunia take their bows out of the story, and I long for Dudley and Harry to be BFF’s.
(Please be advised that this is a reread and I will be discussing book and movie spoilers.)
Vernon Dursley makes his triumphant return to the book and weirdly…I actually missed the Dursleys? I think I have a sort of nostalgia for their terrible garbage people ways now that Harry is old enough to not get bullied by them effectively anymore. Maybe it’s because we started the whole tale with them, as our Roald Dahl-esque villains, and now they just seem like comic relief.
So Vernon wants one last round of “yelling at my orphan nephew” about how they have to abandon the Dursley home and he thinks Harry’s trying to steal it because Vernon Dursley has the intelligence of a fruit fly.
Harry is rightfully like “beyotch I already have a house and it’s not like I have fond memories of being beaten, starved, and locked under the stairs and oh yeah, Voldemort is going to kidnap you and torture you if he finds you” while Vernon’s brain is all
Harry and Uncle V have a moment where they both wonder if Harry would actually attempt to save the Dursleys if Voldemort had them or not and I personally am of the opinion that he would, for Dudley’s sake at least. And he really is a noble soul, that HPotz.
Dudley tells his parents that he’s going with the Order because Dudley has grown a brain against all odds, and Hestia Jones and Dedalus Diggle show up to guard the Dursleys. Pour one out for these two, because goddamn are they in for it with guarding the twin trash tricks of Uncle Vernon and Aunt Petunia. Pour another out for Dudley, whose experience with wizards has been full of terror and torment (even if he had some of it coming) and now has to live with them.
As much as I hate Uncle Vernon, he does have a point in that expecting him to abandon his job and the family their home is not easy, and was a price to pay for housing Harry.
And now we get to it! The goodbyes. Although I do love the movie adaptation of Deathly Hallows Part 1, I have two major beefs and one comes up here, when they cut the Dudley redemption scene (and gave it to Petunia!! PETUNIA!!!) when we know they filmed it.
Uncle V sticks to his usual and can’t even bring himself to touch Harry or use his actual name, although with Uncle Vernon he’s such a turnip maybe he doesn’t even remember Harry’s name at this point, and Aunt Petunia tries to avoid saying goodbye at all. Dudley, however, is like “wait a minute why isn’t Harry coming when there’s an evil wizard out to kill him” and the concern he shows Harry finally gives me a redemptive moment I’ve been craving. We won’t get it with Malfoy, so we have to savor this one.
Turns out the incident with the dementor made Dudley come to his senses about his terrible behavior and relationship with his cousin, and the tea was a peace offering to Harry. Damn it, I know JKR is on the record for saying Harry and Dudley have an awkward relationship as adults but I want them to be friends! I want Dudley to have a magical kid and his kid to be friends with Harry’s kids!
So the cousins, who were both abused by Petunia and Vernon in totally different ways say goodbye and Petunia gets another chance to attempt to not suck as an aunt and fails as usual. Look Petunia, I can’t guarantee that the knowledge that my sister got to go to a magic castle and learn magic and be awesome while I had to stay home and learn algebra wouldn’t drive me over the edge as well but GROW UP YOU HAG.
Aunt P could’ve been such a heroic figure, raising her estranged and murdered sister’s son like her own and instead she is just as petty as Snape. But best wishes to you, Big D! I hope you raise your kids the opposite of how you and Harry were raised.
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Would Harry rescue the Dursley’s if Voldemort captures him?
How do you think the year went with the Dursley’s, Dedalus, and Hestia?
Why doesn’t Petunia say a real goodbye to Harry?
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