Chapter Discussions - Chapter Two Questions, "A Peck of Owls"

[corinthum]

No: HPFGUIDX 72065

> Q1: As Arabella's "cats" do not seem to attract interest by having
an 
> unusual appearance, are they only part-Kneazle as well? Will Harry 
> now be able to identify Mrs. Figg's cats if he needs to? Any ideas 
> how the Kneazle's ability to "guide its owner safely home if they
are 
> lost" will come into play in canon? Mrs. Figg and Filch are the only 
> Squibs we've met (that we know of); does Mrs. Norris fall into the 
> part-Kneazle category, too? Or is she a transfigured person unable 
> to change back? (Was that why Filch was taking the Kwik Spell 
> course?)

I would expect even a part-Kneazle to attract some attention.  Harry
and company don't recognize Crookshanks for what he is, but when he
first sees Crookshanks, Harry thinks to himself that it the strangest
or ugliest or something like that cat he has ever seen (sorry, no
books for exact quote).  So I believe that Crookshanks is the only
part-Kneazle we've seen thus far.  I don't think it's a coincidence
that both Squibs we've been introduced to have an uncanny ability to
communicate with cats.  Perhaps this ability to communicate with cats
(and possibly other animals) is a small advantage Squibs gain as a
result of their magical heritage. 

 
> Q2: What ways does the Ministry have of detecting underage magic? 
> House Elves or portraits? This doesn't seem likely, so what could it 
> be?

kiricat2001 wrote:

>I've wondered if this was something put in place as a way to keep
tabs on >Harry because of his unique situation. Certainly it seems
that Fred and George >do not hesitate to use magic, yet we never hear
of any consequences from the >MoM.

The best explanation I've heard to explain this discrepancy is that
the detection methods are general; they can detect the presence of
specific spells but not who cast them.  I imagine a radar system of
sorts.  In the Weasley household, the Ministry expects to find an
assortment of spells being cast at all times, and is unable to
distinguish between the legal magic and Fred and George's illegal
experimentation.  It also explains why Harry was punished for Dobby's
actions; as far as the Ministry knows, Harry is the only wizard in
that house (or indeed, that area, as we see from Harry's trial).


> Q6: When Harry explains about the Dementor's Kiss, Petunia utters 
> a "soft scream". Does she know someone who received the Dementor's 
> Kiss? Is this what happened to her and Lily's parents? If so, did 
> Petunia only know that they were killed due to Lily's connection to 
> the Wizarding World, but never knew how (or why)? Could the victims 
> of the Dementor's Kiss have been someone other than their parents? 
> Who?

Lily and Petunia's parents have always intrigued me.  I find it very
strange that Petunia has never mentioned them.  We know she hated her
sister, and though I'm sure she resented her parents for doting on
Lily, she has never expressed the same dislike for them.  So why no
mention?  I think Petunia was actually much more involved with the
wizarding world when she was growing up.  Her parents seem to have
embraced the wizarding world.  I think Petunia always disliked this
involvement, whether out of jealousy or resentment.  It explains why
she married Vernon Dursley, a man who epitomizes everything the
wizarding world is not.  But I really don't think she was successful
at cutting herself off from that world until after her sister's
death.  I think, as a result, she was much more knowledgable of the
events during the first Voldemort war than we have been led to
believe.  Perhaps her parents let her know whenever they heard from
Lily?  I'm sure their death (and possibly Lily's as well) only further
convinced her that magic was terrible and dangerous.
 
  
> Q9: When Vernon rails against the magical world, Petunia never 
> demurs; but while he rants and raves, she stays in the background. 
> The concern has always been that they want to live a normal life, 
> that they maintain a proper and respectable appearance among the 
> neighbors, among family, in Vernon's career; this is probably true 
> for Vernon, and maybe to some degree for Petunia as well. But does 
> Petunia have another reason for keeping their connection to the 
> Wizarding World a secret? Is her behavior all this time is just a 
> facade? Is she just playing a role?

I don't believe it's an act.  As I said above, I think she truly
dislikes and distrusts the wizarding world for a combination of
reasons: her jealousy of her sister and resentment of her parents'
attention, her inability separate herself from the source of that
resentment, and the eventual death of her entire family.  But I think
she will eventually be forced to face her past.  How and why I'm not
sure.
 
> Is she 
> worried he might exhibit some magical tendencies? If this is so, who 
> might she most want to hide that from -- Vernon? The neighbors? The 
> magical world? Could she be fearful that she may lose her son the 
> way she lost her sister (and possibly her parents)? 

Hmm, very interesting.  I had never thought of that, but it does seem
to go along with my theories above.
 
> *Is* Petunia the person who will exhibit/discover magical ability 
> later in life?

Oh I hope not.  I think it will be much more interesting if she must
learn to deal with the wizarding world without such a drastic reason. 
"You're a witch so you have to accept this world" is much less
interesting than Petunia eventually learning that she can't shut out
this part of her life, and learning to deal with the witches and
wizards in her life.

Also, Rebecca wrote:

>Do we know if Petunia is the older or younger sister? If she's
younger, maybe >Lily had James over after she graduated and him,
hearing about what type of >person she is, told her the dementer
stories to scare her. It appears that >would fit with James'
character.

Although the Petunia-is-younger scenario would be interesting, I don't
think it's possible based on the timeline we're given.  We know that
James and Lily graduate from Hogwarts only two years before Harry is
born, which makes them about 20 at the time of their deaths.  If
Petunia was indeed younger, it would mean she would be younger than
this at the beginning of SS/PS.  That just doesn't fit with the
descriptions given. Vernon seems to have a middle management type job,
which would require at least a few years experience, and he is never
described as being older than Petunia.  Also, I get the feeling Vernon
and Petunia have been married and settled at Privet Drive for at least
a few years.  My impression was always late-twenties, early-thirties,
making Petunia 5-10 years older than Lily (a large gap, but not
unheard of).  

-Corinth