OotP: Harry's Family (minor spoiler)

[rlharalson]

No: HPFGUIDX 62184

--- In HPforGrownups at yahoogroups.com, "Julia" <enderjulia at y...> wrote:
> Gretchen wrote:
> > The book was also pretty insistant on refering to the "place you 
> call 
> > home".  I took that to mean that they protection was on the house 
> > itself, not so much Petunia or Dudley.  If Harry returns home, he 
> is 
> > safe.  Petunia sealed the charm Dumbledore set and as long as he 
> can 
> > call that place home, where her blood resides, he is safe (p. 836 
> > US).  Harry also has Lily's blood so even if something happens to 
> > Petunia and Dudley, he is safe as long as he calls Privet Drive 
> home.
> > 
> > Some other words in this exchange that stuck out in my mind was 
> that 
> > Dumbledore was pretty specific in refering to the fact that 
> Petunia 
> > was the only living relative from Lily's family (p 836 US 
> addition).  
> > No mention of anyone left from James' family. Dumbledore also 
> talked 
> > about how much he loved Harry.  I still think there is a family 
> > connection between Dumbledore and Harry (grandfather, uncle?).
> 
> 
> I like the point about Petunia already sealed the spell, so it 
might 
> not matter, but does Harry still call Privet Drive home?  This is 
> just a theoretical question, especially after Dumbledore calls it 
> Harry's home, just in the previous books Harry constantly refers to 
> Hogwarts as his home, or feeling his home.  Just curious.  He does 
> live at Privet Drive, though, and has for the last 15 years when 
not 
> at school, so in that aspect of course it's his home, though a 
> rather awful one.  
> 
> Sirius talked earlier of James's parents, about he stayed there 
when 
> he was 16 or 17 over the holidays after he left the Black 
> household.  Wonder what happened to Harry's grandparents.  Did they 
> die of old age, were they killed, what?  I'm making a very large 
> assumption in that they might not have been targets, considering 
> Voldemort seemed to only be after Lily and James (got away from him 
> thrice as I recall), but that is a VERY large assumption.  And we 
> know Petunia isn't related to Dumbledore, and Dumbledore's crazy 
> brother was mentioned in that picture of Moody's  (before leaving 
> for Hogwarts), the one who performed suspicious charms on a goat 
> (book four, talking to Hagrid).  So I honestly hightly doubt 
> Dumbledore and Harry are related.  I think Dumbledore has just done 
> what we readers have done.  Watched Harry and fallen in love with 
> him.
> 
> Julia :)

I think you are right about Dumbledore not being related. If he was 
related to Harry why would he be surprised that he came to care for 
Harry more than the "Plan" thus putting Harry at risk like he claims 
at the end. I think we expect to love those we are related to. Also I 
think that perhaps Petunia and Dudley may also be protected by the 
sacrifice Lily made. Dumbledore says that the protection is in Lily's 
blood which Petunia shares. It wouldn't make much sense to put Harry 
in the protection of someone who was vulernable especially when they 
hated him.

Just my thoughts,
Renee