Petunia's pact (long)

[caesian]

No: HPFGUIDX 110115

When I first read PS (ah, those were the days...), the following 
exchange between Harry and Petunia caught my eye:

'You could just leave me here," Harry put in hopefully...
Aunt Petunia looked as though she'd just swallowed a lemon.
'And come back and find the house in ruins?" she snarled.
'I won't blow up the house," said Harry....
(PS, The Vanishing Glass)

At this point in the story, before Harry knows he is a wizard, we 
already know that the Potter's "house was almost destroyed" (Hagrid's 
quote, PS, The Boy Who Lived), "nearly ten years" ago (although Harry 
doesn't).  We also know that Dumbledore left a letter for the 
Durlsey's, explaining everything.  Perhaps he explained that the 
Potter's house had been destroyed, and that it had something to do with 
Harry.  But I've wondered about Aunt Petunia's "ruins" comment ever 
since, and what she knows.

On "the dull, grey Tuesday our story starts", while Uncle Vernon is 
plagued by visions of literate cats and the absence of collecting tins, 
"Mrs Dursley had a nice, normal day."  The way this sentence is 
structured leaves little room for doubt - the authorial voice has 
proclaimed it so.  That Petunia might have had a terrible Halloween 
night, including any knowledge of the Potter's fate, seems unlikely.

It seems that the only way she could have learned of the fate of the 
Potter's house is through Dumbledore's letter.  That must have been an 
incredibly persuasive letter.  Harry has never seen the letter, nor 
does he understand why Aunt Petunia agreed to "grudgingly, furiously, 
unwillingly, bitterly" (DD, OotP, The Lost Prophecy) seal a "pact" by 
taking Harry in.  By the time Harry is sitting in Privet drive on 
Dudley's 11th birthday, the pact has been sealed nearly 10 years, and 
as far as anyone can see "Privet Drive had hardly changed at all."

I doubt Dumbledore resorted to falsehood or deception in his letter.  
If Petunia knew, at the time she found the letter and sealed the pact, 
that the Potter's house had been destroyed in a deadly struggle 
concerning her nephew - knew, as stated by Dumbledore, that "allowing 
[Harry] houseroom may well have kept [him] alive for the past fifteen 
years" (OotP, The Lost Prophecy) - why did she agree?

It seems she was aware of the possibility of danger to herself, Vernon 
or Dudley as a consequence of doing so.  Dumbledore sends a Howler to 
Privet Drive ("REMEMBER MY LAST, PETUNIA" OotP, A Peck of Owls), 
because he "suspected the dementor attack might have awoken her to the 
dangers of having you as a surrogate son."  /Awoken./  1.  To rouse 
from sleep; waken.  2.  To stir the interest of; excite.  3.  To stir 
up (memories, for example).

She takes Harry and seals a pact of which Vernon and Dudley seem 
completely unaware.

OotP, A Peck of Owls:
Aunt Petunia looked as though she might faint.  She sank into the chair 
beside Dudley, her face in her hands.  The remains of the envelope 
smoldered into ash in the silence.
"What is this?" Uncle Vernon said hoarsely. "What - I don't - Petunia?"
Aunt Petunia said nothing.  Dudley was staring stupidly at his mother, 
his mouth hanging open.  The silence spiraled horribly.  Harry was 
watching his aunt, utterly bewildered, his head throbbing fit to burst.
"Petunia, dear?" said Uncle Vernon timidly. "P-Petunia?"
She raised her head. She was still trembling. She swallowed.
"The boy - the boy will have to stay, Vernon," she said weakly.
"W-What?"
"He stays," she said. She was not looking at Harry.  She got to her 
feet again.
"He ... but Petunia ..."

Vernon has always known that Harry is a wizard, and that Lily and James 
had been a witch and a wizard, although they tried to keep this a 
secret from Dudley and Harry.  Why is Petunia keeping the terms of this 
agreement secret from Vernon?

There seems to be no evidence to suggest that the Dursley's themselves 
needed protection after Voldemort's fall, or that it had been provided 
prior.  And if Petunia's motive was the protection of the family, less 
secrecy and anti-wizard feeling might have been one expected result.

Why did Dumbledore feel confident enough to merely leave Harry on the 
doorstep of an unknown (?) woman, with only a letter for persuasion.  
The letter must have been persuasive.  And, I suspect, Dumbledore knew 
a good deal about Petunia - enough to make him certain that she would 
accept his terms.  When Professor McGonagall expresses shock and 
outrage on hearing the nature of Dumbledore's errand (PS, The Boy Who 
Lived), mentioning the dubious character of the inhabitants of 4 Privet 
Drive, Dumbledore does not express surprise.  He knew already what the 
Dursley's were like, and knew he was "condemning you [Harry] to ten 
dark and difficult years." (OotP, The Lost Prophecy)

You might ask - and with good reason - why it had to be so.  What is 
the nature of the pact between Petunia and Dumbledore?

September 8, 1999 Barnes&Noble.com  Chat Transcript
Q: My children and I love your books, and we care about Harry Potter. 
We are wondering if Harry will continue to live with the Dursley's 
every summer.
A: Well, you have to decide whether you want to give up the fun of 
seeing Harry getting the better of the Dursley's or whether you'd 
rather see Harry happy. I've made my choice, but I can't tell you what 
it is because it will ruin future plots.

Dumbledore has now explained to Harry what he gained by the pact.  
Harry is somehow protected from physical harm (if not psychological 
abuse), by Voldemort,  his followers, and probably even muggles* 
("Then, as the pain in the top of Harry's head gave a particularly 
nasty throb, Uncle Vernon yelped and released Harry as though he had 
received an electric shock - some invisible force seemed to have surged 
through his nephew, making him impossible to hold"),  when he near the 
house at 4 Privet Drive. (" ... DO NOT LEAVE YOUR AUNT AND UNCLES HOUSE 
..." OotP, A Peck of Owls)  As it happens, Harry was outside the house 
in the flower bed when the invisible surge forced Vernon to release 
him.  Perhaps this protection extends to the surrounding neighborhood 
as well, because Harry is allowed to roam Little Whinging freely, 
observed only by that "doleful basset hound", Mundungus.  But this 
seems unlikely. Dudley punches Harry in the narrow alleyway between 
Magnolia Crescent and Wisteria Walk. "A fist made contact with the side 
of Harry's head, lifting Harry off his feet.  Small white lights popped 
in front of Harry's eyes; for the second time in an hour he felt as 
though his head had been cleaved in two; next moment he had landed hard 
on the ground, and his wand had flown out of his hand."  And then, of 
course, there are the dementors.  Perhaps the protection extends in a 
gradient from a center at Privet Drive.

*October 19, 2000 America Online, Chat Transcript
Q: Does everyone have a little magic in them? Even if they are Muggles? 
And if not, how did magic start?
A: I think we do (outside the books), but within my books -- do you 
really think there's any magic in Uncle Vernon? Magic is one of those 
odd talents which some have and some don't.

At any rate, it seems likely that this facilitated protection for Harry 
is sufficient reason for the pact on Dumbledore's side, and there may 
be little else he expects of Petunia.  Clearly, kind treatment of Harry 
was not part of the bargain.

16 November 2000 Dateline Harry Pottermania in Vancouver, with J.K. 
Rowling
A question also surfaced surrounding Harry Potter’s non-magical 
relatives, the Muggles who have always tortured or mistreated Harry, 
because of their fear of magic. For revenge, Harry has magically 
tortured his cousin Dudley. `I like torturing them,` said Rowling. `You 
should keep an eye on Dudley. It’s probably too late for Aunt Petunia 
and Uncle Vernon. I feel sorry for Dudley. I might joke about him, but 
I feel truly sorry for him because I see him as just as abused as 
Harry. Though, in possibly a less obvious way. What they are doing to 
him is inept, really. I think children recognize that. Poor Dudley. 
He’s not being prepared for the world at all, in any reasonable or 
compassionate way, so I feel sorry for him. But there’s something funny 
about him, also. The pig’s tail was irresistible.`

Q: Which character do you most enjoy writing for?
  A:Good question... Gilderoy Lockhart was loads of fun, but he was a 
bit of a one-joke character, and I think I did as much as I could with 
him. I love writing Hagrid and the Dursleys, too oh, and Fred and 
George,all of them, now I come to think of it.

J.K. Rowling's World Book Day Chat: March 4, 2004
LRGS School: Which character do you most dislike ?
JK Rowling replies -> Probably Uncle Vernon.

So what is Petunia getting that she won't admit to Vernon?  First of 
all, if it is something she did not have at the time the pact was 
sealed, she hasn't got it yet.  If Dumbledore is not long for this 
world, as many have speculated, Petunia may get her bargained reward at 
the time of his death, or when Harry comes of age.  But it somehow 
seems unlikely to me that Dumbledore has agreed to reward her - he is 
fully aware of her treatment of Harry and does not approve of it.  His 
small expressions of disapproval ("Harry Potter, The Cupboard Under the 
Stairs/The Smallest Bedroom/ The Floor...") suggest he is unlikely to 
give Petunia anything that he considers to be valuable.  Furthermore, 
their pact does not seem to be amicable in nature:

  "An awful voice filled the kitchen, echoing in the confined space, 
issuing from the burning letter on the table.

REMEMBER MY LAST, PETUNIA.

Aunt Petunia looked as if she might faint.... She was still trembling. 
(OotP, A Peck of Owls)

I would suggest, given Ms. Rowlings statements in interviews, that she 
has something planned for Aunt Petunia - something Petunia deeply 
wants, but the rest of us will find somehow sad or just in a karmic 
sense.  Therefore, I believe that what Petunia is getting from this 
pact is a secret.

4 /Privet/ Drive.  "The Dursleys had everything they wanted, but they 
also had a secret, and their greatest fear was that somebody would 
discover it."

There is one other small detail which may pertain:
"And what the ruddy hell are dementors?"
"They guard the wizard prison, Azkaban," said Aunt Petunia.
Two seconds ringing silence followed these words and then Aunt Petunia 
clapped her hand over her mouth as though she had let slip a disgusting 
swear word.  Uncle Vernon was goggling at her.  Harry's brain reeled.  
Mrs. Figg was one thing - but Aunt Petunia?
"How d'you know that?" he asked her, astonished.
Aunt Petunia looked quite appalled with herself.  She glanced at Uncle 
Vernon in fearful apology, the lowered her hand slightly to reveal her 
horsey teeth.
"I hear - that awful boy - telling her about them - years ago," she 
said jerkily.
...
[Harry] was astounded that [Aunt Petunia] had remembered this scrap of 
information about the magical world for so long, when she usually put 
all her energies into pretending it didn't exist.
(OotP, A Peck of Owls)

I speculate that the secret Petunia is keeping from Vernon (and 
everyone else), the secret that perhaps only Professor Dumbledore also 
knows - /is/ the pact.  He will keep her secret.  And that the secret, 
in some way, involves Dementors - that Petunia has good reason to 
remember this particular detail very well.

It does not seem that she has any personal experience with a Dementor, 
as she does not seem to recognize Dudley's symptoms.  Perhaps she has 
been warned that if she goes against her pact, she'll be sent to 
Azkaban - but that certainly does not seem like Dumbledore's style.

I would speculate, instead, that she did something prior to Lily's 
death that could have been punishable by a sentence in Azkaban 
(assuming, of course, that muggles like Petunia may be tried according 
to wizard law for crimes within/against the magical community).  Her 
crime would have been shameful, and having to do with her nosy, spying 
habits - but probably cannot be so bad as to make her, for example, 
culpable in the death of her sister.  Dumbledore knows of her guilt, 
and has promised to keep her secret, and thus keep her away from 
Azkaban, provided she keeps Harry.  This, for him - seems like perfect 
justice - we know he disapproves of Dementors anyway.  And Petunia, by 
living her life as she is - may be inflicting a punishment on herself 
nearly as terrible.

my two bits, for what they're worth

Cheers,
Caesian