Questions about a Dementor's Nature (Re: Dementors and the MoM)

[KathyK]

No: HPFGUIDX 124729


Hi Everyone!

Great Questions, Meri!  I wish I had the answers.  

Meri wrote:

> 3) Are the Azkaban Dementors the only ones in Britian? In the WW? 
In the world in general? Where do the other Dementors live? Are 
there other wizard's prisons that have Dementor guards? When did 
Dementors first appear? Do they predate LV? Did he create them? And 
how did he get them to be his allies in the first LV War?<

KathyK, also delurking, replies:

Whether or not the dementors were involved in the first LV war is 
something I have actually put a considerable amount of thought 
into.  It is my belief that the dementors have been working with the 
Ministry at least since the GoF Pensieve trials.  Adding to that, 
there is evidence, scant as it may be, that dementors were in 
cahoots with the Ministry during the first LV war.  

The Lestranges & Crouch Jr had a nice dementory escort.  The dark 
creatures even put in a guest appearance at Karkaroff's trial.  
Bagman had no such escort, apparently.  At least none that Harry 
cared to take note of but given the other two scenes made special 
mention of dementors and the general feel of Bagman's trial, there 
probably weren't any there (GoF, Chapter 30, The Pensieve).     

Even before that, we have Sirius' statement that Crouch handed him 
straight over to the dementors without trial.  Dementors have been 
working with the Ministry since LV's fall (GoF, Chapter 27, Padfoot 
Returns.  

Finally, the evidence I believe leads to the conclusion that 
dementors aligned themselves with the Ministry earlier (during or 
before the first war).  There are two little bits.  The first is 
Dumbledore in the Pensieve.  He says to Moody something to the 
effect of, "I have long felt it was a mistake for the Ministry to 
ally itself with such creatures."  Bah, I can't recall the exact 
quote at the moment but I know it's in Chapter 30.  Bad, bad, 
Kathy.  

The second bit is more ambiguous.  I hesitate to even use it.  Okay, 
the moment of hesitation has ended.  It requires you to beleive 
Petunia when she says in OoP, (Chapter 2?) that she heard, "that 
boy" telling "her" about it "years ago."  It also requires those 
folks she's referencing to be Lily and James.  If the above is true, 
then the dementors were indeed guarding Azkaban during, if not, 
before the first war as The Potters' demise marks the end of that 
conflict.  Take or leave this bit but I think the other canon points 
in the direction of dementors siding with the Ministry for at least 
part of Voldemort War I.  

It used to bother me that they remained with the Ministry, stationed 
at Azkaban.  What more could the Ministry offer that LV could not?  
Then it occurred to me.  At Azkaban, they're getting a steady diet 
of human emotion.  And with a war going on, it's likely they were 
getting a fair bit of fresh blood, so to speak, perhaps even a whole 
soul or two.  Why make a change if they're getting exactly what they 
needed with minimal effort?

Now, though.  There's no war.  Perhaps their well as dried up a 
bit.  Not as many prisoners as there once was.  Maybe the new ones 
aren't staying as long in Azkaban.  People just aren't getting 
caught doing a whole lotta prison-worthy crimes.  The Death Eaters 
residing there have been in Azkaban so long, there's little left for 
the dementors to feed on.  

It's time for the dementors to look elsewhere for their tasty 
treats.  And they find Lord Voldemort, very interested in getting 
his followers released and offering the dementors the promise of 
greater pleasure than they're getting from the Ministry.  Yeah, one 
guy got to soul suck Barty Jr, but what about the rest of them?  
Umbridge teased them when she had them go after Harry on Privet 
Drive.  No fair sending them after a kid who can actually produce a 
Patronus.  Couldn't even get a Sirius Black or a stray student the 
previous year.  Defintely time to move on.  


 
>If enough wizards got together and produced Patronuses at the same 
time would this kill a dementor?<


Like a Care Bear Stare? :-P

KathyK, apologizing for a lack of page numbers but thinking it's 
pretty sad she could remember chapter numbers and names off the top 
of her head