The Dursleys

[LordVisser908]

Let's talk about Matt's Dursleys for a few seconds.

Does anyone think they'll be making a second appearance? I personally do, considering how much he's confessed he hated Uncle Vernon, not that I blame him. I personally want to see Ginny carry out her plan of visiting them when she turns seventeen. Then it's just stand back and watch the show.

[Greatlimmick]

Personally, I wouldn't mind seeing Harry's revenge come back to bite him. We've seen that when he does things differently, it can have unforeseen and potentially unfortunate consequences.

[LordVisser908]

Yeah, true. I'm also thinking of his comment that "revenge is a dish best served cold, not french fried like fast food."

XD

[jgkitarel]

He's done a good job of severing his ties to them, so it is doubtful that it would be any time soon. Of course, it would not be beyond the Evil Authorlord to have this come back and bite him.

[Atharyn]

It is worth noting that Harry has a lot on his plate. Dumbledore, school, that pesky Dark Lord problem, and so on.. From what we've seen in NoFP Harry rather strongly dislikes his relatives. He doesn't consider them a priority unless they are around him. Following that line of thinking, if the Dursleys never impact his life again Harry is unlikely to take the effort to harass them on his own.

His friends, however, are more likely to make the Dursleys a priority whenever they have the time and ability to do so.

[LordVisser908]

And that's what I'd love to see, his friends taking turns torturing the Dursleys. Can you imagine Harry's reaction to finding out they did that?

[gamebrain89]

Yeah, he'd probably start questioning himself on how what he has changed could have pushed them into diving off the cliff into "What the *@#$! is Wrong with You?!" territory. The bit about using the Cruciatus on them when he turns 17 to the goblins was meant to build some trust between himself and Griphook. I highly doubt he would be okay with his friends doing something like that to them, no matter how terrible of people the Dursleys are.

The way I read it, as far as Harry is concerned, he's won. He's away from them permanently and has had his revenge by destroying their "Perfectly Normal, Upstanding Family" image. He's done with them.

[Frances]

Harry's taste for revenge seemed to increase dramatically when he found out that Vernon and Petunia had defeated the attempt to charge them for Harry's attempted murder. I could definitely see him taking further action if he felt like his initial efforts had failed to keep the Dursleys from regaining their previous lifestyle. I agree that I can't see Harry actually using the Cruciatus Curse on them and also feel that that particular threat had more to do with establishing a relationship of trust with Griphook.

Yet, Harry was completely chuffed when the twins interfered with Vernon Dursley's appearance and his labour board hearing in a way that got Vernon arrested for contempt. My interpretation was that they had slipped Vernon some of their Veritamints and Vernon found himself unable to lie during the hearing, which is bound to be problematic as he was protesting having been fired for just cause. I wonder whether he confessed to the actions that had gotten him fired, or just expressed his honest opinion about a judge?

Sirius also promised to torment the Dursleys some while he was out collecting horcruxes, though if he actually did anything I don't remember it coming to light in the story. Ginny decided to take action against them in the future, though she didn't tell Harry that. Further, Harry is surrounded by fierce friends and advocates who all have powerful magic and a sympathetic hatred of the Dursleys. While I think Harry does have some more revenge left in him, I wouldn't be surprised if the people who care about him end up doing so much damage that Harry will never feel the need.

As far as tormenting the Dursleys coming back to haunt Harry, I think his destiny is not really dependent on them any longer, but I think it might look bad for Harry if someone learns about what has been done to his aunt and uncle. For example, if the Authorlord needs a good excuse for Dumbledore's doubt of Harry's intentions to take a sharp upswing at some point, Dumbledore could learn about a series of damaging "pranks" played on the Dursleys by various members of Harry's inner circle. Dumbledore never really seemed to believe that Harry's injuries hadn't been exaggerated when he'd been hospitalized, and what might seem to him to be overkill in the revenge department would have the headmaster seeing shades of Tom Riddle's proto-death eaters.

In fact, if several of Harry's friends feel the impulse to interfere with the Dursleys in small ways, then the sum of all of their actions might actually be a much harsher revenge than any of them intended. Anyone assuming that the various efforts were coordinated could come away with a flawed understanding of what Harry's circle of friends are about.

[jgkitarel]

The main thing on Harry's part is that he considers himself rid of them. The Twins did some things on their own, which he found ironic and amusing, but for the most part, he doesn't see them as much of a concern anymore. However, if they decide to rear their ugly heads into his life again for anything short of a damn good reason, he will also not hold back in getting his own vengeance.

For him, he considers living well with the Weasleys, being happy and knowing that they are ruined to be a proper revenge, for now. He may decide to revisit them later, if only to remind them that he is still out there and remembers every wrong they committed against him. After that, he doesn't need to do anything, their minds will do it for him.

[PeachWookiee]

Of course... if our author decides, the Death Nibblers could Imperious Vernon and have him blow the Statute of Secrecy. But that would lead to the Death Nibblers being doomed as well.