The Letters from No One
In which many letters addressed to Harry Potter find their way into 4 Privet Drive sending Uncle Vernon into an angry tizzy.
Harry has this really excellent mischievous quality about him that he uses against Dudley and the Dursleys when he's feeling particularly ballsy. His sly mind gets him into trouble, but it also gets him out of it. I think this trademark mischievousness is something he gets from his dad, but it's also characteristic of wizards in general. We get to see this firsthand when he receives his first piece of mail. Addressed to him in his cupboard under the stairs, Harry has never received mail before this letter. Though Uncle Vernon destroys the letter, more and more keep coming in peculiar ways: in Petunia's eggs, through the cracks in the windowsills, and through the chimney. Harry has no idea at this point that wizards are trying to contact him, but it does show that he belongs with them. He's never fit in with anyone he knows. Of course at this point he has no idea that the letters are from wizards, inviting him to a place he'll call home.
It's kind of sad but the few times the Dursleys ever show affection towards Harry are when they are scared. one of these moments is when Vernon visits Harry in his cupboard after the first letter is gone and lets Harry move to Dudley's spare bedroom. A lot of the seemingly cruel things Vernon says I believe are said more out of fear than anger. An example would be when talking with Petunia in the kitchen after the first letter arrives he says, "didn't we swear when we took him in we'd stamp out that dangerous nonsense?"(36) Vernon's fear is so great that he buys a gun and skips town to avoid a bunch of paper. Courage.
Turning our focus to Aunt Petunia, it seems like she has no control over her husband. Growing up with Lily, Petunia knew Harry's magic couldn't be "stamped out," yet she makes no attempts to tell Vernon about this, implying that she is either scared of magic, is scared of her husband, or knows Vernon probably wouldn't listen to her if she tried to explain to him because he's so afraid of magic.
Vernon goes stark, raving mad and takes his whole family on a crazy driving adventure that lands them in a tiny shack on a tiny island in the middle of a storm. It looks like once again, Harry will celebrate his birthday alone. Until—"BOOM. The whole shack shivered and Harry sat bolt upright, staring at the door. Someone was outside, knocking to come in."(45) One of my favorite parts in the book. Next chapter, though.
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