Mundungus Fletcher

Mundungus “Dung” Fletcher was a half-blood wizard and a member of the original and reinstated Order of the Phoenix. A notoriously unreliable petty thief and conman, he was brought into the Order by Albus Dumbledore, who valued his connections to the shadier elements of the wizarding world. Fletcher's cowardice and self-interest frequently caused significant problems for the Order's efforts against Lord Voldemort. His most notable failures include abandoning his guard duty on Harry Potter, which led to a Dementor attack, and his panicked Disapparition during the Battle of the Seven Potters, which resulted directly in the death of Alastor Moody. He was also responsible for the theft of Salazar Slytherin's Locket from Number Twelve, Grimmauld Place, which he later gave to Dolores Umbridge as a bribe.

Long before his prominent role in the Second Wizarding War, Mundungus Fletcher had established a reputation as a disreputable figure in the magical community. At one point, he attempted to hex Arthur Weasley in the back while Mr. Weasley's back was turned. Following the first fall of Lord Voldemort, he continued his criminal activities.

When Lord Voldemort returned, Albus Dumbledore reassembled the Order of the Phoenix and included Fletcher, much to the chagrin of other members. Dumbledore insisted that Fletcher was useful due to his network of contacts among thieves and traders who would otherwise remain outside the Order's sphere of influence. Fletcher owed a personal debt to Dumbledore, who had once gotten him “out of a tight spot,” which secured his loyalty, however wavering. In the summer of 1995, Fletcher was assigned to the Advance Guard responsible for watching over Harry Potter in Little Whinging. He abandoned his post to pursue a black-market deal for stolen cauldrons, leaving Harry vulnerable. This dereliction of duty allowed two Dementors, sent by Dolores Umbridge, to attack Harry and his cousin, Dudley Dursley. Fletcher's loud, cracking Disapparition alerted Arabella Figg, who was able to assist Harry. He was later berated for his cowardice by Mrs. Figg and other Order members. After the death of Sirius Black in 1996, Fletcher looted Number Twelve, Grimmauld Place, stealing numerous valuable Black family heirlooms. Among the stolen items were a set of solid silver goblets bearing the Black family crest and a heavy, unopenable locket. In the winter of 1997, Harry caught him trying to sell these stolen goods in Hogsmeade to Aberforth Dumbledore, the bartender at the Hog's Head Inn. During the Battle of the Seven Potters, Fletcher was assigned to act as one of the six decoy Potters, flying with Alastor Moody on a broomstick. When Lord Voldemort himself appeared and pursued them, Mundungus panicked and Disapparated, leaving Moody alone and defenseless. Moody was struck by a Killing Curse and fell to his death. Months later, Harry Potter, Ron Weasley, and Hermione Granger learned that the locket he had stolen was one of Voldemort's Horcruxes. They instructed Kreacher to find Fletcher, and the house-elf successfully captured him. Under interrogation, Fletcher confessed that he had been caught selling unlicensed magical artifacts by Dolores Umbridge, who confiscated the locket as a bribe to let him go. His detailed description of Umbridge and her office at the Ministry of Magic provided the trio with the information needed to infiltrate the Ministry and retrieve Salazar Slytherin's Locket. His fate after this encounter is unknown.

Mundungus Fletcher is described as a squat, bandy-legged man with long, straggly, unkempt ginger hair. His eyes are bloodshot and baggy, giving him an appearance often compared to a basset hound. He perpetually smells of stale tobacco and old sherry, and his clothes are typically ragged and dirty. Fletcher's personality is defined by his unreliability, cowardice, and greed. He is an opportunist who prioritizes personal gain and self-preservation above all else. His loyalty to the Order of the Phoenix is tenuous and primarily based on his debt to Dumbledore. He is not malicious but is fundamentally untrustworthy, and his actions, driven by fear and avarice, often have disastrous consequences for those who rely on him. Despite his significant flaws, he possesses a certain low cunning and a deep knowledge of the wizarding underworld.

• Apparition: Fletcher is proficient at Apparition, often using it to make a swift escape from dangerous situations.
• Concealment and Stealth: He was able to use a Disillusionment Charm on Harry Potter effectively during the flight from Privet Drive. His lifestyle as a thief suggests a general aptitude for stealth.
• Underworld Connections: His most valuable skill was not magical but his extensive network of contacts within the criminal and black-market communities, which provided the Order with valuable intelligence.
• Duelling: His combat abilities are very poor. He is known to flee at the first sign of a real fight and has never been depicted successfully duelling a competent opponent.

• Wand: The specifications of Mundungus Fletcher's wand are unknown.
• Stolen Goods: His primary possessions consisted of a large cache of stolen items. Most notably, he briefly possessed several Black family heirlooms from Number Twelve, Grimmauld Place, including Salazar Slytherin's Locket.
• Cauldrons: He was attempting to sell a batch of stolen cauldrons when he abandoned his post guarding Harry Potter.

• Albus Dumbledore: Fletcher felt a deep sense of obligation to Dumbledore for an unspecified past favor. This was the sole reason for his involvement with the Order of the Phoenix.
• Order of the Phoenix: Most members of the Order, particularly Molly Weasley and Alastor Moody, viewed him with disdain and distrust. They tolerated his presence only out of respect for Dumbledore's judgment.
• Harry Potter: Harry harbored a strong dislike for Fletcher, which intensified into outright anger after learning he had abandoned Moody to die and had been selling Sirius Black's possessions.
• Kreacher: The house-elf despised Fletcher, referring to him as “the thief, the sneak, the slime on the sole of a shoe,” for defiling the House of Black by stealing its treasures.

• Mundungus: A Latin-derived word for offal or waste, which later came to mean a foul-smelling, cheap tobacco. The name aptly reflects his unkempt appearance, unpleasant odor, and low character.
• Fletcher: An English and Scottish occupational surname for a maker or seller of arrows.

• In the film adaptation of Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, Mundungus's role in abandoning Harry before the Dementor attack is omitted.
• He is portrayed by actor Andy Linden in the film adaptation of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1.
• Mundungus Fletcher is first mentioned in Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets by Molly Weasley, though this mention is not included in the film adaptation.