Dementor's Kiss

> "*You can exist without your soul, you know, as long as your brain and heart are still working. But you'll have no sense of self anymore, no memory, no...anything. There's no chance at all of recovery. You'll just — exist. As an empty shell. And your soul is gone forever... lost.*"
> ― Remus Lupin on the Dementor's Kiss[source]
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The **Dementor's Kiss** is the act of a Dementor sucking out a person's soul. It was sometimes used as a sentence for criminals by the Ministry of Magic, and is considered a fate worse than death. Before Voldemort was in control of the Ministry, the Dementor's Kiss was ordinarily used against those who escaped from Azkaban. When Kingsley Shacklebolt became Minister for Magic after the end of the Second Wizarding War in 1998, Dementors were no longer used by the Ministry of Magic.

## Description

When the Dementor's Kiss is performed, the Dementor will pull back its hood, clamp its jaw around the victim's mouth, and consume his or her soul. The Dementor's Kiss is generally considered to be a punishment worse than death. Victims are left in what Muggles would call a *Persistent Vegetative State*: empty shells that are still alive but irretrievably "gone". It is impossible to return as a ghost, for the Kiss consumes the soul, and the soul of a person is required in order to become a ghost. It is unknown what happens to souls once a Dementor “ingests” them.

## Usage

> "*But a pair of strong, clammy hands suddenly attached themselves around Harry’s neck. They were forcing his face upward... He could feel its breath... It was going to get rid of him first... He could feel its putrid breath... His mother was screaming in his ears... She was going to be the last thing he ever heard —*"
> ― Harry Potter nearly being kissed by a Dementor[source]
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The Dementor's Kiss was occasionally imposed as a sentence for criminals by the Ministry of Magic; as the reformed Ministry stopped employing Dementors as guards of Azkaban after the Second Wizarding War, the Dementor's Kiss was no longer used as a criminal sentence either.

Sirius Black was fated for such a sentence if he was caught after he escaped from Azkaban. Barty Crouch Jr also suffered this when his escape was discovered. These are the only known examples of this punishment being legally meted out prior to Voldemort's takeover of the Ministry. This fact and the fact that even very serious criminals (such as Bellatrix Lestrange) were not sentenced to it, suggest that it may have been reserved for the crime of escaping from Azkaban.

The Dementors attempted to Kiss Harry Potter, Hermione Granger and Sirius Black after cornering them by the Black Lake in 1994.However, the Dementors were driven away by a Patronus that had been cast by Harry's future self after he and Hermione used a Time-Turner to try to rescue Sirius. After his capture, Sirius was sentenced to be Kissed, but Harry and Hermione helped him to escape once again with Buckbeak's assistance.

The Kiss was performed on Barty Crouch Jr after it was discovered that he had disguised himself as Alastor Moody to deliver Harry Potter to Lord Voldemort and had killed his father in 1995. However, as the Kiss was administered before an official confession could be documented, Cornelius Fudge refused to believe that Voldemort had actually returned.

During the summer holiday, Harry and his cousin Dudley Dursley were attacked by two Dementors in Magnolia Crescent in Little Whinging, secretly sent by Dolores Umbridge to 'silence' Harry of his opposition to the Ministry's stance of denial on Voldemort's return. Were it not for Harry's quick response, both he and Dudley would have received the Kiss.

When Voldemort was in control of the Ministry in late 1997 and early 1998 and Muggle-borns were being persecuted, those detained by the Muggle-Born Registration Commission were threatened with the Kiss if they resisted. Dementors nearly kissed Mary Cattermole during one trial, but Harry Potter repelled them, and he and Hermione Granger freed her and the other Muggle-borns being held prisoner, helping them to escape.

## Known victims

> "*Harry felt a chill in his stomach, as Professor McGonagall struggled to find words to describe what had happened. He did not need her to finish her sentence. He knew what the Dementor must have done. It had administered its fatal Kiss to Barty Crouch. It had sucked his soul out through his mouth. He was worse than dead.*"
> ― Barty Crouch Jr suffers the kiss[source]
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Barty Crouch Jr cropped.jpgBartemius Crouch Junior
### Narrow escapes

Harry Potter movies hbp promostills 6.jpgHarry Potter
(severalHermione Granger Half Blood Prince.jpgHermione Granger
(several)OOTP promo front closeup Sirius Black.jpgSirius Black
(once)Dudley DH.pngDudley Dursley
(once)Mary Cattermole 2.jpgMary Cattermole
(once)