326 HARRY POTTER Fluffy! I told him ! lt was the only thing he didn't know an' I told him ! Yeh could've died! AII fer a dragon egg! l'll never drink again ! I should be chucked out an' made ter live as a Muggle ! ' 'Hagrid!' said Harry, shocked to see Hagrid shak- ing 、 vith grief and remorse, great tears leaking down into his beard. 'Hagrid, he'd have found out somehow, this is Voldemort we're talking about, he'd have found out even if you hadn'ttold him. 'Yeh could've died! ' sobbed Hagrid. 'An' don' say the name ! ' 'VOLDEMORT ! ' Harry bellowed, and Hagrid was so shocked, he stopped crying. 'l've met him and l'm calling him by his name. Please cheer up, Hagrid, we saved the Stone, it's gone, he can't use it. Have a Chocolate Frog, l've got loads . Hagrid wiped his nose on the back of his hand and said, 'That reminds me. l've got yeh a present. 'lt's not a stoat sandwich, is it?' said Harry anx- iously and at last Hagrid gave a weak chuckle. 'Nah. DumbIedore gave me the day off yesterday ter fix it. 'Course, he shoulda sacked me instead ー anyway, got yeh this . lt seemed tO be a handsome, leather-covered book. Harry opened it curiously. lt was full of wiz- ard photographs. Smiling and waving at him from every page were his mother and father. 'Sent owls off ter all yer parents' old school friends, askin' fer photos ... Knew yeh didn' have any ... D'yeh like it?' Harry couldn't speak, but Hagrid understood. Harry made his way down to the end-of-year feast

234 HARRY POTTER Harry had even less time than the other two, because Quidditch practice had started again. 从み 00d was working the team harder than ever. Even the endless rain that had replaced the snow couldn't dampen his spirits. The Weasleys com- plained that 、 vood was becoming a fanatic, but Harry was on W00d's side. If they won their next match, against Hufflepuff, they would overtake Slytherin ⅲ the House Championship for the first time in seven years. Quite apart from wanting tO win, Harry found that he had fewer nightmares when he was tired out after training. Then, during one particularly wet and muddy practice session, WOOd gave the team a bit Of bad news. He'd just got very angry with the Weasleys, who kept dive-bombing each other and pretending to fall off their brooms. 'Will you stop messing around! ' he yelled. 'That's exactly the sort of thing that'll lose us the match ! Snape's refereeing this time, and he'll be looking for any excuse t0 knock points off Gryffindor!' George Weasley really did fall off his broom at these words. 'Snape's refereeing?' he spluttered through a mouthful of mud. 'When's he ever refereed a Quidditch match? He's not going to be fair if we might overtake Slytherin. The rest of the team landed next to George to complain, t00. 'lt's not my fault,' said 、 M00d. 。、 ve've just got t0 make sure we play a clean game, SO Snape hasn't got an excuse tO pick on us. Which was all very well, thought Harry, but he

THE KEEPER OF THE KEYS 63 'Then she met that Potter at school and they left and got married and had you, and 0f course I knew you'd be just the same, just as strange, Just as ー as 訪れの明記 and then, if you please, she went and got herself blown up and we got landed with you ! ' Harry had gone very white. As soon as he found his voice he said, 'Blown up? You told me they died in a car crash ! ' ℃ AR CRASH ! ' roared Hagrid, jumping up so angrily thatthe Dursleys scuttled back to their cor- ner. 'How could a car crash kill LiIy an' James POtter? lt's an outrage! A scandal ! Harry Potter not knowin' his own s [ 0 when every kid ⅲ our world knows hiS name! ' 'But why? What happened?' Harry asked urgently. The anger faded from Hagrid's face. He looked suddenly anxious. 'l never expected this,' he said, in a 10W , worried voice. 'I had Ⅱ 0 idea, when Dumbledore told me there might be trouble gettin' hold of yeh, how much yeh didn't know. Ah, Harry, I don' know if l'm the right person ter tell yeh ー but someone's gotta ー yeh can't go Off ter Hogwarts not knowin'. He threw a dirty 100k at the Dursleys. 'Well, it's best yeh know as much as I can tell yeh ー mind, I can't tell yeh everythin', it's a great myst'ry, parts 0f it . He sat dO 、Ⅵ 1 , stared intO the fire for a few seconds and then said, 'lt begins, I suppose, with ー with a person called ー but it's incredible yeh don't know hiS name, everyone in our 、 vorld kno 、 MS ー

T H R 0 U G H T H E T RA P D 0 0 R 287 Mighta bin a dragon dealer, mightn' he? I never saw his face, he kept his hood up. Harry sank down next to the bowl of peas. 'What did you talk to him about, Hagrid? Did you mention Hogwarts at all?' 、 Mighta come up,' said Hagrid, frowning as he tried to remember. 'Yeah ... he asked what I did, an' I told him I was gamekeeper here ... He asked a bit .. so I told him about the sorta creatures I lOOk after . . an' I said what l'd always really wanted was a an' then I can remember t00 well dragon cause he kept buyin' me drinks ... Let's see ... yeah, then he said he had the dragon egg an' we could play cards fer it if I wanted ... but he had ter be sure I could handle it, he didn' want it ter go ter any old home ... So I told him, after Fluffy, a dragon would be easy . 'And did he ー did he seem interested ⅲ Fluffy?' Harry asked, trying to keep his voice calm. 。、 Mell ー yeah ー how many three-headed dogs d'yeh meet, even around Hogwarts? SO I t01d him, Fluffy's a piece 0 ' cake if yeh know how t0 calm him down jus' play him a bit 0 ' music an' he'll go straight 0ff ter sleep ー Hagrid suddenly 100ked horrified. 'I shouldn'ta told yeh that! ' he blurted out. 、 Forget I said it! Hey ー where're yeh goin'?' Harry, Ron and Hermione didn't speak t0 each Other at all until they came tO a halt in the Entrance HaII, which seemed very cold and gloomy after the grounds. 、 We've got to go to Dumbledore,' said Harry. 'Hagrid told that stranger how t0 get past Fluffy and

T H E P 0 T 10 N S M A S T E R 145 around a lot. The people in the portraits kept going tO visit each Other and Harry was sure the coats Of armour could walk. The ghosts didn't help, either. lt was always a nasty shock when one 0f them glided suddenly through a door you were trying t0 open. Nearly HeadIess Nick was always happy t0 point new Gryffindors ⅲ the right direction, but Peeves the poltergeist was worth two locked doors and a trick staircase if you met him when you were late for class. He would drop waste-paper baskets on your head, pull rugs from under your feet, pelt you with bits of chalk or sneak up behind you, invisible, grab your nose and screech, 'GOT YOUR CONK ! ' Even worse than peeves, if that was possible, was the caretaker, Argus Filch. Harry and Ron managed tO get on the wrong side Of him on their very first morning. Filch found them trying t0 force their way throu gh a d0 or which unlu ckily turned ou t t0 be the entrance tO the out-of-bounds corridor on the third Ⅱ 00r. He wouldn't believe they were lost, was sure they were trying tO break intO it on pur- pose and was threatening tO lock them in the dun- geons when they were rescued by professor Quirrell , who was passing. Filch owned a cat called Mrs Norris, a scrawny, dust-coloured creature with bulging, lamp-like eyes just like Filch's. She patrolled the corridors alone. Break a rule in front Of her, put just one toe out Of line, and she'd whisk 0ff for Filch, who'd appear, wheezing, tWO seconds later. FilCh knew the secret passageways 0f the school better than anyone (except perhaps the Weasley twins) and could POP

THE KEEPER OF THE KEYS 65 you was all living, on HaIIowe'en ten years ago. You was just a year Old. He came ter yer house an an Hagrid suddenly pulled out a very dirty, spotted handkerchief and blew his nose with a sound like a foghorn. 'Sorry,' he said. 'But it's that sad ー knew yer mum an' dad, an' nicer people yeh couldn't find ー anyway ー 'You-Know-Who killed 'em. An' then ー an' this is the real myst'ry of the thing ー he tried to kill you, t00. Wanted ter make a clean job of it, I suppose, or maybe he just liked killin' by then. But he could- n't dO it. Never wondered how you got that mark on yer forehead? That was no ordinary cut. That's what yeh get when a powerful, evil curse touches yeh ー took care of yer mum an' dad an' yer house, even ー but it didn't work on you, an' that's why yer famous, Harry. NO one ever lived after he decided ter kill 'em, Ⅱ 0 one except you, an' he'd killed some 0 ' the best witches an' wizards Of the age ー the McKinnons, the Bones, the Prewetts ー an' you was only a baby, an' you lived. Something very painful was going on ⅲ Harry's mind. AS Hagrid's story came tO a close, he saw again the blinding flash 0f green light, more clearly than he had ever remembered it before ー and he remembered something else, for the first time in his life ー a high, cold, cruel laugh. Hagrid was wa tching him sadly. 'Took yeh from the ruined house myself, 0 Ⅱ Dumbledore's orders. Brought yeh ter this 10t . 'Load of old tosh,' said Uncle Vernon. Harry jumped, he had almost forgotten that the Dursleys

304 HARRY POTTER A white pawn had moved forward two squares. Ron started to direct the black pieces. They moved silently wherever he sent them. Harry'S knees were trembling. What if they lost? 'Harry ー move diagonally four squares to the right. ' Their first real shock came when their other knight was taken. The white queen smashed him to the Ⅱ 00r and dragged him off the board, where he lay quite still, face down. 'Had to letthat happen,' said Ron, looking shak- en. 'Leaves you free tO take that bishop, Hermione, go on. Every time one Of their men was lost, the white pieces showed no mercy. Soon there was a huddle 0f limp black players slumped along the wall. Twice, Ron only just noticed in time that Harry and Hermione were in danger. He himself darted around the board taking almost as many white pieces as they had lost black ones. 、、 Me're nearly there,' he muttered suddenly. 'Let me think ー let me think . The white queen turned her blank face towards him. . ' said Ron softly, 'it's the only way ... l've got 'Yes . tO be taken. 'NO ! ' Harry and Hermione shouted. 、 That's chess ! ' snapped Ron. 'You've got t0 make some sacrifices ! I take one step forward and she'll take me ー that leaves you free tO checkmate the king, Harry!' 'But ー 'DO you want tO stop Snape or not?'

260 HARRY POTTER 'Nearly there ! ' Harry panted as they reached the corridor beneath the tallest tower. Then a sudden movement ahead of them made them almost drop the crate. Forgetting that they were already invisible, they shrank into the shad- OWS, staring at the dark outlines Of two people grappling with each other ten feet away. A lamp flared. Professor McGonagaII, ⅲ a tartan dressing-gown and a hairnet, had Malfoy by the ear. 'Detention!' she shouted. 'And twenty points from Slytherin! Wandering around in the middle of the night, how 靃尾 you ー ツ ou don't understand, Professor, Harry potter's coming ー he's got a dragon ! ' 'What utter rubbish ! How dare you tell such lies ! Come on ー I shall see Professor Snape about you, MaIfoy ! ' The steep spiral staircase up to the top of the tower seem. ed the easiest thing in the world after that. Not until they'd stepped out into the cold night air did they throw off the Cloak, glad to be able to breathe properly again. Hermione did a sort ofjig. 'Malfoy's got detention ! I could sing! ' 、 Don't,' Harry advised her. Chuckling about Malfoy, they waited, Norbert thrashing about in his crate. About ten minutes later, four broomsticks came swooping down out of the darkness. Charlie's friends were a cheery lot. They showed Harry and Hermione the harness they'd rigged up, so they could suspend Norbert between them.

106 HARRY POTTER 'Oy, Fred ! C'mere and help ! ' With the twins' help, Harry's trunk was at last tucked away in a corner Of the compartment. 'Thanks,' said Harry, pushing his sweaty hair out of his eyes. 'What's that?' said one of the twins suddenly, pointing at Harry's lightning scar. 'Blimey,' said the 0ther twin. 'Are you ー ? ' 'He is,' said the first twin. 'Aren't you?' he added to Harry. 。、 Mhat?' said Harry. 'Harry PO ' chorused the twins. 'Oh, him,' said Harry 'I mean, yes, I am. The two boys gawped at him and Harry felt him- self going red. Then, t0 his relief, a voice came floating in through the train's open door. 'Fred? George? Are you there?' ℃ oming, Mum. With a last look at Harry, the twins hopped off the train. Harry sat down next t0 the window where, half- hidden, he could watch the red-haired family on the platform and hear what they were saying. Their mother had justtaken out her handkerchief. 'Ron, you ve got something on your nose. The youngest boy tried to jerk out of the way, but she grabbed him and began rubbing the end of hiS nose. 'Mum ー geroff. ' He wriggled free. 'Aaah, has ickle Ronnie got somefink on his nosie?' said one Of the t 、 vins. 'Shut up,' said Ron. 'Where's Percy?' said their mother.

94 HARRY POTTER 'And that's where . Mr Ollivander touched the lightning scar on Harry's forehead with a long, white finger. 'l'm sorry to say I sold the wand that did it,' he said softly 'Thirteen and a half inches. Yew. Powerful wand, very powerful, and ⅲ the wrong hands ... Well, if l'd known what that wand was going out intO the world tO dO . He shook his head and then, to Harry's relief, spotted Hagrid. 'Rubeus ! Rubeus Hagrid! How nice to see you again ... Oak, sixteen inches, rather bendy, wasn't 'lt was, sir, yes,' said Hagrid. ℃ 00d wand, that one. But I suppose they snapped it ⅲ half when you got expelled?' said Mr Ollivander, suddenly stern. 'Er ー yes, they did, yes,' said Hagrid, shuffling his feet. 'l've still got the pieces, though,' he added brightly. 'But you don't 6 them?' said Mr Ollivander sharply. 'Oh, no, sir,' said Hagrid quickly Harry noticed he gripped his pink umbrella very tightly as he spoke. 'Hmmm,' said Mr Ollivander, giving Hagrid a piercing lOOk. 。嶬Ⅱ , now ー Mr POtter. Let me see. He pulled a long tape measure with silver markings out of his pocket. 'Which is your wand arm?' 'Er ー well, l'm right-handed,' said Harry 'HoId out your arm. That's it. ' He measured Harry from shoulder to finger, then wristto elbow, shoulder tO Ⅱ 00r , knee tO armpit and round his