THE DESCENDANT OF SLYTHERIN

CHAPTER 16 : ARAGOG

HARRY'S POV

"All students will return to their House common rooms by six o'clock in the evening. No student is to leave the dormitories after that time. You will be escorted to each lesson by a teacher. No student is to use the bathroom unaccompanied by a teacher. All further Quidditch training and matches are to be postponed. There will be no more evening activities."

The Gryffindors packed inside the common room listened to Professor McGonagall in silence. She rolled up the parchment from which she had been reading and said in a somewhat choked voice, "I need hardly add that I have rarely been so distressed. It is likely that the school will be closed unless the culprit behind these attacks is caught. I would urge anyone who thinks they might know anything about them to come forward."

She climbed somewhat awkwardly out of the portrait hole, and the Gryffindors began talking immediately.

"That's two Gryffindors down, not counting a Gryffindor ghost, one Ravenclaw, and one Hufflepuff," said Lee Jordan, the Weasley twins' friend, counting on his fingers. "Haven't any of the teachers noticed that the Slytherins are all safe? Isn't it obvious all this stuff's coming from Slytherin? The Heir of Slytherin, the monster of Slytherin — why don't they just chuck all the Slytherins out?" he roared, to nods and scattered applause.

"Percy's in shock," George told me quietly. "That Ravenclaw girl — Penelope Clearwater — she's a prefect. I don't think he thought the monster would dare attack a prefect."

But I half-listened. I couldn't seem to get rid of the picture of Hermione lying on the hospital bed as though carved out of stone. And if the culprit wasn't caught soon, I was looking at a lifetime back with the Dursleys. Tom Riddle had turned in Hagrid because he was faced with the prospect of a Muggle orphanage if the school closed. I now knew exactly how he had felt.

"What're we going to do?" said Ron. "D'you think they suspect Hagrid?"

"We've got to go and talk to him. I can't believe it's him this time, but if he set the monster loose last time, he'll know how to get inside the Chamber of Secrets, and that's a start."

"But McGonagall said we've got to stay in our tower unless we're in class—"

"I think," said Harry, more quietly still, "it's time to get my dad's old Cloak out again. You're in, aren't you, Laia?"

Laia nodded. She was still stunned, still hadn't spoken since leaving the infirmary.

That night, after everyone had gone to sleep, we reached Hagrid's Hut.

"Oh," he said, lowering the weapon and staring at us. "What're you three doin' here?"

"What's that for?" I asked, pointing at the crossbow.

"Nothin' — nothin' —" Hagrid muttered. "I've been expectin' — doesn' matter — Sit down — I'll make tea —"

He hardly seemed to know what he was doing. He nearly extinguished the fire, spilling water from the kettle on it, and then smashed the teapot with a nervous jerk of his massive hand.

"Are you okay, Hagrid?" I asked. "Did you hear about Hermione?"

"Oh, I heard, all right," said Hagrid, a slight break in his voice.

There was a loud knock on the door. Hagrid dropped the fruitcake. We exchanged panic-stricken looks, then threw the Invisibility Cloak back over ourselves and retreated into a corner. Hagrid checked that we were hidden, seized his crossbow, and flung open his door once more.

"Good evening, Hagrid."

It was Dumbledore. He entered, looking deadly serious, and was followed by a second, very odd-looking man. The stranger had rumpled gray hair and an anxious expression, and was wearing a strange mixture of clothes: a pinstriped suit, a scarlet tie, a long black cloak, and pointed purple boots. Under his arm he carried a lime-green bowler.