MAGIC AND MYSTERY

Part 12 of Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets

The screen showed them step off the stone staircase at the top, and McGonagall rapped on the door. It opened silently and they entered. McGonagall told them to wait and left them there, alone.

Harry and Halley looked around. It was a large and beautiful circular room, full of funny little noises. A number of curious silver instruments stood on spindle-legged tables, whirring and emitting little puffs of smoke. The walls were covered with portraits of old headmasters and headmistresses, all of whom were snoozing gently in their frames.

"Pretending too, more likely, portraits are such gossips," Bellatrix shook her head.

There was also an enormous, claw-footed desk, and, sitting on a shelf behind it, a shabby, tattered wizard's hat—the Sorting Hat.

Harry walked around the desk, lifted the hat from its shelf, and lowered it s lowly onto his head. It was much too large and slipped down over his eyes, just a s it had done the last time he'd put it on.

"Did you want to be resorted Mr. Heir?" Daphne teased.

"You'll see," Harry told her.

Harry stared at the black inside of the h at, waiting. Then a small voice said in his ear, "Bee in your bonnet, Harry P otter?"

„Er, yes," Harry muttered. „Er—sorry to bother you—I wanted to ask—"

„You've been wondering whether I put you in the right House," said the hat smartly. „Yes... you were particularly difficult to place. But I stand by what I said before, you would have done well in Slytherin—"

Harry grabbed the point of the hat and pulled it off.

"Nothings wrong with being a Slytherin," Theo said. "People just treat us horribly because of something out of our control."

It h ung limply in his hand, grubby and faded. Harry pushed it back onto its shelf . „You're wrong," he said aloud to the still and silent hat. Harry b acked away, watching it.

"Whaddit say?" Halley asked. Harry opened his mouth, then a strange, gagging noise behind him made him wheel around.

Standing on a golden perch behind the door was a d ecrepit-looking bird that resembled a half-plucked turkey. Harry stared at it and t he bird looked balefully back, making its gagging noise again. it lo oked very ill. Its eyes were dull and a couple more f eathers fell out of its tail.

"That's such a pretty phoenix," Luna commented, earning strange looks.

The bird burst into flames. Harry yelled in shock and backed away into the desk. The bird had become a fireball; it gave one loud shriek and the next second there was nothing but a smoldering pile of ash on the floor.

"You looked so panicked," Halley laughed.

The office door opened. Dumbledore came in, looking very somber. " Professor," Harry gasped. „Your bird—I couldn't do anything—he just caught fire —"

"Harry, it's fine. It's a phoenix," Halley told him. " Phoenixes burst into flame when it is time for t hem to die and are reborn from the ashes."