Chapter 29 The Dream

It comes down to this,” said Hermione, rubbing her forehead. “Either Mr. Crouch attacked Viktor, or somebody else attacked both of them when Viktor wasn't looking.”

“It must've been Crouch,” said Ron at once. “That's why he was gone when Harry and Dumbledore got there. He'd done a runner.”

“I don't think so,” said Harry, shaking his head. “He seemed really weak - I don't reckon he was up to Disapparating or anything.”

“You can't Disapparate on the Hogwarts grounds, haven't I told you enough times?” said Hermione.

“Okay…hows this for a theory,” said Ron excitedly. “Krum attacked Crouch - no, wait for it - and then Stunned himself!”

“And Mr. Crouch evaporated, did he?” said Hermione coldly.

“Oh yeah…”

It was daybreak. Harry, Ron, and Hermione had crept out of their dormitories very early and hurried up to the Owlery together to send a note to Sirius. Now they were standing looking out at the misty grounds. All three of them were puffy-eyed and pale because they had been talking late into the night about Mr. Crouch.

“Just go through it again, Harry,” said Hermione. “What did Mr. Crouch actually say?”

“I've told you, he wasn't making much sense,” said Harry. “He said he wanted to warn Dumbledore about something. He definitely mentioned Bertha Jorkins, and he seemed to think she was dead. He kept saying stuff was his fault.…He mentioned his son.”

“Well, that was his fault,” said Hermione testily.

“He was out of his mind,” said Harry. “Half the time he seemed to think his wife and son were still alive, and he kept talking to Percy about work and giving him instructions.”

“And…remind me what he said about You-Know-Who?” said Ron tentatively.

“I've told you,” Harry repeated dully. “He said he's getting stronger.”

There was a pause. Then Ron said in a falsely confident voice, “But he was out of his mind, like you said, so half of it was probably just raving.…”

“He was sanest when he was trying to talk about Voldemort,” said Harry, and Ron winced at the sound of the name. “He was having real trouble stringing two words together, but that was when he seemed to know where he was, and know what he wanted to do. He just kept saying he had to see Dumbledore.”

Harry turned away from the window and stared up into the rafters. The many perches were half-empty; every now and then, another owl would swoop in through one of the windows, returning from its night's hunting with a mouse in its beak.

“If Snape hadn't held me up,” Harry said bitterly, “we might've got there in time. ‘The headmaster is busy. Potter…what's this rubbish, Potter?’ Why couldn't he have just got out of the way?”

“Maybe he didn't want you to get there!” said Ron quickly. “Maybe - hang on - how fast d'you reckon he could've gotten down to the forest? D'you reckon he could've beaten you and Dumbledore there?”

“Not unless he can turn himself into a bat or something,” said Harry.

“Wouldn't put it past him,” Ron muttered.

“We need to see Professor Moody,” said Hermione. “We need to find out whether he found Mr. Crouch.”

“If he had the Marauder's Map on him, it would've been easy,” said Harry.

“Unless Crouch was already outside the grounds,” said Ron, “because it only shows up to the boundaries, doesn't -”

“Shh!” said Hermione suddenly.

Somebody was climbing the steps up to the Owlery. Harry could hear two voices arguing, coming closer and closer.

“- that's blackmail, that is, we could get into a lot of trouble for that-”

“- we've tried being polite; it's time to play dirty, like him. He wouldn't like the Ministry of Magic knowing what he did -”

“I'm telling you, if you put that in writing, it's blackmail!”

“Yeah, and you won't be complaining if we get a nice fat payoff, will you?”

The Owlery door banged open. Fred and George came over the threshold, then froze at the sight of Harry, Ron, and Hermione.

“What're you doing here?” Ron and Fred said at the same time.

“Sending a letter,” said Harry and George in unison.

“What, at this time?” said Hermione and Fred.

Fred grinned.

“Fine - we won't ask you what you're doing, if you don't ask us,” he said.

He was holding a sealed envelope in his hands. Harry glanced at it, but Fred, whether accidentally or on purpose, shifted his hand so that the name on it was covered.

“Well, don't let us hold you up,” Fred said, making a mock bow and pointing at the door.

Ron didn't move. “Who're you blackmailing?” he said.

The grin vanished from Fred's face. Harry saw George half glance at Fred, before smiling at Ron.

“Don't be stupid, I was only joking,” he said easily.

“Didn't sound like that,” said Ron.

Fred and George looked at each other. Then Fred said abruptly, “I've told you before, Ron, keep your nose out if you like it the shape it is. Can't see why you would, but -”

“It's my business if you're blackmailing someone,” said Ron. “George's right, you could end up in serious trouble for that.”

“Told you, I was joking,” said George. He walked over to Fred, pulled the letter out of his hands, and began attaching it to the leg of the nearest barn owl. “You're starting to sound a bit like our dear older brother, you are, Ron. Carry on like this and you'll be made a prefect.”

“No, I won't!” said Ron hotly.

George carried the barn owl over to the window and it took off. George turned around and grinned at Ron.

“Well, stop telling people what to do then. See you later.”

He and Fred left the Owlery. Harry, Ron, and Hermione stared at one another.

“You don't think they know something about all this, do you?” Hermione whispered. “About Crouch and everything?”

“No,” said Harry. “If it was something that serious, they'd tell someone. They'd tell Dumbledore.”

Ron, however, was looking uncomfortable.

“What's the matter?” Hermione asked him.

“Well…” said Ron slowly, “I dunno if they would. They're…they're obsessed with making money lately, I noticed it when I was hanging around with them - when - you know -”

“We weren't talking.” Harry finished the sentence for him. “Yeah, but blackmail…”

“It's this joke shop idea they've got,” said Ron. “I thought they were only saying it to annoy Mum, but they really mean it, they want to start one. They've only got a year left at Hogwarts, they keep going on about how it's time to think about their future, and Dad can't help them, and they need gold to get started.”

Hermione was looking uncomfortable now.

“Yes, but…they wouldn't do anything against the law to get gold.”

“Wouldn't they?” said Ron, looking skeptical. “I dunno…they don't exactly mind breaking rules, do they?”

“Yes, but this is the law,” said Hermione, looking scared. “This isn't some silly school rule.…They'll get a lot more than detention for blackmail! Ron…maybe you'd better tell Percy.…”

“Are you mad?” said Ron. “Tell Percy? He'd probably do a Crouch and turn them in.” He stared at the window through which Fred and George's owl had departed, then said, “Come on, let's get some breakfast.”

“D'you think it's too early to go and see Professor Moody?” Hermione said as they went down the spiral staircase.

“Yes,” said Harry. “He'd probably blast us through the door if we wake him at the crack of dawn; he'll think we're trying to attack him while he's asleep. Let's give it till break.”

History of Magic had rarely gone so slowly. Harry kept checking Ron's watch, having finally discarded his own, but Ron's was moving so slowly he could have sworn it had stopped working too. All three of them were so tired they could happily have put their heads down on the desks and slept; even Hermione wasn't taking her usual notes, but was sitting with her head on her hand, gazing at Professor Binns with her eyes out of focus.

When the bell finally rang, they hurried out into the corridors toward the Dark Arts classroom and found Professor Moody leaving it. He looked as tired as they felt. The eyelid of his normal eye was drooping, giving his face an even more lopsided appearance than usual.

“Professor Moody?” Harry called as they made their way toward him through the crowd.

“Hello, Potter,” growled Moody. His magical eye followed a couple of passing first years, who sped up, looking nervous; it rolled into the back of Moody's head and watched them around the corner before he spoke again.

“Come in here.”

He stood back to let them into his empty classroom, limped in after them, and closed the door.

“Did you find him?” Harry asked without preamble. “Mr. Crouch?”

“No,” said Moody. He moved over to his desk, sat down, stretched out his wooden leg with a slight groan, and pulled out his hip flask.

“Did you use the map?” Harry said.

“Of course,” said Moody, taking a swig from his flask. “Took a leaf out of your book, Potter. Summoned it from my office into the forest. He wasn't anywhere on there.”

“So he did Disapparate?” said Ron.

“You can't Disapparate on the grounds, Ron!” said Hermione. “There are other ways he could have disappeared, aren't there, Professor?”

Moody's magical eye quivered as it rested on Hermione. “You're another one who might think about a career as an Auror,” he told her. “Mind works the right way. Granger.”

Hermione flushed pink with pleasure.

“Well, he wasn't invisible,” said Harry. “The map shows invisible people. He must've left the grounds, then.”

“But under his own steam?” said Hermione eagerly, “or because someone made him?”

“Yeah, someone could've - could've pulled him onto a broom and flown off with him, couldn't they?” said Ron quickly, looking hopefully at Moody as if he too wanted to be told he had the makings of an Auror.

“We can't rule out kidnap,” growled Moody.

“So,” said Ron, “d'you reckon he's somewhere in Hogsmeade?”

“Could be anywhere,” said Moody, shaking his head. “Only thing we know for sure is that he's not here.”

He yawned widely, so that his scars stretched, and his lopsided mouth revealed a number of missing teeth. Then he said, “Now, Dumbledore's told me you three fancy yourselves as investigators, but there's nothing you can do for Crouch. The Ministry'll be looking for him now, Dumbledore's notified them. Potter, you just keep your mind on the third task.”

“What?” said Harry. “Oh yeah…”

He hadn't given the maze a single thought since he'd left it with Krum the previous night.

“Should be right up your street, this one,” said Moody, looking up at Harry and scratching his scarred and stubbly chin. “From what Dumbledore's said, you've managed to get through stuff like this plenty of times. Broke your way through a series of obstacles guarding the Sorcerers Stone in your first year, didn't you?”

“We helped,” Ron said quickly. “Me and Hermione helped.”

Moody grinned.

“Well, help him practice for this one, and I'll be very surprised if he doesn't win,” said Moody. “In the meantime…constant vigilance, Potter. Constant vigilance.” He took another long draw from his hip flask, and his magical eye swiveled onto the window. The topmost sail of the Durmstrang ship was visible through it.

“You two,” counseled Moody, his normal eye on Ron and Hermione, “you stick close to Potter, all right? I'm keeping an eye on things, but all the same…you can never have too many eyes out.”

　　　　　*　　　　　*　　　　　*　　　　　*　　　　　*　　　　　*

Sirius sent their owl back the very next morning. It fluttered down beside Harry at the same moment that a tawny owl landed in front of Hermione, clutching a copy of the Daily Prophet in its beak. She took the newspaper, scanned the first few pages, said, “Ha! She hasn't got wind of Crouch!” then joined Ron and Harry in reading what Sirius had to say on the mysterious events of the night before last.

Harry -
what do you think you are playing at, walking off into the forest with Viktor Krum? I want you to swear, by return owl, that you are not going to go walking with anyone else at night. There is somebody highly dangerous at Hogwarts. It is clear to me that they wanted to stop Crouch from seeing Dumbledore and you were probably feet away from them in the dark. You could have been killed.
Your name didn't get into the Goblet of Fire by accident. If someone's trying to attack you, they're on their last chance. Stay close to Ron and Hermione, do not leave Gryffindor Tower after hours, and arm yourself for the third task. Practice Stunning and Disarming. A few hexes wouldn't go amiss either. There's nothing you can do about Crouch. Keep your head down and look after yourself. I'm waiting for your letter giving me your word you won't stray out-of-bounds again.
Sirius
“Who's he, to lecture me about being out-of-bounds?” said Harry in mild indignation as he folded up Sirius's letter and put it inside his robes. “After all the stuff he did at school!”

“He's worried about you!” said Hermione sharply. “Just like Moody and Hagrid! So listen to them!”

“No one's tried to attack me all year,” said Harry. “No one's done anything to me at all-”

“Except put your name in the Goblet of Fire,” said Hermione. “And they must've done that for a reason. Harry. Snuffles is right. Maybe they've been biding their time. Maybe this is the task they're going to get you.”

“Look,” said Harry impatiently, “let's say Sirius is right, and someone Stunned Krum to kidnap Crouch. Well, they would've been in the trees near us, wouldn't they? But they waited till I was out of the way until they acted, didn't they? So it doesn't look like I'm their target, does it?”

“They couldn't have made it look like an accident if they'd murdered you in the forest!” said Hermione. “But if you die during a task-”

“They didn't care about attacking Krum, did they?” said Harry. “Why didn't they just polish me off at the same time? They could've made it look like Krum and I had a duel or something.”

“Harry, I don't understand it either,” said Hermione desperately. “I just know there are a lot of odd things going on, and I don't like it.…Moody's right - Sirius is right - you've got to get in training for the third task, straight away. And you make sure you write back to Sirius and promise him you're not going to go sneaking off alone again.”

　　　　　*　　　　　*　　　　　*　　　　　*　　　　　*　　　　　*

The Hogwarts grounds never looked more inviting than when Harry had to stay indoors. For the next few days he spent all of his free time either in the library with Hermione and Ron, looking up hexes, or else in empty classrooms, which they sneaked into to practice. Harry was concentrating on the Stunning Spell, which he had never used before. The trouble was that practicing it involved certain sacrifices on Ron's and Hermione's part.

“Can't we kidnap Mrs. Norris?” Ron suggested on Monday lunchtime as he lay flat on his back in the middle of their Charms classroom, having just been Stunned and reawoken by Harry for the fifth time in a row. “Let's Stun her for a bit. Or you could use Dobby, Harry, I bet he'd do anything to help you. I'm not complaining or anything” - he got gingerly to his feet, rubbing his backside - “but I'm aching all over.…”

“Well, you keep missing the cushions, don't you!” said Hermione impatiently, rearranging the pile of cushions they had used for the Banishing Spell, which Flitwick had left in a cabinet. “Just try and fall backward!”

“Once you're Stunned, you can't aim too well, Hermione! “said Ron angrily. “Why don't you take a turn?”

“Well, I think Harry's got it now, anyway,” said Hermione hastily. “And we don't have to worry about Disarming, because he's been able to do that for ages.…I think we ought to start on some of these hexes this evening.”

She looked down the list they had made in the library.

“I like the look of this one,” she said, “this Impediment Curse. Should slow down anything that's trying to attack you. Harry. We'll start with that one.”

The bell rang. They hastily shoved the cushions back into Flitwick's cupboard and slipped out of the classroom.

“See you at dinner!” said Hermione, and she set off for Arithmancy, while Harry and Ron headed toward North Tower, and Divination. Broad strips of dazzling gold sunlight tell across the corridor from the high windows. The sky outside was so brightly blue it looked as though it had been enameled.

“It's going to be boiling in Trelawney's room, she never puts out that fire,” said Ron as they started up the staircase toward the silver ladder and the trapdoor.

He was quite right. The dimly lit room was swelteringly hot. The fumes from the perfumed fire were heavier than ever. Harry's head swam as he made his way over to one of the curtained windows. While Professor Trelawney was looking the other way, disentangling her shawl from a lamp, he opened it an inch or so and settled back in his chintz armchair, so that a soft breeze played across his face. It was extremely comfortable.

“My dears,” said Professor Trelawney, sitting down in her winged armchair in front of the class and peering around at them all with her strangely enlarged eyes, “we have almost finished our work on planetary divination. Today, however, will be an excellent opportunity to examine the effects of Mars, for he is placed most interestingly at the present time. If you will all look this way, I will dim the lights.…”

She waved her wand and the lamps went out. The fire was the only source of light now. Professor Trelawney bent down and lifted, from under her chair, a miniature model of the solar system, contained within a glass dome. It was a beautiful thing; each of the moons glimmered in place around the nine planets and the fiery sun, all of them hanging in thin air beneath the glass. Harry watched lazily as Professor Trelawney began to point out the fascinating angle Mars was making to Neptune. The heavily perfumed fumes washed over him, and the breeze from the window played across his face. He could hear an insect humming gently somewhere behind the curtain. His eyelids began to droop.…

He was riding on the back of an eagle owl, soaring through the clear blue sky toward an old, ivy-covered house set high on a hillside. Lower and lower they flew, the wind blowing pleasantly in Harry's face, until they reached a dark and broken window in the upper story of the house and entered. Now they were flying along a gloomy passageway, to a room at the very end…through the door they went, into a dark room whose windows were boarded up.…

Harry had left the owl's back…he was watching, now, as it fluttered across the room, into a chair with its back to him.…There were two dark shapes on the floor beside the chair…both of them were stirring.…

One was a huge snake…the other was a man…a short, balding man, a man with watery eyes and a pointed nose…he was wheezing and sobbing on the hearth rug.…

“You are in luck, Wormtail,” said a cold, high-pitched voice from the depths of the chair in which the owl had landed. “You are very fortunate indeed. Your blunder has not ruined everything. He is dead.”

“My Lord!” gasped the man on the floor. “My Lord, I am…I am so pleased…and so sorry.…”

“Nagini,” said the cold voice, “you are out of luck. I will not be feeding Wormtail to you, after all…but never mind, never mind…there is still Harry Potter.…”

The snake hissed. Harry could see its tongue fluttering.

“Now, Wormtail,” said the cold voice, “perhaps one more little reminder why I will not tolerate another blunder from you.…”

“My Lord…no…I beg you…”

The tip of a wand emerged from around the back of the chair. It was pointing at Wormtail.

“Crucio!” said the cold voice.

Wormtail screamed, screamed as though every nerve in his body were on fire, the screaming filled Harry's ears as the scar on his forehead seared with pain; he was yelling too…Voldemort would hear him, would know he was there.…

“Harry! Harry!”

Harry opened his eyes. He was lying on the floor of Professor Trelawney's room with his hands over his face. His scar was still burning so badly that his eyes were watering. The pain had been real. The whole class was standing around him, and Ron was kneeling next to him, looking terrified.

“You all right?” he said.

“Of course he isn't!” said Professor Trelawney, looking thoroughly excited. Her great eyes loomed over Harry, gazing at him. “What was it. Potter? A premonition? An apparition? What did you see?”

“Nothing,” Harry lied. He sat up. He could feel himself shaking. He couldn't stop himself from looking around, into the shadows behind him; Voldemort's voice had sounded so close.…

“You were clutching your scar!” said Professor Trelawney. “You were rolling on the floor, clutching your scar! Come now. Potter, I have experience in these matters!”

Harry looked up at her.

“I need to go to the hospital wing, I think,” he said. “Bad headache.”

“My dear, you were undoubtedly stimulated by the extraordinary clairvoyant vibrations of my room!” said Professor Trelawney. “If you leave now, you may lose the opportunity to see further than you have ever -”

“I don't want to see anything except a headache cure,” said Harry.

He stood up. The class backed away. They all looked unnerved.

“See you later,” Harry muttered to Ron, and he picked up his bag and headed for the trapdoor, ignoring Professor Trelawney, who was wearing an expression of great frustration, as though she had just been denied a real treat.

When Harry reached the bottom of her stepladder, however, he did not set off for the hospital wing. He had no intention whatsoever of going there. Sirius had told him what to do if his scar hurt him again, and Harry was going to follow his advice: He was going straight to Dumbledore's office. He marched down the corridors, thinking about what he had seen in the dream…it had been as vivid as the one that had awoken him on Privet Drive.…He ran over the details in his mind, trying to make sure he could remember them.…He had heard Voldemort accusing Wormtail of making a blunder…but the owl had brought good news, the blunder had been repaired, somebody was dead…so Wormtail was not going to be fed to the snake…he, Harry, was going to be fed to it instead.…

Harry had walked right past the stone gargoyle guarding the entrance to Dumbledores office without noticing. He blinked, looked around, realized what he had done, and retraced his steps, stopping in front of it. Then he remembered that he didn't know the password.

“Sherbet lemon?” he tried tentatively.

The gargoyle did not move.

“Okay,” said Harry, staring at it, “Pear Drop. Er - Licorice Wand. Fizzing Whizbee. Drooble's Best Blowing Gum. Bertie Bott's Every Flavor Beans…oh no, he doesn't like them, does he?…oh just open, can't you?” he said angrily. “I really need to see him, its urgent!”

The gargoyle remained immovable.

Harry kicked it, achieving nothing but an excruciating pain in his big toe.

“Chocolate Frog!” he yelled angrily, standing on one leg. “Sugar Quill! Cockroach Cluster!”

The gargoyle sprang to life and jumped aside. Harry blinked.

“Cockroach Cluster?” he said, amazed. “I was only joking.…”

He hurried through the gap in the walls and stepped onto the foot of a spiral stone staircase, which moved slowly upward as the doors closed behind him, taking him up to a polished oak door with a brass door knocker.

He could hear voices from inside the office. He stepped off the moving staircase and hesitated, listening.

“Dumbledore, I'm afraid I don't see the connection, don't see it at all!” It was the voice of the Minister of Magic, Cornelius Fudge. “Ludo says Berthas perfectly capable of getting herself lost. I agree we would have expected to have found her by now, but all the same, we've no evidence of foul play, Dumbledore, none at all. As for her disappearance being linked with Barty Crouch's!”

“And what do you thinks happened to Barty Crouch, Minister?” said Moody's growling voice.

“I see two possibilities, Alastor,” said Fudge. “Either Crouch has finally cracked - more than likely, I'm sure you'll agree, given his personal history - lost his mind, and gone wandering off somewhere -”

“He wandered extremely quickly, if that is the case, Cornelius,” said Dumbledore calmly.

“Or else - well…” Fudge sounded embarrassed. “Well, I'll reserve judgment until after I've seen the place where he was found, but you say it was just past the Beauxbatons carriage? Dumbledore, you know what that woman is?”

“I consider her to be a very able headmistress - and an excellent dancer,” said Dumbledore quietly.

“Dumbledore, come!” said Fudge angrily. “Don't you think you might be prejudiced in her favor because of Hagrid? They don't all turn out harmless - if, indeed, you can call Hagrid harmless, with that monster fixation he's got -”

“I no more suspect Madame Maxime than Hagrid,” said Dumbledore, just as calmly. “I think it possible that it is you who are prejudiced, Cornelius.”

“Can we wrap up this discussion?” growled Moody.

“Yes, yes, let's go down to the grounds, then,” said Fudge impatiently.

“No, it's not that,” said Moody, “it's just that Potter wants a word with you, Dumbledore. He's just outside the door.”

“最后结论是这样的，”荷米恩边说边揉揉她的前额。“要不是克劳斯先生袭击了维特，就是有人袭击了他们两个人，是趁维特没在看着克劳斯时下的手。”

　　“肯定是克劳斯先生，”罗恩马上说，“那就是为什么当哈利和丹伯多赶到时不见他的原因，他逃走了。”

　　“我不这样认为，”哈利摇了摇头，“他看起来很虚弱——相信他用分身术或其它办法。”

　　“在霍格瓦彻是用不了分身术的，我不是告诉你几百遍了吗？”

　　荷米恩说。

　　“那……这个设想怎样，”罗恩兴奋地说，“克伦袭击了克劳斯先生——然后弄昏了他自己！”

　　“然后克劳斯先生自己蒸发了，是吗？”荷米恩冷冷地说。

　　“噢，是……”

　　天刚破晓，哈利，罗恩和荷米恩就从宿舍里爬出来。他们一起赶去奥里路发封信给西里斯，现在他们正站在那里看着外面的迷蒙烟雾。他们三个的眼睛都肿了，脸色苍白，因为他们晚上谈论克劳斯到很晚才睡。

　　“让我们再回想一下，哈利。”荷米恩说，“事实上克劳斯先生说了什么？”

　　“我都告诉你了，他说得语无伦次，”哈利说，“他说要警告丹伯多某事。他肯定提到了珀茜·佐金斯，看起来他以为她死了。还老是说什么都是他的错……他还提到他的儿子。”

　　“好吧，那就是他的错。”荷米恩烦躁地说。

　　“他神经不正常，”哈利说，“有时候，他以为他太太和儿子都还活着，他一直在跟伯希谈工作还给他发指示。”

　　“呃……能不能再说一下，关于‘那个人’他说了什么？我忘了。”罗恩试着问。

　　“我已经告诉你了，”哈利厌烦地重复一遍，“他说他正在变得更强大。”

　　沉默了一会儿。

　　然后罗恩用一种装出来的自信说：“但他神经失常，像你说的那样，所以其中一半很可能只是胡言乱语。”

　　“但当他试着说起福尔得摩特的时候，是他神志最清醒的时候，哈利说道，不理会罗恩畏缩了一下。”他很难把两个词串在一起说出来，但当他知道自己在哪，要做什么的时候，他一直在说要见丹伯多。“

　　哈利从窗边走开，凝视着上面的屋椽，半数的椽木是空的，还不时有猫头鹰从窗户外飞进来，叼着它们晚间的猎获物——老鼠。

　　“如果史纳皮当时没有阻拦我就好了，”哈利苦着脸地说，“我们就可以及时回到那儿了。

　　“也许他不想让你到那儿！”罗恩急忙说，“也许——等一下——你认为他能有多快到达那个森林？你不认为他可能已经在那里打败了你和丹伯多吗？只要他比你们快。”

　　“除非他能变成一只编幅或什么东西。”哈利说。

　　“别这样轻易就放过他不理。”罗恩咕哝着。

　　“我们应该去看看莫迪教授，”荷米恩说，“看看他是否已找到克劳斯先生。”

　　“如果他有马罗得的地图，那会很容易。”哈利说。

　　“除非克劳斯先生已经不在这个区域，”罗恩说，“因为它只能显示到边界，不会——”

　　“嘘！”荷米恩突然说。

　　有人正沿着楼梯上这里，哈利可以听到两个声音在争吵，越来越近。

　　“——那是敲诈，那样我们会卷进许多麻烦中去的——”

　　“——我们已经很礼貌了，是时候也学学他耍一下手段，他肯定不愿意让魔法内阁知道他做了什么——”

　　“我告诉你，如果你把那写上去，就是敲诈！”

　　“是的。等我们捞到了一大笔油水，你就不会再老是唠唠叨叨抱怨了，不是吗？”

　　迪迈尔里的门砰的一声打开了，弗来德和乔治一进来就碰上哈利、罗恩和荷米恩的目光，他们一下子僵住了。

　　“你们在这做什么？”罗恩和弗来德同时说。

　　“发封信。”哈利和乔治异口同声。

　　“什么，在这个时候？”荷米恩和弗来德的反应也很一致。

　　弗来德笑起来。“好吧——我们不问你们在干什么，但你们也别问我们。”他说。

　　他手上拿着一个密封的信封。哈利瞄了一眼，但是弗来德不知是有意还是无意，动了动他的手，把信封上的名字盖住了。

　　“好了，别让我们碍了您的事。”他说着，嘲讽似地鞠了一个躬，指着大门。

　　罗恩没有动，“你们在敲诈谁？”他说。

　　笑容一下子从弗来德的脸上消失了。哈利注意到乔治瞄了弗来德半眼，然后对罗恩微笑。

　　“别傻了，我只是在开玩笑。”他故作轻松地说。

　　“听起来不像喔。”罗恩说。

　　弗来德和乔治对望了一眼。

　　弗来德突然说：“我以前告诉过你，罗恩，别多管闲事，看不出为什么你不能，但——”

　　“如果你在敲诈谁，那就是我的事，”罗恩说，“乔治是对的，你会有大麻烦的。”

　　“告诉你，我在开玩笑，”乔治说着，走到弗来德身边从他手中拿过信，把它绑在最近的一只猫头鹰脚上。“你越来越像我们亲爱的老大哥了，罗恩。继续像这样下去，你会扮得更像的。”

　　“不，我不会！”罗恩气呼呼地说。

　　乔治把猫头鹰放到窗户上去，它扑啦啦地飞走了。

　　他掉过头对罗恩笑，“那就不要老是告诉别人要怎么做。再见。”

　　他和弗来德离开了奥里路，只剩下哈利，罗恩和荷米恩在面面相觑。

　　“你想他们会不会知道这些事？”荷米恩小声说，“关于克劳斯先生的或其它的？”

　　“不会。”哈利说，“如果有什么严重的事，他们会告诉某人。

　　比如他们会告诉丹伯多。“

　　但罗恩看起来很不舒服。

　　“有什么不妥吗？”荷米思问他。

　　“呃……”罗恩吞吞吐吐地说，“我不知道他们会不会。他们……他们最近想钱想疯了。我和他们在一起的时候就注意到了——那时——你知道——”

　　“我们不说话，”哈利帮他接着讲完下面的话。“是的，但是敲诈……”

　　“这主意听起来像开玩笑，”罗恩说，“我想他们只是说说，让妈妈心烦，但他们可能真的会做，他们在霍格瓦彻只剩一年了。他们到处跑，怎么说也是时候为将来打算一下了。爸爸帮不了他们，他们需要金子去开始他们的计划。”

　　荷米恩现在也不安了：“是的……但他们不会用违法手段去赚取金子吧？”

　　“为什么不？”罗恩表示怀疑，“我不知道……他们不是特别在意违反规定，不是吗？”

　　“是的，但这是法律，”荷米恩看起来吓坏了，说，“这可不是些学校的什么愚蠢规定……敲诈会让他们得到比关禁闭更严厉的惩罚！罗恩……也许你最好告诉伯希？”“你疯了！”罗恩说，“告诉伯希？他等你一转身就会把他们交给警察。”他怔怔地看着弗来德和乔治的猫头鹰飞出的那窗户，然后说：“走吧，去吃早餐。”

　　“你不认为现在去看莫迪教授太早了点吗？”荷米恩说。他们正走下螺旋形的楼梯。

　　“是的，”哈利说，“如果我们在天刚破晓的时候吵醒他，他很可能会把我们踢出门外，他会以为我们要在他睡着的时候袭击他。

　　让我们等到天亮再说吧。“

　　魔法历史课从来没有这么难度过，哈利不停地看罗恩的手表，因为他已经把自己的表扔掉了。但罗恩的表走得那么慢，他敢发誓它也肯定坏掉了。他们三个都困得要命，恨不得马上趴在桌子上呼呼大睡；连荷米恩也没有照往常一样做笔记。她用手托着头，目光模糊地看着宾西教授。

　　铃终于响了，他们急忙跑出走廊，向“巫术”课室跑去，发现莫迪正要离开。他看起来和他们一样累，眼皮搭拉下来，这使他的脸看起来比平时更斜。

　　“莫迪教授？”哈利叫道，他们正从人群中向他挤去。

　　“哈罗，波特。”莫迪粗声说，他的魔眼盯着一对路过的虫子。

　　它们很紧张，迅速爬到莫迪的后脑勺去了，在角落里看着哈利他们。教授说：“进来吧。”

　　他先让开让他们进来，然后关上门。

　　“您找到他了吗？”哈利开门见山地问道。“克劳斯先生？”

　　“没有。”莫迪说着，走到他的桌子旁坐下，把他的木头腿放直，并发出一声轻微的呻吟。然后拿出他的小热水瓶。

　　“您用了地图吗？”哈利说。

　　“当然了。”莫迪说着喝了一大口水。

　　“他用了分身术吗？”罗恩问道。

　　“他不可能在这个区域用分身术的，罗恩！”荷米恩说，“他肯定用了其他方法消失了，不是吗，教授？”

　　莫迪的魔眼颤抖了一下，看着荷米恩。

　　“你是又一个可以考虑一下做沃罗的人。”他说，“你的思路很清晰正确，格林佐。”

　　荷米恩高兴得涨红了脸。

　　“但他并不是消失不见的，”哈利说，“地图可以显示出看不见的人。他应该已经离开了这里。”

　　“用他自己的力量吗？”荷米恩急切地说，“或是有人把他带出去了？”

　　“是的，也许某人——某人把他拉上扫帚一起飞走了，不是吗？”罗恩急着说，带着希翼的神情看着莫迪，好像也想莫迪说他是块做沃罗的料。

　　“我们不排除绑架的可能。”莫迪粗声说。

　　“那么，”罗恩说，“您认为他现在在霍格瓦彻的某个地方吗？”

　　“可能在任何地方，”莫迪摇摇头，“我们唯一知道的就是他不在这里。”

　　他大声地打着呵欠，他脸上的疤伸得更长了，从他歪歪的嘴巴里可以看到他掉了很多牙齿。

　　然后他说：“丹伯多告诉我，你们三个喜欢把自己想象成侦探。

　　但这里没什么你们可以为克劳斯先生做的事了。魔法部现在正派人寻找克劳斯先生，丹伯多已经通知了他们了。波特，你只要把精力都放在第三次任务上就好了。“

　　“什么？”哈利说，“噢，好的……”

　　自从昨晚和克伦离开那个迷宫后，他还一直没想到过它。

　　莫迪看着哈利，边用手挠着他那疤痕累累，胡子拉连的下巴。

　　“听丹伯多说，这类事情你不知碰到多少次了，你上一年级的时候就破除了一系列障碍，保护了‘点金石’。”

　　“有我们帮忙啊，”罗恩很快地说，“我和荷米恩帮的忙。”

　　莫迪笑了起来，“那么，这次帮他练习吧，如果他没赢我才会觉得出奇呢，”他说，“而且同时……你必须时刻保持警惕，波特，警惕。”他又从水瓶里喝了口水，他的魔眼转向窗户，窗户外可以看到丹姆斯安船的帆尖。

　　“你们两个，”——他的正常眼睛看着罗恩和荷米恩——“你们要紧跟着波特，知道吗？我正注意着事态的发展，……你们千万别管太多的其它事。”

　　第二天早上，西里斯的回信到了，与此同时还有一个茶褐色的猫头鹰停在荷米恩面前，嘴里叼着一份《先知日报》。她拿下报纸，翻了翻开头的那几页，说：“哈！他们还不知道克劳斯的事！”然后她扔开报纸，凑上前去，看看西里斯对前天晚上的那起神秘事件有什么要说。

　　哈利——你知不知道你在做什么，和维特。克伦走进森林里去？

　　我要你回信发誓，你再不和任何人在晚上出去了。在霍格瓦彻有一个极度危险的人物。很显然，他们要阻止克劳斯去见丹伯多。你可能前脚刚离开，他们后脚就跟着来了。否则你可能已经被杀掉了。

　　你的名字因为意外上火杯名单。如果有人想要袭击你，那现在是他们最后的机会了。跟罗恩和荷米恩呆在一起，不要离开格林芬顿太久，还有在第三次任务时带上武器，练习一下怎样打昏敌人和解除敌人的武装。不要念错咒语。你别再管克劳斯的事了，要照顾好你自己。我等着你向我保证你不会再乱跑了。

　　西里斯“他是谁啊，训诫我不要乱跑？”哈利有点气愤，边把西里斯的信折起来放到袍子里，“他自己在学校还不一样。”

　　“他在担心你！”荷米恩尖声说，“就像莫迪和哈格力一样！所以听他们的话！”

　　“一整年都没人袭击我，”哈利说，“根本没人对我做什么——”

　　“除了把你的名字送上火杯名单，”荷米恩说，“他们这样做肯定有原因，哈利，史纳皮是对的，也许他们在等候时机，也许他们的任务就是要抓到你。”

　　“瞧，”哈利不耐烦地说，“就让我们假定史纳皮是对的，有人打晕了克伦，绑架了克劳斯先生。那么，他们当时很可能就在我们附近的树林里，不是吗？但他们等到我走了才下手，所以我应该不是他们的目标才对呀？”

　　“如果他们在森林里干掉你，他们就很难把这弄成是意外！”荷米恩说，“但如果你在任务中死了——”

　　“他们毫不在意攻击克伦，不是吗？”哈利说，“那他们同样又怎会放过我？他们本可以把我和克伦弄成像是决斗后死或什么的。”

　　“哈利，我也不明白，”荷米恩泄气地说，“我只知道一连串古怪的事情在不断发生，我不喜欢……莫迪是对的——西里斯是对的——你应该马上为第三次任务进行训练，马上。还有你必须回信给西里斯保证你不会再独个人偷偷溜出去了。”

　　当哈利不得不呆在户内时，霍格瓦彻对他的吸引力从来没有这么大过。这在接下来的几天里，他一有空，要不和罗恩、荷米恩去图书馆查咒语，要不就偷偷溜进教室里练习。哈利正集中精力练晕眩咒语，这个他以前从来没用过。麻烦就在于要练习它，罗恩和荷米恩就得做出牺牲。

　　“我们不能把挪里斯太太绑架来吗？”在星期一午饭时候，罗恩建议道，他正四脚朝天躺在符咒课室的中央，他已经连续五次被哈利打晕然后弄醒了。“让我们弄晕她几下，或者你可以叫多比，我打赌他愿意为你做任何事，我不是在抱怨或什么，”——他小心翼翼地站起来，揉着他的背——“但我全身都在疼……”

　　“你呀，老是不对准垫子！”荷米恩不耐烦地说，重新调整那堆垫子。这些垫子是菲利特威克留在橱柜里的，曾经用作练习驱逐咒语。“试着向后跌！”

　　“当你被打得晕头转向的时候，当然不可能对得很准啦！”罗恩生气地说，“你为什么不来替换我一下？”

　　“那，我想哈利已经学会了。”荷米恩急忙说，“我们不用担心‘解除武装’咒语，他很久以前就会了……我想我们今晚应该练习这其中的一些咒语。”

　　她低头看着他们在图书馆列的单。

　　“这个看起来不错，”她说，“‘障碍咒’，它可以阻拦一下那些想攻击你的东西，哈利，我们就从这个开始。”

　　铃声响了，他们急忙把垫子塞回橱柜，然后溜出课堂。

　　“晚饭时候见！”荷米恩说，她去阿利斯蒙西，而哈利和罗恩则要去北塔。一条条金黄灿灿的光柱从走廊的天窗上透过来；外面的天空一片亮蓝。好像上了一层釉。“特雷络尼的房间热得就像要沸腾了，她从来不把那火拿出去。”罗恩说。他们走在楼梯间向那银色的梯子和活板门走去。

　　他说得没错。昏暗的房间里热得出奇，从香火里冒出的烟比以前更浓。哈利的头直发晕，于是他趁特雷络尼在看其他地方的时候把一扇窗的窗帘开了一条缝。有一丝微风吹进来，他感觉舒服多了，就坐回他那用印花棉布套着的扶手椅上去。

　　“各位，”特雷络尼教授坐在她那有翼的椅子上跟大家说，她那奇特的眼睛睁得大大的，审视着大家，“我们已经学完了行星占卜术。今天我们有个极好的机会观察火星的活动，现在它正运行到了一个非常有趣的位置。如果你们都准备好了，我就熄灭这些灯……”

　　她挥动着魔杖，所有的灯都熄灭了，只有火光在跳动。特雷络尼教授弯腰从椅子底下拿出一个罩在玻璃里的太阳系微缩模型。真是一件漂亮的东西；许多卫星围在九大行星和炽热的太阳的周围，闪烁着微光；它们都悬在空中，玻璃罩里面的空气很稀薄。哈利懒洋洋地看着特雷络尼教授给他们指出火星正和海王星形成了一个迷人的角度。浓浓的香烟熏人欲醉，窗外的微风柔柔地抚摸着哈利的脸，他好像听到窗帘后面有只虫子在嗡嗡地叫。他的眼皮开始掉下来……

　　他骑在一只猫头鹰的背上，直冲蓝天，不久山腰上出现了一间爬满常春藤的老屋。他们越飞越低，风很舒服在吹在哈利的脸上。

　　他们从二楼的一个又黑又破的窗户嗖的一声飞了进去，穿过这道阴森森的走廊，尽头有一个房间……进了门，房间里真黑，所有的窗户都被木板钉死了……

　　哈利爬下了猫头鹰背……他努力想看清房间里有什么，猫头鹰扑喇着翅膀飞到一张背对着他的椅子上……椅子旁边的地面好像有两个黑影……在不停地扭动……

　　其中一个是一条巨蛇……另一个是个人……一个矮小的秃头男人，尖尖的鼻子，眼睛泪汪汪的……他在炉前的地毯上喘息着，抽泣着……

　　“你很走运，温太尔，”一个尖尖的，冷冷的声音从猫头鹰落下的椅子下面传来，“你非常幸运，真的。你的错误并没有把所有的事都毁了。他死了。”

　　“我的天哪！”地上的那人喘息着说，“我的天哪，我……我真高兴……也很难过……”

　　“纳格艾里，”冷冷的声音说，“你真不走运，我不能把温太尔给你吃了，毕竟……但不要紧，不要紧……还有哈利·波特……”

　　巨蛇发出嘶嘶声，哈利可以看见它的舌头在不停吞吐着。

　　“现在，温太尔，”冷冷的声音说，“再提醒你一下为什么我再也不能忍受你的错误……”

　　“天哪……不……我求求您……”

　　椅子底下伸出一根魔杖，它拍着温太尔。“哥鲁西欧。”这个冷酷的声音说道。

　　温太尔尖叫着，好像他身体的每一根神经都在燃烧，哈利满耳都是尖叫声，他前额上的疤痕开始灼痛；他也开始大叫起来……福尔得摩特会听到他的，会知道他在那儿的……

　　“哈利！哈利！”

　　哈利睁开眼睛，他正躺在特雷络尼教授房间的地板上，手捂着脸。他的疤痕还在灼痛得厉害，疼得他的眼睛直流眼泪。这疼痛是真实的。现在整个班的人都站在他周围，罗恩正跪在他旁边，看起来吓坏了。

　　“你还好吗？”他说。

　　“他当然不好！”特雷络尼教授说，她看起来很兴奋。她那大眼睛通视着他。‘它是什么，波特？一个预兆？一只怪物？一个幽灵？

　　你看到了什么？“

　　“什么也没有。”哈利撒谎说。他坐起来，仍能感觉到自己在发抖。他忍不住向四周张望，看看他身后的阴影，福尔得摩特的声音曾经那么的近……

　　“你当时在抓着你的疤痕！”特雷络尼教授说。“你边在地上打滚边抓着你的疤痕！告诉我，波特，我也曾经历过这种情形！”

　　哈利抬起头看看她。

　　“我要去校医室。”他说，“很头痛。”

　　“我亲爱的，毫无疑问你肯定被我房间里的超强感应刺激到了！”特雷络尼说。“如果你现在就离开，你就会失去看到更多东西的机会——”

　　“我不要看到任何东西除了一粒头痛片。”哈利说。

　　他站起来。大家向后退开让出一条路，他们看起来很气馁。

　　“再见。”哈利对罗恩小声说，拿起书包向门口走去。毫不理会一旁带着一脸挫折神色的特雷络尼教授，好像她刚刚错失了良机。

　　哈利从梯子上下来，但他并没有去医疗室，他根本没想去那儿。西里斯曾经告诉他如果疤痕又在痛，他该怎样的做，他正准备照办：他直接向丹伯多的办公室走去。他沿着走廊走下去，边想着刚才在梦中的所见所闻……它就和那次在普里怀特街所做的那个把他惊醒的梦一样逼真……他在脑海中回想所有的细节，以免忘了……他曾听到福尔得摩特指责温太尔犯了一个大错误……但猫头鹰带来了好消息，错误已被纠正，某人死了……所以温太尔不用被抓去喂蛇……而他，哈利，则要做为代替品给蛇吃掉……

　　哈利没有注意到他已经走过了石兽守着的那条通向丹伯多办公室的门。他眨眨眼，终于意识到了，于是走回来，停在它面前，然后他想起来了，他不知道暗号。

　　“柠檬汁？”他试探性地问。

　　石兽没有动。

　　“好吧”哈利说，瞪着它，“梨子汁。呃——利格罗斯魔杖。杜鲁波最棒泡泡糖。贝蒂伯特的美味豆……噢不，他不喜欢这些，是吗？……噢，开开门不行吗？”他很生气地说。“我真的很需要马上见他。非常紧急！”

　　石兽仍然是铁石心肠。

　　哈利用力踢他，但除了抱着脚趾喊痛外，无济于事。

　　“巧克力青蛙糖！”他生气地大喊，一只脚站着，“糖条！蟑螂串！”

　　石兽一下子活了，跳到一旁。哈利眨眨眼。

　　“蟑螂串？”他惊奇地说。“我只是开玩笑……”

　　他急忙跳进墙缝，然后走到螺旋形的石梯脚下，它慢慢地向上升去。门在哈利后面关上了。石梯把他带到了一扇精美的橡木门前，门上有个铜扣环。

　　他可以听到办公室里传来的声音，他走下旋转楼梯，犹豫着。

　　“丹伯多，我恐怕我看不出来两者之间有什么联系，根本看不到！”这是魔法部长可尼斯。法治的声音。“露得说珀茜最擅长的事就是迷路了。我们现在本该已经找到她了，这我承认，但都一样，我们没有证据证明有作弊行为或私下的肮脏交易。丹伯多，根本没有。怎么会把她的失踪与克劳斯的失踪连在一起？”

　　“那么您认为克劳斯发生了什么事呢，部长先生？”莫迪那低沉的声音说道。

　　“我看有两个可能，阿拉斯特，”法治说，“一是克劳斯最后精神分裂了——从他个人记录来看，我想你也同意，他不只是像而已——精神失常，然后到处游荡——”

　　“那他游荡的速度可真快，如果那是真的话，可尼斯。”丹伯多平静地说。

　　“或者——呢……”法治的声音听起来很尴尬。“好吧。我得去看看他被发现的地方，才能下结论，但你说离比克斯贝克顿斯马车不远？丹伯多，你了解那女人吗？”

　　“我认为她是个非常能尽责的女校长——还有她跳舞跳得非常好。”丹伯多淡淡地说。

　　“丹伯多，好了！”法治生气地说，“你不应该因为哈格力的缘故就对她特别有好感，他们并不是无害的——如果，事实上，你可以说哈格力是无害的，即使有那怪物跟着他——”

　　“我对他们俩一视同仁，既不怀疑哈格力，也不会怀疑玛西姆夫人。”丹伯多仍然镇定自若，“我想那是您有偏见，可尼斯。”

　　“我们可以先暂停讨论吗？”莫迪低吼着说。

　　“好吧，好吧，一起到森林去吧。”可尼斯不耐烦地说。

　　“不，我不是指这个。”莫迪说，“因为波特想跟你说几句话，丹伯多。他就在门外。”