Chapter 35 Veritaserum

Harry felt himself slam flat into the ground; his face was pressed into grass; the smell of it filled his nostrils. He had closed his eyes while the Portkey transported him, and he kept them closed now. He did not move. All the breath seemed to have been knocked out of him; his head was swimming so badly he felt as though the ground beneath him were swaying like the deck of a ship. To hold himself steady, he tightened his hold on the two things he was still clutching: the smooth, cold handle of the Triwizard Cup and Cedric's body. He felt as though he would slide away into the blackness gathering at the edges of his brain if he let go of either of them. Shock and exhaustion kept him on the ground, breathing in the smell of the grass, waiting…waiting for someone to do something…something to happen…and all the while, his scar burned dully on his forehead.…

A torrent of sound deafened and confused him; there were voices everywhere, footsteps, screams.…He remained where he was, his face screwed up against the noise, as though it were a nightmare that would pass.…

Then a pair of hands seized him roughly and turned him over.

“Harry! Harry!”

He opened his eyes.

He was looking up at the starry sky, and Albus Dumbledore was crouched over him. The dark shadows of a crowd of people pressed in around them, pushing nearer; Harry felt the ground beneath his head reverberating with their footsteps.

He had come back to the edge of the maze. He could see the stands rising above him, the shapes of people moving in them, the stars above.

Harry let go of the cup, but he clutched Cedric to him even more tightly. He raised his free hand and seized Dumbledore's wrist, while Dumbledore's face swam in and out of focus.

“He's back,” Harry whispered. “He's back. Voldemort.”

“What's going on? What's happened?”

The face of Cornelius Fudge appeared upside down over Harry; it looked white, appalled.

“My God - Diggory!” it whispered. “Dumbledore - he's dead!”

The words were repeated, the shadowy figures pressing in on them gasped it to those around them…and then others shouted it - screeched it - into the night - “He's dead!” “He's dead!” “Cedric Diggory! Dead!”

“Harry, let go of him,” he heard Fudge's voice say, and he felt fingers trying to pry him from Cedric's limp body, but Harry wouldn't let him go. Then Dumbledore's face, which was still blurred and misted, came closer.

“Harry, you can't help him now. It's over. Let go.”

“He wanted me to bring him back,” Harry muttered - it seemed important to explain this. “He wanted me to bring him back to his parents.…”

“That's right. Harry…just let go now.…”

Dumbledore bent down, and with extraordinary strength for a man so old and thin, raised Harry from the ground and set -him on his feet. Harry swayed. His head was pounding. His injured leg would no longer support his weight. The crowd around them jostled, fighting to get closer, pressing darkly in on him - “What's happened?” “What's wrong with him?” “Diggory's dead!”

“He'll need to go to the hospital wing!” Fudge was saying loudly. “He's ill, he's injured - Dumbledore, Diggory's parents, they're here, they're in the stands.…”

“I'll take Harry, Dumbledore, I'll take him -”

“No, I would prefer-”

“Dumbledore, Amos Diggory's running…he's coming over.…Don't you think you should tell him - before he sees - ?”

“Harry, stay here -”

Girls were screaming, sobbing hysterically.…The scene flickered oddly before Harry's eyes.…

“Its all right, son, I've got you…come on…hospital wing…”

“Dumbledore said stay,” said Harry thickly, the pounding in his scar making him feel as though he was about to throw up; his vision was blurring worse than ever.

“You need to lie down….Come on now.…”

Someone larger and stronger than he was was half pulling, half carrying him through the frightened crowd. Harry heard people gasping, screaming, and shouting as the man supporting him pushed a path through them, taking him back to the castle. Across the lawn, past the lake and the Durmstrang ship, Harry heard nothing but the heavy breathing of the man helping him walk.

“What happened. Harry?” the man asked at last as he lifted Harry up the stone steps. Clunk. Clunk. Clunk. It was Mad-Eye Moody.

“Cup was a Portkey,” said Harry as they crossed the entrance hall. “Took me and Cedric to a graveyard…and Voldemort was there…Lord Voldemort…”

Clunk. Clunk. Clunk. Up the marble stairs…

“The Dark Lord was there? What happened then?”

“Killed Cedric…they killed Cedric.…”

“And then?”

Clunk. Clunk. Clunk. Along the corridor…

“Made a potion…got his body back.…”

“The Dark Lord got his body back? He's returned?”

“And the Death Eaters came…and then we dueled.…”

“You dueled with the Dark Lord?”

“Got away…my wand…did something funny.…I saw my mum and dad…they came out of his wand.…”

“In here. Harry…in here, and sit down.…You'll be all right now…drink this.…”

Harry heard a key scrape in a lock and felt a cup being pushed into his hands.

“Drink it…you'll feel better…come on, now. Harry, I need to know exactly what happened.…”

Moody helped tip the stuff down Harry's throat; he coughed, a peppery taste burning his throat. Moody's office came into sharper focus, and so did Moody himself.…He looked as white as Fudge had looked, and both eyes were fixed unblinkingly upon Harry's face.

“Voldemort's back, Harry? You're sure he's back? How did he do it?”

“He took stuff from his father's grave, and from Wormtail, and me,” said Harry. His head felt clearer; his scar wasn't hurting so badly; he could now see Moody's face distinctly, even though the office was dark. He could still hear screaming and shouting from the distant Quidditch field.

“What did the Dark Lord take from you?” said Moody.

“Blood,” said Harry, raising his arm. His sleeve was ripped where Wormtail's dagger had torn it.

Moody let out his breath in a long, low hiss.

“And the Death Eaters? They returned?”

“Yes,” said Harry. “Loads of them…”

“How did he treat them?” Moody asked quietly. “Did he forgive them?”

But Harry had suddenly remembered. He should have told Dumbledore, he should have said it straightaway -

“There's a Death Eater at Hogwarts! There's a Death Eater here - they put my name in the Goblet of Fire, they made sure I got through to the end -”

Harry tried to get up, but Moody pushed him back down.

“I know who the Death Eater is,” he said quietly.

“Karkaroff?” said Harry wildly. “Where is he? Have you got him? Is he locked up?”

“Karkaroff?” said Moody with an odd laugh. “Karkaroff fled tonight, when he felt the Dark Mark burn upon his arm. He betrayed too many faithful supporters of the Dark Lord to wish to meet them…but I doubt he will get far. The Dark Lord has ways of tracking his enemies.”

“Karkaroff's gone? He ran away? But then - he didn't put my name in the goblet?”

“No,” said Moody slowly. “No, he didn't. It was I who did that.”

Harry heard, but didn't believe.

“No, you didn't,” he said. “You didn't do that…you can't have done…”

“I assure you I did,” said Moody, and his magical eye swung around and fixed upon the door, and Harry knew he was making sure that there was no one outside it. At the same time, Moody drew out his wand and pointed it at Harry.

“He forgave them, then?” he said. “The Death Eaters who went free? The ones who escaped Azkaban?”

“What?” said Harry.

He was looking at the wand Moody was pointing at him. This was a bad joke, it had to be.

“I asked you,” said Moody quietly, “whether he forgave the scum who never even went to look for him. Those treacherous cowards who wouldn't even brave Azkaban for him. The faithless, worthless bits of filth who were brave enough to cavort in masks at the Quidditch World Cup, but fled at the sight of the Dark Mark when I fired it into the sky.”

“You fired…What are you talking about…?”

“I told you. Harry…I told you. If there's one thing I hate more than any other, it's a Death Eater who walked free. They turned their backs on my master when he needed them most. I expected him to punish them. I expected him to torture them. Tell me he hurt them, Harry.…” Moody's face was suddenly lit with an insane smile. “Tell me he told them that I, I alone remained faithful…prepared to risk everything to deliver to him the one thing he wanted above all…you.”

“You didn't…it - it can't be you.…”

“Who put your name in the Goblet of Fire, under the name of a different school? I did. Who frightened off every person I thought might try to hurt you or prevent you from winning the tournament? I did. Who nudged Hagrid into showing you the dragons? I did. Who helped you see the only way you could beat the dragon? I did.”

Moody's magical eye had now left the door. It was fixed upon Harry. His lopsided mouth leered more widely than ever.

“It hasn't been easy, Harry, guiding you through these tasks without arousing suspicion. I have had to use every ounce of cunning I possess, so that my hand would not be detectable in your success. Dumbledore would have been very suspicious if you had managed everything too easily. As long as you got into that maze, preferably with a decent head start - then, I knew, I would have a chance of getting rid of the other champions and leaving your way clear. But I also had to contend with your stupidity. The second task…that was when I was most afraid we would fail. I was keeping watch on you, Potter. I knew you hadn't worked out the egg's clue, so I had to give you another hint -”

“You didn't,” Harry said hoarsely. “Cedric gave me the clue -”

“Who told Cedric to open it underwater? I did. I trusted that he would pass the information on to you. Decent people are so easy to manipulate, Potter. I was sure Cedric would want to repay you for telling him about the dragons, and so he did. But even then, Potter, even then you seemed likely to fail. I was watching all the time…all those hours in the library. Didn't you realize that the book you needed was in your dormitory all along? I planted it there early on, I gave it to the Longbottom boy, don't you remember? Magical Water Plants of the Mediterranean. It would have told you all you needed to know about gillyweed. I expected you to ask everyone and anyone you could for help. Longbottom would have told you in an instant. But you did not…you did not.…You have a streak of pride and independence that might have ruined all.

“So what could I do? Feed you information from another innocent source. You told me at the Yule Ball a house-elf called Dobby had given you a Christmas present. I called the elf to the staffroom to collect some robes for cleaning. I staged a loud conversation with Professor McGonagall about the hostages who had been taken, and whether Potter would think to use gillyweed. And your little elf friend ran straight to Snape's office and then hurried to find you…”

Moody's wand was still pointing directly at Harry's heart. Over his shoulder, foggy shapes were moving in the Foe-Glass on the wall.

“You were so long in that lake, Potter, I thought you had drowned. But luckily, Dumbledore took your idiocy for nobility, and marked you high for it. I breathed again.

“You had an easier time of it than you should have in that maze tonight, of course,” said Moody. “I was patrolling around it, able to see through the outer hedges, able to curse many obstacles out of your way. I Stunned Fleur Delacour as she passed. I put the Imperius Curse on Krum, so that he would finish Diggory and leave your path to the cup clear.”

Harry stared at Moody. He just didn't see how this could be.…Dumbledore's friend, the famous Auror…the one who had caught so many Death Eaters…It made no sense…no sense at all.…

The foggy shapes in the Foe-Glass were sharpening, had become more distinct. Harry could see the outlines of three people over Moody's shoulder, moving closer and closer. But Moody wasn't watching them. His magical eye was upon Harry.

“The Dark Lord didn't manage to kill you. Potter, and he so wanted to,” whispered Moody. “Imagine how he will reward me when he finds I have done it for him. I gave you to him - the thing he needed above all to regenerate - and then I killed you for him. I will be honored beyond all other Death Eaters. I will be his dearest, his closest supporter…closer than a son.…”

Moody's normal eye was bulging, the magical eye fixed upon Harry. The door was barred, and Harry knew he would never reach his own wand in time.…

“The Dark Lord and I,” said Moody, and he looked completely insane now, towering over Harry, leering down at him, “have much in common. Both of us, for instance, had very disappointing fathers…very disappointing indeed. Both of us suffered the indignity, Harry, of being named after those fathers. And both of us had the pleasure…the very great pleasure…of killing our fathers to ensure the continued rise of the Dark Order!”

“You're mad,” Harry said - he couldn't stop himself- “you're mad!”

“Mad, am I?” said Moody, his voice rising uncontrollably. “We'll see! We'll see who's mad, now that the Dark Lord has returned, with me at his side! He is back, Harry Potter, you did not conquer him - and now - I conquer you!”

Moody raised his wand, he opened his mouth; Harry plunged his own hand into his robes -

“Stupefy!” There was a blinding flash of red light, and with a great splintering and crashing, the door of Moody's office was blasted apart -

Moody was thrown backward onto the office floor. Harry, still staring at the place where Moody's face had been, saw Albus Dumbledore, Professor Snape, and Professor McGonagall looking back at him out of the Foe-Glass. He looked around and saw the three of them standing in the doorway, Dumbledore in front, his wand outstretched.

At that moment, Harry fully understood for the first time why people said Dumbledore was the only wizard Voldemort had ever feared. The look upon Dumbledore's face as he stared down at the unconscious form of Mad-Eye Moody was more terrible than Harry could have ever imagined. There was no benign smile upon Dumbledore's face, no twinkle in the eyes behind the spectacles. There was cold fury in every line of the ancient face; a sense of power radiated from Dumbledore as though he were giving off burning heat.

He stepped into the office, placed a foot underneath Moody's unconscious body, and kicked him over onto his back, so that his face was visible. Snape followed him, looking into the Foe-Glass, where his own face was still visible, glaring into the room. Professor McGonagall went straight to Harry.

“Come along, Potter,” she whispered. The thin line of her mouth was twitching as though she was about to cry. “Come along…hospital wing…”

“No,” said Dumbledore sharply.

“Dumbledore, he ought to - look at him - he's been through enough tonight -”

“He will stay, Minerva, because he needs to understand,” said Dumbledore curtly. “Understanding is the first step to acceptance, and only with acceptance can there be recovery. He needs to know who has put him through the ordeal he has suffered tonight, and why,”

“Moody,” Harry said. He was still in a state of complete disbelief. “How can it have been Moody?”

“This is not Alastor Moody,” said Dumbledore quietly. “You have never known Alastor Moody. The real Moody would not have removed you from my sight after what happened tonight. The moment he took you, I knew - and I followed.”

Dumbledore bent down over Moody's limp form and put a hand inside his robes. He pulled out Moody's hip flask and a set of keys on a ring. Then he turned to Professors McGonagall and Snape.

“Severus, please fetch me the strongest Truth Potion you possess, and then go down to the kitchens and bring up the house-elf called Winky. Minerva, kindly go down to Hagrid's house, where you will find a large black dog sitting in the pumpkin patch. Take the dog up to my office, tell him I will be with him shortly, then come back here.”

If either Snape or McGonagall found these instructions peculiar, they hid their confusion. Both turned at once and left the office. Dumbledore walked over to the trunk with seven locks, fitted the first key in the lock, and opened it. It contained a mass of spell-books. Dumbledore closed the trunk, placed a second key in the second lock, and opened the trunk again. The spellbooks had vanished; this time it contained an assortment of broken Sneako-scopes, some parchment and quills, and what looked like a silvery Invisibility Cloak. Harry watched, astounded, as Dumbledore placed the third, fourth, fifth, and sixth keys in their respective locks, reopening the trunk each time, and revealing different contents each time. Then he placed the seventh key in the lock, threw open the lid, and Harry let out a cry of amazement.

He was looking down into a kind of pit, an underground room, and lying on the floor some ten feet below, apparently fast asleep, thin and starved in appearance, was the real Mad-Eye Moody. His wooden leg was gone, the socket that should have held the magical eye looked empty beneath its lid, and chunks of his grizzled hair were missing. Harry stared, thunderstruck, between the sleeping Moody in the trunk and the unconscious Moody lying on the floor of the office.

Dumbledore climbed into the trunk, lowered himself, and fell lightly onto the floor beside the sleeping Moody. He bent over him.

“Stunned - controlled by the Imperius Curse - very weak,” he said. “Of course, they would have needed to keep him alive. Harry, throw down the imposter's cloak - he's freezing. Madam Pomfrey will need to see him, but he seems in no immediate danger.”

Harry did as he was told; Dumbledore covered Moody in the cloak, tucked it around him, and clambered out of the trunk again. Then he picked up the hip flask that stood upon the desk, unscrewed it, and turned it over. A thick glutinous liquid splattered onto the office floor.

“Polyjuice Potion, Harry,” said Dumbledore. “You see the simplicity of it, and the brilliance. For Moody never does drink except from his hip flask, he's well known for it. The imposter needed, of course, to keep the real Moody close by, so that he could continue making the potion. You see his hair…” Dumbledore looked down on the Moody in the trunk. “The imposter has been cutting it off all year, see where it is uneven? But I think, in the excitement of tonight, our fake Moody might have forgotten to take it as frequently as he should have done…on the hour…every hour.…We shall see.”

Dumbledore pulled out the chair at the desk and sat down upon it, his eyes fixed upon the unconscious Moody on the floor. Harry stared at him too. Minutes passed in silence….

Then, before Harry's very eyes, the face of the man on the floor began to change. The scars were disappearing, the skin was becoming smooth; the mangled nose became whole and started to shrink. The long mane of grizzled gray hair was withdrawing into the scalp and turning the color of straw. Suddenly, with a loud clunk, the wooden leg fell away as a normal leg regrew in its place; next moment, the magical eyeball had popped out of the man's face as a real eye replaced it; it rolled away across the floor and continued to swivel in every direction.

Harry saw a man lying before him, pale-skinned, slightly freckled, with a mop of fair hair. He knew who he was. He had seen him in Dumbledore's Pensieve, had watched him being led away from court by the dementors, trying to convince Mr. Crouch that he was innocent…but he was lined around the eyes now and looked much older.…

There were hurried footsteps outside in the corridor. Snape had returned with Winky at his heels. Professor McGonagall was right behind them.

“Crouch!” Snape said, stopping dead in the doorway. “Barty Crouch!”

“Good heavens,” said Professor McGonagall, stopping dead and staring down at the man on the floor.

Filthy, disheveled, Winky peered around Snape's legs. Her mouth opened wide and she let out a piercing shriek.

“Master Barty, Master Barty, what is you doing here?”

She flung herself forward onto the young man's chest.

“You is killed him! You is killed him! You is killed Master's son!”

“He is simply Stunned, Winky,” said Dumbledore. “Step aside, please. Severus, you have the potion?”

Snape handed Dumbledore a small glass bottle of completely clear liquid: the Veritaserum with which he had threatened Harry in class. Dumbledore got up, bent over the man on the floor, and pulled him into a sitting position against the wall beneath the Foe-Glass, in which the reflections of Dumbledore, Snape, and McGonagall were still glaring down upon them all. Winky remained on her knees, trembling, her hands over her face. Dumbledore forced the mans mouth open and poured three drops inside it. Then he pointed his wand at the mans chest and said, “Ennervate.”

Crouch's son opened his eyes. His face was slack, his gaze unfocused. Dumbledore knelt before him, so that their faces were level.

“Can you hear me?” Dumbledore asked quietly.

The man's eyelids flickered.

“Yes,” he muttered.

“I would like you to tell us,” said Dumbledore softly, “how you came to be here. How did you escape from Azkaban?”

Crouch took a deep, shuddering breath, then began to speak in a flat, expressionless voice.

“My mother saved me. She knew she was dying. She persuaded my father to rescue me as a last favor to her. He loved her as he had never loved me. He agreed. They came to visit me. They gave me a draft of Polyjuice Potion containing one of my mother's hairs. She took a draft of Polyjuice Potion containing one of my hairs. We took on each other's appearance.”

Winky was shaking her head, trembling.

“Say no more. Master Barty, say no more, you is getting your father into trouble!”

But Crouch took another deep breath and continued in the same flat voice.

“The dementors are blind. They sensed one healthy, one dying person entering Azkaban. They sensed one healthy, one dying person leaving it. My father smuggled me out, disguised as my mother, in case any prisoners were watching through their doors.

“My mother died a short while afterward in Azkaban. She was careful to drink Polyjuice Potion until the end. She was buried under my name and bearing my appearance. Everyone believed her to be me.”

The man's eyelids flickered.

“And what did your father do with you, when he had got you home?” said Dumbledore quietly.

“Staged my mother's death. A quiet, private funeral. That grave is empty. The house-elf nursed me back to health. Then I had to be concealed. I had to be controlled. My father had to use a number of spells to subdue me. When I had recovered my strength, I thought only of finding my master…of returning to his service.”

“How did your father subdue you?” said Dumbledore.

“The Imperius Curse,” Moody said. “I was under my fathers control. I was forced to wear an Invisibility Cloak day and night. I was always with the house-elf. She was my keeper and caretaker. She pitied me. She persuaded my father to give me occasional treats. Rewards for my good behavior.”

“Master Barty, Master Barty,” sobbed Winky through her hands. “You isn't ought to tell them, we is getting in trouble.…”

“Did anybody ever discover that you were still alive?” said Dumbledore softly. “Did anyone know except your father and the house-elf?”

“Yes,” said Crouch, his eyelids flickering again. “A witch in my father's office. Bertha Jorkins. She came to the house with papers for my father's signature. He was not at home. Winky showed her inside and returned to the kitchen, to me. But Bertha Jorkins heard Winky talking to me. She came to investigate. She heard enough to guess who was hiding under the Invisibility Cloak. My father arrived home. She confronted him. He put a very powerful Memory Charm on her to make her forget what she'd found out. Too powerful. He said it damaged her memory permanently.”

“Why is she coming to nose into my masters private business?” sobbed Winky. “Why isn't she leaving us be?”

“Tell me about the Quidditch World Cup,” said Dumbledore.

“Winky talked my father into it,” said Crouch, still in the same monotonous voice. “She spent months persuading him. I had not left the house for years. I had loved Quidditch. Let him go, she said. He will be in his Invisibility Cloak. He can watch. Let him smell fresh air for once. She said my mother would have wanted it. She told my father that my mother had died to give me freedom. She had not saved me for a life of imprisonment. He agreed in the end.

“It was carefully planned. My father led me and Winky up to the Top Box early in the day. Winky was to say that she was saving a seat for my father. I was to sit there, invisible. When everyone had left the box, we would emerge. Winky would appear to be alone. Nobody would ever know.

“But Winky didn't know that I was growing stronger. I was starting to fight my father's Imperius Curse. There were times when I was almost myself again. There were brief periods when I seemed outside his control. It happened, there, in the Top Box. It was like waking from a deep sleep. I found myself out in public, in the middle of the match, and I saw, in front of me, a wand sticking out of a boys pocket. I had not been allowed a wand since before Azkaban. I stole it. Winky didn't know. Winky is frightened of heights. She had her face hidden.”

“Master Barty, you bad boy!” whispered Winky, tears trickling between her fingers.

“So you took the wand,” said Dumbledore, “and what did you do with it?”

“We went back to the tent,” said Crouch. “Then we heard them. We heard the Death Eaters. The ones who had never been to Azkaban. The ones who had never suffered for my master. They had turned their backs on him. They were not enslaved, as I was. They were free to seek him, but they did not. They were merely making sport of Muggles. The sound of their voices awoke me. My mind was clearer than it had been in years. I was angry. I had the wand.

I wanted to attack them for their disloyalty to my master. My father had left the tent; he had gone to free the Muggles. Winky was afraid to see me so angry. She used her own brand of magic to bind me to her. She pulled me from the tent, pulled me into the forest, away from the Death Eaters. I tried to hold her back. I wanted to return to the campsite. I wanted to show those Death Eaters what loyalty to the Dark Lord meant, and to punish them for their lack of it. I used the stolen wand to cast the Dark Mark into the sky.

“Ministry wizards arrived. They shot Stunning Spells everywhere. One of the spells came through the trees where Winky and I stood. The bond connecting us was broken. We were both Stunned.

“When Winky was discovered, my father knew I must be nearby. He searched the bushes where she had been found and felt me lying there. He waited until the other Ministry members had left the forest. He put me back under the Imperius Curse and took me home. He dismissed Winky. She had failed him. She had let me acquire a wand. She had almost let me escape.”

Winky let out a wail of despair.

“Now it was just Father and I, alone in the house. And then…and then…” Crouch's head rolled on his neck, and an insane grin spread across his face. “My master came for me.

“He arrived at our house late one night in the arms of his servant Wormtail. My master had found out that I was still alive. He had captured Bertha Jorkins in Albania. He had tortured her. She told him a great deal. She told him about the Triwizard Tournament. She told him the old Auror, Moody, was going to teach at Hogwarts. He tortured her until he broke through the Memory Charm my father had placed upon her. She told him I had escaped from Azkaban. She told him my father kept me imprisoned to prevent me from seeking my master. And so my master knew that I was still his faithful servant - perhaps the most faithful of all. My master conceived a plan, based upon the information Bertha had given him. He needed me. He arrived at our house near midnight. My father answered the door.”

The smile spread wider over Crouch's face, as though recalling the sweetest memory of his life. Winky's petrified brown eyes were visible through her fingers. She seemed too appalled to speak.

“It was very quick. My father was placed under the Imperius Curse by my master. Now my father was the one imprisoned, controlled. My master forced him to go about his business as usual, to act as though nothing was wrong. And I was released. I awoke. I was myself again, alive as I hadn't been in years.

“And what did Lord Voldemort ask you to do?” said Dumbledore.

“He asked me whether I was ready to risk everything for him. I was ready. It was my dream, my greatest ambition, to serve him, to prove myself to him. He told me he needed to place a faithful servant at Hogwarts. A servant who would guide Harry Potter through the Triwizard Tournament without appearing to do so. A servant who would watch over Harry Potter. Ensure he reached the Triwizard Cup. Turn the cup into a Portkey, which would take the first person to touch it to my master. But first -”

“You needed Alastor Moody,” said Dumbledore. His blue eyes were blazing, though his voice remained calm.

“Wormtail and I did it. We had prepared the Polyjuice Potion beforehand. We journeyed to his house. Moody put up a struggle. There was a commotion. We managed to subdue him just in time. Forced him into a compartment of his own magical trunk. Took some of his hair and added it to the potion. I drank it; I became Moody's double. I took his leg and his eye. I was ready to face Arthur Weasley when he arrived to sort out the Muggles who had heard a disturbance. I made the dustbins move around the yard. I told Arthur Weasley I had heard intruders in my yard, who had set off the dustbins. Then I packed up Moody's clothes and Dark detectors, put them in the trunk with Moody, and set off for Hogwarts. I kept him alive, under the Imperius Curse. I wanted to be able to question him. To find out about his past, learn his habits, so that I could fool even Dumbledore. I also needed his hair to make the Polyjuice Potion. The other ingredients were easy. I stole boom-slang skin from the dungeons. When the Potions master found me in his office, I said I was under orders to search it.”

“And what became of Wormtail after you attacked Moody?” said Dumbledore.

“Wormtail returned to care for my master, in my father's house, and to keep watch over my father.”

“But your father escaped,” said Dumbledore.

“Yes. After a while he began to fight the Imperius Curse just as I had done. There were periods when he knew what was happening. My master decided it was no longer safe for my father to leave the house. He forced him to send letters to the Ministry instead. He made him write and say he was ill. But Wormtail neglected his duty. He was not watchful enough. My father escaped. My master guessed that he was heading for Hogwarts. My father was going to tell Dumbledore everything, to confess. He was going to admit that he had smuggled me from Azkaban.

“My master sent me word of my father's escape. He told me to stop him at all costs. So I waited and watched. I used the map I had taken from Harry Potter. The map that had almost ruined everything.”

“Map?” said Dumbledore quickly. “What map is this?”

“Potter's map of Hogwarts. Potter saw me on it. Potter saw me stealing more ingredients for the Polyjuice Potion from Snape's office one night. He thought I was my father. We have the same first name. I took the map from Potter that night. I told him my father hated Dark wizards. Potter believed my father was after Snape.

“For a week I waited for my father to arrive at Hogwarts. At last, one evening, the map showed my father entering the grounds. I pulled on my Invisibility Cloak and went down to meet him. He was walking around the edge of the forest. Then Potter came, and Krum. I waited. I could not hurt Potter; my master needed him. Potter ran to get Dumbledore. I Stunned Krum. I killed my father.”

“Noooo!” wailed Winky. “Master Barty, Master Barty, what is you saying?”

“You killed your father,” Dumbledore said, in the same soft voice. “What did you do with the body?”

“Carried it into the forest. Covered it with the Invisibility Cloak. I had the map with me. I watched Potter run into the castle. He met Snape. Dumbledore joined them. I watched Potter bringing Dumbledore out of the castle. I walked back out of the forest, doubled around behind them, went to meet them. I told Dumbledore Snape had told me where to come.

“Dumbledore told me to go and look for my father. I went back to my father's body. Watched the map. When everyone was gone, I Transfigured my father's body. He became a bone…I buried it, while wearing the Invisibility Cloak, in the freshly dug earth in front of Hagrid's cabin.”

There was complete silence now, except for Winky's continued sobs. Then Dumbledore said, “And tonight…”

“I offered to carry the Triwizard Cup into the maze before dinner,” whispered Barty Crouch. “Turned it into a Portkey. My master's plan worked. He is returned to power and I will be honored by him beyond the dreams of wizards.”

The insane smile lit his features once more, and his head drooped onto his shoulder as Winky wailed and sobbed at his side.

哈利感到自己被人平平地扔到地上，他的脸埋入草丛中，草的气味顿时充溢在鼻内，在那波奇运送着他时，哈利一直是合著眼睛的，现在他仍未睁开眼，也未移动身子，周围的气息好像让他昏昏入睡，而且他头晕得厉害，以至于觉得身下的大地像船的甲板那样摇晃，为了保持平衡，他将两件一直握着的物事抓得更紧了，那是奖杯光滑冰冷的把手和塞德里克的尸身。如果让这两件物事离了手，他觉得他思维边缘的无尽黑暗就会吞没他，恐惧和疲惫让他只能俯在地上，呼吸着草的气息，等待着……等待著有人来……等待着奇迹发生，而那一刻，他额上的伤疤又隐隐作痛起来。

　　一个突如其来的声响震耳欲聋，也令人迷惑，哈利听到到处都有声音：脚步声、尖叫声……他仍趴在地上，他的脸扭动着像在抗拒那声音，好像那只是一个终会醒来的恶梦……

　　然后一双手将他紧紧抱住并将他的身子转过来。

　　“哈利！哈利！”

　　哈利被唤醒了。

　　他看到灿烂的星空，艾伯斯。丹伯多在他身边屈膝半蹲着，一群人慢慢靠上来，像要压向他们，哈利感到头下的大地也在回响着他们的脚步声。

　　他不再觉得昏迷了，他能看到人群围着他，并有更多的人影靠近来，他们头顶上，繁星争艳。

　　哈利松开了那金杯，却将塞德里克抱得更紧，他伸起他那空闲着的手抓住丹伯多的手腕，让丹伯多的面孔，稳定下来而不会看起来摇晃不定。

　　“他回来了！”哈利低声说，“福尔得摩特，他回来了。”

　　“怎么了？发生了什么事？”

　　哈利看到上方突然出现可尼斯。法治的脸来，那脸写满了惊骇以至于十分苍白。

　　“天啊，是迪格瑞！”他惊呼着，“丹伯多，你看，他死了！”

　　“哈利，放开他。”哈利听到法治这么说，并发觉有只手想撬开他的手，那只紧抓住塞德里克软软的躯体的手，但是哈利不肯放手。

　　接着丹伯多靠近来，看起来仍觉得有些模糊朦胧。“哈利，你不能帮他了，结束了，放手吧！”

　　“他让我带他回家，”哈利喃喃说道，似乎这话很重要。“他让我带他回家见他父母……”

　　“对，哈利……现在，请松手吧……”

　　丹伯多俯下身来，将哈利扶起身，靠在他的腿边上，这对这个又老又瘦的人来说不是件易事，哈利仍在摇晃，他的头沉重地垂着，他那受伤的腿也不能支撑他的体重了，周围的人群挤过，那人影像压着他，“发生什么事了？他怎么了？迪格瑞死了？”

　　“他需要去医院！”法治高声说。“他病了，受伤了，丹伯多，迪格瑞的父母，他们也在这，在人群中。”

　　“我来背哈利，丹伯多，我来背他。”

　　“不，我宁可……”

　　“丹伯多，阿姆斯。迪格瑞跑来了……他靠近了……在他看到真相之前你难道不想告诉他吗？”

　　“哈利，待在这。”

　　女孩们在尖叫着，哭得歇斯底里……这些场景奇怪地在哈利的眼中扑闪着。

　　“这就对了，孩子，我来背依……走吧……去医院。”

　　“丹伯多说待在这。”哈利喘着气说，那被打烂的伤口让他痛不欲生，他的知觉越来越模糊了。

　　“你需要躺下来……来吧，躺下来……”

　　有个比哈利高大强壮的人半背半拖着他走过吓呆了的人群。哈利听到他们喘着气、尖叫着，而那男人扶着他走上一条小路，带他回城堡，他们走过草地，穿过湖泊和丹伯多的船，哈利一路上只听到那人沉重的呼吸声。

　　“发生什么事？哈利。”最后，当他带着哈利噔噔噔地走上石阶时，有人问道，原来是魔眼莫迪。

　　“金杯是个波奇，”当他们通过大厅口时，哈利说：“带我和塞德里克去墓地……在那……，”

　　噔噔噔，他们走上大理石阶。

　　“黑色公爵……他们杀死了塞德里克……”

　　“然后呢？”

　　噔噔噔，他们又通过走廊。

　　“做一剂药水……让他的躯体回来……”

　　“黑色公爵的躯体回来了？他复活了？”

　　“然后食尸者们来了……我们打了起来……他们从他的魔杖中走出来……”

　　“就在这里，哈利……，坐在这里……你很快就会好的，把这喝了……”

　　哈利听到一阵开锁声，并发觉有个杯子递到他的手上。

　　“喝了它……你会好点的……好吧！哈利，我想确切地知道发生了什么事……”

　　莫迪帮着将那些液体倒入哈利嘴中，他咳起来，有一股辛辣的味道刺激喉咙，莫迪的办公室变得清晰了，也逐渐能看清莫迪的面孔了……他看起来跟法治一样白，一双眼睛紧盯着哈利的脸。

　　“福尔得摩特复活了，哈利？你肯定吗？他怎么会复活呢？”

　　“他从他父亲的墓中，从温太尔和我的身上取走一些东西，”哈利继续说道，他的头脑清醒了许多，伤口也不再那么痛了。虽然办公室有些暗，但现在，他能完全看清莫迪的面孔了。

　　“那黑色公爵究竟从你身上取走什么？”莫迪问道。

　　“血液。”哈利答道，并举起他的手，他的衣袖破开了，那是温太尔用短剑划的。

　　莫迪吐了一口长长的气，“还有那食尸者们？他们也复活了？”

　　“是的。”哈利说道，“并且是成千上万的……”

　　“他是怎么对待他们的？”莫迪平静地问道。“他原谅他们吗？”

　　突然，哈利记起来，他应该告诉丹伯多，应该马上告诉他，“霍格瓦彻内有个食尸者，有个食尸者在这里，他们把我的名字刻在了金杯上，他们知道我没死……”

　　哈利想站起，但莫迪推他坐下。

　　“我知道那个食尸者是谁。”他平静地说。

　　“卡克罗夫？”哈利怒问，“他在哪？你抓到他了？他被关起来了？”

　　“卡克罗夫？”莫迪冷笑道。“他逃跑了，在他感觉到黑色标志在他的手臂上灼痛时，他就跑了。他出卖了大多食尸者们的忠实拥护者……但我怀疑他不会逃多远。黑色公爵总是有办法追踪到他的敌人！”

　　“卡克罗夫跑了？他逃跑了？但是……难道他没有在金杯上刻上我的名字？”

　　“是的，”莫迪缓慢地说。“他没有，是我干的。”

　　哈利几乎不相信自己的耳朵。

　　“不，你不会，”他说道，“你不会那么做……而且你也不能做到……”

　　“我会让你相信的。”莫迪说，说着他的魔眼转了两转，盯住大门，哈利知道他要确信门外没人偷听，与此同时，莫迪拿出他的魔杖，指着哈利。

　　“他原谅了他们，是么？”他说，“那些被释放的食尸者们？那些从阿兹克班逃出来的？”

　　“什么？”哈利不明白。

　　他盯住莫迪用来指着他的魔杖，这可不是开玩笑的！

　　“我问你，”莫迪平静地说。“他是否原谅了那个不去寻找他的卑贱之人，那些奸诈的胆小鬼们从不敢为他在阿兹克班坐牢，无用的不忠心的小人，却敢蒙面在快迪斯世界杯上欢腾，但当我将黑色标志点燃送上天空时，他们一见到就逃之夭夭。”

　　“是你点燃的……你在说什么呀！？”

　　“我告诉你，哈利……我来告诉你。再也没有一个自由自在地走动的食尸者更让我讨厌的事了。他们在我主人最需要他们的时候背叛了他。我期待着他会惩罚他们，折磨他。来，哈利，告诉我他在折磨他们。”莫迪的脸上突然露出一种狂喜的笑容，“告诉我他曾跟他们说过我，只有我才是最忠心的，准备为了他冒任何险，送给他一件他最想要的东西……那就是——你！”

　　“你不会……这，这不可能是你干的——”

　　“是谁把你的名字刻在火杯名单上，而且在另一个学校名下？

　　是我！是谁吓跑了想伤害你和阻止你在比赛中夺魁的那些人？是我！是谁推开哈格力给你看到龙？是我！是谁助你看清唯一能击败龙的办法？是我！“

　　莫迪的魔眼现在不再对着大门了，他盯住哈利，他歪在一边的嘴张得更大了。“这不是容易的事，哈利，指引你经历那么多风险而不引起怀疑，为了不让人觉察你的成就中有我的一臂之力，我几乎用尽了一切能用上的聪明智慧，如果你很容易就将一件事做得很好，丹伯多就会怀疑，只要你一进到那个迷宫，相对来说在一个适合的开头位置，那么我知道能有一个机会除掉其他竞赛者而让你以后的路毫无阻碍，但我还得和你的愚蠢作斗争……第二个任务里，那次我以为我们会失败了，我一直在看着你，波特，我知道，你不能解决那蛋的线索，所以便给了你另一个暗示……”

　　“不是你，”哈利吸声道，“是塞德里克结了我线索……”

　　“又是谁告诉塞德里克在水下打开它呢？是我，我相信他一定会告诉你的。普通人很容易操纵，波特，我敢肯定塞德里克想报答你告诉过他有关龙的事，后来他确实这么做了，可是即使这样，波特，你看起来仍很可能失败，我一直关注你……一直在图书馆里关注你，难道你没发觉那本你需要的书一直在你的宿舍吗？是我安排放在那儿的，我把它交给那个兰博顿男孩，你记得吗？《奇异的地中海水生植物和它们的特性》能告诉你所需的有关居利维得的全部知识，我估计你会问你能找到的任何人，兰博顿马上告诉过你如果你问他的话，但你竟没有……没有……你那高傲的独来独往的臭脾气差一点毁了一切！”

　　“结果我怎么办呢？只好从另一无害的渠道告诉你，你在圣诞节时告诉过我一个叫多比的家伙送你一份圣诞礼物，我告诉他去全体职员的屋子里拿些长袍去洗净，我故意和麦康娜教授大声讨论有关那些被劫持的人质的事，以及波特是否想到要使用居利维得，然后你那小仆人朋友直跑向史纳皮的储物木橱，跑出去找你……”

　　哈利看到墙上的观察镜里有几个朦胧的东西移动着。

　　莫迪的魔杖仍指着哈利的心脏处，在“你在湖下呆了那么久，波特，我以为你溺死了，幸运的是，丹伯多认为你的愚蠢行为是高贵的品质的体现，并且称赞你，我才松了一口气。”

　　“当然，那晚在迷宫里你其实可以做得更好。”莫迪继续说，“那是因为是我在巡逻，能够透过外面的防护物看到里面，能够用咒符排除你的障碍，我在芙璐。迪米高经过我旁边时，我点昏了她，我对克伦念了咒语，那样他就能结果迪格瑞，你就可以更容易地得到那个金杯。”

　　哈利睁大眼瞪着莫迪，他不敢相信事情怎么会这样……这个丹伯多的朋友，著名的沃罗……这个曾抓住了许多的食尸者的人……

　　这是不可能，完全不可能的……

　　那在观察镜上朦胧的东西变得有棱有角，越来越清晰了，哈利能看到三个人的轮廓从莫迪的肩后走来，越走越近，但莫迪没有看到他们，他的魔眼仍盯着哈利。

　　“黑色公爵不打算杀你，波特，他确实是这么想的，”莫迪低声说。“想想他会怎样回报我，当他发现我为他干好这事，我将你交给他——他复活最需要的东西——然后我为他杀掉你，我会成为所有食尸者中最受宠幸的，我将成为他最喜爱的，最紧密的支持者……胜过他的儿子……”

　　莫迪的那只正常的眼睛凸了出来，那只魔眼盯着哈利，大门紧关着，哈利明白不可能够时间拿到他自己的魔杖……

　　“黑色公爵和我，”莫迪继续说，现在他看起来完全疯狂了，他俯视着哈利，“有许多相同之处，比如说，我们都有个令人失望的父亲……事实十分糟糕，哈利，我们两人都觉得跟那样的父亲姓是一种耻辱，并且我们两人都在承受着沉重压力……弑父的压力，那是为了保证能继续提高黑命令！”

　　“你疯了！”哈利叫道，他再也忍不住了，“你是疯子！”

　　“疯？我疯？”莫迪反驳，他的声音高得刺骨，“我们等着瞧，我们看看谁才疯了，现在黑色公爵复活了，我与他并肩作战！他复活了，哈利·波特，你不能打败他，哈，现在，我来打败你！”

　　莫迪举起他的魔杖，张开嘴要念咒语，哈利迅速将手伸入上衣中……

　　“麻醉！”一束红光射了进来，夹着扯裂的破碎的声音，莫迪的办公室的大门顿时四分五裂……

　　莫迪被击倒在地上，哈利，仍盯着刚才莫迪的面孔所在之处，看到艾伯斯。丹伯多，史纳皮教授，麦康娜教授正从观察镜上看着自己，他转过头，看到他们三人站在门口，丹伯多站在最前，他高举着他的魔杖……

　　在那一刻，哈利第一次完全明白了为什么人们总说丹伯多是福尔得摩特唯一害怕的巫师，当丹伯多盯着莫迪那失去知觉的身体时，他的脸看起来很可怕，哈利从未想象他的脸会这样，丹伯多的脸上没有和蔼的笑容，眼镜后的眼睛也不再炯炯有神，只有冷冷的愤怒映在苍老的脸上，有股力从丹伯多脸上辐射出来，看起来像快要燃烧起来了。

　　他走进办公室，用脚踩了踩莫迪无知觉的躯体，在他身上又踢了几脚，将他反过身来，这样就能看清他的脸了，史纳皮跟着他走上前来，仔细查看了那观察镜，看起来他的面容仍清晰可辩，那观察镜发出强光，照亮了整个屋子。

　　麦康娜教授则直接走向哈利。

　　“起来，波特。”她低声说，她的嘴蠕动着像要哭了，“起来孩子……先去医院。”

　　“不行。”丹伯多突然插了句。

　　“丹伯多，他应该去，你看他，他今晚受够了。”

　　“他要留下来，米尼维，因为他需要了解实情。”丹伯多简洁地回答。然后说，“了解是接受事实的第一步，只有接受了事实，方会康复，他需要知道是谁给他带来了今天这样的苦难，为什么会这样。”

　　“莫迪。”哈利唤道，他仍不相信事情竟会这样，“莫迪怎会变成这样？”

　　“这不是阿拉斯得。莫迪，”丹伯多平静地说。

　　“你不认识阿拉斯得。莫迪，发生了今晚的事后，在今晚的事发生后真的莫迪不会在我视线范围内带走你。他一带走你我就知道，并跟来了。”

　　丹伯多在莫迪软绵绵的躯体上俯下身，将手伸入他的上衣中，他掏出了莫迪的水瓶和一串扣在一个圆环上的钥匙。然后他转向麦康娜和史纳皮教授。

　　“塞维来斯，请你拿给我最厉害的真相水，然后去一趟厨房，将那个叫温奇的仆人带来；米尼维请去哈格力家，在那会发现在南瓜藤下有一条大黑狗，把那狗牵到我的办公室，告诉哈格力我会很快还给他，然后你们回来这。”

　　尽管史纳皮和麦康娜都觉得这种指示很奇怪，但他们都没表现出来，而是马上转身离开办公室。丹伯多走向那只有七把锁的皮箱，先试了第一把钥匙，打开它，里面有一堆咒符书，他关上皮箱，用第二把钥匙打开第二把锁，再次打开皮箱，那些咒符书不见了，这次是几种破烂的潜望镜，几张羊皮纸和几支羽毛笔，以及看起来像一件银白色的变透明外衣的东西，哈利惊讶地看着丹伯多继续将第三、四、五、六把钥匙打开相对应的锁，重复打开皮箱，并发现每次皮箱里的东西都不同。最后他用第七把钥匙打开锁，掀开盖，这次哈利惊呼一声。

　　看上去这次是一个地洞，里面有个地下室，在十英尺的地下躺着一个人，看起来瘦瘦的，像饿得昏睡过去了，那是真的莫迪，他的木腿不见了，眼睑下本有个魔眼的地方凹了下去，相当大的一部分的灰白头发也不见了。哈利看着睡在皮箱里的莫迪，和外边躺在地上无知觉的莫迪，怒火上冲。

　　丹伯多爬进去，轻轻地靠近那熟睡的莫迪身旁，他弯下身。

　　“被英柏丽欧咒言催眠了，他很虚弱，”他说。“当然，他们不会让他死的，哈利，将那骗子的大衣扔下来，阿拉斯得冷坏了，波姆弗雷夫人须要给他看看，但他现在没有什么危险。”

　　哈利照做了，丹伯多给莫迪盖好大衣，把他裹好，从皮箱中爬出来，然后他从桌上拿起那个聪明瓶，取下盖，将它倒过来，一种粘稠的液体滴下地板。

　　“是多利药水，哈利，”丹伯多说，“你看它多简单又多有用，因为莫迪从不饮不是他的水瓶的药水，这是他的特性，这个骗子当然要把真的莫迪关起来，只有这样他才能继续做药水，你看他的头发……”丹伯多看着在皮箱下的莫迪，“这个骗子一直从阿拉斯得头上剪下的头发。但是我想，今晚，我们的假莫迪会忘掉像往常那样做了，在此时，我们会看到……”

　　丹伯多拖过桌边的凳子，坐下，他的双眼凝视中地上昏迷的莫迪，哈利也看着他，沉默几分钟……

　　然后，在哈利眼中，躺在地上的人的面容开始变得不同了，伤疤消失了，皮肤也变得光滑了，损坏了的鼻子长好了并开始抽动，那长长厚厚的灰白头发也缩到头皮下了，取而代之的是金黄色的头发，突然，噔的一声那条木腿掉了下来，一条正常人的腿，在木腿原来的位置上长出来，一会儿后，那只魔眼跑出那脸，一只正常的眼睛长了出来，那魔眼滚到地上，毫无规则朝各个方向转动。

　　哈利看到一个躺在他面前，白皙的肌肤，长着些雀斑和一头浓密的头发的人，哈利认出他了，他曾在丹伯多的班西福中见过这个人，当时他想向克劳斯先生证明他是无辜的……现在他的眼角起了皱纹，看起来老了许多……

　　走廊上传来急促的脚步声，史纳皮回来了，后面跟着温奇稍后是麦康娜教授。

　　“克劳斯！”史纳皮喊道，呆在门口：“内卜。克劳斯！”

　　“上帝。”麦康娜说道，也呆在门口盯着那躺在地上的人。

　　脏兮兮的衣冠不整的温奇站在史纳皮的旁边，她的嘴张得大大的，发出一声震耳欲聋的尖叫。

　　“内卜主人，内卜主人，你怎会在这？”

　　她扑向那年轻人，俯在他的脸口，对丹伯多喊着：“你杀了他！

　　你杀了他！你杀了主人的儿子！“

　　“他不过是被咒昏了，温奇。”丹伯多说，“请到一边，塞维尔斯，你带药水了吗？”

　　史纲皮交给丹伯多一小玻璃瓶完全透明的液体，那就是他在课堂上用来威胁哈利的真相之水，丹伯多站起来，走到那年轻人身旁俯下身将他拉到靠墙的观察镜下的地方，那观察镜反照着丹伯多，史纳皮和麦康娜和仍呆在那里，跪在地上的温奇，颤抖着，用手捂住脸，丹伯多撬开那年轻人的嘴，滴进三滴药水，然后将他魔杖指着那年轻人的胸口说：“解符。”

　　克劳斯的儿子睁开眼，他的脸是松驰的，眼光迷离，丹伯多半跪下，这样他们的脸就相对着。

　　“你能听见我说话吗？”丹伯多轻声问。

　　那人的眼睛扑闪了几下。

　　“能。”他喃喃地说。

　　“我希望你能告诉我，”丹伯多仍柔声说，“你是怎么到这来的，你又怎样从阿兹克班逃脱？”

　　内卜深深地吸了口气，夹带着一种战栗的声响，然后用一种低平的毫无感情的声调说：“我母亲救了我，她知道她快死了，她恳求我父亲解救我，那是她的最后愿望，父亲爱她却不喜欢我，但他同意了，他们来看望我，给我喝了一份多利药水，内含有我母亲的一根头发，我母亲也喝了一份多利药水，内含有我自己的一根头发。结果我们互换了身体。”

　　温奇一直颤抖着摇头，“不要说了，内卜主人，别说了，你让你父亲很为难！”

　　但是内卜又深深呼吸一次，仍用那种低平的声调说，“那些愚蠢的得蒙特，他们送进阿兹克班一个凉爽人、一个垂死的人，他们也送出一个凉爽人、一个垂死的人，我父亲将假扮成我母亲的我偷送出来，因为每一个犯人都透过门看着我们。”

　　“我母亲在阿兹克班没过多久就去世了！她一直喝着那种多利药水直至死亡逼近，她带着我的躯体以我的名字下葬，每一个人都相信她就是我。”

　　这人的眼睑又扑闪了好几次。

　　“你父亲将你带回家后又怎样对待你呢？”丹伯多平静地问道。

　　“安排我母亲的葬礼，一个安静秘密的葬礼，墓中空空如也，家仆照顾我康复后接着我被藏起来，被严格监控起来，我父亲不得不用大量的咒语制服我，当我逐渐恢复我的力量时，我只想去寻找我的主人……回去为他效力！”

　　“你父亲是怎样制服你的？”丹伯多问。

　　“用英柏丽欧咒语。”莫迪说，“我在父亲的控制下，被迫日夜穿着件隐身衣，总是和这个仆人在一起，她照料我也同情我，并劝父亲给我偶尔的款待，她说是为了对我良好表现的回报。”

　　“内卡主人，内卜主人，”温奇捂住脸呜咽着说：“你不该告诉他们，我们会有麻烦的……”

　　“还有人知道你仍活着吗？”丹伯多还是柔声问，“除了你父亲和这个仆人？”

　　“有，”克劳斯说，他的眼睑又飞快地扑闪了几次，“我父亲办公室里的一个女巫，珀茜她拿着文件走进家来要我父亲签名，他不在家，温奇领她入屋，然后去厨房找我，但珀茜·佐金斯听到温奇和我说话，她进来查看。她听到的话足以让她猜到是谁在和温奇说话，父亲回到家与她碰上面，他就用一道非常厉害的记忆符咒，让她忘记她所发现的。因为太厉害了，他说那符咒永久地破坏了她的记忆。”

　　“为什么她来刺探我主人的私事？”温奇哭着说，“为什么她不让我们一直保持原状呢？”

　　“告诉我有关快迪斯世界杯大赛的事。”丹伯多说。

　　“是温奇跟父亲说起的。”克劳斯仍用那种单调的声音说，“她用了几个月的时间来劝他，她说我已经几年呆在家里了，我喜欢快迪斯。让他走，他会穿着隐身衣，让他出去呼吸一次新鲜空气，她说我母亲一定会同意她的，她对父亲说我母亲用生命换来我的自由的一生，而不是换来我仍被监禁的一生，他终于同意了。”

　　“这被小心地安排好了，我父亲带我和温奇一早来到汤波斯，温奇说要为我父亲留个位置，其实是我隐身坐在那里，只有人人都离开了小隔间，我们才出来，温奇看起来独自一人，没有人知道真相。”

　　“但是温奇不知道我变得强壮了，我开始与我父亲的英柏丽欧符咒斗争，好几次我几乎复原了，有几个短暂的时期我挣脱了他的控制，最后这事发生了，并且是在汤波斯，那种感觉像从一个熟睡的梦中醒来，在比赛进行到一半时，我发现自己暴露在大众里，而且我发现有根魔杖从我前面的一个男孩的袋中露出来，自从进入阿兹克班后，我就一直没能拥有一根魔杖了，于是我偷了它，温奇也不知道，温奇有恐高症，她一直捂住脸。”

　　“内卜主人，你这个坏孩子。”温奇低声说，眼泪滴在她的手指上。

　　“所以你拿到了魔杖。”丹伯多说，“那么你怎样使用它？”

　　“我们回到帐篷里。”克劳斯继续说：“接着我们听见了他们发出的声音，那些食尸者们，那些从来没去过阿兹克班的东西。他们从未为我的主人受过苦，全部背叛了他。他们不再受奴役，他们可以自由地找他，但没有这么做，他们只是在玩马格人运动，那种声音吵醒了我，我的头脑比几年前更加清醒，那让我生气，我有魔杖了，决定攻击他们，因为他们背叛了主人！父亲已离开了帐篷，他去释放那些马格人，温奇见到我生气，她用自己的魔法将我与她连在一起，带我走出帐篷，走进森林，远离那些食尸者们。我想阻止她，想回到露营地去，我想教训那些食尸者们，让他们知道什么是对黑色公爵的忠心，我要惩罚他们的不是，我用那偷来的魔杖将黑色标记射人天空。

　　“各部巫师都赶来了，他们向四面八方发射了昏迷咒，有一道咒穿过了我与温奇所在的森林，我们中间的连线被打断，两个人都昏过去了。”

　　“当温奇被发现后，我父亲知道我一定在附近，他找遍了她曾待过的灌木丛，并发觉我躺在那里，但等其他的人都走出了森林，他才将我重新用英柏丽欧咒语咒住，并带我回家，他打发温奇走人，她令他差点败露，让我得到了一根魔杖，并且几乎让我逃跑了。”

　　温奇发出一阵绝望的哭嚎声。

　　“现在只剩下我和父亲独自在家了，然后，然后，”克劳斯的头摇了摇，他的脸上露出一阵狂喜，“我的主人找到了我。”

　　“有晚深夜，他和他的仆人温太尔来到我家，我主人发觉我仍活着，他在阿尔巴尼亚俘虏了珀茜·佐金斯，并折磨她，她告诉主人很多事，告诉他有关三个魔法赛比赛的事，以及那个年老的莫迪，要在霍格瓦彻教书，他继续折磨她，以至于最终破掉了我父亲放在她身上的那道记忆符，她就告诉他我已从阿兹克班逃出了，并且被我父亲亲自押住不能去找他。因此我主人知道我仍是他忠心的仆人，甚至可能是最忠心的，按照珀茜给他的信息，我主人筹划了一个计划，他需要我帮忙，于是近半夜时他来到我家，父亲开了门。”

　　克劳斯的脸上笑得更高兴了，仿佛回忆起一生中最甜蜜的时光。

　　“很快，父亲被主人用英柏丽欧咒语咒住了，现在他被囚禁，被控制了，主人强迫他像平常一样干事情，就像什么事也没发生，当我被释放时，我醒过来了，我又成了自己，像几年前一样充满活力！”

　　“那么公爵福尔得摩特让你去干什么呢？”丹伯多问。

　　“他问我是否准备好为他做任何事，冒任何险，我总是说那是我的梦想，是我最大的抱负，为他服务，向他证明自己的能力，他告诉我他需要在霍格瓦彻安置一个忠实的仆人，他要引导波特通过三个魔法比赛，而不自己现身去做，他要监视着哈利·波特，保证他拿到金杯，并将金杯变成一把波奇，它能带第一个碰到它的人去主人那里，但首先要……

　　“你需要阿拉斯得。莫迪。”丹伯多说，他的蓝眼睛愤怒得要喷火，但他的声音仍保持平静。

　　“温太尔和我一起做这事，我们事先准备好了多利药水，然后潜入莫迪房间，他抗争了一会儿，但我们及时将他制服，将他放进他自己魔法箱中的一个小房间里，剪下他几根头发并加到药水中，我喝下药水，变成莫迪的模样，又拿走他的木腿和魔眼，当亚瑟。

　　威斯里赶来处理那些听到有动静的马格人时，我已准备好去找他，我把