Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s stone Chapter14英2

孙祎卓

“But there aren't wild dragons in Britain ?” said Harry.
“Of course there are,” said Ron. “Common Welsh Green and Hebridean Blacks. The Ministry of Magic has a job hushing them up, I can tell you. Our kind have to keep putting spells on Muggles who've spotted them, to make them forget.”
“So what on earth's Hagrid up to?” said Hermione.
When they knocked on the door of the gamekeeper's hut an hour later, they were surprised to see that all the curtains were closed. Hagrid called “Who is it?” before he let them in, and then shut the door quickly behind them.
It was stifling hot inside. Even though it was such a warm day, there was a blazing fire in the grate. Hagrid made them tea and offered them stoat sandwiches, which they refused.
“So — yeh wanted to ask me somethin'?”
“Yes,” said Harry. There was no point beating around the bush. “We were wondering if you could tell us what's guarding the Sorcerer's Stone apart from Fluffy.”
Hagrid frowned at him.
“O’ course I can't,” he said. “Number one, I don’ know meself. Number two, yeh know too much already, so I wouldn’ tell yeh if I could. That Stone's here fer a good reason. It was almost stolen outta Gringotts — I s'ppose yeh've worked that out an’ all? Beats me how yeh even know abou’ Fluffy.”
“Oh, come on, Hagrid, you might not want to tell us, but you do know, you know everything that goes on round here,” said Hermione in a warm, flattering voice. Hagrid's beard twitched and they could tell he was smiling. “We only wondered who had done the guarding, really.” Hermione went on. “We wondered who Dumbledore had trusted enough to help him, apart from you.”
Hagrid's chest swelled at these last words. Harry and Ron beamed at Hermione.
“Well, I don’ s'pose it could hurt ter tell yeh that… let's see… he borrowed Fluffy from me… then some o’ the teachers did enchantments… Professor Sprout — Professor Flitwick — Professor McGonagall — ” he ticked them off on his fingers, “Professor Quirrell — an’ Dumbledore himself did somethin', o’ course. Hang on, I've forgotten someone. Oh yeah, Professor Snape.”
“Snape?”
“Yeah — yer not still on abou’ that, are yeh? Look, Snape helped protect the Stone, he's not about ter steal it.”
Harry knew Ron and Hermione were thinking the same as he was. If Snape had been in on protecting the Stone, it must have been easy to find out how the other teachers had guarded it. He probably knew everything — except, it seemed, Quirrell's spell and how to get past Fluffy.
“You're the only one who knows how to get past Fluffy. aren't you, Hagrid?” said Harry anxiously. “And you wouldn't tell anyone, would you? Not even one of the teachers?”
“Not a soul knows except me an’ Dumbledore,” said Hagrid proudly.
“Well, that's something,” Harry muttered to the others. “Hagrid, can we have a window open? I'm boiling.”
“Can't, Harry, sorry,” said Hagrid. Harry noticed him glance at the fire. Harry looked at it, too.
“Hagrid — what's that ?”
But he already knew what it was. In the very heart of the fire, underneath the kettle, was a huge, black egg.
“Ah,” said Hagrid, fiddling nervously with his beard, “That's — er…”
“Where did you get it, Hagrid?” said Ron, crouching over the fire to get a closer look at the egg. “It must've cost you a fortune.”
“Won it,” said Hagrid. “Las’ night. I was down in the village havin’ a few drinks an’ got into a game o’ cards with a stranger. Think he was quite glad ter get rid of it, ter be honest.”
“But what are you going to do with it when it's hatched?” said Hermione.