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.The thing bowled him over as it scuttled away, tearing up thecorridor and out of sight.Riddle scrambled to his feet, looking after it; heraised his wand, but the huge boy leapt on him, seized his wand, and threw himback down, yelling, "NOOOOOOO!"The scene whirled, the darkness became complete; Harry felt himself fallingand, with a crash, he landed spread-eagled on his four-poster in the Gryffindordormitory, Riddle's diary lying open on his stomach.Before he had had time to regain his breath, the dormitory door opened and Roncame in."There you are," he said.Harry sat up.He was sweating and shaking."What's up?" said Ron, looking at him with concern."It was Hagrid, Ron.Hagrid opened the Chamber of Secrets fifty years ago."CHAPTER FOURTEENCORNELIUS FUDGEHarry, Ron, and Hermione had always known that Hagrid had an unfortunate likingfor large and monstrous creatures.During their first year at Hogwarts he hadtried to raise a dragon in his little wooden house, and it would be a long timebefore they forgot the giant, three- headed dog he'd christened "Fluffy." Andif, as a boy, Hagrid had heard that a monster was hidden somewhere in thecastle, Harry was sure he'd have gone to any lengths for a glimpse of it.He'dprobably thought it was a shame that the monster had been cooped up so long,and thought it deserved the chance to stretch its many legs; Harry could justimagine the thirteen-year-old Hagrid trying to fit a leash and collar on it.But he was equally certain that Hagrid would never have meant to kill anybody.Harry half wished he hadn't found out how to work Riddle's diary.Again andagain Ron and Hermione made him recount what he'd seen, until he was heartilysick of telling them and sick of the long, circular conversations thatfollowed."Riddle might have got the wrong person," said Hermione."Maybe it was someother monster that was attacking people.""How many monsters d'you think this place can hold?" Ron asked dully."We always knew Hagrid had been expelled," said Harry miserably."And theattacks must've stopped after Hagrid was kicked out.Otherwise, Riddle wouldn'thave got his award."Ron tried a different tack."Riddle does sound like Percy - who asked him to squeal on Hagrid, anyway?""But the monster had killed someone, Ron," said Hermione."And Riddle was going to go back to some Muggle orphanage if they closedHogwarts," said Harry."I don't blame him for wanting to stay here."You met Hagrid down Knockturn Alley, didn't you, Harry?""He was buying a Flesh-Eating Slug Repellent," said Harry quickly.The three of them fell silent.After a long pause, Hermione voiced theknottiest question of all in a hesitant voice."Do you think we should go and ask Hagrid about it all?""That'd be a cheerful visit," said Ron."'Hello, Hagrid.Tell us, have you beensetting anything mad and hairy loose in the castle lately?"'In the end, they decided that they would not say anything to Hagrid unlessthere was another attack, and as more and more days went by with no whisperfrom the disembodied voice, they became hopeful that they would never need totalk to him about why he had been expelled.It was now nearly four months sinceJustin and Nearly Headless Nick had been Petrified, and nearly everybody seemedto think that the attacker, whoever it was, had retired for good.Peeves hadfinally got bored of his "Oh, Potter, you rotter" song, Ernie Macmillan askedHarry quite politely to pass a bucket of leaping toadstools in Herbology oneday, and in March several of the Mandrakes threw a loud and raucous party ingreenhouse three.This made Professor Sprout very happy."The moment they start trying to move into each other's pots, we'll knowthey're fully mature," she told Harry."Then we'll be able to revive those poorpeople in the hospital wing."The second years were given something new to think about during their Easterholidays.The time had come to choose their subjects for the third year, amatter that Hermione, at least, took very seriously."It could affect our whole future," she told Harry and Ron as they pored overlists of new subjects, marking them with checks."I just want to give up Potions," said Harry."We can't," said Ron gloomily."We keep all our old subjects, or I'd've ditchedDefense Against the Dark Arts.""But that's very important!" said Hermione, shocked."Not the way Lockhart teaches it," said Ron."I haven't learned anything fromhim except not to set pixies loose."Neville Longbottom had been sent letters from all the witches and wizards inhis family, all giving him different advice on what to choose.Confused andworried, he sat reading the subject lists with his tongue poking out, askingpeople whether they thought Arithmancy sounded more difficult than the study ofAncient Runes.Dean Thomas, who, like Harry, had grown up with Muggles, endedup closing his eyes and jabbing his wand at the list, then picking the subjectsit landed on.Hermione took nobody's advice but signed up for everything
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