Harry had gone very white.
As soon as he found his voice he said,
“Blown up? You told me they died in a car crash!”
“CAR CRASH!” roared Hagrid, jumping up so angrily that the Dursleys
scuttled back to their corner. “How could a car crash kill Lily an’ James Potter?
It’s an outrage! A scandal! Harry Potter not knowin’ his own story when every
kid in our world knows his name!”
“But why? What happened?” Harry asked urgently.
The anger faded from Hagrid’s face. He looked suddenly anxious.
“I never expected this,” he said, in a low, worried voice. “I had no idea,
when Dumbledore told me there might be trouble gettin’ hold of yeh, how much
yeh didn’t know. Ah, Harry, I don’ know if I’m the right person ter tell yeh —
but someone’s gotta — yeh can’t go off ter Hogwarts not knowin’.”
He threw a dirty look at the Dursleys.
“Well, it’s best yeh know as much as I can tell yeh — mind, I can’t tell
yeh everythin’, it’s a great myst’ry, parts of it.…”
He sat down, stared into the fire for a few seconds, and then said, “It
begins, I suppose, with — with a person called — but it’s incredible yeh don’t
know his name, everyone in our world knows —”
“Who?”
“Well — I don’ like sayin’ the name if I can help it. No one does.”
“Why not?”
“Gulpin’ gargoyles, Harry, people are still scared. Blimey, this is difficult.
See, there was this wizard who went ...bad. As bad as you could go. Worse.
Worse than worse. His name was...”
Hagrid gulped, but no words came out.
“Could you write it down?” Harry suggested.
“Nah — can’t spell it. All right — Voldemort. ” Hagrid shuddered. “Don’
make me say it again. Anyway, this — this wizard, about twenty years ago now,
started lookin’ fer followers. Got ‘em, too — some were afraid, some just
wanted a bit o’ his power, ‘cause he was gettin’ himself power, all right. Dark
days, Harry. Didn’t know who ter trust, didn’t dare get friendly with strange
wizards or witches…terrible things happened. He was takin’ over. ‘Course, some
stood up to him — an’ he killed ‘em. Horribly. One o’ the only safe places left
was Hogwarts. Reckon Dumbledore’s the only one You-Know-Who was afraid
of. Didn’t dare try takin’ the school, not jus’ then, anyway.
“Now, yer mum an’ dad were as good a witch an’ wizard as I ever knew.
Head boy an’ girl at Hogwarts in their day! Suppose the myst’ry is why You-
Know-Who never tried to get ‘em on his side before…probably knew they were
too close ter Dumbledore ter want anythin’ ter do with the Dark Side.
