章节_106

ot maake it from you. i

arrived io prevent that, although y very well

on your own, i must say.

”you got hermiones owl?”

”we must have idair. no sooner had i readon

than it became e that the place i should be was the one

i had just left. i arrived just io pull quirrell off you.”

”it was you.”

”i feared i might be too late.”

”you nearly were, i t have kept him off the stone much

longer --”

”one, boy, you -- the effort involved nearly killed

you. for oerrible moment there, i was afraid it had. as for

the sto has beeroyed.”

”destroyed?” said harry blankly. ”but your friend -- nicolas

flamel --”

”oh, you know about nicolas?” said dumbledore, sounding quite

delighted. ”you did do the thing properly, didnt you? well, nicolas

and i have had a little d agreed its all for the best.”

”but that means he and his wife will die, wont they?”

”they have eored to set their affairs in order

ahey will die.”

dumbledore smiled at the look of amazement on harrys face.

”to one as young as you, im sure it seems io

nid pere really is like goier a very,

very long day. after all, to the well-anized mih is but

the ure. you ko such a

w. as muey and life as you t! the two

things most human beings would choose above all -- the trouble is,

humans do have a knack of g precisely those things that are

worst for them.” harry lay there, lost for words. dumbledore hummed

a little ahe g.

”sir?” said harry. ”ive been thinking... sir -- even if the

stones gone, vol-, i mean, you-know- who --”

”call him voldemort, harry. always use the proper name for

things. fear of a name increases fear of the thing itself.”

”yes, sir. well, voing to try other ways of ing

bat he? i mean, he hasnt gone, has he?”

”no, harry, he has ill out there somewhere,

perhaps looking for ao share... ruly alive,

he ot be killed. he left quirrell to die; he shows just as

little mercy to his followers as his eheless, harry,

while you may only have delayed his retur will merely

take someone else who is prepared to fight what seems a losing

battle ime -- and if he is delayed again, and again, why,

he may o power.”

harry opped quickly, because it made his head

hurt. then he said, ”sir, there are ss id like

to know, if you tell me... things i want to kh

about....”

”the truth.” dumbledhed. ”it is a beautiful and terrible

thing, and should therefore be treated with great . however, i

shall answer your questions unless i have a very good reason not to,

in which case i beg youll five me. i shall not, of course, lie.”

”well... voldemort said that he oher because

she tried to stop him from killi ant to

kill me i place?”

dumbledhed very deeply this time.

”alas, the first thing you ask me, i ot tell you. not

today. not no, one day... put it from your mind

for now, harry. when you are older... i know you hate to hear

this... when you are ready, you will know.”

and harry k would be no gue.

”but why t quirrell touch me?”

”your mother died to save you. if there is ohi

derstand, it is love. he didhat love as

powerful as your mothers for you leaves its own mark. not a so

visible sign... to have been loved so deeply, even though the person

who loved us is gone, will give us some prote forever. it is

in your very skin. quirrell, full reed, and ambition,

sharing his soul with voldemort, ot touch you for this

reason. it was agony to touarked by something so good.”

dumbledore now