The Potters

The Keeper of the Keys

BOOM.

They knocked again. Dudley jerked awake.

"Where's the cannon?" he said stupidly.

There was a crash behind them and Uncle Vernon came skidding into the room holding a rifle in his hands. Now they knew what had been in the long, thin package had brought with them.

"Who's there?" he shouted. "I warn you - I'm armed!"

SMASH.

The door was hit with such force that it swung clean off its hinges and with a deafening crash landed flat on the floor.

A giant of a man was standing in the doorway. His face was almost completely hidden by a long, shaggy mane of hair and wild, tangled beard, but you could make out his eyes, glinting like black beetles under all the hair.

The giant squeezed its way into the hut, stooping so that his head just brushed the ceiling. He bent down, picked up the door and fitted it easily back into its frame. The noise of the storm outside dropped a little. He turned to look at them all.

"Sorry about that," the man said, patting the dust from the door of his great, long cloak.

"Ah, an' there they are!" the man exclaimed, gesturing towards the twins who were frozen in fear. Lilly had grabbed Harry's arm and was staring wide-eyed at the man. "Harry and Lilliana! Las' time I saw you, you was only babies," said the giant.

"I demand that you leave at once, sir!" Uncle Vernon said, he held the gun shakily pointed at the giant. "You are breaking and entering!"

"Ah, shut up, Dursley, yeh great prune." The giant jerked the gun out of Uncle Vernon's hands, bent it into a knot as easily as if it had been made of rubber, and threw it into a corner of the room. Uncle Vernon made a noise like a mouse being trodden on.

"Anyway, you two," said the giant, turning his back on the Dursleys. "A very happy birthday to yeh. Got summat for yeh here - I mighta sat on it at some point, but reckon' it'll taste good just the same."

From inside one of his many pockets he pulled a slightly squashed box. Harry and Lilly glanced at each other before Harry opened the box with trembling fingers. Inside was a large, sticky chocolate cake with Happy Birthday Harry + Lilly written on it in green icing.

Harry looked up at the giant. He meant to say thank you, but the words got lost on the way to his mouth, and what he said instead was, "Who are you?"

The giant chucked. "True, I haven't introduced meself. Rubeus Hagrid, Keeper of Keys and Grounds at Hogwarts."

He held out an enormous hand and shook Harry's whole arm, then offered his arm to Lilly, who just stared at him with fearful eyes. "Yeh know," said the giant softly to Lilly, "when you was a baby you had the same expression on yer face when I picked ya up outta yer parents' house. Dreadful night, that was."

Lilly glanced over at Harry with a confused expression. "I'm sorry sir," said Harry carefully, "I'm still not quite sure what to call you."

"Call me Hagrid," he said. "Everyone does. An' like I told yeh, I'm Keeper of Keys at Hogwarts - yeh'll know all about Hogwarts, o' course."

"Er- no." Harry said.

"What?" barked Hagrid, turning to stare at the Dursleys, who shrank back into the shadows. "I knew yeh weren't gettin' yer letters but I never thought yeh wouldn't even know abou' Hogwarts, for cryin' out loud! Did yeh ever wonder where yer parents learnt it all?"

"All what?" asked Harry. For Lilly, the realization dawned on her. Those letters must have been from Hogwarts.

"ALL WHAT?" Hagrid thundered. "Now wait jus' one second!" He had leapt to his feet. In his anger he seemed to fill the whole hut. The Dursleys were cowering against the wall.