Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone: Chapter 12 - The Mirror of Erised
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Chapter 12
The Mirror of Erised
Christmas is almost here! Most of the students will be going home for the holiday season to be with their families. But some students must stay at Hogwarts. Professor McGonagall provides a list for the students who will be staying. Harry signs the list immediately. He does not want to spend the holidays at Privet Drive.
It’s true that Harry will not be spending Christmas with his family, but he does not feel sorry for himself at all. Harry thinks this will be the best Christmas ever! Ron will be staying, and his brothers will be staying, too! His parents are traveling to see his older brother in Romania. Hermione will also be staying. So Harry will not be alone during the holiday. He will be with his friends.
Since their last meeting with Hagrid, the children have been looking for any information about Nicolas Flamel. They have been looking in the library for books about him. Unfortunately they have not found anything yet. After all, there are thousands and thousands of books in Hogwarts’ library. But there is one place they have not searched yet - the Restricted Section in the library.
But in order to check out a book from the restricted area, you need special permission from a teacher. There are many advanced books about Dark Magic and Defense Against the Dark Arts. The children know they will never get permission from any teacher. But Harry goes into the restricted area anyway. “What are you looking for, boy?”
It is Madame Prince, the librarian. She is as old as some of the ancient books in the library. “Nothing!” Harry says in surprise. “Then you had better leave…now. Get out!” Harry runs back to the Gryffindor common room. When Ron and Hermione join him later that day, he asks them if they have any luck searching for information about Flamel. Both of them shake their heads, no.
On Christmas Eve, Harry goes to bed thinking about the next morning - Christmas Morning. He does not think he will get any presents. But when he wakes up early the next day, there are many gifts in a pile at the foot of his bed! “Merry Christmas,” says Ron, who is still almost asleep. “You, too!” says Harry. He is excited to receive so many gifts!
Harry and Ron bring their presents down to the common room so they can open them together with Hermione. Her presents are already there when the boys arrive. “Merry Christmas, Ron! Merry Christmas, Harry!” she says happily. The boys pile their presents next to hers and they all begin to open their presents together.
Harry gets a beautiful, hand-made wooden flute from Hagrid.
And he also gets a warm, hand-sewn sweater from Ron’s mother. “She always makes a sweater for each of her children at Christmas,” says Ron. “But for some reason, the ones she makes for people who are not her children are much nicer than the ones she makes for her own children.” Ron holds up the sweater he got from his mother. It looks like it was made by a blind cat!
“You still have one more present, Harry,” says Hermione. Harry picks up a small parcel. It is very light. He unwraps it. Something fluid and gray falls out of the wrapping onto the floor. Ron gasps in surprise! “Harry, you’re so lucky! I’ve always wanted one of those!” Harry looks confused. “What is it?” he asks. “If it’s what I think it is, it’s very valuable,” answers Ron, “It’s an invisibility cloak! Try it on!”
Harry feels the material. It is shining and feels strange, almost like solid water. He puts the cloak around his shoulders and Ron gives a satisfied yell, “It is an invisibility cloak!” Harry looks down at his body, but it is gone! “That’s amazing, Harry!” yells Hermione. She feels a little jealous that Harry has such a powerful magic item. Harry runs to a mirror to look at himself.
All he sees in the mirror is his head, suspended in mid air! His body is completely invisible! He pulls the cloak over his head and he disappears completely! There is no reflection of him at all in the mirror. “There’s a note!” says Ron suddenly. “A note fell out of it!” Harry takes the cloak off and picks up the letter. The words are written in beautiful cursive:
Your father left this with me before he died. It now belongs to you. Use it well.
A very Merry Christmas to you
There is no signature on the note. Harry feels very strange. Who is the cloak from? Did the cloak really belong to his father? “Harry, what’s wrong?” asks Ron. “Nothing,” says Harry. Before he can say anything else, Percy, Ron’s brother and Prefect of Gryffindor comes in. “Come on, everyone! Let’s go! It’s Christmas breakfast! Follow me!” The children run after Percy. They are starving!
This has been Harry’s best Christmas day in his whole life. But something is still bothering him. As he is lying in bed, ready to sleep after a long Christmas day, he can’t stop thinking about the invisibility cloak, and the person who sent it to him. Harry sits up, and reaches under the bed. He pulls out a box with the cloak in it. His father’s cloak… this had been his father’s cloak. The material feels smoother than silk, and as light as air. “Use it well,” the note says.
He has to try it! He gets out of bed silently and wraps the cloak around himself. He looks down at his body, but he can only see the floor of his bedroom, and the shadows from the moon. It feels very strange, but exciting! “Use it well”. Suddenly, Harry feels wide awake. If he wears this cloak, he thinks, he can have access to all of Hogwarts. He can go anywhere! He is filled with excitement at the idea!
Harry sneaks out of his dormitory. He goes down the stairs, past the fat lady in the painting - “Who’s there?” she yells - and then he moves quickly down the corridor. Where should he go? He stops for a moment and thinks. His heart is beating very fast in his chest. Of course! The Restricted Section in the library! Off he goes, as quickly and as quietly as he can. The library is as dark as night - pitch black.
Harry lights a lamp to help him find his way down the corridors full of books. The lamp looks like it is floating in midair. It makes Harry feel a little scared. He moves carefully towards the back of the library, where the Restricted Section is. He raises his lamp so he can read the titles of the books. Flamel must be in here somewhere, he thinks.
The titles of the books don’t tell him very much. Many of them have words in foreign languages that he does not understand. Some don’t have anything written on them at all. One book is covered with something that looks a lot like dried blood! He feels like the books are whispering to him, as if they know he should not be there. He does not know where to begin looking, so he chooses a heavy silver book, and sits on the floor. He opens the book carefully.
There is a loud, terrifying shriek that penetrates the silence. The book is screaming in protest! He shuts the book immediately, but the screaming does not stop. He tries to get up to run away, but he knocks over the lamp. He begins to panic. He does not know what to do! Then, suddenly, he hears footsteps coming quickly in his direction. He puts the heavy book back on the shelf and runs for the exit of the library. He passes Filch in the doorway!
Filch is looking straight at him, right in his eyes - but he does not see Harry! Harry manages to pass Filch without being discovered. He can still hear the screaming behind him. He runs and runs until he finally stops. He listens for any footsteps that might be following him. He looks around him and he has no idea where he is! Then suddenly, Harry hears voices.
“You asked me to come to you if I found anyone in the corridors at night. Somebody was in the library - in the Restricted Section.” It is Filch’s voice. It is getting closer. Then he hears Snape’s voice, “The Restricted Section, eh? Well, they can’t be far away. We’ll catch them.” Then Harry sees them come around the corner and walk towards him. There is an open doorway next to him. He enters the dark room.
The voices pass by outside the room and move down the corridor. Finally they disappear. Harry looks around him. The room looks like an unused classroom. The desks and chairs are pushed against the walls. But there is something in the room that does not look like it belongs there. Leaning against one of the walls is a large mirror.
The mirror is magnificent. It is as tall as the ceiling. There is a beautiful gold frame around the mirror. It is standing on two feet, with claws. There is an inscription above the mirror. It is carved into the wood of the frame. It reads:
Erised stra ehru oyt ube cafru oyt on wohsi
He steps in front of the mirror. He has to cover his mouth with his hands to stop himself from screaming! He turns around quickly and looks behind him. There is nothing behind him. But in the mirror, he not only sees himself, but there is a whole crowd of people standing right behind his reflection! But the room is empty!
He looks in the mirror again. He sees his own reflection - white-faced and scared. And there, behind him, are many people. Harry looks over his shoulder again. Still, no one is there. Or are all the people invisible, too? He looks back at the mirror. There is a woman standing right behind his reflection. She is smiling and waving. Harry reaches a hand behind him, but he feels only air. The woman and the others only exist in the mirror.
She is a very pretty woman. She has dark red hair, and her eyes… her eyes are just like mine, Harry thinks. Her eyes are bright green. They are the same shape as Harry’s eyes. Then he notices that she is crying. She is smiling, but she is also crying at the same time. There is a tall, thin, black-haired man standing next to her. His arm is around her shoulders. He wears glasses, and his hair is messy, just like Harry’s hair.
“Mom?” he whispers. “Dad?”
They just look at him, smiling. Then Harry looks into the faces of the other people in the reflection. He sees other pairs of green eyes, like his. Their noses are like his nose. Even the little old lady looks like him. Then Harry realizes… he is looking at his whole family, for the first time in his life. They all smile and wave back at him. Harry feels great joy and deep sadness at the same time.
He does not know how long he stands in front of the mirror. The reflections do not disappear. Then he hears a noise outside the room. He must get back to his dormitory, he thinks. “I’ll come back, mother,” he says. He looks one more time at his family, then he turns and runs from the room back to Gryffindor House.
Later that morning, after everyone wakes up, Harry tells Ron and Hermione about the mirror. “I’m going back tonight,” says Harry. “You should come. You can see all your family, too!” Ron makes a face. “I can see my family when I go home for summer vacation!” he says. “Maybe the mirror only shows people who are dead.” Later that night the three of them go off in search of the mirror.
But Harry is worried he will not be able to find the mirror room again. With all of them under the invisibility cloak, they have to walk much slower. But they walk the corridors for a long time before, “I’m freezing,” says Hermione. “Let’s forget about it and go home,” says Ron. “No!” Harry whispers, “I know it’s here somewhere.”
Then suddenly, Harry says, “Here it is! I’ve found it!” They push the door open and Harry takes the cloak off. He runs to the mirror. They are all there: his mother, his father, and the relatives he never knew. “Can you see them?” Harry asks quietly. “See what?” asks Ron, in a whisper. “I can’t see anything,” says Hermione, confused.
“Look again! Look at them all! There are so many people there,” says Harry excitedly. “I can only see you, Harry,” says Ron. “Come closer and look,” Harry says. Harry moves to the side and Ron stands in front of the mirror. Harry and Hermione can only see the reflection of Ron in his pajamas, but Ron is staring straight into the mirror with an expression of joy and fear on his face.
“Can you see all your family around you?” asks Harry. “No, I’m alone. It’s just me. But… I look different. I’m older, I think. And I’m head boy!” Ron smiles. “What?” asks Hermione. “I’m holding the house cup and the Quidditch cup. I’m Quidditch captain, too!” Ron looks excitedly at Harry and Hermione. “Do you think the mirror shows the future?” he asks.
“I don’t think so. It only showed my family, and they are all dead,” Harry says. “Hermione, do you want to look?” Ron asks. “No, thank you,” she answers. She looks at the mirror suspiciously. “Let me look again,” Harry says. “You had all last night to look. I want to look a little longer,” Ron says, a little angrily. “I think we had better leave,” Hermione whispers. “This mirror is making you both crazy.”
“I want to see my parents again,” Harry says, and he pushes Ron out of the way. There is a sudden noise outside in the corridor. The children stop fighting and realize they are talking very loudly. “Quick!” Hermione throws the cloak over all of them just as Mrs. Norris walks silently into the room. The children stand perfectly still. Does the cloak work on cats? Harry thinks in terror. After a long time, the cat turns around and leaves the room.
The children run back to Gryffindor as quickly and as quietly as they can. But Harry can only think of one thing - the mirror. The other children tell him he should not go back. He will get caught! But nothing will stop Harry from visiting the mirror again. And the next night, Harry sneaks out again. He finds the mirror room much more quickly this time. He looks at his reflection, and there are his father and mother smiling at him again. Harry sits on the floor and stares into the mirror. Suddenly…
“So, you’re back again, eh, Harry?” Harry feels like he has turned to ice! He looks behind him. Albus Dumbledore is sitting on one of the desks, in the darkness. Harry must have walked right past him when he entered the room. “I… I didn't see you, sir.” “It is interesting how being invisible can distract your attention,” Dumbledore says. Harry is relieved - Dumbledore is smiling.
“So, I see you have discovered the wonders of the Mirror of Erised,” Dumbledore says. “I didn’t know it was called that, sir.” Dumbledore looks closely at Harry. “But I imagine that by now you know what the mirror does?” “It… er… it shows my family,” Harry responds. “And it showed your friend Ron as head boy and Quidditch captain,” continues Dumbledore. “How did you know?” Harry asks.
“I do not need a cloak to become invisible,” says Dumbledore kindly. “Now, think. What does the Mirror of Erised show all of us?” Harry thinks for a moment. “It shows us what we want… what we want to see.” Dumbledore smiles. “Yes… and no. It shows us nothing more or less than the deepest, most desperate desire of our hearts. You have always wanted to see your family. Ronald Weasley has always wanted to be better than his brothers.”
“But this mirror does not give us knowledge, or truth. Men have died by wasting their lives staring into the mirror. They become entranced, or have gone crazy. They do not know if the mirror shows them what is real, or even what might be possible. The Mirror will be moved tomorrow, Harry. And I ask that you not look for it again. If you do ever see it, you will now be prepared. Now, let’s get back to bed.”
