HARRY POTTER and the Chamber of Secrets: GRYFFINDOR
♦AN INTRODUCTION♦

You might belong in Gryffindor,
Where dwell the brave at heart,
Their daring, nerve and chivalry
Set Gryffindor apart''
THE SORTING HAT

BUT FOR AN outstanding act of true Gryffindor daring, Harry Potter wouldn.'t have made it back to Hogwarts for is second year. Locked in his room by the Dursleys for ruining their dinner party, it looks as though he may be heading for a year spent eating cold soup and rattling the bars on his bedroom window.

In his midnight rescue mission Ron Weasly is ably assisted by his twin brothers, Fred and George. Not many young wizards would have the nerve to borrow their father's enchanted car and fly for miles through the night sky to find out was has happened to a friend.

Gryffindor may be accused at times of pointless heroics, but courage and determination are the key to achieving many things in life, and Fred and George Weasly certainly know how to get things done. Undeterred when they find Harry barricaded into his bedroom, they simply rip the bars off his window to liberate Harry, leaving Vernon Dursley apoplectic with fury.

The twins may infuriate their mother Molly Weasly with their high jink's but their rescue of Harry Potter is a moment to make all Gryffindors proud.

The late and great Sir Nicholas de Mimsy-Porpington, the Gryffindor house ghost, illustrates another characteristic Gryffindor trait: chivalry. In his extravagantly plumed hat, and neck ruff that conceals his dangerously wobbly half-severed neck, Nearly Headless Nick is always a model of courtesy.

His five hundredth Deathday Party provides another memorable Gryffindor moment. Nearly Headless Nick is delighted to welcome the famous Harry Potter to his party, hoping Harry will tell Sir Patrick Delaney-Podmore of the Headless Hunt how very immpressive and frightening he is. But the Gryffindor Achilles heel is the tendency to show off, and Nick's efforts to impress are dashed when Sir Patrick guesses he asked Harry to big him up, and then starts a game of Head Hockey in the middle of Nick's speech.

The brave and daring Weasley brothers and chivalrous Nearly Headless Nick - all embody the spirit of Gryffindor. In a year when danger stalks the corridors of Hogwarts, the Gryffindor traits of courage and bravery are needed more than ever as Harry Potter and his friends seek to discover what lies hidden in the Chamber of Secrets.