Гарри Поттер и узник Азкабана
Cat, Rat, and Dog
AlltheycouldseenowwasoneofRon’slegs,whichhehadhookedaroundarootinanefforttostopthedogfrompullinghimfartherunderground—butahorriblecrackcuttheairlikeagunshot;Ron’sleghadbroken,andamomentlater,hisfootvanishedfromsight.
"Harry—we’vegottogoforhelp—"Hermionegasped;shewasbleedingtoo;theWillowhadcutheracrosstheshoulder.
"No!Thatthing’sbigenoughtoeathim;wehaven’tgottime—"
"Harry—we’renevergoingtogetthroughwithouthelp—"
Anotherbranchwhippeddownatthem,twigsclenchedlikeknuckles.
"Ifthatdogcangetin,wecan,"Harrypanted,dartinghereandthere,tryingtofindawaythroughthevicious,swishingbranches,buthecouldn’tgetaninchnearertothetreerootswithoutbeinginrangeofthetree’sblows.
"Oh,help,help,"Hermionewhisperedfrantically,dancinguncertainlyonthespot,"Please..."
Crookshanksdartedforward.Heslitheredbetweenthebatteringbrancheslikeasnakeandplacedhisfrontpawsuponaknotonthetrunk.
Abruptly,asthoughthetreehadbeenturnedtomarble,itstoppedmoving.Notaleaftwitchedorshook.
"Crookshanks!"Hermionewhispereduncertainly.ShenowgraspedHarry’sarmpainfullyhard."Howdidheknow—?"
"He’sfriendswiththatdog,"saidHarrygrimly."I’veseenthemtogether.Comeon—andkeepyourwandout—"
Theycoveredthedistancetothetrunkinseconds,butbeforetheyhadreachedthegapintheroots,Crookshankshadslidintoitwithaflickofhisbottlebrushtail.
