When Professor McGonagall finds Harry in the hallway near the petrified Justin Finch-Fletchly and Nearly Headless Nick (CS11), she takes him to Dumbledore’s Office, using the password “Sherbet Lemon” (CS12). While waiting, Harry looks around at the many sleeping Headmaster portraits on the wall, as well as Dumbledore’s silver instruments emitting puffs of smoke. Spying the Sorting Hat on a shelf, he puts it on to ask whether he should have been put in Slytherin instead of Gryffindor because of his ability as a Parselmouth. The Sorting Hat tells him he would have done well in Slytherin, but Harry disagrees. Suddenly he hears a coughing sound behind him, and turns to see Fawkes the Phoenix sitting on a golden perch. The bird looks terrible with feathers falling out, and while Harry watches Fawkes exploded into a fireball of flames and turned to a pile of ashes. Dumbledore arrives and explains to Harry that the Phoenix burns up and dies, to be reborn as a baby bird from the ashes. Hagrid comes into the office to speak up for Harry, saying he couldn’t be the one attacking people, and Dumbledore agrees.
