Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire: Chapter 1 Summary
The Riddle House
Chapter 1 of Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, titled ‘The Riddle House’ deals with an old abandoned mansion, a gardener with a bad leg, and intruders who are more than men.
Murders of the Riddle House
The Riddle House stood atop a hill overlooking the village of Little Hangleton. Once a grand estate, it is now reduced to a state of neglect and abandonment.
The villagers avoid it, believing it to be haunted due to a mysterious tragedy that occurred decades ago. Over the years, multiple owners have attempted to restore the property, but nobody ever stayed for long.
According to legend, the wealthy Riddle family; comprising of Mr. and Mrs. Riddle and their son, Tom were discovered dead in their drawing room. Their faces bore expressions of sheer terror, yet their bodies exhibited no signs of struggle or injury. A maid, upon stumbling upon the lifeless figures, had rushed to the village to raise the alarm. The villagers did not care about the Riddles; for they were snobbish and rude. All they cared about was the identity of the murderer, for there was no way three healthy people had died of natural causes at the same time.
The police had launched an immediate investigation, suspecting poisoning due to the lack of visible wounds. Their suspicions had soon fallen upon Frank Bryce, the Riddles’ gardener and a World War II veteran. He was the only person present on the estate that night and was hence arrested. Frank, of course, pleaded innocent. Repeatedly, he told the police officers about a teenage boy with pale skin and dark hair he had seen near the house that day; but nobody paid him any attention.
Frank The Gardener
Soon, the reports of the dead bodies came out. In a strange turn of events, doctors could not ascertain the cause of death. According to them, the Riddles were all in perfect health, apart from the fact that they were all dead. The police station was baffled, but Frank’s name was cleared on all accounts.
Despite being proven innocent, Frank found himself shunned by the other villagers. Everyone considered him a murderer and wished he left the village. Frank, however, chose not to leave. Instead, he stuck to his gardening duties for the mansion, even as it changed multiple owners.
Time passed. The latest owner of the house did not care much about it, but paid Frank for his duties regardless. Frank was nearing his 77th birthday now, was deaf, and suffering from a bad stiff leg. He was also troubled by the young boys who lived nearby and loved to play pranks on him. They would throw stones, disturb the lawn with their bikes, and have the limping man chase them across the garden.
One summer night, Frank Bryce notices a flickering light inside the supposedly abandoned Riddle House. Considering it to be another one of the boys’ pranks, perhaps a fire they set this time, he goes to investigate.
As quickly as his bad leg allows, Frank makes his way to the house. He makes his way to the kitchen, then through the hall to the stairs. At the end of the passage, a door stands ajar, and Frank could tell this is where his intruders were hiding.
The Snake That Tattled
He inches closer and overhears two men in conversation. One has a timid, weak voice and is being addressed as Wormtail. The second one, rather high-pitched and icy cold, orders Wormtail around. Frank listens on as the cold voice declares they will live here for a week since it would be foolish to do anything before the Quidditch World Cup. The word does not make sense to Frank, but he continues to listen.
The conversation gets weirder. Words such as Wizards, Muggles, and the Ministry of Magic are thrown around, which Frank assumes are code words. It soon takes a dark turn, as the intruders talk about a murder they committed. The murder of Bertha Jorkins, which would somehow lead them to a Harry Potter.
Frank, frozen on the spot, wrestles with his distrust of the police. If he ever needed them, it was now. Before he can do anything, however, Frank hears some movement behind him and turns. He finds himself face-to-face with a gigantic snake and freezes in fear.
The snake comes level with him but slithers past him as the cold voice starts to hiss. It enters the intruders’ room, and a few seconds later, the cold voice informs Wormtail about the old muggle standing outside the door.
The Wrath of Lord Voldemort
A short, balding man greets Frank at the door, and the cold voice orders him to invite the gardener in. Frank announces that he is going to turn them in for murder and that his wife knows he is in the mansion right now.
Frank could not see who the cold voice belonged to. It was coming from an ancient armchair which had its back to him, and the speaker was so short, that not even the back of his head was visible.
The cold voice told Frank that he had no wife, and that nobody knew of his whereabouts. In doing so, the voice addressed itself as Lord Voldemort. Frank challenges the ‘lord’ to turn his chair and reveal himself, and the voice agrees.
Wormtail turns the chair, and Frank screams at the sight of Lord Voldemort. He screams so loud, that he cannot hear the words that come out of Voldemort’s mouth. A wand is raised, a green light flashes and Frank crumbles backward.
The chapter ends as Frank dies on the spot. Two hundred miles away, a boy named Harry Potter wakes up with a start.
