The Great Hall was buzzing with the low murmur of conversation when Gilderoy walked through the doors beside Dumbledore. The murmuring changed as whispers rippled from the entrance and spread through the hall like stones dropped into still water. Heads turned, and eyes followed him as he entered.
Gilderoy kept his gaze straight ahead while he tried to find where Amelia was sitting, but he could feel the weight of their stares pressing against him from all sides. Some were curious, some were confused, and most were hostile for reasons he could not understand.
Why is everyone staring at me as if I assaulted someone?
He spotted Amelia soon because she was sitting at the Ravenclaw table next to Pandora and Xenophilius with her face half-turned toward the doors as if she had been waiting for him to appear. The moment their eyes met, she was on her feet and her chair scraped against the stone floor with a sound that cut through the murmuring.
She crossed the distance between them in a few quick strides before she pulled him into a tight hug with her arms wrapping around him like she was afraid he might disappear. He felt her breath against his neck and her body pressed completely against him as if she was anchoring herself to him.
"You're okay," she said, relief flooding her voice.
"I'm fine," he said as he looked down at her. "I'm here."
She pulled back as her hands moved to his shoulders and then to his arms while she checked him thoroughly like she was searching for injuries he might be hiding. Her eyes swept over his face, his neck, and his wrists. Relief filled her expression, but something else lingered behind it, a simmering anger that had not yet faded.
Before he could ask, Pandora appeared at Amelia's side. She did not wait for an invitation because she threw her arms around him too and squeezed tightly.
"You're alright?" she asked as her voice remained muffled against his shoulder. "They did not hurt you? What happened? The Aurors —"
"I'm fine," he repeated. "I will explain everything. Just give me a moment."
Pandora pulled back with her eyes red-rimmed but dry. Xeno was a few steps behind her with his expression calm but watchful. He gave Gilderoy's shoulder a firm shake and patted it, a silent acknowledgment that did not need words.
Gilderoy looked around the Great Hall again. Most of the students had returned to their conversations, but their gazes kept flicking toward him with quick, furtive glances that they tried to hide behind lowered heads and whispered words.
The hostility was unmistakable.
Amelia followed his gaze, and her jaw tightened. She reached for his hand as her fingers laced through his.
"You need to see this," she said quietly. "I have been saving it for you."
She passed him a copy of the Daily Prophet. The front page was dominated by a single headline, printed in bold letters that seemed to shout from the page:
LOCKHART: HERO, FRAUD, OR DEATH EATER IN THE MAKING?
Gilderoy unfolded the newspaper and began to read.
.
LOCKHART: HERO, FRAUD, OR DEATH EATER IN THE MAKING?
By Rita Skeeter, Special Correspondent
The Wizarding world was left reeling yesterday when Gilderoy Lockhart, a seventh-year student from Hogwarts, was arrested by Ministry Aurors following a violent attack in Hogsmeade. This reporter has learned that the truth behind Lockhart's so-called "heroics" is far more sinister than anyone could have imagined.
Sources close to the investigation have revealed that Lockhart was caught red-handed carrying a Dark artifact of unknown origin that was hidden within his robes during the chaos of the attack. The artifact, described by one source as "deeply sinister" and "pulsating with dark energy," was discovered when Aurors searched Lockhart moments after the masked attackers vanished into thin air.
But that is not all because this reporter has uncovered disturbing details about Lockhart's past that raise serious questions about his true allegiances. Once a mediocre student with nothing but a pretty face and a talent for self-promotion, Lockhart has suddenly risen from obscurity to duelling champion and Quidditch star in a remarkably short time. How, one might ask, does a student with no prior achievements suddenly become a master of duelling? The answer, this reporter suspects, is far from innocent.
Witnesses who wish to remain anonymous have cast serious doubt on Lockhart's role in the Hogsmeade attack. "He was casting spells like he wanted to be seen. It was almost like he was performing for an audience."
Another source, a Ministry insider who spoke on condition of anonymity, added: "And then suddenly the Aurors find a Dark artifact on him? It makes you wonder what he was really doing there. Perhaps he was never trying to save anyone at all. Perhaps he was part of the attack all along."
This reporter has also learned that Lockhart has been seen associating with individuals of questionable reputation. Sources have confirmed that he has been spending time, attending private events and forming alliances with dark families that should concern every law-abiding witch and wizard.
When asked about the arrest, a Ministry official refused to comment, but it is clear that the questions surrounding Lockhart are only growing. A duelling champion one moment, an accused Dark wizard the next. Who is the real Gilderoy Lockhart? This reporter intends to find out.
Lockhart was released pending further investigation. The Wizarding world will be watching closely to see what the Ministry uncovers. And this reporter will be watching too.
For now, one thing is certain: Gilderoy Lockhart is not the hero he pretends to be. And the sooner the Wizarding world sees him for what he truly is, the safer we will all be.
Gilderoy finished reading as his jaw tightened for a split second, but he relaxed immediately. He did not crumple the paper or throw it aside because he simply folded it slowly and placed it on the table in front of him.
So that is how it is.
Malfoy and Lestrange think they can destroy my reputation with lies. They think a few words on a page will break me.
Ha. Like I care.
They can go fuck themselves.
I do not need the approval of sheep because Amelia, Pandora, Xeno, and the others who actually know me are enough.
"Hey," Amelia said as she watched him closely and hugged his arm. "Are you okay?"
He looked at her, and the anger he had seen flickering in her eyes earlier suddenly made sense because it was not directed at him. It was for him. She was furious, not at him, but at the newspaper, at Skeeter, and at whoever had paid her to write such a hatchet job.
"You're angry," he said.
"Of course I'm angry." Amelia's jaw tightened as she gestured toward the paper. "Look at what they wrote and look at what they are saying about you. It is all lies because every word of it is false."
"I know."
"And you are just sitting there while you read it like it is nothing?"
He reached for her hand and squeezed it gently. "It is nothing," he said. "They are just words because words from someone like Rita Skooter do not mean anything to me."
Amelia stared at him as her expression shifted from anger to something softer.
"Besides," he added, "I am starving."
He reached for the platter of roasted chicken in front of him and loaded his plate with a generous portion. The smell of spiced meat and herbs filled his senses, and his stomach growled loudly enough to make Amelia's lips twitch.
"I have been in a cell all day, and I have not eaten since breakfast."
He picked up the chicken leg and took a bite. The chicken was warm and tender, and the spices were rich and savoury on his tongue. He closed his eyes for a moment and let himself enjoy it.
The hostile gazes from around the Great Hall did not bother him because if anything, they made him hungrier.
Gilderoy took another bite of the roasted chicken as he chewed slowly and gathered his thoughts. The spices warmed his tongue, and the familiar taste grounded him after the chaos of the day.
"The holding cells are cold," he began as his voice remained low enough that only she and Pandora could hear. "Stone walls and iron bars with no light. They put me in there and left me alone for hours because no one came to question me."
Amelia's jaw tightened, but she stayed quiet.
"I thought about the fight over and over while I tried to figure out who planted the artifact. One of the masked wizards must have slipped it into my robes during the chaos, probably with magic, because I did not feel a thing."
"You were in the middle of a fight," Pandora said. "You would not have noticed."
"Exactly." He reached for his glass and took a sip of water. "But that did not matter to the Aurors."
"But then Crouch came and questioned me for what felt like hours. He questioned me about the artifact, about my connections, and about the attack. He was relentless, but he said something that surprised me when he told me that raising my wand in defence of students was a good decision, but the crime of carrying a Dark artifact had to be resolved in front of the court."
"He believed you?" Amelia asked with surprise in her voice.
"Maybe he did." Gilderoy shrugged. "Or maybe he just wanted to follow procedure, but he allowed visitors after that."
"Visitors?" Pandora leaned forward.
"Yes. Dumbledore came first because he joked about us meeting in strange places and told me he believed I was innocent. Then Edgar arrived after he had received your letter and came straight to the Ministry. He went to Crouch, and Arcturus was already there because he was telling Crouch to investigate properly."
Amelia's eyes widened. "Lord Black was there?"
"He said he was doing it for his granddaughters." Gilderoy smiled faintly. "I think that was his way of saying he was doing it for me."
"The trial was a nightmare." He took a bite of chicken and chewed it before he swallowed and continued. "The courtroom was packed as if I was on a full-scale criminal trial."
"You were tried with a full Wizengamot?" Amelia's voice was suddenly filled with anger on hearing what Gilderoy said.
"Yes," he said. "I spotted Bellatrix and Narcissa in the visitors' area on the second level. Narcissa waved supportively while Bellatrix just stared and looked like she wanted to hex the entire courtroom for me." He shook his head as he smiled at the memory.
Amelia's anger softened when she heard that Narcissa and Bellatrix had been there to support him.
"Nott led the prosecution while Malfoy and Lestrange joined in. They accused me of everything they could think of, including carrying the artifact, causing chaos, and being a threat to wizarding society."
"But Lord Potter, Lord Black, and Dumbledore spoke in your defence, I assume," Pandora asked expectantly.
"Yes. Potter said I was defending students and not attacking them. Black said I was not the type to carry Dark artifacts. Dumbledore said he had already confirmed with the students that I was protecting them."
Pandora leaned closer. "And then?"
"I requested Veritaserum."
Amelia inhaled sharply. "You asked them to use Veritaserum on you?"
"It was the fastest way to prove my innocence because Nott and half the court protested and said it was unreliable and that it could be tampered with, but Crouch allowed it."
"Under Veritaserum, Crouch asked me if I caused the chaos, if I carried the artifact willingly, and if I knew it was in my robes, but I said no to all of them."
Gilderoy paused as he remembered the weight of the question. "He asked if I thought the attackers were Death Eaters. Malfoy protested, but Crouch ignored him, and I said yes."
"Everyone heard you?" Pandora asked, her eyes wide with shock.
"Everyone heard me." He took another bite of chicken. "Crouch's eyes lit up because he looked like he wanted to hunt them down himself. He proposed authorizing lethal force against Death Eaters so that Aurors and normal witches and wizards would be allowed to defend themselves with deadly magic."
"And the vote?" Amelia asked.
"It failed because Malfoy and his allies voted against it." He shook his head. "But it was close, too close. I could see the fear in their eyes."
Pandora leaned back as her expression turned troubled.
"Crouch actually pulled me aside and asked if I would come forward as a poster boy and help him, but I directly refused." Gilderoy pushed his plate aside. "I made it clear to Crouch that I would not help him unless he acted first. I told him about the Aurors and how they arrived conveniently, how they had a tip that led them straight to me, and how they ignored you both when you protested. He was angry, and he walked away without saying a word."
"You think he will do something?" Amelia asked.
"I think he already knows his Aurors are compromised, and I think he is not the kind of man who lets that slide."
He reached for his water again and drank deeply.
Amelia suddenly remembered something and reached into the pouch at her waist before she pulled out a large wrapped object.
"I saved this for you," she said.
He looked at it and saw that it was a chocolate bar, one of the ones they had bought at Honeydukes just before the attack. The wrapper was slightly crumpled, but the chocolate inside remained intact.
"You kept this?" he asked.
"I thought you might want one when you got back."
The sweetness melted slowly, tasting rich and smooth, and he let himself savour it.
I did get to eat the chocolates after all.
___
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