Yes, People Like That Really Exist
"It seems I won't just have to use you as hostages. I'll have to make you pay for this too. If my face ends up even more disfigured because of you... you'll pay dearly," Lockhart said as he tightened his grip on his wand.
"Disfigured?" Ron repeated, looking again at the tiny scar beneath his eye.
"Yes, disfigured!"
Lockhart narrowed his eyes.
"If it weren't for that woman, my face wouldn't have ended up like this. They were just jealous of me. And that monster who's supposedly a knight, with his fake smile... he did this to me..." Lockhart said as his body began to tremble, bringing his hands toward his "enormous" scar. "But it's impossible to do anything to them outside. No matter how much I tried to get close, all those knights would find me immediately. Every single one of them is a monster. I know that better than anyone. So what better way than to enter Hogwarts as their professor?" Lockhart said, proud of his master plan.
"But what do Harry and Percy have to do with any of this if your enemies are the Knights?" Hermione asked softly while subtly gesturing to Ron without Lockhart noticing.
"You probably don't know this, but when their mother joined the Pendragon Order, those two brats came under the protection of the entire Order. Even they don't know all the conditions of the contract. I do. I was there when it was created," Lockhart said mockingly, with a somewhat crazed excitement. "Two boys with that kind of protection... What do you think will happen if they never return home after going to the best school of magic in England, where the headmaster is none other than Albus Dumbledore? A war between wizards and knights wouldn't be that crazy."
"You want the Knights to fight Headmaster Dumbledore?" Hermione asked.
"Yes. If they go against Dumbledore, they'll make enemies of the entire magical world. Don't you think it's a magnificent plan?" Lockhart asked proudly.
Hermione was about to open her mouth again, but Lockhart raised his hand with an amused smile.
"Do you think I don't know you're trying to buy time? You'd better stop and let's finish this once and for all," Lockhart said calmly, raising his wand again.
"Ron!" Hermione shouted as she raised her own wand at the same time and pointed it toward Lockhart.
"Stupefy!"
Lockhart saw the spell flying toward him and simply moved his wand in front of it to intercept it. But he instantly remembered the attack he'd taken a moment ago, so instead, he quickly moved to the side and dodged the spell.
But when it struck the wall, it simply dissolved like mist.
A second later, a rock slammed into the wall, becoming visible.
"You think that trick is going to work? It seems you've forgotten who I am," Lockhart said mockingly as he raised his wand to attack.
But another rock struck him in the forehead.
Lockhart grabbed his forehead in pain and looked up furiously at Hermione and Ron.
Ron's arms were full of rocks he'd picked up from the floor, pieces left behind from the destroyed wall, while Hermione held her wand in one hand.
"Just like the gnome competition back home," Ron said as he grabbed one of the sharper rocks and aimed it toward Lockhart, but before he could throw it, it instantly turned invisible.
Lockhart saw Ron make the throwing motion and immediately shouted,
"Protego!"
A magical shield formed in front of him.
But the impact from the rock never came, making Lockhart look confused as he opened the arms he'd raised to protect his face.
Then Lockhart looked toward Hermione and Ron.
And saw that both of them had already taken off running at full speed, while all the rocks in Ron's arms were fake.
"You!" Lockhart shouted angrily, immediately starting to run after them.
…
"Hurry up, Ron, or he'll catch us. We need to buy as much time as possible," Hermione said as she ran beside Ron, turning a corner in the corridors.
The problem was that Ron wasn't doing nearly as well, since the blows seemed to make his chest hurt more the longer he ran.
"Easy for you to say when you weren't hit by something that sent you flying several meters. Twice. I think I've got a broken rib," Ron said, barely able to catch his breath as he ran, though he didn't stop.
"You two, stop right now!" Lockhart shouted from behind them.
Lockhart fired two spells in a row.
Hermione ducked to avoid the first, and Ron jumped behind one of the suits of armor to hide from the second.
The impact tore off several pieces of metal.
"Expelliarmus!" Hermione shouted, aiming at Lockhart.
But the spell was deflected by the professor's wand, making it crash into another suit of armor, which fell to the floor with a loud clatter.
Ron poked his head out.
"Is he seriously trying to kill us?" Ron said, instinctively pulling out his wand to defend himself, only to remember that it was still snapped in half. He immediately shoved it away and kept running.
"Atabraquium!" Lockhart shouted.
Then two magical ropes flew toward Ron and Hermione. They tried to jump out of the way, but like snakes, the ropes quickly caught them, and neither of them could stop themselves from falling to the floor completely tied up.
"I already told you, it's a waste of time," Lockhart said, letting out a sigh as he approached them.
"Mphm, with all the noise we made, aren't you afraid the professors will come?" Hermione said with a small, proud smile, showing that had been her plan all along.
Lockhart paused for a moment as he approached them and let out a small laugh.
"The professors? I'm afraid you'll have to wait quite a while. Dumbledore isn't even at Hogwarts. Why do you think I finally have the chance to make my move?" Lockhart said proudly.
Hermione's eyes widened.
"What?" she asked in confusion.
"The latest attacks drew far too much attention. Lucius Malfoy came for him to take him before the school governors. It seems he still hasn't returned. Maybe he's even been fired," Lockhart said before laughing in amusement.
"And the other professors?" Ron asked.
Lockhart gave both of them a somewhat dark look.
Ron and Hermione went pale for a moment, fearing the worst.
"What did you do?" Ron immediately asked.
"Relax. After all, they were my professors," Lockhart said with a smile. "I simply made sure they were far too busy to come here."
Hermione frowned.
"How?"
"That doesn't matter anymore. What matters is that right now, no one's coming to help you."
"You're completely insane."
"No, it's revenge," Lockhart said as he approached them both, ready to drag them back toward the corridor from before.
"You won't be able to hurt them! Even if you have us as hostages, someone will stop you!" Hermione shouted.
"And who exactly could that be? Right now, there's no one who can," Lockhart said mockingly.
"How about me, then?"
A voice suddenly rang out.
Lockhart froze for a couple of seconds before slowly turning his head.
Not far away, Mark stood with his arms crossed, staring at him with an expression of complete contempt. Draped over his shoulder was a cloak familiar to Ron and Hermione.
Harry's Invisibility Cloak.
"I was planning to go stea... borrow a few forbidden books, but that damn idiot interrupted my free time," Mark complained dryly, staring directly at Lockhart. "Looks like you won't be able to claim you're someone else this time, and you won't need that stupid accent either, right, Gilderoy Lockhart?" he said mockingly, remembering what had happened a few days earlier.
"You," Lockhart said when he saw Mark.
He remembered him from the past, although Mark looked more mature now and even taller, and above all, much more handsome and cooler than him.
"If it weren't for that bastard, you wouldn't even be comparable to me," Lockhart muttered.
"What the hell are you talking about? Whatever, just let the brats go. If something happens to them in front of me, those other two boys are going to become a pain in the ass," Mark said calmly, without showing Lockhart even the slightest bit of respect.
"Mr. Mark, hurry! Percy and Harry..." Hermione immediately shouted, more worried about her friends than herself.
"It's fine. The chubby kid got to me earlier. I already warned the other two. I was just taking advantage of the chance to stay away from those two who spend all their time fighting. Who would've thought I'd run into an old colleague who got fired?" Mark said mockingly, looking at Lockhart with a sneer.
From the moment Mark appeared, Lockhart remained completely still, carefully studying every one of his movements.