chapter 184 part 2
The referee, Madam Hooch, blew her whistle, ending the match, but the Bludger showed no sign of stopping. It gathered all its strength and plummeted downward, as fast as a cannonball.
"That's too vicious," William said, lowering his wand. With Madam Hooch there, the Bludger couldn't possibly hurt anyone.
*Dong!*
A loud impact echoed across the pitch, reaching every corner.
William saw it clearly. Just a moment ago, Lockhart, from the other side of the pitch, had hit the Bludger with a spell, blasting it to smithereens.
The entire student body erupted in cheers, while Lockhart stood there, smiling at the people around him, clearly very proud of his recent spell.
'The cheers should be for the victor. What is he doing out there!'
Singeade whispered in William's ear. Adams was a fan of Lockhart's books, so this couldn't be said out loud.
"At least he dealt with the ball," William whispered back.
After speaking, he glanced toward the other side. The spell that had just destroyed the ball wasn't *Diffindo*, but some form of Dark Magic. Was Professor Lockhart that skilled even with the Dark Arts?
---
"Foolish and vainglorious."
A few more lines of text appeared in the diary, making Lockhart's blood boil.
"I, Professor Lockhart, saved a student from a dangerous Bludger and received the cheers of the entire school's staff and students. What's wrong with that?"
"Any wizard could have done it. Since when has dealing with a Bludger become a praiseworthy tale? Even the students of Hogwarts won't talk about it for long, let alone The Daily Prophet."
The diary unhurriedly displayed the words. "Oh, Professor William is dealing with Ravenclaw's Diadem, while our Professor Lockhart is dealing with a rogue Bludger! Heavens, that will surely be tomorrow's headline!"
Lockhart felt a vein throbbing wildly on his forehead.
Not even his harshest fan would send such a taunt, but this book had managed it.
"Fine, you tell me, what is greater than Ravenclaw's Diadem!" Lockhart began to taunt back. "Go on, tell me, give me a suggestion. Do you want me to go catch a phoenix? Gryffindor's hat is here, but the school has been using it for nearly a thousand years, so it hardly counts as a discovery. You're not going to tell me you're greater than the Diadem, are you?"
"Of course, I am the greatest of all books!"
The diary presented the text at top speed.
"Oh, is that so?"
Lockhart's handwriting reverted to its usual beautiful, florid style. "Heaven knows, can something not made by a Founder really compare to a relic of a Hogwarts Founder?"
"There are such things, but... you? Would you dare?"
"What wouldn't I dare!"
Lockhart responded with his quill.
"Slytherin's secret. If you can uncover it, you'll not only have the attention of the entire school, but even an Order of Merlin, First Class would be effortless to obtain. But—do you dare?"
The final words were in bold, and the question mark, in particular, was a blatant provocation to Lockhart.
---
"What? You're saying you found the person who blocked you at the start of the school year?"
William looked at Harry, who had suddenly run over and sat down opposite his desk, looking utterly shocked.
What kind of joke was this? Hadn't the matter been dropped due to a lack of further clues?
"How did you find them?"
He was genuinely curious. Logically, it had been a long time since the incident. Would the criminal be foolish enough to turn themselves in?
"It found me. Dobby did it."
So they really did turn themselves in?
"Dobby?"
"Yes, a house-elf from who-knows-where. It found me and urged me to leave school during Christmas and not to get involved in the Wizarding World anymore."
Harry said with a straight face, though his words sounded like a joke.
William was aware that Christmas was approaching, but not get involved in the Wizarding World anymore? What wizard would willingly abandon their wand?
"Are you sure? It wasn't one of the school's house-elves?"
"No, Professor, the clothes weren't the same. Besides, I was framed by that house-elf during the holiday."
"Have you told Professor McGonagall about this?" William's interest was piqued. "As far as I know, these things are kept on record at the Ministry of Magic. The first offense is a warning; the second, expulsion. If we can find proof that it was this Dobby, it will at least provide some context for the warning on your record."
"Not yet, Professor."
Harry looked annoyed—he was angry with himself.
Although his owl had been locked up at the time, if he had told Professor McGonagall afterward, perhaps none of this would have happened.
"You have to learn to trust Professor McGonagall," William said, staring at Harry. "She is your Head of House. She's certainly intimidating, but she cares about you all more than any other professor in the school."
"Okay, Professor."
Harry's tone was perfunctory. William could tell, but there was nothing to be done about it. Professor McGonagall was usually too strict, which made students hesitant to approach her with ordinary problems.
"Can a house-elf not belonging to the school enter and leave freely?" William tapped his fingers against his other hand. "I'll have to ask."
"Bart, could you come here for a moment?"
He called for the house-elf, and Bart arrived with extreme speed.
"Professor, what can I do for you?"
"I have a question for you, Bart. Can house-elves from other families enter and exit Hogwarts freely?"
"Enter and exit freely?" Bart raised a hand to scratch his ear. "I don't think so, Professor."
"They can't?"
"That's right, Professor, they cannot. Only school personnel are allowed. (Note)"
"Then do you know a Dobby?"
Harry suddenly interjected, then proceeded to describe what the house-elf named Dobby looked like.
"I do not know him, Mr. Potter," Bart said after a moment's thought, scratching his ear again.
"Alright, thank you, Bart."
Bart bowed and Apparated away again.
Note: After some consideration, the loopholes at Hogwarts shouldn't be that big. It's unlikely that just any house-elf could intrude—Malfoy's father is, after all, a School Governor, recognized by the School Authority, which is why Dobby can enter freely. Otherwise, the Castle's protective security loopholes would be too large to have gone unnoticed for a thousand years.
P.S. There's one more chapter, still 800 words to go... Depends on my speed... I suggest not waiting up.
(end of chapter)