Back home-HPXVARIOUS (XReader)

ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀ ᴛʜɪʀᴛʏ ᴇɪɢʜᴛ

Soon enough, echoing through the corridors, came not the bell, but Professor McGonagall's voice, magically magnified so to reach all around the castle.

"All students to return to their House dormitories at once. All teachers return to the staff room. Immediately, please."
"Not another attack?" Harry turned to stare at Ron and I. "Not now?"
"What'll we do?" Ron asked, eyes darting at every portrait in the room with us. "Do we go back to our dorms?"
"No." I shook my head, stopping once I saw a wardrobe full of teachers cloaks. "We hide. In there."
"Wh-Hide? Why?"
"To hear what all this is about! Then we can tell them what we've found out."
And with that, the two boys agreed, and we hid ourselves inside the wardrobe, listening to the rumble of hundreds of people moving above, and the staff room door banging open. Through the cloaks that we were hid behind, we watched the teachers entering the room. Some of them were looking puzzled, and others were downright scared. And then, McGonagall arrived.

"It had happened." She told the silent staff room. "A student has been taken by the monster. Right into the Chamber itself."
'𝑶𝒉... 𝑻𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒅𝒐𝒆𝒔𝒏'𝒕 𝒔𝒐𝒖𝒏𝒅 𝒈𝒐𝒐𝒅.'
Professor Flitwick let out a squeal. Professor Sprout clapped her hands over her mouth, and Snape grilled the back of a chair very hard, and said;
"How can you be so sure?"
"The Heir of Slytherin." Professor McGonagall spoke through hiccups of fear. "Has left another message. Right underneath the first one."
"What does it say?" Binns asked her.
"Her skeleton will lie in the Chamber forever." McGonagall quoted the message.
"Who is it?" Madam Hooch asked. "Which student?"
"...Ginny Weasley."
I looked to Ron immediately. He slide silently down the wardrobe, holding his knees. And from his quiet sounds, I could hear him sniffling, and also, heard his tears run down his face.
"We shall hate to send all the students home tomorrow." Professor McGonagall continued. "This is the end of Hogwarts. Dumbledore always said..."
The staff room door banged open again. For one wolf moment, I was sure it would be Dumbledore. But instead, it was Lockhart, and he was beaming.
"So sorry." He cleared his throat as everyone looked to him. "Dozed off. What have I missed?"
Snape stepped forward.
"Just the man." He began. "The very man. A girl has been snatched by the monster, Lockhart. Taken into the Chamber of Secrets itself. Your moment has come at last."
'𝑯𝒆 𝒄𝒂𝒏'𝒕 𝒃𝒆 𝒔𝒆𝒓𝒊𝒐𝒖𝒔.'
"That's right, Gilderoy." Sprout chipped in. "Weren't you saying just last night that you've known all along where the entrance to the Chamber of Secrets is?"
"I- Well, I-" Lockhart stuttered.
"Yes, didn't you tell me you were sure you knew what was inside it?" Professor Flitwick pope up. "
"D-Did I? I don't recall-"
"I certainly remember you saying you were sorry you hadn't had a crack at the monster before Hagrid was arrested." Snape added again. "Didn't you say that the whole affair had been bungled, and that you should have him been given a free rein from the first?"
"I- I really never. You may have misunderstood-"
"We'll leave it to you, then, Gilderoy." Professor McGoangall told him. "Tonight will be an excelled time to do it. We'll make sure everyone is out of your way. You'll be able to tackle the monster all by yourself. A free rein, at last."
Lockhart gazed desperately at everyone around him, but nobody came to his rescue.
"...V-Very well." He nodded. "I'll...I'll be in my office, getting - getting ready." And he left the restaurant in m.
"Right." Professor McGonagall continued. "That's got him out from under our feet. The Heads of Houses should go and inform their students what has happened. Tell the the Hogwarts Express will take them home first thing tomorrow. Will the rest of you lease make sure no students have been left outside their dormitories?"
Everyone in the room and nodded and muttered 'of course' before leaving the room, one by one.

After they had all gone, Harry, Ron and I climbed out of the wardrobe.
"Ginny." Was all that Ron would say.
"We can't just do nothing." I shook my head. "Lockhart sure as hell isn't going to save her."
"There's nothing to do, Y/n." Harry walked to the door. "All we can do, really, is go back to our common rooms. And be safe. Someone'll rescue her."
"But not us?"
"We can't."
Harry and Ron walked out of the staff room, leaving me alone, feeling helpless, but determined. I had to do something. Even if it meant on my own.