The Exchange Student - Cedric Diggory⁴

➣ 𝘾𝙝𝙖𝙥𝙩𝙚𝙧 𝟏𝟑 "𝙏𝙝𝙚 𝙎𝙚𝙘𝙧𝙚𝙩 𝘼𝙙𝙢𝙞𝙧𝙚𝙧"

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As Nicolás went to take Ginny, who was slowly recovering vitality to her face. Harry went to retrieve a sword from the Basilisk's mouth and grabbed the Sorting Hat.

When Harry came back, Ginny moaned in Nicolás' arms, taking in the image in front of her; the ink, and their bloody frames, she broke crying.

"Harry — oh, Harry — I tried to tell you at b-breakfast, but I c-couldn't say it in front of Percy — it was me, Harry — but I — I s-swear I d-didn't mean to — R-Riddle made me, he t-took me over — and — how did you kill that — that thing? W-where's Riddle? The last thing I r-remember is him coming out of the diary —"

"It's all right," said Harry, holding up the diary, and showing Ginny the fang hole, "Riddle's finished. Look! He and the basilisk. C'mon, Ginny, let's get out of here —"

"I'm going to be expelled!" Ginny wept in Nicolás' arms. "I've looked forward to coming to Hogwarts ever since B-Bill came and n-now I'll have to leave and — w-what'll Mum and Dad say?"

"Everything's okay for now," Nicolás said soothingly. He guided Ginny's face to his chest, where the girl cried silently as they walked back to the entrance.

"Ron!" Harry yelled, speeding up. "Ginny's okay! We've got her!" Ron gave a strangled cheer.

"Ron, move back!" ordered Nicolás. After a moment, he pointed his wand at the rockfall, flicking his wand at it, the rocks started to move, leaving an entire door-sized space for them to walk.

"Ginny!" Ron said, "You're alive! I don't believe it! What happened? How — what — where did that bird come from? How come you've got a sword?"

"Ron, it's been a horribly tiring day, we'll explain outside. Where's the useless git?" Nicolás said.

"Back there," said Ron, still looking puzzled but jerking his head up the tunnel toward the pipe. "He's in a bad way. Come and see. His memory's gone, and the Memory Charm backfired. Hit him instead of us. Hasn't got a clue who he is, or where he is, or who we are. I told him to come and wait here. He's a danger to himself."

Lockhart peered good-naturedly up at them all.

"Hello," he said. "Odd sort of place, this, isn't it? Do you live here?"

"No," said Ron, raising his eyebrows at Harry.

Harry bent down and looked up the long, dark pipe.

"Have you thought how we're going to get back up this?" he said to Ron.

"Fawkes will take us," Nicolás said. The others looked at him confused. "He's a Phoenix, they can carry monumental weights like its feathers. Let's see — I'll grab one of his legs and Harry the other. Ginny, you hold, Harry's hand and Ron grabs Ginny's. You, dunderhead!" He pointed at a distracted Lockhart. "Take my hand, or I'll leave you here."

Moments later all five of them were hitting the wet floor of Moaning Myrtle's bathroom, and as Lockhart straightened his hat, the sink that hid the pipe was sliding back into place.

Myrtle goggled at them.

"You're alive," she said blankly.

"There's no need to sound so disappointed," Nicolás said grimly, as Harry wiped flecks of blood and slime off his glasses.

As they were trying to decide where to go, Fawkes told Nicolás to follow. And so, the four of them walked down the hallways of the castle right behind the Phoenix.