And so life continued with the Frontier meeting almost every Thursday to learn, practice, and test themselves and each other on Defense Against the Dark Arts. Unbeknownst to everyone, Lockheart was planning something truly malicious and vile.
Early one morning, oh about a month or so before school ended, Paige woke up to someone shaking her urgently. Sleepily, she pushed them off.
"Fine!" snapped her bed-neighbor in a truly foul mood due to her tripping backwards and stinging her palms. "Read this when you wake up." A newspaper smacked her in the face and she groped for it, catching the bottom bit and opening one eye blearily.
Lockheart Escapes Azkaban! read the first title. She sat up in an instant, all sleep gone from her body, replaced by a prickling sensation that covered her in frightened goosebumps. She threw on some clothes then looked at the paper again, hoping it was just a dream. Lockheart was glaring hatefully at the person taking the picture. No. At her. His normally coiffed hair in disarray, eyebrows bushy and out of control. The most haunting and frightening thing was his eyes. Staring out with all the intelligence of a predator, his gaze cut through to her very soul, chilling her blood. It was as though she were looking into the eyes of a monster.
"How," she breathed. "How the hell did he escape?!" She ran down to the Common Room and everyone there looked up to see her. Papers were strewn about, and several of her fellow classmates were giving her worried looks. "So...Guessing everyone's read the paper?" Nods. "Guess I've got a target on my back, then, eh?" She chuckled, but it was dry and humorless. Mirroring her anxiety, Draco, Nick, and Lisa Ascarpio, a third year student, stood as she descended the stair unsteadily. They all headed for the doors when they opened and Professor Snape and Professor Dumbledore entered. "Good morning, Professors."
Professor Dumbledore nodded to the newspaper in her hands. "You've been informed then?" She nodded, not trusting her voice to sound even remotely respectful.
Professor Snape spoke up, his voice oddly detached for the situation. She had expected more passion, but she guessed it was his way of coping and not losing his mind over the threat presented to one of his Slytherin students. "The Ministry has set a 24-hour Auror guard to patrol the hallways. They feel that Lockheart will stop at nothing until you or he are dead or irreparably damaged, even if it means harming others," he said. She nodded, again, remaining silent.
I thought he'd never get out, she wanted to say. I thought you said he'd never come near me or anyone I care about. I was even starting to feel safe. She kept her lips tightly clamped and flicked her gaze around a bit before returning them to the wizened wizards before her.
"At the end of the year, if he's not captured, you, Harry, and the Dursleys will either be given the same protection as here, or moved to a more secure location. Whichever is most beneficial," Professor Dumbledore said. Again, she nodded. He smiled kindly and gestured for her to follow. She did, Tetio not far from her mind. They ran into Harry, roping him into joining them as they made their way up to Professor Dumbledore's office. They climbed the spiral staircase and she kept a tight grip on her wand, trying to keep her hands from trembling.
They sat down and Paige waited a minute before finding something to change the uncomfortable subject of Lockheart's escape. "Professor Dumbledore, I don't mean to sound rude, but weren't you put on suspension for the goings on here?" she asked.
He chuckled. "They felt that in spite of the circumstances going on here, I would be best suited to face Mr. Lockheart in wand combat unless you or someone else are engaged in said combat," he said.
"Basically, they said you're the best fit for a protector," she said, hoping to keep talking about it. She never liked talking about uncomfortable or dangerous topics, especially if they could be avoided. Unfortunately for her, she would need to address Lockheart's escape. After a few moments of silence, she sighed, her shoulders sagging in defeat. "I guess there's no avoiding it any further, is there?"
"No avoiding what?" Harry asked.
"Ha-have you not read the papers this morning?" she asked.
"Er...I was kind of preoccupied with my own challenges. Sorry," he said sheepishly.
"Lockheart has escaped. He's actively hunting me now." Harry's face noticeably paled. "If he's not caught in a month's time, you, me, and the Dursleys will either be moved or have round-the-clock protection from the Aurors, which I assume are the wizarding equivalent of FBI agents."
"Of what?" Professor Dumbledore asked, curious.
"They're highly trained people who can defuse situations without the need of lethal force, though they will use it if necessary. They have offices everywhere, most notably in America, and they deal with high-profile cases, like if Harry were being hunted instead of me, there would be someone with him or near enough to him to keep him from as much harm as possible," she explained.
"Ah," Professor Dumbledore said. "Very close, but not quite."