The Potter Timeline

Chapter 46 - Year Two Epilogue

Lockhart slammed the door behind him and fell back against it in fright. Eyes wide and heart pounding, he realized he had mere minutes before the professors and Aurors arrived. He'd better gather his belongings and exit the castle quick - in fact, it was probably best to exit the country. When what he'd done fully came to light, he would find himself in hot water, fast.

As he moved to his trunks, the students' words on that damned parchment echoed in his mind, filling him with terror.

"...fraud...deceit...plagiarism...lies..."

Gilderoy had been found out. All those stories and all those adventures he'd stolen and claimed for his own. All those wizards and witches he'd swindled, robbed, and then obliviated to cover it up. When all that saw daylight, he knew for sure he'd wind up in Azkaban. Hands trembling and a face having lost all its color, the wizard hurriedly began packing.

A quick reduction charm and he should be able to fit everything inside a single bag. Using the secret doorway at the bottom of the South wall would allow him to escape unnoticed - unless Dumbledore could somehow prevent him.

Rummaging through clothes, books, and other trinkets, Lockhart frantically tried to organize it so he could close the trunks.

"Damn my messiness!" he cursed.

But as he feverishly worked, something appeared in front of him.

The wizard froze and stared at a purple light reflecting off the stone blocks of the chamber wall.

Wondering what it could be, he realized it was coming from behind him. Spinning around, the man gasped at what looked like a wall of purple flames erupting from the floor in the center of the chamber. The flames made no sound, nor did they emit heat of any kind. But near their top, which reached to his height, appeared faint sparkles of some kind. Supremely puzzled by this enigma, Lockhart started to move toward it. But before taking a single step, the wizard was bolted in place when a figure stepped through the flames and appeared inside the chamber.

The mysterious person wore a brown cloak with a large hood covering the head concealing their face. Lockhart thought momentarily it was one of the professors. Frightened beyond measure, he scrambled to retrieve his wand from the table, fumbling in an attempt to grab it and defend himself. He finally managed to take hold of the wand and turned with a shaking hand to stun the person before they could do anything to him. The cloaked figure was faster, however.

"Expelliarmus!" the person uttered.

Lockhart's wand flew from his hand and clanked on the floor into the corner. The wavy-haired man then backed into the table upon which his trunks sat. His eyes even wider now, he stared trembling at the cloaked figure.

"Who are you?! What do you want?!" he yelled out nervously.

The wizard did not respond, however. He kept his wand pointed at Lockhart and slowly moved toward him until stopping a few feet from the frightened professor.

"Look, I have...loads of galleons on me!" Gilderoy uttered nervously, "I can give you whatever I have! I also have some very valuable items in my..."

"Silence!" the figure spat back, shaking his wand once at the professor to let him know he meant business.

Swallowing hard, Lockhart held up his hands, his knees knocking.

"You're not going to...kill me...are you?" he muttered in abject fear.

"Kill you?" the figure now spoke, "oh no, my dear fellow. I'd never kill you. I have a vested interest in you staying alive."

"Ah! Thank Merlin!" Lockhart spoke with relief and a slight chuckle, sweat on his forehead. The cloaked figure continued.

"There is, however, one modification needing to be made..."

At these words, the man pointed his wand at Lockhart's head.

"OBLIVIATE!"

A flash of light from the wand struck the professor's head and caused it to jerk backwards. Lockhart's face expressed shock as his eyes went wide and his mouth gaped open. This lasted only a moment as the wizard collapsed on the floor stunned. Shaking his head, Gilderoy's face turned to puzzlement as he gazed around the room and at himself. He then looked up at the cloaked man.

"Oh! Hello!" he uttered, "um...where am I...exactly? And for that matter...who am I?"

The man in the cloak chuckled, returning his wand to his pocket. He then reached up and pulled back the hood.

Gilderoy Lockhart, with streaks of gray in his light brown hair and a few wrinkles under his eyes, smiled and gazed down at his obliviated self.

"That's much better," he said with a satisfied look, "not everything was meant to be changed..."