Chapter 21: Far from Home Free

Several weeks after that memorable Christmas, the rest of his students returned to school. He had his portraits keeping close eyes on not just Harry, but Hermione as well, making sure that she was getting better from her furry problem.

Dilys gave him reports that she was recovering… slowly, but recovering well while in the hospital. Her two friends visited every single day with her homework and Dilly told him every detail about their conversations, which he found to be very interesting. At least it was much more interesting than what he was doing right now.

Albus went to his desk and pulled out a quill as he began to write, yet another letter to Fudge trying to explain to the man for the hundredth time that he was suspecting the wrong person. The minister had been writing to him for almost a month now, telling him to remove Hagrid from the school and Albus wasn't going to stand for it. He had been telling him over and over again that there was no possible way that he would ever believe that Hagrid was the culprit.

While he was right, Dilys was talking, "That Hermione has got it real bad. That smarmy bloke Lockhart gave her a 'Get well card'" she made air quotations in the air at those last three words, "And she sleeps with it underneath her pillow!'

Albus couldn't help but laugh at that. "She's young," he told her through his chuckles. "It's just a small crush, it won't last long… hopefully."

"But still…" she said with a roll of her eyes. "Oh, by the way, Filch threw another fit today. Something happened right where he's been standing guard—you know? Where the message on the wall still is."

Albus felt his insides freeze as he looked up at her. "There hasn't been another attack has there?" he asked urgently.

"No, no, no," she said quickly, which caused Albus to breathe a sigh of relief. "Nothing like that. But it looks like Moaning Myrtle caused the second floor to flood again. I should warn you that Filch is planning to come here tonight to complain to you… again."

"As long as none of my students are harmed in anyway," he told Dilys, "Then I'll be happy to listen to whatever Argus has to complain about. Is there anything else that you need to tell me?"

"Nothing important," she said. "Harry and Ron both went into the bathroom again to find out what was going on. Apparently from what I heard, someone threw a book at Myrtle."

Albus nodded, glad that nothing more had happened, but also a little disappointed that they weren't any closer to figuring all this out. But as long as there weren't any attacks he could be satisfied for now.

*Several days later*

Dexter came running into his painting as Albus was going over another letter that he received from Fudge telling him that, as the minster, he had to be seen doing something. Albus shook his head disdainfully, 'Even if that meant sending an innocent man to Azkaban?'

For one brief second, Albus was considering sending a Howler to him, just to make him stop with these letters.

"Oi! Dumbledore!" Dexter called.

That got Albus's attention. He looked up in surprise and called out, "Yes? What is it Dexter?"

"A surprising turn of events, Dumbledore!" he called back. "Our trio found out about Tom Riddle!"

Dumbledore blinked, taken aback. How in the world did they come across Voldemort's real name? Hardly anyone knew that Voldemort was born as Tom Riddle… he knew that Tom was the real culprit behind the attacks fifty years ago, but he never had any proof to back it up.

And yet here were his students, finding out the name of the very person responsible…

"How did they find out about Tom?" he asked Dexter quickly, hoping for any information that he could get.

"From what I overheard, they found his name in an old, blank diary."

"A diary?" Phineas repeated incredulously. "That's a bit girly isn't it?"

"What does the diary have to say?" Albus asked Dexter. "And where did they find it? It might be dangerous."

"It doesn't appear to be," he told Dumbledore shaking his head. "I think it's the same book that someone threw at Myrtle the other day."

"Why should that upset that sobbing specter?" Phineas demanded with a sneer. "It can't hurt her."

"That doesn't mean that she doesn't have feelings, Phineas," Albus told him, before turning back to Dexter. "What else?"

Dexter shrugged. "All they found was Riddle's name. That's it. They don't know who Tom Riddle really is yet… I mean not too many people do know. But the diary doesn't seem to be dangerous. There's nothing written in it. Miss Granger tried a few spells, and even a Revealer but nothing happened. I think that it's just an empty book. But they went to the trophy room to find out more about Riddle. They found his award… which I think you should've gotten rid of a long time ago… but they also found his name on the list of old Head Boys. Nothing too special…"

"But still," Albus said to himself. "They now know about Riddle. I want you to watch them like a hawk and report to me on anything else they find or say about this. Especially that diary… I have a bad feeling about this."

That evening, things started to look up. Madam Pomfrey told him that the Mandrakes were growing up fast and that the students in the hospital should be up again by the end of the year. That news and the fact that the attacks seemed to have stopped for now, had given him more hope than he had all year.

*A few weeks later*

It's been several weeks since the last attack, and things seemed to be returning to normal. Or rather to the closest thing you can get to normal at Hogwarts. In fact, Lockhart came to him about a week ago and asked him if it would be possible for him to plain a little something special for Valentine's Day. He seemed to think that the attacks are over with and that he wanted to plan something fun for the students.

Lockhart didn't say what it was he was planning, but Albus was wishing that he questioned it more before he gave him permission.

By the time he got down to the Great Hall on February 14th, he didn't even recognize it. The walls were all covered with large, pink flowers, with little heart-shaped confetti falling from ceiling like snowflakes and covering the tables and floors. He walked up to the high table, where Severus glared at the flowers like he was about to be sick, and Minerva's eye was twitching. His other teachers were all looking like they wished that they could be anywhere but here—all except for one.

Lockhart stood up and was dressed in bright pink robes to match the decorations, and he waited until all the students had come down for breakfast for him to make a speech.

"Happy Valentine's Day! And may I thank the forty-six people who have so far sent me cards! Yes, I have taken the liberty of arranging this little surprise for you all — and it doesn't end here!"

Just as Albus was thinking what else could possibly happen next, a dozen grumpy dwarfs came matching in with golden wings attached to their backs, and carrying tiny harps. As he looked at them, he just had to wonder what on earth Lockhart had to do to get them to agree to this.

"My friendly, card-carrying cupids! They will be roving around the school today delivering your valentines! And the fun doesn't stop here! I'm sure my colleagues will want to enter into the spirit of the occasion! Why not ask Professor Snape to show you how to whip up a Love Potion! And while you're at it, Professor Flitwick knows more about Entrancing Enchantments than any wizard I've ever met, the sly old dog!"

Filius hid his face in humiliation while Severus's hands clenched tightly before he threw a glare at him. As if he thought it was his fault that there was now confetti on his eggs. Albus gave him an apologetic glance, trying to tell him silently that he had no idea that this was what Lockhart had planned.

Once the students all left for their classes, he approached Lockhart and asked him, "I thought that you said that you were planning something small?"

Lockhart just grinned widely and said in a loud, carrying voice, "Now Albus! It's Valentine's Day! This is the day for celebration!"

"Yes," Albus said, forcing himself to be patient. "But this wasn't what I had in mind."

"But don't you think that the students are enjoying themselves?" Lockhart said as if he thought that Albus was a bit dim.

"The girls perhaps," he agreed, but that wasn't completely true, he noticed the sour expressions of all the boys, and even a few of the girls faces when they saw the Great Hall. Some of them even looked like they couldn't eat their breakfast without looking sick.

"Oh, they'll love it!" Lockhart cried out and thumped him on the back. "I know that this will be something that everyone will love! We need something to celebrate now that the attacks have stopped. Yes, the culprit must've been afraid that it would only be a matter of time before I caught them—so now that he learned his lesson and I think that…"

Albus quickly left before Lockhart could go on any further about himself. As he walked passed his teachers, he gave them all a silent apology as the feeling of irritation began growing inside him. Even his patience was running very short with that man.

*That night*

Dumbledore went back to his office after dinner, feeling worn-out. He honestly didn't know how much more of Lockhart he could take. He was wishing… and he felt somewhat ashamed for thinking it… that the curse would hurry up and get rid of him.

He sat down and took of his glasses as he leaned back in his chair, almost falling asleep.

"What's up with you, Dumbledore?" asked a cunning voice.

"Phineas," Albus groaned without opening his eyes. "Please, I am not in the mood."

"Why, that's not like you at all Dumbledore," he replied mock surprise voice. "You're always so polite that it's almost sickening."

Albus opened his eyes and his mouth, getting ready to tell him that he was too tired to talk tonight when he saw Everard looking at him nervously.

"What is wrong, Everard?" he asked tiredly.

"Well, it's Harry Potter," Everard said uncertainly.

Albus opened his eyes a little wider, sat up straighter, "Is there something wrong?" he asked.

"I don't know how they found out," Everard told him. "But they… the three of them know Hagrid's involvement with the Chamber fifty years ago."

That got Albus's attention. He almost got up and asked, "How on earth did they find out about this?"

Everard shrugged, as the other paintings also let out noises of shock. "They found out about Riddle didn't they?" he asked. "I guess it was only a matter of time that they found out about why Hagrid was expelled as well."

Dumbledore thought this over before inquiring, "Do they really think that it was Hagrid who did it?"

"To be honest," Everard said with a wave of his hand, "They aren't sure what to think. I overheard Harry telling the other two about what he thought of this. He doesn't find it difficult to believe that if Hagrid heard that there was a monster somewhere in the castle then he would've done almost anything to get a glimpse of it. But at the same time he doesn't believe that Hagrid had actually killed anyone. To tell you the truth, I'm not sure they know what to believe. They talked about this for a long time before they finally went to bed."

Albus got up and began to pace the room. Just what was going on? How on earth did they find out about this? He knew that it there was no possible way that it was from Hagrid, he never talked about this to anyone. Someone had to have told them…

If he had to be honest with himself, he felt a little jealous that a group of children were having more luck finding information about this than he and the rest of his staff were. "I'm afraid," he said at last, "That there's not much we can do at this point. Just keep following them around like always. Especially tomorrow, I want to know what they plan to do."

*Several months later*

Everard had come to Dumbledore the next morning and told him that after a long argument, the trio decided that they wouldn't ask Hagrid about this unless there is another attack. Several months had passed after that, and things had quieted down considerably. His portraits kept informing him that nothing unusual was happening that Harry hadn't heard from the disembodied voice and the Mandrakes were almost ready to revive the ones who had already been attacked.

He was particularly interested when Armando came to him and informed him when the second-years were choosing their classes for their next few years. Harry and Ron both signed up for Care of Magical Creatures, and Divination while Hermione had signed up for all the classes.

"You can truly allow a young girl to sign up for all of the classes?" he asked with concern. "That's much too much for one child to take in."

Albus shrugged. "We'll just have to wait and see. She's a little too eager, Armando, maybe once she thinks about it some more, she'll drop some subjects."

"But she's Muggleborn! Why would she want to take Muggle Studies?"

He shrugged again. "That will be something that will be left for Minerva to decide for her."

*Later*

It was the day of the Quidditch match. Gryffindor vs. Hufflepuff. Albus was hoping that the game would take everyone's mind of this dreadful year and start to enjoy themselves again. But as he was shuffling around his office, Dexter came running in and yelled out, "DUMBLEDORE?"

Fearing that tone, Albus spun around and demanded, "What is it? Did something happen?"

Dexter had his hand over his heart as he panted for breath. He must've run through all the paintings in the castle just to get back.

"It happened again! Just now!" Dexter gasped out. "Potter heard that voice again!"

All his hopes that this nightmare was over with quickly disappeared. "Are you certain?" this wasn't good. Almost every time Harry heard that voice, an attack had happened shortly afterwards.

As the other former Headmasters and Headmistress let out cries of fear and anxiety, Dexter gasped "But I think that Hermione Granger figured something out!"

Albus stared. "Are you serious? What is it?"

"I don't know," he answered. "After Harry told them that he heard that voice again, she got all excited like she figured out a hard riddle and said that she needed to look something up in the library to be sure. But I think that she might've figured out what's behind these attacks!"

Phineas let out a snort of doubt, but Albus's heart sank. He laid aside the stack of parchment that he was carrying before he asked, "Is she still in the library?"

"I believe so," Dexter said, and Albus knew that Dexter didn't understand why he was looking so pale and worried. Albus didn't stop to explain, instead he left the office and headed straight down to the library. If Hermione did indeed figure something out about the Chamber, then she would certainly be the next target. He had to get down there before anything happened.

He was in such a hurry, that by the time that he reached the right floor, he almost ran down Minerva when she suddenly came out of a classroom. He stopped just in time from knocking her to the floor.

"I'm sorry about, Minerva," he said quickly before he headed straight down the corridor. But something in his voice must've let her know that something was wrong.

"Headmaster?" she repeated as she jogged beside him with a look of fear and confusion. "What is it?"

He didn't answer her, which made her look even more frightened. The two of them had just turned the last corridor… when they saw them. There, just outside the library at the opposite end of the corridor… were two black-robed figures lying still as stone.

His heart sinking, he and Minerva, who gasped in horror, sprinted to the two figures. The first victim he recognized as the Prefect, Penelope Clearwater… who lying still and stiff just as a statue. Minerva dropped down next to her as he turned his attention to the smaller, younger girl that was lying beside her.

He closed his eyes in misery… it was Hermione Granger. Her eyes were unseeing and wide open— and looking as if she was just a carving. He bent down next to her, only to realize that his knee hit a small mirror that was right next to them.

"Albus?" Minerva started, her mouth twitching as if she was going to cry. He didn't look at her or anyone else as he picked up the mirror. He looked into it to see his own white and anxious face looking back at him.

"Albus?" Minerva repeated as she looked at the mirror in his hands and then back to his face. "What does this mean?"

Albus couldn't answer her because he didn't know himself. He put the mirror into his pocket before conjuring up two stretchers for the two girls. Once that Hermione was levitated onto the second, he had just realized how Harry and Ron would react when they saw her… "I'll take them to the Hospital," he said to Minerva, "Go and cancel the match. Make sure that everyone is brought safely back to their common rooms. And…" he hesitated for a brief moment. "And bring Harry and Ronald Weasley up here. I think they need to see this."

She nodded with a pained look on her face before she turned and headed straight for the Quidditch pitch, wiping her eyes on her handkerchief. Albus took the girls up to the Hospital Wing, and explained to a horrified Madam Pomfrey what had happened. He went back to his office shortly after that, wanting to be alone. The feeling of failure and guilt weighing heavily on his shoulders.

(Yeah, the Chamber of Secrets is almost done! I think that there's going to be 2 more chapters before we move onto the prisoner of Azkaban. Hope you intend to stick through until then. Hope