CHAPTER TEN:

Third Person P.O.V.:

Charlie, Harry, Ron, and Ginny all subconsciously agreed that it was in their best interest to tell McGonagall about what had happened. They had let Lockhart bugger off for now, but we're planning on letting everyone know he was a fraud as soon as this was over.

The brown eyed boy had knocked twice on McGonagall's office door before opening it. For a moment, there was silence as the four of them stood in the doorway covered in muck and slime, and even blood in Charlie's case.

Then there was a scream.

"Ginny!"

It was Mrs. Weasley, who had been sitting crying in front of the fire. She leapt to her feet, closely followed by Mr. Weasley, and both of them flung themselves on their daughter.

Charlie, however, was focused on the sight of his grandfather standing next to the mantelpiece with McGonagall at his side. Fawkes, who had been on his shoulder the entire time, whooshed through the room and landed on Dumbledore's arm.

Without a second thought, Mrs. Weasley had swept up the three young Gryffindors boy in a large hug after releasing Ginny, "You saved her! You saved her!How did you do it?"

"I think we'd all like to know that," said Professor McGonagall weakly.

Charlie, Harry and Ron all looked to one another. They didn't even know where to begin. The only thing that Charlie thought was appropriate was to step forward and place the sword and sorting hat down on the desk in front of his grandfather. Harry did the same, but with Riddle's diary.

Then, the boys proceeded to tell them everything. They told them about Harry hearing the disembodied voice, how Hermione had finally realized that he was hearing a basilisk in the pipes;
how all three of them had followed the spiders into the forest, that Aragog had told them where the last victim of the basilisk had died; how Charlie had guessed that Moaning Myrtle had been the victim, and that the entrance to the Chamber of Secrets might be in her bathroom...

"Very well," Professor McGonagall prompted him as he paused, "So you found out where the entrance was — breaking a hundred school rules into pieces along the way, I might add — but how on earth did you all get out of there alive?"

Charlie took the lead in telling the adults in the room about Fawkes' timely arrival and about the Sorting Hat giving him the sword. But then he faltered. Both, he and Harry had so far avoided mentioning Riddle's diary — or Ginny.

"What interests me most," said Dumbledore gently, "is how Lord Voldemort managed to enchant Ginny, when my sources tell me he is currently in hiding in the forests of Albania."

Relief — warm, sweeping, glorious relief — swept over the boy's faces. However, Charlie couldn't help but raise a brow. He didn't know his grandfather was keeping tabs on Voldemort. What else was he not telling him?

"W-what's that?" said Mr. Weasley in a stunned voice. "You-Know-Who? En-enchant Ginny? But Ginny's not... Ginny hasn't been... has she?"

"It was this diary," said Harry quickly, picking it up and showing it to Dumbledore. "Riddle wrote it when he was sixteen..."

"Brilliant," Albus said softly before addressing the room, "Very few people remember Lord  Voldemort as Tom Riddle, but I do. I taught him all those years ago. What happened to him was tragic. He fell so deeply in love with the dark arts that he lost himself. When he resurfaced as Lord Voldemort, he was barely recognizable."

"But, Ginny," said Mrs. Weasley. "What's our Ginny got to do with — with — him?"

"His d-diary!" Ginny sobbed. "I've b-been writing in it, and he's been w-writing back all year — "

"Ginny!" Mrs. Weasley gasped, "Have I taught you nothing? I can't even believe —"

"With all due respect Mrs. Weasley," Charlie chimed in, as he took notice of Ginny on the verge of tears, "It wasn't her fault. She was used. She didn't know that any of this was going to happen. Please don't blame her."

Mrs. Weasley eyed the boy with a look he couldn't decipher, but soon enough, her face fell in understanding and she nodded.

"Charlie's right," Dumbledore spoke, "This has been a terrible ordeal for her. I assure you, there will be no punishment. In fact, I believe it to be in her best interest to go visit Madame Pomfrey in the hospital wing just to make sure she's alright."

He strode over to the door and opened it for her and her family.

"Bed rest and perhaps a large, steaming mug of hot chocolate. I always find that cheers me up," he added, twinkling kindly down at her, "You will find that Madame Pomfrey is still awake. She's just giving out Mandrake juice — I daresay the basilisk's victims will be waking up any moment."

"So Hermione's okay?" asked Charlie brightly, which made Ron'a ears perk up.

Dumbledore nodded with a smile as Mrs. Weasley led Ginny out the door, and was shortly followed by Mr. Weasley as well.

"You know, Minerva," Professor Dumbledore said thoughtfully to Professor McGonagall, "I think all this merits a good feast. Might I ask you to go and alert the kitchens?"

"Right," said Professor McGonagall crisply, also moving to the door. "I'll leave you to deal with these three then, shall I?"

"Certainly," said Dumbledore.

With that, Charlie, Harry and Ron were left in the room with Dumbledore staring at them intently. He couldn't punish them, could he? Not after everything they just went through!

"I seem to remember telling you three that I would have to expel you if you broke any more school rules," said Dumbledore.

Ron opened his mouth in horror. How could he —

"Which goes to show that the best of us must sometimes eat our words,"Dumbledore went on, smiling, particularly at his grandson, "You will each receive Special Awards for Services to the School and — let me see — yes, I think one hundred points apiece for Gryffindor."

"Wicked!" Ron cheered as he high-fived his friends.

Harry laughed as Charlie smiled at his friend's obvious excitement.

"The way I see it, the entire school has you three to thank," Dumbledore said proudly, "You're free to go to enjoy tonight's festivities. However —" he shifted his gaze to Charlie specifically, "I'd like a word with you, if you don't mind."

Charlie nodded before seeing his friends to the door. Once Harry and Ron were gone, the brown eyed boy approached the desk once more and held his hands behind his back as a form of respect.

"You lied to me, Charles," Dumbledore said softly, "And you broke a promise. I specifically asked you to tell me if there was something going on first before you went and nearly got yourself killed. You promised me —"

"I know," Charlie said with his head down, "And I'm sorry. I just didn't want you to worry —"

"You're my grandson, it is my job to worry about you." Albus cut him off with a soft smile, "Nonetheless, I am relieved you're alright."

The brown eyed boy looked to the Phoenix who was now perched on a shelf, "I wouldn't be if it weren't for Fawkes, he saved me."

Dumbledore sighed as he moved to give Fawkes a pat on the head, "You must have shown me real loyalty down in the Chamber. Nothing but that could have called Fawkes to you."

Charlie smiled. He would forever remain loyal to Albus Dumbledore, no matter what. He was the only family member that the boy felt he could trust.

His grandfather moved back towards the desk and lifted the sword into his hands, "The sword revealed itself to you, did it?"

The boy nodded slowly, "I'm not sure what that means."

Albus handed the sword to Charlie and pointed out a name engraved just below the hilt. A name that the boy hadn't noticed in the entire time he wielded it.

Godric Gryffindor

"I once read to you the story of Godric Gryffindor when you were a kid," Albus said with a wide smile, "You were always the utmost fascinated with the House of Gryffindor. The fact that the sword showed itself to you explains why."

Charlie raised his eye brow, he didn't quite understand what his grandfather was insinuating, so he urged him on.

"Only a true Gryffindor could have pulled that out of the hat, Charles." Dumbledore said simply, "Your father had always envisioned Slytherin to be the House that called to you, but I knew the truth. I knew that the House of Godric Gryffindor was always meant to be your home. I always knew your heart better than he did; still do."

Albus laughed slightly as he pulled his grandson into a tight hug which Charlie gladly reciprocated. They stayed there for a moment, relishing in the fact that Charlie was alive and well, and that Dumbledore was Headmaster again.

Then, Charlie recalled something that Tom Riddle had said.

"About my father," Charlie hesitantly began, "In the Chamber, Tom Riddle mentioned something about my family being a key asset to his reign, what did he mean by that?"

Dumbledore sighed as he pulled away from Charlie slightly, "I wish I knew, Charles. Your father has always been a quite secretive man. I have no idea whether his muggle-born hatred stems from within himself or within the suggestion of another. I'll look into it, but I think it'd be best if you dropped the idea for now. Your father is a very powerful man as of late and I am not sure what he is capable of anymore. I will not allow you to be put in the position you were in, that night in my office, ever again. Even the mere thought of it sickens me."

Charlie tensed as the memory of his father's aggression filled his head. He closed his eyes tightly, trying to shake it off.

Albus grabbed the boy's head gently, making Charlie open his eyes and focus on Dumbledore's icy blue ones, "That's enough talk of this for now. I hate to see you like this. What you need, Charles, is some food and sleep. I suggest you go down to the feast, while I write to Azkaban — we need our gatekeeper back."

Charlie smiled softly. Hagrid was coming back. Focus on that. Forget everything else.

The young boy nodded as he headed for the door, but suddenly a mischievous thought came into his head.

"Grandfather," He said with a smirk, causing Albus to turn back around to face him, "Maybe you could send a draft advertisement to the Daily Prophet. Seems like we're going to be needing a new Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher. Preferably one that's not a fraud and actually knows what he is doing."

Albus gave out a hearty laugh but nodded with a large smile plastered on his face.

Charlie had just reached for the handle, when the door burst open so violently that it bounced back off the wall.

Lucius Malfoy stood there, fury in his face.

And cowering behind his legs, heavily wrapped in bandages, was Dobby the house elf.

"Good evening, Lucius," said Dumbledore pleasantly.

Mr. Malfoy almost knocked Charlie over as he swept into the room. Dobby went scurrying in after him, crouching at the hem of his cloak, a look of abject terror on his face.

The elf was carrying a stained rag with which he was attempting to finish cleaning Mr. Malfoy's shoes.
Apparently Lucius had set out in a great hurry, for not only were his shoes half polished, but his usually sleek hair was disheveled. Ignoring the elf bobbing apologetically around his ankles, he fixed his cold eyes upon Dumbledore.

"So!" he said. "You've come back. The governors suspended you, but you still saw fit to return to Hogwarts."

"Well, you see, Lucius," said Dumbledore, smiling serenely, "the other eleven governors contacted me today. It was something like being caught in a hailstorm of owls, to tell the truth. They'd heard that Arthur Weasley's daughter had been killed and wanted me back here at once. They seemed to think I was the best man for the job after all. Very strange tales they told me, too... Several of them seemed to think that you had threatened to curse their families if they didn't agree to suspend me in the first place."

Mr. Malfoy went even paler than usual, but his eyes were still slits of fury.

"So — have you stopped the attacks yet?" he sneered. "Have you caught the culprit?"

"We have," said Dumbledore, with a smile.

"Well?" said Mr. Malfoy sharply. "Who is it?"

"The same person as last time, Lucius," said Dumbledore. "But this time, Lord Voldemort was acting through somebody else. By means of this diary."

He held up the small black book with the large hole through the center, watching Mr. Malfoy closely. Charlie, however, was watching Dobby.

The elf was doing something very odd. His great eyes fixed meaningfully on Charlie, he kept pointing at the diary, then at Mr. Malfoy, and then hitting himself hard on the head with his fist.

"I see..." said Mr. Malfoy slowly to Dumbledore.

Albus continued, "Very fortunate that the diary was discovered, however, and Riddle's memories wiped from it. Who knows what the consequences might have been otherwise..."

Mr. Malfoy forced himself to speak.

"Very fortunate," he said stiffly.

And still, behind his back, Dobby was pointing, first to the diary, then to Lucius Malfoy, then punching himself in the head.

And Charlie suddenly understood. He remembered his encounter with Mr. Malfoy in Diagon Alley. He especially remember Lucius putting something into Ginny's cauldron. He hadn't even thought about it until now.

He nodded at Dobby, and Dobby backed into a corner, now twisting his ears in punishment.

"Don't you want to know how Ginny got hold of that diary, Mr. Malfoy?" said Charlie, cockily.

Lucius Malfoy rounded on him.

"How should I know how the stupid little girl got hold of it?" he said.

"Because you gave it to her," said Charlie in a confident tone. "In Flourish and Blotts. You picked up her old Transfiguration book and slipped the diary inside it, didn't you?"

He saw Mr. Malfoy's white hands clench and unclench.

"Prove it," he hissed.

"Oh, no one will be able to do that," said Dumbledore, smiling at Charlie. "Not now that Riddle has vanished from the book. On the other hand, I would advise you, Lucius, not to go giving out any more of Lord Voldemort's old school things. If so, I imagine they will be traced to you instantly..."

Lucius Malfoy stood for a moment, and Charlie distinctly saw his right hand twitch as though he was longing to reach for his wand.

Instead, he turned to his house-elf. "We're going, Dobby!"

He wrenched open the door and as the elf came hurrying up to him, he kicked him right through it.
They could hear Dobby squealing with pain all the way along the corridor. Charlie stood for a moment, thinking hard.

Then it came to him —

"Grandfather," he said hurriedly. "Can I give that diary back to Mr. Malfoy, please?"

Dumbledore nodded as he seemed to understand, "Certainly, but don't be long, Charles. There is a feast awaiting your arrival."

The young boy nodded as he took the diary and dashed out of the office. He saw Mr. Malfoy and Dobby down the corridor. He knew what he had to do. Quickly, he took off one his shoes, pulled off his filthy, bloody sock, and stuffed it in between the pages of the diary before slipping his shoe back on.

"Mr. Malfoy!" He called down the hall and skipped down before coming to a halt in front of the long haired blonde man. "I just wanted to make sure you got this back..."

The young boy handed the diary to Lucius, to which he laughed devilishly as he took it his hand.

"One of these days, Charles," he spat, furiously, "You're going to meet the same damned fate as your mother. She too, was a meddlesome fool."

The boy gritted his teeth to withhold his anger as he watched Lucius do exactly what he had intended for him to do. He threw the diary into Dobby's small hands before turning to go.

"Come, Dobby."

As the little house elf went to move, Charlie grabbed his boney arm gently and whispered, "Open it. Go on."

Dobby looked at him with terrified eyes. He didn't want to get in trouble with his master, but he did as Charlie told him to do. Dobby opened the diary slowly and his face lit up as he saw the sock in between the pages. He held it up, staring at it like it was a piece of treasure to which Charlie laughed slightly.

"Master has given a sock," said the elf in wonderment. "Master gave it to Dobby."

"What's that?" spat Mr. Malfoy as he turned around. "What did you say?"

"Dobby got a sock," said Dobby in disbelief. "Master threw the diary at Dobby, and Dobby caught it, and Dobby — Dobby is free."

Lucius Malfoy stood frozen, staring at the elf. Then he lunged at Charlie.

"You've lost me my servant, boy!"

But Dobby shouted, "You shall not harm Charlie Hawthorne!"

There was a loud bang, and Mr. Malfoy was thrown backward. He crashed down the stairs, three at a time, landing in a crumpled heap on the landing below. He got up, his face livid, and pulled out his wand, but Dobby raised a long, threatening finger.

"You shall go now," he said fiercely, pointing down at Mr. Malfoy. "You shall not touch Charlie Hawthorne."

Lucius Malfoy had no choice.With a last, incensed stare at the pair of them, he swung his cloak around him and hurried out of sight.

"Charlie Hawthorne freed Dobby!" said the elf shrilly, gazing up at Charlie, moonlight from the nearest window reflected in his orb like eyes.

"Least I could do, Dobby," said Charlie, grinning. "Just promise me one thing; you leave the saving Harry's life thing up to me from now on."

Dobby reluctantly nodded, "Charlie Hawthorne will save Harry Potter, just like he saved Dobby."

Charlie laughed, "That's right. Now, I've got to go. The feast has probably started, I still need to change, and Hermione should be out of the hospital wing by now. I'll see you soon, Dobby."

Dobby smiled as he waved goodbye to the brown eyed boy who dashed down the corridor towards the Gryffindor common room.

Charlie Hawthorne freed Dobby.

Dobby is free.

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Just as he expected, when he arrived at The Great Hall after changing, the feast had already began. The room was full and the candles above were shining brighter than Charlie had ever seen before.

He took in the sight for a moment. He treasured it because for a moment in the Chamber, he genuinely didn't think he would've seen this place ever again. The brown eyed boy locked eyes on Ron and Harry sitting at the Gryffindor table, who were gazing back at him kind eyes.

Then, he shifted his gaze to see Hermione Granger sitting down next to them. He smiled widely at her un-petrified state from the doorway of the Great Hall.

She was okay.

More than okay, actually.

As soon as she saw him, she got up from the table and made a dramatic dash for him. He decided it was best for them to meet in the middle, so he ran towards her before they collided in the tightest hug humanly possible.

God, how Charlie missed this. How he missed the feeling of his arms around her, the smell of her perfume, the eagerness of her hug; everything.

They stayed in that position for awhile. Neither of them wanting to let go, as they feared it may not be real.

Hermione pulled away slightly, her arms still around his neck as she frowned, "Harry told me what happened. God, Charlie I was worried sick! You almost died!"

The boy smiled softly. There was his Hermione, always the worrier.

"And while you were petrified, I felt the same," Charlie retaliated, "But it's okay, because we're okay. You're back and I'm not going anywhere."

He then did something very dangerous, he leaned forward and gave her a peck on the cheek.

Both of them blushed furiously. He had no idea what he had just done, but the butterflies fluttered in his stomach. What if she didn't like it? What if —

His thoughts were cut short as she smiled widely at him, her cheeks bright pink, "B-brilliant."

Then, to ignore the obvious weirdness between the two of them, she pulled him into another quick hug.

The boy she cared about more than anything was okay. He even kissed her on the cheek! Oh god!

The amount of horrible possibilities that crossed her mind when Harry had told her what had happened were endless. She thought the absolute worst.

But there he was.

The brown eyed boy with the award winning smile that occupied her thoughts.

Alive and well, and she couldn't be happier.

The two separated one more before walking back to the table. Charlie was greeted by all of his friends. He celebrated their victory by laughing and talking all night long with them. It was moments like these that he cherished forever; they are what make Hogwarts special.

Charlie couldn't decide whether his favourite part of the night was reuniting with Hermione, or securing the House Cup for the second year running, or Professor McGonagall standing up to tell them all that the exams had been canceled as a school treat, or his grandfather announcing that, Professor Lockhart would be unable to return next year, owing to the fact that he needed to go away and get his memory back.

They were all great things that led up to the return of Hagrid from Azkaban.

The Great Hall doors opened wide as he stepped through them, "Sorry I'm late."

The half-giant walked down the path in between the tables before stopping where Harry, Charlie, Hermione and Ron were sitting.

"Welcome back, Hagrid," Harry beamed.

"I'd just like to say that if hadn' been for yeh four," Hagrid began with a soft smile, "I would still of bin yeh-know-where, so I'd just like to say thanks."

Charlie looked to his friend's before rising to his feet and looking at Hagrid, who now had tears in his eyes, "I think we'd all agree" — Charlie looked around the room to see everyone singling in on him and the giant — "That there is no Hogwarts without you, Hagrid."

The tears started to roll down Hagrid's face as Charlie had given him a hug that was joined by Harry, Ron and Hermione within mere seconds.

In the midst of their group hug, Charlie saw his grandfather stand and begin a round of applause for Hagrid, to which everyone joined in.

Especially the four kids who had now released him from their hug.

The entire crowd went crazy with praise as Collin Creevey's camera flash had gone off multiple times to try and capture the pure moment on film.

It truly was really beautiful to witness, and honestly? Hagrid deserved it more than anything.

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The rest of the final term passed in a haze of blazing sunshine. Hogwarts was back to normal with only a few, small differences — Defense Against the Dark Arts classes were canceled and Lucius Malfoy had been sacked as a school governor against Fenwick'a request.

Meaning, Draco was no longer strutting around the school as though he owned the place. On the contrary, he looked resentful and sulky. On the other hand, Ginny Weasley was perfectly happy again.

It reminded Charlie of the Hogwarts he had fallen in love with. A place where he met his best friends, learned a lot of cool stuff, and even fought a snake or two. Everything had fallen back into place.

Too soon, it was time for the journey home for some students on the Hogwarts Express. Like last year, Charlie bid his friends a bittersweet farewell on the platform before the train left.

He hugged each of them, but held onto Hermione for a second longer for no particular reason. Then, he waved a sad goodbye to them as the train took off.

It was sad that the year had come to an end already. So much had happened in the last two years.

One could only imagine what was yet to come...

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Author's Note:
*this chapter was not proof read*

And we're done! Two down, five to go! Let's do this!

Hope you enjoyed, if you did be sure to let me know by showing some love!

I'll probably update tomorrow, idk yet.

Much love to you all! Until next time!

xo, Selena