Charlie didn't return to the Great Hall until dinner.
The dwarves had already been expelled from the school by Snape.
It was said that someone had anonymously commissioned the dwarves to deliver a small model of Snape wearing a skirt to him.
Snape immediately stuffed the dwarves into the fireplace and sent them away.
Charlie breathed a sigh of relief, and the students in the Great Hall were also relieved; Snape had finally done something humane.
But Ron's expression was very strange, grinning foolishly.
"What's wrong with you?" Harry asked.
Ron shook his head, still grinning.
"Nothing."
"You can't fool me, confess," Harry stared at him.
Ron's face flushed, and he pulled a greeting card from his pocket.
"Someone confessed to me."
Harry was stunned for a moment and took the greeting card.
The greeting card was pink, with a love confession written on it, so cheesy that Harry shivered.
Harry rolled his eyes.
"Looks like you really like the dwarves."
Ron quickly waved his hand.
"I also think Lockhart's dwarves are stupid."
He paused, his face redder.
"But this greeting card is innocent; it's the first time I've received a confession card."
As the youngest son in the family, with older brothers who were all excellent, he grew up under the pressure of his brothers and, because the family was poor, could only use their hand-me-downs.
This made Ron somewhat sensitive, lacking self-confidence, and he had never been cared for by anyone outside his family.
Charlie sat beside him, his expression odd.
After setting so many traps, you're the only silly boy who fell for it.
Fred snatched the greeting card from Ron's hand and exaggeratedly said:
"Ron actually has a girl who likes him; this is incredible."
He glanced at the greeting card, and his expression also became strange.
George leaned over for a look, exchanged glances with Fred, and finally said with reluctance:
"Ron, I'm sorry to tell you, but we all received such a greeting card, and the content is exactly the same."
"The person who sent the greeting card specifically instructed the dwarves to dance in public; it's clearly someone playing a prank, and we all saw through it."
Ron was stunned for a moment, his face flushing.
"You must be mistaken; it's different."
He turned to look at Harry, only to find Harry closing his eyes with reluctance, clearly, he had also received one.
Ron stood frozen in place.
He silently picked up a chicken leg and took a big bite.
"This chicken leg is so salty."
Fred added insult to injury without mercy.
"The chicken leg isn't salty at all; your tears fell on it."
"Oh, silly brother, how could any girl like a silly boy?"
...Lockhart was under the Imperio.
This was a good thing for Tom.
Lockhart's personal will was stripped away by the Imperio, and he no longer guarded against the diary's intrusion, allowing Tom to control him with ease.
There were Roosters everywhere in the Castle.
Tom guessed that the Basilisk must have escaped the Castle and was hiding in the Forbidden Forest.
Late at night, Tom controlled Lockhart's body, quietly left the Castle, and entered the Forbidden Forest.
At the same time, in a corridor of the Castle.
Charlie was squatting on the ground, holding paints and a brush, drawing a wild boar princess on the portrait of Sir Cadogan on the wall.
Sir Cadogan was so angry that he jumped around in the frame.
"This is an insult to a knight!"
Charlie ignored him, focusing on adjusting the wild boar princess's eyelashes.
Suddenly, he stopped his movements.
A strange sensation came from his brain, as if something was struggling, trying to break free from his control.
It was Lockhart.
Charlie frowned; the Imperio indeed had a chance of being broken by a strong will, but Lockhart was definitely not in that category.
That was clearly the diary's doing.
Damn Tom.
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