Summary : She grew up kept away, made an appearance under a false identity during her first year at Hogwarts, and now she and her brother are back. After facing Voldemort in their first year, Harry and Holly Potter hope their second year might be calmer... but things might not go as planned. Set to Chamber of Secrets. Second in a series.
Author's Note : Heya! Welcome back to my readers - whether you were with before or after this was rewritten! I've worked my backside off, so I hope it paid off. I hope you enjoy.
This was meant to be out earlier... but I lost my Internet in a tragic incident and couldn't get it out as quickly as I'd have liked! But I'm back now, so I hope you like this!
Disclaimer : I don't own Harry Potter, make any money off of this, or enjoy writing disclaimers... so without further ado, chapter one!
Diary of a Hidden Girl
by Ash-Caro-Lynn
Chapter I : Of Reunions and Realizations
Date : 31 July 1992
It was early in the morning on a day without clouds when I awoke to a noise coming from the first floor of the Burrow - the family home of the Weasleys, whom I was spending part of my summer with. Confused at what could possibly happening at six in the morning, I quickly threw on a shirt and pants and hurried down the stairs from the third level, hopping as I slipped my socks on while descending the two flights.
I came to a skidding halt at the bottom of them and turned in a half-circle to face the source of the noise : Mrs Weasley yelling at her sons - Fred and George Weasley, the prankster twins; and Ron Weasley, their younger brother and one of my good friends - while my own brother stood by, nervously running a hand through his messy jet black hair. I let out a sort of excited shriek, enveloping him in a sort of flying tackle hug.
"Harry!" I exclaimed, pulling back to get a good look at him. "When did you get here?" I turned to the twins and Ron. "When did he get here?"
"Late last night," replied Mrs Weasley, pausing in her berating of her sons. "These three flew that enchanted car of Arthur's to Surrey and back last night."
"Really? How'd it go?" I asked enthusiastically. Mrs Weasley turned and smacked me upside the back of the head. "Only joking, really - that was very irresponsible of you three, you should be ashamed of yourselves-"
"They were starving him!" argued George. "They had bars on his window!"
"Bars on his window?" I repeated, turning back to Harry. "So that's why you haven't been replying to our letters!"
"Sort of," replied Harry, averting his emerald green eyes that were identical to my own.
"You can explain later," I said, grabbing a piece of toast off the table. "Ooh, and happy birthday, by the way!"
"You too," he replied, sitting down. The Weasleys all turned to look at me.
"Harry!" I exclaimed, cuffing him upside the back of the head in a fashion similar to how Mrs Weasley had done to me just moments ago.
See, the Weasleys didn't actually know that Harry and I were siblings. In fact, most people didn't even know that I had survived the attack that had killed our parents when we were just babies.
A dark wizard had attempted to murder Harry that fateful Halloween night, but somehow my brother had managed to reflect the Killing Curse back at him, leaving him with nothing but a lightning scar as proof.
In the present, Fred and George turned to look at me with murderous expressions.
"You didn't tell us it was your birthday!" exclaimed Fred.
"Who would've known? Both of our favorite first years, share a birthday!" added George dramatically.
"First of all, we're second years, and second of all, isn't Ron one of your favorites?" I asked, raising an eyebrow.
"Ah, yes, we do love our Ickle Ronniekins," said Fred, draping an arm around his younger brother.
"Shut up," mumbled Ron, the tips of his ears turning pink.
"Oh, we'll simply have to have a celebration!" exclaimed Mrs Weasley. "My apologies, dears, I didn't get you anything-"
"Honestly, Mrs Weasley, just being here is a good enough gift," replied Harry wholeheartedly.
"Couldn't have put it better myself, Harry dear," I added. "Now, come upstairs 'cause we need to talk."
I dragged him up the stairs, shooting a glance back at the twins, who snickered.
I rounded on him the minute we reached the landing. "They don't know who I am!"
"I forgot, I'm sorry!" said Harry, his hands raised in surrender. "I won't tell them you're my sister!"
"Then we're goo-" I stared at the door which had just slammed closed. "Shit."
"What? What was that?" asked Harry, looking at it confusedly.
"That," I replied, my eyes widened, "was Ginny."
"She's their sister, isn't she?" I nodded.
"Now look what you've done!" I said, smacking him upside the back of the head again.
"Well," mumbled Harry, rubbing the back of his head, "what's the harm in them knowing? It's not like they're working for Voldemort or anything."
"You're right." I sighed. "And to think, they call me the brilliant one!"
"They do?" asked Harry, smirking. I scowled at him.
"Yes, they do," I replied, rolling my eyes. "So, let's go back to breakfast, and hope Ginny is kept away by your being there!"
"Wait, what?" asked Harry, following me back down the stairs - well, walking as I slid down the banister.
"She's been talking about you all summer!" I replied.
"Who, Ginny?" asked Ron, picking up on what I was saying.
"Yeah," I replied.
"Quite annoying, really," added Fred.
Harry was by now redder than any of the Weasleys' hair. "I get it," he mumbled, taking a seat at the breakfast table, where all of the school aged Weasley boys sat - including Percy, who sat like he had a stick up his butt, as usual. The door opened, and Mr Weasley walked through.
"Morning, Weasleys!" he said, taking a seat.
"Morning, Dad," chimed his sons. He kissed Mrs Weasley on the cheek, sitting down.
"Morning, Willow," he said to me, and turned to Harry, looking at him strangely. "And who are you?"
I go by there name of Willow Leavitt at school, so as to divert confusion, you see.
"Oh, sorry, sir, I'm Harry," he replied. "Harry Potter."
"Ron's told us all about you, of course," said Mr Weasley. I cast a glance out the window, where an owl was flying towards the window. I hurriedly got up, opening it, and it flew through.
"Thank goodness," I mumbled, closing it. "He usually flies into that one - first time I've been quick enough."
"I wouldn't worry about it," commented Percy. "Errol's always done that, and he's none the worse for wear."
The owl ruffled its feathers, waving the letters in its beak at me. "Don't you get sassy with me, Errol, I just tried to save your life," I muttered, rolling my eyes and looking through the envelopes. "Ooh, look! Hogwarts letters!" I threw them to the boys. "Ooh, and look, Harry, they've sent us ours as well." I made a point of showing him the name on mine as I handed him his.
"Can't even get your name right," he muttered, rolling his eyes. I scowled, sitting next to him.
"Let's see," I muttered, opening it. I sucked in a breath. "Expensive books. Who's Gilderoy Lockhart?" The Weasleys all turned to look at me.
"Five time winner of Witch Weekly's Most Charming Smile award," supplied Fred.
"Honorary member of the Dark Arts Defense League," added George.
"Order of Merlin, Third Class," continued Fred.
"Subject of Mum's fancying," concluded George, neatly ducking her swat.
"Well, there's only one place to get all of these books," declared Mrs Weasley dramatically. "Diagon Alley."
"Diagonally?" I repeated.
"No, Diagon Alley, dear," she replied.
"But - you said diagonally-"
"No, no, Diagon Alley. It's a street, you see."
"Oh."
"I've never travelled by Floo Powder before," I said, facing the fireplace. "Harry hasn't, either."
"Well, then, Ron'll go first, show you how it's done," said Mrs Weasley. He stepped into the fire, and took a pinch of what looked to be ashes from the dish she offered him. "Now, loud and clear."
"Diagon Alley!" he yelled, and dropped the powder. I squealed as green flames leapt up, enveloping him. When they disappeared, he, too, was gone.
"Go ahead, then, Harry, you next," I said, nudging him.
"I think I'll let you," he replied.
"Go on," I replied.
"Make me," he challenged.
"Afraid?" I asked, smirking. This was playing out just like it had almost exactly a year ago, in Ollivander's Wand Shop, when we had gone back and forth over ringing a bell.
"All right, you two, that's enough," said Mrs Weasley. "Go ahead then, Harry."
I smirked, and he scowled back, stepping into the fireplace.
"Honestly, you two fight worse than us, and we're twins," muttered Fred, ruffling my hair. I scowled at him, righting it.
"Don't touch my hair," I growled out as Harry dropped the powder, shouting out something incoherent.
"Did he just say what I think he just said?" asked Mrs Weasley.
"I heard 'diagonally,'" I replied, "though that might just have been me."
"No," replied Mr Weasley. "I heard it too."
"Where's Harry?" I asked Ron as I stumbled through the fireplace.
"Haven't seen him," he replied, confirming my fears.
"He came through before me!" I exclaimed, looking around. "He must be here somewhere!"
"He must have gone to a different grate," replied Ron as he, too, looked around. "Bloody hell - the two of you have a knack for getting into situations like this, don't you?"
"We don't go looking for trouble, honest," I replied. "It just... has a way of finding us."
Percy was the next to come through. "Where's Harry?" he asked immediately.
"Went to a different grate," replied Ron.
Fred was next. "Where's Harry?"
"Went to a different grate," I replied. This process repeated with the rest of the Weasleys, concluding with Mrs Weasley, who came through last.
"Oh dear," she mumbled, shaking her head. "Well, hopefully he hasn't gone too far... a couple of us can look for him while we get our shopping done..."
"I volunteer as tribute," I said immediately. Mrs Weasley raised an eyebrow.
"What on earth is a tribute?" she asked. I shrugged. "Alright, never you mind, anyone to go with her?"
"I'll accompany her," volunteered Percy. I barely concealed my shock - I had never had so much as a civil conversation with him.
In fact, the only conversation I had ever had with him was back in first year, when he had interrogated me as to where I had been. Unless you count the numerous times I had gotten back late to the common room, and he had been standing there, tapping a pocket watch...
I guess he did enjoy making sure I was back on time... which I always managed to do.
"Oh, lovely, Percy," said Mrs Weasley. "Now, we'll be going to Second-Hand Robes for Ginny's robes, then we'll stop by Potage's Cauldron Shop-"
"We'll find you," assured Percy. "After all, it is hard to miss a wave of redheads."
I snickered at the joke as I followed him out into the busy streets of Diagon Alley.
"Our results thus far have been fruitless," said Percy. "Do you reckon we should return to the others?"
I raised an eyebrow as I tried to process what he had just said. Finally, I just shook my head, looking out into the crowd.
"Ooh, look, there's Hagrid!" I exclaimed, pointing out the half giant who was quite visible, seeing as he was taller than everyone else on the bustling street. "Maybe he's seen him!"
"Well, I suppose there's no harm in at least checking," replied Percy.
"Why must you be so stuffy?" I asked exasperatedly as I followed him through the street. Even though his back was turned to me, I could tell that he rolled his eyes.
"He has seen him," he told me over his shoulder.
"How do you know?" I asked, trying and failing to look past him.
"He's got him," he replied.
I breathed a sigh of relief as we reached Harry. "Finally!" I exclaimed. "Oh, thank goodness."
"'E was down Knockturn Alley," explained Hagrid.
"Thank you very much for retrieving him, Hagrid," said Percy, shaking his plate-sized hand.
We escorted Harry back through Diagon Alley. "Are you alright? Are you hurt?" I asked him.
"No," he replied.
"Then what the hell were you thinking?!" I exclaimed, smacking him upside the head.
"Oh, thank goodness!" exclaimed Mrs Weasley as myself, Percy and Harry returned, the latter rubbing the back of his head where I had smacked him. "You're alright!"
"Yeah," he replied. "What... is happening?"
A line was out the door for the busy bookshop, Flourish and Blotts. It was popular, but never quite this crowded.
"Gilderoy Lockhart's doing a book signing," answered Fred, who was looking over the heads of the crowd.
"Wow. I didn't realize that so many witches were like your mother," I commented, and she smacked me upside the back of the head... again... "That gets really annoying sometimes... ooh, look, it's Hermione!"
Said bookworm was rushing towards us at high speeds, narrowly dodging the other people walking about. My best friend immediately enveloped me in a sort of flying tackle hug not unlike the one I had given Harry earlier.
"Willow!" she exclaimed. "I haven't seen you in forever!"
"Technically, it's only been about five weeks," I replied. Upon her raised eyebrow, I quickly added, "But it feels like forever!"
"Hiya, Harry!" she said, hugging him as well. "Oh, and happy birthday, by the way!"
"Thanks, Hermione," he replied. She turned her gaze to the store.
"What's happening?" she asked curiously.
"Gilderoy Lockhart's doing a book signing, Granger," replied George.
"Oh, is he?" asked Hermione, her eyes lighting up. My own widened in horror.
"No," I mumbled. "Not you... Hermione Granger, of all the people to fall victim to the charms... I thought you were above this!"
"Wait, what?" asked Harry confusedly. "Is there something I'm missing here?"
"Yes," I replied, "though you're probably better off not knowing..."
"Oh, shut up, Willow," mumbled Hermione, rolling her eyes.
"Never!" I replied. "Oh, you may not see the problem now... but when I tease you forever more, you will..." I shot her a grin. "And-"
"Harry Potter!" called out a voice. Confused, I looked around to find its source, before my eyes landed on a man in lilac robes, with curled blonde hair and a charming grin.
"Ew."
I was immediately filled with a sense of loathing for the man as he leapt up, seizing Harry and dragging him up to the table he had been sitting at, grinning broadly at the reporters covering the story all the way.
He held Harry at his side, despite my brother's protests, and grinned at the cameras. "Smile, Harry," I heard him whisper, "Together, you and I are worth the front page."
"When Mr Potter here came in here for a copy of my autobiography, Magical Me," announced Lockhart loudly, "he had no idea that he'd be getting my entire collected works," here he gestured a person carrying a stack of said books to hand them to Harry, "Free of charge."
I rolled my eyes.
"And indeed, he didn't think that he'd be getting to meet the real Magical Me," continued the arrogant wizard, "but I can assure you all, he'll be seeing much more of this."
"For indeed, Mr Potter and all of his fellow students will be getting the real Magical Me! I am pleased to announce that I will be taking over the post of Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher this September!"
My eyes widened in horror as I buried my face in my hands. "Am I dreaming, 'Mione?" I asked, horrified.
"I know, it's lovely, isn't it?" she replied. "Oh, it'll be so good to have a teacher with real experience!"
"It'll be hell," I replied under my breath.
A/N : Yes, my dear Holly, it will be... oh, you have seen nothing yet...