"Well?" demanded Moody, scowling at his reluctant class. "No volunteers? Not even one?"
The class shifted apprehensively and gazed at the shuddering cabinet at the front of the room.
"Oh, come on, it's just a boggart," he barked. "I'm sure all of you kids are capable enough to perform a simple Riddikulus Charm. It's just a weak, pathetic boggart."
Ginny Weasley, like everyone else, tried not to make eye contact with him. Why, oh why, did paranoid, crazy, hard-core Mad-Eye Moody have to be her third-year Defense Against the Dark Arts professor? He had spent the past five minutes explaining to the horrified Gryffindors that what was inside the cabinet would transform itself into their worst fear in the whole world, and had then gone on to tell them a very graphic story about an old friend of his who had run into a boggart, failed to perform the Riddikulus Charm correctly, and had been found hours later gibbering in a corner, completely insane. The boggart had helpfully made the story even more dramatic by shaking the cabinet loudly at climatic moments.
"Which is why it's important to master this charm in case that ever happens to YOU!" he had roared as he finished up the story. "Now, who wants to go first?"
Ginny had not expected him to look so surprised when no one answered. He probably had thought they would all eagerly jump at the chance to risk their sanity by coming up against the thing they feared the most.
"If no one speaks up, I'll have to go in alphabetical order. That would start with you, Mister Creevey."
Colin Creevey blanched and looked even smaller than he really was.
If only Professor Lupin had stayed. Who cared that he was a werewolf, really? He had been so kind. Ron had told her that it was easy, that you only had to think of something funny, that Lupin had offered support and help, and hadn't pressured them. He had said it was actually almost fun, and Ginny knew how much he was afraid of spiders. If her brother could do it, surely she could.
"Er- couldn't- couldn't you give us a- a demonstration, sir?" squeaked poor Colin.
"No!" snapped Moody. "You're the one who is supposed to be learning this charm, not me!" But Ginny noticed he carefully kept his magical eye looking far away from the boggart. Could he see his own worst fear through the wood? Was he too afraid to show them it? Or- oh help- was his fear so ghastly that he didn't want thirteen-year-olds to see it?
Ron had said that Professor Lupin's boggart was a strange white floating orb- the moon, of course, though no one knew that at the time. Lupin had stepped in just before Harry was about to take his turn.
Ginny realized she didn't know what Harry's boggart was. Surely Harry Potter wasn't afraid of anything. No- wait- what about the dementors? Last year, he had fallen off his broomstick during the Gryffindor-Hufflepuff match because the dementors had come onto the field. And on the train, he had passed out when the dementor entered the compartment.
Somehow, it was a bit comforting to her that even Harry Potter was deathly afraid of something. Yes, she was afraid… but Harry had been afraid too. Fear wasn't a weakness. Be brave like Harry.
"I'll go first," Ginny said.
Moody beamed and Colin turned to her with worshipful, thankful eyes. Ginny stepped away from the rest of the Gryffindors and pointed her wand at the cabinet. Be brave… be brave like Harry.
"Five points for your house, Weasley. Good job. Now, in order to successfully perform the Riddikulus Charm, you have to think of your greatest fear in a way that you find amusing, such as making your fear covered in pink stripes or- I hear this was a favorite last year- dressing your fear in your grandmother's clothing."
What? She had to know what her fear actually was? Ginny frantically thought, but she couldn't recall any monstrous creature that she had been traumatized by when she was young. At least Ron was prepared; Fred and George had frequently reminded him of his greatest fear every other week. Be brave like Harry! Strange how some people think things are scary which aren't really scary to other people… if anything, she would have thought Harry would have been most frightened by You-Kn…
"Ready, Weasley? 3- 2- 1-"
The cabinet door swung open and something small shot out with a fluttering noise. The class gasped and Ginny lunged backward, her left hand instinctively coming up to protect her face-
But the thing landed at Ginny's feet with a dull thump and lay there harmlessly. She looked down and felt her stomach jolt.
It was nothing more than a small, old black book lying open on the ground. Elegant ink words were already forming on the blank parchment page…
Hello, Ginny.
The class started muttering and craning their heads, unable to see the writing. "Ginny?" said Colin curiously, and someone shushed him. The redheaded girl seemed to be frozen in place.
Did you miss me? I've missed you. Now it'll be just like old times. Just you and me, Ginny.
Everyone watched the girl shakily point her wand at the book and say, "Riddikulus."
What's wrong, Ginny? It's me. It's Tom. That's not going to work, Ginny, I'm quite real.
"Riddikulus!"
Stop that, Ginny. It's really me, I swear. I'm back for good now… and we'll be best friends forever, won't we?
"Ridikkulus! RIDDIKULUS!"
We'll be best friends forever, and you'll do whatever I say, won't you, Ginny?
"NO!" shrieked Ginny. "No, no, no… RIDDIKULUS! Stop it, stop it Tom-"
She could feel hysteria taking over. It isn't really him, it's just a boggart, it's just an illusion… She lunged at the book, grabbed it, and threw it as hard as she could, over the heads of all the Gryffindors. It hit the wall on the other side of the classroom and fell out of sight.
Seconds later someone screamed as a flock of bats flew into the air. Their victim yelled, "Riddikulus!" and the bats changed into brightly-colored butterflies.
"Miss Weasley?" growled Professor Moody in what could have been a concerned tone. Ginny, white as paper, turned away and walked carefully out of the classroom.
She didn't start to cry until she had safely reached Gryffindor Tower.