Chapter Nine
"Did you really think you could leave me behind?"
Three heads whipped around as a figure stepped out from under the shadows of the willow tree. Their jaws dropped open as they saw who it was.
"G-Ginny?"
"You won't be able to get rid of me that easily, Mr. Potter."
"Gin, what are you doing here? Mum'll be furious!"
"And you think she'll be happy with you lot leaving with nothing but a note?"
"Well... Gin, you're her little girl!"
"And you, Ronald, are her "baby boy"."
Ron's ears reddened as he walked up to his sister.
"You haven't even finished your OWLs yet!"
"So? I don't care about OWLs. This is waymore important than any tests or marks. Besides, I can take them later."
The Trio recognized their defeat, and proceeded with their search. After a few more minutes, Hermione spoke up.
"I think we're done out here, don't you? Maybe we should go into the house."
"Do you want to, mate?"
Harry nodded and silently climbed over the rubble to reach the door. He opened it and went inside.
The others looked at each other, then followed quietly.
Harry looked around what must have been the living room. Then, as if drawn by some invisible force, he walked over to a spot near the remains of a couch, and froze, his face pale. He leaned over andbrushed his fingers againstthe floor.
Ron, Hermione, and Ginny entered the house to find Harry staring at the ground. Hermione looked questioningly at him.
"Harry...?"
"My dad died here."
Three faces paled as the full impact of that sentence came through the fog in their minds.
They went around the house, collecting more nick-knacks, and anything they thought might be of importance.
They then started up the stairs, looking nervously at the broken and strained wood, andhoping they wouldn't collapse beneath them.
On the upper floor, there were several rooms. They first went into what used to be the bathroom. Harry picked up a small hand mirror and a jewelry case, wrapping them in a tissue and putting them in his bag. They then went into what seemed to be a guest room, as it was devoid of any personal belongings, and had only a bed, and some basic furniture.
The next room was his parents' bedroom. It was basically intact, and Harry sat down on the side of the bed, fingering the Gryffindor-coloured quilt that lay on it. It was dusty, but small embroidered details could be made out along the edge.
They left the room after about 15 minutes, and proceeded to the next.
It was Harry's nursery.
The remains of a crib were by the far wall. Toys and children's books littered the floor. A playpen lay by an old toybox.
Harry walked over to a spot by the window.
"Mum was killed here." Hemotioned to the floor by his feet.
"I got the curse here." He pointed slightly to his left.
"Er, mate, um...How do you know this?"
"I don't know... I just do."
He walked around the room, and picked up a small toy snitch. He also found a tiny pretend broomstick, as well as a Quaffle and two bludgers. He packed them into his bag, and left the room silently, without looking back.
Ron, Hermione, and Ginny shared a worried glance. Any other person would be crying their eyes out at that point, and Harry's emotionless facade was starting to scare them.
They found him sitting on a rock just outside the gate.
"Harry, are you ok?"
"I'm fine, Hermione."
"Where do we go next, mate?"
"We need somewhere to sleep."
"Merlin Harry, you're right! I completely forgot about that!"
"What? The great Hermione, forget something?"
"Oh, shut it, Ron."
"We need to find out where Riddle went, all the places he's been. I know he lived at an orphanage, and that he worked at Borgin and Burkes. He tried to get the Defense job at Hogwarts, too. We have to find a locket, with a big 'S' on it, a cup that once belonged to Helga Hufflepuff, Nagini, and something that belonged to Ravenclaw or Gryffindor. Then we have to destroy them, and after that I have to kill him."
They decided to disguise themselves, incase anybody they knew were to see them. They first stopped off at a muggle hairdresser to dye their hair.
Ginny and Hermione giggled as they went through the books of hairstyles. Ron and Harry rolled their eyes in amusement as they watched the girls.
"Is this fun to them?"
"Dunno mate... women are a mystery."
Ron and Ginny left the salon with dark brown hair, as dark as Harry's natural colour. As they were siblings, they decided there should be some obvious likeness between the two of them, so nobody would doubt the fact. Harry and Hermione were also to be posing as brother and sister. They both had straight blond hair, as Hermione had decided that blond would be a nice colour, and that she would also like to try straightening her hair. Ron and Ginny decided to make their last name 'Weston', while Harry and Hermione were 'Patterson's.
They started their journey as completely different people.