Disclaimer: I am not JKR I do not own any of her characters. If I had, things would've been very different.
Author's note: This story is not in a linear fashion. It is told through a series of interlocking one-shots that do not necessarily go in order. This particular snippet occurs after both previous ones. Salazar is 10 years old, almost 11 in this story, and his little sister Alcyone is almost 8. I was planning on having a holiday cookie for you all, but, unfortunately the plot bunnies did not agree. Please review! All opinions are welcome, as always! Anyway, on with:
The Riddle Children Visit Diagon Alley
"But Mum, I don't want to wear any poxy uniforms." Salazar Riddle complained, verging on whinging as he stood with his mother and sister inside Madam Malkin's Robes for All Occasions, staring at the Hogwarts robe displays. "They look ugly! Why can't I go to Durmstrang with Alexei?" His friend Alexei Dolohov had wicked uniforms, unlike these things.
"You are going to Hogwarts, Salazar, and you will wear the uniforms. I don't care what you think of them. I've worn them, your father's worn them and you will wear them." Ginevra scolded, putting a hand to her temple. "If you don't behave we won't go to Knockturn Alley after we get your school supplies." Ginevra threatened. She had learned some things about her children in the past eleven years. Try threats, if threats didn't work, bribery, and if that failed, flattery usually had them in the palm of her hand.
"Mummy, I want to go to Hogwarts!" Alcyone said, pulling on her long red braid. "Can I go? Please…?"
Sometimes Alcyone reminded Ginevra so much of herself at that age. "Of course you can go, Alcyone." She said, in a gentle voice, and just as the girl looked ready to strip the nearest mannequin of the Hogwarts uniform it was modelling she added. "In two years, when you're nearly eleven." The little girl looked at her mother, fell silent and stared jealously at her brother as he was measured and got his robes. Ginevra reminded herself to change the wards to Alcyone's rooms the night before Salazar left. Alcyone was a daddy's girl, and as much as she was like Ginevra, she definitely had Tom's cunning streak. She would not be surprised if the little girl tried to sneak into her brother's trunk, or at the very least, hex some of his belongings for being able to do something she wasn't. There was no doubt that both of her children were intensely spiteful, though Alcyone was much easier to provoke.
The next stop was the Apothecary, and for once, Alcyone had the upper hand on her brother. As he swept over to the more common ingredients bins, Alcyone walked up to the counter, that she was still to small to see over properly, and, as if she had been doing this her entire life, and was twice her age she reached into her pretty lavender robes and pulled out two pieces of parchment. After inspecting them, she put the one back and got on her toes, pushing the parchment onto the counter to the amused apothecary. "I would like these ingredients, please." She said in a firm tone, imitating her mother.
The apothecary laughed and conjured a stool for his small customer. "You're a bit younger than my usual patrons," he chuckled, but he did as she asked and measured out her ingredients into tightly wrapped paper parcels, phials, and an amber-coloured jar. "And how will you be paying for this, little miss?" He asked politely, still finding this in a way, absurd.
"Charge it to my Gringott's account, please." Alcyone said calmly, handing him the smooth round stone that was used for credit and debit transactions. She didn't miss how the man balked slightly, but did as she asked. After all, a paying customer was a paying customer no matter what their age. Once Alcyone had gotten her things her brother went up to the counter with only the things he needed for his first year. Unlike his sister, he had no interest in Potions. They bored him and he didn't see much point, he had a much greater success rate and proclivity toward Charms.
Once they had gotten that done, it was on to the scrivener's shop for many rolls of parchment, bottles of ink, and expensive quills. Alcyone and Salazar squabbled over the last bottle of emerald green ink, causing their mother to snap it up for their father. They could be very ridiculous sometimes and this was giving her a headache. Once they had gotten everything they had needed, they wandered around the more entertaining shops, Eeyops Owl Emporium, Quality Quidditch Supplies, and Magical Musical Instruments. It was after the trip to this last location that they happened to run into Draco Malfoy and his two sons, Orion and Corvus, just outside Weasley's Wizard Wheezes.
"Corvus!" Alcyone called excitedly, rushing over to her friend. "I missed you, why weren't with Orion and your father last month?"
"I caught dragon pox, but I'm fine now." Corvus said, grinning. "Is it true that you really hexed Alexei at the meeting?"
"Just a little one, really." Alcyone said humbly. "He interrupted me and Daddy said I could. What are you doing here?"
"We're shopping for Orion's Hogwarts stuff. What about you?" Corvus said, "But we finished, so now we're just shopping and trying to convince Dad to take us for ice cream."
"Ice cream sounds great!" Salazar said, hearing the words mentioned from where he was discussing Hogwarts with his best friend Orion. "Mum, can we get ice creams, please?"
Ginevra sighed, and turned from her conversation with Draco. "I don't see why not, Salazar. What do you think, Draco? It was Corvus's idea. It wouldn't be fair if we stole their idea."
Draco shrugged, "Why not? After all, we are in Diagon Alley and old man Fortescue has the best ice cream around, Ginevra." He was immensely cautious with how he addressed Ginevra Riddle. Like any faithful Death Eater he had been on the business end of Voldemort's wand more than once, but unlike most he had been punished more than once for slipping up and improperly addressing the Dark Lady.
The quartet of children, plus the two parents were soon sitting at a large table at the ice cream parlour. Again, making sure that he was practicing subservience properly he made sure that Ginevra was sitting at the head of the table and he was stuck between his two sons.
"So, Slytherin is going to have quite a large new class, isn't it, Draco?" Ginevra commented, taking a bite of her English toffee ice cream.
"It certainly looks that way. Your Salazar will definitely be in his namesake's House, my Orion, probably Erasmus Zabini, I hear Millicent Bulstrode's daughter is a shoo-in, and that's only what I know for sure. I wouldn't be surprised if we pull in Lovegood's daughter, and a few other Ravenclaw alumni's children as well."
"It'll be interesting to see the reactions, especially with both Hermione and Harry teaching." Ginevra said, grinning. "Can you just imagine Harry's face when he sees my Salazar? I'm half-expecting him to have a heart attack"
Salazar looked up from his gummy-slug covered ice cream. "Why is someone going to have a heart attack when he sees me, Mum?"
"Because, darling, you're the spitting image of your father." Ginevra answered, ruffling his hair.
Alcyone's attention was caught—her brother was getting attention and she wasn't. This was a travesty that had to be rectified. "Who do I look like, Mummy? Do I look like Daddy?" She of course, already knew the answer, having been told by adults many times before, but that wasn't the point. The point was giving her equal attention to that her brother was getting.
"You have your father's eyes, baby, but you take your colouring from me." Ginevra said, touching her own copper locks nostalgically. She shook her head and looked at the clock, surprised. "Oh my, we'd best be getting home before your father gets worried and sends Vince and Greg to find us. Say goodbye to Corvus and Orion and let's get going." She stood quickly, passing out napkins to the messy children, and commenting on the slight stain on Alcyone's robes, even though it could be (and was) cleaned very easily with a simple charm.
"Bye Corvus! Bye Rion!" Alcyone said, waving to the boys.
"Bye guys! See you soon, Orion!" Salazar said, grinning.
As the Riddles left, Draco shook his head. "Between you and Salazar, my son, Hogwarts won't know what hit it. Salazar may look like his father, but he takes after his mother in temperament. It'll be a very interesting few years. Almost makes me wish I was going back." He caught the look on his son's face and frowned. "Almost."