"Diagon Alley!"
Whoosh.
With a great sweep of green flames, Molly Weasley disappears from the Weasley household's fire place. Ginny blinks a few times, her eyes readjust to the light. She stares at the spot where her mother was just standing. 'School starts in just a few days,' she thinks. 'Has time really pasted so quickly?'
She takes a handful of the odd powder on the mantle piece, steps into the fire place (Making sure to tuck in her elbows) and throws the powder down, screaming, "Diagon Alley!" and the next thing she knows, she's standing in a fireplace in a very crowded Eyelop's Owl Emporium. Nodding to the shop keeper briefly, Ginny weaves her way around many excited eleven year olds and their parents and steps outside to find her mother and Ron.
Diagon Alley, ever full with bustling customers, is bright and warm. Ginny's heart warms a bit at the familiar sight of people running everywhere at all speeds to go to Olivander's to buy their first wand, to reach Madame Malkin's to buy new robes to replace the old ones that only just cover their ankles now, or simply heading off to have a bit of Enchanted Chocolate Chip ice cream with Flaming Fudge on top at Florean Fortescue's Ice Cream Parlour.
"Gin!" she hears a familiar voice call out. Ginny turns to see her brother, Ron's, head poking out of Flourish and Blott's. "Gin, come on, we're buying our books first, then its off to Malkin's for a fitting," Ron bellows.
"Coming!" Ginny calls, rushing towards the old book shop.
Stepping through the ornate entrance, Ginny catches her mum's eye and motions to her that she was going off to find her books. With her mother's hasty permission, Ginny begins to browse through the shelves and rows and piles of books.
How to Train Your Hippogriff? No. Your Wrackspurt and You? Nope. Predicting the Unpredictable: Insulate Yourself against Shocks? Definitely not. Ginny scans the shelves, searching for a copy of the Year Seven Potions book that was first on her list. Oh! Potions, Year Seven! There you are! With a triumphant smile, Ginny takes the book from the shelf and inspects it's second-hand binding.
"Well, well, well, Ginevra. Doing some shopping are we?" a dark voice rings out from the left of her. Ginny stifles a squeak and fumbles, dropping the book. She turns to see Tom leaning against the wall not far from her.
"T-Tom," she stutters. Her voice lowers to a whisper. "What are you doing here?"
"Well, you're here, aren't you?" he says to her snidely. "And where you go, I go. Or did you forget that little nugget of information?"
Ginny's cheeks, to her horror, color with embarrassment. "Well, I know that, but… I mean, why are you here? There are people around, I can't be seen talking to myself. Again."
"Oh, I just wanted to check on you. See how the school things were going. And besides," Ginny sees Tom's smirk broaden, radiating pure narcissism. "Shouldn't I be aloud to stretch my legs once and a while?"
Ginny's tone is infused with anger. "You don't have any real legs, or the need for physical exercise!"
"Details, Ginevra, details."
Ginny glares. "Please, Tom, leave."
Tom's smirk falls from his face, and his eyes darken just a shade or two. "No," he says slowly. "No, Ginevra, I don't think I will."
With a small "rah!" of repressed anger, Ginny turns on her heel and walks the opposite way, up a set of stairs. She slows her pace once she's safely on the second floor and surrounded by a sea of books. Looking for a distraction, she begins to look through the piles and shelves of books. Running her fingers along the hard spines as she reads the sideways titles, she ignores the figure of a dark haired boy behind her- always following her but somehow never moving.
"Ginny, dear," she hears her mother call. "Are you quite ready to go?"
"Sure, Mum, just a second!" Ginny calls down from the second story, to her mother who is craning her neck to see her. As she moves for the set of stairs, she feels something solid hit her around her knees, and falls to the ground.
"What in the name of Merlin's old trousers…" she looks back to see what she's tripped over, but finds nothing. Ginny slowly moves her hands in front of her, knowing she hadn't stumbled over a flat surface. Not this time, anyway. She thinks. Curiously, her hand hits something, and feels it topple over. "A pile of books," she exclaims. "Invisible books!"
She hears a deep chuckle of amusement from behind her.
Ginny spins around and finally acknowledges Tom.
"Tom, I-"
"You know, Ginevra," he cuts her off abruptly. "I was thinking… we should form a truce."
Ginny stares for a second. "A truce…" she repeats him, slightly confused.
"Well, yes. After all we shall be working together rather closely for the next… well, I'd wager at least three months. Why be so hostile towards each other? I see no reason."
She hesitates.
He gives a sigh of exasperation. "Ginevra, really. Our behaviors have been childish. And I tire of having no company other than myself. Do you know, I haven't even been able to pick up a book for the longest time? You see, I'm not asking much, just a healthy conversation once every long while and the turn of a page or two. You'll be rid of me, and I of you, soon enough anyway. Why not make the time go a bit faster?"
Ginny thinks of plenty of reasons to never even look at him unless absolutely necessary. But then she looks into his eyes, his eyes which she knows probably don't really hold the sorrow and kindness they're showing now, and sees the Tom she knew when she was eleven.
"You're in your first year? How interesting. You must love the castle."
"Oh, Ginny, its not so bad, you see? I'm your friend, you know. You're not alone."
"Don't be sad, Ginny. Potions isn't so hard. Would you like me to help you?"
"There, there, Ginny…"
"Don't cry, Ginny…"
"He'll notice you soon, Ginny…"
"I love you, Ginny…"
And his eyes, they do look sincere, don't they? Ginny thinks. And it's only for a little while. After we're separated, Harry and the others can handle him, I'm sure… And just like that, Ginny finds herself making a pact with Beelzebub himself. "Alright, fine. Truce."
Ayyyyye, Jeezu. Sorry it took so long, folks. I would tell you that I've been immersed in school work and what not, that I've been sick and so has everyone else…but that would be a COMPLETE lie. I tell you, man, that Kingdome Hearts game can REALLY suck a girl into the ZONE, you know? Any wayy… How've you all been?
Oh! Thanks to the reviewers for the last two chapters, KooleyKid and NovemberDreamer (Not sure if I answered this, but he's real, for the most part. But if you read (red? Damn English language…) the next chapter, you'd figured…getting off track) and Four's reviewers insanity75, seriana14, Madridista, and Hydra27.