Another summer day for the Weasleys, this time told from the perspective of the only daughter of the family.

GINNY II

Ginny woke up early on the day they went to Diagon Alley. It wouldn't be the first time she went there, but it would be the first when her parents would actually buy her things. Within less than a month, she would be at Hogwarts. Finally.

Ginny had dreamed of going to Hogwarts since the day her elder brother Bill took the Hogwarts Express for the first time. Through the years, she watched Bill and Charlie leave for the school seven times each before their studies were over. The first then left for Egypt, the second for Romania. She watched Percy go and return five times, Fred and George three times, and Ron only once, last year. Every year, she wanted to go with them. This year, her wishes would become reality.

Despite this, Ginny was very stressed. It wasn't the fact that they would go to Diagon Alley. She had already gone there. It wasn't even the fact that she was finally going to Hogwarts either, at least not mainly because of it. After all, there were still a few weeks left before she would embark on the train for the first time. No, she was stressed because they were supposed to meet Harry Potter on the Alley.

Harry Potter. Ginny was born about two and a half months before You-Know-Who was defeated. she grew up hearing stories about the Boy Who Lived. Then last year, when she accompanied her family to Platform Nine and Three-Quarters and she watched for the first time all her brothers leaving for the school she dreamed of, she met Harry Potter in person. She didn't recognize him. His hair was falling on his forehead and hid his scar. She also met his mother, who she called Mrs Lily, although she didn't know who she was yet either. The woman was very kind with her. She didn't realize that her son was Harry Potter when Fred and George said they saw him on the train. Ginny had begged her mother to let her climb into the train to see him, but she had refused.

It was only over two months later, when Ginny attended the first Quidditch game in her life at Hogwarts, that she discovered that this boy she saw on the platform was indeed Harry Potter, and that Mrs Lily was none other than Lily Evans Potter, the mother of the Boy Who Lived. Ginny watched in horror and even panicked when his broomstick got uncontrollable during the game, afraid that he would die. She cheered him to no end when he caught the Golden Snitch at the end of the game, and again in his second game against Hufflepuff, after only five minutes of play. She was disappointed when he didn't show up for the third match against Ravenclaw and Gryffindor lost that match, being that had he been there, her brothers' team would have won the Quidditch Cup. She had hated the girl who caught the Snitch for Ravenclaw when it should have been Harry. She caught another glimpse of him in June when he disembarked from the Hogwarts Express, pointing him excitedly so that her mother would also see him. But she never said a word to him.

Her first chance to speak with Harry Potter was during the summer, when he came for two weeks at their home. Ginny was excited from the very moment Ron told them his best friend would come. Finally, she would meet him. It would arrive sooner than she thought, as she expected she could finally speak to him when she would go to Hogwarts in September. But she was never able to speak to Harry.

One morning, she went down the stairs from her bedroom, looking for some of her clothes, and she found him sitting at the table with her brothers, eating their breakfast. Ginny didn't expect to find him there. She thought he was arriving later in the morning. When he said hello to her, she found her throat tight, her tongue dry, unable to say a word. She ran away back to her chamber, ashamed.

The next two weeks didn't go any better. Every time she crossed Harry's path, Ginny would find herself jumping in surprise, unable to say a word, barely able to move properly and knocking over quite a few things. She hid behind the trees of the hill to watch him play Quidditch with her brothers, only to run away when she was afraid he did notice her. She opened her door to see him climb the stairs with Ron, hid behind a wall to listen to him, and disappeared the moment she thought he saw her. She even went a far as listening behind Ron's bedroom door when her brother talked with him.

She was almost relieved when he left, as she was afraid of the opinion he might have of her, but she was disappointed too. In all his time at the Burrow, she didn't say a word to Harry. He barely looked at her, spending most of his time with her brothers. If only he had known that Ginny knew how to fly as well, perhaps he would have invited her to play with them, and for once Ginny would have been allowed to play with her brothers.

The time he spent at the Burrow was a disaster for Ginny. She had never felt so shy into her own home. She was afraid of how he might react when he would see her on Diagon Alley today, if he ever noticed her. She didn't think he would, given how she behaved around him the last time.

She went down the stairs, fully dressed for the day. Only Percy was already up yet, dressed for the day like she was, his prefect badge on his robes. Her mother was serving her father.

"Hi, Ginny," Percy told her as she sat down. "You must be excited for today."

She nodded, hoping it would be convincing enough that it would hide her uncertainties everyone could probably see on her face. Her parents were talking in whispers in the kitchen, trying not to be heard by their children, but Ginny could hear them all the same.

"The books are going to cost a fortune," her father said, worry plain in his voice.

"We may be able to find some second-hand copies. If we can pick most of Ginny's things second-hand..." her mother began.

"Do we really have to? She's the last of our baby to go to Hogwarts."

"Arthur, you know we don't have much to spend. Even if we take everything second-hand, we will not have enough left to buy her a present for her admission. We have no choice."

Ginny ate in silence. She shouldn't be disappointed. Her brothers had worn each other's clothes as they grew up and the clothes of one were too small for him but not too big for a younger Weasley. As the only girl in the family though, Ginny had somewhat hoped that she would get new robes, a few if not all of them. But her parents were already talking about how to best reduce their expenses, using her brothers' old school's items. Well, she hoped the second-hand merchandise they would buy would be nice.

Fred and George arrived a few moments later, together as always. Sometimes Ginny had wished she was born with a twin sister. She wouldn't be the only girl in the family aside from her mother then.

"Hey, little sister," Fred said as a good day, sitting down in the meantime.

"Did you sleep well?" George then asked.

"Did you dream of Harry?"

At the last question, she felt her face getting completely red, and looked away. Why did they have to mention him?

"Hey, don't worry, little sister," Fred added. "If you missed him in your dreams, you'll have more than enough time to make up with him on Diagon Alley."

"Fred, George, leave her alone," Percy said as the blood kept rushing to her face and she tried hard for her brothers to not see it.

"What, Percy? We're just trying to cheer her up."

Ron arrived at this moment, still in pyjama. "When are we leaving?" he asked immediately.

"Very soon, Ronald," Percy replied. "I suggest you eat your breakfast quickly and you get dressed right after. We've got a lot of things to buy today and no time to lose."

"We'll still have enough time to see Harry and Hermione, won't we?" Ron asked to their parents. "We organized ourselves so we would see them today."

"Of course, Ron," their mother replied. "We will meet them during our shopping. Your father is very excited to meet Hermione's parents."

"Oh, yes, I am. I have a lot of questions to ask them," he confirmed.

They all knew what kind of questions it would be. Ginny had barely met Hermione, only seeing her once when her brothers came back from Hogwarts last June, but they all knew her parents were Muggles. Ginny wondered how it was to be raised by non-magical parents when you were a witch.

"Well, if Hermione Granger is going to be there, that means you will have competition, little sister," George said.

"How many times have I told you?" Ron's voice boomed. "Harry and Hermione are not dating!"

"Well, you told us yourself that she spent a week at his mother's home in London," Fred countered.

"While she didn't come here for the whole summer," George added.

"Perhaps it's not Ginny who should be jealous. Perhaps it's Ron who is."

"That's nonsense what you're saying," Ron replied, looking disgusted.

"Not at all. It's normal that she prefers to be with Harry. After all, he saved her life at Halloween last year. Everyone was talking about it."

"Are you done with your silly gossips? We have to leave in a few minutes," Percy interrupted them.

"Your brother is right. Get ready. See you in five minutes before the chimney," their mother stated, and no one dared to disagree.

Ginny went back to her bedroom, grabbing what she needed for the day, trying not to think about what her brothers just discussed about. Ron had to be right. Harry was certainly not dating Hermione. Ron always complained about her, even though he said they were friends. Harry was his best friend. Surely he would never be in love with a girl Ron complained so much about. Wouldn't he?

Percy, Fred, George, Ron, Ginny and their parents soon assembled in front of their fireplace. Her father and brothers went first. Then it was Ginny's turn. It wasn't the first time she used Floo powder, but she was apprehensive of ending somewhere far from her brothers. She nonetheless took a great inspiration, threw the powder and walked in.

"Diagon Alley," she said clearly.

Ginny was spinning very fast. She kept her eyes shut as she remained unmoving and tried to be as small as she could. She waited for quite some time. She barely opened her eyes, and finally saw them. She walked forward and emerged from the fireplace, coughing but standing. Fred and George were there to catch her when she arrived.

"Hi, little sister. You found you way to us," George said.

"Not too spinning, this trip?" Fred asked.

Ginny looked around. Their father, Percy and Ron were nowhere to be seen.

"Don't worry, they must be in another shop. But you arrived just in the right place considering this is your first year," Fred said as if he could guess what she was thinking.

"OH! STAY AWAY!"

At the same time, both her brothers seized her by the shoulders. An instant later, their mother emerged as well. If Fred and George had not grabbed her, Ginny would have been struck by her mother's arrival.

"So, the three of you are here. Where are the others?" their mother asked.

"Don't know," George replied.

"But we're going to find them," Fred completed.

They got out of the shop. Ginny realized that it was full of robes. They had barely set foot on the Alley that the rest of their family was running to them.

"Everyone is here, Father," Percy said very pompously. "We can start our shopping."

"Well, Ginny, you're coming with me," her mother told her. "We have a lot of stuff to buy you, and it starts here."

Her mother pointed the store they just walked from. The sign read Madam Malkin's Robes for All Occasions. Madam Malkin positioned Ginny on a stool. She remained there while the owner discussed with her mother about the available robes in second-hand categories. Since her mother was checking the price and size of every robe, Ginny had to wait quite some time. Next to her, another girl had her robes magically adjusted with pins, needles and tape moving on their own.

"First year you too?" the girl asked.

"Yes," Ginny replied.

"Is it your mother behind?"

"Yes," she answered again, afraid of the impression her mother might giving by negotiating and verifying prices like this.

"She seems nice. She reminds me of my own."

"Oh yeah?" Ginny asked timidly.

The girl next to her nodded. She had very blond hair falling far behind her back, a very pale skin, and her eyes were pale too. Ginny couldn't distinguish their color. She wasn't looking at Ginny, not directly, but seemed rather quite interested by a corner of the wall over Ginny's head.

"Your mother has gone to buy you something?" Ginny asked.

The girl's lips, locked into a dreamy smile, lowered in their corners for a moment, though she didn't lose her dreamy expression. "She's dead."

Ginny felt horrible all of a sudden. "I'm sorry," she mumbled.

"I still got my dad. And it's not as if I'll never see her again."

She kept this same lost expression as she spoke. Ginny was a little afraid by this girl.

"By the way, my name is Luna," the strange girl added.

"Ginny," she said carefully.

"Nice to meet you, Ginny."

But Luna wasn't looking at her. Ginny didn't know who this girl was smiling to, but the smile never left her face for the short time they discussed. A man who had to be his father, who looked even more eccentric than his daughter, came to take back Luna. They left while talking about something called a Crumple-Horned Snorkack. Luna said goodbye to Ginny before she left. Ginny found Luna and his father quite strange, but she had to admit that they really seemed to love each other. It reminded her of Harry and his mother, Mrs Lily.

Ginny looked at herself in the mirror. Madam Malkin had finally put a robe on her shoulders and was busy working on it while her mother looked for other robes that may fit Ginny. What would people think when they would see her wearing this? It was obvious that the robe was old and already used by lots of people before.

The morning was spent buying everything she needed for the day she would go to Hogwarts. Ginny tried to enjoy this time going through the shops of Diagon Alley. Everything was not so bad in the end. Her mother was careful with everything she bought, trying to find the lower price at the better quality. She even bought Ginny a cauldron that looked almost brand new, even if the salesman warned them that it was used by a student for over a year.

Ginny spent a rather time good time all the same. They walked past the Quality Quidditch Supplies store, which displayed the latest model of broomstick, the Nimbus Two Thousand and One, with a small crowd of avid children around it. Ginny wished she could stop to admire it, but she knew they were too busy and that her mother wouldn't let her. And if her brothers ever learned that she got interested by the new broomstick, she knew very well what was going to happen: Percy would lecture her that first-years were not permitted broomsticks and that it was better spending what few money they had on more practical items, Fred and George would taunt her about how maybe one day she would play for the Holyhead Harpies, like the poster in her bedroom might suggest, and Ron would probably say Quidditch wasn't a sport for girls.

Through their wanderings, they finally arrived at Flourish and Blotts. Ginny had heard her parents say that this stop would be the more costly, because of Gilderoy Lockhart's books. And as if that couldn't be more appropriate, the storefront of the bookstore displayed a large banner indicating that Lockhart himself was signing copies of his latest book today.

Ginny's mother got all excited. "Well, if that's not a stroke of luck," she said. Ginny didn't know first if her mother was talking about the signing session or the fact that she just found one of Ginny's books at a very good price. The cover was all scrapped and torn.

"You think we could have our books for Hogwarts signed by him, Mom?" Ginny asked, excited as well. She saw his books lingering everywhere at home so often and the man's reputation as a famous author was enough to make Ginny want to.

"We'll try," she answered, a large smile displayed on her face.

It was hard enough for them to enter the bookstore as a crowd of people was lining even in the Alley to get their copy signed. Inside was even worse with the line stretching all around the store and other customers trying to find and buy their own books. Ginny suspected that her mother was suddenly more interested by taking a look at Gilderoy Lockhart than by buying Ginny's books. The famous wizard and author sat behind a desk, wearing flashy blue robes, and signing one copy of his latest book after another, granting a charming smile to each and every woman who presented their own copy.

It was then that Ginny heard the shrill voice.

"Harry, come on! We can actually meet him! I mean, he's written almost the whole booklist!"

Ginny slowly turned to see a girl with bushy brown hair not far behind. She was accompanied by two adults who looked like her parents... and Harry.

"I don't know, Hermione. I mean, I read Break with a Banshee a few years ago, and I got the feeling while reading it that Lockhart was more interested in depicting himself in a flattering way than by really relating what truly happened."

"But he's such a great wizard, Harry. He cannot really depict himself as if he was doing nothing."

It was then that Harry's eyes happened on Ginny. She felt the blood rushing to her face right away. "Hello Ginny."

She could barely contain a squeal, but she jumped back and accidentally pushed her mother. As Ginny turned away, she saw the whole line of women waiting in front of Lockhart's desk pushing each other as a result of her mother falling on them, until the one right in front of Lockhart ended face first against his desk.

Lockhart looked pleasantly surprised by this. "Well, I'm glad to see how enthusiastic you are, Mrs Lebrown, but we should try to maintain convenient behavior in public, don't you think?"

Gilderoy Lockhart then looked in the direction where the confusion started. Ginny's mother was rearranging her hair and straightening up after almost falling on the floor because of Ginny. But it wasn't her nor Ginny that he was looking at.

"It can't be Harry Potter?"

Within an instant, all heads were turned towards him. Ginny noticed that he just stopped rubbing his forehead and had dropped his hand very quickly. Usually, his scar was hidden by the strands of hair falling on it, but it had become visible an instant, and Lockhart had seen it.

"Harry Potter!"

A man with a large camera, who had been taking photos of Gilderoy Lockhart ever since they arrived, shouted his name, seized Harry by the arm and brought him next to Lockhart. Then he took a photo of them both.

"Ladies and gentlemen," Lockhart said loudly as he held Harry by the shoulders, "What an extraordinary moment this is! The perfect moment for me to make a little announcement I've been sitting on for some time! When young Harry here stepped into Flourish and Blotts today, he only wanted to buy my autobiography, which I shall be happy to present him now, free of charge."

People applauded all around them. Ginny, though, didn't get the impression that Harry was enjoying the attention. She saw him make more than one movement away from Lockhart, and his expression on his face was everything but one of someone happy to be the focus of attention. Plus, there was what she heard him say about Lockhart right before. She looked around and saw Hermione, all smiling and applauding excitedly.

"He had no idea," Lockhart continued, "that he would shortly be getting much, much more than my book, Magical Me. He and his school fellows will, in fact, be getting the real, magical me. Yes, ladies and gentlemen, I have great pleasure and pride in announcing that, this September, I will be taking up the post of Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry!"

So, Gilderoy Lockhart would be her teacher this year? That was why her family had to spend so much to buy his books. Ginny's mother looked ecstatic, and so was Hermione. Ginny seemed to be the only one who was not under Lockhart's charm.

When she looked again at Harry, while the whole library was applauding and cheering as if this was some sort of Quidditch game, Harry was moving away from Lockhart's desk, a huge pile of books in his arms. Lockhart must have given him all his books for free. He walked in her direction, at the far end of the room, and Ginny tried to not make eye contact him.

"He's really kind, Harry, isn't he?" her mother told him. "I can take your books for a moment if you want and have them signed by Lockhart," she then offered.

"No, thanks. Ginny?" She dared not look at him. But then she almost tumbled when a pile of books crashed into the cauldron she was holding into her hands. "They're yours. I'll buy my own."

Ginny was barely understanding what he just did when another voice raised behind them.

"Bet you loved that, didn't you, Potter?"

The boy who just spoke was about their age, and Ginny didn't like him right away. White blond hair cut short, pointy features, pale, and dressed in the finest clothes you could find in Diagon Alley. Plus the way he behaved and he spoke, which displayed arrogance, mockery and jealousy all at the same time.

"Famous Harry Potter! He can't even go into a bookshop without making the front page."

"Leave him alone! He didn't want that!" she shouted at the boy. Whoever he was, she didn't like him, and everything he said was a lie. She stared at him, but he barely acknowledged her, only shooting a short glance at Ginny.

"Well, Potter, you have a new girlfriend? Got tired of Granger already?"

Ginny felt her face turn red. It was a chance that this boy didn't pay attention to her. Luckily enough, Harry didn't take a lot of time to retort.

"They're friends, but I guess you don't understand the idea. You have no friends, after all."

"I have friends. The only difference between us is that I don't need them, unlike you."

"True enough. You have your parents who give you everything you want."

"Indeed." He looked at Ginny as if he was disgusted by her before he stared back at Harry. "I suppose her parents will go hungry for a month to pay for that lot."

"Don't you have anything better to do than bragging about your family's fortune, Malfoy?" Harry retorted as he held Ron away. "It's not as if you earned it."

"I still deserve it more than you deserve your fame, Potter." Malfoy almost spit on the ground. "You are just a baby who had a lucky accident."

Someone then put a hand with a cane on Malfoy's shoulder. "Now, now, Draco. Play nicely." This man had very similar facial features and the same blond hair as the boy, but longer. He smirked when he looked at Harry. "Mr Potter. Lucius Malfoy. We meet at last."

He offered a hand, but Harry didn't shake it.

"It is probably better that you don't shake Harry's hand, Lucius." Lucius Malfoy turned to face the person who just talked to him behind his shoulder. It was Mrs Lily, who just arrived in the bookstore. "The last of your kind who had physical contact with my son didn't live long enough to tell the story," she then added, standing right in front of Mr Malfoy.

"Why am I not surprised? Lily Potter," he said with the same sweet and threatening voice.

"Lily Evans, to be correct. Unlike your wife, I didn't abandon my family name the day I got married."

Mrs Lily circled Malfoy and came to stand next to Harry. Ginny, her mother, Ron and Hermione were all standing next to them.

"A pity your marriage didn't last as long as mine," Mr Malfoy then said just as softly.

Ginny watched Harry's face contorting. That of his mother too. She noticed more their resemblance this way, apart from their eyes. Mrs Lily was holding her son's left shoulder quite strongly.

"Have you bought your books, Harry?" she asked her son.

"Not yet," he answered, his voice obviously angry. It made even Ginny afraid. Harry's books were in her cauldron, the ones he gave to her. Perhaps she should tell Mrs Lily about this.

"Then let's go buy them. Ginny, Hermione, I think you better follow us."

"Miss Granger?" Mr Malfoy looked at Hermione. Whatever movement they had begun, they stopped as Mr Malfoy eyed Harry's and Ron's friend critically. "Draco told me a lot about you... and your parents. Muggles, aren't they?"

"Okay, children, let's go," Mrs Lily said. However, before they could move enough, Lucius Malfoy had grabbed one of Ginny's books in her cauldron. Not the new ones Harry just gave her, but a worn copy of her Transfiguration book her mother took when they arrived in the bookstore.

"Hey, it's mine," she said, but he barely acknowledged her comment, looking more interested in her book.

"Red hair. Second-hand book. A certain arrogance, too," he said as he looked straight into Ginny's eyes this time. She sustained it the best she could. "You must be a Weasley."

"Give back her book, Lucius," Mrs Lily said. "You wouldn't have any use of it anyway."

Lucius Malfoy seemed surprised. "You think I thought about keeping it?" He didn't give back her book to Ginny though. "I'm no petty thief, Evans." He said her name with disdain. "That was more the type of your husband."

Ginny saw Harry try to move, but his mother stopped him. Instead, she approached Lucius Malfoy and stood right in front of him. "Unlike you, my husband wasn't afraid of a man because he had red eyes and the nostrils of a snake. And he didn't lick the boots of a professor just to get into a party."

This seemed to have an impact on Lucius as his features hardened. He stared at Mrs Lily for a time, then he put back abruptly Ginny's book into her cauldron.

"Take your book, girl. It's the best your parents can give you. Draco, we leave. This place stinks."

They watched Mr Malfoy and his son walk away to the outside. Mrs Lily turned and sighed. "I wish it was easier to ignore these people. Harry, your books."

Harry and Mrs Lily disappeared among the shelves of the bookstore. Ginny found herself alone with Hermione and her mother.

"Are you alright?" Hermione asked her.

Ginny nodded. In fact, she was still afraid. She didn't like this Mr Malfoy and his son. She heard both her father and her brothers talk about them more than once, and never did they speak of them with good words.

"Let's go, Ginny," her mother said, tapping her shoulder. "We must find your other books."

Ginny kept thinking about this discussion with the Malfoys as they searched for second-hand copies of her school books. Hermione was back with her parents, who had not witnessed the scene with the Malfoys, while Harry and his mother looked for his own books. She crossed their path in the same alley between two shelves. They were looking for his book of Charms this year. Ginny stared at the shelves, avoiding their gaze, especially Harry's. Her mother was far away, looking in the sections with second-hand merchandise. She had allowed Ginny to wander on the side of fresh copies.

"I don't think that it took so much time to find a book on Charms when I went to Hogwarts," Mrs Lily was saying.

"Perhaps you were just more patient before you got so old," Harry said. "Ouch!"

The comment he made just earned him a blow on the head, but only with the finger. At the same time both Harry and his mother were laughing quietly. "Be respectful of your mother, young man," she warned him in a teasing way.

Ginny didn't understand how they could just joke around only a few minutes after the incident with the Malfoys. And she also didn't understand how Harry could insult his mother and just laugh with her about that. She would never imagine her own mother doing that with her.

"Oh, I think I found it," Mrs Lily finally said, getting a brand new copy of the book from one of the shelves. "It only leaves us with Lockhart's works. It will not be easy to find them with all those women running after his autograph. Ginny, do you need some help? You're looking for something?"

Usually, Ginny liked Mrs Lily very much and she had no problem talking with her. But now that Harry was present, she tried to avoid her gaze just as much as she tried to avoid his.

"Uh, Mom, I'll start looking for Lockhart's books," Harry told her.

"Okay, I'll join in a second," Mrs Lily replied. She returned her attention to Ginny. "Ginny, are you looking for something?"

Shyly, and after making sure that Harry had left the alley, Ginny looked at his mother. "I... I'm looking for the Charms book they asked us to buy."

"Standard Book of Spells? Grade 1? Miranda Goshawk?"

"Yes." She nodded so quickly she believed that her head was shaking. Mrs Lily smiled.

"Harry was asked to take the second tome. The first tome shouldn't be far." Mrs Lily went to the specific shelve she just walked away from, took a book, and came back with it, landing it in Ginny's cauldron as well.

Ginny reddened again, ashamed. "Euh... Mrs Lily... I..." Ginny felt like she was about to cry.

"Ginny, what's going on?" Ginny gulped. "Hey, you're crying." Indeed, tears had begun to fall from her eyes. Mrs Lily knelt so their faces were at the same height. "What's going on, my little girl?"

"I'm sorry... It's just... We don't have enough money." She wiped the water from her eyes.

"Oh. I see." Mrs Lily looked away for a moment. "Look, keep the book. Hide it among the others. You won't have to pay for this one."

"But..." Surely the owner would notice if she tried to sneak a brand new book out of his store.

"Don't worry. I'll make sure this is not a problem. You trust me?" She sent an insistent gaze on Ginny, who felt compelled to nod in agreement. "Good. Now, dry your tears. There's no reason for you to cry. It's a beautiful day. Look outside."

Ginny looked through the window. The day was all sunny. She removed the rest of the tears with her sleeve. It was too much, between the altercation they had with the Malfoys, the fact she wasn't able to speak with Harry or even to look at him, and now being remembered again how her family was poor.

"Look, Ginny," Mrs Lily resumed. "Why don't you think about something positive? Something that makes you happy? You're still excited to go to Hogwarts, aren't you?"

"Yes."

"Then think about it. Think that within less than a month, you will be on the train with your brothers and your friends, going to the school you've always dreamed of going to."

Ginny tried. Hogwarts. Yes, she had always wanted to go there. She always looked with envy to her brothers leaving, year after year. This year, she would be leaving with them. Everything she had would be second-hand, but she would be going with them. That helped her feel better. She was going to Hogwarts. She was going to Hogwarts.

"Okay. Feel any better?" the kind woman asked her. Ginny nodded. "Good. Because I think the rest of your family has just arrived."

Indeed, Mrs Lily was right. Ginny's father and brothers had just walked into the bookstore. As a result, the rest of the afternoon went quite well. The only thing Ginny regretted was that Harry and Mrs Lily had to leave quite early. She heard Harry explaining to Ron and Hermione that his mother had to finish an important work for tomorrow.

"I shouldn't have spent two weeks at the Burrow with you," he said Ron while all their parents were out of earshot. "It took her too much time to cook, she had less time to dedicate to her training. I've really been preparing meals during the whole summer."

"She's working so hard?" Ron asked.

"Ronald, she's training to become an Auror. An Auror!" Hermione pointed out. "They only take the best."

"Hermione's right," Harry said. "Half of the people she started her training with are already gone. And they say that over half of those who are still in it will not make it to the end."

"Well, in this case, it's certainly not a career I'll consider," Ron said.

Ginny listened to them without adding a single word. That allowed her to see Gilderoy Lockhart trying to grab Mrs Lily's attention, probably thinking she was another one of his fans. But she ignored him, and a moment later he found himself stuttering his words, barely unable to make one follow another. Ginny thought she noticed Mrs Lily perform a swift movement towards her wand in her pocket just before it started. When the three families left the bookstore, Harry and his mother left since their shopping was already over. He said goodbye to everyone, saying they would meet again on Platform Nine and Three-Quarters. He even said goodbye to Ginny, whose heart stammered against her chest again and whose face she felt had turned once again redder than a tomato. The only time she spoke when Harry was present was when she had told Draco Malfoy to leave him alone.

The rest of their shopping day went smoothly. Ginny was disappointed that Harry was gone soon, but at the same time she felt more relaxed without him around, and she enjoyed the rest of the day better. She saw Ron speak a lot with Hermione. Despite often complaining about her at home, Ginny found that they got along quite well.

They were all back to the Burrow in the evening, tired of this day. After their dinner, Ginny went into her bedroom and put on a pyjama and a nightdress. She went over checking her stuff for school.

She had no mirror in her chamber, so she didn't bother with trying her new robes. They were obviously already used by one or more other people before her. Her protective gloves, with all their scratches, threatened to let holes appear at any moment. The hat was unstitched on the edges. The telescope only seemed to hold by a thread. There were traces of rust at the bottom of her cauldron, which was probably the thing her parents bought that was in the best state. Well, that was except for her wand.

Unlike Ron, Ginny had gotten herself a real new wand. There was no one else in the family to give over their old wand to her. Mr Ollivander had been very kind with her, testing many wands until he found the right one for Ginny. She found the old man quite fascinating. She ended up with a wand made of yew, eleven inches long, flexible, and with a phoenix feather at its core. When the wand chose her, Ollivander said something's telling me that you have a bright future ahead of you, young woman. It was probably the first time someone called her young woman.

It wasn't the only thing that was brand new that Ginny got. All her books from Lockhart were brand new, thanks to Harry who gave her the ones Lockhart offered him as a gift. She smiled and reddened a little at the thought he had given them to her among all other people. And there was also her Charms book from Miranda Goshawk, which Mrs Lily gifted her as well. Ginny's mother didn't notice it among the piles of other books Ginny had when they were about to pay. Ginny suspected that her mother was more interested by Lockhart's books. When they left Flourish and Blotts, Ginny noticed Mrs Lily making a wink at her.

All accounted, half her books were brand new, which was far better than what she expected at the beginning of the day. She piled them in a corner of her room, when one fell on the floor. She took it to put it back in place in the pile, but when she looked at the cover, she realized there wasn't any title on it. On a closer look, she noticed something, written in old golden letters at the bottom of the front page.

TOM MARVOLO RIDDLE

It was strange. She didn't remember her parents buying her something like this, not when they had to be careful about every Knut they spent. The small book looked old. She opened it, and discovered that it was a personal diary, and it was entirely blank. She thought about going to her parents to ask them if they had bought this for her, but she thought better. They were probably too tired by now after such a day. And she didn't think they really bought it. She looked at all her second-hand books, all damaged but quite big. The small diary must have been in one of them. Someone must have forgotten about it and left it behind another book he gave up. She saw that the diary was bought fifty years ago.

She browsed the diary. All pages were indeed blank. Each page corresponded to one day of the year. Ginny shrugged. Perhaps the person who bought it never bothered to write in it. Better not to waste it. In her family, nothing ever went to waste.

Ginny thought about everything that had happened today. It was a beautiful day, and still she had experienced several disappointments as well. She couldn't tell her brothers or her parents. Maybe this diary was a gift from the universe to her, after all.

"Ginny, time to go to bed!" Her mother's voice, coming from the other side of the door, was kind but imperious. Ginny went to her and slid under her covers, hiding the diary below them.

"Yes, Mom. I'm shutting the light in two minutes."

"Have a good night, my little Ginny."

"Good night, Mom."

Ginny slowly came out of bed and sat at her desk. Why not begin to write in that journal right away? She took some ink and her old feather, opened the small diary on today's date and began to write at the top of the page.

My name is Ginny Weasley.

That wasn't really her name, truth be told. Her true name, her complete name at her birth, was Ginevra Molly Weasley, but everyone called her Ginny. She found it prettier and easier to pronounce.

She dipped the quill into the inkwell to continue writing. But when she brought the feather back to the page, what she just wrote had disappeared. Ginny didn't understand first. But then new words appeared on the page, words she never wrote, but written with the very ink she just used.

Hello, Ginny Weasley. My name is Tom Riddle. How did you come by my diary?

You can expect Ginny to have a lot of chapters going forward. From now on, she will be a major POV.

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Next chapter: Harry