Hogwarts: I'm Truly a Model Wizard

Back at the Leaky Cauldron, Hagrid suggested a drink before they left, and everyone agreed... even Mrs. Weasley, who was still quite upset.

She felt the need to explain to the Grangers what had happened, hoping they wouldn't form a poor opinion of wizards. While the adults talked, Kyle walked over to Ginny.

Ginny was sitting with her head down, sipping hot chocolate—the only non-alcoholic option at the Leaky Cauldron—without saying a word. Kyle's sudden appearance startled her.

"That was a really impressive throw back there."

"You... you saw that?"

"I wasn't sure at first," Kyle said with a shrug, "but a quiet Ginny isn't exactly normal."

"I... I was just so angry," Ginny replied, clutching her cup. "Why did he say that about Dad!"

But then, her expression changed to one of worry. "Kyle, do you think they'll fire Dad?"

"Don't worry, they definitely won't," Kyle assured her after thinking for a moment. "The Ministry of Magic just passed the new Muggle Protection Act, which Mr. Weasley initiated and pushed forward. If they fired him now, it would seriously damage the Ministry's credibility. Fudge wouldn't agree to that."

Ginny blinked, clearly confused.

"Okay, I'll put it another way," Kyle said, smiling. "Mr. Weasley has a lot of friends—including directors, deputy directors, and even members of the Wizengamot—who will support him."

This time, Ginny understood. She let out a long breath, her whole demeanor relaxing.

"Thank you, Kyle!"

"You're welcome. I was just telling the truth," Kyle replied with a casual wave of his hand. "But you know, that cauldron throw was really accurate. If it hadn't been stuffed with books, it probably would have hit Malfoy square on the head. Honestly, Ginny, you have the makings of a great Chaser."

"Too bad they don't let first years play Quidditch," Ginny laughed.

"You could always try anyway. I mean, Harry was an exception."

"But I heard Gryffindor doesn't need any Chasers right now..."

"True enough. We'll talk about it when you're in second year."

"Hey, you just said I should give it a try!" Ginny protested. "Why can't I be an exception like Harry?"

"I was just being polite... If it were me, I wouldn't have held back with an empty cauldron," Kyle said calmly.

Ginny gritted her teeth, looking like she was considering tossing the cauldron at Kyle's face just to prove how accurate her throw could be. But when she glanced down, she realized Kyle had already taken her cauldron at some point.

"I was just thinking about what to get you for school..." Kyle said as he pulled her old books from the cauldron. "How about a brand new set of textbooks?"

Ginny quickly shook her head. "No, no, that's way too expensive! I can use second-hand ones."

"It's decided then," Kyle said, not giving her a chance to argue. He stowed the old books away. "Though we'll have to wait a few days—Flourish and Blotts might not welcome us back just yet."

Ginny couldn't help but laugh. After all, thanks to them, several of the shop's bookshelves had been knocked over, spilling books everywhere. If it hadn't been for Hagrid, they probably wouldn't have been able to leave the store so easily.

...

After finishing their Butterbeers, everyone had calmed down significantly. Even the Grangers seemed at ease, letting go of the day's earlier tensions as they said goodbye to Mrs. Weasley with a smile. They were about to head back to the muggle street on the other side of the Leaky Cauldron, when Kyle handed Mr. Granger a large bottle of Sleekeazy's Hair Potion. He had plenty of them stashed in his bag, all intended for a certain professor, so giving one away didn't matter.

After saying their goodbyes at the bar, Kyle and the Weasley family moved to the fireplace and returned to The Burrow using Floo powder.

"Glad you got the names right this time, dear," Mrs. Weasley said, standing at the kitchen door, holding a coat brush and brushing the ashes off of them. "Very good, everyone's here…wait, why are there only eight of you? Where's Percy!"

It took a moment for everyone to realize that Percy hadn't returned with them.

"I remember he was reading in the Junk Shop," said Ron.

Harry nodded. "The book was called Prefects Who Gained Power."

Everything in the Junk Shop had been shabby, except for that book, which looked almost brand-new.

"Ha, that's classic Percy," Fred said, grinning. "He wants to be Head Boy…"

"Or Minister of Magic!" George added.

Mrs. Weasley ignored Fred and George's jabs. She put down the coat brush and sighed. "Oh dear, Percy must have lost track of time… And none of you thought to call him?"

"Who cares about Percy?" Ron muttered. "We thought you'd called him…"

Mrs. Weasley didn't respond. Instead, she simply grabbed another handful of Floo powder and tossed it into the fireplace. Truthfully, she'd forgotten too.

...

After Mrs. Weasley went back to retrieve Percy, Kyle declined Fred's invitation to play Quidditch in the woods and left The Burrow to head home. In his room, he locked the door and took out Ginny's stack of old textbooks. Tucked inside A Beginner's Guide to Transfiguration was a worn black notebook.

The faded date on the cover indicated it was from fifty years ago, blending easily with the old books. Anyone who glanced at it would assume it was just something left behind by a previous owner of the second-hand store.

Kyle took a deep breath and carefully opened the notebook. On the first page was a faintly written name:

"T. M. Riddle."

As he'd suspected, Lucius Malfoy had slipped the diary to Ginny, likely in an attempt to harm the Weasley family in some twisted form of revenge. Kyle drummed his fingers on the table, thinking. Lucius Malfoy might not have known the diary's true purpose, but he must have known it was dangerous—Voldemort's things always were. In other words, he hadn't cared at all about Ginny's safety.

Hagrid had been right. Lucius Malfoy was indeed a truly evil man.

Although he had paid a price for it, eventually. When Voldemort was resurrected, he discovered that the Horcrux he had hidden with the Malfoys had been damaged. Lucius Malfoy sacrificed almost all his wealth just to keep his family safe, but in the end, Draco was still forced to attempt to assassinate Dumbledore.

A student, not even fully trained, sent to kill Dumbledore... Clearly, Voldemort had never intended for him to succeed—or survive.

But all that was still far in the future.

For now, with the diary safely in Kyle's possession, Ginny could look forward to a normal school year. And as it happened, Kyle had a few questions he was eager to ask the young Riddle.