Part of Your World| D.M., M.R., C.D., H.P., F.W., G.W., and N.L.

Chapter 39- The Man, The Myth, The Liar

As we ran towards Flourish and Blotts, we noticed the gigantic group of women about Mrs. Weasley's age standing near the door. Yuck, they were all here for Gilderoy Lockhart's book signing. A large banner stretched across the upper windows of Flourish and Blotts saying:

Gilderoy Lockhart

will be signing copies of his autobiography

MAGICAL ME

Today 12:30 p.m. to 4:30 p.m.

"Mum must be excited," George muttered. The three of us pushed and shoved our way through the crowd, trying to get in. Angry ladies pushed back at us and yelled about how we were "dumb kids with no real appreciation" for such a great man like Gilderoy Lockhart. Ha, great man my butt.

The moment we entered the shop, my poor ears heard his voice say, "It can't be Harry Potter?"

My gaze shot to the front of the crowd and I watched as Gilderoy began to dive forward to drag Harry up with him. I knew Harry was very nervous and didn't want the attention, which gave me a strange burst of energy. Time seemed to slow and I managed to dart forward and dodge all the women, grabbing Harry's arm right as Gilderoy did.

When Gilderoy tried to tug Harry up, I tugged Harry back. Gilderoy Lockhart seemed to be shocked at what I was doing, but did his best to maintain a smile for the cameras.

"Harry," Gilderoy whispered softly, "tell your girlfriend to let go of you."

I stared Gilderoy in the eye and whispered back, "No. Don't talk to him, talk to me directly."

"You know what? Come join us," Gilderoy said with a smile, tugging harder than I expected. Because I wasn't expecting the amount of strength he had, I wasn't prepared to be pulled onto the platform with Harry.

As the cameras clicked away, I froze in fear. Honestly, I felt really comfortable at Hogwarts with all my friends and characters I knew, but that didn't mean I was some social person or an extrovert. My whole body began to tremble, and I felt like my throat was closing up. I wasn't meant to be here, cameras clicking away, taking pictures for the front cover. I was just a reader that ended up in the Harry Potter universe.

Being a reader, I was also an introvert and a person with social anxiety. So, having pictures taken of me scared the crap out of me. I felt like a deer in the headlights.

I was snapped out of it when I suddenly felt someone squeeze my hand tightly. It was Harry. I had forgotten we were even holding hands. He was squeezing my hand because he could feel how scared I was, and he felt the same. I managed to stop looking afraid and I smiled gently at the cameras.

Gilderoy Lockhart waved his hand over everyone, signaling them to be quiet.

"Ladies and gentleman, there couldn't be a more perfect time to announce a surprise I have kept hidden for a while," the man stated. The crowd began to murmur excitedly.

"You see, when Harry and..." he stared at me for a little bit, trying to figure out what to call me. He glanced at my hand and I looked down, realizing Harry and I's fingers were still laced together quite tightly.

"You see, when Harry and his girlfriend," Lockhart said, causing the crowd to whisper in confusion and surprise. Wait, he just called me Harry's girlfriend?! Oh no, that meant everyone in the shop, everyone at Hogwarts, and the entire Wizarding World would now know me as "Harry Potter's girlfriend"!

"When they both stepped into Flourish and Blotts, they only wanted to buy my autobiography—"

"Pfft, load of crap..." I muttered to myself. Gilderoy heard this and side-eyed me. Oops, I said that too loud.