Chapter 4: The New Kid and the Mysterious Diary
The end of the summer vacation came too quickly for the children's liking. Claire was dreading having to wake up at the crack of dawn to go to classes. Ron wasn't looking forward to the workload they'd get. Harry, though he was looking forward to getting back to Hogwarts, had the happiest time of his life at the Burrow and was dreading the sort of welcome the Dursleys would give him when he turned up on Privet Drive at the end of term.
On their last evening, Mrs. Weasley conjured up a sumptuous dinner that included all of Harry's favorite things, ending with a mouthwatering treacle pudding. Fred and George rounded off the evening with a display of Filibuster fireworks; they filled the kitchen with red and blue stars that bounced from ceiling to wall for at least half an hour. Then it was time for a last mug of hot chocolate and bed.
The next morning, it took a long while to get started for the day. They woke up at dawn, but somehow they still seemed to have a great deal to do. Claire and Ginny were packing their schoolbooks in their trunks.
"Here, Claire. I think this is your book." Ginny said throwing it on Claire's bed.
"Thanks," Claire put the book in her trunk before closing it. She stood up and surveyed the room to check if she was missing anything.
"Well, I think that's everything. You have all your supplies, Ginny?" Claire asked.
"Yep, I just can't get my trunk to shut." Ginny said.
Claire walked over and helped Ginny shut the trunk.
"Well, I don't know about you, but I'm starving. Let's go eat." Claire said.
They went down to the breakfast table and saw Fred, George, Percy, Ron, and Harry eating already. Claire sat next to Harry and Ginny sat next to Claire. After breakfast, Mrs. Weasley dashed about in a bad mood looking for spare socks and quills; people kept colliding on the stairs; and Mr. Weasley nearly broke his neck tripping over a stray chicken as he crossed the yard carrying Ginny's trunk to the car. Claire, Ron, and Harry followed Mr. Weasley to the Ford Anglia. Harry couldn't see how nine people, seven trunks, two owls, and a rat were going to fit into one small Ford Anglia. He had reckoned, of course, without the special features that Mr. Weasley had added.
"Not a word to Molly," he whispered to Harry as he opened the trunk and showed him how it had been magically expanded so that the luggage fitted easily. When at last they were in the car, Mrs. Weasley glanced into the back seat, where Claire, Harry, Ron, Fred, George, and Percy were all sitting comfortably side by side, "Muggles do know more than we give them credit for, don't they?" She and Ginny got into the front seat, which had been stretched so that it resembled a park bench. "I mean, you'd never know it was this roomy from the outside, would you?"
Mr. Weasley started up the engine and they trundled out of the yard.
"Wait! I forgot the Filibuster fireworks!" George exclaimed.
After returning to the Burrow to grab the fireworks, Fred said that he forgot his broomstick. By the time Fred came back, they were running very late, and tempers were running high.
Mr. Weasley glanced at his watch and then at his wife.
"Molly, dear-"
"No, Arthur-"
"No one would see-this little button here is an Invisibility Booster I installed-that'd get us up in the air- then we fly above the clouds. We'd be there in ten minutes and no one would be any wiser-"
"I said no, Arthur, not in broad daylight-"
They reached King's Cross at a quarter to eleven. Mr. Weasley dashed across the road to get trolleys for their trunks, and they all hurried into the station.
"Percy first," Mrs. Weasley said, looking nervously at the clock overhead, which showed they had only five minutes to disappear causally through the barrier.
Percy strode briskly forward and vanished. Mr. Weasley went next; Fred and George followed.
"I'll take Ginny and Claire and you two come right after us," Mrs. Weasley told Harry and Ron.
"See you on the train!" Claire said, before disappearing with Mrs. Weasley and Ginny.
When Claire appeared on Platform 9 and 3/4, she saw the familiar red train. She smiled feeling a bit excited to start this term. She decided to wait for Harry and Ron.
"Claire, dear, why don't you and Ginny go on the train. I'll send Harry and Ron, ok?" Mrs. Weasley said.
Claire nodded and she told Ginny to follow her. They pushed their way through the crowd to the train. They boarded the train and were looking for a compartment when Claire heard her name being called. She turned around and all she saw was bushy brown hair. Hermione was hugging her.
"Oh, it's so good to see!" Hermione released Claire from the hug. "Where's Ron and Harry?"
"They should be here any moment." Claire answered.
"Ok, well I already got us a compartment let's go." Hermione led them to the compartment. They sat down and waited for the boys to show up. Suddenly, they heard the clock strike eleven and they began to worry.
"Do you think they couldn't make it through the barrier on time?" Hermione asked.
"It's possible. We were running a bit late today." Claire said, staring out the window trying to see if she could spot the boys.
The train whistle blew and the train began to set off. As they disappeared from Platform 9 and 3/4, they knew something must be wrong.
"Maybe they did make it on the train and they're just sitting somewhere else." Claire said.
"I suppose anything's possible." Hermione said wearily.
Hermione then noticed Ginny. "Oh, how rude of me! Hello, you must be Ginny, Ron's little sister, right?"
Ginny nodded. "Nice to meet you. You must be Hermione."
"Yes, that's me." Hermione replied.
"Anything from the trolley?" The trolley woman asked standing outside their compartment.
They shook their heads and the woman disappeared.
"You're a first year, right?" Hermione asked Ginny.
"Yep." Ginny replied.
"Are you excited to start your first term?" Hermione said.
Ginny nodded. "I can't wait to start this year."
Claire, Hermione, and Ginny talked the whole way through the train ride to Hogwarts. Time seemed to go by extremely fast and they were suddenly at Hogwarts. Ginny said goodbye to Hermione and Claire before joining the other first years for the sorting. Hermione and Claire walked to the Great Hall both feeling worried about Ron and Harry's disappearance.
"I have a bad feeling." Claire said.
"Me too, I just hope we're wrong." Hermione said.
As they entered the Great Hall, Claire spotted Fred, George, and Percy.
"Maybe Ron's brothers have seen them. I'll go ask." Claire said.
"Fred, George, Percy!" The three boys turned their heads to Claire. "Have you seen Ron and Harry?"
"No, we haven't." The twins said in unison.
"They didn't come on the train?" Percy asked.
"If they had come on the train would I be asking where they were?" Claire said.
"Don't worry, they'll be fine. I bet they'll turn up any moment." Fred said.
Claire nodded. She then sat with them and Hermione sat down next to her.
"Did you hear?" George asked them.
Claire and Hermione were confused.
"Hear what exactly?" Hermione asked.
"There's a transfer student coming here this year. He's in your year." George said.
"Where'd he transfer from?" Claire asked.
"Durmstrang Institute." Fred said.
Claire's eyes widened. "You mean, that wizarding school that focuses primarily on the Dark Arts?"
"The very one." George said.
"Why would he want to come here?" Claire questioned.
The twins shrugged. Suddenly, the headmaster Dumbledore walked out. The Great Hall fell silent.
"Welcome to a new year at Hogwarts!" Dumbledore said. "Let us begin the sorting ceremony!"
The new first years walked into the Great Hall and Professor McGonagall began to call names. Claire spotted Ginny and waved to her. Ginny smiled and returned the wave. The sorting went by pretty fast. Within forty-five minutes, Professor McGonagall was already on last names beginning with L.
"Lovegood, Luna!" A girl with straggly, waist-length dirty blonde hair and protuberant silvery grey eyes that gave her a permanently surprised look, walked up to the sorting hat. She was wearing an eccentric, bulky necklace and earrings. When the sorting hat was placed on her head it exclaimed, "Ravenclaw!"
"That is one weird girl." Fred said.
"We're all weird in one way or another." Claire said.
When the last person was called Professor McGonagall began to speak.
"We have one more student to sort. He is a transfer student from Durmstrang Institute. He will be in second year. Saxton, Jason." A familiar brown haired, brown eyed boy went up to the sorting hat.
"Isn't that the boy from the bookshop?" Hermione questioned.
"He is. Now we know why he enjoyed watching others fight to the death." Claire said. "They practically teach that stuff at Durmstrang."
"Claire, you shouldn't be so quick to judge. Maybe he's not all bad." Hermione said.
"Yea, right. I believe that as soon as Lockhart actually does something heroic." Claire said.
"Slytherin!" The hat exclaimed.
The Slytherin table erupted into loud cheers as the boy, Jason made his way over to the table. As Jason walked to the table, he caught Claire's eyes and gave a smirk. Jason sat down at the table next to Malfoy.
"See, Hermione. I'm telling you there's nothing but pure evil within that dude. Look he's sitting next to Malfoy. That just proves my point." Claire said.
Hermione rolled her eyes. The sorting had finally finished and Dumbledore said a few words before dinner appeared. After they ate, Claire got the password from Percy and she and Hermione walked up to their common room. As Claire and Hermione walked to their common room, they spotted a familiar raven-haired and red-haired boy.
"There you are! Where have you been? We've been worried sick!" Hermione exclaimed.
"Skip the lecture," Ron said impatiently, "and tell us the new password."
"It's 'wattlebird,'" Hermione said impatiently, "but that's not the point-"
Her words were cut short, however, as the portrait of the fat lady swung open and Ron and Harry rushed up to their dorm.
"Well, that was rude." Claire said, as she and Hermione sat down on the couch in front of the fireplace. "Not even a hello or goodnight? I hope they crashed into Whomping Willow."
"Didn't you hear? They did." The Weasley twins appeared.
"They what?!" Claire and Hermione said in unison.
"They apparently used dad's Ford Anglia to get here because they couldn't get through the barrier. They ended up crashing into the Whomping Willow and Snape was furious. They almost got expelled, but I guess they didn't, seeing as they're still here." George said.
"Are they really that thick? Why didn't they just send a letter to Dumbledore or wait for your parents to come through the barrier?" Hermione questioned.
"Hermione, this is Ron and Harry we're talking about. I'm surprised they weren't seen in the flying car." Claire said.
"Oh, they were." Fred said. "That's another reason why they were almost expelled."
"Well, see you two later." George said.
"Try not to kill them tomorrow." Fred said.
The Weasley twins then disappeared to their dorm. Claire and Hermione decided to go to their room to start unpacking.
"At least they're not hurt." Hermione said, as they entered their dorm. Their other roommates weren't in the room yet.
"Yea, but not for long. I'm smacking them both upside the head tomorrow." Claire said as she opened her trunk and began pulling out clothes and textbooks. "I can only imagine how Mrs. Weasley is going to react when she finds out about this. I can't wait to see the look on Ron's face."
"I take it Mrs. Weasley gets scary when she's anger." Hermione said putting some of her clothes in her dresser.
"That's the understatement of the year. She makes Snape look like an angel." Claire said.
"That doesn't sound pleasant." Hermione stated.
"It's not." Claire then saw a strange book on her bed. She furrowed her eyebrows before picking it up. It had a hard cover and was black.
"Hermione, is this yours?" Claire asked, showing her the book.
Hermione looked at the book and shook her head. "No."
Claire flipped the book over and saw at the bottom a name in gold font: Tom Marvolo Riddle. Who is this person? She thought to herself.
"Claire, I'm going to take a shower." Hermione said, leaving.
"Ok." Claire said absentmindedly.
Hermione left Claire alone. Claire opened the book and the first page said Diary. She flipped to the next page and it was blank. She was curiously as to why it was blank. Well, maybe it's invisible ink? She thought. Claire reached into her trunk and pulled out a jar of ink and a quill. She sat down on her bed and dipped the quill in the ink. She wrote on the blank page My name is Claire Smith. Within seconds, the words disappeared and new ones appeared.
Hello, my name is Tom Riddle.
Claire was shocked. Did it just talk back to her? She had a bad feeling, but something made her want to reply back.
Hello. She wrote. No words appeared for a while.
Tell me about yourself. Tom wrote.
Claire couldn't ignore the nagging feeling that something was off. She quickly pushed it away though saying she was being ridiculous.
There's not much to say.
I find that hard to believe. Everyone always has an interesting story.
Claire hesitated before writing back.
Well, I was abandoned by my parents as a child.
I can relate. I, too, was abandoned as a child. I grew up in an orphanage. The children weren't very nice.
I'm sorry to hear that. I was fortunate enough to be taken in by my godparents.
Who are your godparents?
Arthur and Molly Weasley. They had seven children prior to taking me in. There were six boys and one girl.
Sounds like a full house.
Claire laughed.
It definitely was and it still is. Bill and Charlie have already moved out, but there's still five of us, six if you count me.
Are you close with them?
Yes, everyone except Percy. He is arrogant and big-headed. I don't like hanging around people like that.
Was it difficult growing up in a predominantly male household?
At times, but I guess I never really paid much attention to it because we always had fun. And I shared a room Ginny, the only girl child. And besides I'm not very girly. Ginny is like that too, which is probably why we get along really well.
What school do you go to?
I go to Hogwarts. Did you go there too?
Yes, what house are you in?
Gryffindor.
I was in Slytherin.
Oh, did you like it there?
Yes, I felt excepted. What about you? Do you like Gryffindor?
Yes, I have made really good friends here.
Who are your friends?
Ron Weasley, Hermione Granger and Harry Potter. Ron is one of my godparents' sons. He is the same age as me. He is like a brother to me. He eats alot. However, he can be stubborn at times. Hermione is incredibly smart, but can be a bit bossy at times. Otherwise, she is always there for me just like I'm there for her. Harry has a rough background. His parents were killed by a horrible wizard named Voldemort. His aunt and uncle took him in and they are absolutely horrible to him. This past summer Ron, his brothers, and I rescued him from them because they had barred his windows shut and locked him up in his room like a prison.
How did you manage to that?
Well, we took Ron's father's Ford Anglia which he charmed to fly. We were able to fly to Harry's house, take the bars off the window, and take him back to the Weasley's house for the rest of the summer. The only bad part was when Mrs. Weasley caught us and started to yell our ears off.
It sounds like you went through a whole lot of trouble for Harry. You must care for him.
Well, he is one of my best friends. He'd do the same for me. I would do the same for Hermione or Ron.
"Claire, what are you doing?" Hermione asked.
Claire jumped in fright. She placed a hand on her chest. "Geez, Hermione. Warn a person before you come in unannounced!"
"Sorry, I just-is that a diary?" Hermione questioned curiously.
"Yea," Claire said.
"You have a diary? That's surprising." Hermione said.
"How's it surprising?" Claire questioned.
"You just don't seem like the person who would want to write about their feelings." Hermione stated.
Claire shrugged. "Well, maybe I wanted to try to."
"That's a good idea. Maybe it would help with your anger issues." Hermione said, climbing into her bed and pulling the covers over herself.
"Yea-wait a minute, I do not have anger issues!" Claire exclaimed.
Hermione didn't reply. Claire rolled her eyes. She then noticed that her eyes felt suddenly really heavy. She yawned. She wrote in the diary: Sorry, Tom, I've just felt a wave of tiredness creep over me. I'll talk to you later. Good night. The words disappeared and Tom's words appeared. It's fine, I understand. It is important to get some sleep. Claire closed the book shut and placed it into her schoolbag. She put her quill and ink in her schoolbag too. She decided to shower in the morning. She threw on pajamas, turned off the light, and then crawled into bed. As soon as her head hit the pillow, she could no longer keep her eyes open. She drifted into a long, deep sleep.
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Well, what did you think of this chapter? I introduced a new character to this chapter: Jason Saxton. He is portrayed by Nick Jonas and Jack Donnelly from the BBC tv show Atlantis. Jason and his back story will be important to the story line. And also in this chapter you see that Claire has gotten a hold of Tom's diary. How do you think this is going to play out? What did you think of Claire's and Tom's conversation? All will be revealed soon. And don't forget the Silence will be making an appearance soon.
Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter or Doctor Who only what you don't recognize (backstories, original characters/plots). I also do not own the songs. All rights go to their original artists.