I know I haven't updated in a long time, and for those of you who added this story to your Story Alert: THANK YOU. I think the writer's block is gone for a little while, hence I'm taking advantage of it. But, don't forget to read AND review. It helps me as a writer to hear from my readers. And now, on with the story.

….

Chapter Six: A Stolen Look

Once downstairs, Maddie, Hermione, and Ginny waited for Tonks, who was taking an abnormal amount of time to prepare for their outing. While waiting, the girls took individual turns sitting on the floor, standing, and pacing, their patience proving to be short. Finally, after what seemed to be endless minutes, Tonks finally appeared before them, smiling. Hermione sighed and stood, excited to get out of the house for a little while. "Well then, now that Tonks is finally ready, maybe we can get going."

Tonks brushed a bit of dust from her jacket, still smiling. "Sorry I took so long. I guess my nap went a little over, eh?"

Ginny laughed. She had many fond memories of Tonks taking abnormally long naps, and she wasn't surprised one bit. "This isn't new," she said to Maddie, who was standing next to her. Maddie didn't mind waiting, because she was in no rush. Tonks rolled her eyes playfully at Ginny's comment as she walked past them, opening the door and walking out. Ginny, Hermione, and Maddie all followed her, Maddie shutting the door behind them.

If there was one place—other than her now destroyed home—that wasn't unfamiliar to Maddie, it certainly was Diagon Alley. Maddie had gone on countless trips with her parents, and she had many fond memories in many of the different shops. Of course, while they were there, Maddie stopped at Madam Malkin's Robes Of All Occasions. She needed new robes for everyday usage, and she also liked to visit Madam Malkin, who supposedly had fond memories of Maddie when she was a child. While they were in Diagon Alley, they also went to Ollivander's, where Maddie was able to get a new wand; 10 ¼ inches, willow, and swishy, apparently good for charm work. It made sense, since Maddie had always been gifted with charms, just as her mother had been.

While still in Diagon Alley, the girls were walking together in the following order: Maddie and Tonks leading and walking side by side, with Hermione and Ginny walking behind them in the same fashion. The group was able to cut through the voluminous crowds with ease, and it also made their trip much faster. At one point, the sign for Flourish and Blotts Bookstore caught Maddie's eye, and she instinctively headed straight for it. When Tonks saw Maddie's departure from the corner of her eye, Tonks' head snapped toward Maddie. "Maddie, where on earth are you going?" she asked, concerned for Maddie's safety. She knew that at any time, Death Eaters could have been watching, and it was her job to make sure Maddie was not harmed in any way.

"I'm just going to take a look," she shouted above the crowd, her head turned toward Tonks. "I'll only be a minute." With that, Maddie continued on her way, soon stepping through the front doors with a giddy feeling going through her body. She had always loved books, ever since she was a child. Her room back home had a couple of bookshelves stuffed with books, as much as the structures could possibly hold. She liked reading books on a number of subjects, preferring to sit outside under a tree in her front yard. As far as she was concerned, it wouldn't hurt to see if she could find a book that would help her to restart the collection she had recently lost.

Maddie happily began to wander through the various bookshelves, all of which were stuffed to the brim with books on every subject possible in the wizarding world. She knew that she would return here soon for her schoolbooks, which made her excited. For now, she only planned on finding something that would interest her, to give her something to read during her stay at Grimmauld Place—however long that would actually prove to be.

While she was searching, her eyes came across a copy of Famous Potion Makers and Their Potions by Siberius Portman. She hadn't read this book yet, and potions was one of her favorites subjects in school. Interested, she picked it up and leafed through it, scanning it over to see if it was truly worth buying. It was no more than a couple of minutes later that her concentration was broken by the sound of a book falling over. Maddie's head snapped toward the sound, where her eyes fell upon a young man. From the looks of things, he was about her age, and her height. His hair was a silvery blond, and he was quite skinny. Maddie couldn't take her eyes off of him for a minute, as she tried to assess just what had happened. The young man meanwhile picked up the book, and with a few mumbled words, set it back on the stack it had come from. His head turned to look at her, and soon she felt like his icy blue eyes were staring into her brilliantly dark blue-grey ones. She couldn't turn away then, and so their eyes were locked for a few moments, until a voice shattered the concentration of both of them.

"Draco, come son. We're leaving."

Seconds later, a taller woman, with the same silvery blond hair, and a blank expression on her face, appeared behind the young man. Maddie quickly looked away, not wanting to seem out of place. She instead kept looking through the book. When she looked up again, the young man and his mother were gone. Maddie quickly took the chance to pay for her book and leave the shop, where the rest of her group was waiting for her.