I'd like to say Happy Birthday to my friend Anna. She's a drum major for the Newton Cardinal Regiment, and she's amazing. My initial impression of her was off and I wish I could get to know this girl. Friday, she turns 18. She's officially an adult, and she'll make a wonderful woman.

Underlined=quotes from book

"It can't be Harry Potter?" shouted Lockhart. It can, and it is, thought Harry sarcastically.

The crowd parted, whispering excitedly; Lockhart dived forward, seized Harry's arm, and pulled him to the front. The crowd burst into applause. Harry's face burned as Lockhart shook his hand for the photographer, who was clicking away madly, wafting thick smoke over the Weasleys. The smoke stinks, too, thought Ginny.

"Nice big smile, Harry," said Lockhart, through his own gleaming teeth. "Together, you and I are worth the front page." Yeah, front page news: lying fake who's only famous for taking credit for other people's work poses for a photo in the Leaky Cauldron with the boy-who-lived, only famous because of a prophecy made before he was born and the rash actions of a man who overheard it. Harry hated Lockhart with a passion! Wow, Harry! I understand you don't like the man, but calm down, thought Ginny bemused. I will not calm down! He was just going to run away like the coward he is while you rotted to death in the chamber! Being evil is one thing, at least then we got to put DADA to real use! But all the coward got us was your soul being sucked away, a venomous fang in my arm that almost killed me, Ron and I separated by a wall of fallen rock, and Tom Riddle almost came back to life! I hate Lockhart, and won't regret it if his memory still gets wiped, thought Harry vehemently, all the while with a fake smile on his face. That hasn't happened yet, thought Ginny, so don't say anything to the others yet.

As Harry, with numb fingers, attempted to escape back to the Weasleys, Lockhart forcibly threw his arm around Harry's shoulders, locking him in place. Oh yeah, thought Harry, now he has to announce his new "teaching" position.

Ladies and gentlemen," he said loudly, waving for quiet. "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 –" The crowd applauded again. "He had no idea," Lockhart continued, giving Harry a little shake that made his glasses slip to the end of his nose, "that he would shortly be getting much, much more than my book, Magical Me. He and his schoolmates 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!"

As the crowd cheered about the announcement, Harry walked over to Ginny and deposited his giant pile of books into his wife's cauldron. He planned to buy his own set later, he didn't need charity from that man.

"Bet you loved that, didn't you, Potter?" said a voice Harry had no trouble recognizing. He straightened up and found himself face-to-face with Draco Malfoy, who was wearing his usual sneer.

Famous Harry Potter," said Malfoy. "Can't even go into a bookshop without making the front page."

"Leave him alone, he didn't want all that!" said Ginny, standing up for her husband. She glared at Malfoy and pulled out her wand, forgetting that she couldn't use her magic yet. You haven't even started school yet! Don't act like you know magic, Harry scolded her.

"Hahahaha! Got yourself a girlfriend, have you, Potter?" laughed Malfoy. Ginny looked back to Harry, who noticed Ron and Hermione attempting to fight their way through the crowd with their own stacks of books.

"So what if I have? That's better than you'll ever get! Even Pansy would never marry you!" Harry spat back at Draco. Ginny looked over at him, shocked! Did you just tell him I'm your girlfriend? thought Ginny. I guess I did, he thought curiously. Well, yikes! Let's see how this goes…

"You're dating the puny Weasel! Oh, ho! The press is going to love this! Just wait until I tell them!" Malfoy exclaimed, gloating over his newfound "blackmail" power.

"They already know, you fool! And you would've known too, if you had ever developed the ability to read!" Ginny spat back, loving the disappointed look on Malfoy's face.

With that, they walked away to the outside of the shop where the rest of the Weasleys were waiting for them. Ron opened his mouth, about to ask what that was all about, but Harry mouthed "tell you later" and Ron stayed quiet.

Sorry its still short. I'll try to update again on Anna's birthday, if I have time before my cross country team sleep-over. If not, the night before, or the day after, or maybe Sunday. I might just always have short chapters and edit later to combine them. What would you think of that?

R&R PLEASE