"Natural?" Lockhart's mouth curved into a pleased smile. "Then clearly we were destined to meet."
He seemed genuinely satisfied with Richie—this young fan whose looks actually reminded him a little of his own younger self.
"Our little Harry and little Richie came all the way to Flourish and Blotts to buy my autobiography, Magical Me. I'm delighted by their support. What they don't know yet is that I'm giving them the entire deluxe set—completely free."
The bookstore erupted in thunderous applause.
"Oh, how generous!"
"That moment is going straight in the history books!"
"Lockhart is the greatest wizard alive!"
Jeremy the clerk quickly pulled two pristine sets from the display and handed them over. Still smiling for the cameras, Lockhart passed the books to Harry and Richie.
The applause continued as Lockhart went on.
"But there's something even better coming their way soon—something more valuable than any book."
"That's right. Me."
He straightened up, radiating confidence. "Ladies and gentlemen, I am thrilled and honored to announce that this September I will be joining the staff of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry… as your new Defense Against the Dark Arts professor!"
He gave Harry and Richie a hearty shake. Harry's glasses slid down his nose.
A few young witches in the crowd squealed with excitement. The rest of the store broke into excited chatter.
"All right, madam, let's begin," Lockhart said once the reporter stepped back. His celebrity smile vanished. He gently but firmly pushed Harry and Richie out from behind the counter and turned to the first fan in line.
The signing had officially started. The crowd surged forward.
Harry and Richie were instantly swept aside.
"Ladies, please form a proper line!"
"No cutting! Pay at the counter first!"
Store clerks rushed to keep order.
"This feels awful," Harry muttered once they were clear of the crush. Mrs. Weasley had taken his books to get them signed, so he finally had a free hand to push his glasses back up.
"Tell me about it," Richie agreed. His own books were already with his dad.
They looked around. The Weasleys, Denton, and Hermione were all queued up, so the two boys drifted to a quiet corner to wait.
That was when Richie frowned and glanced upward.
On the second-floor balcony, a pair of eyes had been watching them. The moment Richie looked up, the watcher jerked back out of sight.
"Draco Malfoy," Richie said quietly.
Harry's head snapped around. "He's here too?!"
"Second floor," Richie confirmed.
Both boys wore the exact same expression: pure annoyance.
Harry couldn't stand Draco's constant sneering at his friends, the casual cruelty, or the way he'd ratted them out after their nighttime adventure.
Richie still remembered Draco's two goons trying to bully him—and the dragon-egg blackmail that followed (even if Richie had started that particular fight with a few well-chosen words).
Bottom line: neither of them had any patience left for Draco Malfoy.
Seeing the matching look on Richie's face made Harry feel even more certain they were on the same side.
A moment later Draco came down the stairs and stopped right in front of them.
"You must love this, don't you, Harry Pot-ter," he drawled, stretching the name like it tasted bad. "Famous Harry Potter can't even buy a book without ending up in the Daily Prophet."
He turned his narrowed eyes on Richie. "And you—Richie Harland, Ravenclaw's precious Seven-Pointed Star. Always hanging around with Gryffindors. Look at what you've become. Taming dragons? Saving lives? Trying to play the hero now?"
"Where's that famous Ravenclaw brain and cunning gone? You think you're some kind of savior too?"
Draco's tongue had gotten a lot sharper over the summer.
Richie raised an eyebrow, about to reply, when a small figure shot out from behind Harry.
"Don't you talk about Harry like that!"
It was Ginny.
The entire Weasley family had moved up behind them.
"Well, well," Draco smirked, taking a half-step back. "Is this your little girlfriend, Potter?"
Before he could say anything else, a silver snake-headed cane settled firmly on his shoulder.
"Remember your pure-blood manners, Draco."
Draco's expression instantly turned respectful. He stepped aside without another word.
A tall, elegant man now stood in front of them. His hair was a paler blond than Draco's, slicked back neatly. He wore expensive black robes and carried the silver cane with casual authority. His face wore the same cold, arrogant expression his son had practiced so often.
"Mr. Potter," the man said. His cool gray-blue eyes fixed on the lightning scar. He extended a pale hand. "Lucius Malfoy. Draco's father."
Out of politeness, Harry shook it.
"So we finally meet," Lucius murmured. There was something odd in his tone—half nostalgia, half something darker. He suddenly tugged Harry closer. Harry stumbled forward.
"Forgive me…" Lucius reached out and brushed Harry's fringe aside with two fingers, exposing the scar fully. "A legendary mark… left by a legendary wizard."
Harry's temper flared at hearing the man who had murdered his parents described that way.
"Voldemort killed my parents!" he snapped, eyes blazing.
Lucius flinched at the name.
Harry yanked his hand free and stepped back, anger still boiling. "He was a murderer!"
Lucius exhaled slowly. "How brave of you to say the name aloud. Foolish, perhaps… but brave."
"Anyone too frightened even to speak his name would be far more terrified if they ever faced him in person."
A new voice cut in from beside Richie.
Hermione had stepped forward.
Lucius turned, studying her with mild interest. "Ah. You must be Hermione Granger."
His gaze slid to Richie. "And you—Richie Harland. Draco has told me all about both of you."
"Your parents are Muggles, correct?"
He gave a small, pitying shake of his head.
"Some things are decided the moment you're born. No amount of effort can change that. Instead of trying to prove yourselves, you would be wiser to make the right choice when the time comes."
His eyes moved to the red-haired family behind them.
"And you… red hair, hand-me-down books, and that perpetually bored expression. You must be the Weasleys."