A Second Shot by Adrian

Rate: T

Summary: A study in how one act changes everything, and exactly how dangerous a book can be. Begins in Harry's second year, Harry, instead of Ginny, comes into possession of the diary.

Disclaimer: All rights to the Harry Potter series go to Jo; any delusions that I may have about owning any portion of the plot or characters are precisely that, DELUSIONS. Also, a portion of this chapter is taken straight from the book.

A/N: I apologize for the delay, and the change of account. I hope it hasn't been too much of an inconvenience and appreciate that you are continuing to read.

Also, I made very minor changes to this first chapter. Chapters two and three have been changed more extensively. I had to reconstruct them a bit, especially three, to accommodate my new (and much more complete) plot.

Harry pushed his way through the crowd of brainwashed, hormonal, middle-aged women that swarmed the book store in a manner similar to that of moths clustering towards a light until he spotted Ginny standing next to her empty cauldron. He shoved his way over, avoiding the Daily Prophet reporter, until he was standing next to her and proceeded to dump all of the books into the convenient emptiness that makes the cauldron a cauldron and not a useless block of metal.

Harry mumbled to her, "You have these. I'll buy my own – "

***Beginning of J.K.R's portion, taken from Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets Chapter Four***

"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 book-shop without making the front page."

"Leave him alone, he didn't want all that!" said Ginny. It was the first time she had spoken in front of Harry. She was glaring at Malfoy.

"Potter, you've got yourself a girlfriend!" drawled Malfoy. Ginny went scarlet as Ron and Hermione fought their way over, both clutching stacks of Lockhart's books.

"Oh, it's you," said Ron, looking at Malfoy as if he were something unpleasant on the sole of his shoe. "Bet you're surprised to see Harry here, eh?"

"Not as surprised as I am to see you in a shop, Weasley," retorted Malfoy. "I suppose your parents will go hungry for a month to pay for all those."

Ron went as red as Ginny. He dropped his books into the cauldron, too, and started toward Malfoy, but Harry and Hermione grabbed the back of his jacket.

"Ron!" said Mr. Weasley, struggling over with Fred and George. "What are you doing? It's too crowded in here, let's go outside."

"Well, well, well – Arthur Weasley."

It was Mr. Malfoy. He stood with his hand on Draco's shoulder, sneering in just the same way.

"Lucius," said Mr. Weasley, nodding coldly.

"Busy time at the Ministry, I hear," said Mr. Malfoy. "All those raids . . . I hope they're paying you overtime?"

He reached into Ginny's cauldron and extracted, from amid the glossy Lockhart books, a very old, very battered copy of A Beginner's Guide to Transfiguration.

"Obviously not," Mr. Malfoy said. "Dear me, what's the use of being a disgrace to the name of wizard if they don't even pay you well for it?"

Mr. Weasley flushed darker than either Ron or Ginny.

"We have a very different idea of what disgraces the name of wizard, Malfoy," he said.

"Clearly," said Mr. Malfoy, his pale eyes straying to Mr. and Mrs. Granger, who were watching apprehensively. "The company you keep, Weasley . . . and I thought your family could sink no lower –"

There was a thud of metal as Ginny's cauldron went flying; Mr. Weasley had thrown himself at Mr. Malfoy, knocking him backward into a bookshelf. Dozens of heavy spellbooks came thundering down on all their heads; there was a yell of, "Get him, Dad!" from Fred or George; Mrs. Weasley was shrieking, "No, Arthur, no!"; the crowd stampeded backward, knocking more shelves over; "Gentlemen, please – please!" cried the assistant, and then, louder than all –

"Break it up, there, gents, break it up –"

Hagrid was wading toward them through the sea of books. In an instant he had pulled Mr. Weasley and Mr. Malfoy apart. Mr. Weasley had a cut lip and Mr. Malfoy had been hit in the eye by an Encyclopedia of Toadstools. He was still holding Ginny's old Transfiguration book. He thrust it at her, his eyes glittering with malice.

"Here, girl – take your book – it's the best your father can give you –" Pulling himself out of Hagrid's grip he beckoned to Draco and swept from the shop.

***End of Copied Portion***

Harry's eyes narrowed as he watched the exchange; his seekers observational power catching the slight-of-hand as Mr. Malfoy gave back Ginny's Transfiguration book along with another slimmer book that had not previously been in Ginny's possession. From what he knew, anything involving Mr. Malfoy and the Malfoy family was probably something sinister and dangerous; Harry resolved to get it from Ginny when they got back to the Burrow.

It was a subdued group that headed back to the Leaky Cauldron, where Harry, the Weasleys, and all their shopping traveled back to the Burrow by Floo powder while the Grangers headed out to muggle London.

Harry took off his glasses and put them safely in his pocket before helping himself to Floo powder. It definitely wasn't his favorite way to travel.

Arriving back at the Burrow, Mrs. Weasley sent them all to put away their new school things. After quickly dumping his purchases onto his bed, Harry decided to take his chance at retrieving the mysterious book from Ginny. Making his excuses to Ron, he sprinted down the stairs to Ginny's room. Stopping at the door, he paused slightly before quietly knocking and waiting. The door opened almost immediately to reveal Ginny who promptly turned a deep tomato red at the sight of Harry.

Forcing his slightly anxious facial expression into a small smile Harry said, "Hey Ginny, I . . . uh, think I may have gotten one of my books mixed in with yours, so . . ."

Blushing even more, Ginny stuttered, "Oh . . . um . . . I, uh, guess you can come in and look for it."

Harry stepped inside the small, yellow room which was decorated in a fashion that he could not quite associate with the shy Ginny he was accustomed to. The desk was placed by the window that overlooked the field they had used to play Quidditch. Harry's attention turned toward the cauldron that was perched on top of the bed. Hurrying over, he quickly shuffled through the smiling Lockhart books until he found the Transfiguration book, and there, tucked between the pages, he found the small, black book. Taking it, he turned the blushing red head and muttered a soft, "Thank you," before fleeing the embarrassing situation and heading back up the stairs towards Ron's room.

Ron was still in his hideously orange room when Harry arrived, so Harry hid the book in his trunk before adding his school books and other purchases on top of the previous year's disorganized mess.

Mrs. Weasley's voice reached them from the kitchen as she called everyone to dinner. Vowing to himself to investigate the book later, Harry slammed his trunk shut and went to go join the chaos of a Weasley family meal.