Harry Potter and the Time Fluke

Dating Disasters

"Hi, Harry." Harry forced a smile, which probably looked more like a grimace, if Tom's muffled laughter meant anything, and waved back. He had to admit, she looked nice that day. Her loose strawberry blonde curls were left to hang around her shoulders, and her bright saphire eyes were even brighter with anticipation. "You ready to go?" Harry nodded and politely extended his arm, which she immediately took hold of.

"Let's go." Harry didn't look back, but he could feel the eyes of his friends on his retreating form. He didn't want to see their expressions. It shouldn't be too bad, this date. Atleast I'll be able to buy Tom's gifts without him getting suspicious...

Aquila and he trudged from the castle up the dirt path towards Hogsmeade. There was no talk between them. For Harry, the silence was uncomfortable, but he guessed from the smile on her face, that Aquila didn't share the same sentiments as himself. When the pair reached the edge of town, they stopped. Harry still wasn't sure where he wanted to take Aquila, so he decided that asking the girl was probably best. "Where do you want to go first?"

Aquila frowned. She thought that Harry would've planned out the day already. She was an extremely attractive girl who had boys lining up for a chance to get with her, and she chose Harry. Wasn't that an honor? So why hadn't the Slytherin boy already decided what they were going to do? Unless, a little voice in the back of her head began, he's trying to win you over by letting you choose where to go first. Aquila smiled, pleased. She liked that idea. "Hmmm. Let's go to the robes shop next to Dervish and Bangs. I've been thinking, lately, that I need a new cloak since it'll be getting colder soon."

Harry nodded. "Lead the way." He didn't want to go shopping for clothes. It was stupid, in his opinion. He knew that Aquila already had at least three heavy winter cloaks; she didn't exactly try to hide the fact. Maybe she was just trying to impress him with her money since he was from a muggle orphanage? Harry snorted. It wouldn't work. He was, after all, a Potter in the 1990's, as well as Sirius' heir, and that meant he was entitled to a lot of gold.

They got to the robes shop, which turned out to be a Hogsmeade branch of Madam Malkin's. Harry didn't even know one of those existed, but he entered the tiny store anyway.

"Welcome!" said an over-enthusiastic sales lady when they entered. She pranced right up to Harry and Aquila. "My name's Avis, and I'll help you out today. Is there anything you're looking for in particular?"

"Yes," Aquila smiled at the hyperactive girl, "I'm looking for a new winter cloak, preferably one with a fur trim. Do you have any of those in stock?"

"Why yes we do! Right this way," she took Aquila's wrist and dragged her into the forest of clothes. Harry stared after them. The sales-girl was strange, but at least she'd gotten rid of the Aquila-problem. He chuckled in his head. Aquila-problem. Oh, he was definitely using that from now on whenever referring to the tiresome girl.

He didn't want to just stand there looking strange, so he began browsing the racks of clothes. Nothing in the store would be good enough for Tom, though. In the end, he would most likely by his friend a book or two and some candy. It was all he could afford on the little money Hogwarts provided for him, and Tom never complained. His face always broke out into a radiant smile every time he saw that Harry got him two presents. It was true that Abraxas, Orion and Dmitry also got multiple presents for Tom, but since Harry was the first to ever do so, that meant that the ones he bestowed on Tom were special in the older boy's eyes.

"How's this one, Harry?" He turned. It looked... exactly like every other cloak she owned. He really couldn't tell the difference.

"Very nice." He wasn't a fool. Better to pretend rather than offend.