Take This to Your Grave and I'll Take It to Mine

Chapter One

Dear Diary,

Luna got me a diary for my birthday the other day, so I decided to write in it. I need a place to put my thoughts (I say that like I have a lot of them. I suppose I do, but most of them are rambly sentences like this one...). My name is Amber-Lynn Zabini. Yes, I am Blaise's twin, but I'm not an imbecile like him (watch, as I spell 'imbecile' wrong...). Um, I'm short, kind of tan, have brownish blonde hair and ocean blue eyes. Not much to me really. I hate my blood-family. As far as I'm concerned, they aren't my real family; we share the same blood, that's all. My brother's parents (my biological parents) are never home; they hate me anyways. Not that I care, I hate them too. In reality, I have one parent, Chris Lovegood. Let's see...ah yes, the lists (as Luna calls them).

"The Top 10 Reasons Why My Blood Relatives Hate Me"

1. I'm a Ravenclaw, the first Zabini ever to be a Ravenclaw.

2. I refuse to be a Death Eater or have anything to do with them or The Dark Lord.

3.I don't sleep around. My parents think I'm a lesbian because of it. They're homophobes.

4. I'm friends with Luna. She's not pure-blood, pretty much though. There has only been ONE Muggle in her WHOLE family! The Muggle isn't very close to Luna, but the Zabini's think either your family has all purebloods or they are "contaminated"

5. I don't live with them, but why would I live with people who hate me?

6. I don't like Draco Malfoy. I LOATHE him, therefore, I must be a lesbian (Their reasoning).

7. I live with the Lovegoods. They don't have a mansion, and Chris isn't married. Well, he was. Serene died when Luna was six.

8. I'm interested in playing Quidditch, and I'm female. That's bad; leave all the Quidditch-playing to the men. I should be snogging the players not being a player (according to my blood-relatives, the ones I wish to divorce.)

9. I'm not shallow--I'm open-minded. I get good grades in Transfiguration, and I'm friends with Gryffindors. I'm, "on the wrong side," of the war, etc. (Things they've said).

10. I hate Slytherins. They are all gits. They are obsessed with themselves and shagging each other; why should I like them?

"The Top 10 Reasons I Hate My Blood Relatives"

1. They are Slytherins (see reason 10).

2. I like being a Ravenclaw--I like Luna--I like my life the way it is. They want to change it, and turn me into a Slytherin type girl. Like that will happen!

3. I was abused by my father when I was younger. He was always drunk, still is, come to think of it!

4. They hate the Lovegoods because there was ONE muggle in their family!

5. I don't take any crap from guys. They raised me to be a "trophy wife." Yeah, right, it's not going to happen!

6. I have an arranged marriage to Draco Malfoy, thanks to them. Need I say more?

7. My biological parents are never home. If they are home, they are drunk .

8. They think I should get all perfect grades because I'm, "in that house." I don't get perfect grades, yet, because my blood-brother is in Slytherin, he is allowed to flunk out of Astronomy.

9. I have an attitude. They think women should be seen, not heard.

10 They are Slytherins; all they think about is themselves and shagging each other.

As much as I love Luna, she is too cheerful sometimes. I really don't know how she is happy 24/7, but that's Luna for you. I'm not sure 'happy' is right, but it's as close as I can get.

Speaking (or writing) of Luna, you probably wish to know why I live with her. Well, as you will find out, my father was abusive. I won't get into details, but it was really bad right before I started Hogwarts. I met Luna on the train. Ah, what fond memories...as you know, we ended up in the same house and hit it off immediately. She didn't notice my bruises until the end of first year. She was really concerned, but I wouldn't tell her what they were from. I didn't tell her until the middle of second year. By then, my "parents" could care less what happened to me.

~*~Flashback~*~

"Hey, Amber! Um...Do you have plans this summer?" A shyer, smaller version of my best friend asked.

"No...Why?" I remember asking Luna.

"Well, I was wondering...it would be ok if you didn't want to...but... do you want to stay the summer at my house? Dad says it's alright." The apples of Luna's cheeks turned red while she talked. I could clearly see she was nervous; I was her only friend. Well, she was mine.

"Yeah! I'd love to!" I said, breaking out my quill and some parchment. I scribbled a letter to my parents, telling them I wasn't returning this summer and ran off to the Owlery with Luna. The rest is history.

~*~End Flashback~*~

I ended up moving in once Chris (Luna's father. I've always thought of him to be mine as well) found out about my family life. Technically, my "parents" have custody of me, but they don't want me, not like Chris does. He treats me like I belong with them; like I've always been a part of their family. They both welcomed me with open arms when I moved in. I am eternally grateful of that.

I love Hogwarts. It's my sixth year here. Some Gryffindors, Ravenclaws and Hufflepuffs didn't return this year, due to Dumbledore's murder. Chris let us decide, so here we are. We want to continue our education, and we could never leave Hogwarts for good. It's our second home! Sadly, all the Slytherins stayed; every single one of them. There aren't any first years in that house though.

Why do I love Hogwarts? I get to play Quidditch, sneak off to the Astronomy Tower with Luna, go to Hogsmeade, and be in Dumbledore's Army (The DA for short). Harry teaches it twice a week. Thanks to Harry, I can now produce a Patronus, a raven! My thoughts on Harry...Well, I fancy him, a lot, more than a lot. I feel like I could just melt during a few DA meetings when we catch each other's gaze. I don't think I'm his type; he likes girls like Cho and Ginny. I'm just not like them.

I love everything about this place! The way my dorm looks out at the Lake, the teachers, the atmosphere; I can't really describe it. You'd have to experience it for yourself.

The first Quidditch Practice of the year was last night, in the rain, no less. Despite the fact my hair was tied back, a clump of my caramel-colored hair danced in front of my face during practice. Our Quidditch teams vary by house at Hogwarts. The Ravenclaw team is mostly girls, while the Slytherin team is big, stupid boys like Crabbe and Goyle (And Blaise). The Hufflepuffs have only two girls (Susan Bones and Hannah Abbott), but they just aren't good at Quidditch. If Quidditch was played in a greenhouse, not on brooms, and involved plants instead of enchanted balls, then they would be awesome at it. I love Gryffindors style of playing. It's unique; so much so, I don't think I can describe it. You'd need to witness it, really. Gryffindors got a great team this year (Harry as captain), with a nice mix of genders.

I love to fly in the September rain. It's a refreshing way to end the day. I have a hard day at school, and then I play Quidditch in the rain, take a warm shower, get into my cozy pajamas, sit in the common room, and catch up with Luna, who is usually curled up in an overstuffed armchair. Luna's a Chaser with me now! It took four years of persuasion, but I did it! Quidditch practice is so much more fun now that she's on the team! I don't have to hang out with Cho Chang anymore. She's OK once in a while, but she gets on my nerves, fast. Very fast.

I have "Astronomy Homework" (meaning: Luna and I are sneaking off to the Tower!). Later!

~Amber