Chapter Nine: The Little Black Book
Ginerva Weasley decided she was one of the worst witches in the history of wizard kind; no, in the entire world, both Muggle and magical. The reason for this was very simple:
She had let her jealousy and anger overrule her until she had isolated herself from everyone near her, including her family at Hogwarts, and had been absolutely evil to everyone that tried to find out what was wrong.
When Ron had first started at Hogwarts, Ginny had been alone in the Burrow, excluding her mother and father, for the first time in her entire life. She reveled in the quiet and solitude for the first couple of weeks, but the loneliness began to set in and she began to look forward to the scarce letters that Ron sent home.
The letters were an added treasure for, besides hearing about Hogwarts, Ron wrote about becoming friends with Harry Potter. THE Harry Potter, the boy who defeated You-Know-Who when he was just a baby and was Ginny's idol ever since.
Even better were the ones that Ron had sent directly to her, the first lines always including a reference to the fact that Harry had told Ron to write to his little sister, which had only increased her admiration for the ebony-haired boy that had asked her mother how to get on the platform at 9 3/4.
Then came the incredible summer before school started, the summer where Ginny got her fondest wish and deepest desire granted; Harry Potter had come to stay with them, in her house!
When she first ran into Harry Potter, and she had quite literally ran into him, Ginny's initial reaction had been shock; she had overheard her brothers talking about a rescue attempt after Harry hadn't answered any of Ron's letters, but she had never thought that they would put it into action so soon. Her almost immediate reaction after that was horror at the thought that they might've been too late and that the boy standing in front of her might have been a ghost.
The Harry Potter of Ginny's imaginings had been tall, bronzed skinned and would see the girl past her six brothers, see something special in her that Ginny herself was looking for so she could stand out instead of being shadowed. This Harry was short and skinny, pale, and was Ron's best mate who only saw her as the little sister; all in all, nothing like she had thought. Then he smiled at her and Ginny felt herself blush all the way to her toes.
Despite the fact that the real deal was nothing like what she had imagined, Ginny wanted to prove to Harry Potter that she was just as good as her brothers, but every time she tried, she ended up mucking it up somehow.
Take, for example, when they had talked for the first time, she had been so desperate to make a good impression that she had started babbling like a complete ponce and then, when they had been playing Quidditch-something the boys had never included her in-Harry had complemented on the fact that she had decent Beater skills, she tried twirling her bat to impress him even more and ended up hitting Fred in the nose!
Determined to prove she wasn't some klutzy little girl, Ginny was on her guard on the trip to Diagon Alley; she watched every little step she took, made sure to speak the incantation to Diagon Alley clearly so she would be right there when Harry came out, so she could talk to him before her parents showed up and embarrassed her; Dad with his obsession on everything Muggle, Mom with her never-ending fretting. She should have known her plan was ruined from the start.
Not only was Harry not at the gate he was supposed to be, two minutes after they had found him-saved by Hagrid from Knockturn Alley, of all places-did an ebony-haired stranger throw herself into Harry's arms, cutting Ginny off from doing the same thing.
If that wasn't bad enough, as soon as they were finished hugging, Harry and Veronica-Ginny found out her name a few minutes later, as well as the fact that she was a Slytherin-spent the rest of the trip holding hands and walking together!
Everyone seemed to brush the fact that she was a Slytherin aside and Ginny, who had grown up with 'every single witch or wizard that went bad had been in Slytherin' resounding every day in her ears, could not understand why. It made it that much more unbearable, that Harry had someone like that as such a close friend, and she was from a house of Dark wizards and murderers.
So, instead of getting to know the boy who was her brother's best mate and her idol ever since she was four, Ginny spent most of her time locked up in her room, feeling depressed that she hadn't wowed Harry like she planned and succumbing to random bursts of anger as she got her things ready for Hogwarts.
It was during that time that she found it, found the thing that seemed to amplify every negative emotion she had when she held it. She had been holding it when Harry had invited her to a Quidditch game and she had snapped at him, nearly clipped his nose off and almost immediately felt bad about it as soon as she had set the journal down.
Ginny had first been curious as to where the diary had come form, but then remembered-this was one of the few times that she was actually in a good mood-that Harry had dumped all of his Gilderoy books into her cauldron. Maybe he had given it to her as a kind of gift...?
Maybe that also explained the eerie way that the journal seemed to draw her; the way everything seemed so horrible and that the only way she felt better was when that journal was tucked against her chest in her arms, jacket, shirt, whatever was the closest she could use. It had been nestled against her chest, between her shirt and jacket, when she had told Harry off for being friends with a ruddy Slytherin when everyone knew how evil they were... and she had just put quill to the first page when Harry had entered their compartment moments later with the very Slytherin they had been fighting so fiercely over.
Ginny did not start writing in the journal until her second day at Hogwarts, and it was then that she realized that it could not have come from Harry by the ratty edges and the gold inscription on the back that said it had previously belonged to a T. M. Riddle. Whether they were friends or not, Ginny was pretty sure that Harry wouldn't give anyone anything so ratty and obviously secondhand.
Having the diary's previous owner greet her when she began writing in it-and thank Merlin it hadn't been anything too personal-also confirmed Ginny's suspicions that this was not a gift from her brother's best mate and something different entirely. Something special, just for her.
Tom was just so understanding about everything that had been happening to her; it was then that she had agreed with Harry about not all Slytherins were bad and was even grateful to whoever had slipped the diary into her book. Having someone who understood what it was like to be constantly overlooked and pushed to the side made Ginny consider the boy in her journal her best friend; and, the fact that she could carry him in her pocket wherever she went, so she could have a listening ear anywhere at any time, made it all the more special.
Then the blackouts started to happen.
At first, Ginny thought it was just the stress of starting at Hogwarts with four older brothers, none of which had any time for their little sister who was having such a hard time making friends and could barely keep up in any of her classes. Then they started to occur more and more frequently, usually around the time she wrote in a certain black journal and they'd always end with her in weird places, completely covered in rooster feathers...
It was starting to scare her and the replies Tom wrote were beginning to sound less and less like the friend she had made and more like the git who was in Harry and Ron's year that pranced around with his nose in the air. It had scared her so badly that she had gone to the deserted girls' lavoratory on the second floor to get rid of the dairy, all under the disguise of looking for an absent Veronica.
Imagine her surprise when she actually found the girl!
Seeing the tear tracks that Veronica had missed wiping away sent a dim pang of regret to flow through Ginny, but it was overstepped by the pain in her rump from colliding into Veronica when she entered the girls' lavatory.
After getting over her momentary daze, Veronica immediately dropped to help Ginny pick up all the supplies that had fallen out her book-bag during their collision, making another twinge of regret hit Ginny as she asked the knee-jerk question of what Veronica was doing in the lavatory.
Myrtle's appearance startled Ginny just as much as it had Veronica and since the ghost-girl was well known for reveling in other's pain, Ginny was shocked at how personal Veronica took Myrtle's comment. It also made all regretful feelings she had for the girl disappear; Ginny Weasley was not one to be shouted at, especially if she had done absolutely nothing wrong!
Snapping out her excuse-that she had been helping Harry look for Veronica-Ginny spun on her heel and left the bathroom, clutching her ripped book-bag to her chest and wishing all Slytherins would suddenly develop boils; large, painful boils.
She just made into Gryffindor Tower a few seconds before Harry had and only stayed in the common room long enough to hear him tell Seamus and Dean that when they had finally found Veronica, she was acting 'a little off'.
Stomping her way to the First Years' dormitory, Ginny fumbled through her book-bag to stuff Riddle's diary in the bottom of her trunk until she could find a better time to get rid of it; only to find, after nearly tearing up the entire girls' room, that the journal was gone.
Racking her brain, Ginny tried to remember when she had last seen the diary; she knew she had it in Herbology and in Care of Magical Creatures... Ginny's heart began to race as she vaguely remembered sticking it in her book-bag before heading to Moaning Myrtle's bathroom, she was even doubling checking that it was there when she collided into the older girl.
Heart plummeting down into her stomach and pounding nearly twice as fast as before, Ginny realized that this could only mean one thing; Riddle's diary, and all of her deepest, darkest secrets were now in Veronica Dathey's hands.
Ginny was walking on eggshells for most of the next morning, just waiting for Veronica to make some remark on one of the things she had told Tom, but the Slytherin didn't even seem to notice anyone around her. As a matter of fact, Draco Malfoy had to call Veronica's name at least half a dozen times before she even acknowledged that she was being spoken to.
Looking over at Harry and Ron, Ginny considered telling them about Riddle and the diary, but she knew Ron would yell at her about 'trusting something that you couldn't see where it keeps its brain' and Harry would just go along with whatever Ron said. No help there...
Making up her mind, Ginny waited until the bell announcing classes tolled and made her way over to the Slytherin table, ignoring the whispers of 'blood traitor' and several more nasty comments as she caught up with Veronica.
"What do you want, Weaselette?" Malfoy drawled, somehow dragging Veronica's distracted attention to the fact that Ginny was standing toe-to-toe with Malfoy, matching sneer for sneer.
"Ginny?" Veronica blinked a few times and looked around the Great Hall as if surprised to find herself there, a feeling the youngest Weasley was very familiar with. "What are you doing over here?"
"I need to talk to you," Ginny replied urgently, eyes fixed on the black leather book tucked in Veronica's grasp. When Veronica noticed her gaze and tightened her grip on the diary, Ginny stressed, "It's important."
"Trying to find a way to make your family some money, Weaselette?' Malfoy sneered, causing several of his cronies to jeer and for Ginny's face to flame as her hands tightened to fists beside her. If talking to Veronica wasn't so important...
"Stuff it, Draco," Veronica muttered, not really paying attention to the group around her. Eyes scanning the Great Hall once more, Veronica leaned over to Ginny and whispered, "Can we talk at lunch? We have classes now and I have that detention with Professor Snape later..."
"You have only three minutes to get to your classes, children, I suggest you toddle off now," Professor Lockhart interrupted Ginny's answer as he began to push them toward the hallways and stairways, ignoring the disdainful looks the majority of the students were sending him.
Barely having time to nod her approval of Veronica's plan and see her nod in return, Ginny was all but thrown into her classroom by Professor Lockhart, much to Flitwick's annoyance and just in time for class to start.
They were suppose to be learning a simple charm that made sour drinks taste like chocolate-sadly, they couldn't apply it to medicines because it dulled the effect or something like that-but Ginny was so nervous about her upcoming confrontation with Veronica that all her drinks tasted like burnt chocolate, or still had the original drink lingering as an aftertaste.
Barely making it through the rest of her classes, Ginny all but barreled over her fellow Gryffindors on her way to the Great Hall in her haste to get the diary away from Veronica and down the nearest toilet or, better yet, in the nearest fireplace.
Unfortunately, as soon as Ginny spotted the ebony-haired Slytherin already sitting at her House table between Crabbe and Malfoy, Professor Snape decided to swoop in on Veronica before she could.
"Mrs. Dathey," Professor Snape growled, causing Veronica to look toward her Head of House, "It seems that Potter will be serving his detention tonight with Professor Lockhart due to his interest in the boy, instead of the original punishment."
Professor Snape's lip curled even more, obviously believing this was due to some sort of special standard that everyone was suppose to hold Harry to, but Veronica didn't even react to the news; as a matter of fact, she was blinked rapidly at Professor Snape like she forgot who he was as Harry glared at the back of Snape's head from across the Great Hall.
"Okay?"
Professor Snape sneered down at the girl in front of him, who now looked as if the whole conversation was going in one ear and out the other, hitting nothing in between. "You will be serving your detention with me tonight as usual, Dathey. Just because the other teachers deem to have favorites, do not expect me to do the same, even if you are a student from my House. I will not allow any more leniency toward you children than what my peers already heap on Potter's enlarged head-"
Ginny could see Veronica zoning out as Professor Snape decided to indulge in his favorite subject; detailing the many flaws of Harry Potter as said boy's glare grew darker. Ginny didn't understand why he seemed to hate Harry so much, and there were even Sixth and Seventh Years who had never seen him reacted so hatefully toward a student before...
Deciding to figure out Professor Snape's utter loathing for Harry later, Ginny tuned into his rant just in time for Veronica to be snapped at, asking if she had been paying any attention to a word being said.
Veronica jumped, clearly not paying any mind as she nearly knocked Malfoy off his seat next to her, causing the pale boy to give her a little push, almost as if he was trying to get her to pay attention. Gathering her bearings from the collision, Veronica stammered, "Y-yes, Professor Snivelly."
You could hear a pin drop; Professor Snape was looking at Veronica like she was Harry reborn as a female, all the students sitting near her had scooted down several seats so they wouldn't get caught in the explosion that was sure to happen and, from across the Great Hall, Harry, Ron and the twins were looking at Veronica in something very close to awe while the female herself jaw dropped when she realized what she said.
Ginny, however, felt sick to her stomach as she remembered that nickname being told to her as well when she had mentioned to Tom how mean-spirited and bigoted a certain teacher she had was. It was right after her first class in Potions, and she had been feeling particularly soar because Harry was chatting with Veronica a few feet down the hall from her. Tom's comment about Snape's habit to sniff whenever she was around had made her feel better, at the time...
Veronica seemed to have begun writing in the small black book she had found in the girls' lavatory, and Ginny was now more worried about the girl being Cursed than getting the diary away from her.
Professor Snape's face was splotchy with color and it looked like a blood vessel in his head was going to pop as he leaned down over the Slytherin table with the air of a vulture over a dying animal. Veronica shrunk away from his towering form, but there was only so far she could go before falling off of the bench
"Detention, Mrs. Veronica Dathey, for the rest of the month." There was a few-namely half of the students-outcries of disbelief that this was all the punishment Veronica was going to get until Professor Snape took a breath to continue, "You will be cleaning, mulching, and fertilizing the Whomping Willow under Professor Sprout's care. By hand. No magic."
The enchanted ceiling of the Great Hall almost caved in from the collective gasp that followed Professor Snape's detention; the Whomping Willow was a vicious tree that swung at anybody that looked at it crossed-eyed, a pretty impressive feat for something without eyes of its own. To be told to take care of it was every students' worst nightmare, as a matter of fact, it was a popular threat by Professor Sprout to get her more disobedient students to behave.
Veronica, of course, knew this and had opened her mouth to complain when the look on Professor Snape's face told her that her punishment was not negotiable. Swallowing hard, Veronica nodded once and Professor Snape made his way to the Head Table, where it looked like a sudden bout of coughing had broken out.
Not wasting another minute in case Veronica was bombarded with students that wanted to either congratulate her on insulting Professor Snape without dying or ask her why she did something so stupid-Malfoy was looking at her like he wanted to do both-Ginny walked over to the Slytherin table, grabbed the older girl by the arm and pulled her out of the Great Hall and into a vacant classroom.
"Now," Ginny sighed, locking the door and turning to Veronica, who was looking much more alert as she glanced around the empty room, "Let's get started."
"Yes," Ginny was suddenly struck by the thought that maybe locking the door wasn't such a good idea as Veronica focused on her with a smile that sent shivers up Ginny's spine. "let us."
A/N; I got a review that said that my characters seemed to be acting a bit extreme for only twelve and eleven year olds. There are two reasons for this;
One, it's been a long time since I was eleven years old and don't really remember how to write that kind of character.
Two, as I hope to explain in this chappie, Riddle's diary acts as a sort of amplifier for negative emotions, making the person more willing to write in the diary and give Riddle a body from their stolen energy
Anyway, please feel free to tell me how I'm doing and I'll try to get better....
As always, read and review!
