Another month and a half went by. Ariana went to classes, finding herself with greater affinity for Charms than she had originally realized. She had also become rather good at Potions, but the class was still awful, because Snape still hated her for reasons she guessed she would never understand. Ginny claimed he had saved Harry's life last year, so maybe he wasn't a bad person, but he sure seemed like one. Meanwhile, the mandrakes grew closer to being ready to restore everybody who had been petrified. Everything was going to be okay. Ginny had decided to let Harry keep the diary, saying he would never let it control her as she had. Ariana wasn't sure about that reasoning, but she trusted Ginny. And indeed, nothing had happened. No attacks or anything. But by the beginning of May, Ginny had changed her mind.

"Are you sure about this?" Ariana asked, rather concerned with her friend's plan.

Ginny nodded. "I am. It's not safe to trust anyone with the diary, even Harry. I have to do something."

"Then go to an adult! Or at least just warn Harry that the diary is dangerous." This seemed like a remarkably bad idea.

"Look. I need to get that diary back."

"And what if you do another attack?"

"I won't. I'll be able to handle it this time."

"Are you sure about that?"

"No, but I know it's dangerous, which gives me a better chance than anybody else."

"Why can't you just talk to Harry?"

"Because. He wouldn't understand."

"Ginny, he's a reasonable guy. I think he would understand that the diary is dangerous."

"No... he wouldn't understand why he can't turn me in."

"I think he would."

Ginny looked at her. "Really?"

"Yes. Really." She was jumping to conclusions here, but still. "He loves it at Hogwarts too. I think he would understand your fears about getting kicked out."

Ginny thought about for a minute. "He'd still tell Ron. And Ron would tell Percy, and the twins, and Mum and Dad would find out, and I'd be in so much trouble... please, Ariana. I'll get rid of it again."

"You promise?"

"Yes. I promise."

Ariana sat in the common room reading a book, and looked up when Harry came running in frantically. "Hermione!" he said.

She looked up. "Yes?"

"Someone broke into the boys' dormitory. Just my area. My things are all strewn about the floor."

She gasped. "Who would do that?"

"I don't know. But Hermione... there's only one thing missing."

"What?"

"The diary." Ariana bit her lip and did not say anything.

"Oh." Hermione's mind seemed to be racing at a mile a minute. "It has to be a Gryffindor. Nobody else knows the password."

"But why would a Gryffindor do this? Why would anyone, for that matter, but someone in our house?"

"I don't know, Harry."

Ariana looked back down at her book, but she couldn't focus on reading. There was a knot in her stomach.

The next morning was the Quidditch match between Gryffindor and Hufflepuff. Ariana still wasn't entirely thrilled by Quidditch; she'd much rather be on a broomstick herself. But these matches were a fine way to spend a Saturday morning. Ginny was supposed to be meeting her at the match, but she couldn't find her anywhere, and the knot in her stomach from last night returned with greater intensity. The stands were full of basically the entire school, the match was about to begin, and still, no Ginny.

Her thoughts were interrupted when Professor McGonagall stepped onto the field.

"There has been another attack." The professor's words rang through the stands, and Ariana's blood froze to ice. Ginny hadn't gotten rid of the diary like she had promised. She had succumbed to it yet again. Another innocent person was petrified, and Ariana couldn't help but feel partially responsible for not trying harder to stop Ginny. She had trusted the person who was her only friend, and it had resulted in someone being turned to stone.

As everyone got up to go back to their common rooms, Ariana saw Professor McGonagall walking somewhere, followed by Harry and Ron. If they were the ones she was taking with her... no, it couldn't be. But Hermione was a Muggleborn. It very well could be. She had to find Ginny. Surely, now, Ginny would tell Professor Dumbledore. Surely now she would understand. Otherwise... she didn't know what she could do.

"Ginny!"

She was sitting on her bed, almost as still as the people she-no, the boy in the diary-had petrified. "Hi."

"Another attack?"

"Two people," Ginny said quietly. "Hermione, and Percy's girlfriend."

Two people. If she had just tried to convince Ginny harder. "You have to tell Dumbledore."

Ginny shook her head. "It's over now. There won't be any more attacks."

"How can you say that after you said that last time and it wasn't true?"

"Tom promised me," she said. "He promised he wouldn't use me to attack anybody else."

"And you believe a sentient diary?"

"He's a person, Ariana. And he promised."

"Why should you believe him?"

"He didn't promise me that before. So this time I have to believe that he means it. I have to. He's lost, Ariana. He just needs help."

"No... Ginny, you're the one who's lost."

"I am not!" She looked angry now. "I've got it under control."

"Ginny, if you so much as go missing again, I will report everything to an adult." She should be reporting it now, she knew, but she didn't want to lose Ginny's friendship. She was the first friend Ariana had ever had. She would just have to make sure that nobody else got attacked.

Ginny nodded. "Alright."

A plan began to form in Ariana's mind, a plan that could stop Ginny from attacking people but possibly not lose Ariana her friendship. She would steal the diary, hide it, let Ginny think she had lost it. Hopefully that would give Ginny enough time to realize that it was wrong to keep this secret, and get her to tell somebody.

That night, as soon as Ginny, went to sleep, Ariana found the diary in her things and carefully extracted it.