Synopsis:

Ginevra Weasley would say her trouble began the moment she decided to write in a tatty black journal that appeared in with her school books, she would be right. She thought her troubles had ended after local Chosen One, Harry Potter vanquished said book and the ex-best friend inside, she would be wrong.

When a Quidditch accident lands Ginny unconscious in the Hospital Wing she thinks that is about as shit as her day can get but upon waking up she discovers not only can she see the specter of Tom Riddle but he is fully interactive and wants to mend their relationship aaaand commandeer a new body.

This is the story of Ginny Weasley and how a bout of mild haunting and feared psychosis turns into a story of hard-won love, a fantabulous girl gang, self-discovery, and how hope can be found in the darkest of times if only you are willing to beat its arse into submission.

I do not own Harry Potter or make any profit therein, this is simply an AU based upon its world and characters.

Author's Note at the bottom, enjoy!

Chapter 1: Broken Hearted Baby

Lately, Ginevra Weasley had been finding herself in some rather unexpected places. That is not to say that she consciously traveled places without a direction in mind but that she disconcertingly found herself in places she had no memory of travelling to. Now, she might be willing to take this matter up with Madame Pomfrey, the school's Matron, were it not for the startlingly large amount of blood she generally found herself splattered in when she 'came to' and the coinciding fact that someone was not only butchering the school's chickens but popping about and 'petrifying' misbegotten masses. No, Miss Weasley was decidedly on her own in this endeavour- excepting, of course, the tatty black journal within which she was able to commune with Tom.

Tom Marvolo Riddle, little Ginny Weasley's truest friend and the only person to have ever understood her. With him she was able to be honest as she had never felt safe enough to be with any of her six brothers, either of her parents, or even the girl up the road that was a similar age. Put simply, Ginny thought the world of Tom and was doubtless in her faith of him. Tom, however, respected Ginny's spark but thought of her only as a means to the utmost of ends. Ginny, trusting Tom, told him all about her unconscious meanderings and the side effects therein. Tom, desperate to further his own agenda, laid rest to Ginny's fears with words as empty as his heart.

And so things progressed.

Ginny kept giving and Tom kept taking, but unbeknownst to either of them at the time the nature of their relationship was more comparable to that of a seesaw than that of an overpriced therapist and his mentally healthy patient. Ginny would give and Tom would take but as time progressed Tom would give and Ginny would take, entwining their souls in a way not so easily undone.

Events came to head as our sweet and fiery young Ginny painted her own death notice on the wall of a school she had longed to go to, at the end of a year she can scarcely remember.

(All she remembers is Tom. All she is is Tom and his warmth...but also a sharp edging of fear- though she knows that's wrong because Tom promised her and Tom never lied.)

Ginny comes to with a sharp gasp and a sharper shiver as the damp of Salazar Slytherin's chamber permeates through the thin wool of her second-hand jumper. Her only warmth radiates from her right hand which is tightly clasped in that of Tom's starkly larger one as his thumb chases a line across her knuckles. She thinks he looks like the statue of a fallen angel with his head bent, a small frown on his thin lips and he thinks she looks like a spectre from a tragic fairytale with her fiery red hair thrown in stark contrast against her overly pale skin.

"I can see you properly," Ginny whispers in confusion.

"I've done a rather bad thing, princess." Tom pauses for a moment, "I never meant to like you."

"I'm sure I'll forgive you for it, the bad thing, I'm rather glad you like me." Ginny whispers tiredly.

"How can you be sure?" Tom asks, the whole of his face creasing into a frown.

Ginny huffs lightly in what one might call a laugh, "Because you're my best friend and therefore I am capable of forgiving you anything."

Tom's hollow laugh echoes throughout the chamber as Ginny shifts next to him, angling her head to better see his face. "Tom, I'm so tired. I don't think I can keep my eyes open much longer, can you tell me about the bad thing later?" Ginny asks her voice fading in and out as she struggles to push air through her lungs.

Tom begins stroking her hair with his free hand, "That's quite alright princess, would you like me to tell you a story as you drift off?" Ginny hums lightly in agreement as she curls in towards Tom's warmth.

"Once upon a time there was a striking princess with fiery red hair and a temper to match…" his voice slowly tapering off as did Ginny's conscious thought.

A resounding crash sounds in the distance and the harsh clap of footsteps begin to echo towards them. Standing up with a resigned sigh, he throws Ginny a parting glance as he moves off into the shadows slotting into place his company scowl and sociopathic smile. Now it was less the interruption and oncoming strife that annoyed Tom and more-so the thoughtless destruction of his ancestors chamber, Tom casually wondered who raised the child to have such poor manners and then remembered Potter's lack of guidance was down to him and decided to benevolently put aside his annoyance.

Potter appears and he is good and loyal, Tom can't help but think how he would be a Hufflepuff if it weren't for this stupidly brave streak he clings to so ardently.

Tom is vile and vicious, and oh so dramatic; he knows he does his Slytherin heritage proud. Yet quite a large part of him, larger than he thought it would be, is rooting for Potter to suc-. Okay that last bit was utter bullshite but he was remorseful that Ginny came as the cost to his success. Perhaps he could reanimate her as a sort of inferi, he had always been a rather talented necromancer. In fact, he could make her into quite a lovely companion and it would finally be his turn to unload all his woes and she would-

A loud roar and resounding crash announced the return of Potter and the basilisk, knocking Tom out of his overlapping thoughts.

A flash of silver and ruby glints in the corner of Tom's eye and he turns; as if in slow motion the boy shoves the sword up through the beasts mouth. Annnnd Potter just killed Tom's basilisk. Yes, it was trying to kill him but it's an endangered species and the human race is not. Additionally, Potter never thought to ask whether or not the creature had a name (Gladus) or a family (no, but she was on the lookout for that very special chicken and toad combo) and now it was dead and Tom was fucking tired. If this is what it was like to be a magical human in today's world, well Tom didn't know if he wouldn't have been better off back within the safe confines of his dia-journal.

By the time Potter goes for the journal, armed with a basilisk fang all Tom can say is that he is really fucking done with this shitting twelve year old boy who can't seem to mind his own twatting business. I mean fucks sake.

As Tom is bursting into fragments of light he can't help but wonder what Ginny will think of him when she realizes that he lied. If he wasn't in so much pain he would think it funny that he cared at all as it was most definitely not like him. Then again he had never had a friend before.

Ginny wakes and it becomes immediately apparent to her what Tom had meant by 'a bad thing'. Understatement of the fucking century. For while her mind is clearer than it has been in months she is unable to process anything. Not the mutilated diary (because that is exactly what it fucking is regardless of Tom's insistence otherwise) or that the boy she used to fancy (before Tom) is finally noticing her or even that up until a few minutes ago she was closer to death than a Gringotts intruder. From the moment Ginny's eyes opened, the moment she recognizes Harry sitting next to her, the moment she finds herself surrounded in Professor McGonagall's office she feels hollow. Every person present and every word spoken falls into a dull blur around which Ginny stands staid at the center, unable to make herself move or speak or feel. The scene around her seems to shuffle and slide sideways as she is shuffled and slid from place to place. She knows they are talking to her and about her, oh how she loathes it, being a twig in the current of their needs . Ginny simply wishes it would all stop. Knowing only one way to achieve this, she fills the silence with their expectations of her, plastering over the hollow spots and moving her face into the shape of a relieved smile. She goes big, she goes bold, she pretends to be a person and they all eat it up as if it were the last portion of Treacle Tart. Ginny knows that at this stage in her life she is by no means a talented actress, that these adults are simply purchasing her performance so they can offload their guilt. It is in this moment with this series of detached realizations that Ginny decides she won't ever be someone they fail to notice again.

They kindly insist Ginny return home where she can recuperate, Ginny wishes she could kindly insist that they fuck off but instead she politely says, "Thank you, Professors. I'll make sure to study extra hard over the summer so I'm prepared for my second year."

"I'm sure Luna would be willing to pitch in with a bit of tutoring, eh?" Mr. Weasley remarks with a pleasant smile.

"Yes, we are quite lucky to have such an intelligent girl living just up the road even if she is a bit, well…" Mrs. Weasley offers a polite, if not a bit pinched, smile, "I'm sure she will be absolutely delighted for the company." Both Professors nod in agreement, Harry does nothing having long since departed for parts unknown. The Professors, all too eager to move on, usher the Weasley's out with generic farewells.

Well that settled that.

The moment they return to the Burrow Ginny is dispatched upstairs, packed into her slightly bumpy bed and buried under far too many blankets for some 'much needed rest' according to her mum. Yet Ginny's eyes remain wide, her head a mess of static. She lays in a room that is her own and feels nothing at all.

Author's Note:

Author's Note: So this will be a multi-chapter fic with Ginny and Tom as the ultimate pairing though I am writing this story primarily as a character study of Ginny Weasley. I feel she gets so little development throughout the series as anything other than Harry's side-piece so the Ginny in my story will be very much her own person with her own wants and goals and developed motivations that actually make sense. That being said, while Gin & Tonic is endgame here, it will by no means be an easy road to this pairing. Tom betrayed and violated Ginny's autonomy and he has a lot of personal growth before he can be the type of person that Ginny could even consider forgiving. Below I will add the actors I imagine playing the main characters, this does not mean you have to do the same I'm simply sharing my vision. Let me know what you think! I love comments about my fics and just discussing HP in general.

Ginny Weasley: Elle Fanning as she looks in "Ginger Rosa"

Luna Lovegood: Dahyun from kpop band Twice

Miri Lestrange (OC): Alia Bhatt

Tom Riddle: Richard Madden as he looks in "A Promise"

Professor Deirdra Vastry (OC): Ruth Nega

Professor Marren Kessler (OC): Noel Fielding

Hermione Granger: Antonia Thomas