Later on Christmas night, I figured something out. Everytime there was an attack, it started with me opening the diary, then falling asleep. But no, Tom couldn't have anything to do with it, he's just a diary. It was wierd though. Maybe... no, Tom wouldn't do anything the hurt me, would he? But I've fallen asleep many times before in my life and not attacked anyone, it's wierd how it only happens when I opened the diary. Wait, the first time there was an attack, I was writing to Tom, and then got suddenly tired. Oh Merlin, it was Tom that was making me attack all these people!
I really didn't want to give up the diary, but the only alternative to to continue hurting people, which I didn't want to do either. I grabbed the diary out of my bag, tears running down my face, and started to run, not really sure where I was going. I ended up in front on the girl's bathroom, the one with Moaning Myrtle in it. I could think of no other options, so I went in the bathroom and threw it in the stall, that's when Myrtle flew out from the stall, screaming and crying. I went in there, flushed the toilet, and ran back out, Myrtle yelling after me.
That night, I felt really relieved, and slept with no problems or nightmares, thinking that I wouldn't petrify anyone else ever again. Boy, how wrong I was.
The next day I woke up to the news that Hermione was in the hospital wing. I quickly rushed down there, to her face covered in fur. She had whiskers, cat ears, and yellow eyes.
"HERMIONE! What happened to you?!" I exclaimed.
"Oh, erm, hey Ginny. Nothing, I'm fine. Er, how was the rest of you dinner?" She replied, obviously trying to change the subject.
I was very suspicious, but went along with it, "Fine, how was the rest of your Christmas?"
"Oh, er, okay, listen Ginny, you should go and, erm, eat breakfast," she said hurridely as Harry and Ron walked in.
"Fine," I said angry, and stormed out. If they didn't want me there, I'd leave.
I got to the Great Hall and looked around for Dana, I was tired of not having any friends. I spotted her aways down the Gryffindor table, talking to Holly and April, the other Gryffindor first-year girls. I walked over to them, prepared to get my friends back.
"Erm, hi, could I sit here?" I asked tentatively.
"Sure," said Dana.
I sat down and began eating. I joined in on their conversation, realizing just how hungry I was, and gaining more energy as I ate. I was feeling much better, and they noticed. I felt much more like myself after eating, I was never a small eater, none of the Weasleys were. Of course, Ron was a pig and never stopped eating, I just had a healthy appitite.
February rolled around with no more attacks, and I was very happy. I was actually able to enjoy finally being at Hogwarts, I've been looking forward to going ever since I could remember. Professor Lockhart decided that everyone needed a morale-booster, and, while most of the girls thought it was fantastic, I could only see one good thing in it: I could write and anonymous valentine to Harry! No one would know it was me, and I could still get my feelings out. I had been trying to avoid Ron and his friends, I just couldn't talk in front of him, but now I could talk to him without him knowing it was me! I decided to write him a poem.
His eyes are as green as a fresh pickled toad,
His hair is as dark as a blackbord.
I wish he was mine, he's really divine,
The hero who conqured the Dark Lord.
Okay, so it wasn't my best work, but it was one of the first poems I had written for Harry over the summer, and it was special. Tom Riddle said that it was good. Not that his opionion mattered anymore. Unfortunately, my little plan went very wrong. See, I had planned on not being anywhere near Harry when the valentine was recited to him, but it happened right in front of my whole class.
The Gryffindor second years were heading past my class, waiting to go in the room, when one of Lockhart's dwarfs cornered him.
"Oy, you! 'Arry Potter!" he shouted, making his was to Harry. It took all my strength to keep a straight face and not turn red. Harry turned a light shade of pink and tried to get away.
"I've got a musical message to deliver to 'Arry Potter in person," he said, starting to play the harp.
"Not here," Harry hissed, still trying to get away.
"Stay still!" grunted the dwarf, grabbing Harry's bag.
"Let me go!" Harry snarled, trying to get his bag back.
Then, his bad split in two. Everything went flying, and my heart sank when I saw what was in there. Tom Riddle's diary! No, I flushed it, how could it get into Harry's possesion? It was in the girl's bathroom, what on earth was Harry doing in there?!
I was pulled back to reality when Malfoy said "I don't think Potter liked you valentine much!" I instantly turned red, put my hands over my face, and ran into the classroom, sitting at the back.
For the next week, I could think of nothing but Harry and the diary. What if Tom told Harry my secrets? Or worse, what if Tom starts making Harry pertify people too? What if the diary gets placed in the wrong hands and everyone finds out that I was the one petrifying everyone? Nothing that could happen with Harry in possesion of that diary could be good, so I had to get it back. But how?
My chance finally came that Friday night. There was Quidditch practice, and Harry would be down at the pitch most of the night. Neville, Dean, Seamus, and Ron would hopefully be somewhere else, but I couldn't know for sure and it was a chance I had to take. As soon as Harry left through the portrait hole, I looked around the common room. Everyone seemed to be interested in their own stuff, so I quietly snuck up to the boy's dorm. I knew that I could get in and it wouldn't turn into a slide or anything, Hermione had gone in there Christmas morning. When I got to the top of the stairs and found the door marked "Second Years," I opened the door and walked in.
Okay, which bed was Harry's? There were five of them. I knew it wasn't the one in the corner, there was a poster of a muggle soccer team and I didn't think that Harry's aunt and uncle would buy him a poster. It definitely wasn't the one with the picture of the Weasley family next to it, that was Ron's. It more than likely wasn't the one with the plant and a remembrall next to it, I was guessing that was Neville's. I decided to check the one across from Ron's, and knew it was his from the second I got to it. It smelled like Harry.
I love that smell, and sat there for a few seconds on his bed, just smelling it, until I realized that I was in there for a reason. I opened his trunk and looked around, but I couldn't find it. I looked over at the clock, it had been fifteen minutes. Had I really been day-dreaming that long? By this time, I was frantic. Any of the other boys could come up here at any second, I didn't have much time.
No bothering to be neat anymore, I threw his stuff everywhere until I finally found what I was looking for. A little black book at the bottom of the trunk. I grabbed it and got out of there, getting safely back to the girl's dormitory.
After putting the diary at the bottom of my trunk, I decided to get out of the Gryffindor tower as fast as possible. I did NOT want to be on the suspect list. I was walking down the hall, trying to figure out where to go, when I heard heavy breathing in a classroom. I became very curious and opened the door. What I found surprised me very much.
"PERCY?!" I exclaimed, as a couple jumped back from eachother, their faces red.
"Ginny? What are you doing here?" he asked, obviously trying to cover his embarrasment.
"I could ask the same thing," I replied, stiffling a giggle.
"Listen, Ginny, don't say anything to anyone, especially Fred and George, please," he asked, desperately.
I sighed and agreed, I was never one to betray secrets. I always knew everything that was going on at my house, and my brothers trusted me the most not to tell.
The next day, I finally got up the courage to write to Tom. I had been dreading it all night, but I could no longer think of excuses, so I took it out and sat on my bed.
Dear Tom,
It's Ginny. I'm not writing for long, I'm not too happy with you. I just need to know something, did you tell Harry my secrets?
Why Ginny, nice to talk to you again.
Did you tell him Tom?
No, I told you that you can trust me.
Okay, good.
That was the last thing I wrote before I fell asleep.
The next time I woke up, I was staring at the ceiling of a hallway, and my heart sank, I knew what was coming. I took a deep breath and looked around. Another attack. A double attack. But I couldn't tell who they were yet, I just saw two bodies. I looked closer at the one nearest, and recognized her immediately. It was the girl who Percy was kissing. He's gonna be so upset, she must be his girlfriend. Then I moved over the the next body, and I was in shock, it was the last person I wanted to find petrified, Hermione. My vision blurred with tears as I ran up to the common room.
Within a few hours, Professor McGonagall was ordering all students to their common rooms. They must've found the bodies, I thought as I walked down, trying not to cry again.
"All students will return to their House common rooms by six o'clock in the evening. No student is to leave the dormitories after that time. You will be escorted to each lesson by a teacher. No student is to use the athroom unaccompanied by a teacher. All further Quidditch trainind and matched are to be postponed. There are no more evening activities," She announced as soon as everyone was there.
I looked down at my feet ashamed. It was my fault that everyone had to have such a horrible year. If I had just listened to my conscience and thrown out the diary when I found it, we wouldn't be in this mess.
Dumbledore was gone. GONE! And it was, like many other things, my fault. How could they take away Dumbledore?! What's going to happen to the school? And that's when I made a decision, I was never going to talk to Tom Riddle again. Just one more time to tell him, and then that's it for good. But before that, I had to see Hermione.
"No, I'm sorry, we're not taking anymore chances, there's every chance that the attacker might come back here to kill these people," Madam Pomfrey told me when I tried to get in there. Well, she was right about one thing, the attacker was trying to get in there, but not to kill anyone. I truely just wanted to apologize. It didn't matter if these people were petrified and couldn't hear me, it would've made me feel better.
I just couldn't get up the courage to open that diary again. Now, the logical thing to do would be to just throw it out, without saying good-bye, but my eleven-year-old brain just didn't work like that. I figured that I ought to let him know that I'm not going to be writing anymore. Don't ask me why, I have no idea why I thought that, but I did. Anyways, I was too chicken to open the diary again, so I decided that I needed to confide in someone, so I picked the person I knew I could always tell anything. My brother, Ron. And Harry of course, he could put a stop to this. I just had to convince myself to actually talk in front of him.
After Professor McGonagall announced that the Mandrakes were ready, I went over the them and sat, feeling extremely nervous.
"What's up?" Ron asked, getting more porridge.
I didn't day anything yet, what if someone was listening?
"Spit it out," Ron said, still looking at me.
"I've got to tell you something," I mumbled, looking everywhere but Harry.
"What is it?" asked Harry.
Okay, how could I tell them? What words could I use?
"What?" Ron asked, rather inpatiently.
I opened my mouth, but couldn't find my voice.
"Is it something about the Chamber of Secrets? Have you seen something? Someone acting oddly?" Harry asked as he leaned closer.
I took a deep breath when I heard a familiar voice from behind me.
"If you've finished eating, I'll take that seat, Ginny. I'm starving, I've only just come off patrol duty." Percy said.
I jumped and ran for it. I couldn't tell them infront of Percy!
Okay, since I obviously couldn't tell anybody, I had to finally do something. I opened the diary when I had gotten back to my dorm, saw someone coming out of it, and immediately passed out.
The next time I opened my eyes, I was somewhere that I had never been before. I looked around, there were snakes everywhere. Then I saw a giant snake that was dead, then Harry, who was covered in blood and holding the diary. I gasped and tears were suddenly pouring down my face.
"Harry -- oh, Harry -- I tried to tell you at b-breakfast, but I c-couldn't say it in from of Percy -- it was me, Harry -- but I -- I s-swear I d-didn't mean to -- R-Riddle made me, he t-took me over -- and -- how did you kill that -- that thing? W-where's Riddle? The last thing I r-remember is him coming out of the diary--"
"It's all right," said Harry, showing me the diary, there was a hole going through it, "Riddle's finished. Look! Him and the basilisk. C'mon, Ginny, let's get out of here --"
"I'm going to be expelled," I wailed as Harry pulled me to my feet, "I've looked forward to coming to Hogwarts every since B-Bill came and n-now I'll have to leave and -- w-what'll Mum and Dad say?"
The rest of the evening went by, and I was barely aware of it. All I knew is that I wasn't going to be expelled, and I had been able to pass the year, barely. The feast went by in a haze, and I was just happy to have the year over with, and to have nothing to do with Tom Riddle ever again.
Me, Fred, George, Ron, Harry, and Hermione shared a compartment on the journey home, and played games and just did fun magic the whole way home. It had been a horrible year, but it was finally over, and now I could go to my second year and enjoy being there. Plus, I had the whole summer to enjoy. Maybe Harry would visit us again.
Author's Note: Yay, chapter five and COS is finished! I can't wait to get on with OOTP, that's my favorite book. Anyways, review and tell me what you think, chapter six will be up soon!