My next conversation with Tom was one I didn't expect to have, nor one I will ever forget. It was a couple weeks after term had re-started, and we were talking about random stuff, when he suddenly interrupted me.
"Ginny, I know you've suspected something all along. I know you've suspected me of lying about Hagrid. It's time, now that it's too late for you to change anything, for you to know the truth. YOU HAVE BEEN COMMITTING THESE ATTACKS. You have put a cat, Colin Creevey, Justin Finch Fletchly, and Nearly Headless Nick in the hospital wing, petrified. You have been doing my bidding, as I, Tom Marvolo Riddle, also known as LORD VOLDEMORT, and the Heir of Slytherin, have set out to complete the Noble Founder's biggest wish, to rid the school of all Mudbloods. I will not stop until I succeed, and there is nothing you can do. You are under my complete and total control now, Ginny Weasley, I see your fear, I see all your emotions, I feed off it, and you are my vessel to ensuring this great plan does not go unfulfilled!
You have told me everything I need to know, and now, all that's left is to finish the job I started but could not finish in my time. Yes, that's right, I killed Myrtle Warren, the one you know as Moaning Myrtle, and now, through you, I'm about to kill even more of the dirty scum that infests this world!"
YOU WILL NOT! I wrote back. "I'm going to a teacher, right now!"
"Ah Ginny, your efforts will be in vain, I have already taken over your body you see, I am inside you, I am seeing your every thought, sight, smell and breath. You will not be able to tell anyone even if you try. You can never truly escape Lord Voldemort..."
I slammed the diary shut, and without a second thought, even though it was eleven thirty at night, I tore out of the dormitory, ignoring Demelza and Amy's confused shouts, down through the portrait hole, past a group of bewildered seventh years who were up late studying for mock NEWT's, and didn't stop until I'd reached Myrtle's bathroom.
I wondered if Tom was controlling me even at this very moment, as I wasn't heading for any teachers office, but I found myself compelled to throw the diary away here, as if this was the perfect location. I thrust open one of the cubicles and hurled it down the toilet with all the force I could muster. I heard Myrtle's surprised shouts as I left the bathroom, but I didn't stop. I was now heading off in a random direction, and throughout all of this, a cold, high voice kept repeating inside my head.
"I'm still here Ginny, I'm always here. You can run, but you can't hide. You will do my bidding, you have no choice"
I was so entranced by the voice that I had no idea where I was going or what I was doing, and I only became aware of my surroundings when I walked straight into Professor McGonagall, who was out on a night patrol.
"My goodness me, Weasley, what on earth are you doing out here this late?!"
"Professor, I've got something so important to tell you!" I began "The Heir of Slytherin-" but I couldn't continue, as I felt my tongue tie up and block my vocal cords.
"The Heir of Slytherin what, Miss Weasley?" said McGonagall, suddenly looking very serious
"He- He is" but again I couldn't say anything
"Yes?" said McGonagall impatiently
I tried once more to reveal Tom to her, but I couldn't no matter how I tried to phrase it, and to add insult to injury, McGonagall deducted 20 points from Gryffindor and gave me three nights of detention, for being out in the corridors late at night and for wasting her time. As I was walking back to Gryffindor Tower, I could hear Tom laughing at the back of my mind.
I was unable to give Demelza and Amy a logical explanation for my actions that night, and for a while they looked at me as if i was crazy, though thankfully that was just a phase that they got over after about a week.
Soon February arrived, and I began to feel a lot better about everything, as there had been no further attacks. Deep down I knew that Tom was probably planning something, but I decided to just allow myself to feel these positive emotions while they lasted. I started Quidditch practices again, to prepare for our upcoming game against Hufflepuff. My team were just as good as ever, it was if the 3 month break had never happened. Hermione had also suggested some very clever new strategies, and once we'd got them mastered I really felt like nothing could stop us!
Once the 14th came around however, Gilderoy Lockhart decided that his ignorance and stupidity had taken a break for far too long, he organised a Valentines Day celebration.
When Demelza, Amy and I walked into the Great Hall that morning, we thought we'd entered the wrong place for a moment. The walls were all covered with large, lurid pink flowers. Worse still, heart-shaped confetti was falling from the pale blue ceiling. Soon, Ron and Hermione joined us, followed by Harry, who was late after his Quidditch practice had overran following ours the previous night. Ron looked sickened and Hermione was overcome with giggles.
"What's going on?" Harry asked us , sitting down and wiping confetti off his bacon. Ron pointed to the teachers' table, apparently too disgusted to speak. Lockhart, wearing lurid pink robes to match the decorations, was waving for silence. The teachers on either side of him were looking stony-faced. From where he sat, Harry could see a muscle going in Professor McGonagall's cheek. Snape looked as though someone had just fed him a large beaker of Skele-Gro.
"Happy Valentine's Day!" Lockhart shouted. "And may I thank the forty-six people who have so far sent me cards! Yes, I have taken the liberty of arranging this little surprise for you all — and it doesn't end here!"
Lockhart clapped his hands and through the doors to the entrance hall marched a dozen surly-looking dwarfs. Not just any dwarfs, however. Lockhart had them all wearing golden wings and carrying harps.
"My friendly, card-carrying cupids!" beamed Lockhart. "They will be roving around the school today delivering your valentines! And the fun doesn't stop here! I'm sure my colleagues will want to enter into the spirit of the occasion! Why not ask Professor Snape to show you how to whip up a Love Potion! And while you're at it, Professor Flitwick knows more about Entrancing Enchantments than any wizard I've ever met, the sly old dog!"
Professor Flitwick buried his face in his hands. Snape was looking as though the first person to ask him for a Love Potion would be force-fed poison.
"Please, Hermione, tell me you weren't one of the forty-six," said Ron as we left the Great Hall for our first lessons. Hermione suddenly became very interested in searching her bag for her timetable and didn't answer.
All day long, the dwarfs kept barging into classes to deliver valentines, to the annoyance of the teachers, and to the humiliation of the Valentine recipients. Demelza, Amy and I had a horrible day. We were the three most attractive and popular first year girls, so we all received several Valentines, which were read out loud in front of our entire classes by the dwarfs. I had one which compared my red hair to the flames in someone's fireplace, Amy received a few which mentioned Ludo as well as complimenting her bravery with a beaters bat, and Demelza had some generic love notes, which she complained jokingly about their lack of creativity compared to mine and Amy's.
Here's another moment where reality differs from Joanne's retelling. In her version of events, Harry is embarrassed in the corridor by a dwarf singing a valentine that I wrote to him. Well, I never did such a thing. Instead, here's what actually happened.
As Demelza, Amy and I were leaving Charms, Harry passed us on his way inside. Marcus Flint, Draco Malfoy, Vincent Crabbe and Gregory Goyle were also walking past, and Flint decided that this would be a good time to cause a commotion. He pointed his wand at Harry's bag, and said "Diffindo". Harry's bag split open and everything smashed onto the floor. To my horror, I saw that the diary was there among his parchment, ink and quills. How Harry had obtained it after I flushed it away, I had no idea! What I knew was that I needed to get it back without it being obvious! I had written so much to Tom about Harry in there, including the fact that I had feelings for him, so Tom could potentially be telling Harry all about it if he was writing to him now!
"What's all this commotion?" said Percy as he arrived. "Off you go, off you go, the bell rang five minutes ago, off to class, now," he said, shooing some of the younger students away.
"And you, Malfoy —"
Malfoy stooped and snatched up something. Leering, he showed it to Crabbe and Goyle, and I realized that he'd got the diary.
"Give that back," said Harry quietly.
"Wonder what Potter's written in this?" said Malfoy, who obviously hadn't noticed the year on the cover and thought he had Harry's own diary. A hush fell over the onlookers.
I was staring from the diary to Harry, terrified now.
"Hand it over, Malfoy," said Percy sternly.
"When I've had a look," said Malfoy, waving the diary tauntingly at Harry.
Percy said, "As a school prefect —" but Harry had lost his temper. He pulled out his wand and shouted, "Expelliarmus!" and just as Snape had disarmed Lockhart, so Malfoy found the diary shooting out of his hand into the air. Ron, grinning broadly, caught it.
"Harry!" said Percy loudly. "No magic in the corridors. I'll have to report this, you know!"
I really don't think Harry cared though.