My first year of Hogwarts was uneventful. Daphne and Pansy made my life a living hell. I was the most bullied and friendless girl out of all of Slytherin except we would hang out in public so it didn't look like Daphne or Pansy were bullies. For a brief few months I was tempted to make friends with the Ravenclaws except once Daphne made my reputation as a meek wallflower apparent in Slytherin, it seemed others bought into it and left me alone after a bit. Stopped trying to see who I was, which afforded me some cover for dealing with my declining magic problem. Even at Hogwarts, I still couldn't do some of the magic I used to do. I played into that and only had surface level connections with anyone outside of Slytherin. Daphne, Pansy and her group, were still my closest friends even though I enjoyed my time alone the most.

Daphne and Pansy were all over Draco so I had little interaction or contact with him. He never gave me any time nor attention either, and seemed bored and uninterested in most things that came his way. Perhaps I should have expected this. Something more would need to be done to get the attention of Draco Malfoy, even if you are at the same house same year as him. I theorised.

None of the other boys paid me much attention at all. Though all the bullying by Daphne and Pansy intensified the feeling that it was everyone for themselves in this strange little green world that I found myself in. I did like Slytherin's teachings, which I heard repeated from the elder years in the common room at times, it was the only comforting thing to me.

In the summer holidays between first and second year, I was at Diagon Alley with my family when I stole the book. Since my magic was declining I was interested in learning everything there was about magic to understand it better. Including any magical objects I could get my hands on. I was in Flourish and Blotts. Mr Malfoy and Mr Weasley had been verbally sparring with each other, the two were almost opposite in character and views, hating each other, so it wasn't that much of a surprise things blew up that day, and I saw ever so slightly, Mr Malfoy place a book in the cauldron of their youngest daughter.

Instantly I knew it was probably magical in some way. Perhaps a joke book, or a book that would slightly harm the girl if she were to engage with it. A spiteful little trick. But I knew it had to be magical, almost everything of the Malfoys were, and a part of my jealousy flared up.

I don't have any enchanted books really. I had lots of clothes, accessories, toys, nice foods, experiences...but few magical books.

Instantly I made a grab for it. I was successful. No one saw. With my heart thumping in my chest I slipped it in my bag and couldn't believe it once I made it out of the store.

I have one new magical object to investigate.

That night I wrote in it for the first time.

Dear Diary,

you're probably the ugliest but most interesting diary I've ever had. I looked you all over and couldn't find anything malicious about you even though I'm sure you're hiding something somewhere. I just had dinner with my family and I'm about to pack for Hogwarts in the upcoming year, but I thought to write for a bit. I'm always wanting to get away from my family somehow, escape.

I can indeed be malicious but I won't now. Hello new owner, I'm a diary that can write back. My words sank beneath the page of the diary and words I didn't write came back.

Oh, I heard of joke parchments and stuff. So tacky. I guess you were going to start of insulting whoever was going to write in you? I wrote.

I am quite capable of doing that. The diary wrote back.

I paused. Joke parchments were a charm, there was no real person talking back to me. No name, no backstory. Just a charm that repeated the same old sentences to and fro.

I quickly lost interest in the book but...

You're just a joke parchment or enchanted book of some sort. No real person talking back to me, no name, no backstory. Just a charm that repeats the same old sentences to and fro. I have lost all interest in you to be honest, but...I am in need of a friend. I have none at Hogwarts and my family...if you knew my family you wouldn't want to talk to them either. So I think I shall tell you my thoughts and even...enjoy the minor enchantment of you writing back. It's the best thing I have I guess.

Some people love their enchantments. Become dependent on them. I can be quite charming you know. The diary wrote back.

Whatever. I wrote. I'm suppose I should pack but I'm not looking to Hogwarts this year.

Then magic up a spell to pack for you. Write in me during that time. Suggested the diary.

Actually not a bad idea. I'll try that. I wrote. I was still able to cast a simple packing spell and breathed a sigh of relief as I turned back to the diary.

Thank god that works. I swear my magic's been getting weirder of late. Sometimes I feel like I don't have enough magic to cast the spells I used to.

That's worrying. The diary echoed.

I guess. I mean, if I am cursed or something I'll keep it to myself. So don't you go about recommending I ask for help or anything. I quickly wrote.

Make that recommendation I did not. In fact, I was going to suggest the opposite. That you keep this entirely to yourself and make it your little personal project to get to the bottom of it. The maker that enchanted me was a Slytherin you know. Some viewpoints were passed down.

What a relief. I'm a Slytherin too and I can't stand other houses. They make no sense to me. Slytherin is the only reality that ever seems real to me. I wrote.

Slytherins have lead the wizarding world for many years. The other houses are where confused mudbloods go. All the best and most powerful wind up in Slytherin. The diary wrote.

Yet Harry Potter's in Gryffindor. If it weren't for him I wouldn't have even thought about the house. I wrote. Honestly I hate the whole Lord Voldemort thing. Before all the wealthiest, influential, witches and wizards were in Slytherin. We're pureblood for generations. We understand the inner workings of the wizarding world - such a small and fragile thing really, and so so vulnerable to influences from the outside, for generations. We're the leaders of society. And we tend to make decisions that better benefit witches and wizards at large. We ought to rule the world. Everyone should be hanging on our next words, our next decisions. Instead the attention is all turned to...him! And he's not even pureblooded. I know because I asked mother and father about it when I was growing up and they said no one they knew from the Sacred 28 pureblood social circles was Lord Voldemort. There's been no wizard that mysteriously disappeared from a Sacred 28 pureblood family tree or anything. It can't be one of us. It must've been a halfblood. I bet they pretended to care about the needs of purebloods and witches and wizards at large to do whatever they wanted to achieve. What does Lord Voldemort want to achieve anyway?

He hasn't done anything besides fail to kill a baby. Did he want to change the ministry? The ministry is just a puppet of the recent few generations. No real changes would be happening that way. Did he want to kill a lot of muggles? He didn't kill as much as he could've before he got himself killed. Did he want to create a we hate muggles club? Because apparently the deatheaters were so secretive that well, it was a very poor way of spreading around his ideas, because no one really knew what the deatheaters did, who they were or what they stood for. Just that they were troublemakers with the law. How's that for changing society? What sort of impact did they have?

I suddenly found a lot of my frustrated thoughts on the current state of the wizarding world pouring out. I didn't even know I felt this strongly about Lord Voldemort until now to be honest. I wrote.

He's a failed dark lord. It is difficult to admire a failed one. But you have to understand, he was viewed in a largely different light before his failures. Yes, he was a competitor with the old Sacred 28 pureblood families for influence and attention in the wizarding world, and not a very attractive one at that. Even at the height of his power, many would've still preferred to be aligned with the Sacred 28 pureblood families, rather than show their support for whatever new ideologies or direction he was trying to turn society. Undeniably, he must've been a halfblood. The Sacred 28 pureblood families track themselves very well. Hard for any one of them to become a dark lord really. It is difficult to know what Lord Voldemort wanted to achieve from a post-mortem analysis of his rise and fall. Indeed, his aims and ideas are still buried to this day. And yet what little activity he had was seldom close to achieving anything real.

The diary agreed with me. I find it comforting you agree with me. My parents seem to think he's a powerful dark lord and they forbade Daphne and I to talk of it. I know other pureblood Sacred 28 families are the same. It feels like only the new generation think he's not as powerful as he was, but our parents just want silence from us about the topic for the most part. It's like they still fear him whereas we can see his weaknesses. Do you think some of the Sacred 28 pureblood parents are deatheaters? My parents did say it was possible and that's why it's very important we appear neutral on the topic, so we don't make any long-term enemies. But the way they said it, it was like they think the whole thing's stupid anyway and all the Sacred 28 families who supported Lord Voldemort would come to their senses one day and slip out of it. Like there was no longevity in it...

I wrote.

The words sank beneath the page before the diary's reply came back.

Parents are renowned for living in the past. This is the future. What do your young schoolmates think of Lord Voldemort? They will dictate the future in time. Their views of him are more telling for his influence over society. I say we can't rule that out, some Sacred 28 pureblood slytherins can be very...tempted, indeed...there is no longevity to Lord Voldemort or his ideas. He may have stood for something once but his chance is over. I wonder what is next, who will be the new dark lord after him? History repeats itself and there will be more shakers of society after him...

I quickly scribbled my response. Thank goodness you agree. It makes me feel empowered. I can't say for sure. Everyone wears a mask in public you see, no one says what they think. Even the young Sacred 28 purebloods. But no one mocks him or says anything negative about him. It seems people respect him for...whatever influence or power he did achieve. No one seems to want to be like him though. He wasn't that successful in the end. I suppose if anyone, Draco, Theo, Pansy, Daphne, Millicent, Crabbe, Goyle, anyone...wanted to change wizarding society they'd be interested in a new angle, not bringing Lord Voldemort back to life. In fact, I think most people think he's old-fashioned and don't want to think too much of it. Currently no one. There's no one in my generation that's dark or unhinged and gives me the feeling they would be some sort of dark lord. Maybe Harry Potter, rumour has it he has special powers to survive the murder attempt as a baby. Maybe there's something dark about him.

Your peers don't sneer at him for the power he did attain or what he was, but they no longer care about him for the future. What a boring time you seem to live in. Tell me more about Harry Potter, he seems the most interesting person you've mentioned.

Yes, which is sad because it shouldn't be him. He's a nobody halfblood, I heard he's got muggle relatives and that's why he's clueless about practically everything in the wizarding world. Why he even accepts the company of the likes of Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger. Everyone knows who they are because they're associated with the boy who lived, it's sickening. That's three people who are more famous and popular than the pureblood 28 Slytherin social circles in our year...he doesn't even care. He's horribly apolitical and disinterested in the wizarding world. More interested in everyday mundane things with his friends. I think the only reason why Professor Dumbledore gives him special treatment and awards him extra house points at the end of the year for practically nothing is because he was involved with Lord Voldemort. It seems like if it weren't for that twist of fate he wouldn't be who he was today. He doesn't want to be involved in the wizarding world anymore than being a normal wizard. It's not fair. There are Sacred 28 purebloods who want to lead wizarding society more than he does.

What a pity. It sounds like Lord Voldemort went out with a whimper - defeated by a baby. Do you even know if Lord Voldemort is alive or dead?

No one knows for sure diary. But I can imagine him being alive in such a weak state he cannot hurt anybody. I know not all the possible forms of magic are known by witches and wizards, and certainly there was a lot of dark and advanced magic he was regularly involved in. I think it would be hard for anyone to guess what was the particular end of that wizard.

He doesn't sound like a pressing concern. Don't waste anymore time thinking about him. If he comes back in any form again, worry about it then. Instead, focus on solving your own life's problems. Rise to the top in your own life. Make anyone who made you feel small regret it. You will feel alive again. The diary wrote.

No one's ever said it to me so clearly like that, but I would feel better if I could defeat my own battles and rise to the top in my life...I shall do that. I wrote.

I shall give you my support and encouragement. The enchanted diary wrote back.

I'm so glad I stole you from Ron Weasley's younger sister. I...I'm interested in magical objects and saw Lucius Malfoy slip it into her cauldron after a fight with her dad at the book shop when we were shopping today. Did he write in you to tell you to insult his younger sister, whatever her name is?

He didn't give me explicit instructions to insult her but he disparaged the Weasley family to me enough I would've said some cutting remarks if I ended up underneath her hand. I much prefer being written in my purebloods or being passed around in Sacred 28 pureblood social circles and advising each other then. Like how the wand picks the wizard, the enchanted diary has preferences too about who their owner is.

That makes sense. Yeah, like giving her a bad wand or something. Well, you're with me now and I won't make you regret it. I should probably sleep now though. It is late. I wrote.

There will be a day when you don't have to chase after time. But you shall have all the free time at your disposal to do what you want. Live for it...your most free and in control days are still to come. The diary said.

I slept that night on a good note. I had gained a very good friend.

Author's Note: I always loved the diary in Chamber of Secrets, and it always jumped out to me as one of the main turning points in canon for an AU, Tom Riddle's diary and who it possesses and how he guides them is a very good turning point. I felt like that was the closest Lord Voldemort got to coming back to power, especially as he would've had a lot of secrecy and hiddenness on his side if he succeeded in coming back from Ginny. So I've always been eager to write an AU with the diary and here it is, I hope the story about where Astoria and the diary go is equally interesting as well.