Tom had never written a diary.
He believed it was unwise to record the secrets of his heart on any object.
If he wrote them down, it would be as if he were inviting others to see and discover them.
But he could never find a way to throw this diary away either.
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--
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On December 31, 1937, his eleventh birthday.
When Dumbledore came to find him, he was not as confident as he looked.
Only after he followed Dumbledore's instructions and took a trip alone to Diagon Alley did he completely believe he was a wizard.
And immediately, he plans to acquire a magical space-saving bag.
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Why?
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Because he couldn't possibly bring a whole trunk of books and clothes back to the orphanage so openly.
Even though he had his own room in the orphanage, the staff still had his key.
They would check his room and ask him why he had a travelling trunk, and if he honestly answered, he was certain that not only would the children in the orphanage covet it, but even the headmaster would hint at the virtue of "sharing" with him.
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He never kept things that he couldn't hide.
Since Dumbledore threatened him to "return" his possessions to others, he had no choice but to use a new tool to hide his own belongings even deeper.
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--
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"Good afternoon, sir. May I ask if I can work here?"
Eleven-year-old Tom pushed open the glass door with a doorbell and asked Ollivander.
After the incident with Dumbledore, Tom no longer dared to steal in the wizarding world. So, he had to work diligently to buy his extracurricular supplies.
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Twenty-year-old Ollivander looked up from behind the counter, filled with surprise.
"Aren't you here to buy a wand?"
Tom politely replied, "Yes, sir, but I also want to work."
Ollivander saw him in the shabby uniform of a Muggle orphanage and understood the reason.
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"I don't need anyone here. You can try asking the teachers at Hogwarts if they can help you." Ollivander wasn't being intentionally cold-hearted, but there were too many poor people in this era.
Tom asked, "Well... do you know of any places that are hiring?"
Ollivander replied, "Let's first select a wand, then we can discuss further."
Tom shut up and obediently followed Ollivander's instructions to wave the wands that were chosen for him.
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He came to the wand shop first because the wand was the most important proof of a wizard's identity, and also the smallest magical school item that could be carried around.
"Incredible," Ollivander looked at the wand that ultimately matched Tom, lost in thought
After waving countless wands for two hours, Tom's hands were sore, and his feet were tired from standing, but he remained patient.
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"Why do you say that?" Tom asked, curious.
Ollivander said, "Yew wood and phoenix feather..."
Tom wonders, "Is there anything wrong?"
Ollivander gave Tom a peculiar look and carefully examined him as if wanting to etch him deep into his mind.
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Tom smiled and asked again, "So now, can I come to work here?"
Only then did Ollivander blink and say, "Alright."
Tom was somewhat surprised, thinking, "Did all wizards judge people based on their wands?"
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"Return here at nine o'clock tomorrow," Ollivander said and added lightly, "I do need someone to organize the shelves for me..."
Tom looked at the stacks of wand boxes behind Ollivander, leaning crookedly and spanning two or three floors tall.
He felt that the possibility of being buried alive was not entirely unfounded.
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"Okay, thank you, sir. May I ask about the hourly wage?" Tom felt a bit excited and nervous. This was his first job working directly with the employer.
The headmaster always arranged all temporary works outside the orphanage he had before. And therefore, he never gets paid for his forced labour.
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Ollivander pondered for a moment and said, "One Knut per day."
Tom mentally converted it to pounds and asked, "Five Knuts?"
"Two, take it or leave it."
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--
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Back in the Muggle world.
Because he had found a job, Tom felt a bit lucky and secure in his heart.
"How much is this?"
On his way back, Tom passed by a newsstand and picked up a black-covered diary.
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Tom was so happy in the wizarding world that he forgot to buy a wand holster.
It wasn't until he was close to the orphanage that he remembered:
He couldn't just go in there carrying a box happily and walk inside, or he would definitely be questioned.
But if he casually stuffed the wand under his sleeve, he was too afraid that it would break.
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He chose this diary simply because its size and thickness were suitable for rolling it up inside his left forearm while tucking a wand in between.
He would also ask the newsstand owner if he could have a piece of straw rope that was left over after tying the bundle of newspapers for free.
He will then tie both his wand and diary to his left forearm, before covering them under his loose, oversized long-sleeve.
Hence, from the outside, it would ultimately appear that he wasn't holding anything in his hands.
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The newsstand owner said, "One penny."
His gaze was a bit skeptical, wondering if Tom could afford it.
Tom then smiled confidently and paid him a penny.
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--
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"Where have you been?"
Once returning to the orphanage, the headmaster started interrogating Tom.
Tom calmly replied, "I went to work to pay for the boarding school fees."
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The headmaster frowned.
She knew that Tom had been selected by a school and was sponsored to attend.
But whenever she tried to think deeply about it, her attention shifted.
"The school..." the headmaster couldn't remember what she wanted to say.
"Forget it, how much did you earn?" That was the only point she cared about.
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Tom blinked, "The job was related to the school, they didn't pay me, but deducted it directly from the tuition." Tom realized quickly that Dumbledore had manipulated this wicked woman's mind. And so he smiled yet cursed very dark internally, "Albus Dumbledore, you're nothing but a hypocritical double standard self-righteous asshole."
Don't bully Muggles, he said. Yet he was manipulating and deceiving Muggles behind the scenes. Playing God, and thinking that makes any difference.
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The headmaster furrowed her brow again and waved her hand, "Fine, see if you can have all your meals there, and you don't have to come back during the holidays." Tom took a deep breath and said, "Fine, I'll ask about it." While thought to himself, "Like I would want to come back here at all."
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At the same time, a new thought floated into his mind, "Could he find an adoptive family among the wizards?"
Or, maybe he should first start by trying to find his biological father... right?
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--
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Ginny: Tom, I've been stood up again.
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Tom thought, "It's been less than a day, how lonely is she?"
He replied: Who stood you up?
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Ginny: Eugene. He said he couldn't find me in the library last night, so he left. I told him I was right at the first table near the entrance. Then, he said he'd definitely come tonight.
Tom: So, why can't you just ignore him?
Ginny: Then we might both fail the potions class...
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Potion-making in class took a great part of their overall marks in Potion.
If they didn't get along, they would inevitably start blaming each other in front of the whole class and make things ugly.
Ginny originally felt that Eugene didn't seem like someone who wanted to pick a fight, otherwise, he wouldn't have specifically come today and asked her why she didn't show up yesterday.
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Tom: Can't you discuss this with your brothers?
Tom thought, "Slytherin's plan might be to deliberately isolate Ginny and find an opportunity to trick her."
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Ginny: They will certainly tell me not to bother with Eugene and just accept the loss in Potions class.
Tom: And what's wrong with that?
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But Ginny still felt so frustrated.
Ginny explained: I don't want Snape to target me and keep giving me assignments.
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Tom: It's a two-person team. If you have to write, make Eugene write as well.
Ginny: And we'll lose house points...
Tom: It's not just your problem. At least your brothers will understand.
Ginny: Should I say, only my brothers could understand if it really happened?
Tom: Well then, win back the points from other classes, couldn't you?
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Ginny surprised.
Ginny: You know Hogwarts' rules quite well.
Tom: I am a student at Hogwarts.
Ginny: Is that one of your settings?
Tom: Yes, It is.
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Ginny was interested, so she continue and asked: Which house are you in?
Tom hesitated for a moment but still answered: Slytherin.
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A sense of alertness flashed in Ginny's mind: Does my dad know?
Tom: It's a secret.
Ginny couldn't help but get a bit angry: You're 'uncapable' of lying to me, right?
Tom said straightforwardly: There's no such setting.
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He bet on Ginny's loneliness and knew she couldn't stay away from him.
Ginny hesitated and asked: So, Is your creator a Slytherin?
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She suddenly remembered that her dad had warned her not to trust things that didn't have a visible brain.
But isn't the flying car that Ron and Harry crashed also a self-aware car?
Its "brain" is not in the engine, right?
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However, is Tom too clever?
Ginny felt his intelligence rivals Hogwarts' portraits and ghosts.
But then, she thought, "Well, Tom can only read and write, how dangerous could it be?"
As long as she doesn't give the diary to anyone else, nothing will happen.
Tom's secret will also belong to her, alone, forever.
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Tom replies: I've said I don't know my creator.
Ginny continues asking: Then, what grade are you in?
Tom thought, "She has some nerves, or is she just too desperate for a friendship?"
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Tom: Sixth.
Ginny: So, do you dislike Gryffindor?
Tom: I don't use houses to divide people. (I use their utility value.)
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Ginny was not scared: Do you have many friends?
Tom: I don't have any friends.
Ginny: Why?
Tom: Don't you also not have any?
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Ginny hesitates a bit.
What is she doing? Try to be friends with a diary?
All the settings of magical objects are fictional. He cannot be a real student.
She is just curious about how many settings he has. That's all.
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Ginny: I have my brothers, and I know some people from other houses.
Tom doesn't respond.
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Ginny: So, do you feel lonely?
Ginny wants to hear Tom answer, "Yes, I'm also very lonely." then she wouldn't be the only one. Even though she knows magical objects can't have genuine human emotions.
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Moving and jumping portrait paintings would never get Bipolar Disorder unless the painter intentionally painted an angry lunatic.
The "personality" of magical objects is limited, all part of the creator's imagination and design.
If Tom's "setting" isn't meant to be lonely, he wouldn't feel any "loneliness".
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Tom responds: I prefer feeling lonely rather than crowded.
From the beginning of his time, he had to deal with everyone around insincerely.
Working, schooling, living, surviving — there's no other path for him.
If he were Ginny, be seen as a "bitch" in Gryffindor based on simply her family background, having the luxury to be able to ignore people as she wanted without fear. How nice would that have been felt.
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Ginny asks: So, are you an aristocrat?
Tom laughs: Yes! I'm even the heir of Slytherin!
Ginny laughs too.
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The setting of this diary is quite interesting.
Ginny thought that the creator of this diary must be a materialistic woman.
Or in the real world, how would an aristocratic Slytherin boy be wholeheartedly amusing her, for she is a user?
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Super unrealistic... But she likes it.
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Ginny closes the diary, feeling slightly better.
She packs up her books and walks out of the library's door.
She stayed even later than yesterday, by an hour.
There was no other student in the corridors.
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"Stupefy!" Someone suddenly curses her from behind.
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Ginny gets startled, her vision darkens, and she falls forward.
Before losing consciousness, she still couldn't believe such a despicable thing would happen in Hogwarts.
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--
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Coming out from behind the pillar was none other than Eugene.
"It's your fault for offending Malfoy," he whispered to himself.
Eugene opened Ginny's bag and searched for something he could use.
"A diary," Eugene thought, "this is perfect."
Just as he was about to open it to make sure it had contents...
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"Don't you think that would be mean?"
Ginny suddenly woke up.
"Petrificus Totalus!" She pointed her wand at him.
He was frozen in terror.
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"Pretty impressive for a first-year, using Stupefy,"
Tom didn't want to interfere, but he mentioned the Malfoys.
Tom didn't want to go back into the hands of the Malfoys, after all, he had just managed to escape.
"How I have trusted you with my whole heart," Tom cruelly smiled, using Ginny's face.
Eugene was shocked and thought to himself, "Did the spell not work? Why?"
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Tom was thinking about how to deal with him.
Yes, he could modify this student's memory, but he was afraid Dumbledore would notice.
And Slytherin's revenge wouldn't be so easily stopped. There was not only Eugene but others as well.
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"Don't blame me. Before playing tricks on others, dig your own grave," Tom said.
Tom searched Eugene's body, but unfortunately, he only found a wallet.
"I'll take this as tuition fee," Tom said, lifting Ginny's bag and dusting it off.
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He carried the petrified Eugene into an empty wardrobe covered in spiderwebs.
Regardless of Eugene's terrified and pleading gaze, he closed the door.
He then returned to Gryffindor's common room as if not things ever happened.
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Ginny, or rather Tom, was intercepted again.
"Hey, Ginny," it was Colin and Kenny.
"Wanna play Wizard's Chess together?"
Tom was not Ginny, and he didn't recognize that the chessboard belonged to Ron.
Ron must have come earlier to establish a relationship with them, indirectly hoping they would take care of her and play with her more.
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"No, I think I'll rest, thanks," Tom said coldly.
The longer Tom stayed active, the more memories Ginny would have lost.
Tom went upstairs and mechanically helped Ginny:
Took a bath, dried her hair, and drew the curtains around the four-poster bed.
Then he crossed her hands, placing the diary on her chest, and closed her eyes.
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His consciousness sank back into that deep deep darkness.
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--
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The next day, Ginny woke up. "Hah!"
She was startled, covered in a cold sweat. "What? It... was a dream?"
She sat up in bed, and the black diary fell on her lap.
She remembered someone attacking her, it felt so real.
Wait, how did she get back to the dormitory?
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"Ginny, you're going to be late." Stephanie drew open her curtains.
Daisy was there too, saying, "You missed breakfast, we were worried about you."
Ginny didn't have time to think further and quickly got up to freshen up.
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--
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Today has Potions class again.
Ginny was worried about confronting Eugene for stood her up again, till she found Eugene didn't even show up.
Slytherin's students have informed Professor Snape that he was sick, and kept giving her looks.
As if insinuating that she had done something to upset Eugene?
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Ginny innocently stared back at the cold gaze of Snape.
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--
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Ginny nervously finished a full day of classes and had dinner.
Out of habit, she headed towards the library instead of the common room.
"Was last night really just my imagination?" she muttered to herself as she walked to the location where she was attacked.
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There were no portraits around.
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"I don't sleep hugging my diary," she thought. "I always keep it under my mattress."
Should she tell her brothers about this incident? Ginny had a vague feeling that it might be related to the diary.
But if she reported it to her brothers, it would likely mean that she would have to share Tom with them in the future.
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"No way," Ginny thought, feeling annoyed.
Tom Riddle was her secret, something that belonged only especially to her for the first time in her life.
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--
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Ginny continued walking, getting closer to the library.
"Miss Weasley," a chilling voice called from behind her.
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Ginny froze and turned around. "Professor Snape?" she thought, feeling terrified.
"I need to talk to you," Snape approached, casting a dark shadow over her.
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Ginny immediately whispered, "I haven't done anything!"
She pulled on the straps of her backpack, shrinking her neck.
The tension made it seem like he was about to strike her any second.
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Snape stared at her coldly for a while.
"Mr. Laletta requested to withdraw from school, and I'm curious about what you did to him."
Ginny tightened her fists and said coldly, "He stood me up for two days. Why don't you ask him..."
Her rationality made her suppress her anger, and she changed her wording to something more polite.
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"I mean... I don't know what happened to him. If we're discussing who did what to whom." She stared up at Snape, feeling both aggrieved and angry, then let out a sigh.
Snape silently stared at her fiery red hair for a while before shifting his gaze back to her face.
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"I'm afraid you won't have a partner for your classes from now on. And I won't give you any additional practical time due to your personal circumstances."
Ginny relieved, "I can do it on my own."
Snape asked in return, "How do you know you can?"
Ginny replied, "Cause...I help out at home... cooking and stuff..." She said the last part particularly quietly.
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With nine people in the house, her mother always praised her for her multitasking abilities in the kitchen.
Stirring soup while frying vegetables, simmering one pot while roasting another...
Her mother always said that thanks to her help, she could shorten the cooking time so much.
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Snape gave her a noncommittal look. "You said it yourself. When the time limit is up, I will empty your cauldron and give you a zero."
Ginny replied firmly, "Understood, Professor." Although she had no real confidence in her heart.
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--
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When she arrived at the library, Ginny started to feel a bit sad for Eugene.
Why did Eugene want to withdraw? It is so lucky to get into Hogwarts...
Ginny raised her pen, trying to write a letter, yet wasn't sure if she had the right to be concerned about this matter in the first place.
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"Maybe he wasn't having a good time in Slytherin..." Ginny muttered to herself. "Those Slytherins were making up excuses..." Unless...What happened when she lost her memory?
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Ginny: Tom.
Tom: Good evening, Ginny. How was your day?
Ginny: I lost my memory. How did I get back to the dormitory after the attack last night?
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She opened up and spoke honestly.
Apart from him, there was nothing suspicious around.
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Tom: Eugene attacked you, he tried to take me away. That's why my defensive magic activated.
Ginny widened her eyes, this diary had its own defensive magic?
No, seriously thinking about it, she has heard about books that brought their own curses before...
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Ginny: So... what did you do to Eugene?
Tom: If you're here to interrogate me, I don't want to tell you.
Ginny: You've affected my life.
Tom: I protected you. And that's what a friend does!
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Ginny paused for a moment.
Yes, last night's situation could have gotten worse if it weren't for Tom.
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Ginny: But Eugene applied for withdrawal today. What did you do to him exactly?.
Tom: He attacked you. According to the school rules, he should be expelled.
Ginny: That should be determined by the teachers.
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Tom didn't respond.
He inwardly cursed, "Gryffindors are all a bunch of moral hypocrites."
Eugene's withdrawal was his own business.
If Tom really was just an ordinary diary, then the one who requested to withdraw from school today would have been her, would it?
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Ginny: Anyway, don't do things behind my back that I don't know about.
Tom remained silent.
Ginny forcefully closed the diary, still feeling uneasy in her heart.
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