Paper Should Be Good Enough

Paper should be good enough--Chapter 2

Years pass. Ginny grows up. Fifth year. Tom is far from her mind, for three years is a long time.

Or maybe not.

Dinner on a rainy September night. Harry is talking hurriedly to Ron. "He's not going to leave Hogwarts alone for long. Dumbledore wants me to do the Fidelius Charm, but.." he hesitates.

"You don't trust it," Ron says. He takes a small sip of cider. His face is amazingly serious. "Listen, I don't see what other course you can take, Harry. It's understandable that you don't trust it, but you can trust me, or Hermione.. we wouldn't betray you, you know that." He lifts the glass to his lips again.

Harry remains silent. Ginny just watches out of her corner of her eye. "Ron, I won't do it," Harry says quietly, staring down at the table. "You have to understand."

Ron puts down the glass. "I see." Silence settles uncomfortably over them.

"Ginny," Harry says. She looks up. "I want to talk to you."

"Harry," Ron says. There's a hint of warning in his voice.

"Ron, this is my choice."

"You can't have her do this--she's been bewitched by him once already!" Ron looks furious, and begins to turn quite red. "She's my sister and I won't let you do this!"

"It's my decision." Harry seems a bit more uncertain.

"Harry," Ginny says. "What's going on?"

"Just come with me for a second, will you?" Harry stands and Ginny begins to follow suit, but Ron pulls her down.

"Ginny, no. Stay here."

"Ron," Harry says. His eyes narrow.

"Harry, you must choose someone else. She's more susceptible than anyone else, she's already been taken over by him, all he would have to do--"

"--I know what I'm doing, Ron."

"Dumbledore would tell you the same."

"What is this?" Ginny breaks in. She can't take it anymore. "Is this about You-Know-Who?"

Ron glares away. Harry nods silently. "Okay," she says slowly, "fine." She turns to Ron. "I think you're right." Harry's jaw drops. "We should go to Dumbledore. He knows what to do. Whatever this is about, he'll know what to do."

Harry finds his voice. "All right." He gets up and leaves. "I'll talk to him. You two stay here."

"Fine," Ron says. His tone is cold, yet vulnerable. "Go ahead."

"Ron," Ginny says. There's just a hint of a warning in her voice. He quiets. "Good luck, Harry."

"Thanks," he says. Ron says nothing. Harry stalks away.

"Bastard," Ron says under his breath, then takes a small sip of juice. Ginny says nothing. Ron says nothing. The silence overpowers them and they surrender to it willingly.

Ginny takes out her journal and writes in it. Surrendering her soul onto its pages just as Tom did.

Just as Tom did...

She snaps it shut, shaking. She gathers up her things and carefully leaves the hall, as if afraid she could shatter into pieces at any moment. She hears Ron say, "Ginny, wait," but she ignores him and runs as slowly as she can towards the doors, towards the flames, to destroy that which imprisons her soul.

The third journal she's burnt already this year. Another "accident."

Countless amounts of paper that Ginny bound herself to with ink and a quill. Countless pieces of her soul up in flames. Countless pieces of herself sacrificed to the memory of him.

"Tom..."

She craves, and she calls.

And he hears.