Ginny tiptoed through the dark castle. It was nearly midnight, and not a single flame lit the corridors. Wind howled through the darkness from every direction, while the tall trees outside the castle swayed their branches like twisted, bird-shaped man-eating monsters.
All of this made Ginny a little frightened.
She was jumpy and suspicious, and even the slightest noise sent a shiver of terror through her.
Now Ginny rather regretted putting the diary away. What if a ruthless, three-headed, man-eating monster sprang out around the next corner? Ron had told her that a friend of theirs had kept a three-headed dog as big as a house in the castle last term.
But even if she held the diary, Mr. Riddle could not help her.
"Mr. Riddle..."
All she could do was clutch the diary tightly to her chest, trying to draw a little courage from it, as though that meant she was not alone but had someone beside her.
Perhaps the diary really did possess that sort of magic. Ginny gradually felt more at ease, and she discovered that the enormous castle only seemed frightening. In reality, it was incredibly spacious, grand, and full of old-world elegance. It was far more interesting than her cramped little home.
She now fully appreciated the fun of roaming the castle at night. She could do whatever she liked without worrying about school rules, run through the corridors as much as she pleased, and even pull out her wand and send sparks flying with abandon. At worst, a portrait on the wall or a passing ghost might give her a scolding.
Just then, for instance, Ginny encountered the Gryffindor ghost-
"It's not good for a little girl to wander around the castle alone so late at night. Ah, a Gryffindor, obviously! Let me think. Ginny Weasley, correct? The Weasley family's hair is really quite unmistakable. But out exploring at night on your very first day! You're even more daring than your two brothers!" Sir Nicholas said cheerfully.
"Hello, Nearly Headless Nick." Of course Ginny knew Nick. This year, as in previous years, he had performed his "head-separating act" at the Gryffindor table. Unfortunately, a little skin and flesh still connected his head to his neck.
"How rude! You won't even call me Sir!" Sir Nicholas said, pretending to be angry.
Being nearly headless was indeed a source of regret. By his own account, he had not enjoyed having that axe hack at his neck dozens of times either.
"All right, Sir Nicholas," Ginny immediately corrected herself.
"Good girl! Enjoy your nighttime stroll. And don't go up to the fifth floor. Peeves is over there. Don't use your wand either, or you might bring Filch down on you." In excellent spirits, Sir Nicholas offered those warnings, then passed through the wall with his head dangling from his neck.
So Ginny put her wand away and continued through the darkness. Before long, she reached the end of the fourth-floor corridor and discovered a wooden door.
"This is it! Locked? That won't stop me-Alohomora." She drew her wand, and the lock on the wooden door sprang open, clattering to the floor.
Ginny could not help feeling pleased with herself. "Good thing Mr. Riddle taught me all the first-year spells."
She happily pushed open the door and stepped inside. The room was pitch-black-
"Lumos."
The tip of her wand immediately glowed, lighting up the room.
But to Ginny's disappointment, the room was utterly boring and completely empty. There was no terrifying three-headed dog that fell asleep whenever it heard singing, nor was there a Trapdoor leading underground.
"There's nothing here." She laid the diary flat on the floor and, holding her glowing wand in one hand, wrote in crooked, untidy letters.
"Perhaps Dumbledore restored everything to its original state," Cyrus replied. "But there are plenty of other interesting things in the castle. Do you know how many secret passages and hidden chambers there are here? Or if you get hungry at night and want something to eat,
"just go beneath the Great Hall. There's a painting of fruit there. Tickle the pear in the painting, and it'll turn into a door handle." "Never mind. I'm not that hungry. I ate more than enough at the feast," Ginny declined. Finding nothing connected to Harry had left her a little disappointed, but she soon thought of something else.
"Oh, Mr. Riddle. You said earlier that you won an award for special services? Can I go and see it?"
"Of course," Cyrus said at once. "I'm so glad you remembered. The trophy room is right here on the fourth floor. Just leave this room and turn a few corners, and you'll be there."
So Ginny closed the diary once again, extinguished the light from her wand, and slipped quietly out.
A few minutes later, another dark figure appeared there.
"Hurry, Mrs. Norris-catch those little brats breaking the school rules! I heard something!" Filch's voice was harsh and hoarse, like an evil wizard who had drunk too many potions. Though if that had really been the case, he might actually have been a little happier.
His legs were not very sound, and he came hobbling over at an awkward trot, carrying an oil lamp in one hand.
"Ah, found it! A chain! Careless little wretch!" Excitedly, he picked up the chain that had fallen to the floor. How he longed to wrap it around those young wizards and leave them hanging from the ceiling for a few days!
"Quick, it must be those two Weasley boys! Don't let them get away!" he urged. Mrs. Norris sniffed hard at the lingering scent on the floor, slowly following the route Ginny had taken.
Ginny wandered around the trophy room. It must have had an Undetectable Extension Charm cast on it, because the room was much larger than it looked from outside.
Countless awards stood in rows. There were trophies from Quidditch matches and other competitions, along with the names of prefects and Head Boys and Girls... All of them were displayed behind a huge pane of glass.
In the dim light, Ginny saw Percy's name among them.
Naturally, she also saw Tom Riddle's name.
In fact, that name appeared many times in the trophy room, and Ginny could readily imagine just how outstanding he had been. The award for special services was quite different from the others. It was very large, emphasizing its special status. But there was nothing on it explaining exactly why Tom Riddle had received it.
Ginny was suddenly brimming with curiosity. Unable to resist finding out the answer immediately, she opened the diary again-or tried to. This was fast becoming her signature gesture.
This time, however, she was interrupted before she could even open it!
A hand reached out of the darkness and seized Ginny's wrist.
Ginny's eyes widened in terror!
Before you continue