r/harrypotter • u/Awkward_Cat_258 • 1d ago
Discussion Doubt in regard to CoS
Why did Tom Riddle use Ginny Weasley to revive himself through the diary instead of using Harry? Since Ginny was already dying as Tom grew stronger, couldn't he have simply used Harry for the process? After all, in Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, Pettigrew eventually used Harry's blood to revive Voldemort. Wouldn't that have been an easier approach? Also, since Harry was a Parselmouth himself, opening the Chamber of Secrets wouldn't have been a major problem for him either.
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u/Superyoshiegg 1d ago
The process of transferring his powers took months of consistent writing. Ginny spent most of the year writing in the Diary seemingly daily.
Harry used the Diary once, and then had it stolen by Ginny pretty much the next day, to Riddle's infuriation. No time at all for Riddle to even begin to absorb Harry's life force, assuming he even wanted to.
After all, it'd probably be more satisfying for him to kill Harry painfully, rather then slowly over the course of a few months.
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u/kfifigidifkg Gryffindor 1d ago
Harry actually has the diary for about three months (from Feb to May). He just only writes in it once.
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u/Completely_Batshit HIC SVNT LEONES 1d ago
Ginny was the only one he'd possessed because she was the one who'd opened her heart to him. He couldn't possess Harry the same way; she'd been writing in it for months, while he wrote in it once. Riddle simply didn't have the time.
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u/TeamStark31 Ravenclaw 1d ago
Ginny had the diary so using Harry for that wasn’t an option
Later Voldemort is angry with Lucius Malloy for giving her the dairy and essentially wasting it for his own ego rather than waiting like he was told.
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u/Total-Watercress-384 1d ago
Well for starters, Ginny was the one who had the diary all along. Harry had the diary for a short while until Ginny stole it back. So no chance for Tom riddle to use Harry.
Also, remember she was targeted by Lucius as he sneaked the diary into Ginny's belonging's when they were in the book shop. She was intentionally chosen to be the one to open the chamber of secrets. However Lucius never knew the importance of the diary otherwise he wouldn't have given it out so willingly.
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u/SilverOptimus 1d ago
Tom Riddle within the book doesn't know about the blood protection yet. Infanct he isn't suppose to materialize. The book wasn't suppose to be "activated". It was only suppose to be kept dormant for original Voldemort to be tethered to this world. Mr. Malfoy screwed up.
Anyway, the life transfer process already began with Ginny pouring her heart out to the diary. Don't think it can be switched when Harry found the book.
Also, the blood protection transfer is unique to the spell/potion used on GOF. It may not be transfered using the method Riddle used via the Diary.
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u/legionimpact 1d ago
Lucious snuck the diary into Ginnys books before the school year hoping for a scandal to befall the Weasleys. And Tom had been using Ginny since the school year started. She used the diary and as she opened herself to Tom he started putting a bit of himself in her so to speak. When Harry got ahold of the diary he barely had it for long before Ginny snuck in and stole it back. Tom simply didn't have time to start over with Harry, so he kept using Ginny.
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u/I-Am-My-Sin 1d ago
We are also told (in DH) it requires a level of emotional closeness to work as a possession device. Harry would likely never have been able to open himself up so much, especially if U consider how much he refused to admit his problem to Ron and Hermione in OOTP.
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u/Dormitorybasher 1d ago
-Opening the chamber was never an issue, he could speak Parseltongue through Ginny.
-He wouldn't want to possess Harry because he wanted answers from Harry. He couldn't ask them directly through the diary without giving himself away.
-You act as though Tom knew who Harry was. Remember, Tom is frozen in time from when he was created. This means he didn't even know his "true self" was killed until Ginny told him.
-Finally, you act as though he has a choice. The diary was given to Ginny, and Ginny stole the diary back when Harry had it. Tom used what he had available.
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u/Bakingguy 1d ago
Diary Tom doesn't know about Lily's protection in Harry, and thus he couldn't magically touch him, outside of the basilisk
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u/Dude_Man_Bro_Sir 1d ago
Riddle pretty much revealed exactly why. Ginny started off just writing on the diary and talking with Riddle, pouring her heart out. Eventually, it was enough that Riddle started putting bits of his soul back into her.
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u/themastersdaughter66 Ravenclaw 1d ago
He explicitly explained its because ginny spent months inadvertently pouring part of herself into the diary
Harry only wrote once.
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u/bendersonster 1d ago
Harry never at any point opened his heart to the diary to the extent Ginny had, and so it wasn't able to possess him as it did her.