Occlumency - 6

"What's bothering you, Harry?" she asked.

Harry averted his eyes again, wanting desperately to talk with her, but also worried about her reaction. Before he could second-guess it, the words burst from his throat. "I'm scared, Ginny. What if the reason I'm feeling this connection to these Horcruxes is because they're part of me, too?"

Ginny nodded solemnly, as if she understood his fear. "It most likely is. That would make sense."

It wasn't what he wanted to hear. He wanted her to deny it and give him logical reasons why it couldn't be so.

"But, Ginny! How can you say that and still trust me? I've got a bit of Voldemort in me," he said, nearly choking on the words.

"Yes," Ginny replied, nodding. "You have a bit inside you, but it's not you. You're in control, and you're the one I trust."

"How can you be certain?" he whispered, fighting the hope that flared in his heart.

"Is that what's bothering you?" she asked, tracing the line of his face with her fingertips. "Are you worried that Tom has more control over you than you know? Don't let him do that, Harry. He's making you doubt yourself, that's how he works. Don't let him succeed. You're going to beat him. You'll find these other two Horcruxes, and then you'll manage to defeat him while keeping yourself whole. I know you will."

"Ginny–"

"Don't doubt it, Harry."

"I have to! Are you listening to yourself? Ginny, I have to destroy a part of myself to win," Harry said, feeling utterly hopeless.

"No," she replied firmly. "You don't have to destroy part of yourself. He's separate from you, and after all this time, he's never been able to gain control."

Harry looked up suddenly, her words jarring loose a memory.

"What?" she asked, perplexed.

"That instrument that I got from Professor Dumbledore," Harry said, his mind racing. "When I saw him checking it after your father was hurt, remember how I told you the smoke formed a snake? Well, Professor Dumbledore said something about being divided and the one snake split into two. Do you suppose it was me that he was checking on – checking to see if he'd managed to take control?"

"It's certainly plausible," Ginny said slowly, "but didn't you say Dumbledore wasn't certain about the Horcruxes until he got the memory from Professor Slughorn?"

"Yeah…but he always had his secrets," Harry replied, his brow furrowed.

Ginny shrugged. "Even if he suspected, that story proves it. You've been winning all along."

Harry looked at her doubtfully.

Ginny sighed, exasperated. "Harry, do you think you can believe in something that you've never seen before?"

It was Harry's turn to roll his eyes. "Ginny, I lived as Muggle for ten years before I was exposed to magic. I'd have to believe anything is possible after that, wouldn't I? But Voldemort is still much stronger than me."

"But you do have something just as wondrous that he doesn't – it's your ability to love, and the people who love you," Ginny said, taking his shirt in her fists and shaking him slightly. "Don't discount that. Dumbledore believed in you, I believe in you. You're stronger than any bit of Tom ever could be.

"You've already beaten him if he's been inside you all this time, and there is no trace. There was a trace with me, Harry. I have huge gaps in my memory that year, but I can remember walking outside, wondering why but doing it anyway. That was right before the roosters were killed. I went outside and then my memory just stops. You're stronger than that. You've always been true to yourself, and he couldn't bear to be inside you at the Department of Mysteries because you are so different from him. The piece of him that's inside you hasn't overtaken you, despite your tough childhood. Don't underestimate the value of that strength."