Hermione and Theo arrived on platform nine and three quarters early to make sure that they got a compartment to themselves. Neville arrived a couple of minutes later and Hermione waved to him out of the window.
'Did you hear about Mr Weasley and Mr Malfoy's fight in Flourish and Blotts?' Neville asked as soon as he was seated.
'Obviously. It made the news.' Theo drawled.
'And Harry on the front cover. I bet he hated that.' Hermione pursed her lips. 'I doubt Lockhart is going to be any good though.'
She and Theo had read all of his books as soon as they had purchased them and although he had certainly done a lot of things, he seemed very self centred and when they had asked Lord Nott, he had seemed fairly convinced that the Wagga Wagga werewolf had been defeated before Lockhart had graduated.
'That doesn't matter. We've got you to teach us and you're better than any of them.' Neville declared confidently and Hermione blushed.
'I'm sure he knows lots that I don't.' Hermione mumbled.
Fortunately, the conversation was diverted by the gaggle of Weasleys that appeared through the gate at the last minute, unmissable with their orange hair and the large, frantic matriarch. They milled around for several minutes, only clambering onto the train just as it began to pull out of the station.
'Did you see Harry?' Neville asked after a moment. His question was answered by Theo's creased brow and Hermione's head shake.
'Might he have slipped in earlier?' Theo checked.
'I hope he doesn't do anything stupid. Did you know the Weasley boys broke him out from the muggles in a flying car?' Hermione moaned and Neville laughed in disbelief.
Just then the door slid open and they turned to see a trio of Weasleys.
'Ah, Neville!' The one on the left cried jovially.
'And her most honourable ladyship Grindelwald.' The second bowed deeply with an exaggerated twist of his arm.
'Meet gentle Ginevra.' The second pushed the small red-headed girl forwards. Her face was as red as her hair and she looked like she wanted nothing more than for her second hand Hogwarts robes to turn into an invisibility cloak. Hermione took pity on her.
'It's nice to meet you, Ginevra. I'm Hermione of Gorlois, and this is Theodore Nott and Neville Longbottom.'
'There you go, Ginny. Now, we've got to catch up with Lee - he told us he's got a tarantula.' The second Weasley twin clapped his sister on the back, sending her stumbling further into the compartment and before she could scurry out again, they slid the door shut behind her.
'How rude.' Theo commented idly and Ginny looked like she was about to burst into tears.
'Yes, that wasn't nice of them at all. Have a seat Ginny.' Neville offered kindly and the young girl sat quickly. There was a moment of awkward silence as Theo started out of the window, Ginny watched Theo like he was about to sprout horns and Hermione watched Ginny. She was sleight, with pale, freckled skin and dull orange hair that fell in artificially straight lines to her shoulders.
'Are you really related to Gellert Grindelwald?' The girl blurted suddenly and everyone jumped at the sudden noise. Colour swept up Ginny's cheeks again and she buried her chin into her collar in embarrassment as three pairs of eyes fixed on her. Hermione considered her for a moment, then decided that she hadn't intended to be rude with the question. If her father was anything to go by, she had no idea that one shouldn't ask things like that.
'He's my adopted brother.' She answered eventually.
'Wow.' Ginny breathed. 'I bet nobody messes with you.'
The response was so unexpected that Hermione couldn't help but laugh.
'So where's Potter?' Theo asked, and Ginny's eyes widened.
'He was right behind us at the barrier. Mum was frantic.'
'He's done something stupid again.' Theo deduced, nudging Hermione significantly. She huffed in irritation.
'My brothers are always doing stupid stuff.' Ginny huffed and Theo laughed.
'So what are you looking forwards to most?' Hermione asked eventually and the conversation turned to the new school year. Ginny was interesting, Hermione decided quickly. She was Gryffindor through and through, full of fire and brash spirit with a bright, fiery magic that crackled with life. But she was independent and intelligent, and ambitious enough to be worth Hermione's time. She quickly decided that this Weasley was one that she wanted and she shared a significant look with Theo to say as much. To her surprise the Slytherin boy nodded in agreement.
Several hours passed as the scenery outside grew wilder and wilder and the sun dipped beneath the horizon. Ginny was a keen broomstick flyer with ambitions to play chaser and she was also brilliant at wizard's chess. The second years made sure to teach her her first piece of magic, and Hermione invited her to join them in the library for study sessions.
Unsurprisingly, Ginny was excellent at conjuring wandless fire.
Once the trolley lady had been past, Hermione kicked the boys out so that they could change in private. She levitated down her trunk - brand new and equipped with an extension charm so that it could hold the new wardrobe that Anneken had made for her.
Her new Hogwarts uniform was pitch black and fitted her perfectly. The shirt was feminine and comfortable, the silk so soft that it felt like clouds against her skin. The robes had a slight flare at the waist, unlike the boxy ones from Madam Malkins and the the tights were charmed to never ladder. She glanced over at Ginny once she was changed and noticed the young witch looking mournfully at her second hand robes. They were an unattractive shade of grey and were almost certainly a boy's cut from a decade ago, judging by the heavy weft of the cloth.
'Here.' Hermione said after a moment, digging out her old set. She hadn't initially expected a new wardrobe, so she'd packed them when she left her parents'. Ginny was a little taller than she had been in her first year, but the robes would certainly look better than the ones her family had given her. Ginny went scarlet when she saw what Hermione was holding, and muttered an awkward excuse that was lost to her collar.
'Oh, don't be silly. Anneken Krum is a family friend and she made me a new set of robes this year. I won't be using them.' Hermione pushed them closer, watching as the young witch glanced between Hermione's crisp black robes and her own greyish ones. 'Tell you what, let me do your hair and I won't even ask a favour.'
Ginny's hand flew self consciously to her hair and Hermione patted the seat next to her.
'I'll get one of Theo's elves to swap them in the laundry.' Hermione threatened. 'And you do not want to let the Nott elves near your stuff - they'll tidy it and you'll never find anything again.'
Ginny giggled and uncertainly took the seat that Hermione had gestured to. Hermione pulled out her hairbrush from her trunk and cleaned it with a flick of her wand. She ran her hands through it a couple of times, and then held a bunch up to try and get a grasp on the colours. She could feel the magic in her hair; thick and stiff like hairspray. Ginny's own magic fought and railed against it, and the result was dull. Wixen hair was an extension of one's magic, and Hermione was constantly reminded by Anneken that she should use no potions of products until at least her first bleed, and even then use them only sparingly.
'Does your mother do these charms?' Hermione asked, sweeping the brush through her hair to gently remove the tangles caused by their exploding snap game earlier.
'Yes. She says I'm lucky that they work so well on me.' Hermione bit her lip.
'You know, I think you've got such lovely magic. Your hair would be spectacular without the charms.'
'It used to be much more red, but everyone teased me.' Ginny admitted.
'They're idiots.' Hermione answered shortly. 'Your hair is a reflection of your magic. I can feel how unhappy it is, like you're wearing shoes that are a size too small.'
'Oh.' Ginny said quietly. 'Lavender said it was like a burning bush on my head.'
'Lavender Brown? Well, she barely has enough brains to read her own horoscope and I doubt she had enough magic to fill her hair.' Hermione snarled derisively and Ginny snickered. 'You, you're like me. I can show you some plaits and things to keep it out of the way, but its best to let it develop naturally. You'll feel much better.'
'Okay.' Ginny said uncertainly, biting her lip. Hermione smiled and ran her hand through the ginger locks, smoothing away the spells.
'It will take a little while to recover, but your magic will love it.' Hermione assured, pulling a blue ribbon from her trunk and transfiguring it into a sparkling headband with a tap of her finger. Ginny gasped in delight and Hermione showed her how to twist her hair beneath it so that it flared prettily as she walked.
'There. Now, if anyone gives you trouble send them to me, and I'll see if I can borrow any of brother Gellert's jinxes.' She shared a smile with the younger girl, then slid the door open to let the boys back in. Both complimented Ginny's hair immediately and she blushed predictably crimson.
Neville found the head boy to remove the Slytherin logo and colours on Ginny's new uniform, just in time for the train to pull smoothly into the station. The young witch had gone remarkably pale and remembering Ron's words from her own sorting Hermione leaned down and whispered that there was no troll battling required. The sag of relief was almost comical.
Because they were now second years, they would be taking the thestral drawn carriages up to the school. She couldn't see them still, which was remarkable considering the war that she'd already fought in and her duel with Voldemort last year. Theo could though, and he guided her hand to stroke the length of the bony neck. The thestral must have appreciated the attention because they were one of the first carriages to reach the castle.
Harry and Ron were not in the great hall, but they had to part ways with Neville anyway; Hermione and Theo heading to the Slytherin table and taking a seat close to the head tables. Already, the teachers were sat at the head table. Dumbledore was watching her sharply, his eyes lacking their usual twinkle. She assumed that as the supreme mugwump, he had heard about the permission form sent to Nurmengard and as such knew that she was helping Harry to meet with Sirius Black. She smirked at him and let her eyes drift further down the table. Snape was missing and Lockhart was already sitting in the chair next to his empty seat. His hair gleamed in the golden light and his lilac robes were painfully bright next to the darker colours that the other professors wore.
The hall filled quickly, the volume rising steadily as friends caught up over the tables. Malfoy, Crabbe and Goyle took seats a little way down from Hermione and Theo, sneering impressively at her. She ignored them, tossing her hair over her shoulder.
To her surprise, Daphne Greengrass slid in next to her. The girl was usually one of Zabini's posse who remained carefully neutral.
'If I hear Pansy complain about your robes one more time...' Daphne huffed irritably. Hermione just watched her suspiciously. 'She's been going on and on about it since the summer ball.'
Then Blaise sat next to her and Millicent took the spot opposite and Daphne was distracted. Hermione could only assume that meant that the usually neutral group were beginning to lean more towards taking her side.
The sorting began a few moments later, and a hush fell across the hall. There was still no sign of Harry or Ron, or Snape for that matter.
Ginny was sorted into Gryffindor and Hermione was glad to see her take a seat next to Neville.
It wasn't until after the feast when they returned to the Slytherin dungeon that Hermione learned that Harry and Ron had been caught taking the Weasley's flying car to school.