Disclaimer: I own nada. Except a few characters here and there. And the plot. Ok so maybe not nothing exactly.

Chapter 17 – Basic Instincts

Ginny sat beside Persephone, placing her hands on her face, feeling her temperature, her pulse, her breathing. They all seemed normal, relaxed even, like someone in a deep sleep.

Blaise and Draco looked on silently, not wanting to encroach on the moment Ginny took with Persephone.

"You said she stopped breathing?" she enquired, not looking up, a curtain of red hair covering her face.

"Difficult to believe now isn't it?" Blaise replied, studying Perse's restful form.

"Persephone... wake up... please?" Ginny spoke softly to her friend, shaking her shoulders gently, willing her to awake. To her astonishment, Perse's eyelids began to flutter, and she stirred beneath Ginny's hands.

"Now why didn't I try that?" the tall dark-haired Slytherin muttered sarcastically. Ginny shot him a look.

Crystalline blue eyes opened, staring up at the red head. Confusion immediately bubbled in them.

"Who are you? Where am I?"

Persephone took in her appearance slowly. Where was she? More to the point, who was she?

Her eyes continued to blur, as though she was looking at the world through a water haze. Persephone didn't know what to think, where was everybody?

She began to examine the room she was in in as much detail as she could with her blurry sight. It appeared that she was still in Hogwarts, but it certainly wasn't Gryffindor tower. The hangings on the wall appeared to be blue, although she was uncertain as it was dark. Ravenclaw then, presumably, and whoever she had become was obviously a prefect of some sort to have a room to themselves.

Abruptly, a small house elf appeared in front of the door, it's bulbous eyes reflecting the light from the singular candle in the room. Persephone eyed it questioningly.

"Tamby came for if you want something? Miss is not usually awake now."

There was a pause whilst Perse eyed the creature interestedly. She'd never been waited on before, let alone by a house elf.

"Tamby is it?" The elf nodded enthusiastically, as entirely non-judgemental as any of its race. "I can't, uh, see anything very well?"

"Miss needs her glasses. Tamby will find for Miss."

"Thank you," said Persephone, cursing her own stupidity.

A pair of glasses were thrust into her hands that she promptly put on, the world coming into focus.

"Does Miss want anything else?" Tamby asked patiently.

My 'name'? The date? A reason why I'm here? "No, I'm good thank you Tamby."

The house elf bowed herself out.

Persephone stood for a moment in the semi-darkness, before moving to the drapes across the window. Cautiously, she eased them back to display the landscape of Hogwarts stretching away from her. There was a thick covering of snow purifying the land; the sun had not yet managed to conquer the night, casting an ethereal light over the pale wintry scene.

Perse just watched it, taking in the beauty and the strong sense of magic that emanated from her surroundings. She guessed that she was probably in the past as there was no Hagrid's hut that she could see and the Forbidden Forest extended almost all the way across the grounds, thick and untamed.

Even the beauty of Hogwarts in the snow though couldn't take her mind off her present situation. She was in an unknown person, in an unknown time, and if she was here... then who was in her body? It wasn't a comforting thought.

The Gryffindor common room was surprisingly quiet. Most of the younger years were outside playing in the sudden fit of good weather that had taken hold of Hogwarts. But three students were tucked into the corner, between the red and gold hangings, amid half done homework and cushions.

"Well, have you seen her?"

"No, Persephone neither." Hermione doodled absently with her quill on a scrap of parchment.

"When was the last time you saw them?"

"Must have been... this morning at breakfast. But not at all since."

Ron and Hermione dissolved into silence.

"Do you think we should worry?" Ron asked out loud.

"I'm sure they're fine," assured Hermione, "if we haven't seen them by dinner, then we'll start to worry ok?"

Ron nodded, content with the plan. Harry continued to stare into space, lost in his own thoughts.

"You don't think Malfoy would actually do anything with my sister do you?"

Harry looked up sharply, all of a sudden paying attention. "Of course not, he's all talk and no action – you know that. Besides, Ginny can look after herself, you saw her at the Dark Arts Comprehension lesson."

Hermione watched Harry from the corner of her eye. If she didn't know any better she'd say that Harry had a thing for Ginny, but he couldn't have... could he?

She dismissed the notion for the time being. "Yeah Ron, Ginny's been standing up to Malfoy all term from what I've heard, I'm sure she'll be able to make him back off. He wouldn't actually try anything under Dumbledore's nose either."

Ron nodded in agreement, his red hair bobbing in time. "You're right, I know you are. After all, Ginny's a Weasley – Malfoy wouldn't stand a chance." He puffed himself up proudly.

"At least she doesn't go quite as red or get quite as violent as you do," Hermione replied innocently, before promptly having to duck a low flying cushion. She threw one back in retaliation, but hit Harry instead. All out war ensued.

Ginny was already the colour of her hair, and – if it was possible – was getting redder by the minute.

"Malfoy tell me to calm down one more time and you'll never be able to sit down comfortably again."

Draco went paler than his usually white pallor but still shot back "Back to Malfoy now are we then?"

"Not that I'd usually have a problem with you being castrated, but I'd have to listen to you whinging the whole time, so stop pissing her off!" Blaise snapped over his shoulder. "C'mon Persephone it's ok, we won't hurt you, you know that," he whispered softly to the cupboard.

"You can come out Persephone," agreed Ginny equally as gently.

"I'm not this Persephone person!" exclaimed the cupboard. "I'm me!"

"And who is 'me'?" Draco inquired dryly.

"Amelia. Amelia Sloane of Ravenclaw." One very scared eye poked its way around the cupboard doors. "Now if you'd call Tamby, I'd like a nice hot chocolate."

Ok, I'm sorry again that it is so short, but I'm only gradually getting back into the swing of things again. So I'm afraid that near future chapters are probably going to be short but semi-frequent!

Thank you to all my reviewers, I'm glad you appreciate my somewhat bizarre take on the wonderful world of Harry Potter.