Hermione resisted the urge to rip her Arithmancy chart to shreds. One last equation eluded her, and she couldn't shake the suspicion that the answer was staring her in the face. Harry and Ron's noisy game of chess nearby wasn't helping either, and she could almost have wished they were still fighting – it would have made things far more peaceful.
She had pressed a hand over her eyes, desperately trying to find a solution, when someone pulled out the chair next to her with a clatter, and sat down in a flurry. Unable to help herself she snapped, "What?"
Hermione looked up to see Ginny positively beaming at her. "Hermione," she said, "You won't believe what's happened. I'm going to the Ball!"
Ginny's eyes were sparkling, and she looked terrifically ecited, and though Hermione thought she knew what was coming, she gave into the temptation for a chat and said, "That's great! Who asked you?"
Ginny tucked a strand of hair behind her ear, looking slightly shy. "Oh," she said, "Neville came over to me at dinner; it's just as friends, but …"
Hermione smiled. "I'm so glad," she said, "I wasn't sure he'd work up the courage. I mean I told him …"
She cut herself off, suddenly aware that she might have made a blunder. Ginny stared at her, clearly suspicious. "Told him what?"
"I told him to ask you," Hermione confessed, wanting the floor to swallow her, "Because I can't go, and …"
"So he only asked me because you weren't available?" Ginny seemed to shrink a little.
"Welll, yes, but … only because he doesn't lnow you well – he thought you'd already be going with someone."
Ginny stared in Harry's direction for a moment, and snorted, "Not bloody likely." She did look rather deflated however, and Hermione wished she'd never spoken.
"I'm really sorry Ginny … it's just, I wanted you to go, so … since Harry is such an idiot, I thought … I should have said something to you first."
Ginny brightened a little at this and said, "You really wanted me to go?"
"Yeah, I mean, it'll be fun," Hermione gulped, thinking of entering the Great Hall, "I mean, I thought we could, you know, get ready together, and … maybe you could help me tame my hair."
"Your hair's lovely," Ginny said absently, "But, yeah, I'd like that. No one else in my year is going, so … that'd be really nice."
Hermione let out a sigh of relief, and Ginny giggled. "I don't bite people's heads off you know. Well, maybe once."
They quieted momentarily, just in time to hear Harry bemoaning the loss of his queen, and Ginny said, "So who are you going with?"
Hermione chewed on her lower lip a little – she wasn't sure she wanted to say it out loud just yet; it would make it too real. Yet, at the same time, since she'd gotten over the initial shock, she'd been bursting to tell someone. Certainly she couldn't tell Ron, he'd probably think she wasn't good-looking enough for… Hermione cut that thought off quickly, as it would only make her angry. After all, who better to tell than Ginny? "Okay," she said, "Do you promise not to scream?"
Ginny's eyes widened, and she zipped her mouth shut and threw the key over her shoulder. "Okay," Hermione said, taking a deep breath. But she couldn't say it, out loud, where people might hear. "I'll just whisper it."
She leaned forward and said the name into Ginny's ear – the effect was impressive to say the least. She actually goggled at Hermione, and she felt bpund to say, "You promised not to scream."
Ginny nodded, seemingly overcome, and it took her several moments to say, "That's brilliant Hermione! When did he ask you? Is he nice? What are you going to wear?"
The barrage of questions unsettled her a little, and the best she could do was to say, "Emm, he asked me three days ago."
"Three days ago! Why didn't you tell me?" Ginny looked almost outraged and added, "You should have come up to my dorm immediately!"
Hermione was honestly surprised at this, and said curiously, "You would have wanted to know?"
"One of my friends is going to the ball with a Triwizard Champion … of course I'd have wanted to know!"
"Oh," Hermione said, "I didn't think … I'm used to Harry and Ron, you see."
Ginny laughed. "So?" she said, "What's he like?"
Hermione squirmed, not quite sure why she felt so uncomfortable. "Well … he's really clever, and … he knows so much Ginny, and he's very … courteous. He kissed my hand you know."
Ginny sighed and pretended to swoon. "That's wonderful Hermione"
But having started, she had to continue. "It's just," she said, "I don't understand why he likes me. He's so much older and … he's a Champion, he could have anyone, and I'm just …"
"Well, it just proves he has good taste." Ginny said stoutly, giving her a stern look.
"Maybe," Hermione said doubtfully, "But, the thing is, he's really nice and everything, really nice … but I'm not really … comfortable around him, he's so much older, and, even though we've met up in the library, I still …"
Ginny smiled, "Don't worry Hermione, once you get to know him a bit better, like at the Ball … you're probably too used to Ron."
Hermione stiffened. She had actually had, well, thoughts about Ron asking her to the Ball, and turning up with flowers, and generally acting in a most unRon-like manner, but… How did Ginny know?
"What do you mean?" she said.
"Oh nothing, I'm probably all wrong, it's just sometimes, I thought that, maybe, you and Ron were …"
Hermione decided to be open about it. "You too? See, sometimes, when he does something … I even think that, but then he says such awful things, and he can be so stupid sometimes …"
"I know," Ginny said, looking sympathetic, "Think how it feels to be related to him."
"And he's been so awful about this Ball that …"
"What's he said?"
"Oh, just that he'd go with the best looking girl he could find, even if she had all the personality of a pigeon." Hermione folded her arms and slumped down in her chair, scowling at the memory.
"Well," Ginny said, "If he can't see that you're really pretty, then he's the dumbest thing on two legs. We're going to have so much fun Hermione! Tell me about your dress robes."