Hermione glared at Ginny. "Stop laughing!"
"What?" Ginny said, nearly spitting out her pumpkin juice. "You know it's funny."
"It. Is. Not." Hermione said through gritted teeth.
"Oh, come on," Ginny said, "You are getting better you know. I thought Mum was going to go mad, watching you over the summer."
Hermione glanced down at her knitting needles. "Why?"
"Oh, you know Mum – she's been knitting for years. I could just see that look in her eye – all she wanted was to take it from you and do it herself."
Ginny was attempting to tie off a friendship bracelet as she spoke – friendship bracelets had become something of a craze among the fourth year girls – and Hermione couldn't help but wonder who she was making it for. All the girls in Ginny's year already sported three or four to a wrist.
Ron and Harry were sitting across the room, clearly making heavy work of their essays. They looked so unhappy that Hermione almost wanted to go over and help them – or at least she would have, if they hadn't wasted all their time over the weekend. Besides which, she'd barely had a chance to talk to Ginny all week, and for that one reason, she wasn't going to stir out of her seat – no matter how many times Harry would look at the pair of them wistfully.
"So," she said, "Have you seen Michael?"
Ginny nodded, somewhat absently. "Yeah – I had lunch with him and his friends the other day. Blue is your favourite colour, right?"
"Yes. How is he?"
"Oh, he's fine, " Ginny said dismissively. "Panicking a bit about the OWLs, typical Ravenclaw, you know."
She really seemed quite distracted, and Hermione realised she would have to ask the question straight out if she ever wanted to know. "Was he annoyed you didn't meet him on the train?"
Ginny laughed shortly. "Honestly, Hermione? I think he was relieved. He doesn't know what to do with a girlfriend – I think he thought I'd want a bunch of flowers, or…a sonnet, or something."
Hermione couldn't help herself. "Is that a bad thing?"
"No – no, it's just…we've going out a month really, so… did Viktor act like that?"
"No. Mind you, I don't think his English was good enough to write poetry."
Ginny shook her head. "Well…I don't want any sonnets – not from anyone."
Hermione stared. "Ever?"
"No. It's ridiculous, Hermione, that's what it is. Most of the boys I know can't tell their arse from their elbow, let alone write poetry."
There was an odd tone in Ginny's voice, and Hermione couldn't resist the opportunity to say, "You're very cynical all of a sudden."
Ginny glanced at her sharply, but Hermione didn't continue. Eventually, Ginny sighed and shrugged her shoulders – "You really don't miss anything, do you?"
Hermione thought for a moment, then nodded, making Ginny laugh. "What happened?"
"Oh…nothing, nothing really. Cho Chang came over to me, while I was talking to Michael."
"Okay…"
Ginny sighed deeply. "It's not important…she just wanted to know 'all about Harry' and how he is, and what he likes…and…"
Hermione couldn't even imagine what that would feel like. "I'm sorry, Ginny," she said.
"It's fine…you know, just because… I don't care, Hermione."
Ginny might have been a good actress, but she wasn't that good…still, Hermione decided that this was one façade she actually needed, and let it lie. There was a moment's silence and Hermione said, "Does Michael know you were with Harry on the train?"
Ginny shrugged. "I don't know – it's not like it'd matter." Hermione raised an eyebrow. "Don't be ridiculous."
"Ginny, I hope you don't mind me asking, but…why did you go with him?"
Ginny looked deeply uncomfortable, and went back to work on her bracelet as she said, "Sirius asked me to."
Hermione looked around hurriedly, but no one seemed to have heard them. She was about to glare at Ginny, when the younger girl continued, "And…I said I would, not that…but then he just looked so sad, Hermione."
Hermione noticed Harry watching them again, and gestured sharply at him to get back to work. He shrugged and got back to work, but she could see him glancing across the room every few minutes – thankfully Ginny wasn't looking his direction. Ginny continued speaking, "And you know, Siri…Snuffles was worried about him, and…"
Hermione smiled. "You get on well with him don't you."
Ginny nodded thoughtfully. "He reminds me of the twins a bit…only, I bet Snuffles was good-looking in school."
"What!" Hermione's voice was so loud that both Ron and Harry glared at her for disturbing their work (an irony she scarcely had time to appreciate.) "You think Snuffles is good-looking?"
Ginny seemed confused. "Well…not now, 'cause, old enough to be my father and that's kind of disgusting but, when he was younger, yeah, probably."
"But…but…but that's Harry's…"
"So? Just think about it for a second – when he was our age."
Hermione made a face. "I don't want to," she said, "It's disturbing. I'd never be able to look him in the face again."
Ginny started to laugh at this comment, and finally Hermione had to ask. "What?"
"It's just…Lockhart, Hermione? He was your teacher."
"That's not fair," Hermione said. "I was a little girl."
Ginny shrugged mournfully. "I'm still a little girl."
Hermione touched her shoulder affectionately. "Always, and forever."
Ginny laughed shortly and tied off the friendship bracelet at long last. "You know," she said, chewing on the inside of her lip, "I think it's good that Cho wants to…that she believes Harry."
Ginny turned her head to look at him for a moment; Harry was running his hands through his hair as he conversed with Ron in a tone of low desperation. "It's just," she said, "I get the feeling…this year's not going to be easy."
Hermione wanted to hug her – it was one thing for Ginny to go out with Michael, another entirely for her to be supportive of Harry and Cho. She started to say, "You're a good friend…"
But Ginny interrupted her, saying, "And if you're going to be starting fights with everyone else."
"Oh come on – you said yourself Luna's ridiculous."
Ginny sighed. "But she doesn't know that, Hermione. And, she means well. We can't all be sane – the world would get boring."
"But it's not like we're even…"
"It's just," Ginny said, "She gets it enough from everyone in my year already – I thought you wouldn't… I know she can be annoying, but…"
"Yeah, yeah," Hermione said, though inside she felt a trace of guilt. Ginny smiled at her, and stretched her arms over her head. Hermione noticed Harry staring again and glared at him fiercely, knowing this was yet another moment that neither of them would ever mention. Even if Ginny was wearing a v-neck tee shirt, it was no excuse for Harry to…
Ginny yawned and said, "I'd better go upstairs. I promised Jules I'd help her curl her hair."
Hermione smiled. "Does she still fancy Seamus?"
Ginny giggled. "She said, and I quote, that if he doesn't wake up someday soon, she'll just hop on him."
"I'd think the subtle approach would work better."
Ginny goggled at her. "With Seamus?"
"You have a point."
Ginny nodded approvingly. "I usually do."
They enjoyed the warmth of the fire for a moment or two, before Ginny handed Hermione the bracelet she'd been working on. It was hardly the best example of the style Hermione had ever seen, but the colours (two shades of blue and a rich green) were very pretty, and she had to ask, "Is it for me?"
Ginny nodded. "Well," she said, "I didn't want you to feel left out – I made them for Jules and Louise as well."
Hermione was smiling so hard she thought she must look rather odd, but Ginny only said, "I'll see you on Wednesday?" They had made a standing arrangement to have breakfast together one morning a week – Hermione wasn't sure how well it would work out, but she thought it was a good idea.
She'd realised over the summer just how much she liked talking to Ginny, but it could be difficult in school. They didn't have classes together, and Ron and Harry tended to…take up a lot of her time. And it wasn't that that wasn't great, because it was, it was Ron and Harry, but…even though Ginny was always around, Hermione didn't want to talk to her in front of the boys.
Silly as it was, she really felt that Ginny was her friend, and as such, they should spend time together separately. Not that she couldn't always find Ginny – if something dreadful happened, Hermione had a fairly good idea just whose door she'd be knocking on – but she didn't only want to see Ginny when she'd had a fight with Ron.
Ginny yawned again, and Hermione said, "Go to bed – you're dead on your feet."
Ginny nodded, standing up slowly. "I think I practised Quidditch for too long today. Don't let all that work get you down."
Hermione nodded. "Goodnight, Ginny."
" 'Night Hermione."