The rest of the week Hermione spent working ahead on her homework assignments, wanting to leave her weekend as clear as possible. She invited Luna to come and work with her in the old Charms classroom, and Luna happily took her up on it, though Hermione was surprised to see she brought a friend.
"Hermione, this is Ginny Weasley," Luna said, smiling. "She's going to do homework with us today."
Ginny looked confused and wary, while Luna beamed. Hermione blinked.
"Pleased to see you again, Ginny," she said. "Ah— you need to catch up on homework too?"
"No, not really," Ginny said, faltering. "I mean, I have homework, but I—"
"You need to be here," Luna said firmly, tugging Ginny to sit down. Ginny looked surprised, her large eyes darting to Hermione, who shrugged.
"If Luna says there's a reason, there's probably a reason," she said, offering a small smile. "Just probably not the one you'd expect."
They worked together, Hermione helping the two first years with their Transfiguration essays as she wrote her own. Luna asked most of the questions, Ginny still seeming skittish and somewhat frightened to be hanging around an older Slytherin girl. Hermione tried not to let it bother her—with a brother like Ron, she'd have been surprised if Ginny wasn't skittish around her.
As they all finished up with their Transfiguration essays, Hermione stuffed her scroll away and went to pull out her History textbook, only to slip and drop it.
"Oh, bother…"
She bent down to get it, noticing something odd and pausing, before grabbing it and sitting back up. She looked at Luna for a long moment, who was sucking on the end of her quill and looking over her Charms homework.
"…Luna?"
Luna looked up. "Yes?"
"Why aren't you wearing any shoes?"
"Oh," Luna said. "They went missing."
There was a pause.
"They went missing?" Hermione repeated.
"Yes," Luna nodded. "Lots of my things have gone missing, lately. Nargles, I suspect."
"Nargles," Hermione said flatly. She looked at Ginny sharply, who flinched. "Do you know any of these 'nargles'?" she asked.
Ginny looked uneasy.
"I don't know what a nargle is," she admitted. "But I know Sue Li and Lisa Turpin stole her hat last week."
Hermione stood up abruptly.
"Please excuse me," she said. "I find I forgot something. I'll be right back."
She strode off, Luna giving her an absent wave while Ginny stared after her. Hermione could hear her pulse thundering in her head as she went directly to the Slytherin common room, eyes rapidly scanning the room. They settled on a figure playing chess over by the lake window, a small crowd watching, and she walked over.
"Draco," she said. "We have a problem."
Draco glanced up at her, then did a double-take at her expression.
"What is it?" he asked. "What's wrong?"
"Luna is being harassed by some older Ravenclaws," she told him. "You said she was under our protection."
Draco looked uneasy, but Daphne gasped.
"The Seer?" she said, her eyes wide. She looked pale. "Oh, no. This is bad. An upset Seer can prophesize doom and cause it to manifest. This is awful."
Theo gave her a sideways look. "They can?"
"We have to do something," Daphne pleaded with Draco. "We promised her our protection."
Draco looked around.
"We all promised her protection," he said finally. "Is everyone up for this?"
"I'll get the others," Theo said, hurrying off.
"I can't imagine Crabbe and Goyle will protest," Hermione said. "And I'd be seriously surprised if Blaise, Tracey, or Millie offered an objection."
"What about Pansy?" Draco asked.
Hermione turned to face Pansy, who had been sitting at the side silently, her arms crossed. As attention turned to her, she scowled.
"Who's harassing her, anyway?" she asked, examining her nails.
"Sue Li and Lisa Turpin," Hermione said. "Possibly a couple others. I don't have all their names yet."
Pansy's eyes flashed.
"Sue Li is the one who's always making snide comments about me looking like a pug," she said. She turned to Draco. "I would be happy to help 'protect' this Luna girl, Draco."
As Theo returned with Blaise, Tracey, Millie, Greg, and Vince, Draco nodded. He turned to the newcomers.
"As a group, we offered Luna Lovegood, the Seer, our protection," he said. "That protection has been challenged by a group of Ravenclaws. Do we stand together to make them rue the day they ever crossed us and ours?"
There was a murmur of assent.
"Follow me," Hermione directed, and she led them out of the common room and down the hall.
If Ginny's eyes had been wide with one Slytherin working peacefully with her, they grew even larger at the sight of ten second-year snakes filtering into the room. All the Slytherins nodded to her politely, then ignored her, which Ginny seemed happy with, scooting her chair as far away from them as she could. Theo closed the door behind them all, silently instructing Vince and Greg to stand guard.
"Miss Luna Lovegood," Draco pronounced. "It is my understanding that some students have decided to harass you. Is this correct?"
Luna looked up at him.
"Oh," she said. "Your hair is very pretty today. It's like mine."
Draco looked thrown, and Blaise snickered from somewhere behind him.
"Your things have been going missing, right?" Hermione gently prompted. "Your shoes, your hat?"
"Yes..." Luna nodded.
"What else has gone missing?" Daphne said, sinking into a chair next to Luna and offering her a kind hostess smile. "Maybe we can help you find your things."
"Umm." Luna considered. "My shoes, most of my socks, my cloak, my hat, my green ink bottle…"
As Luna began listing things, the list growing longer and longer and longer, it was as if the slowly-growing rage of Slytherin house was a palpable thing, hanging heavy in the air of the room.
"—and my raddish earrings," Luna finished. "I think that's it."
"Very good," Daphne said, nodding gently. "And who do you think might have taken your things?"
Luna frowned. "You mean it wasn't the nargles?"
"Sue Li and Lisa Turpin," Ginny volunteered suddenly. "They're in your year. In our year, Orla Quirke, Yutaka Amano, and Becky Arncliffe."
"And they're all in Ravenclaw?" Daphne asked, looking at Ginny, who flinched under her gaze.
"I think so," Ginny said. "But— I'm not a Ravenclaw, so it's only who I've seen teasing her and what I've overheard—"
"That's enough."
Draco stood. His face was dark with anger.
"We put you under our protection, Lovegood," he said. "Do you know what that means?"
Luna blinked up at him. "You'll help defend me from those who would do me harm?"
"Something like that," Draco admitted. "But mostly, now… it means that those who have done you wrong will face our wrath."
"Oh," Luna said. Her eyes brightened. "That sounds like fun."
Hermione smiled in satisfaction as Slytherin house got down to planning, occasionally asking Luna or Ginny a question as they did.
It was interesting to watch Ginny as they did. Her eyes were wide as she listened in on their brainstorming; first as they developed a plan to get Luna her things back, then as they made a plan to wreak vengeance on the culprits who had taken them in the first place. Hermione suspected that while Ginny had heard people make plots before (she was sister to the Weasley Twins, after all, and crazy plotting seemed to be a hobby in Gryffindor), the viciousness of the Slytherin methods was probably catching her off-guard.
"Then that's what we'll do," Draco said, sitting back. "Are we all agreed?"
A murmur of assent went up from their little contingent, and Draco nodded.
"Then we'll launch our plan soon," he said. "Part one will go into effect as soon as possible. Part two as soon as we can." He glanced to Theo and Hermione. "How long will that be?"
Hermione considered.
"Probably a month or two," she admitted. "We'll need to check."
"Are we okay with waiting a month?" Daphne said, looking worried. "That's quite a period of time to lapse."
"We can teach Luna some basic defensive spells in the meantime," Blaise suggested. "But this is a good plan. It'll get them back good, this plan."
"Then it's settled." Draco looked up, his eyes settling onto Ginny, who shrank back. He looked disgusted, but he stood up and offered her a short bow.
"Miss Ginevra Weasley, if I'm not mistaken," he said. "A pleasure to formally make your acquaintance. I am Draco Malfoy."
"A pleasure," Ginny said automatically. "My brothers say you're evil."
Draco rolled his eyes. "And I suppose they say all Slytherins are evil and scummy and to be avoided at all costs, too?"
Ginny flushed a brilliant red. "Errr…"
Draco waved her off. "Regardless. Ginevra, I need your word that you will not breathe a word of what was discussed here today with anyone not present here in this room."
Ginny looked outraged.
"I wouldn't tattle on you!" she said fiercely. "Luna is my friend!"
"Good," Draco said. "Then it shouldn't trouble you to give your word, should it?"
Scowling, Ginny withdrew her wand, and Hermione watched as she made a vow to never speak, write, or communicate in any way of what she had heard to anyone not currently present in the room. A curl of gold came from her wand as she did, disappearing in a flash, and Draco nodded in satisfaction.
"At least one Weasley knows how to do things right," he said. He looked down at her, then to Hermione. "Is everything good, now?"
"It is," Hermione told him.
"Good."
The Slytherins filed out of the room one by one, with Blaise, Tracey, and Millie lingering behind.
"I understand you started your History essay without us, Hermione," Blaise pouted. "I'm hurt."
They began setting up their own study materials at the table, and Hermione watched in amusement as Ginny stared at them with suspicion, looking to Luna and her relaxed manner, before gradually untensing her body and focusing on her work once more.
By the end of the study session, everyone had their essays done, Millie and Ginny had gotten thoroughly sidetracked in a discussion about the World Cup, and Blaise had made Ginny blush a brilliant red no less than three times through his shameless flirting.
All in all, it was a good study session, Hermione considered, looking out over her friends and Ginny, who was now flustered and arguing with Tracey about something or other. She highly doubted Ginny would become a regular participant in such activities, but Luna's words lingered in her mind.
For whatever reason, Ginny had needed to be here today. Hermione would just have to have faith that whatever Ginny needed to have happen had occurred and hope for the best.
