Belle found Ginny waiting for her outside of the Arithmancy classroom.
"How was it?" Ginny asked immediately, falling into step beside Belle as they walked down the corridor.
"It went rather well," Belle said, as they descended stairs in what she hoped was the direction of the Great Hall. It was just about dinner time and Belle was hungry. "I actually have some familiarity with the subject because of my father, but from the, how do you call it, Muggle perspective."
"That's good, right?" Ginny asked.
"Yes, it is," Belle said. "The foundations seem to be similar if not the same so far. Of course, we go deeper into the magical aspects here."
"You seem, overall, to be really well suited for magical school," Ginny observed. "You're a natural."
"I didn't do so well in Herbology," Belle pointed out. "I have a garden at home, but these plants are nothing like mine."
"Well," Ginny said. "Professor Sprout likes to keep all the 'interesting' magical plants. Ready to eat?"
"Yes!" Belle said. "I was hoping that's where we were going."
They talked about Belle's experiences with numerology and gardening as they continued their walk to the Great Hall.
Once they entered the hall, they sat down at an empty part of the table so they could talk uninterrupted.
As they ate, Belle pointed out the girl who was in her Arithmancy class to Ginny. "Who is that?" Belle asked Ginny. "I forgot her name."
"Demelza Robbins," Ginny said enthusiastically. "She's very sweet. And a great Chaser. Why?"
"She was in my Arithmancy class," Belle said.
"Ahh, I didn't know she studied Arithmancy," Ginny said. "That's good to know."
"I also met someone that Professor Vector called Mr. Finch-Fletchley," Belle commented.
"Ah yes, Justin Finch-Fletchley," Ginny said. "He couldn't complete his final year last year because of the war so he came back to finish just like Hermione."
"Why not?" Belle asked.
"Because he's Muggle-born," Ginny said. "And the bad guys were rounding up anyone Muggle-born. It was safer for him not to attend. There are a few like him here." Ginny pointed down the table to a black boy. "That's Dean Thomas. He couldn't attend Hogwarts last year either, so he came back."
Dean looked towards them, caught Ginny's eye, and quickly looked away. "Things are a bit awkward between me and him," Ginny commented. "We used to date. But he also plays on the Quidditch team and is in the same house so we can't avoid each other."
Ginny seemed to have had a lot of experience in the realm of dating and relationships. Belle was once again intrigued by her.
"Oh, remember," Ginny said. "After dinner, we're going to meet up with Luna."
"Okay," Belle said, remembering the ethereal blonde girl who walked with them from Herbology to Charms.
"Luna can be trusted," Ginny said. "I think she'll be one of your best bets to help you stay on top of Ancient Runes and help with other subjects if she's willing. Luna is really smart, even if she's odd. She's in Ravenclaw."
Belle recalled that Ravenclaw was the Hogwarts House characteristically known for knowledge and wisdom. Also, her mother's house. Belle was glad to get to know someone from Ravenclaw. It helped her feel closer to her mother.
As if summoned by them speaking about her, Luna drifted over from another table. "Would you like to meet up now?" Luna asked. "Or meet later?"
Ginny looked at Belle questioningly. "Does now work?" Ginny asked.
"Sure," Belle said. "I'm finished."
"Let's go then," Ginny said, standing up. "Shall we go to the library?"
The three women walked in the direction of the library. As they walked, Ginny kept checking different classrooms. At last, Ginny pulled them into a vacant classroom and shut the door.
"Before we get there," Ginny said. "I wanted to explain something to you, Luna."
"That this isn't Hermione?" Luna asked.
"How did you know?" Ginny asked, startled.
"I could just tell," Luna said simply. "Her expressions and mannerisms are different."
"I forgot how observant you are," Ginny said, smiling.
"But I don't know what happened," Luna said dreamily.
Ginny launched into an explanation, Luna listening intently.
"I discovered something new today," Belle chimed in when Ginny finished, remembering something she hadn't told Ginny yet. The other two looked at her. "In Arithmancy, we're studying complex spell formulations. Professor Vector feels guilty that she might have enabled Hermione to do this."
Ginny and Luna looked thoughtful. "It's just like Hermione to have read the full textbook ahead of time," Ginny said. "It's not surprising she figured it out early."
"Very complex magic," Luna said. "And dangerous. My mother used to experiment with spells. She died from an experiment gone wrong."
"I never knew that," Ginny said softly. "I'm so sorry."
"Yes, it's very sad," Luna said. "I'm very glad nothing like that happened to you or Hermione."
"Me too," Ginny said.
"Agreed," said Belle.
"Well, Luna, would you mind coming to the library with us and helping Belle with her Ancient Runes homework?" Ginny asked.
"Not at all," Luna said. "Let's go."