Inside Your Mind

what can i say

What Can I Say - Brandi Carlile

September 5th 1998

It had been four days since Hermione arrived back at Hogwarts. It had been three whole days of living in an isolated dormitory with Ginny and two Slytherins.

After that first night, with Blaise's attempt at bonding over Firewhiskey not having the desired effect, the group hadn't spoke much or spent much time in each others company. Perhaps not wanting to ruin the somewhat civility that they had created while drinking.

Hermione, being Hermione, spent all of her free time in their library curled up in the cushions and reading whatever her hand touched first. She always told Ginny where she was going and that she was welcome to come along but she never joined her.

Classes and mealtimes had helped to break up the routine and the loneliness that bounced around their tower but, as the morning rays of the first Saturday broke through Hermione's window and woke her from sleep, she knew that today would be difficult. There would be nothing to distract her from the loss of her two best friends, no classes to attend, no homework to do as she had completed it as soon as she got it in order to fill the time isolated in this dormitory, and no one else to speak to besides Ginny. Though the two girls were now inseparable there was only so much they could talk about that would distract from the missing pieces.

Not only had Hermione lost her two best friends but Ginny had lost her brother as well as the boy she loved. Having only been reunited for a few hours that night, only to be ripped apart once more, Hermione couldn't ask Ginny to comfort her over the loss of Harry and Ron any more. She knew that Ginny was hurting more than she ever could.

But that didn't mean that it didn't hurt.

After seeing that it was barely 6am, but knowing that she wouldn't be able to go back to sleep, Hermione dragged herself out of bed and picked up her towel so that she could use the shower before anyone else was awake.

She was still yawning by the time she shut the water off and stepped out the shower, her hair dripping down her back, and she was surprised to hear shouts coming from the common room.

'I swear to Merlin, Zabini, I will hex you!' She heard Ginny scream.

'Weasley, calm down!' Blaise shouted back. Hermione could hear the slight shake in his voice and wondered what was going on.

'What are you two shouting about?' She heard Draco grumble, clearly having been woken up by the shouting match.

The sound of smashing glass cleared Hermione's mind and she was running from the bathroom, her wand in hand, before she could think twice about it.

'Ginny, what are you doing!' Hermione shouted as she entered the common room, taking in the sight of the two Slytherin's covering their heads with their arms, and Ginny with her wand pointed directly at them.

'I'm going to bloody kill him!' Ginny shouted as she fired a hex towards Zabini.

'Ginny!' Hermione shouted once more, rushing to stand between Ginny and her target, as Blaise ducked out of the way of that last hex just in time. 'Expelliarmus!'

Ginny's wand flew from her hand and landed in Hermione's.

'What did you do that for?!' The red head cried.

'What's going on?' Hermione demanded, glancing from Ginny to Blaise with wild eyes.

The tension in the room was palpable.

'Tell her what you said.' Ginny hissed through gritted teeth as she focussed her glare on Blaise.

'I-I don't know what I said wrong.' Blaise stuttered as he straightened up. When he looked at Hermione to explain she saw him quickly avert his eyes away from her before he continued. 'I just asked why her brother and Potter didn't come back to school. I was just trying to make conversation, I was trying to be polite and civil, but she bit my head off.'