Inside Your Mind

kiss with a fist

Kiss With A Fist - Florence + the Machine

September 21st 1998

Two days had gone by and Hermione hadn't spoken to anyone.

Ginny tried to catch her at breakfast and lunch on Sunday but as soon as Hermione saw her coming, she would get up and leave the table, leaving Ginny to eat alone. By the time dinner came around Blaise had invited her to sit with him and Draco at the Slytherin table and, as the three of them had walked through the castle towards the Great Hall, Ginny grudgingly accepted.

'Can you see her?' Ginny had asked the two boys as she looked over to the Gryffindor table.

'No,' Blaise replied. 'She might not have left our dorm yet.'

Ginny had let out a sigh as she piled food onto her plate, ignoring the stares that she was getting from the majority of the students in the Hall.

The Slytherin students sent her glares whenever she looked around at them.

'Maybe I shouldn't have sat with you.' She grumbled through a mouthful of mashed potatoes.

'Ignore them, Ginny.' Blaise said softly.

Hermione didn't turn up for Breakfast Monday morning either.

Ginny, Blaise, and Draco made their way to their first class of the day, wondering if they should have hunted Hermione down and dragged her out of hiding.

'We did the right thing.' Ginny insisted as they walked down the corridor. 'She needed space. She won't miss classes so we'll know if she's alive or not in the next ten minutes.'

'I hope you're right. If not, we're blowing down her door and barging in to make sure she's okay.' Blaise said, a determined look on his face, which had Ginny looking up at him as if he had three heads. She hadn't expected either of the Slytherins to be so worried about Hermione but Blaise was almost acting... protective of her.

The three sat down in their Defence Against the Dark Arts classroom, Ginny sitting with the two boys for a change, and waited for Hermione to appear. Ginny saved a seat in preparation for her arrival and waited with bated breath for the witch to run through the doors.

When Professor Switch, one of the newly appointed professors this year, started the lesson five minutes later, with no sign of Hermione, Ginny's shoulders slumped.

A strong hand gripped her thigh and gave her a comforting squeeze. 'We'll go and see her after this.'

Ginny nodded and tried to pay attention to what Professor Switch was saying at the front of the classroom.

'As part of your advanced training in this subject it is my belief, as well as the Headmistresses', that you are well trained in the art of duelling.' Professor Switch said as she wrote a number of spells on the blackboard with a wave of her wand. 'Though I hope that you should never need to use them it is unrealistic for me to believe that you should not be taught how to duel.'

At that moment Hermione burst through the classroom door and was met by stares from every student.

'Sorry I'm late.' Hermione said breathlessly.

'Take a seat, Miss Granger.' Professor Switch said as she gestured to the spare seat beside Ginny.

Not a word was said as she sat down next to the three people she had been ignoring for the past two days.

'As I was saying, we will spend the next four weeks practicing the art of duelling. Pick your partner wisely, you will be working with them for the duration of the next month.' The professor said as whispers erupted from the students as they negotiated partners.