MAGIANIMA // Hermione Granger

Kalo

The Herbology lesson on Puffapods Atlas had studied for in very early advance came to pass, with Ron preoccupied glaring at Hermione most of the class - which ended up with the greenhouse floor covered in freshly-bloomed Puffapods - and now they were heading for Transfiguration. Atlas was stood between Harry and Hermione, her head in a book and eyebrows furrowed in concentration. 

The lesson hadn't been hard per se, but the next lesson would be slightly more difficult and as Atlas was generally hopeless at the subject, she'd been neglecting most of her other well-known subjects in favour of the class. It hadn't been doing any harm really, not even putting a dampener on any of her grades, in honesty she could drop all of her out-of-class work and still get good marks by the end of the year. She didn't though, she quite enjoyed sitting in silence with Hermione, Harry and Ron doing their work together.

"What's the matter, Lavender?" The concern in Hermione's voice made Atlas look up, her Herbology book immediately discarded into her bag. There was a girl, Lavender Brown, crying into Parvati Patil's arms in front of Seamus Finnigan and Dean Thomas. It all looked very serious.

"She got a letter from home this morning," Parvati whispered. "It's her rabbit, Binky. He's been killed by a fox."

"Oh," Hermione frowned, "I'm sorry, Lavender."

"I should have known!" Lavender cried out. "You know what day it is?"

"Er -- no?" Hermione winced.

"It's October 16th," Atlas supplied, pulling a tissue out of her bag and offering it to the absolutely distraught girl, "the day something Lavender's dreading to happen will happen. Professor Trelawney said that in our first lesson right?"

"Right!" Lavender sobbed, blowing her nose loudly into her tissue. "She was right! She was right!"

Hermione hesitated - Atlas could see - then she said, "You...you were dreading Binky being killed by a fox?"

"Well..." Lavender blinked, wiping at her nose a few more times and when Atlas noticed the girl's tissue looked particularly spent she pulled out another, "not necessarily by a fox," she admitted looking up at Hermione who flinched back in surprise, bumping into Atlas who held her steady instantly, "but I was obviously dreading him dying, wasn't I?"

"Oh," Hermione said and then furrowed her brows, "Was Binky an old rabbit?"

"N-no!" Lavender cried again with renewed tears, "H-he was only a baby!"

"But then, why would you dread him dying?" Hermione asked, earning herself a deadly glare from Parvati, "Well...look at it logically," she sighed, "I mean, Binky didn't even die today, did he? Lavender just got the news today--" Lavender wept loudly, "--and she can't have been dreading it, because it's come as a real shock --"

"Don't mind Hermione, Lavender," Ron interrupted, "she doesn't think other people's pets matter very much."

"I'm just saying we shouldn't take all of Professor Trelawney's so-called 'predictions' seriously!" Hermione puffed up, her entire being suddenly alight with energy, Atlas grimaced and tried to calm her down at the side as Ron went at her with just as much vigour. "I'm obviously sorry for Binky's death--!" Lavender cried again, "I'm not heartless, Ronald!"

"Could have fooled me!"

"Come on guys," Harry tried, pulling at Ron's arm.

"Yeah," Atlas agreed with a nod, handing Lavender her entire packet of tissues before turning to Hermione and latching onto her shoulders, "Come on Mione, calm down."

"Honestly!" Hermione fumed, cheeks red, "heartless! The nerve!"

At that moment Professor McGonagall walked into the class, halting the drama for a heated second before whisking the students to their seats. The four were the last to sit down.