Ford looked up at her when she cut off mid-sentence. He frowned, pushed his tongue against the inside of one of his cheeks, and subtly made a small mark in his notes. However much he might empathize with her, this was not exactly a mark in her favor. Threatening living beings, especially children, wouldn't look well in his report no matter how favorably he phrased it when he wrote it up.

"No one would," he agreed sympathetically. "It's quite rude. Their etiquette teacher must have missed a few steps with those." While this was a textbook response when it came to Spirit Division training — sympathize superficially and then move on — he really did feel for her situation. If he had to spent all of eternity with mannerless teenagers who wanted to throw things at him, he might get ideas, too. He remembered how Hogwarts bullies could be.

"Have you considered a change of circumstance?" he asked, raising an eyebrow. "You might find the company more agreeable in Hogsmeade."

(She also might find the Spirit Division scrutiny more bearable in Hogsmeade; they did not have such high standards for ghostly conduct within the village as they did for the school).

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