Written for The Houses Competition and HSWW forum
House Hufflepuff
Houses
Category: Short
Prompt: Myths
Hogwarts
Task: Write about a person who finds a way to breathe again.
Word count: 1,236
Beta: Dark Angel of Sorrow Returns
Every civilisation has its myths and legends. Those myths about the various gods the old settlements believed in are by far the most well-known. Zeus, Anubis and Jupiter are names known by all to belong to an old god. In modern times, there is no one religion known—instead there are many. As such, each religion's followers dismiss all others as myths. Having one God would be ridiculous for some and for others having more than a singular God is the ridiculous notion.
In the Wizarding World, there are no arguments over God or gods. Wizards believed in Magic and her power, along with all that came with her. A wizard's myths were found in the strange and wondrous creatures that may or may not populate the world. A phoenix was almost considered a myth, despite the feathers and tears being used in several magical recipes and the great Albus Dumbledore having a phoenix familiar. Those outside Great Britain, however, had no experience with Dumbledore and therefore could hold onto some doubt as to the validity of the bird's existence.
There was a publication that these people could turn to when they needed answers; The Quibbler. The Quibbler was run by the Lovegood family and was full of marvellous discoveries and strange theories. While those who religiously read the Daily Prophet thought The Quibbler was a load of nonsense, the magazine still stood strong and continued to write about the fantastical beasts and even more fantastical theories. One such fantastical beast was the Crumple-Horned Snorkack, a mythical creature that had never been photographed and yet was still believed to exist.
It was almost a given that somewhere in any edition of The Quibbler, there would be an article or factoid about the elusive Crumple-Horned Snorkack. The Lovegood family was obsessed with finding the creature and learning about it while also proving the Daily Prophet snobs that the 'crazies' were right and the 'sensibles' wrong. Xenophilius Lovegood was currently teaching his young daughter all about the various creatures he knew existed out there that others did not.
Xeno had never understood why people would close their minds off to the possibilities of the world around them. Why would they lock themselves into a room with no windows or light and then stay there for the rest of their lives? To him, that was what they were doing when they ignored the wonders surrounding them. Those wonders and his daughter were the only reason that Xeno had still been able to function after he had lost his wife to a tragic accident that had come from an explosion.
His wife, Pandora, had understood Xeno's look on life and had embraced the strange and fantastical easily. They had explored the world together and then settled down for a while when Pandora discovered she was pregnant. They had a little cottage that was surrounded by a garden filled with dirigible plums, nargles and other such life. It was a cheerful place and the perfect home to raise a child in.
Luna Lovegood was never given the chance to close her eyes and mind to the world around her. Her parents always made sure to encourage her imagination and belief to grow while keeping any scepticism on a tight leash. A small amount was healthy, but they had no wish to blind her with scepticism and leave no room for faith. Luna's mind was a wide open field with trees dotted around and a gentle breeze floating through; there was no small, dark room keeping her locked away and unable to breathe due to the stifling air of disbelief.
Then came the second Wizarding War and the return of Voldemort. The Quibbler still published and discussed theories, but those theories had more to do with Voldemort, Minister Fudge and Albus Dumbledore. There weren't as many mentions of the wonderful creatures that were sure to exist somewhere and not just within myths and legends. Luna Lovegood went to school with Harry Potter and fought by his side, eyes wide open and seeing the nargles that floated around the Boy Who Lived.
She had been called odd by many people and had really only had one friend during her first few years of Hogwarts, not that she minded all that much. During her fourth year, she reassured Harry that he wasn't crazy and began chipping away at the small room that was suffocating him slowly. While he may not have understood what she was talking about when she mentioned the nargles and other creatures she knew and could see, he still vaguely believed her, and a small shaft of light shone down into the once completely dark room.
The light was quickly snuffed out again when Sirius Black died, and Luna could see by Harry's actions that his room had shrunk in size. Still, she did not give up on him and continued that year to chip away at the reinforced barrier that held Harry hostage. It did not want to let him go and he wanted to stay inside it, hoping it could protect him somehow from the horrors Voldemort showed him through his famous scar.
It was the end of the war when the walls of Harry's room crumbled to dust as similar walls rose from the charred field in Luna's mind. She cried out and futilely tried to scratch and kick her way out of the room. There was no light around her and she could feel the horrors she had seen steal her breath away. There were no nargles to see now, no Crumple-Horned Snorkack to track down and capture an image of. There was simply four walls and a small, dark room. For the first time in her life, Luna couldn't breathe.
Everyone noticed that Loony Lovegood had become more subdued and less mad, they assumed she had finally grown up due to the war. Except Harry. Harry Potter had found that after dying and returning, defeating Voldemort and finally having the weight of the prophecy off his shoulders; he could see more in his mind than a small room with no hope for the future. He could instead see a serene Quidditch Pitch with a broom lying on the ground waiting for him to take off. He could see the little creatures that he assumed were nargles and eagerly wanted to talk to Luna about them.
Except Luna wasn't Luna anymore, she had lost her belief after being trapped in the dungeon at Malfoy Manor and tortured, followed by fighting in a massive battle while Hogwarts was destroyed around her. She begged him to save her, to show her the way out of the prison she had found herself in. There was nothing else he could do, he could not let Luna fade away and she had helped him breathe freely for the first time in his life. He could not let her suffocate in his place.
So, Harry Potter swore that he would restore Luna Lovegood's belief in all the myths and legends that she had once believed in. He would show her the nargles, he would get her to see the wrackspurts and he would find a Crumple-Horned Snorkack for her. He would break her out of the prison and show her to the beautiful field, she would be able to breathe again and see the wonders if it was the last thing he did.