Title: The Pensieve's Recollections of a Starry Night
Author: MrsRobot
Disclaimer: I own none of the characters and receive no profit from this work.
Warnings: References to sexual situations.
Author's Note: I don't even know what this is other than relatively short and hopefully original. Clearly AU and out-of-character. Came up with this in Creative Writing club (my one and only escape from the torture that is engineering education). Hope you like it! Please leave a comment with your thoughts!
Summary: Mundungus Fletcher and Luna Lovegood embark on a brief affair on a clear starry night. An unceremoniously captured pensieve retells their story.
The Pensieve's Recollections of a Starry Night
Mundungus Fletcher – he'd always been an unstable one. Nick something from here, snatch something from there, slip some confidential information to the wrong person, anything nefarious you could think of, he'd done it. But the war had changed him, reformed him even – his previous betrayals were noted but mostly forgotten and he is still allowed into the dining room at Number Twelve, Grimmauld Place. Out of courtesy, or shame perhaps, he keeps his head down when he enters and all throughout dinners. When he walks in, silence often embraces the room and conversations change with no consideration for including him. It saddenes him greatly to see these people who once regarded him with some semblance of respect look so disappointed. Yet what he misses most is the thrill of taking something that is not his and getting away with it. Something about the act – so immoral but so adrenaline-inducing brings him back in every time that he can hardly stop himself.
Luna Lovegood – she'd always been an unstable one. See this and explore it, see that and adopt it – she'd done it all. The girl is a non-nefarious being with goodness overflowing from her veins and curiosity pouring from her eyes. The war hasn't much changed her – it is hard to crack her, really. Luna Lovegood lives in her own world and what happens outside bothers her, yes, but never alters her ways. Through her old friendship to Harry Potter, she is a well-valued member of the Order, invited to every meeting and get-together and included in every conversation. Sometimes, they ask her for her opinions and thoughts but more often than not she is not taken seriously. On odd days, they even laugh at her. It doesn't bother her, per se, but her father never laughs at her musings and she's never seen that anywhere else. It isn't her fault that they cannot see what is obvious to her eyes, silly people.
On some nearly-forgotten starry night, Luna Lovegood leaves the gloomy house to observe the position of the moon and its alarming distancing from the planet. It vexes her – this painfully slow escapade that the moon is on. She wonders if the moon feels impatient sometimes, fighting off gravity at too slow a rate. She supposes she would never find out. Mundungus Fletcher leaves the gloomy house to get absolutely pissed and curse at the Potter boy and his bloody never-ending glory. He wonders what life like that would be like. Endless riches and only the best of drinks, he supposes – no thievery would be necessary at that rate.
When he sees her perched on the spot where he was to sit, Mundungus Fletcher scowls and curses at the blond girl. She does not seem to mind his insults and keeps staring at the never-ending sky, undisturbed by his harshness.
"Why do you think the moon wants to escape from the Earth?"
"So bloody werewolves, like Lupin, would go to Hell."
"Are you angry tonight, Mr Fletcher?"
"I am not angry, you smart arsed loony. I am miserable."
"Do you think getting drunk and losing yourself for a few hours would change the world?"
"Stop asking me so many bloody questions. I came here to drink, not to take a test, eh?"
She stays silent after that but the moon no longer holds her attention. She trains her curious eyes on him and observes as he takes sip after sip, gulp after gulp. Before long, an even more unrefined version of him comes out and spits out some more curses at no one in particular. At some point, a wasted Mundungus Fletcher clumsily offers Luna Lovegood the glass tub he is drinking out of. Being the inquisitive individual that she is, she takes it, sniffs it and dampens her tongue with it. It is not unpleasant.
Walking back into the house is harder than expected. They sway and stumble and giggle, and all types of uncharacteristic motions come from within Luna Lovegood and Mundungus Fletcher. The pair – so absolutely pissed that they are nothing but the highest order of friends in their deranged state of mind. They meet the trio of Harry Potter, Hermione Granger and Ron Weasley somewhere within the house and with lousy shouts and grunts start laughing at their bewildered expressions. Naturally, it is more for the unusual state the girl is in; as opposed to the renowned thief (they already expect this sort of behaviour from him).
Luna Lovegood and Mundungus Fletcher are only having the best time of their lives, in this unhinged time of war and peril. Sorrows and worries don't mean much when you are gone beyond reasoning. At some point in the night, someone (they don't remember a specific face) tries to pry their clenched hands away from each other. But they only grip harder and move some place where no one would bother them further.
It is then that they return to their spot on the grass, the cold air refreshing but not so chilled as to sober them. Hands still drawn together, they roll on the damp grass and stare listlessly into the sky. It is a clear night and the stars form a beautiful picture for their disoriented eyes to dwell on. The hours pass and the darkness fades but yet they remain there, unmoving and sharing the breathtaking silence.
Luna Lovegood could wager her radish earrings that Mundungus Fletcher's rough lips had, at some point or another, rested on top of hers. She doesn't remember the exact details but the distinct feeling of hastily moistened lips attached to hers remains in her mind. She supposes it uncharacteristic for her to be sharing kisses with this person and that but the girl could never deny a new experience. It is something she stores in her thoughts and files for later reevaluation. Luna Lovegood does not like Mundungus Fletcher but the old man had been intriguing enough to entertain her all throughout the night.
Mundungus Fletcher does not usually snog crazy blonde girls but out in the dark, she'd looked almost like a forest nymph. Her eyes had blurred from the alcohol and her lips had parted in a curious way, and he'd just moved, and his lips were all over her. He is sure her neck would be bruised soon and he wants to be far and gone by the time the blue comes out. He is not apologetic for his endeavors with the girl but the wrath of her friends is not something he wishes to deal with. Mundungus Fletcher is almost certain that the girl scarcely remembers any of it but he'd been so gone in alcohol, rage and lust that he'd almost lost himself inside of her. Her only saviour had been the wind interrupting them, for he had stopped when the cold feeling of a gust had passed over his lifted wizarding robes.
Mundungus Fletcher and Luna Lovegood don't see each other again but memories are scarcely forgotten and tend to live on inside of us. Often times, pensieves are also good keepers for recollections. On the rare occasion that a pensieve is borrowed without permission, unwanted private information (as encountered here) enters the minds of unsuspecting wizards and witches in the likes of myself. As an upstanding subject of the wizarding world, however, I choose to share this information with you only and promise that what I have encountered here shall never escape mine own thoughts.