Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter or any lyrics in this fic. They belong to JK Rowling and Mumford and Sons respectively.
A/N: Here is a ridiculously late birthday fic for the wonderful Resa Aureus – a brilliant writer and friend. I hope you enjoy it Resa – and congratulations on the birth of your son! :)
Based on the song 'Sigh No More' by Mumford and Sons. Centred especially on the lines 'Love, it will not betray, dismay or enslave you - it will set you free!/ Be more like the man you were made to be...'
Sigh No More
The day had gone terribly wrong. In fact wrong was an understatement.
Hermione touched her black eye tenderly and remembered the humiliation of tumbling down the several flights of stairs that led down from her flat. She had surprised several witches and amused two wizards as she skidded to a halt on the main floor of a moderately busy Flourish and Blotts. Her black party dress had ridden up and given all the Christmas shoppers a view of her enormous stomach-holding-in knickers.
Biting her lip and trying to keep her blush to a minimum, Hermione approached Grimmauld Place. She attempted to squash the halo of frizz that had developed over her hair without success. So much for the two hours she had spent trying to look nice for Harry and Ginny's Christmas party.
Splat.
Hermione shrieked as something splattered down the side of her face and landed on her shoulder. "You have got to be joking!" She exclaimed, looking at the blob of pigeon poo on the shoulder of her new dress. The offending pigeon cooed happily from its perch on top of the door. "Right, you little bastard…" Hermione growled, pulling her wand from her bag and pointing it at the bird.
"Incend-" Hermione was interrupted by the squeak of a door and a familiar voice.
"Hermione Granger! Are you about to incinerate a poor defenseless pigeon?"
"Ginny! That poor defenceless pigeon took a shit on me!" Hermione exclaimed in reply, as she gestured towards her shoulder. "Look at it!" She said shoving her soiled shoulder at the red head in the doorway.
"It's good luck y'know," Said a dreamy voice from behind Ginny.
Hermione turned her gaze to Luna who was smiling her stupid, faraway, irritatingly attractive smile. "Really?" Hermione huffed. "And what happens if a blibbering humdinger craps on you? Does that mean you're going to discover a pile of gold or become the next minister for magic?"
"Don't be ridiculous Hermione, everybody knows that blibbering humdinger poo is poisonous," Luna said before flouncing off down the hall.
Ginny raised an eyebrow at Hermione. "What?" Hermione asked as she stepped into the house.
"Scougify," Ginny said pointing at Hermione's shoulder. "You don't have to be so hostile to Luna, you know," She continued as they walked down the hall towards the party.
"We just don't get on, Gin," Hermione replied. "Thanks," She added, looking at her bird poo-less shoulder.
"Sure, Hermione... there was me thinking you two had a thing for a while," Ginny said as she walked into the large sitting room crammed with people.
"That was years ago – and it was just after the war so it doesn't count!" Hermione hissed in reply.
Ginny grinned at her and rolled her eyes.
Hermione went to the drinks counter and poured herself a generous glass of firewhiskey. "What happened to your eye?" Harry exclaimed as he hugged Hermione in greeting.
"Nice to see you too," She replied with a smile before taking a sip of her drink.
"Ooo ook ik ander!" Ron exclaimed with a mouthful of cake.
"Pardon?" Hermione asked, smiling despite herself.
"You look like a panda!" Ron repeated.
"I fell down the stairs," Hermione sniffed and tried to ignore the surge of embarrassment that rushed to her cheeks.
Three hours later, the party was filled with raucous laughter and festive cheer amplified by all the alcohol. Hermione slipped outside to get some air and sober up a little. Her head felt fuzzy with drink and she needed to get out before someone noticed that her eyes seemed to be permanently fixed to Luna's legs. They were lovely legs though, she thought to herself as she leaned against the wall and breathed in the cold air.
"Are you alright?" Ginny asked as she appeared in the garden to hand Hermione a glass of water.
"Yes. No. I don't know..." Hermione mumbled as she sipped the water gratefully.
"Is it Luna?" Ginny ventured.
"What? How did you know?" Hermione asked, alarmed by her friend's question.
"It was difficult not to notice when you couldn't pull your eyes away from her," she answered with a shrug.
"Bollocks. Was it that obvious?"
"Afraid so."
Silence hung between them as Hermione stared miserably into her glass of water. "Why does she have to be so damn beautiful?" Hermione sighed.
"Why don't you go talk to her?" Ginny asked.
"I can't!"
"Why?"
"She just... it's... complicated," Hermione said with a frown.
"This is about Pansy isn't it?"
Hermione flinched at the name. After the war Pansy Parkinson had blossomed into a beautiful witch with a sharp wit and all the confidence Hermione lacked. But it had all fallen apart six months ago when it turned out that Pansy was having an affair with Blaise Zabini. Hermione wasn't sure whether the fact that she'd been cheated on was the thing that hurt most, or if it was the fact that Pansy had preferred a man to her. Not to mention a man who was a colossal twat.
"Luna isn't exactly the kind of girl to settle down," Hermione said with a shrug. "When we – uh – were seeing each other it became clear pretty quickly that she wanted it to be a casual arrangement."
"She's changed, Hermione," Ginny said, placing a hand on Hermione's shoulder.
"Really? There I was thinking she'd been fucking half the witches in the country for the last three years," Hermione said, trying to fight the tears pricking at the corners of her eyes.
"She's not been with anyone for months. She told me she was ready to settle down."
"Even so... I just don't know if I can trust someone again. Not to mention she quite obviously doesn't want me – all she ever does is make snippy remarks and I swear she goes out of her way to say things to me that she knows will wind me up. I mean really, blibbering humdinger poo? Ugh!"
"I think she likes getting you all hot and flustered," Ginny said with a laugh.
"Yes, well, she achieves that simply by looking at me," Hermione blurted out before slapping a hand over her mouth.
Ginny dissolved into peals of laughter before looking at her seriously. "You really care about her, don't you?"
Hermione nodded. "I keep denying it to myself. But I think that I might... you know..."
"What?" Ginny asked her innocently.
"Don't make me say it," Hermione groaned.
"You have to admit it some time," Ginny shrugged.
"I think that I might love her. Shit, I said it," Hermione said in surprise at herself. "I fucking love her!" She exclaimed to herself with a relieved laugh.
o0o
Stood behind the tall apple tree in the garden of Grimmauld Place Luna had been watching the stars and thinking how much she'd like to be able to sparkle like a star they did when Hermione and Ginny had come out. As they started talking she couldn't help but listen in.
When the back door closed and the two other women had gone back in, Luna allowed herself to grin and spin around joyfully. "She loves me!" She laughed.
o0o
Hermione watched as the couples danced to Christmas music and guests kissed under the mistletoe. She felt embarrassed about what she'd told Ginny now that she'd sobered up a little. Walking to get a glass of orange juice Hermione suddenly found herself alone, under a sprig of mistletoe. How depressing. The empty glass she was holding dropped and shattered as she jumped in surprise at the sudden exclamation from behind her.
The music cut out and suddenly all eyes were on her and the owner of the loud voice.
"NOOOO! THE NARGLES!" Shrieked Luna. "DON'T MOVE!"
Hermione turned around and looked at Luna. Luna stood in the middle of the room, a twig was caught in her windblown hair and her skin glowed in the soft lamplight. Before she knew what was happening, Luna was moving towards her and reaching out a hand towards her face.
"Don't you know? If you step out from under the mistletoe without kissing someone, the nargles get angry."
Suddenly Luna's lips were pressed firmly against her own. The wonderful sensation of soft lips and hot breath made Hermione forget about the hooting and catcalls of the other party guests.
Luna pulled away and looked at Hermione. "Be my girlfriend," Luna stated simply.
"What?" Hermione asked completely stunned.
"Be my girlfriend. I want to be with you," Luna repeated in her strange dreamy voice.
"No," Hermione blurted out.
"Why?" Luna asked.
Hermione bit her lip, why did Luna have to be so blunt?
"If you say no then I'll be like a nargle without her mistletoe, a wrackspurt without a brain, or a heliopath with no fire. I'm sorry for how things worked out before but if you don't take a chance then you'll never know how wonderful and freeing love can be – I promise I will never hurt you." In her strange way Luna was saying the most romantic things Hermione had ever had said to her.
"So, be my girlfriend," Luna said with that beautiful and beguiling smile of hers.
Hermione smiled shyly and nodded, incapable of words. Luna grabbed her hand and pulled her away from the crowd of amused partygoers and out into the night to apparated home. As they were leaving Hermione heard mutters of "about bloody time" and "took long enough.
She grinned to herself as Luna's thumb stroked circles on her hand and the air seemed to fizzle with the prospect of what was to come...
'Love it will not betray you
Dismay or enslave you, it will set you free
Be more like the man you were made to be
There is a design, an alignment, a cry
Of my heart to see,
The beauty of love as it was made to be…'