Pushing the wardrobe to the opposite side of the room, he heaved a sigh. It thunk'd against the wall, and he slumped next to it, wiping his face. A wisp of a girl brushed through his doorway then.
"Are you busy, Professor?" The angel from his nightmares asked him. Remus looked up at her, and managed a wane smile.
"No, Luna. What is it?" She came over and sat next to him, sucking her bottom lip into her mouth and chewing on it while a look of deep thought crossed her face. He waited patiently for her to gather her thoughts, peering at her from the corner of his eye. He couldn't help but notice today she only wore a light, baggy dress made from thin material that clung to her front when she sat. He also couldn't help but notice she was not wearing any under garments. Oh, Luna, what you do to me, he thought, mentally slapping himself. He was a sick, sick man...
"I think I'm in love," She turned her sweet face towards him, "How do you know when you're in love?"
Ah, the age-long question. Hmm. How does one know? He mulled it over for a few moments-quite a few moments, then answered slowly, "Well Luna, you can't seem to get them from your mind, I suppose. And their needs go before yours: that is, you put their needs before your own. When you're around them, you have a butterfly-and-sparkles sort of feeling. Maybe sometimes you even get flustered. Or you just feel content, happy, when they're around. And if just thinking of them can put a smile on your face, then you've got something. If they somehow come up in your dreams. If just being around them makes you feel like you can conquer the world. If holding hands with them makes you feel invincible. I suppose there are many different ways, though it can probably depend on the person."
"Hmm," Was her reply. He looked over at her. She was chewing the inside of her cheek now.
"Luna," He ventured hesitantly.
She tossed her hair behind her shoulder and looked over at him. "Yes, Lupin?"
Don't ask her. Don't ask her. Don't-"Who do you think you're in love with?"-ask her...
She sighed. "I don't think anymore. I know." She stood, and left the room. He looked after her, and the thought to call her back to him didn't even occur to him.
"Wanna play Exploding Snap, Lu?" Neville asked her. She shook her head.
"Not today, Neville. I'm busy." He shrugged his shoulders, not questioning her any further, and walked back to the circle, where Hanna looked up at him with a shy smile. Though she was just sitting cross-legged in the grass a ways away from the main group, Neville knew better than to ask what she was busy with-or he'd never get to play that round of Exploding Snap. She looked up at the sky. It would be dark in about an hour. Slowly and seemingly dreamily, Luna rose to her feet. Without warning, she sprinted to number 13, Grimmauld Place.
Remus walked into Grimmauld Place wearily. He nearly tripped over the troll leg umbrella stand, and thankfully a painful thought of his Dora didn't flit across his mind. He walked as quietly as possible without tip-toeing to the dimly lit kitchen and sunk into a chair. He flicked his wand, and the tea kettle started to boil. Another flick and a cup was out. Yet another. Sugar and cream went into the cup. Flick. Water tipped into the cup. Swish. The cup came floating to him. He lifted it to his mouth, taking a greedy pull at the honey-coloured liquid within.
"Are you hungry, Professor Lupin?" A dreamy voice asked, causing him to start violently and spill what remained of the tea on his thighs. Luna's pale arm lifted and waved her wand. He smiled thinly at her.
"Thank you, Luna," He took another drink of the tea that was back in his cup, "And yes. I was going to see if there were left-overs. If not I'll just make some food. Would you care for some, too?"
But he needn't have asked. Luna was already up and pulling things from the fridge. He watched, berating himself for his thoughts, as she heated him a bowl of vegetable broth. Not his favorite, that was for sure. She slid the bowl in front of him and he nodded his thanks. His eyebrows rose up in surprise when he tasted a spoonful."
"Did Molly come over when I was gone, or did she-"
"Send it in? Yes." The 19-year-old answered. He nodded. "Ah." He sipped his tea. She scratched her nose. He rubbed his chin. A smile flickered across her face. He tried not to think about how lovely she was. She sniffed. He rubbed his chin. She slowly sucked her lower lip in. He spooned a bit of broth into his mouth. She slowly bit down. He rubbed his chin. She hopped up and started heating the kettle manually. He sipped his tea. She grabbed a chipped white cup. He scrunched his nose. She dumped a copious amount of sugar in her cup. He tried to focus on how odd and senseless she was. She put tea in the cup, not bothering to mix it, and slid her mis-matched covered feet over to the chair. He bit his tongue to stop himself from blurting out how and completely young she was. She blew across her tea to cool it down. He managed to pull his eyes off her and focused on the broth. She took a sip. He rubbed his chin. She turned her head at him. He pretended not to notice. She smiled widely. He rubbed his chin.
"So do you still want to know who I'm in love with Lupin?" She asked brightly. He sighed. He really, really did not want to know.
"Of course. Maybe I could help you get him." Did he just say that? Oh, he just said that...
"Well. I'm sorta... loopy for him." She looked at him, hoping he would catch the hint.
"Oh? Yes, I suppose love is quite loopy."
"Do you love anyone, Lupin?" She asked, switching the conversation to him.
He looked startled. "Y-yes. I suppose I do."
"Are you in love with someone?" She persisted.
"Yes, I suppose I am." He relented.
"Who?" Luna asked simply. He looked over at her, and took a sip of his tea.
"I'm positively loopy for this man. And, speaking of loopy, he's quite loopy too. Actually, Peeves used to call him Loopy Lup-"
"Remus! I didn't know you were back!" Harry spoke loudly while rubbing the sleep out of his eyes.
"Yes, only just. What are you doing here?"
"Oh, Ginny exploded at me. I hope she's not-well, it's probably her time of month. I hope."
"I know all about that," He murmured. Luna moved from her chair to the one next to his.
"He is rather loopy, actually." She continued. Harry looked over at her.
"I am not loopy, Luna!" She rolled her eyes, and took a long drink of tea. Something clicked in Remus's head.
"If you're going to keep dropping hints instead of coming right out, I suppose I won't come right out either. The person I love is rather loony."
Harry looked at the two in utter confusion.
"How loony?"
"Oh, the looniest. In fact, Peeves used to call her Loony Lun-"
"You two are ridiculous. I'm going to bed," Harry interjected before turning around and tromping up the steps.
"Loony Lun-what?"
"Loopy Lup-who?"
They asked at the same time. The two started at each other.
"You first." Luna said, smiling.
"Actually, ladies first," Remus leaned back in his chair smiling smugly.
"Hmm. No. You. Anyway, I know he doesn't love me back. He hates my namesake."
Remus leaned forward, and pulled her to him. He brushed his lips against her cheek.
"Maybe he resents it, but he surely thinks it's beautiful, just as you are, and wishes he could hold it."
She whispered back, "You can hold me." With a slight smile, Remus leaned down to settle his lips upon hers, even as the sane part of his mind screamed at him that she was too young, that she was younger than too young, that she deserved somuchbetter, and she had so much life in her. Finally they parted. Now there's no escaping the moon, was his last coherent thought.
"I'm positively loopy for you, Lupin." She whispered secretively.
He smiled against her lips. "I'm absolutely loony for you, Luna."
I'm aware their pairing would never happen like this. I'm going to write to companion pieces that kinda-almost-probably-not-really go with this, titled 'Loopy For Lupin' and 'Loony For Luna.'