A/N: Hello and welcome to this new story. I thought that this site was severely lacking Luna and Ginny fics, so I decided to rectify that problem. Please let me know what you think. I'm open to criticism and feedback. Also this story won't have any magic. Sorry. But there's still plenty of drama to be had in any school, right? Anyway, enjoy and don't forget to review.
The garden was always so quiet in the morning, little tufts of mist seeming to rise from the ground. Luna stepped down lightly and gently cupped a violet. It would be blooming any day now, all of them would be. A small smile graced her face as she imagined the spectacle of color and smell that would entail. Luna glanced up at the sky; the sun was just beginning to peak above the horizon. She would have to get ready for school. But before she went inside, she approached a particular tree at the edge of the garden, next to the azaleas. Luna reached out and gently laid her hand against the base of the cherry blossom tree. The tree had been planted eight years ago as a sapling, and in those short eight years it had already grown significantly. Luna had helped her father pick it out herself.
"Good morning mum," Luna said softly. "It looks like your tree is going to blossom within a week or so. You always liked the smell of cherry blossoms so much." Luna paused for a moment as a soft breeze blew by and gently tussled her long, dirty blond hair. "School's been fine I suppose," she began once more. "The others have been taking my things again; I'm certain it isn't Nargles this time. They seem to treat it like a game. They're always smiling and laughing while they do it." Luna looked down and brushed a stray hair from her eyes. "I laugh along too, though sometimes I wish they wouldn't do it. My things are always returned eventually, but I lost my new pencil set, the one Dad got me for my birthday, and I wish they would give it back." Luna stood there quietly; the only sound the occasional bird call.
She knew her mother couldn't reply back, at least not with words. She knew that she had departed this world, but standing by her tree, she couldn't help but feel closer to her. It was a lot more pleasant than standing next to her tombstone, although Luna always made sure to bring plenty of flowers with her when she visited. If any of her classmates could see her right then, talking to a tree, no doubt they would call her by that name they had assigned to her, Loony Lovegood. It had always puzzled Luna why they had called her that. She knew that some of them did it out of meanness, but there wasn't anything she could do about it, so why get upset? Although she had grown use to it over the years, and try as she might to dissuade herself, it still hurt a little.
Luna gave the tree one last gentle brush with her hand before removing her hand and looking back up. "I'll talk to you tomorrow mum." And with that, Luna turned around and went inside to get ready for school.
Homeroom was always so loud. People talking, little bits of paper thrown about, and the futile efforts of the teacher to get the class to quiet down. Luna quite liked the frenetic chaos that surrounded her, though she never contributed to it herself. She just sat quietly in her seat, idly flipping through a copy of the Quibbler. In the latest edition, her father had dedicated an article to the subject of Wrackspurts and how one could avoid the effects of them. Luna was just glancing over an illustration of one (drawn actual size, so it was quiet difficult to see without proper magnification) when the bell rang. She closed her copy and slid it into her bag. It took a much longer time for her homeroom teacher to get the attention of the rest of the class. It was then that Luna noticed a girl standing by the board at the front of the room. She had long red hair and stood with her back to the board. Her eyes darted around the room defiantly, her hands clenching tightly was the only sign of her nervousness. She was very pretty, that was the first thought that popped into Luna's head. It was only when the girl's brown eyes locked with Luna's hazel ones that she realized that she had been staring. Luna looked down, her cheeks flushing for some reason she couldn't quite put her finger on.
"Now I want all of you to behave and make sure that Miss Weasley feels welcome," her homeroom teacher was saying. "She's just transferred here, and I'm sure you'll all conduct yourselves in a manner befitting our school." He turned to the girl. "Find a seat where you can dear." She nodded and walked to the back of the room. She took the seat in front of Luna and to the right. The teacher went on to talk about some fundraiser the school was hosting later in the week, but Luna wasn't listening. She reached behind her ear and removed a pencil. Taking a moment to judge if the point was adequate (it was) she flipped to a new page in her sketchpad and pressed the pencil tip against the paper.
Luna began to draw. At first it was just a few curving lines, a hint of shading here and there, but slowly it began to take shape. To Luna's mild surprise, she realized that she had drawn the new transfer student, hunched over her desk and gazing out the window. She was just beginning to outline the cheekbones when she felt something warm and sticky strike the back of her head. Luna reached behind to gingerly probe the unknown substance. Bubble gum. She brought her finger to her nose and sniffed it. Blueberry. Luna gave a small sigh. Getting gum out of her hair was such a pain. She raised her hand to get her homeroom teacher's attention.
"Yes, Miss Lovegood?"
"May I go to the bathroom sir?" Her teacher sighed.
"Is it urgent?" Luna checked the back of her head once more to assess the spread of the gum. She heard a few snickers behind her.
"I'm afraid so."
"Take a pass." Luna got up out of her seat and walked to the front of the room to fetch the pass. She opened the door and slipped out into the hallway. A few moments later she was in the girl's bathroom. She turned her head in the mirror to assess the damage. Luna winced. The gum had spread to about the size of a baseball. It was going to be a pain getting out.
"Need some help?" Luna turned around in surprise. It was the transfer student. She stood in front of Luna, hand outstretched, offering an alcohol wipe. Luna took it cautiously with a small smile.
"Thank you." The other girl shook her head.
"It's nothing. When you grow up with as many brothers as I did, you carry a few of these on you at all times." Luna opened the packet and slid the moist towelette out of the packaging. She then began to massage the gum gently out of her hair, wincing every now and then when the gum tugged at her hair.
"Do you have a big family then?" Luna asked curiously, looking at the girl's response through the mirror. The girl grimaced and rolled her eyes.
"A very big one; I'm the youngest of seven, first girl in generations apparently."
"Well that sound just lovely," Luna replied dreamily. "When I was little I always wanted a brother or sister. It's just been me and Dad for a while." The red headed girl had a question in her eyes. She opened her mouth slightly and seemed to be considering whether to voice it or not. Luna had a fairly good idea what it was. "My mum died when I was nine." The other girl was taken back, by the candid way Luna conveyed this information. It wasn't sad, or resentful, or any other kind of emotion, just matter of fact.
"I'm so sorry. I-" Luna merely shook her head as she worked the last of the gum out of her hair.
"It's quite alright. How you could you have known? Besides, it's not like you're responsible, right?" The girl tilted her head to the side in confusion.
"No I-"
"Then you shouldn't apologize then. People always seem to apologize for things they aren't responsible for. It's just a waste of energy."
"I suppose you have a point," the girl said as Luna as reached for a paper towel to dry her hair. "I'm Ginny by the way, Ginny Weasley."
"Luna Lovegood," Luna replied simply. Ginny smiled.
"It's nice to meet you Luna. Does this kind of thing happen often to you?" Luna tilted her head to the side curiously.
"What thing? Meeting girls in the bathroom or getting gum in my hair?"
"Um, the second one." Luna shrugged as they exited the bathroom started walking back to class.
"It happens occasionally. Usually it's just the others. Nargles don't tend to resort to such tactics."
"Nargles?" asked Ginny in confusion.
"Oh yes," Luna replied earnestly as they approached the classroom door. "I seem to be particularly attractive to them. I'll have to make a new charm. This one," Luna touched the bottle cap bracelet on her left wrist, "seems to have become much less effective as of late." Ginny was spared having to come up with a response by Luna opening the door for her. Luna followed her into the classroom. A particularly malicious girl by the name of Pansy Parkinson decided that now was the perfect time for a barb.
"Oi Weasley! You don't want to hang around Loony Lovegood; her weirdness might rub off on you. Next thing you know you'll be looking for Kacky Snorgles."
"Oh, they're called Crumple-Horned Snorkacks, and I doubt that they would come this far south," Luna piped up. "They prefer colder climates, like those in Sweden." And with that the bell rang for first period and the students began to trickle out of the classroom. Luna returned to her seat to find that her sketchpad was missing. Well, she didn't actually find it per se because it wasn't there. Luna frowned and glared at her anti-Nargle bracelet. She would have to make its replacement a priority.
"Looking for something?" Ginny asked as she gathered up her books.
"My sketchpad," Luna replied. "Must be Nargles."
"What the hell are Nargles?" Luna merely smiled as she walked out the door with Ginny.
"Nargles are mischievous little creatures that love to pull pranks. They're quick and hard to see. They love to infest mistletoe."
"Right..." Ginny said cautiously. "Have you ever seen one?" Luna shook her head.
"Well, no, not yet, but that doesn't mean I won't someday." Ginny raised an eyebrow, but merely nodded.
"You're right I suppose. Anything could be out there."
"You have an unusually open mind," Luna intoned. Ginny gave a weak smile.
"I don't think anyone's ever complimented me like that before."
"It's a rare quality nowadays," Luna said. Ginny nodded quietly in agreement, a small frown on her face.
"Luna, do you know where Mr. Snape's chemistry class is?" Luna nodded.
"Yes, it's on the other side of the school. I can show you if you want."
"I'd like that."
Luna directed Ginny through the many winding stone corridors. Part of the school had been the renovated remains of an old castle. Luna liked the feel of the stone walls and the high ceilings. There seemed to be something almost ancient and timeless about it. The two girls descended down a winding staircase. The fourth step from the top was a little uneven; Luna skipped past it without half a thought. Ginny, however, wasn't so lucky and stumbled. She would have fallen down the flight of stairs if she hadn't reached out for Luna's hand. Luna did her best to steady her as their hands were linked for several long seconds. Ginny flashed an apologetic smile, and Luna once again felt a strange stirring in her chest. She would have to look into these strange occurrences at once. Any number of creatures could be responsible. Ginny gently released Luna's hand.
"Sorry, I promise I'm not normally this clumsy." Luna shook her head.
"It's all right. I'm sure it was just a Tipping Tarian." Ginny blinked several times in befuddlement, and Luna took note of her long eyelashes. If she were to continue her sketch, she would have to trace their delicate outline with the sharpest and subtlest of strokes.
"A Tipping what?" Ginny asked her as they continued down the stairway and came out onto the next floor.
"Tarian," Luna replied. "They're small reptile like creatures that enjoy tripping the occasional passersby on the stairs. I've noticed that they're particularly fond of this staircase." Once again Ginny appeared as if she wanted to say something, but she held her tongue and merely nodded her head thoughtfully.
"I suppose so." At long last they arrived at the chemistry classroom. It was rumored that the room was once a part of the castle's dungeons. The dank moisture in the air and lack of windows certainly added an amount of credence. Also there was the fact that it was situated at the lowest floor of the school, practically the basement. Luna led Ginny to the door and opened it for her. Ginny peered in cautiously. Most of the desks were already filled with students, all of which were completely silent. A man with black, greasy hair stood in the corner of the room, slowly stirring a solution in a beaker and frowning as it bubbled and frothed. He glanced up at the two girls in the doorway and sneered.
"Miss Lovegood, are you going to idly stand at the door like a dimwitted buffoon? You don't have class until fifth period. To what am I owed the pleasure of your presence so early?" he asked dryly. Luna did what she always did when confronted with this particular teacher: ignore his words and tone and give a small smile.
"Just showing Ginny to her class, sir," Luna said cheerfully. Snape carefully turned off the Bunsen burner and set down his stirring rod, slowly walking over to the two of them. He peered down at Ginny with a predatory, almost serpentine expression on his face, as if he were sizing up prey. His frown deepened as if what he found was worse than he had anticipated.
"Ah," he said after a moment. "Miss Weasley I presume?" Ginny swallowed nervously and nodded her head.
"Yes, sir."
"I highly doubt that it will be the case," Snape said as he turned and walked back to his desk, "But it would be in your best interest to take this class very seriously. Chemistry is a very exact science. One slight miscalculation and you not only endanger yourself, but possibly everyone else in this room. Such transgressions will not be tolerated." Snape walked up to the chalkboard and removed a piece of chalk from his pocket. He placed it against the slate and turned his head to Ginny and Luna's direction. "In fact they will be met with the utmost severity." The bell rang, signaling the beginning of class. Snape turned to face the class. "Turn to page 394. Miss Weasley, take a seat. And Miss Lovegood," Snape said to her. "I hope that you do not expect me to write you a pass. No good deed goes unpunished after all."
"Of course not, sir," Luna said. Ginny turned to her with a worried look on her face.
"I'm sorry for making you late," Ginny whispered. "Are you going to get in a lot of trouble?" Luna shrugged her shoulders.
"I'll be fine. It happens every now and then. I'm glad I could help."
"Miss Lovegood!" Snape called without looking up from the equations he was quickly scribbling on the board. "I will not have you distracting my students any longer. If you would be so kind as to leave..."
Luna nodded and flashed a reassuring smile at Ginny before exiting the chemistry classroom. Mr. Snape wasn't as bad as everyone made him out to be. Sure, he was incredibly strict and not the easiest person to get along with. In fact, he seemed to go out his way to make sure that his students hated him, or at least feared him. Luna never let his sharp words bother her though. Whenever he would glare at her or reprimand her for sketching a moon frog instead of Lewis Dot structures, Luna would merely shrug and apologize. Chemistry could be a bit... dull at times. Whenever Luna felt bored, her mind would wander, along with her pencil against her lab report. Luna couldn't count the number of times that she had papers returned a letter grade lower because she had happened to doodle in the margins.
Luna took the winding staircase up from the basement until she came back to the ground floor of the school. She slowed to a stop as she glanced out the window. The sun was streaming in, lighting up little particles of dust that seemed to almost dance in the air. It was such a beautiful day. A shame that she had to spend it inside. Luna glanced down at her watch. It was mishmash of copper and silver metal, interconnecting throughout the frame. An old fashioned watch, one that had to be wound up. Her father had found it while he had been perusing a garage sale. One never knew what treasure someone might be willing to part with. And according to this particular treasure she was five minutes late to her calculus class. Luna frowned and set off at a brisk pace, her shoes echoing off of the stone floor. Hopefully Ms. Vector wouldn't be too upset.
Ms. Vector was in the middle of demonstrating to the class how to derive a particularly difficult equation. When Luna slowly opened the door and slipped inside. Her entrance was greeted with a series of giggles and whispers from the other students. Ms. Vector looked up from the board and frowned.
"Miss Lovegood, so nice of you to join us," she said dryly. "Just where were you?"
"I was showing a new student to class."
"And do you have a pass?" Luna shook her head.
"Mr. Snape wouldn't write me one." Ms. Vector paused for a moment in thought.
"Well, that does sound like Severus..." she said quietly. "I'll let it slide this time. Go take a seat." Luna nodded thankfully and walked down the row of desks to one on the left. Along the way, someone stuck out their foot and tripped Luna. She went sprawling forward, her books and papers spilling all over the floor in a cluttered mess.
"Head out of the clouds, Looney!" Someone called out as Luna slowly got to her knees and began to pick up her papers; she wasn't sure who. Not that it really mattered. The majority of the students at the school treated her in this fashion, with a few exceptions of course. Neville had always been kind to her and sometimes Harry would come and talk to her while she sat underneath her favorite tree in the courtyard long before class started for the day. Luna never asked why he came so early, but sometimes he would be favoring one of his sides. And once, Luna saw a dreadful bruise that spanned nearly the entirety of his arm. Harry quickly hid it, and Luna pretended to not notice for his sake. If he didn't want to talk about it, that was fine. Luna understood. She never burdened her problems on her father, and she didn't plan to. Was it really so bad pretending that everything was alright? Her father had been so strong ever since her mother passed away, but Luna could tell by his eyes that it still hurt something fierce. Now it was her turn to be the strong one, and if that meant pretending everything was fine at school, so be it.
Ms. Vector whirled around and the laughter immediately stopped. She looked towards Luna kneeling on the ground, and her eyes narrowed.
"Is there a problem, class?" she demanded. She was met with silence save for Luna finishing gathering her belongings and finally taking a seat. "Good. Now Mr. Thomas, would you be so kind as to come to the board and demonstrate your mastery of U substitution..." Dean groaned, but reluctantly got to his feet and approached the board.
The rest of Luna's morning passed rather quickly. There were no more instances such as the one that occurred in Calculus, for which Luna was grateful. The beautiful weather continued, and Luna was happy to be able to eat outside. Normally, Neville would have joined her, but apparently there had been a bit of an accident during P.E. A rather forceful dodge ball had resulted in a twisted ankle and a bloody nose. He was currently recuperating in the infirmary. Luna would go check up on him before her next class to make sure he was alright. Luna reached into her brown paper bag and took out her lunch: a peanut butter and strawberry sandwich, her favorite. She lifted up the top piece of bread and peered at the strawberries. She had grown them herself in her garden. She bit into the sandwich and savored the strawberry juices mixing with the peanut butter.
Looking across the courtyard, Luna noticed Harry chatting with a boy who Luna had never seen before, but somehow looked familiar. He was quite tall, almost gawky looking, and had red hair and a smattering of freckles on his face. He and Harry seemed to be getting along. Harry said something amusing and the other boy laughed heartily and slapped him on the back good naturedly. Luna gave a small smile. Harry didn't have many friends, and she was glad that he had seemed to find a new one.
"Mind if I join you?"
Luna looked up in surprise. Standing next to her was Ginny, looking down at her with a smile. Luna blinked several times and tried to formulate an answer. She also tried to finish the bite of sandwich she had already taken. She settled for nodding, and Ginny sat down next to her in the shade.
"Looks like Ron is acting like an idiot, again." Ginny gestured to the red haired boy who was currently waving his arms around excitedly and nearly toppled off the low wall he was sitting on. Harry quickly reached out and grabbed him by the shirt to steady him. Luna's eyes widened in surprise. That's why he looked so familiar. She turned to Ginny.
"He's your brother," Luna said as a statement, not a question. Ginny nodded as she reached into her own lunch and pulled out a bottle of juice.
"Unfortunately, yes. He's a year older than me. Who's that he's talking to?"
"That's Harry Potter."
"Is he a friend of yours?" Ginny asked. Luna stopped and considered the question for a moment. Harry did come and talk to her often. And he never teased her or called her "Looney" like all the others did. He always called her by her name.
"I think so," Luna finally said. Ginny gave a small laugh.
"What do you mean think so?" she asked good humoredly. "You don't know for sure?"
"I don't," Luna replied honestly. This comment seemed to deflate Ginny, and she stopped laughing. In fact, she became rather quiet. Luna could feel the awkwardness start to grow between the two of them, so she decided to break the silence. "But he's kind to me, and I like talking to him. I'd like for him to be my friend."
"He's sounds like a nice guy," Ginny told her. Luna smiled at her.
"He is. Sometimes he reminds me a lot of Neville."
"Who's Neville?" Ginny asked her curiously.
"Neville's my friend," Luna said confidently, savoring how it felt to be able to say the word. "He usually eats lunch with me, but he's in the infirmary right now."
"Is he alright?" Ginny asked concerned.
"Oh, he's fine," Luna told her. "He just had a little accident during P.E. It tends to happen a lot. Neville's a rather clumsy boy unfortunately." Luna reached into her lunch bag and pulled out a cookie. She broke it in half and held out the bigger half to Ginny. "Would you like some?"
"Sure. Thanks." Ginny accepted the cookie and took a big bite out of it. Her eyes widened in surprise. She bit back a moan as she chewed it and swallowed. "This is delicious! What's in it?" Ginny peered at Luna intently, and for some reason, Luna felt her cheeks flushing for some reason. Swallowing, she decided that the grass was incredibly interesting at the moment.
"Nothing much really," she said a little embarrassed. "Just cinnamon and chocolate really. It was my mother's recipe." Ginny finished the cookie and to Luna's amusement, licked her fingers clean.
"Well, I think it's really good. I can't cook at all. I swear, I could burn water." Luna gave a small smile.
"Now that would be magic, burning water…" she said dreamily. Ginny laughed and brushed Luna's hair from her eyes, her hand brushing against her cheek. Luna stiffened at the contact, but Ginny didn't seem to notice.
"I don't think I've ever met anyone like you before," Ginny informed her. Luna paused.
"Is that a bad thing?" she asked cautiously. Ginny shook her head.
"No it's a good thing. I've known girls who haven't had a single thought in their head. Nothing but fluff, make up, and boys. You're not like that." Luna had always known that others had considered her different, even strange. But this was the first time that someone had ever complimented her for being different. She found she rather liked it. Luna must have not have been paying attention, because before she knew it, she found Ginny apologizing to her. For what she couldn't imagine. "I'm sorry."
"What do you mean?" Luna asked curiously. Ginny elaborated.
"For making you late earlier. You were nice enough to show me around, and you ended up late for class. You didn't get in trouble, did you?" Luna took another bite of her sandwich and swallowed it before answering.
"Not it's fine. Ms. Vector wasn't terribly upset." Ginny nodded.
"Good."
"How was chemistry?" Ginny groaned and leaned back, her head resting against the tree behind them and her long red hair spilling over her shoulders.
"Torture. That man is a monster. He started quizzing me in front of the class and made me feel like an idiot for not knowing an isotope from a valence structure." Luna grimaced in sympathy.
"Mr. Snape is certainly… passionate about his subject.
"Bloody obsessed is more like it," Ginny muttered darkly. "I swear he was going to shove a flask right up his-"
"Where exactly was he going to shove it?" Harry and Ron had wandered over to the two girls. Harry had been the one to ask the question, and Ginny flushed, but gave a cheeky grin and finished.
"Up his arse." Harry laughed and ran his hand through his unruly black hair.
"You'd have to remove the stick he seems to have permanently stuck up there first."
"You're lucky Mum's not around to hear you talk like that," Ron informed his sister, "otherwise you'd be in for it." Ginny scoffed and got to her feet. Luna joined her.
"You're one to talk Ronald, what was it were you calling out in your sleep last night? Something about-"
"Lay off, Gin!" Ron's face had suddenly become as red as his hair. Luna thought that it was a very interesting look. Harry had seemed to find this whole exchange rather funny.
"I like your sister, Ron. She's alright," Harry said while trying not to laugh. He stuck out his hand. "I'm Harry." Ginny reached out and shook it.
"Ginny." Harry turned toward towards Ron and gestured towards Luna.
"And this is Luna Lovegood," he said, introducing her to Ron. Ron had taken her hand and had shaken it once or twice when he stopped and stared at her curiously.
"Hold on a second. Is she the nutter that everyone's always going on about? The one that believes in all those made up creatures? Loony Lovegood?" Harry stuck his hands in his pockets and looked down at his feet as he shuffled them. He muttered something under his breath and looked very uncomfortable. Ginny was a lot more expressive of how she felt.
"Ron! Don't be a prat!" She snapped at him as she swatted at his arm. Ron dropped Luna's hand like it was a hot iron.
"Bloody hell!" He cried as he rubbed his tender arm. "What'd you do that for?" Ginny put her hands on her hips.
"Negative reinforcement seems to be the only way to get something through that thick skull of yours."
"It's quite alright," Luna assured Ginny, finally speaking up. "Your brother didn't offend me. A lot of people at this school think I'm crazy," Luna said matter of factly, "not just your brother." Luna speaking seemed to have startled the three of them. Harry removed his hands from his pockets and adjusted his glasses.
"You're not crazy, Luna," Harry told her. "You're one of the sanest people I know." Luna gave him a large smile.
"Thank you, Harry." Ron rubbed the back of his head sheepishly.
"Sorry about that."
"Apology accepted," Luna told him simply. Ron sighed, obviously relieved to have gotten off the hook so easily. Ginny continued to glare at her brother for a moment longer before relenting. She shook her head and sighed.
"Idiot," she muttered. Luna glanced down at her watch. Lunch was nearly over.
"I'm going to go visit Neville in the infirmary," Luna told Ginny.
"Oh," Ginny said with a tone that Luna couldn't quite determine. What was the word? Not wistful or sad per se. There was a better word for that. Something that completely encompassed the meaning, but for the life of her, Luna couldn't quite put her finger on it.
"Neville gotten himself into another fix, has he?" Harry asked curiously. Luna merely shrugged.
"Nothing worse than the usual," she replied. "I'm just going to go check up on him. Make sure there aren't any Blibbering Humdingers skulking about." Ron looked at her strangely once more, while Harry merely chuckled.
"No, we certainly don't want any of those lot."
"Do you mind if I tag along?" Ginny asked with a slight bit of hesitation. Luna looked at her in surprise. Ginny flushed a little bit under Luna's gaze.
"You know, to make sure there aren't any of those Humdingers or Nargles or… things," Ginny finished rather lamely. Ron looked inquiringly from his sister to Luna and back again. He coughed indiscreetly and turned to Harry.
"So you were saying that this school has a pretty good soccer field, right? Care to show me where it is." Harry raised an eyebrow at Ron's behavior, but slowly nodded anyway.
"Sure. It's right around the corner. See you later Luna. Oh and it was nice to meet you Ginny." And with that Harry led Ron across the courtyard, but not before Ron had the opportunity to look over his shoulder at Ginny and wink. Ginny merely scowled in return, though Luna wasn't entirely sure why. After another moment, the two boys were out of sight as they rounded the bend.
"Ron seems nice," Luna remarked to Ginny as the gathered up their lunch things. Ginny shrugged her shoulders as she picked up her bag and threw it over her shoulders.
"He's alright, when he's not acting like a complete git."
"Do you have any other brothers going to this school?" Luna asked her as the entered the school and took the first corridor on the left. Ginny shook her head.
"Nah. It's just me and Ron. The others already graduated. We moved here because Dad got a job transfer."
"What does your father do?" Luna asked Ginny.
"Some boring, office job for the government. Pushing paper, regulations, that kind of thing. What about your dad?"
"He's the editor in chief of a magazine," Luna said proudly. "The Quibbler." Ginny cocked her head to the side.
"That's cool. I don't think I've ever heard of it though."
"Well, we do sort of have more of a select readership," Luna admitted. "But they're loyal. I could lend you a copy later if you want."
"Sure."
The two of them came to the door of the infirmary at the end of the hall. Luna quietly opened the door, and the two girls slipped in. There was a sea of white beds and matching sheets. It almost looked like snowfall, Luna thought bemused. Sitting on the corner of a bed was Neville. He held a handkerchief to his nose with one hand and an ice pack on his left ankle with the other. He removed the handkerchief and inspected it. The bleeding seemed to have stopped.
"Hello Neville." Neville glanced up at Luna and smiled, then immediately grimaced as smiling seem to be painful.
"Luna! What are you doing here?" Neville asked surprised. One of the things Luna liked most about Neville was how good hearted he was, though he always acted with the utmost surprise when other people acted the same way in turn towards him. Luna walked over to his bed and dug a cookie out of her lunch bag.
"Just to see how you were doing. Do you think Wrackspurts distracted you during the game?" Neville just ruefully shook his head as he took the cookie and bit into it.
"No," he mumbled with a mouth full of cookie before swallowing. "I'm just unlucky I guess." Neville looked up and noticed Ginny standing by the door for the first time. He hastily wiped his mouth clean of chocolate.
"Oh, err… H-hello," Neville stuttered nervously. "I didn't see you there."
"Neville, this is Ginny Weasley," Luna said as she waved Ginny over to them. "Ginny, Neville Longbottom."
"Nice to meet you Neville. Today's my first day at this school."
"How do you like it so far?" Neville asked as he attempted to regain his composure. Ginny rolled her eyes.
"Snape seems like a right prick to me." The curtains of a nearby cot were yanked back sharply as Madame Pomfrey, the school nurse, entered the room. She glared sharply at Ginny.
"I won't have anyone speaking ill of the staff in my infirmary. And you!" she turned to face Neville who gulped nervously. "Keep that ankle elevated and put the ice back on it." Neville's ice pack had fallen to the floor, and he hastily picked it up. She turned back to the two girls. "I imagine your lunch break is nearly over. I won't have you two bothering my patients." And with that Madame Pomfrey escorted Luna and Ginny out the door before Luna could so much as bid Neville goodbye. The door was shut quickly behind them.
"What just happened?" Ginny asked as she attempted to get her bearings.
"The staff at this school take their jobs very seriously." Luna intoned simply. Ginny gave a small laugh.
"I was beginning to get that impression, yes." The bell then rang several times, indicating that lunch was over. Ginny swore under her breath and dug around in her bag. She pulled out a rather crinkly and crumpled schedule. She anxiously scanned the page for the appropriate class before looking at Luna with a sheepish smile.
"I hate to bother you again, but do you know where Ms. McGonagall's English class is?" Luna nodded.
"I have the same class next period. It's the next floor up." Ginny let a sigh of relief.
"Good, I've been running all over this school this morning," she said as she absentmindedly tucked a lock of red hair behind her ear. Luna nodded once more absentmindedly, but once again she was momentarily distracted by Ginny. Her pale creamy skin along the expanse of her neck stood in stark contrast to her silky ginger hair. "Luna?" asked Ginny with a hint of concern in her voice. "You there?" Ginny cautiously reached out and touched Luna's arm, startling her and causing her to drop her books. The two of them knelt to the ground so quickly that they ended up knocking heads. "I'm sorry!" Ginny exclaimed as she hastily gathered several loose pieces of paper.
"It's alright." Luna reached out to grab her textbook and her fingers brushed against Ginny's, sending a trill of heat up her arm. Luna slowly looked up and locked eyes with Ginny. It was probably only for a few seconds, but for those few seconds Luna felt exceedingly strange. A pleasant shiver running down her spine and butterflies in her stomach. Ginny coughed uncomfortably and handed the book to Luna wordlessly. Ginny's face had begun to flush, so she looked down and attempted to hide behind her hair.
"We… We should get to class," Ginny slowly stood up. "The next floor up, right?"
"That's right." Ginny held out her hand to help Luna up. Luna took it, and again there was that strange feeling. Luna reluctantly released Ginny's hand after a moment. Luna led them over to the stairwell as other students jostled and bumped into them. Ginny gave Luna a side glance and a sly smile.
"Obviously they don't know about Tipping Tarians, otherwise they'd be more cautious." Luna smiled back. She was beginning to think that she and Ginny would be getting along swimmingly.