This is my fic for the lgbtfest at LiveJournal. The prompt: Luna Lovegood/Ginny Weasley. Ginny doesn't understand that Luna fancies her - she thinks it's just Luna being weird (as usual). Luna wishes there was an easier way to convince Ginny and everybody else that she is serious.

I had fun with the prompt. Thanks to luvmeanddespair for the read-through. Reviews make me happy. :-)

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter. The Harry Potter universe belongs to J.K. Rowling. No money is being made and no copyright or trademark infringement is intended. The title "Signal Fire" is from a Snow Patrol song.

Signal Fire

"He broke up with me."

"He doesn't look so happy since."

Ginny looked down as she straightened the creases on her skirt. "I know he's got a lot on his plate. I guess I wanted to ... I guess I don't know what it's like. To be him."

Luna gently slid off the armchair and sat on the rug near Ginny's feet. "You're not blaming yourself." It was neither a question nor a demand. Ginny looked at her friend, a tinge of color appearing on her freckled cheeks, and quickly looked away into the dying embers of the fireplace.

"You know ... you're beautiful," Luna said dreamily.

Ginny turned her head so abruptly that she felt a crick in her neck. "Ow," she said, her reaction a bit late, and gently massaged her neck.

"I'm sorry. Did I startle you? Here ... let me help."

"Luna." Ginny shifted her position on the armchair.

"You remind me of a cat. I like cats. They're feisty, don't you think?"

Ginny gave her an awkward smile and ignored the pounding in her head.

Snuggled up in her bed, Ginny closed her eyes and replayed the day's events in her mind. First, there was the snowball fight in the morning. Ginny had woken up early to the sound of distant laughter from beyond her window, and when she looked out she saw that the world was covered in white.

Jumping out of her bed, Ginny had run out of the Gryffindor dormitory, wearing her pajamas and slippers, only to run into Luna. Both girls let out uncharacteristic squeals and went out together in the cold. Amidst much giggling and snowball action, Luna had somehow landed on top of Ginny. They were breathless and slightly flustered but how was Ginny to know that the cold wasn't the only reason?

Later, when their hands and feet were numb, the girls had sneaked off to Hogsmeade around mid-day. They had settled in a corner of The Three Broomsticks and quietly sipped on their Butterbeers, letting it warm them up. Luna's eyes were sort of glazed as she swiveled the straw around in her drink.

"Enjoying your drink?" Ginny asked with a hint of amusement in her tone.

Luna nodded and stared at her long enough to make her uncomfortable.

"You have some--" Luna made an odd gesture with her hands, "Butterbeer on your chin."

"Oh." Ginny tried licking the drops but ended up wiping them away with the back of her hand. Luna was still staring at her, without any sign of hesitation whatsoever, causing Ginny to shift in her chair. Red warning lights went off in her head but she had tucked the Issue at the back of her head for later.

Well, later was now and Ginny shrugged it off as nothing. This was Luna, after all. She daydreamed about catching Crumple-Horned Snorkacks and talked to invisible fairies. This was just another quirk of Luna's. Either that or Ginny was truly blind. Yeah, it's got to be the first one, Ginny convinced herself, as she turned over and dreamt about chasing cats.

Ginny yawned and rubbed her eyes as she sat up in her bed the next morning. Reluctantly, she slipped out of her nightgown and tossed it at the foot of the bed. She couldn't bother with being neat this early. Plus, it was cold. Her eyes half-open, Ginny searched for her robes, before she could freeze to death.

"It's so weird, though."

Ginny was startled by the distant whisper but she vaguely recognized it as Lavender's. She couldn't be too sure, though. For all she knew, she could be dreaming, or getting voices in her head. Crap.

"Have you seen the way she stares at Ginny?"

Well, evidently, they thought she was still asleep.

"I know. And it fits. I mean, Ginny's always standing up for her. What with her being so different and all."

"God, like she doesn't get enough looks already."

"Totally. It's no wonder they call her Loony. Out of her head, she is."

"Ugh."

Ginny felt a sudden stab of anger for Luna. This wasn't fair. Those girls had probably never said a word to Luna. She reached out for the bed curtains instinctively to tell them just that, when Lavender's voice rang in her head:

I mean, Ginny's always standing up for her.

Ginny gritted her teeth. There was no ulterior motive behind that. That's what real friends do. Keep each other's back. Yeah? and real friends accept each other, too, said a mean voice inside her head.

Deciding it wasn't worth putting up a fight, after all, Ginny jumped out of her bed and stormed out of the dormitory. Meanwhile ignoring the voice of sense in her head that was screaming too fucking loud.

Ginny was late for class. She hadn't slept too well and her thoughts were scattered. Two days had passed since the incident in her dormitory but the memory was still fresh. Replaying it every ten minutes probably didn't help matters, but the Issue was too close to proximity to shrug off any longer.

She rushed to get to her Divination class when Peeves appeared from nowhere and blocked her way.

"Peeves!" she growled, "Not today. Grumpy. Rushing."

Peeves cackled and danced around her, then made for the opposite direction when she whipped out her wand and glared at him. But not before dropping her books and making a face at her.

"Very mature, Peeves." Ginny grumbled as she bent down and picked up her books hurriedly. She was interrupted again but this time by a dreamy voice.

"Why are you on the floor?"

Ginny looked up and she almost dropped the books. Oh. This wasn't the right time. She couldn't deal with this right now. Nonetheless, she forced a smile, trying hard to hide the tone in her voice. "Peeves dropped my books. Just wait till I get a hold of that little--" She stopped mid-sentence as Luna got down on the floor, inches away from her, and retrieved the remaining books.

"Um, thanks," Ginny said, not quite looking at her friend.

"You're welcome!" was the cheery reply and suddenly Luna was too close. She swayed forward as if to whisper a secret in Ginny's ear and instead gave her a swift kiss on the cheek and mumbled "Happy Birthday."

Ginny felt as if a volcano had erupted inside her. She was too stunned to decide whether that was a good feeling or not, let alone react. She looked at Luna incredulously before something clicked in her brain.

"It's not my birthday."

"I know." Luna smiled and handed her the books before skipping away.

Ginny's head was pounding. This was becoming common phenomenon lately. She left her books and ran after Luna. By the time she caught up with her, she was out of breath.

"Luna, what the hell were you thinking?!" she asked, her jaw tense and her cheeks flushed.

"What?" Luna said, looking quite dazed herself.

"Why did you ... y'know, what were you thinking? Were you thinking at all?"

"Isn't that how Michael Corner and you started? He kissed you. You slapped him." Luna paused for a second and her eyes lit up. "Oh! Are you going to slap me?"

"No, Luna, I am not going to slap you."

A strange emotion flitted across Luna's face. "Oh."

Ginny closed her eyes and took a deep breath, and then let it out.

"Luna, this isn't the same. This is different."

"Michael liked you. I like you. I don't see what's different. Was I supposed to use tongue?"

Ginny yowled in frustration. Whether it was because of Luna's persistence or the mean voice in her own head that kept repeating itself like a broken record, she wasn't too sure. Without warning, she grabbed Luna's hand and started towards the Room of Requirement.

Luna didn't protest. "Are we taking a walk?"

Ginny huffed in reply. She trudged up the stairs, dragging Luna behind her, until they faced the blank wall opposite the tapestry of Barnabas the Barmy. Waiting for them inside was a giant bed and lots of pillows. Luna and Ginny claimed their spots on the bed, surrounding themselves with plushy pillows, and left considerable space between them.

"Luna..."

Luna stared back unblinkingly. Her face held no indication of insecurity. Ginny, on the other hand, looked every bit of torn but also strangely decided.

"I ... need more time. I think."

Luna made a show of checking the clock on the wall. "That's okay. We have two years left."

"Heh. I don't think it's going to be that long. See, I-- I've been thinking ... since the day you told me --" Ginny bit her bottom lip as she chose her words carefully so as not to give her friend the wrong impression, "—and I've come to realize this doesn't, shouldn't, change anything. Between us, I mean. Well, it's sort of weird, well no, it's just different and it'll take some time getting used to, but," Ginny rushed before Luna could interject, "I mean ... I have an uncle who's y'know, and he's, um, alright. He's Charlie's favorite."

"He's not a Death Eater, is he?"

Ginny laughed. "No, definitely not."

There was an awkward pause but a silent understanding seemed to pass between the two. "You know I'll keep this a secret, right? No one has to know until you want them to."

"So, does this make me your dirty little secret?" Luna teased.

That got her a pillow in the face.