Chapter Two
Luna blinked and stared up at the grey sky hoping that she would be pulled away from here and taken somewhere more familiar. After a minute she realised it wouldn't happen and pulled herself up and looked around. She was at the edge of a field, there was a cluster of trees hosting a choir of chirping birds and in the next field over a herd of cows were lying in odd clusters, Luna's father had told her that you could tell the time based on the arrangements of cows and judging by the pattern they were in it was early morning. She took a step before pulling off her wet socks and stuffing them into her pocket, opting to go barefoot.
It only took five minutes for her to come across a road and twenty long minutes later she was in a small Muggle village called Winneslowe. Luna didn't really know what she was going to do now that she here. She had no money, muggle or otherwise but she still had her wand. She passed houses, a corner shop, a post office and church before coming to a stop outside a café that was thankfully open. It was small and empty, there were only about five tables each with four wooden chairs tucked in around it.
"What can I get you, love?" The smiling grey haired woman behind the counter asked.
"I'll have a cup of tea and a bacon sandwich, please. And cake, if you have it."
"You take a seat and I'll bring it over."
Luna nodded and noticing a newspaper on the table she took a seat near the window. Luna smiled at the blank, static photograph on the front page. It was March 1987, somewhere out there she was six years old and with a happy sigh she realised her mother was still alive. But the smiling red haired girl, Lily Evans, was gone, murdered.
"Rough night, was it?" The owner asked as she placed a mug of tea and a slice of chocolate cake on the table.
Luna smiled and said, "It was very strange," and then observed her reflection in the window, her clothes were wrinkled, torn, muddy and had trail of dried blood caked onto the shoulder. Luna had to admit that she was never the best at giving good first impressions.
So she decided to just wait, she would vanish again soon. She ate her cake slowly as she nodded her head along with the song on the crackly Muggle radio, "Woooaaah, livin' on a prayer!" she sang as the song made it's way to the final chorus.
"You like this one?" The owner asked setting down the sandwich.
"It has a very good rhythm." Luna tapped the table in time with the beat, "You don't like it?"
"It's just noise to me. Enjoy your breakfast." She made her way back to the kitchen and the announcers on the radio started to talk about the weather so Luna just went back to her meal. She reached for her tea, still bobbing her head when she felt the ground fall away beneath her and she left the Winneslowe café behind.
The cup was still in her hand when she felt cold, hard ground under her feet. She was back in the Ministry and the battle was over. Hermione, Ron and Ginny were sprawled on the floor unconscious. She dropped to her knees and besides Ginny and reached for her wrist, and sighed with relief when she felt the faintest beat of her pulse.
"Rennervate." She said shakily and Ginny's eyes fluttered open.
"Luna?" She whispered hoarsely, "What…?"
"I'm afraid I don't really know but I think it's over." Somewhere, not too far away Luna could hear voices, "Tea?" she offered the pale blue mug that was still half-full to Ginny who took it with trembling hands.
"You carry cups of tea around with you?"
"You don't?" Luna blinked and then crawled over to Hermione and tried the same spell again. The door burst open, "Professor Lupin?" Luna gasped, he looked different somehow like he was broken.
He took a moment to assess the damage then grabbed the now drained mug from floor, held his wand against it and murmured "Portus." The cup rattled and then glowed for a second, "Take this Portkey back to Hogwarts, Madam Pomfrey will see to you all." He put it into Luna hands and left as abruptly as he came. Ginny stretched to hold onto the mug with one hand and wrapped her other arm around Ron and Luna did the same with Hermione. She felt herself being jerked away and compared to her experience of time travel it was almost soothing.
The four of them landed on the ground in a heap in the Hospital Wing. Ginny called for Madam Pomfrey and Luna tried to heave Hermione onto a bed. The lights flashed on Madam Pomfrey sprinted out of her office and flicked her wand and in an instant Luna was lying back in that same bed she'd been in just over an hour ago or twenty years depending on your point of view. Madam Pomfrey worked on Ron and Hermione first, she was so fast she was almost a blur. Potions flew from the shelves and mixed together as she waved her wand and muttered spells and incantations Luna couldn't even understand. Luna looked over to Ginny who looked like she was just remembering everything that had happened at the Ministry and realising it's ramifications. She looked around wildly then focused on Luna again.
"Where's Harry? And Neville…are they…" She couldn't bring herself to finish the sentence.
"I don't know Ginny, I wasn't there. But I'm sure they're both fine. Someone would have told us. Professor Lupin would have told us."
Ginny nodded slightly and then turned to look back to Ron and Hermione but the screens had been pulled back hiding them from view. Ginny slumped back onto the bed and rolled over so she faced the wall. She made a tiny, choked gasping sound and Luna was sure that she was crying.
After a few hours of restless sleep and empty dreams it was morning. Ginny, Hermione and Ron were still sleeping so Luna was as quiet as she could be as she sneaked out of the Hospital Wing and up to Ravenclaw Tower. It was only five in the morning so the halls were still empty but the sun was beginning to streak in the tall windows. She walked automatically without really taking in her surroundings and answered the riddle to be let into the Common Room. No one was up yet, no one would know what had happened and how everything had changed. She flopped onto her bed in the dormitory and rubbed her eyes. She placed her patched, muddy socks and the pale blue mug onto her bedside table, the relics of her time travel; their ordinariness made them look all the more extraordinary as they were nestled in between her more outlandish trinkets. She smiled a little at them. It was proof that it had really happened, while it might not be enough for the Hermione's of the world it would surely be more than enough for her father. She sighed and got up, pulled some fresh clothes from her trunk and went to shower and freshen up.
Luna slipped back into the hospital wing about an hour later, her damp hair was pulled into a loose bun and the scent of coconut drifted off her. Hermione and Ron were still hidden from view but Ginny was awake, absentmindedly braiding and unbraiding the same strand of hair.
"Luna! Where did you go? Have you heard anything? Pomfrey won't say if she knows anything."
"I haven't seen anyone. It's all very ordinary out there." Luna perched on the edge of Ginny's bed.
"Let's go to Dumbledore's office. He'll be back by now…right? It's been ages."
"What if he hasn't come back? Umbridge is still-"
But Ginny had already swung herself off the bed and marched forcefully out of the room leaving Luna to race after her. Ginny was already tearing her way through a tapestry by the time Luna had caught up with her. They walked quickly and in silence, Luna had never been to Dumbledore's office before but Ginny seemed to know the way. The pair turned a corner and there standing by a gargoyle was Harry and Dumbledore.
"Harry!" Luna and Ginny said in unison rushing forward.
"Ah, Miss Weasley. Would you be so kind as to escort Mr Potter to the Hospital Wing? Miss Lovegood follow me please." He beckoned her and she followed him up to his office ignoring Ginny's confused look.
Dumbledore's office was beautiful. A large round room with huge windows illuminating everything with the early morning sun that was rising over the mountains in the distance. The walls were covered in chattering portraits and there were tables displaying all kinds of weird objects, some Luna recognised such as the Byzantine malivion but some were utterly foreign and some even appeared to be broken and smashed.
"Please take a seat." Dumbledore gestured to the chair by his desk as he took his seat. "I believe the last time we spoke was 1975?" He asked with a twinkle in his eyes.
"Yes Professor. I am sorry for leaving rather suddenly. It must have seemed quite rude."
"Well, you have no control over this new found ability of yours. You travel at random, there isn't really a pattern although you appear quite frequently in the 1970s. As you know from your first experience the defences here at Hogwarts that prevent apparition don't prevent you from appearing."
"Do you know why I can do it? Is it some kind of gift? A new magical ability perhaps? I read that we only use 10% of our magical ability, maybe I've unlocked something in that extra 90%?"
Dumbledore was silent for a moment perhaps he was just humouring her but he looked thoughtful, "I can only theorise. I have had many hypotheses over the years, many have already been disproven I'm afraid, but lets not get into that. I don't want to ruin things by telling you what will happen."
Luna nodded, "I'd rather have it be a surprise."
"Indeed. I will not tell you about anything that lies ahead for you, alternatively you must not tell me anything about you may learn about my future however vital you may think it is." Dumbledore looked her right in the eyes as he said those last words, fixing her with a piercing stare.
Luna paused for a moment running it over in her head before simply saying, "I promise."
"Very good. I'm afraid you will have to explain all this to me the next time we meet in the past. I would like to take this opportunity to apologise for what it is I will do. It was a very dangerous time after all."
Luna's eyes widened as possible scenarios raced through her mind, "What do you do?"
"Miss Lovegood, I'm afraid we just agreed not the spoil what is to come. You are free to go and rejoin your friends in the Hospital Wing. Mr. Longbottom should be there by now." His tone made it quite clear that the conversation was over and she should just leave but Luna remained rooted in her seat. He looked at her over the top of his half moon spectacles inquisitively. "Will you be telling them?"
"I think they have enough to deal with right now. I don't want to add to it. Thank you, Professor." She got up and left without saying another word. She would have to tell them eventually but not right now. Right now she had to go and write a letter to her father and tell him everything. She skipped to the Owlery humming the song from the café in Winneslowe, 1987.
