Adjusting to life
DISCLAIMER: Harry Potter belongs to JK Rowling. I own nothing save this fanfiction's plot and some OC characters.
N/a:Thank you for the nice reviews. I love them all and enjoyed reading them. Expect monthly updates - they will be sporadic.
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Meeting Voldemort as a ten year old was an enlightening experience. Within seconds of being in his presence, she could already feel the predatory air he radiated that would one day become murderous intent. However, unlike his future self, the boy's hair was home to many Nargles, which was a vast relief.
A childish yet mirthless laugh rang from her mouth as she skipped down the splintering staircase, the urgency to fulfil her mental list of errands surpassing the immature temptation to slide down the banister.
As Luna became surrounded by a mix of glum and cheerful orphans on her way out to the trampled field, she felt brief a pang of pity for the children. These children would never again experience the warmth and protection of a family – if they even had the access to in the first place. The thought of a future Dark Lord blossoming amongst an environment so lacking in love was not surprising in the least, in fact, it wouldn't come as a surprise to have multiple potential Dark Lords running around here, if the occupants too bore the gift of magic.
A blast of fresh air tainted by the yells and cries of playing children greeted her as she approached the veranda that connected to a grassy plain. The field, fifty yards in length and width, was bordered by a wooden fence so old that it was a wonder why it simply didn't collapse on itself. There was a playground to her far right, a sand pit to her left and a large rectangle drawn out in front of her, likely to be intended to be soccer field.
Luna tripped as she jumped off the porch, a painful reminder of the unfamiliarity of having a ten year old body but her expression did not waver. Sprinting directly to the fence, she found a hole, large enough for her to crawl through, and just like that, she had escaped the confines of the orphanage.
It never occurred to her that her misadventure had been witnessed by none other than her new roommate, situated at his vantage point in his bedroom.
Returning to the daunting iron gate, she held out her right hand and toppled over instantly as a exploding 'bang!' marked the arrival of the Knight Bus.
The door opened with a low creak and steam almost billowed out dramatically from within the vehicle, exposing the current bus conductor, a petite red haired lady who strode forward to meet Luna's fallen position.
"Welcome to the Knight Bus, emergency transport for the stranded witch or wizard. My name is Ezra Shunpike and I will be your conductor this morning." She droned in monotone.
Luna hastily got to her feet and stepped into the bus. "To the Leaky Cauldron."
"That'll be eleven sickles, ma'am." The lady said automatically, paused for a moment before leaning forward to inspect her latest customer. "Eh, missie, aren't you a little too young to be walking around in your own?"
"I'm... just lost." Squirming under the women's critical gaze, Luna shot the conductor a terrified look which prompted the woman to soften her features.
"Lost, eh? Well you're not the first one." Ezra said, shooing the girl onto the bus and adding in an undertone, "Never mind about payment – a girl like you ain't likely to have even a knut."
After a rickety ride that involved her discussing the dietary habits of Blibbering Humdinger to a confused but friendly man, a contented girl stumbled off the bus and pushed her way through the over-crowded Leaky Cauldron. She followed a family of wizards through the separating brick wall and entered Diagon Alley.
For the first time, it finally struck her as to how odd it was to see that everything was so out-dated. While the wizarding attire remained mostly the same, the mass of unfamiliar faces and the several unfamiliar shops almost threw her offbalance. An antique shop stood in the place of Quality Quidditch Supplies. In turn, a bright store called Superb Sports Supplies substituted Madam Malkin's Robes for All Occasions. Luna stole a glimpse into the interior, and was updated with the knowledge that the Cleansweep 4.5 was currently all the rage.
She felt like a foreigner. Not only was the place so visually different – it was the general atmosphere that hit her the hardest with the realisation that she really was in the past. Everyone was happy – so blissfully unconcerned about any prospect of war looming above their heads. After years of living in a Wizarding War where people were too terrified over the possibility of a Death Eater terrorist attack to ever wander out to the open, Luna felt so alienated from the lively atmosphere of the present that she had half a mind to stop and ask for directions.
Still, the unfamiliarity of Diagon Alley did not dampen her mood. Skipping happily towards the polished marble building of Gringotts, she came to an abrupt stop at the nearest back teller.
"I'd like a withdrawal from the Lovegood Family Vault."
As the goblin bent over its table to inspect Luna, she felt herself shiver for the second time under a harsh gaze.
"Minors are prohibited from withdrawals from Family Vaults." This all came out in a sneer which exposed all of the goblin's yellowing serrated teeth.
Anticipating the rejection, Luna stood up a straighter and announced firmly. "I'm older than I look. I'm willing take a Blood Test."
"Very well." He yawned.
A Blood Test was used to certify the identity of an individual. The test consisted of writing the person's full name onto an enchanted piece of parchment with a blood quill. Created through Goblin magic, the parchment is impossible to hoodwink. Should the name be false, it would burn itself.
Memories of her Sixth year at Hogwarts ruled under Snape's iron fist flooded her brain as she gripped a blood quill in her hand. Frowning but unaffected by the familiar pain, Luna wrote in a loopy scrawl:
Luna Avis Lovegood
As the words cut into her flesh, Luna looked up to the goblin quizzically.
"Not so fast, Miss Lovegood." It said and with a gnarled finger, pointed to parchment.
Underneath Luna's name, more words in the same shade as her blood, began to form on the page.
DOB: 29 February, 1980
Age: 18
Blood status: Pureblood
Race: Human
Heir to House of Lovegood
Heir to Most Noble and Ancient House of Ravenclaw
"You are a time traveller," The goblin stated mundanely, radiating an air that suggested it was everyday when he encountered one.
Jerking her head in affirmation, Luna opened her mouth to speak. "I trust you not to tell anyone of this-"
"-Client confidentiality is held at Gringotts."
"Is it possible for me to gain the keys to the vault?"
"Absolutely not. The Lovegood key still resides with Mister Spencer Lovegood whilst he lives. Only upon their deaths will you be granted possession of the keys."
"Oh..." Luna's heart did a little jump at the mention of her paternal grandfather. The mere thought of the rest of her ancestors being alive was enough to send her heart into a beating frenzy. It escalated into performing aerobatics upon hearing a name that she had not heard for eight years, the name of her mother. Her mother was alive.
"Will my transaction be recorded?"
"Yes."
A crease formed on Luna's forehead as she weighed her options. If any of the Lovegoods found out that their vault had been opened by a stranger, Luna was at risk of exposure – something she was wary of.
"Would they be able to gain the identity of who opened their vault? And even without my keys, can you take to the Lovegood Family Vault?"
"No and yes, since you have proven your accessibility."
Although she was unfazed by the goblin's rude attitude, she knew that there was some sort of goblin etiquette which she ought to follow, but for the life of her, couldn't remember.
"Anything else?"
"Yes. How do you say 'thank you' in Gobbledegook?"
His scratching quill stilled and a smirk that sent shivers down her spine found its way onto his face.
"No such word exists."
A bumpy cart ride later, Luna was whisked away to Vault 492, the Lovegood Vault, cradling her right hand which had begun acting up painfully from the after-effect of the blood quill. The cart halted with such suddenness that would have been impossible without magic. Feeling lightheaded, Luna staggered away from the offending vehicle to the simplistic doors of the vault. She was accompanied by a sneering goblin, who made no attempt to hide his amusement at his customer's discomfort. The goblin held a key with two clawed fingers and roughly inserted it into the keyhole. With a flash of blue light and a loud clang, the heavy door swung open, its hinges groaning from sudden use.
Luna felt extremely small and insignificant as she was confronted with the vault's contents. It was a little known fact that her great grandparents had invested in the stock market and over the course of his lifetime, gathered a small fortune. Not as big as perhaps the Potter fortune, but just enough for her to support herself for two or three years.
As Luna clambered into the vault, she was met with massive piles of golden Galleons, Sickles, and Knuts – some of which she scooped up and deposited in a small beaded handbag, charmed hold more items than it otherwise could, which she had found in the chamber. Amongst the money, there were piles of antique Lovegood heirlooms such as jewellery, weapons, artworks, books, and even chinaware. Nonetheless, these possessions were ignored by Luna, who only had eyes for a particular item sitting at the very back of the vault. A sapphire crusted velvet cushion was propped against the wall and in the centre, laid an ebony wand – the same wand she had used in her original timeline. Unlike ordinary students who bought their wand from Ollivanders, Luna had decided to use an ancestor's wand – swishy, eleven inches, with Thestral tail hair as its core - it had served her well in many occasions.
With her forefinger and thumb, she gingerly picked up the black wand and relished in the wave of warmth that swept over her. A flick of the wand presented a shower of silver sparks that danced around in the air. It wasn't until Luna was armed with her wand did she realise how vulnerable and naked she felt without it. Not good, she thought.
Wandless magic was an exceedingly complex branch of magic, but Luna felt it was possible for a young time traveller such as herself.
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Although it was never obvious in her native timeline, Luna was a Ravenclaw at heart. She was intelligent enough to be aware of other's hostility to her and knew that no matter where she went, she would be perceived as an oddball, the primary reason being her unique ability to see creatures nobody else could. Not that she really cared of what others thought. Perhaps once, but not anymore. The war had left her empty, depleting her of conventional human emotions and reactions. So, like many times before, Luna tucked her ebony wand behind her ear, uncaring of that it was within visible sight. Any muggle would simply see it as an odd but simple wooden ornament.
Upon returning, she discovered that nobody had noticed her absence – not that that was much of a surprise in itself. But what Luna did notice, as she idly walked around the field, was that a small child was under the mercy of another. Years of undergoing torment of her Hogwarts peers, even before the war, had left Luna unsympathetic to victims of bullies, rather it was replaced with empathy.
The blonde sprinted hastily towards the furthest corner of the field, a section obscured by trees and bushes. What met her there caused the girl to stiffen and clench her fists in restrained anger.
"I told you never to touch my things." The words came out in a hiss dripping with venomous anger that sent chills down her spine.
"I-I'm sorry! It was just that Mary told me to - Don't hurt me! Please no!"
A terrified orphan no older than 5 was cowering against the wooden fences, her twiglike limbs held in front of her in a form of vain protection against the furious male that towered above her. Bruises, cuts and puncture marks were littered across her delicate skin and, to Luna's utter horror, a swarm of garter snakes lay wriggling at her feet, all their yellowing eyes trained on the terrified individual.
"You pathetic thieving wretch, do you think that I'd give a damn about Mary?" Even Luna, who was only a bystander, could feel the anger curling off Tom in waves as spoke. His tone was steady, but his rage was made obvious by his intimidating posture that appeared to tower over the little child, even with knowledge of the fact that he couldn't possibility be any higher than five feet.
When his hand rose and swung downward towards the whimpering girl's cheek, Luna found that she could not keep herself hidden and swiftly stepped forth to place a vicelike grip onto Tom's wrist before it came into contact with the child's face.
"Stop."
The furious girl mirrored every powerful and menacing aspect that Tom had just previously radiated. Any other child would not have been subdued by one word spoken so calmly, but Tom was intelligent beyond his years and adept enough to sense her concealed underlying aggression. A flash of surprise briefly washed over his resentful face.
Luna held his gaze for what must have been minutes, her own expression emotionless with her eyes being the only signs that betrayed her fury. Meanwhile, the child went by ignored, squirming in the vicinity of two equally formidable people, and under the mercy of serpents that had suddenly become unsure of themselves and their master.
Tom's eye twitched, briefly darting towards the wand at Luna's ear and back, before he spoke, "Get your filthy hand off me Lovegood. You have no business here."
When Luna made no intention to do so, the boy hissed and his horde of snakes instantly abandoned the young child to turn their focus onto the girl. They slithered towards Luna, whose heart had started racing, and wrapped themselves around her limbs, binding her ankles and rising to her arms to hang there like vines. All the while, she remained motionless, as if someone had placed the stunning spell onto her and her iron grasp did not waver, her grey eyes remained glued onto the boy.
Her lack of reaction must've provoked some degree of uncertainty within Tom because he shook his arm in a vain attempt to detach Luna's grip and repeated in a voice less confident, "Get your hand off me, or I'll tell them to bite you."
This time, Luna's pupils flickered downwards. When it become blatantly obvious that nobody was paying attention to the unknown victimised child and that the snakes' attention were no longer on her, the girl seized her chance and ran for her life, escaping back to the orphanage building.
"You shouldn't be hurting other people." Luna whispered in a coldness that surprised herself, ignoring the decrease in company.
"Romy asked for it." Tom responded swiftly. Without warning he made a hissing order that caused three snakes fling themselves forward and strike Luna's hand, the unexpected pain causing her grasp to loosen and thus free Tom's own.
Twin spots of blood was appeared on three pairs of fang puncture wounds and as Luna snatched her bleeding hand back, her surprise replaced her anger and her wide eyes suddenly bored into the person responsible for the attack.
Tom straightened up, smoothed down wrinkles, brushed away dirt, and fixed up his clothing. No longer an angry oppressor, he merely cast a cold glare of finality at Luna and without any further comment, briskly strode away. At his leave, all the obedient serpents dispersed except for one which remained behind to slither towards Tom and toss him some sort of bronze figurine which he caught easily and deposited into his pocket.
When he was out of her sight, Luna collapsed onto the flattened grass that was previous occupied by the child (Romy was it?) and pulled her knees towards her chest. Ignoring tiny streams of blood that tricked down her wrist, she buried her face into her small hands and sighed heavily, all her thoughts in a jumbled mess.
Not even past puberty and Tom Riddle was already displaying signs of sadism. How in the name of Merlin was she supposed to fix this? She doubted that even an Umgubular Slashkilter would have an inkling of an idea.
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N/a: Please review!