Disclaimer: I am in no way anyone who owns Harry Potter and surrounding and supporting characters and universe. In fact, my sister stole my set of books, so I don't even have that.

AN: I am alive! To anyone who reads any of my other stories, I am AT WORK on them. There will be updates arriving, hopefully before July 4th. (Hopefully) In the meanwhile... Canon until book 5, then, well, for now it is canon, but that is subject to change, depending on what happens next.

And, with no further ado,

Introspection: Luna Lovegood

I grew up on the furthermost edge of society. Most children, from what I have managed to deduce, would resent their parents for that.

But I did not, would not, and never would. Oh, there were times that I wondered, and times that I knew that I had missed chances due to the way I had grown up.

But that didn't change my pride in my life, and in the person who defined my life.

My mother cared for me with a devotion that none could match. She was the one who ensured that I ate my vegetables, and that I remembered to bring a cloak before I headed to the Longbottoms.

But, for some reason, there were always people from the Ministry turning up, trying to take me away from her. It was at the tender age of four, that I realized my job in life – to protect my mother from the Ministry of Magic.

In the way that most children did, I thought that my mother had always been a mother, just like Mr. and Mrs. Longbottom had surely always been married.

My best friends, Sirius and Remus Longbottom, were the first ones to enlighten me on the outside world. Despite their being two entire years younger than me, they tended to know more about things than I did. I ascribed that to being the nephews of the ever-famous Weasley Twins.

On my first overnight with them at my house, I was introduced to the many unique aspects of my life.

o

"Lily," Remus began, his brow furrowed. "Why do you set and clear the table all the time? I mean, I can understand once in a while, but…"

I shrugged. "Mum always sets an extra seat by accident, so I just set instead."

o

"Lils, why's that room locked?" Sirius asked, after fruitlessly tugging at the handle for near ten minutes.

I pulled him away from the door. "Mum goes into fits, if that door's open. So I keep it locked."

o

"Lily, it's time to say goodnight to your father," my mother said, setting her book on the coffee table.

I looked up from the three-way game of chess we were playing, and grabbed my cloak. "C'mon, guys."

I didn't miss Remus whispering to Sirius, "I thought she didn't have a father?"

When we went outside, Remus and Sirius both stopped short in confusion, but I waved them on. Tis was my special time with Dad, before bed.

We stopped in front of a pure white tombstone, with a single emerald set into the top-center.

Harry James Potter

July 31, 1980 - September 1, 1997

"Call no man happy till he is dead" – Aeschylus

o

When I was nine, the Aurors knocked down the door, and took my mum.

"No!" I screamed. "Stop it! She's my MUM!" Tears streamed down my face, clogging my throat and nose.

I ran to the fireplace, and threw a handful of Floo Powder. "Phoenix Rising!"

The Longbottom home came into view. I tumbled out, my vision blurred by the unchecked tears.

"Lily? Lily, sweetheart, what happened?"

Sniffing, I looked up at Aunt Ginny. "Th-They took Mummy away, Aunt Ginny. They took her away." The rest of what I attempted to say was incomprehensible.

Aunt Ginny's face darkened with anger. "Curl up on the sofa, love, and Dobby will make you some hot cocoa, alright?"

I shook my head. "What about M-M-Mummy? Is she going to be okay?"

Aunt Ginny steered me to the sofa, and Dobby popped in with a mug of hot cocoa. "She will be," she said firmly. "I promise you, Lily Selene Potter, your mother will be fine."

Pushing away my tears with the heel of my hand, I waited as Aunt Ginny pulled out a necklace, and made it glow. Sipping my cocoa, I couldn't help but continue to cry.

A door slammed upstairs, and Uncle Neville came dashing down the stairs, his robes half-tied and his tie flapping funny. "Gin?" Remus and Sirius crept down behind their father.

Aunt Ginny slapped something into Uncle Neville's hands, and he vanished with a swirly pop.

"Mum!" "Mum!"

"What's going on?"

Crack! "Ginny, what's wrong?"

I stared in shock at the woman in the muggle business suit, as Aunt Ginny began talking at a mile a minute.

"That Idiot has gone and pushed through that ridiculous restraining order again, Daph. Nev went out to stall, and I sent out the call to –"

Crack! Crack! Crack!

"Ginny, what –"

"Longbottom, what's going on?"

"Gin –"

"Ginny –"

Aunt Ginny glared at Remus and Sirius. "Take Lily up to Dora's room," she ordered. "Stay there. Use the emergency Portkey if Ministry Officials turn up."

Wide eyed, Remus and Sirius dragged me upstairs. At the landing, I stopped and glared at them.

"Guys," I hissed. "I wanted to hear what was happening to my mum!"

Remus winked. "We have a secret eavesdropping hole. Follow us."

I followed them to a small room outside of their sister Dora's room. In the corner, there was a small hole – which, I realized, carried the voices from downstairs.

"Ginny, what's going on?"

Aunt Ginny cleared her throat. "Alright, Vanguard, listen up. Moron Flint somehow managed to push through that trial and restraining order on Luna."

"What!"

"That _!"

"How dare he!"

"A-hem!" Aunt Ginny slammed her hands into something – probably the dining-room table. "Nev is stalling, and Daphne is doing backup just in case we need to overturn the stupid Wizengamot. Hannah, we need you to spread the word that Harry Potter's widow has been kidnapped by the Ministry. Trace, we need interference at Hogwarts. Gred and Forge, help Tracey."

"Right."

"Ginny, should I –?"

"Yes. Ernie, Justin, pull up every barrister dead stop. Angelina, Alicia, Katie, the Quidditch network. Rosie and Jennifer, we need every muggleborn who left Wizarding Britain in on this within as short a time as possible. Seamus, Jack, Colin, we need to rouse up as many Aurors as possible."

The sounds of lots of people Apparating made all three of us think that the meeting must have been over. I was sniffling again. What if mum went to Azkaban? She was so frail, and so gentle. Surely, the Dementors would eat her for breakfast!

Suddenly, a quiet voice startled me back to eavesdropping.

"Ginny, what about us?"

Aunt Ginny sighed. "Natalie, Euan, Romilda, Kenneth, Dennis. Parvati and Padma, Lavender, Tricia, Megan. You guys need to work with Susan."

"Me?"

Another sigh. "Su, you're the only one of us with access to the floor-plan of Azkaban and the Ministry Vaults. I need an invasion plan, and soon."

The lady named Susan gasped. "You don't think that they'll do a repeat of the Black Affair?"

Aunt Ginny made a strange sound that resembled a sob. "Unfortunately for little Lily, that's exactly what I think."

o

The entire thing, thankfully, was over by the time I woke up the next morning. My mum had returned, sickly and pale-looking, and quieter than ever, but still my mum.

I observed my mum more than ever. She was always quiet, talking to things that nobody could see, and ignoring things that were there. I knew very little about my mum from before I was born, only that she used to wear Butterbeer cork necklaces, and that she had been deeply in love with my dad.

I knew that Uncle Neville and Aunt Ginny were really Mum's only friends, and that everyone else was her sort-of-friends. And I knew that Endy, that is Endymion Harris Weasley, was sort-of named after my mum and dad.

There was short time, when I was ten, that I was afraid that people at Hogwarts would make fun of me. At that point, I knew that my mother was a bit of a public laughingstock, and that the government thought that she needed to go to St. Mungo's.

I was a bit ashamed, I suppose, that I had to lead my mother about Diagon Alley, because she had the tendency to stand in one place for hours, without me.

Kids giggled, and whispered, when we walked by. I was proud, and I knew it, but that didn't stop me from feeling the slightest little bit of insecurity. What if everyone was right? What if my mum was crazy? Would I be left all alone?

I received my Hogwarts letter with very little fuss. It was addressed to Lily Lovegood-Potter, the Second-Largest Bedroom, Number Three, Godric's Hollow.

We went to Diagon Alley with Aunt Ginny and her brothers, the famous Weasley Twins. The eldest son of the Weasleys, Endy, was going to be in my year.

I peeked at Endy out of the corners of my eyes. He was really different from everyone else in the Weasley family. He had the darkest eyes, and the blackest hair, but his skin was as freckly as Aunt Ginny's skin.

"Hey."

I jumped. I'd never actually heard my older 'cousin' talk. "H-Hello."

He smiled. "You're Lily Selene, right?"

I nodded.

"What House do you want to be in?"

I tilted my head to the side. "I don't know. Mum was in Ravenclaw."

Endy grinned at me. "I know. My Dad and Mum were both Gryffindors, though, and so was your dad."

I stopped. "You knew my dad? How? You're the same age as me!"

Endy shook his head. "I'm nearly a year older'n you, Lily. I met your dad a bit, but I don't really remember much. I have some photos, though, if you want to see them."

My eyes widened. "Could I? Mum always cries if I ask about Dad."

Endy shrugged. "I dunno, your mum never wanted to talk to me much, but word is that she misses your Dad more than anybody in the world."

I grimaced. "Yeah, I have to make sure that Mum remembers to take care of herself. I don't know how she'll deal with September First this year, without me."

Endy patted my shoulder. "I'm sure Aunt Ginny and –"

A loud crash interrupted what he was about to say. In a flash, Uncles Fred and George, and Aunt Ginny, all had their wands out. Mum stood still, as if in a daze.

A bunch of grey-cloaked people had Apparated into the middle of the Alley, shouting and throwing curses.

Uncle Neville came out of one of the shops, and grabbed Endy, Apparating out. He hadn't seen me, because I was standing behind Mum.

I yanked on Mum's limp hands. "Mum," I pleaded. "Mum, pay attention! There's an attack!"

There was a loud boom, and the ground jumped underneath me. I flew to the side, and made a startled cry. The cobblestones hurt.

I was about to try to crawl out of the way, when a wand came directly into my range of vision. "Avada –"

"Depulso!" The man who was about to curse me went flying out of the way.

"How dare you?" Mum screamed. I could only stare. Gone was the ghost-like mother I had known for all of my life. In her place was a woman with heart-of-flame-blue eyes, and wild gold hair, her face twisted with fury. "Leave my daughter alone!"

She was like an avenging angel – all fire and fury. I could only sit on the ground and gape, as my mum took out the attackers like they were bits of fairy floss, floating in the air.

Then, something gripped me by the neck, and tossed me into the air. Gasping for breath, I could only scream, as some spell hit me. It felt as if every part of my body was on fire, as if I was being slowly pulled apart.

"LILY!"

Mum's voice ripped across my consciousness, raw and full of agony. I felt a part of my heart cry along with her – that my sweet mum should ever feel so agonized…

The world exploded. Distantly, I felt something hot and wet splatter my face.

Soft, gentle arms cradled me. "Lily, Lily, oh, my baby, Lily, please be okay, I couldn't live…"

I forced one aching eye open. "M-Mum?"

"Lily!"

I blacked out.

o

Later, I found out that my mum nearly killed anyone who tried to take me from her, until Aunt Ginny found a Healer.

Vaguely, I remember someone saying; "Now that's Harry Potter's wife."

o

I bore the effects of that day with trouble. I had ended up with a horrible scar on the back of my neck that nothing could get rid of. But I saw another side of my mum, that day.

My mum was not just the slightly strange woman who kept to herself and fought the Ministry for the right to her daughter. My mum was a fierce, fiery, fighter. Nothing could stand in her way, if she was thus inclined.

And after that day, my mum took out the photos. She began to talk about my dad, and I learned, not from books, but from my mother, about the eternally famous Harry Potter.

On September First, Mum kissed me goodbye, and stopped me before I boarded the train. "Lily," she began. Then she stopped. Her eyes widened. "Impossible…" she breathed.

I turned to look. It was Endy, walking through the smoke and steam of the crowded station. I waved. "Endy!"

Mum relaxed. "Ah," she said, as Endy drew close enough to hear. "Fred and Angelina's son? Owain?"

Endy grinned sheepishly. "They changed my name nine years ago. I'm Endymion Harris, now."

Mum nodded. "Ah, that's right." She grinned. "Chin up, Gryffindor."

Endy looked startled, but grinned back. "I'll see you on the train, Lily," he said, giving me a quick hug.

I watch bemusedly as he dashed off to find a compartment, when Mum tapped my shoulder. "Lily?"

I hugged her. "Yeah, Mum?" I mumbled into her shoulder. I wouldn't see her until Christmas!

I felt her smile against the top of my head. "I'll be proud of you," she whispered. "Gryffindor, Ravenclaw, Hufflepuff, or Slytherin. Your father was nearly a Slytherin, and I chose Ravenclaw to honor my mother. Good luck, my Lily-love."

I tightened my hug. We had a few minutes left, after all.

"Lovegood-Potter, Lily Selene!"

Whispers swamped me.

"Is that Loony Lovegood's daughter?"

"The Loony's daughter?"

"Loony –"

The Hat slipped over my head. Well, well, hello little Potter.

I lifted my head. Hello, Hat.

You would do well in Gryffindor, little Potter, fierce as a lion, just like your parents –

Ravenclaw. I interrupted, as politely as possible. Put me in Ravenclaw.

The Hat did something that sounded suspiciously like a sigh. You do know that more people will associate you with your mother, if I Sort you into Ravenclaw?

My chin drew higher. I know. Ravenclaw.

All right… If that's the way you want it…

"RAVENCLAW!"

I removed the Hat, my face proud. Endy was clapping hard, and I waved to him. I hoped he got into Gryffindor, like my Dad.

Because I was proud to be the daughter of Luna Lovegood.

AN: Hehe... so... it drifted a bit away from the subject, but... d'you like?

REVIEWS? PLEASE? Do I need to cry? (Just kidding!) :)