Strange Can Be Good

HarryxLuna

Rated T

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter or its characters from the franchise. That honor belongs to JK Rowling

Strange Can Be Good

Chapter 7: Finding Peace

The news of the Potter's divorce spread throughout the Wizarding World much quicker than Harry had expected. When Ginny had presented him with the divorce papers over a month ago, he had been reluctant to sign them. He had tried to talk civilly with her and for them to try again, if not for themselves then for their children. Unfortunately his attempts had been for naught and after serious contemplation, he signed the papers.

The divorce wasn't official until two weeks later, but by that point Ginny had moved out of their home and signed over all of her parental rights. She didn't say where she was going but Harry didn't care. He needed to focus on his sons and moving along in life. The hardest thing though was telling his children that their mother had left and was not coming back. James accepted the news better than Harry expected, but Albus didn't understand at all. Albus was confused and upset, and his innocent questions about why Ginny wasn't there broke his father's heart. He would ask why mommy left, why she didn't love them anymore, and why she didn't want them anymore. And all Harry could do was hold him and sooth his tears.

Rita Skeeter was the one who covered the Potter's divorce story and put it in The Daily Prophet. However unlike most time, she didn't twist the story; Harry was actually grateful to her for that. But as soon as it was clear the Ginny Weasley (no longer Potter) divorced Harry Potter and left him and their children, all sorts of eligible bachelorettes came forth wanting to be able to date Harry, become the new Mrs. Potter and mother his children. Harry politely turned them down, definitely not ready for a relationship as the wounds from his previous one were still fresh.

Harry had also been getting Howler upon Howler from Mrs. Weasley, she blaming Harry for divorcing her only daughter and forcing her to give up her rights as a mother. Ron had also been angry with Harry, but after Hermione explained that it was Ginny who initiated the divorce, he calmed down and accepted that his sister and his best friend were no longer together and that she had abandoned his nephews. Harry was glad that his friends were standing by him and he knew that he would be alright.


Over two months had passed and Harry had become used to being a single father. James and Albus had also become used to not seeing their mother anymore and all of her belongings absent from their home. Harry was glad that his sons weren't letting what happened affect their schoolwork and were being happy, though he knew that the hole Ginny had left was still there.

At the moment Harry and Albus were spending some time together in a wizard's park while James was over at Ron and Hermione's house taking Muggle lessons with Rose. Hermione believed that should something ever happen where they need to hide out in the Muggle world, the children needed to have a Muggle education. Albus was sitting in Harry's lap who was sitting on the ground, watching in fascination as his father produced his Patronus. The glowing stag leapt out of Harry's wand and bounded around before walking towards them. The little boy smiled and laughed when the Patronus knelt down and seemed to nuzzle his cheek before it disappeared.

"What do you think my Patronus will be, daddy?" Albus asked.

"I can't tell you that, son. You will just have to wait a see for yourself, but I'm sure it is bound to be something great," Harry said with a smile.

Albus nodded and said, "I bet mine is going to be a dragon. Roar!"

Harry laughed and began to tickle the dark haired boy, making him laugh and try to fend off the hands that were tickling him. It wasn't until a glow in his peripheral caught his attention did he stop. Albus stopped laughing and looked too, surprised at what was sitting in front of them.

A Patronus was sitting in front of them in the form of a hare. The hare twitched its ear before it spoke, saying, "Hello, Harry. Hello, Albus."

"Luna?" Harry said, looking around for the blond woman. A tap on his shoulder made him turn, finding the dreamy woman squatting behind him with a serene smile on her face. Harry smiled at her as her Patronus disappeared, feeling his heart flutter a bit.

"Luna!" Albus exclaimed, climbing out of his father's lap and running into Luna's arms, making her fall back onto her bottom and causing her to sit on the ground. He hugged her tightly before pulling away with a grin, asking, "Your Patronus is a bunny rabbit?"

The witch giggled and said, "Actually, it is a hare, which is a type of rabbit. So in a way, yes my Patronus is a bunny rabbit."

Harry moved to sit next to his friend before saying, "It's good to see you again, Luna."

Luna nodded and returned the greeting, letting Albus tell her all about his schoolwork and what he had been learning. She listened intently and spoke when needed, answering any question Albus wanted to ask her. Harry couldn't help but smile as he watched two of the many important people in his life interact easily. He couldn't remember a time where Ginny ever actively listened or wanted to listen to Albus when he wanted to tell her something. The sight warmed his heart and he felt much better than he had in months.

Harry had been so wrapped up in his own thoughts that he didn't realize that the conversation between his son and Luna had ended until he realized that it was suddenly quiet. Looking over he found Albus still sitting in Luna's lap, only asleep with his head on her chest as she held him. Luna's silvery-blue-grey eyes shined as she smiled at him kindly, slowly rocking herself to keep Albus sleep. Her smile disappeared as she softly said, "I read the story in the paper; I'm really sorry."

"It's alright, I should have seen it coming," Harry said looking down in his lap. Sighing he said, "She kept telling me she didn't love me and that she probably never really did. Does that mean that I'm not worth loving or something?"

"You are wrong, Harry. You are worth loving, and you already have love. You have the love of your children and the love of your friends; even if you didn't have it with or from your wife, you still have it. Things have been stressful for you and you are trying to stay strong, but you can only do that once you find peace with the situation and yourself," Luna said reaching over to hold one of Harry's hands tightly.

Harry nodded and smiled before saying, "You truly are one of a kind, Luna."

Luna smiled and gave Harry's hand a squeeze before letting go and turning her attention back to the little boy in her arms. She began humming a lullaby that only she knew and Harry found himself relaxing just from hearing the tune.

He had to admit that the woman was right; he did need to find and make peace with what had happened. He couldn't keep holding onto and resenting Ginny for their divorce and her abandonment of their children. If he was ever going to find some solace, he needed to accept what happened. But if he was honest with himself, he felt better now just having Luna next to him. She had given him good advice and it wasn't cryptic like it usually would be. She had been sincere while also in a way telling him to man up. And he realized that things became easy and better to bear with Luna around.

Even at the moment of them sitting in a comfortable silence, he felt his heart flutter and just felt a sense of tranquility that came with being around the dreamy witch. Harry had never felt that with Ginny, and it was a nice contrast. And with Luna, if anything strange occurred, she would make it seem as if it was the most normal thing in the world; considering his own past experiences, strange should be the norm for him, too. But even so, he liked it, and James and Albus did as well.

Harry thought that maybe he should spend more time with Luna and get to know her all over again and better. If he was honest she was probably the only other person he wanted to interact with on a daily basis other than his sons. And just thinking of spending more time with Luna made him feel warm inside. With that thought in mind, Harry made sure to ask Luna if she wanted to spend time with him the next day.

"I would love to. I don't have to work tomorrow, so that would be perfect," Luna replied, a sweet smile on her face. Harry grinned back at her and wrapped an arm around her shoulders, giving her a side hug while also being careful not to wake Albus.

Luna felt her own heart race from Harry's touch, but willed her cheeks to remain their natural color. She had deduced that she liked Harry more than a friend, and she felt guilty that she was attracted to her friend's ex-husband, but she couldn't help how she felt. And if him spending time with her helped him to get over Ginny and the divorce, then she would gladly do it, even if he didn't return her feelings. Because to her, being a good friend was more important than being selfish, a lesson that possibly went over her red haired friend's head.