DISCLAIMER: I don't own anything HP.
A/N: I think the next few chapters will alternate from Neville and Luna's point of view so I apologize if it does get a bit confusing. Not much Nuna in this chapter, but don't worry! There will be more interaction in later chapters! REMINDER: Luna is now referred to as Mia, just in case you forgot ;)
Mia and Danny fell into the same pace walking beside each other. From what Mia understood of Danny's English, he was planning on bringing her to meet his grandmother, to see what could be done about the fact that she had no idea who she was. She tried her best to recall parts of her life before she woke up to find herself in the streets of China but nothing came to mind. So wrapped up in her own world she was that she didn't even notice as they entered a small, dark alley. As the darkness swallowed her, she suddenly found it very hard to breathe, as if the blackness was a solid being pressing up against her. The world around her started spinning and she stumbled, only managing to stay upright due to the narrowness of the alley, meaning that the walls of the buildings around her were not far away, allowing her to lean against them. She latched a hand on one of these stone walls, trying to steady herself but a splitting headache caused her to double up in pain again.
The dark Chinese alley faded away and she saw a dark corridor instead, of what seemed to be a huge infrastructure, rather like a castle. How did she know what a castle looked like? Then, a darker, solid, strange-looking mass started to come towards her in the corridor. It seemed to be dragging something in the middle, and a flash of pale yellow caught her eye. This looked familiar but she couldn't think how. As the mass moved ever closer, she realized that it wasn't one object, but rather the silhouettes of several people, around three to four of them, some of who were wearing dark hoods that obscured their faces. Her eyes widened in shock as she saw what was being dragged between them. It was a girl, the same girl that she had had a vision of when she had first bumped into Danny. What was she doing here and what were these men doing to her? Mia tried to shout out in alarm, to warn someone of what was happening, anyone, who would be able to save the girl, but there seemed to be no one else within hearing distance. Mia started to panic, and, as soon as that happened, a flash of whiteness blinded her, forcing her to shield her eyes from the sudden light. When she opened her eyes again, she found herself in the dark Chinese alley once more.
"Mia, what wrong?" her head was still groggy with the pain of that headache and the sudden overload of information and it took her a long while to respond to Danny.
"I'm…I'm fine I think. That girl! The girl with pale blonde hair! We have to help her; she was being attacked by these strange hooded men! Is there a castle nearby?" She let out all of her worry and her fear in a rush and poor Danny barely had time to interpret the mess of English she had just spouted at him. When he just stood there, she started to shake him in frustration. "IS. THERE. A. CASTLE. NEARBY?" she yelled.
"Castle? No castle in China. Only palace for emperor. You wish to see palace?" he asked. Why would this strange girl suddenly want to go sight-seeing after having just broken down for no obvious reasons? He really had to get her to Nanny; she would know what to do. Nanny was the wisest woman around and she had healing powers that were sure to put this strange girl right again.
Mia sighed. Clearly he had no idea about what she was talking about, and who was to say that the girl was being attacked right at this moment anyway? It was hopeless. She didn't even know which country this castle was in, let alone who the girl was and how on earth was she going to be able save the girl in her vision. She could barely save herself. This girl, who is she? Why does she keep appearing in my mind? Tears pricked her eyes as she sympathized with the girl; she knew all too well what it felt like to be lost and helpless. Thank god she had someone as warm and friendly as Danny by her side. She knew she must look like a nutter, yet he had been nothing but kind and patient with her. She smiled at him, apologetic for having shaken him the moment before, and he helped her to her feet again.
"You okay? We go to Nanny." He smiled at her too, but she could see the worry in his eyes. He must be wondering what kind of trouble he has gotten himself into, mingling with a looney girl. Still, she wasn't complaining 'cause she wouldn't know where she would be right now if it hadn't been for Danny. Probably being sold off into a slave market somewhere far away or something. She shuddered at the thought and quickly followed behind him, in case she lost him too.
After a short while, Danny finally came to a stop in front of a small stone house; there had been no further incident in their journey there. Judging by the undergrowth and the quietness of the neighbourhood, they had walked quite far from the bustling city centre and were closer to the outskirts of town. She was glad of the peace, and, though the house was unimpressive, it looked welcoming. It seemed to be completely encircled by a mouth-watering aroma, and Mia's stomach growled in protest. Danny raised his eyebrows at this was a bemused look on his face, causing Mia to blush with embarrassment. "Come in." Mia needed no further invitation and eagerly stepped in through the door.
The house looked completely empty at first, the only sign of movement being a stew that was bubbling over the fireplace, and it smelled absolutely scrumptious. Mia peeked around, but did not see the "Nanny" that Danny had talked so often about. Though the house was small, it was clean and immaculate, and was clearly very well looked after.
"Nai Nai! Nin kuai chu lai ba! You ge nu hai xu yao nin lai kan kan ta!" Danny yelled in Chinese, apparently calling for his Nanny to come out. Mia stood there awkwardly, not sure where to put herself in the limited amount of space in the room. Seeing Mia shift undecidedly from foot to foot, Danny chuckled. "Make you at home! Me call nanny to come and see you" he explained. Mia smiled gratefully and chose to sink into a couch by the fire. Mmmm. Her whole body sagged in relief, finally able to relax after the whole drama she had experienced today.
An old woman hobbled out. She looked at Mia, and then raised her eyebrows at Danny. Mia almost laughed out loud at the resemblance between the two. Danny spoke first, addressing his nanny in Chinese again. "Nai Nai. Wo gang gang zai lu shang pong dau zhe nu hai, ta hau xiang mi lu lah! Ta shen zhi bu ji de zi ji shi shui…zan men gai zhen me ban? Oh! Hai you, wo bang ta qu le ming zhi, jiao Mia." He then turned to Mia and translated for her in his choppy English. "Me tell nanny you lost and forget name. Tell her you Mia." He gave her a reassuring smile to encourage her to approach Nanny.
Nanny came over and grasped both of Mia's hands in her own enthusiastically. Her eyes lit up and she pulled Mia into an enveloping embrace. "Ai yo, zhe me piao liang de gu liang ah! Bu yong pa, wo hui bang ni de. Zai zhe duan shi jian ni jiu zhu zai wo men jia ba hao bu hao?" Mia looked around helplessly for Danny to explain what Nanny just said to her.
"Nanny say no worry, she help you. You stay at our home." Mia's heart swelled with emotion for the caring these two people were showing for an absolute stranger who had been nothing but trouble. "Oh! She say you very pretty too!" Danny's face was tinged with red when he said that, and Mia giggled. "Thank you." She whispered.
For some reason, despite the vulnerability of her situation, she felt no fear when she was in the presence of Danny, and this small stone hut already felt like home.
Danny nodded at his Nanny and she immediately pulled Mia along. "zou ba, Mee-ah, wo men chu qing jie qing jie!"
"She take you to clean. Wait I get clothes you." He hurried off in the opposite direction into some rooms at the back of the living room she had just been in, and Mia couldn't do anything but helplessly follow Nanny. She was led into a small bathroom. Nanny handed her a fluffy towel and left her in there. Mia stood there, wondering what she was supposed to do next. Taking notice of the grime and sweat and dirt that covered her whole body, she grimaced, stripping off her clothes with renewed determination. For the first time, she took a look at the clothing she had been wearing when Danny found her. It seemed to be a dress of some sort, ripped and slashed open in areas, with an indistinguishable colour from the dirt that covered it. She put that to one side and stepped into the shower. The warm water running down her back did wonders for her, and she finally felt comfortable again. It soothed her weary muscles and the headache seemed to wash away with the water. Scrubbing herself, she suddenly winced in pain when she rubbed an area on the small of her back. "Ah!" She gingerly touched that area again. The soreness told her that it was probably a bruise. She looked all over herself and was shocked to find that most of her body was indeed covered with bruises and cuts.
Being more careful this time, she finished rinsing off the rest of her body, and stepped out of the shower. She felt like an entirely new person, and all her worries seemed to momentarily disappear. Wrapping herself in the fluffy towel, she sighed with content. The mirror above the washing basin caught her attention and she suddenly realized that up till now, she still had no idea what she looked like. She felt nervous, not sure of what she would see. Reasoning that it probably wouldn't be too bad (Nanny had said that she was pretty, after all), she reached up and wiped the steamy mist off the mirror.
"Ahhhh!" What she saw caused her to topple backwards scream in shock, the sound filling the stone house. Danny burst into the bathroom just as Mia came in contact with the floor. Her towel slipped, but she didn't seem to notice, still screaming, her eyes wide with horror. Danny quickly averted his gaze and hastily wrapped the towel around her again, pulling her up and into his embrace.
The warmness and the feel of his strong arms around her seemed to calm her down and her screams subsided. Danny held her even tighter than before, and frowned when he felt her trembling uncontrollably. He crooned and stroked her hair all the while. When he decided that her emotions had stabilized, he lifted her up, making sure that the towel had her completely covered, before bringing her into his bedroom. He gently placed her on his bed and handed her some of his old clothes for her to change into.
"You change. No scared. I leave now, but I am outside door, okay? You find me, anytime." He gave her a small pat on her head and left the room so that she could change.
Mia took deep breaths. Shakily, she lifted herself off the bed and started putting on the clothes he had handed to her. As she pulled his shirt over her head, she smelled the sweet scent of soap and the faintest traces of mint and pine. This seemed to sooth her, and, after changing, she went out to find Danny and Nanny. After her behaviour today, she knew she owed them an explanation.
She found both Danny and Nanny in the living room, sitting on the couch apparently deep in conversation. They were speaking in Chinese so she couldn't understand a word they said. "Hi" she said timidly, not sure as to whether or not she should interrupt them.
"Mia!" Danny immediately stood up and sat her down in the middle of the couch, between himself and Nanny. "What wrong?" he asked. The genuine concern in his voice was evident. Mia took a deep breath again, not sure where to start.
"I….I….I looked in the mirror, and I saw what I looked like." All the while, Danny translated for his Nanny. Mia closed her eyes. "I saw…the girl, Danny. I saw a girl in my visions when I had those headaches and I saw her in the mirror. That girl was me. I think I have been having flashbacks. Something happened to me, a group of men kidnapped me, I'm not sure why, but that's all I remember before waking up in front of you." Danny gasped, quickly translating for his Nanny again.
"You…remember?" he asked.
"Not all the details. It seems that sometimes, something I see or hear jolts my memory and causes me to see images of bits of my past. I obviously don't belong here, but I don't know how on earth I ended up in China. It must have been to do with those hooded men I saw in my flashback." She bit on her lip. That girl was her. She was the one that had been attacked and captured. Why had that happened to her? Who was she, before she had become Mia? How had she come all the way to China, which was obviously very, very far from where she used to live? There were so many questions and no one had answers to them. She sighed in frustration.
A hand was placed lightly on her shoulder. "Bu yao xiang tai duo, xian hao hao xiu xi ba!" Nanny's kind, twinkling eyes were all it took for her to break down. Tears ran down her cheeks and her whole body wracked with unrestrained sobs. Nanny held her like that for a long while, until she fell asleep, exhausted from the day's events. Good, sweet child. Rest now, don't think too much.
Note: Sorry for the incomprehensible Chinese in this chapter; I needed it to make the character for Nanny more authentic. Hope you enjoyed this chapter though Neville did not make an appearance…I needed this as a filler where Luna finally realizes that the girl she has been seeing has been herself all along. Look out for my next chapter!
P.S. Poll on my profile page waiting for you to fill in! Trying to get some ideas on the sorts of pairings you want to see most so this would be much appreciated. Thanks!