Only the Loony Ch. 11: Broken
Neville and Luna began their journey back to school as soon as the sun ha begun it's descent towards the hills in the distance. They hadn't realized how far their run had taken them the other day, nor did they remember it had already been two days since they had left Hogwarts. The hours had flown by. Vacation was over. It was time to face what they had done. It was time to get back to class. Back to their friends. Neville's face lit up every time he thought about being back in his dormitory, safe and sound. His hand intertwined with Luna's as they trekked through a dark patch of woods. Suddenly he felt his arm being held back and saw that Luna had frozen where she stood.
"What is it?"
Luna didn't blink. She didn't look at Neville. She didn't seem to have heard him. She was staring, petrified, at a spot a few meters away. Neville turned.
The sight before their eyes was ghastly, to say the least. Through the shadows, the clear outline of a horse-like creature lay on the ground, unmoving. Bright, silver liquid was in a pool by the creature's side. Unicorn blood. Their unicorn was dead. Luna's grip on Neville's hand tightened as she tentatively stepped closer, wanting desperately to be mistaken, to see that the blood was just an illusion. To see her magical friend alive and well again. Neville walked silently behind her, half wishing they could just get out of there before whatever killed the unicorn killed them. He had to be with Luna, though. He had to stay strong for her.
She crouched down next to the horse-like animal's horn and stroked it's fur. Neville put a nervous hand on her shoulder and glanced around, his Gryffindor senses picking up some kind of disturbance in these woods. All seemed quiet. Almost too quiet. A crow lifted off the ground with a loud "Caw!" and Neville jumped a foot in the air.
He leaned slowly against a tree and watched Luna for a moment, her beautiful kindness forcing a smile onto his face, even through the pity he was feeling for her and her unicorn. Suddenly, he heard a shuffling behind him and a hand was over his mouth before he could scream. He watched through a black glove as Luna was taken in the same fashion. He tried to yell, to tell her everything would be ok, but the hand holding him was stronger than he. He let himself be pushed onto his knees and held forcibly by the shoulder, his head beginning to spin. To his left, Luna was in the same position as he, and both of them were too scared to speak. A man in a Death Eater mask paced in front of him, long blonde hair flowing out of his hood. "Mr. Malfoy."
Lucius's lips curled into a devilish smile as he looked down at Neville. "Yes, I believe we have met, Longbottom. I think I'm also correct in saying that you met my darling wife just yesterday afternoon."
The word 'darling' had seemed so insincere that Neville began to feel angry. Angry at this terrible man who doesn't deserve his wife. This stupid war that's always looming over everyone. This school where nobody cares about the outcasts. Bellatrix Lestrange. Barty Crouch, Jr.. He couldn't take any more of this suffering. No more taunting. No more pain.
His chest felt about to burst with all of the anger he had built up. His face was turning red, not from shyness anymore, but from a much deeper place. His fist was clenched and his teeth were gritted.
His eye flitted across the scene once more. He was about a second from punching out old Malfoy when Luna's eyes met his. Without even a word, she brought his guard down. His heart skipped a beat. Her eyes were telling him to back down, so he willingly obliged. His anger subsided. He couldn't risk her life for his stupidity. It wasn't worth that.
Lucius came closer to Neville and asked threateningly, "What did my wife do?"
Neville cleared his throat and replied calmly, "She asked about Draco. She wanted to make sure he was alright."
"Anything else?"
"No, sir."
"Then why does my son suddenly not want to fulfill his tasks?"
Neville looked over at Luna, who looked just as puzzled as he felt. "I'm sorry, sir?"
Mr. Malfoy was angry. Not just angry but desperate. He was scared. But what could possibly scare him?
"Draco no longer wishes to do the Dark Lord's job. He says he is 'unable'."
"Ah." Of course Mr. Malfoy was afraid of Voldemort. Of course he only cared about what his son did because he didn't want to be punished. Why hadn't Neville guessed that earlier? It was hardly surprising, for Lucius.
"Why did you kill the unicorn?"
Luna's whimsical voice sounded innocent as a child in the dark forest with these cloaked figures surrounding the area. Lucius was caught completely off guard, as was Neville. "Why did I...what?"
Luna asked again. This time, Lucius began pacing quickly towards her, his cloak billowing in the wind threateningly. "Don't hurt her!"
Neville's command wasn't heard, but it wasn't disobeyed either. Mr. Malfoy stopped a meter away from Luna, glancing from her to the unicorn, until he finally stated coldly, "All dreams end. All magical things die. It's time you learned that. You'll lose more than a unicorn in the years to come. It's time to join us or face more broken dreams."
Luna didn't even stutter. "Anything that is broken can be healed again. Dreams end, but they're never forgotten. Not completely. Good will win, in time. Good always wins."
Lucius chuckled, an act more menacing than his foulest scowl. "Not always, girl. Not always." He strolled back to where most of the Death Eaters were and began putting his mask back on. "It's time we pay the Headmaster a visit. Draco will be waiting for us to finish his work."
Surprisingly, all of the Death Eaters walked off, leaving Luna and Neville sitting stunned for a few moments. When Neville's senses came back to him, he jumped onto his feet, fear in his eyes. "Luna, what are they planning?"
"I...I don't know."
She stood next to him, casting a dismal glance at the unicorn, and then wrapped her arms around Neville. "He'll be alright. It's Dumbledore."
Neville suddenly jumped back. "How long have we been out here?"
"I don't know, two days maybe, why?"
"That plant...I read about it in a book once...it only grows in Spring and summer."
Luna froze. "Are you sure?"
Neville nodded without taking his eyes off of the plant, dancing in a beam of sunlight.
"But it was October!"
Neville looked down solemnly. A year of their lives. A whole school year. How?
"Don't worry, Luna. I'll sort this out. Everything will be fine."
In the back of her mind, Luna really believed he could fix it all.