-Disclaimer: Harry Potter is the property of JK Rowling
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-I would really like to know why nobody is reviewing this fic anymore. Is it really THAT bad?
Thanks to my Beta Crimsonangel23 and welcome back.
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Loony for Luna: Forever from the Ashes
Chapter Twenty-One
Finding George Weasley
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George bent and picked up the box, blew the ashes from the top, and then pulled off the lid. Atop a thick stack of parchments lay Luna's silver combs. Under the combs was the thank you card bearing the picture of Fred that George had brought with the basket of food the first time he had come to see Luna. Next to it was a thick braid of burgundy ribbons.
George felt a heady jolt to the heart as he realized that the box contained every letter he had ever sent to Luna.
"So she did have them." George said softly, remembering how he had subtly looked for evidence when he had been putting Luna's laundry away just after he had begun to stay with her. He wondered vaguely where she'd had them hidden, but the thought vanished as quickly as it had come.
He sat on the ground and leaned back against the stone of the fireplace, the box in his lap. He picked up the combs and looked at them. He'd wondered what she had done with them as she hadn't been wearing them at the station the day before and she hadn't given them back to him. He picked up the card bearing Fred's picture and flipped it open. The ink was badly smeared and he wondered if her crying had been the cause, but he dismissed it when he looked at the first piece of parchment, it too, along with most of the top of the stack, were smudged as well.
Perhaps they had gotten wet wherever she had hidden them, she certainly hadn't kept them in the tent...George realized now that he had looked in every imaginable place for them under the cover of doing something else.
He set the combs and card aside, and looked closer at the top piece of parchment. It was the very first poem he had ever sent her, when he had been keeping his identity secret.
Her eyes remind me of blue skies
When she smiles, my heart flies
Her hair is like the light of the moon
She'll know I fancy her, one day soon.
George smiled, remembering how he had waited until everyone was sound asleep, then wrote the poem by the light of his wand. He'd gotten up at the crack of dawn and made a secret trek to the owlery to mail it before going to breakfast. Then he'd watched Luna receive it, loving how her eyes went huge as she read the words and her cheeks went pink in the most adorable way.
Further examination of the stack revealed the rest of the poems he had sent her, including the one he had recited by heart that night in the stone circle...the night he confessed his feelings for her. He'd transformed a simple Moly flower into a yellow rose...
-Flashback-
"Eternally I wait for you
I long so for your touch
You don't know how it tortures me
This loving you so mu...much." His voice broke on the last word.
Luna stopped, one foot on the stairs to the bridge. Her head jerked up and she turned around.
"What did you say?" she whispered.
He walked towards her, closing the distance between them as he recited word for word a poem Luna had read so often she knew it by heart.
"I want to hold you in my arms
But distance takes you away
I want to tell you who I am
But fear keeps me at bay
Could you dear one love me too
Are your feelings the same
Or would you only turn from me
If I tell you my name"
"George..." Tears poured from Luna's eyes as he stopped in front of her, then from behind his back, he presented her with a perfect yellow rose.
"I am yours..." He whispered. "...eternally."
"It...was..."Luna gasped for air, her throat closed in tight around the enormous lump until she was only able to whisper "It was you..." She searched his eyes almost fearfully, waiting for him to say that it was only a joke.
"You...you sent me the poems." She rasped. "And the flowers...and...and the comb."
He nodded.
"I saw Ron...and Fred...I saw them...with a burgundy ribbon..."
"Mum's favorite color is burgundy...she buys us all the same color...Ink too."
"But...The owl..."
"I had to make Fred and Lee think I was sending orders off somehow...I didn't want them to know I was sending things to you."
"But..." She spluttered "But...Angelina..."
"Is madly in love with my brother." He brushed a thumb down her cheek "Practically engaged really."
"But...it can't be you!" She stared up into his eyes, her fingers wrapped tightly in his cloak. "It just can't be."
George put his hands on her shoulders. "Why not?"
"Because..." She could barely see through her tears. "Because I wanted it to be you...I wanted it to be you so badly!"
George grinned. "That makes no sense."
Luna laughed. "It does if you're Loony Lovegood."
"Well..." George cupped her cheek and stared adoringly into her eyes, more confident now that he knew she felt the same way. "I happen to be loony for Loony Lovegood."
-End Flashback-
He was STILL loony for Luna.
On and on he flipped through the old letters, letters marking everything that had happened between them the year and a half they were together. Near the bottom was one that wrenched so horribly at his heart he had to wipe away tears.
December 8th
Dear Luna,
Yes, I'll be in Hogsmeade this weekend...and while I'm there we really need to talk.
I Love you,
George
He'd written it two days before that day in the cavern...the day Luna had misunderstood his intentions and broke things off between them. The visit had started off so perfectly, George had sealed the cavern off and then conjured up soft, warm blankets. After they'd made love, he looked at her...his eyes full of concern...
-Flashback-
"Luna" He pulled her closer. "We need to talk."
"So you said." Luna looked at him, her eyes wary. She was fairly sure she knew what this was about.
"Luna, you have to stop. You can't keep fighting with Snape and the Carrows."
"George...I know you're worried, but, I can't just desert Neville and Ginny and the others. This is a fight we all took on together, we are still Dumbledore's army...whether Harry is here to lead us or not."
"This is insane." George pulled away from her, sat up and reached for his clothes to hastily dress. "What you're doing Luna...it's too dangerous."
Luna reached for her own clothes and pulled them on. "George...surely you of all people understand... We have to do our part, we have to fight."
"Why?" George vanished the blankets with an angry flick of his wand. "Why do YOU have to be involved?"
"It's what I agreed to when I signed that parchment that day in the Hogshead." Luna looked at him stubbornly.
"No" George said angrily. "You sighed up to LEARN to DEFEND yourself. Not to be part of some kind of idiotic force determined to piss off Voldemort."
Luna rolled her eyes. "We're not exactly trying to piss off you-know-who."
"No, you're setting out to piss off Snape, who is nothing more than Voldemort's proxy." George crossed his arms angrily. "You know damned well you piss off one, you piss off the other."
"Yes," Luna snorted. "And everyone knows that you lot worry so much about who you piss off during that radio show you, Fred, and Lee put out."
"This isn't about me, Luna." George looked at her, his eyes angry.
"Well, you know what they say..." Luna glared at him. "What's good for the goose..."
"Fuck the goose!" George yelled and Luna began to giggle.
"I will not 'fuck the goose'." She smirked "That's sick."
George smirked despite himself. "Luna, will you please listen to me?"
"I have been." She sobered. "And I understand that you're worried. Honest I do."
"I'm not the only one you know." He cupped her cheek in his hand. "You're father is as well."
"You've been talking to Daddy?" Luna's eyes narrowed. "So what? He sent you up here to discipline me?"
"No." George said as she pulled away with an angry jerk. "He just asked me to talk to you. But you must know that I would have talked to you whether he asked me to or not. Luna...trying to steal that sword...it was incredibly stupid."
"Stupid was it?" She continued to fix him with angry eyes the color of steel. "And you can say that because you have always been so cautious and well behaved."
"Argh!" George growled. "We're not talking about me, Luna! We're talking about you, and the idiotic shit you and my sister are up to with Neville Longbottom!"
"George..." she pleaded. "If you would just listen..."
"Listen...?" his voice was an angry snarl. "To what? More of your lame excuses for putting yourself in danger? And don't think this is just about stealing the sword...I know damned well you're involved with reviving the DA and the Anti-Voldemort graffiti."
-End Flashback-
George had thought that things couldn't get any worse...but they had...
-Flashback-
"If you think I'm going to just stand by and watch you get yourself killed..."
"What do you mean?" she said softly.
"I love you Luna...I do." He turned around and looked deep into her eyes, "but I can't watch you kill yourself."
Luna watched him for a moment, her eyes incredibly sad and hurt. Was he really going to break things off with her over this?!
"Then don't." She reached back and pulled the silver combs from her hair. "Don't watch."
George looked at her in shock...he hadn't meant that he wanted to end things between them! He was only going to take her home, then on to Belize. He wanted her to be safe, even if that meant his walking away from the war himself...he would NEVER leave her!
"Luna..."
"I never asked you to be a coward for me George, but...as much as I love you...I can't be a coward for you...and it's not right of you to ask me to be."
She picked up his hand and put the combs into it, and then she turned away from him.
"Goodbye George."
-End Flashback-
He hadn't gone after her...if he had, she never would have been taken. Her father would still be alive.
A week and a half later, she had been taken off the Hogwarts Express. She had been held at Malfoy Manor for nearly six months...until Harry, Ron, and Hermione had been captured and they managed to escape with the help of Dobby the house elf, taking Luna, Dean Thomas, and Mr. Ollivander with them.
George had reached nearly the bottom of the stack when he recognized his brother's familiar handwriting.
December 9th
Dear Luna,
George just came home looking for all the world like a dead man. He won't tell me what happened, only that you have broken things off between you. I don't understand why you would do that, I've seen how much you love each other. I can only guess that my git of a brother has once again said or done something really stupid...
I just want you to know that I am standing by at the ready to wipe the floor with his arse as soon as you give the word.
Love,
Fred
P.S. Seriously, please forgive him for whatever he did. Give him another chance. Despite being an idiot, he really does love you.
George sighed and moved on to the next letter. His eyes opened wide with shock as he looked at the date. Fred had written to Luna while she was staying at Shell Cottage? He hadn't said a word about it...
June 10th
Dear Luna,
Professor Lupin just told me that you have been rescued from Malfoy Manor. He just stopped by to tell us that his son has been born, and he is standing impatiently over me while I pen this letter as he agreed to deliver it to you.
Luna, I have been so worried...scared really. Angelina cried for hours when she heard you were taken, you know how she thinks of you like a little sister right? Lee, George, and I wanted to put out a reward for your rescue but the Order warned us not to do it. They said that since no one knows for sure where you are that it would only get people hurt if they attempted to invade places where you weren't being held. As much as we hated to admit it...they had a point.
Are you Okay? Did they hurt you? If they did, I swear I will kill Malfoy myself...if George doesn't beat me to him that is.
Speaking of George, he has been going out of his mind with worry over your abduction. He had it in his head that you were at Malfoy Manor (guess he was right too), and it took Dad and I both to stop him from going there. I've never seen him so upset.
Surely you realize what that means, right? He still loves you Luna, you are always on his mind. It's a bit pathetic to watch really. He looks like nothing less than a beaten up little puppy.
You have to give him another chance Luna, the two of you being apart it's hurting him...and you know George, he isn't the kind of person who hurts over little things.
I am willing to bet it is hurting you as well.
Love,
Fred
He had been miserable without her...he still was. George's eyes filled with tears as he flipped to the last letter.
June 13th
Dear Luna,
I know that everything you said in your letter is true...except the part about how our family must really hate you. Don't be silly...not a one of us could possibly blame your father for what he did. I have a sister remember? Don't you think I would have done the same thing if it had been Ginny? That my parents would?
I understand what you're saying, I know he hurt you...but you have to realize that you hurt him too. He still refuses to tell me what happened that day, but it is obvious to all of us that he is still in love with you, and after reading your letter, I am convinced that you still love him. So you tell me...how can living without the one you love ever be the right thing...for either of you?
Unfortunately, your warning came to us a bit late. We got raided last night, nothing major, I mean, we managed to apparate away in time since Lee had caterwauling charms up all around the abandoned house we were using. But we had to leave everything behind. So George is off with Lee trying to track down a high powered compact radio antenna so we can get back on the air. He should be back late tomorrow. The next morning, I am bringing him to see you and then I am going to lock you two up in a room until you work this out.
I can't stand the idea of you hurting...either of you.
Love,
Fred
George sighed and dropped the stack of parchments back in the box. He and Lee had been delayed and didn't get back until two days later, late the evening of the fourteenth ...only three hours before Neville Longbottom had sent out the alert to come to Hogwarts.
He and Fred had never made that trip to Shell Cottage. If they had...things might have been different. Fred would still have died of course, but maybe if he and Luna had gotten back together before...
'It is obvious to all of us that he is still in love with you, and after reading your letter, I am convinced that you still love him.'
George began to wonder what Luna had written in her letter, whatever it was, it had caused Fred to make plans to intervene between him and Luna. He found himself wishing that he could read her letter to Fred...and then he realized that he could. He had forgotten all about the scroll in Fred's desk...the one with the badly smeared ink that he hadn't been able to bring himself to read.
George put the lid back on the box, then he stood and apparated back to the shop.
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Chapter 22 Preview
George reads
Luna's letter to Fred...
But what will he do about
what he's read?
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