WRITTEN FOR THC, YEAR 7

Standard

Gryffindor, DADA

Prompts:

(object) springs

(character) Pandora Lovegood

Word Count: 1196

Pandora Lovegood cocked her head, inspecting the item in her hand.

"What is it, Mummy?" her five-year-old daughter, Luna, questioned, standing on the table beside her. Her grey eyes were wide as she looked at the item in Pandora's hand. Never before had Luna seen something so peculiar.

Luna's curiosity piqued even more when Pandora squeezed it between her thumb and forefinger and it sprang back to its natural form.

The small item had been lying in the field near their house, discarded by Muggles. Luna had brought it into the house after the Umgubular Slashkilters had tired of playing with her.

"I'm not sure, dear," Pandora murmured, carefully rolling the item in her hand. It was long and shiny, and it went round, and round, and round in a coil of endless circles.

"What does it do, Mummy?" Luna inquired further, standing on her tiptoes and leaning forward on Pandora's shoulder. Her platinum-blond hair tickled Pandora's nose, and Pandora smiled.

Pandora knew Luna wouldn't rest until she had her questions answered — it was one of the traits Pandora and Xenophilius had done their best to instil in her — so she wound her arm around Luna's petite waist and pulled her onto her hip.

"I don't know the answer to this, dear, but I know someone who might," Pandora announced. "Can you guess who?"

Luna's face lit up, and she clapped, the sound resonating through the small house. "Ooh, is it Mr Weasley? May we go see him, Mummy? He knows all about Muggles, doesn't he? Maybe he'll know what this thingamabob is."

"I'm sure he will, sweetie," Pandora assured her. She placed Luna down on the ground and pushed her towards the stairs. "Now, why don't you run along and get dressed? Then, we can go see if Mr Weasley is home."

Luna stood up on her tiptoes to press her lips to Pandora's cheek, an action which never failed to warm Pandora's heart. "Okay, Mummy, I'll be right back. Don't go anywhere."

"I won't," Pandora murmured, kissing Luna's head in return. When Luna disappeared up the stairs, Pandora turned her attention to the item in her hand.

It fascinated her; it was so peculiar. She squeezed it a few times and watched it bounce on her open palm, amazed by the Muggles ingenuity. It could be anything: a toy for children to play with, something important they used in their cars to make the wheels go round, or just something useless. But one thing Pandora was sure of was that Luna wouldn't rest until she had discovered its uses.

She didn't have to wait too long for Luna to come bounding down the stairs, dressed in her brightest sundress. Her favourite radish earrings hung from her ears, and her heart-shaped glasses were perched on her little button-like nose.

Pandora had never seen anything more beautiful than her beloved daughter. Mothers often said the same thing about their children, but Pandora truly believed it.

She smiled as she scooped Luna up into her arms and tickled her sides. Luna's delighted squeals and laughter echoed through the house, and Pandora's smile widened at the sound. "Are you ready to get some answers, Miss Lovegood?" Pandora asked dramatically, placing Luna down.

Luna giggled and nodded. "Yes, Mummy."

"Here we go!" Pandora tightened her grip on Luna's hand, closed her eyes, and imagined standing in the Weasleys' field.

With a soft pop, the mother-daughter duo disappeared.

Pandora landed lithely on her feet in front of The Burrow, immediately turning towards Luna. "Are you okay, sweetie?"

"Yes, Mummy," Luna said, her chest heaving as she struggled to breathe.

Pandora waited for her to catch her breath before they made their way towards the crooked house towering on the edge of the field. Luna knocked on the door and waited patiently. Pandora was impressed with her daughter's actions; most of her nieces and nephews would have never stood so calmly.

Molly Weasley opened the door and smiled at them, her eyes twinkling merrily. She called out over her shoulder, "Arthur, look who it is! Your favourite student!"

Pandora chuckled and stepped forward to hug Molly. "I hope we're not intruding, Molly… Luna found something rather peculiar, and she'd like to ask Arthur about it."

"Oh, no, not at all, Dory! The children are at their cousins' house for the day. It's just Arthur and me. Come on in, you two," Molly said, ushering them inside.

The scent of freshly baked apple pie wafted to their noses, and Luna breathed in deeply, a small smile forming on her lips. Molly smiled.

"Why don't you two take a seat, and I'll bring out Arthur and some pie?"

"That would be lovely, Mrs Weasley," Luna said, her tone sweet and polite. Pandora shook her head in amusement at her daughter's antics; she had trained Luna well.

A few moments later, Arthur arrived, a long screwdriver in his hand and sweat beading on his forehead. He beamed when he saw Luna, and he came over to sit on the armchair beside them. "Hullo there, Miss Lovegood. And what have you brought for me today?"

Luna scooted closer to him. "I found this in the field, Mr Weasley." She handed the small item to Arthur. "What are they? What do they do? Can I play with it? Is it dangerous?"

"Slow down, sweetie," Pandora said, her shoulders trembling with suppressed laughter. "Mr Weasley won't be able to answer you if you don't breathe."

Arthur chuckled as well, reaching forward to ruffle Luna's hair. "This, my dear, is called a spring. See," he said, tapping the item with his finger and watching it bounce, "it springs up and down."

"What does it do?"

"They're used to make things bounce. And they're also used in Muggle beds," Arthur explained patiently.

"Why? Do Muggles jump in bed?" Luna asked, her eyes widening at the thought.

"Muggles don't jump in bed, dear, but their beds are made of springs so that the bed is more comfortable for them. We don't use springs — we just use Softening Charms instead," Pandora added, and Arthur nodded along.

Luna nodded solemnly. "I understand now." She turned to Arthur and smiled. "Thank you, Mr Weasley."

"You're welcome, Miss Lovegood. Now, would you like to see what we wizards can do with this spring?" Arthur asked, already pulling out his wand.

Luna nodded excitedly. Pandora leaned back on the couch and watched as Arthur entertained her daughter by enlarging the spring and helping Luna onto it.

Molly came out with the pie, and Luna held onto the spring and bounced over to Molly's side, beaming up at her. "Look, Mrs Weasley! I'm a spring!"

The adults all laughed, and Molly patted her head. "You most definitely are."

It warmed Pandora's heart to see Molly and Arthur treating Luna with such kindness. She knew her daughter's strange beliefs might cause people to bully her, but Pandora was proud of Luna for being herself.

Even if Pandora had to act like she didn't know what a spring was, she would — just to see her daughter be entranced by the wonderful world around her.