AN:
Round 9 of QL season 9
Team: Puddlemere United
OPTIONAL PROMPTS:
[creature] Ghost
[character] Luna Lovegood
[Dialogue] "Take a chance. What harm can it do?"
Word Count: 1433
BEATER 2: Breaking a mirror
A lot of people thought Luna Lovegood was crazy, that her mind was in the clouds and the creatures she always talked about were imaginary. Hermione, for the longest time, had thought the same. But after her torture at the hands of Bellatrix, Hermione's opinion of the girl had shifted.
Luna had nursed her back to health with Fleur; she had sat there beside Hermione as the brunette convulsed and cried out. She had been a rock for her during the hardest time of her life. During that time, Luna had grown on Hermione. She started to understand the blonde's different perspective on things. Luna saw the world differently; she was brilliant but misunderstood.
Hermione suspected that the blond could see ley lines. Ley lines, although believed to be just a myth in the muggle world, were very much a reality. They were an energy line that extended from a magical stronghold to the next. And since magic was energy concentrated and manipulated by magical beings, leys were a source of magic.
Seeing leys was a very rare and sought-after talent; it was believed that if a person could see the ley line, he or she would be able to see the flow of magic and would be able to manipulate the course of spells. If people were to find out or suspect that the girl was able to see them, she would be a target. Hermione had sworn that if Luna actually saw them, she would protect the girl and keep anyone from finding it out.
Luna, though, was a bit lost when discussing that point. She had confided in Hermione about the prospect of seeing the leys but wasn't sure that was what she was seeing.
"I think I see energy or auras, not the leys," she had told her one day. "Every magical being has a signature, an aura that follows them. Even ghosts have these signatures, and even some portraits."
So, when Luna had told Hermione about a mirror that had a magical trace, the bookworm had become intrigued. The mirror was a strange one; it had a wooden orange-painted frame that seemed to sparkle at all times. Luna had found it during one of her travels and had bought it immediately when she sensed the aura it emitted.
It had drawn Hermione in. It had a certain allure and power that made it impossible for her not to be attracted to it. The feel of the magic seemed familiar to her somehow. She had no idea how she could have possibly come across such a strange and powerful aura and forgot the witch or wizard who possessed it. Luna had had a similar reaction from what she had told her.
"What do you think we should do with it?" asked Hermione, staring blankly at the object sitting in front of them.
"I'm not sure, it is an interesting thing. There are so many creatures surrounding it."
"Oh? Different kinds of creatures, Luna?"
"Yes, I haven't seen as many in one place in a while. You used to have a lot surrounding you, too."
"You've said that before, but how does that information help us here?" Hermione questioned, looking expectantly at her friend. She may have been dubbed the smartest witch of her age, but the Golden girl knew her limitations and her field of expertise; Luna's creatures were definitely outside of her scope.
"I would think that whoever is stuck inside has very strong emotions, anger and hurt being the most prominent," Luna told her absentmindedly.
"Someone is stuck inside of it?" Hermione all but shouted.
"Well, I wouldn't say whoever is inside is alive, probably a ghost or the remnant of a soul."
"Like a horcrux?" Alarm was seeping into Hermione's voice now.
"I didn't say that. Whoever is locked in there is definitely dead, but something stayed behind. Their magic was imprinted on the mirror. You know how portraits have some of the figure's magic weaved into their fabric? This is something similar."
"What do you think we should do with it? It feels wrong to leave it without doing anything." Luna stared blankly at the mirror for a bit before jumping up.
"What are you doing?" Hermione asked once she saw Luna take out her wand.
"Breaking it, of course."
"Is that a good idea, Luna…"
"Maybe it is, maybe it's not, we'll find out when it's broken."
"Take a chance. What harm can it do?" Hermione questioned sarcastically.
"Exactly!"
"I was only joking!"
"I was not. Bombarda!" And with that, the spell flew out of Luna's wand and hit the mirror square on.
Silence filled the room as they both stared at the object. Nothing happened at first, but then cracks started to form on the surface of the mirror before it exploded. Hermione reacted instinctively and threw up a shield around them both. Glass shards hit the invisible surface and a figure started to form. The silhouette of a woman started to become more prominent with every passing second, and Hermione stared in fascination as the ghostly figure in front of them became clearer.
"Hermione, if you have a twin we didn't know about…" the blonde trailed off, looking at the ghost with interest. The woman standing in front of them looked like an older version of Hermione. Same hair, same features.
Hermione stared open-mouthed. Who was this? Her eyes were wide as they tried to take in all the features of the ghost standing in front of them. Similarly, she could see that the woman was staring back at her with interest.
"My name is Luna Lovegood. I'm happy to finally put a face to the aura I've been sensing. Though your face and Hermione look a lot alike," Luna said in her usual dreamy tone.
The ghost looked at Luna for the first time and something flashed in her eyes. Recognition, Hermione assumed. But this was all strange. Who was this woman and why had she been locked in a mirror?
"Luna," she whispered as though testing the name.
"Yes, and this is my friend Hermione." The woman's gaze fell back on her doppelganger.
"Hermione."
"Hi…" The brunette was at a loss; she had no idea what to say or how to address this ghost.
"I am Nimue," she announced, causing Hermione's shock to expand tenfold.
Nimue...She really said Nimue, as in the lady of the lake who had lived during Merlin's time. Why did she look like Nimue? Hermione's mind was going into overdrive; she had heard of the legends, and she had read the different takes on her story, but she had never thought that she would one day come face to face with Nimue.
"Nimue, you are the one who helped Merin defeat Morgan Le Fey," Luna said, remembering the old story she had heard as a child. But her words seemed to have angered the ghost. Nimue's features hardened, and she shot a dark look toward the blond.
"I did no such thing! I would never! Morgan was my everything, my confidence. I would never betray her that way. It was him, he did this, he killed her, he is to blame. I hate him," the ghost ranted.
"Wrong thing to say," Hermione murmured to Luna, who nodded.
"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to offend you, but that is the story that is told in this time," Luna said, glancing at Hermione. Apprehension was clear in her voice; the blonde was clearly walking on eggshells, which was an unusual thing for Luna to do.
"Story…Story is wrong. Would you do it, betray your Morgan?" the ghost asked Hermione, pointing at Luna.
"My Morgan?" Confusion was clear in the Golden girl at that.
"Yes, yes, she's your Morgan, she looks like her, you look like me. She's your Morgan."
"Luna looks like Morgan le Fay?" The brunette was astounded. What on earth did all of this mean?
"Morgan." Nimue got close to Luna and gently ran her hand across her face. It was clear to both girls that the woman in front of them cared deeply for Morgan, and that whatever happened in the past, it was not what has been passed down.
"I'm going to avenge you, Morgan. If we have descendants, Merlin must have some too."
And with that, Nimue disappeared in a mist of grey smoke.
"It seems as though taking a chance with the mirror wasn't that good of an idea," Luna announced.
Little did they know that the breaking of the mirror marked a new age in the history of the wizarding world.