34. Prize

Harry sat with his back arched against an open window. On his lap was a book written by Ambrosius himself, depicting all sorts of magical creatures. He found it a good additional source to Hagrid's class Care of Magical Creatures.

He rested his side towards the window to get closer to the Sun. Below him, he heard the click of steps, much lighter than a professor's, besides Flitwick. It couldn't be Ron or Hermione since the former was watching Quidditch tryouts and the latter was doing even more school work.

She truly belong to the House of the Brave.

Instead, he saw Neville and Luna walking around the corner. Luna had a plate covered by a napkin that was seeped with a dark sauce.

Neville shared a past similar to his, parents lost to the tyranny of Voldemort. His were alive in body, but not spirit. They had permanent rooms in what amounted to the Mental Care Unit.

Then there was Luna. She was aptly named he admitted. For it seemed that her eyes were always in the stars, rejecting her place on the land below. Perhaps that was why those cruel students found such delight in watching her fall.

"Yes?" He asked as he closed his well-used book.

Nearly unfocused eyes turned to Neville and she pushed him forward, "Go on. We have all day, but I don't think that would be much fun, staring at each other like this. The worst he could do is horribly berate you for speaking to him."

It must have come as a surprise to Luna that Neville didn't find much comfort in her wording.

Once he had gotten his fidgeting under control, Neville started, "Hello, Harry I see that you're busy-"

"It's fine, Neville", he started with a smile, "I was just doing some light reading. I don't play Quidditch anymore, so I'm free. What do you have in mind?"

Luna smiled serenely at the nervous boy. "See, he's just like us. Ignored even if his name is constantly said." There wasn't a hint of reproach or pity in her voice. It was merely how she perceived things.

'Loony' Lovegood they called her. As though calling her mad made them enlightened. To his chagrin, Hermione and Ron felt the same about her.

"She isn't wrong", he said with a touch of bitterness. Quitting Quidditch hadn't made him extra fans, but it wasn't anything too bad. He felt that Neville and Luna got shorter ends of the stick.

"W-Well I was thinking of setting up a kind of club, a small gathering really. We'll do Herbology. I wanted to know if you'd like to join", he asked hopefully.

A Herbology Club? It was a subject that Neville excelled in, though he was surprised that Luna would be involved. "Why me?"

Neville swallowed and looked like he wanted to be devoured by the ground, "I thought you'd might have fun. I mean, you don't have to go to every meeting and you could just hang out?" He finished weakly.

"Chatter can be a nice sound while reading thick books. Being too serious might make your brain rebellious. And, I don't think you like being alone. You just are because you want to be around people who like you. Two is enough for our club", she seemingly assured Harry and Neville at once.

A club that didn't strictly need him, but wanted him for company? Harry thought he liked the sound of that. Pulling out his wand, he chanted, "Spongify", as a pink light shot out of his wand. The softening charm hit the ground and Harry jumped from his high position to the soft ground with a grunt.

"I'll join. I guess that makes three", Harry stated.

With a growing smile, Luna replied, "Silly there's four of us." Directing her look around the corner, she addressed the dog.

It had begun to act as a guard dog of sorts after meeting him. Always watching, it appeared it was on the guard for something. So it came as little shock for him to have been around.

Luna took the napkin off the plate to reveal a thick steak with plenty of steak sauce on top. She placed the plate on the ground and stepped back. The dog trotted slowly, dragging its feet, and ate messily. Harry would have laughed if the thing didn't look so thin and worn out.

"It's rude to exclude a member", she said with a mixture of pride and scolding.

"U-Um, isn't he just a dog?" Neville questioned logically.

"How can that be a dog? It's clearly a burdened soul possessing a dog. Look how sad it is", Luna argued.

Harry shook his head, "No. I think it's a sentient magic dog. It's going through a life crisis", Harry pushed firmly.

"I think it just had a bad owner and escaped recently. It's just being cautious of people", Neville stated.

Luna tilted her head in bewilderment, "Opinions are welcomed no matter how varied or wrong. Regardless, he's a member. Just like us, he doesn't want to be alone. Battered and pushed around he now has wobbly legs, but keeps walking. Of course he belongs in our club."

"You're right, Luna", Neville admitted and Harry agreed.

When the dog was finished, they began to walk to the meeting room. Luna was more skipping than anything, she turned on her heels and seemed to skip backwards. With a look of giddiness, she addressed Harry, "There's another reason I wanted to invite you. I absolutely love your head statement. Do you think I can add to it?" Her eyes broke their nearly permanent trance and shined with hope.

Harry paused at that, then smiled softly. "Sure." Friends were after all an expression of one's own personality.

Lune removed a hare bracelet from her wrist, it was made from a golden material with a small hare penchant. She went behind Harry and hung it beside the other ornaments in his headdress.

When it was attached, he simply knew that there was where it always belonged.