Luna pushed his arm back down. "That's a house-elf, Harry," She said,
looking at him strangely.
"That's no house-elf," Harry said through clenched teeth, his fist clenching his wand tightly, "That...that thing...it tricked me...if it wasn't for..."
Luna turned her gaze to the cowering elf, which was glaring at them with equal parts loathing and horror.
"Oh..." she said in a low voice.
Harry wanted nothing more than to vaporise this miserable creature before him. Everything that had gone so terribly askew at the Ministry was due to this miserable little elf's treachery and deception - it deserved Sirius' fate, Harry vowed silently - he raised his wand again -
The tall woman's hand drifted into her robes, eyeing him warily. Luna quickly pulled him back, tugging hard on his sleeve.
"Cru - Cruc - Luna!" Harry yelled as he stumbled back and fought to maintain his balance. He lunged forward, trying desperately to point his shaking wand at the malevolent elf. "LET GO!!"
" - PUTRID CREATURE OF BILE!!! HORRID ABOMINATION!!! VILE ATROCITY - "
"GET OVER HERE!!!" Harry screamed at the house elf. He lurched forward with such force that his sleeve tore off at the shoulder, sending him hurtling to the floor and Luna falling backwards. He instinctively tried to break his fall with his hands, his wand clattering on the floor and coming to rest near the tall woman's feet. Kreacher's demented gaze followed it, a tiny gnarled hand reaching down -
"Accio wand!"
The wand slipped out of Kreacher's reach and flew by Harry's head. He rolled to his side and saw Luna sitting on the floor where she'd fallen, his torn sleeve draped over her lap. She reached up and caught his wand in one hand.
Harry glanced at Tonks and Lupin battling valiantly behind her, frantically trying to shut the mouldy curtains of Mrs. Black's screaming portrait.
" - HALF-BREED OFFSPRING!! FOUL MONSTROSITY!!! BALEFUL WIGHT - "
Harry scrambled to his feet and glared at Kreacher, who now was infuriatingly sneering with delight, now that Harry was wandless. His vision clouded over with rage. Wand or not - He lunged for the house-elf.
"Accio Harry!" Luna shouted behind him.
"YouuaaaaAAAGGGHHH!!!"
Harry felt himself lift off his feet and hurtle backwards through the air, the walls of the long hallway spinning wildly around him. He slammed heavily into Luna, who'd just managed to get to her feet, sending them both sprawling across the floor.
" - IT DARES TO CAST SPELLS IN THE HOUSE OF MY FOREFATHERS!!! DEFILER!!! MALIGNANT SPIRIT!!! PESTILENT HALF-BREED - "
They rolled several times until they came to a stop near Mrs. Black's shrieking painting, Luna lying atop him.
"It won't stop!" Tonks said, struggling desperately with her half of the velvet curtain.
Harry tried to push Luna off, his rage blinding him to the single-minded determination of wringing Kreacher's scrawny neck.
"Harry, stop! It's me, Luna!"
" - DREG OF WIZARDKIND!!! ABOMINABLE MISCREATION - "
Harry blinked. His vision cleared, becoming suddenly very conscious of two large, silvery eyes only inches from his. All thoughts of murderous intent quickly faded away.
"Take this side with me," Lupin said from somewhere behind him, "If we both pull at the same time - "
"L-Luna?" Harry managed to blurt out. "I'm...it's okay..."
Harry saw a look of relief cross her pale features. She moved off him and sat back, brushing stray strands of dirty blonde hair from her face. Harry watched the tall woman walk by them, waving off Lupin and Tonks.
" - ACCURSED SPRITE!!! WRETCHED CHILD OF... "
The sight of the woman immediately caused Mrs. Black to fall silent, and the stranger drew the curtains without the slightest difficulty. It had always been fiendishly difficult to close them, Harry knew...how had she managed it with such ease?
It came to him just as she turned from the painting and gazed down at him for a moment before walking quietly back into the kitchen. He'd seen her during the Quidditch World Cup two years before...that was Narcissa Malfoy, he realized.
He pushed himself up to a sitting position, Luna regarding him attentively.
"It wouldn't have made you feel any better, you know," she said solemnly.
"Sshhh," Tonks said, holding up a finger to her lips. Lupin helped Harry and Luna get to their feet, nodding towards the kitchen.
"Evening, Amelia," Lupin said at the monocled woman sitting at the table as Tonks closed the door behind them. Harry recognized her immediately; she'd been one of the witches sitting at his hearing at the Wizengamot, when Fudge was trying to get him expelled for doing illegal magic outside of school. She had several official-looking documents spread out on the table before her, along with a golden quill perched atop a pewter inkwell. Harry detected the faint fish-like scent lingering in the air; a cauldron was on the stove, steam rising in wisps from under its lid.
Narcissa Malfoy had taken a seat at the far end of the table, watching them with cold detachment. Harry wondered what she was doing here, of all people. Yet Lupin and Tonks didn't seem at all surprised by her presence, which only served to perplex him further.
He started walking around the kitchen, looking for any sign of Kreacher. The elf was nowhere to be seen. Luna, meanwhile, was following him about, trying to slip Harry's sundered sleeve back onto his arm.
"Hold still, you're making it rather hard to put this back on, you know," she said before finally managing it. She then mended the sleeve back to his robes with a Reparo charm before giving Harry his own wand back.
"I've never seen her get so riled up," Tonks said, jerking her thumb over her shoulder towards the hall, "What got her so ticked off, anyway? I've heard her insults before, but that..."
"Probably not used to having strangers peeking under the curtains, I guess," Lupin said, drawing up chairs and glancing at Luna. "Anyway, Harry, I don't know if you've met Narcissa Malfoy?"
"Er..." Harry said, "Once, sort of..."
Narcissa raised an eyebrow at Harry, her aloofness rather disquieting him. The air she presented was making him feel as though he'd somehow committed some unspeakable faux-pas, even though all he'd done is try to destroy a baneful house-elf.
Hang on, Harry thought, that's Bellatrix's sister! This is my place now! She's the one who should be feeling on edge, not me!
He tried to present a bolder facade, though so steadfast was her icy demeanor that it was Harry who finally looked elsewhere.
"Hello," Luna said dreamily, taking a seat next to Narcissa. She proceeded forthwith to stare at the woman curiously, receiving a frosty gaze in return for her trouble.
Harry would have been interested to see who would win such a stare-off, but was interrupted by Lupin motioning him to sit down.
"Well...I think you know Amelia Bones?" Lupin asked, taking a seat next to Harry.
The plump, gray-haired witch gave Harry a smile which contrasted oddly with her somewhat stern appearance. "Oh yes," she said genially, "Bloody well threw a stick in old Fudge's spokes that day, didn't you, Mr. Potter?"
"Er...I suppose," Harry said cautiously. He was feeling rather intimidated by this woman, despite her evident cordiality.
"Susan speaks very highly of you," she said, "As does Arthur Weasley, I might add. Which reminds me," She bent down to retrieve something from her satchel, handing over a small green and silver silk bag to Lupin, "This is the...er...the saltshaker."
"Oh, yes," Lupin said, pocketing the small bag without any further explanation. Harry doubted very much it had anything to do with something so mundane as kitchenware.
"Amelia is a Ministry Magistrate as well as being on the Wizengamot, Harry," Lupin said, "She has the legal authority to handle these types of affairs."
"Oh, okay," Harry said. He was rather curious about what had just changed hands, but this was definitely not the time nor the place to ask.
"Well then," Mrs. Bones said, pulling out a long and ornately written document, "This is your godfather's last will and testament, Mr. Potter. In it, he has named you as sole beneficiary of his estate. Would you like me to read through it?"
"Um..." he glanced at Lupin, though he gave no sign to Harry as to what he should do. He was very uneasy with the simple fact he was Sirius' inheritor; to have it all recited to him out loud, in front of Narcissa Malfoy no less, was even more discomforting. Do I really have to go through this? He wondered. "I...er..."
"Take your time, Harry," Lupin said finally, "You could always read it later on your own, if you'd prefer."
Harry quickly seized on the offer. "Yeah," he said with tangible relief, "Yeah, I think I'll do that."
Amelia Bones nodded, smiling sympathetically. She turned the long document around until it faced him, the glowing Ministry seal stamped on the bottom corner. She took the long golden and dipped it in the inkwell.
"All right, Mr. Potter," she said graciously, "All you need to do is sign your acquiescement to the testament...right here," she pointed out the correct place for him to sign.
Harry hesitated. What did 'acquiescement' mean? This just didn't feel right. He didn't deserve Sirius' estate to begin with. He wondered what would happen if he didn't sign...couldn't the estate be transferred over to the Order?
But then he glanced up at the other end of the table. Narcissa Malfoy was staring at him rigidly.
No one said a word. He was beginning to regret not having Mrs. Bones read the testament out loud...he really had no idea what he was getting himself into. He could feel everyone's eyes on him, which only exacerbated his discomfort.
The longer he waited, the more nervous he became. Blast it, he thought, let the chips fall where they may, I'll deal with all this later. He abruptly scribbled his signature on the document, noticing that nothing appeared on the parchment at first. Gradually, the scribble began to glow softly and then solidified. He handed the golden quill back to Mrs. Bones, noting the trembling in his hand.
Mrs. Bones quietly pushed the paper over to Lupin, handing him the quill in turn. "And, as a witness," she said, pointing to a line just below where Harry had signed. Lupin solemnly penned his signature and turned the document back to the Magistrate.
She removed the first copy of the document and handed it to Harry, folding away the other two into her satchel. They spent the next half hour or so going through the other forms, Mrs. Bones offering to read each one in turn, though Harry asked only for the briefest summations. He wanted to get this over with as quickly as possible.
"Well," she said after they'd finished the last of the paperwork, gathering the various forms and putting them into her satchel, "It's done. Now it's quite normal for some people to experience feelings of guilt during such times, Mr. Potter. Try not to let it get to you; most everyone has to go through this when they lose someone."
Harry gave a forced smile. "I...I guess," he said.
"Good lad," she said, getting up from her chair and moving over to the stove, where the cauldron was bubbling over, "Now then, I took the liberty of helping myself to some of your ingredients while I was waiting; I'm known to make a mean calamari stew, you know. Would anyone care for some?" She raised the lid, scooping up a gray tentacle that had slipped over the side back into the pot.
"I, uh, already ate before coming," Harry said, eyeing the steaming pot warily.
As Tonks has wandered over and taken a keen interest in what was boiling, Harry quickly excused himself from the kitchen before he could see anything emerge from that pot, Luna trailing close behind. They crept past the portrait of Mrs. Black, being mindful not to speak, and took the staircase up to Harry's old room.
"Well, that wasn't so bad," Luna said dreamily as she plopped herself down on the edge of Ron's old bed, "It was nice of Minister Lupin to bring a Magistrate and all."
"Yeah," Harry said, taking a seat on his own bed across from her, the testament still clutched tightly in his hand. "You could have grabbed a bite, you know, I didn't mean for you to leave the table too - "
"Oh, no," Luna said vaguely, "I don't like tentacled food very much."
"You don't, huh? I wonder why?" Harry grinned at her, his weariness lifting slightly.
"No, it's rather 'oogily', you know," she said, shrugging and shivering at the same time.
Luna gazed dreamily around the room, apparently finding interest in the most mundane things. Harry glanced over to the empty portrait along the far wall, briefly wondering if Phineas Nigellus was eavesdropping on him. Was the presence of Narcissa the 'peculiar' goings-on he'd told Harry about?
"This is where you stayed last year?" Luna asked, running her hands across the blanket, "It's a rather odd house, isn't it?"
"Oh yeah, you missed most of it though," Harry agreed, "You should have seen it when I first got here. We had to work for days just to clean it up. The doxies were a nightmare."
They were quiet for a time. Harry's elbows rested on his knees as he stared at his feet, very conscious of the crumpled testament in his hands, though unable to bring himself to read it.
He could sense Luna's eyes on him, although this did not fill him with the slightest discomfort. On the contrary, he found her presence heartening. After several minutes had passed, he drew up and looked at her.
"What are you going to do?" She asked, gazing at him empathically. Though the question was rather vague, Harry knew what Luna was referring to.
"I don't know," he answered, "I just...I don't want this place, Luna. It just doesn't feel right. I don't know how else to explain it. I've got more than enough money from mom and dad to get my own house after I graduate. If I graduate. The last thing I need is another estate."
The room descended back into silence. Harry thought about how it must have been for Luna to go through this when her mother had died. Then he thought of her father and began to feel rather ashamed for dumping his troubles on Luna, at a time when her own life was undergoing so much turmoil...
"Have you ever read the story of Goldilocks?" Asked Luna unexpectedly, her feet dangling back and forth.
Harry looked up and blinked. "Goldilocks? Uh, yeah, sure...it's been a while, though. Why?"
Luna's large silver eyes brightened. She straightened up attentively. "Well, remember when the wolf sent her from the gingerbread house to go down to the village with the ox? How she traded it for the magic beans instead of - "
Harry put up both hands. "Whoa, hold on," he said, finding himself laughing, "I thought you were talking about Goldilocks!"
"That's right," Luna said, staring at him with her large, unblinking pale eyes, "She's the one taking the ox to town, remember?"
Harry gaped at her. "Ox? Where does an ox come into it? I don't remember any ox...and the wolf, and the beans, and the gingerbread - what about the three bears??"
Luna continued to stare at him innocently, her head tilting with curiosity. "What three bears?"
"The three - " Harry blurted, "The cottage! You know, the bears! How she sneaks in, eats the oatmeal in the bowls, and stuff!"
Luna's face brightened with a smile, her eyes wide with excitement. She clasped her hands between her knees and slipped to the edge of the bed eagerly. "Oh that sounds rather interesting! Tell!"
"Wha - er, okay, well I guess it starts with 'Once upon a time' - hey wait, hang on, what were you going to say?" Harry asked, "Your version isn't the story of Goldilocks the way I remember it." She regarded him for a few moments, her eyes clear and bright. "Well," she said, "what I was trying to tell you, Harry, is that you don't have to feel guilty, you know."
Harry stared at her. "Luna..." he said, his emotions threatening to come to the surface, "If...if I wasn't around, Sirius would still be alive now. It's because of me, the mistakes I've...there's no other way to look at it..."
"Of course there is," Luna said conversationally. She slipped off her bed and came to sit next to him, regarding him thoughtfully. "If you weren't around, then you never would have known him, would you? And he wouldn't have known you. Imagine what both of you would have missed."
Harry looked at her, a slight smile on her face. What she said was true, he knew, but his actions had ensured that he'd thrown away whatever future Sirius might have had. And, what was worse, he seemed to have learned nothing from the lesson. How many times since then had he endangered the lives of those friends which he held so dear?
"How...how did you deal with it?" Harry asked gently, "About your mother, I mean?"
"That's the trick, Harry," she said, nodding vigorously, "We all have two choices: to accept what life dishes out, or not. The bad with the good. Mum told me so when I was very little, you know. If you always fight it, then you'll eventually go mad, like Mirabella Plunkett, or sent to St. Mungo's, or turn yourself into a haddock."
"A haddock? What - " Harry shook his head, trying to clear that peculiar imagery from his mind. "You make it sound so simple, though. I wish I could think the way you do."
"Well, that would certainly be wise," Luna said, nodding sagely.
"So...that...that's all you did? You just accepted it and moved on?"
"Well," she said, "Some things are harder to accept than others, Harry, it's true...but then, you know we'll see them again, on the other side. You heard them."
Harry thought about the Veil. He had heard voices, distant, strangely disembodied, perhaps, but definitely there. Luna placed so much faith in such strange, inexplicable things. "But...how can you be so sure?" He asked.
She leaned close, a few roaming strands of dirty blonde hair brushing against his, "Because I choose to believe, Harry. And it is that simple, really. You reminded me of that yourself, remember?" she whispered furtively. She drew back and nodded with a smile, pale eyebrows rising.
"Besides," she said dreamily, waving a hand around the room, "I can't imagine why anyone would choose not to believe. People are so odd sometimes, really. Look at Muggles. They don't even believe in magic, you know. It must be so terrible to go through life like that."
Harry found himself laughing on the inside. He glanced over to the deserted painting over the dresser, taking satisfaction that its occupant was elsewhere. "Do you think I'll ever go mad and wind up in St. Mungo's?" He asked jokingly.
His question was greeted with silence. He turned back to look at Luna, who, to his surprise, seemed to have taken the question seriously and was regarding him intently, hand cupping her chin, tilting her head back and forth as though ascertaining his propensity for insanity. "Mmmm...no," she said finally to his relief, "No, I don't imagine you will."
"Thanks," Harry said, grinning at her.
They sat together in silence for awhile, Harry beginning to feel strangely better in spite of himself.
A thought occurred to him. "Anyway, what were you talking about before? That Mirabella lady? Who was she?" He asked, recalling her earlier reference to that name.
"Oh come on," Luna said, gazing at him incredulously, "You know, Mirabella Plunkett, the girl who fell in love with a merman?"
"Huh?"
"Well, it was published a few years ago," she said dreamily, "So it's possible you never saw it. Anyway, she fell in love with a merman in Loch Lomond, but her parents didn't want her marrying him, you know, and so one day she finally went mad and transfigured herself into a haddock," she appeared pensive for a moment, gazing off into space, "I suppose she might have been happy, though. Well, maybe that wasn't the best example after all."
"Ooookay," Harry said. This sounds like something from The Quibbler, he thought. One of these days he was going to have to read through one of those magazines and see for himself. Luna swung her legs playfully back and forth over the edge of the bed.
"Have you noticed, Mrs. Malfoy doesn't talk very much," Luna said disappointedly, "I hope she'll come around, though. She seems nice. It was good of the Order to bring her here, wasn't it?"
Harry hadn't thought about that. Had she gone to Dumbledore? Was that why she was here now? Now that Grimmauld Place was his, what was he to do with her? Throw her out? Of course, there was no question that it would continue to serve as the Order's headquarters; that at least brought him a small measure of satisfaction. But sheltering Bellatrix Lestrange's sister sent him chills.
"I don't know about having her here," Harry admitted, "She's the wife of a Death Eater, remember? And her sister is the worst one of the bunch."
"She's not one of them, though," said Luna confidently.
Maybe, Harry thought. But he was finding considerable difficulty in believing Narcissa Malfoy could be very different from her sister. Both their names were still proudly displayed on the Black family tree, after all.
"Do you think your godfather was ever a member of the Hobgoblins?" Luna asked, absent-mindedly twirling a stray lock of sandy-coloured hair.
Harry snapped out of his dark thoughts. Luna could change topics as easily as he could blink, it seemed. "The Hobgoblins? I don't - oh, wait, you're talking about that Stubby Boardman thing, aren't you?"
"That's right," said Luna, nodding enthusiastically, "Wouldn't it be interesting if they were one and the same, as Ms. Purkis said?"
Harry thought back to the first time he'd read that story; it was just after first meeting Luna on the Hogwarts Express, in fact. It seemed so long ago, now. So many things had happened since then. He shuddered to think of what he might have missed had he passed that cabin by on that fateful day.
"Well, I don't know," Harry said, "I heard Sirius singing Christmas Carols last year, so I don't think he would have been a lead singer. But then you never know with some of those bands, I guess..."
A twinge of guilt ran through Harry. Here Luna was, keeping him company and making him feel better, when her father was being held by the darkest wizard of the times. He looked into her large, mesmerizing silver eyes and knew he couldn't keep it from her any longer. He took a deep breath.
"Luna...there's something I have to tell you," he began gently, "It won't be easy for you to hear it. To tell you the truth, I've been trying to decide wether or not to tell you at all. But, I think Hermione's right. You do have to know."
Luna became very still, her eyes fixed on his, though her expression was inscrutable.
Harry tried to sound as reassuring as he could, given the dark nature of the news. "Professor Dumbledore found out your father's being held...by Voldemort," He said carefully, lest she burst into tears. She showed no reaction, however, so he continued. "He's...he wants your wand, Luna. In exchange for your father..." He held his breath. Now she knows.
She continued to stare at him, seemingly unaware of the magnitude of what he'd just said. Several moments passed. "Uh...Luna?" Harry asked tentatively, "Are you okay?"
"Yes," she said softly at last, "I suppose I rather knew, Harry."
Harry blinked. "You...you did?"
She nodded solemnly. "I had plenty of time to think up on that tower, you know," she said, "I rather imagined it would come to this," she pointed to the tip of her wand tucked behind her hear.
"He'll come back, though," she said, "Like you so wonderfully reminded me, Harry."
Harry swallowed. He remembered all too well; it was the only time he'd ever seen Luna lost within herself. "But, listen," he said tentatively, intending to give her hope, "We...well, Hermione...came up with a plan - "
Luna's eyes widened precipitously at this news. "Oh, Hermione's plans are rather imaginative, aren't they? Remember how she fooled that Umbridge lady to go into the Forest? Strange how she can do that and not believe in Snorkacks. Anyway, tell!"
Harry went on to describe Hermione's plan, Luna listening raptly. He was surprised that Luna was taking all this so well. He found himself wishing he could take some of his own advice he'd given her that fateful night on the tower.
"I'm coming with you," Luna said bluntly after he'd finished.
"We thought you might," Harry affirmed. "Ginny wants you at her back."
They continued talking for a while, first about Hermione's plan, then about Luna's father, and then wandered incongruously amidst a bewildering array of subjects, including Luna's rather ludicrous rendering of the Goldilocks story, followed by Harry's more traditional version. They eventually came, somehow, to the subject of Sirius and the Black family.
"No, no," Harry said, finding he didn't mind talking about this usually sensitive subject with Luna, "It couldn't be Regulus, he died years ago. Sirius told me so himself."
"At almost the exact same time Stubby Boardman 'retired', too!" Luna said excitedly, "It's him, Harry, it must be!"
"Okay, look," Harry said, finding himself playing the Devil's advocate on this farcical subject while trying to keep a straight face, "He's still listed on the Black family tree, I saw his name there last year. I'm sure Mrs. Black wouldn't have kept him on there if he was a member of a band like the Hobgoblins!"
"But she's an old ninnyhammer, you know," Luna said, "He would have kept it a secret from her, of course!"
"Hey, why was she calling you all those things, anyway?" Harry asked, "She's always yelling her head off, but I've never heard her go off the deep end like that."
"Oh...that...well..." Luna said, shrugging slightly, "That's because Mum was - "
A knock on the door interrupted them. Tonks stuck her pink-haired head in. "We're all done downstairs," She asked, "Whenever you guys are ready, Remus is waiting to take us back."
Harry looked at Luna. She was staring back at him blankly, though her silence indicated to him that she didn't wish to discuss the matter in front of Tonks. He took his cue, and stood off the bed, as Luna quietly followed suit.
As they walked out the door Harry thought he heard a muffled chortle coming from the near wall over the cabinet...
* * *
The next few days passed by uneventfully, aside from a minor accident with Zacharias Smith during the first DA meeting since the holidays, Seamus having apologized profusely. Madam Pomfrey assured them the third eye on his forehead would gradually dissapear overnight.
Harry had not been able to bring himself to read Sirius' testament any more now than he had at Grimmauld Place. Lupin had confirmed to him that Narcissa Malfoy had indeed sought out Dumbledore after receiving Luna's note; which, apparently, had arrived in the proverbial nick of time. He'd found himself wishing the note had arrived just a bit late, though he quickly reprimanded himself for such thoughts.
What was more disturbing to him now was that Kreacher had returned; Lupin had told Harry that he served the Malfoys now, and that so long as Narcissa was around, there was nothing to be concerned about. That reasoning hardly satisfied Harry.
He'd been wondering what to do about the two of them, though at Hermione's pleading he'd decided to leave the matter up to Dumbledore, as he was head of the Order and Grimmauld Place still served as its headquarters.
As it was, he was rather glad to put the issue behind him for now. He and his friends had gone down to Hagrid's hut Friday evening, Harry finding solace in its familiar surroundings. He hadn't paid Hagrid a visit since before Christmas, he realized.
" 'Course I'll help," Hagrid said gruffly as he refilled Ron's oversized cup, "But y'know, Hermione's right, Harry. Yer really should be tellin' Professor Dumbledore 'bout all this."
Harry groaned inwardly. Not another lecture, he thought, remaining silent in the hopes that Hagrid would abandon the argument.
His wish was short-lived. "See, Harry?" Hermione said from her vantage point near the fireplace, sitting next to Luna in the huge stuffed armchair that had plenty of room for both of them, their feet not quite reaching over the edge of the seat cushion. "You don't think Dumbledore would be against it either, do you Hagrid?"
"Fer lil' Luna's 'ere? 'Course he would'na be against it!" Hagrid exclaimed, smiling reassuringly over at the young Ravenclaw who held a very large teacup with both hands in her lap. She'd been gazing dreamily about the place, lightly tapping the ends of her feet together, seemingly lost in the virtually endless details of the hut's rustic decor. She'd emerged from her reverie however, once the discussion had turned to the Hogsmeade mission.
"Well, I for one agree with Hagrid and Hermione," Ginny exclaimed, taking a momentary break from feeding treats to Fang under the table. "Dumbledore would want to help, Harry."
"That's not the issue," Harry said dispiritedly, feeling the first hints of a headache coming on, "I don't doubt he'd want to capture Lestrange, it's what he'd do after that!"
"Eh?" Hagrid asked, putting the large teapot back on the stove, "What'd ye mean, exactly?"
"Oh, he's worried that Dumbledore wouldn't want to give up Lestrange," Hermione said severely, "Because of what she knows."
"Kodswallop!" Hagrid said, retaking his seat at the table next to Neville. "He'd never leave somebody out t'dry like that, Harry. Ye should know better!"
"Should I?" Harry retorted hotly, the memory of Dumbledore's dismissal of him a few nights before still very vivid in his mind, "If there's one thing I've managed to learn over the last few years, it's that I don't know Dumbledore as well as I thought I did!"
"What do you mean by that?" asked Hermione.
Harry glared at her, though his anger quickly faltered at the sight of her concerned gaze. "It's...nothing," He said finally, feeling everyone's eyes on him and staring at a table leg. They have no idea, he thought, no idea at all...
An uncomfortable silence descended in the hut. Everyone seemed unwilling to ask Harry to elaborate on that last point, lest he should lose his temper again.
"Well, I think we should get to the carriages early tomorrow morning," Hermione said at last, "So we can keep an eye on where Malfoy will be when we get to Hogsmeade."
"I agree," Harry said at once, grateful for the change in subject. "And we stick to him like glue once we get there."
"What do we do if he notices us?" Ron asked, leaning back in his chair as Ginny had dropped a few treats at his feet, so as to avoid Fang's drooling, "I mean, we're not exactly known for hanging out with Malfoy, are we?"
"Just be inconspicuous," Harry said, "Try and make it look like we're just wandering around or something."
"Blimey, the whole lot of us, walking in circles around him, pretending to wander around?" Ron asked, "I'm sure he won't suspect a thing!"
"Oh Ron," Hermione said, "Don't be such a prat. There is such a thing as subtlety, you know, even if you're not aware of the concept."
"I can be subtle!" Ron protested, leaning over more in his chair until he lost his balance and tipped over, sending himself crashing heavily to the floor. He upended a large wooden bucket with his shoulder, sending a load of Fire Crab shells spilling around the table.
"I stand corrected," Hermione said dryly.
"Careful, 'ere," Hagrid said, helping Ron back to his feet. Luna was trying valiantly to suppress her laughter by dropping her cup in her lap and pressing her fists in her mouth. Her shaking shoulders and large eyes swimming in tears of mirth were tangible evidence that she was not altogether successful.
"Ewww!" Ron said with disgust, brushing off a few shells, "These are all slimy!"
"Yeh, well," Hagrid said, righting the bucket back up as Ginny used her wand to refill it, "Can' exactly leave 'em out to dry this time o' year, y'know."
"Well," Hermione said, "we'd best get going anyway, it'll be curfew soon. Thanks, Hagrid!" She slid off the large chair, the others following suit after Ginny had tossed down her remaining treats to Fang, Luna eyeing Ron with a look of barely contained mirth. Ron caught sight of her and quickly marched to the front of the group, ears reddening.
They waved goodnight to Hagrid and proceeded up the trail towards the castle. About midway back, Harry took Luna aside and told the rest of them to go on ahead.
"Luna," he said sombrely, "You didn't say anything in there. I'd like to know what you think."
She stared at him blankly.
"About going to Dumbledore, I mean." He added. "You know...how I feel about..."
"I remember," Luna said, nodding, "But I didn't realise you were still so upset about it, Harry."
"Well...I wasn't," he replied, "But...he did it again, Luna! Just a couple of nights ago. They were getting ready to discuss something in his office right after he'd told me about your dad, and then he sent me away! Blast it, I deserve to know! You deserve to know!"
To his surprise, she just smiled dreamily at him. "Well, what do you think?" She asked.
Harry blinked. "Well...what if he was against giving up Lestrange? I mean with all she knows - "
"Is that your brain or your heart talking?" Luna remarked serenely. She took a step closer to him and stared intently with her large silver eyes.
Harry stared back at her. "I...what's the difference?"
She titled her head slightly and gazed at Harry. "You don't really subscribe to the buttered toast principle, do you?"
"Huh?" Harry said, gaping at her in befuddlement.
She smiled slightly at him. "Well, when you drop a piece of toast, what side does it land on?"
Harry briefly wondered if he'd somehow missed part of their conversation. "Er...well, buttered side down, usually."
"Exactly!" Luna said, nodding vigorously.
Harry gaped at her. "Er...I think I'm missing something here..."
"Oh well, look," she said, "Most people get all upset when that happens, because they blame it on bad luck, right?"
"Well, yeah," Harry said, "...aren't they right?"
She shook her head, "No," she said, "It's because the toast doesn't have time to flip all the way around before it hits the floor. Our tables aren't high enough, you know. Mum showed me once."
Harry found himself smiling at the mental image of Luna and her mother pushing toast off tables in order to test their hypothesis.
"So, the moral is...just accept the toast falling that way and eat it anyhow?"
"Oh no," Luna said, "There could be Gimpies lurking on the floor, you know. They're very tiny, so you'd never know if they were there or not."
"Okay," Harry said, even more confused than before, "So then it's...to just make more toast?"
"That's one," she said, before leaning close and whispering: "But Mum and me found a secret...if you lay your toast buttered side down on your plate they land buttered-side up if they fall."
"That's why you do that!" Harry exclaimed, "I always thought it was because - er - "
"Because I'm odd?" She asked dreamily.
"I don't think you're odd," Harry said, "But...I'm kind of wondering what all this has to do with telling Dumbledore."
"Well, when you dropped the toast, you automatically assumed the worst, right?"
"Uh...well, yeah..." Harry said, scratching his head.
"Aren't you doing the same now?"
"That's no house-elf," Harry said through clenched teeth, his fist clenching his wand tightly, "That...that thing...it tricked me...if it wasn't for..."
Luna turned her gaze to the cowering elf, which was glaring at them with equal parts loathing and horror.
"Oh..." she said in a low voice.
Harry wanted nothing more than to vaporise this miserable creature before him. Everything that had gone so terribly askew at the Ministry was due to this miserable little elf's treachery and deception - it deserved Sirius' fate, Harry vowed silently - he raised his wand again -
The tall woman's hand drifted into her robes, eyeing him warily. Luna quickly pulled him back, tugging hard on his sleeve.
"Cru - Cruc - Luna!" Harry yelled as he stumbled back and fought to maintain his balance. He lunged forward, trying desperately to point his shaking wand at the malevolent elf. "LET GO!!"
" - PUTRID CREATURE OF BILE!!! HORRID ABOMINATION!!! VILE ATROCITY - "
"GET OVER HERE!!!" Harry screamed at the house elf. He lurched forward with such force that his sleeve tore off at the shoulder, sending him hurtling to the floor and Luna falling backwards. He instinctively tried to break his fall with his hands, his wand clattering on the floor and coming to rest near the tall woman's feet. Kreacher's demented gaze followed it, a tiny gnarled hand reaching down -
"Accio wand!"
The wand slipped out of Kreacher's reach and flew by Harry's head. He rolled to his side and saw Luna sitting on the floor where she'd fallen, his torn sleeve draped over her lap. She reached up and caught his wand in one hand.
Harry glanced at Tonks and Lupin battling valiantly behind her, frantically trying to shut the mouldy curtains of Mrs. Black's screaming portrait.
" - HALF-BREED OFFSPRING!! FOUL MONSTROSITY!!! BALEFUL WIGHT - "
Harry scrambled to his feet and glared at Kreacher, who now was infuriatingly sneering with delight, now that Harry was wandless. His vision clouded over with rage. Wand or not - He lunged for the house-elf.
"Accio Harry!" Luna shouted behind him.
"YouuaaaaAAAGGGHHH!!!"
Harry felt himself lift off his feet and hurtle backwards through the air, the walls of the long hallway spinning wildly around him. He slammed heavily into Luna, who'd just managed to get to her feet, sending them both sprawling across the floor.
" - IT DARES TO CAST SPELLS IN THE HOUSE OF MY FOREFATHERS!!! DEFILER!!! MALIGNANT SPIRIT!!! PESTILENT HALF-BREED - "
They rolled several times until they came to a stop near Mrs. Black's shrieking painting, Luna lying atop him.
"It won't stop!" Tonks said, struggling desperately with her half of the velvet curtain.
Harry tried to push Luna off, his rage blinding him to the single-minded determination of wringing Kreacher's scrawny neck.
"Harry, stop! It's me, Luna!"
" - DREG OF WIZARDKIND!!! ABOMINABLE MISCREATION - "
Harry blinked. His vision cleared, becoming suddenly very conscious of two large, silvery eyes only inches from his. All thoughts of murderous intent quickly faded away.
"Take this side with me," Lupin said from somewhere behind him, "If we both pull at the same time - "
"L-Luna?" Harry managed to blurt out. "I'm...it's okay..."
Harry saw a look of relief cross her pale features. She moved off him and sat back, brushing stray strands of dirty blonde hair from her face. Harry watched the tall woman walk by them, waving off Lupin and Tonks.
" - ACCURSED SPRITE!!! WRETCHED CHILD OF... "
The sight of the woman immediately caused Mrs. Black to fall silent, and the stranger drew the curtains without the slightest difficulty. It had always been fiendishly difficult to close them, Harry knew...how had she managed it with such ease?
It came to him just as she turned from the painting and gazed down at him for a moment before walking quietly back into the kitchen. He'd seen her during the Quidditch World Cup two years before...that was Narcissa Malfoy, he realized.
He pushed himself up to a sitting position, Luna regarding him attentively.
"It wouldn't have made you feel any better, you know," she said solemnly.
"Sshhh," Tonks said, holding up a finger to her lips. Lupin helped Harry and Luna get to their feet, nodding towards the kitchen.
"Evening, Amelia," Lupin said at the monocled woman sitting at the table as Tonks closed the door behind them. Harry recognized her immediately; she'd been one of the witches sitting at his hearing at the Wizengamot, when Fudge was trying to get him expelled for doing illegal magic outside of school. She had several official-looking documents spread out on the table before her, along with a golden quill perched atop a pewter inkwell. Harry detected the faint fish-like scent lingering in the air; a cauldron was on the stove, steam rising in wisps from under its lid.
Narcissa Malfoy had taken a seat at the far end of the table, watching them with cold detachment. Harry wondered what she was doing here, of all people. Yet Lupin and Tonks didn't seem at all surprised by her presence, which only served to perplex him further.
He started walking around the kitchen, looking for any sign of Kreacher. The elf was nowhere to be seen. Luna, meanwhile, was following him about, trying to slip Harry's sundered sleeve back onto his arm.
"Hold still, you're making it rather hard to put this back on, you know," she said before finally managing it. She then mended the sleeve back to his robes with a Reparo charm before giving Harry his own wand back.
"I've never seen her get so riled up," Tonks said, jerking her thumb over her shoulder towards the hall, "What got her so ticked off, anyway? I've heard her insults before, but that..."
"Probably not used to having strangers peeking under the curtains, I guess," Lupin said, drawing up chairs and glancing at Luna. "Anyway, Harry, I don't know if you've met Narcissa Malfoy?"
"Er..." Harry said, "Once, sort of..."
Narcissa raised an eyebrow at Harry, her aloofness rather disquieting him. The air she presented was making him feel as though he'd somehow committed some unspeakable faux-pas, even though all he'd done is try to destroy a baneful house-elf.
Hang on, Harry thought, that's Bellatrix's sister! This is my place now! She's the one who should be feeling on edge, not me!
He tried to present a bolder facade, though so steadfast was her icy demeanor that it was Harry who finally looked elsewhere.
"Hello," Luna said dreamily, taking a seat next to Narcissa. She proceeded forthwith to stare at the woman curiously, receiving a frosty gaze in return for her trouble.
Harry would have been interested to see who would win such a stare-off, but was interrupted by Lupin motioning him to sit down.
"Well...I think you know Amelia Bones?" Lupin asked, taking a seat next to Harry.
The plump, gray-haired witch gave Harry a smile which contrasted oddly with her somewhat stern appearance. "Oh yes," she said genially, "Bloody well threw a stick in old Fudge's spokes that day, didn't you, Mr. Potter?"
"Er...I suppose," Harry said cautiously. He was feeling rather intimidated by this woman, despite her evident cordiality.
"Susan speaks very highly of you," she said, "As does Arthur Weasley, I might add. Which reminds me," She bent down to retrieve something from her satchel, handing over a small green and silver silk bag to Lupin, "This is the...er...the saltshaker."
"Oh, yes," Lupin said, pocketing the small bag without any further explanation. Harry doubted very much it had anything to do with something so mundane as kitchenware.
"Amelia is a Ministry Magistrate as well as being on the Wizengamot, Harry," Lupin said, "She has the legal authority to handle these types of affairs."
"Oh, okay," Harry said. He was rather curious about what had just changed hands, but this was definitely not the time nor the place to ask.
"Well then," Mrs. Bones said, pulling out a long and ornately written document, "This is your godfather's last will and testament, Mr. Potter. In it, he has named you as sole beneficiary of his estate. Would you like me to read through it?"
"Um..." he glanced at Lupin, though he gave no sign to Harry as to what he should do. He was very uneasy with the simple fact he was Sirius' inheritor; to have it all recited to him out loud, in front of Narcissa Malfoy no less, was even more discomforting. Do I really have to go through this? He wondered. "I...er..."
"Take your time, Harry," Lupin said finally, "You could always read it later on your own, if you'd prefer."
Harry quickly seized on the offer. "Yeah," he said with tangible relief, "Yeah, I think I'll do that."
Amelia Bones nodded, smiling sympathetically. She turned the long document around until it faced him, the glowing Ministry seal stamped on the bottom corner. She took the long golden and dipped it in the inkwell.
"All right, Mr. Potter," she said graciously, "All you need to do is sign your acquiescement to the testament...right here," she pointed out the correct place for him to sign.
Harry hesitated. What did 'acquiescement' mean? This just didn't feel right. He didn't deserve Sirius' estate to begin with. He wondered what would happen if he didn't sign...couldn't the estate be transferred over to the Order?
But then he glanced up at the other end of the table. Narcissa Malfoy was staring at him rigidly.
No one said a word. He was beginning to regret not having Mrs. Bones read the testament out loud...he really had no idea what he was getting himself into. He could feel everyone's eyes on him, which only exacerbated his discomfort.
The longer he waited, the more nervous he became. Blast it, he thought, let the chips fall where they may, I'll deal with all this later. He abruptly scribbled his signature on the document, noticing that nothing appeared on the parchment at first. Gradually, the scribble began to glow softly and then solidified. He handed the golden quill back to Mrs. Bones, noting the trembling in his hand.
Mrs. Bones quietly pushed the paper over to Lupin, handing him the quill in turn. "And, as a witness," she said, pointing to a line just below where Harry had signed. Lupin solemnly penned his signature and turned the document back to the Magistrate.
She removed the first copy of the document and handed it to Harry, folding away the other two into her satchel. They spent the next half hour or so going through the other forms, Mrs. Bones offering to read each one in turn, though Harry asked only for the briefest summations. He wanted to get this over with as quickly as possible.
"Well," she said after they'd finished the last of the paperwork, gathering the various forms and putting them into her satchel, "It's done. Now it's quite normal for some people to experience feelings of guilt during such times, Mr. Potter. Try not to let it get to you; most everyone has to go through this when they lose someone."
Harry gave a forced smile. "I...I guess," he said.
"Good lad," she said, getting up from her chair and moving over to the stove, where the cauldron was bubbling over, "Now then, I took the liberty of helping myself to some of your ingredients while I was waiting; I'm known to make a mean calamari stew, you know. Would anyone care for some?" She raised the lid, scooping up a gray tentacle that had slipped over the side back into the pot.
"I, uh, already ate before coming," Harry said, eyeing the steaming pot warily.
As Tonks has wandered over and taken a keen interest in what was boiling, Harry quickly excused himself from the kitchen before he could see anything emerge from that pot, Luna trailing close behind. They crept past the portrait of Mrs. Black, being mindful not to speak, and took the staircase up to Harry's old room.
"Well, that wasn't so bad," Luna said dreamily as she plopped herself down on the edge of Ron's old bed, "It was nice of Minister Lupin to bring a Magistrate and all."
"Yeah," Harry said, taking a seat on his own bed across from her, the testament still clutched tightly in his hand. "You could have grabbed a bite, you know, I didn't mean for you to leave the table too - "
"Oh, no," Luna said vaguely, "I don't like tentacled food very much."
"You don't, huh? I wonder why?" Harry grinned at her, his weariness lifting slightly.
"No, it's rather 'oogily', you know," she said, shrugging and shivering at the same time.
Luna gazed dreamily around the room, apparently finding interest in the most mundane things. Harry glanced over to the empty portrait along the far wall, briefly wondering if Phineas Nigellus was eavesdropping on him. Was the presence of Narcissa the 'peculiar' goings-on he'd told Harry about?
"This is where you stayed last year?" Luna asked, running her hands across the blanket, "It's a rather odd house, isn't it?"
"Oh yeah, you missed most of it though," Harry agreed, "You should have seen it when I first got here. We had to work for days just to clean it up. The doxies were a nightmare."
They were quiet for a time. Harry's elbows rested on his knees as he stared at his feet, very conscious of the crumpled testament in his hands, though unable to bring himself to read it.
He could sense Luna's eyes on him, although this did not fill him with the slightest discomfort. On the contrary, he found her presence heartening. After several minutes had passed, he drew up and looked at her.
"What are you going to do?" She asked, gazing at him empathically. Though the question was rather vague, Harry knew what Luna was referring to.
"I don't know," he answered, "I just...I don't want this place, Luna. It just doesn't feel right. I don't know how else to explain it. I've got more than enough money from mom and dad to get my own house after I graduate. If I graduate. The last thing I need is another estate."
The room descended back into silence. Harry thought about how it must have been for Luna to go through this when her mother had died. Then he thought of her father and began to feel rather ashamed for dumping his troubles on Luna, at a time when her own life was undergoing so much turmoil...
"Have you ever read the story of Goldilocks?" Asked Luna unexpectedly, her feet dangling back and forth.
Harry looked up and blinked. "Goldilocks? Uh, yeah, sure...it's been a while, though. Why?"
Luna's large silver eyes brightened. She straightened up attentively. "Well, remember when the wolf sent her from the gingerbread house to go down to the village with the ox? How she traded it for the magic beans instead of - "
Harry put up both hands. "Whoa, hold on," he said, finding himself laughing, "I thought you were talking about Goldilocks!"
"That's right," Luna said, staring at him with her large, unblinking pale eyes, "She's the one taking the ox to town, remember?"
Harry gaped at her. "Ox? Where does an ox come into it? I don't remember any ox...and the wolf, and the beans, and the gingerbread - what about the three bears??"
Luna continued to stare at him innocently, her head tilting with curiosity. "What three bears?"
"The three - " Harry blurted, "The cottage! You know, the bears! How she sneaks in, eats the oatmeal in the bowls, and stuff!"
Luna's face brightened with a smile, her eyes wide with excitement. She clasped her hands between her knees and slipped to the edge of the bed eagerly. "Oh that sounds rather interesting! Tell!"
"Wha - er, okay, well I guess it starts with 'Once upon a time' - hey wait, hang on, what were you going to say?" Harry asked, "Your version isn't the story of Goldilocks the way I remember it." She regarded him for a few moments, her eyes clear and bright. "Well," she said, "what I was trying to tell you, Harry, is that you don't have to feel guilty, you know."
Harry stared at her. "Luna..." he said, his emotions threatening to come to the surface, "If...if I wasn't around, Sirius would still be alive now. It's because of me, the mistakes I've...there's no other way to look at it..."
"Of course there is," Luna said conversationally. She slipped off her bed and came to sit next to him, regarding him thoughtfully. "If you weren't around, then you never would have known him, would you? And he wouldn't have known you. Imagine what both of you would have missed."
Harry looked at her, a slight smile on her face. What she said was true, he knew, but his actions had ensured that he'd thrown away whatever future Sirius might have had. And, what was worse, he seemed to have learned nothing from the lesson. How many times since then had he endangered the lives of those friends which he held so dear?
"How...how did you deal with it?" Harry asked gently, "About your mother, I mean?"
"That's the trick, Harry," she said, nodding vigorously, "We all have two choices: to accept what life dishes out, or not. The bad with the good. Mum told me so when I was very little, you know. If you always fight it, then you'll eventually go mad, like Mirabella Plunkett, or sent to St. Mungo's, or turn yourself into a haddock."
"A haddock? What - " Harry shook his head, trying to clear that peculiar imagery from his mind. "You make it sound so simple, though. I wish I could think the way you do."
"Well, that would certainly be wise," Luna said, nodding sagely.
"So...that...that's all you did? You just accepted it and moved on?"
"Well," she said, "Some things are harder to accept than others, Harry, it's true...but then, you know we'll see them again, on the other side. You heard them."
Harry thought about the Veil. He had heard voices, distant, strangely disembodied, perhaps, but definitely there. Luna placed so much faith in such strange, inexplicable things. "But...how can you be so sure?" He asked.
She leaned close, a few roaming strands of dirty blonde hair brushing against his, "Because I choose to believe, Harry. And it is that simple, really. You reminded me of that yourself, remember?" she whispered furtively. She drew back and nodded with a smile, pale eyebrows rising.
"Besides," she said dreamily, waving a hand around the room, "I can't imagine why anyone would choose not to believe. People are so odd sometimes, really. Look at Muggles. They don't even believe in magic, you know. It must be so terrible to go through life like that."
Harry found himself laughing on the inside. He glanced over to the deserted painting over the dresser, taking satisfaction that its occupant was elsewhere. "Do you think I'll ever go mad and wind up in St. Mungo's?" He asked jokingly.
His question was greeted with silence. He turned back to look at Luna, who, to his surprise, seemed to have taken the question seriously and was regarding him intently, hand cupping her chin, tilting her head back and forth as though ascertaining his propensity for insanity. "Mmmm...no," she said finally to his relief, "No, I don't imagine you will."
"Thanks," Harry said, grinning at her.
They sat together in silence for awhile, Harry beginning to feel strangely better in spite of himself.
A thought occurred to him. "Anyway, what were you talking about before? That Mirabella lady? Who was she?" He asked, recalling her earlier reference to that name.
"Oh come on," Luna said, gazing at him incredulously, "You know, Mirabella Plunkett, the girl who fell in love with a merman?"
"Huh?"
"Well, it was published a few years ago," she said dreamily, "So it's possible you never saw it. Anyway, she fell in love with a merman in Loch Lomond, but her parents didn't want her marrying him, you know, and so one day she finally went mad and transfigured herself into a haddock," she appeared pensive for a moment, gazing off into space, "I suppose she might have been happy, though. Well, maybe that wasn't the best example after all."
"Ooookay," Harry said. This sounds like something from The Quibbler, he thought. One of these days he was going to have to read through one of those magazines and see for himself. Luna swung her legs playfully back and forth over the edge of the bed.
"Have you noticed, Mrs. Malfoy doesn't talk very much," Luna said disappointedly, "I hope she'll come around, though. She seems nice. It was good of the Order to bring her here, wasn't it?"
Harry hadn't thought about that. Had she gone to Dumbledore? Was that why she was here now? Now that Grimmauld Place was his, what was he to do with her? Throw her out? Of course, there was no question that it would continue to serve as the Order's headquarters; that at least brought him a small measure of satisfaction. But sheltering Bellatrix Lestrange's sister sent him chills.
"I don't know about having her here," Harry admitted, "She's the wife of a Death Eater, remember? And her sister is the worst one of the bunch."
"She's not one of them, though," said Luna confidently.
Maybe, Harry thought. But he was finding considerable difficulty in believing Narcissa Malfoy could be very different from her sister. Both their names were still proudly displayed on the Black family tree, after all.
"Do you think your godfather was ever a member of the Hobgoblins?" Luna asked, absent-mindedly twirling a stray lock of sandy-coloured hair.
Harry snapped out of his dark thoughts. Luna could change topics as easily as he could blink, it seemed. "The Hobgoblins? I don't - oh, wait, you're talking about that Stubby Boardman thing, aren't you?"
"That's right," said Luna, nodding enthusiastically, "Wouldn't it be interesting if they were one and the same, as Ms. Purkis said?"
Harry thought back to the first time he'd read that story; it was just after first meeting Luna on the Hogwarts Express, in fact. It seemed so long ago, now. So many things had happened since then. He shuddered to think of what he might have missed had he passed that cabin by on that fateful day.
"Well, I don't know," Harry said, "I heard Sirius singing Christmas Carols last year, so I don't think he would have been a lead singer. But then you never know with some of those bands, I guess..."
A twinge of guilt ran through Harry. Here Luna was, keeping him company and making him feel better, when her father was being held by the darkest wizard of the times. He looked into her large, mesmerizing silver eyes and knew he couldn't keep it from her any longer. He took a deep breath.
"Luna...there's something I have to tell you," he began gently, "It won't be easy for you to hear it. To tell you the truth, I've been trying to decide wether or not to tell you at all. But, I think Hermione's right. You do have to know."
Luna became very still, her eyes fixed on his, though her expression was inscrutable.
Harry tried to sound as reassuring as he could, given the dark nature of the news. "Professor Dumbledore found out your father's being held...by Voldemort," He said carefully, lest she burst into tears. She showed no reaction, however, so he continued. "He's...he wants your wand, Luna. In exchange for your father..." He held his breath. Now she knows.
She continued to stare at him, seemingly unaware of the magnitude of what he'd just said. Several moments passed. "Uh...Luna?" Harry asked tentatively, "Are you okay?"
"Yes," she said softly at last, "I suppose I rather knew, Harry."
Harry blinked. "You...you did?"
She nodded solemnly. "I had plenty of time to think up on that tower, you know," she said, "I rather imagined it would come to this," she pointed to the tip of her wand tucked behind her hear.
"He'll come back, though," she said, "Like you so wonderfully reminded me, Harry."
Harry swallowed. He remembered all too well; it was the only time he'd ever seen Luna lost within herself. "But, listen," he said tentatively, intending to give her hope, "We...well, Hermione...came up with a plan - "
Luna's eyes widened precipitously at this news. "Oh, Hermione's plans are rather imaginative, aren't they? Remember how she fooled that Umbridge lady to go into the Forest? Strange how she can do that and not believe in Snorkacks. Anyway, tell!"
Harry went on to describe Hermione's plan, Luna listening raptly. He was surprised that Luna was taking all this so well. He found himself wishing he could take some of his own advice he'd given her that fateful night on the tower.
"I'm coming with you," Luna said bluntly after he'd finished.
"We thought you might," Harry affirmed. "Ginny wants you at her back."
They continued talking for a while, first about Hermione's plan, then about Luna's father, and then wandered incongruously amidst a bewildering array of subjects, including Luna's rather ludicrous rendering of the Goldilocks story, followed by Harry's more traditional version. They eventually came, somehow, to the subject of Sirius and the Black family.
"No, no," Harry said, finding he didn't mind talking about this usually sensitive subject with Luna, "It couldn't be Regulus, he died years ago. Sirius told me so himself."
"At almost the exact same time Stubby Boardman 'retired', too!" Luna said excitedly, "It's him, Harry, it must be!"
"Okay, look," Harry said, finding himself playing the Devil's advocate on this farcical subject while trying to keep a straight face, "He's still listed on the Black family tree, I saw his name there last year. I'm sure Mrs. Black wouldn't have kept him on there if he was a member of a band like the Hobgoblins!"
"But she's an old ninnyhammer, you know," Luna said, "He would have kept it a secret from her, of course!"
"Hey, why was she calling you all those things, anyway?" Harry asked, "She's always yelling her head off, but I've never heard her go off the deep end like that."
"Oh...that...well..." Luna said, shrugging slightly, "That's because Mum was - "
A knock on the door interrupted them. Tonks stuck her pink-haired head in. "We're all done downstairs," She asked, "Whenever you guys are ready, Remus is waiting to take us back."
Harry looked at Luna. She was staring back at him blankly, though her silence indicated to him that she didn't wish to discuss the matter in front of Tonks. He took his cue, and stood off the bed, as Luna quietly followed suit.
As they walked out the door Harry thought he heard a muffled chortle coming from the near wall over the cabinet...
* * *
The next few days passed by uneventfully, aside from a minor accident with Zacharias Smith during the first DA meeting since the holidays, Seamus having apologized profusely. Madam Pomfrey assured them the third eye on his forehead would gradually dissapear overnight.
Harry had not been able to bring himself to read Sirius' testament any more now than he had at Grimmauld Place. Lupin had confirmed to him that Narcissa Malfoy had indeed sought out Dumbledore after receiving Luna's note; which, apparently, had arrived in the proverbial nick of time. He'd found himself wishing the note had arrived just a bit late, though he quickly reprimanded himself for such thoughts.
What was more disturbing to him now was that Kreacher had returned; Lupin had told Harry that he served the Malfoys now, and that so long as Narcissa was around, there was nothing to be concerned about. That reasoning hardly satisfied Harry.
He'd been wondering what to do about the two of them, though at Hermione's pleading he'd decided to leave the matter up to Dumbledore, as he was head of the Order and Grimmauld Place still served as its headquarters.
As it was, he was rather glad to put the issue behind him for now. He and his friends had gone down to Hagrid's hut Friday evening, Harry finding solace in its familiar surroundings. He hadn't paid Hagrid a visit since before Christmas, he realized.
" 'Course I'll help," Hagrid said gruffly as he refilled Ron's oversized cup, "But y'know, Hermione's right, Harry. Yer really should be tellin' Professor Dumbledore 'bout all this."
Harry groaned inwardly. Not another lecture, he thought, remaining silent in the hopes that Hagrid would abandon the argument.
His wish was short-lived. "See, Harry?" Hermione said from her vantage point near the fireplace, sitting next to Luna in the huge stuffed armchair that had plenty of room for both of them, their feet not quite reaching over the edge of the seat cushion. "You don't think Dumbledore would be against it either, do you Hagrid?"
"Fer lil' Luna's 'ere? 'Course he would'na be against it!" Hagrid exclaimed, smiling reassuringly over at the young Ravenclaw who held a very large teacup with both hands in her lap. She'd been gazing dreamily about the place, lightly tapping the ends of her feet together, seemingly lost in the virtually endless details of the hut's rustic decor. She'd emerged from her reverie however, once the discussion had turned to the Hogsmeade mission.
"Well, I for one agree with Hagrid and Hermione," Ginny exclaimed, taking a momentary break from feeding treats to Fang under the table. "Dumbledore would want to help, Harry."
"That's not the issue," Harry said dispiritedly, feeling the first hints of a headache coming on, "I don't doubt he'd want to capture Lestrange, it's what he'd do after that!"
"Eh?" Hagrid asked, putting the large teapot back on the stove, "What'd ye mean, exactly?"
"Oh, he's worried that Dumbledore wouldn't want to give up Lestrange," Hermione said severely, "Because of what she knows."
"Kodswallop!" Hagrid said, retaking his seat at the table next to Neville. "He'd never leave somebody out t'dry like that, Harry. Ye should know better!"
"Should I?" Harry retorted hotly, the memory of Dumbledore's dismissal of him a few nights before still very vivid in his mind, "If there's one thing I've managed to learn over the last few years, it's that I don't know Dumbledore as well as I thought I did!"
"What do you mean by that?" asked Hermione.
Harry glared at her, though his anger quickly faltered at the sight of her concerned gaze. "It's...nothing," He said finally, feeling everyone's eyes on him and staring at a table leg. They have no idea, he thought, no idea at all...
An uncomfortable silence descended in the hut. Everyone seemed unwilling to ask Harry to elaborate on that last point, lest he should lose his temper again.
"Well, I think we should get to the carriages early tomorrow morning," Hermione said at last, "So we can keep an eye on where Malfoy will be when we get to Hogsmeade."
"I agree," Harry said at once, grateful for the change in subject. "And we stick to him like glue once we get there."
"What do we do if he notices us?" Ron asked, leaning back in his chair as Ginny had dropped a few treats at his feet, so as to avoid Fang's drooling, "I mean, we're not exactly known for hanging out with Malfoy, are we?"
"Just be inconspicuous," Harry said, "Try and make it look like we're just wandering around or something."
"Blimey, the whole lot of us, walking in circles around him, pretending to wander around?" Ron asked, "I'm sure he won't suspect a thing!"
"Oh Ron," Hermione said, "Don't be such a prat. There is such a thing as subtlety, you know, even if you're not aware of the concept."
"I can be subtle!" Ron protested, leaning over more in his chair until he lost his balance and tipped over, sending himself crashing heavily to the floor. He upended a large wooden bucket with his shoulder, sending a load of Fire Crab shells spilling around the table.
"I stand corrected," Hermione said dryly.
"Careful, 'ere," Hagrid said, helping Ron back to his feet. Luna was trying valiantly to suppress her laughter by dropping her cup in her lap and pressing her fists in her mouth. Her shaking shoulders and large eyes swimming in tears of mirth were tangible evidence that she was not altogether successful.
"Ewww!" Ron said with disgust, brushing off a few shells, "These are all slimy!"
"Yeh, well," Hagrid said, righting the bucket back up as Ginny used her wand to refill it, "Can' exactly leave 'em out to dry this time o' year, y'know."
"Well," Hermione said, "we'd best get going anyway, it'll be curfew soon. Thanks, Hagrid!" She slid off the large chair, the others following suit after Ginny had tossed down her remaining treats to Fang, Luna eyeing Ron with a look of barely contained mirth. Ron caught sight of her and quickly marched to the front of the group, ears reddening.
They waved goodnight to Hagrid and proceeded up the trail towards the castle. About midway back, Harry took Luna aside and told the rest of them to go on ahead.
"Luna," he said sombrely, "You didn't say anything in there. I'd like to know what you think."
She stared at him blankly.
"About going to Dumbledore, I mean." He added. "You know...how I feel about..."
"I remember," Luna said, nodding, "But I didn't realise you were still so upset about it, Harry."
"Well...I wasn't," he replied, "But...he did it again, Luna! Just a couple of nights ago. They were getting ready to discuss something in his office right after he'd told me about your dad, and then he sent me away! Blast it, I deserve to know! You deserve to know!"
To his surprise, she just smiled dreamily at him. "Well, what do you think?" She asked.
Harry blinked. "Well...what if he was against giving up Lestrange? I mean with all she knows - "
"Is that your brain or your heart talking?" Luna remarked serenely. She took a step closer to him and stared intently with her large silver eyes.
Harry stared back at her. "I...what's the difference?"
She titled her head slightly and gazed at Harry. "You don't really subscribe to the buttered toast principle, do you?"
"Huh?" Harry said, gaping at her in befuddlement.
She smiled slightly at him. "Well, when you drop a piece of toast, what side does it land on?"
Harry briefly wondered if he'd somehow missed part of their conversation. "Er...well, buttered side down, usually."
"Exactly!" Luna said, nodding vigorously.
Harry gaped at her. "Er...I think I'm missing something here..."
"Oh well, look," she said, "Most people get all upset when that happens, because they blame it on bad luck, right?"
"Well, yeah," Harry said, "...aren't they right?"
She shook her head, "No," she said, "It's because the toast doesn't have time to flip all the way around before it hits the floor. Our tables aren't high enough, you know. Mum showed me once."
Harry found himself smiling at the mental image of Luna and her mother pushing toast off tables in order to test their hypothesis.
"So, the moral is...just accept the toast falling that way and eat it anyhow?"
"Oh no," Luna said, "There could be Gimpies lurking on the floor, you know. They're very tiny, so you'd never know if they were there or not."
"Okay," Harry said, even more confused than before, "So then it's...to just make more toast?"
"That's one," she said, before leaning close and whispering: "But Mum and me found a secret...if you lay your toast buttered side down on your plate they land buttered-side up if they fall."
"That's why you do that!" Harry exclaimed, "I always thought it was because - er - "
"Because I'm odd?" She asked dreamily.
"I don't think you're odd," Harry said, "But...I'm kind of wondering what all this has to do with telling Dumbledore."
"Well, when you dropped the toast, you automatically assumed the worst, right?"
"Uh...well, yeah..." Harry said, scratching his head.
"Aren't you doing the same now?"