Prologue

When Luna Lovegood was five years old she believed in many things.
She knew already the fact that all cats have three Names. She accepted without question the existence of the Portmeirion Hedgehog and even wanted one for a pet. She pondered the mystery of the Akkadian Light Shard of Ur and decided it was real. She knew full well the Tooth Fairy existed, especially after the discussion they shared the night Luna had those four loose frontals. And the Crumple-Horned Snorkack, of course, was a given.
Luna also believed at that age that she would one day become a good friend to the Boy Who Lived.
When asked by her mother, Luna answered, "Well, we know that Harry Potter has gone to live with Muggles, hasn't he?"
"Well, yes," her mother replied, "But remember to not tell anyone. Your father promised Dumbledore as one of the Prophet's editors not to reveal the young boy's whereabouts so he could grow up without all the attention he might receive. Especially since there are some who would seek him to do him great harm." Her mother added, "And please, do not use the word Muggle. It speaks of snobbery of wizarding kind over others."
"Very well, mum. But still, Harry's growing up among…normal non-magic folk, yes?"
"Yes."
"Then he must be very lonely."
"Luna! Why would you say that?"
"Because he's magic, like us, and he doesn't have anyone to play with who would understand. He's probably not allowed to use a wand in public anyway."
"Well, Luna my sweet, you're not allowed to use your wand."
"Yes, but I have one, you let me train with it. Does he?"
Luna's mother paused. "I don't think so. Your father reported they never found either of his parents' wands in order to let him use one."
Luna blinked sadly. "I really do think Harry Potter is in a quiet, lonely place, without his parents, without friends like him. So he really needs one, doesn't he?"
"Probably," Luna's mother smiled a faint, almost sad grin. "But remember, we're not allowed to visit him now."
"No, of course not. But he's bound to go to Hogwarts, like me. He's got to be on their list to attend, and at least his relatives ought to be nice enough to let him go. So when I get there, he'll be there, and he's going to need friends."
Luna's mother laughed, "Oh, Luna. By then, he'll be second year. He should have friends. You don't have to worry about that."
Luna's dreamy expression, noticeable even then, flashed a rather serious demeanor. "Even so, I ought to plan on it, just in case Harry Potter needs a friend when I get there…"

When Harry Met Luna

Time passed since Luna made that decision to be a friend to the Boy Who Lived. A lot of beliefs had not changed for her, except for that one year when everything she knew seemed gone in a blink of an eye. But she recovered, although her father even at his new job as self-employed publisher seemed worried otherwise.
It was the summer when she prepared for her first year at Hogwarts. One day, perhaps the first day of August if she remembered it right, Luna decided to visit her neighboring friend Ginevra Weasley. It was totally on a whim: Ginny was most likely going with her family to Diagon Alley as soon as convenient for their school supplies, but still Luna wanted to stop by and see what they were planning.
The unkempt grass along the hills blocked a good amount of her view as Luna walked toward the Weasleys' Burrow residence, so much so that she truly tripped over Ginny by accident. "Whoops!"
Luna fell across Ginny's legs, tangling the two until they grumbled together to stop wiggling long enough for Luna to slide both legs out. Both on the ground, surrounded by untrimmed hedgerows and field grass, Luna crawled over to her friend and whispered, "Hello, Ginevra, are you hiding again from the twins?"
"What? No, of course not. And call me Ginny, Luna."
"Very well, Ginny. I thought you agreed to keep calling me Loony, however."
"Very well, Loony." They both grinned at that before Ginny added, "I'm not hiding from Gred and Feorge, they've stopped picking on me once Percy made Prefect last summer. I'm…I'm…"
A slight crashing noise against the nearby hedgerow distracted the two of them. Ginny sighed and continued. "I'm just keeping an eye on…well, you know…HIM."
"Him who?"
"HIM HIM," Ginny answered, eyes wide, suppressing a giggle, a flush of embarrassing red crossing her freckled face. "HIM. My brother's bestest friend HIM. Him, you know…"
"Oh, him." Luna nodded. "It's good that Ronald got a friend at Hogwarts, I was worried he seemed so sad about going there."
"What?"
"We're talking about your brother Ronald, yes?"
"NO!" Ginny caught her voice before it went too loud and resumed whispering. "I'm talking about Harry. Harry Potter."
"Oh…HIM."
"Yes!"
"That's good. I was hoping Harry Potter would get a friend too. It's nice they each have a friend then." Luna smiled. "Can we meet Harry Potter then?"
"NOO!" Ginny covered her mouth for a full minute, during which more minute crashing noises occurred on the other side of the hedgerow. She lowered both hands and tried whispering again. "I mean, he's…I mean…we can't just…walk up to him or…he's just…I mean, wow…"
"Ginny," Luna sighed, being rational as always, "You should not be afraid of Harry Potter. He's a boy just like any other, just like your brothers. You don't see me getting flustered around Ronald or Bill do you?"
Ginny shook her head, then thought it over. "Why should anyone get flustered over Ron?"
"The point is, Harry is simply Harry. Don't be upset or stunned or all girly giggly like you are now. He's probably off doing things now with your brothers, yes?"
"Well, yeah, actually they're de-gnoming the garden right now…"
"There, you see? Perfectly normal person. Let's say hello to him then, shall we?"
"WHAT?!?!?! NOW?!?!" Ginny covered her mouth again, as more crashing noises of gnomes falling to the ground continued unabated. Luna could now hear one groan "Gerdoff!" Ginny lowered her hands one more time. "Oh, I couldn't…we shouldn't…it's too embarrassing…"
"Nonsense. Watch. I will do it now." As Ginny's eyes widened in shock, Luna stood upright, as tall as she could to glance over the hedgerow, in the direction of the Burrow's garden where she could see a set of tall redheaded boys and one rather normal-sized dark-haired boy doing yardwork.
"See, there he is." Luna raised one hand up and and started shouting. "Hello, Harry P…"
THWACK!
A gnome slammed right into her forehead, knocking Luna backward. A groaning "Gerdoff" came from the shaken gnome as it stumbled off in the direction of the nearest larch tree, under which Luna knew existed goblin alehouses where various creatures could drown their sorrows. Luna lay there awhile, absorbing the pain of being hit. "I seem to have been hit, Ginny."
Ginny poked her head through a sparse area of the hedgerow. "It looks like…from what I can tell the boys are congratulating Harry. He must have thrown that gnome the farthest of any of them."
"Good thing I broke that gnome's fall then…"
"Oh, Luna, I'm so sorry." Ginny sat next to her friend as Luna struggled to sit upright as well. "Still, you have to admit that was a very long throw for a gnome-tossing, wasn't it?"
"Oh, definitely." Luna rubbed her sore spot. She knew it would look bad the next day, and wondered how she could explain this to her father. The truth seemed best, after all gnome-tossing is a constant health hazard in the rural wizarding communities.
"He's got to be a very powerful wizard, after all." Ginny grinned, almost wickedly. "And handsome too. He's all of that, even those glasses look perfect on him. I can't wait to see him grow up more."
"Hmm, you mean puberty. Yes, I got the Lecture from my aunt last month…"
"Silly." Ginny's grin grew wider as her eyes lit up. "I'm going to marry him. I've just got to. Ron's his closest friend, I'll get to be in Gryffindor just like them, you'll see. It's destiny. We'll be married and he'll be an Auror, or a Dragon handler like Charlie, something brave and noble like he is. It'll be perfect."
"Well, you do have to talk to him first, you know."
"Shut up, Loony." The two girls glanced at each other, and for once Luna noticed the dark demeanor in Ginny's stare, worried for a moment they had breached some form of rules of friendship.
Then Ginny blinked and started crying. "Oh, oh Luna you're right! He's not going to marry me! I can't even string two words together, and look at me! What can I offer him that some older cuter more popular girl can't???"
Ginny sobbed uncontrollably, and Luna draped an arm around her friend for comfort. "You can be his friend first."
Ginny kept crying. "Oh, please! He's going to have every girl at that school chasing after him, even those dumb Slytherins, and they hate everybody! I'm not going to compete with some…some glamorous supermodel type who's on the Quidditch team and has all the friends who don't even envy her and…and…is probably named Heather or something!"
Luna arched an eyebrow, otherwise ruining her calm expression. "Ginny. You're overreacting, and you don't even know what his situation is like at Hogwarts yet. You're thinking too far ahead. Let the moment come, let time be as it is."
"Ohh, Loony!" Ginny growled through her tears. "What do you know?"
Luna gave it some thought. "Everything, I suspect."

Luna returned home that afternoon without having said hello to Harry or to Ronald. She needed to attend to her bruised forehead and besides, she reasoned, Ginny will introduce her to them on the Hogwarts Express anyway. There was more than enough time to meet the Boy Who Lived.

To be continued…