Whoops – good point made on some reviews. We can just take it for granted that Hermione's, Luna's, and Neville's folks are all cool with the summer arrangement. Hermione is in constant 'chat' with her parents via the journals, Luna's dad is hoping this will generate future articles, and Gran will do anything for the founderettes, now that her grandson has come out of his shell and they saved her bacon!

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Chapter 19

Something Hits the Fan

Luna was lying on the large couch in Godric's Trunk the next day, her head resting in Neville's lap who was gently stroking her long golden/white hair and gently twirling strands playfully around fairies, who were giggling with delight. He smiled at the girl/woman he loved and at the flitting and flying beings that were her constant companions.

"Luna, why do the fairies like you so much? I mean besides the obvious" Neville turned red, stammering.

She smiled dreamily at him, and reached up to stroke his face. "I think you should grow a beard, Nev. It would match your animagus so much better."

He stared down at Luna. Although many things that came out of the gentile witches' mouth was strange, he had learned quickly she only spoke truth. Just how did she know these odd truths?

"Oh – they teach me because I am part fairy. You guys could learn the same magic, but it would take so much longer. It's in my blood you see." She smiled at one female fairy who brought over a new born baby, the size of a butterbean, to show off proudly to the two of them. Mother and child both glowed pale green, with dark sweet eyes of solid black. Neville absolutely cooed with delight, which seemed almost strange coming from the boy who had grown from pudgy and hunched-over to tall, muscular and proud.

"Luna – lets get married after school and have a dozen kids of our own" he gushed. Clapping a hand over his mouth in shock, he looked at her fearfully – he had never meant proposing to be so spontaneous and unplanned.

She sat up and gave him a deep kiss. "Of course we will" she replied simply.

"Um Luna – how do you mean you are part fairy? "Neville stammered when they broke apart. "I mean, there's sort of a size obstacle to marrying a fairy, isn't there?" Neville's blush turned from embarrassed pink to mortified red, trying not to think of the logistics.

"Father Christmas is my great grandfather" she replied, waving her fingers in a fairy blessing over the tiny baby and mother. All the fairies brought their new born infants to Luna for blessing.

Harry and Hermione, who were trying not to listen in from the table, where they were pouring over books about dark marks and tattoos, couldn't stop themselves.

"Whoa – hold on. Father Christmas is real? He's a fairy? He's your great grandfather?" Harry burst in, excited.

"Of course he's real. My great grandmother was Mrs. Claus the 89th. Santa always preferred witches for wives, although we live such short lives. I see him every Christmas. I'd like to visit his home someday when I finish school." She looked at the astonished looks on her friends faces. "There are many races of fairy – all shapes and sizes. Man and Wizard alike have ignored them, except for children. I guess because fairy magic isn't violent or flashy enough to attract the attention of most grown ups."

"Luna, if Father Christmas is real, how come I've never gotten anything from him?" Hermione asked hesitantly. She didn't want to sound like she was accusing her best friend's great grandfather or anything, but it certainly didn't fit with the myths she grew up with.

Luna smiled gently at her friends. "He only brings gifts to nice children who have been good. There aren't very many kids who are truly selfless and well behaved. It's just not in a child's nature. The 'naughty list', as the muggles put it, is in actuality the 'acts like a typical kid list', and is far, far longer, and no, they don't get coal. His gifts are magical by nature – not silly junk from the store." She looked at Harry thoughtfully. "You were one of the few on his nice list, but Dumbledore's wards prevented him from visiting all those lonely years. I'm sorry Harry."

"Er, the Dursleys would have destroyed anything for me under the tree after accusing me of stealing whatever it was" Harry shrugged his shoulders. "Just one more thing to thank the headmaster for when the time came." Harry thought with grim amusement.

O0o0o0o0o0o0o

Harry looked up from his books. The twins were sending him a telepathic message.

"Oh IckleHarrykins – better turn on your 'telly'. Mum just found out Ron and Ginny couldn't find you on the train, and is contacting ''Ol' Whiskers" Fred sent.

"Yah – she's really giving it to Ronny for not saying anything sooner. Mum and Dad are beginning to get suspicious of our two youngest siblings" George quipped.

"Are you busy? Want me to pop you over to watch?" Harry sent back.

"Oh yes!" the twins replied in unison. "Store is closed on Sundays – we were just getting ready to do some very boring inventory."

"Telly everyone! Dumbledore is about to get an owl about me." Harry called out, settling in on the couch. "This should be wonderfully entertaining. Can somebody fetch the twins?"

"Should I start popcorn, kind master?" asked Winky. It was only nine in the morning, but wizard's eating habits were so strange at this age.

Harry scooped the elf up in his arms and gave her a hug. "We'd love some, Winky. Nobody makes popcorn like you." It had taken Harry a long time (considering the years they had spent in time-warp in Godric's Suitcase) to learn to hug and show emotion. His abusive childhood made physical contact uncomfortable and difficult at first. However, with the help of the counseling of the ghosts and the unconditional love of his elves and friends, Harry now found it a delight to hold hands, hug, and show his feelings on his face when the situation called for it. Winky hugged back with delight and set off to make snacks.

"Dobby jealous!" The elf laughed, hands on his hips. He had been sorting through piles of photos Harry had brought back from Godric's Hollow, and was sitting in front of the fireplace, organizing and labeling family snapshots into albums with the help of Harry's parents. Harry laughed, reached over and scooped up Dobby, planting a big, wet, exaggerated kiss on his wrinkly cheek. Sirius and James made gagging sounds and his mum gave her musical laugh that Harry so loved to hear.

"Get a room" yelled Neville, pelting them with couch cushions.

"I'll fetch the Weasleys" Luna said, popping off and returning in less than a minute with the red heads in tow.

"Oh Harry – we love what you've done with the place" Fred gushed, looking around at the marble track whirring and clicking around the room. He kept plucking marbles off the track to see what sensations each gave. The smell of a bush of cabbage roses, the feel of sand on a beach, the boom of fireworks … wonderful stuff.

"And widescreen too!" George admired the spy canvas, peering at Dumbledore sitting at his desk working through stacks of parchment, and thumbing his nose at him. "Too bad there are ladies present. This occasion really calls for a good mooning."

"But isn't it about time to take down the Christmas tree?" Fred asked, as he was promptly and playfully 'attacked' by scores of fairies.

"Naw – the fairies love it too much" Neville answered.

The six of them magically expanded the couch some more and lined up. Winky brought over huge bowls of popcorn. "Cheers!" Fred said, munching away. "Wow – this is great popcorn."

"Winky is the best," Harry nodded.

Pig, Ron's hyper little owl, flew in Dumbledore's window, and flittered around his head. The headmaster gave the bird an annoyed look as he snatched the owl out of the air and grabbed its letter. Fawkes, behind his shoulder, didn't seem to appreciate the wizard's rough handling of the tiny bird.

"I'm going to have to look into the relationship between wizard and phoenix" Harry mused to himself. "Fawkes seems rather unhappy with Dumbledore lately."

Dumbledore glanced over the letter, muttered "Whaaaat?" out loud, and read it again. "Harry hasn't been seen since Hogwarts? Impossible.". He stood up and strode to the fireplace, tossing in a hand of floo powder.

"Remus – when was the last time you saw Harry?" he asked the green flames.

The werewolf's face appeared in the fire. "Do you mean the last time I spoke to him in person? I guess last summer, Albus. Why, what's wrong?"

"But Remus, when was the last time you saw him – on duty or around?" Dumbledore frowned with impatience.

"My guard duty has always been at night, Albus. I haven't seen him at all since last summer. I assumed he was in bed when I'm on duty."

"Have you received any mail from him since school?"

"No, Albus, but it's only been a couple days."

"Hmmmm" the headmaster muttered and cut the connection. He opened a floo to Moody.

"Alastar, when was the last time you saw Potter?" Dumbledore asked, feeling rising panic.

"Oh, this is brilliant" laughed George.

"…And such clear reception!" Fred agreed.

"Shhh!" Hermione elbowed the twin on her right.

"Ages, headmaster" growled the mangled auror. "Ever since you strengthened the wards around that house, I told you I can't see through with my eye."

"But how do you know he's in there?" Dumbledore was practically shouting now.

"I don't. But it's not unusual for those muggles to lock him in his room for weeks at a time. I've told you how they jail him for years now. I assumed he was locked up. They don't set foot outside themselves – too scared of running into us I assume." Moody sounded annoyed.

"I'm coming through" Dumbledore growled. "We can apparate over and check on him." And he stepped through the fire.

"Whoo hoo!" Neville yelled, throwing popcorn at the canvas. "Hey – how long before he discovers we are gone too?"

"I don't think he will" Luna mused. "He will attempt to check with Hermione, naturally, and discover she is missing too, but we made it a point for the two of us not to be seen as hanging out with them. The headmaster will check with Ron and Ginny, but other than that, Harry was seen as a loner."

Neville nodded, grinning. "Well, if he does check with Gran, she will fib for me and say I've been home all summer, and can send an elf to let me know if I gotta make an appearance."

In the intermission while Dumbledore was checking on Privet Drive, Fred and George were inspecting the marble track inch by inch. "Harry, where did you get this? It's absolutely brilliant." Fred gushed.

"Christmas gift from Hermione – gotta ask my lady". Harry grinned, standing up and plucking a glowing lilac colored marble from the track. The taste of cold lemon ice hit his senses. "We can charm the marbles however we want. You are enjoying the senses of summer at the moment."

The twins looked at Hermione questioningly. "I saw something kind of like this on muggle television before my folks left – some mall in the States had a huge sculpture made up of track like this, and heavy metal spheres rolled all over it. I recalled the image in Harry's penseive and had Dobby help me build this version. I think the enchanted glass balls are much nicer, don't you?"

"Oh Hermione – I smell a gold mine" Fred sniffed the air with exaggeration.

"Harry, I think we love your wife-to-be. Mind if we steal her away?" George waggled his eyebrows at her suggestively.

"Get off" Harry chuckled, pulling his fiancé over to him. "She's all mine".

"But you can have my idea – I think it would be lovely to see more of these." She told the twins, returning the embrace from her future husband.

Dumbledore floo'd back into his office, followed by Mr. & Mrs. Weasley, Remus and Tonks, Kingsley Shacklebolt, Moody, Ron, Ginny, and a very put out looking Snape. The headmaster conjured up chairs and tea for everyone, and they sat down, with varying expressions of worry on their faces. He tossed some more floo powder in the fireplace and called out to Harry's old real estate agent.

"Matilda Malkin? I need information on a house you sold back last summer." Dumbledore spoke sweetly. "Could you tell me where the Dursleys of Privet Drive, Surry, moved to and when?"

"Hmmm – didn't take him long to find out who sold my Aunt and Uncle's house!" Harry observed, watching with amusement.

They watched the green fire image of Ms. Malkin's face and she looked down, evidently going through files in her office.

"Davis, Demming, Diggory, ah – here we go Dursley. Sorry, headmaster. It was a secure transaction. Once the sale was finalized, the information is wiped from all involved party's minds and the paper work obliviates. I can send over a copy of what little information is in the file. In sales like this I can guarantee that the new home, if we sold it to them, is heavily warded and unplottable."

"Please – I'd like to see what you have" Dumbledore sounded very on-edge. A hand reached through the fireplace with a single sheet of paper, which he took. "Thank you, Ms. Malkin for your time."

Glancing over the parchment, he passed it around. "There isn't much here. Their house was sold under secret contract to a muggle family late last October. We spoke to them – they never met the Dursleys, who were represented by an agent at closing. The transaction must have been handled by a wizard, but who?"

"It couldn't have been Potter, although it smells like him" Snape growled, arms crossed aggressively over his chest, looking bored.

"Dear Severus, you suspect Harry for everything. You really need to get along with him." Dumbledore smiled at the potions master condescendingly. Naturally, Harry did not leave the grounds except for one Hogsmeade weekend in November – we have kept a careful eye on him. He had no owl correspondence through last school year, except for you, Remus, and the Weasleys, and a couple short letters to Miss Lovegood, Miss Granger and Mr. Longbottom."

"Ooooh – forgot about those letters. Maybe he will check up on you two between the letters and spending Christmas with Nev" laughed Harry.

"Albus!" Molly broke in with a shocked voice. "You don't mean to tell me you have been reading his mail?"

Dumbledore gave her the grandfatherly twinkle 'you-aren't-smart-enough-to-understand' look. "I only do what is necessary to keep Harry safe, Molly."

"Yes, but read his outgoing owls? That's completely uncalled for. I can see reading in-coming mail from unknown sources, or checking to see who he corresponds with, but that is unacceptable" Remus growled, frowning at the headmaster.

"You tell him Moony!" Sirius shouted from the fireplace.

Dumbledore ignored the protests and grumbles from the Order members in the room. They would get over it – he was, after all, in charge. He faced Ron and Ginny, who were woofing down ginger biscuits and looking very bored with the whole proceedings. "Mr. Weasley, Miss Weasley? Did Harry say anything to you during the last year about his relatives moving?" The brother and sister both shook their heads in the negative.

The headmaster probed their thoughts, which Harry, Hermione, Neville and Luna all listened in on and relayed to the twins. "Those disobedient brats! They think they are getting a paycheck from me? They didn't speak ten words to Harry between the two of them all year!"

"Gotta learn occlumency" smirked George, after Harry told them what he was thinking.

"It is way entertaining" agreed Fred.

"Kingsley, please go to the Grangers and see what you can learn from them. Moody, please get the Aurors to track down the Dursleys – it's very possible that Voldemort killed them while Harry was at school, and kidnapped him at 9 3/4. Severus, any hint of Death Eater activity involved with Harry?"

Molly gasped and Arthur looked a pale. Remus and Tonks were both staring at the headmaster with less than friendly faces.

Snape shook his head. "The Dark Lord grows increasingly paranoid, and does not share plans with anyone that I'm aware of. He was closest to Lucius Malfoy, whose incarceration has affected him deeply.

Dumbledore made another floo connection, this time to Longbottom Manor.

"Whoops – gotta go. I'll be right back!" Neville grinned and popped out of the trunk.

"Mrs. Longbottom?" Dumbledore spoke pleasantly, pouring on the 'sincere respect' in his voice. "May I speak with your Grandson?" The elderly witch started, looked behind her for a second, and nodded. Neville's face showed in the green flames.

"Yes, Headmaster?" Neville asked, playing the part of a confused student to the nines.

"My – this is Oscar material!" Hermione gushed with admiration. Harry nodded in agreement.

"Could you step through to my office for a moment of your time?" Dumbledore requested cordially. Neville stepped through, brushing garden soil off his hands onto a work apron tied around his waist. He had a couple leaves in his hair, and had every appearance of someone just stepped in from the greenhouse.

"He's good!" Fred shouted with admiration.

"Neville, my boy. Have you heard from Harry lately?" Dumbledore twinkled his eyes at him.

"Fred, George – how does he do that eye twinkle thingy?" Harry asked.

"Since school two days ago?" Neville asked in confusion. "No".

"Did you see him on the train?" Dumbledore asked.

"Yes – we shared a compartment with Hermione and Luna." Neville spoke truthfully.

"Would you tell me who met Harry at the station?" Dumbledore continued interrogating.

"I never noticed – Gran was waiting for me and we left immediately. Is something wrong with Harry?" Neville frowned with concern.

"He has gone missing, and his muggle relatives moved sometime during the school year. We are very worried about him. Did he say anything to you during the holiday or school about his family or his plans for the summer?" Dumbledore was getting more and more agitated. Longbottom wasn't much help, except to confirm that Harry had got off the train at 9 ¾.

"Nooooo" Neville puckered his forehead, the very appearance of a dim-witted child trying hard to recall facts and figures. "We had started to hang together early in the year, but once Luna and I started going out, well, we kind of drifted apart. I can't remember him saying anything about his family." He looked at the headmaster positively oozing innocence, sincerity, and worry.

"My," Luna mused. "I'll never try to get information about my Christmas present out of him. He's too good!"

The rest of the room nodded in agreement around mouthfuls of popcorn.

"Thank you, Mr. Longbottom" Dumbledore twinkled at him, thinking to himself 'I'd better suck up to this one – I might need him if Harry is dead'.

The meeting in the headmaster's office came to a close. The last thing Dumbledore did was obliviate the Order members from under his desk, removing the memory of how he handled Harry's mail. Snape raised his eyebrows at Dumbledore, who simply winked at him. As Severus continually made clear his deep loathing of the Potter boy, Dumbledore didn't feel it was necessary to mess with his mind. Everyone filed through the floo, leaving Dumbledore alone, staring into space with a deep frown.

"Creep" Harry hissed, throwing popcorn at Dumbledore's image on the canvas.

"That's much nicer than what I was going to call him" Hermione glared.

"I still say a good mooning is in order" George stated, with Fred nodding in agreement. For the good of all, however, they didn't follow through with their threat.

Luna gazed at the twins with a slightly raised eyebrow. She wasn't a witch to hold a grudge – personal insults and hurts rolled off her back. But she wasn't a witch who could ignore the severe mistreatment of her closest friends. The Weasleys gave her an idea, and she had no doubt that Hogwarts would help her with it.

O0o0o0o0o0o0oo0o

The next day found Dumbledore pacing his office, glaring at his fireplace impatiently. The morning had not gone well – every portrait in the castle, as soon as he came within its sight, would turn around and MOON him! Him! Albus Dumbledore, etc etc etc! And he could not get Hogwarts to talk to him and stop the paintings from their vulgar gestures. It was very difficult to pay attention in his office when he was surrounded by paintings, all 'cracking a smile'. Even his own portrait was doing it. Could his backside possibly be that large?

Back in Godric's Suitcase, the four founderettes were sitting on the sofa, smiling smugly at the angry headmaster. On the coffee table was a brand new ornament – a copy of the American Oscar statue, but with one arm behind its back, fingers crossed. Neville was deeply touched and pleased by the award.

After a bit more waiting, the tall dark figure of Kingsley Shacklebolt strode through the fireplace. Dumbledore conjured a seat for the auror, who sat down and declined a lemon drop. It was getting harder and harder to get rid of the tainted candies.

"Any clue from the Grangers?" Dumbledore started in immediately.

Kingsley shook his head, trying not to look at the paintings of prior headmasters. Dumbledore sure had some strange things to amuse himself with. "You will probably be interested to hear that the Grangers are missing as well. Their home has been rented out to relatives, who told us they were now in South America doing charity work, and will be gone for the next couple of years."

Dumbledore rubbed his hands together in glee. "Fantastic – that will keep Harry away from Miss Granger. She just does not fit into my plans for him."

The auror frowned at him. "Let me elaborate, sir. They left sometime last year, possibly the same as the Dursleys. I don't think that Miss Granger is with them. The cousin renting the home assumed she was with them, but we would have known if Hermione flew out of the country. She doesn't have a pass port registered with the muggle government – I checked."

Dumbledore stared at the auror in mute shock. He grabbed a file out of his desk and scanned it over. "Her tuition is paid through next year – I can't prevent her from coming back, as she will legally be an adult…"

Kingsley continued to give Dumbledore (and the mooning portraits) disapproving looks. "How do you mean she "doesn't fit into your plans?"?

Dumbledore looked up impatiently. "I don't approve of Harry's engagement to her. He has too much political clout if he survives Voldemort. I think a union with a powerful family would be much wiser for the good of the wizarding world" he snapped.

"Be that as it may, Headmaster," Kingsley sniffed, "I think that it is very possible Harry and Hermione ran off together. Perhaps," he added tersely, "to avoid your meddling."

The ancient wizard shot the auror a dirty look. "It's possible. I could believe that Potter's family left without letting him know – they absolutely despise him. But the house was sold by a wizarding real estate agent who was under a secretive contract, obviously from a wizard. Moody couldn't track them. Perhaps Harry is rebelling a bit. Very irresponsible of him." Dumbledore took to pacing the floor again.

"Harry," his father called from the fireplace. "I will bet you can get the aurors on your side very easily at this point. I think they are getting tired of Dumbledore's manipulations, and he can only obliviate so much."

"I think you're right, Dad" Harry called over.

The tall auror stood up stiffly. "All I care is that Voldemort doesn't have him or her. I think that Harry needs whatever happiness he can find, and if he found it with Miss Granger, I'm glad for the both of them." He turned and left out the fireplace back to work before Dumbledore had a chance to obliviate him. .

Dumbledore ignored the exiting auror. Where was Harry Potter? He glared at the canvas with Armando Dippet, who was mooning him in an extremely rude fashion and giggling like a school girl.

"OH WILL YOU STOP IT ALREADY?" the supreme mugwump screamed.

Luna smiled dreamily. "Mischief managed" she thought to herself. "Thank you Hogwarts – would you please stop the mooning now?"

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There have been mixed reviews on the amount of pranks going on. Luna is highly grateful to Harry – he was one of the first people to look beyond her strangeness and like her for who she is. So she really takes Dumbledore's treatment of him to heart, and her pranking is her way of getting a bit even with him. Also, learning about the Marauders from Harry (they do use the map, and he and Sirius are bound to talk about them), she probably feels she's paying homage to her friends. But sadly (for the pranking fans) it will slow down – one more 'accidental' prank next month and that's it. They don't want to make Albus suspicious that they could be in Hogwarts by pranking during the summer.