Author's Note: I do not own these characters, etc etc. This is a Harry/Luna story but be warned it does contain elements of Harry/Ginny, as it takes place during HBP and I wanted to remain as true to canon as possible. So whatever side of the shipping spectrum you should enjoy the story, but it is primarily H/L frienship/something more. Special thanks to Ana Luthor for her help with everything, so check out her fanfics as well! They are awesome! Enjoy! Feedback encouraged.)
Harry wandered through the desolate corridor that led outside to the school grounds. Everyone was at dinner by now, but he felt like being alone. Ginny was busy studying for her exams, and the whole school, especially the Gryfindor's, seemed to be abuzz with Harry-related gossip today and he didn't feel like dealing with it. So he skipped out before Ron and Hermione could find him and headed outside to catch some fresh air and enjoy what was left of the day. The sun was setting, and the blazing amber sky presented a startling backdrop for the shadowy stone pillars that surrounded the Hogwart's courtyard. He looked up into the sky burning with such intensity and his mind wandered to Ginny. He sighed as he noted the evening sunset was the same color as her hair. He closed his eyes and found himself back in the Gryfindor common room the previous night. There he had kissed Ginny for the first time. She had thrown herself around him with joy after winning the Quidditch match, and when feeling the closeness of her body, her warmth, he felt the monster within him roar. It seemed like he had waited too long, and it was now time to end the suffering. Then with total abandon he kissed her, and she reciprocated with gustso. Her kiss was fierce and passionate, a force that overtook him and made him feel slightly dizzy. Ginny had always been a strong, fiery girl, and her kiss was just like her. It was amazing. "Amazing..." he said outloud to himself.
"What's amazing?" Asked a familiar dreamy voice from behind him.
Harry jumped and felt his face flush from embarassment. He had thought he was alone. He turned around to see Luna behind him, staring at him with a curious look, her right eyebrow cocked in puzzlement. "Hi Luna. Ummm...I was just commenting on the sky tonight, the sunset and all it's colors. It's really quite amazing."
The look of confusion on her face faded and her misty eyes grew big with excitement as she glanced upwards. "Yes. It is beautiful, isn't it?" she said with a small sigh. Harry thought he detected a note of sorrow in her voice.
"Yes." he agreed, shifting uncomfortably and unsure of what to say next. Sometimes talking to Luna was quite a challenge for him as he was always unsure of what she would say next. "Ummm, so what are you doing out here all alone?" He asked as he noticed she was carrying something purple that looked like a blanket.
"Well, my roommates were being rather vile to me so I am escaping."
Harry's eyes narrowed and he frowned. "They shouldn't treat you like that you know. I mean you shouldn't take that abuse."
"Oh, it's fine. Besides it gives me time to go look for shooting stars."
Harry was always taken aback by the way Luna dismissed the unforgivable actions of her classmates. She was always so calm about it, as if nothing could faze her. But it definitely got under his skin. It never failed to irritate him, the way people treated her, as if she had no feelings. Secretly he wished that one day she would lose it and seek revenge on those who had made fun of her. "Maybe Ginny could teach her the Bat Bogey Hex," he thought with a smirk. But he knew that revenge was not in her nature. She seemed to be above such pettiness, and almost incapable of anger. The few times he ever saw he express anything close to anger was when Hermione insulted her father's paper as "rubbish."
"Shooting stars, eh?" He asked with interest. He was quite happy to hear such a mundane thing for her to go searching for, and was relieved that she hadn't said she was off to find crumpled horned snorkacks, or any other one of the multiple creatures she believed existed.
"Yes, my mum used to tell me that stars are the souls of our lost loved ones, looking down upon us to keep us company and protect us during the night..."
Harry smiled. It was a beautiful sentiment, but he knew it was a fairy tale parents told children to explain things that they weren't able to understand. When you are young you don't know that stars are really giant balls of burning gas millions of miles away. But a romanticized tale of lost loved ones, that was something a child could grasp.
"... and that shooting stars" she continued, her voice taking on an authoratative tone, "happen when we miss that one special soul so much that they use all their energy to streak across the sky in a spectacular display, to remind us that they are still with us and that they love us."
Harry watched as she clutched her purple blanket close to her chest and looked upwards as if expecting to see one at that exact moment. He didn't feel the need to break the illusion by telling her that shooting stars are really chunks of rock floating in space that collide with the Earth's atmosphere, glow and burn down, something he had leaned in astrononmy class. Besides he felt that she wouldn't believe such information anyways.
"I've never seen one you know. I remember when my mum told me what they were. I was so anxious to see one, but I didn't know anyone who had," She stopped for a minute and looked thoughtful, as if choosing her words carefully "... died. But she said that we would go one night and try to find my grandmum who died before I was born. And I was so happy because I had never met my grandmum before you know?" She said looking him square in the eye as if this was quite normal, everyday conversation. "But the night we planned to go, well it was the day my mum had her accident and died. So I never got to go and see my shooting grandmum."
Harry felt a simultaneous pang of sadness and an urge to laugh at the image of Luna's grandmum literally shooting across the sky. "I'm so sorry Luna. I know it must have been hard."
"Yes. It was rather difficult, and I must confess that I haven't tried to find my mum's shooting star until about a year ago. But so far I've been unlucky," she confessed. "But I have a good feeling about tonight. The skies are clear and my bright, and my since my mum loved nights like this I am positive she has to show up tonight!"
"Well, I wish you luck, Luna. I hope you find your..um..special star".
"Oh, I will!"
"Well I am gonna get going," he said realizing that maybe he should get back to the dorms before Ron and Hermione got the wrong idea and thought he was mad at them. "I should get back before everyone starts to wonder where I've gone off to. I'll see you around," he said and started off back towards the school. He waved goodbye as Luna turned her back and began to walk silently out towards the grounds where the sky was already starting to turn black, as if someone had spilled a bottle of quill ink and it was spreading fast.
As Harry entered the corridor that led towards his dormitory he spied a gaggle of girls walking in the same direction a few steps ahead of him. They were whispering violently and giggling, sneaking looks over their shoulders and seeming to move as one entity of possible annoyance. He thought he heard one of the girls say "No! No...YOU ask him...you have to ask him!" He didn't know what this could be about, wether it had to do with simply being the famous Harry Potter, or if it had to do with him and Ginny, he didn't want to stick around to find out. Before any of them could look over their shoulders again to sneak a peek he had ducked through the nearest doorway and began to sprint across the courtyard, running to catch up with the retreating figure of Luna Lovegood. "Luna! Wait up!" He yelled as he ran up beside her.
Luna whipped around in surprise, her ridiculous raddish earrings swinging wildly.
"Woah! You are gonna poke your eyes out with those things someday," he laughed as he grabbed both earrings with his hands.
"Harry, why did you come back?"
"Ummm, I, uhhh..." He stammered, not wanting to admit that he came back to avoid being accosted by a group of gossipy girls. "I thought I could help you in your search..I mean with my amazing astronomy skills," he fibbed, knowing full well that you didn't need to possess any great skill to spot objects streaking across the sky.
"Oh thank you!" she said with such sincerity that it made Harry feel a tinge of guilt for not telling her the truth. "I am sure you will be soo much help to me that I know I will see one tonight!"
Harry looked down with embarassment.
"I'm so glad you came back."
Though still feeling guilty, he could not help but feel glad that he had brought such complete happiness to someone for doing something so trivial as showing up. "Me too Luna," he said. And he meant it.
The sky was now completely dark as Harry and Luna marched through the grounds in silence. "There," she said breathlessly, motioning to a patch of earth in front of them. She carefully spread the blanket on the ground and lay down face up, her long pale hair fanning out behind her like some kind of crazy halo. Harry tentatively sat down next to her, sitting indian style. He could feel the dew on the grass seep through the thin material. They were quite aways from the castle as Luna insisted on being as far away from any light as possible. The temperature had dropped so that the air was now crisp and chilly. Then he felt his stomach rumble slightly and remembered that he had not eaten in some time. As much as he liked making Luna happy, he began to wonder if he shouldn't of just gone back to his dormitory instead.
"Oh Harry! Look!" She exclaimed, and with a firm hand she grabbed his collar and jerked him backwards. The air was knocked from him as he slammed onto the ground.
"Isn't it just like some sort of miracle!" She sighed, pointing upwards to the clear, dark sky punched with bright stars and an unbelieveably full moon. She seemed completely unaware that she had just assaulted him.
He tried to regain his composure, dumbfounded by Luna's brazen action and amazed at her strength. "Mmmhmmm." He mumbled propping himself up and rubbing the back of his head where it had hit the ground. "It's...great."
"Oh Harry, I'm sorry if I hurt you," she said when she realized what she had done. "But you know one can only truly experience the wonder that is the night sky through a reclining position. It really is the only way one can comprehend the vastness that encompasses us all."
Harry looked back over his shoulder and saw a genuinely earnest expression upon her face. "It's okay. I guess I didn't realize what an, uhh, passion this all was for you."
She nodded serenly and sat upright, reaching over to touch the back of his head where he had felt the blow. He felt her hand brush against hers and he moved it away quickly as she tenderly smooth his hair. "No lumps or bumps."
"Yet." Harry muttered under his breath.
"Oh, I understand if you want to leave," she said softly, the same serene look upon her face.
"No, why would I want to?" he said knowing that Luna had meant no harm. "Besides we have your mum's star to find now, don't we?"
Luna nodded, wrapping her arms around her legs and gazing upwards, smiling a contented smile. Suddenly Harry could feel a weird twisting sensation in his gut. He felt guilty. Here he was in the middle of the night, gazing upon the stars... Not with Ginny. With Luna Lovegood. "If anyone should happen upon us at this minute, what would they think?" He thought nervously, his eyes scanning the area, trying to make out the outline of anyone lurking in the blackness. "What would Ginny think if she found us, or if someone else told her? We would be done for sure!" His head was swimming with images of Ginny's upset face, tears streaming down, her angry voice hurling wild accusations at him. "Ron would kill me, Hermione would be upset I hurt her friend and the others... It would be a scandal! Everyone would think I've gone bloody mad! Wait!" He stopped himself. "But it's Luna Lovegood..." He could feel the twisting in his gut cease. "I mean, we are just friends, looking for her mum, she thinks is in a star for crissakes! And if anyone thought me and Luna could...would..." His brain grew fuzzy and he couldn't bring himself to complete the thought. "Well... They would be the crazy ones". He chuckled softly to himself and shook his head at the absurdity of it all.
"Something funny?" Said Luna's dreamy voice beside him.
Harry's head snapped around to see Luna lean back, propping herself up on one elbow, giving him yet another quizzical look. "No...I...uh.." He searched for an excuse that failed to come to him. "It's...nothing". Her eyes burrowed into him in such a way that he was sure that she could read his mind. Somehow Luna had a way of making you feel like you were the only person in the world when she was looking at you. It was intense and highly unnerving. He also had the distinct feeling that she did not believe him. He averted his eyes quickly and carefully laid back down, folding his arms behind his head.
"I heard my roomates talking tonight. They said you and Ginny were a couple."
"Yeah."
"That's very nice. I like Ginny. She's always been very kind to me. Did you two kiss?"
Harry felt his cheeks become warm. Sometimes she could be very direct with her questions. There was no beating around the bush with Luna. He wanted to say "none of your business," but since almost the entire Gryfindor sixth year class saw him mauling her the other day, he could not deny it. He was positive the whole school would have known by now. Still he felt very strange to be discussing the subject of kissing with Luna. He had a feeling that she was not very experienced in that area, and maybe that's why she was asking. In fact, he was pretty sure she had never kissed anyone ever. "Umm... Well, yes," he answered casually as if it was no big deal. He could feel her body shift dramatically and felt her gaze penetrating the side of his head. He turned to look back at her and realized just how close they were. "Why do you ask?" He said searching her silvery eyes.
"No reason."
Harry realized that he was so close that he could feel her breath on his face. It was warm and it smelled like peppermint. He caught himself inhaling ever so slightly. "I suppose you heard then. About the other day."
"No I haven't heard anything. What happened?"
"Oh well, I just thought you already heard and that's why you were asking, seeing as how news spreads like wildfire around here. Anyways, I kissed Ginny for the first time after the Quidditch game yesterday. In front of everyone in the Gryfindor common room no less."
"Really?" She asked turning back to look up at the sky. Harry studied her profile, the way the moon illuminated the contours of her face made he look unearthly. She said nothing more and continued to gaze upwards. Harry felt that the conversation had ended abruptly. But surprisingly he found that it felt good talking to Luna about himself and Ginny. She was the only one he could open up to and not feel like she would judge him or run off to go gossip about him with her friends. Afterall he couldn't discuss this with Ron, and he felt like Hermione would "awwww, how cute" so much that he would get quite sick. She was pretty close with Ginny and he thought her reactions might become a little too girly for his taste.
"Well, " He continued, looking upwards again. "It wasn't planned or anything. I had definitely wanted to kiss her for a while, but I didn't know that yesterday would be the day, you know? It was definitely unexpected."
"The best kisses usually are."
Harry felt his eyes open wide. "Luna Lovegood knows about kisses? Unexpected, wonderful kisses?" He felt at a loss for words. He was so sure that someone like Luna could not of had experience with kissing before. Not that she wasn't attractive, she was, in her own way. But she was different, and Harry had known firsthand what it was like for a teenager to be different, to not fit the mold. He couldn't imagine what it was like for Luna. With the terrible way her classmates treated her, he was convinced that the bestower of her "unexpected" kisses was not a Hogwart's student. "Yes they are," he replied after a period of silent reflection. He wanted desperately to ask her who she had been kissing, but felt it was too much of an uncomfortable subject for him to broach.
"So what was it like? To kiss Ginny, I mean, did you enjoy it?"
"Of course. I like her a whole lot, so of course I enjoyed it."
"Hmm. But what was it like?" She said turning her head to look back at him. Harry met her gaze and felt quite uneasy with where the conversation was going. This was getting a little too personal. His mind drifted back to the night before when he had kissed Ginny and he felt a strong rush of emotion.
"It was... It was... Wonderful. It was full of intensity and passion. I mean, she kissed me with such force that it almost knocked me off my feet. It was like we had to kiss each other right then and there or else we would burst into flames. It was... explosive. It was everything I could of ever hoped for. The perfect kiss!" He blurted out without hesitation, caught off guard by his openess.
"Hmmm." Was Luna's only reply.
Harry could not believe that he had said all of that outloud, to Luna no less. These were his most private thoughts and it scared him to realize how easy it was to reveal them to her. She seemed to possess an innate knack for getting information out of him, like he would feel better somehow if he told her all his secrets. "Luna, why do you want to know about me and Ginny? I mean, why did you want to know what it was like to kiss her?"
"I'm so glad that you enjoyed a kiss like that." she replied, her voice even dreamier than usual. She put such a strange emphathesis on the word "that" that he instantly felt annoyed.
"What do you mean you are glad I enjoyed a kiss like that? Why wouldn't I have? I just said it was amazing!" He retorted defensively, turning back glare at her. Wether or not Luna had kissed one or one hundred boys, he would not let her insinuate in any way that the kiss he and Ginny had was subpar. Besides, she never answered his question.
"I guess Harry..." She began, looking back at him so now the tips of their noses were only inches apart. Harry could feel the heat generating from her body. He instantly felt goosebumps creep over his arms as the chilly night air above him and Luna's heat beside him collided. He found himself staring at her mouth, a queer feeling rising from the bottom of his gut. "Some prefer spontaneous combustion. While others prefer a slow burn."
Harry gulped hard and felt his heart start to beat a little faster than usual. "Why is Luna saying all this?" He thought wildly, once again looking at her lips. The tone of her voice was decidedly seductive, yet by the look of complete innocence on her face it was clear that she had no idea what effect her words had on him. It seemed like an eternity had passed between them before anything was said. Harry didn't know what to make of her words. He wanted to ask her what she meant, but felt uncharacteristically shy. He felt his mouth had grown dry as he opened it to speak, but Luna beat him to the punch.
"I guess by your silence, you don't know what I mean."
Harry stared back at her and shook his head.
"I've come to understand," She continued turning away from him again, "that a kiss can mean many things. It can mean lust, happiness, sadness, hello or goodbye. It can be passionate, polite, tender..."
Harry wondered where she was going with this, and wondered who was the one she was having lenghty discussions about kissing with.
"A kiss is a wonderful expression. And it's always different. Ever changing from who you kiss to whomever you kiss next."
Harry thought he felt her inch closer. His mouth grew even drier and he licked his lips.
"And everyone has their own idea of what they think is a perfect kiss. You enjoy a kiss that is hard and fast. Quick and to the point. One where the passion 'explodes' off the bat and then it's over."
He opened his mouth to reply but she cut him off.
"And that's wonderful Harry...for you."
He could swear he detected the same seductive quality in her voice again. But this time her expression seemed to be less than innocent. He could swear he detected a mischievous glint in her eyes.
"But you see, some prefer things quite differently. Some like a slow buildup of soft and tender kisses, ones that caress you lightly, ones that grow more urgent. Ones that finally release into a most fantastic passion."
Harry closed his eyes and let her words wash over him. He had never expected anyone to speak like this before, like some sort of romance novel come to life. But he had to admit it sounded wonderful. He felt his mouth twitch upwards slightly thinking of how good that would be with Ginny. Yes, the kiss they shared before was like a firecracker going off, but he certainly did not mean to imply that was his only idea of an ideal kiss. He did say it was "perfect," but he could enjoy a slow burn like anyone, especially Luna. Before he could open up his eyes and start to defend himself he caught a strong whiff of peppermint. Instantly his eyelides flew open and he saw Luna leaning over him in dangerous proximity, their chests touching slightly. Her long hair was cascading down her shoulder, the tips brushing Harry's glasses. He felt his pulse begin to race as he reached up to push back the tumbling waves that obscured the side of her face. As he did so she reached up and caught his hand in hers. Slowly she leaned in even further and Harry instinctively closed his eyes and parted his lips.
The moment he felt Luna's soft lips upon his he lifted his head up to meet her. Harry reached up and encircled her in his arms, wanting to crush her into him, but he felt her pull back. He opened up his eyes to see her shake her head and mouth the words "Not yet." Soon she was again kissing him softly, moving from nibbling his lips to placing featherlight kisses on his jawline and down his neck. She continued to kiss slowly back up towards his mouth, skimming over his chin. Their mouths met once again and Harry felt her kiss back with more pressure. His lips felt like they were on fire and he could feel her softly lick them, sending his mind reeling from the new sensation. She made light circles in his hair with her fingertips, sending a shiver go down his spine as he pulled her closer.
Suddenly she pulled away and Harry felt a shock as his hot lips met the chilly night air. "See what I mean?" He heard Luna say through sharp, gasping breaths.
Harry reached up with his free hand and touched his lips, which were now tender and swollen. He was positive he was trembling. "How could she stop now!' He thought incredulously. He looked up at her and saw that her cheeks were flushed and her lips were the most delicious cherry color. Slowly she leaned back down over him letting her mouth stop inches from his. He could feel her breath, hot on his face. "God, please kiss me now," he thought violently, reaching up to stroke her cheek. As if reading his mind she began to kiss him with such a frenzy, her tongue finding his. Harry could not think, he could not breathe. He grunted and used all the power left in his body to roll him and Luna over so that now he was above her. Glorious ages seemed to pass as their tongues searched each others mouths and their lips collided a million times over. Gradually things began to slow and she started to place soft kisses on his cheeks. She pulled away and began to touch his face. He opened his eyes and saw Luna beneath him, her hair tangled and her eyes shining brighter than he had ever seen, reflecting the moon above. Luna's kiss had been captivating, completely unique and unlike anything he had experienced before. It was just like her.
As the euphoria he had been feeling beagn to fade, reality started to seep back into him as he comprehended what had just taken place. "I just made out with Luna Lovegood!" He thought with disbelief. "She kissed me... And I didn't try to stop her... And I liked it...alot! Maybe too much." He sat up and turned hs back to her.
"Something wrong, Harry?"
"What happened Luna? Why did you kiss me?"
"I thought that was clear? Remember I was telling you how a kiss is different from person to person."
Harry felt his mouth agape. He turned around to face her and saw that she seemed quite content with her answer. "Does she really expect me to believe that ? That this was just a way to prove a point?" He thought. Then again this was Luna, so he really couldn't be all too surprised that she would say or do something so outrageous. "But still, this is much different than heliopaths, butterbeer necklaces, and roaring lion hats."
"So," He started, "you just wanted to...ummm...prove a point then?"
"Of course, Harry."
She seemed to be oblivious to the fact that it was a highly unsatisfying answer. Whatever her reason, he was flabbergasted to say the least. "Oh no.. .Ginny," he thought as if a light had just been switched on inside him. "Oh God, I've cheated on Ginny." Once again he imagined her finding out the news, her face white with shock. He could feel her cold, hard slap across his cheek. He could see Ron ready to explode with anger and Hermione shaking her head in dissapointment. He could hear and see the snickers and pointing of his classmates around him. He felt angry at himself for letting this happen, and confused by why it happened in the first place. He felt completely dumbfounded yet strangely satisfied. He didn't want to admit to himself that Luna Lovegood had just given him the best kiss of his life, even better than...
"Wait!" He snapped before he could finish the thought. "Luna, I need to know the real reason you kissed me. I mean, yes, you've definitely proven your point... But I mean, you were the one who brought up kissing in the first place, you asked me about Ginny, you asked how it was, you made it seem like me and Ginny's kiss couldn't compare to..."
"Okay, slow down," she cut him off with a laugh. "Harry, I never meant to imply that you didn't know how to kiss..."
"That's not what I said..."
"Because you certainly do," She continued. "It's just well... When I asked you about Ginny it was a natural curiousity. Then when you described your kiss, well it sounded quite wonderful, and as I have never had the opportunity to kiss anyone before, it seemed like something I wanted to try. It sounded rather enjoyable."
Harry could not believe what he was hearing. Did she really expect him to believe with the way she had carried on that she had never kissed anyone before, ever? That Harry was her first kiss and that she kissed him because she merely thought it sounded like an enjoyable thing to do? "Wait a minute, are you saying that I am your first kiss? But what about 'how unexpected kisss are the best' and all that stuff about slow burns? I mean you sounded as if you were an expert!" He roared. "Not to mention the way you kissed me, I mean wow! Luna, are you trying to tell me that you have never done that before!"
"Oh no, no one's ever wanted to kiss me before."
Harry still had trouble accepting that the way Luna kissed him was not the result of previous study, but a completely natural instinct. He remembered his first kiss, with Cho Chang. It was quite a disaster really. "Then...how...why...wha?" Was all he managed to get out.
"Well, I used to read these most fabulous muggle books my father would smuggle home to me. He told me they would teach me all about womanly ways and everything my mother wasn't able to tell me of, since she died and all. They were quite wonderful. They had swashbuckling heroes and beautiful women on the cover. They were quite informative," she finished with a wink.
"So this is why she sounded like a romance novel," he thought, "because she got everything from reading them."
"So let me get this straight: you didn't kiss me because you,' He paused, embarrased to ask the last question, "because you like me?"
"Oh Harry, I like you! You have always been so nice to me! You have been a true friend!"
Harry couldn't help but feel conflicted. Glad that she didn't seem to harbor any deep feelings for him, but disappointed that she didn't seem to have any feelings at all. Even a teesny bit.
"But I always wanted to see if what these books taught me about kissing was true. And after hearing about how perfect your kiss was, well, I wanted to see if maybe you could enjoy a different kind of kiss."
Harry still could not quite believe everything but it was starting to make some sense. Actually he started to feel pretty foolish. Playing back the conversation in his mind, Luna never did actually say that she herself enjoyed kisses and such. It was heavily implied, but unconsciously so. It was clear in Luna's mind, and she was unaware of the context in which her words were being taken.
"And since I have never had a kiss before, and no one was lining up to do the honor, I thought I could practice on you. It was like killing two Hovering-Hellerskunks with one stone!"
Harry could not help but laugh as he heard the enthusiasm in her voice. Such enthusiasm he had not heard from her since he had asked her to Slughorn's party.
"I mean, what a perfect way to have a first kiss! Under the stars, with someone you truly care for. A true friend! "
Harry felt a weird pang shoot through him as she said the word friend again.
"After all, I don't know what I am doing, and when I heard how experienced you were I thought..."
"Luna I'm not that experienced."
"You could, you know, help me, tell me if I was doing anything wrong..." She began to trail off into a yawn.
"No need for that." Harry thought feeling slightly warm.
He looked over at Luna and saw her struggle to hold back another yawn. Harry looked up to see that the moon was slowly starting to descend. He was not sure exactly how long they had been out here but figured maybe it was time to call it a night. So far they had yet to see anything resembling a shooting star, and he figured if one did appear,they probably missed it during their impromptu makeout. "Luna, maybe we should, you know, call it a night? You look tired, and I am sure we've broken curfew a zillion times over."
"Mmm," mumbled Luna contorting herself into the weirdest stretch he had ever seen. "Boy, the ground sure is hard. Ok Harry, we should go. I think my mum must have been too busy tonight so show up. Some other time I suppose?"
"Yeah, some other time."
Harry stood up first, helping Luna to her feet and began to gather the blanket up in his arms.
"I do have to say, it's such a shame that you and Ginny had to break up," Luna mentioned casually.
"What?"
"I heard some girls talking about it during transfiguration, how you two broke up soon after you got together."
Harry blinked. What in the world was she talking about. "Luna, me and Ginny haven't broken up. We are still a couple. I believe what you heard was gossip. Completely untrue."
Luna stood in silence for a minute, a blank expression on her face. "So this means..." She looked upset. "Oh no, that's the only reason I thought it would be ok to kiss you! And, and she has always been so kind to me! And here I go and do this. Oh, I am sure she won't be my friend much longer!"
He was glad to hear that Luna didn't set out to hurt Ginny in any way. She thought it all innocent practice, with a friend who was unattatched. He also vaguely recalled her saying "I heard you and Ginny were a couple." Past tense. Harry could not believe how daft he could be sometimes. "No Luna, it's fine. It's just a misunderstanding. Besides, it can be our little secret." Harry could see she instantly felt relieved. Luna didn't have many friends at Hogwarts, and it would crush her to lose one, especially over something like this. In fact Harry was starting to feel like he was in one of those muggle tv shows that the Dursley's loved so much. One with too many misunderstandings to count. "So, what was the reason you heard? Why me and Ginny broke up? She thought I was too much man for her?" He snorted.
"Oh, something about how you had to break up with her because of Lord Voldemort. That you thought going out with Ginny would make her some sort of target for him or the death eaters. That's all I was able to hear. A boy behind me turned his frog into a swarm of bees and with the all chaos."
Harry felt nauseous. He knew all of this was false, just the product of gossip and rumor. Deep down though,he could not help but realize that what Luna was saying rang true. If somehow Lord Voldemort found out about him and Ginny he could use her as a device to lure him into his clutches. Or he could simply hurt or kill Ginny just for the sport of it. All the scenarios of what could happen flashed through his mind and he felt even worse.
"Harry, are you alright? You don't look so well."
Harry shook his head, he felt quite ill in fact. Harry and Luna set of on the long walk back to the castle in uncomfortable silence. Harry had convinced her that all he needed was something to eat and he would feel much better. She seemed to take him at his word, but once again he had the funny feeling that she didn't quite buy his explanation. "Luna, what if I did break up with Ginny?"
"Oh, no Harry! I sure hope this isn't because of me!"
"Oh, no," said Harry quickly. He did have to admit that, like it or not, he was attracted to Luna. He wouldn't of let her kiss him if he wasn't. He wouldn't of returned that kiss if he wasn't . And what a kiss it was. One that he wouldn't mind repeating again. But that wasn't what he meant, and things in his life right now felt too complicated to start opening up that can of worms. "It's about what you said, or rather what you heard. Maybe I should call it off with Ginny. I didn't really realize that I could be putting her in danger. Or maybe I did and didn't want to see it. Whatever the reason, maybe ending things would be best. For everyone."
Luna stopped in her tracks and grabbed Harry's shoulder, bringing him to a halt as well. "I think it's quite noble of you Harry," she said, "to want to protect her like that, but..."
"But what?"
"Shouldn't this be the kind of choice that you and Ginny make together?"
"I suppose, but I can't stand to think that I am putting her in danger."
"But Ginny is a very clever witch. I believe she would be able to handle herself extremely well."
"If anything happened to her, I couldn't live with myself."
"But everyone is in danger now Harry, why should you be unhappy in the process? No matter what, people will get hurt, people will die. Regardless of your relationships, everyone is in danger. Does that mean you should turn your back on everyone else you care about as well?" There was something pleading in her eyes, and her voice was noticeably different. It sounded stronger, and full of conviction. A sharp contrast to it's usual dreaminess.
"No, I suppose not."
"Everyone would miss you very much if you did. I would miss you," she added quietly.
"Well, I don't plan on making any decisions about me and Ginny yet," he said firmly, hoping to think things over once he got back to his room. "Oh, and by the way Luna... I would miss you too." They started walking back towards the glow of the castle again. As they reached the courtyard where they had met up hours before, Harry was deep in thought when out of the corner of his eye he swore he saw something bright shoot above the treetops. "Luna, did you?"
"Yes, I did," she said, her voice was full of emotion.
"Me too."