Chapter 30: The Attack Before Christmas Break!
"What do you think of this Heir business, Draco?" Harry asked one day as they both just finished an assignment.
"I'm not sure what to make of it. It seems too brazen of someone, if you ask me. And I don't mean just because they're attacking students now," Draco said.
"What exactly do you mean then?" Harry asked.
"To call themselves an heir to a founder? Yeah. That is not something you should claim lightly. Wizarding Society as a whole take family names and positions seriously, regardless of their thoughts on muggle borns. To say you're the heir of a founder… Let alone daring to say you're Slytherin's Heir? That is not something someone would do as just a joke," Draco said.
"I'm guessing there isn't anyone in Slytherin with strong enough ties to claim they're an heir?" Harry asked.
Draco shook his head. "It is possible there are a number of students descended from Slytherin here… Maybe even yourself… But none that can call themselves his heir. Someone of that level of status in Slytherin would be known, if not extremely proud of the title," Draco said.
The two lapsed into silence for a moment before Draco then gave a chuckle.
"What?" Harry asked.
"Nothing. I was just wondering if Crabbe and Goyle would be asking me about it again tonight," Draco said.
"I take it they've asked you a lot," Harry said.
Draco nodded. "Oh yes they have. I've lost count of how many times. I would be annoyed, but it's Crabbe and Goyle," he said.
"How are things with them? What do they think of our talking to each other? I've noticed they aren't usually around when we have our discussions," Harry said.
"They're Crabbe and Goyle. They're fine with it. I was concerned a bit at first. I've started to question some things, but I wasn't sure where they stood on certain issues," Draco said.
"Where do they stand?" Harry asked.
"Wherever I do. That's exactly what they said," Draco replied. He then shook his head in disbelief as he added, "I'm not sure if they're that dedicated to me, or if they usually just leave such decisions to others."
Harry gave a laugh. "Truly a perplexing question," he said. Draco chuckled to that.
"I wondered what they would think about it. Especially given the way our first meeting went," Harry said after a moment.
"You mean during first year on the train going to Hogwarts?" Draco asked.
"Yeah," Harry answered simply.
"If anything… You gained their respect by not backing down and they could tell you weren't just blowing hot air," Draco replied.
He then gave a stretch. "The reason I don't usually involve them in our discussions, is because they would serve no purpose. They can be useful in other ways in other places during such talks," Draco said.
Harry nodded in understanding. "Things do seem to be good between you three during classes and such at least. It is also good to have people play to their strengths," Harry said.
"Very true. Pansy also likes the space we have when Crabbe and Goyle aren't around," Draco added.
"So… How about that Dueling Club?" Harry asked with a grin.
Draco smirked to that. "As useless as I figured it would be. Though it was entertaining," he said.
"Is that before or after your duel with Ron?" Harry asked.
"The first part was entertaining too. But the best part was getting to put Ron in his place," Draco said still smirking. Harry gave a chuckle and shook his head. "What did you think of it?" Draco then asked.
Harry was in thought for a moment. "As odd as the expression was… Luna was right to call it a very entertaining train wreck. I will admit I did learn a couple of things from the first demonstration though," Harry said.
"Entertaining train wreck?" Draco asked curiously.
"Yep," Harry answered giving a chuckle.
Draco shook his head. He only knew Luna in passing, but that seemed like something she would say. Draco wasn't sure what to make of Harry's close friendship with the strange girl. He just took a neutral stance on it. Maybe it was another case of Harry seeing something no one else did. Her being kind of cute, even if odd, probably helped matters too. If she wasn't talking about strange creatures so often, she could be very popular.
Draco did wonder though if there was more than just friendship there. Harry was pretty much as close to dating as you one could be with Hermione without making it official. Why was Harry surrounding himself with other girls as well? Harry wasn't the type to always look for opportunities in dating regards. He was very much a Hufflepuff in that way, but there was no way he and Luna were just friends. They were too close for that.
There was one reason, one obscure reason, Draco could think for it. However, he was pretty sure Harry was only going to be head of one family. He didn't have a need for two wives. "But if he did…" Draco thought. That would be something.
Harry was going to be very powerful politically as it was. If he was heir and later head for two ancient and noble houses? That would be enough to rock the British wizarding world to its core.
"How exactly did you learn anything from even that?" Draco asked after a moment. He was using mulling over the odd expression as a means to pause and think for a moment.
"Professor Snape taught us a decent stance, even if he only showed it. We also learned a new spell. Professor Snape didn't waste any wand movements and while they were quick… they were still visible and easy to read," Harry said.
"That is true. I already knew that stance of his, so I guess I didn't pick up on that," Draco said. He would have to correct that mistake. It was easy to get caught up in what you knew and think some of the things you see as regular were the same for others.
"There's also one more thing," Harry said grinning.
"What was that?" Draco asked.
"Professor Lockhart can do a great imitation of a ball being thrown against a wall," Harry said.
Draco then laughed to that as Harry did as well. They were thinking about all the rolling Lockhart did after being hit by Professor Snape's spell before he hit the back wall. The man did do a pretty remarkable job, for anyone else at least, in acting unaffected by that.
[-] [-] [-]
Luna gave a sad hum as she read the letter from her dad. She loved her daddy, but he could be really annoying at times. He just sent her a letter saying he won't be home for Christmas this year and she should probably sign up to stay at Hogwarts. That might have been fun if the circumstances were right, but that wasn't the case this year.
Ginny was as distant as ever and her family were worried about her. They were taking her home for the break and Luna really hoped it would help her friend. She didn't know what to do.
Harry and Hermione were spending part of the break together again. Susan and Hannah were visiting their families once more. Luna still wouldn't have minded staying at Hogwarts for the holiday on her own, if she didn't realize recently how much she actually hated being alone.
She had been very attached to her friends in Hufflepuff after her roommates ended their bullying. She knew she would be spending all the time she could around Harry and Hermione that weekend, but she kept doing that afterwards as well. She would probably be seen as clingy, but Harry and the others didn't seem to care if she was. They even seemed to kind of think it adorable.
Luna wasn't sure if that was good or not. Was she adorable, adorable? Or was it little kid adorable? She didn't want them thinking that. She was just a year behind them. She was new to this crush thing, but was pretty sure you didn't want any crushes you had seeing you as a little kid. If they thought her adorable, adorable… that was probably really good.
"Maybe I'll see what the ghosts do for Christmas… Maybe there will be secret passageways only open for Christmas break," Luna thought to herself. Something like that would usually cheer her up. It would be exciting for her! This time though? She sighed at the thought. It was just her trying to cover up how she would be missing her friends.
"What's wrong?" Harry asked as he happened to pass by at just that moment. Luna blushed a little bit at being caught sighing.
"Nothing…" she tried.
"Really? That was kind of a big sigh for you," Hermione asked.
Luna thought what to do here. She decided to hand them the letter. It would be easier.
"That's terrible…" Hermione said as she finished reading it.
"Leads are important. And usually daddy would just take me with him," Luna said.
"It still sucks," Harry said.
Luna could only nod to that. She wanted to meet her daddy again for the holidays. She missed him and wanted to tell him all about her friends. He would be so genuinely happy to hear that. Her father hadn't really been genuinely happy, since her mom died. Hearing his daughter was having a good year at Hogwarts and made friends, would be a great Christmas present for him Luna thought.
Harry looked to Hermione in question. She blinked in thought a couple of times and gave him a nod.
"If you wanted…" Harry started, getting Luna's attention. "You could come and spend Christmas with us," he said.
Luna's eyes widened, but she dared not smile. "Really?" she asked in a breathless voice.
"We'd love it! You could even spend the second half of Christmas with my parents and me," Hermione said with a smile.
There were two reasons she said that. One was really shamefully petty. A really small and nasty part of Hermione didn't want Luna spending Christmas with Harry alone. Fortunately, this mattered to her in an amount equal to how petty it was.
The second reason, and most important and bigger. It was because she never had a friend sleepover at her house. Hermione loved the idea of that! She couldn't have Harry do that yet, and she didn't really count her time at Hogwarts as a sleepover.
It also meant Luna wouldn't have to be alone at Hogwarts for the holidays. Hermione knew how lonely something like that would seem after having friends. She had always been fine being alone, but that was before she had friends and knew how important they were.
Luna smiled to that. She grinned widely to that. "I'd like that," she said.
Hermione then made a happy noise and hugged Luna tightly. "It will be so much fun! I have to tell my parents!" she said.
"Will they understand?" Harry asked.
"I'll tell them Luna's father suddenly had a business trip pop up on him," she said.
Luna nodded. "It is the truth," she said.
"It's settled then. I'll arrange things with Boss. If for some reason Hermione's parents oppose the idea, you can stay with me the whole time," Harry said.
Luna blushed deeply to that. She really liked that idea. She felt she liked it too much. She wasn't sure what she would do being alone with Harry for that long. The silver eyed girl was actually hoping she ended up spending the second half of the holidays with Hermione and her family, oddly enough.
That wasn't as… troublesome for her. She really liked Hermione and even thought her pretty. She wasn't as dangerous for Luna's heart and feelings as Harry was. It was a good dangerous, but still dangerous.
"Great!" Hermione said. She then gave the younger girl a smile and said, "I'm pretty sure they'll be happy to have you stay with us, Luna. They'd like meeting another witch in training I think."
Luna smiled. "This might actually turn out to be one of the best Christmases I've had in a while," she said while feeling warm in her heart. She wouldn't be alone for Christmas. She would be with friends!
"I know I'm looking forward to it," Harry said with a grin.
Luna looked to him with her large eyes as she said, "You really like the idea of having two lovely witches with you." They both missed the hint of mischievousness in her voice.
Harry blushed and Hermione gasped at him a little. She then giggled and said, "I think Luna and I will have a lot of fun with you."
Harry grinned and said, "Doesn't change the fact I'll have two lovely witches with me this Christmas."
Hermione blushed and Luna did as well. They looked to each other and then to Harry. Luna's heart beat faster as strange and new ideas filled her mind. There were also some less strange ones as well, such as the three of them enjoying Christmas Celebrations together. She had to admit Harry was fast on his feet so to say. He took their teasing in stride and returned it.
To cover her sudden awkwardness, Luna spoke up. "I can't wait to see how muggles celebrate Christmas," she said smiling to Harry and Hermione in turn.
Hermione smiled as she said, "We'll make sure you get to experience plenty of a muggle styled Christmas." She felt that would be a great way to keep Luna from feeling lonely, since her dad wasn't spending Christmas with her. She really couldn't believe that. That was terrible and incredibly irresponsible for a parent to suddenly leave and tell their child not to come home for Christmas.
[-] [-] [-]
Luna found herself extra cheerful as the Holiday Break approached. She was really looking forward to it, despite not going home. Harry had since told her about where he lived. He told her about the Rust District. He told her about his past and how he no longer lived with his Aunt and Uncle. She really liked the idea about The Rust District. It sounded so very interesting. And she would get to see all of it over the break!
The first year Ravenclaw girl was so happy she actually found herself skipping a time or two in the hallways. She was even humming Christmas Carols. The dirty blonde also looked forward to meeting Hermione's parents. She wondered what they were like. Hermione said they weren't really that interesting, but warned they might ask her a lot of questions.
Luna thought it would be fun to explain things about magic to muggles. Hermione gave her a few pointers on how to approach explaining things to them. She also asked Luna not to say much about Harry and her. Luna didn't get that, but decided to follow Hermione's example there. Besides, there was so much more to talk about than Harmony, as Hannah called them. Though that would be a great topic.
The young girl soon saw Harry, Hannah, Susan, and Ernie coming out of the library together. "Hermione isn't with you all?" Luna couldn't help but ask instead of a proper greeting.
Hannah hid a giggle behind her hand. "She was… But it's Hermione and that is a library. She's gotten better about it all, but she is still hard to tear away from books," she said.
"I haven't said it to her, but I've wondered why she isn't in Ravenclaw. She's really smart and she loves learning. That is pure Ravenclaw all the way," Luna said.
"You'll have to ask her yourself one day," Harry said.
"So, what were you all doing in there?" Luna asked.
"We were studying a bit, but then we started talking about the heir. Justin's been worried lately," Ernie said.
"Most muggleborns are to an extent, even if they act like they aren't," Susan said.
"True. I've told him to try and play it safe and keep a low profile. No reason to be taking unnecessary risks so close to the Holiday Break. He's never really had much reason to keep it to himself he's a muggleborn before though, so I worry. He loves talking about it and we all usually love hearing about it," Ernie said.
"He shouldn't really be ashamed of being a muggleborn," Luna said.
"Not saying he should be. He's great for talking about the muggle world and magic world as well. He's great at explaining things to us and drinks up all we tell him about the magical world. Just been saying that ain't something you should go around spreading with this heir business afoot," Ernie said. He then frowned. He really was worried for his best friend.
The group walked together a little and then ran into Hagrid. He was hard to miss being so large and wearing that coat of his. "Hagrid?" Harry asked.
"Ah Harry, Hannah, Susan… You must be Luna Lovegood. You look a lot like your mother…" Hagrid said sounding saddened at the end, even though Luna gave a warm smile. He then turned and looked to Ernie and said, "You look like your father, but got your mother's hair, Ernie."
Ernie smiled to that and asked, "What brings you inside, Hagrid?" He hadn't really talked to the giant of a man before. His parents told him he was a friendly sort and was great to listen to when he talked about something.
"Sad business, I'm afraid. Something's been killing the roosters. Needing to ask Dumbledore to place a charm around the coop ta keep it safe and ward off whatever it is," Hagrid said with a frown.
"Sorry to hear that… What would be attacking the roosters?" Ernie asked.
"It's either foxes or a Blood-Sucking Bugbear, near as I can tell," Hagrid replied.
"I hope you get what you need from Dumbledore," Harry said.
"I be hoping as well. Be seeing you all around," the large man said as he left the students with a farewell wave.
[-] [-] [-]
The group walked a little further and around a corner. The five students then came to a dead stop. "Ahhh!" Hannah screamed after a moment as she grabbed Susan tightly. Susan was staring with wide eyes as tears formed in them and she sniffed.
"What happened?!" Ernie asked in a breathless voice. "I was just saying…" he said in shock. He took in a breath and let it out as he clenched a fist and shut his eyes tight trying to fight back tears. "Why didn't he listen…" Ernie muttered.
Luna stared as well. She was no longer in a cheery mood. She was also glad she wasn't staying at school over the Holiday Break. The small blonde girl grabbed Harry's arm and squeezed tightly. She scooted in as close as she could and shivered.
She may be glad she wasn't staying here, but she really hated that her dad was leaving her for the Holidays now. "Why couldn't he have gone on a trip later?" Luna thought in worry. She wanted to hug him tightly and make sure he wouldn't disappear as well.
In front of them, there were two motionless figures. One was a dark grey almost black semi-transparent figure floating off the ground eerily. It was Nearly Headless Nick. Next to him, was a smaller figure. This one was Justin. He looked frozen in terror. He pretty much was. He was petrified just like Colin and Mrs. Norris.
Harry frowned at the scene. He almost wished he was staying at Hogwarts this Christmas Break. He would have the full run of the Castle and no distractions. He could start getting to the bottom of this business. He would have to really work hard on figuring this out once he returned.
He had no doubts Dumbledore would again prioritize controlling the information over actually doing something to stop the attacks. He didn't get how the man could just leave it like this when he clearly knew what was going on.
"What do we have here?" an annoying voice asked as Peeves came floating through a hall. He then froze in shock himself. He then took in a deep breath.
"You better not make a joke of this," Harry muttered darkly to the poltergeist.
Peeves actually seemed a bit worried at those words It was almost like he believed Harry was serious. He then shouted, "Attack! Attack! No Ghost! No Wizard! No Student is Safe! Attack! Attack! Run for your lives! The Heir is Back!" He then shot off through the halls continuing to shout.
It wasn't long until a number of students nearby and a few professors arrived. Everyone started to whisper among themselves. They were mostly worried about Sir Nick. They didn't know what could do that to a ghost.
"What is going on here?" a strict voice called.
It was Professor McGonagall.
"We just came from the library and were talking to Hagrid before we found them," Ernie said.
"Just like he said. There was another attack and we just found them," Harry added.
Professor McGonagall looked over the two figures. She and Professor Flitwick started to discuss what to do. They easily floated Justin to the Hospital Wing, but they weren't sure what to do about Nearly Headless Nick.
Everyone started gossiping about the double attack. "And so close to Christmas…" a fifth year girl said to her friends in worry.
"Ye notice how Potter was at the scene of two attacks?" Seamus said in a hushed whisper to Dean that was purposefully loud enough to be over heard by Harry passing by.
"What are you playing at, Seamus? Another one of your true tales?" Harry asked dangerously. He did not like being accused of attacking Justin. He was angry the problem hadn't been solved, despite Dumbledore seemingly knowing who was responsible for the attacks and the chamber.
"I'm just saying. Might fishy, that is," Seamus said staring at Harry without backing down.
"Justin is a fellow Hufflepuff and a friend," Harry said.
"There ain't no way it was Harry. The two of them have always gotten along well. Plus, like Harry said… Justin is a fellow Hufflepuff," Ernie defended him.
Dean nodded in agreement with the two. "Why would he have attacked Colin? How could he have attacked him? Surely you remember the bludger attacks? Harry and Draco were both in the Hospital Wing after that," Dean said.
Seamus raised his hands in surrender.
"You have a big fat mouth, Seamus. You should be careful. One day it will get you in trouble," Harry said.
"Is that threat?" Seamus asked.
"Just stating a fact. Can't believe you have the nerve to suggest I would attack a friend. Most of the time your tall tales can be mildly amusing. This is not one of those times," Harry said coldly.
Seamus swallowed nervously. "Alright… I get it. Sorry for saying it," he said in a poor attempt to apologize.
Harry shook his head and left with the others. Luna stared at Seamus in disappointment for a moment longer. The Irish boy gave a shiver. She didn't say a word, but her stare alone was enough to get to him. Maybe he shouldn't have said anything. He would admit he did have a big fat mouth.
[-] [-] [-]
For the remainder of the school year, no one shut up about the heir and the chamber. The Hufflepuffs seemed a little subdued since Justin was attacked. The badgers also seemed to be purposefully sticking closer together, regardless of if they were pure blood, half blood, or muggle born. Surprisingly, Lavender seemed a little down as well and she was glad to have Parvati to cheer her up.
Theories around the school grew wilder and wilder as to what Slytherin's beast was. Many started guessing who the heir could be, but no one really had solid guesses. Harry's name was briefly mentioned, but mostly to point out how absurd it was to say he was Slytherin's heir.
When the Holiday Break finally came, the student body couldn't have been more relieved. Almost everyone was leaving this year. With the beast and heir running around, no one wanted to stay in the castle with most of the people gone.
Everyone figured that would mean the heir would have free run of the castle and could attack students whenever they wanted. With so few people here, students feared you would get attacked and no one would find you until after the break.
Luna was even more glad she was going to have Christmas with Harry and Hermione. Not only would the school halls be extra lonely, they would be extra dangerous if she stayed. She did feel a little guilty though. She might not have decided to bother her dad with the details of her holiday break. A spiteful part of her felt angry about what he did.
If her dad decided going on a trip to search for some creature without her was the best idea for Christmas, he didn't need to know what her plans were. It wasn't like it would be hard for an owl to find her anyways. She wasn't even sure by this point if he would send her a letter Christmas Day.
"I'm being silly…" she thought to herself at that. She would just have to see on Christmas Day if he did or didn't. Surely, he wouldn't be that forgetful… She hoped.
Despite it all, the feast the night before everyone would leave saw the school in high Christmas Spirits. Many were making up for the scare they had this year with levity and Christmas Joy. They also really appreciated the Christmas decorations around Hogwarts. If one paid enough attention, they would realize there was a sense of relief underlying the change in mood. There was no way the heir would get anyone while they were at home with their families.
[-] [-] [-]
"Is it always like this for non-first years?" Luna asked from where she was sitting in a carriage going to Hogsmeade Station.
"Nope. We rode from the train to Hogwarts in magical carriages without anything pulling them," Hermione answered.
"Last Christmas it was like this though. With the reindeer and everything. I think they do that to give everyone a Christmas feel," Harry said.
"I like it. I can't wait until next year where I also get to ride one of those magical carriages," Luna said happily.
Harry was in quiet thought on the matter. He didn't know much about what happened to Luna's mom, but he did pick up she died not too many years ago at least. It was the way Luna usually danced around her mom or quickly moved the topic to her dad. He decided he would wait, but it was possible Luna might also see the thestrals. It wasn't anything to mention now though and ruin the good mood.
Luna was actually eagerly sitting on her knees on top of her seat looking out the carriage window. She really liked seeing Hogwarts covered in snow like this. It was very Christmasy and she liked that. She really didn't like being outside in the cold to look though. Inside a warm carriage, was much better.
Luna gave a nod to herself as she smiled and said, "Hogwarts really is very Postcard Pretty like this."
[-] [-] [-]
The train finally pulled into the station and Luna all but ran out to the platform. She was excited and also wanted to do this quickly, since she wouldn't be meeting her daddy. She constantly asked questions about what all they would do during the break on the train.
As soon as Harry and Hermione finally got off the train, which felt like forever to Luna, she grabbed both their hands and dragged them through the barrier. Harry barely was able to grab their overladen cart with all of the trunks. Hermione luckily managed to get a better hold on Hedwig's cage too.
There were so many people in the station proper. It was decorated up for Christmas as well with lights and hollies and all kinds of things. Luna stopped and stared in awe at the Christmas lights. Wizards usually used magical candles for light decorations. She was also amazed at the large tree reaching up to the high ceiling. It was probably even taller than the biggest tree in Hogwarts' Main Hall.
Hermione grinned as she decided she would get her parents to take her and Luna on a tour around London to several of the best and biggest Christmas trees. She hadn't done that in a while. She was sure it would be a lot of fun with Luna and the younger girl seemed to really like Christmas decorations.
"I always tell daddy we should do more decorating for Christmas," Luna said. She gave a slight frown as she thought of her mom.
Her mom was always the one to decorate for Christmas. After her death, their house had been on the dreary side by comparison the last couple of Christmases. Luna was wondering if that was why her dad decided he needed to go on his business trip this year.
"I see them Harry!" Hermione said and shook Luna from her sad thoughts. Luna looked around and saw Hermione waving to a couple of people. One of them was a girl who looked to be a couple of years older with bright blonde curly hair and a big smile. The other person was an older man of decent height with salt and pepper hair.
"Davey! Professor?" Harry greeted them.
"Hello, Harry! Hello, Hermione!" Davey said cheerfully.
"Harry. Hermione. I'm here because Boss is busy making sure this is an even better Christmas and he said he'd be damned if he let anyone interfere with that," the Professor said as he gave Harry a firm hand shake.
Davey was busy giving Hermione a friendly hug.
"This is Luna Lovegood," Harry quickly introduced the girl.
"Hello. I'm sorry about intruding like this…" Luna started.
Davey smiled and gave her a big hug. "Don't you worry about that, Luna. I love your name," Davey said.
Luna blushed as Davey hugged her. It was really warm and she was also a little caught off guard that the Wrackspurts seemed to really like her. Luna thought they liked Harry, but they seemed to like Davey even more. It was something curious.
Davey then gave a giggle as she stood back up and turned to Harry. "You brought home another girl this year. I think your starting to form a pattern," she said.
Harry was blushing as Hermione giggled after greeting the Professor herself. Luna grinned happily. She really liked this atmosphere already. It was really warm and friendly.
Harry then smiled and shrugged his shoulders at Davey. "You did warn me," he said causing Davey to blink a few times before she burst out laughing again. She didn't expect Harry to throw her teasing about him collecting girls before he started school back at her like that.
"I wonder if you'll bring another one home next Christmas then," she whispered to him before snickering. Harry blushed. He should have known better with Davey.
[-] [-] [-]
"Welcome to the Rust District," Harry said with a fond smile to Luna.
Luna was looking around at everything she could. It was such an amazing place she could already tell. The way it was decorated up for Christmas was wonderful too. She found all of the muggle things in the shop windows, as they walked, really curious. She only wished she had at least twenty more eyes to take it all in.
She even found the Warehouse area amazing as well. It was so cool the way it was set up. The noise of people laughing and talking together happily made her feel like she was in Felix Summerbee's famous pub. He was the one who created the Cheering Charm and made his pub at the time the most cheerful place in all the land. Sadly, it suddenly disappeared a couple of generations after his death. No one knew why.
Luna's dad suspected it was elves. The legendary Jubilee Elves that were always a cheerful lot. He said they were so impressed with his pub and work they took it with them when many of the magical creatures and peoples of yore went into hiding around magical Britain. He told her if a Witch or Wizard managed to contact them and earn their respect and trust, they would be whisked away. They would go to where the pub stood now in their realm.
Luna actually believed that story, or at least she wanted to believe it. She really liked it. She just wished they knew how to get the attention of Jubilee Elves. She supposed it made sense no one knew, or if they did, they didn't share the knowledge. Something like that was more or less sacred now.
It felt way too quickly for Luna before they were outside of where they would be staying for the Holiday Break. "Enjoy the tour?" Davey asked as she grinned from the kitchen area as she cooked for them.
"There wasn't enough time," Luna said with a cute pout.
Davey chuckled as she said, "Then it is a good thing you are staying for a while."
Luna smiled to that and nodded. "What I did see is amazing!" she said. Luna then went off as she talked about everything she already saw. Davey listened as she cooked away and hummed Christmas songs to herself.
Hermione added in her own thoughts every so often and explained some general muggle things to Luna. Harry provided more context given it was his home area and the Rust District was unique for the muggle world. Luna was really enjoying her holiday break already.
"Oh yeah. Remind me after supper to give you a package that arrived for you, Harry," Davey said. She then asked, "Who wants to set the table?"
Surprisingly it was Luna who eagerly volunteered. She smiled happily as she set the table for everyone. It would just be the four of them tonight. Luna was really looking forward to a home-cooked meal for once.
She hadn't had one in about two years. Her daddy always got carried away with the Quibbler and Luna hadn't really learned much about cooking yet. They usually had sandwiches and other easy to put together meals that didn't require much work. They even sometimes had cereal for supper. They did go out from time to time and Luna always had leftovers after that.
Having a home-cooked meal like this, was really nice Luna thought. She felt all warm inside. This was definitely something she needed. The last time Luna had a proper Christmas was before her mother died. As much as she loved her dad, things had been really off in their home since then.
[-] [-] [-]
Harry looked over the package Davey told him about after supper. It was small and there was a letter with it. Harry did what came naturally and opened the letter first.
Dear Heir Potter,
This is not customary of Gringotts' but I figured you would like this as an early Christmas present. We came across it while going through your family's vault. It is much more a task than we first thought it would be, but we are hard at work on it. I will keep you updated. Enjoy.
Sincerely,
Goldbite (Potter Family Accountant)
Harry opened the package after that. He stared in awe. It was a small leather-bound book with a dark brown cover. Across the top of the book in gold script letters, was a name, "Lily J. Evans".
Harry sat down on his bed and opened his mother's diary. He started reading with earnest. He would have to be careful he didn't stay up all night reading it. He had a lot of things he wanted to do with Luna and Hermione tomorrow.
[-] [-] [-]
"Luna?!" Hermione said with a gasp as she sat on her bed in the room she was sharing with the younger girl.
"What?" Luna asked innocently.
"Y-Y-You can't be wearing that…" Hermione said with a blush.
Luna frowned as she looked down at her favorite nightgown. "What's wrong with it? I've always loved this nightgown," she said.
"N-n-nightgown?! More like nightie…" Hermione said as she looked over the other girl. Luna twirled around trying to see if something was wrong with it.
The Ravenclaw girl was wearing a very sheer, almost transparent nightgown. The only reason her modesty was preserved was because she wore a pair of pink panties with it. Her growing chest was barely covered by what looked like fake feathers. The rest of it was sheer and didn't at all hide her light colored skin, slim waist with just a little curve and smooth flat stomach. It was far too mature in Hermione's mind.
"I don't get the problem. We're just sleeping. When I'm at home, I usually sleep naked. I'm pretty sure you wouldn't appreciate that though," Luna said.
Hermione blushed again. "Just don't go sneaking into Harry's room dressed like that," she said.
"Why would I?" Luna asked in confusion. She may be crushing on Harry, but she was pretty sure sleeping with a boy was kind of a big step.
"Just. Don't do it," Hermione said again as she sighed and plopped down on her bed. She might as well get used to it. When they visited her house, the two of them would be in the same bed. It wouldn't be a sleepover if they weren't.
[-] [-] [-]
"You seem a little tired, but in a really good mood. I'm guessing the package was something really good?" Davey asked as she served a yawning Harry his breakfast after the girls.
"It was. It was a diary from my mom during her school years," Harry said with a tried grin. He gave a yawn and added, "I might have stayed up too late into the night reading it."
"That's really good to hear!" Hermione said.
"Hermione's right. Don't forget you have company though," Davey said.
"That's why I plan to read it in the evenings or at nights only. Just need to be more careful," Harry said.
"Anyways. I was planning to take Luna to see the arcade," Harry said after a few bites.
"Are you sure…" Hermione started. "If you want to read more of your mom's diary… We won't stop you. Will we? Luna?"
Luna was a little torn here. She wanted Harry to take all the time he needed, but she also really didn't want to spend her whole Christmas sitting around while Hermione and Harry read books.
Luckily, she didn't need to say anything. Harry shook his head. "Like I said. I'll read after we finish for the day," he said. Harry turned to Luna and grinned as he said, "I wouldn't want to miss your reaction to seeing an arcade."
Luna smiled warmly to that and blushed a little in happiness. She liked that they wanted to do things like this with her. "I look forward to pretty much anything you have planned," she said.
[-] [-] [-]
The next few days were amazing for Luna. She couldn't believe the things muggles had. It was amazing! She didn't get how it was Hermione couldn't believe most of the things she talked about over the year considering all the stuff muggles had.
Pictures that moved for over an hour, almost two, and going to all kinds of places? Colorful screens playing music and sounds that let you control what happened on them? These fixed motorbike things that leaned with you and moved a person on the screen according to what you did? Multiple people able to play these video game things at the same time? How could Wrackspurts, Nargles, and Crumpled Horn Snorkaks seemed unrealistic by comparison?
Whatever the case, this holiday break was amazing. Luna also quickly came to love the Rust District and the people she met. It was pretty quickly, probably too quickly if you asked most people, but Luna had kind of come to see Davey as the older sister she never had. Maybe she just really wanted someone like that in her life or something and the older blonde happened to fit the bill. It didn't help that Davey seemed to adore her as a little sister in return. Luna wasn't sure if Hermione or Davey were more huggy as a person.
Luna also loved how cheerful Davey was. Luna volunteered to help out whenever she could. She loved setting the table and listening to Davey hum Christmas carols while she prepared their meals. There was also one night while they were relaxing that Luna asked the older girl to brush her hair. Davey was more than happy and hummed again while she did so. That made Luna remember how her mother used to do the same when she was alive. She felt cared for in a way she hadn't since then.
Something else that was a lot of fun were the snippets Harry talked about from his mother's diary. "You know how Hagrid said my mom couldn't stand my dad at first?" Harry started one night.
Hermione nodded. Luna was listening very intently from where she sat in front of the fireplace with her recently combed and brushed hair, while she wore a thick and wonderfully woolly bathrobe at the moment. Hermione would have freaked out if she wore just her pajamas in this setting, even if they were really comfy. Luna still didn't get what the problem was there. Seriously, she wasn't about to go strutting around in front of Harry or something.
"It's different seeing it in her own words. It is kind interesting though. It seems my mom read back through it sometime much later. She added notes in the margins about how she was surprisingly blind to his feelings towards her, especially back then. Hagrid did say my dad pretty much liked her from the start," Harry said with a fond smile.
Hermione smiled to that. "To me that shows you're more wonderful than your dad was. You aren't as obtuse about such things," she said. She had few doubts about his feelings towards her and they were just in their second year.
Harry chuckled to that. "I also find it interesting he and his friends called themselves The Marauders. They really were impressive, even if they were pranksters. They learned to be animagi in their fifth year without anyone knowing or helping them," Harry said.
"Wow…" Luna said in awe. It was not an easy feat to become an animagus. It was even more difficult to do it on your own.
"That's impressive... but so very dangerous! They should have never done something like that so young," Hermione said.
"Kind of like how a bunch of first years went after the Sorcerer's Stone to protect it from Voldemort?" Harry asked in amusement.
Hermione blushed. "That was different. We had a good reason," she said.
"True," Harry said. He turned a little serious and said, "They also had a good reason for what they did, even if becoming animagi was foolish."
"What was it?" Luna asked.
"Turns out their friend, Remus Lupin, was a werewolf. They learned to be animagi so they could be with him during his transformations," Harry said.
"They were friends with a werewolf?!" Hermione asked in shock.
"Yep. He was also the best student out of their group and later became Prefect," Harry said.
"I don't know… That all sounds too dangerous to me," Hermione said.
"It makes sense," Luna said nodding in thought.
"How?" Hermione asked her.
"Werewolves are dangerous to humans when their transformed. They're not a danger to most animals tough. Just like how Werewolves usually aren't a danger to humans when they aren't transformed. Well… no more dangerous than your average witch or wizard. Daddy hates how they're treated by other people," Luna said.
"I'll agree with your dad on that," Harry said. He knew a little how they were treated. He hated it. They would be right at home in the Rust District, if it was a magical place, after going through that.
"I'm surprised they were friends with a werewolf. You hear about them, but I have yet to meet one. It is sort of like they're just a story in a way. A true story, but still a story," Hermione said.
"That's because they usually keep it to themselves so people won't hate them for no reason," Luna explained.
"That is terrible," Hermione said. The others nodded in agreement. "What animals were your dad and his friends? Did your mother know and write about it?" she asked.
"She did in her later entries. Apparently, my dad thought they had the perfect combination. He was a large Forest Buck. Sirius was a large black dog some mistook for a Grim at times. He had fun with that as a way to get back at people. Peter Pettigrew was a rat. He needed help with getting his form right at first," Harry said. He wondered what it would be like to be an animagus. He wondered what animal he would be.
"My dad and Sirius were able to keep the transformed Lupin in line with ease, so they never lost track of him. Peter's rat form allowed him to help them get in and out of where Lupin was usually locked up during transformations. Being able to have his friends there with him during that time made it bearable he always told them, according to what my mom wrote," Harry finished.
"That actually makes it sound more endearing than dangerous now," Hermione said with a smile. To have friends that would go that far for you? That was rare. She wasn't an expert on friends, but even she knew that. She did feel her friends would be like that. Luna nodded with her in agreement.
They talked a little longer until Harry checked the time and said, "Well. It's about time we got ready. Davey will be upset if we aren't ready to walk right out the door when she comes to pick us up for caroling."
"I can't wait! I never got to do that before, even though we would always sing them together," Luna said. Davey was so excited about taking them all caroling. It being Luna's first time, she went all out and picked an outfit for the young girl. She would have done the same for Hermione, but for some reason the Hufflepuff girl didn't want Davey measuring her to make the outfit fit just right. Hermione could be perplexing at times like that to Luna, but she still really liked her.
[-] [-] [-]
Luna was grinning from ear to ear in her Christmas elf outfit. It even had ears to match. Davey had one as well with different colors. Hermione did have a Christmasy outfit of her own, but it wasn't as great as Luna was sure Davey's choice would have been for the other girl. Harry was well dressed in warm clothes wearing a Santa Hat and Christmas vest to round out their group.
The Ravenclaw girl decided Davey was right about Christmas Caroling being the best thing ever. She loved it. The people they sang for loved it as well. Some gave them each a cookie or a small cup of Hot Chocolate in thanks.
Luna decided that should be the currency for a Christmas Carolers. Cookies and Hot Chocolate were the greatest of Christmas treats. They made her want to sing even more. She would dance too, if given the chance, but she was pretty sure that might be too much for the others.
They just finished singing another song and were laughing in good nature with each other as an elderly couple joked a little while thanking them.
"That's the best singing I've ever heard!" said the older man smiling to them.
"I'm surprised heard a single word," his wife said.
"Huh?! What was that?" the man asked.
"I said… nevermind. Do you want some hot cider?" she asked him.
"Of course, I do! Tis' the season," he replied grinning to her.
"Talk about selective hearing…" she mumbled.
"That just means whatever I do hear is worth it," he replied as he chuckled and winked at the kids getting them to laugh. His wife shook her head but laughed as well and smiled to him before thanking them again and wishing them a merry Christmas.
The group rounded a corner when they heard someone call out to them. Well. He only called out to Harry.
"Harry?" a man asked in shock from nearby.
"You know Harry?" a female asked.
"I do…" the man replied.
Harry turned and looked over to man. He didn't recognize him. At the same time, he felt an odd sense of familiarity to him. It was like something from his past he couldn't clearly remember. He would listen to the man though. Harry did recognize the man's female companion, so that was a good start.
Whatever was happening, it seemed his Christmas would be a bit more interesting…