Chapter 1: Taking Stock

It had been a long month since the battle in the department of mysteries, and even outside Ottery St. Catchpole you could feel the gathering and impact of dark forces at work. She was acutely aware of how it impacted not only humans but also the smaller wildlife that would roam through their gardens and wooded areas near where their rook home was located. Usually they would be playful and a tiny bit shy whereas now...well, they were skittish and scared instead of merely being cautious. Seeing innocent creatures behaving like that it made her angry. Before now, the only thing she'd truly been angry about was not having her mother to talk to. However, she had died in an accident so there was no direction for that anger to focus on...so with time she had learned to cope. This was different, there were people living to be held responsible and accountable for their actions. She didn't want them to be jailed, with this new anger inside of her she wanted to see them hurt like all of their victims. A darker side of her didn't want to stop at that, if pressed she would admit to wanting to see some of them killed as well. Maybe with Harry and the rest of the DA we can make a real difference. This was isn't just for the adults, it belongs to all of us now. The thought was enough to bring a small, slightly threatening smile as she bared her teeth a bit. When the time was right she knew that they could make a difference if they stuck together.

A twig snapping brought her out of the slightly dark but comforting thoughts and she drew her wand with a quick motion. "Who's there?" she called out, scanning the area for movement. Luna's blue eyes might be a bit dreamy most of the time, but they were piercing as she looked for signs of danger. The recent battle had taught her the valuable lesson of always being aware of one's surroundings. It had come from the direction of The Burrow but she hadn't scheduled a meeting with Ginny for today. A flash of red hair made her smile but she didn't lower her wand quite yet, not after what they'd all been through at the Ministry of Magic. Soon Ginny crested the hill she'd been climbing in full and it certainly appeared to be her friend. "If you're really Ginny Weasley, what did I get you for your last birthday?" she asked, eyes narrowing as she prepared to read her features to see if she was struggling with it. She had gotten her a rather unusual gift, so she was almost certain the real Ginny would recall instantly.

Ginny just rolled her eyes and let out an easy laugh, shaking her head. "I believe it was a series of short stories you wrote and illustrated yourself about all the creatures you and your dad go hunting for. It was titled The Adventures and Misadventures of Hidden Beings. My favorite was the one about how a snorkack got lost and had to acquire the help of a djinn to find his way home." she told her, grinning. "I know you haven't decided what you want to do yet, but you're a great writer. I'm sure lots of kids and even some adults would appreciate a book like that being made available to them." she complimented. It was a nice thing of her friend to say and Luna nodded, lowering her wand.

"I have given that some thought Ginny, but, until the Death Eaters and the...thing that leads them are taken care of, I don't think I'll be able to move on. We got lucky that the Order figured out where we were in time, by all rights we should have died that night at the Ministry." Luna said seriously, before shaking her head. Luna's usual dreamy-eyed stare appeared as she produced a pair of dirigible plum earrings that matched the ones she wore. "Ginny, I...I made these for you. Dirigible plums are known for elevating one's state of mind. In addition to that, they help you to accept the extraordinary and seemingly unbelievable. According to a great fictional detective by the name of Sherlock Holmes, 'when you've eliminated the impossible, whatever remains, however improbable, must be the truth'. I hope you find them helpful." she explained, holding them out to her. Her dreamy looks were intentional, ever since her mother died they had been her go-to defense mechanism for getting people to leave her be so she could think and sort through emotions. She was far from crazy, and the Loony Lovegood insult was a painful cross to bear. On the other hand, it gave her space from her house to study or simply have some time alone and unbothered by people who would never understand her. Ginny tried her best to, and for that she'd always been grateful. To be honest, she had gotten used to being self-reliant for the most part and not having many friends had never really bothered her. Now that she was starting to make some though, even she could appreciate how great having a few people to count on could be.

Carefully taking them from her blonde friend, Ginny swapped them out with the broomstick earrings she'd been wearing before and gave her a brief but firm hug. "Thanks Luna, I'd be honored to wear them. You're the only girl contact I have around here that isn't mum, and...well you've always been one of my closest friends. I'm just sorry that we're not in the same house, but like most of us Weasleys I'm a Gryffindor through and through." she admitted with a 'what can you do' shrug, a small chuckle escaping. "As much as I do love to visit you for fun I did come with news this time. Harry is already with us at the burrow and according to him Snape is being kicked from Potions to Defense Against the Dark Arts. I, well I overheard him and Ron talking about it. Apparently Dumbledore made Harry help him recruit some former potions master named Slughorn." she admitted a little sheepishly, while she might not have felt guilty about eavesdropping and eager to share the news she wasn't exactly proud of that habit. "A former Death Eater who hates Harry is teaching us how to defend ourselves against other Death Eaters when a war has broken out!" she yelled angrily, before returning to a lower volume. "It's said You-Know-Who himself killed the head of the DMLE Amelia Bones, a member of the order was killed named Emmaline Vance, and they are making blatantly obvious attacks against muggles in plain sight. This new minister Rufus Scrimgeour is trying to crack down, but they're losing and fast. I just...I'm not sure Harry's ready, and Dumbledore has to protect Hogwarts in addition to everything else he does for our side." she said, her speech finally stopping as she vented everything she'd been carrying on her chest recently to her friend.

Ginny took a few moments to catch her breath before continuing and not really allowing Luna a chance to respond. "This is finally starting to genuinely scare me, Luna, but I also want to help end it. How, though? How can two girls like us help in a war? That's what this is now there's no doubt about it." she said, looking to her for answers, confirmation, assistance, anything she had to give. Her friend clearly wanted her to reassure her of things, and she wondered what she could say that would actually give her friend some hope in a dark time like this.

Instead of answering her directly she closed her eyes and thought about the love she had for her family, her friends, even the bullies who tormented her because they were just lashing out. She thought about all of the kindness that people showed to her each other, and how parents would do anything to cheer up and protect their children because they cared for them so deeply. Lastly she thought about the DA, and the friendships they had all made over the past year. The happiness they had all gotten from working together towards threatening to spill out of her she opened her eyes and spoke firmly, "Expecto Patronum." Without a moment's hesitation, the hare patronus leapt from her wand and started to circle them, eventually nestling between the two of them and simply looking at them and hopping from time to time. "We love each other, we defend each other, and we don't lose hope. That's the only way they can win...is if they make us all so afraid we lose the hope of a better future. If you can't imagine a brighter tomorrow it will never come, Gin. I've seen Harry and so have you, he can do this. Our job is to give him the time to grow, to make sure he knows we all fight with him and that he will never be alone." she told her, her slightly silvery blue eyes going hard as ice. She reached over and grabbed her hand firmly, giving it a squeeze as she let her hare dissipate. "All we have to do is fight, and keep fighting. I'm scared too, but I'm also angry...oh, so angry. They're trying to scare us into submission and I won't have it. My life is mine to live and nobody can take that away from me, don't let them take yours away with the fear and their threats they always make." she advised her friend.

The Patronus had helped ease her fears some, but it was the wise words from a girl who hid behind the imaginary that actually comforted her. Ginny squeezed her hand back hard, giving her a firm nod. "It always baffles me how some people don't think you deserve to be in Ravenclaw. There are times I think you even understand more than Dumbledore, Luna." she told her with a wink before hopping up. "I need to get back before mum comes looking, but I wanted to invite you to Harry's birthday party. It's on the 31st and I know he would love to have you there with us." she told her, giving her a hopeful look. "I want it to be a surprise for him, so I haven't told Mum or anybody. Somehow I doubt they'll mind though, so what do you say?"

Luna had a faint blush on her cheeks when Ginny told her that she thought she understood more than Dumbledore. "Well, I don't know if I'd go that far, but I appreciate the sentiment." she told her honestly. The old headmaster always seemed to know what was going on, sometimes even what people were thinking. While some might try and accuse him of using Legilimency to accomplish that feat she thought it was more that he had a keen understanding of humanity that most people didn't. He had lived through dark times and faced things most people could scarcely imagine, and had survived it all. If there was one person she respected as much as Harry, it would have to be him. "So it would be a surprise, where do you think I should hide? I think daddy could cast a disillusionment charm on me or teach me how if I ask him." she said, thinking about it. If she could get the drop on the defense genius and make him let out a scream she would count that as a successful appearance. Technically, she wasn't supposed to be using magic outside of school. However, a lot of the wizarding families let their children practice so as not to get too rusty over the holidays. They could only detect when and where magic was cast, not who cast the spell. Harry had been the victim of that in his second year when he got blamed for a house-elf's use of a levitation charm on a cake.

"I think that would be perfect. So you're in?" Ginny asked her bluntly, a mischievous grin appearing as she imagined the look on Harry's face. "If we pull this off right it will be brilliant, maybe we could start our own prank business at Hogwarts now that Fred and George are gone too. Someone has to fill the void." she said, making Luna ponder that idea. As long as they made sure none of the pranks were dangerous she thought that becoming a terrific troublemaking team could be quite fun.

Without hesitation she nodded. "Oh, I'm definitely in for surprising Harry. As for the other matter...I'll give it some thought and get back to you. We couldn't fill their shoes, but maybe we could make our own style of pranking. Between the two of us I know we can do the Weasley pranking name justice. What should our title be?" Luna asked. If they couldn't come up with a name worthy of their efforts than it wouldn't be nearly as much fun. Perhaps they could leave calling cards at the scene of their pranking crimes.

Considering that for a moment, Ginny shrugged. "I don't know, maybe...the Dirigible Duo? We do match, now." she pointed out as she gave one of her little dirigible plum earrings a flick with her finger. The way it set to bouncing and catching the light made her giggle and Luna couldn't help but think that would be fitting. A lot of students liked to make fun of the earrings, calling them radishes or carrots, but the joke was one them. Even discounting the fact that they helped open up the mind to possibility, the earrings looked pretty cool in her opinion.

"Works for me, I'll see you at Harry's birthday party. I'll be hiding in the garden so just make sure you toss the gnomes out before the party or they might accidentally bump into me and give me away." Luna suggested as she stood up, getting ready to go back inside. Harry was one of the few people aside from Ginny who had always been kind to her when given the chance. He was busy, and usually had Ron and Hermione with him going on their 'golden trio' quests; but, she did appreciate what help he did give. Not the least of which being how he stepped up and taught Defense Against the Dark Arts on his own with Dumbledore's Army. That had earned him her respect, because basic self-defense is something nobody should be without. As she thought about that, she slipped her hand into a pocket and fingered the fake galleon that Harry had used to set the dates of their Dumbledore's Army meetings. . It had been quiet for a while, but she still kept it on her in case he decided to set a date to meet up when they went back to school. She really hoped that he did, because she didn't really trust Snape to teach them useful material.

"Sure thing, I'll see you soon, Luna." Ginny said, before taking off at a brisk walk back towards the Burrow. Whenever she decided to pop up or go home Ginny always moved quickly, like she couldn't wait to move to doing whatever was next on her list. Not everybody had a drive like that to always be doing, working, learning, and it was something she thought both her and Ginny shared. There was always more to learn, things to practice and get better at, and only a small amount of time that was their own to do it in.


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Luna watched her go over and down a few of the hills before smiling to herself and heading back inside. She went to where her daddy was working on the newspaper and gave his robes a gentle tug to get his attention. The printer was running so she wasn't sure if he would have heard her otherwise. His candy-floss hair was well-brushed and his robes were clean in spite of him working on his newspaper. The only things that was a bit messy were his ink-stained fingers. The Quibbler was something he'd done for years and was well-practiced at keeping everything running like a well-oiled machine.

Xenophilius Lovegood was fairly engrossed in what he was doing, and she startled him out of his work. He turned off the press to look at the best part of his life, his amazing daughter. "Yes, dear?" he asked, curious as to what she wanted. Usually she wouldn't bother him while he was busy like that unless it was important to her. He loved his paper, but his daughter's needs always far outweighed that of his job in terms of importance so he gave her his full attention.

"Can you teach me the disillusionment charm by July 31st, or cast it on me if I can't learn it by then. Ginny and I decided that I would make a good surprise guest for Harry's sixteenth birthday party." she explained, giving him her best puppy dog eyes. "Please, I know he'll get a kick out of it if we do it." Luna was all too aware of the advantage she had of being an only child. She didn't manipulate her daddy too often, but usually when she did she was able to get her way with what she wanted.

Xenophilius looked at her and scratched his chin in thought as he mulled it over. He didn't have anything against the surprise guest idea, but the Disillusionment Charm was a tricky one. "Well, you should be learning this charm in fifth year anyways for your O. W. L.'s so I suppose it couldn't hurt. Also it doesn't make you invisible, it changes your body's coloring to match your surroundings. If you don't have it down by then I'll cast it on you, deal?" he asked.

Luna gave a nod of excitement and reached up on her tippy-toes to give him a peck on the cheek. "Sounds perfect, let me know when you want to start. I'll be in my room working on a gift for the party." she said, before darting off like a shot and disappearing from his line of sight. Getting out a box that contained what looked like random materials to the untrained eye, she got down to business on crafting a Harry Potter worthy present. While he might not think things like birthdays were a big deal, all of his friends certainly did and they wanted to make sure he had a good time. After all, if anybody deserved it Harry did...especially with everything that was going on right now.