Chapter 6: Ottery St. Catchpole
Luna was working in the garden when she spotted Hedwig heading towards her with a later. Smiling, she went into the house and got a few pieces of bacon leftover from breakfast. Hedwig landed, elegant as always, and Luna untied the letter before handing her the bacon treat. She gently scratched her on the head before the beautiful snowy owl flew back towards the burrow and Harry. Curious, she opened the letter and was reminded of their last conversation as she read. It seemed Harry really was interested in wanting to visit Ottery St. Catchpole and if she was free he wanted to go today. In all honesty Luna hadn't really made any specific plans for the day, so wrote her father a quick note that she left on the kitchen table explaining where she'd went. Right now he was busy making final edits to the Quibbler as the next issue was being released in two days. Once all was in order she set off towards the Burrow, skipping to start off the trek.
It wasn't too long before Luna found Harry happily tossing gnomes from the Weasley garden with the help of Ron. One actually came fairly close to her, and she patted him on the head gently before waving at Harry. "You ready to hit the town?" she asked, calling out loud enough for him to hear since he was still a fair distance off. They didn't go into town that often themselves, but she knew where some of the shops and interesting things were. Usually she tried to do her exploring away from the muggles though, just to be safe in case she accidentally let something magical in nature slip into her conversation.
Harry nodded and talked to Ron briefly before heading her way. Once he was close he let a big grin appear. "Of course I'm ready. We are going to go and have some fun. You can give me the special Luna tour, I'm sure that's the best way to go about exploring anywhere." he told her with a wink. Looking back at Ron, he watched him engage his mom in conversation before smiling. "Ron and Ginny agreed to be the Mrs. Weasley distraction for our trip. Since it will most likely take a while I figured we would need somebody to keep her occupied and when I explained the situation they agreed to help. I think the plan is going through old picture books or something." he informed her.
Luna couldn't contain a giggle at how cheesy Harry was being, blushing. "Well, you are probably right about that. I suppose I can help you out, but in exchange I want you to show me that invisibility cloak I've heard rumors about. Not only show me, but take me out after curfew at Hogwarts when we get back. Do we have a deal?" she asked, holding out her hand for him to shake as she stared him down. She knew that if he promised to do it that he would keep his word. When Harry explained that their redheaded best friends were running interference for them she smiled, nodding. "I'll have to make sure to thank them both somehow, they're good friends." she told him.
Normally he would promise anything to help his friends, but the cloak was special so Harry actually took a good minute to think over her offer before nodding and shaking her hand. "You have a deal, one late night excursion at Hogwarts with the help of my cloak. Only rule is you cannot tell anybody about what we do or how we do it." he said, reaching up to rub his scar a bit as he felt a light twinge of pain. "Looks like they're all thoroughly occupied, we should probably get moving." Harry pointed out, and she nodded in response, beginning to lead the way towards Ottery St. Catchpole. "So what's first on the Luna tour?" he asked, as they walked together. They were moving at a steady pace but not so fast that they would get worn out on the way. They weren't wasting time, but they didn't really feel the need to make a mad dash of it either.
Thinking for a few moments as she weighed options, the little town gradually began to come into view and she smiled. After their long walk on another nice, sunny day she knew the perfect place to go. Luna took his arm without warning and started dragging him after her. "First things first we get some ice cream. It's really hot and they have a pretty good place here. You can even get a chocolate frog on top if you want one." she told him with a giggle. "It's pretty messy if it jumps on you, but really fun." she assured him. Two minutes later and they'd reached the shop called Reggie's Frozen Treats.
"That sounds great, but how on earth do I decide what to get here? Everything looks delicious..." Harry said, his mouth watering as they waited in line and he started to scan the selections. "Also, doesn't this town have both people with and without you know what? How can they do chocolate frogs on ice cream and get away with it?" he asked her quietly. He was well aware that the statute of secrecy was no joke, having been brought up on charges himself before.
"That's easy, silly. Just do eeny meeny miny mo. Whichever one you land on is the one you get. You have to close your eyes when you do it, though." she explained. Luna decided to lead by example and wound up with two scoops of the rainbow sherbet on a large waffle cone. "As for how they do chocolate frogs, they sell them to both sorts of people and simply take the jumping spell off for the people who do without. After that it's just a simple notice-me-not an they tend to overlook any unusual movement from them." she explained to her friend.
Harry shrugged and followed Luna's example in selecting an ice cream flavor, ending up with rocky road and a sugar cone. He opted out of the chocolate frog on top. When he had his first taste he couldn't help licking his lips and nodded. "Okay, this really is fantastic. I think this ice cream is better than Fortescue's to be honest." he said, before focusing on demolishing the tasty treat. As soon as he had started to eat it he realized how much he'd been craving something cool and refreshing, and he licked his lips happily when he was finished.
Luna nodded sagely when she heard his comment. "Oh, I think it's far superior. They make really good milkshakes too. Because this place is both muggle and magical they also use muggle contraptions in their shops. Have to admit they really do help make things better." she said, going to work on her cone as well. Once she was finished she grabbed a napkin and cleaned off the sticky edges of her mouth. Harry blushed a little, realizing he should probably do that too and got his own napkins to clean up. Soon enough they both felt much better and Luna once again took charge. He had placed her in charge of this excursion and she had no intention of letting him down. "Next stop is a book collector's shop, you can find the most interesting things in there. It's not only books, he tends to collect anything that catches his eye." she explained, dragging him towards the next place.
The next place was called Odo's Curiosities, and they had all manner of strange things. Some seemed magical where others were clearly muggle. Luna let go of Harry when they'd entered (once again having pulled him after her by the arm) and began to wander, leaving him to do his own thing as she did. Not sure where to start, Harry closed his eyes and let his senses lead him. Something almost started to call out to him, enticing him as it subtly pulled him forwards. Deciding not to resist it, he let the strange feeling guide him and he finally reached what he thought was the source and opened his eyes. In front of him was a small bowl filled with a clear liquid that could have been water but he wasn't really sure. Around the rim of the bowl were runes carved into it, but...it wasn't a pensieve like he'd at first thought. This was something else, something...stranger, and possibly older if he had to guess.
An old man who looked to be in his late seventies or early eighties appeared seemingly out of nowhere next to him. "Ahh yes, that my boy was a rare find indeed. It is what's known as a scrying bowl. All you have to do is picture a location and give it one drop of your blood, once you do this bowl shows you a scene. The only catch is the scene will either be from the past, present, or future. There's no rhyme or reason to which it will show you, but it's always something important." he explained. "To be honest, it's one of my favorites that I've managed to discover over the years. A part of me would be loathe to part with it, but everything needs a home and I've always known that I was never meant to keep it forever." Odo told him sadly.
Harry listened, fascinated that such a thing actually existed. He could tell the man was telling the truth, there was a unique magic about this item that had called out to him. What was almost more peculiar was how the old man, (presumably Odo), seemed to talk about the item almost as if it was alive and a friend. Perhaps it was in a way, after all magic did strange things. Odd though it may be, he decided he liked the kind of respect and care the old man obviously took with the items and the running of the shop itself. "How much to take it, sir? I...I can't say why, but something about it calls to me. I think I'm meant to have it, though why I couldn't even begin to say." he told him, knowing it sounded ridiculous but it felt true all the same.
Odo listened to what Harry had to say and nodded to himself, thinking the matter over as he did. Things in his shop didn't have fixed prices like most places. He tailored transactions to suit the buyer, and would sometimes even offer trades if they didn't have coin. He knew the boy was Harry Potter, and something told him that the bowl would come in handy for him in the future. "I'll tell you what lad, give me three galleons, three sickles, and three knuts. Something tells me you're meant to have this bowl as well, so I won't bleed you dry." he said, letting out a chuckle. He was of course aware that the Potters were well off, but three was a lucky number and had magical significance which felt much more fitting to him at the moment than trying to rob the poor boy.
The old man's offer was a generous one, Harry knew. He was sure that the bowl was worth at least three times that much if not more. He counted out the money and handed it to him. "Are you sure you want it to go for so little?" he asked him, and the man nodded. Harry hesitated before taking it. Surprisingly, the liquid within didn't move at all when he picked it up. "Thank you. I'll do my best to use it wisely." he said, before going to find Luna and show her what he'd found. It didn't take him long, she was on the second floor examining a peculiar owl statue that seemed to have fairies or something circling its head.
Luna hopped down from the stool she'd been sitting on when she saw Harry and eyed the bowl with an approving nod before looking at him. "Looks like you found something cool. This owl's nice, but nothing really spoke to me this time. So, unless you see anything else I think it's on to the last spot I wanted to show you. This place is the most special...well, to me at least." she explained, as she proceeded to lead him out of the shop and actually out to the outskirts of town. She didn't stop until she reached a strong, old oak tree that had a small treehouse in its branches. There were steps nailed into the trunk so you could climb it easily, and she led him up inside before sitting down on a bean bag chair. There was a little window, a tiny table and a little octopus stuffed animal in there but not much else. "This treehouse was built for my mother when she was little, and she showed it to me. When I get upset or overwhelmed I come here to calm down." she explained. "Oh, and the octopus is Mr. Tentacles." she said with a laugh.
Harry looked around the treehouse and had to admit that it was cozy and quite well made to have held up so long. He could see that more important were the memories she had shared with her dead mother, though...and he passed Luna the bowl he had acquired in the shop. "Luna...this bowl will show you a scene from either the past, present or future when you picture a place and give it a drop of your blood. Maybe you could picture the treehouse, I think it will show you something special." he said, passing it over to her and leaning back to watch. He was curious to see how this all worked. He couldn't say why he had a feeling the bowl would show her something important, it was an instinctual guess, really. Having survived several dangerous situation by acting on his instincts, Harry had learned to trust them over time and try not to question it too much.
When he passed her the bowl Luna was more than a little surprised, as Harry hadn't even had a chance to use it himself. "Thank you Harry, I appreciate it. I've heard stories about bowls like this, but never thought I'd see one for myself let alone get to use one." she said. She took out her wand and made a small cut in her thumb before holding it over the bowl. Once a drop of blood fell she pulled her hand back and closed her eyes, focusing on the treehouse. Although the bowl didn't seem to change for Harry, in her eyes it did as the liquid swirled to form what looked like a memory. It was of her mother sitting in this treehouse when she was maybe six years old, drawing what looked to be an underwater mermaid village. The mermaids looked to be having a festival of some sort, and Luna couldn't help herself as a few tears fell. Merlin, she missed her so much. She was glad that she'd had this place to go when she was little though, just like she did. Watching for a bit longer, she saw her mother began to draw otters swimming above the village playing near the surface as they tossed a ball back and forth. Finally she tore herself away from it, and wiped her eyes before passing the bowl back to Harry. "Thank you, it really is special." she said quietly.
He took the bowl back from her, a little awkward as he could see the bowl had showed her something private. "You're welcome, I could just kind of sense that it wanted to show you something." Harry said, shrugging. For the life of him he couldn't understand how this thing worked, but it was definitely one of a kind and most definitely one of the more magical items he'd ever encountered. He'd never heard of anything like this, and he would definitely have to ask Hermione when he saw her next to see if she had. "Thanks for showing me this Luna, I can see this place means a lot to you." he told her, doing his best to give her what he hoped was a reassuring smile.
Looking over at him, Luna simply nodded in response to that last comment. "It does. This is a treehouse for special people, it's a safe place for them. If you ever need to use it you're welcome to as well. Please don't tell anyone else though, I haven't even shown Ginny this place." she told him, and Harry nodded in understanding. "Also, I just wanted to say thanks for today. Coming out was a great idea." she said, leaning closer to him. Before Harry had a chance to respond Luna leaned in and gave him a quick peck on the lips before pulling back. "Getting to know you this summer has been really special Harry, I just wanted to say thanks." she told him. The kiss had been fleeting, but Luna had felt a pleasant shiver through her body at the contact and smiled. Hmm, perhaps we do have potential as a couple. The thought had her blushing a light pink, but she was glad she had simply gone and done it. She knew that if she had tried to overthink it she never would have worked up the courage for her first kiss.
The kiss out of nowhere had completely thrown Harry off guard, and his cheeks were a bright red as his brain raced to process what had just happened. Harry had grown rather fond of Luna, he'd just never really imagined the possibility of them being more than friends. Now that she'd turned his thoughts in that direction, he realized he definitely wasn't opposed to the idea of possibly dating the amazing girl he'd already shared some adventures with. He could rely on her and talk to her about anything, which he figured were two rather important things in a relationship. "Yeah, I've enjoyed it too." he admitted. It took him a few moments before he looked at her more seriously. "Look, when we go back to school I don't want this to change. When I'm with you I feel like I can tell you anything, even things I can't talk about with Ron or Hermione. You're important to me, so I want us to keep spending time together. If that's okay with you, of course." Harry added, not wanting to sound like he was bossing her around or anything.
Luna beamed at him when she heard that and nodded happily. "Of course, Harry. Rampaging Hippogriffs couldn't keep me away. Now come on, we really should be heading back before Mrs. Weasley comes searching for you. My daddy won't mind so much and I left him a note, but Mrs. Weasley notices you're gone she'll worry. Maybe even ground you or give you extra chores." she said, hopping up and leading the way out of the treehouse. It wasn't long before they were back at the Burrow, and she wrapped Harry in a tight hug before letting go. "Thanks again, I had a great time. Next time you want to ask me out on a date though, just say so." she said with a knowing smirk.
The teasing joke about this having been a date hit awfully close to home, and Harry decided it was time he plucked up the courage to ask her the question that had been on his mind since she kissed him out of the blue. "Luna, there was something I wanted to ask you, actually. I know that this has all been happening rather fast between us, but...well, I really like you. I was wondering if you wanted to be my girlfriend? I've thought about it, and there's really nobody else I feel like this about." he admitted, blushing as he spoke but not backing down. "We can talk to each other, laugh, fight by each other's side...if you'll have me I would be the luckiest guy in the world. Do you want to take some time to think it over, or do you already know how you feel about it?" he asked. Harry looked at her hopefully as he waited for her answer, hoping that he wasn't wrong and that she did in fact feel the same way about him. She had kissed him, but perhaps he had misconstrued it and it really had only been a thank you for loaning her the strange bowl and whatever it showed her.
She couldn't help but let out a small giggle at how serious he was, and she wrapped her arms around him. "Silly Harry, if I didn't like you too I never would have kissed you in the treehouse. Of course I'll be your girlfriend. Because you asked so nicely, I'll even do you a favor and let Ginny know for you so she doesn't try to murder you when she learns about it." she said, patting his cheek before giving him another gentle kiss, this one a tad longer than the previous one. "You do know she's had a massive crush on your for ages, don't you?" Luna asked. It had always been rather obvious in her opinion, but she knew boys could be thick about that sort of thing. She didn't think Ginny would be too mad at her, it's not like she had wanted to steal Harry away from her it had just happened.
Harry was over the moon when she agree to be his girlfriend, and was more than happy to kiss her back when she went in for their second kiss. It made his head spin and a pleasant warmth blossom inside him, leaving him feeling a bit dazed but very happy. When she went on to talk about Ginny liking him after agreeing to be his girlfriend, and her saying she would talk to her about it he was rather confused. "To be honest I thought she'd gotten over that after her first year at Hogwarts. If you can talk to her that would be great though, I'd still like to be friends with her after all." he told her, and Luna simply smiled and nodded in understanding.
"Don't worry, I'll handle it. Now go and get back inside before you get in trouble with Mrs. Weasley, I'm sure we'll see each other soon." Luna told him before skipping off towards the rookery at a good clip. She glanced back briefly to check that Harry got inside without too much trouble and he seemed to so she kept going on her way.
It didn't take too long for her to reach her house, and when she did she went straight to her room and laid down on her bed, smiling widely. "That certainly went better than I had planned." she said with a giggle. Sometimes life had surprises lying in wait for you, and she thought this whole thing with Harry was one of them. She hadn't been expecting it this summer, but it had snuck up on her and she was glad that it had. Neither of them were perfect, but nobody was. The important thing was that they could be themselves with each other. That was more valuable than anything else in her opinion.
