Chapter Seven

They continued on and over the next few days Draco found himself actually starting to enjoy Luna's observations and anecdotes. He put this down to the fact that for the past year and a half what few conversations he had taken part in had been with an elderly aunt, a toddler and a house elf.

One day as Luna was beginning to relate yet another story about her father's search for the elusive Crumple-Horned Snorkack, Draco caught sight of a dark flash out of the corner of his eye. Years of quidditch training kicked in and he leapt forward and grabbed the projectile just seconds before it slammed into the back of Luna's skull.

Luna spun around just as another object rocketed towards her. This time Draco managed to grab the sleeve of her jacket and pull her aside while casting a shield charm over both of them.

Luna's gaze darted around then she motioned for Draco to follow her, changing their course to swing wide and avoid a thick grove of trees on their right. She whispered, "Its a fruit bearing variant of the whomping willow. It throws fruit at passersby in order to frighten off those who would steal from it."

Once they were a safe distance away, Luna smiled at him. "Thank you for saving me back there, Draco. Your reflexes are most impressive. I take back almost everything I said about you in my quidditch commentary during fourth year."

Draco couldn't help but laugh at the forthright expression on her face. "That's okay. I probably deserved whatever it was you said. I'd wager it wasn't the worst thing ever said about me. Since the war the Wizarding Press often has a field day at my expense."

Luna gave a knowing nod. "I've been a target as well. It can be rough when they start going at you. Over time I learned not to take what they said too seriously. Eventually I even made a game out of it." She leaned towards him. "Can I tell you a secret?"

Draco shrugged. "Sure."

With a gleam in her eye she confided, "When Rolf and I got married it was a very small, informal ceremony and we didn't bother taking pictures. When we returned to Britain the press was clamoring for wedding photos so we staged some. Since I knew they were going to write horrible things about whatever I wore, I decided to have a little fun with them."

"How so?"

"I determined that I would create the most over the top bridal ensemble the world had ever seen."

Remembering some of clothes she had worn at school, Draco was hesitant to imagine what Luna would consider 'over the top' but curiosity got the better of him.

"Okay. I'll bite. What did you come up with?"

Luna rummaged around in her backpack and pulled out a tattered copy of Witch Weekly Magazine. She turned to a specific page and pointed.

"See for yourself."

"Great Godric's Ghost!" Draco snorted in disbelief. Staring back at him, under the headline 'Baffling Bridal Bungles', was a full page photo of Luna, proudly wearing a gown comprised entirely of rainbows and spangles and topped with a tiara made of silver unicorn horns.

Luna giggled. "I know, right?"

Draco burst into laughter. "And your husband agreed to this?"

"Who do you think added the unicorn horns? They're reproductions by the way. No actual unicorns were harmed in the making of that outfit."

"Dare I even ask what they said about it in the press?"

Luna lifted her chin and announced, "Rita Skeeter said it was the most horrendous atrocity she had ever laid eyes upon and it was voted 'Most Hideous Outfit of the Year' by the readers of the Daily Prophet. It is an achievement that I am still quite proud of. I made them send me the trophy. It sits on my mantle to this day."

Draco handed back the magazine and asked, "Didn't that bother you?"

"Oh, Draco, the only opinions that matter to me are the ones of the people that I know and love. That does not happen to include Rita Skeeter or the majority of subscribers to the Daily Prophet. I know who I am and what I am. If other people aren't inclined to learn the truth about me that is their problem, not mine."

She dropped the magazine back in her bag and set off down the path again. Watching her walk away Draco felt a strange mixture of pride and envy and it dawned on him that, despite his most determined efforts, he was actually growing fond of this odd little witch.

xoxox

A few days later they were debating the pros and cons of different types of spell craft as they hiked through the forest. As Luna turned a tight corner in front of him and disappeared behind a massive oak, Draco made what he thought was a particularly good argument. When he heard nothing back from her, he announced smugly, "No response to that one, eh? Where is the press when you actually need them? I've rendered Luna Scamander Previously Lovegood speechle..."

He came around the large tree and froze as he saw two burly men holding both a wand and knife to Luna's throat. Before he could react Draco found himself in the same predicament. Soon they were both disarmed and their captors shoved them down a path leading in the opposite direction than they had been heading.

Draco whispered, "Who are they?"

Luna replied, "Bulgarian dragon poachers."

"Wow. The fun just never stops with you, does it?"

"Rolf always said I knew how to show a man a good time."

The poachers continued to push them along until they reached a large open field where the pair were directed to a specific spot in the center of the clearing.

Draco glanced around. "Why are they bringing us out here?"

"So they can use our bodies for bait."

"Oh. Right. Regret asking now." Draco spotted the way some of the poachers were eyeing Luna and it occurred to him that her death might not be the only thing they had on their minds.

When one of the poachers started shoved them together, Draco placed himself between the man and Luna. The burly figure shouted at them and Luna translated, "He's saying that we should stand here and not move."

Draco gave her a tight smile. "Figured that out myself, thanks."

They positioned themselves so they were back to back in an attempt to keep watch on their captors. The poachers immediately got busy assembling a large mechanism around them.

"What are they doing?" Draco asked.

"Building the trap around us," said Luna.

"And why haven't they killed us already?"

"The fresher the kill the more effective the bait. Even using magic, it takes a while to finish a rig this complicated. They'll wait until the trap is complete and then kill us."

"Oh." There was a long pause before Draco said, "Luna?"

"Yes?"

"Remind me not to ask any more questions."

Something caught Luna's attention and she reached for Draco's hand. "Draco? How is your Bulgarian?"

"Other than a few rather crass insults about Viktor Krum? Nonexistent. Yours?"

"I think I recall enough to make this work," said Luna.

"Make what work?" asked Draco.

"I have an plan."

"Really? Excellent. Would love to hear about it."

"In all fairness it is a pretty terrible plan but it's the only one I've got." Luna gave him a hopeful look. "I don't suppose you have any ideas you'd like to share?"

"Does rethinking all of the choices that brought me to this particular moment in life count as a plan?" asked Draco.

"No," said Luna.

"Well, there's your answer."

"Right. Let's try this first then." Luna began calling out in Bulgarian. The poachers stopped briefly then laughed and went back to work.

"What did you say?" asked Draco.

"I was giving them a chance to let us go unharmed before something awful happened to them."

"And the something awful was...?"

"I didn't specify," said Luna.

Draco rolled his eyes. "And they didn't rush to release us? I'm shocked."

"I had to give them an opportunity, Draco. Unless our death is imminent and we are left with no other options, what happens next might be considered criminal."

"What are you on about?"

"The next part of the plan is a bit...iffy. Step one is I need to provoke them into hurting me."

"They want to kill us, Luna. I really don't think any more provocation is necessary."

Luna shook her head. "What I meant was I need to be sure that whatever spell they cast on me draws the proper amount of blood."

Draco spun around and yelped, "What?!"

The poachers looked up and Luna glared at him. "Shhh! Now, when I give the signal, drop and cover your eyes. Once I am on the ground, make sure mine are covered as well then turn our faces towards the ground as much as possible. Don't hesitate, not even for a second. Do you understand?"

"Do I have any choice?"

"Not really."

Draco swallowed hard and nodded. "Fine. What is the signal?"

"When I squeeze your hand." Luna pivoted so they were now facing in the same direction and began yelling at the poachers.

"What are you saying this time?" Draco asked.

"If I remember the language correctly, I am commenting on the sex lives of their mothers."

"Oh, good. Here I worried it was something that could conceivably make our situation worse."

"I need them distracted, focused on me and moving in a bit closer," said Luna.

Draco hissed, "And the only way to accomplish that is to..."

Luna brusquely cut him off. "Be quiet, Draco. I need to concentrate to make this work without my wand."

She closed her eyes, inhaled deeply and squeezed his hand. As he dropped to the ground he heard her whisper something under her breath then felt an enormous surge of magic explode from her. A second later the spell rebounded and hit her square on, covering her in gashes and blood as she collapsed next to him.

Draco stared in horror before forcing himself to do what she had requested. He covered her eyes and shut his own tightly as he turned their faces towards the ground. He heard the men running toward them then felt a tremendous rush of wind followed by an intense blast of heat. He heard agonizing screams as the putrid stench of burnt flesh threatened to overwhelm him. He remained frozen in place until he felt a nudge at his back, followed by another a few seconds later.

He opened his eyes to find Elliott the dragon standing with his wings spread protectively over them. A quick glance around confirmed Draco's suspicions - the poachers had all been fried to a crisp.

Draco hoped their captors had left the packs at the edge of the clearing or they most certainly would not have survived the blast. He cast a summoning spell and breathed a sigh of relief as his wand flew across the field and into his trembling hand. His stomach dropped when he turned Luna over and saw the full extent of her injuries and he struggled to focus so he could remember the proper incantations for treating these kind of wounds.

Elliott grunted and Draco said, "I'm going as fast as I can. This first part needs to be done in a precise sequence or she may not heal properly." He closed his eyes and muttered, "And I'm talking to a dragon..."

Just then Luna's eyes snapped open. She sat up and shook her head, groaning as she stretched her arms and legs. "Right. Okay. We're alive. That's a good start." She surveyed the carnage surrounding them, shook her head sadly and whispered, "I am so sorry. I didn't see any other choice."

Draco fought to get his heart rate under control. "Do you mind telling me what the hell just happened?"

Luna gingerly rose to her feet. "Mr. Ollivander and I talked a fair bit about wandlore while we were sharing time in the cellars during the war. He taught me an old charm that let you bounce a spell off a wand towards another person. Sort of a sneak attack, if you will. I decided to use it to cast a modified version of Sectumsempra on myself."

"Why?!"

She reached up and gave Elliott a gentle scratch on the nose. "I noticed our friend flying over the tree line. I thought if he saw us being attacked he would return the favor and rescue us. He gave me a pretty good sniff when we released him. They don't have the best eyesight but their olfactory senses are superb so I reckoned if he could smell enough blood he would know it was me. I couldn't risk them using a killing curse on us right away so I controlled the situation the best I could."

Draco stared in astonishment. "Your entire plan was to injure yourself in the hopes that a wild dragon would not only recognize but also feel a sense of obligation to humans it had encountered once?"

"I told you beforehand it that the plan was iffy and you said you didn't have any other ideas."

"Y-you- you are certifiably insane," Draco spluttered. "Do you have any idea how dangerous, foolhardy, irresponsible, m-moronic..."

Luna sighed and said, "I am going to just assume that this is just the Malfoy way of saying, 'Thank you very much for saving our lives, Luna' and respond by saying, "You're welcome, Draco'."

She summoned her pack and began walking across the glen, retrieving any of the poacher's belongings that had survived the flames and depositing them inside her bag. Draco looked on before smugly calling after her, "Didn't figure you for one that went in for looting and plundering the dead, Lovegood."

"I thought we had this sorted, Draco. It's Scamander and I'm not looting. These men had families. When we return home I need to have a way to identify them so proper restitution can be paid out to their loved ones."

"Are you serious?! These men were ruthless criminals that had no problem killing innocent people and using them as bait in their illegal activities. Do you honestly think rewarding their families for this behavior is a wise use of the Ministry's resources?"

Luna kept on with her task. "I don't know anything about these men or why they made the choices they did, Draco. They may have felt backed into a corner, forced by circumstances to participate in activities they would otherwise never considered. Whatever their motives, it doesn't matter. Their families shouldn't suffer because of their actions. The sins of the fathers should never fall upon the children. Besides, it won't be the Ministry's money. These men died because of my actions so I will fund the restitution out of my own pocket."

"Now I know you're joking," Draco snorted. "By that logic, you would have recompensed anyone that you injured in battle during the war."

When he received no response, Draco's eyes slowly widened. He scrambled to his feet and started towards her. "Bloody hell. That's it. That's what you did. That's what happened to your inheritance. Your father didn't leave you saddled with debt. You sold the family business in order to give money to the families of people you hurt during the war."

Luna kept her back to him. "Not all of it. Some of the families didn't exist after the war so there was no one to compensate. In those cases the money went to charity."

Draco grabbed her arm and spun her around. "Damn it, Luna! You were a homeless, orphaned war victim. You were a bloody charity!"

Luna looked at him and he was struck by the haunted expression in her eyes. "I hurt people, Draco. I was even responsible for taking some lives during the final battle. Yes, it was a war, and yes I was protecting my friends, but I still feel the weight of those actions. I needed to do something to try and ease my conscience so that's what I did. I'll admit that it was difficult but it was the only way I could start to make peace with what I'd done."

Draco's gut twisted as a horrible thought occurred to him. "Did...did you give my family any money?"

"I tried but your solicitor refused it. I donated to a fund established to build a proper memorial to the house elves instead."

He stood dumbfounded as Luna picked up the last few items and nuzzled the dragon before setting off back towards their original route, Draco once again trailing behind.

They travelled in silence until they stopped for the night, at which point Draco stalked over and thrust a small vial towards her. "I'm assuming you have a wash tub in there?" He gestured towards her tent and she nodded. "Good. Soak in this. It's a special blend of dittany brewed specifically for injuries like the ones you sustained today. If it's a standard size tub use about twenty five drops. It will prevent the wounds from scarring. Stay in the water for at least half an hour." He motioned towards her face. "Put three or four drops directly on that one. It will sting like hell for a few minutes but then it will stop."

With that he turned on his heel and stomped off, secretly wishing that a person could slam a door when they entered a tent.