November 2005

Luna stared up at her ceiling and watched as shadows danced across the paint. Mere days before she left with Rolf, Luna decided that it was time to get rid of the childish mural that she created so long ago while in Hogwarts. Painting over Harry's face had been cathartic in a way and though Luna did not regret her decision, at that very moment she found that she missed gazing up at him… his face painted exactly the way that she used to dream about him when they were young. Luna moved her eyes across her newest creation – a painting that reflected the summer stars of the night sky as seen from her garden – and sighed. She rolled onto her side and faced Rolf's back, hunched over in sleep.

Luna listened to the sound of his steady breathing and counted the seconds that he took between exhaling and inhaling. She would regret breaking Rolf's heart – she knew that with certainty. If circumstances were different or if they had simply been born in a different life, Luna thought that Rolf would be a perfect match for her. He was steady and sweet and patient in a way that Luna did not deserve… but everything had changed again.

Luna squeezed her eyes shut and sent apologetic thoughts towards his sleeping form. And, until she mustered her courage, Luna repeated, "Please don't hate me," over and over again until…

"Rolf," she said, her voice breaking through the night's silence. Rolf jumped awake and Luna watched as he gained awareness of his surroundings. Rolf did not turn to face her, for which Luna was grateful, but he turned his head slightly up.

"Luna?" he replied. "Are you awake?"

Luna waited a beat and then said, "I slept with Harry at the memorial service."

Rolf took in a deep breath and blew it out. "Do you regret it?" he asked.

"No, I don't think that I do."

Rolf sat up in bed and turned to look down at her. Luna felt him watching her through the darkness of her bedroom and she held her breath. Rolf sat silently for a long while, simply watching her.

"Are you going back to him?" he asked.

"I don't know. Right now… I don't think so," she replied.

"Do you love me?" he asked quietly.

"No," Luna said and then added a meek, "I'm sorry for that."

Rolf pushed himself out of the bed and stood. Slowly, he gathered his clothing and began to dress. Luna turned onto her back and regarded her constellations once again while listening to the sounds of Rolf leaving. Luna was vaguely aware of him turning back to face her and she cringed when he began to speak, his voice cracking.

"You're too good for him and he doesn't deserve you… but I'm not going to beg for you. I feel like I've done nothing but try to convince you to pick me for the past year and a half. I could've made you happy, Luna. We could've been great together. And I think that you're really stupid for taking him back-"

"I don't know that I am taking him back," Luna began but Rolf cut her off.

"Don't do me any favors in trying to spare my feelings. Just be honest and call a spade a spade," Rolf snapped, the sadness in his voice replaced with harsh anger. Rolf strode towards the door but paused before leaving. "And you're a real bitch for leading me on like you did. You know that, right?" Rolf slammed the door and Luna listened to him make his way out of her house. She jumped as she heard the front door slam shut and the windows rattle in their panes.