At the top she paused in front of the door, just as she had done before. But this time the door swung open violently, and she saw her father looking down on her from the doorway.
"Dad - " She said, but he shook his head sharply and then nodded to where Dumbledore was seated in front of his desk, apparently paying no attention.
"Afterwards."
"Ah, Miss Lovegood." Said Dumbledore, suddenly seeming to wake up. He smiled at her kindly. "You seem to have given the DA plenty of things to think about."
"Yes, sir. What are we going to do about Hogsmead, sir?"
"Well, that was just what we called you up here to talk to you about. At the moment we know the following things. There is going to be an attack, at Hogsmead, on the 4th of January at 16:30 exactly. We know that a rather vicious potion will be used which may, according to that overheard conversation, be able to melt bone. We do not know where in Hogsmead the attack will take place. We do not know which, if any, Death Eaters will be involved. We do know that this is going to be a very dangerous expedition and therefore it has been decided that neither the DA nor you will be taking any part in its prevention."
Luna looked at him blankly for a moment and then nodded. "I understand."
Her father spoke from the corner where she could just about see him settled back in a chair staring out of the window. "This does not mean that your duties here are over. We still depend on your reports on the activities here in Hogwarts."
Both of them looked at her expectantly but she stayed silent, staring with a sudden interest towards a small globe tucked away beneath some of the papers on Dumbledore's desk. After a moment, Dumbledore spoke. "I suppose that's about that then. I think, Miss Lovegood, that if you have no questions you may return back to your Common Room."
"Actually, Headmaster, I would prefer it if I were able to speak to my daughter for a moment. Would you have any objection if I met her on the grounds for a short while?"
"Not at all."
He turned towards her and looked down at his watch. "Fifteen minutes," he said. "By the lake."
Luna sat on the bank, gazing out at the giant squid and watching as it played carelessly with a discarded muffin.
"I feel stupid talking to myself." She said.
"Lucky that you're not, then," he answered, wryly, and she felt his arm settle round her shoulders. "I know that it's difficult. Goodness knows that at your age half the things happening at Hogwarts now seemed impossible. But you know that we, as a family, do have - "
"I know." He fell silent, and they sat there together.
"Why can't I do something more? I'm sure that I could be more useful than I'm being at the moment... and the rest of the DA - they'd all be eager to help too -"
"Luna..." he said, and she looked over at him. "You're just children. You do know that, don't you? I know that sometimes it doesn't seem that way but in the end that's the truth. And you're my daughter. I'm not going to put you into any more danger than you're already in, especially when I don't need to."
"Don't you?"
"No. We've been training for something like this for months. If we can't handle it now, we'll never be able to."
Luna drew a deep breath and then suddenly tensed and said, "You'd better go. Someone's coming."
The wind shifted slightly and the pressure on her shoulder lifted. She turned and looked at Colin and Loretta Horn moving slowly towards the tree, grinning at one another, Colin holding yet another banana.
She turned back towards the lake, and, when the couple had passed, watched the giant squid swim slowly towards her. Hesitantly it offered her the muffin and she took it.