Chapter 2
Lonely Just Like Me
Week 4
"Loony Lovegood, Loony Lovegood" I heard a few second years chant one morning at breakfast. My eyes shot up from my bacon and eggs to see them run away, giggling towards the doors of the hall. I looked at Luna to see her normally dreamy expression had a dent of hurt in it. I felt anger flare up inside of me. No one deserved to be called names. No one. I wanted to hex those insolent second years, what did they know about Luna? Well, sure I don't really know much about her either but she didn't deserve that.
"You alright Neville?" Dean asked me from across the table "Only, you're squashing your toast."
"I'm fine" I said through gritted teeth as a package from Gran dropped in front of me. I was surprised that I'd forgotten so much this year, must've been the fact that my Mimbulus Mimbletonia had been distracting me and I had forgotten to pack most of my needs for the year. I relinquished my hold on the toast and let it fall back onto my plate as my eyes sought out Luna again. She was reading her magazine, doing her best to look unruffled by the fact that she had just been humiliated by second years. But I knew what it was like to be endlessly teased by people who didn't know you, who thought it was acceptable to judge you when they didn't know the first thing about you. I knew that face. The mask that you put up to mask your hurt, pain and suffering, that mask can be a killer.
She was lonely, but she didn't mind. I didn't know how that was possible. I hated being lonely. I'm terrified of being alone. The only reason I sleep at night is because I know there are four other boys in my room who would be able to protect me if the time came. Gran says that I have a need of being with someone because of what happened with my parents when I was very young. I was left alone in our house for days before anyone thought to remember about the Longbottom's son. Mum and Dad had been out in the garden while I was sleeping and they'd taken one step outside the boundaries of the fidelius charm and the death eaters were upon them, taking them to a remote strip of land out in the country where they tortured them.
I was almost dead by the time Gran came to collect me a few days later. I've never been able to be alone for long periods of time since.
The bell rang and I jumped up quickly, consulting my timetable to see what I had next. Potions… with the Slytherins… and Snape. Why don't I just go back to bed and wallow in self-pity?
I saw Luna walking out of the hall, well, skipping out of the hall that same dreamy look in her eyes, but the hurt was still there. I could see it, even from where I was standing. I broke into a run to catch up with her, leaving Dean and Seamus standing where they were.
"Hey, Luna" I said, arriving breathless beside her.
"Oh, hello Neville, you've got a twig in your hair." She said absent-mindedly. I ran a hand through my hair and sure enough there was a small twig. The owl that had brought my stuff from Gran had probably dropped it in my hair.
"You okay?" I asked softly, looking around.
"Of course" said Luna with a smile. "Are you?"
"Yeah" I replied, confused "But I thought you might've been a little shaken up after what those second years said to you..." I trailed off as Luna smiled widely.
"Oh that, It's nothing; I'm used to it now, the wrackspurts get inside their heads and make them say things that they don't really mean"
"Oh-kay" I said hesitantly.
"It's all good fun, for the wrackspurts I mean." She replied happily. "I'll see you around Neville, I'm late for transfiguration."
"Bye" I called as she skipped off up the marble staircase.
"Longbottom" I heard a familiar voice drawl from behind me and I groaned. Malfoy. "Still shagging Lovegood I see?"
"When will you realise that you are never going to get girl." Crabbe said stupidly. "You're too dumb." I rush of blood went to my head and I suddenly felt fearless.
"Well if I'll never get a girl then you'd might as well give up now. You look like a baboons backside." I snapped, not even thinking about the consequences, I was on a roll.
"You sure you want to say that Longbottom?" Goyle said, stepping in front of Crabbe and cracking his knuckles.
"Yeah, yes I do! I'm sick of you bullying me, I'm sick of taking your crap, I'm sick of you testing out your little death eater rituals on me. I don't have to take this anymore; I'm worth fifteen of you three put together." I finished breathing heavily, feeling pretty impressed with myself. But to my dismay, Malfoy started to laugh, throwing his blonde head back and letting all of the laughter come out mercilessly. Crabbe and Goyle guffawed along with him, their stupid fat faces turning into grins as they laughed alongside their leader.
"You really are stupid Longbottom, who's been filling your head with such nonsense, your dinosaur of a grandmother?" Malfoy laughed. Before I knew what I was doing, Malfoy was staggering back, clutching his nose and I was suddenly aware of a throbbing pain in my fist. I looked up from it to see Malfoy pinching a bleeding nose, that was when I realised, I had punched him.
"Don't you dare talk about my family that way" I said, pointing my finger at him in an attempt to look threatening. It was short lived, because Crabbe took advantage of it and grabbed my arm, twisting it up behind my back. I whimpered in pain as Goyle delivered a punch to my gut. I felt all the wind get knocked out of me as I attempted to double over, but was pulled up short as Crabbe still had my arm pinned behind my back. Another punch, and Crabbe shifted his grip from my arm into a headlock. I gasped for air, scrabbling at my throat where all the remaining air was being squeezed out of me.
I managed to kick Crabbe where the sun don't shine and he staggered back a bit, clutching his balls, screaming abuse at me. I wondered why a teacher didn't come out to see what all of the ruckus was about. But no one came. Goyle threw me to the ground as I tried, in vain, to put up a fight as he pummelled the crap out of me, delivering blow after blow to my face, torso and groin. I curled into a ball in an attempt to protect myself. But that was when they started to attack my limbs. One of them grabbed my arm and pulled it right back. I gasped in pain as I felt it break roughly and my shoulder pop out of place. Words couldn't describe how much pain I was in. No sound could escape as they beat me to within an inch of my life and left me lying there, broken and bleeding, in the middle of the draughty corridor. All I could see was the wall as I spaced in and out of consciousness, wishing all the pain would end. Wishing for the blackness to come, and it did! The last thing I saw before my world went black was a pair of shoeless feet, blue eyes and blonde hair.
Week 5
"I'm asking you to tell me Mister Longbottom, who did it?" Professor McGonagall asked me a week later as I sat in a hospital bed, my arm in a cast and a bucket clutched in front of me, as I was still in danger of throwing up because of a nasty concussion. My body was still battered and bruised and it hurt to move.
"I'm telling you Professor." I said feebly "I can't remember anything." McGonagall pursed her lips in disapproval.
"Very well then, what is your last memory." She asked.
"Waking up here" I lied, that wasn't my last memory. My last memory was a certain blonde haired, blue eyed girl finding me in the middle of a corridor after a bashing.
"You do realise that we will have to administer Veritaserum to every student in the school if you cannot tell us what happened." McGonagall said.
"Just give me a few days." I asked "Maybe my memory will come back."
"Mister Longbottom, you have been in here for a week…" McGonagall started before being interrupted by Madame Pomfrey.
"And he will stay in here for another if everything goes my way. This boy has been emotionally and physically traumatised; he doesn't need questioning right now Minerva." Madame Pomfrey fussed, attempting to usher McGonagall out.
"Very well, Poppy, but once he is discharged we will need to ask him once more." McGonagall said, before walking out of the hospital wing of her own accord.
"Fancy questioning a patient while they're still recovering" Madame Pomfrey muttered under her breath, bustling back over to her office.
"Madame Pomfrey?" I asked after her from my bed as I forced down a retch "How long will I be in here for?"
"As long as it takes for your injuries to clear up, I'd estimate about another three to four days." She replied, sorting through some documents. "In the meantime, your friends may visit during visiting hours."
I couldn't help but think what friends? But no sooner had I thought that, the hospital wing doors burst open and Dean and Seamus waltzed in.
"Neville!" Seamus said jovially, "How's everything?"
"Not too good." I said, confused. I didn't think Dean and Seamus actually considered me as a friend, I thought they considered me as more of a tagalong that they didn't mind having around.
"Well obviously" Seamus said as Dean set down a basket of chocolates next to my bed.
"Gifts from the Gryffindor's" Dean said "There was a Hogsmeade visit last weekend and Harry, Ron and Hermione came up with the idea. They thought it'd cheer you up a bit."
"Thanks" I said gratefully "I appreciate it."
"So, you dying of boredom yet?" Seamus asked
"More like dying of pain." I replied with a wince.
"Oh take a joke Neville." Seamus asked.
"I didn't realise it was a joke." I said with full honesty. I was never any good at picking up sarcasm or anything like that.
"You're no fun" Seamus joked obviously enough that I could see that he wasn't criticising me.
"So, what happened?" Dean asked in an undertone. I was about to repeat the response that I had given McGonagall when Madame Pomfrey bustled over.
"Honestly, I'm kind enough to let people in in to see their friends and all they do is grill them for details. Out! Out I say!"
"See you later Neville." Dean said, tugging on Seamus' sleeve as he started to protest.
"Bye" I said miserably, eyeing the chocolates as they walked out. It really was nice of Harry, Ron and Hermione to think of me like that.
"You have one more visitor Mister Longbottom, she is most insistent on seeing you." Madame Pomfrey said, her lips pursed. I nodded before thinking wait… she?
The doors opened and Luna skipped through them, smiling happily with an onion looking thing clutched in her hand.
"Hello Neville." She said happily, setting the onion next to my chocolates.
"Uh… hi Luna." I said, immediately feeling awkward.
"Are you feeling alright? You didn't look very good when I saw you last." She said, her wide eyes becoming wider with concern.
"I'm coping." I said, wincing as I moved too quickly, making my head spin.
"You'll be fine!" she said "I asked the Wrackspurts to leave you alone for the moment, they're quite sympathetic creatures when they want to be."
"Great" I said with a laugh, which made my ribs start to hurt.
"They told me to say sorry for what happened to you."
Okay, so now she talks to these things? She really is crazy.
"I should really get going now, but" she stopped and leaned in to whisper in my ear "I think you were very brave standing up to Malfoy like that."
My eyes widened in realisation as all of my memories that had been stolen by my concussion came flooding back, she had been there, watching me the whole time as I yelled at Malfoy, and had been there while they attacked me. I didn't blame her for not intervening; all that would've done was get her hurt as well. She made sure that I was found by the right people. If she hadn't been there, I probably would've died. She nodded as she read my expression and pressed a finger to her lips.
"I'll see you around Neville."
Week 6
I've never met anyone as puzzling as Luna Lovegood, she's crazy, but a good kind of crazy. She's also not what she seems. She saved my life, and I'm forever in her debt for that.
I watched her in the great hall as we ate dinner. I was almost completely healed thanks to Madame Pomfrey's potions and medical remedies. I was still afraid of going anywhere alone, and Dean and Seamus had risen gallantly to the challenge of accompanying me everywhere, shooting death stares at any Slytherins who decided to crack their knuckles as I walked by, or look menacingly at me.
I watched Luna as she shamelessly helped herself to seconds, eating it daintily with a knife and fork, all the while with a smile on her face as if she was laughing at an inside joke. It was rather cute, adorable cute, not romantic cute, because despite Malfoy's jokes about how I'm 'shagging' her, I most certainly do not feel that way about her.
I didn't know why I found her so interesting… it was almost as if the things that she did was addicting to watch. I guess it's because you don't see anyone like her on a daily basis, someone who's completely fine with rejecting the status quo and not caring a bit about it. You also didn't meet someone who was completely content with not having any friends to talk to, and telling someone who showed concern that it was 'just the wrackspurts'
I took out my piece of paper that I'd been carrying in my pocket ever since the incident in the forest three weeks ago and added another thing that I knew about Luna.
Her Name is Luna and she's crazy as can be.
Her Name is Luna and she's lonely just like me.
AN: You may kill me now. Okay, I don't really want you to kill me but you can be angry at me for taking 3 weeks longer than I said I would to update.
I wrote this through a concussion, so I'm dying right now (I got hit in the head with a netball if you must know) and this may be a little vague. I can't tell because I have a concussion. And I don't know what happened yesterday. I know what I did and when I did it but I can't remember the details, like stuff that we learnt in class, or what our score for Netball was, but like Neville, my memory is slowly coming back. So I hope that means quicker updates, but I'm a busy bum and a lazy bum…. So they cancel each other out… okay Imma shut up now…
Reviews and feedback are always valued and appreciated
Until Next Time
~The Original Horcrux~
