Hello friends! I hope you all enjoy this installment! Sending love! -Lillie
Chapter Fifteen
Though she would never admit it, Luna had avoided talking to Dean throughout the day. They had sipped their Butterbeers in silence as heavy cloaks draped around their faces. Luna kept staring at the Dirigible plum earring in her hand as if it would disappear or vanish from her possession. Several times Dean attempted to ask her something, but she would turn her head and look out the nearest window or stare at a picture; something else always grasped her attention. That night, when they were safely back in the Room of Requirement, Dean climbed into Luna's hammock as she stared down at her hands lying still in her lap; without looking, he knew she was staring at the earring. Once comfortable, Dean bumped his shoulder with hers.
"Whatcha got there?" he asked.
"It's my earring," Luna said lowly so no one else would hear. "The earring the Death Eaters took when I was brought to Malfoy Manor."
"How did you get that?" Dean asked with interest.
"Draco," Luna whispered. "He slipped it into my hand right before he pretended to curse me after Theodore Nott came into the alley."
"Did you go looking for him?" Dean asked staring at the earring along with her as he clenched his jaw.
"Not exactly," Luna responded lightly looking up at Dean with wide eyes.
"Luna," Dean sighed.
"You would do the same," Luna said with a certain tone. "If it was Seamus, Neville, Ginny, or me, you would do the same, Dean. Please understand."
"I'm trying," he replied earnestly. "But Luna, you don't know how devastated we would be if anything happened to you. I wasn't here for the first time, but I can only imagine how torn Neville and Ginny were. I might be selfish in saying so, but please don't make them go through that again or me."
"It wasn't my fault the first time," Luna said slightly hurt by his words.
"No, absolutely not," Dean agreed. "But if you continue to seek him out knowing the possible consequences, it might be. You were lucky it was only Nott. If it was Snape or the Carrows, I don't think a pretend Cruciatus would fool them."
"He's my friend, Dean," Luna said with fierce eyes.
"So are we, Luna."
"Are you asking me to choose?" she implored.
"No, never. I would never ask you to do that, Luna, ever. I just want you safe; we need you. We care about you. I'm not asking you to choose him or us, but I am asking you to be cautious. Hogwarts is not the same."
"I know," Luna nodded reaching out for his hand. She was relieved he hadn't asked her to choose, because she didn't think she would have been able to.
"You're really okay, though," Dean asked claiming her fingers.
"Perfectly fine," Luna assured him as she stared lovingly at the earring in her free hand. "It's going to happen soon, Dean. The end of it all; I can feel it coming near," she said looking over once more at the boy beside her. His eyes darkened as he nodded his head once.
"I know; I can feel it too," he replied gripping her fingers fractionally tighter.
After wandering around Hogsmeade in search of his Slytherin companions, Draco, along with Theo, trailed back to the castle. The Sugar Quills were heavy and unappetizing within his robe pocket. Theo was talking about something he had no desire to hear, so Draco tuned him out. Nott Jr. could have been rattling off a way to defeat the Dark Lord and Draco would not have heard a syllable. He was beyond reach. Though he knew he hadn't hurt Luna, Draco felt awful putting her in that position once again. Doing so had brought back so many memories of sleepless nights and the sounds of her screaming reaching his bedchambers as Bellatrix and the other Death Eaters cursed her night after night. Draco knew tonight was going to be another sleepless night, and his muscles were already protesting at the realization.
Continuing to push his legs further, Draco reached the stone castle steps and turned towards the Slytherin common room. Theo had finally stopped talking, and Draco didn't have the energy within him to feel guilty at having ignored his mate for nearly twenty minutes. Walking down the chilled steps into the dungeons, Draco pushed open the door and allowed the cool air to fan over his face. It brought him back to reality allowing him to see a very annoyed Pansy Parkinson waiting for his arrival with crossed arms and pursed lips.
"Finally," she clipped as Theo shut the door behind them. "I thought you'd been captured by a team of bloody Gryffindors."
"No such luck, Pansy," Draco shrugged as he slid his arms out of the thick woolen robe; it was just cool enough to need it outside, but inside it felt suffocatingly hot.
"What took you so long then? Surely Sugar Quills aren't that time intensive," she smarted.
"Draco here found a little moonbeam where she didn't belong," Theo said clapping Draco on the shoulder in a gesture of pride.
"Lovegood?" Pansy said at once raising a dark eyebrow. "Did you report her to Snape?"
"No," Draco smirked though it felt unnatural to do so. "Where's the fun in that?"
"Get on with it, mate," Blaise said from his spot on Draco's favorite chaise. "You're practically bursting."
"Well, I saw her slip behind the Hog's Head, and I followed her. I was just about to hex her when Theo walked up; he witnessed my using the Cruciatus curse. She always was an exceptional screamer," Draco chuckled.
"Then Dean Thomas came running out of nowhere and slammed Draco into a brick wall," Theo added.
"Are you going to leave off the part where I sent him to his knees with a nonverbal curse, Nott," Draco sneered. "Or did you forget that part just as you forgot you owned a wand during the altercation?"
"Sod off," Theo said narrowing his green eyes. "I was getting there, mate. No need to get all sensitive."
"It's a shame she was raised as she was," Pansy sighed deeply causing all the Slytherin boys to look at her in shock. "What? It's so rare to come by a decent pureblood witch these days."
"Taken a sudden interest in witches have you, Parkinson?" Blaise smirked.
"No, Zabini," Pansy smarted back. "But I do wish people like the Lovegoods would simply live up to their lineage; they're purebloods, yet they want to dilute their magical blood with that of muggle plainness. I don't understand. If we all reproduced with muggles and half-bloods, eventually, the magical world would be obsolete. Centuries of history and culture gone from the world."
Draco expected to feel revulsion at her words, to hear Luna's counterargument echo in his mind, but it never came. He agreed with Pansy, and that scared him more so. He briefly wondered if he was reverting back into his old self, or rather back into the person he once thought he was. However, Draco knew he wasn't the same, but that didn't mean he was a full supporter of muggle greatness. He thought for a moment about what Luna would say to him, but he couldn't find the words within his mind. It was all terribly confusing and left a dull ache in his left temple.
"You don't have to preach to us, Pansy," Theo said from beside him. "We all think the same."
In his mind, even Draco had to acknowledge the fact that Theodore Nott wasn't lying; they did all think the same. With a mumble about being starved, Draco walked into his room and changed out of his heavy clothes for dinner. All the while, he went over Pansy's statement several times trying to find some fatal flaw in her argument; unfortunately for his conscience, he couldn't find any.
Dinner was a seemingly uneventful to say the least. Draco ate his root vegetables and meat without really tasting and drank pumpkin juice whenever he felt the need to do so. He resigned to let Theo and Pansy recount the story of him cursing Luna to any one who would listen. Eventually, the entire Slytherin table was whispering about the event. In typical Hogwarts fashion, the table closest, which happened to be Ravenclaw, overheard the whispers and started giving Draco steely glares; he knew he deserved them. However, he felt a heavier set of eyes on him; turning, he met the black eyes of the Headmaster of Hogwarts. Professor Snape was peering at Draco with upmost interest, and the young Slytherin could detect a spark of annoyance in his eyes. Quickly, Draco turned away.
Draco tried to keep his eyes on his plate and on his companions around him, but he could feel everyone glaring at him. He assumed the Ravenclaws had spread the word to Hufflepuff who then spread the news to Gryffindor. Though no one would dare to curse him outright, Draco felt the creeping proclivity to watch his back for the next few days. Their glares may have been a bit hypocritical seeing how they all had treated Luna for the past six years, but he supposed the rest of the students had never gone further than teasing and hiding her belongings; they had never resorted to cursing her so painfully. Apparently, he had brought forth a sense of protection for Luna from the other students. In his opinion, it was too little too late.
As the entrée platters disappeared, the tables flourished with every sort of pastry and dessert imaginable. From the corner of his eye, Draco saw Crabbe's massive fist close around a towering stack of chocolate cookies while Goyle dropped a heavy piece of pie onto his plate. Draco was no longer hungry, nor did he crave the sickly sweet sugar found within all of the desserts. He looked over to where the Bloody Baron stood in the corner, the dark shadow of blood running down his clothing as he face maintained a grimace of misery even in death. Draco's eyes drifted slowly around the room observing the ghosts who floated around the Great Hall. At once his eyes ceased roaming as he locked gazes with the Grey Lady of Ravenclaw. Draco's blood ran cold as her silvery translucent eyes bored holes into his being; she was glaring directly at him with a look that could quite possibly kill had she been alive. With a panicked need to do something, Draco plopped a massive heaping of chocolate and cherry pudding on his plate and shoved a large bite in his mouth. Pansy looked at him quite strangely as he sat there with whipped cream on his pointed chin.
Back in the Slytherin common room, Draco's mind was muddled with conflicting thoughts he couldn't rid himself of. He started repeating Pansy's words in his brain over and over, dismembering every syllable until a pounding erupted in his temple. He stared into the Black Lake for nearly an hour before giving up with a huff. Making his way to his trunk, Draco draped a cloak around himself and walked out of the Slytherin chambers. Thankfully, no one questioned him anymore.
In the dark corridors, Draco didn't feel the usual sense of relief he had grown accustomed to. Instead, he found himself looking behind statues as he passed and growing weary of the aching silence. He'd seemingly hurt one of Potter's friends; there was a larger target over his head now. With anxiety rushing through his veins, Draco pushed his legs to walk faster through the dark stone passageways. He wasn't looking where he was going and stopped suddenly when his entire body erupted in a deadly chill. Looking behind him, Draco's body became rigid as he stared into, or rather through, the dark eyes of the Grey Lady. Snapping his mouth shut, Draco started to turn on his heel to walk away before her cold voice sent chills up his spine.
"You could say you're sorry," she said. He had expected her voice to be hard and inflicting, but instead, it was light and soft. However, the gentle tone did nothing to drown the fire she felt. "It's very rude indeed to walk through people."
"Right," Draco said slowly. "I apologize."
"You're a very strange boy," she said causing Draco to furrow his blonde brows. "I knew a boy like you many years ago."
"You know who I am?" he asked hesitantly before squaring his shoulders. "Of course you do, I mean. How could you not? I thought you didn't talk to other Houses?"
"Yes, I do remember every Slytherin who mistreats one of my students," the Grey Lady clipped. "I've learned to do so over the years, and I typically don't, unless it becomes necessary. I especially avoid Slytherins; you all tend to have a proclivity in targeting Ravenclaws."
"What are you talking about?" Draco asked growing impatient with her sly riddles.
"Luna is kind; she is caring and compassionate. She is intelligent, and she loves people despite everything they've done to her. People take advantage of her," she said. If she hadn't been a ghost, Draco was sure he'd be turning red with anger.
"Why are you preaching to me about Lu-Lovegood?" Draco asked putting a note of disgust in his voice. "I couldn't careless about her."
"I suppose she knows that now too," she said. "I saw you both in the Astronomy Tower a few night ago; she stayed there with you for hours listening to all your problems, yet you curse her the moment the opportunity arises. You don't deserve her."
"You-You saw us?" Draco asked scanning the hallways for any signs of life or afterlife. They seemed to be alone, yet it did nothing to calm Draco's frayed nerves.
"I did; I always follow Luna while she sleepwalks so that she doesn't go anywhere that could cause her harm," she nodded. "I saw you tell her to be safe as she headed back into hiding and you walked back to your rooms. She was happy; Luna's always happy. I thought you were too, but I was wrong. I'm always wrong when it comes to people like you."
"People like me?" Draco responded in shock.
"Yes, charming and cunning, sly and willing to do whatever it takes to get what you want no matter the consequences," she ranted as her dark hair seemed to blow around her. "Stop treating Luna like she is disposable. She is a person; she's better than you all."
"Helena," Draco said softly; the Ravenclaw ghost was taken aback at the use of her first name. "Luna, she talks of you often," Draco explained seeing her shocked reaction. "Helena, it's not what you think, I swear," he added as he checked the hallway once more.
"Is it not?" Helena asked. "I may be dead, but I'm not deaf nor blind, Mr. Malfoy."
"Is there somewhere else we could talk?" Draco asked anxiously. "If I'm seen out here with you—"
"The elusive Grey Lady," Helena smarted as she seemed to shrink into herself. "Me talking to another Slytherin; how the others would mock you."
"It's not like that," Draco said pleadingly. "Luna, she's my—my friend. I would never hurt her if I had the choice. I didn't mean the curse; it didn't work, I swear. I can't—I can't hurt her; something in me won't allow it."
"It didn't hurt her?" Helena asked apprehensively; Draco could see the swirling questions in her translucent eyes.
"No, it was nothing more than a tickle," he assured her. "When you see her again, ask her."
"She would not betray people she thought were her friends," Helena said crossing her arms in defiance.
"No, but she wouldn't lie either, and you know that," Draco said. Helena said nothing more but continued to stare at Draco as if the written truth would appear on his forehead. "We're friends; she's the only person I can be myself around. She's the only person who will listen, genuinely listen to me without judgment or repulsion. She's the only one who can calm me when I get worked up or stressed beyond recognition. I would never hurt her if I could avoid it."
"Your friend seems to believe you hurt her; one of them, the dark haired boy, he witnessed it."
"Theo did yes," Draco nodded. "But Luna knew what I was doing; she knew to make it seem realistic. And they're not my friends, not really. They wouldn't be if they knew about her and everything."
"You're willing to risk exposure to protect her," Helena asked with squinted eyes.
"Yes," he responded immediately.
"I must tell you, Mr. Malfoy, Ravenclaw and Slytherin don't have the best of history. There are two ghosts here from Ravenclaw House killed by men from Slytherin. One killed for power and the other in the name of love. Those who do not understand often fear intelligence and individuality, and they seek to destroy it."
"I don't crave power, and I'm not in love," Draco said.
"You're wrong," Helena said though she didn't specify what it was he was wrong about; this irked him more than anything. "I must go," she said turning from him and floating away. His mouth reacted before his mind could stop him.
"Do you know where she is?" Draco called to her retreating form.
"Yes," Helena responded as she stopped in the middle of the hallway though she didn't turn to face him.
"Tell me," Draco said breathily. "Please, I need to know."
"You are not welcome there," she said.
"Could you give her a message for me?" Draco pleaded.
"I cannot," Helena said sadly before continuing her retreat. Draco stared after her until her silvery form was no longer visible in the distance; he faintly heard the words I'm sorry whisper into the empty air.
He felt heavy; his throat tight as his only connection to Luna floated away out of sight. Helena Ravenclaw knew where Luna was, yet she wouldn't indulge him in such knowledge. The despair he felt doubled; he was so close to knowing where she was. So close to not having to search for her every night, so close to being able to go to her whenever it all became too much. He was so close to her, yet he was just out of reach. The thoughts were suffocating him in loneliness.
Wishing he had the ability to turn off his brain completely, Draco turned his foot intending to walk back to the Slytherin dorms. He didn't want to be in the hallways any longer; he felt as if one unwanted encounter was enough for the night. However, fate did not agree with him. As he rounded the corner near Moaning Myrtle's bathroom, a shadowed figure was standing by a statue of the Hogwarts' crest. Draco slowed down apprehensively, and the figure stepped away from the stone sculpture. The burning light emitting from the lanterns hanging on the wall illuminated the face of Seamus Finnigan who looked eerily calm.
"Hello there Malfoy," he stated with a grimace. "I guess that mark on ye arm keeps ye out of trouble; it's afterhours isn't it?"
"Then why are you out here, Finnigan?" Draco challenged resisting the urge to grab the wand in his robe pocket and send a Confundus towards the Irish Gryffindor. "Take a few pages from Perfect Potter's handbook, have you?"
"Leave Harry out of this," Seamus fumed; Draco realized the Gryffindor was already holding his wand, his grip tight with resistance. "This isn't about him."
"That's new," Draco deadpanned. "What's this about then, Finnigan? Or do you simply enjoy standing in dark hallways?"
"I prefer hallways to alleyways, that's for sure," Seamus smarted through gritting teeth.
"Ah," Draco said as he realized what Seamus' business with him was. "I see news travels to your little hideout. You must have reporters hanging about the school."
"Doesn't matter, Malfoy," Seamus fumed. "You didn't get enough of her while you had her trapped under your bloody mansion, did ye? Didn't hurt her enough?"
"Is that what she told you?" Draco asked with a smirk though he felt his body tighten at the thought of Luna saying what a horrible person he was to her. Even though she would have been right in saying so, thinking of those words falling from her mouth hurt him deeply.
"Of course not," Seamus laughed humorlessly. "Luna said you only ever brought food down, but I doubt that's all you did, Malfoy. There was a Potter supporter, Little Looney Lovegood, in your dungeon; how could you resist, right? Just admit it."
"I see Dumbledore's Army is having trust issues," Draco said snarkily before he could stop himself; he saw Finnigan's cheeks flush darker. "Pity. I thought you were all best mates for life, heroes of the world and all that muck."
"Just admit you tortured her," Seamus retorted back; the tips of his ears were burning red. "Just admit it, Malfoy. Admit the monster you are, already!
"So what if I did," Draco said noncommittally. "What are you going to do about it, Finnigan?"
"Admit it and you'll find out," the Gryffindor boy gritted.
"Don't you know Slytherins have a proclivity for self-preservation? Why would I admit to something knowing you were going to attempt to hurt me for doing so?"
"Good enough for me," Seamus shrugged before lifting his wand to point at Draco. "Impedimenta!" Seamus yelled before uttering something under his breath. However, Draco didn't feel himself being thrown back, but rather slightly frozen to the spot he was standing, but he did feel hot, burning hot.
"What did you—" Draco started until he felt his leg sear in excruciating pain. "Fuck!"
Draco's knee buckled as he fumbled for his wand and muttered a flimsy Aguamenti at his leg that was on fire. However, the pain did not subside, but rather continued to travel up his leg as wails of pain echoed through the stone passageway. As usual Seamus' spell casting resulted in fire; though Draco suspected it may have been intentional this time as Seamus didn't make a move to stop the flames. Yelling out in pain, Draco looked up to see Seamus Finnigan staring at him with a mixture of disbelief and contentment in his eyes.
"Be glad you have quick reflexes, because I wasn't going to stop it until it burned that Mark off your arm," Seamus spat. "That was for Luna, you bastard."
With that, Seamus Finnigan stomped off leaving Draco sprawled out against the cool stone floor with a burned leg. For a moment, Draco lay there in pain; it was like nothing else he'd ever felt. It was like his entire leg was charred yet pulsing and twitching as his raw skin touched the night air. Draco pushed himself up, but the rustling of the burned fabric against his scalded skin caused his eyes to glaze over in black and bursting stars. He'd rather both of his arms be broken by wild hippogriffs than have severely burned flesh. Inhaling and exhaling two deep breaths, Draco attempted to push himself up again, only to fall back down due to a burst of pain. A scream of pain fell from his lips.
"Draco, what's happened," a quiet voice said beside him. Looking over through blurry eyes, Draco saw Moaning Myrtle floating in the entrance of her bathroom.
"Myrtle, I need you to get someone, anyone," Draco grunted out.
"Why should I help you?" Myrtle said putting her nose into the air. "You only come to me when you're lonely or need help finding another girl to spend your time with. I should leave you here to rot," she said before looking down at his leg. "It seems you've already started doing so. I'm dead, and even I can smell the scent of burning flesh."
"Please," Draco begged through gritted teeth trying to convey sincerity in his eyes. "Myrtle, please," he gasped as he moved his leg to the side and a surge of pain shot through the left side of his body. He heard her high pitch voice rattle off something else before his vision left followed by his hearing. In the place of utter darkness, Draco could still feel the burning of fire on his skin.
Ginny had never seen Luna in such a state. The dreaminess from her eyes was gone, the serene aura she always carried had disappeared; instead her usually unfocused eyes stared unblinkingly at Seamus Finnigan with such force, Ginny wondered if she were still alive. Slowly, Ginny walked to her best friend and put a lightly freckled hand on her shoulder; Luna didn't respond to her touch.
"What have you done?" Luna finally said lowly.
"Luna, I did it for you; after what he did to you today, the bloody wanker deserved it," Seamus said putting his hands up in a show of surrender. "He used an Unforgivable on you! I wasn't going to let him get away with that!"
"I never asked you to do that," Luna whispered. "I never asked because I didn't want it to happen. Why would you do this, Seamus?"
"He was just standing up for you, Luna," Ginny said gently. "I know you don't condone violence or anything, but—"
"No, Ginny," Luna said softly turning to her friend. "You all don't understand."
"Tell us then," Ginny coaxed. "Help us to understand, Luna."
Looking around the crowded room, Luna saw that every set of eyes was on her. They were all watching for her response, her reaction, and the reason she was so upset for Draco Malfoy's pain. Luna felt overwhelmed; she could feel their interest and desire to know every secret she was keeping. She couldn't stand it; it all felt so raw and intrusive. She needed to be away from everything and everyone. She needed to see him; he needed her.
"I can't," Luna whispered backing away. "I have to go."
"Go where!?" Ginny called after her in panic. "Luna, you can't leave! Please!"
"I have to, Gin," Luna said with tears filling her wide eyes. "I have to see him; I need to make sure he's alright. He can't—He needs me. I can feel it."
"Who, Luna?" Ginny asked hesitantly as Luna pushed the door open. Ginny's voice rose as she rushed to grab Luna before she walked out of the room. "Luna, who needs you?"
"Draco," Luna whispered before shutting the door on her friends' frantic and shocked faces.
Ginny stared at the door as it slammed behind Luna; it shook the walls around it, but the Weasley daughter barely noticed, for the door shook her world even more. She didn't move for a few moments, and everyone within the room seemed to freeze in silence. Ginny couldn't believe what happened. There was no way Luna and Draco were civil with one another. Feeling a hand on her shoulder, Ginny looked up to see the unmoved face of Dean Thomas.
"You knew," Ginny said with certain; Dean responded only with a nod. "Why didn't you tell us? Why didn't she—"
"Because she knew this would be the response," Dean admitted.
"He must have tricked her," Ginny reasoned with herself. "He did something to her because there's no way Luna could be fooled by Malfoy on her own. She's smarter than that."
"Ginny," Dean sighed. "There's so much you don't know."
"Then tell me, Dean," Ginny growled as the tips of her ears turned red.
"It's not really my story to tell," Dean shrugged as he backed away from the boiling redhead. "Luna has to be the one."
"So you know about them, about everything?" Ginny shouted making a few people in the room jump in fright. "You knew this whole time, Dean, and you kept it to yourself. Why? You know how she is! She'll sacrifice her life to protect people she cared about. And you're willing to let her die for sodding Malfoy? Because I'm not!" Ginny shouted at the tall Gryffindor boy before following her best friend and exiting the safety of the room. She left a room of shocked silence behind her.
After casting a Disillusionment Charm on herself, Luna stood just within the door of the Hospital Wing blending in seamlessly with the walls. She watched at Madam Pomfrey worked over Draco's leg. From her spot at the door, she could see the chard bits of skin, the unnatural redness, and the blisters that covered the surrounding areas. She wanted nothing more than to sit in the empty chair beside him and hold his hand while his wounds were tended to. Severus Snape stood off to the side, watching intently as Madam Pomfrey covered Draco's leg in a deep, green salve. His leg jerked as she applied the concoction though he did not make a sound or open his eyes.
For nearly half an hour, Madam Pomfrey muttered incantations over Draco who winced a few times in his sleep. Professor Snape never said a word; he merely looked on with a guarded expression. Soon enough, she was finished with her mending and Draco's leg was wrapped tightly in white bandages up to his upper thigh. Once finished, the head nurse looked at Snape with a dull expression.
"Mr. Malfoy will keep his leg, obviously," she stated. "However, I want him to stay here for a few days so I can insure that his skin heals properly and doesn't scar anymore than necessary."
"See to it then," Snape nodded as he turned to leave.
As he reached the door, he stopped with his hand on the door handle as his eyes traced over the spot where Luna stood hidden. Luna held her breath and willed her heart the cease beating as his cold stared wandered over her. Deciding there was nothing worth seeing, Professor Snape pushed the door opened and walked out of the Hospital Wing. With a gentle pat to Draco's good knee, Madam Pomfrey placed a burning candle next to his bedside before retreating into her private quarters. Luna stayed hidden for a while longer to make sure that everyone had truly left before walking away from her hiding spot and over to Draco's sleeping form. She sat down beside him in the once vacant chair and reached her hand out to grab his.
"I'm terribly sorry this has happened to you," Luna whispered as she wrapped her long fingers around his. "Seamus thought he was defending me, but clearly he didn't know we are friends. I feel as if this is my fault; had I been honest with them, maybe this wouldn't have happened," Luna sighed as she brought Draco's hand up to her face; she placed their intertwined hands against her cheek. "I'm so sorry, Draco."
Though Luna couldn't see, Ginny was standing behind the slightly opened doors. Through the narrow opening, the Gryffindor could see clearly into the Hospital Wing. Thankfully, Draco Malfoy's bed was directly across from the door. As her best friend talked to the young man who had made Harry, Ron, and Hermione's life miserable for the past seven years, Ginny struggled to hear Luna's soft whispering. She wished she had thought to bring one of Fred and George's Extendable Ears. Ginny remained silent as she stood in the doorway; however, Luna knew she was there. Just as she always knew Narcissa Malfoy was waiting in the shadows of the manor, Luna knew her friend wouldn't let her go so easily.
"You can come in, Ginny," Luna said not taking her eyes off of Draco. "I know you're there."
Feeling thoroughly foolish, Ginny walked in sheepishly bending her head and causing a veil of red to shield her face. It was so unlike Ginny that Luna felt herself smiling at the sight. Conjuring a second chair, Ginny sat down next to Luna and waited for the Ravenclaw to speak. Ginny noted that Luna seemed lighter; the dreaminess had returned to her eyes and a soft smile stretched across her lips. She looked like the Luna she was accustomed to.
"I know you're waiting for an explanation," Luna whispered as she reached her unoccupied hand to straighten the rising hemline of Draco's hospital top. "But I'm afraid it's much to long to share at the moment."
"Did he ever hurt you? Physically?" Ginny asked.
"Yes," Luna said honestly. "But not today."
"It doesn't matter, Luna," Ginny said.
"He did it so Bellatrix wouldn't," she added. "He did it after I begged him to so he wouldn't be hurt himself. He'd gone through so much already, I didn't want him to become a shell. He was so close to nothingness, Ginny. His eyes were dead; his spirit was nearly gone."
"It's not your responsibility to protect him," Ginny replied gently. "He has friends who never leave his side, his family—"
"Is in shambles," Luna finished for her. "His mother and his father have conflicting ideas; Draco never told me, but I know it. Mrs. Malfoy was always kind when others weren't around, but Bellatrix is a mad woman who will stop at nothing to please You-Know-Who, and he wants Draco. Mr. Malfoy is trying to repair the Malfoy name in You-Know-Who's eyes, and it's harder than he thought. Draco was—is—under so much pressure, and all the while, he didn't know what he wanted."
"What does he want?" Ginny asked.
"The opportunity to choose for himself, I think," Luna replied.
"What's his choice?"
"I don't know," Luna said honestly. "But I believe in him; I have to."
"Why is that?" Ginny questioned.
"You say it's not my responsibility to protect him," Luna whispered looking at Ginny for the first time. Her eyes were swimming with unshed tears. "But it is, because when it was his responsibility to destroy me, he protected me. Now it's my turn, and I won't let him down."
"He's not a good person, Luna," Ginny sighed standing up from her chair.
"I'm not saying he's good, but I'm not saying he's bad either, Ginny. He's neither; he's a person, and no person is ever merely one thing."
"Spoken like the one and only Luna Lovegood," Ginny sighed though she couldn't hide the grin creeping onto her face. "I trust you, Luna, but I don't trust him."
"I understand," she nodded.
"If it ever comes to it, I'll curse him to pieces," Ginny threatened. "I won't hesitate."
"I would expect nothing less," Luna responded.
"I'll leave you here for now; if you're not back within the hour, I'm coming for you. Hogwarts isn't safe, Luna," Ginny said as she walked to the door. As her hand touched the door handle, she turned to look at her friend. "You really should reconsider your taste in men, Luna."
"We're just friends, Ginny," Luna assured her. "Like you and Harry."
"I don't think of Harry as just my friend," Ginny whispered before slipping out of the door.
"I know," Luna said in a hushed voice so that no one could hear. She brought their intertwined hands away from her cheek to press her lips gently against Draco's hand. Only when she placed his arm back on the bed did she hear the door shut with a soft click.
Pulling her chair closer to Draco's side, Luna gently tucked a stray piece of hair behind his ear. Her fingers lingered on his skin as she traced over his jaw. She itched to paint him, the capture every angle and curve of his face on parchment. He looked so peaceful and relaxed; Luna surmised hat she had never seen him so serene, nearly angelic as the warm candle light cast a soft glow on his pale features. Knowing Ginny's threat of returning was true, Luna stood up to leave.
She rested her fingers against Draco's hand and gave him a light squeeze, but as she was turning to walk away, she felt cool fingertips caress her wrist. She turned around to see his silver eyes still hidden behind his eyelids, but the corners of his mouth were slightly turned up. He was happily dreaming; with a gentle smile, Luna leaned down over him planting a soft kiss to his forehead.
"I'll try my best to come tomorrow night," she whispered to him trailing her fingertips across his cheekbone and over the shell of his ear. "Sleep well, Draco."
With her final goodbye, Luna left the Hospital Wing and walked the well-memorized path to the Room of Requirement. She was mulling deeply over the conversation she had with Ginny and thinking about what she was going to tell the rest of the refugees. As her mind began to ache, Luna shook her head to clear her thoughts as she told herself it would all come together as it should. As a serene smile took over her face,, Luna skipped the rest of the way to her friends. Because of his heavy black robes, she didn't notice Professor Snape standing in the shadows watching her with curiosity.