Chapter 5 – Bruises and Pizza

The week after lunch at the Burrow, Luna moved into her new flat. She had enjoyed her time with Harry, Ginny, and James, but knew it was time to get back on her own feet. She had enough money between her and Rolf's inheritances to take care of her and the boys without needing to work, but she was still careful in selecting an affordable flat in a magical building located near the Ministry. The flat was two bedrooms with a single, good sized bath, an above average living area, and a general floo usage fireplace. The previous tenants had caused a fair bit of damage to the place, but the landlord had repaired it and assured Luna that he had removed any latent spell traces. Harry had a day off work and stayed home with all three boys while Luna and Ginny moved her few belongings to the flat and then went shopping for furniture, of which Luna had none. By Friday night everything was settled and she picked up take-away and spent a pleasant evening home with her sons.

The week following Luna's move, she spent quite a bit of time exploring London, taking the boys to parks and the zoo. Ginny brought James along when she went to the zoo and the day was quite fun. Despite how much she was enjoying her time with the boys, Luna still found herself craving the intellectual stimulation she had in Kenya. With that in mind, she decided to send an owl message to Hermione. Upon graduating Hogwarts, Hermione had taken a position in the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures. Five years later, she was now the assistant director of the department and her lobbying had caused a recent name change, making it the Department for Magical Creature Relations. Luna made her letter to Hermione quite formal, listing her qualifications and publications and inquiring if a position would be available in the research division of the department. She sent it off with a small sense of trepidation and then continued on with her normal routine.

As part of her routine, Tuesdays were Luna's day for shopping and errands. She floo'd to Ginny's to drop the boys off as usual and Ginny gasped when she saw Luna.

"Luna! What in Merlin's name happened to you?"

"I had an argument with a door. The door won."

"What door and how did it manage to blacken both your eyes forehead?"

"The crazy moaning door that goes into my kitchen. It hasn't been swinging right and it came back at me last night. I tried some bruise potion, but it only helped some. George mentioned he has a bruise paste he developed, so I am going to stop by his shop and pick up some."

"Alright, that sounds good. George's bruise paste is quite good. I actually used to have some, but Harry used the last of it after his last mission. I should probably pick up some more. I think too that you need to get your landlord to look at that door."

Luna nodded and then kissed the boys goodbye before leaving Ginny's and heading for Diagon Alley. She wore a pair of sunglasses to disguise the worst of the bruises, despite the overcast day. She made a couple of quick stops and then proceeded on to Weasley's Wizard Wheezes and Wares. When she stepped into the busy shop, she took a minute to look around and marvel at the place. Then she spotted a familiar ginger head above the crowds as George waved to her. She made her way over to him and he looked concerned.

"Hi Luna, what's with the sunglasses? I keep the Belgian Brightness Powder locked up since one of my customers set some off and everyone thought the building was on fire."

"Actually George, I had a bit of an accident, which is why I'm here."

Luna removed the glasses and George gasped, then an angry look grew on his face.

"Luna, who did this? Tell me and we'll sort him out."

"No one George. I'm not ready to even think about being with anyone again. I just have a badly behaved door in my new flat."

"Alright, I understand. Here, let's step over to the Wares side of the shop. I think you need to have that door looked at."

Luna followed George through a large archway to an adjacent, second shop next to the original Weasley's Wizard Wheezes. The second shop was more subdued in coloring and decoration, but no less astounding in the products that were displayed.

"So this is the second part of your shop you were talking about at lunch. Very impressive."

"Yes, this is Weasley's Wizard Wares. Fred and I had a couple of products in our initial development that weren't really joke items, but we still included them in Wheezes. Since then I've developed a number of additional items with Ron's help and we decided to split out the two product lines. Here is where we'll find the bruise paste."

George walked over to a first aid display and grabbed a tube of the paste before turning back to Luna.

"Do you want to wait until you get home, or would you like to apply some now?"

"I think I should get some on now. The sooner the better."

George nodded and summoned a mirror from the other end of the store. Luna began to apply the paste and hissed as it burned and made her eyes water.

"Sorry about that Luna. I've tried a number of variations and I can't make it burn any less and still have it work as well. Here, do you want help?"

Luna nodded and accepted his offer since her watering eyes made it hard to see to apply the thick goo. George gently reached over and finished dabbing it on. She tried to keep quiet, but couldn't help wincing. Once it was done, George let out an explosive sigh.

"There, I think you're done. Sorry, I hated hurting you, but at least it's already working. Here, let me get you a tissue."

Luna dabbed her eyes and checked the mirror, surprised to find that the bruises were already fading.

"Wow George, this stuff does work fast. I guess it was worth the burning. This is much better than the old bruise potion."

"Aye. I ship a couple of cartons to St. Mungo's each month. It's one of my best selling items. Now, what is up with the door that did this?"

"It's the door into the kitchen of my new flat. I've scanned it and it seems clear, but I think there's some latent spell damage on it. My landlord said the couple who had the place before me used to have some mighty rows and let loose with all kinds of curses. He supposedly cleansed the place, but I think he missed something. It's a swing door and every time I push it, it makes this horrible moaning noise. Then last night, I was up late and went to push through it like normal and it stuck, then let loose, and swung back at me hard."

"Hmm, definitely sounds like your landlord missed something. I actually have a product that might help. Unfortunately, I'm sold out, but I do have a shipment coming in two days."

"Sure George, whatever you think will help. The landlord has done what he can and he's started to ignore my complaints."

"Okay, I'll let you know when the shipment comes in."

Luna thanked George, paid for the bruise paste and left to continue her errands. After she finished with groceries, she headed back to the flat to store everything and then floo'd to Ginny's to pick up the boys. Ginny was happy to see by that point that the bruises were mostly gone, and was also happy that George may have a solution for the angry door. That evening, as she laid in bed, Luna thought back on the day and couldn't help but think about how kind George had been. And his shop was truly amazing. With all his pranks during school, she had never realized how smart he really was.

The following day Luna received an enthusiastic reply from Hermione regarding her request for a research position. The note also asked that Luna come in to interview with the head of research the following day at 10 am. Luna floo called Ginny to see if she could look after the boys.

"Actually Luna, I'd love to, but Harry has the day off tomorrow and he's taking me out. He hasn't told me where. Mum is taking care of James for the day. Why don't you ask mum if she'd look after the boys? It shouldn't take you long."

"I don't know Ginny, I don't want to impose on your mum."

Ginny snorted.

"Really? Mum loves having the grandkids around and would love a couple more. She handled George and Fred, yours won't be a problem. Just give her a call."

Luna nodded and wished Ginny a good day out with Harry, then she ended the floo call before initiating a new call to the Burrow. Molly enthusiastically agreed to take the boys for a couple of hours. With the plans set, Luna penned a reply back to Hermione's department, accepting the interview offer.

The following day, Luna floo'd to the Burrow at 9:30 with the boys. Molly was waiting and immediately took hold of both the boys, squeezing them as she sent them on to the living room. Little Molly, James, Fred, and Roxy were already there and Molly assured Luna that everything would be fine and not to rush. Luna hugged her and then apparated to the entrance of the Ministry.

Promptly at ten, Luna presented herself to Evan Grey, head of the research department. They spent nearly an hour in animated discussion on magical fauna. He had read her recent publication on the history and research with the emela-ntouka and was delighted with her translation capabilities. He had also heard of Rolf's death and extended his condolences. As they wrapped the conversation, he made her an offer for part time research work. They worked on the details, and when she left, Luna was officially a Ministry researcher for magical creatures, working three days a week and starting the following week. She was overjoyed with the opportunity and with the income it would provide. Although she had the inheritances, the money from her part time work would cover a large portion of her monthly expenses. Working three days a week would also allow her time with the boys, while maintaining the intellectual stimulation she needed. As she pondered finding a daycare, she apparated back to the Burrow to pick up the boys. Molly was waiting and wanted to hear all about the interview, insisting that Luna stay for lunch. The boys were quite content and she was happy to agree to lunch. She helped Molly settle all the kids with food and then the two women sat down to talk.

"So, how did the interview go? I'm guessing they were suitably impressed with your experience?"

"It went well Molly. I was surprised that my recent publication has actually been read by several people in the department. I had a very nice discussion and accepted an offer for three days of work a week. Due to other schedules in the department, I've chosen Mondays, Tuesdays and Thursdays. It's the perfect solution, allows me to work and still spend time with the boys."

"Well, congratulations! That does sound perfect. So, what about the boys? Where are they going while you work? And when do you start?"

"I start next week, which is actually only five days, so I need to get busy finding a daycare."

"What? A daycare? Nonsense. I'll take care of them."

"Molly, that's very generous, but you've got your hands full with your grandkids."

"Well, only three of my grandkids are here regularly and I've certainly handled more than them. Really, I would feel better with your boys here than with some strangers."

"Alright, if you insist, but I will pay you. No discussion on that. I really do appreciate it."

Molly made a face, but agreed to let Luna pay her. They talked for a couple more minutes before cleaning up from lunch. Luna hugged Molly goodbye and then took her sons home to nap. That night, Ginny floo'd over after her mum had told her Luna had news. They drank tea while Luna told her about the job and the fact that Molly was going to take the boys. Ginny was ecstatic and they talked for a bit longer about her wonderful day in Brighton with Harry.

The following day Luna spent a quiet day with the boys at a park. After lunch, they returned home and she had just settled them down for naps when the floo alarm indicated a call was coming in. Returning to the living room, she accepted the call and George's face appeared in the fire.

"Hi Luna. I received that shipment I mentioned. The powder I think will work is actually new and I'd like to try it out myself on your door. The shop closes at five and I pick up the kids at mum's after that. Tonight is our usual pizza night and I was wondering if I could bring the kids and pizza to your place so that we could try to fix the door? Do your boys like pizza?"

"Sounds like a plan George. I don't think the boys have ever had pizza, but I'm sure they'll like it. I haven't found anything they won't eat yet."

"Great, we'll be over around 5:30 then?"

Luna agreed and George left the floo. She looked around the flat and pulled her wand to begin tidying up. With that done, she decided to do a bit of reading until the boys got up. At a couple of minutes after 5:30, the floo alarm rang and she unlocked it to allow George in. He stepped through with Fred holding onto his pants while he held Roxy and a box of pizza. Fred immediately let go of him and ran to where the boys were playing. Luna took the pizza from George while he set Roxy down.

"Hi Luna, since the boys are playing, how about we take a look at the door first?"

Luna agreed and showed George down the short hallway to the kitchen. She gently pushed on the door and it made its usual moaning noise before swinging back at her hard. George made a face and nodded. He pulled his wand and ran a quick sensing over the door as he turned back to Luna.

"Alright, that is definitely not normal. I don't sense anything, but sometimes minimal residues from spell damage won't be detected. I've actually seen this a couple of times and that's why I developed the spell absorption powder. I wanted something that could be used on items without causing damage. I originally designed a gel, but I found a way to compress it down to a powder. That way it can be cleaned out easily after. What I need to is get the powder wherever the latent damage is and then activate it. We should know fairly quickly if it works."

Luna nodded as George opened the small bag he had brought. He put some of the powder in his hand before lightly blowing it onto each of the door's hinges, as well as the door itself. He then cast a quick shield around them before casting the activation spell. The door briefly shuddered, then it swung back and forth before a small flash of light centered on one hinge and fizzled out. When it looked like it was done, George lowered the shield and pushed the door carefully. For the first time since Luna had moved in, the door was quiet. George gave it a couple of good swings and it seemed to behave normally.

"Excellent! Well Luna, it looks like it worked."

"Thanks George. That really is amazing. So, how much do I owe you?"

"Don't worry about it. I barely used any of the powder and this was actually a final test before I put this out for general sale. I've sold some to the Ministry, but I've been waiting for a final test before I release it to the public."

Luna thanked him again as they made their way back to the living room and the small attached dining area of the flat. The boys were playing and Roxy had crawled over to join them. They all looked content as George took the pizza and began to set up dinner. A few minutes later Luna and George had all four children happily munching when they started on their first slices. Luna watched her boys and they were eating with gusto.

"Well Luna, I'd say they like pizza."

"Indeed. Not that I'm surprised."

Dinner stretched on longer than usual as Luna enjoyed talking with George about a variety of topics. He congratulated her on her new job and was thrilled when he found out his mum had agreed to look after the boys. They would have kept talking for much longer, but the children all started to get fussy and George declared it was time to take his home. Gathering Fred and Roxy, he stepped to the floo and turned around to say goodbye to Luna. They were mere inches apart and for a moment he seemed to pause, but then stepped back and wished her a good night before stepping into the floo.

Later that night, as Luna prepared for bed, she thought back on the evening. She'd had a good time with George and enjoyed a chance for adult conversation. When he had stood by the floo, she almost thought for a moment that he was about to kiss her. What if he had? What would she have done? She wasn't sure.