Author's Note: I do not and never will own Harry Potter.
Written for the OTP AU! Competition. Round 2: Spies AU. Pairing: Luna/Ginny. (Very AU, naturally.)
She toyed with her food, staring dreamily around the Great Hall as conversations ebbed and flowed around her, carefully excluding her. She didn't mind. Across the Hall, her eyes landed on a red-headed girl with her head propped on her fist as she forked mashed potatoes into her mouth. Their eyes met for a second, then passed on. She still felt the spark.
Her forearm burned suddenly, a fierce throb that caught her breath, trapping air in her lungs. If she'd been able to look at that moment, she would have seen a similar grimace pass across the redhead's face, and the hook-nosed professor at the Head Table.
She waited a few minutes, letting herself ride the pain for as long as she dared, before rising gracefully from her place and sliding a dinner roll in the pocket of her robes. If anybody noticed, they wouldn't comment. Anything unusual she did was chalked up to being "loony." Sometimes she could almost be grateful for it.
Ginny waited outside already, fidgeting with the edge of her sleeve. Her skin was pale as milk under her freckles and she looked like she was going to sick up on her shoes.
"It will be all right," Luna murmured as serenely as she could, fighting the nausea herself. The Dark Mark was the most painful thing she'd ever experienced. The Dark Lord touching it and summoning her was worse.
It was dark outside, but the two girls still took care in making their way down to the front gates. The wind sliced through their robes, raising goosebumps on every inch of exposed flesh. Luna paced and Ginny bit her fingernails. They were ragged and her thumb was bleeding by the time Professor Snape sauntered down. One eyebrow arched at seeing them already there.
"Good," he murmured. "Hold onto me and do not let go." Then they Apparated.
Voldemort's chosen meeting place this time was Malfoy Manor, and Luna spared a fleeting thought for Draco, wondering if he knew who (what?) had set up perpetual court in his ancestral home. Narcissa Malfoy was haggard- even her glamour spells could not hide the dark shadows under her eyes, or the worry in every wrinkle.
"Severus," Voldemort greeted them, red eyes glinting with approval at the sight of Luna and Ginny. Luna fought down the urge to vomit on his feet. "You've brought your...proteges, I see."
"They wished to come, my Lord," Severus replied blandly. Luna pressed her lips together to keep them from trembling, staring resolutely at the floor. Beside her, Ginny did the same. "They were- eager, in fact."
"Is that so?" Voldemort sounded intrigued. "Come closer."
They did, hands linked together, robe sleeves pushed to their elbows. Voldemort lifted Luna's head, bony white fingers tipping up her chin.
"There you go," he whispered. She could feel him probing her thoughts, skimming through snippets of classroom scenes and petty bullying in the hallways, lingering for a moment on her kissing Ginny's cheek. Thankfully, he stopped there, and she knew he was doing the same to Ginny, prying for any instance of treachery. There was none. (Snape had taught them well.)
This time, he had nothing further for them, and they were free to go and sit down. Luna sat gingerly by Professor Snape, every sense heightened. She wasn't concerned for her sake, so much as she was for Ginny's. The Weasley name was already tarnished, but even more so in the presence of so many Death Eaters.
"Wonder how your mum would feel, you taking the Mark," someone whispered in Ginny's ear, loud enough for Luna to hear. She held her mask in her lap, tracing the edges with her fingertips. Ginny wore hers, but her bright red hair set her apart anyway.
It was a careful deception, but necessary. Luna was tired of being bullied, she claimed, and with the copious memories that flooded forth when Voldemort so much as brushed her mind, it wasn't hard to believe. Ginny followed for Luna. Voldemort couldn't feel love, but he could understand devotion. He could also understand the broken, empty places that still haunted Ginny's mind after her experience with his diary and when he'd first realised that, the smile on his face had chilled Luna down to her bones.
Midnight had come and gone by the time they returned, staggering through the gates on Professor Snape's arm. The after-effects of the Cruciatus still spasmed painful shocks through Luna's nervous system and she couldn't stop her fingers twitching.
"See me tomorrow if it doesn't improve," Professor Snape told them both in a quiet voice and left them in the entry.
"Figures," Ginny muttered in a disgusted voice, watching the billow of his robes vanish into the dungeons. "What if a prefect caught us-"
"They won't," Luna said quietly. "Come on."
Whether it was luck or something else, they made it to the Room of Requirement without incident. A massive bed filled most of the available space, but there were medical supplies on a side table, as well as a tray of snacks. Luna flopped down on the pillows, saying nothing but feeling quietly grateful as Ginny cuddled up next to her.
"I hate doing this," Ginny whispered. Luna nodded. They should go and report to the Headmaster, she thought, but she didn't want to move. And he didn't mind morning reports, she reminded herself.
The Order needed another spy, Luna thought, but didn't say. Luna had volunteered herself, but she'd never expected Ginny to volunteer herself up, too. Only Dumbledore and Professor Snape knew. Less chance of it leaking that way.
The lights dimmed a bit, adjusting to their drowsiness. Luna turned over, kissing Ginny's cheek, the line of her jaw. Their lips brush together, but it's more incidental than anything else.
"I love you," Luna said, and Ginny smiled.