Writing for the QLFC Season 11 Round 3:
Team: Wigtown Wanderers
Position: Keeper
Prompt: Bragi 'God of Poetry' [Norse]: Write about someone reciting a poem or verse during an important/major scene in your story.
Word Count: 2953
Warnings: Kisses, Getting clothes Dirty, Public embarrassment, slight angst, mild sexual references, Harry being a idiot, Teasing
I own nothing of this beautiful universe except the plot of this story.
I really hope Harry and Luna are in character in this fic. I always seem to lose out points in this category.
A million thanks to my captain, Sam and teammate, Aya, for their immense help in correcting my terrible grammar. I'm immensely grateful to them, and am indebted. I have no idea how can I ever repay them. I love my team. 😁
"Luna, what're you doing?" Harry asked.
He scratched his head as he eyed his blonde-haired wife standing in the middle of the street. She was gaping at him as though he were some rare specimen of fish. Lizzie, who hadn't left her side, was also eyeing her mother with vivid curiosity.
"Sorry, I just remembered something," Luna said before walking up to him. She cracked one of those infectious smiles. "Let's go! I can't wait!"
"Yeah," Harry said after a brief smile. She really was adorable. But something had been bothering her for the past two days. He could tell.
"Mummy!" Lizzie cried, tugging at her hand, "Can I have one of those huge tubs of popcorn? The ones Grandpa was talking about?"
"Of course, dear," Harry answered, "but you'll have to promise you won't shout out something that'll embarrass either me or Mum."
"I promise," she said earnestly.
"Then I don't see any problems in you getting one."
Lizzie broke free of Luna's grip and ran forward to give him a very, very tight hug. Harry savoured the warm feeling that fluttered across his chest as she whispered, "I love you, Daddy!"
Harry placed a hand on her head and ruffled the blonde strands of hair she'd inherited from Luna.
"Daddy," she asked uncertainly after pulling back. "Aren't you forgetting something?"
"What?" Harry frowned. "I don't think so, but why?"
She shrugged. "Nothing. It's just that Mum's been a bit sad… since last night."
"My dear," Harry turned to Luna, who was looking at the small coffee shop at the end of the street. "What is it?"
"Nothing important," she said, staring at him with a blank face.
Harry placed a hand on her shoulder before softly saying, "You know that you can talk to me about anything, right? I won't judge you or call you loony."
"I know. That's why I love you so much," she said.
Harry couldn't resist planting a light kiss on her forehead. He could never hurt this beautiful soul.
As they stepped into the dimly lit foyer of the cinema hall, Harry felt a surge of excitement ripple through him. The scent of buttered popcorn hung in the air, mingling with the soft murmur of voices and the faint strains of music playing in the background. With Luna on one arm and Lizzie on the other, he couldn't help but smile at the anticipation sparkling in his daughter's childish eyes.
The walls of the foyer were adorned with colourful movie posters; each one promising thrills, laughter, and adventure. Neon lights flickered overhead, casting a warm glow over the bustling crowd of moviegoers milling about. Their chatter was filled with eager anticipation for the film they were about to see.
As they made their way toward the entrance of the cinema, Harry's gaze swept over the rows of plush red seats, the flickering of the projector danced shadows across the empty screen.
A quick glance at Luna revealed her somewhat sad face. Harry knew she was upset about something, but he would rather wait until she brought it up herself. Right now he considered it his duty to comfort her. Going for her petite hand dangling by her side, Harry caught it and squeezed it reassuringly, feeling a swell of pride and love. Luna responded by smiling up at him and giving a squeeze to his hand in return.
The air was alive with the crackle of laughter and the promise of an unforgettable evening at the movies. His eyes adjusted to the dim lighting as they made their way down the aisle, Luna and Lizzie following closely behind. They found their seats in the middle of the row and sunk into the plush cushions with a sigh of contentment.
As they settled in, Harry glanced around the theatre, taking in the rows of eager faces illuminated by the soft glow of the screen.
The theatre was alive with unflinching excitement as the lights dimmed and the opening credits began to roll. Harry felt a thrill of happiness course through him as the familiar strains of music filled the room, the screen coming to life with vibrant colours and stunning visuals.
It was 'Avengers: End Game' – widely regarded as the best film of the Marvel Universe, a certain Muggle film franchise even Wizarding kids seemed to be following closely these days. Harry himself didn't enjoy movies in general, but Lizzie certainly did.
As they were transported into the world of the movie, Harry had to admit it was good. Their hearts raced as they followed the twists and turns of the plot. Lizzie giggled with delight at the humorous moments, her eyes wide with wonder at the breathtaking action sequences. Beside him, he felt Luna lean in close, her hand reaching for his as they shared a knowing smile.
As the movie unfolded before them, Lizzie seemed lost in the story, her emotions swept away by the powerful performances and captivating cinematography. She laughed, she cried, and she gasped in awe as the characters journeyed through their trials and triumphs on the screen. A short glimpse at Luna confirmed his suspicions that like him, she too had been watching their daughter more than the movie. They were a strange couple.
About halfway through the movie, Harry's wandering eyes landed on his wife. She was looking strangely sombre and distant. Harry knew those were supposed to be her characteristic traits, but over a decade of their relationship had given him the unique power to tell when she was being genuinely sad. He feared it was one of those rare occasions. He hated that look on her face; he couldn't see her sad.
Harry's eyes narrowed in suspicion as he saw Luna taking out red parchment, holding her wand over it. Her lips were just starting to murmur some spell when Harry decided to interfere. "Luna dear, what is it?"
To his immense confusion, Luna's eyes widened in shock as she turned to regard him.
"Nothing," she said hurriedly.
In a matter of seconds, the parchment was snatched away from her hands by Harry, who held it tightly in his own fists. His curious eyes moved between its red seal and his wife's mortified look.
"Harry, give it back!" Luna cried as she leaned in, her tiny hands swaying in the air in an attempt to catch it. "It's personal!"
"Nah, not so soon, my sweetheart," Harry gently chided. "I'm sorry, but I really need to see what's making you so sad."
Luna sighed in defeat. "Fine, open it. But I doubt you would like the result."
Harry shot a last questioning look at her before his trembling hands went up to the seal. It opened with a satisfying pop, but what happened next was straight out of a horror movie.
It was a Howler! The letter came floating in front of him before flashing its disgusting white teeth.
"HARRY POTTER!" Ginny's voice shouted, amplified to over a million times her usual volume. Her voice echoed through the hall so that each and every person who'd come with the ambition of watching the movie was given a free insight into his personal life.
"WHAT DO YOU THINK YOU'RE DOING? YOU HAVE TIME TO RUN AFTER THE BAD GUYS, BUT NO TIME FOR YOUR FAMILY? TOO BUSY THAT YOU CAN'T REMEMBER YOUR WIFE'S BIRTHDAY, ARE YOU? SHAME ON YOU! I'M VERY UPSET WITH YOU. HERMIONE'S MAD, AND EVEN THAT MORON RON MANAGED TO ADMIT YOU'RE BEING A GIT."
Then the letter burned itself out, like magic, in open Muggle air!
Harry's horrified eyes flicked towards his wife. Her eyes were glistening as she mouthed, "Told you". Even Lizzie had stopped watching the film, her wide blue eyes turned towards the commotion surrounding her parents.
Harry swiftly got up to his feet before pulling his wife and daughter up from their seats. As he dragged them out of the room, he could feel the weight of so many staring at him. Lizzie was struggling a bit (she really loved Avengers), but Luna just gaped at him in curiosity.
Soon, they were out of the hall. Harry had the decency to shout out a "Sorry!" before slamming shut the door.
Harry hurriedly addressed his wife, who hadn't stopped her surprised stares his way, "Firstly, I'm sorry."
"It's okay, Harry," she mumbled to her hands.
"No! It's not okay, Mum!" Lizzie complained before her angry eyes turned to fix a glare at him. "You said sorry after you did it last year, too. You don't care about Mum!"
Harry's train of thought stopped dead in its tracks. How could he have forgotten? The disappointment in her eyes... The hurt in her voice... It cut him deeper than he cared to admit. Luna deserved better. She deserved the world, and all he'd given her was forgetfulness. How could he have let this slip through the cracks? She'd been his rock, his support in times of despair, his everything, and he'd failed her.
He needed to make this right, to show her how much she meant to him. But where should he even begin? He had absolutely no idea.
Harry kneeled down, his head in his hands. Yes, he was an idiot. He was finding it hard to forgive himself for this callous act of forgetfulness, so how could he even expect others to do so?
It wasn't long before the man started to shudder.
"Harry." Luna had kneeled too, and her whisper crept into his ears, "It's okay."
Harry looked up to regard her smiling at him. "No, it isn't okay, dear. I am a horrible person. Why did you marry me?"
"Because," she said, putting a hand on his shoulder, "I love you the way you are, and I won't have you any other way."
Those words broke through Harry's flesh and bones until they wrapped tight around his heart. Within moments, Harry's arms flung forward as he engulfed his wife in a tight embrace.
"I'm sorry," he started sobbing like a child, "I'm so, so sorry about that. I'm a very bad person."
Luna ran her slender fingers through his messy black hair. "I know you're sorry, and that means you are still a good person."
Harry looked up with his sore, red eyes. "You were sad, weren't you?"
"Yes," she replied, "but not anymore."
"Why didn't you… like, tell me or anything?"
"Because I knew it would hurt you."
"I'm being an absolutely bloody jerk towards you, and all you care about is it'll hurt me?" Harry asked, wide-eyed at her kindness.
"Yes," she said simply, "I do car—"
The words never escaped her mouth as Harry kissed it firmly with his own. It felt warm, pleasantly warm and sweet. His hands wandered up to claim a tight grip on her waist, and he felt Luna's fingers reaching for his hair. They kept kissing for several blissful, amazing moments, like numerous sunlit days, swaying from side to side as they did so.
When he finally pulled back, he found her smiling at him. But to his horror, he realized her usually pale lips were swollen and bright red.
"Luna," he whispered, terrified, "did I hurt you while doing that? I'm so sor—"
To his immense bewilderment, Luna's face adopted the distinct colour of Ron's hair as she looked down at her feet.
"What?" Harry asked.
"Oh, Daddy!" Lizzie squealed out. It was hard to say if she was smiling or giggling, "That's Mum's…"
"Lizzie," Luna began hurriedly, "let's get back home. You haven't finished your homework. We need to do it… You haven't even finished memorizing the poem you're going to recite in class next week."
"But," she protested, "I distinctly remember the two of us doing it two days back. As for the poem, I'm pretty confident about another poem I memorised yesterday. Let me recite it for you and Daddy."
She took in a deep breath and adopted a stern standing posture, like a soldier going to war.
"My love, in this moment so fine,
Beneath the stars, will you be mine?
With you, I'll journey through life's grand design,"
So, my dear, will you be my forever Valentine?"
Harry gulped. He could feel the heat emanating from Luna's face; those were the lines he'd used when he proposed to her. How the hell did that reach Lizzie's ears?
"Oh!" Luna had a funny little stutter at this point. "Anyways, let's go. It's getting late."
Saying this, she sped off towards the main gate, refusing to look at both Harry and Lizzie.
Harry found himself walking beside his daughter, who was now eyeing her mother with vivid amusement.
"Lizzie…" he said, "has your Mum been crying?"
Lizzie scratched her head, "I'm not really sure, but it's possible. I found her hair in a total mess every time she returned from Aunt Ginny's."
"Oh." Harry felt bad for her, but then his thoughts circled back to the most recent image of his wife. "And what was that? That thing on her lips? Did I hurt her?"
Lizzie pouted. "No, Daddy. You don't need to blame yourself for everything. You didn't hurt her."
Her voice then reduced to a whisper. Harry had to lean down to hear her say, "It was that enchanted lipstick she's been using. You know what it is, right?"
Harry scratched his head. As hard as he tried, he had no idea what she was referring to.
Lizzie put her hands to her waist and scowled, "You're impossible. It makes her lips turn red when she's feeling a little, for lack of a better word, seductive and flirtatious."
"What?" Harry's eyes turned wide at that. He could use many words to describe his wife, but seductive was the last on that list. Really? Flirtatious and Luna?
"Yes, as hard as I find it to believe, I'm afraid it's true," Lizzie continued before a grin broke onto her face. "Since I've given you insight into the matter, why don't you make up for your idiocy by responding to her… flirts? Like, kiss her or something?"
"Don't you worry, my little princess." Now, it was Harry's turn to smirk. "Leave the rest to me. I'll do more than just kiss her when we get home. I really need to make up for being a git, don't I?"
"Yes." Lizzie gave him a tight hug. "But I haven't forgiven you yet."
Harry stopped in his tracks and slowly crouched down till his head was level with her. "What do I need to do to make you forgive me, dear?"
"Let me punish you for your misdeeds."
"Okay, then. Go on. I'm ready."
"You sure about this?"
"Positive."
Harry was wondering what this punishment was going to be, but he got his answer soon enough in the form of a large splash of mud pounding against his face. By the time he rubbed it off his eyes, he found Lizzie standing in the middle of one of those dark grey mud puddles, her feet dipped in them, her beautiful blue skirt barely blue now. And yet, she was giggling.
Really, this was too much. Harry opened his mouth to scold her, but the sight of her cackling madly at him changed his mind. Feeling like an absolute idiot, he splashed into the mud beside her so that a fountain of mud spewed out, engulfing all the ground nearby. The place was empty, but Harry didn't care.
When he'd done laughing with his daughter, he found Luna looking back at them, smiling fondly.
"Come on, sweetheart," Harry called, waving his hands. "Why should you miss out on the fun?"
It didn't take her too much persuasion before she joined them in jumping up and down into the dark grey pool, all the while with Lizzie howling wildly into the air.
Finally, Harry pointed out that they should head back lest they catch a cold. Lizzie scampered back forward, leaving Harry and Luna trudging behind, looking lovingly at their daughter and each other. Their muddy clothes brushed against each other, but Harry didn't care; her lips were still red.
"Do you want me to kiss you?" Harry asked.
Luna's whole face turned into a deep shade of crimson as she looked down at her muddy shoes. "Yes," she said in a mortified tone.
Harry had no reason to refuse and ensured their lips were glued to each other for the next few seconds, her lips murmuring in pleasure against his.
"Have I told you that you're the most wonderful woman I've ever met?" Harry asked her after pulling back.
Luna just beamed brighter than the sun overhead. "You're so sweet, Harry."
A short silence ensued.
"By the way," Harry began, "why did you break out that verse to Lizzie? I thought it was our secret."
"Oh, is that a bad thing?" Luna's eyes widened. "I think it'll come in handy when she's around Tom. Especially since I find her using my lipstick every once in a while."
"Now now." Harry's lips curved into a smirk at this recent piece of information. "Who is this Tom?"
He was rewarded by a sharp hit on his arm. "That's why Lizzie never discusses these things with you. She's afraid you and Ron are going to tease her for it."
"I promise we will," Harry grinned.
"But actually," Luna began, "I didn't tell her that verse."
Harry turned to his wife, flabbergasted. "Then who did?"
"Probably Ginny."
"What?" Harry almost toppled down in shock, "How the hell does Ginny know about it?"
"Because you told her those exact same lines when you proposed to her."
Luna laughed at how her husband's whole face turned red at that.
I hope you liked it.
JK Rowling really broke my heart when she wrote Harry falling for Ginny. 😭
Do comment, I appreciate and look forward to any and all constructive criticism. Please do so if you liked the fic, it brings a very bright smile on my face that's hard to rub off.
