The Houses Competition Year 12 Practice Round

House: Hufflepuff

Class: Divination

Theme: An original character - Use your own original character as the main character. Prompts: [Character] Luna Lovegood; [Character] Lucius Malfoy

Beta'ed by: ZoomieZoomie324, CoppersMama

Word count: 2989 (Google docx)

Takes place in HP 7. Starts canon compliant.

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HOW THE DICE ROLLS

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It was almost always cold at Hogsmeade Station this late in the year, this late in the month, this late in the morning.

Here, up north, the wind blew harshly at the end of December, and the winter seemed to bleach everything of colour. The cold made everything sharp, hollowed out the very air, and not even the softly falling snow made the weather less harsh.

Half-buried in snow, the red train coaches of the Hogwarts Express were waiting on the train track for the students of Hogwarts. The first carriages had already arrived, and all over the platform house-elves were popping in and out bringing luggage.

More than one pair of students passed by me, chattering loudly with each other and never noticing my cold gaze taking them in. I wasn't the only one. Just a few steps closer to the train, another pair of icy eyes were scanning the crowd.

Unlike me, the man— tall, pale like snow, and dressed like someone who wandered out of one of Hogwarts' portraits— hadn't noticed me. One of his hands was clutching an ivory cane and his white-blond hair was long and partly caught in the play of the wind.

While I doubted he knew me, I had known his name since the cradle.

Lucius Malfoy.

He had a child who was currently going to Hogwarts— Draco Malfoy, a seventh year— but I couldn't see Lucius coming all the way to Hogsmeade Station to take his son home.

Lucius was scanning the crowd more intensely than me, though whenever his gaze wandered in my direction, it slid right over me. I wasn't offended. I was often invisible to people.

I, unlike Lucius, had sat down when I arrived at the platform about an hour ago. I was kneeling on the snow-covered ground, my thin, midnight blue cloak–– glimmering a bit silvery and revealing galaxies and stars whenever the sun hit it just right–– was the only thing keeping the cold a bit at bay.

In one of my hands, I was slowly kneading a small, velvet bag, decorated with stars and galaxies. Its contents were rustling nearly inaudible with each move.

The little table before me looked worn down and old. It was just as bleached out as the rest of the world and looked a bit like old bones and the half-burned remains of an elder tree. My other hand was resting on it, stroking over the dings and dents marking it.

Deep down, I was still wondering what I was doing here.

This wasn't my game, after all. My game was already over or yet to come— and yet, here I was, sitting at a table and scanning the crowd.

And then, I saw her.

She was younger than the seventh years, and yet, older than most of the other students. Her hair was nearly as pale as Lucius' and her eyes were that special kind of blue-silver that looked like it was capable of piercing the veil and looking into the beyond.

She was whirring like a hummingbird, looking here and there, searching for creatures that weren't visible with the naked eye. Her clothes were a mix of colours, taking away a bit from the winter's way of sucking away all colour and her ears were adorned with little sprigs of mistletoe on red and golden strings.

For a single, breathtaking moment, I wondered why she couldn't be mine. I wanted her. I wanted the life in her eyes, the wonder, the unbroken belief that there was so much more to the world than what meets the eye.

She smiled, hummed and then came closer to me, her eyes on the horizon and a world she would never be able to see. She passed my table, her robes brushed over my hand and for a second, I didn't react, I didn't reach.

She could be mine. Just one nudge, just one influenced thought. It wouldn't be right, but…

My hand lifted from the table and reached out. I barely managed to catch her robe before she was gone. Behind her, I could see Lucius, his eyes now trained on her, drawn to her like a moth to the flame. He was alert now, not yet aware that I had taken her attention, but aware of her like I was.

Meanwhile, she startled when her robes caught, turned and her eyes— for once clear and seeing the same world as me— met my own.

In my throat, her name burned. 'Luna,' I wanted to say. No word left my lips. I knew her name, but I had no right to use it.

Luna, though startled, wasn't spell-bound like me. "You have eyes like galaxies," she said and crooked her head. "Though I'm not sure if they're all beginning— or ending."

Then, she crooked her head in the opposite direction. "Or maybe, you have old eyes," she said. "Not tired— just old, like scrolls written in long forgotten alphabets."

I guessed that I should have expected her to say something like that. Not only was she a Ravenclaw, she was also a bit different than any other human I've met before.

"I think the galaxies are more correct," I told her sincerely. "But you're also not wrong about the scrolls."

Then, I lifted my other hand, showing her the velvet bag. "How'd you feel about a game?"

With that, I opened the bag and poured three dice into my palm. One was eight-sided, another three-sided and the last twelve-sided. They all were translucent, and alive with numbers that moved like minnows under water, each face pulsing with soft light.

"I never play. Daddy says it's challenging fate if you play with something so unpredictable," Luna answered, her eyes on the dice, her gaze thoughtful and half in the beyond. "Are they cursed?"

"Not the way you think," I replied and smiled at her. "Will you indulge me nevertheless and play just one game with me?"

Because I wanted to play with her. Fate brought me here today. And even if I couldn't keep her, I wanted this beautiful creature in front of me.

For a moment, Luna searched my face, then she looked back towards the train. "If I played, I might miss the train. Daddy would be concerned if I didn't come home."

"He would," I agreed. "But there's still time until the train departs. A small game— three rolls— nothing more, just to indulge an old and tired man?"

From the corner of my eye, I could see Lucius' frown. The man's eyes were still trained on the girl, but unlike before, his gaze flickered over the platform ever so often.

Luna hummed. "Alright," she finally said. "Three rolls and then I'll board the train."

With that, she knelt on the opposite of the little table.

I closed my hand around the dice, shook them, before rolling them.

The dice hit the little table and for a moment, the echo of the hit filled the air around us like a song. Beneath the dice, the faint impression of a meteorite colliding with a planet appeared on the suddenly glowing table top. Luna's eyes widened. "Oh, that's pretty!" she said, delighted.

I grinned. "I know." I reached for the dice and held them out towards her, my palm open so that she could take them. "Your turn." She returned the grin, took the dice and shook them.

Around us, the crowd of students started to thin out, most of them having already boarded the Hogwarts Express. There were only a few last carriages arriving at the station and Lucius had turned away from the train and was now steadily, but slowly, walking in our direction.

Luna rolled the dice.

The numbers in the dice swirled before each side of the dice shimmered like starlight, shifting between runes, numbers, and tiny illustrated scenes— a blooming flower, a howling wolf, a spiral galaxy. The table glowed and for a moment, I could see one of the train compartments of the Hogwarts Express like a moving watermark imprinted on it. A figure with a silver gleaming mask ripped open the compartment door.

The scene vanished.

Luna blinked, then, with a frown, looked up and into my face. "Did you see the Death Eater on your table, too?" she asked dreamily. "Or did I imagine them after accidentally eating some fearlings instead of my usual cereal today?"

I crooked my head. "It depends," I said gravely. "Did you see a real Death Eater or a mirror image?"

"Well," the girl replied thoughtfully. "He looked real enough, I guess."

Then, she looked up and towards the train. Her gaze passed by the slowly closer coming Lucius and fixated on the train. "I should go now," she said and I could hear concern in her voice. "I think I'm the last to board."

"You promised me another two rolls," I replied and picked up the dice. I rolled them in my fingers for a moment, before I tossed them carelessly onto the table. They hit it hard and for a moment, the table showed an erupting volcano. "That's beautiful," Luna said, her eyes drawn back to the dice. I had to agree with her. No matter how many villages had burned through erupting volcanoes, they were beautiful in all their fearsome glory.

"Do you think I can make a pretty picture like that?"

I looked at her thoughtfully. "This game is about more." My voice was raspy like I had been inhaling smoke. "It's about you."

"About me?" Luna inquired and thoughtfully picked up the dice. Behind her, something fluttered and then Lucius threw back an invisible hood that I could see shimmering for a single second. Then, he took his cane into both hands and pulled his wand out of the handle.

The gleam in his icy eyes was full of dark promises. The train's whistle blew, filling the air with its clear sound.

Luna rolled the dice. They swirled when they rolled, their colour lightening to a turquoise while the numbers, runes and pictures turned pearlescent. The moment they stopped, it looked like the table opened to another galaxy.

For a second, there was a letter containing a threat and a deadly afraid father holding it filling out most of its surface, looking real enough that Luna actually reached out to reach into the scene.

"That's Daddy," she said and I could hear the same fear in her voice that I could see in her father's face. Her eyes met mine. "I don't think I like this game anymore." Her voice was small when she confessed and for a moment, I pitied her.

"Not every fate is pretty." I leaned forward, my hand brushed hers and she shuddered under my touch.

"You're cold," she whispered, her eyes never leaving mine before looking at my hands. "And you're pale. Your fingers are very thin."

"It's winter," I replied. "Winter bleaches everything of colour and I don't wear gloves."

"I think, I don't like the winter anymore." Luna's voice sounded even thinner than before. She shivered visibly.

"Every part of the world has a reason." I wasn't sure if I wanted to console her or if I just gave her a truth she couldn't deny. "Just like every action has a consequence."

The whistle blew. The train started moving.

Luna startled and then jumped up. "Oh, no! The train!" She turned and tried to run towards the Hogwarts Express.

Her feet froze before she could take more than two steps and no matter how much she tried she couldn't move further.

She turned towards me, her eyes big and fearful. I returned her gaze calmly.

"It's my turn, now," I said.

"But— the train! I'm about to miss it!" Luna countered. "I can't finish the game! I need to get onto the train! Daddy will be so worried if I don't come home!"

"He will," I agreed mercilessly. "And yet, you still owe me a roll. You're not going to leave until you fulfil your promise."

For a moment, Luna stared at me. "Is this the consequence of my action?" she finally inquired. She sounded more thoughtful than panicky this time around.

"I can't say," I replied. "Your action hasn't finished yet."

She opened her mouth to reply, when Lucius reached for her. His face was hidden beneath a skull mask made of silver; his impeccable clothes were exchanged for black robes.

"I didn't think you'd make it that easy for me, Miss Lovegood," he said, his voice cold while he pressed his wand against her throat and his other hand down onto her shoulder.

Luna froze.

"You will come with me now, Miss Lovegood," Lucius told her as if he were talking about the weather. "I'm sure you will be delighted that you're going to spend some time at Malfoy Manor now."

He yanked at her, trying to Disapparate with her, but the only thing that happened was that he stumbled.

I leaned back on my hands and watched him while he tried again before he tried to pull her with him towards Hogsmeade.

"She won't go anywhere," I said casually and Lucius flinched when his eyes finally settled on me. "She's currently mine."

And I hated to give up what was mine. I hated it even more than being late— or being early.

But then, I looked at Luna with her gaze full of wonder and fear, and thought that maybe, for her, I'd make an exception.

"Do you know what I am, vagabond?" Lucius asked me icily.

"A Death Eater," I replied and rolled the dice in my hand. "But Death Eaters are less important than the game— and currently, it's my turn."

Lucius scoffed, "So you expect me to wait until you're finished? Why would I do that if I can take her immediately?"

"Oh, but as you noticed, you can't," I replied and put my hands on the table. "That's the curse of this game. You can only end it when the final dice has been rolled. Until then, the participant can't leave."

"I'm not going to wait around until you've finished your game!" Lucius countered with hate in his eyes. He lifted his wand and pointed it at me. I barely managed to stop myself from rolling my eyes.

"Remove your spell or die," he demanded.

Well, Lucius had always been an impatient man. I sighed.

"I fear," I told him matter-of-factly. "I can't do either."

I guess I should have expected the Avada Kedavra to my chest for those words, but I was still put out when the spell scorched the Andromeda galaxy on my chest and imploded a star.

How rude!

"That star had another ten thousand years of life before you destroyed it," I reprimanded Lucius. "Honestly! You can't go around destroying stars just because you feel like throwing a temper tantrum for a missing roll of dice!"

With that and a glare, I threw the dice on the table. They hit it even harder than before, leaving new indents where they landed.

The table glowed even more blindingly than before. Lucius yowled when he didn't close his eyes fast enough. Then, a figure rose from the table, its breath rattling, its face a white, gleaming skull, and in their hands a scythe.

Lucius paled and stumbled backwards when the figure lunged at him. The air was suddenly freezing around us. In his panic, Lucius had removed his hands from Luna, all but shoved her at the figure.

The girl, meanwhile, stared at the being in front of her, her eyes looking beyond the normal world.

"Oh," she said, her voice suddenly full of understanding. "I guess, I can see the beauty in you, too." Her eyes were fixed on their appearance and the figure crooked their head. Then, they held out their open palm towards her. The dice gleamed as white as the bone hand holding them, the numbers, runes and images only shadows in their depths.

For a moment, Luna looked at the figure, then she looked towards me again, before she slowly, hesitatingly reached for the dice and picked them up. She stepped towards the table. Lucius raised his wand, his mouth opening, forming a curse.

The dice rolled— and the table lit up.

For a moment, I could see two futures unrolling in front of us. One with a girl captured and imprisoned in Malfoy Manor until she was rescued by friends— another of a girl free.

Then, one of the futures collapsed and the glow receded.

Behind Luna, the Hogwarts Express entered King's Cross station with a whistle.

Luna started and then looked around. We were in a corner, surrounded by waiting parents.

Then, her eyes met mine and she stood, in her hand, the three-sided dice. I hadn't seen her take it even though I had known she would.

It was black now, as if it had been burned.

"It feels sad," she whispered, her eyes on the dice.

"They all do," I agreed.

"Are you a diviner?" she asked.

"No," I said.

"A time-traveller?"

"No."

She nodded and looked at me. "You don't cast a shadow."

For a moment, her gaze looked like eternity. "You're not a man, are you?" Her voice sounded small.

"No," I agreed and she closed her eyes.

"Will I see you again?"

I smiled. "At the end of a hallway. At the edge of a battle," I agreed. "When you roll your dice for the final time."

She nodded and pocketed the dice. "Luna!" Her father pushed through the crowd and hugged her before they left.

I watched them go, desire burning inside me.

I wanted her, but that was fine.

She had my dice. And one day, we'd play again.

Until then, I wouldn't chase her. I never chased.

I only waited.

Just like I'll wait for her final roll of dice.

The End

I hope you liked it.

Over and Out

Ebenbild