“Have you ...” he began. “I mean, who ... has anyone you known ever died?”
“Yes,” said Luna simply, “my mother. She was quite an extraordinary witch, you know, but she did like to experiment and one of her spells went rather badly wrong one day. I was nine.”
Order of the Phoenix, page 760
The little blonde girl sat in her bed, looking through the tatty pages of an old book. A tall
blonde woman walked through the bedroom door. The little girl smiled up at her mother.
“Mummy, what’s that?”
”That, darling, is a Crumple-Horned Snorkack. Your father and I saw one on our honeymoon.” She looked at her daughter as she found another page.
“And what’s this one?” Her daughter’s silver eyes looked inquiringly at her mother once more.
The woman laughed. “Ah, and that is a Blibbering Humdinger.” She looked at the little girl in the bed and smiled. “Tell you what, Luna, when you’re a little older I’ll take you to see some.”
The little girl became noticeably excited. “Can we see them soon?”
Her mother smiled. “We might take you to see them before you go to Hogwarts, I’ll talk to Daddy. And now, my little Luna, it’s time for bed.”
Luna sighed. “All right, Mummy.” She clicked off the lamp and snuggled down into her bed. Her mother walked out of the room.
“Remember, darling,” her mother said as she walked out of the room, “Lovegoods are different, we’re special. Remember, wit beyond measure is man’s greatest treasure.” She smiled and walked out of the room.
Luna fell asleep, thinking of Blibbering Humdingers and Crumple-Horned Snorkacks, and family adventures across the country.
***
Luna was woken up two hours later by the sound of her front door crashing down. She got up and walked into her parent’s bedroom. She was confronted by six men in cloaks, pointing wands at her mother and father.
“Mummy, Daddy, why are they here?” Luna asked calmly.
“You heard the girl,” Xenophilius Lovegood said angrily. “What in the name of Merlin are you doing here?”
“We don’t like what you and Evanna here,” the wizard motioned at Luna’s mother with his wand, sending red sparks flying towards her, “are saying about the Dark Lord in your little magazine.”
Xenophilius was close to tears. “Please don’t hurt them, please ...”
“Crucio Muffliato .”
“Good one, Snape,” one of the cloaked men said to the one who had cursed Xenophilius.
As Xenophilius screamed silently in agony, a man with long blonde hair visible from the edges of his hood turned towards Luna. “What shall we do with the little girl who asks to many questions?” he said smoothly to his comrades.
“I think her death would provide the right ... incentive ... to shut down their silly little magazine,” one of them replied, smirking.
“May I do the honors?” the blonde man said, unsheathing his wand.
“Go ahead, Malfoy,” one said.
Luna’s breathing started speeding up. Why was her father writhing like that? What was the man who was pointing his wand at her trying to do?
“Avada ...”
The rest of the curse was blocked out by the sound of Evanna Lovegood screaming “No!” and jumping in front of Luna, taking the jet of green light right in her chest.
Luna started to cry as she watched her mother falling to the ground, the light gone from her eyes.
***
Five years later, Luna was looking around Hogwarts for her stolen possessions, trying to figure out in her mind why exactly it was that people chose to hide her things every single year, when Harry Potter came walking down the hallway, his face a mask of despair.
“Hello,” she said to him, putting up a sign asking the students to give back her belongings.
“How come you’re not at the feast?” he asked. Luna explained how all her belongings had mysteriously disappeared and, considering it was the last day, she really did need them back.
“How come people hide your stuff?” he asked her again. Luna thought about how he did ask rather a lot of questions, but decided to answer them anyway.
“Oh ... well ... I think they think I’m a bit odd, you know. Some people call me ‘Loony’ Lovegood, actually.”
Luna could feel that Harry pitied her, and longed to tell him there was no need to. He offered to help her find her things, but she declined. She didn’t need help.
“Anyway ... why aren’t you at the feast?” Luna thought as it seemed that a lot of questions were being asked, she may as well ask some of them. Also, she’d seen Harry almost every day at the table with his best friends. Luna longed for a best friend, and if she had some she would take every opportunity to be with them.
Harry shrugged. “Just didn’t feel like it.”
Luna suddenly remembered that his godfather had died in the Ministry fight. “No,” she said, turning towards him for the first time. “I don’t suppose you do. That man the Death Eaters killed was your godfather, wasn’t he?” Thinking that he might think she had pried, she added “Ginny told me.”
Harry nodded quickly, but didn’t seem offended. Then he spoke again, with words that made Luna’s heart ache with grief.
“Have you ... I mean, who ... has anyone you known ever died?”
Luna hesitated. She longed to tell him the truth, to pour out how her mother had sacrificed her life for her, just like Harry’s mother had done for him. But her father’s voice echoed in her mind.
“Your mother’s death was proof that there are still Death Eaters, even after the Dark Lord fell. He’s still out there, Luna. We can never, ever tell anyone what happened to your mother, no matter what.”
“Yes,” she said, keeping her voice calm so she would not burst into tears and reveal the truth. “my mother. She was a quite extraordinary witch, you know, but she did like to experiment and one of her spells went rather badly wrong one day. I was nine.”
Luna was beginning to regret saying this, as Harry instantly reacted in the way that everyone reacted when she told them this story about her mother’s death.
“I’m sorry,” he mumbled, averting his eyes to the floor.
“Yes, it was rather horrible,” Luna said, trying to keep her voice light. “I still feel very sad about it sometimes. But I’ve still got Dad.” Luna thought about her father. He’d be proud of her, not saying the wrong thing.
Luna thought for another moment of the Ministry, of the voices behind the veil, of her mother, calling her, saying exactly what she’d said the night she was killed.
“Lovegoods are different, we’re special. Remember, wit beyond measure is man’s greatest treasure.”
“And anyway, it’s not as though I’ll never see Mum again, is it?”
“Er “ isn’t it?” Harry said. Luna was amazed. Didn’t he hear his parents, his godfather, Cedric? Didn’t he hear his loved ones, calling him, advising him?
“Oh, come on. You heard them, just behind the veil, didn’t you?”
“You mean ...”
“In that room with the archway. They were just lurking out of sight, that’s all. You heard them.”
Luna looked at Harry, smiling desperately, waiting for him to say “I heard them too. You’re not the only one, I heard them too.” Was she the only one who could hear them?
The rest of the conversation didn’t really register with Luna, and eventually she said something about going to have some pudding and walked away, leaving Harry standing beside her sign.
Luna walked to the great hall, her mind racing. Was she going mad? Was she really loony, like everyone said?
Lovegoods are different, we’re special. Lovegoods are different, we’re special.
Luna sank down the stone wall, her head in her hands, tearing pouring down her cheeks. She saw it all again; her father in silent agony on the bed, Lucius Malfoy and Severus Snape, her mother, screaming and throwing herself in front of the killing curse.
Then more recent memories came. Seeing Lucius Malfoy and his son, Draco boarding the Hogwarts express, then seeing Snape as one of the teachers. Seeing the Thestrals pulling the carriages, but trying to convince the other first-years they were there, making them call her Loony. Her fourth year, when Professor Moody used the killing curse on the spider, making Luna’s mind race with horrible memories. And finally, that very year, that very battle, when she saw the veil, calling her, with advice from her mother from beyond the grave. Luna longed to be able to run towards the veil, to pull her mother out of the land of the dead and embrace her.
Wit beyond measure is man’s greatest treasure.
Luna wiped the tears from her eyes, and remembered what her father had taught her. Bringing to mind the image of Lucius Malfoy and Snape falling into a fiery pit, filled with vicious Crumple-Horned Snorkacks and Blibbering Humdingers, Luna laughed.
Her laughter filled the empty hall, as the paintings said various things “That’s the way, dear!” “Do stop that dreadful racket!”
She stood up, smiling softly to herself, allowing one final thought of her mother.
“Mum would be proud,” she thought, taking the first few steps toward overcoming the sadness.
The True Story of Luna Lovegood by gen_potter
Chapter Notes: I own nothing except the character Evanna Lovegood. The conversation between Luna and Harry and the quote at the beginning is taken directly from Order of the Pheonix. This is my first review, so I would love feedback.