𝙛𝙤𝙤𝙡𝙨 (𝖽𝗋𝖺𝖼𝗈 𝗆𝖺𝗅𝖿𝗈𝗒 𝗑 𝗋𝖾𝖺𝖽𝖾𝗋)

chapter forty-four

"The Elder Wand," Xenophilius Lovegood, Luna's father, drew a line in the middle of a paper after he finished telling us the Tales of the Three Brothers, "the Resurrection Stone," he continued, adding a circle, "and the Invisibility Cloak." He drew a triangle around the other two shapes.

"Oh," Harry said. "Okay."

"Does anyone want tea?" Xenophilius asked.

"Sure."

Xenophilius rushed downstairs and began a pot of tea. I turned to Hermione and said, "Why did you need to visit him? All he's done is tell us a story and that Luna's at the river."

"I keep seeing the symbol on his necklace and this paper in the book Dumbledore gave me. I think it might represent something, and I hoped he could explain what that is."

"I don't like the feel of this place," Ron said.

"Let's go to Luna's room," Harry suggested, standing up.

The three of us followed him upstairs. We entered a small blue room with pictures covering the walls in a thread of golden string that read Friends.

I reached up to touch one of the pictures that featured Harry, Luna, Hermione, and me from Slughorn's Christmas party. When my fingers crossed it, a coat of dust rose into the air, making me cough. I looked around and saw that everything in the room had the same dust.

Harry turned around and we went back down. Xenophilius was approaching with teacups and a pot just as we sat down.

"Mr Lovegood, where is Luna?" I asked.

"Down at the river."

"So she's home for the holidays?"

"Yes."

"But why is there a layer of dust on everything in her bedroom?"

Xenophilius placed the tray of tea on the desk, hands trembling. "S-shall I go check on her?" Without waiting for our answer, he ran downstairs and out of the door.

"We should go, I don't trust him," Ron said.

"Luna's gone," I stated, ignoring him. "She didn't come back after the holidays."

We remained seated, thinking silently to ourselves. Xenophilius came back a few minutes later.

"How's Luna?" I asked.

"T-they took her, my Luna, they took my Luna from the Hogwarts Express."

"Who?"

"Them. The Death Eaters."

"Them—?"

With a bang, the side of the building exploded open, bits of wood raining through the room.

"Go!" I screamed.

"Wait! I have them! I have the Potters!" Xenophilius screamed at the Death Eaters in the sky. "I have the Potter twins!" He grabbed my wrist as I tried to run, so I stomped on his foot, and he let me go.

Hermione ran to me, took my hand in hers, and Disapparated the four of us out of the building.

We touched ground in a new forest, one we hadn't be in yet. It felt strange since we had practically moved to every spot of the forest at this point.

~~~

The sun shined down from the middle of the sky, putting an appreciated warmth in the cold air. Harry and I were outside, sitting in the grass right outside of the tent.

"And, well, that's the whole story behind my friendship, or, uh, relationship, with Draco," I said. "Questions?"

"No," Harry said slowly, pausing to think. He stood up suddenly. "I just figured it out! Vol—"