All Hallow's Land
X
Draco Malfoy was sat at the Slytherin table in the Great Hall of Hogwarts, blocking out all the commotion as he concentrated on eating his bowl of delicious pumpkin soup.
Then he felt it again; her eyes on him.
He glanced up and saw Luna Lovegood staring at him, or perhaps through him; it was hard to tell. Unlike those times he had caught Potter staring back in their sixth year, causing the Gryffindor to quickly avert his gaze, Lovegood just smiled at him, keeping her eyes fixed on him.
He grumbled to himself and looked back down at the soup. This was becoming an everyday occurrence.
After the Battle of Hogwarts, the Light side regained control of the school, and the new Headmistress; McGonagall, had told those who were in their seventh year when the school was ran by Death Eaters that they were more than welcome to repeat their final year if they so wished.
Draco hadn't wanted to return at first, but his mother had insisted, and after much consideration he realised she was right. Even though they had turned from Voldemort in the end, and Ol' Saint Potter had testified for him and Narcissa at their trials, the Malfoy name was still in the mud, and a year away from the working world might have given it enough time to heal so he would be able to get a decent job. Even if his name held him back, if he had good N.E. it would be even harder for a place to turn him away.
Not many of them had returned; he was the only Slytherin. Fortunately only one Gryffindor had returned; unfortunately it was Granger. Hannah Abbot and Justin Finch-Fletchley from Hufflepuff, and Padma Patil, Terry Boot and Mandy Brocklehurst from Ravenclaw completed the 'eighth-years'. They all shared a common room, but he tended to stay in his dorm room. Finch-Fletchley was a twit, but Terry Boot was decent enough for him to be able to bear it.
He had been quite content to keep his head down and study, and that had been going fine until Lovegood started with her staring.
Yes, his family had locked her in a dungeon and basically starved her, but if she was going to be angry at Draco, surely she wouldn't just watch and smile?
It had been going on from almost the beginning of term, and now it was nearly November; something had to be done or she'd send him as loony as she was.
He finally had enough when he felt her eyes on the back of his head all the way through Charms class, and he snapped when he sensed her following him as he headed back to his room the long way; something he had done on purpose.
"Do you have a problem with me?" he hissed, spinning around to face the blonde Ravenclaw; she didn't even look surprised.
"Oh, hello, Draco," she said with a smile. "Why ever would I have a problem with you? You were nice to me when I was living in your dungeons."
"How was I nice to you?" he asked incredulously.
"You brought us all down water and food," she said, and Draco had to push away the guilt that was nagging at him; those times hadn't been nearly enough. "And you lied about Harry, which meant he was able to help me get back home; your dungeons were pleasant enough for a dungeon, but I did miss Dad."
Draco felt rage building inside of him. "What is wrong with you?!" he yelled, grateful there was nobody else around. "My family locked you in a dungeon for Salazar's sake! You should be hexing me, or screaming at me, or something; not smiling at me and telling me our cells make nice accommodation." He panted heavily as he clenched his fists. Lovegood didn't even bat an eyelid, so he lashed out; he realised what he was doing at the last second, and his hands landed on the pile of books in her arm, sending them crashing to the floor.
He felt that nagging guilt trying to get at him again as the Ravenclaw quickly bent down to pick them up. He plastered a sneer on his face as he watched her; it turned to a true one as he saw a book entitled 'Magical Realms: Where to find them'.
"What is this rubbish?" he asked, picking up the heavy book. "Magical realms; what a load of old nonsense," he mocked as he flipped through the pages.
"Other realms are very real; where do you think the Veil in the Ministry of Magic leads to?" Lovegood asked him seriously.
"Death; that's where it leads you," he replied with exasperation. Lovegood looked at him, tilting her head "Fine, let's see how right you are," he smirked, flicking to a random page. He trailed his eyes down until he found a chant, and began to read. "Cápite nos ad Totus Sanctio Terre."
As he spoke, Luna's eyes widened, and she tried to snatch the book away but he held it high, and at the last word, she grabbed hold of his arm.
He was about to shrug her off, but then everything started to spin.
"What have you done?" he demanded, but he didn't know if she heard him; he couldn't even hear himself.
The walls and the floor seemed to break away, floating into a black void. Luna was the only physical thing left, and she was clinging onto his arm, a look of concern on her face; damn, if she was worried it had to be bad.
The next thing Draco felt was falling; not the kind of falling Potter liked which included scrambling at the air as panic overtook you more and more as you neared the ground; no, instead it was almost graceful, gently floating down, almost like he was air itself.
He landed on the ground softly, and everything seemed to shift into place, only it hadn't shifted into Hogwarts.
"Where are we?" he asked, jumping to his feet.
The world around them was grey, or so it seemed. The sky was dark, as was the ground beneath their feat. Their clothes had faded into grey, and though Draco was pale normally, his skin was now strikingly white, like all the blood had been drained from his skin. There wasn't much around; only rough ground and leafless trees with sharp branches.
"Hmm, what enchantment did you cast?" Luna questioned, and Draco looked around for the book; it hadn't travelled with them.
"I can't remember," he frowned. "No wait, something, something Totus Sanctio Terre."
"Cápite nos ad Totus Sanctio Terre; take us to All Hallows Land," Luna translated. "Didn't you learn Latin?"
Didn't really see the point," he said with a shrug. "Fine, you know where we are, but do you know how we can leave?"
"Leave where?" Luna asked innocently, and Draco glared at her.
"Back to Hogwarts; where else would I mean?" he snarled, and she smiled that infuriating smile again.
"Where is Hogwarts?" she questioned, and Draco swore his eyes were about to bulge out of their sockets.
"I don't know; back wherever we came from," he hissed, and Luna nodded, looking satisfied.
"So you admit there are other realms," she summarised, causing Draco to inwardly wince; she had just proven him wrong and made him admit as much; he hadn't realised she could be so sneaky. "Now you've accepted that it will be easier for us to leave, but I suppose we'll have to go travelling."
"Travel where? There's nothing here," Draco pointed out.
"There must be somewhere; it will be like going on an adventure," the girl said with so much excitement Draco could almost feel it too. Almost.
"I don't like adventures," he stated firmly. "I'm quite happy waiting while you get help."
"What if I don't find you again? I don't think we'd like it very much if you were left here and I couldn't get back," she retorted, and Draco had to admit she did have a point.
"Fine, but let's be quick about it; the sooner we're home the better," the Slytherin muttered and Luna nodded in agreement.
They walked in silence; well Luna was humming, but he was attempting to block it out so it was almost in silence.
The sky showed no sign of getting lighter or darker, and though they kept walking, there were still no signs of life.
Draco was preparing to give up when Luna pointed and started to shout excitedly.
"Look over there!" she said, and Draco followed her finger to where he could just make out the outlines of buildings and the faint shimmer of light.
They ran towards it, the ache in their feet and legs suddenly disappearing as the first glimmer of hope they had pulled them through.
The buildings appeared to be shabbily built homes, candles hooked onto the walls outside, and Draco sprinted to the first one, banging his fists against the door.
"I'm coming! I'm coming!" a hoarse man's voice shouted through, and the two students heard shuffling and metal clinking as the door was unlocked.
Everything Draco had to say with cleared from his voice as he saw the man.
He was dressed in tattered grey cloth that shawled his body; his chin was stubbly and his hair was straggly and unkempt, but that wasn't that shocked Draco, and Luna too from the sounds of things; what was shocking was that where the eyes should be there were none, and instead they were looking into empty sockets.
"Hello, sir, we were wondering if you could help us," Luna said, getting her voice back first. She didn't sound shocked, or disgusted, or anything else that Draco was feeling.
"I don't know ya voice, girly," the man said gruffly.
"No, we've just got here," Luna explained. "There are two of us; we come from another place, and we came here by mistake. It seems very interesting here, but we'd like to get home when we can."
"Yes, you need ta see the Queen before the clock strikes twelve on All Hallow's Eve," the man said; that was only a couple of days away.
"What happens if we don't get there on time?" Draco asked, and the man turned towards him; Draco had to look away.
"Ya die; simple as," the eye-less man stated, making a wave of panic rush through him. "Just head north," he pointed through the village. "But be warned; there is no safety out of The Village."
"Thank you very much," Luna smiled, and the man nodded.
"Wait; what do you mean we'll die? Why isn't it safe?" Draco questioned frantically; the man ignored him.
"The Queen will know ya coming; she sees all," he said, pointing towards the empty sockets on his face.
"You mean she takes your eyes and can see through them?" Draco asked in a strangled voice; the man nodded once more.
"She sees all," he repeated. "Have a safe journey, strangers."
He moved back inside his house and slammed the door shut behind him.
"Well, to the Queen we go then," Lovegood affirmed.
Draco pulled out his wand and cast "Lumos!" giving them a light. "Thank Merlin these work," he muttered. Luna grabbed her wand which had been placed behind her ear, and cast the same.
"Why do you keep your wand there?" Draco asked her, and she looked surprised at the question.
"It's a lot harder to lose or have anyone take it without me knowing," she supplied.
They trudged past the rickety houses, through the empty, trampled muddy pathway, until they reached the end.
"Where shall we go?" Luna asked.
She really wanted his opinion? He has thought, considering she was friends with Potter and his gang, that she'd just prefer to go whatever way she felt like at the time without thinking about it first. 'She is a Ravenclaw, remember' a thought said at the back of his mind.
She was still looking at him, and he realised he hadn't given her an answer.
There was a patch of trees in front of them, not quite large enough to be a forest, but just as menacingly dark and mysterious. There was the option of going around, but the man had told them to go north.
"We'll go through the trees," he decided; better to stick to the directions they had been given, even if they had been given by a blind man.
"Lumos Maxima" he hissed, and his wand shone even brighter. Luna did the same.
"You don't seem concerned," Draco commented as Luna strode forwards without a thought.
"Why would I be? I spent a lot of time in the Forbidden Forest and nothing ever happened. Besides, I'm with you," she said with a soft smile.
"Why would being with me help?" he questioned, not sure if she was mocking him.
"You're brave, and you're good; you wouldn't let anything happen to me," she answered, brushing a branch away from her face.
"Where'd you get that idea from?" Draco quizzed; nobody had ever told him that before, not even his mother, and he tried to ignore the fact his heart had leapt.
"Well you lied to and defied the Dark Lord; that's very brave. And you couldn't hurt Harry in the Room of Requirements; he told me it showed who you truly were," Luna explained, brushing away another branch; were they getting lower?
Damn it! Everything Lovegood said about Potter made him sound really nice; it was easier to hate someone thinking they acted in a certain way just to boost their own ego, but that didn't seem to be the case at all. And Luna seemed to hold no grudge against him either; why were they all so forgiving? And why did Luna acting like nothing was wrong send a pleasant twinge running through him?
He kicked away a branch that had hooked around his ankles; who knew branches could go so low?
He stopped; branches couldn't go so low. He grabbed Luna's arm to stop her going any further."
"Aww; aren't they cute?" a voice said, sounding oddly distant yet close.
"Ickle babies," another said. "Look tasty."
The pair spun around, trying to find the voices; and then he heard Luna let out a surprised gasp.
He turned to see a branch wrapped around her arm, trying to lift her up, just as another reached around his ankles and hoisted him into the air.
"Blondes always taste better," the first voice commented, and Draco gasped as he realised who had spoken; the tree. There were two holes, like there should have been eyes but weren't any, and a mouth with vicious sharp teeth.
"Confringo," Draco yelled, pointing at the branch near his feet, causing them to burst open. He fell to the ground with a thud, and he quickly cast the spell at the branch holding Luna, which had constricted her wand hand.
"Brothers! Don't let them escape!" a tree cried, and they both ducked as more branches swung at them.
"Run!" Draco yelled, and Luna nodded, grabbing hold of his hand and darting forwards.
Branches grabbed at them from every direction, and Luna cast 'Confringo' at one that was about to wrap it's way around Draco's throat.
The more they ran, the closer the trees seemed to get, and it felt like they were enclosed; there was no light, not even the sight of the dark sky. Scratches were burning over his arms and his face, his knees were sore from when the trees tripped him, and his hand was crushing Luna's, while simultaneously being crushed by her grip.
The trees in front of them didn't seem to be stopping, and Draco felt they were surely doomed to die in this forest.
As he was ready to give up all hope, and resign his fate to the murderous trees, a bright orange light seemed to shine through the mass of bark. He could faintly hear screaming, and suddenly the branches were off them, their owners hastily backing away and the screams got louder.
A large rabbit, or a hare perhaps, came into view, made entirely of flames. Each tree it touched lit up as the animal ran past.
It stopped and looked at Draco, and looked almost longingly at Luna for just a second, before darting off again, leaving them a scorched path to follow.
The fire creature didn't seem to have any inclination to harm then, so a silent agreement between the pair led them to follow the newly formed passage.
They ran again, fleeing the burning forest, until they could run no more; or rather Draco could run no more.
He could feel himself trembling, though it had nothing to do with the distance they had covered.
He stopped, dropping to his knees beside a large body of water. He dipped his hands in and splashed his face, trying to calm himself.
"What's wrong?" Luna asked, kneeling beside him and placing a gentle touch to his shoulder.
"What makes you think anything's wrong?" he hissed; Luna did not give up.
"You're shaking," she commented, and Draco had a feeling she wouldn't stop until she had an answer.
"The last time I was running from fire, my friend died," he stated, shivering as the vivid pictures of Crabbe falling into the flames below haunted his mind.
"I was very sorry to hear about Vincent," Luna said sadly.
"He tried to kill Granger; I thought you were friends," Draco muttered, and Luna shook her head.
"She's like a friend, but I don't think she's particularly friends with me. I think she puts up with me for Harry, mostly" Luna answered. "Besides, Vincent was brought up to believe in Lord Voldemort's cause; of course he wasn't going to change his mind right away. Just because he believed in something different doesn't mean he was a bad person, just like you."
"I am a bad person; I don't know why you can't see that," Draco sneered, putting on a mask he knew Luna would see right through; strangely that thought didn't bother him.
"I don't know why you can't see why you're not," Luna retorted, and they fell into silence.
"I'm tired," Draco said after a while. "Incendio," he muttered, pointing his wand at the ground, making gentle flames appeared. "I'm going to sleep; you keep watch."
He woke up some time later, sleeping surprisingly well considering his bed was a rough ground. It was still dark outside, and Draco didn't think the sky would ever lighten. Luna was humming to herself, poking the fire with her wand. He didn't think that could possibly be safe, but the girl didn't seem to have any worries.
"Do you want to have a bit of a sleep now?" he asked awkwardly, but Luna shook her head.
"I'm quite awake at the moment, thank you. I had a short walk while you were asleep, and saw something you need to see," she replied, offering a hand to help him up. He ignored it.
He followed after Luna, heading round a curve.
"I thought you were meant to keep watch," he criticised, and Luna turned to look at him.
"You were fine," she said. She had taken her brightly coloured shoes off and was paddling in the shallow waters.
"I might not have been; who knows what could have-" but he stopped, and Luna would never learn the horrors that might have befallen on Draco in the few minutes Luna was gone.
Across from them, separated by a stretch of sea, was a huge, jagged rock with a castle on the very top of a small mountain. The castle was narrow, and spindly, and as dark as the sky above. From what Draco could see, the waves were crashing angrily far below it.
"Think that's where the Queen lives?" Draco asked.
"Not many people live in castles; only us Hogwarts students and royalty," Luna answered, and Draco smiled, and forced himself to hold back a laugh.
"Are you okay?" Luna questioned. "You look like you've swallowed something with a sting."
"Fine," Draco managed, making Luna eye him warily. He tore his eyes away from her as she continued to stare, and examined the rest of the shore.
"There's a boat over there!" he cried, pointing at a small rowing boat just up the shore.
"I enjoy sailing," Luna commented as they clambered aboard. "Water is lovely and peaceful; you feel so insignificant against the waves."
"That's rather poetic," Draco commented, setting the oars to row themselves.
"Do you think so? How do you normally feel at sea?" Luna asked.
Draco thought for a moment. "The same, I guess." He smiled again, and quickly wiped it off his face. Lovegood was known as 'Loony Lovegood' for crying out loud! She was strange; quirky, his mind protested, and she worshiped Potter; he's just her friend, one of the few people who didn't bully her, came his nagging voice again. He shouldn't be laughing at her jokes, and smiling at her comments that made him realise not everybody saw bad in a world so rotten.
"Do you mind if I sleep now? I'll find it much easier to sleep with the sea rocking me" she said, and Draco nodded, watching as she settled herself down and shut her eyes. Soon she seemed to be deeply asleep, and Draco continued to watch; he saw her chest moving up and down, her eyelids fluttering as she dreamt, and her straggly hair flowing around her face.
If he had to comment on her looks, he would say that yes, she was attractive; beautiful more like, said the voice. But, of course, she was a free-spirited innocent and he was an ex-Death Eater; he'd just corrupt her. He never considered that maybe she would purify him.
He watched her sleep for some time, until he felt a raindrop fall on him. He cast his eyes up to the sky, and frowned as menacing clouds assaulted his vision. A heavy mist seemed to fall from the clouds and onto the water, obscuring all sight.
He shook Luna's shoulders gently to wake her up.
"Is there a storm coming?" she asked, and Draco nodded.
"I think so," he murmured.
A light shone through the mist, travelling across the water. They both peered at it; it disappeared and in it's place a huge ship came through.
Draco stopped the oars, and just in time too; if they had moved just a bit further they would have been crushed. The boat stopped beside them, and Draco just had time to see a flag above them with skull and crossbones on before they were lifted up by an invisible force and dropped onto the boat.
He edged nearer to Luna, and stood up, grasping his wand as his did so, so he could face their assailants.
They were skeletons; nothing to them but bones. They all had different coloured bandanas wrapped around their skulls, bar one who had a large tri-cornered hat on above his red wrap. Each of them held a sword in their hands and were all leering at them; they seemed to be the only things still with eyes.
"Found us some new treasure, boys," the one with the hat shouted, staring lustfully at Luna.
"Not a chance," Draco hissed under his breath; 'you must always defend a lady's honour', his mother had told him once.
"And ye will be made to walk the plank," the man hissed back. Walk a plank? The man was clearly insane.
"Walk the plank? Are you some sort of idiot or something?" he voiced aloud, brandishing his wand dangerously.
"They're pirates, Draco; it's what they do," Luna said from beside him. He had never heard of any pirates before.
"I'll fight you," Draco warned. He would have done already had they not been outnumbered by armed men.
"Fight us with a stick? And ye call us the fools," the man, the Captain, Draco realised, said, and then he laughed, his crew following his lead.
"Bombarda," he shouted at one of them, who shattered, remaining bones falling to the floor. Half the others recoiled in horror, while the other half tried to step forwards, wielding their weapons.
"Magic, eh? I'll give ye a deal, boy. Fight on our terms, and if ye win, we'll let yourself and the lady go; if ye lose, we get to keep your magic stick, and the girl, and to the plank with ye," the captain said, making Draco frown.
"What are your terms?" he asked.
"Well it would be mighty unfair for ye to fight with a magic stick when the rest of us cannot use it; ye can fight like a real man," the man answered, tossing a sword at Draco.
Draco hesitated, but Luna gave a subtle nod, so he handed her his wand and picked up the sword.
The captain grinned, and sent one of his men forwards.
The skeleton ran at him, waving his sword around like a maniac. Draco gave a quick dodge and sliced the creature in the back.
He smirked and gestured for the captain to send another forwards.
This skeleton went down just as easily, and the next.
"See how ye like these odds, boy," the captain growled, and three men jumped forwards.
He took down one, but as he stabbed it through the chest, he felt another right behind him, and he braced himself for the attack that never came.
He opened one eye, and saw Luna with her wand extended. Apparently the captain hadn't realised a girl would be able to produce magic, and had set a full attack on the pair now.
Draco quickly ducked, flinching as he heard two swords clash above his head.
Luna seemed to dance past him; scratch that, she was dancing past him, only pausing to press his wand back into his free hand.
Part of him was enjoying the sword though, not that he'd ever admit that, so for the reason that it was quicker, he went back to full height, swinging the sword around and slicing the skeleton pirates that were near him.
He saw a red flash fly behind him, and heard the screech of whoever had been creeping behind him.
The captain had fled behind the wheel, and was moving the ship, turning it in an attempt to throw Draco and Luna off balance.
"Expecto Patronum!" he heard Luna shout, and a glowing, silvery hare hopped around them, causing the skeletons to throw their bony hands up to their face as the light burnt them, turning their bones into ashes.
The whole ship rocked as the captain jumped down; all his crew had been killed and he didn't look very happy.
"Ye messed with the wrong cap'n," he hissed, and Draco laughed inwardly; he had stood by as his whole crew were killed; not good captain material if you asked him.
He threw the sword down and raised his wand, shouting "Confundo," just as Luna shouted "Avis Oppungo."
The result was a very confused captain getting attacked by vicious birds. He stumbled about frantically, backing onto a long piece of wood that was perched at the end of the ship.
"That's the plank," Luna said, and they rushed to the side and peered over to watch as the captain fell into the murky water below.
Something large immediately burst from the water for just a second with the skeleton in it's firm jaw before disappearing under the waves.
"That's actually quite useful," Draco commented, putting his gaze back on the plank.
The clouds and mist seemed to clear almost right away, and they saw they were close to the rock with the castle on top.
Now they were nearer, they saw a pathway wound around the mountain, with a narrow, crumbling passage.
They could only see the front, and it looked like around the back was a just as dangerous cliffside walk.
Draco set a spell on the wheel to take them to the rock; he didn't think either of them would be recommended to steer the huge ship.
"So they were pirates, then?" Draco asked, sitting beside Luna on the top deck of the ship.
"Yes; they are mainly a Muggle thing, but they make for wonderful stories," Luna told him. "Mum loved pirate stories; she would tell me all these fantastic tales. That's my favourite memory of her."
Draco hadn't realised her mother was dead; he wasn't too sure how to respond. He was taken aback when Luna gently slipped her hand into his.
To his surprise more than Luna's, he didn't shrug it away.
They sat in a comfortable silence, listening to the waves crash against the ship and the rock before them.
They were both jolted out of their musings as the head of the ship bumped against the land, and they hurried off the ship and onto the rugged mass.
The pair cast their eyes up towards the castle, looking at the threateningly steep climb. Pieces of rock seemed to be continuously crumbling and landing at their feet. Towards the top they could make out fir trees, covering the flatter land near the top.
"Might as well make a start of it," Draco muttered. He waited for Luna to nod before walking with her and up onto the slope.
It was steep, and within only a few steps Draco could already feel it wearing at his already tired legs.
"Who puts a castle up something so steep?" he muttered.
"Well you'd have to be quite dedicated to climb up here," Luna reasoned. "I thought you liked being active anyway, what with being a Quidditch player."
"We never did much training like this," he said with an exasperated laugh. "It was all strategies on making the other team weaker."
"You were a good player," Luna said cheerfully. Draco shook his head.
"Potter was better," he admitted. "Reckon I could have showed that Weasley girl a thing or two though."
"She might have let you; she's nice like that," Luna sang.
They had managed to make one loop around the mountain now, and it seemed even darker than before now, yet despite the poor lighting, they seemed to be able to see just fine.
Or so Draco thought until he saw a flash of orange pop out of the mountain side for just a moment. Luna hadn't shown any sign of seeing anything, so he ignored it, forcing himself onwards until he was half way round the back and he heard giggling. Once again, Luna showed no recognition, not even when he asked if she had heard anything.
On their second time at the front side, he definitely heard a laugh, yet he still jumped when a long, thin orange body appeared with a pumpkin for a head. The pumpkin had carvings to look like eyes, a nose and a mouth, and they were somehow made to look very happy and cheerful.
Draco and Luna both halted, pressing their hands to their wands.
"Hello, friends," the pumpkin-headed man greeted.
"Hello," Luna responded with a smile.
A few other of the creatures appeared from behind the first one, bouncing on the balls of their feet.
"What brings you to our mountain?" the leader asked, and Draco took his chance to answer.
"We need to go and see the Queen," he explained, and they all nodded, bobbing their heads in a somewhat comical way.
"We didn't realise this was your mountain," Luna added.
"That is no trouble if you bring no harm intended to us," the pumpkin-man said, and Draco let go of his wand instinctively.
"Of course not," Luna said gently.
"Great," the pumpkin said, clapping it's hands. "The Queen is very generous; she allows us to live in peace on our mountain in return for her private residence at the top. Treat her well, and she shall treat you well."
"Is there an easier way to get up?" Draco decided to ask, scuffing his feet against the ground; they really were hurting now.
"We can show you a way to the top, but no further," the leader offered, while the ones behind it nodded.
"That would be lovely, thank you," Luna smiled, following the figure into the hidden cave.
"You will have to crawl, but it goes straight up. Be careful, friends, and shout for us if you need us," said pumpkin-man, gesturing to a small tunnel.
"Ladies first?" Draco offered, but he was already crouching down to go in first.
It was cramped; luckily Draco was slim, but even his height was an issue. He presumed Luna would fit in easily due to the fact she was rather petite.
"Are you okay?" he called out, heading up the slight incline.
"Lovely; I love tunnels; who knows what you might find?" the girl responded. Draco both smiled and rolled his eyes.
"We aren't here to dig, remember," he added. As he spoke his hand connected with something cold and metallic; in the dim lighting he could just make out it was a small necklace; he had spoken far too soon. He pocketed the item and continued on his way.
The tunnel was long, but on a much gentler slope, and so they easily made their way to the top.
When they came out into the open, for a moment Draco happily collapsed on the ground, but then he remembered himself and stood up.
"Would you like to rest?" Luna asked him.
They both looked at their surroundings; the top was wide, with lush fir trees around it. The Queen's castle was in view, but it would be quite a walk to get to it.
"How long have we been here?" Draco questioned; it was impossible to tell how much time had passed when they didn't have any daylight to judge it by, and the Tempus spell he had used earlier went haywire.
"We'll have time to rest for a little while, if you'd like," Luna told him; his response was to flop onto the ground without a complaint.
"Luna; listen," he said after a moment's consideration; he noticed her ears had perked up at the sound of her first name; he either called her Lovegood, Loony, or didn't name her at all. "I want you to have this," he said, holding out the necklace he had found. Now with a bit more light, he saw that it was a small silver medallion, engraved with an image of a crescent moon; it was rather ironic and strangely perfect.
She stared at it with an odd expression for a moment, before reaching out to grab it. She looked almost sorrowful.
"Is everything okay?" he asked her; he had long since given up caring about wondering why he worried for her.
"Oh yes, thank you, Draco," she replied. "My mother used to have a necklace just like this; after she passed away it disappeared."
After another moment of silence, Luna leant forwards and pressed a kiss to Draco's cheek; it was chaste, but he could feel it lingering on him.
He was about to lean in for a kiss, when a twig snapped behind them.
They both turned with a start, to see a man staring back at them.
He looked like an old man, with long grey hair and a long grey beard; almost like Dumbledore, but a lot more menacing and dirtier looking. He was missing his eyes too, and he held a cane, presumably to help his blindness.
"I smell children," he said in a hoarse voice, facing them directly.
Draco raised his wand, and from the corner of his eye he saw Luna do the same.
"Stupefy," Draco yelled, but the man waved off the spell with his hand.
"Silly wizard," the man muttered. "I'm going to eat your souls and leave your bodies to rot."
"Petrificus Totalus," Luna cast, but once again he easily waved the spell away.
"Say night, night, young wizards," the old man snarled, raising his hand and making it emit a red glow.
They both cast a shield around them, but before the glow could even leave his hand, a fiery hare, the one from the forest, leapt at the man knocking him off balance.
He tried to follow the animal circling him, especially difficult considering he couldn't see it, and Luna and Draco watched as the maniac began to stumble about.
"Watch out!" Luna shouted as he neared the cliff edge, but he stumbled off with a cry.
Luna looked mournful, but Draco was more interested in the hare who seemed to be waiting for them.
"Luna; I think it wants us to follow," Draco said, tapping Luna on the shoulder, and she nodded in agreement.
As they moved, so did the hare, and it led them through the forest, and Draco was glad they chose to follow it; he could see murky figures lurking in the trees, and he shivered to think what might have attacked them.
It led them all the way to the castle, and in through the heavy, narrow doors.
The inside was just as gloomy as the world outside; it's floors were wooden and rotting in places, and seemed to be sloping. The walls had peeling wallpaper; a feature he had never seen in castles, peeling or not, and the windows were blacked out with thick wooden shutters.
Draco walked through a rotting doorway, and stopped dead in his tracks as he saw he was in the same room as the Queen.
She looked like she had been beautiful once; now she was emaciated, and her long blonde hair hung from her head limply. As Draco looked closer, he saw she looked almost like-
"Mum?" Luna said faintly from beside him, and the woman beamed, standing up and stretching her arms out wide.
"Come to me, my beautiful daughter," she said, and Luna darted forwards, throwing her arms around her mother.
They pulled apart, and the Queen crouched down, pressing her hands to the side of Luna's face.
"I'm sorry I couldn't be there for you," she said, her pain evident in her voice. "I tried to find a pathway to the other realms, and in the process I destroyed by body and my soul was thrown here. I saw you arrive," she said, gesturing to the eyeballs lining the shelves."
"So that really was your hare?" Luna asked, and her mother nodded and smiled.
"I would never let any harm come to you if I could stop it. I rule these lands, you see, and I control them all; time passes much quicker here than our home; I have been queen for over a hundred years."
"How much quicker?" Draco asked hastily, and the Queen looked at him, though her hands stayed on her daughter.
"It is almost midnight on All Hallow's Eve," she answered with a hint of sadness to her voice. "I'm afraid I bear bad news; only one of you may return."
"I don't mind staying here with you," Luna offered, but the Queen shook her head sadly.
"I'm sorry to say it doesn't work that way; without the incantation to go back, one of you must sacrifice themselves to create an opening for the other to leave through. If not, you shall both die, and then you have no choice." the woman explained; Draco froze, and he saw Luna do the same. The last comment didn't make sense, but they didn't matter when it was clear one of them had to die.
"I'll do it," Draco said after the silence became unbearable. He felt like his own heart was breaking as he spoke. "I've made some bad choices in my life; Luna deserves to live more than me."
"No, that's not true," Luna said, running towards him. The Queen was right behind her, a dagger held firmly in her grip.
"You only have a couple of minutes; hurry, boy," she ordered, handing him the dagger. It was obvious she had no intentions of letting Luna die.
"No!" Luna protested, trying to grab the blade off him.
Draco roughly jerked himself away from her. "Let me do this!" he hissed. "Stop being so obsessed with me, you freak," he snarled; he tried to ignore the hurt inside him, and he angrily blinked away the tears that had formed.
He held the dagger above his chest, but then Luna moved back towards him, grabbing hold of his shirt and hauling him towards her.
Then she was kissing him; she tasted of sugar and what rainstorms must taste like, and he found it intoxicating. She seemed just as passionate, kissing back with equal vigour; for such an innocent looking girl she sure knew how to kiss.
He heard her mother growl behind them, and when they pulled apart; not by choice; Luna's mother had yanked her back, he saw her eyes were glowing a bright blue and her hair was whipped angrily behind her.
"Do it!" she screamed, her voice shaking the glass in the windows. "Kill yourself, now! Let my daughter live, and put your sullied soul to rest!"
Draco raised the dagger and brought it down; a clock chimed somewhere, and he heard Luna's scream and her cold hands on his arms, and then there was searing pain; more screaming, and then everything went black.
X
Draco opened his eyes with a start, shutting them again when he found himself blinded by the bright light of the sun streaming in through some windows.
He stood up, trying once more to open his eyes. They were back at Hogwarts!
His celebration was halted as he realised something felt off; he couldn't feel the floor beneath him, or the chill of the cold castle air against his skin.
He looked down, and let out a horrified gasp as he saw the pearly white, transparent form of his body; he was a ghost!
"I think this is what Mum meant when she said we didn't have a choice," Luna's voice said, and he turned, seeing her in all her ghostly glory.
"I was too late?" he whispered faintly, and Luna nodded.
"They won't believe us," she said sadly, and she glanced down.
Draco did too; their bodies were on the ground, their skin blue and frozen, and their hands connected. The book that started it all lay innocently at their feet.
"I'm sorry," Draco said hoarsely. "I didn't mean what I said about-"
"I know," Luna interrupted. "I know."
She moved her hand against his, even though he could not feel her, he appreciated the gesture.
He leant it, and pressed his lips against hers, feeling nothing but a cold chill, yet he could see get the faint taste of sugar and rainstorm.
And Draco decided, if he was cursed to spend forever to Earth, at least he had his Luna to spend it with. She had stripped away the taint on his soul, and now it was pure to love her.
X