Fic: "Fairy Lights" for derryere
Happy witchwinter, derryere!
Title: Fairy Lights
Author: ?
Recipient: derryere
Disclaimer: Harry Potter and all associated characters belong to J.K. Rowling. Copyright violations/infringement not intended.
Pairing: Hermione/Luna
Rating: G
Word Count: 1047
Warnings: None
Summary: Sometimes life could still be beautiful.
The winter nights seemed darker that year.
Hermione had never been the sort of person to think in terms of metaphor and simile and all those other things she understood as interesting concepts and not much else. She loved her books and was good at riddles and word puzzles, but her own thinking tended to be literal and rational.
Despite that, she couldn’t help but think, as she stared out the window and wondered if Harry was all right out there wherever he was, that the sky seemed blacker than ever, black as pitch and beetle eyes and a hundred other things poets might think of. And she scolded herself for wasting her time on useless thoughts when she could be working out what to do next, but at the same time she found it impossible to just push it all aside.
Sometimes it was hard to believe she was still only seventeen. Normal seventeen-year-old girls did not sit in windows wondering if their best friends were still alive, while drawing comparisons between the night and beetle eyes. Normal seventeen-year-old girls went out with boys and had nothing more serious than schoolwork in their lives.
Hermione supposed it was fortunate that she had never been particularly normal.
“Oh! So sorry!”
Hermione jumped when the light voice interrupted her thoughts. She turned her head quickly and found herself looking into the wide, bright eyes of Luna Lovegood.
“I didn’t know anyone was here,” Luna explained. “I sometimes sit in this window, it’s a good place. But since you were here first, I’ll go find somewhere else.”
“No, it’s all right.” Hermione managed a small smile. “You can sit down, if you’d like.”
“Oh!” Luna said again, her lips forming a perfect little circle. Then she sat down next to Hermione. “It’s probably for the best, really, that I stay. One never knows when there could be a rampaging Graphorn and it’s always better to be in pairs for safety.” She peered at Hermione curiously. “Are you all right?”
“A rampaging Graphorn? Is there really much chance of that?” Hermione ignored the question.
“You really ought to read The Quibbler,” Luna said. “Then you would understand the dangers. There was an attack last month in France, you know. But you’re not worrying about beasts, are you? You’re thinking about Harry.”
For a moment, Hermione was surprised by the observation. Then she nodded.
“I thought so. Though I was hoping it was a Niffler attack because I know how to deal with those. This is much more difficult.” She twisted a lock of blonde hair around a pale finger as she thought about it, staring somewhere over Hermione’s left shoulder.
“You don’t have to do anything,” Hermione protested. “Really, there’s nothing to be done. We can’t help Harry right now.” She didn’t add that she’d probably already done anything Luna might think of. No need to be rude.
“Oh, I wasn’t talking about Harry. I was talking about you.” Luna looked at her like it was as obvious as the dangers of the Graphorn. “I know we can’t do anything for Harry, which is sad because he’s always been such a nice boy, but we can do something for you. Just so you don’t forget that life can still be beautiful.”
Part of Hermione wanted to yell at Luna for thinking that this was more important than Harry and the war. After all, there were books to be looked at, research to be done, plans to be formulated. But sometimes it felt so futile, especially when the winter nights were dark.
So she offered Luna another wan smile and said, “What do you have in mind?”
Luna paused, then beamed. “I have the perfect thing!” And she bounced up, grabbing Hermione’s hand to lead her down the hall.
Hermione had no idea what to think of this, and had low expectations of it being anything she needed, but she went along, anyway. Unconsciously, she tightened her hold on Luna’s hand, more desperate for the physical comfort than she’d ever have admitted aloud.
Abruptly, Luna stopped in front of a closed door. She looked at Hermione. “Now you have to close your eyes!”
Hermione wasn’t so fond of surprises, but she didn’t argue and obediently closed her eyes.
She heard the door open and let Luna guide her in by the hand. The door closed and, gleeful, Luna announced, “Now you can look!”
Slowly, cautiously, Hermione opened her eyes and then gasped. The little room was decorated for Christmas, all in tinsel and fairy lights.
“I’d forgotten about Christmas,” she murmured, stepping farther into the room, eyes as wide as Luna’s. “Luna… this is… thank you.”
“Why are you thanking me? I’m just showing you something that was already here. You could have found it on your own.” But the smile in Luna’s voice was a brilliant ‘you’re welcome’.
Hermione turned, still delighted by the magical lights, to look at Luna. And her breath caught in her throat. In the softly shimmering light, Luna looked different, soft and radiant, like a Muggle angel, had Hermione believed in such things. Her pale eyes shone and her hair could have been made of spun gold. The beaming smile she directed at Hermione was warmth and summer sunshine and light.
For the second time that night, Luna asked, “Are you all right?”
After the briefest of hesitations, Hermione nodded slowly. “Yes, I’m all right.”
“Do you like the lights?” Luna held up a thin hand and one of the fairy lights touched down briefly on her fingers before flitting away again.
“I do,” Hermione said softly. But she wasn’t looking at the lights anymore. Instead she was watching Luna, captivated by the way her hair caught the light. “Absolutely beautiful.”
Another beaming smile was turned on her. “And you thought there were no more beautiful things.”
“Maybe,” Hermione said hesitantly, “Maybe I was wrong.”
Luna nodded and came closer. And, when she kissed her, a light, fleeting kiss, somehow Hermione was not surprised.
“Maybe you were.”
And, for just that moment, when the lights were shimmering around them and Hermione wasn’t thinking about Harry or wars or things she couldn’t change, she had to agree with Luna that sometimes life could still be beautiful.
Title: Fairy Lights
Author: ?
Recipient: derryere
Disclaimer: Harry Potter and all associated characters belong to J.K. Rowling. Copyright violations/infringement not intended.
Pairing: Hermione/Luna
Rating: G
Word Count: 1047
Warnings: None
Summary: Sometimes life could still be beautiful.
The winter nights seemed darker that year.
Hermione had never been the sort of person to think in terms of metaphor and simile and all those other things she understood as interesting concepts and not much else. She loved her books and was good at riddles and word puzzles, but her own thinking tended to be literal and rational.
Despite that, she couldn’t help but think, as she stared out the window and wondered if Harry was all right out there wherever he was, that the sky seemed blacker than ever, black as pitch and beetle eyes and a hundred other things poets might think of. And she scolded herself for wasting her time on useless thoughts when she could be working out what to do next, but at the same time she found it impossible to just push it all aside.
Sometimes it was hard to believe she was still only seventeen. Normal seventeen-year-old girls did not sit in windows wondering if their best friends were still alive, while drawing comparisons between the night and beetle eyes. Normal seventeen-year-old girls went out with boys and had nothing more serious than schoolwork in their lives.
Hermione supposed it was fortunate that she had never been particularly normal.
“Oh! So sorry!”
Hermione jumped when the light voice interrupted her thoughts. She turned her head quickly and found herself looking into the wide, bright eyes of Luna Lovegood.
“I didn’t know anyone was here,” Luna explained. “I sometimes sit in this window, it’s a good place. But since you were here first, I’ll go find somewhere else.”
“No, it’s all right.” Hermione managed a small smile. “You can sit down, if you’d like.”
“Oh!” Luna said again, her lips forming a perfect little circle. Then she sat down next to Hermione. “It’s probably for the best, really, that I stay. One never knows when there could be a rampaging Graphorn and it’s always better to be in pairs for safety.” She peered at Hermione curiously. “Are you all right?”
“A rampaging Graphorn? Is there really much chance of that?” Hermione ignored the question.
“You really ought to read The Quibbler,” Luna said. “Then you would understand the dangers. There was an attack last month in France, you know. But you’re not worrying about beasts, are you? You’re thinking about Harry.”
For a moment, Hermione was surprised by the observation. Then she nodded.
“I thought so. Though I was hoping it was a Niffler attack because I know how to deal with those. This is much more difficult.” She twisted a lock of blonde hair around a pale finger as she thought about it, staring somewhere over Hermione’s left shoulder.
“You don’t have to do anything,” Hermione protested. “Really, there’s nothing to be done. We can’t help Harry right now.” She didn’t add that she’d probably already done anything Luna might think of. No need to be rude.
“Oh, I wasn’t talking about Harry. I was talking about you.” Luna looked at her like it was as obvious as the dangers of the Graphorn. “I know we can’t do anything for Harry, which is sad because he’s always been such a nice boy, but we can do something for you. Just so you don’t forget that life can still be beautiful.”
Part of Hermione wanted to yell at Luna for thinking that this was more important than Harry and the war. After all, there were books to be looked at, research to be done, plans to be formulated. But sometimes it felt so futile, especially when the winter nights were dark.
So she offered Luna another wan smile and said, “What do you have in mind?”
Luna paused, then beamed. “I have the perfect thing!” And she bounced up, grabbing Hermione’s hand to lead her down the hall.
Hermione had no idea what to think of this, and had low expectations of it being anything she needed, but she went along, anyway. Unconsciously, she tightened her hold on Luna’s hand, more desperate for the physical comfort than she’d ever have admitted aloud.
Abruptly, Luna stopped in front of a closed door. She looked at Hermione. “Now you have to close your eyes!”
Hermione wasn’t so fond of surprises, but she didn’t argue and obediently closed her eyes.
She heard the door open and let Luna guide her in by the hand. The door closed and, gleeful, Luna announced, “Now you can look!”
Slowly, cautiously, Hermione opened her eyes and then gasped. The little room was decorated for Christmas, all in tinsel and fairy lights.
“I’d forgotten about Christmas,” she murmured, stepping farther into the room, eyes as wide as Luna’s. “Luna… this is… thank you.”
“Why are you thanking me? I’m just showing you something that was already here. You could have found it on your own.” But the smile in Luna’s voice was a brilliant ‘you’re welcome’.
Hermione turned, still delighted by the magical lights, to look at Luna. And her breath caught in her throat. In the softly shimmering light, Luna looked different, soft and radiant, like a Muggle angel, had Hermione believed in such things. Her pale eyes shone and her hair could have been made of spun gold. The beaming smile she directed at Hermione was warmth and summer sunshine and light.
For the second time that night, Luna asked, “Are you all right?”
After the briefest of hesitations, Hermione nodded slowly. “Yes, I’m all right.”
“Do you like the lights?” Luna held up a thin hand and one of the fairy lights touched down briefly on her fingers before flitting away again.
“I do,” Hermione said softly. But she wasn’t looking at the lights anymore. Instead she was watching Luna, captivated by the way her hair caught the light. “Absolutely beautiful.”
Another beaming smile was turned on her. “And you thought there were no more beautiful things.”
“Maybe,” Hermione said hesitantly, “Maybe I was wrong.”
Luna nodded and came closer. And, when she kissed her, a light, fleeting kiss, somehow Hermione was not surprised.
“Maybe you were.”
And, for just that moment, when the lights were shimmering around them and Hermione wasn’t thinking about Harry or wars or things she couldn’t change, she had to agree with Luna that sometimes life could still be beautiful.