Tales of a Spiritual Warrior

Chapter 13: Facing the Future

Harry and Luna were kept so busy for the duration of the holiday that they had no time to get mired down in their mutual grief. Luna put the cottage up for sale, and arranged to have much of the furniture and most of the other household items put up for auction. Arthur Weasley checked each piece for her to make sure there would not be a problem if it fell into muggle hands. There were many items Luna wished to keep, and she needed a place to store them. Remus Lupin offered the shack. He knew know that Harry and Luna had been using it as a makeshift home for some time, and while he had misgivings about that, he said nothing about them to anyone.

Albert Braddock and Harry, now that they had a mutual understanding, worked on the Quibbler business together amicably, and Braddock began to see why Emmitt Lovegood had appreciated Harry. Perhaps it was because he had seen the effect of the media first hand, but Harry had an uncanny knack for the magazine business.

Harry was deeply concerned, though, about how his involvement, when it became widely known, would affect the Quibbler, and when he and Luna got back to school, he swallowed his pride and they asked for a meeting with the one person who might have a useful perspective of that.

When he and Luna sat down with Professor Snape, Harry asked Snape directly, "When we move the main Quibbler office to Hogsmeade, will the staff there be in any danger from the Death Eaters?"

Snape considered this carefully. "From what I know, they would be in no more danger than any other business in Hogsmeade. The Death Eaters know that you and Miss Lovegood are close, but they are rather behind the times when it comes to the Quibbler. They do not think it is very important, and the fact that Braddock is fronting it helps. He is a distant cousin of Mr. Macnair, and he is related by marriage to the Malfoy family. As you probably know, he is not a Death Eater. He was never considered for membership, possibly because he had an aunt and cousins who were squibs. The Braddock family is pure-blood, but not considered high class. Unless something drastic happens, I think they'll leave him alone, and by extension, the magazine."

"What about Hogsmeade itself?" Luna asked.

Snape looked troubled. "Eventually, I see an attack against Hogwarts being inevitable. It looks like an attack on Hogsmeade is quite likely to come first. It's been discussed for some time. I hope to get some warning, but I can't be sure I will."

"Thank you," Luna said softly, "for all you have done and are doing."

Snape looked startled. He acknowledged her statement with a quick nod. As Luna and Harry left the office, Snape caught Harry's eye. "Take good care of your asset, Mr. Potter. You apparently have more sense than I have given you credit for."

"High praise, coming from you," said Harry. Snape nodded curtly and shut his office door.

"An asset," Luna told Harry dreamily, " is a valuable and desirable thing. Why does Professor Snape consider the Quibbler an asset?"

"Luna, don't be so thick. He was talking about you!"

She blinked slowly, then looked rather flattered.

After Harry and Luna left, Snape went to his fire, threw in a handful of glittering powder, and called, "Poppy, I want a word with you."

A large shape appeared in the fire, spinning rapidly. "What is it, Severus? I have four students down with the flu that I should be keeping an eye on."

"Potter and Lovegood were just here. I am highly concerned. The connection between them is becoming very obvious! I could sense it, like thunder in the air. I am worried about that girl."

"I'm worried about her, too, but from what I can tell, the link is emotional and mental, not a physical one. Since I am responsible for the health of the students, I have ways of knowing which girls are...shall we say, indulging? The last time I had Luna in for a checkup, I didn't pick up anything untoward in this case. You can sense the connection, because you know them both so well. I don't know if someone who knows them less well would pick up on it immediately."

"You forget, Poppy, the link between Harry Potter and the Dark Lord has not been broken, only disrupted. If there is an attack, the Dark Lord may well choose to use Luna Lovegood to break Potter."

"Then we must suggest to Albus that in the event of an attack, the two remain separated," Pomfrey replied, "but Harry must not be aware that we are deliberately doing so. Do you want me to speak to him, or will you do it?"

"I will do it. If Potter has anyone to blame later, it may as well be me." The two friends parted, troubled.

All of the legal papers concerning the Quibbler and the cottage were completed, and ready to be signed on Luna's seventeenth birthday, which was also the day chosen to announce the official opening of the new Quibbler office. A reception was held at the new premises, which Harry and Luna attended, although they were careful to let Braddock make the opening speeches and give all of the interviews. Luna held up very well until she and Harry were ready to leave, but then she looked up at the freshly painted sign in the window, and began to sob.

"It looks wonderful," Luna wailed, "but I miss Daddy! I'm sorry, Harry, but have I no cause for tears?"

"Of course you do, so if you have to cry, you can cry without worrying about what I think. Actually, I've been worried about you. You've been bearing the burden so well, I was afraid for you. We can find a better place to grieve, though." Harry went to Libby to try to explain, and to ask her send a message to the castle that he and Luna would not be back that night. She looked concerned, but nodded. Harry and Luna then left the office once more, and walked to the shack, where she could at least have the comfort of some of her own things near her, and the two of them clung to each other and wept together for everything they had lost.

"I'm so glad we have each other, Harry," Luna finally said in a choking voice. "As long as I have you, I know I have hope, but I'm so afraid of what is yet to come."

"Luna, tell me the truth. Voldemort IS coming, and probably very soon. I love you and I love working on the Quibbler, but that isn't really my purpose in life, and we both know it. We've always known. Do you think I can do this? Do you ever doubt me?"

"I love you Harry, and I do have faith in you, but sometimes I get scared. We are up against a very powerful enemy. I don't want to lose you, not now."

Harry sighed. "Lu, if Voldemort kills me, I know it will hurt you, but it won't matter personally to too many people. Not everyone in the wizarding world knows me personally, and those who do, not all like me. It will hurt a few people in a personal way, and I will regret that, but I will regret more the people it will hurt in a general way. If I die at Voldemort's hands, hundreds of people who don't know me personally will suffer. Forgive me, but that's why I don't want to die. I don't want to live for myself, or for you, although I love you with all my heart. I want to live for the other people whose lives will be lost. As much as we love each other, we can't lose sight of the bigger picture. There are things I have to do that you can't be involved in"

They sat silent for along time, then Harry said abruptly, "I'm going up to bed." He kissed her on the cheek, and left her to her own thoughts.

Luna pondered for awhile. Her love for Harry was unconditional, and she had known all along that his destiny reached beyond her, no matter how deeply their lives intertwined. Being with Harry had made her feel like she was floating on air, but sooner or later they were going to have to come down. Why then, was it so hard to admit that he was right about his mission? The prophecy was for him alone. She could not help him with that. Or could she?

Luna thought hard. "As long as we have a Potter, we have hope. I believe in you, Harry, but I believe in us, too. I will not let you die."

She rose and went to Harry. He was asleep, and looked very young. Her heart lurched. His hair was more tousled than ever, and he had one arm thrown out as if he were reaching for something. Luna climbed onto the bed, and whispered, "Harry, I love you. Do what you have to do, and I will do the same." Leaning down, she pressed her lips gently to his. When he opened his eyes, they were dazed from sleep, and looking right into hers.

She then whispered in a sing-song voice, "Make it part of you to be a part of me."

"Lu, I love you," Harry answered. Luna's pale eyes were like stars in the night, glittering and distant, as Harry drew her down beside him. Then they slowly closed.

"Oh, Harry!"

It was very late the next morning when they returned to Hogwarts. Severus Snape, Poppy Pomfrey and Albus Dumbledore were standing near the great doors when they returned. Snape had just been questioning Dumbledore's decision to let Luna and Harry "party" in Hogsmeade all night.

"You would not have allowed any other student such freedom, especially in such troubled times, headmaster."

"I didn't do it for Harry. I did it for Luna. I had a message from the photo editor at the office that Luna held up very well until the party was almost over, then broke down, thinking of her father. I had hoped that if she stayed at the Quibbler office last night, her father's friends, and Harry, might be able to comfort her."

"She's certainly been repressing her grief, Severus," Pomfrey said. "It isn't healthy."

The adults were greatly relieved to see Harry and Luna back at the castle, and even more relieved to see their tired, but peaceful faces. They nodded at the two young people as they passed.

"Well," Dumbledore said, "it looks like they finally cried it out."

"It's about time," Pomfrey sighed. "What next, Albus?'

"I don't know. The enemy is on the move. The last of Voldemort's followers were able to leave France two days ago. They will join him soon. Is Harry ready?"

"Are any of us truly ready?" Snape asked bitterly. "Will any of us ever be? Are you ready, headmaster?"

Dumbledore looked at Snape sadly, but did not answer. There were no words to say.