Gone - A Story of Luna Lovegood

A bell tinkled as a customer entered the shop. Neville looked up, hands slightly muddy from repotting the Mandrakes he had. He smiled. It was just Luna.

"Hello, Neville. Are there Whippersnappers in your greenhouse? There are so many holes in your leaves..." Luna said, eyes twinkling, face lit up with a slight, mischievous smile. Today, she was wearing a patchwork dress, with crazy lines and odd, mismatched colors, but it looked beautiful on her. Her hair was up in a ponytail, with loose bangs drifting into her eyes and tickling her nose.

She sneezed. 'She was always awfully ticklish,' Neville thought wistfully. They had been together, once, when they were younger. She didn't seem to grow any older, though, always a free spirit who didn't mind what others thought of her. He couldn't be like that, couldn't ignore what other people said, what other people thought.

That was why they had broken up, actually.

There were no hard feelings, but sometimes Neville wondered if she was still the same as she seemed to be, the same as she was five years ago, the same as when she used to love him. He wondered if she still loved him. He wondered about what he felt for her.

He wondered a lot, when he was alone. He was alone quite a lot. His Gran had died during the Second War, defending the Longbottom Ancestral Home from Death Eaters. He hadn't escaped unscathed, either. He was almost as crazy as Luna seemed to be, now.

"Neville?" Her soft voice shook him out of his thoughts, and he stood up slowly, brushing his hands against his overall. "Yes?" he replied, wide muddy brown-blue eyes looking intently at her features. He had this odd feeling, like he would never see her again after this.

"I'm hungry. Would you like to go for lunch with me?"

Oh. So that was it. He was happy, though, that she had remembered him. "No problem. Just give me a while to close down the shop and change. Working in this line is a filthy business. All soil and dragon dung fertilizer." He laughed hollowly, after that sentence. Not too long ago, Herbology had been his life. Now, he only worked in this line because it was one of the only things he was good at.

She sat down at one of the pretty garden tables, fingers tracing the carvings on it, and started to hum. He knew what she meant. It seemed that this, at least, was still the same from their Hogwarts days. She was going to wait for him, but he'd better be quick.

He ducked into the backroom, grabbing the set of clothes he wore there that morning, and started changing hurriedly, but not before he made sure he had locked the door. Knowing Luna, she would probably see something far more fascinating in a minute or so, and from certain angles it was possible to see into the backroom if the door wasn't locked. It was a tricky set of spells, and cost him quite a bit to get a Gringotts Curse Breaker to ward the door for him.

Buttoning the last button, he unlocked the door again, and found that his prediction had ben true. Now, Luna was looking at the Snapping Dragonthistles.

He closed all the shutters with a flick of his wand. "Ok, I'm done. Let's go." It felt like something out of their Hogwarts days, a memory hidden so deep that he never wanted to find it. Luna turned around, took his hand, and swept out of the door, dragging him along. He had only enough time to whisper the pass-key that would lock and unlock the whole place before he found himself apparating, unconsciously, to Diagon Alley.

There, Luna pulled him out of the gateway to the muggle world and went off, finding some small cafe to sit down and eat. They found a small place, just off the main street, found a table, and sat down.

Before they ordered, Luna announced that she was going to the Ladies'. He didn't follow. After all, Luna could protect herself, couldn't she?

It was a little more than five minutes when he got a horrible, queasy feeling in his stomach, the feeling that seemed to always tell him that a close one was in danger. He got out of his seat, and ran towards the direction Luna had headed towards.

He was barely around the corner when a gunshot rang out, and he saw Luna falling, gracefully, like she always was. He froze.

And then footsteps hurrying away shook him out of his stupor, and he ran towards Luna. It was no use. The bullet had hit her heart. She was barely breathing by the time he reached her. Her eyes opened just a crack and she whispered, softly, painfully, "Don't cry for me, Neville. Don't cry..."

With that, her eyes slid close for the last time, and her hand fell to the concrete floor, limp. Neville didn't notice the bloodstains ruining his shirt. He didn't notice the crowd that had gathered around him. Luna was dead. Dead. How could it be? He hadn't even told her that he still loved her, hadn't even heard her say that she still loved him...

It was entirely his fault. His fault. If he hadn't left Luna alone she wouldn't have...no. He couldn't think that way.

Distantly, far away, he heard a siren, but he paid no attention. His mind was sinking into the depths of madness, just like his parents. The sustained Cruciatus curses had finally taken their toll. Luna's death had been the last straw.

The paramedics took a look at him, rocking silently with a young woman's body in his arms, dribble flowing down his chin, silent tears and snot and blood mixing together. It was confirmed. The man was a nutcase, the girl was dead, and they were here to pick up the pieces. Well, it was their job after all.

"Move away, people. We've come to clear the area."

----

The funeral was beautiful. It was wacky, colorful, patchwork, and everything Luna. They had been able to find Neville, and he was currently being kept in the Janus Thickey Ward together with his parents. Harry wheeled Neville in to say his last goodbyes to Luna.

Neville just sat there, eyes unblinking. Occasionally his eyes would wander to a point just beside the coffin, and he would smile and giggle. "It was Luna, saying goodbye to Neville," the people said. Never would they be able to find such a wonderful person, a person who, through her craziness, brought peace and stability to others' lives.

When it was Ginny's turn to speak, she only said two sentences.

"You knew Luna. Thank God for it."

And then she started crying. It was so painful, the death of a close friend, one of her best friends. Ron rushed to her side, and hugged her tightly, finishing the speech that his sister had prepared.

"She was the most wonderful person I have ever known. I'm sure you all agree. She was never jealous or spiteful, she was always kind, and she was a wonderful writer. Even though she might have been slightly 'off her rocker', she was saner than all of us here. Her insanity kept her sane.

"I guess that wherever she is, she's looking at us and laughing because we're being such a blubbering bunch of babies. She would want us to go on with our lives, to live in remembrance of her."

And then he supported his sister off the stage. Now, it was Hermione's turn.

She walked up the steps, black robes swishing against the floor. Turning to face the group of people, she took out two sheets of parchment from her pocket, bent her head for a moment, and then started speaking.

"When I first met Luna, I didn't really like her. Her existence threatened my little world of solid facts and numbers. She shook my world, in fact, when she started talking about Crumple-Horned Snorkacks and Jarveys and other things that I've never heard of in my life.

"I scoffed at her antics more than once, but during the Second War she was a pillar of strength to us all. She was always there to hold our hair up when we vomited from the horrible sights we saw on the battlefield. She was always there with a shoulder for a good cry. She proved her worth ten times over, and I think even more than that, sometimes. Luna was a good, loyal friend.

"At the height of the war we were all worried for our lives, so we wrote wills that would be read if we died. She entrusted her will to me, trusting that I would keep it well, that I would act according to her wishes. To be honest, I never imagined that she would die the first of all the six of us. I always imagined her living to a ripe old age, with no children but a bunch of kids that called her Aunt Luna. That dream will never come true now.

"Now, I read her last will and testament, though I'm sure it will be more of a letter than anything. Here I go."

"Dear everyone,

If you're reading this, I'm up in Sugarcandy Mountain with the candy floss bunnies that have been extra good. Now, don't be sad, and don't drip all over my letter. I'm in a good place now, where there is candy everyday and you never need to work anymore.

To Neville, I leave all my love, and everything that's been left to me that I haven't given anyone else. I love you, Neville, and I know you love me too.

To Ginny, I leave my roaring lion hat and my radish earrings. May they protect you from Dreambopples and Vilestirkers.

To Harry, I leave the article we published in the Quibbler in your fifth year. When you're sad, look at that article, and remember the good times we've had. I also leave the Quibbler to you, if Dad's not alive anymore. Tell the world the truth, Harry.

To Ronald, I leave my butterbeer cap necklace and my many, many potions notes. Don't fail your Potions NEWT, or else I'll come back from beyond the veil and haunt you until you do.

To Hermione, I leave my school robes. I hope they fit you. You know what I mean.

Everyone, be happy. You'll see me soon, you know? Live while you can. That's always been my motto.

Toodles,

Luna."

When she finished, everyone was silent, even the Slytherins. They had always looked down on little Loony Lovegood, but it seemed that she had the strongest moral fiber of them all. She had the biggest heart, the widest arms, and the broadest shoulders. No one could be like her again, ever.

She would always be in their hearts.

And beyond the veil, Luna saw this, and laughed. They were all so silly.