Luna(tic) (Marauders Era)

8. Knots in a Full Stomach

Luna didn't pay much attention to the rest of the sorting. Truth be told, she didn't much care what happened to anyone else and only vaguely registered that the boy with the scars went to Gryffindor with Lily. It shouldn't have mattered, because she'd only known either of them for a matter of hours, but it still made something heavy settle in Luna's stomach. The two of them had already been kinder to her than almost anyone else Luna had known. She hoped it was because her mother was right and the magical children would be nicer but... well. She doubted it. And that doubt only worsened when a girl newly sorted into Ravenclaw sat next to Luna, right where Sam was.

The worst part of it, really, was that Sam didn't jump up and start cursing like he usually would have. He simply sighed and stood, dropping Luna's hand beneath the table and stepping back from the table to stare at the filling benches. Luna stared right back at him, not caring that she looked odd and simply wishing she could have made the girl move. Or else just... sat elsewhere. Somewhere silent and empty where they couldn't be disturbed. Where she could speak to him. Where she could... could just be normal with him. But looking down the table, now that the sorting was finished... there was nowhere for them to sit, nevermind a place silent enough to risk speaking to him.

After a moment of studying this same problem, Sam's gaze slipped to Luna's, his eyes so soft and sad Luna could hear things shattering in her chest. And she decided that stupid though it was, strange though she would seem, she didn't care how people looked at her. She was going to give her best friend a place to sit.

She shifted as close as she could to the new girl without touching her, ignoring the slightly sideways look the girl gave her, and, still with her eyes on Sam, patted the empty space she had made beside her.

Sam looked at her, a flicker of confusion, and then warmth coming over his gaze until at last, he smiled and moved to sit. It was a small space, really, small enough that he was forced to press against Luna to prevent the boy on his other side from phasing into him, but it was better than nothing. Much better. And Sam knew it too. Indeed, once he'd sat down, he pulled his arm out from between them, the movement slightly awkward given how close he'd had to sit, and put it around her, offering her shoulders a slight, grateful squeeze.

"Thanks, Lulu," he whispered. Luna's head snapped to the side at the nickname, her mouth already open in reprimand only to find Sam watching with an amused face and raise brows as he glanced pointedly at the surrounding students.

Luna shoved away a scowl and decided she would pay him back for that later.

"Do you need more space?" asked the girl to Luna's right, and Luna turned, looking at her new housemate. The girl had moved a bit down the bench since last Luna had seen, condensing with the boy beside her and making Luna's proximity to her somewhat less awkward.

The gesture seemed like a kindness, really, but at the words, Luna frowned, wondering if the girl was poking fun at her. "I'm sorry," she murmured. "I just..." She trailed off, glancing at Sam and wondering how on Earth she could explain that she'd had to make space. That she didn't want her best friend left alone, not when this day was already so hard. Not when she could read the disappointment between the lines of his teasing smile.

But the girl was just smiling and shaking her head. "You don't need to apologise," she assured Luna. "Some people don't like sitting close to others, I get it. My cat's like that," she added brightly, then, frowning and realizing that was perhaps not very flattering, she continued, 'Not that I'm saying you're like a cat but... well. You get what I mean."

Luna blinked again, now in surprise. "That's not-" she started, before breaking herself off and realizing she should really take any excuse anyone offered. Perhaps, she thought, she should start a list of those too, to go along with her rules. "You're okay," she amended. "Thank you."