Into Your Gravity ( Luna Lovegood & Tom Riddle )

Chapter three: Alone

Somebody better let me know my name
before I give myself away.
Somebody better show me how I feel,
because I know I'm not at the wheel.
Artifice - Sohn

•

"Luna, we should go," Ginny was muttering, pulling on Luna's sleeve.

Professor Trelawney snorted, seeming to wake up. "Have I dozed off?" she said. Seeing her students' terrified faces, she asked, "What's the matter?"

"Professor," Ginny said, standing up from their table, "Luna isn't feeling well. I'm going to walk her to the Hospital Wing."

Peering at them, eyes abnormally large through her spectacles, Trelawney said, "Very well, my dear."

Ginny extinguished their fire with the jet of water from her wand, then shoved her book into her bag. Seeing that Luna was still frozen in her chair, she grabbed Luna's book and bag as well, then placed a firm hand under Luna's elbow and pulled her to standing. "Let's go." The eyes of every student in the class followed their progress as Ginny marched Luna to the trap door, down the ladder, and out of sight.

The moment they were alone at the bottom of the ladder, trap door shut behind them, Ginny said, "We need to talk to Harry."

Luna still felt incapable of words, and she allowed Ginny to tow her through the castle until they came to the Defense Against the Dark Arts classroom. Ginny knocked on the door, then poked her head in. "Excuse me, Professor, but I need to speak to Harry and Hermione for a moment. And Ron, Neville, you should come, too. It's very important."

A moment later, Harry, Ron, Hermione, and Neville stepped outside, faces quizzical. "Ginny, Luna, what -" Harry started.

"Not here," Ginny interrupted. "We need to speak in private."

Seeing the graveness in Ginny's face, as well as the far-off, stunned look in Luna's, Harry didn't question her further. "Fine. Let's go to the Room of Requirement."

The six of them set off, heading back upstairs to the seventh floor, finding the painting of Barnabas the Barmy, then pacing back and forth three times thinking of a private place to talk. The door materialized, and they hurried inside, Ginny glancing over her shoulder to make sure no one had seen them as her hand still guided Luna forward.

The Room had turned itself into a small, cozy study with dark wood bookcases along the walls, a warm fireplace crackling, and six plush armchairs atop a Persian rug. Ginny led Luna to one of the chairs, then collapsed in another herself.

"What's happened?" Harry said as soon as he had shut the door behind them. He hovered by the door while Ron, Hermione and Neville also took seats.

Ginny, sitting with her elbows on her knees and her face in her hands, shook her head, causing her red hair to waver back and forth. Luna sat in her chair, her rigid posture and still face in sharp contrast to the way her mind and heart were racing. Harry looked between the two of them, then crossed the room to sit down in the last chair.

After a moment, Ginny lifted her head up, clasping her hands between her knees. "Professor Trelawney just had another prediction. A real one. She was just like she was with the other two, all trance-like and with a deep voice. Didn't realize what she'd said."