(no subject)
X-posted to loonieslions
Title: Memories
Author: nucking_futs
Word Count: 1897
Pairing: H/LL, J/L, Dursleys
Rating: Kid+
Warnings: Angst, drama.
Summary: After the war, Harry and Luna go to take care of some unfinished business.
Disclaimer: I have no claim to Harry Potter which is owned by JKR, Bloomsbury Publishing Company, etc.
Notes: Originally, this was for a fic series I was working on. However, that was abandoned post-HBP but this stood alone enough that I decided to release it as a one-shot. This is my first every H/LL fic.
The room was pretty and light, with cream and eggshell blue wallpaper. The furniture was pastel blue and yellow with nice Chippendale end tables. Luna could tell that she had chosen to make the room look nice but to also make sure anyone sitting here thinks that they had money and power. Luna smiled inwardly as she looked at the woman sitting across from Harry.
Petunia Dursley had ambition but she definitely fell short of her aims. Luna remembered all that Harry told her about his mother’s remaining family. Vernon Dursley was a vicious man who hated everything that did not fit his view of reality, especially magic. Dudley Dursley was a spoiled, stupid pig who did no wrong in his parents’ eyes. And Petunia….Petunia was Harry’s nasty aunt who only took him in because of Dumbledore nearly twenty years ago.
The woman was nattering on about something to Harry. Petunia ignored Luna when they came in, dismissing her paper-clip earrings, simple dark-blue Muggle dress and Muggle flip-flops. That didn’t faze Luna; she was used to being ignored. She liked it; it meant that they didn’t notice it when she read them and it meant that they didn’t bother her for being different.
It wasn’t as bad as when she was growing up. She had been Loony Lovegood, the crazy daughter of that nutter publisher of The Quibbler. Now, she was Luna Potter, wife of the savior, Harry Potter. She had power as his wife; everyone wanted to get on their good side in the topsy-turvy Wizarding world. It was rather refreshing to be around someone who didn’t really care about Harry in a way.
Luna returned her thoughts to Petunia. Petunia was rather skinny and pale, the years and her sour personality wrinkling her face and giving her a very nasty look. Her hands kept fluttering around, as if she was hiding something important. Her eyes kept darting around, probably watching out for that ass of a husband. Luna rolled her eyes; Vernon Dursley had told them in no uncertain words that their kind was not welcome and to not come back after today. The son had just looked at him, frightened yet uncaring at the same time.
Taking a sip of tea, Luna fixed her eyes on her husband. Harry was sitting there, impatient. They wouldn’t have been here if it wasn’t for the letter they received from Petunia, telling them that there was something important that she needed to give them. Harry had no idea what she was talking about; in all of the years that he had lived with the Dursleys, they never gave him anything except the basics. But something in that letter told them that she was serious and that was why they were here.
Petunia stopped talking and set her tea cup down. She pulled out an old box and hurriedly pushed it towards Harry. Petunia tersely stated, “Here, this is yours.”
Harry blinked and gave Petunia a blank look before asking, “What is it?”
Petunia rolled her eyes and scrunched her face. Then she replied, “That old man gave this to me for safekeeping. He said to give it to you when you were old enough. I certainly don’t know what it is.”
Luna looked at her husband. Harry looked suspicious, annoyed yet fearful at the same time. Harry always had an obsession with the past. He had learned how to control his temper and emotions after Dumbledore's death but whenever James and Lily were mentioned, Harry had a harder struggle to control them. Now, faced with this development, Luna could tell that Harry was struggling with the hopeful desire of finding out more about his parents.
Harry took the box, a bland expression on his face belying the shakiness of his fingers. He opened it, the look on his face becoming cloudy. Luna leaned over to the right, trying to see what the box contained.
The box only contained a pensieve. It was small and light, as if the owner of the pensieve wasn’t able to put many memories into it. Harry picked up the pensieve and peered into it. Luna looked into the box and saw a note. She picked it up, saying, “Harry, there was a note attached to it.”
Harry looked over at her, a strange look on his face. He asked, “Could you read it for me?”
Luna opened up the letter. It was dated, January 12, 1979 and read,
Dumbledore,
For some reason, I feel this need to leave this with you. Like you told me to, I took out all of the memories from the 2 times that Lily and I averted death with Voldemort as well as the memories dealing with the deaths of my father and Aunt Leanne. I’m also working on occlumency lessons with Lily since Voldemort was able to breach her mind so effectively last time.
James Potter
Luna looked sharply towards Harry. Harry was looking into the pensieve, a dark expression on his face. He swirled the memories with his finger as if he was looking for a particular one. His expression turned thoughtful before he looked up at his Aunt Petunia.
Harry causally asked, “You never looked in this at all, have you?”
Petunia sniffed, “Why would I ever look at some nasty thing that your kind has? I never wanted anything of Lily’s and that nasty boy at all.”
Harry looked down at the pensieve again then looked at Luna. She met his gaze, something registering in her mind. Harry was sure that she had lied; she had looked inside of it. Harry carefully asked, “Since you’ve already told me that you never wanted to see me again after today, will you tell me now why you kept me for all of those years?”
Petunia bristled, displeasure reigning supreme on her sour face. To Luna, she seemed indecisive; she wanted to tell Harry but there was something holding her back. To Harry’s credit, he didn’t push her. He sat there quietly, waiting for an answer. Petunia sighed with defeat on her face as she put her teacup and saucer down on the table. She closed her eyes; when she opened them again, to Luna, it seemed like she had aged another ten years in mere seconds.
Petunia coughed then she said, “Don’t think that this is going to be some sad tale about that man finding some kind of way to make feel sorry for my crazy sister and that boy because I wouldn’t have taken you in if it was that.”
She closed her eyes as if she was reliving her worst experience ever. Then Petunia continued, “I guess you would know how it feels to see pure evil in front of your face. I mean, from what I’ve seen in that thing,” she pointed towards the pensieve, “there is pure evil in this world. Guess if evil came to interfere in your life and the only way to keep it away from you and your family was to do something that you would have never wanted. I wanted nothing to do with Lily and her world but it kept interfering with my life! If keeping a weirdo baby managed to get it out of my life, I would have done it. That’s why I took you in.”
Petunia sagged against the chair as if in her mind she was seeing something that was still haunting her to this day. Luna looked at her, reaching out but then she stopped, realizing that Petunia wouldn’t have wanted her sympathy. She sighed inwardly; something was missing from what Petunia had said but she wasn’t that willing to push to find out what it was. Neither was Harry because he simply put the pensieve and the note back into the box. He said, “That’s all that I need to know. Thank you, Aunt Petunia.”
Petunia looked up, blinking then she returned back to normal. She sniffed, disdain back on her face. She said, “Why are you thanking me? That belonged to you anyway.”
Harry and Luna got up from the couch, uncertainty on their faces as they looked for a way to leave diplomatically while knowing that this was the last time that they were going to see this woman. Then Petunia said, “Sometimes, I wondered if it was worth it, keeping a child like you rather than to just deal with what may have came but I guess it was worth it.”
She looked at Harry, an unfamiliar expression on her face. “Lily was my sister and it would have been remiss if I hadn’t taken you in. There were rules that had to be followed,” Petunia stated, a far away look on her face. But then, she continued, “I hope to never see you again now. You and your kind never were and never will be welcome here.”
Harry opened his mouth as if he was going to say something but then Luna could see that he controlled his temper. They just left the room without a word and Apparated back to their flat.
*******
Back home, Luna asked Harry, “What do you think she saw,” as she took a seat on their sofa, the pensieve on the coffee table. Harry walked over towards the window and opened it, letting a summer breeze into the room.
Harry answered, “I’m not sure and the other person who probably knew was Dumbledore but I think it was more than a Dementor…,” as he walked over towards the couch and sat down.
He paused, a thoughtful look on his face as if he was thinking of some of the things that had happened during the war. Then Harry grabbed Luna’s hand and held it for several moments. Then he said, “I think if it had happened to us, it wouldn’t have affected us as badly since we are wizards. For such anti-magic Muggle, it must have been devastating. Whatever it was, I’m not sure what it is, but it answers some questions…”
Harry trailed off, a far away expression on his face as he looked inside of the pensieve. Luna took her free hand and ran it through Harry's hair. There was so much that she wanted to ask yet she instinctively knew that it was not the time. Harry would tell her in due time. Then, to her surprise, Harry picked up and thrust the pensieve towards her.
Luna looked inside of the pensieve, swirling the memories. They began to separate, some pleasant, others joyful like Harry's parent's wedding. Others were darker from when James and Lily were fighting as members of the Order. Then one stood out, a memory that was obviously not one of Lily's or James'.
At first, all Luna could see was a figure in black robes, face hidden, just a white hand visible. Then, the memory became clearer and she could see Petunia holding a baby, her face frozen in horror while Vernon Dursley began yelling at the man to take his magic and leave them alone. Then, it became hazy again as if the full memory wasn't put into the pensieve. She whispered, "Voldemort, he threatened the Dursleys?"
The memory faded back in with the rest and Luna set the pensieve back onto the table. Some memories answered questions but others; they raised more questions, questions that couldn't be answered at all.
Title: Memories
Author: nucking_futs
Word Count: 1897
Pairing: H/LL, J/L, Dursleys
Rating: Kid+
Warnings: Angst, drama.
Summary: After the war, Harry and Luna go to take care of some unfinished business.
Disclaimer: I have no claim to Harry Potter which is owned by JKR, Bloomsbury Publishing Company, etc.
Notes: Originally, this was for a fic series I was working on. However, that was abandoned post-HBP but this stood alone enough that I decided to release it as a one-shot. This is my first every H/LL fic.
The room was pretty and light, with cream and eggshell blue wallpaper. The furniture was pastel blue and yellow with nice Chippendale end tables. Luna could tell that she had chosen to make the room look nice but to also make sure anyone sitting here thinks that they had money and power. Luna smiled inwardly as she looked at the woman sitting across from Harry.
Petunia Dursley had ambition but she definitely fell short of her aims. Luna remembered all that Harry told her about his mother’s remaining family. Vernon Dursley was a vicious man who hated everything that did not fit his view of reality, especially magic. Dudley Dursley was a spoiled, stupid pig who did no wrong in his parents’ eyes. And Petunia….Petunia was Harry’s nasty aunt who only took him in because of Dumbledore nearly twenty years ago.
The woman was nattering on about something to Harry. Petunia ignored Luna when they came in, dismissing her paper-clip earrings, simple dark-blue Muggle dress and Muggle flip-flops. That didn’t faze Luna; she was used to being ignored. She liked it; it meant that they didn’t notice it when she read them and it meant that they didn’t bother her for being different.
It wasn’t as bad as when she was growing up. She had been Loony Lovegood, the crazy daughter of that nutter publisher of The Quibbler. Now, she was Luna Potter, wife of the savior, Harry Potter. She had power as his wife; everyone wanted to get on their good side in the topsy-turvy Wizarding world. It was rather refreshing to be around someone who didn’t really care about Harry in a way.
Luna returned her thoughts to Petunia. Petunia was rather skinny and pale, the years and her sour personality wrinkling her face and giving her a very nasty look. Her hands kept fluttering around, as if she was hiding something important. Her eyes kept darting around, probably watching out for that ass of a husband. Luna rolled her eyes; Vernon Dursley had told them in no uncertain words that their kind was not welcome and to not come back after today. The son had just looked at him, frightened yet uncaring at the same time.
Taking a sip of tea, Luna fixed her eyes on her husband. Harry was sitting there, impatient. They wouldn’t have been here if it wasn’t for the letter they received from Petunia, telling them that there was something important that she needed to give them. Harry had no idea what she was talking about; in all of the years that he had lived with the Dursleys, they never gave him anything except the basics. But something in that letter told them that she was serious and that was why they were here.
Petunia stopped talking and set her tea cup down. She pulled out an old box and hurriedly pushed it towards Harry. Petunia tersely stated, “Here, this is yours.”
Harry blinked and gave Petunia a blank look before asking, “What is it?”
Petunia rolled her eyes and scrunched her face. Then she replied, “That old man gave this to me for safekeeping. He said to give it to you when you were old enough. I certainly don’t know what it is.”
Luna looked at her husband. Harry looked suspicious, annoyed yet fearful at the same time. Harry always had an obsession with the past. He had learned how to control his temper and emotions after Dumbledore's death but whenever James and Lily were mentioned, Harry had a harder struggle to control them. Now, faced with this development, Luna could tell that Harry was struggling with the hopeful desire of finding out more about his parents.
Harry took the box, a bland expression on his face belying the shakiness of his fingers. He opened it, the look on his face becoming cloudy. Luna leaned over to the right, trying to see what the box contained.
The box only contained a pensieve. It was small and light, as if the owner of the pensieve wasn’t able to put many memories into it. Harry picked up the pensieve and peered into it. Luna looked into the box and saw a note. She picked it up, saying, “Harry, there was a note attached to it.”
Harry looked over at her, a strange look on his face. He asked, “Could you read it for me?”
Luna opened up the letter. It was dated, January 12, 1979 and read,
Dumbledore,
For some reason, I feel this need to leave this with you. Like you told me to, I took out all of the memories from the 2 times that Lily and I averted death with Voldemort as well as the memories dealing with the deaths of my father and Aunt Leanne. I’m also working on occlumency lessons with Lily since Voldemort was able to breach her mind so effectively last time.
James Potter
Luna looked sharply towards Harry. Harry was looking into the pensieve, a dark expression on his face. He swirled the memories with his finger as if he was looking for a particular one. His expression turned thoughtful before he looked up at his Aunt Petunia.
Harry causally asked, “You never looked in this at all, have you?”
Petunia sniffed, “Why would I ever look at some nasty thing that your kind has? I never wanted anything of Lily’s and that nasty boy at all.”
Harry looked down at the pensieve again then looked at Luna. She met his gaze, something registering in her mind. Harry was sure that she had lied; she had looked inside of it. Harry carefully asked, “Since you’ve already told me that you never wanted to see me again after today, will you tell me now why you kept me for all of those years?”
Petunia bristled, displeasure reigning supreme on her sour face. To Luna, she seemed indecisive; she wanted to tell Harry but there was something holding her back. To Harry’s credit, he didn’t push her. He sat there quietly, waiting for an answer. Petunia sighed with defeat on her face as she put her teacup and saucer down on the table. She closed her eyes; when she opened them again, to Luna, it seemed like she had aged another ten years in mere seconds.
Petunia coughed then she said, “Don’t think that this is going to be some sad tale about that man finding some kind of way to make feel sorry for my crazy sister and that boy because I wouldn’t have taken you in if it was that.”
She closed her eyes as if she was reliving her worst experience ever. Then Petunia continued, “I guess you would know how it feels to see pure evil in front of your face. I mean, from what I’ve seen in that thing,” she pointed towards the pensieve, “there is pure evil in this world. Guess if evil came to interfere in your life and the only way to keep it away from you and your family was to do something that you would have never wanted. I wanted nothing to do with Lily and her world but it kept interfering with my life! If keeping a weirdo baby managed to get it out of my life, I would have done it. That’s why I took you in.”
Petunia sagged against the chair as if in her mind she was seeing something that was still haunting her to this day. Luna looked at her, reaching out but then she stopped, realizing that Petunia wouldn’t have wanted her sympathy. She sighed inwardly; something was missing from what Petunia had said but she wasn’t that willing to push to find out what it was. Neither was Harry because he simply put the pensieve and the note back into the box. He said, “That’s all that I need to know. Thank you, Aunt Petunia.”
Petunia looked up, blinking then she returned back to normal. She sniffed, disdain back on her face. She said, “Why are you thanking me? That belonged to you anyway.”
Harry and Luna got up from the couch, uncertainty on their faces as they looked for a way to leave diplomatically while knowing that this was the last time that they were going to see this woman. Then Petunia said, “Sometimes, I wondered if it was worth it, keeping a child like you rather than to just deal with what may have came but I guess it was worth it.”
She looked at Harry, an unfamiliar expression on her face. “Lily was my sister and it would have been remiss if I hadn’t taken you in. There were rules that had to be followed,” Petunia stated, a far away look on her face. But then, she continued, “I hope to never see you again now. You and your kind never were and never will be welcome here.”
Harry opened his mouth as if he was going to say something but then Luna could see that he controlled his temper. They just left the room without a word and Apparated back to their flat.
*******
Back home, Luna asked Harry, “What do you think she saw,” as she took a seat on their sofa, the pensieve on the coffee table. Harry walked over towards the window and opened it, letting a summer breeze into the room.
Harry answered, “I’m not sure and the other person who probably knew was Dumbledore but I think it was more than a Dementor…,” as he walked over towards the couch and sat down.
He paused, a thoughtful look on his face as if he was thinking of some of the things that had happened during the war. Then Harry grabbed Luna’s hand and held it for several moments. Then he said, “I think if it had happened to us, it wouldn’t have affected us as badly since we are wizards. For such anti-magic Muggle, it must have been devastating. Whatever it was, I’m not sure what it is, but it answers some questions…”
Harry trailed off, a far away expression on his face as he looked inside of the pensieve. Luna took her free hand and ran it through Harry's hair. There was so much that she wanted to ask yet she instinctively knew that it was not the time. Harry would tell her in due time. Then, to her surprise, Harry picked up and thrust the pensieve towards her.
Luna looked inside of the pensieve, swirling the memories. They began to separate, some pleasant, others joyful like Harry's parent's wedding. Others were darker from when James and Lily were fighting as members of the Order. Then one stood out, a memory that was obviously not one of Lily's or James'.
At first, all Luna could see was a figure in black robes, face hidden, just a white hand visible. Then, the memory became clearer and she could see Petunia holding a baby, her face frozen in horror while Vernon Dursley began yelling at the man to take his magic and leave them alone. Then, it became hazy again as if the full memory wasn't put into the pensieve. She whispered, "Voldemort, he threatened the Dursleys?"
The memory faded back in with the rest and Luna set the pensieve back onto the table. Some memories answered questions but others; they raised more questions, questions that couldn't be answered at all.