Splendid Disorder (G; Luna, Rolf, Ginny, Harry, their children, others; 1381 words)
Title: Splendid Disorder
Author:
iulia_linnea
Characters: Luna, Rolf, Ginny, Harry, their children, and an original portrait with implied thestral foals and other babies
Rating: G
Word Count: 1381
Summary: Aunt Luna and Uncle Rolf look after the children in their lives.
Disclaimer: This work of fan fiction is based on characters and situations created by J. K. Rowling and owned by J. K. Rowling and various publishers, including but not limited to Bloomsbury Books, Scholastic Books, Raincoast Books, and Warner Bros., Inc. No money is being made from (and no copyright or trademark infringement is intended by) the posting of this fan work.
Author's Note: Written in response to the following old stump-the-pairing-whore prompt of order of operations, thestrals, and happy families.
The maths problem floated before her eyes:
1 + 2 x 2 + 3 = ?
"Well, that's easy!" Lily Luna exclaimed, "It's nine!"
"Is it?" asked Aunt Luna.
"Sure! One plus two is three. Three times two is six. Six plus three is nine!"
"You're wrong," James Sirius remarked.
Albus Severus stuffed a biscuit into his mouth and then spoke, but no one understood what he said.
"Scorpius wouldn't approve of your eating habits," Aunt Luna told him.
"I'm not wrong!" Lils insisted.
"You," Al said, choking down the rest of his biscuit, "forgot the order of operations."
"The what?" Lils asked Aunt Luna.
"The order of operations, sweetheart."
"What's that?" demanded Lils.
Aunt Luna smiled. "I thought you didn't need any help with maths? I thought you were 'entirely prepared' for Arithmancy?"
Lils glared.
"All right, you two," Aunt Luna said, before Jamie and Al could tease their sister, "go set the table in the kitchen, please. It's almost time to eat."
Lils watched them go without complaint. "I don't understand why they never argue with you. They argue with Mum and Dad."
"Yes, because they're not my children. Lorcan and Lysander argue with me, sometimes, because they are. That's part of being in a family. . . . Now, uncross your arms and I'll teach you all about the order of operations, at least, the specific order that will be of interest to you. There are lots, really, and they're all made up."
"'Made up'!" exclaimed Lils.
Aunt Luna laughed. "We made up a lot of things to help us understand the world. Turn your attention back to the problem."
Lils did as Aunt Luna told her. "It mocks me."
"Not intentionally. Numbers are just like that," said Aunt Luna. "Now, look again and tell me what you see, please."
1 + (2 x 2) + 3 = ?
"You added brackets around the two times two. Why?"
"To more easily indicate to you the order of operations," replied Aunt Luna. "You need to multiply before you add. If you do that, your answer will not be nine. Try."
"Two times two is four. Four plus one is five. Five plus three is eight. It is eight!"
The maths problem's solution appeared and then the numbers exploded into fireworks.
"Without the order of operations, it's also nine," Aunt Luna began, but Uncle Rolf, who had been dozing on a pile of cushions near the fire, interrupted her.
"Don't confuse her. You need to employ the order of operations, kiddo. S'mportant."
"I know."
Uncle Rolf's snoring rose as if in answer.
"Food!" announced Jamie, from the kitchen.
"We'll continue after, Lils."
"Should we wake Uncle Rolf?"
"No, let him sleep. He had a busy night."
"Come on!" encouraged Al, poking his head into the room. "The stew'll get cold if you don't come."
"How can Uncle Rolf deliver thestrals if he can't see them?"
"A keeper's spell."
"What's a keeper's spell, Aunt Luna?"
"Ew! Did you wash?" demanded Lils, of Jamie.
"Er," he murmured, holding a basket of bread.
"Order of operations!" Lils insisted, giggling.
Al relieved his brother of the basket while Jamie went to wash, and then they all sat down to stew and bread and pumpkin juice and the tiny, dancing mince pies that their father had been craving for weeks.
"Those went down a treat," said Lils. "Glad Mum sent them along."
"Let's see if the maths go down as smoothly," Aunt Luna said, winking at her.
~*~
"You did very well, Lils. I'm proud of you."
"Does that mean we can use the keeper's spell to see the foals?"
Rolf turned to Luna. "There's time before the kids get to bed."
Al lit up at the idea. "Please?"
"Oh, do say yes, Aunt Luna!" cried Lils.
"How can you say no to this face?" Jamie asked, batting his eyes at Luna, who giggled.
Just then, a terrific whoosh erupted from the Floo, and Lorcan and Lysander came tumbling out of the fireplace. "Mum! Dad! We did it! We rode the dragon! We-Merlin, it's tiny children!"
The kids rushed forward to greet each other, giving each other a hard time, while Rolf and Luna looked on, pleased.
"I should fire-call St Mungo's to see how Harry's doing," said Luna.
"What? And miss out on dragon camp news? Besides, Ginny told us to be patient."
"I have been patient."
"Ginny," Rolf continued, moving to embrace the boys, "said she'd call us. . . . I'm proud of you both. What did Charlie say?"
"That we've the makings of good Keepers," said Lorcan.
Lysander added, "And we're welcome back any time at all."
"Stew?"
"Yeah, I almost ended up as meat a few times, Mum, but-"
"Don't frighten your mother," Rolf admonished, lightly.
"Hey, wanna see the thestrals?" Al piped up.
"They were born? Let's!" insisted Lysander, pulling Lorcan behind him before his brother could expand on their dragon-related near misses.
The other children followed close behind with Rolf in tow.
"Join us?" he asked Luna.
"Be right there."
Luna flicked her wand, and the kitchen began to right itself. She swished it, and a late meal packed itself and levitated out of the house to her sons. And then she sighed.
"Don't do it, dearie," a sweet-faced, hard-eyed elderly relative told her, from her frame. "You're not supposed to be working today, Healer Lovegood. You're supposed to be resting-and your should really tell him, soon."
Ignoring the old midwife's suggestion, Luna replied, "Yes, but I want to know how they're getting on. Male childbearing is rare."
"Is insane, I think you mean, but of course, it's only fair."
Luna's nose twitched. "Harry did say that he wanted a big family, but I suppose he really shouldn't have told Gin that if she carried their first three, he'd carry their next three."
"No, wife, he truly shouldn't have done!"
"You're impatient," Luna told him.
"I'm exhausted and want the kids in bed, so that we can go to bed . . . ."
The portrait clucked and closed her curtain.
Luna laughed as Rolf hugged her from behind. "I thought you said you were exhau-"
Fwoosh!
From the hearth came the sounds of Ginny's voice and Harry's laughter, "It's a boy! We've had-I've had!-a beautiful boy!"
"Hi!" called Ginny, from the flames.
"Congratulations, Mummy!"
"Daddy and I thank you! The kids? You'll tell them, Luna? They can come through in about an hour. Harry needs to be cleaned up and to get used to the nursing charm."
"I didn't agree to a nursing charm!"
"Don't listen to him," said Ginny. "He can't wait to nurse-and I've got him the best nipple cream."
Rolf tightened his grip around Luna; she felt him wincing as he whispered, "I will not be doing that."
Luna had no time to react to him, saying to Ginny, "I will tell the kids straight away, and I'm so excited for you both!"
"See you soon!"
"Brave man, is Potter."
"You knew? You know?"
"That you're pregnant? Of course. Great Aunt Mavis gossips-and you've been eating nettles again. I've only ever seen you do that once before."
Luna laughed again. "I wanted to suprise you."
"Oh, I was surprised when I saw the nettles, but I thought it best to wait for you to tell me. I love you, Lu."
"I love you, Rolf."
After a moment. Great Aunt Mavis' curtain flicked open and she demanded, "Don't you have news to share with the children? There's no need to be getting up to . . . that again. You are already with child!"
"Order of operations," Rolf murmured, against Luna's hair.
"It's been a good day," Luna whispered back.
"Full of," said Rolf, kissing her between kisses, "splendid . . . disorder."
After another moment, Great Aunt Mavis said, "Oh, very well. At least be good enough to close my curtain."
"You're perfectly capable of achieving your own privacy, madam," Luna said, her mock solemnity breaking almost at once as she began running for the barn. "Splended disorder, Rolf!"
Rolf appeased Great Aunt Mavis by physically closing her curtain before catching up to Luna. "You wouldn't have it any other way, I know."
"Oh," said Luna, "you should know that it's not 'with child'. It's 'with children'!"
Rolf froze in place for half a moment, and then, grinning, he joined his family.
Author:
iulia_linnea
Characters: Luna, Rolf, Ginny, Harry, their children, and an original portrait with implied thestral foals and other babies
Rating: G
Word Count: 1381
Summary: Aunt Luna and Uncle Rolf look after the children in their lives.
Disclaimer: This work of fan fiction is based on characters and situations created by J. K. Rowling and owned by J. K. Rowling and various publishers, including but not limited to Bloomsbury Books, Scholastic Books, Raincoast Books, and Warner Bros., Inc. No money is being made from (and no copyright or trademark infringement is intended by) the posting of this fan work.
Author's Note: Written in response to the following old stump-the-pairing-whore prompt of order of operations, thestrals, and happy families.
The maths problem floated before her eyes:
1 + 2 x 2 + 3 = ?
"Well, that's easy!" Lily Luna exclaimed, "It's nine!"
"Is it?" asked Aunt Luna.
"Sure! One plus two is three. Three times two is six. Six plus three is nine!"
"You're wrong," James Sirius remarked.
Albus Severus stuffed a biscuit into his mouth and then spoke, but no one understood what he said.
"Scorpius wouldn't approve of your eating habits," Aunt Luna told him.
"I'm not wrong!" Lils insisted.
"You," Al said, choking down the rest of his biscuit, "forgot the order of operations."
"The what?" Lils asked Aunt Luna.
"The order of operations, sweetheart."
"What's that?" demanded Lils.
Aunt Luna smiled. "I thought you didn't need any help with maths? I thought you were 'entirely prepared' for Arithmancy?"
Lils glared.
"All right, you two," Aunt Luna said, before Jamie and Al could tease their sister, "go set the table in the kitchen, please. It's almost time to eat."
Lils watched them go without complaint. "I don't understand why they never argue with you. They argue with Mum and Dad."
"Yes, because they're not my children. Lorcan and Lysander argue with me, sometimes, because they are. That's part of being in a family. . . . Now, uncross your arms and I'll teach you all about the order of operations, at least, the specific order that will be of interest to you. There are lots, really, and they're all made up."
"'Made up'!" exclaimed Lils.
Aunt Luna laughed. "We made up a lot of things to help us understand the world. Turn your attention back to the problem."
Lils did as Aunt Luna told her. "It mocks me."
"Not intentionally. Numbers are just like that," said Aunt Luna. "Now, look again and tell me what you see, please."
1 + (2 x 2) + 3 = ?
"You added brackets around the two times two. Why?"
"To more easily indicate to you the order of operations," replied Aunt Luna. "You need to multiply before you add. If you do that, your answer will not be nine. Try."
"Two times two is four. Four plus one is five. Five plus three is eight. It is eight!"
The maths problem's solution appeared and then the numbers exploded into fireworks.
"Without the order of operations, it's also nine," Aunt Luna began, but Uncle Rolf, who had been dozing on a pile of cushions near the fire, interrupted her.
"Don't confuse her. You need to employ the order of operations, kiddo. S'mportant."
"I know."
Uncle Rolf's snoring rose as if in answer.
"Food!" announced Jamie, from the kitchen.
"We'll continue after, Lils."
"Should we wake Uncle Rolf?"
"No, let him sleep. He had a busy night."
"Come on!" encouraged Al, poking his head into the room. "The stew'll get cold if you don't come."
"How can Uncle Rolf deliver thestrals if he can't see them?"
"A keeper's spell."
"What's a keeper's spell, Aunt Luna?"
"Ew! Did you wash?" demanded Lils, of Jamie.
"Er," he murmured, holding a basket of bread.
"Order of operations!" Lils insisted, giggling.
Al relieved his brother of the basket while Jamie went to wash, and then they all sat down to stew and bread and pumpkin juice and the tiny, dancing mince pies that their father had been craving for weeks.
"Those went down a treat," said Lils. "Glad Mum sent them along."
"Let's see if the maths go down as smoothly," Aunt Luna said, winking at her.
~*~
"You did very well, Lils. I'm proud of you."
"Does that mean we can use the keeper's spell to see the foals?"
Rolf turned to Luna. "There's time before the kids get to bed."
Al lit up at the idea. "Please?"
"Oh, do say yes, Aunt Luna!" cried Lils.
"How can you say no to this face?" Jamie asked, batting his eyes at Luna, who giggled.
Just then, a terrific whoosh erupted from the Floo, and Lorcan and Lysander came tumbling out of the fireplace. "Mum! Dad! We did it! We rode the dragon! We-Merlin, it's tiny children!"
The kids rushed forward to greet each other, giving each other a hard time, while Rolf and Luna looked on, pleased.
"I should fire-call St Mungo's to see how Harry's doing," said Luna.
"What? And miss out on dragon camp news? Besides, Ginny told us to be patient."
"I have been patient."
"Ginny," Rolf continued, moving to embrace the boys, "said she'd call us. . . . I'm proud of you both. What did Charlie say?"
"That we've the makings of good Keepers," said Lorcan.
Lysander added, "And we're welcome back any time at all."
"Stew?"
"Yeah, I almost ended up as meat a few times, Mum, but-"
"Don't frighten your mother," Rolf admonished, lightly.
"Hey, wanna see the thestrals?" Al piped up.
"They were born? Let's!" insisted Lysander, pulling Lorcan behind him before his brother could expand on their dragon-related near misses.
The other children followed close behind with Rolf in tow.
"Join us?" he asked Luna.
"Be right there."
Luna flicked her wand, and the kitchen began to right itself. She swished it, and a late meal packed itself and levitated out of the house to her sons. And then she sighed.
"Don't do it, dearie," a sweet-faced, hard-eyed elderly relative told her, from her frame. "You're not supposed to be working today, Healer Lovegood. You're supposed to be resting-and your should really tell him, soon."
Ignoring the old midwife's suggestion, Luna replied, "Yes, but I want to know how they're getting on. Male childbearing is rare."
"Is insane, I think you mean, but of course, it's only fair."
Luna's nose twitched. "Harry did say that he wanted a big family, but I suppose he really shouldn't have told Gin that if she carried their first three, he'd carry their next three."
"No, wife, he truly shouldn't have done!"
"You're impatient," Luna told him.
"I'm exhausted and want the kids in bed, so that we can go to bed . . . ."
The portrait clucked and closed her curtain.
Luna laughed as Rolf hugged her from behind. "I thought you said you were exhau-"
Fwoosh!
From the hearth came the sounds of Ginny's voice and Harry's laughter, "It's a boy! We've had-I've had!-a beautiful boy!"
"Hi!" called Ginny, from the flames.
"Congratulations, Mummy!"
"Daddy and I thank you! The kids? You'll tell them, Luna? They can come through in about an hour. Harry needs to be cleaned up and to get used to the nursing charm."
"I didn't agree to a nursing charm!"
"Don't listen to him," said Ginny. "He can't wait to nurse-and I've got him the best nipple cream."
Rolf tightened his grip around Luna; she felt him wincing as he whispered, "I will not be doing that."
Luna had no time to react to him, saying to Ginny, "I will tell the kids straight away, and I'm so excited for you both!"
"See you soon!"
"Brave man, is Potter."
"You knew? You know?"
"That you're pregnant? Of course. Great Aunt Mavis gossips-and you've been eating nettles again. I've only ever seen you do that once before."
Luna laughed again. "I wanted to suprise you."
"Oh, I was surprised when I saw the nettles, but I thought it best to wait for you to tell me. I love you, Lu."
"I love you, Rolf."
After a moment. Great Aunt Mavis' curtain flicked open and she demanded, "Don't you have news to share with the children? There's no need to be getting up to . . . that again. You are already with child!"
"Order of operations," Rolf murmured, against Luna's hair.
"It's been a good day," Luna whispered back.
"Full of," said Rolf, kissing her between kisses, "splendid . . . disorder."
After another moment, Great Aunt Mavis said, "Oh, very well. At least be good enough to close my curtain."
"You're perfectly capable of achieving your own privacy, madam," Luna said, her mock solemnity breaking almost at once as she began running for the barn. "Splended disorder, Rolf!"
Rolf appeased Great Aunt Mavis by physically closing her curtain before catching up to Luna. "You wouldn't have it any other way, I know."
"Oh," said Luna, "you should know that it's not 'with child'. It's 'with children'!"
Rolf froze in place for half a moment, and then, grinning, he joined his family.