Victories and Darkest Hours
Ireland emerged victorious, and Mr. Spring popped the cork on his bottle of firewhisky on the walk back to the tents, so great was his excitement.
“Myron, wait until we at least have glasses!” Mr. Lovegood laughed, clapping Mr. Spring on the shoulder.
“Xeno, old boy, there is a time for propriety. And this is not it.” Mr. Spring took a robust swig, then passed the bottle to Mr. Lovegood. Mr. Lovegood hesitated for a moment. Then, with an air of determined spontaneity, took a drink.
Archie and Luna, who were walking behind them, exchanged an amused glance before Archie found the bottle thrust under his nose.
“Well, here go my nose hairs,” Archie said, taking the bottle, raising a brief salute, and drinking to Ireland.
Mackie and Gwennie were sound asleep on their parents’ shoulders by the time they got back to the tents. The adults, all of whom were congregating in the living area of the Lovegoods’ tent, seemed like they were going to be rehashing the match for the rest of the night.
Luna fell somewhere in between, but soon enough found herself in her nightgown and stretched out on her pallet in the sleeping loft. The twins were curled together on the other pallet, breathing softly. Below, the grown-ups were talking and laughing. It was warm and safe and companionable, and Luna smiled at the translucent ceiling of the tent and fell asleep to the sound of friendship and distant fireworks.
She awoke to what sounded like a nearby explosion, and Mr. Cook’s frantic voice.
“Kids? Kids, get up. We have to go, right now. Luna? Luna, you need to get up.”
Mackie and Gwennie were awakening with sleepy, protesting wails. Luna scrambled up, grabbing her bathrobe and her wand.
“What is it?” she asked.
Mr. Cook’s mouth was pinched under his beard. “Trouble,” he said.
Outside it was bedlam, which a few Ministry officials were trying to direct in an orderly fashion.
“Stay calm, everyone. Please proceed to the woods, and stay there. Stay with your parties - make sure all children are accounted for. Do not panic. Please proceed to the woods….”
They might as well have been trying to herd hippogriffs for all the luck they were having.
In the distance-though not nearly distant enough-the sky was lit by fire, periodically punctuated by a blast of light accompanied by an almighty bang and screams. There was no indication, that Luna could see, of what was causing it. But the campers were well intent on getting away from it.
She tried to stick close to her dad, but Luna found herself caught in a wave of people and borne all the way to the distant dark strand of trees. The crowd broke up when it reached the woods, much as a wave would break against a bar, and Luna stopped with her back against a tree, looking around to take stock.
About ten yards away, she saw Archie, carrying one or another of the Cook twins, turning in place, looking like he had no idea where to go.
“Archie!” Luna called, trying to be heard over the distance and the people. When that didn’t work, she raised her wand and sent up a flash of bright blue light, accompanied by a loud pop. That got his attention, and sent the bulk of the crowd scurrying to boot.
It was Mackie who was clinging to his neck, Luna could see as he trotted over to join her. “Luna. Are you all right? Where are the others? A bunch of people pushed past me, and I lost them.”
But they were nowhere to be seen-Mr. Lovegood, the Cooks, Mr. Spring, Auntie George. They had disappeared somewhere in the dark and confusion.
“It’s all right. We know they’re here somewhere,” Luna said. She took Archie by the hand and conjured a small light at the end of her wand. “Come on.”
They wound their way through the trees and brush and frightened witches and wizards. Some were like them-trying to find family and friends. Others were clinging in clumps. And talking. Luna picked up stray words and phrases as they passed.
Blown up. Fire. Ministry fighting. Curses. Dark wizards. Muggles attacked.
Luna felt Archie’s hand tighten on hers at that. He might not be a Muggle exactly, but a Squib was the next closest thing. And here he was, lost somewhere out in the woods, with no protection save a not-quite-third-year Hogwarts student.
Death Eaters.
Luna heard those two words more and more from the people that they passed. Spoken with everything from abject terror to utter disbelief.
And then green light cut into the sky, the skull and snake looking down on them all. And the woods surged with panic again.
It was dawn by the time Luna, Archie, and Mackie stumbled into a clearing where the rest of their party was gathered in a pale and shivering knot. And none of them got a chance to breathe properly for some time after that. Luna’s dad held onto her so tight for so long that she would not have been at all surprised to find that the pattern from his plaid dressing gown had transferred to her face.
They all made their way, along with the other displaced witches and wizards, back to the now quiet campsite. It was slow going-Mr. Lovegood had tripped and given his ankle a good twist sometime during the course of the night. To Luna’s great relief, their tents were still standing, if looking a little worse for wear. They all filed silently into the large one, too numb and shocked and tired for much in the way of conversation.
Luna went straight to the kitchen area and took the teakettle out of the cupboard. When she tried the sink, though, the spout sputtered almost apologetically.
“Water’s out,” she said, passing back through the living area. “I’m going to go see if it’s on in Mr. Spring’s tent.”
Mr. Lovegood, who was being tending by Auntie George and Mr. Spring, looked as if he was about to launch a protest. Auntie George cut him off.
“It’s ten feet away, Xeno. And Luna’s right. We could all do with some tea. She’ll be fine.”
Clutching her bathrobe against the early morning air with one hand and the handle of the teakettle with the other, Luna picked her way over the trampled ground to the front door of Mr. Spring’s tent.
But she found rather more than a working sink when she let herself inside.