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It had been a long time since Luna had friends.
She honestly didn’t remember if she did before her mother died. Everything was different after that moment, and if Luna had any friends, they drifted apart after that. That was fine with her as grief stricken as she was.
Coming to Hogwarts, Luna was always a bit too weird for her classmates as well. It was hurtful when they called her “Loony Lovegood”, but Luna had long mastered ignoring them. She gave up on making friends, too.
Then, there was Ginny. Fiery Ginny, who always defended her, who became her friend and loved her because of her quirks, not despite them. Luna didn’t realize how lonely she was until Ginny truly became her friend.
It didn’t stop there. After Ginny, there were others, including Hermione. They clashed at first because of their natures, but they ended up being quite good friends after that.
Luna didn’t begrudge Hermione’s skepticism, even if it hurt a bit at first, and Hermione had eventually learned to accept her quirks, despite not believing everything Luna believed in.
However, just because she had friends now didn’t mean Luna was used to having friends. She knew friends often celebrated each other’s birthdays, but again, it had been too long since she even had friends to celebrate with. Maybe when she was younger, they had birthday parties but that may have been it.
She didn’t even know if her friends knew when her birthday was, which was why she was surprised when Ginny asked her.
“Are you doing anything for your birthday, Luna?”
Luna looked at her friend serenely, not showing her surprise on her face.
“Not particularly,” she replied in her typical dreamy tone.
“Is it your birthday soon, Luna?” Hermione asked from across from her.
The three in the Room of Requirement, for no particular reason than to chat. It wasn’t often they could hang out, from being in different years and in different Houses.
They tried to meet a bit regularly and Luna went along with it, especially after Ginny said they needed “girl time.”
Luna wasn’t used to the concept. She saw other girls giggling with each other, always talking about the latest gossip and relationship issue, but she never had that before.
She found that she quite liked it though, especially since the talks she had with Ginny and Hermione were more than just idle gossip, though they did that as well.
Hermione had been engrossed in her book while Luna and Ginny chatted about the latest creatures Luna was hunting to find, which is why it surprised Luna when she spoke. She thought Hermione had tuned out the conversation for a bit.
“Yes. It’s the 13th,” Luna replied.
Hermione looked at her in shock, though Luna didn’t know why. It was just her birthday after all.
“So soon?” she said demandingly, “That’s hardly anytime to get you anything! It’s already the 10th!”
Ah, that was what it was , she thought. Luna delicately shrugged her shoulders in response.
She didn’t expect her friends to get her anything, and she said so to Hermione. The older girl looked upset at that. She looked like she was about to speak up, but Ginny cut her off.
“I would like to get you something,” Ginny said before Hermione could say anything else. Hermione always had the tendency to go a bit too far when she was upset.
Hermione seemed to catch on and nodded her head in agreement. “Me as well, Luna,” she voiced, “Why don’t we plan to do something that day as well? Would you like that?”
Luna blinked. “Plan something? Like a party?”
Hermione nodded. “Yes!” she exclaimed, “Maybe a sleepover? Oh, but that wouldn’t work with you being in Ravenclaw.”
“We could always come here,” Ginny offered.
That seemed to spur Hermione on, who proceeded to talk about what they could do.
Ginny seemed equally enthusiastic, and Luna could only watch as they planned a party for her. It made her heart feel warm that her friends wanted to celebrate, but there was one problem.
“I don’t think I’ve had a party with friends before,” Luna said, cutting both of them off.
The mood turned sour at her words, both Ginny and Hermione becoming upset. Luna hadn’t meant to do that, but it was true. It would be the first party she had with friends.
Ginny and Hermione shared a look, seeming to share a silent conversation before Ginny spoke.
“Are you okay with having a party, Luna?” she said, reaching across the table they were sitting at to hold her hand. She always did that when she thought a hard topic was coming up.
Luna pondered the question. It would definitely be new to her, but she wasn’t opposed, as long as it was just the three of them.
“Would it be okay for it to be just us?” she asked.
“Of course!” Ginny responded immediately, Hermione vehemently nodding in agreement, “That’s what we were planning on.”
“Then,” Luna said, brightening up, “I would love that!”
The two smiled at her happiness and started planning. They talked about logistics and getting cake and presents and everything else. Luna only half-paid attention, focusing more on the warm feeling in her chest.
Luna had long given up on friends. She was unapologetically herself, and she would not change for anyone, which made it hard to have friends with her quirks. However, in just a short time, she had made at least 2 amazing friends, as well as many more. It made her happy; so, so, so happy.
“Can I have a chocolate cake?” she interjected.
“Of course! Just plain chocolate? Dark or milk chocolate?” Hermione fired off.
Luna tried to keep up with all of her questions but ended up confused. Ginny cut in with a muffled laugh as she tried to keep the conversation on topic. They bantered back and forth, and although they came to no solid conclusions, Luna knew one thing for sure.
This would be the best birthday she ever had.