Work Text:
Her golden blonde hair was all that was identifiable as Luna sped through Diagon Alley, pushing and apologising to everyone in her way. She had to deliver ingredients she sold to one of the potion shops in the alley, Pippin’s Potions, and the owner had a strict time frame for suppliers. Luna was late, and it was fundamental to her not to lose this contract, especially not because of the Ministry and its bureaucracy.
Luna has dedicated the past couple of years to exploring the world and discovering sustainable ways to obtain ingredients from creatures. The sales of these ingredients have allowed her and her research partner and best friend, Hermione, to fund their travels and research projects while having the freedom not to depend entirely on the Ministry budget.
She entered the shop through the back door, fiddling with her necklace, which had a moonflower charm. The first thing she heard was the owner shouting at her, “Ms Lovegood, you’re late! I don’t have time for you now. There is another supplier here. Unlike you, one who arrived on time and didn’t lose their time slot. Return next week with that partner of yours and be ready to discuss your contract with my shop.”
Luna’s entire body tensed. It was the worst possible moment for this to happen. They really needed the money more than ever. Especially after the Ministry cut their project’s budget in half, Luna couldn’t allow it to lose a weekly client. It could cause a significant delay in their investigation.
“Mr Pippin, I apologise for being late. Please allow me to explain. Just give me a—”
Luna tried to explain what had happened and why she had arrived late, but he interrupted her. “No, I don’t want or care about your excuses. Come back with Ms Granger next week.”
She sighed in defeat and turned to leave the shop, but someone grabbed her arm. When Luna looked up, it was the moment she realised Neville was there too. He was the other supplier. Luna hadn’t seen him in a few years, as she kept little to no contact with her school friends—too busy travelling the world. Neville had grown taller and broader, but he looked at her with the same warm eyes and kind smile as he always had.
During their time in school, he never treated her like an outsider, unlike everyone else. With him, she wasn’t the eagle in the lion’s den; she was simply Luna. The time they spent together practising after the DA lessons and how Neville protected her during the Battle of the Department of Mysteries were the memories she used for her Patronus. It wasn’t a surprise to her when she ended up having feelings for him for years, but she never found the courage to confess. She was an eagle after all.
Gladly, all those feelings were a thing of the past.
Even when she’d denied it until the end of time, truth be told, Luna was only lying to herself. It took only one look from him after all these years, one smile, and all those old feelings bloomed in her heart as if time hadn’t passed.
Neville turned towards the shop owner with the same kind smile and said, “Mr Pippin, didn’t you tell me that you believe in second chances? You mentioned that a couple of weeks ago, when we discussed that Draco Malfoy is now one of your suppliers. Can you just give our dearest Ms Lovegood an opportunity? Has she ever been late before?”
“No, never, but I won’t allow suppliers to come and go as they please. I have a business to run,” Mr Pippin responded in an annoyed tone.
Neville raised his hands. “Of course, I didn’t intend to offend you, and I apologised for it. If it’s okay with you, Mr Pippin, Ms Lovegood could take my time, and I’ll come back next week.” He looked at her, still with his beautiful and bright smile, only to find a befuddled Luna. “Does that work for you, Luna?”
Hermione and Luna’s contract established that if they missed a week, they couldn’t sell their products, they wouldn’t get paid, they could even lose the contract, and if Neville’s were like Luna’s, giving her the spot would mean Neville wouldn’t get paid that week and put at risk part of his income.
Her partner had kept her updated on his achievements, and even when they hadn’t talked since they finished Hogwarts, she always asked about him. His research was similar to Luna’s, but while she focused on creatures, his focus was on plants. Neville had single-handedly improved and changed the process for growing and caring for rare plants. Travelling around the world, doing research and experimenting in his greenhouses. It made sense to assume he needed the money, just as she did, perhaps even more so.
“Luna?”
She shook her head, pulled him down by his shirt and murmured in his ear, “Neville, no. There isn’t a need for you to do this. I could leave this situation to Hermione. She’s better at handling him than I am.”
“Luna, I want to do it. Please let me help you,” Neville pleaded, and Luna’s heart overflowed with emotions.
Mr Pippin scoffed, “I can’t keep wasting my time with you two; my time is too valuable. The store is low on some of its supplies, and I can’t afford to lose clients because of this mess you caused. So, I’ll allow this arrangement only this one time. But no more lateness, Ms Lovegood.”
They quickly delivered their goods, finishing just in time before the next supplier’s scheduled time. The shop owner dismissed them rudely, indicating that they should leave as soon as possible, and reiterated that he didn’t want to waste his valuable time with them anymore. She mouthed a ‘thank you’ to Neville, and he winked in response. Luna’s heart skipped more than one beat.
Before leaving, Luna ensured that her next week’s appointment was before Neville’s, so she would have an excuse to see him again. She couldn’t stop herself from glancing at him as they walked outside together. Neville noticed her looking at him and had a massive grin on his face, while she blushed profusely.
Neville asked her to have lunch together, and Luna didn’t even let him finish before she nodded and said yes. It was physically impossible for her to say no to the man she’d had feelings for since her fourth year.
She had told no one, not even her best friend, about all the letters she sent to Neville while they were at Hogwarts. He mentioned nothing about the ‘secret admirer’ letters he received. For a long time, she hinted about the letters, saying things she wrote on them, and even her signature was a doddle of a moonflower, like the charm on the necklace she always wore.
Luna had planned to tell him everything, but when he started dating Hannah during the last year of Hogwarts, she talked herself out of doing it. It was too embarrassing to admit her feelings for him, especially when he was dating someone else.
They walked in awkward silence, and their fingers brushed against each other too many times to be a coincidence. Luna wanted to scream, grab his hand, and never let him go.
Lunch with him was lovely. It wasn’t as awkward as their walk towards the restaurant. They discussed their research and realised they could benefit from each other’s projects by joining forces. Also, Luna found that Neville’s contract with Mr Pippin gave him more flexibility with the deliveries because of Neville’s trips. It was definitely something worth mentioning to Hermione.
After a couple of hours of non-stop conversation, Neville had to leave, but she wasn’t ready to let him go and wanted to spend more time with him. He noticed her hesitation and, with a smile, reassured her they would see each other again soon. But when it was time to say goodbye, he didn’t leave; it was as if his body was physically incapable of walking away from her.
Neville took a deep breath while taking the charm of her necklace into his hands and murmured, “A moonflower. I should have guessed it was you, Luna. The letters—”
Luna widened her pale, silvery eyes, shocked by the realisation that until that moment, Neville had never known it was her.
“I always thought the letters were a long and cruel running joke of someone from my year. But now everything makes sense. I’m sorry for not realising sooner. I was a fool.”
“You don’t need to apologise, Neville. You didn’t know, and I never told you. I suppose even after spending so much time together, I caught none of that famous Gryffindor’s courage.”
He chuckled while caressing her cheek. “You’re still as adorable as ever.”
Luna pouted her lips. “Adorable?”
“Yes. Also bright, kind and stunningly beautiful,” Neville said, and gave her a sweet kiss on her cheek, making her blush again. The moment he was about to kiss her other cheek, she turned her head, capturing his lips with hers. His hands quickly intertwined in her hair, giving him control of the kiss.
Luna moaned shamelessly loudly in the middle of Diagon Alley, and he groaned in response.
“Neville, you told me you have a place to be soon,” Luna whined. Someone needed to be the voice of reason.
In between kisses, he said, “It’s unimportant right now. Everything is, after I learned that the person I’ve been in love with all my life had feelings for me for years. If you give me one opportunity, Luna, I’ll make you happy. ”
Disregarding everything about being reasonable, Luna muttered, “Have not had. I still have feelings for you, Neville.”
He grabbed her face with both hands and, looking directly into her eyes, confessed, “I love you, Luna. I’ve been in love with you since we were kids. I asked everyone about you, but that Gryffindor’s courage you mentioned must have skipped me because I’ve been too afraid to reach out to you for so long.”
Luna kissed him in response. “I love you, too, Nev. Please take me home with you.”
“If I do that now, I’m afraid I’ll never let you go.”
“Then please never let me go.”
◦•●❀⊱┄┄┄┄┄┄┄┄┄┄┄⊰❀●•◦
Five years late. They were on an expedition in the middle of the jungle. One morning, they suddenly heard the question, “Mum, Dad, what happened after you went on your first date?”
Neville choked on his morning tea. “It’s too early for this,” he mumbled.
Luna laughed but said nothing and kept writing their most recent discoveries; it was his turn to answer their inquisitive daughter’s questions.
“The only thing I can say is that it was the best way to spend my birthday, especially when you were born nine months later, my little moonflower,” he said, kissed the top of her head and winked at his wife.
Luna smiled in response.
fin