Chapter 20

Decorating with Luna 101 & A Backfired Prank

It was now Thursday night, officially twenty-four hours the Ginny incident, and once again Harry found himself in the great hall eating dinner. Godric had said that everyone had twenty-four hours to destroy all love potions and now it was time to see if everyone had complied with his wishes. Harry was nervous, to say the least.

All day everyone had given him their well wishes, and told him not to let Ginny stand in the way of his happiness. Most girls even assured him that they weren't all crazy, and even said that they hope he will eventually find a nice woman to settle down with in the future. Harry, for once, was hopeful that they were right. Especially when Susan Bones gave him a sincere hug and told him that if he needed to talk about girl problems, she would listen. He figured out that he didn't mind Susan's hug, and with her being Amelia's niece, he knew she wouldn't be crazy. At least he hoped not.

Harry and the others were pulled out of their thoughts and back to the present when Godric, once again, stood up at the head table.

"As all of you know, I gave you twenty-four hours to dispose of all love potions, and now it is time to find out if you have. Hogwarts, have they complied?"

"For the most part. However there are still a few that refuse to get rid of them."

"Is that so?" Godric asked, as he glared around the great hall. "Very well Hogwarts, I would like the names."

"As you wish Godric." Hogwarts replied. "Pansy Parkinson has a love potion that is intended for Tom Ringo, Milli…"

Tom looked up startled, dropped his fork, and it landed with a clatter onto his plate. Harry, Neville, and the twins started laughing, but Tom glared at them, then over at the Slytherin table where Pansy had turned bright red.

"Hogwarts please continue." Godric said sternly.

"Millicent Bulstrode also has a love potion intended for Tom Ringo."

Tom shook his head and buried his face in his hands. Harry and the others just continued to laugh at him.

"Unbelievably, Cho Chang has a pretty cunning plan to give her love potion to Mr. Tom Riddle, so he better be careful."

Cho burst into tears at this announcement, but then she stood up. "He looks cute in those red lifeguard shorts!" She shouted defensively, before running out the great hall.

This outburst and acknowledgement took Death by genuine surprise because he had a 'deer-in-the-headlights' look as he stared out across the great hall. This time the boys didn't bother to hold back, and nearly fell out of their seats. Even Godric snickered at that one.

"Thank you Hogwarts. Are there any others?" He asked, trying to pull himself together.

"Yes, unless Salazar wishes to wake up in the morning next to Madam Umbridge, I suggest he not drink out of his pumpkin juice goblet."

Salazar, who thankfully had just taken a sip of water and not pumpkin juice, spewed it everywhere in a very undignified manner, before sheepishly trying to mop it all up with his napkin. Godric, Snape, Death, and the boys started laughing. Merlin patted him on the back and gave him a sympathetic look, but McGonagall looked ready to kill the toad, though no one could figure out why.

Umbridge however, raised her chin and stood up. "Now see here, I don't see what business it is of yours what a Professor does…"

"Excuse me, but it is my business. Godric asked, and I told him. Not to mention, no one wants to see Salazar running round the school chasing after you like a love sick teenager, except you. You are an adult, act like one." Hogwarts said.

Umbridge scowled at the ceiling red faced with anger, then she stormed out of the great hall. Salazar on the other hand just shook his head, but then looked up.

"If you boys even think about mentioning this again, you will not like what I do to you." He warned, as the boys continued to snicker.

Godric looked at Salazar with a mischievous grin on his face, but he didn't say anything. He instead turned his attention to the Slytherin table and told Pansy and Millicent to follow him, and sent one of the Ravenclaws to find Cho.

Harry was just thankful his name hadn't been brought up.

Harry breathed in deeply as he looked around. Freedom! He thought happily, and then he started coughing.

"Ok we really need to do something about that musty smell." He said with a sputter.

"I agree." Tom said. "It still smells like dead basilisk."

"I don't smell anything." Neville said with a laugh. "Maybe it's just your imagination."

"You didn't see the rotten thing, so you might be right." Harry said with a laugh.

They were, of course, in the Chamber, and it was after dinner on Friday night. That night Godric had once again asked about the love potions, but thankfully this time, no one had any. Apparently Pansy, Millicent, and Cho had received point loss for their houses, detention, and loss of Hogsmeade privileges for the first Hogsmeade visit, which was coming up soon.

At breakfast that morning, Umbridge expressed her displeasure about the latest turn of events, and had demanded that the boys remain in Gryffindor Tower. Apparently Hermione had told her that Harry, Neville, and Tom had not been in the tower the past two nights. However, Godric told Umbridge to shut up, none to politely, in the middle of the great hall. She had sat down with an exasperated sigh and glared at him, but as usual, he didn't care. She seemed to be in a worse mood because of her failed attempt at 'catching Salazar's attention'.

Speaking of, Salazar actually had not been able to find the spell Rowena used for the ROR, but he did ask the room itself for the spell. Thankfully it provided it, and now the boys were standing in the Chamber, trying to turn it into a respectable place to live. They had once again slept in the ROR last night with Merlin and Death, but they had already been down in the Chamber a few times today in between classes.

Neville had already created an unseen snake sized tunnel for Nagini, for which she was thankful for. It lead up to the entrance hall and came out right beside the great hall, above the water line for the swimming pool. She was quite happy with this arrangement though, because she was able to enter/exit the tunnel in one location and sneak up behind unsuspecting victims and drag them under the water. She had admitted to being bored recently, and this made things more exciting for her.

With that problem solved, the next task was to create a way for Neville and the others to enter without having to use Parseltongue. This was actually quite easy to solve, and he made a tunnel from the Chamber to the second floor corridor. The entrance/exit on the second floor was covered by the same modified Dark Mark barrier Tom used at Potter Manor, and only those with the coins could gain entrance. Tom however, made more coins so that Flitwick, Sprout, Merlin, Salazar, Godric, and Luna could have access. Umbridge, of course, had not been given one, and it had been absolutely hysterical to see her attempt to gain access, because the smoke barrier blasted her back several feet and made her land on her bum.

Seeing the pink toad skidding down the second floor corridor on her bottom had been a major source of amusement for the students, and Salazar for that matter.

At the moment though, Neville was busy working on actually making the Chamber livable. He had already sectioned off different parts of the Chamber and designated them into bedrooms and a common sitting area. The twins had moved all their new joke items that they had created so far this year from the ROR and into the chamber, and Neville had a 'prank room' set up at the back near the original entrance.

If you were facing the statue, Harry's bedroom area was off to the left and it was painted in Gryffindor red and gold, Neville's bedroom area was off to the right and painted the same, and Tom's bedroom area was right in front of the statue and was done in green, silver, and gold colors. They also each had their own small bathroom, complete with a shower, in their bedroom areas, and had curtains around the bedrooms for privacy.

The common sitting area, which was right in the center of the room, was a garish mash of green, gold, silver, red, blue and bronze accents, tables, chairs, and couches. The ceiling was painted yellow to brighten the room up a bit, and the floor was painted a shiny black. Two very large white marble fireplaces had been put into place, one on either side of Tom's bedroom, so that the whole chamber could be heated. The snake statues were repainted green with silver tongues and eyes, and self-lighting torches were placed in their mouths so that there was more light in the room.

Truth be told, it either looked like a Christmas store blew up in the Chamber, minus the pine trees and garland, or an over decorated Mardi Gras float, minus all the pink and purple colors and human faces. It just depends on how you looked at it.

"I like it!" Luna exclaimed as she exited the tunnel and looked around. "But I think it needs something else."

"Like what?" Neville asked, turning towards with a questioning look on his face.

"I think you should have an enchanted ceiling, and paint the floor in yellow and black stripes."

"But that would be kind of like walking on Hufflepuff." Tom said, coming out of his bedroom. "That wouldn't feel right to me."

"Ok, so do the fireplaces in yellow instead of white."

"There is no such thing as yellow marble, is there?" Harry asked, looking up from an essay he was writing.

"Sure there is." Luna said. "Here, see?"

She scrunched up her face, and the fireplaces turned yellow, and the ceiling now looked like the one in the great hall. The boys all grinned at her.

"That brightens it up a bit better!" Neville said. "Especially during the day, and at night will be dark enough to sleep."

"Yes it will." She nodded. "But it's still missing something."

The boys watched as she walked around looking at things, and after a while, butterbeer corks began popping up everywhere. They were attached to the walls, hanging off of Salazar's statue, and hanging from long strings from the ceiling. Then large knitted hats appeared on the snake statues.

Harry looked at her curiously. "Hats?"

"For Dobby, and the butterbeer corks are to keep away the Nargles." She said simply, and then she continued to walk around some more. Finally she stopped and looked at them.

"There." She said with a nod. "Now all you need is some plants and it should be perfect." She said with a bright smile.

"What about some statues of a Crumple-Horned Snorkack, Blibbering Humdinger, and a Wackspurt?" Tom asked with a grin.

She laughed. "You're so silly Tom. A Wackspurt is too small, but you know what, I could do a Moon Frog!" She exclaimed.

She glanced around again, and suddenly there were animated animals of all kinds of creatures walking about. They weren't made of stone, but some kind of gooey rubbery substance that only Luna could think up.

"See that one there? It is a Umgubular Slashkilter and that one over there is a Dabberblimp."

Harry couldn't begin to describe what they looked like, so he just took her word for it. Neville looked slightly afraid of them, but Tom grinned at her.

"Perhaps one day we will be able to go hunting for these creatures so that we can prove to everyone that they exist." Tom said.

"We?" Luna asked, smiling brightly.

Harry and Neville exchanged a glance and a grin, but Tom blushed. "Unless you don't want to…"

"No, I'd like that actually." She said serenely, sitting down on one of the couches next to him. "We could travel the world, and see what kinds of animals we can find. I think that would be fun." She said, as she petted one of the Crumple-Horned Snorkacks that walked by her.

Neville and Harry grinned again and left them to talk. Harry returned to his homework, and Neville began wandering around the Chamber again. He apparently had taken Luna's advice and now vines were crawling all over the walls, and flowering plants and trees were springing up everywhere. Neville also took Harry's last minute suggestions and made three more tunnels. One for Hedwig and other owls, one straight to the front gates so they could leave the school, and another straight into the great hall so that they could get to meals without having to wade through the pool all the time.

It was getting late and close to curfew though, and they knew they had to get to bed soon. However, bedtime was pushed aside when several people came in.

"What in the name of Merlin has happened to my Chamber!?" A voice suddenly exclaimed loudly.

They all looked up to see Salazar, Godric, Death, Merlin, McGonagall, Snape, Sprout, and Flitwick all standing there in amazement.

Luna, who was completely unfazed by Salazar's outburst, smiled brightly at them. "Do you like it?" She asked. "I had to add a few things, but Neville did most of it."

Neville turned a bright red as Salazar looked at him. "I'm sorry. I kind of got carried away."

Godric started laughing. "Don't worry Neville, its fine. We are just shocked that it has changed so much."

"It is also safe to say that you aren't interior decorators." Sprout said with a giggle.

"I'd rather be a wizard." Harry laughed, looking up from the book he was now reading. "The twins haven't seen the final product, but we can't wait until they do."

"I actually like it." Merlin said with a smile. "Have you all done any more tunnels?"

They nodded, and Neville and Luna both took them on a tour of the Chamber. Luna showed them all her contributions, and they all looked at her curiously as she explained what each animal was. Godric said all the tunnels were fine, and reminded the boys to let them know if they did anymore. Salazar still had not said a word, he just stared at everything and kept rubbing his eyes as if he couldn't believe what he was seeing. Sprout, of course, loved the plants and said that they gave the room a warm and cozy feeling. McGonagall laughed at all the butterbeer corks hanging off of Salazar's statue, and reminded Neville and Luna about the permission forms. Snape, Death, and Flitwick just stood there shaking their heads and laughing at everything.

All in all though, it was safe to say that the Chamber of Secrets had changed…a lot.

"I am not a part of this. I don't want anything to do with it. It's not going to work." Neville said shaking his head, as he listened to the harebrained scheme that was coming out of Harry, Tom, and the twins' mouths. "I don't feel like dying today."

"Oh come on Neville! They deserve payback." Tom said with a grin.

"Yeah, Salazar and Godric should have helped us with repairing the castle like McGonagall told them too. They skipped out, so now they have to pay the price." Harry added.

"Yeah, but this is mental!" Neville cried.

"Exactly." Fred said with a nod. "That is what makes it so brilliant."

Neville groaned and shook his head. "Alright. What do I have to do again?"

"All you have to do is throw the Peruvian Instant Darkness Powder. It's that simple." George said.

"We are all going to die today. You all realize that right?" He moaned.

"Probably." Harry said with a grin. "But it's almost breakfast, so we need to get this all together."

It was indeed just before breakfast on Saturday morning, and they were getting their prank together for Godric and Salazar. With everything that had happened since Harry and Tom's duel from Gryffindor Tower all the way throughout the castle and onto the grounds, they had completely forgotten that they were supposed to get them back for not helping them. They were also hoping that Godric and Salazar weren't expecting anything because this needed to be a total surprise if they were going to pull it off.

"Ok the great hall should be half filled. Is everyone ready?" Harry asked, looking at his watch.

"Not really." Neville said, but the others nodded.

"Just remember to act normal, but eat a lot of breakfast because we will probably have to hide for a while." George said with a grin.

They all nodded again and used the tunnel to the great hall. It came out in the floor just in front of the head table, so it looked like they walked up through the floor, which they kind of did. Everyone there looked at them with raised eyebrows, but no one was really all that surprised because they had learned to expect the unexpected from the boys. However, there is always that one exception.

"Harry Potter! How did you do that!?" Hermione demanded loudly, as she stood up at the Gryffindor table.

"Owners privilege. Can't tell you." Harry said with a shrug.

"Mr. Potter I demand you tell me how you just walked up through the floor. It could be a security risk." Umbridge stood up and said.

"It's not, don't worry. Dumbledore wouldn't be able to use it to get inside the castle. So there is no use in trying to guilt trip me into telling you, just so you can tell him."

"Now see here! I don't know where you got this silly notion that I correspond with Dumbledore, but I assure you I don't!" She shouted.

"Umm…yes you do." Tom said with a nod, as they made their way over to the Gryffindor table to sit down.

Umbridge turned red in the face, but she sat back down with a huff. Harry avoided eye contact with Ginny, who was trying to get his attention, but Tom glared at her and pulled out his wand as a warning. She narrowed her eyes at him, but didn't do anything. Ron was out of the hospital wing, and looked normal again, though he glared at the boys as they sat down.

The meal passed with little incident, and when the time came to execute their prank, they began to get nervous, but they decided to go through with it. They just hoped they lived to see tomorrow.

"Ready?" Harry whispered to his cohorts, and they nodded.

They all got up from the table and made their way back to the entrance of the tunnel, which could be opened with a tap from a wand and a silent spell. However, just as they all crowded around it, Harry and Tom turned round quickly, with their wands drawn at Godric and Salazar.

"SUTPEFY!" they cried out in unison, and the two completely shocked Founders slumped over in their chairs.

"What are you doing!?" McGonagall cried, as she quickly drew her wand.

They held up their hands and grinned. "Payback." They said.

McGonagall eyed them suspiciously, but lowered her wand as the boys moved in. They charmed both Salazar and Godric's robes, skin, and hair pink. Fred and George retrieved two buckets of charmed silver colored wooden toads from the entrance to the tunnel. They threw them on the two Founders, where the toads stayed stuck because of the sticking charms, and began say 'ribbet' over and over again very loudly. Snape, Merlin, 'Voldemort', and Flitwick were laughing, Sprout and McGonagall's eyes were wide with shock, and Umbridge was screaming at them for attacking a Professor and the Headmaster.

Harry and Tom ran back over to the tunnel, pointed their wands at the Founders and revived them. Salazar and Godric looked around confused, but they quickly got their bearings and stared around at everyone laughing at them. Then they looked at each other, and then back at the boys, who could barely stand up because they were laughing so hard.

"Aww look! They match. Now Godric and Salazar have something in common with Umbridge!" Harry said loudly. "Colin get a picture!"

"You should have helped us repair the castle!" Tom shouted as he also laughed loudly.

Fred and George were laughing too, and Neville just stood there shaking his head. However, Godric's face turned red and Salazar glared at them, then they looked at each other, grinned, and stood up.

"Neville now, now, now!" Tom shouted, and Neville chucked the Peruvian Instant Darkness Powder in front of the head table where it exploded.

A dark cloud suddenly engulfed the head table, which gave the boys a few precious moments to escape. Harry shank to his knees and muttered the spell for the tunnel, and they all practically dived in it head first.

Meanwhile the entire great hall was in chaos. Umbridge was screaming, students and Professors alike were laughing and/or trying to get a better look at what was happening, and Godric and Salazar were firing spells in the general direction of the tunnel entrance, hoping to hit someone.

They were unsuccessful…so far.

"Keep running!" Tom shouted, as they heard the tunnel door opening above their heads, and spells began shooting down at them.

"Fly, fly, fly!" Harry screamed, as a green spell shot past his head. He hoped it wasn't a killing curse, but given the circumstances it might have been.

"We should have just flown out of the great hall!" Neville shouted.

"Well it's a bit late for that!" Fred yelled, as they all took flight.

Suddenly they heard a yelp and a thud.

"George!" Fred shouted. "They got George!"

In true Slytherin style, Tom yelled, "Keep going! Save yourself!"

"But they got my brother!" Fred protested.

Then there was another yelp and a thud.

"They got Fred!" Harry yelled, just as another yelp and thud was heard. "And Neville!"

They flew into the Chamber, and Harry saw Tom land on his feet and immediately disillusion himself, and Harry quickly followed suit. It took a few moments, but Salazar and Godric both burst out of the tunnel. They were grinning like fools and looked somewhat triumphant, even though they were both pink from head to toe, and covered in silver toads that were 'ribbitting'. They stood back to back with their wands drawn as they looked around the room.

"Do you think they escaped out of the tunnel to the front gates?" Godric asked.

"Oh no, they are here." Salazar said with a grin. "I locked down that tunnel as soon as we entered the great hall tunnel. They're here somewhere, and they are trapped."

Harry groaned and shook his head. He didn't know what Tom was thinking or doing at the moment, but he hoped that Tom could somehow get them out of this mess.

"What about another tunnel to the surface?" Godric asked.

Salazar shook his head. "Unlike my Heir, I think ahead and have asked the room not to grant them an escape. Hogwarts, where are they? Can you see them?"

Luna please, please, please don't give us away! Harry thought frantically.

"Yes Salazar, I can see them. Tom Ringo and Harry Potter are under a disillusionment charm, and you have them cornered. What would you like Professors Snape, McGonagall, and Merlin to do with the others?"

Traitor!

"Tell them to bring them down here." Godric said with a grin. "We are going to have a little chat."

Uh oh.

"Professors, Godric would like you to take the captured ones down into the Chamber of Secrets, so that Salazar can properly shred them to pieces while they are chained to the wall, by their toes, and upside down. Mr. Tom Riddle, you may want to see your ancestor work his magic."

Harry couldn't help it, he stared laughing. Godric turned toward the sound, and cast the spell to reverse the disillusionment charm. Harry came into view, and was standing over by one of the couches laughing loudly.

"Luna, you're a traitor." He said with a grin.

"I'm sorry Harry Potter."

"Now, where is that sneaky little Slytherin hiding?" Godric asked.

"Oh, Tom Ringo is hiding behind one of the fireplaces, and now he's moved behind his bed, and now he's jumped across Harry's bed and is running to the front entrance. Nope…now he's hiding behind that tree, and now he's turned around…"

"Alright! Alright!" Tom said, laughing loudly and canceling the disillusionment charm himself. "Tattle tale."

"A tattle tale? I'm sorry you feel that way Tom Ringo. Next time I will warn Salazar and Godric before you try to prank them. Although, I do find it amusing that they are now pink and covered in toads. I'm really am sorry though, but I have to remain impartial."

"Which is a good thing!" McGonagall said, as she, Merlin, and Snape came into the Chamber with a grinning Neville, Fred, and George in tow.

"Luna is more Slytherin than you are!" Harry laughed, and Tom grinned at him.

"Speaking of being Slytherin, I'm losing my touch. I think it has something to do with hanging out with a bunch of Gryffindors." Tom said.

"Hey don't blame that on us!" Neville laughed. "I told you guys this wouldn't work!"

"Tom, how can you get outsmarted by an old man?" Harry asked, pointing to Salazar.

"You forget that I'm an old man." Tom said with a grin. "I'm seventy years old! How can I be this…this…neglectful with an escape plan? I blame you Gryffindors."

Harry sighed dramatically and shook his head. "A true Slytherin through and through. Blame everyone else for your lack of cunning. You should…OUCH!" He cried, has he got hit with a stinging jinx.

Tom grinned at him. "Shut up Harry."

Salazar looked at Godric and grinned. "Does this remind you of anything?"

"Yeah, us." Godric replied, as they both started laughing. "Alright gents, here is what is going to happen. Since Neville was firmly against the plan, he can go free. Fred and George supplied the toads and darkness powder, but since they had minimal involvement, they can also go free. You two on the other hand, will just have to switch places with Salazar and I."

"What do you mean?" Tom asked curiously, and a bit fearfully.

Godric and Salazar looked at each other and laughed. Then they took their wands, pointed them at each other, and muttered an incantation. Suddenly, Harry and Tom were standing there covered in toads and were pink from head to toe.

"How did you do that!?" Harry and Tom both shouted, as Fred, Neville, and George started laughing.

"We are old men." Salazar said mysteriously. "Now, as further punishment, this will not wear off until tomorrow morning. Also, you can not hide down here the whole time. You must eat meals in the great hall, and you must be seen throughout the castle the whole time. Also, don't think trying to change your clothes will help. Any clothes you touch will automatically turn pink. If you try getting out of this in anyway, I will personally move you back into Gryffindor Tower. You've been warned." He said with a wide grin.

"Oh and I will be asking Mr. Creevey to get a picture." Godric said with a chuckle. "I do believe Sirius and Remus will like that, don't you?"

"Godric, that is the best idea you've ever had!" Salazar grinned.

Harry and Tom groaned and shook their heads. They knew that once Sirius and Remus got ahold of that picture, their lives would be over. Harry knew that his Dad was already laughing hysterically at them though.

All day long Harry and Tom had to march around Hogwarts covered in the silver toads and 'pinkness', and it was funny to watch. People laughed and pointed at them, and made remarks like 'one finally backfired on you two', and 'did you really think you could out smart Salazar and Godric.' Harry took it in good stride and laughed along with everyone else. Tom, on the other hand, grumbled and glared at everyone.

Lunch was the worst though. The Slytherins nearly fell over from laughter, and Tom kept shooting warning glares at them, but they ignored him. Colin did get his picture, developed it immediately, and handed it to Godric with a grin. He did however apologize to Harry and Tom about it. Ginny kept staring at them, and even tried sitting next to and talking to Harry, until Tom cursed her with the bat bogey hex again. This, of course, led to another argument with Ron and Hermione, which only made Tom even more angry and he cursed them too. Harry finally had enough of Tom's bad mood, and dragged him out the great hall. They spent the rest of the day at the pool talking to 'Voldemort', and floating on the air beds.

Watching Nagini attack unsuspecting victims seemed to cheer Tom up a bit.

By the time dinner rolled around, everything seemed to have calmed down a little, and they were finally able to enjoy their meal. It was only after that that Godric told them they could return to the Chamber, and they left through the tunnel again.

When they got back into the Chamber, Tom finally breathed a sigh of relief and flopped down, none to gracefully, on one of the couches, and preceded to stare into one of the fireplaces. Nagini was curled up in front of one of them. Neville went to attend the multitude of plants in the room, and Fred and George retreated into the prank room. Harry however, went to sit by Tom.

"What?" Tom asked as Harry sat down.

"Nothing. I'm just making sure you're not planning a mass murder attack on the population of Hogwarts."

"Truthfully, the thought had crossed my mind."

"Well, we can't have that." Harry said with a laugh.

Tom sighed. "No, I suppose not." He said, and they sat there in silence.

They continued to sit there and stare at the flames until Luna came in. She smiled brightly and sat down on the other side of Tom. She kept gazing at him serenely as if she was watching something though, and he finally looked over at her.

"What?"

"I'm watching the Wackspurts that are buzzing around your head, but they seem afraid of the silver toad that is sitting on top of it. I'm beginning to wonder if they are worried that he will eat them."

And that was all it took.

Tom leaned over and kissed Luna on her forehead, and she looked up at him and smiled.

"Are you not mad at me for tattle tailing on you anymore?" She asked, as she leaned over and hugged him.

"I was never mad at you." He said quietly, as he rested his cheek on the top of her head.

"Then why were you mad?"

"Because I don't like being laughed at." He replied with a sigh.

"Well that seems a bit silly. Everyone gets laughed at every now and then. It was only a prank that backfired. In all honesty, you were pranked back, but it will be gone by the time you wake up in the morning. The only thing you will have to deal with is Sirius and Remus picking on both of you when they see the picture. I know you can handle that though, because it is just them." She said. "It will be alright. You will see."

"Are you sure?"

"Of course I am." She said looking up at him. "It's just Sirius and Remus. You know them."

Tom chuckled lightly. "I suppose you are right." He said, but then he looked at her uncertainly. "Are you afraid of me?"

She shook her head and smiled. "No, I'm not. Your past actions don't frighten me, because it wasn't you. It was Dumbledore. The man I see is trying to put the past behind him and move forward."

"But I'm old."

She laughed. "Mentally yes, but you don't act like it. Nor do you look like it. Your soul is almost whole again, and while you may have your memories of the last seventy years, your soul was ripped in half at fifteen, and in half again at sixteen. Those two parts were the biggest and they are what we are seeing now." She said, and then she looked directly at him. "Tom, you are healing, so don't fight it."

As Harry sat there listening to the two of them, he couldn't help but agree with Luna. She was right, but it wasn't only Tom who was healing. They all were. Harry could feel himself healing too, and looking at Neville as he pruned one of the vines, he knew Neville was also. Especially since he had his parents, Frank and Alice. Harry himself had Sirius back, not to mention, contact with his own Mum and Dad.

Harry silently got up and was happy to see that neither Tom nor Luna noticed. He went to sit on a different couch, and began to finish his homework that was due next week. After a while though, he looked up and smiled as he caught sight of them. Luna had Tom wrapped up in a tight hug, and Tom's head was resting on her shoulder, and he was smiling.

Harry grinned at his brother and went back to his homework. He had to get it done tonight, because tomorrow was the full moon, and Remus was coming to visit.

*A/N* I tried! I promise you that i tried to fight Tom and Luna and keep them apart! But Tom cornered me and threatened to 'Avada' me if i didn't give him what he wanted, and sweet little Luna threatened me with a Crumple-Horned Snorkack. I dont really know if they are dangerous, but i decided that i didnt want to find out. So alas! Tom and Luna are official. I promise that it wont take away from the main story though. Just imagine that their relationship is growing stronger in the background, and every once in a while i will put in a little blurb about them. As for Harry, maybe seeing how happy Tom is will save the Potter name and line, and he will eventually end up with a wife or something. I dont know though, because im still undecided.

Thank you to everyone who has F, F, & R'd! Please leave me a review and tell me what you think about this chapter. Especially about Tom and Luna.