SPANISH TRANSLATION AVAILABLE ON MY PROFILE

Accidentally On Purpose

"Thanks for saving me from Snape," said Harry to Luna, as they left Slughorn's Christmas party. "That comment you made about Aurors and gum disease was absolutely hilarious; I got half a glass of mead up my nose from laughing so hard. Did you see Slughorn's face?"

"Yes, but I was completely serious, Harry," Luna replied, her dreamy, slightly protuberant eyes looking innocently at him.

Harry shook his head and laughed at her dottiness. "Right," he said, resolving to play along. "Of course."

It was these moments where he knew he had made the right decision to ask her to come to the party. Any other girl would have rushed to tell the world that she was going out with Harry Potter, and the last thing he needed was for the school to make a big deal out of it. Having Luna with him would show them just how much he didn't care about popularity, and she provided a good laugh besides. Only she embraced him as himself, as Harry, not The Boy Who Lived. He wished he could adopt the attitude she took to life sometimes, without a care in the world of what people thought of her. Having her with him was the closest thing to living that life.

He decided not to tell her about the fact that he had seen the heated exchange between Draco and Snape in the dark corridor, and also that he had had to very stealthily sneak out of his hiding spot after they left. "I'm sorry I left you towards the end," he added hesitantly, suddenly remembering how rude he had been to ditch her with Professor Trelawney in his pursuit of Draco. "I had to go to the - "

"I know you weren't at the bathroom, Harry," said Luna, uncharacteristically direct. Harry looked at her; surely she couldn't have followed him too...? "I saw you, you see. You were following someone." She took his hand and looked at him. Silvery grey bore into emerald green. "You don't have to tell me about it if you don't want to, though." She smiled serenely.

There was an awkward pause as they stood in the middle of the deserted hallway, hand in hand. Harry gestured with a nod of his head that they should make their way upstairs, where he would be able to see her off at the entrance to the Ravenclaw common room. She nodded and they set off.

Luna's Christmas tree dress made rustling noises as she walked, making conversational chatter with her usual quirkiness as Harry plodded on beside her. Their hands were still entwined, but Harry was doing his best not to think about that at the moment.

"I could tell you about the Rotfang Conspiracy, if you like," said Luna lightly. "I had a nice conversation with Professor Trelawney about it just now."

"Perhaps another time," said Harry, trying to sound bright rather than apprehensive of the notion.

"All right," she said. Her hand squeezed his. Unsure of what to do, he squeezed back. They walked in silence up the stairs, Luna using her other hand to lift the hem of her dress to prevent her feet from tripping. Harry noticed offhandedly that she was barefoot again; he decided she must have had taken off her shoes at some point during the party, or perhaps she hadn't been wearing them from the beginning.

"Well, thanks for taking me, Harry," said Luna, swinging her arm so their hands moved together. They had reached the top tower where the large brass knocker to the Ravenclaw common room was to be found. "I had a really nice time."

Harry smiled despite himself. "So did I," he replied.

Both of them moved at the exact same time; Luna stood on tiptoe, meaning to kiss Harry on the cheek as a thank-you, but as her lips neared he happened to turn his head at that exact moment. Their lips met.

There was a moment when both of them stood there by the Ravenclaw common room entrance, completely and utterly still in shock and surprise. Then, slowly, Harry experimentally slid his hand into Luna's unruly ash blonde hair and pulled her closer. His other hand went to the small of her back; she responded by pressing into his chest, and their noses brushed past each other. It tickled; Harry gave a slight snort at the sensation and Luna giggled.

The kiss became more insistent and passionate. Harry took pleasure in stroking Luna's long hair, and he could feel Luna's breath hitch as she gasped into his mouth while he did so, which he found to be quite endearing. He used his other hand to cup her cheek and she sighed.

It was a while before they broke apart, almost reluctantly, eyes wide. "Oh," was all Luna could think to say, staring at him, eyelids fluttering.

"Sorry," said Harry, who was blushing furiously. "I turned my head."

"It's quite all right," said Luna. "I suspect the nargles were behind it."

It was a few seconds before Harry realised she was actually joking this time, and he laughed out loud. "Or the wrackspurts," he said.

"Or the wrackspurts," she repeated after him, smiling.

Harry blushed at least two shades redder as he became momentarily lost for words. "Er... merry Christmas, Luna," he said quietly.

"Merry Christmas," she whispered back. She shyly twisted her fingers together behind her back and shifted her feet. "I think I can make my own way from here."

"All right then," said Harry, ducking his head in farewell. "Good night, then,"

"Good night, Harry."

Harry turned and left, hands in his pockets, his jet black hair sticking straight up like it always did at the back as he vanished into the shadows. Luna gazed after him dreamily, the remnants of a smile still etched onto her face.

Author's Note:
I must be on some kind of roll, because story ideas keep coming into my head in the dead of night! Hope you enjoyed this one.

Want more Luna/Harry? Try my other story, Lost and Found. If you just want more Luna, Virtuoso, Golden or Buttercups would be the stories you'd want to check out.