Into Your Gravity ( Luna Lovegood & Tom Riddle )

Chapter nine: Familiar

It might be a little while, but maybe we'll realign soon.
Made to reassign, but find me a little time, too.
Terraform - Novo Amor

•

They appeared outside, in the shadows of a large circular building. Luna shivered in the cold November air and went to pull her hand from Tom's elbow. Tom placed a hand over hers to keep it in place. "You have to allow me to escort you on my arm. It's proper."

"Fine, then," she responded, her eyes fluttering down to focus on his hand over hers.

"This way," he said, sweeping forward. He lead her to the front entrance, over which were the words Royal Albert Hall in white letters. A crowd of Muggles in extravagant clothes was still filtering in through the doors, and Tom and Luna joined them.

"What are we here for?" Luna asked with curiosity, watching the people around her in all their finery and airs.

"A performance by the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra. A gala event, featuring one of the most renowned international violinists, Maximiliano Mendes." He did not expound further on their true purpose in attending, and Luna seemed too dazzled by her surroundings to be too concerned with it anyway.

"Ooh, how exciting, I've never been to an orchestra performance before!" she said. "Goodness, look at that Muggle woman's hair, how clever!" she added, pointing at the woman in question, whose hair was in an elaborate braid and amassed into an enormous mound atop her head.

Tom reached out and forced Luna's hand back down with his own. "Don't point at them."

Upon entering the building, Tom strode across the foyer towards one of the entrances into the hall. Luna was staring around them, her eyes even wider than normal. "What a magnificent place," she murmured. She looked up at the sparkling chandeliers lighting the building with great interest. "They're run by electricity, aren't they? Brilliant."

Tom scowled at her praise of the Muggle technology. "A poor substitution for magic," he muttered back.

"You don't think it's extraordinary?" she asked. "Light like that, without any magic at all!"

"I forgot how easily amused you are with inane things," he said. "And keep your voice down. They're Muggles, not deaf."

Tom noted that has the pair of them walked, the heads of numerous Muggles, men and women alike, were turning in their direction to follow their progress. This persisted as they entered the performance hall, handed their paper tickets to an usher waiting there, and began descending the steps towards their seats in the usher's wake.

Luna's hand on his arm gently squeezed him as they started down the stairs. "I feel as though everyone is staring at us," she whispered. "Have I made some grievous Muggle fashion faux pas? Perhaps I was supposed to wear this gown the other way around? Or perhaps the gloves were intended -"

"That's not why they're staring at you," Tom hissed.

"Oh? Well, that's reassuring to hear, as I put a tremendous amount of effort into the ten minutes you allotted me to get ready, but you do agree they're all staring?"

"Of course they are. These are the wealthiest, most important Muggles in London, and they've no idea who we are."

"Why does it matter who we are? I don't know anyone here, either."