Luna Lovegood and the Broken Relic

Prologue

     It had been a week since the final stand of the most powerful dark lord in centuries, and the death tolls had finally ceased rising. It was a day of mourning for all involved.

Yesterday evening, while the final few bodies were located, Harry Potter, Minerva McGonagall, and Kingsley Shacklebolt had come up with the funeral arrangements and, to a far lesser degree, renovations to the castle. Due to how many casualties the battle had inflicted, the funeral arrangements would have to be done in groups.

It had been decided that today was to be designated to Ravenclaw. Tomorrow would be for Gryffindor, the day after that would be the Order of the Phoenix members and Hufflepuff students, and the day after that would be for the Slytherin students that allied themselves against Voldemort. These would be the only burials taking place on Hogwarts grounds.

Overall, today was a day of mourning. For Luna Lovegood though, it was also a day of silent reverie. She had spent most of the past week drifting around aimlessly, lost in thought, and questioning why she had to be one of the survivors. Why it was her to live and good people like fellow Ravenclaw Terry Boot to die needlessly.

Speaking of Terry, he was on the hastily-erected makeshift stage, and at the podium, giving his own speech. He had died, alright, but became a ghost. Nobody was sure why. He was, however, handling his own death considerably well. That being said, he was lethargic and depressed more so than the majority of the still living Ravenclaws.

"...and well, I didn't really know Corner all too well, but I've heard he's a great guy. From what I did know of him though, he always had some witty joke ready if you asked. May he rest in peace," Terry was saying. While his body had been crushed by the entirety of the Ravenclaw boys' dorm tower falling on him, his way with words had never really diminished.

After the once lively brunet closed up his speech, the funeral came to an end. Before long, only families and close friends of the fallen remained. As Luna was gathering her things and adjusting her raincoat, she overheard Harry talking with his closest friends, Ronald "Ron" Weasley and Hermione Granger. She sidled up to the trio and waited for them to finish. None of the three really noticed her presence, silent as she was.

"Are you sure Ron?" Harry was saying. The astounded look on his face seemed rather out of place considering the subject of conversation and who it was directed at.

"Of course, mate. I just can't stand being here anymore. After all those years of danger, and then," the red haired hero lamented, "and after what happened with Fred. I just...I just don't think I could handle it."

Nobody protested.

"Well, we'll still keep in touch, right?" Hermione.

"Of course! You're my best friends! Hogwarts or no." Ron.

"And we can still get together?" Hermione.

"Definitely! Say, Harry, what about you?" Ron.

"Oh, um. I...really haven't decided yet," the hero in question faltered, "I think I will, yeah."

Luna couldn't blame him. For the past week, she and the Boy-Who-Lived come Boy-Who-Conquered had been trying to come to terms with their respective cases of survivor's guilt. Between the two of them, Harry had it worst. He blamed himself for the majority of the losses the battle wrought.

Luna drifted away to let the Golden Trio hug it out. As she left the procession, the blonde mentally recapped her schedule for the rest of the day, glancing at a Muggle wristwatch she had taken a liking to. An hour after noon. Good, she was still on schedule.

The young heroine pondered the next hour of her free time, before deciding to call the Knight Bus to visit her father before tea with Neville.

When the bus arrived, Luna was surprised to see Draco Malfoy enter after her, and even more surprised to see him sit across from her. She remembered her imprisonment in his basement.

He apologised for her time spent in his house, and between the two a friendship sparked. They chatted for a few minutes before Luna called off everything for the day, in favour of sleep.

When Luna arrived at the Burrow, where Mrs. Weasley had allowed her to sleep for the past week, she ran straight up to her borrowed bedroom, sidestepping the house's normal inhabitants. They must have returned to their home while she cried on the Bus.

Just before Luna fell asleep in the bed, she saw someone peeking at her through the slightly ajar door. The person's eye flashed red. Luna dismissed it as a hallucination from her time in the Malfoy basement before drifting off into sleep.