Notes: This is mostly a Ron/Luna story, with some Harry/Hermione and some implied Albus/Minerva. It is somewhat dark and post-Hogwarts.
Chapter 1: The Visitors
A couple stood in the middle of a large graveyard. Harry and Hermione Potter. They were visiting their best friend, who sacrificed his life for the Wizarding world. If it wasn't for Ronald Weasley, Harry Potter would have been dead, and Voldemort would have won the war. But since Ronald took a Killing Curse for his friend, in a selfless act, Harry had survived. Along with the love he shared with Hermione, he had killed the Dark Lord.
They still had someone else to visit, so after fifteen minutes of talking to their friend's grave, they walked away. Unlike Ronald, this person was still alive. But she had lost her mind, or so the Healers had told them. Luna Lovegood was living in a calm place where all she did was paint and talk cryptically. The young woman had been like that since the war ended.
Harry and Hermione would always visit her after going to the graveyard where their other friend was. They had married six years ago, after the defeat of Voldemort and had lived near the Burrow, where most people couldn't find them. Their young son, Ronald Potter, would stay with the Weasleys during the visits. They weren't sure if Luna would tell the difference between their son and their friend, even if they looked and acted entirely different.
After twenty minutes, they reached their destination. One of the doctors recognized them and led them to Luna's room. They found her like always, surrounded by paintings. Usually, she painted landscapes or random shapes. However, they were taken aback at the new drawings stuck to the walls. The doctor closed the door behind them.
Harry felt uneasy for the first time since they visited her. The paintings had several animals he recognized, and some which he didn't. There were many paintings with a stag, a large black and a brown rat. There was another of a woman with dark red hair and green eyes. A brown bird of prey with green eyes was on her side. There was one of a large, black snake with red eyes, which made them shudder. Another painting had a white unicorn, with a silvery horn.
And Luna was currently painting a large red canine with blue eyes, which snarled at the viewer. All were Muggle paintings, of course. The institute was eager to teach the ways of the Muggles, and it was safer for those who couldn't know the difference between right and wrong. "Hello, Luna," he heard Hermione say nervously.
Luna stopped and turned to them, smiling dreamily at them. "Hello, Hermione, Harry. I was expecting you." She went for more red paint and continued to add shadows and lights to the canine.
"How are you doing?" Harry asked, trying to break the tension he felt in the air.
Luna shrugged, her smile never fading. "I'm fine, Harry. But I must say that it won't last." She turned to them, and they were almost startled, as she wasn't smiling anymore and looked uncharacteristically serious. "He'll come back, Harry. He wants revenge."
"Who?" he stuttered, looking at his wife, alarmingly. Hermione looked as surprised as he was.
"He hates you, Harry. You were responsible for his death." With that, Luna turned to pet Crookshanks, her dreamy smile coming back to her face. The cat had been left with her years ago, to keep her company. Hermione had known he was too old to share a house with their son or with any other animal they got. Especially when Harry bought a black dog for Ronald.
Worried, despite knowing she always said weird things, the young couple left. Hermione tried dismissing it as one of those 'Luna moments', in which the blonde witch would be stranger than usual. But Harry felt depressed as he remembered her words.
Five people ran as fast as they could through the grounds leading to the Hogwarts castle. One was an old man with long white hair and beard. His blue eyes twinkled a little, despite their current situation. Next to him, a chubby young man ran, panting tiredly. His brown short hair was stuck to him because of the sweat. "I hate this!" he complained. "I've forgotten how tired one can get by running in this world..."
"Don't complain, Peter!" a tall black-haired man said, his gray eyes briefly stopping on him. There was some hatred in them, even if it was fading. "The sooner we get there, the faster we'll know where he is!"
"He's right! Then you'll get to sit down." Another raven-haired man said. His hair was short but messy and his eyes were brown, from behind rounded spectacles. A woman ran next to him, her hair was dark red and her eyes were emerald green. "Are you ok, hon?"
The woman rolled her eyes and looked at him with annoyance. "Of course, James! Unlike the lot of you, I'm fit!" The others laughed at her statement, while James pretended to be hurt. "Albus, do you think it's a good idea to show ourselves?"
The old man smiled tiredly. "It's the only thing we can do, Lily. We must find him before it's too late, and we'll need all the help we can get, even from the living."
It was late at night, but Luna couldn't sleep. She looked around her room, to her paintings. She looked at the red canine and smiled. "You're coming back to me."
The door creaked open, which was unusual. At night, the doors were locked, and there had been no sound to indicate that someone had unlocked it. Luna breathed nervously as a dark figure stood in the doorway. It was too dark to tell its features. She opened the curtains, allowing the moonlight to enter the room and chase away some of the shadows. And then she saw who was the figure.
A tall young man stood there, with short red hair and piercing blue eyes. He looked at her intently, in silence. She walked up to him, almost afraid that he'd disappear suddenly. "Ronald? Is it really you?"
A small smile formed in his lips as he looked down at her. "Yes, it is me. I'm back."
Minerva McGonagall was stunned. Right in front of her were five people who had died years ago. They stood in the office that belonged to the Headmasters, where she worked now, as the Headmistress. She felt old as she saw them. "Albus?"
The old man smiled sadly at her. "Yes, Minerva. It is me. I'm afraid we're only allowed to be here for a short period of time," he sighed. "Someone has escaped from the Otherworld, and we are to return him. But we need help. He is mortal again. We need Harry, he must fight him."
"No, please. Don't do this to him..." Minerva said pleadingly. "He's had enough, Albus. He has a family to take care of. Can't you all do it?" She motioned to the other four, who were looking quite sad.
"I'm afraid Harry is the only one who can do this. Believe me it's not what I want," he shook his head. "But Merlin has given us strict orders, Minerva. This man cannot be in the living world, he is dangerous."
Luna had slept quite calmly for the first time in years. She woke up fearing it was only a dream, but she had been hectic when she felt strong arms holding her and heard Ron's snores. She never thought she'd actually be able to sleep hearing him, but it was like music to her ears. "Wake up, Ronald!" she said, poking him lightly on the stomach.
Ron grunted and let go of her. "I'm up, I'm up," he mumbled and then opened his eyes. He smiled at her and sat up. "Had actually forgotten how good is to sleep," Ron muttered as he stretched and yawned. "Now, I'm really hungry... Want to go eat something?"
Luna frowned slightly, but her tone was filled with amusement. "Ronald, this is a mental institution. I cannot leave. They'll come in a few minutes to lead me to the cafeteria."
"You sure sound sane to me," he grinned. "Don't worry about that, I'll get you out of this place." He looked around the room and blinked in surprise. "How did you...?"
"I'm not sure how I knew. I just had a feeling you'd come," she answered, understanding what he had meant.
Notes: I hope it's not too confusing. I don't like giving away too much of my stories. Most of the things that need answers usually get explained in later chapters. I just felt that the Ron/Luna ship never gets any serious stories.