When the brown haired man pulled out what she had spotted before, she nodded. “Yes, that.” She pointed to it. “I’ve never seen it before, it’s just…it’s quite pretty.” She couldn’t help but blurt out thoughtfully. It was definitely an item of importance, that much she could tell. The professor put it away and noted that she was very gifted, this caused her cheeks to brighten slightly. “No no, that’s Hermione Granger, not so much me.” Luna said bashfully. It was pretty rare for her to receive any sort of praise of compliments. And if she did, they were usually spoken in jest or sarcasm. Her self-esteem wasn’t low though, she knew she had uniqueness about her and she was content with being in her own little world of sorts.

But to have someone, a professor with an oddity himself no less, pay her a kindness, well it was just a bit shocking. “Alright.” She bobbed her head slightly and followed him along to his office. Her chest felt heavy, even with the letter having just been sent to her father. Her whole life was hanging up in the air. Sort of like her sneakers. Sometimes kids would steal her things and hide them in curious places. She recalled on more than one occasion, she found her shoes hanging up in the foyer of the entrance to the school. It was like a fun little scavenger hunt for her, she never held any sort of malice toward the others. And when she thought about it, her anger towards Draco had soon subsided. She wasn’t one to want to dwell on sadness or anger, not when the world was so fascinating.

Her thoughts were disrupted by the man speaking to her about change and time.

Luna wasn’t sure where he was going with his comment but she found some comfort in it. Then he took hold of her hand which caught her even more off guard. She didn’t pull away but instead glanced down at it, the physical contact. Her mind was still trying to catch up to her body’s growth, but she could see this was a gesture of faith and kindness, nothing weird like the teenagers she saw in the hallways during study hall. She offered him a small smile in gratitude as they continued to walk. It wasn’t much longer until they came to his office which was attached to his classroom like every other major subject and professor. He glided into his own seat and pulled one out for her. “Thank you.” She said straightforwardly. She took a seat and leaned forward, hands resting on her lap.

Of course she expected to get some more information about him, his device and everything else. Something told her that there was a bigger picture to everything. Something was going on and he was at the source of it. On top of that, the woman noted that he was in fact rather calm and in control. He was very interesting. He began to speak, telling her that she was the first to mention his aura. Then he took out his odd device and set it down on the desk between them. Her round eyes darted from it, back to the man speaking, hanging onto his every word. Then he gestured to the thing he called a sonic screwdriver and kept on going. Luna was able to follow long, certain that he was in fact telling her the truth. She could see it in his eyes, hear it in his voice and feel it in his presence. He seemed like the sort of man who wouldn't lied.

Mr. Logan then reached into his robes and pulled out a small badge of sorts and extended it to her. Luna looked at it and frowned. Was it supposed to say something? “Um I really don’t know what that is.” She told him. She wasn’t sure if she was to write on it or not. Sitting back in her seat, she found herself starting to relax as his words settled in the root of her mind. So if he wasn’t from this time, he must be from the future. His screwdriver looked very futuristic. “You’re from the future?” Something told her that he didn’t use an ordinary Time Turner such as the ones she read about. She then sat up a little, her large eyes sparkling a little, showing a glimpse of the things he must know. “If you’re from the future, then does this have to do with what happened to me?” Luna couldn’t help but inquire. “Are you here to fix it?” She asked him, a swell of hope crashing against the wall of her heart.

- - -

“You have no idea, it gets way worse in two years.” She muttered under her breath, thinking back to how awful the school turned out when Harry and the others were off doing their own thing in the last book. Still, Umbridge was a brute and would get hers in the end. The blond glanced to the man with the big ears and stepped inside for what felt like the millionth time that day. A sly smile crept to her lips as he told her to say what was on her mind. She wasn’t sure if he would even believe her if she told him. She paced around the small classroom and looked around boredly. It sucked. She could be talking to the Doctor but thanks to Umbridge, she was forced to waste an hour doing nothing. Then Mr. Smith mentioned snacks and her eyes couldn’t help but dart back to where he was. She did love sweets. And she had always wondered what the characters in her favorite books ate.

“Jelly bellies? You have jelly bellies? Blimey.” She walked over to him, unable to resist the temptation. She reached in and grabbed a few and looked at them before popping them into her mouth with a very satisfied grin, the one a cat might wear after having just caught and killed a pesky mouse. Then she stepped back and looked to him, not sure if he was just being nice to her in order for her to open up about her cryptic cynicism. “I’m not even a witch.” She told him and leaned back on one of the stray desks. “I’m not even from here, I mean I’m from London, yeah but not here.” She waved around the empty space in front of her. “I’m from the future and I didn’t get here by some fancy Time Turner or floo network or whatever, I’m just from the future.” She sighed.

Tilting her head to the side, she knew she sounded nuts. “I came here in this big blue box that can go anywhere in time and space and it’s much bigger on the inside than it is on the outside and it’s flown by this weird alien who doesn’t look alien at all and we sort of saved the planet from these plastic things and then he promised to show me the stars and well, what girl can resist sweet talk like that?” She caught herself rambling and quickly shut her mouth, blushing slightly. That and she needed to catch her breath all over again. “And the spaceship thing somehow crash landed here and I can’t tell you how exactly but I know this timeline and I know what happens and you’re not supposed to even be here and the man I came with, he’s called the Doctor, I don’t know why, says he’s looking for an alien just like him.” She paused again.

“And I think it’s you.” She finally came to her conclusion and caught her breath once more.

“I mean if a professor and student should be speaking, it should be Harry and Snape.” She couldn’t help but grumble as an afterthought. “I mean what that man sacrificed, I don’t think even Lily understood…” Rose trailed off, getting ahead of herself in terms of important events. “Sorry sorry, rambling.” She waved a hand at him. “I haven’t really gotten a chance to even talk to the Doctor since we got here and it’s bloody annoying, I feel like I’m on my own here and totally imposing on you and-“ She stopped herself again, knowing how it must sound, that she was only getting close to him as a spy. That wasn’t exactly it. “I didn’t mean…I just…” Now she felt like she was saying all the wrong things, and on top of that, she just spilled everything without consulting the Doctor beforehand. ‘Severs him right for ditching me.’ She thought bitterly to herself and folded her arms, a bit angry with herself for mucking things up.

“I just wanna figure out what’s goin’ on is all. And if you are someone who doesn’t belong here, then maybe you’ll find a better place than just teachin’ and gradin’ papers. Not that um that’s bad or anything but…” She sighed and tried again. “I just met the Doctor but I know he loves whatever it is he does, like travelin’ the world an’ all, and in that crazy ship of his, if he found someone like him, I bet it would make him really happy. But of course I wouldn’t know, I’m guessing here, like I said, he totally abandoned me and we haven’t met up since. So yeah, taking notes and preparing for life after Hogarts is kind of the last thing on my mind. I miss my mum and my bed and I was just hoping the Doctor could help me figure out whatever my life is missing. Funny thing is, I never knew I was missin’ anything until he popped up and maybe you could understand. I dunno.”

- - -

Much to her fretfulness, Harry had a point. Draco was dangerous. The skill to even attempt such a potion was cause for concern. Could he have gotten his hands on a potions book from someplace like Knockturn Alley or perhaps the restricted section? “He is very close to Professor Snape, you don’t think that has anything to do with what happened.” She commented but then quickly corrected herself, cross that she had even suggested such a thing. “I know he hasn’t been kind to you but I know he wouldn’t want to harm a student. It’s possible Draco nicked the book from Professor Snape’s office, if anything.” She considered. Her friend places his hand on top of hers which caused her to smile, the tension fading into the air between them. He understood, he always could.

What he said next bothered her a bit. She knew he had been struggling ever since the start of term months ago. She also knew he and Ron weren’t as close as before. In a way, she could agree, but still it did alarm her to think Harry was growing indifferent to his friends being on his side. “There are no sides here, Harry.” She tried to explain. “I know in our second year it felt as though no one was on your side but you had me and Ron and things are different now.” She admitted. “But still, there aren’t sides. We’re all fighting for one thing.” She said firmly. He then said that having her meant so much more to him. The girl held her breath for a moment, not sure if she had even heard him correctly.

Spoken in confidence with her mother, when she went home for Winter Break in her first year, she had confessed that she did have a fancy for Harry. He was nice and sure, she had read about him but she didn’t look at him as if he was some famed statue or hero. How he survived was incredible, yes but Hermione had gotten to know him during that first year. She saved his life during a Quidditch game, he saved her life when it came to the encounter with the troll. Harry meant so much to her, more than some famous boy or friend who she helped with homework. They got along so well, she couldn’t help but babble to her mother about Harry in her letters and visits home. It tore her heart out that he didn’t ask her last year to the Yule Ball and instead Ron ruined her evening by lashing out at her for no good reason. 

Harry then said he would agree to do it. That was wonderful news. It almost made up for the awful day they had shared. He then explained how he would keep his home safe and help those who were willing to fight. “Thank you Harry.” She gushed and threw her arms around him and held on tightly. She soon relented and let go of him. “I know things are difficult but I promise, you’re not as alone as you think you are.” She said and gave him another hug. It was then that the portrait opened and Ron came over to them. She slowly let go and looked back to Harry. “He says he’ll do it, isn’t that great news?”

“Yeah, bloody brilliant.” Ron just muttered and retreated back into the common room.

“I haven’t a clue what’s got into him.” Hermione brushed off. But she did. The brightest witch of the age knew exactly what was wrong with her red headed friend. She had first suspected he had feelings for her during their second year, it was a brief thought that crossed her mind but she didn’t think much of it. It wasn’t until their fourth year that she figured it out. Much to her dismay, Ginny confirmed her theory and said Ron did like her. Hermione only saw him as a friend, at best, so she hoped that if she ignored it, that he would move on. “Come on, let’s go in before we get into trouble.” Hermione told Harry and followed Ron inside. Once they were in the common room again, it seemed to have cleared out. For once though, she didn’t feel like tackling her homework. “I guess all we can do is wait for Rose to show up.” Hermione shrugged and sat on the couch, only to see Ron head up to the boy’s dorm for fifth years. She just patted the spot beside her for Harry, as it was now very much available.