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"You've never been to a carnival?" Luna asked in disbelief.
"That's a mudbl– muggle thing! Father would never let me." The boy's pale face was aghast.
"So don't ask him!" Luna smiled at her cousin like it was the most easy solution in the world.
"That would be worse. If he finds out after the fact…" Dragon -which was not her cousin's real name, but rather what Luna liked to call him, seeing as it was what his name meant- shuddered and then shook his head.
Luna was sure her puzzled expression was blatantly obvious. "He's your dad though. Doesn't he want you to be happy?"
"Father doesn't– I mean it's not like he–" Dragon hesitated. He bit his lip before finally stating "Happiness should never be one's utmost priority."
He had his forced haughty stare on, but Luna could see the pain hiding in his eyes. He wanted to experience those feelings, Luna was sure of it. He wanted it so bad. She didn't understand why he didn't just try to get it.
Luna stared at her cousin, as if looking longer could give her the answer. The elder of the two started to get embarrassed. He shifted foot to foot. One of his hands came and awkwardly rested behind his neck. Luna might have only been six, but she'd already done some studying on these strange creatures that shared her world. (She had done research on animals too, but those facts weren't nearly as helpful in daily dealing with the most dreaded creatures– people.) If her studying was accurate, Dragon's hand on his neck meant he was stressed. Which only worried Luna more.
Pandora Lovegood chose that moment to walk through the garden next to them. Luna ran over to her, grabbing her legs in a huge hug. When she let go, she looked at her mom, eyes wide.
"Mummy! Dragon has never been to the carnival! And he refuses to ask his dad to take him!"
Pandora stared at her nephew with her steely gray eyes then gave a small laugh. "I can see why you wouldn't want to ask dear old Lucy. He never did like interacting with the 'common folk.'"
"A proper wizard should never lower himself to the level of the mudbloods." Dragon parroted in a way that showed it had been drilled into him for years.
Pandora winced. "Draco, hunny, please. I know that's a word your dad uses a lot, but Xeno is in the other room and that type of language can be very painful to those with his background."
"Sorry Mrs. Lovegood." Dragon said, voice painfully stiff.
"Draco. I'm your aunt. You don't have to be so formal. I highly doubt you talk to Bellatrix like that."
"Auntie Trixie is still on the tree."
Luna looked at her mother in confusion. Her thoughts rattled about her head. Dragon's other aunt was on a tree? Still? How long had she been there? Which tree? Why did that mean Dragon could call her a nicer name? Didn't everyone deserve niceness?
Pandora sighed. "Right. Lucy blasted me off when he found out I'd eloped. Meaning Luna never appeared under me. Which is a sorrow for another date."
Luna ducked down and tried to get between her mother's legs. She wasn't sure why Mummy was sad about it, but Luna could fix this. Mummy had always said she was exceptionally smart for her age. Luna knew what 'appeared' meant. She could appear under Mummy. It wasn't even that hard of a task. She'd make it all better.
Pandora laughed her musical laugh again before scooping Luna into a hug. "Thank you my Little Moon. You always have a way of cheering me up." She turned back to Draco. "I understand that you might never be as comfortable around me as you are with your other Aunts and I'll probably never be Auntie Pandy like I long hoped. But please, Draco, at least call me Pandora."
"Uh, I'll try. But not around Father."
"Fair enough." Pandora chuckled. "Speaking of things kept quiet around your Father, go get your shoes younglings. We're going to the carnival!"
Luna happily bounced away from her mom. She didn't even protest getting the shoes that always pinched her feet like she normally would have. She was too happy to be going on a trip with Dragon.
Luna had never been on a trip with any of her cousins. The family on her Daddy's side were always loud and scary when they saw them, screaming and brandishing their weird silver 't' in their faces. She hadn't met as much family on her Mummy's side, but all the ones she had met were cold and calculating (Luna had just learned that word and thought it fit her Uncle Lucy perfectly). She'd never met the woman Dragon called Aunt Trixie, but she had listened to Dragon's stories enough to know their aunt was probably crazy, and not in a good way.
But it didn't matter that her extended family was scary and calculating. Dragon was nice. He listened to her talk about all sorts of creatures and told her about things like quidditch. Luna didn't particularly want to play quidditch, but it was nice to hear what Dragon liked. She couldn't wait to see how much he liked the carnival, and hoped that would be a future discussion.
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The carnival was, as always, louder than was comfortable for Luna and brighter than it had any right to be. It was worth it for her though to see the smile on Dragon's face. Luna discretely tugged on her mum's sleeve and tapped her ear.
Pandora nodded and silently cast a muffling charm on her daughter to help keep her from getting overstimulated. The two family members had their system down. It took a few tries to figure out what worked, but they had learned from each experience.
Dragon looked around, eyes blown wide with excitement. "No bloody way! The muggles have hired giants?!"
Luna giggled. Dragon can be so funny at times! "Dragon you know that giants would be much bigger! They're not just tall, giants are big! Those are just muggles on stilts!"
He gave her a doubtful look. "Stilts? What's that?"
Instead of answering, Luna turned to her mum. In a very loud whisper, (she was only six after all) she asked "Is Dragon secretly stupid? How doesn't he know what stilts are?"
Luna watched as her mum tried to find a kind explanation. Her mouth kept trying to form words but she didn't seem to be making any sound. It was quite frustrating for Luna. Maybe Mummy is making me practice patience again. She thought sadly. Mummy did that a lot. She said Luna needed it. Needed to be able to listen to people to help understand them. Mummy was normally right.
Luna didn't get to see if that was what had happened. Instead her mum dragged her along to chase after Draco who had run toward a booth.
"What in Merlin's beard is that?" Dragon asked almost reverently as he pointed at the shelf above him.
Luna allowed her gaze to travel to what Dragon was pointing at. On the shelf sat a little brown bear, about seven inches tall. It's legs were stubby and it's arms flopped on each side. The black nose was shaped like a heart, and the plastic eyes made it look like it could cure the worst sorrows. It wasn't the plumpest of its kind, but plump enough that it'd be good to squeeze. All in all, is was a plain, ordinary, almost disappointing teddy bear. The only thing different about this particular bear was he had a little blue and green hoodie on. It pulled over his head, ending in a zigzag meant to look like teeth. It had lines tracing what could only be a snout, up to fierce protective eyes. The bear's rounded ears stuck out through precise holes in the hood. A pair of tiny wings stuck onto the back of the bear, glittering weakly.
"It's a teddy? Dressed like a dragon. Like your name. Duh."
Dragon glared at her. "Am I supposed to know what 'teddy' means?"
Luna tipped her head in confusion. "A teddy? Like a teddy bear? Something you hold onto for comfort? At the carnival you can play games and win them."
"Hold onto for comfort? That's a stupid idea. How very muggle." Dragon attempted to sneer, but his gaze was still locked longingly on the little bear.
Luna studied him. His words claimed he didn't care, claimed it was stupid but Luna remembered his first reaction. He had seemed in love with the little bear. Like she was with her own stuffie (though, Luna's was a demiguise and much cooler, obviously). Had wanted it till he learned it was muggle. Hadn't even known what a teddy was for.
It made Luna sad to realize her cousin probably didn't have anything to hug when he was sad. She'd only been to Dragon's house a couple of times but it had always struck her as cold, creepy, and lonely. Sending Dragon back there, knowing he had nothing to squeeze, felt wrong. Felt… Evil. Luna made up her mind.
She turned to her mum and tugged on her sleeve. "Mummy, can I try to do this game?"
Pandora looked at the game. It was the common knock over the three bottles game. She had often seen how bad her daughter's aim was. Hesitantly, she asked "Are you sure you want this game? It looks kinda hard darling."
Luna stared once more at Dragon. His gaze had returned to the bear now that he thought no one was paying attention to him. Open adoration coated his face. She nodded with resolution.
Pandora sighed, but couldn't help but smile. Her Little Moon was extremely caring and protective, especially of her favorite cousin. It probably would come to nothing, but Pandora couldn't deny her a chance to try.
Pandora paid for a round and stepped to the side with Draco. They both watched as the portly man chuckled and handed Luna two heavy balls.
"Ya gets two tries, ya pipsqueak."
Dragon snarled at the man's condescending tone. Luna briefly noted the noise, puzzled, as her mum put a gentle hand on Dragon's shoulder, a simple gesture to help ground himself. It worked sometimes for Luna and Luna hoped it'd help Dragon as well.
Luna didn't care about the man's judgmental stare. She grabbed one of the heavy balls carefully. It was lifted over her shoulder and grasped like a lifeline. Luna cocked her arm back and tried her hardest to throw the solid mass.
It fell with a dull thunk about five feet in front of the bottles. It didn't so much as bounce an inch upon landing. Luna's nose wrinkled and she determinedly grabbed the second ball. For Dragon.
The second ball was also thrown into the air. It curved quickly and Luna could tell it was going to land mere inches past the other one. Which wouldn't do at all.
Luna concentrated on the subtle tingle she could feel deep in her core. Her Daddy had told her before that the tingle was her magic. He had explained it took a lot of training for most wixen to feel it deep inside them and was normally the first step of learning wandless magic. When Luna had her bursts of "accidental" magic, though it was normally far more controlled than the term would suggest, the tingling feeling grew faster and bubbled over to fill her belly and race to her finger tips.
Luna hadn't yet tried to force the tingle to bubble over, never tried to choose what it caused to happen. It mainly just followed her feelings. But it felt essential this time. Dragon needs that teddy.
As the ball fell toward the floor, Luna stared at it intensely. Inside her head she pictured a little her, eagerly pouring something into the cauldron that was filled with the tingling magic. She pictured it making the bubbling fizzles froth harder. Luna felt a small twinge in her gut.
The carnival hawker started jeering before the ball even hit the ground. "Better luck next time, rugrat."
Luna didn't spare him a glance as she pictured the tingles shooting out of her finger tips and into the ball. She made one final internal push as the ball finally hit the floor. Unlike the first one, this ball bounced back into the air. The man's jaw dropped.
It flew toward the bottles as if magnetized. The crash of them falling was incredibly loud, even with the muffling charm cast on her ears. Nearby sets of eyes all trained themselves on the small blonde haired witch. She shifted awkwardly under their stares, uncomfortable with the sudden attention. Unconsciously, she pulled her hair from behind her ears and hid behind it.
The carnival hawker finally regained control of his jaw. "But– It doesn't– I mean– It shouldn't– But– You're tiny!"
Luna peered up at the grotesque man through her eyelashes. "I'd like the dragon teddy please." She said clearly but quietly.
"That shouldn't be possible! It's unwinnable by a shrimp like you! I'm supposed to make more than the price of a toy off a single unsatisfied customer! The balls don't bounce!"
"Do I get my prize now sir?" Luna asked timidly.
The man gave her a furious glare but turned around and angrily grabbed the bear. He slammed it on the counter in front of her. The bear's head flopped down against its chest upon impact. In a low growl the man spoke again. "Take it you puny crotch goblin. Don't come back."
Luna quickly grabbed the bear and shuffled back, towards where her mum and Dragon were whispering to each other. The man scared her. Her thoughts were twisted around each other. Maybe I shouldn't have pushed my magic. But Dragon needed a stuffie. But it made the man angry. But he doesn't seem very nice.
The man turned around and with an angry shout, knocked over one of the other bottle towers with his fist. As if it had been waiting for that movement, one of the extra balls flew off the rack, landing squarely on his foot. He howled, jumping around unsteadily on the other foot.
"Are you okay?" Luna asked, concerned. Well, tried to ask. Her mum gently pulled her and Dragon away from the booth, melting back in the crowd as the man spat out some of what the muggles called curse words, though Luna had never seen them perform any actual curse.
Once they were a decent space away, Pandora dropped her daughter's hand. Luna could barely hear the musical chuckle she let out. She simultaneously clocked her cousin's smirk as she deciphered the quiet noise. Luna tipped her head and stared at them in confusion. "What's so funny?"
With a quick look shot at Dragon, who smiled in response, Pandora shook her head. "You just surprised that man is all. Excellent work my Little Moon." Pandora scooped Luna up in a comforting hug, using the motion to hide a small wink at Draco. "Excellent work all around."
Luna squirmed out of her Mum's arms. She proudly presented the bear to her cousin. "Here Dragon! It's for you!"
Dragon's eyes widened. "For me?"
Luna looked at him, her face as serious as she could make it. "I already have my stuffie. I played the game just to get you a stuffie!" She wiggled the dangling bear a little bit.
Dragon finally put up his hands and grabbed the small stuffie. He held it with an almost reverence as he studied it closely. He nuzzled his nose into the bears hood before looking back at Luna with tears hanging in the corner of his eyes. "Nobody's gotten me a toy just because they wanted me to have it before."
Luna didn't comment on his tears. People crying weirded her out. "Well I did. Everyone needs a stuffie."
Dragon smiled in awe at her. "Thank you Little Moon."