The Blind Leading the Blind

After running through his usual morning exercises, Neville checked his calendar. There were a few days left until he returned to Hogwarts, and still no word from Luna.

He didn't know what he'd been expecting. She was in the Forbidden Forest as far as he knew, and it'd been enough of a challenge to track her down the first time. He'd only gotten lucky in June. After a week of monitoring the centaurs, he'd caught sight of her entering their camp and followed her back to her nest. He hadn't had the time to try it again, and she'd be watching for him the second time.

He'd gone into the Forbidden Forest before he'd left Hogwarts, hoping to find her again. She'd moved her nest, leaving no trace behind that she'd ever been there. No footprints leading away from her old nest, no signs of Tutela. He'd followed the river, hoping to find her, but she'd moved far enough that he couldn't find her in the forest.

Hermione had explained the runes to him, but the only part he'd really understood was that Luna had needed special herbs and plants to create the ink for them. Plants that could be found in the Forbidden Forest (Neville had confirmed that himself after Hermione had listed them off). But if she had them, why was she still there? Hermione didn't seem to think that they'd need to be redrawn. The ink moved around Luna's body, but it was never expended, so she'd never need more. It didn't wash off with water either.

If Luna had stayed in the Forbidden Forest to collect the plants for her ink, then why was she still there? Neville had written to Hermione about it, and to Luna's dad to see if she'd shown up there either. He was as worried as Neville was and grateful that it wasn't just him.

He and Hermione had worked out a plan, and the day for that plan had arrived.

Hermione and her parents arrived at his house just after breakfast. They'd be going to Hermione's house afterwards. They weren't allowed to have a door between them and a responsible adult, which meant any plans they drew up would be overheard by said responsible adult, and that adult would eventually figure out that they were using doublespeak. Neville had nominated Hermione's house, because he didn't want his gran overhearing any plans to find Luna.

When he heard Hermione at the front door, Neville grabbed his pack and started to leave his room. He paused for a moment when he noticed someone sneering at him.

"How long's it going to take for you to get the message?" Evil Neville asked. "Moon clearly doesn't want you around. She's dumped you, Toad."

The same thought had been creeping around his mind for the past month, which meant Neville had a prepared response.

"Then why'd she kiss me before she left?" he asked.

"Pity."

Neville opened his mouth to respond, then decided better of it. Slamming the door behind him, he calmed himself down before Hermione saw.

She was at the door, making small talk with his gran. Her eyes darted up when he came down the stairs.

"Everything alright?" she asked.

"Fine," he said, glancing at his gran.

After bidding his gran farewell, he headed out to the street where Hermione's parents were waiting in their car.

"You sure?" Hermione asked after tapping her ear.

"Sure what?"

"That everything's alright? I wouldn't have expected you to be angry about me being here."

She gave him a significant look. Neville had studied Hermione for hours during their sparing matches, and he knew that look. She was looking for a specific answer from him. He just didn't know what it was.

"It's… it's nothing."

Another look from her said she didn't believe him, but she didn't look like she was going to pry. Neville knew she knew about the Nightmare Scenario, but he hadn't told anyone about Evil Neville. He especially didn't want anyone to know he'd started seeing him again.

It's just doubt. Nothing I haven't felt before.

They climbed in, and Hermione showed him how to work the seat belt.

"What's the point of it?" he asked after they'd started moving.

"A car moves pretty fast. Fast enough that if it had to suddenly stop, you'd be sent flying into the seat in front of you."

Neville thought back to his training in the Forbidden Forest.

"So?"

Hermione paused for a second before continuing.

"Not everyone's as durable as you are, Mr. 'It's faster to jump from the seventh floor to the ground floor'."

"It is, and that's feather fall. You can do it too."

Hermione's mum shot a glare at he and Hermione, and they dropped the subject.

"How's your summer been?" he asked.

"Alright. Yours?"

"Uneventful."

"How did your O.W.L.s turn out?" she asked.

Neville thought back to his late exams. He'd never known people could take them in the summer.

"I got Os in Potions and Herbology, Es in Care and Divination, As in everything else."

"You passed!" Hermione exclaimed.

"Somehow, yes," he said.

They sat mostly in silence for the ride back. Neville grew restless, but with the confined space, found himself unable to clean the Sword of Gryffindor to keep himself occupied. Instead, he chose to do inventory of his belt. He could sense Hermione's urge to ask about everything he took out, but they both knew he wouldn't answer. Rose taught them never to let anyone else know exactly what you've got with you. To Hermione, almost everything in his belt looked like vials, bandages, or pellets. He intentionally made sure they all looked as similar to one another as possible.

He smiled when they got inside Hermione's house and he saw Ana. She was one of the last remnants of Rose's time on Earth. The golem walked around the house, holding the door for them, and showing him around.

"Remind me why she's called Ana," he said.

"She's made out of duct tape. It's a—"

"I know what it is," Neville said. "I'm no good at magic, remember? I've got to find Muggle solutions to everything."

"Right. Rose first heard it as duck tape." She emphasised the differences between the words before continuing. "Anatidae is the animal family to which ducks belong, so my parents suggested we call her Ana."

Ana nodded before continuing with the chores.

"Right," Neville said, pulling a map out of his pack. He unrolled it to reveal the entire Forbidden Forest.

"Where did you get…" Hermione started, then looked more at the map. "Did you draw this?"

"Yup."

The map itself was labeled with various parts of the forest. "Centaur Camp", "Aragog's Nest", "Luna", "Fluffy"… anything that had occurred to him over the summer or while he was tracking down Luna.

"What's Grawp?" Hermione asked, pointing to a label on the map.

"Hagrid's half-brother," Neville said. "Hagrid's been hiding him in the forest for about a year now. I stumbled upon him last year while looking for Luna."

"How do you know he's Hagrid's half-brother?" Hermione asked.

"I spotted Hagrid with Grawp, and asked him about it after I got back. Said he was thinking about asking Harry to look in on him after Umbridge sacked him… he'd been planning it before he was attacked… but he said someone had been keeping an eye on Grawp. Not that he knew who it was, since Grawp can't speak English very well."

Hermione looked over the map before asking another question.

"You think it was Luna?"

"I know it was. She can communicate with any living thing, and she's got it in her head that she's the guardian of the forest."

"Probably trying to imitate Carolina," Hermione said. "One of… Rose's friends."

Neville nodded, remembering the stories Rose had told him all too well. It'd crossed his mind that Luna was being driven by those stories, but she was just a girl. She couldn't handle herself the way Rose could. Why couldn't she just go back where it was safe?

"Have you got any idea where she is?" Hermione asked.

"No," he said, pointing to the marker at Luna's old nest. "She was there for months, but she packed up and left after the incident in the forest. By the time Madame Pomfrey let us out of the Hospital Wing, Luna was gone. I tried finding her along the river, but if she's set up camp again, it's not along the river."

"It's possible she just didn't set up a nest this time. Perhaps she thought it was too obvious."

"That doesn't sound like Luna. She doesn't think about the world the way we do. She's too trusting."

"But the centaurs aren't," Hermione said, pointing to the centaur camp. "She went off with them after that fight. According to Sally-Anne, no one was able to break the curse on Viktor. That same curse was used on Luna, and the only way to stop it from eating into your brain is to cut out your eyes. Which means…"

Neville stared at the map. He hadn't thought of it. Somewhere inside him, he'd known, but hadn't wanted to accept it.

"The centaurs would've had to have cut out Luna's eyes."

Two Months Ago

Tutela led Luna through the forest. Her eyes burned, but Tutela insisted she not rub them.

<We don't know what that will do if you touch it.>

Luna followed in silence. She heard the clopping of hooves around her and knew the centaurs were still there. Their scent filled the air. The scent of pride, of courage, of battle. They were prepared at all times to go into a fight. They weren't like her; they were effective. When they fought, they made a difference. All she did was slow everyone else down and get in the way.

"How were you not able to stop them?" Magorian asked her in his deep voice.

Luna shook her head.

"I don't know. I… I suppose I'm no good in a fair fight."

Magorian scoffed at her.

"Is this the human behind you, Losha? A weak, scared little girl?"

Luna opened and closed her mouth a few times, thinking better of talking back every time. She couldn't deny it. Magorian was right. Deep down, she was a weak, scared little girl. No one had been there to save her this time. Even when she'd tried to save Toad, she'd just screwed it up.

Just like when she'd tried to save her mum.

She was of no use to anyone. The forest felt colder, and she shivered involuntarily.

<Moon, we're at the camp.>

Whispered questions arose from the remaining centaurs. Questions about the humans in the forest, about her. What had happened to her?

"Losha is injured!" Magorian announced. "As creatures of the forest, it is our duty to see that she is tended to! As for the remaining humans…"

<He's looking at us. You're up.>

With Tutela's guidance, Luna stooped down and touched the ground with her fingers.

Where are they?

She got a flash of the clearing her friends had been in. The last of the humans were leaving the clearing, following the procession out of the forest.

"The humans have left our forest!" Luna called. "For the time, we are safe!"

Some cheers rose from the centaurs, but she had no time for celebration. Magorian and Tutela led her to Magorian's tent. Another centaur joined them shortly. Tutela informed her that those were the only occupants of the tent.

"It is human magic," Magorian informed the other centaur. "What can you make of it?"

The scent of another centaur surrounded her.

<Hold still. You're being inspected.>

Luna stood up straight and held still, as if Madame Pomfrey were looking her over.

The scent of the other centaur faded a little, and she heard the sound of a book being opened. She waited patiently while the centaur looked her over, going back and forth between her and the book.

"This isn't a common human curse," the other centaur said. "Losha, do your eyes hurt?"

"They burn," she replied. "And itch."

"Can you see?"

"No."

"Hmm. I'll be back."

The other centaur left them alone, then returned with another book. This one sounded older, more of a collection of papers held together than a book.

"The humans call it Decaying Spectacles," the other centaur said. "They've used it on us before, but we've never worked out how to counter it."

"What happens if we don't?" Magorian asked.

"It will eat through her eyes, and then her brain," the other one said. "There is one way to stop it, but—"

"I'm not a patient beast," Magorian said.

"I'm afraid the only way to be sure is to cut out her eyes."

Luna trembled, comforted only by Tutela. She tried hard not to cry. Every inch of her wanted to run home and cry to her dad so he could make it all better. But her father was far away. There was no one to save her this time.

"Whatever you have to do," she said.

Magorian drew a sword while the other centaur left the tent. He returned a minute later with another centaur. One of the other two took the blade from Magorian. Luna heard the sound of ointment being rubbed into the blade.

<Disinfectant,> Tutela told her. <They're sterilizing the blade.>

Luna nodded.

<Are you sure about this, Moon?>

Luna ran her fingers through Tutela's fur, holding the image of her guardian in her mind.

<Yes.>

"Ready yourself, Losha," Magorian said.

Luna held her eyes open and held perfectly still. As still as she could, knowing a blade was about to cut out her eyes.

Another centaur held her while Magorian readied his sword.

Thoughts of Toad filled her head. She'd never see his face again. Not truly. She held his smile in her mind. Even though it wasn't the last thing she'd seen — how she longed for that to be true — she wanted it to be the last thing she thought of before her life was changed forever.

Present Day

Luna's dream faded away and left her in darkness. She felt Tutela next to her, and pulled the homunculus closer.

Shakily, fighting to keep her balance, she got to her feet. Pressing a bare foot onto the ground, she activated her pendant.

Where am I?

A fuzzy picture of the surrounding forest entered her mind. Information flowed freely from the earth to her, and her mind processed it all to draw her a map of her surroundings in her head. It was still blurry, but the burning sensation where her eyes used to be reminded her why she needed to adjust.

The padding of feet next to her told her that Tutela was awake and at her side. Luna put one foot down, then another. Slowly, carefully, she made her way through the area where she'd slept for the night.

She stood still and listened for the rushing of water. Once she picked it up, she crept closer. As she moved, the image in her mind changed to match her location in the forest.

When she reached the river, Tutela stood guard while she bathed. She laid her ragged clothing tenderly on a nearby rock, then walked slowly into the river.

She sunk down into it, splashing water on herself until she was satisfied. The ink ran over her, cleansing anything small enough for the water to miss. After she climbed out, she shook herself dry, then heated the runes to evaporate the rest of the water.

As always, she was careful with her clothes. The clothes themselves didn't matter; she'd patched them with leaves and plants so many times that they were more vegetation than cloth. What mattered was the broach on them. Everything else could be replaced, not that anything cared whether she had clothes on or not. She was the only one who felt uncomfortable without them.

Besides, she needed to look her best when summoned to address Aragog, Magorian, or any of the other tribe leaders. Giants would toss an outsider around for fun if given the chance, and unicorns would have nothing to do with anything that didn't sparkle.

After dressing, she cleaned her hair the rest of the way, tied it back, then donned her mask.

<Are you sure you're ready?> Tutela asked. <You're still walking shakily.>

<I'm fine,> Luna replied. <It still takes some getting used to.>

<My point exactly. If they see you stumbling, it will be seen as a sign of weakness.>

Luna looked out through the fuzzy image of the forest she had. There was no color, not anymore, just a gray unknown. It'd been two months since Magorian had personally tended to her eyes, and she still had the instinct to squint to bring her "sight" into focus.

She'd been in hiding two months, and she still wasn't used to it yet. She hadn't been pushing herself hard enough to recover. It was past time that she got over it.

<I can't keep hiding here.>

She turned to face Tutela. With only the general shape of Tutela's body, Luna couldn't make out a facial expression, but she was sure the homunculus was giving her a look.

<I'll talk to Magorian. He knows I'm blind.>

Tutela shook her head.

<But he won't accept your weakness. He'll expect you to have recovered fully by now. If he sees you this way, he'll cast you out, if he doesn't outright kill you.>

Her body suddenly felt heavy. She wanted to collapse and cry, just like she had every day since she'd lost her eyes. The thought of her father's house was welcoming, so much so that she'd had to fight the urge to return. If she'd wanted to go home, she could've, but she didn't. She couldn't bear the thought of anyone seeing her as she was. Weak. Helpless. A burden to everyone.

Especially Toad. She'd sensed him trying to find her, looking around her old nest. She could smell him coming before he could see her. And she'd never see him again.

Luna put one foot in front of the other, sensing her way around the forest.

I won't burden him anymore. I don't need to be rescued. I'll just put one foot in front of the other, and do what I've got to do.

By the end of the day, Hermione and Neville had mapped out every likely place for Luna to be hiding. They had a plan for how to search for her.

Hermione still felt bad not telling Neville about Rose. She was alive, that was for sure. What if she went after Luna? Tutela was strong, but not nearly strong enough to take on Rose. No one was, apart from maybe Professor Dumbledore.

Worse yet, what if she went after them while they were searching for Luna? What if being outside the castle put them in danger? She couldn't bring herself to tell Neville. Besides, something else was clearly on his mind. She just hoped Rose hadn't decided to start paying him visits.

"You may have to box her in," Hermione said as they were wrapping up. "With her sight gone, she won't be able to get around the forest as well."

"You keep saying 'you' like you're not coming," Neville said. "It'd be a lot easier with you there, even if you don't know the forest as well as I do."

Hermione frowned at him.

"What? I… I thought you didn't want me near her."

Neville shrugged.

"You aren't going to hurt Luna."

Hermione avoided his gaze.

"I did last time."

"No you didn't," he said. "Take it from someone who used to beat himself up about everything. You're fine. Remember last Christmas?"

Memories of fresh snow on the ground and of sitting with her last two friends filled her head.

"But you said—"

"I wasn't thinking straight. I'm sorry."

Neither of them spoke for a time. Hermione stared at the map and let her mind wander. If only they had Rose, she could've found Luna by now. If Rose was against them…

"What's your plan for when we find her?" Hermione asked.

"Talk to her. Figure out why she ran away, and get the telepathy rune on her so we can keep talking to her."

"Didn't you talk to her last year?" Hermione asked. "You said you'd found her that morning."

Neville shook his head.

"There wasn't a lot of time. I'd finally found her, but she didn't say much. We found Taltria and Alavel, who were looking for all of you. Alavel said he had a bad feeling that Voldemort was going to try grabbing Harry. We tried working out what to do, but got your message before long."

Hermione nodded.

"How did the Death Eaters know where to find you?" Neville asked. "I thought I heard that woman, Lux, say she told them, but how did she know?"

Hermione shrugged.

"Dumbledore didn't say anything?"

She shook her head.

"We… he didn't say, no."

Neville frowned at her, and she shifted under his stare. Something told her that he'd understand about Rose. He'd had a crush on her for years and practically worshiped her. Yet, her instincts said not to say anything. Hermione wanted answers. She wanted certainty, and if anyone else knew, they might ask her questions she couldn't answer.

"Alright," Neville said.

After she and her parents brought Neville home, Hermione retreated to her room. She sat on her bed and closed her eyes. Her fear about the upcoming year drained away, along with her thoughts of Rose and Luna, leaving Hermione alone in her thoughts.

"Hermione?" her mum said.

Hermione opened her eyes. Her mum was poking her head in the doorway.

"Dinner."

Hermione nodded and stood up. She followed her mum downstairs. Her father carried food from the stove to the kitchen table while she got out silverware to set the table.

"Hermione?" her dad asked.

"Yes?"

She placed forks on the table, moving out of her father's way while he placed a pot of casserole on the table.

"Have… have they mentioned anything about the Statute of Secrecy in school?" he asked.

Hermione hesitated before placing her own knife and spoon on the table.

"Of course. Don't use magic outside of school, and don't tell any Muggles outside your immediate family."

Her father nodded, glanced at the kitchen, and decided the salad could wait.

"It's just… it's completely random, right? Muggles who get magic. What if someone from the royal family were to be a witch or wizard?"

Hermione's hands slowed down as she considered her father's words.

"What do you mean? I suppose they'd go to Hogwarts too, or be privately tutored, if at all." She frowned at her father. "Why?"

Her mother came in with the salad, shooting a glare at her father.

"It's just… it's obviously important to them, but what about us? The Muggles? If some famous Muggle had magic, how is it still kept secret? What's stopping us from going around telling people?"

"They'd probably think you were mad if you said anything," Hermione replied. "No one would believe you."

"But these attacks, there are people looking into them. People that don't know. Are they going to stop looking? What's stopping them from finding answers?"

Her mum came in with drinks, set them down on the table, then motioned for the two of them to take seats.

"What are you saying?" Hermione asked.

"I'm wondering how they enforce the Statute of Secrecy."

"Oh. Memory Charms, probably."

Her mum rapped the back of her hand on her dad's shoulder, then nodded towards the dishes of food in the middle of the table.

Her dad served himself some food, then opened his mouth to speak.

"I think that's enough conspiracy talk at the dinner table," her mum interjected. "Hermione, you go back in a few days. Why don't we enjoy each other's company until then?"

Hermione picked at her food, her dad's words on her mind. He hadn't said it, but she knew what his next question was. How did they know who to obliviate? She didn't know the answer, and it began to eat away at her. Perhaps Ron would know the answer.

"Hermione," her mum said, "you and your friend aren't getting into trouble, are you?"

"We're just trying to find Luna," Hermione said. "She ran away last year. We saw her for a moment in the forest, but we didn't get a chance to talk to her. I want to put our telepathy rune on her. Then we'll be able to talk to her."

While her mum took a bite of food, her dad asked the next question.

"Do you know why she ran away?"

Hermione shook her head while she finished her own food.

"Not really. That night, she said something was bothering her. I wouldn't have thought it was bad enough for her to run away. She seemed fine on the express, but then we got to the castle, and…"

Her whole body went numb. A shiver ran down her spine, and she dropped her fork.

"Hermione?"

"I…"

Luna got Rose's memories. Rose was still alive. Faking her death had almost certainly been part of a plan devised by Sylvia. A plan she wanted to keep secret.

An hour ago she'd wanted to find Luna because she wanted to keep her friends close. Now, she knew Luna knew something about Rose's disappearance, even if Luna herself didn't realize it.

"Sweetheart, you're starting to scare us," her mum said.

Hermione snapped back to reality. Both her parents were staring at her.

"Sorry." Hermione blushed and turned her gaze back to her food. "I… I can't explain."

Her parents exchanged glances.

"Should we be worried?" her dad asked.

"No, I… I think I know why Luna ran away, but I can't explain why."

Hermione ate the rest of her dinner in silence. She felt she should talk to her parents, but the only thing on her mind was Rose. Once Hermione finished eating, Ana cleared up, then Hermione went to her room again.

Rose is out there somewhere. I'm going to find her, and she's going to tell me what really happened.

She drifted off to sleep that night with the same thoughts on her mind. Thoughts of her best friend, and the hope that she'd see her again soon.