Xenophilius Lovegood was seated on the couch beside his wife, a book about Magical Creatures sitting on his lap. Aurora Lovegood sat with a hand on her ever expanding stomach. She had yet to feel a kick from the child that was forming inside of her and was waiting in anticipation for that moment.
As Xenophilius turned a page in the book, Aurora decided to speak up. “Xeno, don’t you think we should begin thinking up a name for our child soon?”
“We still have plenty of time,” he replied, looking up at his wife. “The baby isn’t due for a few months!”
“Yes, but I think we should still have a few names picked out, nonetheless,” she replied, rubbing her stomach.
Xenophilius nodded, shutting his book and setting it on the table beside the couch. He waited for his wife to make the first suggestion.
“How about Willow?” she suggested, knowing that her husband loved magical creatures and nature. It seemed like a really good choice, in her opinion.
“Willow Lovegood,” he mused, thinking about the name. “I’m not sure, Aurora. It just doesn’t have the right ring to it.” Xeno paused, thinking about a name that he could suggest for their child. “What if we named it Nargle?” he asked.
“Nargle?” repeated Aurora, raising an eyebrow.
“Nargle,” he said, nodding. It was a perfect name. It showed off the characteristics of the family and he was rather proud of the name choice. His wife, however, was not. “Wrackspurt?” he suggested.
“I don’t really think that naming a child Nargle or Wrackspurt would help them with making friends at school,” she sighed, putting a hand on Xenophilius’ shoulder. He frowned at his wife, but understood what she meant. “If you want an animal name, we could use something more normal, like Raven or Jay.”
“Normal?” he questioned. “A Lovegood is nothing close to normal!” She chuckled at his words, knowing they were somewhat true. “Our son or daughter shall have an unusual name. A name that people will remember her by!”
The end of Xenophilius’ words were met with silence.Aurora was deep in thought, over what would be the perfect name for their child. Xeno noticed this and tried to concentrate on the same thing, but Nargle and Wrackspurt just kept coming back to him. Why couldn’t she see that they were great ideas?
After a long moment of silence, Aurora’s face lit up. “Luna,” she announced, grinning broadly. “If we have a daughter, we should name her Luna!”
“Luna,” Xeno speculated. “Luna Lovegood.” He tried the name out, letting it fall from his mouth. Luna Lovegood. It had a nice sound to it. He nodded. “That sounds like a wonderful name.”
“It means ‘moon’ in Latin,” Aurora informed him.
“Moon?” he asked. “Why did you pick a name that means moon?” He wondered if his wife was still trying to keep with the nature theme.
“I named her after the moon,” replied Aurora, putting a hand on Xeno’s thigh, “Because of the first time we met. Remember?”Xenophilius nodded, smiling to himself. How could he not remember the night he had met Aurora, the love of his life? It would be a hard moment to forget.
It had been just another Halloween night at Hogwarts. The whole school was gathered in the Great Hall for the Halloween Feast. Xenophilius, then a 5th Year, was seated at the Ravenclaw table with his good friend, Frank Longbottom. Everyone was laughing and filling their empty stomachs with treacle tarts, pumpkin pasties and liquorice wands, but Xeno was busy staring out the window.
“Do you want a chocolate frog?” Frank asked, reaching for the plate.
“No thank you,” he replied, his eyes not leaving the window. “Did you know that it’s a full moon tonight?” he asked his friend.
“No, I didn’t,” Frank replied, opening the chocolate frog package and pulling out the card. “Why, Xeno? What’s so important about a full moon?”
“Well, I was thinking about going outside to see if I could find a mooncalf,” he explained, tearing his eyes away from the window to look over at his friend.
“A mooncalf?” asked Frank. “Is this another one of your imaginary magical creatures?”
“This isn’t imaginary, Frank,” he replied, crossing his arms over his chest. “A mooncalf is a real creature. It’s even published in Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them. It come out only on a full moon and dance around on their hind legs.”
He raised an eyebrow at Xenophilius. “Okay then,” he murmured, looking out at the moon. “You just better not get yourself in trouble!”
“I won’t get caught,” he replied, shaking his head. “I have my invisibility cloak, remember?”
“Yes, but how long do those things normally last?” asked Frank. “They wear away after time, and soon they’re just a cloak.”
“I think this one is different,” he replied. He glanced around to make sure no one could hear, before leaning in to whisper, “I think it’s Death’s Invisibility Cloak.”
“Death’s Invisibility Cloak?” repeated Frank. “From the Tale of the Three Brothers?”
“Precisely,” Xenophilius nodded. “If it belonged to Death it would never wear out!”
“I don’t know….” Frank muttered as lightning cracked overhead, coming from the enchanted ceiling. Every Halloween, Dumbledore enchanted it to look dark and cloudy with bolts of lightning appearing every so often.
“I won’t get caught, I promise,” he said, smiling at his friend. “I’m just going to see if I can find a mooncalf. If not, I’ll come straight back into the castle.”
“Fine,” Frank replied. “Just be careful. We don’t need you getting another detention because you’re out searching for magical creatures.”
Xenophilius smiled broadly. “Thanks Frank! If I find the mooncalf, it’ll be brilliant!”
At that moment, Headmaster Dumbledore stood up and walked towards the front of the Staff Table. “I thank you all for joining us today to celebrate Halloween! If you would all return to your common rooms now, I believe that the Prefects have a surprise for you! Good night!”
As Dumbledore sat back down, everyone stood up and began walking out of the Great Hall. “I wonder what the surprise is?” Xeno heard one boy murmur.
“Maybe Dumbledore hired the Weird Sisters and they’re going to play for us!” a Gryffindor girl exclaimed, grinning.
“What if they brought a real vampire?” a 7th Years student asked.
“A v- v- vampire?” a 1st Year Gryffindor stammered. “Aren’t they d-dangerous?”
“Hey Peter, don’t worry,” another Gryffindor said. He had jet-black hair and hazel eyes hidden behind a round pair of glasses. “It’s not dangerous. It’ll just bite your neck, that’s all!”
Peter looked at the other boy. He seemed confused as to whether he had been kidding or not.
Xenophilius just followed the crowd of Ravenclaws, sweeping past the young boys, and continued walking up to the common room. He was pushed and jostled as students hurried past, excited for whatever the surprise was. When he finally reached the entrance to the common room, someone had already answered the riddle. Students were streaming through the door and into the common room.
Xeno walked in and gazed around. The prefects had decorated the common room with floating jack-o-lanterns and had changed the couch cushions and window curtains to orange and black. A group of older students were seated on the floor, one of them holding a bottle of Veritaserum in their hand. Xeno noticed that Frank was seated with the rest of the group, a girl a year or two younger than them beside him. The common room was crowded as everyone tried to talk to their friends or eat some of the treats that were laid out on a table. Xenophilius decided that it would be the perfect time to sneak out and find the mooncalf. He crept up the stairs to his dormitory and reached into his trunk, pulling out the invisibility cloak he had bought over the summer. It was still in really good shape and the young boy was positive that it had once belonged to Death. He quickly threw the cloak over himself and snuck back downstairs. He paused to watch the circle where Frank was sitting.
“Frank,” one of the boys said, “Truth or Dare.”
He hesitated for a moment, looking as though he was weighing out his options. “Erm, I think I’ll go with Dare,” he replied.
“I dare you,” began the boy, tapping the side of his head as he thought. “Oh! I dare you to kiss Alice!” Frank glanced over at the younger girl that was sitting beside him. Her cheeks were a deep red.
Xenophilius didn’t stay around to see what happened. Mostly everyone in the common room had turned to watch what Frank would do next and Xeno decided it would be the perfect time to make his escape. He opened the door to the common room and walked out, making sure that his invisibility cloak was wrapped tightly around himself.
It didn’t take long for Xenophilius to walk down to the Ground Floor and out onto the grounds. None of the professors were patrolling the hallways, and he figured that they had taken a break, assuming everyone would be at their common room parties. Xenophilius probably would have stayed for the party to, if it hadn’t of been a full moon that night.
The grounds of Hogwarts looked so peaceful at night. One of the trees shook in the wind, letting orange and red leaves fall to the ground. Xeno shivered against the breeze that blew through the grounds. He took off his invisibility cloak, tucking it into the pocket of his trousers.
Xenophilius walked over to a tree and sat with his back against it, looking around. Mooncalves were only supposed to appear in places where the moon was shining, and that was currently the lake. As Xeno stared, waiting for the creature to appear, something caught his eye. A movement where the moon was not shining. It was so dark he could hardly tell if what he had seen was really there or not. He reached up to rub his eyes before looking again. Another swift movement and this time he heard a sound.
“Hello?” he called out, keeping his voice low. “Hello? Is someone there?” he heard a splash of water as something stepped out into the light of the moon. It was a girl, the moon beams tenderly reflecting off her pale skin. Xenophilius stumbled backwards, frightened by the sudden appearance of another student. She ran out of the water and over to him as he lay on the ground, nursing a bruised elbow.
“Are you alright?” she asked. Her golden blonde hair was falling into her face as she looked at his elbow. “You’re not hurt are you?”
“N- no,” he sputtered out, looking up at the girl. She smiled down at him, her green eyes looking at his body for any cuts or bruises.
“I’m sorry,” she apologized, sweeping her blonder hair out of her eyes.
“You don’t have to apologize,” he said.
“My name’s Aurora by the way,” she said, grinning at him.
“Xenophilius,” he replied.
Aurora giggled. “That’s an odd name,” she said, standing back up and tucking her hair behind her ears. “So, Xenophilius, what are you doing out here?”
“I was just, uh, looking for a mooncalf,” he explained. He hoped that she didn’t think he was a complete idiot.
“A mooncalf, huh?” she muttered, glancing around. “Well, I haven’t seen any. I’m not sure if they live around here or not.”
Xenophilius nodded. “S-so,” he began, “What are you doing out here? Shouldn’t you be at the party in your common room.”
“Nah,” she said, rolling her eyes. “I don’t really like parties. I don’t really like being indoors. The outdoors are much more adventurous and interesting.”
“Hm,” he replied, noticing that Aurora was not wearing any shoes on her feet. He assumed she had been dipping them in the water of the lake.
“So, Xenophilius. Do you have a nickname?”
“Well, people call me Xeno,” he replied, giving the girl a small smile.
Aurora nodded. “And I can see you’re a Ravenclaw,” she continued, gesturing to the blue and bronze tie that he wore around his neck. “I’m a Gryffindor.”
“Neat,” he replied. “I’m a 5th Year, how about you?”
“6th,” she replied, fiddling with a bracelet on her arm. “Do you, uh, want help up?” she asked.
Xeno blushed. “Sure,” he said. Aurora reached down and grabbed his hands, pulling him to his feet. “Thanks,” he replied.
“Don’t mention it,” she grinned. They stood in silence for a moment and he could feel his heart rate increasing just a little bit.
“Are you sure that you haven’t seen a mooncalf around here? I read in Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them that mooncalves can be found all over Europe! They supposedly only come out on a full moon?”
“Really?” Aurora asked, glancing up at the sky. “Well, I don’t know why one isn’t out here. Maybe they’re just shy.”
Xeno shrugged. They both stood silent and he racked his brain for something to think about. Finally, he decided on asking, “Aurora, why were you walking in the Lake?” Xenophilius glanced up at the older girl as he awaited an answer.
“Oh, well I read that walking in water that is being hit directly with the light of the moon is good for your skin. I’m not sure if it’s true or not, but it was relaxing.” She smiled, looking down at her toes. “Would you like to try?”
“Sure,” he replied. Aurora smiled and began walking over to the lake, Xenophilius following right behind her. As the reached the calm waters he slipped off his robe, straightening out the black vest that he wore underneath it. Xeno then bent down to untie his shoes, setting them down beside his robes. Aurora was already stepping into the water, smiling with contentment. He lifted up his pants a bit so that the bottoms wouldn’t get wet, and trekked in.
The water was freezing cold. It felt like daggers against his skin. After a few moments, however, the cold felt nice. Xenophilius waded out to where Aurora was, standing in the moonlight. Her skin seemed to reflect the light and the 15 year old boy stared in awe. She was beautiful, poised there in the light. Too distracted by the girl, Xeno walked forward, not quite paying attention where he was going. His foot hit a large rock, sending him head first into the lake. So much for staying dry.
Xenophilius could hear Aurora running over to him. “Xeno!” she called. “Are you alright?” He sat up in the water, pushing his wet hair out of his eyes.
“Yeah,” I think I’m alright, he replied, shaking his head, to dry out his hair.
“Are you sure?” she questioned, leaning in close to him. He could feel her cool breath on his cheek as she checked to make sure that the younger boy was uninjured.
“I’m sure,” he replied. She reached down to grab his hands as she had done earlier, and Xeno could feel his breath catching in his throat as Aurora grabbed his hand. She was the most beautiful girl in the world, he was sure of it, and here she was, touching his hand.
She hoisted him to his feet, and Xeno let go of her hand to try and make his hair less dripping wet. It wasn’t until he’d run his hand through his hair a few times that he realized Aurora’s right hand was still clutched in his left.
“Oh, erm, sorry,” he blushed, quickly pulling his hand away and stuffing it into his wet pants pocket. He stared down at the water, his bare feet wiggling in the sand, hoping that he hadn’t just made a complete fool of himself.
“You don’t have to apologize,” she replied, winking at him. She reached down and grabbed his hand in hers again. Xeno could feel his cheeks flushing as Aurora gripped his hand tight.
“We should probably go back inside,” Xenophilius commented. “It’s getting kind of late.”
“Okay,” she said, as the two walked out of the water side by side. “It was nice meeting you, Xeno. And I’m sorry that you didn’t find you mooncalf.”
“It’s okay,” he replied, letting go of her hand to slip his shoes back on. He had found something better that Halloween night. Something better than a mooncalf. He had found the most beautiful girl in the world.
“Yes, I think Luna will be an excellent name,” Xenophilius grinned, wrapping an arm around his wife. She was still the most beautiful thing he had ever seen, though she had aged since they first met. Her wasn’t quite so long and her skin wasn’t quite so pale, but she was still a vision of loveliness.
Aurora smiled at her husband, leaning over to give him a kiss. Her lips tenderly touched his, and he could still feel his heart flutter, like the first time they had held hands. It was a great sensation and Xenophilius knew he was lucky to have a wife, and soon a child, who was so wonderful.
He swept the blonde hair out of his wife’s eyes, smiling. He had to be the luckiest man in the world, being able to call Aurora his.
“I love you,” she whispered, curling into him.
“I love you too,” he replied, setting a hand on Aurora’s stomach. Aurora reached her hand up and placed it on top of her husbands, smiling.
Suddenly, Xenophilius felt something hit his hand. “Did you feel that?” he asked his wife.
Aurora laughed, though she was wincing with the slight pain. “That’s our little Luna,” she replied, feeling the baby kick.
Xenophilius grinned, glad to be sharing this moment with his wife. “I think she’s saying hello,” he said, chuckling.
“Hello little Luna,” Aurora cooed.
They felt another kick and this time, Xeno said, “Hello Luna. I’m your daddy and this is your mummy!”
The Lovegood house was quiet no more. Instead, it was filled with laughter and smiling as Xenophilius and Aurora Lovegood spoke to their unborn daughter, Luna. Everything was perfect.
A/N: So, was it good? The bit about Xeno naming his child 'Nargle' or 'Wrackspurt' is a joke between me and my cousin, saying that Lun should name her kids Nargle and Wrackspurt! :) I hope you enjoyed this!
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