Back at the Ball, nobody seemed to pay them any attention, all busy either dancing or enjoying the company of others. Well, all except Ron, who still sat alone with a deep scowl on his face.
"Leave him alone," Luna suggested, seeing Harry glance in that direction. "He is still a bit childish, but he will be alright, eventually. I'd like to dance some more now, dear husband of mine. It is our wedding night, after all."
Harry didn't bother to comment on that. Luna would say some weird things at times, and he thought it was better to disregard them. He just moved to hold her for the dance. As he lifted his left hand, something caught his eye. Looking closer, he found a shining plain gold ring resting on his finger. Luna noticed his surprise and found its cause. She then lifted her own hand. Harry noticed a similar ring on her finger, only slightly thinner.
"These are our wedding bands!" Luna said enthusiastically. "I was sure we'd end up married. I didn't expect it to be so soon, though. Isn't that wonderful?"
Harry felt as if hit on the face. A few weeks earlier, he didn't even know this girl. How could he already be married to her? And they were both too young for marriage! Yet the rings were real, and that flash in the garden was probably what Luna said it was. It really frightened him, yet Luna looked so happy and content that he didn't dare contradict her. He liked to see her happy.
"Yes, it's wonderful," he agreed, making her smile widen.
Harry hoped that nobody would notice their rings. He even tried to furtively take his ring off, but it seemed to stick to his finger. Luna didn't brag about that ring, but didn't try to hide it either.
The hall was starting to empty, as students were getting too tired to continue. Harry felt a tap on his shoulder. As he turned around, he found a smiling Hermione there. "Care for another dance with me?" she asked, as Krum bowed slightly in front of Luna, inviting her to dance with him.
"Sure, why not?" Harry let go of Luna's hand as Hermione stepped forward and her arms wrapped around him, ready for a slow, tight dance.
"So, Luna was right, wasn't she?" she asked him during the dance.
"What do you mean?" Harry wasn't sure what she was referring to.
"You married her, didn't you?" she said, pointing at his ring.
Harry blushed. "I didn't really mean…"
She laughed. "Harry, you couldn't have married her unless you intended to, at least unconsciously. You know that Magic is all about intent."
"Well, there was that flash…" he stammered, unwilling to speak about what they had done in the garden.
She smiled teasingly. "Are you sure you didn't say or do anything to cause it?"
Harry only blushed, remembering too well that wonderful feeling he got from going into Luna's body. He was still unwilling to talk about it. Hermione's smile turned into laughter. "Oh, Harry! You really are a darling. Luckily for me, I don't have that kind of feelings towards you, or I would have been extremely jealous. Congratulations, though. I believe this will all turn out to be very good for you."
"Thanks, I suppose," Harry mumbled.
Hermione tightened her hug, not really minding that her breasts were pressed onto his chest. Harry thought that she was acting more warmly with him since he agreed to take Luna. He wondered what it meant.
Luna was glad to return to his arms after that dance. A few dances later, the ball ended. "We should actually get our own apartment, but I don't think there's anybody to handle that right now, and we've already consummated our marriage. I think it will be all right if we sleep in our old beds tonight and only ask for an apartment tomorrow," Luna said.
"I'll escort you to your dorms," Harry said.
"Well, if you insist…" Luna smiled at him and leaned closer into his hug.
–..–
When Harry returned to the Gryffindor common room, he found Hermione in tears. "What is it, Hermione? What happened to make you cry?"
She wiped her eyes and tried to smile at him. "Ron happened. The git wouldn't give me peace for 'fraternizing with the enemy.' Why, only a few days ago, he was one of Krum's greatest fans!"
Harry took her hand in his and pressed it comfortingly. "He'll come around soon enough and apologize, in his way. You know how Ron is. You shouldn't take to heart."
She sighed. "Isn't it time he grew up a bit?"
"Just give him some time. Maybe we should have found him a date. He would have been more occupied at the ball this way."
Hermione sighed. "Maybe. Now, how come you're here and not with Luna?"
He smiled. "She said it was too late to ask for our own apartment. We'll do it tomorrow, I think."
Hermione tried to suppress a yawn. "Well, it's quite late and we're tired. We shall speak some more tomorrow. Good night, Harry."
–..–
None of the fourth-year boys woke up in time for breakfast, not even Ron. Harry was actually the first to wake up, realizing that he had just had a dream about Luna and him engaged in…
He blushed furiously, finding out that some part of his dream was true, as a few wet spots on his pajama bottom testified. Grateful that nobody else was already awake, he took his wand and used a cleaning charm to get rid of that suspect wetness. The dream was still fresh in his mind, though. It made him wonder if Luna really looked that way when naked. He then realized that he would probably be able to check this quite soon, as she was now his wife.
He looked at the ring on his finger and sighed. It was not that he disliked being married to Luna. Actually, the more he thought of her, the more he liked her. It was just that he didn't feel like he was ready to be married to anybody at all. Come to think of it, he had never kissed any girl before, not to mention more intimate activities. He still blushed when remembering what happened in the garden, although he had to admit that he had enjoyed it more than anything. Was that enough to make them married?
He found he was no longer sleepy. He decided to take a shower and spent quite some time enjoying the hot water running over his body, taking away his worries along with the residues of his activity in the garden and during his dreams.
When he finally returned to his room, his other dorm mates were stirring awake. Glancing at the clock, he noticed it was almost lunchtime. As if to confirm that, he heard Ron growl, "I'm starving. Let's get some breakfast."
"Breakfast is long over. Lunchtime will soon arrive. We may go for lunch when you're ready," Harry told him, not too warmly. He still remembered Hermione crying because of Ron.
Ron got ready quite quickly. Neville also joined them but kept silent. By the time they reached the Great Hall, lunch was already being served. They sat at the Gryffindor table and started filling their plates. A moment later, somebody plopped down at Harry's side. He turned his head to find a widely smiling Luna sitting there. "Good morning, dear husband of mine. Slept well?" she asked quietly, so that only Harry could hear.
"I slept well. And you?" he asked.
"Wonderfully! And I dreamed about us doing… things together." Harry thought he knew what she was referring to and blushed. He wondered if they had the same dream.
They ate silently. Ron still seemed a bit grumpy. Neville looked pensive. Harry thought that Neville was still thinking about dancing with Ginny, but that didn't seem like something safe to talk about near Ron. Luna just hummed to herself, looking very content, and Harry didn't dare talk to her, not sure what she might say.
He glanced at the head table. It was almost empty, except for Dumbledore and McGonagall, who were talking amiably. Harry wondered whom it would be better to approach with his — their — request. He wasn't looking forward to explaining to either how he got married.
A house elf popped up at his side before he finished eating. "The headmaster would like to meet you in his office at your earliest convenience, Lord and Lady Potter. The password is 'Lemon Drops'."
Harry looked at Luna with evident confusion. Luna just smiled. "He's probably found out about us. That may spare us some explanations. Aren't you excited? We're going to have our own shag-nest!"
Harry thought he would have liked some less explicit wording. He was thankful that Ron was too absorbed in eating to pay attention to Luna, and Neville seemed still deep in thought, or he would be hard-pressed to give some explanations, which he wasn't looking forward to.
"You know you'll have to tell him, and quite soon at that," Luna reminded him, as if reading his thoughts. Harry just grimaced.
Luna didn't eat much and ate very daintily. Harry waited for her to finish. By then, the headmaster had already left the hall. Harry stood up, and Luna followed suit, grabbing his arm. "I need to see the headmaster," he said to Ron, who seemed to barely notice his words, and left promptly.
Luna seemed quite happy walking with Harry. While she held his hand in hers, she skipped at his side, as if dancing to some unheard music. Harry was glad to see her so happy and carefree, knowing that she was sometimes not quite happy with her housemates. He said the password as they arrived at the gargoyle, and Luna seemed fascinated at the way it moved, and then at the moving stairs. "I've never been here," she told Harry, excited like a little child. Harry thought she was quite cute that way.
The door to the headmaster's office was open, and he stood up as soon as he noticed them at the door. Harry closed the door behind them and helped Luna to one of the chairs set in front of the headmaster's desk. Dumbledore sat down only after both teens were seated.
"Lord and Lady Potter, I'm quite surprised about you two getting married. If it's not too much of a bother, I'd like to hear about how you two became an item. Everybody seemed so sure that Harry, Lord Potter, would end up with Miss Granger."
Harry wasn't sure what to say. He certainly didn't want to tell about the events in the garden. Luna seemed to like answering, though. "I also thought Harry Potter would end up with Hermione Granger. Then I had a vision, more than one actually, showing me raising our children together and even attending our son's wedding. It seemed so unlikely, at first, that I thought it was just a mistake. I tried searching for the future of Hermione and some other girls. None ended up with Harry. I also tried to see what could happen if he didn't end up with me. I'd rather not tell how bad it could become. This made me understand that I needed to act, and the Yule Ball gave me the opportunity. It then flowed naturally."
The headmaster seemed not to hear most of it. "Can you really see the future?"
Harry, who was looking at Luna, saw her recoil at hearing the question. Her good mood seemed to evaporate at once. "I can't see the future, at least not willingly. I can sometimes see my own future including people I feel close to, yet even that is only the most probable outcome of the current situation, and it could easily change, if one doesn't work to achieve that future, or — in other cases — to prevent it."
Dumbledore nodded, as if he was expecting such an answer. "Still, you saw yourself and Harry living happily — didn't you?"
"Of course. I also started working on making that future the most probable. I helped Harry learn to dance, and he invited me as his date for the ball, resulting in our magical wedding," she explained, regaining some of her good mood.
"What should we do to assure that future?" Dumbledore asked.
Luna smiled, making Harry's heart flutter. "Well, I started working on it. We now have to help Lord Potter survive the tournament and teach him all he may need to overcome his enemy."
The headmaster sighed. "Alas, due to the tournament's rules, I can't help any of the champions until the tournament ends."
Luna shrugged. "You didn't help him much before, either. Don't worry, though. I'll help him, as will Hermione and some others. We first need to get our own apartment, though, and you are free to help us with that. Later, I think Lord Potter will have some things to say about the organization and safety of the tournament, but not right now."
Harry was sure that Luna was enjoying playing this word game. He saw Dumbledore recoil from mentioning the Lord title and the implied dissatisfaction with the tournament, yet Luna was smiling sweetly and looking quite dreamy.
"Of course, Lady Potter. I'll make sure you have your own apartment before dinner. Now, if you don't mind, I'd suggest you visit Gringotts as soon as you can." He opened a drawer and took out four parchments, giving them to the teens. "Due to the ball ending so late, I redirected all mail to the participants here for this morning, to let the students sleep for as long as they needed. I didn't expect much mail to arrive, and indeed, these four letters are the only ones that reached me. As I'm Harry's magical guardian, well — I was his guardian until last night, so it seems, I opened the letters addressed to him, finding out about your marriage. One is from the ministry, confirming your marriage and announcing you of your emancipation. The other is from Gringotts, congratulating you and urging you to take control of your account. Although they phrase it 'at your earliest convenience,' they actually expect you to come today, and would frown upon coming later than tomorrow." He then seemed to remember something else. "I didn't open your letters, Lady Potter, but they seem to be identical to Lord Potter's."
The teens opened the letters, finding two practically identical sets. Harry sighed internally. He didn't feel ready to get married, to become a Lord, and now — to handle his finances. He felt Luna's small hand searching for his and pressing lightly, as if promising her support. His mood changed slightly. He still dreaded all this, but with Luna at his side, it wouldn't be too awful.