So apparently there is a tag limit that I did not know about, so I’m just going to make a text-post about my alternate-universe Harry/Luna headcanon (is it still a headcanon if it’s au?). Because why not.

Sometime in the post book five summer Harry would write Luna a letter because she understands things that at this point Ron and Hermione don’t. Not that it would be about any of those things because of course Harry would feel weird about putting anything about Sirius and stuff into writing. Luna would respond largely with some story about her recent encounter some creature Harry is sure doesn’t exist, but then again everyone had thought the threstrals weren’t real, so he decides to ask her more about it. Before they know it they’re sending letters to each other every few days, and even though mostly they’re about the sort of things that the Quibbler publishes articles about they also somehow get on to a surprising range of subjects. Luna’s perspective on the happenings in the wizarding world is quite different from Ron’s. It both does and doesn’t  surprise Harry how much she notices just from a trip to the store. He likes that she doesn’t pretend it isn’t scary without making a big deal out of it.

And then it’s back to school and through the fall they keep ending up hanging out alone together, because Ron and Hermione and still prefects and Ginny’s got dates, and Neville for some reason keeps leaving after mumbling something about feeling awkward without anyone else there, until at some point they just start hanging out alone on purpose. Harry discovers that when she talks about things like charms and potions she’s actually quite grounded, and very good at school work although unlike Hermione she’s rubbish at checking his work. He asks her to the Christmas party pretty much the same as he does in the book, but Harry ducks back into the party after eavesdropping on Draco. They stay long enough to have a little bit of actual fun and then Harry walks her back to her dormitory. Before she goes to answer the riddle there’s a pause, and Harry gets to thinking that despite the absurdity of her robes, or maybe because of it, she really looks quite nice, beautiful even, and he had a good time, but doesn’t he always when she’s with him, and before he can quite think of any reason not to, he kisses her. It’s quick but nice by Harry’s estimate,but the little humming sound she makes as he pulls away makes him realize he has almost nothing to judge by. She says goodnight and he mumbles something that is supposed to also be goodnight but doesn’t quite make it.

They don’t bring it up the next time they see each other, or the time after that. Things seem normal enough that Harry figures they’re pretending it didn’t happen until one day they’re studying together and Luna asks if he would like to kiss her again or if he’d been under the influence of nargles because of all the mistletoe that had been hung around that night. Harry is taken so off guard that it’s a full minute before he manages to say “It wasn’t nargles.” Luna doesn’t say anything back or, to Harry’s surprise, kiss him, but she does set her book down on the table so she can hold his hand until he needs it to write with.