Hermione met Luna Lovegood in her third year. Having spent her first and second year having to ward off the resurrection of Voldemort, she didn’t have time to meet the sweet blonde Ravenclaw until Harry and Ron ostracized her from their friend group for reporting the Firebolt to McGonagall. She was overworked, exhausted, and no longer felt safe studying in the Gryffindor Tower. So, Hermione retreated to the one place she knew the boys wouldn’t care to follow her- the library. It was there where she was sitting at a table when Luna walked up and handed her a handkerchief.
“Are you alright?” the soft, serene voice rang. Hesitantly, Hermione took the handkerchief, not even realizing she had been crying over her parchment. The quirky girl reached behind her ear to pluck out her wand and wave it over Hermione’s ruined essay.
Hermione stared in astonishment as she fixed the inkblots. “How- how did you do that?”
The Ravenclaw smiled, “I’ll teach you if you like.”
Since that day, Luna had become Hermione’s most treasured friend. While the two had many different interests, Luna being a firm believer in the divine and Hermione’s being Arithmancy, they still found many things to bond over. The girls spent several hours in the library together, pouring over the knowledge Hogwarts kept tucked away in its stacks. Sometimes she would coax Hermione out to the forest edge to read on a log while Luna fed the Thestrals. Even though the curly-haired Gryffindor couldn’t see them, she trusted the Ravenclaw when she said the creatures were there.
The most challenging aspect of their friendship was Luna’s beliefs, which Hermione kept pointing out were not rooted in any form of logic. Her nonsensical ideas often grated on Hermione’s nerves, but Luna remained unfazed by Hermione’s skepticism. She admired that unadulterated faith and found it genuinely alluring when she listened to Luna’s creative yet eccentric thought process. There were an embarrassingly amount of times Hermione would catch herself asking Luna a question so that she could hear the Ravenclaw’s dreamy voice.
Hermione cherished each interaction she had with Luna, and soon she found herself anticipating seeing her more than she wanted to see Harry and Ron. This feeling vexed her for the longest time until they started partnering together in Dumbledore’s Army. Hermione became increasingly frustrated each week she tried to conjure a corporeal Patronus. Her memories just weren’t happy enough until she felt Luna reach for her hand and gave it a comforting squeeze. When Luna let go, she had to stop herself from seeking the Ravenclaw’s touch. With a wink and a soft smile, Luna waved her wand and produced her Patronus. The happy hare bounced all around the room and circled Hermione a few times before it disappeared. Her breath caught in her throat as she met Luna’s silver eyes, shinning with encouragement and compassion.
“Go on, Hermione,” Luna whispered breathlessly, “You try now.”
Hermione’s eyes never left Luna as she tried to keep her wand from trembling in her hand.
“Expecto Patronum!”
Hermione felt exhilarated when a very eager river otter shot out the end of her wand and started to swim around Luna. As she watched them spin in time and play together, Hermione’s smile slowly fell off her face, causing the animal to disappear. It was at that moment that she realized she had fallen in love with her best friend.
She refused to admit her feelings and resigned herself to believing Luna would never love her the way she did. So, when Hermione returned for her Sixth Year, she resolved to find an attraction with Ron. Oh, how miserably that failed. And to add salt to the wound, it was Luna that found her crying in the bathroom before Slughorn’s Christmas Party. She didn’t have the heart to tell her sweet, caring friend the real reason why she was crying, so she lied and blamed her tears on Ron dating Lavender Brown. Not even Dumbledore’s death gave her the courage to tell Luna. Hermione would never forget the knowing yet accepting look on Luna’s face when they were alone in the train compartment.
“Sometimes we are not ready to accept the love we are destined to have, and that can attract Wrackspurts. They make us unfocused and confused, which then leads us to think dark thoughts about ourselves. But… you know, the beauty of light owes its existence to the darkness. So, it must have a purpose.”
That was the last thing Luna said to her before she went on the Horcrux hunt. She would discretely listen to Ron’s radio and wait to hear if Death Eaters had caught the woman she loved. When the trio finally went to Xenophilius Lovegood to learn about the Deathly Hallows, Hermione had been so furious to learn that Voldemort’s followers had taken Luna. She knew Luna loved her father, so she allowed the Snatchers to see them briefly before disappariting, hoping it would save the man from being killed. That mistake led to their capture.
She lay there on the drawing room floor of Malfoy Manor, writhing in pain when she saw a flash of recognizable blonde hair and was suddenly pulled from the ground. Luna had a vice grip on her arm until they were all whisked away. And then Hermione was crumpled on the sand while she held Luna… dying in her arms.
“NO! You can’t!” Hermione screamed as tears poured from her eyes. Her hands were covered in blood from the wound the dagger made in Luna’s stomach. “Ha- Harry, my bag! Something! Anything!”
When she looked up and saw the hopeless expression on Harry’s face, she cried harder before turning back to move a lock of hair out of Luna’s face.
“It’s… It’s alright….” Luna stuttered.
“It’s not,” Hermione argued. She leaned down and kissed Luna’s cheek. “I love you.”
Luna’s skin was pale and turning purple, but somehow, she managed to form a weak smile, “I know.”