Wand-Leader & The Spy

3- Rendezvous

London, Diagon Alley, August 4th, 1999, 11.45 hours

"What are you doing?" Hermione asked Luna, who was moving with a very weird gait. The quirky girl and she had been friends for years, but the muggleborn witch was still confused more often than not by the blonde's antics.

"I'm appeasing fate by the traditional dance-walk performed by the ancestors of the Ukrainian Steppe Shamans."

Hermione decided not to ask about the dance part, nor about Ukrainian Shamans - intuition born from long experience told her that she wouldn't like the explanation - and instead asked: "Fate?"

Luna froze for a moment, her right foot hovering five inches above the ground, and turned her head to the brown-robed Wand. "Yes," she said, nodding slowly. "Fate conspired twice so far to ruin our meal together, both times by causing dreadful calamities. I will not tempt it a third time by not appeasing it."

"Ah." Hermione nodded, smiling. "Will fate be appeased by the time we reach the restaurant?"

"It should be." Luna continued towards 'Connington's'. Since the inn was owned by a half-blood, none of the purebloods who would disapprove of Luna's friendship with Hermione would even think of eating there. Perfect for the two of them.

Even so Hermione noticed a few of the guests glance at them before looking away. She was used to that, though. Even those without something to hide tended to be nervous near her and her fellow Wands. Since they were regulars there it generally wasn't that obvious, but the attack last evening must have had the population on edge.

Luna had stopped dance-walking and had grabbed her left hand to drag the taller girl to their favourite table. Hermione let her, despite the less than professional impression this left. She did notice a few of the nervous guests starting to smile though.

As usual, Hermione needed a while to decide on what to order from the menu while Luna picked her meal at once by combining dishes from the different daily specials. Fortunately, the staff was used to her.

"So… how's work?" Luna leaned forward as soon as the waitress had left their table. She hadn't gotten her quill out, so she was asking as Hermione's friend, not as a journalist. Luna had few rules, but those she had, she followed more stubbornly than the Wand herself.

"Busy. The Corps will be on alert for the time being."

"You're always on alert," Luna said.

"Not technically."

Luna snorted. "You're always ready to jump into a fight."

"'A Wand Is Never Off Duty," Hermione quoted another rule she lived by.

Her friend pouted. "All work and no play. That's not healthy."

She shrugged. "Would you still like me if I could sit on my wand while people need help?"

Luna scowled and took several bites out of the various things on her plate instead of answering. Hermione smirked, then smiled. "But I can assure you, unless there's another attack, I'll not be working late." She was still waiting for answers to her requests to the Department of Mysteries and the Auror Office, anyway. Interdepartmental cooperation in the Ministry of Magic was, unfortunately, far worse than it should be. The Corps' own Investigative Branch was still understaffed and underfunded, in her opinion.

"So you can bury your nose in the latest books then?" Luna gently teased, before spearing a chip with her fork as if she were a hunter on the prowl.

"Maybe." Hermione winced when Luna's head shot up and the blonde stared at her with wide eyes.