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His first Wednesday night at Hogwarts, he sat in the astronomy tower. After dinner up until 15 minutes before curfew, he sat there alone, looking at the stars. A tradition continued from his time before Hogwarts, where he'd sit and stare at the night sky with this gran every Wednesday.
It was a comfort those first few weeks of hogwarts. Every Wednesday, he knew he had the astronomy tower.
Sometimes he talked to the little vines growing there. Sometimes he watered them. Sometimes he cried. Sometimes he rocked back and forth. Sometimes he did none of those things and sometimes he did all of those things.
Starting Hogwarts was a great big change. He had lost all of his routines. He didn't get to see his gran anymore. He had to live with 5 other boys who might as well have been strangers. They were loud and energetic and always talking. He didn't have a routine for the new place, or a list of things, or anything to help him. He couldn’t keep up with all the things he had to do. His gran had to send him a remembrall to keep him on track.
But in the midst of all the chaos of first year, he had the astronomy tower. He had it the day he first learned lumos and the day he finally cast the levitation charm. He had the astronomy tower the day Snape took away 20 points for his potion making, the day he earned his first points in herbology, and he had it the day after he stood up against Harry and Ron and Hermione.
The astronomy tower was consistent. It was routine. It was comfortable. It was his.
He returned back to the tower on the third day of his second year only to find another person there. A little blonde first year named Luna.
His mind went into overdrive when he first saw her. This was his space. His time. There weren't supposed to be any people there. It was his space on Wednesday nights after dinner until 15 minutes before curfew. Everyone knew that. It was his space. She wasn't supposed to be here. What was she doing here?
And then he looked at her again. Sitting and rocking back and forth, humming quietly. She was looking at the stars with a fondness, one hand tracing constellations. She slowly dragged her other hand across the stone floor, feeling every groove. She was humming the same five notes over and over.
He breathed deeply like his Gran had taught him and moved closer. Slowly, he sat down next to her. He started humming the same tune as her, over and over. He rocked back and forth in sync with her. He didn't feel a need to speak with her. Maybe she wasn't going to be so bad.
The next Wednesday, she was there again. He sat down beside her just like last time. They rocked together in the peace of the night, watching the stars.
Slowly, she became a part of his routine. Wednesdays after dinner in the astronomy tower. Sometimes they spoke, sometimes they didn't. Sometimes one listened to the other talk endlessly about their special interest. They never touched. They thought about their own things. Sometimes they rocked back and forth, humming the same tunes. Sometimes neither of them made a sound for the entire night. But even when there was silence, it was comfortable.
As the years went on, in the midst of all the bad things happening, death eaters, war and fearing for their lives, they still always had the astronomy tower. Every Wednesday night after dinner, without fail.