I hope you like this story, it's one that has been on my mind for a while and I really just wanted to write it down.
Disclaimer: I do not own anything from the Harry Potter series.
The bright green leaves whistled as Luna watched the thestral gallop before her. She had never seen one this blue before. She felt the apple in her hand and extended it out towards the creature. It drew near to her and swallowed the apple whole.
"There you go," she hummed to it. She was sure whenever she looked up, the thestral was smiling back at her with eyes that looked so familiar, so much like her own eyes.
"Mum…" she whispered towards the creature who was receding back into the forest.
Luna's eyes snapped open, she looked around and realized she was petting a gargoyle statue on the fourth floor of the castle. She lifted her hand from it and began to walk back to the Ravenclaw Tower.
She really needed to get her sleep walking under control. Lately she's been moving farther and farther away from the tower; who knows where she'll end up next. Luna wondered what was causing this problem. At first she figured something was on her mind that was causing her to go back to sleep walking. Then, a thought dawned on her; what if something was drawing her away from the tower at night? Something, some place, she needed to get to. Was her subconscious trying to tell her something?
Luna kept an open mind and started wearing her shoes as she went to bed, in case she ever felt the need to go for a stroll while unconscious.
…
The light of the fire flickered across Luna's face as she curled up on her favorite arm chair in the common room with her astronomy homework. The room was almost clear, except for her and Cho Chang, the seeker for their quidditch team in the year above her.
"Going to bed soon, Luna?" She asked.
Luna replied softly, "I'll be up in a minute. My father told me about a cluster of stars that look just like the horn on a crumple-horned snorcack. I'm going over my map to spot it for myself.
Cho gave a curious look than shook her head, leaving Luna to her thoughts. Eventually, the flames went out and the astronomy maps fell to the ground as Luna drifted to sleep. Once she was dreaming of her favorite (and completely real) creature, she got up, and her feet started carrying her down through the castle, and out through the herbology door.
As she walked, Luna's head tilted back and forth, her eyes closed. Luckily, she knew the path to the forest so well that she was literally able to follow it in her sleep. She went around the back of Hagrid's hut and into the forest she went.
The thestrals in the forest noticed Luna's presence, but it was so common to them that they didn't think twice of it, though it was the middle of the night. One eventually came up to her and she climbed onto its back, laying down against its warm back, still fast asleep. The thestral noted her steady heartbeat and light breaths and also sat down, keeping her steady on it's back.
…
When Luna awoke on the thestral's back, she was more surprised to find where she was.
"I can't believe I went this far," She exclaimed. The thestral made a small noise at the sound of her voice and she looked down at it, recognizing the creature instantly, "Sorry, Scout, I didn't mean to wake you. Thanks for taking care of me."
She looked around the forest. With the bright light streaming through the leaves, she couldn't understand what people saw so scary about the forest. She decided to take a little walk through it before heading back up to the castle.
She walked past a couple of trees and found a cloak laying at the base of one. It took her a moment to realize the cloak was moving and that someone or something was underneath it. She didn't want to just turn away from it; she couldn't. She picked up a stick from the ground and, at a safe distance, she lightly poked the cloak with the stick.
"Excuse me, hello?" She whispered brightly.
There was a grumble under the cloak and she backed away. The cloak shifted, revealing a ragged looking Defense Against the Dark Arts Teacher still in his suit from the previous day.
"Professor Lupin? Is that you?" She asked, moving closer to him again, offering a hand to help him up.
He looked at her for a moment, "Luna? What on earth are you doing here? You should be up at the castle."
"I sleep-walk, you see. I just woke up here not too long ago." She explained.
Lupin suddenly seemed very distraught. He stood up and looked her in the eyes, "Luna, that's very dangerous. You have to see Madame Pomfrey immediately and get that taken care of. The forest is a very dangerous place."
"Then why are you here, sir?" She asked curiously.
"I-well- it's hard to explain, Luna." He said wearily.
Luna looked at him, at the tree, and then up at the sky, "You're a werewolf, sir. Is that right?"
He twitched as she said it, "How did you come to that assumption?"
"Well, I know it was a full moon last night. You're in the middle of the forest. You look tired and worn out. And I know that Professor Snape has been making some kind of potions particularly for this time of the month. My guess is that you take some potion to make you as harmless as possible. But what I don't understand is why you came all the way out to the forest."
Remus stared at her for a moment. "Well, I can see why you are in Ravenclaw." He cleared his throat, "You are right about everything. I came down to the forest because I was still afraid. If the potion didn't work right, I could be a threat to any of the students and I didn't want to risk that."
"I don't see you as a threat. Clearly, the potion worked. It looks like you stayed at that tree all night, and I was only a little bit away. A werewolf would have found me and attacked me. You did no such thing, professor. You should go back to the castle. It's safer for you."
Lupin smiled. He never thought someone would understand him and accept him wholeheartedly the way she just did. And she cared about him being safe even though he was a werewolf. "Thank you, Luna." He offered to escort her back up to the castle, to Madame Pomfrey to get her a sleep potion.
As they walked, she said, "You know, professor? I don't think I'll be needing Madame Pomfrey. You see, I kept thinking that something was drawing me away while I slept, and I think that it was so I could find you out here. So I could maybe get you back to the castle during your nights as a werewolf before something happened to you. I just hope this wasn't for nothing; you will stay in the castle from now on, right?"
Lupin admired her ability to turn anything positive, "Yes, Luna, I'll do my best to stay in the castle. Thank you."
"Thank you, sir," she replied as they walked up to the doors. She gently squeezed his hand before letting go and running back up to the Ravenclaw Tower. She suddenly was grateful to her sleep walking; it led her right where she needed to be.
I hope you liked the story! Please let me know what you thought