Author's Note: I don't own Harry Potter.

Looking Past the Expected

"Harry!"

Harry Potter ignored the indignant cry, storming out of the Common Room and away from his frustrated friends.

The-Boy-Who-Lived knew that they had every right to be angry with him. He had been lashing out unfairly at them for months.

His fury had been justifiable when his friends had kept information from him during the summer. Sure, Dumbledore had ordered it, but he had also just lost Sirius, and he made sure his friends understood how much the silence had hurt. But in the months since, his constant snapping came so unprovoked that even Harry was at a loss.

He was so lost in his thoughts that he hardly registered where he was going until he was pushing open the doors and exiting the castle. He froze for a moment, contemplating turning around and finding Ron and Hermione to apologize, but suddenly a cold autumn breeze blew through across his skin.

Harry didn't know why such a simple thing caused tears to fill his eyes. He wasn't typically the type to cry, but suddenly, standing there with the grounds sprawled before him, everything still and only just lit by the rising sun, he found himself on the brink of breaking down. His head turned, unbidden, to gaze at the Whomping Willow. The tree was a mere blur of black limbs against the pink sky of dawn, but memories of his first meeting with Sirius flashed through his mind as though he were looking in a Pensieve. Unbidden, his feet began to make the trek to the willow.

The cold air felt good in his lungs as he gasped for air. He was aware that he was properly crying now, but he couldn't bring himself to care.

He stood there for several moments, head pressed against the trunk of the tree, and felt at peace.

That was when it occurred to him just which tree his forehead rested against, and he reeled backwards in confusion. His wand was raised, ready to try and defend himself from the vicious limbs, but the Whomping Willow remained still.

"You can thank the Nargles for that one," A nearby voice caused Harry to jump. He whirled around, his eyes landing on a familiar head of white-blonde hair.

"Luna, did you press the knot to keep the tree from moving?" Harry asked her.

She shook her head, giving him a very patient look. "No Harry. I told you, it was the Nargles."

He glanced back at the willow, slowly, then returned his gaze to the younger girl. "Right. Nargles." He said dubiously.

Luna gave him a serene smile. He flinched as her hand darted forward, but she simply clasped his fingers and pulled him closer to the tree.

"You're seeing what you expect to Harry Potter," She told him, her gaze completely serious.

Harry searched her wide blue eyes, but found nothing to suggest that she wasn't telling the truth. His gaze returned, almost unconsciously, to the trunk before him.

And he looked.

He was not, however, expecting to find himself looking into a pair of large brown eyes.

"Ah!" Harry yelled, jumping backwards. The huge globes blinked, slowly, before shifting to look at Luna.

"I told you he could do it," She said cheerfully. The blonde then turned to face Harry, giving him a brilliant smile. "Nargles are attracted by strong emotions. Hence why they like to hang out in mistletoe, and why this one was so willing to help you out."

Luna gently pulled him away from the willow, making sure they were completely out of its reach before she stopped moving. As soon as she gestured for it, the little Nargle hopped off of the knot in the trunk and sprinted for the two students.

Harry gazed wide-eyed as the tiny creature hopped onto his shoe, climbing up his body until it was perched on his shoulder. Despite its startling eyes, the Nargle was quite small. It was also, strangely enough, lavender in color, and looked to have a mouse's body, a rabbit's ears, and the tail of a squirrel. It was ridiculously adorable.

"It's so small," Harry mumbled.

"Yes, they don't tend to grow much larger than a snitch. They can fly too," Luna responded. "This one is named Porphyra. She's rather fond of you, actually."

The boy-who-lived hesitantly held out a finger, a smile threatening to bloom across his face as the petite creature immediately pressed her head into his hand. He could see Luna grinning at him as he carefully pet the Nargle.

"Luna?" He asked her.

"Yes Harry?"

"Didn't you once say you suspect the Nargles of stealing your things?"

She giggled as Porphyra let out an angry chittering noise. "Yes, though they don't like to admit it. They steal things that have strong emotions tied to them when you haven't been paying them enough attention. They quite enjoy taking my shoes because I always delight in finding them again, so apparently my shoes have a happy feeling to them."

With that she turned, drifting into the forest behind them. Harry followed her without being prompted.

"Do you come in here often?" He asked the girl.

"Yes, it's quite lovely in the mornings especially," She responded. Then she stopped, giving him a calculating look. "Would you carry my shoes? I don't want to scare away any of my shyer friends."

Harry would have agreed even before his introduction to the Nargle currently residing on his shoulder, but now he wondered if he should take his own shoes off as well.

"No," Luna said when he mentioned the issue, "It shouldn't be a problem. They'll recognize my feet well enough."

He nodded, taking her trainers from her without further comment.

The walk through the forest was wonderfully peaceful. Luna narrated her past experiences in her soft, dreamy voice, stopping occasionally to introduce more of her friends. He was amazed at how many creatures he could suddenly see. It made the entire forest seem mystical, and he found himself carefully watching for critters beneath his feet.

"Look, there are Porphyra's friends."

Harry smiled at the tiny group of Nargles. Some of them were purple, like Porphyra, while others were pink, blue, and yellow. They all crowded around him, making him chuckle.

That was when the Thestral entered the clearing. Sirius popped back into Harry's head, and his joy disappeared.

Harry would have yelled and possibly thrown something, had he not been afraid of harming the little creatures still clustered around his feet.

Instead, he burst into tears.

He sank slowly down until he was seated on the forest floor. Luna came and sat down next to him, speaking softly to the Thestral. The Nargles surged onto his legs, making strange squeaking noises that somehow made him feel better.

"I lost my Mum," Luna said suddenly. Harry turned to look at her through blurry eyes. "It happened very suddenly. She was a gifted Potioneer, but there was an accident... It was quite hard, but I realized that she wouldn't want me to be unhappy."

Luna turned and met Harry's gaze.

"Your godfather wouldn't want you to be unhappy Harry."

Then she handed him, of all things, an apple. He watched curiously as the Thestral crept forward, taking the fruit from his palm with caution before nuzzling into Luna's outstretched hand.

Harry remained silent as Luna started to tell him again about her creatures, this time adding in stories of how her mother had fostered her belief in things that others said were fake. Harry was touched that she was willing to share such things with him, and it was nice to have a distraction from the pain of losing Sirius.

After a while, the forest seemed a good deal lighter, and his stomach was beginning to growl.

The blonde giggled. "I think it's time we headed back up to the castle. I'm sure Ron and Hermione have been looking for you, they'll probably be quite worried by now."

Harry nodded. He and Luna began to carefully move the Nargles from their legs, smiling at those that ran off and placing the ones that refused to go in their pockets. Porphyra remained stubbornly on Harry's shoulder.

"Hey Luna?" Harry asked as they began to move towards Hogwarts.

"Yes Harry?"

"What are Wrackspurts?"

She grinned at him, before suddenly grasping the side of his head and blowing in his ear.

"Hey!" He yelled.

She laughed outright, directing his gaze to a line of jellyfish-like creatures that were drifting slowly away from his head. "Actually, you can probably blame them for your bad mood as of late."

"Well, then I suppose I owe you a thank you," He told her with a smirk, though he knew his bad mood had been lifted even before the Wrackspurts had been dispersed. He looked appraisingly at the remarkable girl standing next to him. "Hey Luna? I really think you should write a book. These creatures are amazing."

"No one would believe it, so I would just seem crazy," She said casually.

Harry didn't miss the way she hummed after his suggestion. He suspected few people took any interest in Luna's creatures, but today he had found that listening to her talk about them was exactly what he needed.

Porphyra nuzzled against his cheek as he entered the Great Hall, and he steeled himself as his two very relieved best friends began running his way.

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