Luna pushed a large blond tangle of hair out of her face as she casually sat down on the grass. She pulled her charcoal gray jumper over her head and set it down next to her books, basking in the spotty sunlight that was radiating from above the majestic trees. Lush and tame, the fresh grass and crunching leaves tickled her elbows as she leaned back on them. She kicked her shoes off and embraced the light autumn breeze between her toes as an old friend. Eyes closed, she threw her head back and let the quiet, windy late afternoon submerge her.
Neville walked timidly over towards Luna. With an awkward smile, he set his bag down and squatted next to her on the ground. "Hey, Luna," he said shyly.
Luna opened her sea blue, doe-like eyes and sat upright towards Neville.
"Oh, hello Neville. What brings you here?" she asked dreamily, looking around at the small, forgotten hill at the very edge of the school grounds, leading to the forest.
Neville took a moment to scan the scenic area before he spoke. "Well, I saw you up here on the way back to the castle from the greenhouse," he said, eyebrows scrunched, struggling to form his ideas into words. "I figured you wouldn't want to be all the way out here alone, you know," Neville finished with an honest shrug.
Luna placed a gentle hand upon Neville's shoulder. "Thank you. That's very thoughtful of you," she said, beginning to twirl a long strand of hair in her fingers absentmindedly.
"No problem," said Neville quietly. "It's too beautiful of a day for someone like you to be spending it alone," he commented, his voice shrinking with every syllable. His dark chocolate eyes glanced towards Luna's, which had become fixated onto him curiously. His eyes darted away rapidly, his cheeks turning as red as the firery shade of his house scarf.
Luna smiled softly. "You're very sweet Neville. But honestly, I'm quite used to being alone," she remarked, her hypnotic gaze parting from Neville and slowly drifting down as she spoke.
Neville looked at her for a moment, and felt an unusual sadness radiate from Luna that he had never felt before. He took in a deep breath, and heightened his focus towards her. "Well, I want to change that," he mustered out, jumbled and nervous. His face scrunched up disappointedly, but Luna gave a shy giggle and reached over for his hand.
She paused for a moment, her captivating eyes still stuck to the ground as she spoke. "Do you really mean it?" she asked quietly, squeezing Neville's warm hand in hers. Their eyes simultaneously rose up and found each other's, and locked into place.
"I promise," he said, grabbing Luna's other hand in his, never daring to break their gaze.