A/N: This story was written for The Houses Competition, Year 2, Round 3.
House: Gryffindor
Year: 3
Category: Bonus—Star Wars
Prompt: 8. [Activity] Climbing. ((10. [Colour] Turquoise was also used, but not enough to probably count? Going with just 8 to be safe.))
Word count: 2989 words (according to Google docs and wordcounterdotnet)
Thank you to my betas and everyone who offered help with Star Wars, including CK (Theoretical-Optimist), Shiba (Shibalyfe), Dee (like firing), Aethra (Arthea—who told me about Dr Arsad), Cara (lenore483), Zivvy (Zivander) and to my lovely Gryffindors!
This is AU in the sense that we don't know exactly what Rolf Scamander was like, save for being a Magizoologist like his grandfather and marrying Luna Lovegood later in life (pre-2014). I've based him off my headcanon that he went to Ilvermorny (since I have a feeling he would have been Luna's friend if he were at Hogwarts) and was quite... distracted... like his grandfather when it came to magical creatures. It is also AU since, well, it is a Star-Wars cross-over. This is set around two years after the Battle of Hogwarts.
Although this shouldn't affect my marks, I will state to any Star Wars fans who read this that I do apologise if I got something wrong about Doctor Arsad or the Ewoks. I have never really watched Star Wars (I know the gist of it, i.e. lightsabers, Darth Vader, Leia and hair buns, clones and a quite hot Anakin... oh, and 'Luke, I am your father' paraphrased reference, but it has been years since I watched a movie (and not an entire one, either)). If it wasn't for those who helped me plot out ideas, I would have absolutely no idea what an Ewok (ahem, Fuzzy-buzzy—they do look a bit like bears in the pictures) was or that a doctor helping with war victims even existed. Most information, as such, has been taken from the 'Wookipedia,' actual fans, and the little I do know—sorry fans!
I hope you enjoy this regardless and thanks for reading!
The Comfort of Fuzzy-buzzies
"Map: check. Wand: check. Tent…" Rolf dug around in his rucksack, feeling for the tell-tale sliver of canvas. "Check. Alright, I think I have everything."
He picked up the worn, leather-bound notebook from the top of the bag and opened it to the page marked with a frayed ribbon. He ran his finger over his grandfather's hurried script, his heart pounding as he read the title: Fuzzy-buzzies. Alternatively: 'Ewoks.' Although he had been excited to look for all of the creatures his grandfather had studied, none brought butterflies to his stomach like the Fuzzy-buzzy did. His grandfather was the only one in the world who had met one, and Rolf wanted to be the very next.
Closing the book, he placed it in his rucksack and zipped it up. "If we leave now, we'll make the Portkey and—Luna?"
Turning around, Rolf saw his friend standing by the window. Her hand was pressed against the cold glass, silvery eyes watching the rain trickle down it. Her bag was at her feet, a copy of The Daily Prophet sticking out from between a revamped edition of The Quibbler and a vivid orange sweater. Normally, she would have been the first out the door, hurrying him along so they could begin their adventures.
"Luna? Are you alright?"
The blonde blinked and turned to him. "Hmmm? Oh yes, I suppose we'd better get going."
Rolf watched as the girl picked up her bag and headed for the door. There was a small skip in her step, and he shook his head. He was probably imagining it.
When she picked up an umbrella, however, the feeling that something was wrong came back. In the two years that he'd known her, she had never once used an umbrella, proclaiming that the rain was good luck. He'd always assumed it was just a British thing—at Ilvermorny, the slightest shower sent all the girls into a frenzy trying to cover their hair—but soon, he realised it was a Luna thing.
"Er, do you think we need an umbrella?" he asked.
Luna stepped outside and opened the umbrella. "C'mon, we've got to find those Fuzzy-buzzies."
At the thought of finding the creatures, Rolf forgot his worries and hurried after her.
He wouldn't give up—he couldn't. Peering around the dense forest and then back to his grandfather's notebook, he tried to get a sense of where they should be.
'I discovered a friendly tribe of Fuzzy-buzzies in the Forest of Dean. It seems that the creatures prefer areas where they can build their homes in the trees. However, you mustn't...'
The writing after it was smudged, but from the looks of the hastily drawn map, they should've already stumbled across some sign of the creature.
"Maybe we should head west—"
"Here!"
Looking up, he saw Luna huddled over something on the ground, and hurried over.
"I found some Humpledinks," she said, pointing to what looked like spotty, pink mushrooms.
Rolf sighed and bent down to examine the fungi.
"They're Horklumps, Luna," he said. "See the wiry black bristles on them?"
The blonde shook her head and gently prodded one of the Horklumps. "No, these are most certainly Humpledinks."
Rolf rolled his eyes, but a smile lifted his lips. Luna was back to her stubborn self, and it made his heart swell.
"Do we really need to compare notes again?" he asked, nudging her forearm.
Luna looked at him, her eyes serious. "I can assure you, these are definitely Humpledinks."
"But they have tentacles, see?"
With a sigh, Luna grabbed the notebook from his hands.
"People only call these creatures Horklumps because some wizards want to protect them from being eaten," she said, flipping through the pages.
Rolf peered over her shoulder. When she finally got to the 'H' section, he pointed to the sketch with the small inscription, 'Horklumps, Scandinavia,' underneath.
"See? Told you so," he said, leaning back.
He waited for Luna to come up with her usual conspiracy theory, sure it would be more amusing than the last about the Pigpimple Curse. The girl's lips were pursed, however, and the colour drained from her face.
"Luna?"
He waved his hand in front of her eyes. She seemed to be staring at the picture of a House-elf on the opposite page, her eyes glazed over. Her hands then began to tremble, and blinking, she shut the notebook.
He placed a hesitant hand on her shoulder. "What's wrong?"
Luna swallowed and turned to him with a forced smile. "Maybe you're right; these probably are just Horklumps," she said, sitting the book down.
Without so much as a second glance at him, she got up and began to trudge through the forest.
Rolf grabbed the notebook and hurried after her. "Luna? What's wrong?"
When he finally caught up with her, she simply shrugged her shoulders. "Nothing's wrong."
Rolf shook his head. "What did I… Why did you give up so easily?"
"Hmm?"
"The Horklumps back there. You seemed so sure that they were, er, Humpdingers," he said.
The blonde finally turned to him. There was no longer any trace of the faraway look in her eyes.
"Oh, that? I think maybe my head is just full of Wrackspurts again. Don't worry, I'm perfectly fine."
Rolf tilted his head. Luna was always going on about mythical creatures like Wrackspurts and Nargles, and how the hideous radish-like earring she was wearing always protected her from them. She only had one earring; she had lost the other during the war when—
Realisation dawned on him and he stopped in his tracks. "Did something happen today to, er, to make you remember the—"
"Shh. I think I can hear something up ahead. Could you hold this please?" Luna thrust her bag into his arms. She then turned and jogged further up the forest path. "I'll just check out these bushes."
Opening her rucksack, Rolf took out a copy of The Daily Prophet. He had assumed that she had it to compare with her father's magazine, but when he saw that it was opened to an article on the early release of Lucius Malfoy, his stomach churned.
He hadn't been there for the war, but enough details had spread to America. He knew that Luna had been held captive in the Malfoys' basement for several months and that she had probably been forced to see or do horrific deeds. It was, therefore, no wonder that the news of her captor's release had generated such a strange mood.
Stuffing the paper back into her bag, he quickly scanned ahead for Luna. He breathed a sigh of relief when she saw her head bobbing up and down not too far away. Climbing over a large tree root, he locked his gaze on her golden hair and vowed to never let her out of his sight.
Rolf yawned and looked outside the tent. The very same rain that had kept him awake all night continued to pelt down, breaking through the thick canopy of trees. He felt around for a blanket, hoping that perhaps he could catch a few winks of sleep.
Unfortunately, the other reason for his lack of sleep decided to pop her head in at that moment. "Good morning!" Luna said.
Rolf winced. For someone who had spent the night crying out in her sleep, Luna was very chirpy.
"Morning."
Luna beamed at him and held out what looked like a piece of beef jerky. "Hungry?"
Rolf shook his head, remembering the last time he had accepted one of Luna's food delicacies. He hadn't known what food poisoning was until then, and he swore he would never touch another non-packaged item again.
"Er, maybe later."
Luna smiled and bit into it. Swallowing, she said, "I predict today is the day we find the Fuzzy-buzzies. C'mon, let's head out."
The blonde began to amble off into the forest, his grandfather's notebook in her hand.
With a groan, Rolf pulled his boots on. Making sure that everything was in his rucksack, he zipped up the tent and followed the blonde.
Before they began any sort of adventure, he needed to clear the air and ensure she was alright.
"Luna, hold up!"
She paused, allowing him to catch up. "Yes?"
"I, er…"
Luna was staring at him and, once again, he realised he didn't know how to broach the topic. Would she think he was being too overbearing and overprotective like she often complained her father was?
Swallowing, he decided to try anyway. "What's with your, er, is everything alright?"
Luna smiled and continued walking. "Everything is fine."
He had to jog to match her pace. Reaching forward, he grabbed her arm and spun her back around.
"Look, I know that you've been... upset lately. You're acting weirder than usual—er, normally you're, um..." He was stumbling, and the way her smile now seemed strained wasn't helping. "I just wanted to ask if everything was okay?"
"I'm fine, thank you."
"But you are acting—"
"Acting what? 'Weirder than usual?' I'm sorry that I'm not smiles and sunshine all the time."
Rolf took a step back; he had never before seen Luna's eyes flash like they were now.
"I didn't mean it like that," he said, his cheeks burning. "But you have to admit it. You're not okay, but I am here to help you—"
"Everything is fine." Luna took a deep breath and walked over to a large tree. Throwing her belongings to the ground, she grabbed onto a hollow in the trunk. "I'm going to climb up there and see if I can find anything."
Sighing, Rolf leant against the tree and watched as the blonde dug her nails and feet into the bark. She looked like a Clabbert as she climbed, only more graceful and certainly much prettier. Soon, she was hidden by leaves and branches.
"You can't tell me everything is fine. You were tossing and turning all night." He listened for Luna's response, but all he could hear was the snapping of twigs. "At one point, you even started screaming—"
He heard a faint gasp come from above.
"—Yeah, almost like that."
Another twig snapped, but this time it came from in front of him. Swivelling his head around, his heart began pounding.
Several hooded figures were moving towards him, brandishing nets, slingshots, spears and knives. They were no more than a metre tall, their features covered in varying shades of brown, black and white fur. If they weren't speaking in some sort of foreign language, he would've thought they were some sort of small bear.
Above him, Rolf could hear the tree branches rustling, and as he dared take a peek upwards, he saw one of the creatures climbing down, its arms wrapped tightly around a pale Luna. When they reached the ground and the creatures threw a net over them, he gave her a small thumbs up.
"I think we found the Fuzzy-buzzies," he said, grinning.
"I'm sorry," Rolf said for probably the millionth time that afternoon.
If the Fuzzy-buzzies—or Ewoks, as a near bite from one of the creatures taught him they preferred—hadn't tied his hands behind his back, he would have reached out to Luna to comfort her. Her face was still pale and she was now shaking.
His cheeks burned as he remembered the way he had gushed about the Fuzzy-buzzies' culture as they were being tied up. He hadn't realised that it had probably triggered Luna's memories of her earlier imprisonment during the war; she likely didn't care that the creatures had their own language or opposable thumbs.
Luna gave him a small smile. "Oh well, I suppose they don't really mean to harm us. Look, they're even cooking us a feast."
Rolf followed her gaze, and his heart began pumping faster—this time, not from excitement. The creatures were standing around a large cauldron, where one particularly short, brown Fuzzy-buzzy stood slicing up an onion. When the Fuzzy-buzzy saw him looking, it licked its lips.
A bead of sweat rolled down his forehead, and any remaining need to record the creatures' strange behavioural patterns completely disappeared.
"Er, okay, maybe we should attempt to get our wands out now," he squeaked, wiggling around.
His wand was in his back pocket, and if he could just manage to loosen the ropes, he might've been able to get free.
"I think… ugh… maybe… yes!"
His fingertips brushed against his wand, and after a few twists, he managed to pull it out. He aimed it at what he hoped was the ropes.
"Diffindo!"
He winced as part of the spell cut his hands, but at least he was free. Crawling over to Luna, he removed her own binds.
"Achor! Achor!"
Both of them turned to the creatures, who seemed to have spotted their attempt to escape. A few Fuzzy-buzzies held spears above their heads, prompting them to quickly stand and raise their wands.
"Did Newt say if they could be stunned?" Luna asked, snapping out of her stupor. She was still shaking a little, but she looked determined.
Rolf shrugged, pointing his wand at the nearest Fuzzy-buzzy. "Only one way to find out. Stupe—"
"Stop!"
Rolf turned to Luna, surprised that she would try to stop him. Her lips weren't moving, however, and she was gazing ahead.
Turning back to the clearing, Rolf saw a strangely-dressed woman stride forward. She was wearing a long, white cloak with a thick, scarlet belt. Her greying hair was pulled up into a tight bun, and her unusual turquoise eyes were stormy.
"What do you think you're doing?" the woman asked.
It took Rolf a moment to realise that she wasn't addressing the creatures.
"I, er, we're trying not to get eaten," he said.
The woman placed her hands on her hips. "Ewoks have a civilised culture; they do not eat humans. Well, not anymore, anyway."
Rolf gripped his wand, not sure he liked the woman's tone. When he glanced at Luna, however, he saw that the blonde had lowered hers.
Turning back to the woman, he shuffled on the spot. "But the cauldron…"
The woman raised a thin eyebrow. "You mean the cooking pot?"
The Fuzzy-buzzy with the spoon grunted something, and the woman nodded.
"I agree," she said, turning sharp eyes back to them. "I am not sure how you humans found this place, but I shall ask you to leave."
"How we found this place?" Rolf lowered his wand. "As far as I know, my grandfather discovered the Fuzzy-buzzies." He stepped back as one of the creatures bared its teeth at him. "Sorry, the Ewoks, and we intend to study them."
The woman snorted. "No one 'discovered' the Ewoks, my boy; they are not even from this planet." She sighed when he raised his own eyebrows and turned back to the Fuzzy-buzzy. It gave her the notebook they had confiscated, and she flipped through the pages. "I can guess, though, that you are somehow related to Newt."
"You knew my grandfather?"
For a second, the woman's thin lips lifted into a faint smile. "Newt was a dear friend. He helped me set up my program with some Ewoks here on Earth." She then snapped the book shut, and her smile disappeared. "Regardless, that was long ago and you need to leave."
He stuck his hand out instead. "I'm Rolf Scamander, and this is Luna Lovegood. Did you say you've been off Earth? By golly, how? Did you use a broomstick?"
The woman took his hand and slapped the notebook into it. "I can see how you're related to Newt. I'm Doctor Arsad. Now, if you really wouldn't mind, we have work to do."
"We could help. I've always dreamed of—"
"No."
"But I've always been fascinated by—"
"No."
Rolf huffed. He had finally found the most magnificent creatures, and now someone else was trying to prevent him from studying them.
Doctor Arsad's face softened. "Maybe after we finish our work. Right now—hey, you girl, stay back!"
Rolf turned to see Luna walking towards a brown Fuzzy-buzzy. His heart leapt into his throat as he watched her stop just in front of it, her wide eyes staring into its face.
"Be careful, girl, they only reac—oh. I see."
His head swivelled back and forth from Luna, who was wrapping her arms around one of the bear-like creatures, to Doctor Arsad, who was nodding to herself.
"Aren't you going to help her?" Rolf asked, watching the creature squeeze Luna. He could see a few tears trickling down her cheeks, but the woman held a hand out to stop him from intervening.
"Your friend has been through hardship, hasn't she?" she asked.
Rolf nodded, his eyes still focused on Luna. "A war. How did—"
"Perhaps you may be able to stay and help after all."
Rolf finally peeled his eyes away and looked at the woman.
She gave him a soft smile. "Ewoks are therapy creatures. I've found that beings who are unable to cope with the stress war brings, even years afterwards, tend to close up. Sometimes a warm hug is all they need."
Rolf looked back at Luna. She was now crying into the Fuzzy-buzzy's fur as it rubbed her back. Suddenly, the creatures seemed even more special.
"Do you know of anyone else that might need our work?"
Rolf nodded again. "I have a fair idea."
"Good. I'll ask you to follow me and we can get started right away," Doctor Arsad said.
Relieved that Luna was finally getting some peace, he followed the woman over to one of the trees and started climbing up the rope ladder. The rope stung his cut hands, but his new-found excitement had him pulling himself up anyway.
Before he reached the top, however, she looked down at him. "Just one thing?"
"Yes?"
"If I catch you calling them that ridiculous name Newt came up with again, I will consider letting the Ewoks turn back to human sacrifice."