It was 2:54 AM and Luna Lovegood was walking down the switching staircases. She was heading to the Whomping Willow because she was absolutely positive she had seen a Crumple-Horned Snorkack. The real problem was getting there undetected. She had to walk in the open, so Filch wouldn't see her. Of course he only would be looking NOT in the open because what kind of person would hide in plain sight? It was a simple matter of putting yourself in the caretaker's shoes. It was not a fun process. Filch's shoes were way too big, very dirty, smelled bad, and were out of style.
She had reached the great oak front doors (Filch would only be looking in the back door) and walked out them. Fireflies danced around the stone steps that she walked down. About 2 minutes and 18 seconds later, Luna had reached the violent tree. She looked up;
And there it was.
The Snorkack was perched in the center of the plant so the swinging branches couldn't hit it. She stared at it in awe for a few seconds, and it stared back at her with its beady blue eyes. At last, she thought. She would be the first human being to capture a real Crumple-Horned Snorkack. Her daddy would be so proud.
As she thought of her daddy, she remembered what he had told her to do if she ever encountered a Snorkack. She unclasped her earrings and threw them up at it. They disappeared in one bite. Then something amazing happened. It came down from the tree and nuzzled against her. She petted it comfortably, as if it were a dog. It was in a strange position, almost as if…
Luna climbed onto its back and they were off. It travled with surprising speed and agility. This was what Luna Lovegood had dreamed about all her life. It didn't seem real. She was seriously riding on the back of a Crumple-Horned Snorkack.
And it was heaven.
The beast was slowing down now, which meant her dreamride was over. She sighed sadly and climbed off. It looked at her with those amazing eyes and Luna knew she couldn't capture it. No, it was to remain unseen. If everyone else found out it was real, there wouldn't be anything special about it. It would just be a normal animal, like a cat or an owl. And Luna would be thought of as normal.
She took one last long look at it, and then let it go. It raced off into the distance, where the sky was beginning to dawn.