)( Disclaimer: I don't own the Harry Potter characters! J.K. Rowling ownage them.
Author's Note: Okay this one is a little Ginny/Luna. I started writing this because I felt the urge to write about Hermione, Ginny, and Luna in one fan-fiction. It seems I shall be continuing with this story for a bit. Don't worry, this isn't the end yet. )(
Secret Spells
Second Spell
Moon Madness
The evening wind whipped hard across her face but did not reach her eyes behind her scruffy goggles. Zooming around the three posts again, the Chaser shot across the field towards the other side with a beat up red ball clutched close to her body. Before her the opposite posts grew bigger, the hoops widening just enough for her to carefully guide the scratched up ball perfectly through the center ring. Racing around to the other side, she easily caught the ball again as it fell towards the ground. Slowing down, the Chaser straightened up on her shaking broom, realizing for the first time that she had not had proper air in quite a while.
From somewhere below her the sound of a very paced clapping drifted upwards. Pushing the goggles up onto her head through her red hair, she peered down at the grassy field below and spotted softly colored blonde hair. "Huh, who's that," Ginny panted to herself while directing her tired broom downwards. The closer she got the easier it was to pick out the colors of dark blue and grey adorning the person's black school robes.
With a soft whisper of moving grass the Chaser landed on the ground with her broom in hand and at her side. "You are as graceful as a Kilnork in springtime musth," spoke the Ravenclaw house member in a slowly drawn out voice that seemed to articulate like a song. At these words the Chaser cocked an eyebrow, spinning the Quaffle atop a fingertip.
"Luna? What are you doing out here this late? It's almost dark," Ginny replied, not quite understanding what it was Luna had exactly said to her but almost sure it had been a compliment… perhaps. The sudden appearance of the blonde drove out the thoughts that had been running through the Quidditch player's head while she practiced. Mostly thoughts concerning a certain curly haired brunette who would only come close to her after a successful game and what sort of motives drove that kind of behavior. The Chaser had chosen to do some late practicing to try to drive that particular curious indulgence from her cognitive mind wanderings, but found it was not exactly effective.
In reply to Ginny's question, Luna gave a little twirl. Her Ravenclaw embossed robes flared out with the motion and steadied gently around the girl's curved form when she had stilled again, facing the Chaser once more. "I am doing nothing more than allowing the sweet essence of night a chance to dance with me. Still though, why are you out here flying with the winchles at such an hour? I believe Gryffindor's next game is quite a few days away," Luna said, the song of her voice seeming to flow in perfect harmony with the rapidly awakening night around them. Ginny could almost hear the accent of the night humming alongside Luna's voice for a moment but she quickly pushed the absurd thought aside, not letting Luna's overpowering aura give her thoughts the same strange twinge of reality that Luna seemed to carry with her.
"Ah, well, I just wanted to get in some practice. There's no such thing as too much practice," Ginny said, but judging by Luna's dreamy smile the blonde knew more. Pivoting again, Luna floated around the Chaser in a display of intriguing but fitting dance.
"Practice? Tonight is a full moon, did you know?" Luna said, suddenly changing the subject completely while she moved around the Chaser, silvery eyes studying the red haired Weasley at every chance. "All sorts of fantastic creatures are out to enjoy the dance with the night and the moon. Why don't you join me?"
Ginny immediately opened her mouth to politely decline, however before the words could sound past her lips she had a second thought. Imagining for a moment what she would exactly do now that she was done practicing for the night, she saw herself heading back to Gryffindor Tower and then for bed after possibly an awkward encounter with the one who dominated her thoughts since the previous game, where words had been exchanged without honest feelings.
Instead the Chaser gave a nod of her head and replied, "Sure, why not?" The blonde daughter of the night smiled again, continuing with her flowing dance while the Chaser allowed her broom to hover on its own a short distance above the ground. With moon-kissed hair floating around her in waves of glinting silver light, Ginny carefully pulled off her fingerless gloves and draped them over the hovering broom. After came the frayed red playing robes and then the goggles, leaving Ginny with a long sleeved hooded shirt and a favorite pair of worn faded denims.
Without a word Luna extended a slender finger towards Ginny's sneakers, catching the scarlet haired girl's attention and subsequently drawing it to her own bare feet. Understanding, Ginny easily kicked off her shoes next to her hovering broom and pulled her socks off, rolling them up before stuffing them into her shoes. Only when she had stood up straight again did she allow the sensation of the cool grass caressing the soles of her feet to be acknowledged. This simple pleasure drew a sigh from the Chaser, the sound releasing some of her frustration out to the night.
Luna allowed her a moment to completely enjoy the small touch of nature before she tempted Ginny into the dance of the full moon night. Without a word the Chaser followed. Steadily she let a few movements through here and there, mostly her attention on the fair haired girl who seemed unable to stop moving. Luna's motions were enchanting, and Ginny swore her ears were beginning to pick up an almost tribalistic melody. The mystifying song of faint earthly drums and spiritual wind flutes grew in crescendo and flowed perfectly along Luna's swaying body with an almost tangible glow of color, Luna's dance giving the song a physical form.
Despite how much Ginny tried to tell herself she was simply being easily susceptible due to her stress and sleepless nights, with each passing moment she fell more and more into the mysterious yet joyful magic of the daughter of the night and found she didn't really mind. Stronger grew that hauntingly beautiful glow around the slow dancer, and the more Ginny took it in, the more surreal her surroundings became. It wasn't until later that she realized what was happening was really the full moon making the aura of Luna as well as her uniquely strange magical personality stronger and easier for someone else to experience. On the air Ginny could see the faint color of the wind, a soft almost invisible cool silver, and around Luna a similar glowing silver that was as much a result of the night as it was Luna's own visible aura. Drifting through the colors of the wind Ginny picked out strange tiny creatures with an almost human form but comprised of nothing but tender white light.
In amazement she took all of this in, not even bothering to wonder what it all was or how she was suddenly feeling it, not even trying to rationalize it or blame 'Loony Lovegood' Luna's behavior to explain it. The caress of the night felt like a splash of that cool silver against her exposed skin on her face, hands, and feet. In her ears the music flowed into her being and through her relaxed mind, guiding her body to the same dance Luna herself had not yet paused from.
Somehow, although Ginny was not quite sure how, she managed to whisper with the same melody of the night, "Luna, is this what it's like all the time for you?" The moon-kissed girl only smiled in a knowing way as Ginny and she danced and twirled with one another in perfect harmony as if their bodies had known the steps their entire lives, neverminding the fact that the two were in the middle of a Quidditch field on a Tuesday night.
While facing each other, both girls took a slow fluid step to their rights and in the same motion smoothly sliding forward, passing each other. Twisting and taking a step behind, they lightly brushed their backs against one another while dipping down in sync. Rising like a gentle whisper, they spun with their bodies close until they were again facing each other but with much less distance between them. Ginny could feel the sweet even breath of Luna exhaling as she inhaled, each movement of their bodies timed to the slow thrumming beat of the night.
Their flowing motions never stopped or fell out of step, now leaning into one another gently. Their bodies faintly remembered the ancient dance as the two girls were led by the song of the night, now caressing each other with faint wisps of fingertips barely making contact as they swayed against one another. The haunting tune never grew too loud in Ginny's ears, always rising and falling with her slow breathing.
Bit by bit and at such a rate that Ginny didn't even mind that she didn't take notice of it, both girls were getting closer together and their fleeting caresses became a little more meaningful. The vast painfully public openness around them didn't even phase Ginny when fingertips began to crave for more skin to skin contact, seeking it underneath wind brushed clothes with rhythmic quicker breaths. She didn't notice as she leaned in more against Luna and the girl leaned more against her, didn't even notice when their lips brushed softly past like crossing breezes, and she certainly didn't notice her surroundings.
The only things she did take careful note of were the song of the night and the way Luna and she moved with it in perfect rhythm. The small faintly glowing beings of light didn't even draw her curious gaze any longer when she shut her eyes in reaction to the sensual sensation of the kiss from the moon. Luna's slender fingers gently moved through cascading red hair while Ginny found herself for no viable reason craving the taste of the night, her tongue scarcely rolling along the blonde's bottom lip. A strange yet enticing aroma flooded Ginny's nose and fuddled her murky mind even more, the heady scent seeming to be perfectly tied with the entire sensation of the moonlit night.
"...Ginny?" said a quivering voice that was all too real and all too close. The great surprise from this revelation easily shattered the enchanting spell of the night from Ginny and even Luna as both girls instantly pulled away from each other, Ginny actually stumbling and falling. Wide chocolate eyes whipped around, and to the girl's dismay she took in the sight of perfectly soft curly hair before grazing across the face of the person who had, until recently, been the only thing on her fervent mind for the past few days.
"H-uh… Hermione…" was about the only thing Ginny could manage in the state of ice cold realization and shock. The only reply she received was a shake of brunette hair and a solid step backwards. The red haired girl did not get another chance to try to speak as Hermione whirled on her heel and made a mad dash towards the castle while trying to keep it from looking desperate and out of pain. Luna watched her go as well, taking in the moment and observing it closely.