A/N: Written for QLFC season eight, as chaser three for the Montrose Magpies.

Prompt: The Explorer - Goal: Freedom

This is about stinks because she is way too underrated.

Warning: Mentions of death.

Happy reading!

~ﾐ(o*･ω･)ﾉ

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Conversation flew across the warm, welcoming air. It was close to midnight in the Hufflepuff common room, but almost all of the students were still up. The kind, patient badgers have a very unusual habit of staying up as late as possible. As long as they don't get too grumpy for the next day's lessons, that is.

Tick, tock, tick, tock, the ancient clock on the wall ticked second by second as the fire died down, soundlessly reminding the students of how late it was getting. Midnight slowly arrived, casting shadows upon the walls, scattering the wizards and witches away as they mumbled tired words of goodnight to each other. Only a few students that fell asleep in their chair remained; nobody else seemed to be present.

The prefect pinched both of the witches on the cheek and sent them sitting straight up, mumbling fake words of apology, thinking that it was Professor Snape waking them up. Slowly gaining their composure, they laughed apologetically and stumbled back to their dormitories, covering their mouths and they heaved yawn after yawn.

Soon the air fell silent. The fire drew its last breath and died down completely, inhaling a tiny cloud of smoke as it did so. It seems as if everyone had gone away in the common room. The lights clicked off and the things magically returned to their original place. With one last "click" of the door, the prefect disappeared from our foresight. Finally the room was empty with people.

But was it…?

Tonks remained in her seat, barely moving a muscle as her pink, tingling hair turned into a mischievous yellow. As the prefect closed his door, she smirked, and stepped out of her seat as if in victory.

"Another win-win for Dora!" She whispered cheerfully. "Nobody noticed me again." She giggled and stretched her arms in the sky, suppressing a huge yawn from her mouth as she did so.

She then ran to the window as quietly as she could, skipping her foot around the wizard chess pieces on the ground. Silently the fourteen-year-old peeked outside the stained glass, studying every plant, every animal outside: from the Hufflepuff common room, Tonks could see the black lake, as peaceful as the half moon in the distance. Despite its serene-looking surface, something seemed to be roaming below the surface (as usual). The young Metamorphmagus shuddered and moved her eyes away from the lake, a cold feeling crawling onto her spine and up her back.

Softly, Tonks opened the window and sticked her head out, taking a deep breath of the fresh air outside. The cold breeze of the night embraced her hair - now turning back to that normal, bubbly pink - welcomely, setting a satisfied smile onto the young witch's lips. "Sleep?" She laughed at herself quietly. "Only wimps need those."

Gently, she set her arms on the window sill and heaved a cheery sigh, feeling the wind against her face. It was spring at Hogwarts, the flowers had blossomed and the breeze was soft and warm. Her favorite season. When she was young, she adored going outside with her mother, changing her hair the color of every single kind of flower that enters her eyes, until it turns into a massive mess of brown. The memory seemed to light a comfortable candle in her heart and she chuckled lightly. I miss home. A thought flew out and she chewed her lips thoughtfully, and stretched her left arm out into the cold air, running her hands through the air as if embracing an animal companion's fur.

Suddenly, something invisible touched Tonk's palm and she yelped in surprise. Her right hand automatically took out her Dogwood wand and pointed at whoever - whatever - that was outside her window.

"W-who's there!" It was more like a shout of dismay than a question. Shaking in her boots slightly, Tonks set her left arm on her right to stop her wand from quivering. Sure, she's faced danger before, but when something invisible came to hunt you during midnight - that's not the same kind of fear you experience when a spider jumps on your bed.

"I-I'm armed! Heavily!" Tonks said as she tightened her grip on her wand. "Don't come a-any closer!"

Silence was her only answer. Gradually, she relaxed and set down her wand gently, her eyes - now an intense shade of gold - still darting across the window in shock, but nothing seemed to be there.

Tonks smacked herself on the head. "Stupid," she muttered. "You do need sleep sometimes. Dora and her dumb hallucinations."

What sounded like a horse's neigh sent her ten feet into the air. As soon as she came back to her bearings from the fear, Tonks pulled out her wand again and pointed at the sound source, which, surprisingly, is the window.

That sound repeated itself, setting a fire of fear in Tonk's heart as it vibrated into her ears. "Back off!" She hissed. Even when she was desperately afraid, Tonks didn't want to wake the prefects - they would only make things much, much worse.

The creature outside her window had gone silent all in a sudden, but Tonks could feel the wind around that creature as it flipped its wings up and down. She stood in place, still a little in shock, clenching her wand tightly by her side, her palms already starting to sweat by the tension.

The creature neighed again, letting a muffled scream out of Tonks's throat. "Shoot," She muttered, waving her head left and right, checking for any awake students nearby. Not a sound seemed to emerge from the dormitories, except for the faint murmuring of a few dreaming students. Casually Tonks relaxed and scowled fiercely at the window. "Alright," She scolded quietly, trying to keep her voice from trembling with - fear? Or frustration? "That's enough."

As gently as she could, Tonks tip-toed closer to the window, her wand raised shakily in the air. If the thing attacks, she would, with no doubt, use her favorite spell of the time - fumunculus, as she learned in charms - which causes whoever that's attacking break into boils. If that doesn't work, she'd have to use one of the more serious charms, such as rictusempra, which tickles, or maybe even densaugo, which causes teeth to grow out of control. Of course, there're other spells like stupefy or—

Before she could even get to the end of her train of thoughts, Tonks was standing before the window, her wand in her hands shakily, her mouth set in a tight line, prepared to shout that familiar spell. "Show yourself!" She said steadily, trying to sound confident and brave. "Who—What are you—come out!"

Then there was this horse neigh again, and with it, a pure black thestral stepped out of the shadows, causing Tonks to whimper in surprise. She had heard about those mysterious creatures from those friends she'd made in higher grades - only wizards or witches that had seen death in front of their eyes can see those horse-like beasts. Frowning in confusion, she tried to remember…had I seen death before? That seemed impossible all in a sudden, having to see death in person. Her mother once mentioned that she and her family had seen a severe car crash right in front of their eyes - maybe that was a part of it.

The thestral neighed and nuzzled her unarmed hand, slipping a fearful gasp out of Tonk's throat. The creature seemed small; about two or three years of age. It was unusually affectionate, nudging against her hand more gently than actual horses could manage. Slowly, the Hufflepuff witch let down her guard and gave the thestral a tiny giggle, hesitantly giving it a pet on the nuzzle. The thestral neighed cheerfully, before backtracking from her, giving her a significant glance and flying forward in the direction of the balcony near the common room.

"Wait-come back!" Tonks whispered harshly and ran after its vague shadow outside the window, avoiding the things laying on the floor once again. Soon she made it out in the balcony, being welcomed by a face full of refreshing cold breeze.

The thestral was standing on the balcony, its expression somehow soft and tender as it looked down at Dora. Tonks gave a tiny chuckle as she recalled a similar scene in a cartoon she used to watch when she was young - was the name Aladdon? She couldn't remember. At this scene, the princess was invited on that magic mat by the…man, and they flew wildly into the distance, singing that song she'd memorized for as long as she could remember.

Tonks approached the thestral carefully and patted it on the nuzzle again, feeling its deadly breath in her hair. She giggled and ruffled it between the ears, causing the horse-like creature to snort in comfort.

"So," She said as she backed off. "What are you doing here? What do you want from me, eh?" She had been told that thestrals adored the darkness, and likes to move around at night; that somehow reminded her of herself, always doing things more actively and lively after the sun sat in the distance. With another snort, the thestral knelt down a bit, looking down, its wings trembling in the air in something that seemed like excitement.

Realization dawned on Tonks as she took a casual step back. It…wants me to ride it? She thought in bewilderment. She does have some experience in riding horses, but this…it's a completely strange creature that, in some extend, seemed like death itself.

"I-uh-" Dora stammered nervously. "I don't…usually…"

The thestral gave her look that seemed almost…pleading, and her heart melted. Honestly, she thought, it was just a child. Maybe it wants to play with me. Besides, She thought with a smile, I was never afraid of heights. I like it, actually.

With a tiny smile she approached the thestral carefully, expecting it to run away or something at her advance - but it just stayed there, silent, excitement still shining in those brilliant eyes. It seemed almost like a well-trained horse she used to ride back when she was young. Tonks decided to relax and climbed on casually, finding the creature surprisingly warm.

The thestral gave an enthusiastic neigh and took off, making Tonks yelp the loudest shout that night. Whoosh, whoosh, its wings paddled the air, forcing wind onto Tonks's face. A wave of adrenaline thrived through her body and she screamed in excitement, her pink hair running all over her face. Everything was a blur all in a sudden - all she could see was the thestral's wings and neck, and all she could feel was an endless excitement as the creature carrying her sprinted in every direction freely, without any restriction at all. She let out a laugh, happiness flowing wildly in her veins.

Then the thestral stopped flying around and kept its place, as the Hogwarts castle emerged into Dora's view. A small gasp of admiration escaped her mouth and she took in the enormous towers, the high walls, and that sense of welcome and magic flying around in the air. A few lights are still on, and she could see the shadows of the professors in there, still working for the next day of class.

For the first time since she arrived at Hogwarts four years ago, Tonks realized how much she loved this place. She could see the Hufflepuff common room on the North tower, the gratifying yellow light heartwarmingly familiar. The Great Hall still shined with a welcoming dim light, as if asking her how hungry she is. Every corner of this huge, ancient castle was so…magnificent and amazing, every inch, every piece of it…it brings back memories from so far away, like when she had first arrived in this beautiful place, and how she had set the charms classroom on fire during her second year. Tonks gave a shudder of nostalgia and realized that there were tears in her eyes.

The thestral whined and charged around the castle, its wings large and broad. They could almost fade into the shadows with the thestral's silence and tenderness. Tonks amazed how quiet it could be sometimes. Without a sound it soared above the Hogwarts grounds, and it seems as if the shadows are all clinging onto them. Tonks could barely suppress her endless giggles and laughter as they flew all over the place. She felt so free, so borderless and so wild - she seemed to have melted together with the thestral, and it seems as if she was the one soaring everywhere, her heart as light as the feathers they used to practice their charms in class. This is who I'm supposed to be, she thought excitedly.

She doesn't remember the last time that she felt this happy and free. The wind in her hair, all the things around her smashing together into one tornado of colors, the constant rushes of excitement and joy - Merlin, can anything be better? The night sky seemed to have lightened up with Tonks's cheerful laughter, lingering in the air like magic, echoing in every single corner of the castle. The thestral was having fun as well, diving and twirling in all directions with its giant, black wings wide and broad. The twinkling stars in the distance shone brightly above the unusual duo, castling down magical glow around them.

Time was non-existent; they seemed to have soared in the sky for hours and only for minutes at the same time. Soon enough the stars in the horizon faded with the faint sign of twilight. The thestral tensed at even the slightest signs of light, stopping in its gleeful way around the central tower one last time. Tonks spun around and studied the mountains in the distance, the sun gradually making its up the peeks.

"Alright, buddy," Tonks gave the thestral a gentle pat. "I guess it's time to go for you, yeah?"

The thestral grunted somehow unhappily, and twirled its way around the tower playfully, then sourly dived down, making Tonks yelp in surprise. The things - mountains, trees, towers and gardens - blurred around her one last time and the thestral landed softly on the Hufflepuff balcony again, folding its wings and giving its legs a stretch, which Tonks found somehow endearing.

It bent its knees and let Tonks down, heaving a tiny, sad whine. With a grunt the Hufflepuff witch planted her foot back onto the floor, and chuckled as she heard the thestral's whine. "Don't worry," she gave it one last pat, "I'm sure we'll meet again someday, right?" Tonks gave a big grin. The sun was slowly rising from the mountains, painting the clouds a special pink as some of the students stirred in their sleep.

The thestral gave Tonks another nudge, studying her with those blurry white eyes. Tonks smiled at it and bowed deeply at it. "Thank you," she whispered into its small ears as she got up once more, "I had so much fun."

The thestral gave one last happy whine and set off into the distance, slowly vanishing into the forbidden forest below. Tonks chuckled at its disappearing figure, lifting her arm up to give it a wave of goodbye.

Soon the creature faded beyond the shadows, as Tonks sneaked back into her dormitory, trying not to wake any prefects up as she tip-toed into her bed, hoping to catch a few hours of sleep before school starts. Despite how light it had became, Hogwarts was still asleep; and not another soul knew about all the adventures Tonks had that night.

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A/N: Hope you enjoyed reading this heeheehee.

Have a good day!!

~ﾐ(o*･ω･)ﾉ