Myrtle's tilted head and dead eyes didn't match the dim light that gradually broke through the clouds in the sky. It pierced her and still allowed the question to settle heavily in the room. Long enough to draw out a clearing of Laima's throat before she made her way back to Luna's shoulder.
"It is. Anything else is absolute nonsense. You probably just imagined your love interest," the sylph then brought over herself before tugging on a strand of Luna's hair. "We should be going. We still have to get the book for the next lesson."
"Oh, of course, leave poor Myrtle here alone because she said something you didn't like." Hysterically, the ghost threw her hands up in the air, rolled her eyes and slumped her shoulders immediately after – all only to slide through one of the restroom doors in renewed drama.
Luna kept her gaze fixed on the wood of the door for a moment, motionless in its place. Myrtle's words had already disappeared again. Laima had told her that the search would be harmless and thinking of the guardian's words, perhaps it really was possible that Myrtle had allowed herself to be led astray. She didn't know, didn't want to have to speculate, and so turned on the spot. Still, her steps remained slow. Her eyes kept darting over her shoulder to see if Myrtle had returned – but all she left behind was silence.
"Brother dear, do you see what I see?"
As soon as she reached the corridor, she felt Laima startle and strange voices pierce through to her.
"You mean that first year Ravenclaw girl over there who looks like she's seen a ghost? I see her quite well, dear brother."
Without further ado, the Ravenclaw turned her head, only to look into the faces of two boys who were looking at her with a slight laugh on their features, as if she were perfect for a split minute. They were a good deal taller than Luna, probably even a lot older, but the joy emanating from both of them made them seem unthreatening.
"Welcome to Hogwarts, the entertainment box for-"
"Magic and its side effects. I'm Fred and this is my brother George," they both introduced themselves. Almost as if they had rehearsed the words and fixed them at the same time with a magical bond that only existed between twins. They both bowed to Luna as Laima's grip tightened in her hair. The Ravenclaw eyed them both, trying to find the small but subtle differences between the two redheads and actually got stuck on a few of them.
Fred was a tiny bit shorter than George – while George probably looked a very bit more serious than Fred.
"Would you and your friend be interested in spreading a little joy around Hogwarts?" Out of nowhere, George pulled out a small, square box.
"Although, of course, we can only guarantee the fun of the students, not the professors." In deference, Fred raised his index finger before pointing to the box.
It was nothing special, just a little colourful – if the jumble of red-orange colours could be considered colourful – and Luna found it enchanting at first sight. But she needed her book for the next lesson and upsetting the professors on the first day didn't have the charm that promised to please her, either. In addition, Laima kept tugging at her hair. She wanted to get away from this place. So the Ravenclaw folded her hands in front of her lap and shook her head.
"I'm afraid I don't have time," she then confessed. "But thank you for asking."
"Of course we asked!" The box in George's hands disappeared as quickly as it had come.
"Pretty girls always get asked," Fred added, coupled with a smile that infected Luna. The only one who had ever called her pretty had been her father. Hearing it from someone else now was special. The first big experience outside her own four walls. Here, too, she could be anything she wanted. Free. Stubborn. She didn't have to conform – even if she hadn't planned to – could unfold and seek the magic in the walls because she wasn't alone. She wasn't the only one who went searching a little strangely in this place. These boys were doing it too.
A part of her dared to breathe a sigh of relief. Piper had left a completely different image compared to the twins. Rowan was affable but quiet and Morag was detached in her own special way. In this place, all sorts of characters seemed to shake hands, and it was bewitching. More charming than the last few years when Luna had felt the magic inside her but had never been able to find a clear comparison because she hadn't been able to get to know anyone besides her father.
She had come to this school without friends.
"Well then, we continue to wish you a magical stay at Hogwarts-"
"The school where pranks come true."
They complemented each other perfectly, bowing as if they were one and the same, then turned on the spot to follow the corridor in the other direction. Not, of course, without bumping shoulders and teasing each other a little. It had to be nice having siblings.
"Weird ones." With a snort, Laima drew attention to herself. Crossing her arms in front of her chest, she wrinkled her nose. "I can imagine they're a lot of trouble."
"You think?" Luna's gaze drifted to the side.
"Anything else would honestly surprise me. And it doesn't seem to me they've only been like this for a year or two. They've probably already been born this tricky." The sigh on the sylph's lip sounded heavy. "And they didn't even notice me. Probably think of me as your unusual pet or something."
Luna just listened, meanwhile turning around herself and following the path back that would lead her to the Ravenclaw's common room.
"Don't you have an opinion about them?"
"My mother always said that you don't need to form an opinion about someone you only know in passing. They're not worth the effort and usually forgotten tomorrow." The smile on the Ravenclaw's lips remained relaxed. "It's important to remember a face if there's a chance you'll see it again. But it doesn't possess any importance to make a judgement on someone you don't know."
"I don't know if your mother was a wise woman, or if she made it all a little too easy." Half in thought, Laima wrapped a strand of hair around her fingers. "But surely your feeling will have told you something. A first impulse."
Luna didn't even need to think about it. "I think they're nice. At least they smile very kindly."
"Everything smiles kindly before it tries to devour you." Shaking her head, the sylph dangled her legs. "You're definitely better off with your mother's wisdom."
She certainly was. Her mother had told her a lot and taught her even more. Luna had always taken the little things between the lines to heart because it was what she might need one day in her life. Her mother had gone to great lengths in preparation – as long as she had been given the time.
The tower where the Ravenclaws dwelled was reached between these thoughts faster than Luna could really realise. The steps took her to dizzying heights and the only thing that ultimately separated her from the common room was the door knocker in the shape of an eagle.
Her presence seemed to lure it from an endless slumber as it slowly moved and addressed her. "I am, to be honest, a yellow fork that has fallen from the blue tables of heaven. Dropped by careless fingers, the terrible cutlery, from estates never fully explored and yet never hidden. I am the tool of darkness revealed to ignorance. What am I?"
Luna eyed the knocker for a breath before finding her words. "You are the light. You fall from the sky and the clouds that stop you sometimes let you glide through. Some don't like you, no one knows more than they need to about you and that's even though you're always there. Where there is light, there is also shadow, where secrets hide."
The door knocker gave her no answer. Instead, the door opened. The common room opened up to her and Luna simply stepped inside. A little too elated and at the same time, with too little interest in what had just happened.
Her steps carried her light-footedly straight into the shared bedroom. Rowan was no longer here. She had long since fetched her book and was probably already sitting in the room for the next lesson. Luna wanted to do the same.
It only took a few nimble grips to gather up the books she had placed in the dresser. One of them was the one for the next lesson. She tucked it under her arm, the hard cover pressed tightly against her clothes, before glancing at the dresser. The doll was still there, but it was no longer sitting upright. As if someone had deliberately knocked it over.
Without further ado, a cool shiver chased her skin, made Luna literally jump to her feet, while the doll never disappeared from her sight in a single breath. Nothing moved. It just lay there. Old and worn, from forgotten days she had trouble imagining.
"You're going to be late for class, Luna." Laima barely drew attention to herself, allowing Luna to finally detach her attention from the doll and look at the slender figure on her shoulder. But she said nothing. Merely nodded and turned away to make her way to her next lesson. The tingling on her skin, however, remained.
SEEK ME!
"Keep in mind that flying is not very different from walking. It is merely heavier and more dangerous. Nevertheless, you have nothing to fear. I will avoid the worst." Fists on hips, Madame Hooch let her gaze slide. Luna followed her eyes, seeing the brooms neatly lined up on the floor and also how some were full of curiosity, hoping for the next instruction.
The other lessons had passed Luna by frighteningly quickly. The words that had been pouring down on her until the afternoon had barely settled in her head. Sometimes the walls of the rooms had been more exciting – at least whenever she thought she saw a mysterious magical figure she hadn't seen before. But the apparitions disappeared at least as quickly as they had come into her view, and at no point had she been able to just jump up and run after them. In the end, the material in the lessons had been too important for that, even if she had only listened with one ear.
The flying lessons were the last of the day. After that, she would have time to get to know the castle better, to look closely at every stone and follow the magic around every inconspicuous corner.
"So, what are you waiting for? Line up on the left side of your broom. Come on, hurry up." Madame Hooch spoke quickly while her yellow, hawk-like eyes held each student rigidly in her gaze. "Hold your right hand over your broom and say 'Up!'"
It was a rather simple instruction, which they all complied with. The Ravenclaw students with level-headed precision, while the Hufflepuff ones were much more excited. Shortly after, the unified command rang out from each one's mouth, causing Luna to listen for a moment before an almost too gentle "Up!" escaped her lips. But the broom responded.
The magic created a connection that tingled her fingertips, causing the wood to land instantly in her hand. It gathered her warmth, nestling against her skin, seeming to become a part of her if she looked away for even a single moment.
"As soon as you have your broom in your hand, I want you to mount it." Slowly Madame Hooch strode between them, letting her gaze slide from left to right so she could keep an eye on every mistake and every wrong move. "Hold on tight. After all, you don't want to slide down the back."
Clutching the broom between her legs, Luna held on tightly to the broomstick, waiting for the next instruction. But all that was required of them was to pay attention. Without further ado, Hooch raised her pipe a little so everyone could see what she was up to. It was quite simple. She would whistle and they would all push off the ground – hard.
"Hold your brooms steady, hover for a moment, lean forward slightly, and then land again." The whistle that followed howled in the ears. Some took off on the spot. Others just watched, a little too shy to make the first attempt.
Luna used the seconds to concentrate on herself. Casting magic was always something special. If paid very close attention, it awakened this wondrous tingling under the skin that clearly wanted to tell her how she was merging with the world a little more.
Half in thought, the Ravenclaw angled her legs, letting the broom carry her, and stayed in that one spot, floating, glancing up at the sky. Madame Hooch gave her a nod before turning to the other students. Little things that didn't matter as Luna's fingers loosened. Part of her wanted to reach for the clouds. But the rest of her knew better. She would not get a glimpse behind the veil of the world in this lesson.
Her feet found firm footing on the ground again, barely a moment later. The magic faded, security moved a little closer and possessed no charm whatsoever. At the same time, Madame Hooch gave the next instructions and although Luna tried her best to listen, her gaze lingered in the distance, lost in thought. The airy freedom in her mind did not diminish, pushing everything else into the background. Instead, there were impressions of the day, of Myrtle and Rowan, of what the guardian had told her during the night. Little things she could only imagine.
"Do you want to put down roots there?"
The question snapped Luna out of her muse, made her look to the side where Piper was looking at her with raised brows. "They'll leave without you."
Luna didn't look after the group, only noticing out of the corner of her eye that they were following Madame Hooch. Instead, she clung to those green irises that pierced her. Nothing that seemed unpleasant and yet something that felt frighteningly strange. There was nothing about Piper that seemed truly mean, and yet her every word possessed a hint of rejection.
"What are you looking at me like that for? Do I have something on my face?" Grumbling, Piper wrinkled her nose before snorting and turning away. "Madame Hooch wants to see us try to fly a little round. She also wants to tell us about Quidditch and the annual flying event." She cast a last glance over her shoulder. "As a Ravenclaw, you should be present."
With a barely perceptible nod, Luna agreed before finally getting off her broom and wordlessly following Piper. The broom rustled across the ground as she did so, following them both all the way to the group that was following Madame Hooch in single file.
Until they reached the Quidditch pitch.
"I'm sure some here are already aware of what Quidditch is about. Most of you can get the information you need at one of the upcoming games, which is only a few weeks away. Some of your classmates can certainly help." Hooch underlined her words with a throwing away hand gesture. In her world, everyone probably knew the basic outlines of the sport and those who were seriously interested were watching a game. "Anyone who knows how to prove themselves on a broom has a chance of making the house team - which isn't an option for most until their third or fourth year." She took a breath. "Besides that, there's the Aquilarum Fuga, the flying event to determine Hogwarts' best flier once a year. The top three form a team and get to compete in the worldwide Fuga Festival of Schools of Witchcraft and Wizardry towards the end of the year. You can sign up for the event with your house teachers after the first half term."
Luna had seen it once when her father had taken her on a trip because of a report. She remembered how the witches and wizards had flown all over London, overcoming obstacles and collecting medals. She had always wondered why they were in such a hurry. The years had taught her it was a sport. But she had never been able to muster any honest interest. Flying had to be enjoyed.
Hooch's explanations went even further. At the latest when someone from Hufflepuff asked if the event couldn't be compared to Quidditch, she got up to explain everything about rules, differences and the way of playing, which in the end Luna completely blanked out. The lessons simply passed her by, disappearing behind a veil of dreams that accompanied her on wild adventures, while somewhere in between she flew a predetermined round and ultimately slipped back into the castle – both feet intact and firmly on the ground – to fill the last hour before dinner with wayward ideas.
"I hear the Fuga Festival is amazing." From the inside pocket of her cloak, Laima's voice addressed the Ravenclaw. "I've heard that the winners are considered the best young fliers in the world. Of course, then you have to show up again next year, but you get the best brooms as a gift, as well as a trophy and an award. That must be great." Cautiously, the sylph stuck her head out. "We should keep that in mind."
"I have no interest in this event." In a gentle tone, Luna lowered her gaze. "But I enjoy watching."
"Really?" Laima's anticipation sagged as quickly as her shoulders. "I really would have thought you'd like it. After all, isn't it good to be especially good at something? If I were a witch, I would definitely try to become unbeatable at something."
"I'd like to explore the castle."
"Would go faster on a broom."
"Using brooms inside the castle is forbidden," Luna repeated the rules they had all been told at lunch.
Hands raised, Laima ultimately admitted defeat. "Fine. You're already a seeker, after all. I guess that makes you special enough."
"Aren't we all special already?" Without further ado, Luna tilted her head.
Indecisively, Laima shrugged before ducking back into the cloak and leaving Luna behind. Somewhere within the walls, where the first-years had devoted themselves to their own interests and she was still standing in the corridor.
"I hate running after you, Lovegood." Again, Piper's snort reached her ears and made the Ravenclaw turn around. Sure enough, the witch was rapidly approaching her with long strides. "But you're the only one I haven't asked yet." Wide-legged, she stopped in front of Luna. "Where's Rowan?"
For a breath, the air seemed to grow a little cooler as Luna raised her brows. "Wasn't she at the flying lesson?"
"Wasn't she at flying lesson?" mimicked Piper, far too exaggeratedly. "If she had, I wouldn't have to ask you, silly girl, would I?" Demonstratively, she dug a nicely pressed bookmark out of her cloak. "It's Rowan's. At least I saw her with it on the train to Hogwarts and it seems to have been important to her."
Luna eyed the bookmark more closely, noting the three flowers inside that shimmered bluish. The material itself had been engraved with a phrase in curved script that she couldn't read.
"I'm afraid I haven't seen her. Perhaps she is in the hospital wing."
"I've already looked there, too." Sighing, Piper put a hand to her forehead. "But she wasn't there either. Some said they didn't see Rowan after history class. I really don't know where else to look. But good, you don't know either. So much for that."
Without another word, Piper rushed past her, leaving nothing but the smell of unfamiliar shampoo behind. Luna watched her go for a moment before a shiver ran down her spine. A tremor settled momentarily on her shoulders as she knotted her fingers.
The doll had fallen over.
And although all this hadn't looked dangerous, although she had been told that the search was harmless, all she had in mind was the doll. The worn fibre she had held in her hands, possessing that magical aura of foreign days.
"Luna?" It was Laima who addressed her. "Is everything alright?"
Her eyes darted to the black mop of hair peeking out of her cloak. Her hands had dug into the hem of her jumper and were pulling at the fabric. It was just an idea. A strange feeling that settled heavily on her shoulders.
"I think something's happened."
That was the best she could get out of herself. The only thing the Ravenclaw could think of as she glanced down the empty corridor again, where no one was waiting for her.
Not even Rowan.
