Darkness clung to the passing clouds and discharged into the sky as dinner passed in the Great Hall in lively chatter. It disappeared behind topics about lessons, behind homework, and behind the murmurs of the Ravenclaws. Rowan still hadn't shown up. Piper was also missing.
The food seemed almost tasteless on Luna's tongue.
When she let her gaze glide through the rows of her own house, all eyes seemed to keep moving in her direction. By contrast, others didn't even look up from their books, and a few remained completely unconcerned in their own world. Perhaps Wrackspurts had something to do with it. Small, stubborn, invisible creatures that confused the mind and could only be shooed away with positive thoughts.
It bathed the existence of the witches and wizards present in an image of endless mystery, all of which Luna would have liked to fathom. But seven years at this school were probably not enough for that.
Again and again, Luna tilted her head, looked around, met unfamiliar pairs of eyes and yet was never once addressed. The surrounding silence was predictable, peaceful, enough to shape her thoughts that wafted vaguely through her senses.
Whatever had happened to Rowan, she had to be somewhere and there had to be a way to get her out – if she had even got into the predictable situation of being locked up somewhere.
It was reminiscent of one of those magical fairy tales where a wizard had locked himself in a wall with a spell and waited seven years to be rescued. It was a fairy tale for children. One of those works, that Luna had got behind at a very early age because no one would wait seven years behind a wall when there were spells that would surely free them.
Luna's thoughts bounced through her head, barely settling, unwilling to commit to anything as long as it was all guesswork. What was believed was passed on. Assumptions were spread. Stories emerged from them. But her own assumptions were not something she wanted to hold on to. Not at that moment, and not even when the dinner came to an end, and they all left for their rooms in an organised line.
The steps led them endlessly towards the sky and yet it never grew darker in a breath. Only the echo of footsteps seemed a little more ghostly than the night before.
The common room lay quietly before them in comparison. The accumulated knowledge slumbered in the bindings and the pleasant light sparkled over the walls like endless stars that made a whole. Luna noticed it out of the corner of her eye, only acknowledging it as a side note in her mind before following the girls to the side of the dormitories for witches.
It wasn't until she reached her own room, where the light was already on, that Luna took the small moment to breathe in the magical air more deeply, unnoticed.
"Didn't I tell you to put that stupid thing away?" Piper's question was the first foreign sound to reach Luna within her wayward awareness.
"Are you talking about the doll?" Without further ado, Luna turned her gaze to the worn toy. It was sitting upright on the cupboard again, almost as if Piper had been holding it in her hands.
"What else am I supposed to talk about, you silly thing?" With a snort, the witch wrinkled her nose. "Ever since I got here, that something seems to have been staring at me. You can say what you like, but there's something about that doll that you don't want anywhere near. I wouldn't even pick up such an ugly thing if it earned me a hundred house points."
For a moment, Luna kept her eyes on the doll. But all she saw was a gift that had been given to her on her quest. Maybe Laima knew more. But asking her in front of Piper would have made no sense. It would only have complicated the circumstances.
"Was your search for Rowan successful?" Gently, the Ravenclaw turned back to her roommate.
"How could it?" Crossing her arms in front of her chest, Piper furrowed her brows. "She disappeared without a trace. No one's seen her, not even the teachers. I don't think it'll be long before she's considered missing – and this is the first day!" Inevitably, Linquist shook her head. "And you know what, Lovegood? I can't help suspecting you had something to do with it. Weird girls like you always have to be kept an eye on."
Maybe she was right. Probably the search had something to do with it, which didn't directly mean it was Luna's fault, but it did suggest that she had played a part. At the same time, there was still the question of what had happened. So she blanked Piper out for a moment.
Her small feet carried the Ravenclaw straight to the box in which she kept a few books and clothes, under which she had hidden the first object. If something had happened, her father said, it was important to go through all the possessions. People always had to find the fault in themselves first.
And indeed, she couldn't feel the well-kept chocolate frog box. No matter how deep she went, there was no carton that held a secret.
"Are you even listening to me?" With a flick, Piper moved back to the forefront of her mind, making Luna turn her attention away from the box and back to the witch. Brows pulled together deeply, she wrapped one of her curls around her pinky finger. Her shoes tapped indispensably on the wooden floor.
"I was in thought," Luna confessed, unimpressed, before she pulled herself back to her feet. She couldn't tell Piper about the search, couldn't breathe a single word, and thus had to keep a secret that included Rowan.
"Of course you were. Probably thinking about how to get rid of me next!"
"You're afraid," Luna stated flatly.
Although Piper maintained an upright posture, her shoulders kept shrugging. She spoke faster than usual, playing with her hair, and her eyes circled the room. She was a fascinating image of two thoughts being carried out at the same time.
"Of course I am, you loony!" Finally, Piper jumped to her feet. "I know people like you. Crazy people who think they can see the end, only to put others in danger!" Almost automatically, she picked up her wand. "You have no idea what you're doing, Lovegood."
"I don't understand …" Indecisive, Luna clasped her hands in her cloak.
"Just get out of here. And take your things with you." Piper's demand backed up with a wave of her wand, indicating Luna's exit.
"But where?" The options were few, and it seemed strange to be thrown out of the room they were supposed to share. It was forbidden to be outside their sleeping quarters after a certain hour. "I think we would be punished for that."
"As far as I'm concerned, I'll take a hundred punishments to get as much distance from you as possible." Tensely, Piper jutted her chin. "You shouldn't be here."
"And you should both be in bed sleeping by now." The slam of a flat hand on the doorframe made both witches whirl around, only to look straight into Morag's annoyed gaze. "And put that wand down, Linquist, or Daddy will have to buy a new one. Someone like you, who doesn't know any spells yet, shouldn't be waving a magic branch around."
"I don't know since when you've been in charge here," Piper hissed back, only to actually lower the wand a little.
"Since I'm older than you are." Almost calmly, Morag leaned into the frame, not caring about her demeanour or the general behaviour that seemed to make up most of the society. "And if you don't like Luna sleeping in the same room with you, you're welcome to go to Professor Flitwick and complain. I'm sure your whining will be happily ignored." She shrugged. "Now go to sleep before they take points off us for being stupid."
Luna avoided comment, simply watched as Piper clicked her tongue and Morag turned on her heel to follow her words herself.
Shortly after, the door slammed shut, leaving the silence to climb the walls like magical power, leaving nothing but unspoken words that Luna thought she could read in the air. It was wondrous and, at the same time, this room possessed a sudden charm that rested lightly on her shoulders.
"Don't think this is over, Lovegood." Mouth noticeably down-turned, Piper's fingertips trembled as she tried to place the wand quietly on the bedside table. "The last word hasn't been said yet."
An instant later, Piper turned away for good. She simply grabbed her sleeping clothes and changed, as if no one else was in the room.
Silently, Luna crept over to her own bed, only to do the same as her roommate. She glanced at Rowan's empty bed, then at the doll. Wherever the witch was, there had to be a solution. There was a solution to everything and an answer to every question. Her father had mentioned it often enough.
The light in the room went out barely a blink later, enveloping the Ravenclaw in velvety darkness that swallowed every outline. Carefully, Luna groped her way forward with her hands to find her way into bed and under the blanket that wrapped itself coolly around her senses.
The silence in the room reached into her head, allowing no exciting thoughts. Instead, there was only the opaque cloud of weariness lurking there, reaching for the witch. Gentle hands that carried Luna away. Into the depths, down to a bottom she couldn't see.
A part of her drifted away. Somewhere off into the unknown depths that no one knew and no one could explore. But her curiosity in this world didn't reach deep enough before rigid pressure lifted her upwards. The endless eternity moved into the distance, her body became dull, losing its feeling only to regain it the next moment.
She blinked, continuing to find herself in darkness, but the rustling of the blanket brought a different feeling to the world that had waited for everything and nothing, covered in veils.
Only slowly did Luna sit up, clinging to the blanket, feeling the throbbing in her chest that made her breath come haltingly across her lips.
"Luna …"
The whisper of a voice nestled softly against her ears. A man who seemed so far away that he couldn't be part of the bedroom.
Her eyes wandered through the darkness, searching for outlines, for a spark of magic she couldn't find, until a faint light flashed beside her on the bedside table.
A tiny ball of light flickered in Laima's small hands. The shadows on her features were ghostly, bathing her in a glow of mystery before she addressed her words softly to Luna. "You can't sleep?"
"I heard a voice."
Barely noticeably, the sylph raised her brows. "A voice?"
Luna nodded. "Perhaps a guardian calling out to me."
"That can't be." Without further ado, the creature waved it off before wandering up and down the sideboard. "The guardians are visiting a seeker in his dreams. They don't call out to him, especially not on our 'level'." She shook her head. "And there is no reason for a guardian to call for you, or even to come to this school."
Laima knew what she was talking about. But the voice remained, resonating in the room like an endless echo, just waiting to be followed.
"And Rowan?" It wasn't really an understandable question that came over Luna, but Laima still looked at her as if she could see any meaning clearly.
"I don't know if it could be related to Rowan. But … if she did indeed come into contact with one of the objects and had to bear consequences … then there is at least a probability." With a sigh, Laima put a hand to her forehead. "But I don't think it's a good idea to chase after an unknown thing. What is that voice, anyway? What is it saying?"
"It sounds like a man," Luna replied softly. "And he said my name."
This time, the thoughtfulness was clearly reflected on Laima's features. Putting a hand to her chin, she eyed Luna up and down. "Are you sure?"
"Rowan needs help." Of that, Luna was certain. The one thing that was becoming clearer by the minute was the fact that Rowan was in trouble. After all, she had disappeared and if she was managing things on her own, she would have probably been back by now. But they were all first-year students. Most of them knew maybe a handful of spells.
"Then we should get to the bottom of this." With difficulty, the sylph rose to her feet. "But if it gets too dangerous, we'll turn back."
The Ravenclaw didn't reply. Instead, she allowed herself to be led out of bed by the dim light of the small, magical orb. Bare feet brushed cold floor that seemed to creep up to her calves. Yet it was only the cool air that tried to wake her.
Almost too carefully, she moved to her shoes to slip silently inside and aim for the door after the wand had found a firm place in her hands.
The doorway was easy to pass through, but struck her with even colder air, causing the trembling of her shoulders to come to the fore for a moment.
The drowsy silence of the common room almost infected the witch and the endless steps leading down outside of it all had an air of infinity about them.
"Luna … come …"
Again the voice drew attention, seeming to sit somewhere in the maw of Hogwarts, so the witch followed. In quick strides, she took step after step, letting Laima light her way as she fluttered close to the ground.
It was like an eternal descent into the depths of another world, taking the cold from her and replacing the curiosity within with warmth.
The walls passed her by in shadows, leaving only the certainty of an existence in which life prevailed that was older than all the students who learned in the masonry. Luna's breath seemed to linger on the stone of the walls, enjoying the life that crept so carelessly through the night, though there were probably watchful eyes in the corridors.
But none of those eyes caught Luna.
Unseen, the call, the certainty of being on the strange figure's heels, lured her into the girls' toilet on the second floor.
It was only behind the door that Luna paused, took a breath, and in the same instant heard a clatter in the background. Then a stifling silence sprouted – as if the world was holding its breath.
Instantly, Laima shut off her light, letting the darkness wash over them, while only the light of the moon shimmered through the window. Away from it, the silence remained, making Luna breathe so shallowly that the sweat on her skin ran louder down her body than the oxygen touched her lips. No one was in this place. Not at first glance. But she felt the presence of another person clearly dancing across her senses.
Perhaps this was a moment when courage was needed. But caution felt better.
"I-Is there … someone?"
Before Luna could move closer to the centre of the room, to the sinks, another girl dared to raise her voice. Yet her words were nothing more than an uncertain whisper.
"Hello...," Luna ultimately replied, only to add a slight wave of her wand. "Lumos."
For a moment, she was grateful that her father had taken the time to teach her this spell so that she could still read in the evenings when all the lights had gone out.
Meanwhile, somewhere further back, hidden by the washbasins, a shadow flitted forward just to get a little closer to the light – until a red-haired girl emerged.
As soon as she caught sight of Luna, she breathed a sigh of relief. The tension seemed to fall from her body, turning the slightly round face into a friendly expression, looking at her for a moment only before holding out her hand to Luna. "Ginny … Weasley. And you're Luna Lovegood."
For a moment, Luna simply looked at the offered hand, eyed the slight tremor, and then took it cautiously. This girl was different from the ones she had met so far and it had a pleasant touch to know that even a Gryffindor – as her uniform revealed - sometimes broke the rules.
"You're here because of the voice, too?" To the Ravenclaw's ears, it was a perfectly normal question, echoing softly off the walls and causing Ginny to brush a strand of her red hair behind her ear.
"I …" Uncertainly, she looked around for a moment before nodding slightly. "You heard it too?"
Her voice didn't tremble and yet Luna could feel the unease emanating from the Gryffindor. The clothes on her body had a unique charm compared to Luna's nightgown. It made her appear orderly. Strong. Though all that was just a wall threatening to collapse.
"Why else would someone be hanging around the castle at this inhuman hour, risking breaking the rules on the first day? Or maybe the second, however you want to look at it." Unnerved, Laima intervened. She approached the light, which betrayed her tense features.
"What is this?" Momentarily distracted, Ginny took a step closer to the sylph. "Are you a magical beast?"
"A sylph," Laima replied clumsily. "And that doesn't matter at all. We're standing in the middle of the girls' bathroom. Now what?"
"I came here because … because curiosity got the best of me." Slowly, Ginny clutched her chest. "I thought it would be exciting to discover something." Once more, she breathed a sigh of relief. "But I'm glad I didn't hear it alone."
The thin smile on her lips definitely had something of a girl who had been about to turn back. At least Luna remembered her father telling her over and over about paying close attention to other people's faces and what could be learned from them.
He had explained it to her many times, but she hadn't mastered the technique.
"Are you looking for something, then?" inquired Laima, settling on Luna's shoulder to wait and see.
"Looking?" Ginny tilted her head. "I don't think so."
"And a wish?"
This time, Ginny hesitated a little longer before finding the right words. "Maybe … My brother, Ron, is friends with a girl who is supposed to be very smart. I'd like to meet her, but … I haven't found the opportunity yet."
Or she hadn't dared yet. It was understandable, considering all the students at one table. And finding a clear attachment within such a short time felt a bit impossible. Even if nothing was impossible, just, some days, out of reach.
"Luna …"
Momentarily, it snapped the young Ravenclaw out of her thoughts, made her shrug her shoulders – at the same moment as Ginny.
"Did you hear that too?" The Gryffindor's voice quivered before she glanced over her shoulder. But all that enveloped her was darkness, bathed in cold white light from the faint glow of the outside world.
Laima's Lumos suffocated. Silence stretched like a shroud over the girls' breathing, but nothing moved. All they were left with was the coldness of the unknown.
"Where is this coming from?" Ginny's gaze fixed on Luna again, causing the Ravenclaw to take a moment away from thinking too much about all of this.
"Maybe from the walls," Luna suggested, watching Ginny look around before shaking her head.
"I think it's closer than that." She looked terribly determined all of a sudden. "I think we should look around. Maybe we'll find something."
"It could be in our heads," Luna started again. If the voice was near and far in one, it was most likely in everyone's heads. Or at least in hers – and Ginny Weasley's.
Laima's sigh distracted the Ravenclaw for a moment until the sylph took the word. "I think … I'm beginning to understand what's happening."
"Really?" Ginny's curiosity seemed to flare.
"Really," the creature confirmed. "I haven't experienced it myself yet, but I've heard about it." She shrugged. "If someone really desires something or has potential to go out in search, then people are called or chosen single-handedly by the guardians to be seekers."
"Seekers?"
"All those who seek countless objects in order to have a wish granted at the end. Since you were chosen, I can tell you about it." Slowly, Laima struggled to her thin legs. "If a guardian calls you, you can make the pact and become a seeker yourself. Or you can refuse, but offer yourself as a shadow. Then you'll be able to help Seekers if anyone ever asks you for help."
"And how do I do that?" The Gryffindor's thirst for knowledge didn't seem to fade for a moment, but was only met with a shrug from Laima.
With a dismissive gesture of her hand, the sylph pushed the subject away. "If you want to find out something, it's best to look at it."
"But first we have to find out where the voice is coming from," Ginny countered, earning an amused look from Laima.
"The guardians live in a world in between. What do you think is the closest thing in a school of magic to another world?"
Momentarily, Ginny looked around, only to take a few bold steps forward. Her eyes visibly wandered over the interior as Luna cradled the sylph's words in her mind, careful and attentive.
Another world, a building she had seen more than once – at least from the inside. White walls. White floor. White uniforms. And a man behind the reception desk. Endless words that she hadn't been able to read. An act like sometimes watched in a play.
Through a glass.
As in the world of those who knew no magic.
""A mirror"", it came over the lips of both girls, met with slight astonishment on both sides, because they must have been pursuing the same thought.
Without hesitation, the Gryffindor crossed the distance to the mirrors above the sinks, while Luna followed in silent steps. Next to Ginny, she found a place in the dim, light darkness that seemed to envelop them both, turning her gaze to the glass. Resting their hands on a sink, the two girls pushed themselves up, stretched, came up on their toes, only to be reflected – and to see nothing.
All the glass showed was the two of them. Two girls looking into their reflections with a mixture of gleam in their eyes and raised brows.
"Maybe it isn't this after all," Ginny remarked, shaking on her legs to keep her balance.
"Or maybe you're lacking an important component. But that's what I'm here for." Without further ado, Laima floated past them, only to tap her knuckles against the glass. Almost as if she were knocking, asking to be let in. "Aparecium Geral."
For the first moment, nothing happened. No matter how deeply Luna looked into the image that gazed into her eyes, nothing changed. Until her reflection put on a smile that wasn't hers.
The image's eyes widened, making her googly eyes just a little bigger, before it twisted them. The next moment, everything was white - as white as in her dreams. So brilliantly bright that she allowed herself to be drawn, disengaged her hand from the sink and tried to reach for the bright glow. If it were a mistake, Laima would stop her from doing so.
But nothing happened.
Instead, Luna touched the glass, blinked away the burning in her eyes – and the blackness behind her lids shattered into bright white. The toilet faded away.
"W-where are we?"
Slowly, the Ravenclaw turned her head aside, only to discover Ginny beside her. Her red hair danced as she looked frantically left and right, but found nothing familiar.
"Where the voice came from. Welcome to the starting point." Without further ado, Laima clapped her hands before turning to Luna in a friendly tone. "If you're asking today, it's for the Guardian of Eternity."
"How do you know who we're looking for?" In disbelief, Ginny crossed her arms in front of her chest a tightened her shoulders slightly.
"Because I was chosen to lead the seekers," the sylph replied. "I know who to ask for when you go on a search, and I also know the rules to follow."
Laima's snooty tone fell on Ginny's deaf ears. "And what do we have to follow?"
With a sigh, the magical creature admitted defeat. "Not much. Just try to hurry and when you reach the guardian, don't get distracted. Ask him the question, who created them? That's all."
The Gryffindor's nod remained hesitant as Luna carefully memorised every word the sylph said. Then she put one small foot in front of the other, penetrated the strange silence and reached the counter barely a breath later.
The same man who always seemed to be guiding her hung bent over a magazine whose pages he hadn't turned once since they arrived. She reached out to him, a little as she did to the mirror, hoping he would recognise her, but his movements remained rigid.
"Excuse me," the little witch then began simply, "I would like to visit the Guardian of Eternity."
His shoulders slumped instantly.
Only reluctantly did he lift his gaze, then his head, and look at Luna. But all he had left for her was a long, deep sigh that vibrated in her ears and, at the same time, rasped from his throat. Withered and yet somehow alive.
There was barely a spark of a soul in his eyes, coming to Luna with nothing more than sorrow that tasted like pity, making her rock back to find firm ground beneath her feet.
"As you wish," he finally replied. "It's not my problem."
He slipped out from behind the reception desk and strolled ahead, causing Luna to glance over her shoulder. However, Ginny was already behind her, ready to follow the stranger, so they started moving together.
The endless corridors had the same charm as the last few times. The doors hadn't changed and the halls echoing off the walls were more pleasant than the silence of the last guardian. Only distant shouts clouded the picture.
"Do you hear that?" Ginny's unease seemed to grow with each additional step that kept her close to Luna.
"I think they're insane," the Ravenclaw replied, voice lowered to a soft whisper. Her classmate's fear rolled off her. The screaming of these unknown people was reminiscent of the screeching of little Mandrakes that her mother had sometimes had to relocate in the garden. Not knowing what faces were hidden behind the voices made them all Mandrakes.
And no one could tell her otherwise without bringing the necessary clarity.
"Do you think they're human?" The Gryffindor remained cautious as her footsteps floated across the floor as if trying not to make any noise. She still couldn't suppress the tremor in her voice.
"No." Luna stayed with the Mandrakes. "I don't think so."
Ginny merely gave her a nod as she continued to follow, clearly pale – straight into a maze of white walls that defied counting. The path stretched endlessly, making Luna count her steps in the back of her mind without any benefit. The screams in the background grew louder and louder, ringing in her ears and making the Ravenclaw wipe her sweaty hands on her nightgown.
She knew that the screams of a Mandrake could be deadly. On the other hand, all this was just a dream, another world where nothing could happen and yet was responsible for Myrtle's death. The information she had was contradictory and yet there was this unshakeable trust towards Laima. Because Laima had made her special, maybe even a little more special than the other children of Hogwarts.
So she trusted. Stepping further ahead, not expecting death around the next corner, she continued to listen to the voices whose pleas remained inhuman.
Grates rattled in the distance, wailing filtered through to them. Some suffering sounded hoarse. Others scratched the plaster from the walls loud and clear.
"This is … terrible …" Slowly, Ginny raised her hands, ready to press them to her ears, only to be stopped by Laima.
"Don't!" She waved her arms. "The guardian doesn't like it when you try to block out his self. This is part of eternity."
Half frozen in motion, the witch waited a moment. "And what happens if I do?"
"Then he'll put you in one of those cells and you'll never get out of here." The seriousness in Laima's voice clung to the walls, so Ginny merely swallowed before lowering her hands again.
Luna, meanwhile, gripped her nightgown tighter, enduring the increasingly loud roar with her eyes narrowed slightly to soothe the throbbing behind her eyelids.
The man in front of her didn't show any sign of minding. His pace remained normal, his posture erect. He didn't even flinch when a clatter suddenly reached them. He just took it all in stride, triggering mild admiration in the Ravenclaw. Astonishment that lingered until he turned a corner and came to a halt all at once.
Then he turned to them, eyed them once more and then shrugged before pointing to the door on his left. "That way in."
He took a step aside as if he wasn't just going to disappear or leave this time, and Luna dared a glance over her shoulder. Ginny hadn't moved an inch from her. Her gaze lingered on the door before she looked at Laima. "We're going in there?"
"You're going in there," the sylph confirmed. "And you will endure it."