Luna in the Rain

That afternoon, Edmund slept beautifully.

When he finally woke, the sky outside had already darkened. His body had recovered, his mind felt clear, and his stomach reminded him that mental training did nothing to replace dinner.

He left Ravenclaw Tower and went down to the kitchens. The moment he entered, every house-elf stopped. Then they lined up.

"Master!"

The shout almost made Edmund step back.

Chelsea hurried forward, ears trembling with excitement. "Master has come to the kitchens! What does Master want? Chelsea will prepare anything!"

Edmund looked at the rows of house-elves bowing to him and slowly understood. The Slytherin token.

It did not merely connect to the Chamber. It carried a level of authority within the castle's old magic. The house-elves, who were bound to that magic, sensed the connection immediately.

"Go back to work," Edmund said. "Chelsea, steak, soup, fruit, and something sweet."

"Yes, Master!"

The kitchen exploded back into motion.

Ten minutes later, Edmund left with a full stomach and several wrapped desserts. Instead of returning to the tower, he headed toward the Forbidden Forest. Celestia needed the potions he had prepared, and the sooner she absorbed them, the faster her growth would stabilize.

Halfway across the grounds, rain began to fall.

It started as a drizzle and became a storm within minutes. Students ran toward the castle with robes over their heads. The wind bent the grass. Lightning flashed beyond the forest.

At the edge of the trees, Edmund stopped. A girl stood beneath an old tree, soaked by rain.

Her long, pale hair clung to her robes. A yellow straw hat hung uselessly on her head, heavy with water. She was not shivering, not panicking, not even looking upset. She simply stared into the forest as though the storm were a curtain and something wonderful might appear behind it.

For a moment, she looked less like a student and more like a spirit who had wandered out of the rain.

Edmund walked over and cast a drying charm. Warm air swept around her, lifting water from her hair and clothes. Luna Lovegood turned to him.

"Hello."

"Hello," Edmund said. "Why are you standing in the rain?"

"I am looking for a Crumple-Horned Snorkack."

Of course.

"In the Forbidden Forest?"

"Lauren said one had been seen here."

Edmund searched his memory and found the name. One of Luna's Ravenclaw roommates. So that was what this was.

Some girls teased people with words. Others sent them into a storm to look for imaginary creatures.

Edmund looked toward the castle, then back at Luna.

"Did Lauren say anything else?"

"Only that it might run away if I brought too many people."

"How considerate."

Luna nodded seriously. "She was very specific." Edmund sighed.

"The Crumple-Horned Snorkack can wait. Would you like to see a unicorn?"

Luna's eyes brightened.

"A real one?"

"A real one."

"The Quibbler says unicorns dislike noisy people and Ministry officials."

"Then she has good taste."

Edmund gestured toward the forest.

"Come on. I know where she is."

As they walked beneath the trees, Edmund found himself glancing at Luna again. She was nothing like Hermione. Hermione built her world from facts, arguments, footnotes, and proven rules. Luna seemed to step sideways through reality, accepting impossible things with a calm that made the impossible feel rude for not existing.

Both were interesting. Both were difficult in completely different ways.

Luna walked beside him with perfect trust, as if following a boy into the Forbidden Forest during a storm was the most reasonable thing in the world.

"You are not afraid?" Edmund asked.

"Of you?"

"Of the forest."

"No. The trees are only wet."

Edmund smiled.

The rain softened as they moved deeper inside. Moonlight began to break through the clouds, silvering the leaves and turning the forest floor dark and shining.

Ahead, in a quiet clearing, Celestia lifted her head. The unicorn's coat glowed faintly in the dim light. Luna stopped walking. For the first time that evening, she looked truly amazed.

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