Ron and Hermione abandoned Harry as soon as they boarded the train for prefect duties. He wasn't upset though since he was hoping to find an empty compartment to hide from the students for a while since he was already starting to feel a little hungry, everyone was just a little too happy to see their friends again. Unfortunately, the Grimmauld group had been running late and were some of the last to board; every compartment he saw had at least one person in it. Feeling the emotions around him, Harry felt around for a compartment that didn't make him hungry and was also fairly empty.
He ended up looking into the window of a compartment that only had one girl in it with blonde hair, radish earrings, and who was reading a magazine upside down. Harry shrugged dismissively, this girl's level of strangeness didn't even scratch the surface of his own, and the emotions coming from her compartment were pure peace and calm. So, he pushed open the door and stuck his head him. "Hi there! Do you mind if I join you? Fair warning, there will probably be two prefects popping in after a while if you say yes."
The girl looked over her magazine at him with the most brilliant blue eyes he had ever seen. She smiled in a vague way and motioned to the seat in front of her. "You are very welcome, Harry Potter," she said kindly and a little formally.
Harry grinned and sat across from her. "I don't think I've met you before…or have I and I'm making a fool of myself?"
The girl's eyes seemed just a little off focus as they looked at him, like she was looking through him. "I'm Luna Lovegood, and no, I don't think we've officially met before. I would remember."
"Well, it's good to meet you then, Luna," Harry nodded and situated Hedwig's empty cage in the overhead compartment since she had decided to fly to Hogwarts instead of being cooped up on the train.
"You too. I'm sorry that you really must feel uncomfortable here," Luna stated sadly as she picked up her magazine and stared at it upside down once more.
Harry sat back down and looked at the girl confused for a moment or two. "Er, I'm not sure what you mean? I'm pretty comfortable here in the compartment with you."
Luna flashed him a dazzling smile. "No, I mean carrying a body around you aren't attached to. It has to be very uncomfortable…like wearing shoes that are too big I would imagine."
Harry basically choked on air and figured that if he didn't die by choking then it would be a heart attack. "What do you mean carrying around a body?" He asked very slowly, really hoping he'd misunderstood.
In response, Luna pushed her blonde curls behind her ear that was away from the compartment door. The ear was very normal, if not exceptionally cute. She then waved her hand over it and a glamour peeled away revealing a dramatically pointed ear that reached up into her hair.
"Woah! That's bloody awesome!" Harry exclaimed, leaning forward a bit to see her ear better. It was extremely cool looking.
"Thank you," she said and another wave of her hand reapplied the glamour. "I'm a fairy. There are wings too, but those are more noticeable to just appear in a train compartment."
"I'd imagine," the dementor smiled in awe. "I don't think I've ever met a fairy before...at least I didn't know they were one if I did."
Luna smiled at him kindly. "Fairies see what others disregard. We see how magic interacts with the world around us and how all beings are interconnected," she explained with a far-away look. "You're letting too many wrackspurts in. You really must get rid of some of those."
Harry stared for a minute, not knowing where to even start with all of that. He had only chosen this compartment because it was peaceful…that peace was still strangely there even as Harry was both worried and utterly confused. "Er, so, does that mean you know what I am?" He finally decided to ask first.
Luna nodded with a smile. "Of course, dementors are a part of magic just as all beings are."
"And you aren't afraid of me?" He asked nervously, not really sure why this strange girl's opinion suddenly mattered so much to him, but it did.
"Why would I be?" She giggled. "Oh Harry, maybe you should talk to a dementor before you decide they're all the embodiment of evil. Have you ever actually sat down and had a conversation with a dementor before."
Having had many horrible experiences with dementors, he completely disregarded that suggestion as ludicrous and instead laughed. "Er, yeah, I don't think that's the best idea." He pictured showing up to Azkaban and asking if a dementor wanted to go for tea. Changing the subject before he started laughing again, he asked, "What's a wrackspurt?"
"They are negatively charged magic," Luna explained as she finally closed her magazine. "Those who've given into negative emotions emit them, and when those negative emotions are about yourself, you let them in. You already have too many people sending wrackspurts your way. You shouldn't add your own into the mix. Negative feelings you have about yourself do nothing to better you, they only let in more pain and compound the problem."
Feeling like he'd just had a therapy session, Harry took a deep breath in. This strange girl accepted him, told him to let go of his negative feelings about himself, and listened. He wished he had met Luna Lovegood years before. "Thank you, Luna," he said with all the feeling he could muster into the sentence.
"You're welcome, Harry Potter," she nodded and picked up her magazine once more.
Harry pulled his wand out of his pocket after a couple minutes staring out of the window and thinking about what his new friend had said. "Luna, do you mind if I try some magic? I don't know if I can still cast spells like I am now. I'm really worried I'm going to get to Hogwarts and they'll just send me back, or worse send me off to guard Azkaban."
Luna once more put down her magazine in such a way that said she'd rather have been talking to him anyway. "You're still connected to magic. You just need to tap back into that connection," she assured him.
Harry nervously pointed his wand at her magazine and called out, "Wingardium Leviosa!"
The magazine shook a little bit but didn't stir to Harry's horror. "Try releasing your aura just a bit, not enough to lower the temperature, but enough to loosen your hold. I promise you won't hurt me," Luna assured him. "You have such a tight hold on your magic, you're not letting any of it out right now."
Even more nervous, Harry loosened his tightly held reigns on his aura and tried again. This time the magazine rose up into the air as it should. Harry smiled as Luna clapped excitedly across from him. "Bravo, Harry!" She called out. She made him feel like he just survived the dragon in the first task of the Triwizard Tournament instead of casting a first-year levitation charm, and Harry was certain this girl was going to be his friend if he had anything to say about it.
"Thank you so much, Luna," Harry gushed as the magazine floated down again. A thought then came to him, and he was very interested to hear the answer. "Hey, sorry, I meant to ask…are there a lot of fairies at Hogwarts?"
....
Want to read ahead by more than 60 chapters. Then join my pa*treon now.
Link: pa*treon.com/Amelie796 (Remove the *)
Free members will get 2 chapters for free.