Third Lesson
Luna woke up in an unfamiliar room, that was slightly different from the room she had been offered during her stay at Hogwarts as a guest teacher. A fire was crackling in the fireplace and keeping the room heated during this cold time of year. As Luna looked around, noticing the few personal belongings scattered across the room, she realised that Rolf has kept his promise. From the looks of it, he had apparently slept in the massive armchair near the fire as well. The chair was covered by a blanket that had half slid off and a pillow was balanced on top of it.
She was still in her clothes and securely tucked away in the massive bed. She assumed Rolf had used a drying spell on her lake-drenched clothes, rather than undressing her. She appreciated that.
At last, her eye landed on her itchy forearm, where a bandage was neatly applied. She was softly tugging at it when a voice gently scolded her, "I wouldn't do that if I was you," Rolf said entering through the main door, a platter filled with breakfast in his hands.
Luna dropped her hands and stared at him as he sat down at the end of the bed, near her feet. He sat down the platter on the bed and scooted the breakfast towards her. Both Luna and Rolf stayed silent for a while, neither sure what to say.
As she took a bite of a piece of banana bread, she looked up through her eyelashes. "Thank you," she said softly.
Rolf looked up from his endless stare into the fire, the orange hue making his strawberry blonde hair look like he was one of the Weasleys. It made Luna smile.
Rolfs eyes connected to hers and a small, carefully measured, but ever-gentle smile, graced his features.
"I didn't know if you would keep your promise.....and thank you for being....kind" Luna said waving to the breakfast in front of her to indicate what she meant.
Rolf frowned at her, "I never break a promise," He answered.
After that, they stayed silent until breakfast was finished.
"Where did you learn this?" Luna asked quietly, gesturing towards her arm, curiosity taking over after the sleep had faded and her belly had been filled.
Rolf looked up from the book he was reading and closed it, putting it down on the coffee table next to him. "It comes in handy when you travel a lot as I do," Rolf shrugged.
Apparently noticing his answer did not fulfil her curiosity, he continued, "I work as a Magizoologist, I travel to areas that are uninhabited and work in more dangerous areas. Knowing not only how to take care of the animals, but of yourself and your companions as well, is valuable when help is not always around the corner,".
Intrigued, Luna set up a little straighter. "That's amazing!" she said, her excitement clearly showing on her face, her eyes lighting up and the corners of her mouth curling upwards.
Her wary composure melted away like snow on a sunny spring day.
Rolf blinked with his eyes a few times as if taken by surprise by something, Luna didn't quite understand why, but that was okay with her.
"Yes, I've been to Greece recently to research and take care of a flock of Hippogriffs, they were......" Rolf started babbling away about his adventures in all the far-stretched corners of the world and all the magical creatures he had met along the way.
He talked and talked and Luna listened, asked questions and story by story they ended up closer together. At one point Rolf was laying next to her on the bed, without Luna taking any notice of the change at all. "So this scar I got while trying to help this Chinese Fireball to give labour, let me tell you mama dragon was not pleased," Rolf snickered as he showed the scar on his left forearm.
"Wow," Luna muttered, a look of awe on her face as she in leaned closer to take a better look, she reached out her hand to trail the pattern engraved into his skin with her fingertips.
A few short knocks on the door made her look up and notice that all of a sudden they were really really close together, their noses almost touching, his breath tickling the pale skin of her cheeks. She could count the freckles on his face and the specks of colour in his eyes.
A small squeal left her mouth as she scooted backwards hastily, almost tumbling straight off the bed, on the floor. Rolf worriedly reached out a hand to her, he had broken off his story about his adventures mid-sentence and set up halfway, one elbow leaning on the mattress.
Another knock came on the door, "Mister Scamander!" professor McGonagall's voice came through the door.
Luna's eyes went wide as she looked up to Rolf, he was the son of the famous magizoologist, Newt Scamander.
"Luna wait-," Rolf stood up now, facing her from the other side of the bed, one hand held up into the air as if to stop her.
"Mister Scamander, the students are waiting for you!" another loud knocking on the door, emphasized her words.
Luna walked to the door before Rolf could, opened it and walked out, "Ms. Lovegood but what-,"
"Please excuse me, professor, I am already late to assist with the teachings of the fifth years," Luna said, lowering her head to her former teacher, using the sign of respect to hide the blood that had rushed to her cheeks. Swiftly ushering away, Luna ignored Rolf's voice calling after her.
"Oh hello dear, I anticipated you'd be late today, so I started class already. You can help pour the tea into the cups if you don't mind," Trelawney motioned her towards the already steaming pots with teacups stalled out next to them and a line of students forming to collect their cups.
Luna plastered a smile on her face a nodded, "Of course professor," she stepped forward and introduced herself to the fifth-year Ravenclaw, Slytherin class.
Luna was relieved when the fifth-year double class was done after nearly two hours. She had managed to overflow two cups with too much water, break another one and she had nearly burned the hand of a Slytherin boy, who had stared daggers at her as she quickly redrew the teapot.
Trelawney tried to question Luna all day about this supposed accident that would have happened to her yesterday, which she should be super thrilled about. ?
Luna refused to answer her questions, saying that she was not thrilled about anything and that nothing had happened. That, of course, was only a half-truth but the curly-haired woman with her intense eyes did not need to know that.
Once classes were finished, Luna was almost quicker to leave the classroom than the students were.
Sitting underneath the ceiling of the universe, Luna counted the stars, tracing the patterns in the sky with her eyes as she tried to empty her mind surrounded by the peaceful darkness of the night.
She didn't know how long she had been sitting there until a familiar voice interrupted the silence.
"You know....it's not the stars that hold our destiny....we do," Rolfs's soft voice said as he appeared from the shadows of the stairs that lead to the astronomy tower. He carefully set down next to her and instead of looking at her, he gazed up at the stars as she had before.
Luna's shoulders tensed as she tore her eyes from the night sky and fixed them upon the strawberry blonde man, she wasn't sure which was a more beautiful view, him, or the stars.
"You think so?" Luna whispered, unsure of what to say to him.
"Yeah....maybe not alone, but look at these stars," Rolf said waving his hand towards the sky as a smile appeared on his face.
"Working together, tiny stars light the universe. That's the power of teamwork," he said.
Luna followed his gaze and stared up into the sky once more, "Perhaps," she mumbled, frowning as if she could find her destiny between the little specks of light.
If only it was ever that easy.
Rolf conjured up some cushions and a big fluffy blanket which he carefully put around Luna's shoulders, Luna looked down at the blanket and then up to Rolf's face, a small smile of appreciation growing on her lips.
Rolf sat down next to her, "I am sorry I didn't tell you who I was earlier," Rolf said as he casually propped up one of his legs and put an arm on top of it.
"You see when I started my magical studies on Castelobruxo in Brazil, everyone treated me differently, because of my last name.....carrying a heritage is not always easy, let alone trying to be your own person with that heritage," Rolf explained, spinning his wand between his fingers as he fidgeted with it, avoiding Luna's gaze.
Luna kept silent for a little bit, letting his words sink in. "I know what that feels like....not fitting in," She answered quietly, with the understanding of how he must feel.
Rolf smiled, "I know," he answered, a sad gleam in his eyes as he looked away.
"I suppose that's why Magi found you in the forest, she has a knack for...." Rolf frowned and went quiet.
Luna crooked her neck and looked up at Rolfs face, "A knack for what?" she asked.
He turned his green eyes onto her once more, "She has a knack for people feeling lonely, she is kind of my support animal you see? I never go anywhere without her," Rolf explained.
"I suppose that makes sense, with the Thestral that knocked you over, it was rather playfully I must say," Rolf mesmerised by the memory of finding her in the woods.
Luna's eyes widened, "You can see them too?" she asked.
"One of the expeditions I did went wrong," Rolf answered, his eyes focussing back to the present, a sad smile gracing his face.
Luna frowned, "I am sorry," she said as she turned her eyes back towards the sky, trying to make sense of it all.
"And yet...." Rolf started, "Even though it has hurt you before.....you are so you and you stay true to who you are," he finished.
Luna looked up, "It's never about who you are that hurts, it's about others that are out to hurt you," she answered.
Rolf frowned, "......I am never out to hurt you, rather the....opposite," he eventually said after a few minutes.
Luna stared into his eyes, she hadn't considered the way Rolf showed his affection, she had all but neglected to pick up on it. But now that she paid attention to it, it seemed all so obvious.
Luna sighed to herself, a silly smile spreading on her lips. Rolf was a caretaker and that's what he had been doing all this time; taking care of her, making sure she was okay. When she was on the ground in the forest, when she got injured at the lake....when he got her breakfast the day after.
Luna wasn't used to any of it, it made her feel confused and anxious, but also warm and fuzzy. People had always passed her as if she didn't exist, as if she didn't belong. But then she found her place in the school, with her friends and later on in life, her place in the world, with Rolf
She scooted closer to him and draped her blanket over his shoulders too, causing Rolf to smile.
He carefully put his arm around her shoulder, pulling her in closer, "You know, the moon isn't the only one who goes through phases....." Rolf joked.
Luna laughed, "Oh this is definitely not a phase, quite the opposite....." she muttered as she leaned in closer as she had done before, she softly rubbed her nose against his, their lips barely brushing against each other.