Ravenclaw's Sapphire

"...Thank you." Zooey's voice was unrecognizable. She silently wiped away the tears from the corners of her eyes and the tear stains on her face. Did something happen between Min?"

"I can roughly guess it... But since you two had a fight, why would I ask you these questions when you are sad?" Luna hesitated for a while, but still said in a very vague tone. She didn't know that Zooey could I can't accept the reality that I have already noticed, but I also feel that it is too strange to pretend not to know.

"It's so obvious that even you can see it." Zooey immediately heard the meaning of Luna's words, and laughed at herself, "I thought I hid it well, so everyone around knows it? The only one who doesn't know is Hermione, does she really not know?" Or is she knowing but pretending not to know?The resentment that was finally calmed down in Zooey's heart rose again.

"I don't think she knows anything at all." Luna said lightly, "Don't think that she should know everything, that she should tolerate you in everything, and that everything should be clearer than you. Is Min too demanding? She is only one year older than me, only 13 years old."

Zoe was stimulated by this sentence, and her anger quickly swelled and exploded: "Are you calling me naive? Do you also think that everything is my fault? It's because I like someone I shouldn't like, so I deserve it Insulted, as if I would violate her just because I like a girl? Just because I like a girl, everything in my past can be denied? Listen to those things she said to me! She even thinks it's all wrong Just a mistake, as if so much of my previous struggles and pains were a joke, and she just needs to use this word to bring it over..."

Luna still didn't say anything, just waited for Zooey to gasp for breath and stopped speaking, then tilted her head and looked at her: "Even if you lose your temper with me, Hermione still can't chase me back, although I would like to listen to you. Now that Hermione has responded to you, what are you going to do?"

"I, I..." Zooey held her head dejectedly, she regretted it the moment she said it, she really shouldn't lose her temper with the innocent Luna, but she couldn't control the random running around in her mind The gloominess that went away, finally said in a daze, "I don't know... I just feel so tired..."

"Then you want to come to my house for a while as a vacation?" Luna asked expectantly, "Dad said before that he wanted to invite you, but I have been forgetting to invite you formally. I will be very happy if you can come."

Zooey lowered her head, and Luna's invitation reminded her of the previous quarrel with Hermione, her throat was blocked, since Hermione can cancel her trip without any burden, then why should she Is Gu Zidi feeling sad here?It's not that she doesn't have other friends, since Hermione wants to keep a distance from her, then she must never put her face on it alone.

"Okay, I'll go." She gritted her teeth and vowed to herself that unless Hermione gave in to her, she wouldn't get along well with her.

*****

In the following time, Zoe tried to avoid any topics related to Hermione Granger, but she still could not avoid hearing something from other people's ears, such as Hermione's final grade this semester finally reached a hundred percent The 320 (only Divination is missing), the well-deserved No.1, shocked the whole Hogwarts, because no student has ever achieved such a result, and they have no way to take several courses at the same time, let alone I have taken so many exams.

What's even more sad is that when Zoe heard the news, her first feeling was joy, not jealousy or dissatisfaction. She found that she couldn't forget her feelings for Hermione, but she couldn't hold back her face When approaching her, I can only secretly feel sullen, like a pile of Fierce Fireworks that explode at one point, with a very bad attitude towards anyone, but because of this, some people have turned into Zoe Siegel. Proof of jealousy (she is No.2 again this time).

Compared with Zoe, Draco is extremely high-spirited. It is better to say that this year belongs to Slytherin's grand event. The final victory of the Quidditch Cup finally determined the tilt of the balance. They won the Academy Cup this year. During the banquet, the entire hall was decorated with silver and green, and the traditional snake emblem and snake flag were flying everywhere, and the discussions and laughter from the Slytherin tables were the most lively.

Draco became a hero, surrounded by many people, because he was also one of the decisive forces to win this glory, and everyone was willing to greet him, pat him on the shoulder, and persuade him to eat more. There was almost a mountain of food, but he didn't even have time to finish it all, because he was too busy socializing with everyone and refilling his glass again and again.

"Are they trying to fill me up with orange juice? My whole stomach is clanging and it's full of orange juice!" Although Draco complained like this later, the smugness on his face couldn't be hidden Not to mention that every time he started to show off, he had to be so loud that even the Gryffindor on the opposite side—mainly referring to someone—could hear him.

But even the period of festive end-of-semester, idle time is not without some big things happening.Regarding the fact that Professor Lupine will no longer teach Defense Against the Dark Arts for the new year, they are divided into two distinct factions. The students couldn't even refute a question raised by the other party: What if Professor Lupine turns into a werewolf again next time and hurts the students?

Since that crazy night, many parts of Hogwarts have been messed up because of the chase between Harry and the werewolf. Although there were no witnesses and victims at the time, Hogwarts' eyes and sources of information were never endless. It's the ones who are alive.At least a dozen portraits were awakened. Many of them were terrified of the thrilling chase and wanted to talk about their feelings at that time.Not to mention that there are ghosts everywhere in this school, especially the most troublesome one of them-Peves.

The consequence of this series is that the matter of "Professor Lupine is a werewolf" was thrown into the students like a megaphone, and everyone was discussing this matter for a while. The incident also caused many students to panic. Fortunately, Professor Lupine's reputation has always been good, and the other professors' efforts to appease them later did not cause a greater commotion.

It's just that the parents who have learned the truth naturally don't want their children to be wrapped up in the shadow of a werewolf that may get out of control at any time. Even though the danger of this werewolf may be controllable, letters of complaint are still sent one after another. Come to school, even Dumbledore, it is impossible to defy the wishes of most people.

"I'm leaving." Lupine approached Zoe later, and came to apologize to her solemnly, "I didn't take the medicine on time, which caused so many things in the future, not only let Pettigrew escape, but also put you in danger Middle...Dumbledore gave me so much trust, but I couldn't grasp it, I probably still don't suit to be a professor."

"You are a good professor, Professor Lupine." Zoe said from the bottom of her heart, but she had complicated feelings about this professor, not because she had ever been in danger because of Lupine. "If I could catch up, you just Nothing will happen if you drink the medicine." More than that, although Zoe has no memory of what happened at that time until now, she can probably guess that as long as there was Max at that time, something would definitely happen .It's not fair to put all the blame on Lupine.

But she couldn't say anything: "You're a good boy, Siegel. But it's not your fault. If I could have calmed down after seeing that thing, instead of rushing out immediately...but it's all wrong now. It's too late." Lupine smiled openly, "I can understand the feelings of those parents, no one would want their child to face a werewolf, let alone he once lost control, we shouldn't condemn them Sincerely."

"And what are you going to do next? After losing this job."

"I will stay with Sirius for a while, and then slowly find a new job. Thank God, we finally got a good ending, even if there is only one-you probably don't know, we used to be very good friends, he It would be great to be able to restore my reputation." Lupine worried that Zoe didn't understand what he said, so he quickly explained.

As Lupin said, the Daily Prophet ran the bombshell on the front page the next day.The fact that Sirius Black was not the real murderer caused a violent shock in the wizarding world.At the same time, the arrest warrant for Peter Pettigrew is also shocking. The "hero" and "criminal" that everyone agreed in the past have actually lost each other, although the clarification article did not explain the matter clearly. , but it is also enough to support the discussion topic of many people for a long time.

"Professor Lupine, can I ask you a question?" Zooey asked hesitantly after thinking about it.She cared a lot about Snape's good and bad moods during this time. Ever since she recovered completely from her injury, Snape called her over directly. The pursed lips almost formed a line.Snape's eyes flickered, and he sighed after a long time: "You...you are recovering well, go back."

If that was the case, then there was no need for her to ask Lupine, but since learning that Lupine was about to be expelled from the academy, Snape couldn't hide the joy in his eyebrows, and even his attitude towards Zoe became a little gentler.And when the news of Black's redress reached Hogwarts, his mood quickly turned sour again, worse than ever before.

"Have you ever had any conflicts with Professor Snape?" Lupine listened to Zoe's cautious question, and said with a wry smile, "Yes, it's all old things in the past. We were young at that time, young and frivolous , like to make some exaggerated jokes, we didn't think so at that time, but the hatred was inherited." He didn't continue, but sighed softly.

If the resignation of Professor Lupine still made the students hesitate and hesitate, Margaret's farewell ceremony was exaggerated like a celebrity meeting.Zooey sat in the corner with a blank expression, and Luna beside her also looked very excited.Her ears kept pouring into the students' screams, cries, and persuasion—and even sobbing. She felt that her brain was going to explode in this noisy torrent, so she covered her ears and stared at the stage with cold eyes. Margaret on the table smiled and waved to every student—but she couldn't leave the banquet. This was the last banquet of the school year, and in principle, everyone was required to attend.

Her gaze drifted unconsciously to Barbara, who was also sitting in the corner, and found that she didn't even look at the bustling scene in front of her, but just focused on cutting the meat on her plate.There must be very few people in this school who know the real relationship between the two, and everyone only focuses on the most eye-catching Margaret, but Zooey has a sneaky joy, she is more willing to Watch Barbara's reaction.

Especially when a senior female student couldn't help but kissed Margaret's side face and said goodbye to her tearfully, even though Margaret immediately backed away calmly to keep a safe distance, But Zooey still saw Barbara sullenly, staring at the steak on the plate, holding the knife and fork tightly, cutting the meat cruelly, even scratching the plate without stopping. Li Te will definitely be severely punished, so she can't help gloating.

Maybe it's because of a sense of crisis, or is Margaret definitely just an idiot?In the end, she even blew kisses in the direction of the teachers' dining seats, confusing the professors, so she nodded to her as Margaret's unique way of saying goodbye.Zooey didn't dare to look over there anymore, because Barbara calmed down instantly after Margaret made that action, and even smiled.Just seeing that smile sent a chill up Zooey's spine.

"Look forward, Zoe. I'll send you a letter when the time comes." Margaret came up to her and said to her, rubbed her head, and hurriedly chased in the direction Barbara left.

It was the meeting between Zoe and Hermione on the train aisle that marked the final ending. When the two saw each other, their expressions suddenly became very bad. They didn't even say hello, they just looked away , and went into their respective boxes.

Ignoring the sourness in their hearts, both of them could only keep telling themselves "I'm right", and then barely smiled while talking with their friends, looking at the exterior scenes of the express train shuttling through the mountains and plains, and returned to their respective places. home.

Spoiler: Zoe and Luna

"Good morning, Zoe. Do you want apple jam or strawberry jam on your bread?" Luna walked around the round wooden table lightly. She noticed that Zoe walked down the spiral staircase with a gloomy face Walk down slowly and ask happily.

"Strawberry." Zooey muttered in pain. Because of the lack of sleep for several days, it was like a villain living in her head. Every day, she kept tapping on the steel plate with a small hammer to make her She had to tense her nerves all the time, but no matter how hard she tried, the noise would still get into her mind through the leaky door.

"Luna, it's not that I want to tell you about your family's affairs." She took the slice of bread that Luna handed her, and it was even more painful-because the noise of the rumbling machine still didn't stop, or because the distance was closer. Why, louder, "I know I'm a guest here, and you don't seem to be affected—but can't you really ask Mr. Lovegood to turn his old printing press on? Falling asleep to this sound and being woken up by this sound will blow my head off!"

Zoe folded her bread in half, looked depressedly at the thickly spread strawberry jam slightly oozing from the edge of the slice of bread due to being squeezed, sighed, and then opened her mouth as if to vent her anger Usually bite off half of the bread.

"Sorry." Luna was also very embarrassed and honest, but her eyes were shining with excitement, "But you don't know, this is the fastest-selling "Quiet" in these years, and Dad said they had to choose to add Printing, making every printing press work day and night, he was very happy during this time!" She said with a satisfied smile, "Most people don't see the value of this magazine like us, Dad and the others No chance of getting a good interview, even if they have a team as good as any magazine - but you helped us, Zoe, thank you so much!"

She walked to the printing press that was running continuously, and picked up a copy of "The Quibbler" that had just been spit out by the printing press, and the paper was still a little hot. On the cover was Margaret A close-up of "Exclusive Interview" is marked in bright and large font.

"I just asked for you." Zooey pinched her earlobe and found that it was already getting a little hot. Although she was happy and proud of Luna's thanks in her heart, she still acted naturally on the surface, "If it wasn't Because Margaret also appreciates you, she would not agree to be interviewed; let alone Mr. Lovegood himself seized the opportunity very well, which is not my credit."

"But you got in touch with Professor Margaret—I had no idea you two had such a good relationship. I bet at least hundreds of students would also like to know Professor Margaret's private address, but she Only for one year of class, um..." Luna sighed, "I still don't know who Professor Margaret's fiancé is..."

Zooey subtly moved her gaze away, and even forgot to refute Luna's claim of "good relationship with Margaret".She did know who Margaret's fiancé "husband" was, but Margaret had told her before that she would not take the initiative to disclose the identity of her lover to the public before Barbara agreed. Lite's expression was very helpless.

Even though Barbara herself has already prepared for the exposure, when she thinks about the many things she will face after the disclosure, just being pointed at by others is already the easiest thing, and if it gets serious, there may even be some weird duels Request, she has no interest at all, she does not want to bathe in the sight of others at any time.

But Luna just mentioned it in passing, and this topic was quickly forgotten by her, and she began to talk to Zoe about the raspberries in their yard, the fresh water ball fish in the creek down the mountain, and the house. The tall cliffs in the small forest behind and the magic device that her father is currently researching on how to make thinking ability faster.

"We can stay by that creek today until dusk. Have you ever had fish soup, Zoe? Dad cooks them in a special way. It's a dish my mother likes too. ... In a few days, we can go for a walk in the woods, I have something for you to see."

Zoe had been at Luna's house for a short time, and it was hard not to compare her time at Luna's house with the time at Hermione's house, but in the end she came to the same conclusion, Even though Luna and Hermione's personalities are very different and their family situations are completely different, the atmosphere brought to Zoe is very similar. It is a kind of warmth that Zoe also felt in Malfoy's house. It is a kind of warmth that will be sucked away as long as she returns to Siegel's house alone.

While eating breakfast, she turned her eyes around Luna's house.Everyone knows that Luna is a weird girl, but the family that gave birth to this girl with a unique way of thinking is completely different from ordinary families.At least the homes of ordinary people will not look like a long black cylinder, and the interior is full of arcs, even the walls are curved, and the layout of the rooms is up and down. The iron spiral staircase is its only transfer channel.

On the first day of coming to Luna's house, Zooey was attracted by this arrangement.We must know that compared to those square and old-fashioned houses, this kind of house full of whimsy and fun and strong personality can stimulate the spark of inspiration in people's deep thoughts. It is no wonder that Luna grows up to be so unrestrained character……

She remembered that she couldn't stand it because of insomnia, and wanted to rush down to stop the printing press that was always creaking and making noise.But when she went down the stairs to the lower floor, she found that there was already a person sitting here, and that was Luna's father, Xenophilius Lovegood.

Mr. Lovegood's work has been extraordinarily busy of late, but it's a joy to behold.He always left the house early in the morning and came back late at night, but at this time he was bending over the magazines that kept spitting out of the printing press, stacking them and putting them aside. The wand seems to have its own consciousness, and it will be piled up obediently in two or three strokes.

"Mr. Lovegood," fortunately, Zoe's face was in the shadow of the oil lamp at that time, so that she didn't have to let Mr. Lovegood see the embarrassment on her face, "good evening."

She wanted to go forward to help, but was stopped by Mr. Lovegood. Even under the light, the man looked a little unhealthy. He could see that he was very tired, and his white hair was sticking limply on his head. top.He was still wearing his formal attire for work, which made him look a little more refreshed.

"Can't sleep, Miss Siegel?" His attitude was not very enthusiastic, because he had no strength, but his tone was still very gentle, just like when Zooey first arrived at his house.

"Have some tea? It's a pity that there are no snacks. Eating that in the middle of the night is not good for your health." Zooey saw that he seemed to have something to say to her, so she nodded and accepted the cup that she definitely did not intend to drink. Goldigan tea, Lovegood's specialty tea, tastes very bitter even with three tablespoons of sugar added.

"Have you seen the photo of Luna and her mother in Luna's room?" Zooey nodded. The photo was next to the bed. It was very big and conspicuous. In her mother's arms, she looks very cute after being well-dressed, and with that big smile, people can't take their eyes off.

"That was the last photo of her mother and her. Pandora is always driven by intuition. She is better than me and has a practical spirit... Luna, she mentioned Pandora to you—that is, her Mother?"

Zoe nodded, and repeated to Mr. Lovegood what Luna had said to her in the past. Mr. Lovegood was silent for a while, looking at the empty glass in his hand, as if his thoughts went back to the past: "Yeah, what she said is right, Pandora has never been far away from us... After Pandora passed away, Luna is my only and last concern in this world. I love her more than myself. I hope she can live well Happy, happy, and willing to meet all her requests... But she is a very caring and good child, and has never been willful to me..." Even though the glass was empty, Mr. Lovegood still subconsciously pressed his lips to At the mouth of the cup, "But even if I am willing to pick stars for her, there are some things I can't give her, such as friendship."

Zoe's heart beat violently, and he noticed that Mr. Lovegood was looking at her, and he couldn't help but feel a little nervous: "When she told me about the things between you, I could see that she was very happy, it was with me A completely different kind of happiness together. Luna's character has always made many people feel weird-you wonder I can understand this?" He chuckled softly, "Of course I know our family—me, Pandora and Lu Na, many things are incompatible with others, because our thinking mode is like aliens... Or do you think I have never been treated coldly, scolded and driven away all these years?"

"I still haven't given up on my madness until now, it is something that will accompany me for the rest of my life. But when I found that Luna believed and accepted the world we described to her, and persistently went to find it , I feel the supreme happiness of being a father, but I am more afraid than anyone else...Miss Siegel, thank you for making friends with Luna."

The man lowered his head deeply, and Zooey froze in a panic, feeling a ball of flames rushing directly into her skin, and her whole body was about to burn.She looked at Mr. Lovegood who bowed his head sincerely to her, but suddenly felt a strong desire to cry.

******

"Zoe, Zoe?" Luna's anxious cry made Zooey wake up from her thoughts, she blinked dazedly, and let Luna wave her hand in front of her, "You almost stepped into the pit directly gone."

"It's okay." She looked down. Luna was right. Even though there were many fallen leaves on the ground, the traces of the pothole were still obvious. It wasn't a deep pit, but it was easy for people who stepped into it to sprain their feet.Zoe smiled unnaturally. Even though it had been several days, the late-night conversation with Mr. Lovegood made her unforgettable, so that she would fall into deep thought from time to time.

She dragged her tired body behind Luna. Luna looked thin and short, but she moved like a deer in this forest. Zoe doubted that she could even close her eyes Go wherever she wants to go.

The dark blue night had swept across the entire sky when they climbed to the top of the cliff, and the brilliance of dusk was completely squeezed out.The clouds are flowing in the night sky, and the wind is blowing on the sweaty face, which is also very comfortable.Today's weather was fine, and even the view of the sky was good. When the first rays of moonlight fell on the grove, Zoe finally took a breath from her fatigue.

"It's very late, Luna. What do you want me to read?" She was a little dissatisfied. This morning, she was pulled up by Luna, and she finished her breakfast amidst the roar of the printing press that she was used to, I wanted to take a good rest for a while, but today Luna was extraordinarily tough, completely ignoring Zooey's opinion, and took her out.

According to what Luna said some time ago, they stood on the top of the hill and looked at the Muggle village in the distance, picked raspberries in Luna's yard to eat, and went down to the stream to catch ball fish. One by one the guys tied up their long legs and dropped them into the vat, laughing as they watched the plump fish hop around in it.Luna's Flying Curse practiced much more proficiently, and later they competed who caught more colored ball fishes, and those colored ball fishes that broke out of the water one by one and flew back and forth in the air almost became a strange scenery up.

When they came back from a slow walk along the stream, after dinner, Luna brought her to the grove. She had always said that she wanted to take her here to have a look, but she chose to be here. today.

Although Zooey was complaining, she was also very curious about what Luna would bring her. Even though the two of them didn't talk about this topic once today, Zooey still had expectations in her heart.

"Here we come!" Luna whispered excitedly, and she pushed Zoe, who had her back facing the sky because of Luna's request.When she turned around, she saw a gorgeous starry sky.The sky was cloudless, and the stars under the night shone with their own brilliance. Even the bright moon could not swallow those shining little spots of light.

"My parents used to like to take me here to count the stars. They all said that this is the closest observation point to the sky in the whole area. Whether it's the raspberries in the yard, the ball fish in the creek, or this area belongs to me The starry sky is my greatest treasure in this family in the past ten years. No matter what setbacks I encounter, as long as I think of these things, I can continue to move forward."

"You're my first friend, Zoe," she said with a smile. "I want to share this with you. It's the best birthday present I can give."

"Happy birthday, Zoe. Hope you have a safe and successful life."