Lunette || ONC 2024

4 - Harriet Slips

A tall tree stood in the middle of the courtyard.
Lunette's sister, Selene, clung to an upper branch, meowing for help.
At the bottom of the tree, her student Celeste crouched over a broom, frantically sorting through materials. 

"There's a feather, and a cobweb... What was the last thing? A wing, it had to be a wing. A butterfly wing?" 

Other Year 1 students looked on.  "Maybe we should fetch Miss Goodweather?" one of them suggested as Harriet and Lunette dashed past. 

"She'll probably just make her do it anyway. We're supposed to be learning levitation this year," another student replied.

Selene was a long way up. Lunette was surprised even Selene had dared to climb that high. She wasn't in the top branches, but it was still several feet over the students' heads. 

Harriet went up to Celeste and touched her shoulder. "Are you alright?"

Celeste turned quickly, pushing her glasses up. Her eyes and nose were red with approaching tears. "I can't remember the levitation spell. I got the broom. I know it had a feather and a cobweb, but I'm sure there was another ingredient. Do you remember?"

"I think it was a bat wing," Harriet said. "Or you might be able to get away with bat hair."

Celeste's face grew even gloomier. "Yes, that sounds right. I don't have any of that."

"Well, it's alright. She's not too high up. I think I can get her down," Harriet said confidently. 

"Really?!" Celeste exclaimed. 

Lunette felt proud of her chosen student. 

"Yes. Here, can you keep an eye on my stuff?" Harriet took her bag and wand from her belt and placed them on the ground.

"Yes of course."

"Lu stay here with Celeste, alright? And can you tell Selene not to worry?"

Lunette crooned encouragement up to Selene, who meowed back her fear

Harriet stood under the tree and jumped as high as she could, trying to reach the lowest branch. It took her a couple tries to get a good grip. From there, she walked up the tree trunk and past the branch she was holding, until she was upside-down. There she managed to hook her legs over the next branch, and levered herself up until she was sitting on it. The branches were close together after that, and she quickly reached Selene's precarious perch.

"Here, Selene. You can hang on to my robe and I'll lower you down," Harriet said gently, taking off her uniform robe. 

Selene yeowled her concerns, but allowed Harriet to wrap her in the robe like a blanket. 

"Ok, I'm going to lower her down. Ready, Celeste?"

"Ready..." Celeste said, getting under the tree, though she didn't sound prepared. 

Harriet hooked her leg under the branch and leaned over backwards until she was upside-down again, lowering her robe with Selene in it, until Selene was able to jump safely into Celeste's outstretched arms. Lunette leapt around Celeste's feet, relieved that her sister was safe. 

"Oh, thank you! Thank--" Celeste cried. 

But just then, Harriet's foot slipped. She fell head-first from the branches of the tree--

--and stopped a few inches above the ground. 

"WHAT is going on, here?" Miss Goodweather's voice thundered from the doorway to the hall. In that moment she did not suit her name at all, as her expression was positively stormy. Even Lunette cowered behind Celeste as Miss Goodweather strode over to them.