In the Melancholy Moonlight, Part 5: Dark Matter

Chapter 233: Only Gonna Do You Wrong

Lucy was loved, even when she was in the Forbidden Forest, even by the light of the full moon. The people who loved her were spread far and wide, but their love reached her, even there, even then, even if they knew her secrets, even if they didn't.

Ginny was closest, of course.

She was running just behind Lucy, watching her every move, scanning the trees for unseen threats. The fact that she was there at all was proof enough of her love, because of the ordeal that was the Animagus process, but every full moon that she showed up to be with Lucy, whether the skies were clear or cloudy, whether the ground was solid or slippery, was another "I love you" for Lucy.

Then Hagrid, Tuck, and Fang, in Hagrid's hut.

Hagrid was going over the O.W.L. requirements so he could prepare his students well for the exam they'd be taking in just over a month's time. He was still devastated by the loss of Aragog, his oldest friend, but he knew that life went on anyway and he couldn't afford to disappoint the people who counted on him. He kept casting glances out the window, just in case.

Tuck was perched on his hind legs, looking out the same window, knowing that something was wrong and wanting to help but knowing he couldn't. He loved Lucy, so very much. He missed her when she was gone, and he hated that something was always wrong on the nights that she came to visit and then went away and didn't return until dawn.

Fang loved Lucy too, in his own way, so he was keeping the sofa warm for her, dozing fitfully and dreaming about chasing a dog that didn't look much like a dog at all through the forest.

Then Harry, walking down to Hagrid's hut.

He knew it was foolish to be out of the castle in the middle of the night, but he had his invisibility cloak and he knew Hagrid's was safe and, quite frankly, he needed the company. He just couldn't bear being in Gryffindor Tower anymore, not when the full moon wouldn't stop staring at him, mockingly shining through the windows everywhere he turned. He pointedly ignored its eerie glow as he shuffled through the grass, wearing several jumpers under his invisibility cloak, straining his ears for any sign of distress coming from the Forbidden Forest. The fact that he couldn't hear anything didn't put him at ease, though; he merely walked faster, hurrying toward Hagrid's hut just to be closer to the girl he loved more than anything or anyone else in the wide, cruel world.

Then those in the castle. Hermione and Ron. Lavender and Parvati. Minerva and Poppy. Luna and Neville.

Hermione and Ron were on prefects' duty once again, feeling similarly mocked by the brightness of the full moon streaming through the windows at every turn. Both had their wands drawn, the same way they'd been drawn all year when they were on prefects' duty, just in case. They talked as they patrolled together, which was nice after so many months of angry silence on their own separate routes or awkward attempts to converse normally on the rare nights Hermione wanted his company. That night, they talked about Lavender and Parvati, and about how kind they had been to Lucy the past few days in particular.

Lavender and Parvati were both awake that night, trying to use their Divination homework to find out what was wrong with Lucy and how they could help. When she'd stumbled up to the dormitory Saturday night, red in the face and near tears as she said she didn't feel well, they'd jumped into action immediately, all three of her roommates. It was as if there had never been any tension at all in the room, because Lucy had always been what tied the girls together, and she needed help. Her fever, puzzlingly, hadn't relented at all, and they'd finally convinced her to go down to the Hospital Wing Tuesday night, after not leaving the dormitory for the better part of three days. In her absence, they were practicing their bibliomancy, flipping through a stack of textbooks in the hopes that their Divination skills would guide them to pages that would help explain Lucy's plight and offer a solution.