A kiss from the moon

What a feeling

When Sofia grew up her home was often empty. Her mum worked long hard hours and often came from work with a tired look in her face, wanting to be left alone for a couple of hours. Young Sofia hadn't been particularly bothered by this loneliness. Maybe it was because she was too young to understand that parents were supposed to be there and take care of you. But she often found herself to enjoy her own company.

"Befriend yourself and you'll never be lonely"

Amelia Bones had said to her daughter once. And so Sofia befriended herself. She read almost all the books in their library, she drew until she was so frustrated she quit and came up with different games that she could play on her own in the house. Sometimes, when her house elf Iggy was in the right mood they would play chess together or Iggy would teach Sofia how to cook even. Sofia didn't want to force Iggy to do anything, she knew that elf was old so she always let the elf make the decision when it came to those things.

Sometimes Amelia would be home. This was often after a particularly taxing workday. This either meant that she would be in a good mood or a very bad. When Sofia's mum was in a good mood she would smile at her, read her books, make her own raspberry lemonade from the bushes in their garden and sometimes they went on walks around the grounds. When there was no wind out, you could sometimes here the soft sounds of the ocean that was close by. Sometimes when Sofia's mum was in a good mood their walks would lead them all the way to the cliffside that was right at edge of the Bones grounds. There Sofia could see the massive blue waves hit the stones beneath her. It was strange almost too se it, to feel the salty ocean breeze on her nose and stare down to see the dark blue waters. If Sofia ever got the question on how she thought infinity looked like she would answer that it looked like the ocean.

Sofia was very grateful for those days. And she thought about them often. Especially when her mother was in a bad mood. Then she looked herself in her part of the house and often didn't come out for a few days. On those days it seemed like a big invisible wall formed between Sofia and her mum. A wall that grew stronger and thicker every time her mother left Sofia to manage by her own.

When Sofia started Hogwarts she had been deeply surprised by the loyalty of friends. None of the people she had made her friends at Hogwarts ever left her the way her mother did. There was always someone there to talk to when you got lonely. Suddenly Sofia didn't need to be her own best friend. Even the full moons felt less lonely when she knew she had her friends waiting for her back in the common room the next day. It wasn't until she was older that she realized that that's what living was all about. Not putting up a big invisible wall between you and your loved ones. Living was about being there. It was about never leaving your friends despite being sad, angry or petty.

Now she was sitting in the library with Ernie, Marja and Zacharias looking up on the tall bookshelves. They reminded her a lot of the library at home.

"Sofia do you have the answer to question five?" Asked Marja, sounding a bit stressed. "I'm blanking out here."

"Hmm..? No I haven't started it yet" said Sofia in response. They were currently finishing some transfiguration homework that had been given to them. Zacharias was there because he was so behind in his homework that his parents had hold the threat of taking his broom away from him if he didn't catch up soon over his head.

"Can I help you out then?" Said Marja, her brows were furrowed. "I think we're supposed to turn this in tomorrow and it's getting late"

Marja was right though Sofia. The parchment in front of her was blank and they had been at the library for hours already.

"Yes please!" Said Sofia and Marja shuffled her paper over to Sofia so that she could copy it. Ernie said nothing but Sofia could see that a wrinkle had formed between his eyebrows.

"Just don't copy straight of" Said Marja with a yawn. "Don't wanna get caught again"

Sofia shook her head as she started re writing what Marja had written on her paper. She had just finished the first question when she heard a familiar voice.

"Hello!"

Sofia looked up from her paper to see Ginny Weasley standing at the end of the table. Her red hair was tied up in a ponytail and she looked just as tired as Sofia's other friends that were sitting around the table.

"Hellu Ginny. Doing the transfiguration homework as well?" Said Sofia.

"Yeah just finished! I spent like an hour on question five only, it was brutal." Replied Ginny and looked thoughtful. "Exams this year are going to be murder."

Both Zacharias and Ernie looked up at Ginny when she said those last words and Ginny looked a bit taken back.

"Ehh.. I'll let you get back to it then" Said Ginny with a polite smile.

Sofia gave her two friends angry stares and got up clumsily from her chair.

"I'll walk with you!" Said Sofia in a spur of the moment decision. "Maybe you could tell me about question five?"

"But Sofia when are you going to finish the rest of them" said Marja who was suddenly alert.

"Oh I'll do that later." Said Sofia who had now left the table. "Bring my things back with you if you leave yeah?"

Marja nodded to that and looked a little surprised and Ginny looked happy.

"Come on" said Ginny and the two of them walked out of the library together.

They walked in silence for a little bit and Sofia felt a bit awkward. She put her hands in the pockets of her jumper and coughed a little.

"So are you staying here for Christmas?" Said Ginny Suddenly.

"Yup, my mum is to busy for me to come home" replied Sofia. "How about you?"

"Staying. My parents are going to visit my brother in Romania this Christmas." Said Ginny while looking a little sad.

"Oh that's cool." Replied Sofia. Her head had been filled with images of her and Ginny doing Christmas thing. "Uhm, maybe we could do something together during the break then?"

"Yeah I'd like that. Don't flunk out on me again, my ego can't take another rejection" replied Ginny jokingly and Sofia chuckled.

"Yeah I'm sorry about that, I'll make it up to you now then" Said Sofia, feeling a little flushed.

Ginny had stopped in front of a portrait of a very large woman.

"Well this is me" said Ginny.

"On the portrait??" Replied Sofia surprised and Ginny laughed heartily.

"No hahaha. This is the entry way to the Gryffindor common room." Said Ginny with a spark in her eye. "I'll see you around Sofia. Let me know when you wanna hang out and maybe I could help you with some homework?"

"Definitely" Replied Sofia and smiled.

"Bluebird" said Ginny to the fat woman on the Portrait and suddenly it was opening up to her. Ginny gave Sofia one last smile that made her feel flutters in her stomach before she disappeared on the other side of the portrait.

When Sofia walked back to the Hufflepuff common room she had a funny feeling in her stomach.