Chapter 249: The Eccentric Luna
Chapter 249: The Eccentric Luna
Harry thought it was some sort of bug and subconsciously reached up to scratch his ear a couple of times. But even when he scratched his ear red, he didn't find anything.
He wanted to ask what a 'harassment midge' was, but Luna had already skipped back to Mr. Lovegood.
The little girl looked at the bump on her father's head in surprise and reached out to touch it.
"Ouch!" Mr. Lovegood shrunk his neck in pain.
"Sorry, Dad..." Luna quickly apologized, but soon she reached out and touched it again.
"Was this bumped by a Snoring Snallygaster? Did you see it?"
As if this question held some sort of magic, Mr. Lovegood instantly forgot his pain. He stood up, patting his eye-catching yellow robe:
"Luna, I didn't see the Snoring Snallygaster. But I think it must have discovered that we were looking for it, so it sent this little gift."
"You're amazing, Dad." Luna happily spun around in place.
The conversation between the two left Harry even more confused.
Could it be... that the bump on that man's head wasn't caused by the goblin he hit with a stone?
Harry looked left and right and soon found the goblin on the ground nearby, grumbling and walking back.
Yes, the goblin was right there.
But why did he say it was caused by a Snallygaster... and what even is a Snallygaster?
Harry scratched his hair, suddenly feeling like a clueless Muggle.
Ron and the others beside him wore similar expressions.
The only exception was Kyle, who asked curiously:
"Mr. Lovegood, did you find the Snoring Snallygaster this time?"
"Just missed it." The man said regretfully: "We only found traces of its passage in the southern valley. It seems to have already gone elsewhere."
"I also found this just now." Luna held up the half-leaf in her hand, "Leftovers from the Snoring Snallygaster's meal... Dad, it must have passed through here when it left."
"You're right, Luna." Mr. Lovegood sighed, "We shouldn't have left."
"Can I take a look at that leaf?" Kyle suddenly asked.
"Of course." Luna happily handed over what she was holding, "Are you also interested in Snoring Snallygasters?"
"In fact, I'm interested in all magical creatures."
Kyle took the leaf and examined it carefully in the moonlight... But soon, his expression became strange.
These bite marks... if Mr. Lovegood and Luna could spare the time to visit his humble abode, they would probably discover what they were looking for.
This leaf was clearly half-eaten by a goblin; there were potato stems everywhere in the garden in front of his house. If they really wanted some, he could weigh them out by the pound.
"Don't move, Kyle, there's a Jumping Flea next to your nose... Oh, it's gone now."
"What?" Kyle returned the potato stem to Luna, "What's a Jumping Flea..."
"It's a type of tiny sprite." Luna explained, "Jumping Fleas like to dance around relatively intelligent people, disrupting their thoughts and making them forget what they were about to say. They're quite rare."
"Dad, did you see it just now?"
"I must have missed it when I was tidying up my clothes." Mr. Lovegood said regretfully.
Kyle didn't pay much attention to it either, as they often mentioned names that he couldn't understand.
"Yeah, that's what everyone calls her. She's as batty as that magazine of hers, spouting nonsense all the time." Ron shrugged. "To be honest, most people avoid the Lovegoods. Kyle's one of the few who'll actually exchange a few words with them. But I bet even he can't understand half of what they're on about."
Though it was a tad impolite, Harry found himself agreeing with Ron's assessment of "Loony" after witnessing Luna's peculiar behavior.
"They are an odd bunch," Harry muttered. "Have they always been like this?"
"They used to be somewhat normal. We even had dinner with them once, but ever since that explosion two years ago..." Ron glanced around furtively and lowered his voice. "...they've become like this. Mum has invited them over several times, but they always refuse."
"Explosion...?"
"Apparently, it was a botched magic experiment," Ron sighed, whispering. "Even I remember Kyle warning them multiple times to be careful with their experiments..."
"Ron!" Ginny marched over, her face flushed with annoyance. "Did you forget what Mum said? She told us not to talk about this with others."
"I remember..." Ron defended himself. "But this is Harry, not some random person."
Usually, at the mere mention of Harry's name, Ginny would blush and scurry away. But this time, she stood her ground, glaring at Ron.
"Fine, I won't say anything then..." Ron turned away, muttering under his breath.
(End of Chapter)
Chapter end
Report
