Chapter 3: The Whisper of Wonder
The morning light filtered through the soft lace curtains, casting dreamy patterns across the wooden floor of the Lovegood cottage. Luna awoke slowly, her pale lashes fluttering as a whisper of magic tickled her senses. She blinked at the ceiling, then turned her head to gaze at the small pile of books near her bed—charms, potions, and one about magical beasts with shimmering illustrations that danced when touched.
Her mother, Pandora Lovegood, called softly from downstairs, "Luna, breakfast is ready!"
Luna slipped from her warm covers, toes brushing the cool floor as she padded over to the mirror. She tilted her head. "Hair first or robes first?" she mused, and chose robes. Pale blue ones with little stitched runes that her mother had sewn by hand.
In the kitchen, the table was filled with floating fruit, steaming porridge, and pumpkin toast.
"You were dreaming again last night," her mother said casually, slicing an apple that danced midair.
Luna nodded. "About wires and machines that could think. They didn't feel like dreams though. They felt like... echoes."
Pandora's hands paused, then resumed. "Sometimes magic lets us remember things we've never known."
Luna's eyes shimmered with understanding—or something close to it.
After breakfast, she wandered into her father's library. The large oaken shelves were stacked with dusty tomes, some in Gobbledegook, others in riddling Latin. She selected a slender book on magical theory and opened it next to the wide window.
As she read, her system buzzed softly in her mind.
System Boot-Up Sequence... 14% Integrity Restored.
Basic Magical Recognition Enabled.
Current Magic Signature Detected: Ambient - Lunar Type / Dream-Aligned / Spatial Sensitivity Level: 1.
Warning: Dream Energy Output Exceeds Threshold During Sleep. Minor Stamina Drain Detected.
Luna furrowed her brow. "Dream energy?"
She glanced toward her parchment and began sketching the sensation she had in the dream—a glowing sphere, circuits laced with golden lines, like a heart made of light.
Her fingers moved in spirals, following unseen paths.
By midday, Luna ventured outside. The air was crisp, the winter beginning to soften with hints of approaching spring. Their garden stretched wild and untamed, full of dancing flowers and creeping roots.
Her mother stood by a magical plant whose vines pulsed with a heartbeat-like rhythm. "Do you know this one?"
Luna peered closely. "Is it a Hellebranch Vine?"
Pandora smiled. "Good memory. Dangerous if irritated. Watch."
She waved her wand slowly in a circle and whispered, "Calmare." The vines swayed gently.
Spell Learned: Calmare
Category: Plant Pacification / Healing
Effect: Soothes aggressive magical flora
Incantation: Calmare
Wand Movement: Clockwise circle, palm open._
Luna copied the motion with a stick.
System Response: Improvised Casting Detected. Practice Advised.
That evening, Luna sat on the rug near the fireplace, practicing wand movements with her fingers. Her parents sat nearby, reading and discussing magical anomalies.
The fire crackled softly, casting golden halos on Luna's silver-blonde hair.
In her mind, the system gently hummed.
System Log Update:
Emotional Stability: Improving.
Dream Memory Fragments (2): Archived.
Motor Magic Synchronization: Initiated.
Progress toward Spell Casting Efficiency: 6.2%._
As her parents whispered in the background, Luna closed her eyes. In her dreams, again, she stood in a world of glowing lights, metal towers, and quiet knowledge. Her feet touched nothing, but she floated with purpose.
Far in the distance, the stars pulsed—alive, watching.
She smiled.
Because she knew they would one day remember her, too.