Chapter 99.1 Studying and Socializing (Part 2)

— I see you're making great progress. — I smiled contentedly, for the girl was indeed diligent.

— Thank you. — A light, dreamy smile.

— Good. Then I'll show you the Spiritual Plan. Sit across from me and don't let go of my hands. This time I will lead you, so don't be afraid of anything...'' — Luna nods seriously. — ... and follow me... — I close my eyes...

***

POV Luna Lovegood

The girl watches the man's face for a few more seconds. He pulled his hair back, securing it with a feather headband. Luna closed her eyes and sank into meditation, the way Sora had taught her.

Slowly and unhurriedly, the blackness of the closed eyelids began to fill with very unusual, but not unpleasant sensations, then the first light spots appeared, merging into a single gray foggy world.

The girl felt Sora pulling her with him, pulling her with a gentle tug somewhere inside... "Different", "different" — that was how she defined her sensations of the world around her. Beneath her feet she felt something pliable, elastic, like the bottom of a dinghy the Lovegoods had ridden in Romania. But it didn't stop her from walking, and when Sora gave her a gentle tug, the girl followed.

Everything around her was different: the feelings, the sensations, the sights. Eventually, the girl felt her feet break free of the foggy surface, and she floated leisurely behind the guy holding her hand. By the way, his appearance had changed a lot. The only thing left of the familiar image was his tall stature, which seemed to have changed as well.

He was stronger in the shoulders, his palms were enlarged so much that her palm completely sank into his "paw". His hair color changed from light brown to silver with light blue streaks, and two disheveled tufts resembling animal ears appeared.

A little later, when the guy turned around again to check on her, the girl noticed a silver dilated pupil in her lilac lantern-lit eyes, and the sclera was flooded with blue light.

Luna had no idea how long they had been flying through this strange but curious world. Sora showed her strange cloud formations with flickering lights of different colors in the center.

He showed her real storm fronts, made of leaden and dark blue clouds, through which terrible purple and violet lightning bolts struck with an eerie rumble that sent shivers through the world. He showed her glowing multicolored lines of varying thickness, whole tangles of lines. He led her to a strange border of what looked like translucent silver fabric.

It was pleasant to touch, but it stung a little, stung with electrical discharges. And then they flew back, but now the girl constantly met Sora's gaze — he often turned around and looked at her with a strange expression.

The girl didn't worry; after all, Sora had said there was nothing to worry about, and the boy never lied, and when he made a promise, he kept it. Gradually, the speed of their movement slowed down and their feet descended into the "clouds", sinking into the fog up to their ankles.

— How do you feel? — It was the first time the guy here had spoken, and his voice sent visible waves of bluish disturbance through the world around him.

— I'm fine. — The girl did not look at the guy's face so much as she looked at the world around her.

She immediately felt a kinship with this place, she felt that this place was not a stranger to her, as if she had been created to be here, to spend as much time as she wanted. It was as if the world was speaking to her, whispering in a deep voice unintelligible to mortals. Mortals? Everything has a beginning and an end, but only temporarily, for even the end of one thing is the beginning of something else, something new.

The world is an endless cycle of life in an infinity of manifestations. The world itself is life. The girl closed her eyes, listened, and immediately caught the familiar, distant and warm melody of a lullaby, sung long ago, but still sounding in the gentle voice of a young mother.

The girl reached out to follow that voice ... but she was not let in. Luna opened her eyes and stared incomprehensively into completely inhuman eyes, without a drop of fear, but with a question.

— You can't go in there yet. — The guy said eye-to-eye, and the girl noticed big animal fangs, slightly drawn and sticking out from under his lips. — Don't worry, you'll answer the call. But later. — Here, the seriousness and toughness is abruptly washed away from his face, he smiles, exposing snow-white fangs, looking somewhere above the girl's head. — You know, I even envy you a little — such fast progress... — the guy even shook his head.

The girl gave in to a strange urge and reached for her head with the palm of her hand... discovered a horn there... found a horn there... or rather horns. Slightly curved backwards, ribbed horns, palm length.

— Huh? — the girl was stunned, looking at the openly grinning and even laughing Sora, who had some rumbling tones in his voice. — Where did I get those horns? — At that, the guy was barely able to contain himself, but he jumped back.

— Look at your hands... — the snarling guy squeezed out, his eyes flashing merrily and his fangs rolling in a grin.

— ?

Silver glowing eyes with a horizontal pupil revealed the gleaming golden skin of his hands and the silver, slightly pointed nails...