Author's Note: No copyright infringements are intended. All characters, settings, and Harry
Potter-related things are the property of J.K. Rowling.
"Good morning Luna!" Daddy calls.
I roll over in bed, ready for a new day. Daddy says that waking up at exactly four o' four in the morning helps to ward off Wrackspurts. I hop on the big toe of my right foot seven times with my eyes closed, like I do every Saturday morning. It attracts the Plimpies.
Three minutes and fifty-six seconds later, I'm climbing down the ladder that leads from my bedroom to Daddy's office. Daddy is sitting behind his desk, drinking some Dirigible Plum juice and reading through an old copy of the magazine he edits, The Quibbler. Behind him, there is a sign that says "SNORKAK HORNS WELCOME." Daddy says that he wants to get a new horn from a Crumple-Horned Snorkak one day and hang it there. We had one before, but Daddy said it exploded because it didn't feel welcomed. A new horn would be quite lovely.
"Good morning Daddy," I say, and he looks up from his magazine. "I'm going to Bottom Bridge today. Shall I get Plimpies on my own, or would you like to come along?"
"Luna, nothing would give me more joy than fishing before daybreak, but I think a mob of Gernumblies may be approaching, and I must prepare for their arrival." Gnomes, he means. They like to come out of their holes every so often, and Daddy likes to predict when. "Why don't you invite some friends to help you?" Daddy asks.
"That's a great idea, Daddy! I'll bet Hermione and Ginny would love to catch Plimpies!" I pull a galleon from my pocket and send an invitation to my friends. Looking outside, I see Hermione and Ginny appear with two faint pops. Ginny pulls out her wand and Hermione yells "Luna, are you okay?"
I step outside to greet them. "Of course I am. What did you think was wrong?"
"Your message said that you were in danger and that we could help." Hermione says.
"It's four in the morning!" Ginny adds.
"Oh, yes, that. Well, I thought you would like to go fishing with me."
Ginny pulls out her wand again, but Hermione stops her. I smile. They might be my friends, but they are rather strange.
"If we come along, do you promise that we don't have to eat anything that we catch?" asks Hermione. She certainly has a lot of questions, but I agree that they won't have to eat any of it. What an odd thing to ask. I show them the stream where I like to go fishing.
Once we're at the top of Bottom Bridge, Ginny speaks up. "Um . . . Luna . . . what are those things?"
"Freshwater Plimpies, of course!"
"And what are - ?"
"Plimpies are spherical fish with two long, webbed feet." Hermione says. That girl does seem to know rather a lot. "They eat water snails and nibble at clothing, but they're basically harmless. Luna," she adds, turning to me. "You said we were going to go fishing!"
For someone who knows a lot, she can't tell a Snorkak from an Erumpent. "We are going to go fishing." Hm, I'm bored. Daddy started singing a delightful little song last night . . . how did it go again? Snape, Snape, Severus Snape . . . Snape, Snape . . .
"So," says Ginny. "How are we supposed to go Pimply fishing?"
"It's Plimpy, not Pimply," I say. Snape, Snape, Severus Snape . . . "Just take off your shoes." Severus Snape . . . Snape, Snape, Severus Snape . . . Snape . . .
I pull out some fishing line and tie our shoes into a giant ball. "To ward off Wrackspurts." I explain. "Would anybody like to say anything to the Plimpies before we catch one?" Snape, Snape, Severus . . . DUMBLEDORE . . . Snape, Snape, Severus . . . DUMBLEDORE! . . . that really is a catchy song.
"Er . . . no thanks, Luna." says Hermione. "Can we just get this over with?"
"Alright, then." I say. Really, that girl is rather strange. "Accio Plimpy."
Ginny catches it in her arms. She doesn't look too happy. Snape, Snape, S . . . HERMIONE . . . DUMBLEDORE . . . Snape, Snape, S . . . HERMIONE!
"Would somebody mind carrying the shoes?" I ask. "Since I summoned the Plimpy, I'm not supposed to hold anything until I get home." Snape, Snape, S . . . Ron, Ron, Ron WEASLEY . . . Ron, Ron, Ron WEASLEY . . . DUMBLEDORE . . . HERMIONE! . . . I think there was also something about Harry Potter . . .
Hermione picks up the shoes and I lead them back to my house. Daddy is waiting in the kitchen. I should ask him for the lyrics to that song . . .
"Thanks for going fishing with me. We should do it again." I say. Snape, Snape, Severus Snape . . .
"But we only got one Pimply!" says Ginny. "What can you cook with that?"
"Plimpies aren't for cooking. I just like to keep them for pets." I say matter-of-factly. Cooking a Plimpy would be ridiculous.
"Let me get this right," says Hermione. "You woke us up at four in the morning, had us hike up to the stream, made us take off our shoes, and told us to hike back down barefoot carrying your things, all just so that you could catch a new pet?!"
"Yeah." I answer. She takes quite a while to understand these things. Ron, Ron, Ron WEAS . . . DUMBLEDORE!...
"Go back to sleep, Luna!" They disappear with another two faint pops. How strange.
Was it something I said?
Sources: Harry Potter books 1-7, Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, http://www.potterpuppetpals.com/
