Chapter 123. Luna and Adrian Wesson's Abilities
After mentioning it in passing to Harry and Ron, he followed the winding path up the hill.
As the distance closed, that black dot revealed its true form.
It was a peculiarly shaped, round house, like a wizard's hat set askew; its black roof gleamed in the sunlight, and the crooked chimney leaned and twisted up into the sky.
By the doorway stood several pots of Bouncing Bulbs, magical plants that danced to the sound of the wind, each slender stalk topped with a fluffy yellow pom-pom.
Just as Wesson was about to knock, the door swung open of its own accord.
A blonde girl wearing carrot-shaped earrings, with a pair of silvery eyes, stood in the doorway, head tilted as she sized him up; those eyes seemed as though they could see straight through a person.
At first glance, Wesson was certain the girl before him was Luna Lovegood herself.
"Hello," Luna's voice floated like a feather in the air. "Is there something you needed?"
Wesson was a little surprised; it looked as though Luna had already anticipated his arrival.
"I've come to call on Mr Lovegood," he said with a smile.
To reassure her he wasn't a bad person, Wesson added, "I'm a professor at Hogwarts."
After hearing this, Luna looked Wesson up and down.
Then she stared blankly for a moment, and finally let her gaze settle on Wesson.
"?"
Wesson glanced at his own clothes. "What's the matter?"
At last, Luna came back to herself. She blinked those silvery eyes and said in that airy voice, "There are so many little spirits following you… I've never seen so many spirits."
Wesson instinctively looked over his shoulder; of course, he saw nothing at all.
He had only ever heard of Cornish pixies—small, iron-blue creatures that adored mischief. Clearly, that wasn't what Luna meant.
Wesson looked at her, intrigued. "What sort of spirits are they?"
"They're like transparent bubbles floating round you," Luna drew circles in the air with a finger, "and there's a different colour glimmering inside each one. They're beautiful."
Wesson couldn't help but chuckle. As in the original story, Luna did very much like imaginary creatures.
What was that thing called again… harassment?
Obviously, Luna was fantasising again.
Wesson certainly didn't think there were truly any multicoloured spirits trailing after him.
Just then, Luna's silvery eyes suddenly widened, her gaze fixing on Wesson's sleeve.
"They're all diving into your sleeve now, one after another," she said softly. "Is there something under your clothes?"
There was nothing under Wesson's clothes; if he had to name anything, it was only Devil's Snare parasitising on him.
Wait—Devil's Snare?
He willed it, and two tendrils of Devil's Snare slid out from his cuff.
Luna's eyes lit at once, as if she had discovered some rare treasure.
"Ah, so that's it…" She reached out and touched the writhing Devil's Snare tendril in the air.
The Devil's Snare did not seem to reject Luna; the tip of the vine gently tapped her fingertip.
It was a gesture of affection from the Devil's Snare.
Wesson was taken aback—aside from himself, the Devil's Snare very rarely showed such fondness for anyone.
Could Luna have something about her that attracted Devil's Snare?
"Do you see anything else?"
Wesson crouched, regarding Luna with curiosity.
Luna's eyes sparkled; she said brightly, "In fact, sir, the little spirits by your side are diving into this tendril."
At that, Wesson couldn't quite tell whether she truly saw "spirits."
"Wait a moment," Luna said suddenly. She turned with airy lightness and lifted the pot of Bouncing Bulb by the door, which was swaying to and fro. "Look—those little spirits are running into this as well. Ah, another one just went in."
Wesson stared at the Bouncing Bulb in Luna's hands—and froze.
He seemed to have a notion.
"Eldra."
[I'm here, sir.]
The reply from the Tree of Wisdom surfaced in his mind.
"Help me analyse the plant in front of us."
[Understood.]
[Species: Bouncing Bulb]
[Rank: 1]
[Status: Growing (1%)]
Sure enough, the Bouncing Bulb's growth progress had become one percent.
In truth, the progress the Tree of Wisdom reported was, more precisely, the "alteration" progress.
Generally speaking, when it reached one hundred percent, that was when this plant had been affected by Wesson's ability
and developed a new trait.
Perhaps the "spirits" Luna spoke of had some connection to Wesson's "plant alteration" ability.
Thinking this, Wesson gazed thoughtfully at the Bouncing Bulb in Luna's hands and asked in a low voice, "Do only I have these spirits around me?"
"Yes. I've never seen spirits like these anywhere else," Luna seemed delighted to discuss spirits with him. Cocking her head, she went on, "I should put them into my record book. This is a new discovery."
Wesson nodded.
If so, then he would test his guess about these "spirits" Luna saw—to see whether they truly were related to his special ability.
Wesson took a small vial from the inner pocket of his robes, filled with a dark red liquid.
It was his blood.
He had long had the habit of drawing his own blood at intervals and storing it, since his blood was the primary component of the Growth Potion.
Wesson slowly pulled out the cork stopper. A faint tang of iron spread out.
Luna's silvery eyes flew wide; her carrot earrings swayed lightly as she stepped half a pace back.
"Oh," she murmured, as if startled, "they've got so excited…"
"What's happening?" Wesson asked, curious.
She stared at the mouth of the vial, then tipped her head up. "So many spirits… They're bubbling out of the bottle like a fountain…"
As she spoke, Luna traced invisible paths in the air with a fingertip. "They're everywhere… ten times what there were just now… no, a hundred times…"
As expected, Wesson's guess was correct.
Luna possessed a special gift.
She could see a concrete manifestation of his "plant alteration" ability—those "spirits" floating about him.
Truly… an enviable talent.
Wesson had always wondered why he had such an ability, and had long been studying it.
And now, he had finally found a window through which he could directly observe this phenomenon!
He couldn't help the growing warmth in his gaze towards Luna.
Luna's ability was very important to him—right at that moment—
"Luna, dear, who are you talking to?"
A voice came from inside the house, followed by a quick patter of footsteps.
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