An Inquiry on Thestrals PV Miranda closed

It was a nice day out. The sun was shining, a light breeze was blowing, and only a few puffy clouds dotted the sky. This meant that, obviously, Miranda was no longer in the castle.

She'd spent a while on the grounds earlier that morning, but had moved to the courtyard later in the day after an influx of students had caught on to her idea and taken up the majority of the space. Now she lurked in one of the courtyards, reading a book for the second time that week and watching the people that went by from her spot on a lower tree branch.

Even after her many disastrous encounters and accidents while balancing on trees, Miranda couldn't shake off the habit, even if she stuck a bit closer to the ground now. That was why, when Callie came searching for her, she was perched half a dozen feet off the ground, inside a sphere of red leaves that rustled loudly with every movement or breath of wind that reached within the walled area.

At first, when Callie called out, Miranda barely noticed. It was only after she'd flipped to the next page a couple seconds later did the meaning of the words she'd just heard actually sink in. "Callie?" Miranda exclaimed curiously, peering through the scarlet screen hiding her. She flipped the book shut with her free hand, then used it to hold some of the leafy branches out of the way, offering her a relatively unimpeded view.

"Hey, what are you doing out here?" she continued, slipping down to the ground in a cacophony of rustling and falling leaves. Several settled in her hair, giving the young Ravenclaw a look like she'd dumped a bucket of wet, orangey-red paint on her head. "And, uh, what do you mean by wisdom, exactly?"

@Callie Jensen

Part of her knew deep down that Miranda was incredibly likely to slip out from the tree as if it were an entirely normal thing, but that didn't stop her from giving Callie a fright. As Miranda slipped to the ground alongside an assortment of autumnal leaves Callie jumped and let out a small yelp. "Gah! You get me with that every single time!" She exclaimed before bursting into bright laughter, putting the entire ordeal behind her. "Hey Miranda!" To accompany her formal greeting Callie waved to Miranda with a wide toothy grin painted across her face.

"What am I doing out here? Why I'm looking for you of course!" Callie rocked back and forth on her feet as she spoke, occasionally stopping to pick out a stray leaf from Miranda's hair. "You see I've found myself in quite the predicament. Namely a predicament involving Phel Atwood..you know the quiet guy I hang around with all the time? That guy! Not sure if you've met Phel..but if you haven't you totally should! Trust me he's less annoying than he seems." Callie once again let out another bright laugh before forcing herself to focus on the matter at hand. "Gah, I'm getting off topic! Sorry! Sorry, focus Callie! Anyway we were heading to the study room area earlier to do some potions homework when we spotted that old painting of the carriages right? Weird thing is that the paintings don't have the horses pulling them! According to Phel he can't seem them and they totally don't exist but that doesn't make sense! I saw them! I know I did!" It didn't take much effort to come to the conclusion that the entire ordeal had very much stuck with Callie over the course of the day.

"So natually I have made solemn oath to prove that he's a liar and since you're the resident expert on these things..." Callie trailed off and stuffed her hands into her pockets. "I'm not going crazy right? Those weird leather bat horses where you can see their bones and stuff are real...right? Do you know anything about them?"

At Callie's reaction to her appearing, Miranda looked surprised for a moment, than broke into a grin. "You're the one looking for me!" she protested half-heartedly. "Shouldn't you be ready for me to show up? And hey," she added on as she spoke, waving back, although nowhere near enthusiastically. Callie would - could - never be beat at that, Miranda was sure of it.

When the other Ravenclaw began her explanation, occasionally picking leaves from Miranda's hair, which soon prompted her to dust them all out in a colorful shower, barely catching Callie's final words.

Uh...Bat horses? Paintings? Phel Atwood?" She looked confused for a long moment, then began speaking, trying to make sense of what Callie had said, especially considering the parts she'd missed because of her friend's rapid-fire way of speaking. "So you and someone else saw a painting of the carriages...but you got into an argument with...Phel?" She paused and gave Callie a questioning look, wondering if she'd got the name right. At any sign of confirmation, or even without, Miranda soon continued her train of thought as if the interruption hadn't happened. "...Because you thought you saw...bat horses carrying them?"

There was a long pause as Miranda thought Callie's story over, then a spark of recognition lit her eyes, and she leaned towards Callie with an awed expression. "I'll bet you those were Thestrals! Really? Drawing the school carriages?" She turned and gazed off in the direction of the road to Hogsmeade, as if the horses she'd read of in her books would appear from nowhere. Remembering that Callie had come with a question, Miranda whirled back around to face her. "Thestrals would definitely fit the description! They're related to other Winged Horses, but they have black skin that's tight over their bones, and they are generally seen at night. But that's probably only because people notice them better than. I've never read anything saying a Thestral is nocturnal."

Miranda grinned at Callie. "You know, I've never seen one before. That's because..." she faltered slightly, remembering the reason for someone gaining that ability. It wasn't exactly pretty. "You can only see them if you've seen...death. Or someone die, more specifically."

@Callie Jensen

"I should be ready for you to leap out of trees..but you still manage to scare me every time! I swear it's a talent of yours..maybe you ARE a ninja afterall." Callie teased with her usual signature grin plastered across her face. Despite everything that life seemed to throw at Callie her grin rarely ever faulted, even now when the subject of death horses was swirling around her head. Callie may not have faltered in her explanation as Miranda shook leaves from her hair but she instead caught one of the leaves on their way down and started fidgeting with it. By now the poor leaf was now the victim of the hyperactive Callie Jensen slowly picking it apart.

"Yeah, you got it! Phel is CONVINCED the horses aren't real but I'm positive I saw them. Figured it was pretty weird that they weren't in the painting to begin with...so naturally I have to prove him wrong!" Callie confirmed Miranda's questions with a firm nod of her head, glad that someone was finally understanding the entirety of the situation. Everyone else seemed to either be clueless or entirely uninterested which was kind of fustrating to put it lightly.

For a brief moment when the familar spark of recognition lit up Miranda's eyes Callie seemed excited to finally have some answers. "Thestrals? Yeah! Weird horsey things pulling the carriages." Callie's excitement quickly faltered however as Miranda fully explained the creatures and the girl fell into stunned silence. The sheer number of magical creatures which Callie continued to come across never failed to facinate her, even if these particular creatures were somewhat haunting. "Yes!" Callie exclaimed when Miranda finished her descriptions of the creatures. "Yes, that's exactly what they look like! Ah, you're a genius!" Callie's wide grin returned to her face very quickly out out delight more than anything. Even just having a name for the creatures meant it was a million times easier to prove Phel wrong.

However Callie's grin entirely fell when she found out the truth as to how Phel wasn't able to see the creatures. Miranda too for that matter. "You..have to see death?" Callie questioned in a much quieter tone than usual. For once Callie found herself lost for words as the memories of her grandfather's death the previous month swirled in her head, a memory she wasn't too keen to remember anytime soon. The sirens..the frantic work of the paramedics..him dying whilst clutching her hand tightly..it was all too real. Thankfully Callie quickly managed to pull herself out from the darker recesses of her mind as by now she knew dwelling on things wouldn't help. The man was in a much better place now and he wouldn't want her to be so upset over things. Death was an inevitable part of life that came for everyone, even those close to Callie. Not exactly something she was entirely happy with but a fact she had come to accept nonetheless. "That..that makes sense." Callie eventually managed in response with a slight smile on her face, clearly thankful for the information. "Don't you think its weird that only specific people can see them?"

"I try to be," Miranda replied, her grin darting across her face, then fading as she continued into the final part of her explanation.

"Yeah, you do," Miranda said quietly. She found herself wondering what Callie had seen to prompt the sudden ability, but knew it was almost definitely something she wouldn't want to talk about. No one ever wanted to talk about death, unless they were trying to get it off of their chest. And surely Callie would have better friends than Miranda to do that with, or better yet, family members.

Her musings had become so deep that she only caught the gist of Callie's latest question, but enough to understand. "A lot of things about magical creatures are weird," she replied. "How do dragons, giant, heavy lizards, fly? How does a Phoenix manage to be reborn? How come Kappas are weakened when they lose the water contained in their heads?" Miranda shrugged. "There's some things that are beyond any explanation other than simply being magic. It's best not to question them too much unless you have a way on discovering an answer. And that's something you can't do cooped up in a school."

Miranda cocked her head to the side as another thought struck her. "But maybe when you're older, you can try to figure it out. Most people can't because they can't even see them." If anyone could do it, Miranda was sure it would be Callie. From what she'd seen, nothing deterred the excitable Ravenclaw.

@Callie Jensen

At first most things within the wizarding world confused Callie. Why did everyone care about brooms so much? Did people really have to carry wands around everywhere? Why did some people take blood status so seriously? Over time everything became less confusing as Callie managed to find the answers to her questions. Yet every so often a situation like this appeared, where the explanation was nothing more than the abstract term of magic. This specific answer didn't sit well with Callie, especially when Miranda delved even deeper into her explanation. Everything had to have a reason, right? Just as there was a reason the sky was blue, surely there was a reason why dragons flew? A reason why a phoenix was reborn?

Yet Callie found herself ill-equipped to find the answers which was rather fustrating. For now at least the simplistic answer would have to do even if Callie continued to desperately try and rationalise everything. "Maybe you're right.." Callie eventually managed after pulling herself from her thoughts. "Not everything needs a super complex explanation, I guess. Even if it doesn't make sense in my head. Gah, how fustrating! Thank you though Miranda, I knew you'd have an answer!" Callie let out a small sigh but largely admitted defeat in trying to find method in the madness. "There's books on this stuff in the library, right? I've still gotta prove Phel wrong!"

"Answers are what I do best," Miranda replied with another grin. "And yeah, I'm sure there's books on it in the library. You can try Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find them as a start...you know, the one in our school supplies? From there the librarian should be able to guide you. I've asked her about a few things already, and it's impressive how much she knows about the library, considering how new she is."

Miranda cocked her head at the towers far above them, a wry smile replacing her grin as she thought. However, it didn't take her long to return to the present. After a whole summer of working on her absent-mindedness, she was getting better at keeping it at bay. And while people who just met her might not see a difference, it was obvious to those who'd known her the previous year. Instead of minutes spent staring into space, it was now reduced to no more than thirty seconds.

And...Miranda sighed when she realized her thoughts had wandered yet again, without her even noticing. It was obvious that she wasn't perfect yet.

"Do you have any more questions...or can I go work on my homework? I just remembered it." Miranda smiled apologetically, knowing she was being abrupt. But it would be better if she left now before Callie made her spaz out even more. There was something about the way the other girl made her consider things that prompted the habit. And besides, she really did have homework.

@Callie Jensen It's a bit late, but hopefully it's okay