The night held its breath as countless figures, seeming to have merged with the darkness, slowly approached the clearing.

  "What should we do now?", Luna asked, more to herself.

  Tom, meanwhile, stared feverishly at what was inexorably approaching them. He had never seen such creatures before. Even in lessons, where they had learned much about the creatures of the night, they had never been told of the existence of such beings. Beings that seemed to have sprung from darkness and shadow, with glowing red eyes that were not of this world.

  Denser and denser they surrounded their prey—tightening the circle ever more, so that escape was impossible...Luna slumped to the ground beside him. "It feels as if the life is flowing out of me," she gasped, breathing heavily. He looked down at her, not knowing what to do.

  ... There remained only one way to escape this cursed situation unscathed. He had to attempt to fight the creatures without his wand. And he did not know if his abilities would be enough.

  He took a deep breath and closed his eyes...He concentrated on the earth beneath him and the sky above him - absorbing all the power he possibly could.

  The creatures approached faster and faster. "Come on, concentrate, Tom," he whispered to himself.

  "Light," came instinctively to his mind. Darkness could only ever be conquered with light.

  He tried to focus on light, as pure and clear as that of the stars. A slight tingling ran through his body... yet nothing happened.

  "Come on," he whispered.

  The beings - born of shadow and darkness - were now directly around them - the circle was closed...

  In his plush armchair, Director Dippet had fallen asleep while a pleasant breeze wafted through the open window.In another part of the castle, an increasingly restless Menie paced around her quarters. By now, she already regretted having agreed to the whole thing in the first pce. But she hadn't wanted to take this moment away from Luna, who had been so looking forward to this little nightly encounter. Slowly, she let herself sink onto the soft sofa, her thoughts far away...

  "You can do it," Luna gasped to him, her voice choked. "I know you can.",Her trust in him seemed unshakable.

  His breathing grew steadier; he concentrated with all his might on the light of the stars... then a heat like fire surged through him. And when he opened his eyes, there was a sphere of light as bright as the sun itself, so intense that he had to close his eyes again.

  "Destroy them!", he commanded loudly. For the light was subject to his will.

  At racing speed, the sphere of light expanded - pure and bright, it tore the darkness away with it. Some of the creatures tried to retreat... but in vain; they too were swallowed by the light.

  Slowly, Tom opened his eyes again.

  The creatures and the light had vanished. The soft hoot of an owl echoed across the clearing, as if to announce to the world that the threat was over...

  Luna, too, slowly caught her breath. He sank into the grass beside her. He wasn't quite sure what to do. "Are you alright?", he asked softly into the night.

  She looked up, a smile gracing her lips. "I knew you could do it," she whispered just as quietly.

  He gave her a silent nod.

  "I think it would be better not to tell anyone about what happened tonight... not even your sister."

  "I don't want to lie, Tom."

  "You shouldn't have to," he replied hoarsely. "Understand that if the Headmaster and your sister find out, you and I might never be able to come here again..."

  She nodded silently. He was right, after all.

  Gently, he took her hand and pulled her up. "Come! It’s time we return to the castle. But be certain... there are things that happen to me only once...", He paused, staring at her intensely.

  "And tonight belongs to those things. I will see to it whatever those creatures were that they never return here again!"

  He hissed the st words with such a finality that a brief shiver ran down her spine.Then they set off together. The cloud had vanished, revealing the moon once more.

  Luna felt the strength gradually flowing back into her body as the two walked side by side without a word.When they entered the castle, Tom accompanied her to the young teacher's private quarters. Luna knocked cautiously. The door opened as if by magic, and the two stepped inside.Menie sat on the sofa, watching them both intently.

  "Miss Stone," Tom greeted her politely with a nod in her direction.

  Luna, as usual, had her head in the clouds. But this time, something was different - something didn't fit at all.

  "There you are at st. It’s nearly dawn; how was your little excursion? You wanted to try magic without a wand, didn't you?", Menielooked inquiringly at Tom, who stood with his hands csped behind his back, watching her without a trace of emotion.

  "That is correct, Miss Stone," he replied, a fraction too politely, as Menie noted; she turned her attention to Luna.

  "Luna!", she tried to get her attention. "How was your little practice session? You were so looking forward to it, after all."

  While Tom still looked as if he couldn't hurt a fly, Luna shifted nervously from one foot to the other.

  "Well... now," she stammered uncertainly. "To be honest, we didn't get very far... but perhaps next time," she looked at her "sister" with a smile.

  Beside her, Tom let out a quiet sigh of relief. For a moment, he had suspected she might buckle.The young witch drummed her fingers on the spine of the book she had been reading until just now. Something was fundamentally wrong here. And it wasn't anything good.

  "What happened, Luna?", she asked urgently.

  Feeling a bit guilty, Luna looked first at Tom, then at Menie... With a deep sigh, she began to tell the story... Tom, standing calmly beside her, didn't flinch.

  "YOU WHAT?!"

  The young woman’s voice rang out loudly.

  "YOU!", she screamed in Tom's direction, making his ears ring. "YOU! THIS IS ALL YOUR FAULT!", Now she was truly getting started.

  Furiously, she sprang up and paced back and forth through the room.

  "First, you have the audacity to kiss my little sister RIGHT BEFORE MY EYES!" she continued to shout. "And now you lure her into the Forbidden Forest, where Merlin knows what dangers lurk!"

  Slowly, Tom began to lose his patience. NEVER had anyone treated him this way!

  "We are going to Director Dippet this instant," she hissed angrily and marched out into the corridor, which y silent in the torchlight. But the silence was over now.

  The clicking of Menie's low-heeled shoes echoed unpleasantly off the walls. The house-elves, cleaning the castle corridors at night, stared in amazement as they heard the young witch's tirade. They scrambled to make way as the small group rushed past them...

  Outwardly, Tom was the picture of calm. But inside, a volcano was seething. NEVER had he been so insulted. "Scoundrel and ruffian," she had called him. HIM, the HEIR OF SLYTHERIN!

  Arriving at the Director's quarters, Menie hammered so loudly on his door that even Luna was briefly startled.

  "Director Dippet, it's Miss Stone!", she called.

  Inside, Armando Dippet nearly fell from his armchair as the loud knocking tore him from his dreams like a drumbeat. With a flick of his wand, he opened the door.

  Like a storm cloud, Menie floated into the room, portending doom. But just as she was about to start a new tirade, she was stopped by a gesture from Dippet.

  "First of all, please, all of you, sit down." He stepped over to a sideboard, producing a few gsses and a bottle of cherry liqueur. With another flick of his wand, the bottle opened, and as if by magic, poured four gsses full. They then floated over to the small group.Then he took his own full gss and settled back into his plush armchair, intently studying the small circle at such a te hour.

  "And now, Miss Menie, tell me calmly what has occurred," the Director's soothing voice rang out.

  Menie took a deep breath and began to tell the story. Dippet listened attentively. Then he wanted to hear every detail from Luna and Tom again. By now, he had stood up and was pacing thoughtfully.

  "What you both are describing sounds like the so-called Shadow Beings. Not much is known about these incorporeal entities. Only that they do not originate from this world. However, there would have to be a rift in space and time for them to even enter this world in the first pce..."

  He stood by the window, his gaze lost in the night...

  At these words, Luna and Menie both turned ashen-faced...

  This, of course, did not escape Tom. He frowned inwardly. For what would a young teacher and her sister have to do with such a fatal rift in space and time?Both - the strange girl and the young woman had suddenly grown oddly quiet. It seemed as if all the anger had drained out of the young witch.

  "Curious," Tom thought privately. But he would get to the bottom of it. For NOTHING—absolutely NOTHING—escaped a Tom Riddle...