HI! Sorry for such a long delay, life gets in the way sometimes : (. Anyways, I hope everyone is well. Enjoy this chapter! As always, let me know what you think in the comments! : )

Luna quite enjoyed America.

Ever since her very first encounter with the Statue of Liberty, she had fallen in love with the city of New York. Its vibrant culture was unmatched in its splendor. Sure it had seen better days, but so had every other place on Earth. It was always teeming with life, bustling with tourists and residents alike who always seemed to be in a hurry. The restaurants and bars were so unique, and each was like its own little world. She vowed to try them all someday.

Currently, Luna was trying to get to work, but it seemed that life had other plans.

"No!" She shouted as the heel on her stilettos broke off with a disheartening crack, sending her tumbling to the pavement and her purse flying. Frustrated and disgusted by the sheer repulsiveness of the gum speckled sidewalk that she was now in such close proximity to, she gathered the sad remains of her shoe and stuffed it into her purse. Naturally, her fellows residents paid her no mind.

"And that's the last time I wear heels in the city," She huffed under her breath. She didn't care what the university dress code was anymore. From now on, she was going with sneakers. Let her muggle colleagues talk all they wanted. If she had to spell another shoe back together, she was going to lose it.

She glanced at her watch, which informed her that she was running thirty minutes late. She made a mad dash for the nearest Starbucks, a viable candidate for spelling her shoe back together. She had found that ever since she had assimilated into the world of muggles four years ago, she dealt with situations like this a lot. Maybe it was the fast-paced nature of the muggle world, or her own ties with the wizard world holding her back, but she found that she often had trouble fitting in with the muggles. Incidents such as these were commonplace to her. She could almost see her coworkers' contemptuous stares when she finally would arrive at work, her blouse and knees smudged with dirt.

After Luna had spelled her wand back together in a cramped Starbucks bathroom (and checked for nargles just to be sure-you never know where they are hiding out...) She made her way to the subway station at the end of the block, passing a hoard of missing signs stapled haphazardly to the cardboard walls enclosing the construction site adjacent to the Starbucks, a phenomenon resulting from what she called the great disappearances. Now, the content of most of the missing posters was muddled, deemed unrecognizable by years of exposure to the elements. Still, they were avoided like a plague by the general public, as it served as a reminder of the reality they were faced with. Many families of the subjects who were featured in the missing posters had given up the illusion of hope a long time ago, when they realized no one could save their loved ones. After all, there were no superheros that could swoop in and magically save the day.

Out of all of the wonders of New York, subways had to have been her favorite. Sure they were foul-smelling, hot, and crowded, but they were the most magical place in the city, quite literally. She would often spot magical creatures milling about the subway tracks, mingling with (and sometimes battling) the ginormous subway rats. Occasionally, had she been spending a late night at the university and found herself in a somewhat deserted platform, she would attempt to communicate with the magical creatures, who, taking after the residents of the city they resided in, paid her no mind whatsoever.

As she made her way onto a stuffy subway, crowded with muggles, her shoes now safely spelled together on her feet, she began to ruminate on her predicament. She had a great job, in a (somewhat) great city teeming with magic and beauty. She was far away from the wizard world, far away from their issues and corruption that had been brought on by the great disappearances. She was perfectly happy where she was. So why did she crave more? She glanced around at her fellow citizens, many of whom looked mildly uncomfortable. They all followed the same routine each day. Get up, get dressed, make the commute to work, and then come home. The subway was the only time they could be alone with their thoughts before the onslaught of media that the city above brought on a daily basis. For many passengers, this short, stuffy subway ride was the only reprise from their hyper-planned day, a brief moment of uncertainty and change. It was too easy for one to get used to this kind of life.

Luna remained lost in deep thought as the subway came to a grinding halt, throwing the most unsteady passengers forward. Her grip, however, remained firm. The doors slid open noisily, with an unpleasant ding. She made her way through the humid platform, past the vibrant posters advertising films, and a homeless man sleeping across a row of wooden benches. New York City was full of homeless people. That was one thing the wizarding world lacked, as any witch or wizard without a home could simply use their own knowledge of magic to spell together a place to stay. Muggles however, had no such luxury.

Luna ascended the steep flight of stairs into the garish light of day. Right away, the overpowering smell of hot dogs bombarded her nose. She found herself craving a change of pace. A shortcut through Central Park would do.

Slowly but surely she made her way through the paths of Central Park, past the John Lennon memorial on the sidewalk. She had discovered John Lennon's music purely on accident, having been doing some late night work in a tiny coffee shop when his songs came on over the radio. She was absolutely captivated by their magical sounds, and concluded that he must have been a wizard. Sadly, she was mistaken.

All of a sudden, an owl swooped down from where it had presumably been perched on a tree, blocking her path. This was met with an outcry by the closest pedestrians, and a few phones whipped out to film the phenomena, but a majority of the people around her acted like nothing had happened. Upon closer inspection, she found that the owl was clutching a small piece of paper. For a moment, she was tempted to run the other way, but that would only call more unwanted attention to her. Quickly, she removed the piece of paper from the owl's leg and unfurled it.

Dearest Luna,

I hope that you have found happiness in New York. Is it really as loud as all the books say? I'm aware we left things on bad terms, but I'd like to offer a chance to make it up. We have apprehended a group of oddities who call themselves "superheros". Normally, I wouldn't indulge such childish rubbish but they seem to have some knowledge on what is behind the disappearances. I had the craziest inkling of a plan, and it involves the Deathly Hallows that your father was so keen on. It pains me to admit this, but I'm a bit out of my knowledge here, and feel that you have the best insight into this matter. We need you, Luna.

Sincerely,

Minister of Magic

Hermione Granger

Luna couldn't help but smile as she read the letter. She could tell that Hermione hadn't changed a bit in the past five years since she had seen her. Even though she had left it all behind, a small part of her longed for the wizarding world again, and all of the allure it held. Her initial apprehension turned to excitement as she realized this could be her chance to find a change of pace, and break the never ending cycle of her simple life. If what Hermione had written was true, perhaps there was a chance at a better future!

Fumbling around her purse, Luna pulled out the red ballpoint pen she used to grade papers. The owl remained stationary, aware that it would soon have a message to deliver to its owner. She flipped the letter over to reveal the blank space on the back, and began to scribble furiously. Upon finishing, she tied the letter to the owl using the same ribbon it had come with. She began to speed back the way she came, abandoning all thought of making it to work. She would have to return home immediately to back her few belongings.

The owl, having carried out its duty, took off into the sky, avoiding the gangs of pigeons that swarmed it curiously, flapping their dirty wings. It had a mission to fulfill, and a message to deliver:

I'm coming.