It was painful, and unbearable looking at Hemera and Aether Erebus; Irene and Seulgi’s owls. 

Every bits of them reminded Wendy of her dead owl. They were the same color, and the same breed too. Except that her owl had little black spots on her back, but still she sees her beloved Nyx in them. 

Irene and Seulgi were in the Owlery room at the moment to send a letter to their brothers. They told her not to go with them, but the Slytherin girl insisted to come along, not wanting to be left alone. 

Wendy watched them petting their owls before placing the letters on their beaks. She watched Hemera, and Aether Erebus soaring high in the wide, morning pastel-blue sky. 

She would admit that she was jealous. 

She would miss doing this. She would miss waiting letters and packages from Nyx, ruffling her tough white wings, and seeing her flying freely in the infinite sky. 

Letting out a chilly breath, Wendy ran her hands over her shivering arms to rub off the coldness. The Owlery room was endlessly cold to the bone since none of the windows had glass in them.

“So cold!” she mumbled to herself. 

But Wendy didn’t mean the winter weather. 

She meant the coldness surrounding her fragile heart over losing Nyx, and Professor Jessica Jung. 

* *

Twelve years old Wendy blinked her big, green eyes before saying, “You want me to be your friend?” 

“Yes.” Irene, and Seulgi squeaked cheerfully. 

“But why? I’m a Slytherin.” 

“We don’t care if you’re a Slytherin.” 

“Really?” A smile tugged Wendy’s lips. 

“Irene, and I are not biased. We respect all the Houses, and all the students. Even the ones who hate us.” Seulgi said in her usual friendly voice. 

The Gryffindor and the Hufflepuff outstretched their hands as they said, “Join us, and we can be the new Golden Trio.” 

“I would be honored to be friends with James Potter’s daughter, and a muggle-born.” Wendy replied happily as she took their hands in her gentle ones. 

“It’s an honor too, being friends with Remus Lupin’s beautiful daughter.” Irene smiled, earning an adorable giggle from the Slytherin. 

“Miss Kang, stop grinning and snap out from your stupor!” 

Professor Im Yoona—the teacher of Alchemy class slammed a hand on Seulgi’s desk, but she didn’t budge, blink or even flinch. 

The Hufflepuff witch was staring at the ceiling, brown eyes filled with old memories and nostalgia. Her head was leaning against the chair, and both hands were dramatically placed over her heart. 

She was completely dazed, until Irene kicked the bottom of her chair. 

“Damn it, what’s that about?” Seulgi was taken back to reality, frowning at the Gryffindor witch. 

“You were spacing out since the beginning of the lesson, and you know how much I hate it when someone doesn’t pay full attention in my class.” Professor Im Yoona said angrily. 

Seulgi jolted on her seat, startled from the teacher’s sudden outburst. “Oh Professor, I didn’t see you there.” 

Im Yoona mock-glared. “Pay attention, Miss Kang. This is not a daydreaming class!” 

“You looked like you were in cloud nine.” Irene said in a low voice once the professor went back to her desk. “The hell were you thinking about?” 

“Just reminiscing about our childhood days with Wendy.” Seulgi smiled as she glanced at the Slytherin witch who was sitting at the other side of the classroom. 

We’re so blessed and lucky to have you, our darling Wendy Lupin.

* *

Wendy was bored, so she thought of taking a long walk as usual whenever boredom strikes. But out of all the places, she doesn’t know why she chose the Forbidden Forest.  

She could’ve at least brought Irene or Seulgi, but she had no one but herself, surrounded by the eerie darkness, her bright flashlight, and the heavy rustles of the tree branches against the freezing wind. 

“Ah, look who we have here!” A voice boomed from behind.

Spinning around, goosebumps ran through her skin as she saw who the person was.

“Myoui Mina…” Wendy suddenly forgot how to breathe. She wasn’t afraid, but she won’t deny that she was freaking out. 

“My name is The Dark Mistress, you filthy Half-blood.” Mina barked out as she eyed the young witch. Then her gaze landed on the Head Girl badge. “Looks like the headmaster is very fond of you. Last year you were a Prefect, and now a Head Girl.” 

“You got a problem with that?” Wendy put on a poker face. 

“Yes, it’s disgusting! It disgusts me how they have the nerve to sort Half-bloods and muggle-borns in Slytherin.” Mina exclaimed disdainfully. “Back in my days, the Prefects were always Half-bloods, and the Head Girls and Boys were always Mudbloods. It was really annoying.” 

“Why do you even care? You already graduated eleven years ago.” Wendy snorted. “And stop insulting Halfies and muggle-borns. We aren’t that bad.” 

“Correct! They aren’t bad.” Mina flashed her a wolfish grin, her canines were long and sharp, almost like a vampire. “They’ve always been special, and loved by the headmaster and Professor McGonagall. It irritated me so much that I ended up killing one of my Slytherin classmates.”

At the mention of that, Wendy tensed. She was sure that the Dark Mistress was talking about Rosé.

Wendy’s childho