Chapter One.
Broomsticks are Made for SweepingThe weather is warm, the sun is shining bright, and a fluffy lone cloud trails across the sky. Kyungsoo feels as if a bad omen is approaching. With heavy feet, Kyungsoo sighs as a flurry of scarlet and gold rushes past him before a group of students dressed in emerald and silver hurry on ahead as well. Kyungsoo doesn’t understand their excitement. Shaking his head, Kyungsoo scans the two rows of broomsticks in front of him then picks a spot next to his best friend and fellow Slytherin, Chanyeol. As always, the brunette is smiling.
“Hey Kyungsoo,” greets Chanyeol, “you ready?”
Kyungsoo scowls before responding, “what do you think?”
“Umm…,” Chanyeol frowns, “not too good?”
“Obviously.”
Chanyeol offers Kyungsoo a smile and pats his shorter friend on the back, “Don’t worry about it. We’ll do fine! Probably not as good as Yura and Seungsoo, but that’s okay!”
“I really don’t think I’ll be okay Chanyeol. I just don’t see why I have to lear-”
“Alright everyone,” Mister Shim raises his left hand and puts a stop to all the student conversations, “stand next to your broomsticks in an orderly fashion please! I want all the Gryffindors to my left and all Slytherins to my right, understand?”
“Yes!” The students reply in unison.
Kyungsoo and Chanyeol stay rooted in their spots while some students shuffle around until they’re lined up according to their house.
“Good,” Mister Shim cross his arms and takes a step back so that everyone is in his line of sight, “okay, now I want you to say ‘up’ when you’re ready. The broomstick needs to listen to you and heed to your commands when you’re flying. Be firm, be confident, and have some authority when you say ‘up’ okay? Start!”
“Up!”
“Up.”
“Up?”
“UP!”
One by one, students start repeating the word “up”, all with the hopes that their broomstick will listen. A pair of best friends from Gryffindor, Lee Taemin and Kim Minhee, have their broomsticks in their hands within seconds. No one is surprised. The duo is famous for their good grades and excellent practical skills. The two friends laugh and give each other high fives before cheering on their fellow classmates. Kyungsoo narrows his eyes. Great, they’re nice too.
Mister Shim paces up and down the field and takes notes, an odd smile gracing his face as he does so. He gives some students pointers and praises others. Kyungsoo avoids all eye contact.
Sighing, Kyungsoo repeats “up” over and over again. He thinks he sees his broom twitch, but it might have been the light catching his eye or something. Soon, over half the class has their brooms in their hands. Even Chanyeol, who doesn’t seem to have a care for flying, manages to get a good grip on his broom as it flies straight up towards his face.
“Woah! That was a close call,” said Chanyeol. He places his hand over his heart and takes a couple deep breaths. After calming down, Chanyeol looks over at the frustrated Kyungsoo and pats his back, “it’s okay Soo, you can do this!”
“Right…” Kyungsoo rolls his eyes and attempts to get his goddamn sweeping tool to listen to him, but it just won’t budge.
Minutes go by and Kyungsoo is the last person left empty handed.
“COME ON, UP! UP I SAID!” Kyungsoo loses his temper and stomps his feet, “UUUUUP!!!”
Swoosh.
A collective gasp.
Kyungsoo screeches.
“AHHHHHHHHHH!”
Kyungsoo’s cleaning unit appears to have a mind of its own. After swinging straight up and attacking the poor Slytherin’s sensitive male organ, Kyungsoo’s broom then proceeds to take the raven haired male up into the sky, well above the Hogwarts towers and away from the training grounds.
With his eyes slammed completely shut, Kyungsoo prays for his life while his classmates and friends scream for him to stop.
“Stop Kyungsoo!”
“Slow down!”
“Get down! It’s dangerous!!!”
Well, Kyungsoo would stop if he could, but clearly, he can’t. The wretched broom takes Kyungsoo up even higher. Kyungsoo is doomed.
“DON’T WORRY SOO, MISTER SHIM WILL SAVE YOU!”
Kyungsoo can hear Chanyeol’s cracking voice despite how high he is and how fast he’s going. He’s sure that Chanyeol’s words were meant to be reassuring, but it only serves to increase Kyungsoo’s panic. Oh bloody hell, I need Mister Shim to save me, how embarrassing.
“Don’t worry Do, I’m right behind you.”
At the sound of Mister Shim’s voice, Kyungsoo’s first reaction is to turn around, but he’s physically incapable of doing so and gets whiplash in the process.
“Ahh!”
“Careful!” Mister Shim speeds up and starts flying right next to Kyungsoo. “Okay, I need you to hold onto your broom tight and tell it to slow down. I know you’re scared right now, but remember, you’re the one in control, not the broom.”
Even the mere thought of opening his eyes frightens the poor first year.
“I have to what?!”
“You need to open your eyes and hold onto your broom tight, you need to see where you’re going if you’re going to fly back down.”
With his eyes still firmly shut, Kyungsoo shakes his head.
“I can’t. Can’t you just put me onto your brooooOOO WOAH!” Kyungsoo’s broomstick jerks and shakes, then spins twice.
“It’s too dangerous, I could drop you in the process,” states Mister Shim.
“B-but.”
“No buts Do, you have to do this, you can do it! Just believe in yourself.”
“I-I,” Kyungsoo’s broom jerks again before coming to a stop, “oh bloody hell.”
Both Kyungsoo and his broom dive head first towards the forbidden forest and all Kyungsoo can think about is how he forgot to tell his mother how much he loves her today.
“AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!”
The eleven year old crashes through various trees and breaks multiple branches on his way down. His face is scratched up and he hears a loud crack that definitely came from his own body. For now, adrenaline is rushing through his body, and his fear of death overpowers the pain he should feel from his limbs. He's sure he'll feel true pain soon though.
Mister Shim’s eyes widen in shock. “Hold on tight Do!” Leaning forward, Shim speeds up and chases after his falling student. With his left hand gripping his Nimbus 2001, Shim pulls out his wand with his right hand and aims it directly at Kyungsoo’s broom, “Wingardium Leviosa!”
Right before Kyungsoo meets the floor, his broom levitates and Kyungsoo lets out a sigh of relief. The relief is short lived though when he feels a sharp pain coming from his right leg and a dull ache coming from his left arm. Kyungsoo loses all of his strength the moment Mister Shim appears before him and falls onto the floor with a loud thud.
“Soo!”
“Do!”
Kyungsoo wakes up to the sound of hushed whispers, but keeps his eyes closed. He’s in too much pain and feeling much too tired to answer any questions.
“Do you think he’ll be okay? He’s covered in bandages and I think that cut on his face might scar.”
It’s Seungsoo. Kyungsoo can’t believe his older brother is here to witness the aftermath of Kyungsoo’s failure of a flying lesson. And a scar? Oh no.
“I really hope so, I heard he fell from the top of the tower. Was it really from that high Chanyeol?”
Oh dear, Yura is here too.
“Well, he was flying even higher than the tower, but he didn’t fall and hit the floor until his broom was about half a meter above the ground. It was really scary though. There was blood all over his face and his arms and legs were all floppy and I think Mister Shim was crying and it was just so crazy. Everything happened so fast.”
How did Chanyeol manage to see all that?
“How were you so close Channie? Weren’t you at the training grounds?” asked Yura.
“Oh… ummm…” Chanyeol bites his lips nervously, “well, about that. I ended up flying on my own broom to chase after Kyungsoo as well. You know, cause he’s my best friends and everything…?”
“Wow, that’s amazing!” Seungsoo ruffles Chanyeol’s hair and gives the gangly first year a thumbs up, “how did it feel to fly for the first time?”
“It was great! I went a lot faster than I expected at first, and I kept jerking left and right, but once I got a good hold of my broom and focused all of my attention on Kyungsoo, I started to flyer straighter and smoother.”
“Fantastic! I’m sure you’ll be just as nimble and quick as your sister once you get some practice.”
“You think?” Chanyeol looks up at Seungsoo with wide eyes then turns to face his sister with a sheepish smile gracing his face.
“Probably not as nimble and quick as me Channie,” Yura chuckles, “but I’m sure you’ll be fantastic. It runs in the family you know?”
“Apparently not ours,” Kyungsoo mumbles.
“Kyungsoo!”
Three pairs of eyes are on Kyungsoo now and all he wants to do is cower and hide.
“Are you okay?” Seungsoo takes a step forward and looks Kyungsoo over.
“Yeah, are you okay? Does your face hurt?” Chanyeol stares at the giant bandage on Kyungsoo’s cheek and grimaces.
“Umm, I can’t feel my toes and my left arm is in a cast, but other than that… yes? I mean, I’ll live?”
“Oh good, I’m glad we’re both alive too cause if you die, I’ll need a new seatmate in class an-” Yura smacks Chanyeol in the arms, “ow! What was that for?”
“Hush you.”
Chanyeol pouts, but stops talking.
Seungsoo laughs and shakes his head, “Oh geeze, what are we going to do with the two of you?”
Hi everyone, I just moved to Seoul and it took me a while to settle in. I will be writing again asap
Comments