Chaeyeon is starting her first year at Hogwarts.  And, aged eleven and still at the runty, scrawny end of the tween girl spectrum, abysmally shy and a shameful owner of two left feet, she's terrified for her life.

 

“You'll be fine, honey,” Her mother soothes her once again, the comforting hand massaging her shoulder providing less comfort to Chaeyeon than she'd like. “You'll make new friends with people in your cohort, don't you worry. You'll be fine.” Chaeyeon, sharp-eyed as she is confused, doesn't miss the way her mother's fingers drum against the strap of her handbag at a hundred beats per minute. It's evident in the darting eyes and the thin set of the mouth that no, her mother doesn't believe in her own words, her mother is just as worried as she is.

 

“But mom,” Chaeyeon feels another wave of abstract terror seizing her tiny frame. “All of them are so big. And scary. And they'll tease me for being a weirdo like the kids back at school used to. And - and I'll be away from home for months!”

 

Her mother, seeing the abrupt welling of tears in the child's eyes, hastily bends over to place a kiss on her forehead. “You'll be back for the summer and for Easter and Christmas, Chae. So while you're at school you should study hard and make us proud. You're special, Chaeyeon, remember that. The only witch in our family!” Her mother musters a smile.

 

“That's the thing - I'm the only one going to Hogwarts!” Chaeyeon blinks away her tears.

 

“You've got an owl though, Chae, we bought a pretty owl for you. You can write to us and we'll reply to you as soon as we can, so you won't feel like we're so separated. Okay?” Her mother presses her cheeks gently, and Chaeyeon nods, until her mother suddenly looks up when the tiny girl is nearly bowled over by a couple of older-looking boys chasing each other to the train. Her mother, seeing the thick smoke slowly being released from the top of the train, stands and places a hand on Chaeyeon’s trunk. “Let's get you onto that train, then.”

 

The finality in her mother's tone sends another panicked spasm through Chaeyeon, but she swallows her terror and lends her meagre strength to carry her massive trunk onto the train. Her mother's lips are pursed, hands shaking from her inability to lift the damn trunk.

 

“Here, hey, let me help,” A voice calls out.

 

A hand attached to the voice grasps the handle of the trunk, and with a great heave the trunk is hauled onto the train. The cage with her owl follows. Chaeyeon looks up, confused. The stranger attached to the hand is a girl slightly older than she is, with straight black hair, coldly slanted cat eyes and a smile that screams trouble. And for some reason, Chaeyeon can't look away.

 

“Thank you,” Her mother says, smiling to the girl. The girl just smiles that impish smile back and swings herself onto the train, disappearing amidst the crowd of students. Her mother turns to her, and Chaeyeon snaps her eyes away from the place where the crowd had swallowed the pretty black haired girl up. “You should get on now, honey. Don't worry about anything, alright? I love you!”

 

“I love you too, mom.” Chaeyeon is swept into a tight embrace, and the girl struggles not to cry as she hears the train blast its horn as a warning for students to get on board quickly. Then her mother releases her, and she gets on the train, and she has a final glimpse of her mom's teary wave goodbye before the door slides shut behind her.

 

Now utterly alone on the train, Chaeyeon is determined not to let the panic set in. Being in a foreign place by herself is absolute hell for the tiny girl barely reaching her teenage years. No, she would not let herself panic here.

 

She stands up and grabs onto her trunk and owl cage, and thus begins her exertion to make her dogged way to a compartment to sit in. Most of the compartments at the front of the train are full of returning students, and one is pretty empty save for a pair of first years jabbing each other with their wands, and Chaeyeon decides against entering for her own safety. She's beginning to lose hope in finding a compartment to sit in at all when she sees a familiar black-haired girl sitting in one of the middle compartments, her impish smirk on full blast and her arm slung over the back of her seat. She's with two other girls.

 

It's her! That girl who helped me with my trunk. Maybe she'll let me sit with her and her friends, if she helped me, she must be nice…right?

 

At that moment, the black-haired girl looks straight at her, and her expression morphs from judgemental to confused to recognition in the span of a second. Before Chaeyeon can even blink, the black-haired girl stands up and slides her compartment’s door open, regarding Chaeyeon with a lifted eyebrow and an equally lofty smile.

 

“Hey, you're that girl whose trunk I helped lift just now, aren't you? You must be a first year. I saw you standing here looking in.” The girl's eyes, though warm hazel brown, contain an air of superiority. “D’you want to sit with us?”

 

Chaeyeon makes the instantaneous decision that she'd rather sit in there than with the two weird first years poking each other in the other compartment, so she nods shyly. The black-haired girl's lofty smile widens and Chaeyeon notices the little wrinkle that forms at the corner of her lip, before the girl leans down and pulls Chaeyeon’s trunk in along with her owl cage. Chaeyeon follows her inside, and the black-haired girl shuts the compartment door behind her as her friends push Chaeyeon’s luggage onto the rack overhead.

 

Chaeyeon stands awkwardly by the door, a small runt compared to the other girls who she's now certain are older than her by at least a year. The black-haired girl helps in shifting some stuff around to make space for the addition of the new trunk, and when she notices that the youngest is still standing by the door she says, “Sit, sit.”

 

So the youngest sits on the red fabric seat, right opposite where the black haired girl plops down a moment later.

 

“Welcome to Hogwarts’ Cult for Second Years,” One of the black-haired girl’s friends says, giving her a -eating grin.

 

“Shut up Chu, you're scaring the first year,” the black-haired girl says reprovingly, though she's also grinning. She meets Chaeyeon’s eyes across the compartment and says, “I'm Ki Heehyun. And that annoying little chocolate frog over there is Chu-”

 

“Sojung. Chu Sojung. How many times do I have to place a jinx on you for you to learn not to call me Chu, Ki?”

 

“When you stop calling me Ki, you frog. And the girl you're sitting next to is Kim Nayoung,” the black-haired girl who finally has a name to her face says, and Chaeyeon turns her head to see Nayoung give her a dimpled smile that is just as mischievous as her friends’. Ki Heehyun drags Chaeyeon’s attention back by asking, “So what's your name, cutie?”

 

“Cutie?” Sojung snickers.

 

“Shut your trap, chocolate frog. Yes, cutie?”

 

Chaeyeon forces the terror down when she sees three pairs of eyes shift attentively to her. She opens , prays valiantly that won't stick, and says in her characteristic soft voice, “Jung Chaeyeon.”

 

“Chaeyeon? Pretty name,” Nayoung grins at her, and the warmth of acceptance makes Chaeyeon sit up a little straighter.

 

“Don't flirt with the first year, Kim. Remember when you tried that last year and then Sejeong tried to use the Severing Charm on you? Bless her little soul,” Heehyun laughs as she recounts the story, and Sojung muffles her laughter from the side. Chaeyeon grips onto the edge of her seat, the warm feeling of finally not being treated like an outcast overshadowed by her curiosity, which she has an abundance of since she's naturally very confused.

 

“What are chocolate frogs?” She blurts out, her quiet voice nearly drowned out by Nayoung’s descriptive cursing.

 

“You don't know what chocolate frogs are?” Sojung pipes up, sounding surprised. When Chaeyeon shakes her head, she continues, “Pumpkin pasties? Bertie Bott’s Every Flavour Beans? Cauldron Cakes? None?”

 

Heehyun, who's been staring at Chaeyeon intently, says, “You must be a muggle-born then.”

 

Chaeyeon looks lost. “What's a muggle?”

 

The three girls share significant looks, before Nayoung clears and explains, “A muggle is basically someone who isn't a witch or a wizard. Common folk. A normal human. So, a muggle-born is a witch or wizard who was born to two muggle parents. Sojung, Heehyun and I are half-bloods, which means that one of our parents is a muggle and the other is a witch or wizard. Get it?”

 

“So…I'm a muggle-born then.” Chaeyeon frowns, and tiny girl looks confused again. “Is that a bad thing?”

 

“No, not in this day and age. No one really cares about your descent that much anymore,” Heehyun clarifies, waving a hand dismissively. “Muggle-borns still grow to become excellent witches or wizards. It doesn't matter.”

 

“Oh, okay,” Chaeyeon says uncertainly.

 

Suddenly their compartment door slides open, and a lady pokes her head in, smiling in a motherly way. “Anything from the trolley today, dears?” She asks, and Chaeyeon has no idea what the heck she means by ‘the trolley’, but the three older girls seem excited about its arrival.

 

Heehyun stands and makes her way to the compartment door and speaks to the lady. Chaeyeon can't really hear over the rumble of the fast moving train, but she assumes it's got something to do with food, because she's sure she heard ‘Chocolate frogs’ or something. Then Heehyun fumbles around in her jeans pocket and pays the lady in silver coins - sickles, if Chaeyeon remembers from her trip to Gringotts - and turns around with an armful of food.

 

Nayoung and Sojung each pay her their share for the food, and Chaeyeon makes to pay as well, but Heehyun stops her. “No need to pay, cutie. We're letting you try the wizarding snack experience on the house. Catch!”

 

An unwrapped chocolate frog leaps from her hand and lands right in Chaeyeon’s outstretched palms, eliciting a surprised scream from the youngest.

 

“It jumps!”

 

“Of course it jumps, everything here is magic!” Sojung laughs, “Eat it!”

 

Chaeyeon never imagined that one day she would be eating chocolate frogs that actually leapt around and jelly beans that tasted like actual boogers. To be fair, she also didn't imagine how many surprises she'd had in stall for her…period.

 

-

 

Chaeyeon has been separated from her new acquaintances the moment she got off the train. She was punted to a group of scraggly first years, all dressed the same as her in slightly oversized robes. They'd taken boats across some Lake to Hogwarts, and on the ride she'd heard some of the other first years talking about the Sorting.

 

Ah, Sorting. She'd heard about it during her trip to Diagon Alley. The guy who ran the joke shop had told her about it as she walked around with wide eyes. Four houses, Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw and Slytherin. The guy had explained briefly about the houses to her before he had to serve another customer, leaving the normally confused Chaeyeon even more confused than before.

 

The group of first years is led to the Great Hall, and already Chaeyeon is terrified by the sheer size of the place. The four tables, each occupied by second to seventh years, seem to be very full of people. Chaeyeon doesn't like crowds.

 

They're led to the front of the hall, where this Sorting Hat stands, bursting into song as the first years approach him. Chaeyeon is numb to her surroundings, focusing her attention on the floor so that she won't pass out from how panicky she feels. The song ends. Names are called. Then her name is called at the end of the Js, and she totters up, and the Hat is placed on her head, covering her eyes and nose.

 

It's quiet, even in Chaeyeon’s mind. She doesn't know if it's supposed to be quiet. Then the Hat chuckles and she nearly has an aneurysm, and it shouts, “Gryffindor!”

 

The Gryffindor table explodes in cheers. Chaeyeon heaves the hat off her head and makes her way hesitantly to the very red and gold Gryffindor table where a few fourth years make space for her in the front. Chaeyeon doesn't even pay attention to the rest of the sorting, opting to gaze down the table and see if she can spot Heehyun and gang. They had to be in Gryffindor - they were all so nice and funny, they had to be in her house…

 

With a crushing sensation Chaeyeon studies the table for the fifth time, and her tiny frame slumps. She isn't here.

 

Where is she, then?

 

-

 

“Okay, general rule of thumb when you're in Hogwarts and you're in Gryffindor,” Fifth-year student Jieun says, the prefect’s badge gleaming on her robes. The ragtag bundle of first years sit before her on the floor of the Gryffindor common room, listening intently to her advice. The prefect raises her wand, tapping the tip against her palm as she speaks. “Don't forget the password, or you'll be locked out of the common room until another of your housemates comes along. Don't try to access areas that are restricted or out of bounds unless you want our caretaker to wrangle you with his fists. Don't entertain Peeves - the poltergeist, if you don't know. Questions?”

 

“What about the other houses? Are there any houses we should stay away from?” A boy pipes up from the edge of the group.

 

“Well - no, not exactly. The houses aren't meant to separate the students so distinctly that we avoid other houses entirely. But, well, we Gryffindors do tend to try to avoid Slytherins. Nasty lot, they are. I heard from the Ravenclaw prefect that some hellish Slytherin second years - and I think I can guess who - put bat bogey hexes on everyone just this evening as a ‘welcome back to school’ gift. I think they've got some detentions under their belt already,” Jieun says, unable to hide the scorn in her voice.

 

Chaeyeon, who's sitting next to this other girl who's just as runty and skinny as she is, feels a nudge on her arm and turns. The girl, Choi Yuna, leans in and whispers, “I wouldn't want to mix with Slytherins. Would you?”

 

Chaeyeon shrugs. “I dunno, maybe.”

 

“Yeah, well, they sound scary. I don't like scary people,” Yuna says.

 

“I don't think any of us like scary people,” Chaeyeon replies, looking at the girl beside her earnestly, “But Slytherins do sound scary. Detention on the first day is crazy. I really wonder who could be so crazy as to land themselves a punishment already.”

 

Jieun clears , garnering the attention of the whispering first years again. “Well, bottom line is, you guys should probably stay away from them for now, especially the older students from that house. Slytherins are nothing but trouble.”

 

-

 

Unsurprisingly, Chaeyeon hasn't really made any new friends in Hogwarts, except for the few other girls living in the Gryffindor dorm with her. She's kind of closer to the other runty girl Choi Yuna, who, turns out, is an actual freaking genius at transfiguration. Then again, it's only been little over half a week, so Chaeyeon isn't too unhappy. Life at Hogwarts is pretty fantastic whether you have friends or not. She loves her classes, and though she's confused and blank most of the time she does learn stuff. She likes charms especially, though she's probably annoyed Yuna more than once by levitating her food off the table while practising during dinner. Accidentally.

 

Chaeyeon’s walking alone to class one day after lunch - Yuna had ditched her to talk to the professor early regarding some homework or whatever - when she hears someone speak loudly behind her.

 

“Hey, you! Cutie! Isn't that you?”

 

She turns around, unsure of who the shout is aimed at. Then she sees a familiar black-haired girl swaggering towards her, flanked by another very familiar girl. Then Chaeyeon notices the colour of the hem of her robes and her tie - green, green, green, lots of green, and silver. And suddenly the mischievous impish smile slides right home and the mocking tone clicks into the blanks in Chaeyeon’s brain.

 

They're in Slytherin.

 

Chaeyeon doesn't know what to think anymore when Heehyun and Sojung approach her, two Slytherins to a Gryffindor, and she tries hard not to turn and run away. It's her instinctive flight reflex - run when she senses something she needs to avoid. Like trouble. Like the person with the pretty smile that screams trouble.

 

The two older girls stop about two feet from Chaeyeon, Heehyun smiling her disarming grin and Sojung looking pleasantly surprised to see her.

 

“Hi,” Chaeyeon manages.

 

“Ah, I'd expected this to happen,” Heehyun sighs, her fingertips brushing against the red hem of Chaeyeon’s robes imperiously. She seems disdainful, but yet not really - the hazel eyes are cold, but not aggressive. The younger girl has to force herself not to twitch back reflexively. “Gryffindor. Seemed more like a Hufflepuff when we met her on the train, right Chu?”

 

“Yes, and stop calling me Chu you boggart,” Sojung rolls her eyes.

 

“Whatever, Chu. Anyway, cutie, how're you finding Hogwarts so far? It's pretty good, isn't it? Disappointing that you weren't sorted into Slytherin, but then again, you didn't seem like the Slytherin type.” Heehyun's calculative smile widens, and Chaeyeon shrinks slightly. The older girl notices, and her smile softens a little. “Hey, don't be scared of me. It's me, I'm Heehyun. Don't tell me that Gryffindor prefect told you crap about us.”

 

“Isn't that crap true though?” Chaeyeon squeaks, looking nervously at Sojung and Heehyun. “She said that we Gryffindors should stay away from Slytherins, because you guys are bad news. And she - she said to stay away from the older ones specifically.”

 

“Did she?” Heehyun an eyebrow. “Well, to inform you, miss Chaeyeon, not all Slytherin students are as bad as they seem. Slytherins are a proud, ambitious and kind of passive aggressive bunch, sure, but Slytherins aren't evil. At least most aren't.”

 

“Are you guys part of that evil bunch?” Chaeyeon asks uncertainly, her young, confused face showing clearly what she thinks.

 

“Ah, well,” Heehyun looks significantly at Sojung, who grins back. “We don't exactly have the best reputation. Mayhaps you have heard of this tale of some Slytherin second years putting bat bogey hexes on other students on the first day? Yeah? That was us. Detention this Saturday, but damn was it worth it.” Heehyun's grin is wide, unapologetic, and completely evil.

 

“That - was - you?” Chaeyeon’s eyes widen, either in fear, admiration or both, she doesn't know.

 

“As I said, we don't have the best rep here. Pretty much all the prefects except those from our house hate us, because we're problematic as hell,” Heehyun laughs, slinging an arm around Sojung’s shoulders comfortably. “Me, Sojung, and Nayoung. Us three. Merlin’s pants, they hate us. And the students love-hate us, with all the hate coming from other houses, but eh. I think even Peeves is starting to consider us as growing potential.”

 

Now Chaeyeon really doesn't know what to think.

 

Sojung and Heehyun look down at the tiny runt of a Gryffindor, and the latter feels a foreign surge of protectiveness over her. Merlin’s beard, the cutie is the most confused and lost person Heehyun's ever met, and she's just so small and vulnerable. Heehyun knows what tomfoolery the older students can get up to.

 

“Don't be scared of us, cutie. We would never even think of doing anything to you. You're the first first year who's ever wanted to sit in a compartment with us! You're basically part of our gang now, isn't she?” Heehyun looks pointedly at Sojung, who gives her a look that clearly says, what the heck, dude? And Heehyun fixes her with a frosty stare, accept her, you chocolate frog.

 

“Well, yeah, you kind of are. I mean - if you want to, I guess.” Heehyun can tell what Sojung is thinking - hanging out with a Gryffindor is probably not the best idea for Chaeyeon’s sake.

 

“I - I do want to,” Chaeyeon says quietly, her serene face looking just as confused as ever. And she does. She really likes Heehyun and Sojung and Nayoung and their craziness that she never had, their craziness that is a balance to her - albeit deceptive - calm. “But what would people say about me? Me - a Gryffindor - with three Slytherins?”

 

“Does our house really matter that much, Chaeyeon?” Heehyun tilts her head to the side, the hazel brown of her eyes twinkling with dark mischief. “Honestly, it's not like Slytherins are bad. We're not different from Ravenclaws and Hufflepuffs.”

 

“The three of us. We're just - playful,” Sojung interjects, her eyes gleaming. She meets Heehyun's eyes, and the latter smiles evilly.

 

“Very playful.”

 

And Chaeyeon can't help the smile that begins to stretch her lips. It seems that even when she doesn't want trouble, trouble tends to just come rolling up to her doorstep anyway.

 

-

 

Chaeyeon’s really just beginning to learn the depth of that ‘reputation’ that the three Slytherins have racked up. She'd walked down the hallway next to Heehyun that once, the black-haired second year explaining in detail what bat bogey hexes are, and most of the student population had avoided them like they had spattergroit. Chaeyeon heard the whispers, though, and sees the mortified looks from fellow Gryffindor housemates.

 

She hates how she still feels like panicking when she realises just how much attention she's receiving by hanging around the three mini Satans. The stares get quite intense at times, and she hates it when people stare. It's like back in her old school, when people would stare as she got mercilessly teased and pushed around for being strange.

 

The three Slytherins really do treat her like a princess, though. Sojung is the aggressor who wards off potential trouble for her, Nayoung is the constantly annoyed but caring ‘mom’, and Heehyun acts scary all of the time (she really isn't, though, as Chaeyeon has grown to realise) and is sort of the pseudo-leader of the gang. Of course, the three land themselves in detention more times than Chaeyeon can count, but they never complain.

 

They show her around the vast grounds on the weekends, showing her more secret areas that hardly any students go to, and on the day the four troop down to see the giant squid, Heehyun gets hit in the jaw by a fake quaffle that some Ravenclaw second-year had accidentally thrown at her. The impact is so forceful that Heehyun loses her balance, and Sojung supports her. The second-year is promptly hauled into the air by an ankle, screaming, Nayoung’s wand tip pointed at him. The crowd of students at the lake all gape in shock. Chaeyeon grips onto her sleeve in warning.

 

“You should let him down before a prefect catches you,” She says softly. “They'll throw you in detention again.”

 

“Oh, you spoil my fun, Chae,” Nayoung sighs, muttering the counter spell so that the boy crashes to the ground in a muddled heap. “Watch where you're throwing your quaffles next time!” Nayoung yells threateningly.

 

Chaeyeon turns her attention from the groaning boy to Heehyun, whose jaw is fast taking on an ugly yellow-green shade.

 

“, , ow, that hurts you toad!” Heehyun growls, as Sojung jabs the tip of her wand at her jaw.

 

“I don't know any spells that'll sort that out. Think we have to let it heal naturally. Wanna go to the hospital wing to let Madam Pomfrey check it out?” Sojung asks, unable to stop herself from laughing at their charismatic leader's sorry state.

 

“Shut up, you . I'll just get some ice on it later. Thanks for the backup though, Nayoung. Didn't expect levicorpus.” Heehyun grins, though it looks painful, and slings an arm around Chaeyeon, who's staring worriedly at her bruise. “If you're gonna look at my face, I'd rather you look at my actual face and not just my fantastic jawline, Jung.”

 

Chaeyeon gives her a small smile. “I'm just worried for you. Does it hurt? It looks like it hurts.”

 

Heehyun gazes down at her for a moment, her hazel eyes giving her that tender look that she only ever has for Chaeyeon. Or least the look that doesn't say ‘I want to kill you’. “You sure you're not in Hufflepuff? You're way too nice, Jung Chaeyeon. But yeah, I'm doing great right now. Jaw hurts like hell, but it'll heal.”

 

“You're going to be walking around like some discoloured pineapple the whole day, you sure you don't want to get that checked out?” Sojung asks.

 

“Are you kidding? Madam Pomfrey would probably sock Heehyun in the face. She hates us. Granted, a lot of the people visiting the hospital wing were there because of us, but still, as much as I think Heehyun is dumb, I wouldn't want to send any one of us there,” Nayoung says disapprovingly.

 

“She wouldn't hit a twelve year old, Kim,” Sojung says scornfully.

 

“Oh, you don't know what she could do. Let's just go back to the common room and get her some muggle ointment, I'm pretty sure I have some in my trunk somewhere. You gonna be okay, Chaeyeon?” Nayoung looks at their gang’s precious youngest, the pipsqueak dwarfed by Heehyun's height.

 

“Yeah, I have a Potions essay to finish anyway. Maybe I'll see you guys at dinner later?” Chaeyeon smiles hopefully.

 

“Oh, I wouldn't miss dinner for the world,” Heehyun promises, playfully poking a finger into Chaeyeon’s soft cheek. The youngest squeaks in surprise, and the three older girls chuckle. “Don't get lost on your way back to your common room, Jung. Remember, the stairs are always out to kill you, so you must kill the stairs first.”

 

“I'll keep that in mind,” Chaeyeon says dutifully, before Heehyun lets her arm drop and she walks alone back to the Gryffindor common room.

 

-

 

Chaeyeon has always respected people who could compel crowds with their voice or gaze alone, or simply captivate another's attention. She respects people who are strong, and people who dare to break the rules, because they're all traits that she herself has never possessed in her life so far.

 

Perhaps that's one of the reasons she likes to hang around with the three Slytherin delinquents, because they're everything that she isn't and can't be. And she's honestly honoured that they, out of all the students, chose to accept her into their little but powerful trio.

 

Perhaps that's one of the reasons she respects Heehyun a lot. Admires her. Heehyun has a gaze that can command the attention of even air molecules, is definitely a strong witch, and has no qualms about breaking rules. Plus, she's a natural leader. Chaeyeon doesn't really like the swearing, but she knows that behind the tough delinquent exterior, Heehyun is really a softie who does cry and get her feelings hurt. Just like Chaeyeon. But one of the things she admires is Heehyun's ability to hide it.

 

The trademark impish grin and hazel eyes glittering with the dark promise of imminent doom tends to scare people. Even at twelve, the girl could frighten a seventh year easily. Not that she does it on purpose - okay, she probably does, but Chaeyeon admires it all the same.

 

-

 

Years at Hogwarts pass with an abundance of interesting changes. For one, Chaeyeon does make a handful of friends other than the Slytherin gang, including Yuna and these girls called Eunjin and Yebin, both from Ravenclaw, and a few Hufflepuff acquaintances. But really, the only people she’s really close to are the three Slytherin hooligans, so not much has changed in that aspect. But one other thing that has changed is that both Chaeyeon and said three Slytherin hooligans have become something close to actual teenage Greek goddesses.

 

Puberty generally doesn’t hit most girls that hard, but damn, did puberty hit Heehyun and Chaeyeon like a thrice-blasted bullet train.

 

Sojung and Nayoung had always been pretty good-looking, and they’d grown to look pretty much the same, just more mature. Heehyun, however, had undergone what Chaeyeon would describe as a complete glo up, for lack of other muggle terms. She’d lost baby fat, grown taller, slimmer, and the constantly present impish grin could actually and probably make any muggle guy or girl throw themselves at her feet. The only reason why people at Hogwarts don’t do it is because they’re terrified of her still.

 

Then again, there exists Chaeyeon herself, who's also undergone quite an intense puberty run. The years spent with the three Slytherin girls have shaped her confidence and made her less socially awkward. And the years have also seen her turn from that runty little mouse of a girl to a teenager who'd make people stop and stare. Chaeyeon would never admit that she's pretty, though Sojung and Nayoung and Heehyun bug her about it all the time.

 

“You’d think people would get used to it after so long, I mean, changes happen gradually,” Heehyun says, when Chaeyeon brings up the fact that she’d personally seen a bunch of younger Slytherin boys ogling Heehyun from afar. The older girl is polishing her wand with a fistful of her robes, her head lying comfortably on the younger’s thighs.

 

“Yeah, well,” Is all Chaeyeon can say, because she’s one of the people who still gets stunned at how maniacally gorgeous the older girl has become over time. Not that it should matter to her - Heehyun is still the same tough gangster of a Slytherin who probably knows more jinxes and hexes than anyone, who is still very protective over Chaeyeon, and who Chaeyeon still admires.

 

“Just a yeah well, huh? You've grown quite a lot too, you know. Taller. Prettier. Less pipsqueak and more teenager. Any boys coming after you yet?” Heehyun grins up at her, her slanted cat eyes narrowing. “You'd better be careful, they'll start slipping amortentia into your pumpkin juice in the morning if you grow any prettier than you already are.”

 

“Stop, I'm not pretty,” Chaeyeon mumbles, and the sixteen-year-old Slytherin lying on her lap sits up so fast that Chaeyeon nearly jumps in surprise.

 

“Are you kidding me, Chaeyeon, have you seen your face before?” Heehyun demands, hands slapping to Chaeyeon’s cheeks and cupping them. She squishes Chaeyeon’s face and shakes her gently from side to side. The Slytherin’s eyes are reproving. “Merlin’s beard, you're really freaking pretty, Chaeyeon.”

 

Heehyun says it all the time.

 

And, honestly, Chaeyeon knows it too. She's normally really confused, but even her extreme lack of observance skills can't keep her from noticing. Feeling it, even. The eyes that pass her by in the hallways are not the types falling under blank and uncaring - not like before, when people wouldn't even give her a second glance. Then she'd become friends with Slytherin hooligans, and she'd gotten a few frightened stares. Then she'd gotten insanely beautiful, and the stares turned into ogling, admiration and awe.

 

“Yeah, yeah, okay,” Chaeyeon grabs Heehyun's hands and pulls them down from her face. “I already sense millions of eyes drilling holes into my soul because you're touching me.”

 

“Oh, my God, stop,” Heehyun glares.

 

Chaeyeon laughs, and eventually Heehyun does too. But then the younger girl has to leave to study for her OWLs, she's completely confused about some potions content. Typical, because she's pretty much still always confused. And Heehyun announces that she has detention - again, with Sojung and Nayoung.

 

“Wait, I thought you didn't have detention this week, what did you do?”

 

“Oh, that Hufflepuff prefect - I can't even remember his name anymore - was being a complete because Nayoung bumped into him and he dropped his books. So I told him to stick a broomstick up his- okay, you don't need to know, and then I set his robes on fire and Sojung put a bat bogey hex on him, classic. And then Nayoung levitated him. And then Professor Choi walked by and gave us detention,” Heehyun says with a smile that seems more murderous than self-satisfied.

 

“You know, you guys are the sole reason Slytherin is at the bottom of the House Cup every year,” Chaeyeon says, grinning.

 

“To be fair, if any of them said anything, I'd turn on them and say that I am practiced in utilising the Unforgivables. I think they'd stay away for a while.”

 

“You're crazy, you know that?”

 

“Your favourite witch at your service,” Heehyun makes a mock bow before standing up and stretching. “Too bad we can't apparate on the grounds, I'm way too lazy to walk to the classroom for detention.”

 

“You could nick one of the Comet two sixties from the ancient broom shed,” Chaeyeon says innocently, knowing Heehyun's immense dislike of flying. She'd apparently fallen off her broom in her first year and fractured something, a story Sojung had recounted while laughing.

 

“Say that again and I'll make your eyebrows turn green,” Heehyun threatens coldly, stuffing her wand back into her pocket.

 

“Fair deal,” Chaeyeon allows. She can't stop herself from grinning stupidly.

 

“I agree. See you at dinner, maybe,” Heehyun says as she walks away at a brisk pace, her robes fluttering in her wake. And Chaeyeon watches her, until Heehyun disappears into the castle, and she turns back to face the lake again, the stupid smile still on her face.

 

-

 

Chaeyeon’s staying in the Leaky Cauldron for the few nights before school starts after the summer break. She'd arranged to stay there with Heehyun, Sojung and Nayoung, just so they have more time to spend before school reopens and the seventh-years have to lose themselves in NEWT studies. Chaeyeon arrives at the Leaky Cauldron and checks her room to find Heehyun's trunk already on the ground next to a bunk bed. She places her own trunk next to the other bed and goes down to visit Diagon Alley, which is where she assumes Heehyun is.

 

She stops by Gringotts to withdraw some wizarding money (she'd almost paid the barkeep at the Leaky Cauldron with muggle notes) and comes out looking slightly greener than usual. On her way to Flourish and Blotts, she feels something grab onto the back of her shirt and she nearly screams, whirling around and waving her wand wildly.

 

“God! Calm down there, Gryffindor!” A familiar voice growls, though it doesn't make sense, because the familiar voice comes from a person with a head of very pink and distinctly not black hair.

 

“Heehyun?”

 

“Hello to you too, Princess,” Heehyun says, hazel eyes betraying the happiness that her lack of smile doesn't. She gently pushes the tip of Chaeyeon’s wand away from her nose with her palm. Now that Chaeyeon looks closer, she realises that it is her most admired friend Ki Heehyun, except that her hair is dyed pink. She also notices that Heehyun's wearing a loose white shirt tucked into fitted skinny jeans, and God, she looks really good, but Chaeyeon has other things to address.

 

“Your - hair!” Chaeyeon manages to say, staring at the very pink strands with wide open and her trademark confused look on her face.

 

“Yeah, it's pink. Do you like it? I figured that I'd go crazy this year since it's my last here anyway, and what better way to stand out than to dye my hair pink?” Heehyun finally grins that stupid impish grin again, the corner of her lip wrinkling, and Chaeyeon smiles. She knows the older girl can't keep the tough exterior up for long around her. The older girl slings an arm around Chaeyeon’s shoulders, the few centimetres of height she has over the younger girl helping her to walk comfortably.

 

“You're still as crazy as ever.”

 

“You're telling me. This summer has been pretty crazy too. Did you know that Nayoung’s going out with Sejeong?” Heehyun asks, laughing at the look of morbid shock on Chaeyeon’s face.

 

“Kim Sejeong? And Kim Nayoung? What would compel her to want to go out with Nayoung at all? I know Nayoung’s been flirting with her a lot, but Sejeong’s a sane Hufflepuff!” Chaeyeon argues, sticking her wand back into her pocket before she accidentally jabs someone in an unsavory place. Heehyun lets her arm drop from around Chaeyeon’s shoulders and shrugs, tucking her thumbs into the pockets of her jeans.

 

“Yeah, I don't really understand either, because Nayoung’s just a salty , but you know. I suppose even sane Hufflepuffs can fall for Slytherin troublemakers.” Heehyun isn't looking at her, and Chaeyeon wonders if she's imagining how deliberate Heehyun's words sound. She probably is just imagining things.

 

“You want to get ice cream or something? I think I could charm the person serving the ice cream into giving us extra,” Chaeyeon grins, batting her eyelashes at Heehyun.

 

Heehyun glances at her, and instead of the rebuttal that she'd expected, the corner of the older girl's lips lift in a lazy half smile as she looks back in front of her. Then she says, “Yeah, I bet you could,” and Chaeyeon doesn't know why she suddenly feels so warm, but it isn't a bad feeling.

 

“So ice cream? Then maybe we could walk around and look at stuff, I think I need some new quills and a few more rolls of parchment.” Chaeyeon hooks an arm around Heehyun's and tugs her towards the ice cream parlour down the street. The unprotesting older girl simply lets herself be dragged along until they reach the parlour, where she gently extricates her arm.

 

“Go grab a seat and wait for me,” Heehyun says brusquely, before turning and forcing her way to the counter.

 

Chaeyeon is left to find an empty table for two in a corner, which is kind of squeezy but breathable. She sits and watches the people walking around outside, from grown wizards and witches to kids running around and pressing their faces up against the glass of the broomstick shops.

 

Heehyun arrives six minutes later, holding two cups of ice cream. She sets one in front of Chaeyeon and other in front of herself, settling onto her chair.

 

“I got you strawberry and vanilla with chocolate chips on top, but I think you can already see that,” Heehyun says, smiling slightly when she sees Chaeyeon’s lost expression morphing into one of delight. “I know you have a strawberry latte obsession, so I assumed that as a strawberry latte fanatic you'd like strawberry ice cream too.”

 

“Spot on,” Chaeyeon beams, pulling her coin pouch from the little backpack she's carrying, but Heehyun lays a hand over her own, stopping her.

 

“Don't pay me. This is my treat,” Heehyun says, digging her plastic spoon into her ice cream casually. When Chaeyeon looks like she's about to argue, one stern look makes her put her pouch away again. Heehyun makes a noise of satisfaction. “So, tell me about your summer break.”

 

“We've been texting each other every day, Heehyun.”

 

“Yeah, but you don't exactly tell me what happened during your break. So, tell me.” Heehyun props her chin with her palm, elbow resting on the table attentively.

 

“Well, okay, nothing much happened. Really. I just kind of did all the stuff normal muggle teenagers would do over their summer break, like staying at home under my blankets the whole day watching Barbie movies. And - well - a couple of guys did ask me out,” Chaeyeon adds. Heehyun's jaw tightens as she on her spoon.

 

“Who?”

 

“Um - this Gryffindor guy called Jihoon in your year, and this other Gryffindor guy called Ilsoo in my year. I rejected both of them. But Jihoon is quite…spirited.” Chaeyeon says uncertainly.

 

“Ugh, Yoo Jihoon? He's in a couple of my classes. He has something against me - I mean, pretty much most of the student and teacher population does, but he has something personal against me because I kind of blasted him in the face with water when we were learning the aguamenti spell last time. I swear I was aiming for Sojung,” Heehyun says, “My wand must've slipped.”

 

“Must've,” Chaeyeon says gravely, trying not to a crack a smile.

 

“It really did, okay. But anyway, you should watch out for him, he's someone who doesn't give up when he wants something.” Heehyun steals some ice cream from Chaeyeon, giving the younger girl a -eating grin when she whines in protest. “I paid for your ice cream, I think I deserve a bite.”

 

“Fine. So-” Chaeyeon glances outside, her expression turning startled, before she grins. “Sojung!”

 

“Sojung?” Heehyun peers out the window as well, seeing the aforementioned girl standing outside with Nayoung, staring right at them. They make eye contact, and Sojung mouths to Heehyun to come out of the shop, throwing in some explicitly lip synced profanities for good measure. “Oh. They found us. How disappointing.”

 

Chaeyeon blinks. “Disappointing how?”

 

Heehyun looks back at her, her hazel eyes dark and intense. “Never you mind, Jung. Now get your ice cream and your out of here, we have some idiots to see.”

 

-

 

Chaeyeon would like to say that sixth year has improved from fifth year - since they don't have any major wizarding exams in sixth year - but the exams have been replaced with things much worse. Mainly, people. And not just people. Boys, specifically.

 

Don't get her wrong. She doesn't not like boys. She just doesn't like it when they confess their undying love for her.

 

And she'd thought been ogled at was bad enough. Throw in a sprinkling of love confessions here and there, and you have Chaeyeon’s love life in a pathetic nutshell. She hasn't accepted any of them, though some are pursuing her like bloodhounds - she wonders if patronus charms can repel them - and her predicament doesn't go unnoticed by the Slytherin hooligans. Nayoung, gay and blissfully attached, hints that Chaeyeon should just fake gayness to get rid of the people on her tail.

 

“Look, you either blast them all with some good hexes - I strongly suggest the Unforgivable curses - or you get rid of them, unless you like the attention,” Nayoung said wisely.

 

And honestly, Chaeyeon’s considered it. Thoroughly. It's gotten to the point where boys would actually follow her to her classes. And the thing is, Chaeyeon feels horrible every time she rejects someone - she hates seeing them look so unhappy. She's just too nice for this.

 

She tells Heehyun about them, and Heehyun's jaw tightens as it always does when she talks about her suitors for some strange reason. Then Heehyun clears and says, “Ugh, this cold is making my throat hurt. Anyway, Jung, you know there's that Hogsmeade trip scheduled for tomorrow? Yeah? D’you want to come with me to the Three Broomsticks?”

 

Chaeyeon brightens up considerably, because she loves spending time with Heehyun. Maybe it's the admiration, which still lingers, because she doesn't feel this excited with anyone else.

 

“Yes, sure!” Chaeyeon grins, and Heehyun's lip twitches, but she doesn't smile, because students might see her. She likes keeping up with the whole gangster look. It's okay, though - the twitch is enough to make Chaeyeon feel all warm inside.

 

“Wear something warm, okay? I don't want you getting frostbite or hypothermia or something.”

 

“I'm not that much of an idiot, Heehyun.”

 

“I don't know, sometimes I feel like you have a permanent confundus charm on you. You're just so lost all the time.” Heehyun taps the younger girl's head lightly.

 

“No wonder I got an average of E for my OWLs last year.”

 

“Don't show off, pipsqueak. See you tomorrow.”

 

Chaeyeon waits by the gates for Heehyun, dressed in a pastel pink parka and a cream scarf bundled around her neck. She tops the whole look off with a dumb reindeer beanie and reindeer gloves that Sojung gave to her the previous year’s Christmas. A steady trickle of students flow past her on the path to Hogsmeade, including Nayoung and Sejeong, who tips her a sly wink.

 

Heehyun comes jogging down right on the dot.  Chaeyeon likes to be early, because it’s highly likely that she’ll lose her way to the gates - she didn’t thankfully, so she supposes it’s part of the Christmas miracle.

 

“Hi,” Heehyun says, slowing down as she reaches Chaeyeon. The tip of her nose is pink from the cold, but her hands aren’t. And Chaeyeon knows they aren’t because she grabs on to Heehyun’s gloved hand and pulls her along the path, and Heehyun doesn’t pull away. And so they walk to Hogsmeade, side by side, Heehyun’s nose and cheeks dusted light pink and Chaeyeon wants to call her adorable, but Heehyun would probably smack her upside the head.

 

They reach the Three Broomsticks, which is full to the brim with students. Chaeyeon and Heehyun stand in the open doorway, finding no empty tables. Chaeyeon edges back out the door.

 

“Maybe we should go somewhere else, Heehyun - Madam Puddifoot’s won’t be as cro-”

 

Heehyun pulls her hand away from Chaeyeon’s hand and walks up to a table with two students just sitting and talking, butterbeer tankards empty. She gives them a glare so cold it would make even hell freeze over, and they scoot out of the pub so fast that Chaeyeon nearly doesn’t see them running past her.

 

“I’d sooner join Gryffindor than set foot in Madam Puddifoot’s tea shop, Jung. Now sit here,” Heehyun says directly, and Chaeyeon sits on the vacated seat while Heehyun gets them two tankards of butterbeer, which she sets on the table. Then she sits, fixes her pink hair, and they drink. The butterbeer is warm and so is Heehyun’s gaze, and Chaeyeon doesn’t know if any bliss could amount to this.

 

They don’t stay for long, though Chaeyeon really wants to, because more people are waiting for a seat. And Heehyun may be tough but she’s far from inconsiderate. They stand after they finish and walk back out of the shop into the five-inch-thick snow that coats the ground.

 

“Jung Chaeyeon!”

 

Chaeyeon turns at the male voice calling her name, confused. Jihoon stands behind her, next to the neighbouring shop, which is closed for the day. He holds a bouquet of flowers and a wrapped present and his brown hair is dusted with snow. She sees Heehyun’s jaw tighten again, and Chaeyeon says, “I’ll go and see what he wants. Wait here for me, okay?”

 

Heehyun simply her head slightly, so Chaeyeon takes it has an affirmation and walks towards Jihoon. She smiles.  

 

“Hi, Jihoon. Did you call for me?”

 

“Yeah. Hi. I - uh - well, I know you’ve been receiving a lot of confessions lately, and that you’ve rejected me last time, but I thought that maybe your feelings might’ve changed over the time I’ve been courting you. So. Chaeyeon. Please accept my gifts for you,” Jihoon says almost pleadingly, holding out the flowers and the gift, and the few feet between them hangs with heavy silence.   

 

Chaeyeon bites her lip, looking down at the snow on her boots. “I’m sorry, Jihoon, but I - I can’t. I told you that I don’t like you in that way.”

 

The hands holding the gifts slowly lower, and Chaeyeon sees Jihoon’s face redden.

 

“Why won’t you accept me? Am I not good enough for you? Is it not enough that I’ve expressed my affection for you and given you so many gifts? What is it that you want from all of us?” Jihoon spits bitterly, looking at Chaeyeon with anger in his eyes - the anger of another rejection. Chaeyeon feels terrible.

 

“I’m sorry, Jihoon. I can’t force myself to like someone that I don’t.”

 

“That’s just it, isn’t it?” Jihoon’s hands tremble. “You’re just doing this for the attention, aren’t you? You like rejecting all of us because we’re showering you with even more attention when you do. Well, you know what? I’m done with this. You’re a poisonous snake and an absolute, seething , and I hope that you’ll rot along with all the attention you’re getting!”

 

His voice has risen to almost a shout, and Chaeyeon flinches, hot tears springing up in her eyes. The flowers drop from his hand and that rises as well, strength making his arm swing forward to make contact with Chaeyeon’s face. Chaeyeon cowers, preparing herself to hear the slap.

 

It doesn’t come. With a flash of red light, Jihoon is blasted backwards onto the snow, and Chaeyeon’s vision is suddenly blocked by pink. Lots of pink.

 

Jihoon’s wand is in his hand, and Chaeyeon can only watch in horror as he yells, “Sectumsempra!”

 

Blood splatters the snow, and Chaeyeon feels Heehyun shove her back even further, as she points her wand at Jihoon and a jet of water spouts from her wand so violently that the impact knocks him off his feet again. Before he can recover, Heehyun shouts, “Incarcerous!” and thick ropes bind themselves so tightly around him that his arms are pinned to his sides.

 

Uncaring of the crowd of onlookers gaping at them, Heehyun walks up to Jihoon and kicks his wand from his hand.

 

“Touch her and I’ll castrate you and feed your balls to the the thestrals, you pathetic bastard.”

 

Then Heehyun turns, and Chaeyeon nearly has an actual aneurysm. A three-inch cut is slashed right below Heehyun’s right eye, and that side of her face is completely bloodied. Her hazel eyes blaze with liquid fire, with a rage so intense that it would probably and actually incinerate whoever it lands on. Her hands are shaking as she grabs onto Chaeyeon’s hand and pulls her away.

 

Chaeyeon is too scared to stop her to heal her wound, because Heehyun looks so angry that she’d snap anytime. They make it back to Hogwarts, and Heehyun veers off to some of the secret corners of the grounds that hardly any students know about.

 

Heehyun brushes snow from the stones on the ground and sits, leaving some snow-less space for Chaeyeon to sit too.

 

“Let me see your face,” Chaeyeon says, unable to contain herself anymore. She pulls her wand from her pocket and pulls her gloves off, gently touching Heehyun’s chin to turn her head towards her. Chaeyeon’s hand shakes, but she manages to remember the healing spell she needs and murmurs, “Vulnera Sanentur.”

 

The cut closes itself up and she says “Tergeo” to clean up the dried blood on Heehyun’s face. The rage has died down somewhat from Heehyun’s eyes, and Chaeyeon deems it safe to speak. “Thanks for saving me back there.”   

 

Heehyun stretches her legs out. “No problem. But you should really learn how to protect yourself, Chaeyeon. I can’t be around to protect you forever. I’m already graduating this year.”

 

“I know, It’s just - I feel bad, you know?” Chaeyeon bites her lip. “I don’t want to hurt them.” She looks at Heehyun, remembering the murderous fire in her eyes, and she shivers.

 

Heehyun sees her look. Her eyes drop to the ground. “You’re scared of me, aren’t you?”

 

Chaeyeon decides to be honest. “I was. You were so angry just now - I- I don’t know. I don’t know why you were so angry, it was terrifying.”

 

Heehyun smiles humorlessly. “I was angry because Jihoon was going to hit you. Why else would I be?” She looks at Chaeyeon, her hazel eyes drinking in the sight of her. “I think you’ll get it. I don’t like it when people try to harm the people I love, you know?”

 

Her words and her gaze have so many layers of meaning to it, and as confused as Chaeyeon is, it’s hard to miss them.

 

It’s weird to think about it, but yet it all makes sense. Heehyun treating her like a princess all the time. Heehyun always being so protective of her. Heehyun acting like she doesn’t do all of that and doesn’t care, but really, she cares a lot. Exactly like a kuudere. And Chaeyeon realises why it makes more sense to her now - it isn’t her admiration that makes her feel excited to be around Heehyun. Not just admiration. And, honestly, she’d always been too dense to know about feelings anyway.

 

“So, about that. You know, Nayoung and Sejong?” Chaeyeon doesn’t wait for a reply. “When I said that sane people wouldn’t fall in love with any of you Slytherin troublemakers? I might have been lying.”   

 

Heehyun looks at her, the beginnings of a smile touching the corners of her lips. “You think so?”  

 

Chaeyeon reaches out hesitantly, then steels herself and grabs onto Heehyun’s hand, interlacing their fingers tightly. She sees Heehyun look at her again, and they lock eyes, and Heehyun’s cheeks are so pink that Chaeyeon is sure that it isn’t just from the cold. Chaeyeon smiles.

 

“I think so.”

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

-

 

I can’t believe I just wrote 8300 words of pure fluff, I’m finally living up to my username!  

This is just fluffy af and I can’t believe I actually wrote this, because yall know I can’t write fluff to save my life. Guess I can. Hm.

I don’t know how I’d sort the DIA members in all honesty, they all seem like they could be in Hufflepuff except Heehyun and maybe Eunjin/Yebin? What do you all think? :D

 

~ Fluffy

(P.S for those who don’t know who the side characters are, Chu Sojung is Exy from WJSN, Kim Nayoung and Sejeong are from Gugudan, and the rest are all characters I made up)