It was surprisingly warm for a March afternoon. 

That wasn’t to say that it was actually warm, but the sky was clear and the ground was dry, which was more than anyone really expected. The chill dancing on the breeze was one that Minho could stand, if he were properly bundled up. And, since it felt like an eternity that he had had the pleasure to go outside, he decided to seize this opportunity.

He dumped his morning class textbooks onto his bed, not even bothering to arrange them neatly beneath his bed as he replaced the empty space in his backpack with the afternoon class textbooks. As he started to zip up his backpack, he remembered. It’s Thursday. “Oh, right!” He crouched by his bed and grabbed Numerology & Grammatica, the textbook for Arithmancy and stuffed it into his backpack.

“Coat…” he shrugged it on and untied the scarf from his bedpost. “Scarf…” he wrapped it twice around his neck and grabbed his warmest hoodie. “For Kibum.” 

Then, he was out the door, running for the Great Hall. 

Minho didn’t even look at the Hufflepuff table once he reached the doorway. Instead, he hurried over to where Kibum was sitting and dropped into the empty space by his side. “Oh, you surprised me!” Kibum said, half-laughing. Minho swung one leg over the bench and started unfolding a napkin on the table. “Aren’t you gonna eat?” 

“Yeah.” He glanced over at the others, his eyes meeting their curious gazes. “Outside,” he said in Korean. “Wanna come with?”

“It’s cold.” Minho held up the hoodie with a grin and Kibum slumped in his seat, groaning. “Fine.” 

Sometimes, Kibum would act as though Minho was forcing him to do things that he supposedly didn’t want to do. Minho, however, knew better than to believe it. As if there were anyone could force Kibum to do something that he truly didn’t want to do. It’d probably be easier to flip a mountain range upside down. 

“Grab what you want, then.” He piled two sandwiches in the napkin as well as a handful and a half of the tangerines while Kibum pulled on the hoodie. “Oh, get some cookies, too!” Nodding, Kibum grabbed a couple of butterbeer cookies and some chocolate chip cranberry cookies. He stuffed them into Minho’s hoodie pocket, and his dimples appeared when Minho gasped. “Napkin! There’ll be crumbs.”

“What’s done is done.” Minho huffed and Kibum laughed. “Lead the way.” 

The crisp air nipped at the tips of his ears and nose and fingers as he ran out onto the lawn. Kibum followed him, lagging somewhat behind, to the sunny side of Greenhouse 3. Minho plopped down on the dead grass and unwrapped their sandwiches before he looked up at Kibum. 

The sun gleamed just behind Kibum’s head, making it hard to see what his expression was. “You gonna sit?”

Kibum sighed held the tails of his robes around him as he started to sit. “You’re lucky I tolerate you.”

“Extremely lucky.” Kibum snorted and grabbed the other sandwich off of Minho’s lap. “Muggles next?” His nose crinkled slightly and he nodded. “Something wrong with that class?”

He swallowed slowly, glancing over at Minho before looking back out at the Forbidden Forest. “It’s just different than I was expecting.”

“That class?” He hummed yes. “It’s probably a load of .” Kibum coughed around his mouthful and covered his mouth with his hand as he started to laugh. Minho smiled to himself as he started unpeeling one of the tangerines. “What? It’d be like my dad teaching a lesson on what it’s like being a wizard.” Which, he had sort of done before. Last summer, if Minho remembered right. More of a lecture, but, what’s the difference? “I could probably teach the class better.”

“I don’t know about the rest of the students, but I’d enjoy it more.”

“You mean you’d tolerate it better.”

“Eat your ing orange, Choi.”

“Tangerine.” Minho tossed the peels on Kibum’s lap, who instantly started shaking them off.

“Whatever.” 

They finished their lunch before the bell rang, and they gathered up their tangerine peels and deposited them into the compost bin between the first and second greenhouses. Kibum’s teeth were chattering by the time they headed inside, but it only took the walk back downstairs for him to warm up, as he gave Minho back his hoodie. 

“I’ll see you in Herbology!” Minho called out when Kibum started down the hall to Slytherin. He started to fold up his hoodie, only to feel that there were still some cookies in the pocket. One butterbeer and two chocolate chip cranberry. The chocolate ones were Kibum’s favorite from the kitchen... 

He took a couple of steps back to glance down the Slytherin hallway again. “Bummie!” Kibum looked Minho’s way as he pocketed the butterbeer cookie and jogged into the murky shadows towards him. “Here,” he said, shoving the cookies into the pocket of Kibum’s robe. “Hopefully that’ll make class better. ‘Kay, gotta go!” He ran off again, rounding the corner without looking back. 

Kibum was nowhere to be found by the time Minho emerged from Hufflepuff, which was fine. Honestly, it was probably for the best that he didn’t have Muggle Studies with Kibum. He’d probably be making jokes the entire time, getting them both into more detentions than necessary. 

Luckily, Arithmancy was interesting. Although, he did think it was funny that Dad assumed it was a math class, when in reality it was just another form of Divination. Although, compared to Divination, it was a sparsely populated class. According to what Kibum and Seb said, it had about half the students as Muggle Studies did and maybe less than a quarter of the students that Care of Magical Creatures had. 

He spotted Priyasha Patil, a third-year Ravenclaw and also one of his Arithmancy classmates, as she left the Great Hall. Minho jogged over to her, his backpack swishing back and forth across his back with every step. She smiled in greeting as he fell into step beside her, and the two walked upstairs together. When they reached Classroom 7A, they found Theo Wright, Chloe Burke, and Camila Tórrez waiting for them outside the room. 

Minho followed the girls inside the classroom, closing the door behind them. The girls had already taken to arranging their desks around Professor Vector’s stool and chalkboard, and Minho grabbed his seat and set it on the far edge of the semi-circle. 

It was a small classroom, maybe two or three times bigger than the study closet he and Kibum used. Part of him wondered if the classroom shrunk and grew to fit Professor Vector’s needs because one day, when he was leaving Defense against the Dark Arts, he saw at least twenty fifth-years leaving the classroom. He glanced around the room now, mentally calculating how close the walls were to each other. 

Yeah, no, it would be impossible to fit them all in here.

One of the girls snorted as she laughed -- Chloe, he thought, given how red her face was -- which made the other girls crack up. He wasn’t sure what they were talking about, as he hadn’t been listening, but it made him wish that Kibum had decided to take this class with him.

“Sorry to ruin your fun,” Professor Vector said as she bustled into the room. She deposited her tall, pointed hat on her desk as she passed by it. “But let’s get started, shall we? How many of you completed the homework assignment?” 

Minho bent over, rummaging through his backpack for his Numerology & Grammatica and his scroll with his calculations on it. They were supposed to calculate their life path as well as their family members, for practice. He scanned his calculations again as Vector collected the scrolls from the other girls and set them on her desk. 

“Go ahead and open to page 145.” she said. A piece of chalk floated before the blank chalkboard, hovering as it waited for her. “We’re going to talk a little about destiny today.” Minho flipped to the right page as the chalk scribbled out Destiny across the top of the chalkboard. “How is destiny different than your life path, you might be wondering." The chalk scrawled Date of birth and then underline it three times before it wrote Name underneath. “Your life path is determined by your birth date, and your destiny is determined by your name.”

Camila raised her hand, and Professor Vector looked over at her. “But, what is the difference between the two?”

“Go ahead and read the definition aloud. The fourth paragraph down, I think.” 

Minho looked down at his open book, reading it for himself as Camila cleared .

At first glance, the differences of the definition of your life path and your destiny may seem slight, if not non-existent, but that’s not true. Your life path calculation determines who you are when you are born, which is when you are b with untapped and unknown potential. Your destiny calculation, on the other hand, narrows in on who you will turn out to be.

To visualize the difference: imagine that you are in a forest, walking along a broad road all alone. As you walk on, you occasionally see trails leading away from the road and deep into the woods. That is your life path. One in particular catches your eye, and you decide to take it instead of keeping on the main road. That is your destiny.

“Do you understand now?”

“I think so, Professor,” Chloe said as she sank back into her seat. 

“Let’s get out some parchment and ink,” she said as she walked around to sit on her stool. “There are several different numerology charts that we’ll be using throughout our time here but we’ll be starting with the Pythagorean one today.” She pulled a rolled-up chart down over the chalkboard, and Minho squinted at it. 

Numbers one through nine lined the top of the chart, and below them, the English alphabet was arranged in neat little boxes. Minho started to copy the chart on the parchment. 

“Now, as you can see,” Vector said, gesturing to the chart with her wand. “Each letter falls under a number thus giving each letter a numerical value. The way we calculate your destiny number is by spelling out your full name. First, middle, and last. Each of them gets calculated separately, and then you add the sums to get your destiny number.”

“So,” Priyasha said as she started writing on her parchment. “Add it up like we did our birthdate?”

“Yes.” 

Minho wrote C H O I  M I N  H O across the top of his paper, then glanced between his parchment and the cart as he wrote the numbers below.

C  H  O  I

3 + 8 + 6 + 9 = 26

2 + 6 = 8

M  I  N

4 + 9 + 5 = 18

1 + 8 = 9

H  O

8 + 6 = 14

1 + 4 = 5

8 + 9 + 5 = 22

2 + 2 = 4

He circled the final 4 and turned his parchment around when Professor Vector stopped at his desk. She scanned his work, nodding slowly as she set it back down on his desk. When everyone else was finished, she sat back down on her stool. “Good job, everyone. Tonight, for your homework, you can read the different descriptions of what your calculations mean and write a short essay -- just a parchment page length -- on what you think it means for you.

“For now, I want you to continue practicing. Use any names you want...your parents, your siblings, your friends, anyone really...see how many you can calculate before the bell rings!”

Minho only got through Kibum (8), Minseok (4), Jonghyun (8), and Taemin (3), before the bell rang. He blew on the ink, willing it to dry faster so he could stick it in between the pages of the book. He’d have to finish calculating Jinki’s before he started homework tonight. 

He stuffed his book and quill back into his backpack and followed the girls out into the hall. “Any message for Kibum?” Chloe asked him as she linked her arm with Priyasha’s. Right, Slytherin and Ravenclaw had Potions next. Theo and Camila walked past them to get to the Dark Arts classroom.

Honestly, he couldn’t think of anything he had to say that couldn’t wait until Herbology or their after-dinner study session. “Nah...no, wait!” They both stopped in their tracks almost as soon as they started to walk away and glanced back at him. “Tell him I had a revelation in Arithmancy and that he’s an 8.”

Chloe snorted as they started off again. “Will do!” 

Minho watched until their heads dipped below the stairs before he went down the hall to Classroom 3C.

* * * * * * * * * *

“‘Kay, gotta go!” Minho called over his shoulder as he ran back down the hallway toward the light. Kibum shoved his hand into his pocket, grabbing the two cookies that Minho gave him. He couldn’t help but smile as he opened the wall to Slytherin. 

He tried to school his features before he stepped inside the common room. Based off of Analecia’s expression, he did a poor job. “You ready?” she asked as she bounded up to him, her textbook for Muggle Studies and notebook in her arms.

“In a minute. Gotta grab my book.” 

Truth be told, he dreaded each Muggle Studies class. At the start of the year, he was the most excited about this class because it meant he would understand a little bit more about Minho and his family. But...Professor Coburgg was one of the worst teachers he had ever had, and that was including Binns. He was just so...so...unenthused, for lack of a better word, about the class. He seemed bored or even angry that he had to talk about Muggle history and culture all day. 

Why he didn’t quit and go into literally anything else, Kibum wasn’t sure. 

At least he had Analecia with him to weather to the horror that was this class. That made it slightly more tolerable. Her mother was a Muggle; her father a wizard, so she was taking the class for similar reasons as Kibum. 

Kibum grabbed his copy of Home Life & Social Habits of British Muggles from its place under his bed and stared at the rest of his books for a second. Should he grab the books he needed for his afternoon classes? Wait, no, he had Potions after this. He tucked his textbook and a couple of sheets of parchment under his arm and pocketed a fresh quill and a bottle of ink before he went back to find Analecia. 

She pushed herself away from the wall, giving him a wry smile as the wall opened for them. “Ready to go listen to our favorite professor?” 

“Oh, yes,” Kibum said, his tone dripping with sarcasm. “Should we count his sighs of disdain or his eye rolls whenever someone has a question today?” 

“I would say both, but I don’t think either of us can count that high. You know, since Hogwarts doesn’t have a math class.” Kibum snorted and glanced down the Hufflepuff hallway before they headed into the stairwell. No sign of Minho. 

They trudged up the stairs and onto the first floor. “Maybe we should just ditch,” Kibum said, glancing at the library as they passed it. Her eyes followed his gaze. “Hang out in there for the period.”

“It’d be nice…” She looked as though she was half-considering it, but then she looked down the hall and let out a clipped sigh. 

“There you two are,” Professor Coburgg said as opened the door for them. “Come on in, let’s get started.” He stepped away from the doorway so they could come in, and he closed the door behind them. “We’re picking up where we left off with the witch hunts.” 

Kibum bit his lip to keep from sighing as he got situated next to Analecia. Coburgg had been talking about the witch hunts for the last three class periods and Kibum was beyond over it. He had come into this class expecting to learn more about modern-day Muggles. But, no. Instead, they got to endure lesson after lesson about the crimes Muggles committed against the wizarding world. He flipped through his textbook, skimming the paragraphs detailing the inventions Muggles made to make their lives easier as Coburgg started his lesson. 

He wasn’t paying attention, not when he started reading about the telephone. Analecia’s hand slid into view, and she left a note on top of Kibum’s open book. Are you listening? Blinking, he sat up, glancing over at her before he looked to the front where Coburgg was sitting on the edge of his desk, lecturing. 

“...it wasn’t until after the first of the witch-burnings that the wizarding world took the threat that Muggles posed against our kind seriously…”

“We learned all this in History,” he whispered through clenched teeth. Her eyes narrowed and she shook her head. 

“...many witches died, leaving wizards without their mothers or sisters or wives. Our kind was depleting, and drastic measures had to be taken. The sensible thing to do, which many of them did, was to go into hiding and protect those of us who were left. Some, on the other hand, took the cowardly route.” His eyes narrowed before he let out a long sigh. Kibum glanced over at Analecia and held one finger up over his book. She barely shook her head and held up five. “They decided to betray the wizarding world and mingle with the Muggles.”

Mingle with the Muggles, Kibum wrote down on one of his sheets of parchment. I feel like that should be a title of something but I don’t know what. He tried not to laugh when Analecia flicked his hand. 

“They sullied what it meant to be a wizard, even going so far as producing children with Muggle women. This is why the wizarding world as we know it will continue to diminish, both in power and in -- yes, Ms. Clavel?” Kibum’s eyebrows rose and he looked over at Analecia who had her hand up. 

“It could just be me misunderstanding you,” she said, surprisingly politely. “But you seem to be implying that Half-blood and Muggle-born wizards are a detriment to the wizarding community.”

Professor Coburgg blinked once, slowly. “I never said detriment. I’m just explaining the existence of half and mu -- half-bloods and Muggle-borns.” Kibum stilled in his seat, his eyes blown wide as he watched Coburgg get back to his lecture. Had he...was he about to say mudblood? Analecia sat stiffly beside him as Coburgg continued. He found it quite difficult to focus on the rest of the class, as he was still trying to process what just happened. 

The bell ran soon enough, but Kibum sat unmoving in his seat. Analecia started to get up but then she looked over at Kibum. “Are you gonna talk to him?” 

“I’m thinking about it.”

“I'll come with,” she whispered, and both of their eyes darted to the front where Coburgg was straightening some things on his desk. 

“Do you two have a question? Because if not, you should hurry along to your next class.” They gathered up their books from the desk and made their way to the front of the classroom. Professor Coburgg greeting them with a faint smile. “How can I help you two?”

It was almost unnerving how similar Coburgg looked to O’Neely, aside from the maybe fifteen-year age difference. The same close-cropped blond hair, sparkling blue eyes, and handsome features -- though, in Kibum’s unbiased opinion, O’Neely was far more handsome, on account of his fun personality.

Analecia looked over at Kibum, who was mentally running through the myriad ways he could word his question. “Today’s lesson,” he started slowly, “was very interesting, and, um, we were wondering if you had, like, any more information about the origins of Half and…”

“Mudbloods?” Kibum hoped he kept his shock out of his expression, as well as the vitriol when Coburgg’s eyes flicked down at the green in their uniforms. Great, this was the one time it would come in handy to be in Slytherin. To fit a goddamn stereotype. He didn’t dare look over at Analecia as he reluctantly nodded. Coburgg’s smile grew a little more. His eyes darted to the door left ajar by the students who had already left, and he reached down and unlocked his bottom drawer. 

“I should have known you two would have been curious.” Analecia tensed, but Kibum just smiled as naturally as he could. “I wrote this when I was working at the Ministry a few years back. It goes a little more in-depth into the history of the fall of the purity and the rise of mudbloods in the wizarding community.” 

He pulled out a thin book. Creature of Dirt, the title read. Coburgg held it out to them, and Kibum’s stomach churned as he took it. “Don’t show that to anyone and just give it back to me after the next class. It’s a short and easy read, so you should be done with it by then.”

Kibum slipped the book under his sweater and into the waist of his pants, securing it there. “Thank you, sir.”

“Have a great rest of your day!” 

Analecia waved over her shoulder as they made their way for the door. They shared a look as the door closed behind him, and Kibum pressed a finger to his lips when she looked as though she were about to say something. She pursed her lips, nodding.

The book leeched all the warmth from his side as they hurried down the stairs toward Slytherin again, and Kibum wanted to do nothing but throw it into the fire in the common room. But, he walked on, Analecia on his heels, to the hallways leading to the dorms. They both stopped at the fork in the corridors and looked at each other. 

“What are you gonna do?” she asked, her voice barely above a whisper.

“I...I’m not sure. I'll figure it out.” 

“Whatever you decide, I've got your back.”

He met her eyes with a smile. “We should head to Potions.”

She turned to head down the girls’ hallway, and Kibum felt for the book at his waistline. Still there, unfortunately. He hurried to his room, peering inside to make sure he was alone, and closed the door behind him. “Colloportus,” he murmured with a flick of his wand at the knob. 

He wouldn’t be disturbed now.

Even so, Kibum glanced around the room again before he pulled out Creature of Dirt. He knew he should probably read it -- maybe not read...just skim -- but he didn't think he could stomach even that. 

What could he do? What should he do? Tell someone, obviously...But who?

His first thought was Minho, but after a second of hesitation, he discounted that idea. As far as Kibum knew, Minho didn't know what a...a…mudblood was, and he hoped that he never would. No, this would be the one time he wouldn't let him know what's going on, as much as he hated the concept. 

The second bell rang, and Kibum looked up from the cover at the door. He needed to hurry. Without a second thought, he shoved the book in his pillowcase and ran for the door, only to go back to his bed to grab his Potions textbook. 

The wall was already open, the last of the Slytherins heading this way and that to their next class. Analecia was waiting for him outside, but thankfully, she made no show that something was up. 

Everyone filed into the classroom and Kibum dropped his books onto the nearest workstation. Someone slid over to his side and Kibum instantly shied away. “Message from Minho.” He looked up at the intruder -- Chloe -- now. “Said he had a 'revelation’ in class and that you're an 8.”

Even with the stress of the book and everything that it might entail weighing on his mind, Kibum couldn't help but chuckle. “What were you guys calculating today?”

She looked to the front of the classroom when Slughorn started to speak. “Destiny,” she whispered quickly before she shuffled back to her station. 

Kibum toyed with the frayed bookmark of his textbook as he watched Slughorn talk about whatever. Hopefully, he'd remember to ask Minho later what his destiny was.

* * * * * * * * * *

The air was chillier now.

Minho looked up at the grey and overcast sky and worried his bottom lip. Hopefully the rain would hold out until after the Herbology lesson, because the rain made the greenhouse even more humid than usual. Which was gross. 

His gaze darted to the doorway and he smiled to himself as the first of the Slytherins were making their way up from Potions. He absently zipped and ped the side pocket of his backpack as he waited for Kibum to arrive. When he did, he and Analecia were whispering to each other until Kibum spotted him. Kibum stared at him for a second, Analecia's gaze eventually settling on him, and Minho gave them a little wave. 

Kibum said something else and Analecia nodded. Then Kibum made his way across the garden to sit beside him, his knee rest on top of Minho's as he crossed his legs. “Hey.”

“What was that all about?”

He smiled after he took a deep breath. “We, um, we just learned this weird thing in Muggles today.” Minho cocked his head in silent question, and Kibum pointed at the greenhouse when Professor Sprout opened the door. “Maybe later.”

Kibum stood, holding his hand out to Minho to help him up, which he readily took. He held Minho's hand a little longer than usual, up until they reached the door to the greenhouse, then he let go.

Something was definitely wrong. 

What exactly, he wasn't sure. But Kibum kept taking these deep, calming breaths. And his hand kept finding its way to Minho's knee, resting there for a minute before moving away again. Minho looked down the table to where Analecia was sitting to find her staring blankly off into the distance. When Kibum's hand grazed his knee again, Minho placed his hand over Kibum's. 

Kibum didn't look over at him, but some of the tension did go out of his shoulders. After a minute or so, Kibum's hand shifted and Minho loosened his grip, only for Kibum to flip his hand over so they could hold hands properly. Hopefully, the little bit of constant contact would give Kibum the strength he needed. 

Herbology was over almost as soon as it began, everyone running inside when the rain started to fall. Minho hung back from the crowd -- which meant Kibum did, too -- as they hurried downstairs to drop their books off in their dorm.

“So,” Minho said once the last Hufflepuff slipped out of sight. “What's going on?”

Kibum shook his head and pursed his lips tightly. Minho nodded down the hallway, leading him farther away from anyone who might overhear. He stopped by the open courtyard, the sound of rain falling against stone loud in the corridor. Minho hefted himself up onto the ledge and Kibum stood before him, shoving his hands into his pockets. 

Every time it looked like he was about to speak, Kibum closed his mouth.

“If you don't want to tell me…” his voice trailed off when Kibum met his eyes.

“Believe me, I want to. It's just…I can't. Not right now.”

Minho hopped off the ledge and glanced both ways down the hall before he pulled Kibum into a hug. “I'm always here if you need me, Bummie.”

“I know.” His voice sounded sort of watery, as if he were close to tears. Minho just hugged him a little tighter, rubbing his back until he felt Kibum relax against him. Eventually, they made their way downstairs, reluctantly parting at the corner of their hallways. Minho watched to make sure he got inside Slytherin before he went to his own dorm room. 

At dinner, he picked at his food, tossing a floret of broccoli across his plate with his fork. His dorm mates were talking about the snot bubble Russ accidentally made after he sneezed in Dark Arts earlier. Minho would have been amused, had he not glanced over at Kibum when he first walked into the Great Hall and seen how stressed he looked. 

Whatever was going on, he hoped it ended soon. 

When he was tired of pretending to be interested in dinner, Minho excused himself from the table and made his way over to Slytherin. Once he reached Gryffindor’s table, Kibum looked up at him and quickly averted his eyes, but still scooted over so Minho would have some room to sit. He smiled in greeting to Callum and Aaron when they said their hellos, but then returned his attention to Kibum, who was staring intently at his plate.

“We’re not studying tonight, are we.” 

Kibum gulped then slowly shook his head. 

His brow furrowed as he watched Kibum, waiting for him to look over at him. Or even just his way. When he didn’t, Minho scooted a little closer. “Did I do something wrong?” he asked in Korean. 

Kibum’s eyes widened as he finally looked over at Minho. “Of course not.” The look in his eyes softened when Minho let out a relieved sigh. “Believe me, if you had, I would let you know.” Minho smiled, rolling his eyes. “I’ll be okay by tomorrow, probably, I promise.”

“You’ll tell me then? What’s bothering you?”

“Maybe.” He went back to picking at his food. “If not tomorrow...then some other day.” He speared potato and swirled it through the pool of gravy on his plate. “I’m sorry.” 

“Don’t worry, Bummie. I trust you.” The corner of his lips twitched upwards in the beginnings of a smile, and Minho reached out to pat his back. He pulled his hand back, however, when Kibum flinched away from his touch. “If you need me, I’ll be in Hufflepuff.” With that, he stood, waving to the guys and Analecia as he left the Great Hall. 

Whatever was going on, he hoped it was resolved quickly. Regardless, he was prepared to stay awake and in the common room all night, just in case Kibum came to see him.

* * * * * * * * * *

“What was that all about?” Callum asked as he and Aaron watched Minho leave the Great Hall. “Trouble in paradise?”

“No,” Kibum said tersely. 

“He didn’t feel it, did he?” Analecia whispered to him and Kibum shook his head.

Creature of Dirt was tucked into his waistband again, and Minho almost put his hand on it when he tried to comfort him. The last thing Minho need to know that there were witches and wizards who thought such horrible things about wizards like him. Especially not one who taught here at Hogwarts. 

No, he’d wait to tell him. Not for forever, of course, but for a while. He wished Jjong were here, so that he could confide in him about this. Any letter he wrote wouldn’t reach him in time to be of any help for the current situation. 

And this had to be done tonight.

The plan that he and Analecia decided on was that Kibum would go to O’Neely with this, since he was their mentor. The only issue now, looking up at the dais, is that O’Neely sat directly beside Coburgg at the professors’ table. He was mulling through his options of what he could say that wouldn’t tip off Coburgg but also be a viable reason to talk to O’Neely alone. 

Analecia had offered to go with him, but they both decided that that would definitely let Coburgg know that they were snitching on him. He’d have to do this alone. 

Kibum pushed his plate away, no longer even remotely hungry. “You’re going?”

“In a minute.” He took a deep breath through his nose and slowly let it out through his mouth. The way Coburgg said mudblood kept playing through his mind...the disgust in his voice when he almost said it in class and then the gleam in his eyes when he said it just to them. A shudder ran down his back and Kibum looked up at the dais. He was, without doubt, doing the right thing...but why was he so terrified? Another deep breath, and he looked over at Analecia. “How do I look?” 

She took a deep breath, motioning for him to follow suit. They both let it out, and she smiled. “Ready.” 

Nodding, he stood, stepped over the bench, and sauntered down the Great Hall to the dais. He hoped that his face was a mask of neutral, if not bored, calm. When he stopped at the bottom of the stairs, Coburgg looked his way and wiped his mouth as he stood. 

“Yes, Mr. Kim, how can I help you?” he asked as he walked down the steps to meet him. 

“Um, I actually needed to talk to Professor O’Neely?” He looked past Coburgg and caught O’Neely’s eye, whose eyebrows rose in question. “It’s Defense Against the Dark Arts stuff, I wouldn’t want to bother you.”

“No bother, I’m sure I could help you.”

Kibum prayed his relief wasn’t too evident when O’Neely stepped up beside Coburgg. “Do you need something, Mr. Kim?” 

He glanced between the two professors, his gaze settling on Coburgg for a second. He knew...he knew what he was trying to do. He had to. Kibum forced himself to look back at O’Neely, and let a little bit of his panic seep into his expression. “I, well, I haven’t been able to sleep much since...since the boggart.” Not the truth, but also not a lie, since he had had several nightmares since then. “My best friend said that talking to you afterward really helped him, so…” He made his voice soften. “I was hoping I could talk to you for a little while.”

“You can go ahead and finish eating, Mosely, I’ve got this.” Coburgg almost sneered, but he barely restrained himself, as O’Neely took the last couple of steps to stand by Kibum. “Let’s go to my office.”

Even though he didn’t turn around, Kibum could feel the burning stare of Coburgg on the back of his head until the side door was closed behind them. Kibum fought the urge to sag in relief; he had to maintain his composure until this was over. He followed O’Neely up the stairs to Classroom 3C, where his office was, and wrung his hands behind his back while he waited for him to unlock the door.

“Would you like some tea?” O’Neely asked as he snapped his fingers, instantly lighting the candles scattered about the room. 

“I’m okay, thank you.”

“Go ahead and sit down,” he said, gesturing to one of the armchairs before his desk. Kibum obliged, clasping his hands before him as he tried to formulate what he needed to say. “This...this isn’t about the boggart, is it.”

Kibum’s hands loosened in his lap. “No, sir...How did you know?”

“Call it my special skill.” He chuckled when Kibum relaxed a little into the armchair. “So what’s the reason for your visit, Kibum?” 

One last deep breath. Kibum lowered his eyes and reached beneath his sweater, pulling out Creature of Dirt and setting it onto O’Neely’s desk, and waited for him to pick it up before he started his explanation. “Professor Coburgg gave that to me to read today in class. He...he even said...the M-word -- “ he grimaced when O’Neely flinched at that. “ -- to me and another Slytherin student. It wasn’t directed at us, but...but he seemed to think we’d be okay with hearing it.” O’Neely was flipping through the pages of the book, shaking his head in disbelief. “He almost said...that word during class, but he caught himself.”

“Why did he give this to you?”

“I...we...I expressed a false interest in what he said in class today, and he said something about knowing that we would be interested in pure-blood...stuff.” O’Neely glanced down at the green in his uniform, and Kibum tried very hard not to cover it up with his hands. “He said he wrote it while he was working at the ministry a couple of years ago....”

O’Neely flipped to the beginning of the book. “1997...okay…What time is it?” Kibum looked around for a clock so he could answer, but O’Neely shook his wrist and looked down at his watch. “Are you comfortable telling this to the Headmistress?” He must have noticed his eyes widening because he chuckled. “Don’t worry, I’ll be there the whole time.” Kibum nodded slowly, and O’Neely’s expression softened to the smile Kibum was quite used to. “I’m very proud of you, you know. You’re very brave to come forward like this.”

Kibum’s face heated as he averted his eyes. “I don’t know about that, sir.” 

“Doing the right thing is never easy, Kibum. And, even if the other Muggle-borns of Hogwarts never find out about this, I am very grateful to you. I wish there had been more kids like you when I was at school.” 

Kibum blinked in surprise. He had had no idea that O’Neely was Muggle-born. Maybe that’s why Minho liked him so much? The corners of O’Neely’s eyes crinkled as he smiled, and Kibum lost his train of thought until O’Neely stood. He tucked Creature of Dirt into his waistband and covered it with his sage green waistcoat. 

“Okay, so we’ve got a short window of time to make this work, since Headmistress McGonagall will be going to her room soon. Let’s go.”

The walk back downstairs was much brisker than the trek up. They weaved through students on their way to their dorms or to the library as they made their way to the imposing gargoyle statue that stood at the end of the long hallway. After a furtive glance behind them, O’Neely stepped inside the curved wings and motioned for Kibum to follow him. Once he did, O’Neely said “Chartreux,” and the gargoyle started to revolve, revealing a staircase curling up into the wall. O’Neely stepped up onto it and Kibum jumped on after him, bracing himself on O’Neely’s outstretched arm as the gargoyle continued to go up and up. 

The smell of old books and cinnamon tea wafted over to him as the gargoyle finally stopped spinning. Kibum knew his eyes were blown wide as he tried to take in the Headmistress’ office, but there was so much to see that he couldn’t help himself. Portraits of all sizes lined the wall behind the desk, the largest one being Dumbledore’s -- Kibum recognized him from the chocolate frog cards. He looked over at them for a moment but seemed disinterested and went back to his reading. The Sorting Hat sat on its own shelf amidst...so, so many books...Kibum twirled slowly around, his mouth hanging open. 

“McGonagall, if I might have a word.”

“Of course, Patrick, what can I do for you?”

“Mr. Kim,” O’Neely said, and Kibum’s attention snapped away from strange silver instruments on the shelf at his eye-level and back to the adults. “If you would join us.” Kibum stepped up to O’Neely’s side, his hands trembling as he clasped them behind his back. He had never spoken to the Headmistress before, and judging by the stern look in her eye, this might not go very well. “Go ahead, Kibum.” 

“Um…” Kibum stuttered his way through the explanation he gave O’Neely just moments before, and O’Neely supplemented his story by providing the book from his waistband. 

The office grew still once Kibum stopped rambling on. McGonagall flipped through the book, much like O’Neely had. “He didn’t mention his Ministry work in his resume…”

“You saw the date, I assume.”

“Yes, this has Umbridge’s fingerprints all over it, I’m afraid.” She let the book fall closed and tossed it aside. “Thank you, Mr. Kim, for coming to us with this.” Kibum simply nodded. “He’ll be fired, of course,” she said to no one in particular. “Would you like to be here for it?” Kibum’s eyebrows rose as he pointed at himself. “I can understand if you wouldn’t, but I think there would be some satisfaction in getting closure on this issue.” 

“But then he’ll know it was me!” he wanted to say, but stopped himself. Of course Coburgg would know it was him, the presence of the book was the most damning evidence of that. Instead of answering, Kibum sat down in one of the chairs before her desk, returning McGonagall’s smile. 

“Patrick, if you would.” 

“Of course.” 

O’Neely swept out of the room, leaving Kibum and the Headmistress alone. She went back to whatever she was working on before they arrived, and Kibum tried to relax. He absently felt around in his robe pocket for his wand but was surprised to find two cookies...the ones that Minho had given him earlier. He smiled as he pulled them out, setting one on his knee and brushing the lint off of the other before he took a bite.

“Would you like some tea with those, Mr. Kim?” McGonagall asked without looking up. Kibum froze mid-chew. “You can eat them in here, don’t worry. Do you want tea?”

“No, thank you,” he said once he swallowed his mouthful. 

She seemed to be writing letters while he ate, as several envelopes floated away from her desk when she was finished with them. Four had left by the time O’Neely returned with Coburgg in tow. Coburgg let his gaze slip to Kibum for a second, and if he saw the book on the desk, he made no show of it. 

“What’s this about, McGonagall?” 

“I think you’re acutely aware, Mosely. But, in case you’re denser than you appear, this student made claims that you said some unsavory things about the Muggle-born students of Hogwarts.” 

Coburgg looked over at him then, his gaze hardening for a split second. “He must have misunderstood me, then. His English isn’t very good, you know.”

Kibum’s brow furrowed as his mouth dropped open in surprise. “Wow,” O’Neely muttered under his breath as he shook his head. 

“You’re seriously going to believe the word of a...Slytherin student? About what I said in my own classroom?” 

“No.” McGonagall picked up Creature of Dirt and dropped it on the desk, facing Coburgg. “I’m going to believe yours.” Coburgg’s hands fisted at his sides, and O’Neely stepped between him and Kibum, blocking Coburgg from Kibum’s view. “I’ve already sent letters to Kingsley at the Ministry as well as the Daily Prophet to spread the news that you are unfit to work anywhere a respectable wizard would. You’re things have already been escorted to the front gates, and I’d advise you to hurry and join them.” He must have started to speak, but McGonagall cut him off. “If you say one more word to anyone in the castle, you’ll never speak again.”

She flicked her finger toward the door, and Kibum leaned around the armchair to watch him go. Once the gargoyle disappeared below the floor, McGonagall cleared . “I know you weren’t doing this for the points, Mr. Kim, but one hundred points to Slytherin.” Her stern expression turned to a kind smile. “Go get some rest, now.” 

Kibum hopped off the chair, his eyes trailing down to Creature of Dirt. “May I?” he pointed at it, and her expression turned stern again as he picked it up. He carried it over to the crackling fire and dropped it in, watching the flames started to devour it. “Thank you, Headmistress,” he said, bowing low to her. 

O’Neely didn’t follow him, since McGonagall asked him to stay to discuss Coburgg’s replacement. Kibum stepped onto the stairs, relief settling into him when it started to descend. His stomach rumbled, reminding him he didn’t eat much of anything at dinner. While the cookies helped initially, he was hungrier now than he was before. 

Maybe he should go see if Minho wanted to sit with him while he ate... 

* * * * * * * * * *

The dying embers in the kitchen’s fireplace were still radiating quite a bit of heat. Minho closed his eyes as he scooted back, sitting as close as he dared to the opening of the hearth. He tore off a chunk of the roll in his hand and chewed it slowly as his eyes returned to the door. 

“Come get me if Kibum shows up,” he had told Marcus and Agatha, who were the only two left in the common room, when Minho left for the kitchen. He cursed his hunger and the fact that he couldn’t eat at dinner as he hurried to the kitchen. But...now that he was here, his hunger had basically disappeared. 

Was Kibum okay? He was looking pretty stressed at dinner. Scared, even. Hopefully whatever he needed to do would be over soon and he could go back to being his fun self again. 

Minho was about ready to toss the roll in the nearest trash bin when the door to the kitchen opened, and in walked Kibum. He wasn’t sure what his expression was, but it must have been funny, because Kibum started to laugh as he made his way across the room. “You’re fine?” he asked softly when Kibum sat down beside him in front of the fireplace.

“Mhm.” He glanced over at Minho, his amused smile softening. “I didn’t mean to worry you.” Minho shook his head and Kibum looked down at his clasped hands. “But yeah, everything is okay now.”

“What happened?” 

Kibum squeezed his hands tightly and his brow furrowed. “Coburgg, the Muggles teacher, got fired because of some things he said in class today.” Minho let out a long oh and Kibum nodded. “I talked with O’Neely and just left the Headmistress’ office.”

“You got a teacher fired…”

“And got a hundred points for Slytherin for doing so.” Minho scoffed, which made Kibum laugh again. “You hungry?”

Minho followed Kibum’s eyes to the barely eaten roll in his hand. “Well, now I am.” 

Together, they raided the icebox, eating some leftover chicken and whatever fresh vegetables they could find from tonight's dinner. Minho almost choked on the bite of raw carrot that he took when he started laughing at Kibum’s disgusted face. When he was trying to decide if they should have some hot cocoa, Kibum remembered that Analecia was probably waiting up for him to get back. 

So, instead, Minho walked Kibum back to Slytherin, waiting to make sure that he got inside before he went back to Hufflepuff, full and happy and ready to sleep. 

The next day dawned too soon for Minho’s liking, as usual, but he dragged himself out of bed and to the Great Hall for breakfast. Out of curiosity, he glanced to Professor Coburgg’s presumably empty seat, only to find that it was taken. By a strange lady. Well, not that she was strange...she was just a stranger. Her skin was rich ebony and her hair was done in braids that were twisted in a bun atop her head. She wore a bright yellow vest beneath her dark robes and a brilliant smile as she talked to O’Neely beside her. 

Minho blinked sleepily before he made his way over to where Kibum was sitting. “Do you think she’s your new teacher?” he asked as he sat down beside him.

“I’m assuming so. I’m surprised they found someone so quickly.”

Their suspicions were confirmed when McGonagall made her announcement, introducing Professor Abigale Chanin, the new Muggle Studies teacher, to the students. She waved to them all, then laughed at whatever comment O’Neely made to her. 

“She seems fun.” 

“Yeah, I like her already.” Kibum glanced over at him, then did a double take. “What are you still doing over here? Go to your table before we get in trouble!” Minho laughed as Kibum pushed him away, and hurried across the Great Hall before the Prefects from either house could yell at him for being out of place.