Minji could only watch in horror as her girlfriend was knocked back into a wall with one final Flipendo. 

The Gryffindor was out of breath-- she’d sprinted across the entire length of the castle the second she heard Siyeon’s cry that had followed a loud incantation of the Cruciatus curse. Her strides only became faster, more determined as she spotted the duel that the Slytherin was clearly losing. But it was too late. The younger girl now lay unmoving next to the wall, her body covered in a mixture of dirt and blood. Now Minji didn’t look significantly better-- the battle left no student untouched-- but her worry for Siyeon spiked when she caught sight of blood pooling from her face. 

Not even bothering to catch her breath, the Gryffindor wasted no time in rushing to her girlfriend, immediately taking the girl into her arms. “Oh, Singnie,” Minji murmured. She began examining the Slytherin’s state; even while unconscious it was obvious that the duel had taken an enormous toll on her, most obviously shown through the injuries scattered throughout her body. The Gryffindor finally laid her eyes on Siyeon’s face, which was almost completely covered in her own blood. Minji blinked back tears. Siyeon had taken a curse straight to the face. Minji let out a shaky sigh as she caressed her girlfriend’s-- her soulmate’s cheek before pressing a kiss to her forehead. If it weren’t for her fear of leaving Siyeon, the Gryffindor would have gone and killed the younger girl’s parents herself. The sole thought of them made Minji tighten her hold on the Slytherin.

It was almost as if the chaos around them had drowned out. It was almost as if it were just the two of them, just Minji holding her lover in her arms. Almost. 

“Imperio.”

The Gryffindor’s head whipped around to see Gahyeon freeze in her spot, wand pointed at her parents, seemingly struggling with her own body. The girl’s own parents using the Imperio curse on her. Gahyeon, Siyeon’s little sister who wouldn’t hurt a fly. Gahyeon, who Minji had come to think as her own sibling. Anger surged through her at seeing the way the fifth year’s face twisted in effort to fight the Imperio curse attempting to control her body, immediately followed by a wave of dread when she witnessed her begin to lose the battle against the curse. Just like her sister, who was no match for the wrath of the Cruciatus curse, whose battered body Minji held in her arms. 

“Well, Gahyeon?” her father’s voice was cold. “Be good and finish her.” 

Minji’s heart sank as she watched Gahyeon robotically turn to where she knelt, protectively tightening her hold on Siyeon. She knew she was helpless-- if she tried to fight she’d leave Siyeon vulnerable. She could only hope the Avada Kedavra curse was quick and painless, that there was an afterlife where she and Siyeon could find peace. 

What she didn’t expect was Yoohyeon to appear in front of her, trembling but there nonetheless. She could hear the Ravenclaw murmur inaudible nothings to Gahyeon, clearly trying to encourage her to fight it, and the scene broke her heart even more.

“Y-Yooh,” Minji pleaded, “It’s useless. Get out of here, she’ll kill you. Please.” 

The girl turned to look at the seventh year with a gentle determination, glancing at Siyeon softly before looking back up. “I’m not leaving you two. I know she’s in there, Minji. I know she is.” 

Minji didn’t have a chance to protest before Gahyeon raised her wand at Yoohyeon—

The Gryffindor awoke with a gasp.

It took Minji a little while to realize where she was. She had fallen asleep in a rather uncomfortable position in her chair. Whether it was out of exhaustion from the recent days or lack of sleep, she didn’t know. The other students in the med wing were walking around and talking amongst themselves, the atmosphere heavy after the events that unfolded three days ago. The Gryffindor’s eyebrows furrowed as she recalled the immediate aftermath of the battle. She vividly remembered how dread pushed down on her every time she received the news of yet another person dead. 

It was known early on that they’d lost one of their youngest students. Minji had grown fond of Yuna, always encouraging the first year to pursue her dream of joining Gryffindor’s quidditch team. She’d made it a personal goal of hers to look out for the younger girl. She’d lost count of the nights Yuna would sneak into her bed and spend the night whispering and giggling with her. Even thinking about her made Gryffindor’s head girl tear up, willing herself to hold back the fresh wave of tears. 

And oh, Minji had only later found out about Bora, their Bora, who had been there for Siyeon since the very beginning. Bora, Siyeon’s partner in crime and the person Minji told everything to. Bora, who would light up a room just by being there. Minji remembered how she laughed at Bora’s gushing about that Son Seungwan in their year, remembered how the short woman had vowed since the day she stepped on school grounds that she’d become Slytherin’s quidditch captain. To no ones surprise, that’s exactly what she did. And to no one’s surprise, Kim Bora sacrificed herself so that her Yoohyeon could live and finish that career in the field of magical beasts, as she’d always wanted. 

Poor Yoohyeon had lost that endearing spark in her eyes after watching her sister die right in front of her, and Minji hoped to every god out there that she wouldn’t have to be the one to tell Siyeon.

Shaking herself out of her thoughts, the Gryffindor turned to look at her still unconscious girlfriend. She couldn’t help but wonder what would’ve happened if Gahyeon hadn’t resisted the curse. Truth be told, Minji would have died with her lover a hundred times over before leaving her and saving herself. 

It’d been three days since Minji carried Siyeon to the med wing (and a wonder that she didn’t pass out on the way). The older girl couldn’t help but worry, but the nurse had assured her that her girlfriend would be fine. “Don’t worry, dear,” she had told her as she brought her into a gentle hug, almost as if she were comforting a child, “Siyeon’s body is just sleeping for a bit so that it can get better for you as quickly as possible.. After all, there’s no greater magic than nature itself.” Somehow, despite the juvenile comfort, it’d made the Gryffindor feel better. Nevertheless, since the day Siyeon was admitted to the med wing Minji had slept very little, only leaving her side to eat once a day and shower to get all the blood and dirt off herself. 

The color had returned to the Slytherin’s face by now, though the girl remained in bandages throughout her entire body, mainly focused on her face and chest. Minji wanted her to wake up more than anything, but a part of her dreaded having to see the physical and emotional toll Siyeon would inevitably face. Although having survived, the Slytherin’s right eye was left scarred and blinded, among other damaged skin. Added onto the grief and shock of the previous days’ events, the physical consequences of the battle would be heavy for Siyeon. Minji knew her girlfriend would attempt to get back to caring for everyone as soon as she woke up-- Slytherin’s head girl was nothing short of a workaholic, much like herself. But the Gryffindor was determined to make her rest so she could recover properly. 

Minji turned her head to see Gahyeon staring at her from the other side of Siyeon’s bed, eyes shining with concern. The head girl blinked in surprise, not having noticed her there at all. “You okay?” Gahyeon spoke as soon as they made eye contact, “You’re kinda spacing out .. thought that was a Lee thing.” The older girl couldn’t help but chuckle at that. The fifth year was right on that. She and her sister would constantly be spotted in a completely different world. It was one of the things Minji loved most about them. 

“Yeah,” she responded after a minute, “Just thinking about--” 

A groan cut Minji right off.

Anyone would think the two students had seen a ghost. Minji and Gahyeon, eyes wide, whipped their heads to look at the girl between them. A small gasp escaped the both of them when Siyeon shifted, a hand coming up to clutch her chest lightly as her eyebrow furrowed. The two students moved closer to her with hopeful expressions, Minji taking the hand that wasn’t on her chest into hers. “Singnie?” She called out softly. It mirrored the scene at the battle, but this time she was met with a response. 

“.. Mm.”
The Gryffindor broke out into her first real smile in days as her girlfriend’s eyes fluttered open, her fingers instinctively lacing further into Minji’s. Taking a moment to recognize where she was, Siyeon’s gaze met hers as her eyebrow furrowed once again. “Is it over?” her voice had a rasp to it, sleepy. Minji bit her lip to prevent tears from making their way down her cheeks, only managing a nod in reply. Her girlfriend frowned at seeing her tear up, a shaky hand coming up from her chest to cup the Gryffindor’s cheek, murmuring, “Why are you crying, angel?” Minji let out a shaky, broken laugh. She had almost forgotten how gentle her lover’s voice could be.

A quiet sob interrupted their moment. The girls turned to see Gahyeon with a hand pressed to , seemingly attempting to muffle her cries. Minji watched as Siyeon’s expression softened even further, retracting her hand from her cheek to shakily sit herself up. Gahyeon had made eye contact with her, which only brought out more tears. The older Slytherin brought up her arm, wincing slightly as she did, and began to gently run her fingers through her sister’s hair. “Hey, don’t cry, Hyeon,” Siyeon urged softly, “I’m fine, see?” 

Ironically enough, at that moment a whimper escaped Siyeon as she drew in a shaky inhale and clutched her chest. Gahyeon wasted no time in lightly guiding her older sister into her arms, wrapping her into a protective embrace. It was a sight for Minji, truly, because since the girl had entered Hogwarts as a first year Siyeon had been the one holding her, comforting her whenever another letter came from their parents. The Gryffindor watched fondly as her girlfriend relaxed in her sister’s arms, letting herself be vulnerable for once with someone other than her or Bora. She was more proud of Gahyeon than anything else; the reserved little girl she had met years ago had grown up into such a strong woman. 

“I’m okay.” 

“You’re not, Sing,” Gahyeon sighed, “just let us take care of you for a bit.” 

Siyeon didn’t reply, seemingly pondering whether or not to protest but settling on nuzzling further into Gahyeon. Another moment passed in a comfortable silence, Gahyeon holding Siyeon gently like she would something fragile. The older Slytherin seemed to think through a few things before finally settling on one, something that troubled her by her expression. 

“.. Are they dead, Hyeon?” 

The question clearly took Gahyeon by surprise. She paused a second, thinking of her response. 

“It .. it was them or you, Singnie. You wouldn’t be here if I hadn’t--”

“You killed them?”
Gahyeon bit her lip before responding. “Y-yeah.” 

Another pause.

“I’m so proud of you, Gahyeon.” Siyeon’s voice was thick with emotion, although muffled by the younger Slytherin’s robe. “God, I’m so, so proud of you.” 

For just that moment, Minji allowed herself to feel at peace. Gahyeon was okay, Siyeon was okay, Yooh would make it. So who could blame her for allowing herself to forget about everything for just a minute? For convincing herself, as she watched the siblings, that they'd be okay eventually, that everything would turn out fine in due time.