Yuri looked at the faces in front of her. They were looking back at her, as if waiting, and Yuri hated to admit that they probably were waiting for her reaction. She hated to react. Slowly, she turned to the girl beside her, who had hugged herself timidly and looked down at her own feet, avoiding Yuri's eyes.

 

"She's staying?" asked Yuri, and the girl flinched. Yuri didn't want to think of why the girl flinched. She tried to say the question in a calm tone, it wasn't her intention to make it sound flat. It wasn't her fault if it sounded flat...

 

Jongdae was the first to break the silence, "Hanri said......"

 

"I understand," said Yuri quickly, and other than making him stop, it also made Jongdae froze. Yuri looked up, forcing a smile to a wide-eyed Jongdae and shrugged. "I'll be in the library," whispered Yuri, bowing to Hanri and Hyomin. Without waiting for others to react, she turned around and walked off, fists clenching on her sides.

 

Yuri didn't remember ever cutting someone's words off.

 

Actually, Yuri didn't even remember ever feeling these emotions before.

 

She didn't like it. She disliked it when she couldn't control her emotions.

 

Sighing to herself, Yuri stopped walking the moment she reached the library. She looked up at the wooden door, standing mighty in front of her. It was the Kim's library.

 

"That's right, this is the Kim's residence," whispered Yuri resignedly, "I don't have a say as to who can stay and who can't, do I?"

 

 

~-::DLIBY::-~

 

 

Several knocks.

 

Small noises.

 

Yuri tried her best to ignore them and continue her reading, even if she found herself stuck on a page longer than usual several times. She was only a fourteen years old, after all, her concentration still needed training.

 

Several more knocks.

 

More small noises.

 

A gentle shush.

 

Yuri narrowed her eyes as her ears caught the sound of the door being opened. Without turning to check, she knew. But she waited until the owner of the approaching footsteps got within her radius,

 

"Hi, Mr. Kim."

 

"Hanri, Yuri," the man corrected her, not unkindly. Yuri closed the book in front of her and turned to face the man. Kim Hanri. The Head of Kim family. The very person who gave her a shelter after the most awful event of her life happened to her; the night her parents gone.

 

It had been more than three years since Yuri started living with the family, and Yuri could see why a kind person like Kim Hanri wouldn't hesitate to offer a helping hand to the girl. Truth to be told, Yuri couldn't see why wouldn't he.

 

"You skipped dinner," the man stated, and then, "can I sit with you?"

 

"I don't feel like eating," answered Yuri, and she didn't know if she was supposed to answer the second question, but she nodded.

 

Yuri wanted to be a kind soul like Kim Hanri and his family. But she discovered that being nice isn't going to be easy. Maybe that was why there were bad people in the world; because it wasn't easy to be nice.

 

The man flicked his wrist silently, and a chair came zooming in to him. Calmly, he sat, facing her, and smiled as he asked, "Is it bad?"

 

"What is bad?" asked Yuri, "Your ability to do wandless magic? No, it's glorious."

 

The man chuckled, "No. I mean your relationship with Im Yoona. Is it bad?"

 

Yuri knew any attempts to change the topic would be fruitless, but still, at least she had tried. She diverted her eyes and answered quietly,

 

"I don't hate her."

 

"So you weren't skipping dinner to avoid her?"

 

Yuri grimaced. She didn't want to think that she was that transparent.

 

"No... I guess."

 

"Yuri."

 

"It's just..." Yuri ducked her head, "...she had said some hurtful things, Mr. Kim."

 

"Hanri," the man corrected yet again, and Yuri jerkily nodded without lifting her head. The man would probably think that Yuri's reason was lame. Some hurtful things and she acted cold? To a girl who was going through a hard time, no less? How petty. Then again, people her age should be allowed to be petty...

 

Shouldn't they?

 

"So..." the man trailed off, but Yuri didn't ask "what so," and so, he picked up on his words and gently continued, "...so she had said some hurtful things, yet you were the one who informed us that her... former father... abandoned her. Right?"

 

Yuri shrugged weakly.

 

It had been spontaneous. Her eyes had caught Im Yoona's dull ones just as they were about to leave the station. Then those eyes immediately flickered away, towards a wristwatch the girl wore, her lips quivering.

 

Something had resonated in Yuri. So she called for everyone to stop.

 

She had known even then, that the moment she told the Kims about a lonely girl waiting in the platform nine and three quarters for a father who'd never show up, the Kims would very likely give the girl a stay. It could be for only a day. It would probably extend to forever.

 

But it hadn't stopped her from wishing that they'd help her.

 

"As I've said, I don't hate her..." Yuri whispered, "I know how it felt to be alone."

 

A silence, and a hand came up to ruffle her hair. Yuri closed her eyes at the affectionate gesture,

 

"You're a good girl, Yuri."

 

The hand retreated, and Yuri opened her eyes, the littlest hint of smile on her lips as she nodded to the man's compliment. The man rose up, another flick of his wrist causing the chair to zoom out back to its original place.

 

"Come to the kitchen, a'right? Taeyeon keeps a plate of food for you. Hyomin puts a stasis charm on it, but I'm not supposed to tell you that whoops." He clasped his mouth, eyes widening in mock surprise, and Yuri laughed. The man smiled at the sight, content that his little joke could result to her cheering up.

 

"Anyway, go quickly before the food gone bad, kid. I have to go do my business."

 

"Thank you, Mr. Kim."

 

"Hanri," the man reminded her once again, smiling. "Don't bother about it."

 

 

~-::DLIBY::-~

 

 

Yuri had spent the night turning and shuffling beneath her blanket, restless.

 

"I won't want to be seen walking with you."

 

A nightmare...

 

"You are the one Mum and Dad treasure the most, Yuri. Don't forget it, okay?"

 

She woke up with a jolt, cold sweats dripping down her forehead. Yuri shivered, her knees slowly went to her chest as she curled up and hugged herself. She closed her eyes, trying to grasp her dream; trying to picture the face of her parents as they told them those words.

 

Yuri had come to fear that someday she would forget how her parents look like.

 

She opened her eyes and glanced towards the window. It was gentle dark outside, or so Jongdae identified the sky whenever they woke up at dawn. Yuri took her blanket with her and reached for a pouch she put near her. Slowly, she shifted to get off her bed, feeling no longer sleepy, wanting no more pillow. So she left the room the Kims had given to her, and padded her way to the second-level balcony.

 

It didn't surprise her to see Jongdae here, sitting in the bench, a similar pouch resting in his lap. What surprised her was the wand the younger brought. She quietly stepped into the balcony, with the boy seemingly unknowing as he kept subtly waving his wand, making blue sparks to shoot off into a distance.

 

"Hi," muttered Jongdae when Yuri got close enough.

 

"Nightmare?" asked Yuri with a low voice. She sat on the other edge of the bench, put her pouch in her lap, and covered herself with the blanket she brought.

 

The sparks Jongdae made started to turn grayish, "As good as yours, if I should say so."

 

Yuri mummed, looking at the sparks Jongdae created, and how it seemed to blend with the sky colors faster. Maybe if she painted her feelings with the time's color, it would fade faster too. Since time faded the fastest, with no pause or rewind to halt them.

 

"Jongdae, I... I'm sorry."

 

"I understand," Jongdae simply said, and Yuri knew he knew Yuri was referring to that time she cut off his words. So Yuri nodded, and Jongdae gave her a reassuring glance before refocusing to his wand.

 

Three years knowing the boy, Yuri had come to discover that they shared many similarities. The first time they met, it didn't seem so. But time did its only job; going on, and Yuri learnt Jongdae's history, Jongdae learnt hers, and the first impression faded away.

 

What if that was also the case with Im Yoona?

 

"Noona."

 

Yuri pulled herself out from her bubble of thought and turned to Jongdae. The boy was still shooting sparks, green with a tinge of yellow.

 

Jongdae always referred her with that whenever he wanted her to know that he looked up to her.

 

"What are you going to do with Im?"

 

Yuri her pouch, the thing inside it warmed to her touch. "What do you expect me to do, Jongdae?"

 

"Giving her a chance," Jongdae answered quietly. "Just like you giving Kyungsoo a chance, even if he annoyed you to the Moon and back the first time we met."

 

Yuri smiled. The youngest Kim had been frustrating to befriend with, mainly because he hated the world before. Now, he still hated the world; but to a significantly lesser extent.

 

"You think so?"

 

The sparks had turned back to blue.

 

"Even if I don't, you'll come to that conclusion." Jongdae shot a final spark, which turned to blue butterflies before it disappeared into the silence, and looked at her, a grin on his lips. "I'm just here as a catalyst."

 

"Oh no, you're an NPC."

 

"That joke is so dry. Just like your creativity. Dry."

 

Yuri kicked his leg, and they laughed. A hint of light spread in the sky, as time passed, as always. Dawn would change to morning, as always.

 

Yuri rose up from the bench, and Jongdae curiously looked at her.

 

"Don't wanna watch sunrise?"

 

Yuri shook her head and smiled. She liked sunrise, but her feelings didn't have the luxury of routine the days had. It changed, and for today, she wasn't in the mood to greet the sun. She'd take a journey to the kitchen, and maybe make herself hot chocolate. You could never go wrong with hot chocolate.

 

"Thank you, Jongdae," said Yuri.

 

"Thank you too," Jongdae simply answered.

 

Yuri stepped out from the balcony with a smile that she didn't really feel. It was just there, as if default, and Yuri genuinely wanted to smile because her new year resolution was to greet each day with enthusiasm. She wondered if waking up with a smile and cheery shout of "I'm super depressed!" would be classified as enthusiastic enough.

 

When she reached the kitchen, her steps halted.

 

In the dining chair was a lump. A breathing, dark-haired, sleeping lump. Judging from the approximate height of the lump, Yuri could guess that it wasn't Hyoyeon or Taeyeon. The twins were never that tall.

 

"I won't want to be seen walking with you."

 

Yuri tightened her hold on the blanket around her. She strutted towards the sleeping girl, to the side that allowed her to see the girl's face.

 

The girl was sleeping with furrowed brows, her lips slightly parted, and Yuri's gaze stopped at a familiar pouch the girl shouldered loosely.

 

"That pouch..." Yuri narrowed her eyes.

 

"I hate you."

 

Before her brain could register her move, Yuri's hand had come up to press lightly against the furrowing brows, gently massaging the wrinkled skin beneath her fingers, until the sleeping girl stopped frowning.

 

It's cold out there and she didn't put warming charm on herself...

 

Sighing, Yuri slowly unwrapped the blanket around her.

 

"You probably never know how it feels to be unwanted!"

 

She took a step back after neatly covered the sleeping girl with her blanket. The sleeping girl hummed, to what, Yuri didn't know. Maybe her dream was good, enough to make her sing a tune. It would be a relief if her dream was good.

 

Yuri allowed herself to smile as her hand once again came up to sweep several strands of hair that covered the sleeping girl's face.

 

"I knew," whispered Yuri. "I knew and it hurt."

 

"Giving her a chance."

 

"It will hurt you too," she muttered, "But don't let it bother you."

 

 

~-::DLIBY::-~

 

 

Yuri looked at her watch and pursed her lips. It's almost time.  She quietly rose from her bed and exited her room, hands in her pockets, making her way to somewhere. No one wandered around the corridors, just as she expected.

 

She stopped in front of a bookshelf. Drawing her wand out, she muttered an incantation under her breathm and the bookshelf moved—showing her a dark way ahead, down the stairs. Faintly, several noises came from the darkness, and Yuri holstered her wand back.

 

She descended the stairs.

 

"You better not wake up sleeping with your head on ma t'morrow, twinnie."

 

"Yuck. The heck, Taeng! I don't need that image in my head!"

 

"Now, now, noonas, calm down and take your precaution potion."

 

"Yes, Chenchen."

 

Yuri grinned as she stepped on into the dim... room? Not exactly a room, more like a wide space, with small trees and cushioned walls as the hint of borders.

 

"Yuri noona!" said Jongdae, waving to her. She waved back as eyes turned to her. When she found a pair of doe eyes staring at her too, she smiled slightly, to which the owner looked away without words.

 

Sigh.

 

"You guys ready?" asked Yuri, squatting down beside the Kim twins. Taeyeon and Hyoyeon looked at each other and shrugged,

 

"We think—"

 

"That it's not us—"

 

"Who'd need words of encouragement—"

 

"Chenchen 's enough," the two finished in unison.

 

Yuri felt the edge of her left eye twitched. "Shut up," she hissed in a whisper, "I'm still awkward with her, you know—"

 

"We think, too—"

 

"That the only cure for awkwardness—"

 

"Is communication."

 

"Loads."

 

"Loads of it, frankly."

 

"Aren't we right, Chenchen?"

 

Yuri glared at Jongdae who only shrugged, a smirk on his lips. Sighing, she turned to the other presence in the room, who—apparently—had had her eyes on her.

 

As always, the owner was quick to look away.

 

Yuri scratched her neck and, with a literal push from Jongdae, padded her way to one Im Yoona. She briefly wondered about what was going on the girl's brain, if there was fear or if all it was had been numb. Yuri thought, and overthought, until the moment she found herself squatting beside the other girl, with Im Yoona inching away from her.

 

"Hey." Yuri narrowed her eyes at the little shifts the girl made to create a distance from her, "What are you, a worm? If you want to move away, at least do it properly." She immediately bit her tongue and grimaced, mentally cursing herself.

 

There you go, letting loose your sharp tongue yet again.

 

Before she could think of apologizing, the girl turned to her. "You're mean," she quietly spoke.

 

"Yeah, well, don't pretend you're not mean at all, either," Yuri countered.

 

The girl's gaze dropped to the ground.

 

"Sorry."

 

Yuri wanted to coolly said, 'you're unforgiven', or anything to give the girl an indication that she wasn't ready to wipe the slate clean and be okay with the past, but those cold words stuck in . When the girl glanced at her, probably out of curiosity because Yuri had been silent for too long, Yuri had given up saying hurtful things and offered a hand instead.

 

"Hello, I'm Kwon Yuri, Ravenclaw."

 

The girl stared at her hand, eyes widened. Yuri coughed at the stretched silence and pondering whether to take back her hand or not...

 

"Im Yoona," the girl quietly answered, "Hufflepuff." She touched, or more like poked, Yuri's hand, and then retreated back to herself quicker than Yuri's next exhale. "And I do mean my apology earlier."

 

"I know."

 

Silence immediately arose between them, unwilling to wait. Yoona had busied herself to stare dully at the cushioned wall. Yuri looked at the ground, and then glanced at her wristwatch. Fifteen minutes. She thumbed her wand holster and pursed her lips,

 

"I want to ask you something but holy , this is so awkward."

 

She heard a weak chuckle, "Yeah, it is."

 

"Are you worried?" Yuri whispered, eyes downcast. "You don't have to be worried. Mrs. Kim's modified wolfsbane is the best ever. You won't feel any pain, and you will be—"

 

"Are you worried?"

 

Yuri paused. There was a hint of amusement, wonder, and gratitude. A pulse of pain stung her heart, clenching her lungs. It was ridiculous because there was no reason for her insides to act that way, so what gives?

 

"I'm just asking..."

 

"Don't let it bother you," replied Yoona. "Five minutes. You better go right now."

 

Yuri shook her head. "I've kept them company whenever they transformed," she explained, a jerk of her thumb pointed towards the Kims behind them. "I'm the one who tucks them to their slumber when they have bored themselves with chasing and acting like badass wolves."

 

"Won't you be hurt?" asked Yoona, staring at her intensely. "You can get a scar, can't you? Surely it's not—"

 

"Safe?" Yuri chuckled. "I'm still breathing right now, am I not?" She looked back at her, staring into those doe eyes, noticing a hint of worry and had the thought to with the line 'are you worried?'.

 

She thought against it and smiled instead,

 

"Don't let it bother you, Yoona."

 

Few seconds and the time was there. Soft lights greeted Yuri's eyes as the dimly lit wide space witnessed the transformations, of four soul this time instead of three. Yuri glanced at her side, the soft glow from the girl next to her, mentally counting. A minute and a wolf cub would be there, three behind her.

 

A minute and their memories would be paused until morning came tomorrow.

 

 

~-::DLIBY::-~

 

 

"That's why I'm telling you now, Chenchen isn't our bro, he's our kitty," Taeyeon pressed to a wide-eyed Yoona. "And Yuri is our puppy. We adopted them. Understood?"

 

"Our bro is, y'kno, Kyungsoo," said Hyoyeon with a serious expression. "Y'kno, dat dude who likes to look so done with da world? Yea, dat's our bro, unfortunately. We didn't even adopt him, hmph."

 

"Kyungsoo will kill you if he heard about this, noonas," Jongdae sing-songed from his seat near the 'windowgarden'.

 

Yoona squirmed uncomfortably in her place, "I'm not sure I—"

 

"What we're trying to say is we won't stay still if you hurt our puppy," Taeyeon said sternly. "Dat's a no no."

 

"I've said sorry—"

 

"O, we heard it, Missy. We also heard your conversations, eavesdropped, actually."

 

"Or that one time she called you with your first name before we transformed. You probably don't remember because it's near the time we transformed but we had trained ourselves to remember everything until the last milisecond just before we transformed."

 

"Or, you know, there's also that time when we woke up the morning after and saw you curling up in her embrace—"

 

"Yuri noona will kill you if she heard about this, noonas," Jongdae quipped, finishing the last drop of water from the garden hose.

 

"That's why you shouldn't run your mouth," Hyoyeon snapped. "Behave, Chenchen."

 

"Meow," Jongdae sarcastically replied. He huffed and patted his pocket, where an Extendable Ear was resting. "Here, noona, you have heard everything, right?"

 

In the other end of the Extendable Ears, Yuri massaged her temples, a frustrated sigh escaping her lips. She had tried to avoid the other girl after the full moon, glaring sternly at the twins to keep everything in. After all, it wasn't like she planned to wake up with Im Yoona in her arms. It wasn't her fault if her face reddened when she noticed that the Kims (Jongdae included) were wide awake staring at their overlapping bodies. Totally not her mistake if amidst the menboong moments she managed to pull out gently from Im Yoona and scurried away from the room as soon as possible.

 

Sigh.

 

 

~-::DLIBY::-~

 

 

Yuri watched the potion boiling in front of her. She had locked herself with Hyomin in the laboratorium to prepare for the four's dose of wolfsbane. Full moon would be tomorrow.

 

"Were they behaving okay?"

 

Yuri looked up from the vial, "They? Ah, they were cute as cubs. More manageable than when they're humans."

 

Hyomin laughed. "Want me to accompany you tomorrow?"

 

"No, it's okay," Yuri replied. "I know you guys have things to do."

 

"How's things going with Im Yoona?"

 

Yuri paused, the swirling substance in the vial starting to turn its color. "I don't know what you expect to hear from me when you ask that question..."

 

Hyomin smiled, "You're too smart."

 

"I'm a Ravenclaw."

 

"Obviously."

 

Yuri smiled. She removed the vial when the color-turning stopped, and brought them to Hyomin. Hyomin tipped the substance into a cauldron and added two spoons of yellow powder before stirring it clockwise.

 

"Hyomin..."

 

"Hm?"

 

"If it feels warm near and cold far, what feeling is it?"

 

"I'm not sure, Yuri," Hyomin replied softly. "But it's enough to conclude that you prefer being near, than being separated by a fair distance."

 

"I see." Yuri stared at the small fire and mumbled, "That makes no sense."

 

 

~-::DLIBY::-~

 

 

The night had come and Yuri half-considered skipping from accompanying them just this once. She stood in front of the bookshelf for a long time, staring at the innocent covers, deep in thought.

 

"Yuri."

 

Swallowing a shriek, Yuri flinched to the side and turned around. Yoona was standing there, curiosity shining through her eyes.

 

"H–hi," she stuttered.

 

Yoona smiled, "Preparing for today?"

 

"I think I'm going to skip."

 

Yuri wished she hadn't looked at the other girl when she muttered those words, if only so she didn't have to see how Yoona's expression fell.

 

"If it's about me—"

 

"No!" Yuri swallowed. This was the second time she cut someone's words off. "I—no, I'm just feeling a little unwell."

 

"Are you?" Yoona took a step forward, and Yuri stumbled a step backward. Yuri grimaced at the knowing look Yoona had,

 

"Kinda. Don't... don't bother about it." Yuri laughed. It didn't sound right. "I'll go and ask for Mrs. Kim to be there. You... go first."

 

And she dashed, away, acutely aware of how the warmth that was there began to dissipate from her heart, replaced with coldness.

 

 

~-::DLIBY::-~

 

 

A ray of light. A flinch. A blink. Yuri opened her eyes and stared at the wooden ceiling. The floor beneath her was cold. Kinda. Her fault for choosing to sleep there. Her hand? Merlin, she couldn't feel her hand.

 

Slowly, Yuri glanced to where her hand should've been. What greeted her was a dark view. Hair? Hair. Yuri inhaled, and a scent she remembered from last full moon entertained her nose.

 

Yoona.

 

Yuri leaned back. Warm. It was warm, her heart, her hand, her whole being. It was ridiculously warm and Yuri wouldn't be surprised if her insides had been reduced into a puddle of goo. The girl in her arm mummed, and shifted closer to her, tightening her hand which, to Yuri's new attention, had been resting around her waist. Yoona's head rested in the crook of Yuri's neck, tingling the skin with her small snuggle.

 

Yuri closed her eyes, reminiscing the reason of why she found herself in this position yet again.

 

Two hours after the time the four would've undergone transformation, Yuri had quietly descended the stairs towards the cubs' den. Bringing blankets for the sleeping cubs, firmly reminding herself that she would be there only to deliver blankets.

 

That was before Hyomin greeted her with panicked voice telling her that she had to go to bathroom real quick and Merlin I think I'm on my period right now and if I don't come back after twenty minutes please look after them okay Yuri I love you!

 

Yuri had the thought to practice a Patronus and send Hyomin one just to make sure the woman didn't forget to come back.

 

That was before she finished tucking the Kims comfortably and turned around to tuck the last cub in. She had paused for a moment as she found Yoona curled up in the dark corner, far from the three. From the restless brows, Yuri wondered if she had a bad dream.

 

Silently, she had chosen to stay.

 

I'll have to go now though, Yuri mentally thought, her free hand moved to reach for Yoona's hand around her. Slowly, now...

 

"I thought no one would want to be near me if they know I'm a werewolf."

 

Yuri froze, her widened eyes quickly glanced to the girl in her embrace. A pair of doe eyes looked back at her, awake more than ever. It was more like Yoona was staring into her soul, and Yuri wanted to freak out, except Yoona's words had hold her in place.

 

"I thought it would be better to be gone altogether, rather than being an unwanted existence."

 

"That's not true," Yuri whispered, her heart clenching at the words.

 

Yoona smiled. Yuri felt, rather than saw, Yoona's hand breaking free from her hold to return back to its former place.

 

"I'm relieved when you—when you're not running away. When I discovered that you're here. That you... trust me enough to fall asleep next to me."

 

A tear. Yuri swallowed as Yoona ducked her head to hide that single tear. But Yuri didn't have to see it. Not when that single tear was the start of many, if the wetness in her shoulder was any indication. Yuri wanted to say some comforting words. Wanted to ask her what kind of gaze her former father gave her. Wanted to tell her that she's not a monster—heck, Kyungsoo fitted the monster role more than Yoona would ever, and he's not even a werewolf.

 

"So I... I'm sorry... if I have done something that drives you away, Yuri."

 

Yuri could hear her heart breaking at the words. "No, it's not you." She let her hands do the work, gathering the girl closer to her embrace. Her lips hovered near Yoona's ear as she continued to whisper, "Merlin, believe me, it's not you..."

 

It's me. I need time to sort out my feelings. I'm sorry for letting it to bother you. It's not you.

 

"Don't let it bother you..."

 

Yoona's silent sobs had been reduced into silent hiccups. "Your... heart... was beating wild."

 

Yuri wanted to laugh in embarrassment, but she settled with burning face and two words,

 

"And now?"

 

"It's... calm."

 

"Does it calm you?"

 

Yoona mummed, letting the question go unanswered. Not that Yuri had any expectation about what answer she could get. She only held the girl, letting her to hear her heartbeat, until Yoona slowly succumbed back to sleep. Yuri silently the other girl's cheek, wiping the tears, pausing as several unintelligible words escaped Yoona's lips in a sleepy tone.

 

So Yuri shifted, her free hand gently rested on Yoona's head, thumb pressed against Yoona's temple. Warm, warmth, Yoona. Yuri closed her eyes as she felt her heart beating the same pace as the pulse beneath her thumb, and slowly, she followed Yoona to the dreamland deeper with each breath.

 

 

THE END