He doesn’t come the next day too. He asks Renjun who has classes with Slytherin and sure enough he is absent for all his classes the next day and doesn’t even come down to eat.

Jaemin couldn’t help but worry.

On Friday Jeno is back again, in pressed uniform and all, not a thing out of place. They have a double period of potions with Professor Slughorn in the morning and the rest is off.

It is a revision class of Cure for Boils.

By some odd luck, Jaemin and Donghyuck end up in the station next to Jeno who again is standing alone.

Professor Slughorn had tried to set him up with a partner in the beginning but Jeno firmly said he didn’t need one. He did indeed didn’t need one. He single-handedly aced Cure for boils potion and Slughorn had never been happier. He never tried to set him up again.

Jaemin observes Jeno work on the potion like he had done it a hundred times before. He moves with practiced ease and grace preparing the porcupine quills and horned slugs and snake fangs etc. while Jaemin is having a war while crushing his 6 snake fangs under mortar and pestle.

He stares at his side profile sneakily and if Jaemin is being truthful he looks a bit haggard and has slight eye bags under his pretty eyes.

Was he sick? Should he ask? Would he mind? They are considered friends by now, right?

He was lost in his own musings when it happens. Donghyuck drops one of the porcupine quills, it rolls under his feet and stupid Jaemin strikes again.

Donghyuck lets out the most unmanly screech possible putting the cry of Banshees to shame. Even Professor Slughorn looked shocked. A Slytherin student nearly tips his cauldron over.

“NA JAEMIN! WHAT HAVE YOU DONE?”

There is a crushed porcupine quill under the sole of Jaemin’s foot who hugs his mortar and pestle to his chest at Donghyuck’s outburst.

Donghyuck just groans like he lost his soul. He looks at Jaemin with his dead but accusing eyes.

Jaemin laughs nervously.

“I am sure we have taken extra.” He tries to make amend.

“They were used in the previous batch that we failed due to your incompetence of not grinding snake fang properly.”

“Then I am sure there are some left on the main table.”

“News flash: There aren’t”

True to his words, there is none.

Jaemin looks around in the class in the hope of some borrowing.

They look back at him like he had asked for their kidney, even people from his own house.

Traitors every one of them. Loyalty and brotherhood sold at the cost of a porcupine quill.

Donghyuck looks at him un-amused. He looks like he going to tell Jaemin to go to the Forbidden Forest to look for a porcupine.

Jaemin hears a sigh from his adjacent station. He turns to Jeno in time to see him put 2 porcupine quills on their desk.

“It’s okay I am done with mine already.”

Sure enough, the copper cauldron had a bubbling sparkling blue liquid.

Donghyuck was going to say something along the lines of ‘we don’t need your charity.’ But Jaemin beat him to it.

“Thanks” he gave him the most dazzling smile. Jeno just nodded in response going back to his work of stirring the potion clockwise not before throwing a glare to some grumbling Slytherin behind him protesting on helping out a rival house.

Yep, they are definitely friends now.

Or not.

The following week they sat together for Astronomy and Jaemin finally asked the question that has been eating him up.

“Were you sick last week?”  Jeno who was scribbling down notes suddenly stopped on hearing the question. He glared at Jaemin.

“None of your damn business.” His voice was cold and felt defensive.

 Jaemin was a bit taken back by the answer.

They didn’t talk for the rest of the class.

On the next Wednesday Astronomy class, Jeno had moved away to a different seat sitting with one of his fellow Slytherin. Donghyuck was glad to have his best friend back from the Slytherin’s slimy grip.

Jaemin was a bit upset. Suddenly he found no interest left in Astronomy class.

Time passed by like water and soon it was three weeks into October and Jeno was again absent in another of their Astronomy class. It was also a full moon night. Jaemin sat underneath the lit up moon, heart filled with an odd void.

The Halloween feast came earlier than they thought. It was a highly anticipated event by the student.

On the eve of Halloween, the Great Hall was decorated with live bats; Hagrid’s monstrous pumpkins have been carved into lanterns so large that three healthy adult male can sit in them. The tables are filled with confectionary filled pumpkins, apples, black cauldrons with huge lollipops of weird colors, and varied flavors. There were pieces of carrot cakes, goblets of colored fruit punch, pumpkin juice. There were bats flying around and orange streamers hanging down with the usual floating candles and cobweb chandeliers.

“I heard Professor Shim offered to book a troupe of the dancing skeleton but it was voted out.”

“Aww, it would have been fun.”

There is always some entertainment at the end.

 This year it was led by the Hogwarts Ghosts who pop out of the walls and do formation gliding.

It was an enjoyable feast. Jaemin ate heartily. He saw Jeno from the corner of his eye; the boy was as usual settled in between his brothers in Slytherin table. While some people have taken up the deliberation to dress up, he was still clad in his school uniform.  Jaemin is not the one to judge since he was also wearing school robes only.

Jeno left halfway through the Ghost’s performance. Lee Taeyong left a few minutes after, only the oldest Lee stayed behind being a Prefect.

After the performance, the headmistress, as well as the Professors, retired leaving the students in the Great Hall to enjoy.

Within minutes the tables disappeared leaving the large hall empty and there was music blasting down the room with the walls soundproofed with charms. It was a party and Jaemin had not danced this crazily before. He got separated from Donghyuck halfway through it, he spotted him dancing away with the ‘hot Hufflepuff senior with a nice face’ (his words not Jaemin’s). He looked like he was having the time of his life so he let it be.

Jaemin was dragged into the dance floor by hands of his fellow housemates and soon he was pressed between groups of giggling girls.

 Within minutes he had successfully become the life of the party. It was pretty easy for him if you ask.

An hour into the party he was getting tired of all the dancing and the grabby hands. He got d once and Jaemin did not appreciate that he got creeps all over his body. He deemed that he had enough and looked around for Donghyuck.

 Looking over the heads of the people around him he saw Baekhyun with his tall boyfriend dancing in the middle of the dance floor. He saw his boyfriend leave for a bit to get drinks. Taking this opportunity he approached him.

Baekhyun seeing him wolf-whistled. He shouted over the loud music.

“Wow! Looks like someone had a crazy time.”

Jaemin had taken off his sweater and outer robe leaving him in his white shirt and his tie loosely hanging off his neck. He looks down to see chap-stick lip prints on his white shirt.

! That’s going take forever to come off.

“So what’s up? Aren’t you enjoying the party too much for a 14-year-old? By the way, don’t touch the drinks unless you want to get wasted. I saw Johnny, Jongdae, and Kai pour something suspicious in the punch. So it’s better if you don’t drink or you’ll regret it in the morning.”

Jaemin made a face at Baekhyun at his teasing.

“Contrary to your expectation of me having a blast, I was thinking of turning in for today.”

“It’s only 8:30 pm. Are you sure you want to turn in for the night? The prefects gather all the first year and send them up by 10 anyway.”

“Yep, had enough dancing for today. Hyung, can you inform Donghyuck I can’t seem to find him. Tell him I left for the dorm. I really don’t wanna go inside that crowd again to get him.”

 Jaemin looked back at the crowd at his back distastefully. As much as he loves people and their showering attention, being d is not on his list.

“Okay. I’ll do that.”

Jaemin sees the tall boy (presumably Baekhyun’s boyfriend since they were never introduced formally to each other) returning with two glasses of punch. Taking this as his cue to leave, Jaemin exits the hall.

The first thing he does when he reaches the dorm is to go for a shower. The disused-now-used bathroom of the 7th floor gives him enough privacy and peace of mind. He immerses himself in the lukewarm water of the bathtub as he thinks things through. It’s healing and much needed.

After a shower, decked in his favorite pinstriped blue pajamas he makes his way to the Kitchen. The pumpkin pasty that was served at the feast today was something that is only prepared specially for Halloween. It was too tasty to pass up a few more, Jaemin was thinking of bringing some back and storing them to eat slowly in the future.

He has been to the kitchen accompanying Baekhyun before to smuggle food for Baekhyun’s late-night study sessions from the House-Elves of the Kitchen.

He was given an idea about the elves of the kitchen by Baekhyun.

Kreacher is the oldest and grumpy one. He served the House of Black previously before Harry Potter brought him back from there to serve in Hogwarts. He is also the one with a bad attitude and all the students avoid him.

Debbie is the preppy one. She is the one to ask if you want sweets.

There’s also Toby, Goose, and Winky who was hired by the previous Headmaster Albus Dumbledore. They are all pretty cordial with students.

Thinking about which of the House-elves to ask Jaemin reaches the main kitchen on the ground floor. It was 9:30 pm in the evening and he can still hear the chatter of the students a floor above which means the party is still going on.

The weather has gotten colder in recent days with the arrival of fall so he took a woolen robe with him, front left untied as he ventured into the hallway in front.  He was about to enter the kitchen when he stops at his feet.

He sees someone familiar sitting in a stool in front of the big fireplace.

At first, he thought his eyes are playing tricks on him but instead it is indeed Lee Jeno in all his casual glory in solid grey colored pajamas. Jaemin hides behind a pillar not wanting to be seen. He doesn’t have any reason to hide but somehow did it instinctively.

The boy didn’t seem to notice him as he is talking with one of the house-elves; Debbie if he had guessed her name correctly while holding onto a goblet, Jaemin is unable to see its contents but the way the boy has curled his fingers around it seemed like some hot drink.

Then another House-elf arrives with a large platter of pumpkin pasties and set them in front of Jeno on the table. To his surprise, Jaemin knows this House-elf well, its Kreacher. He is grumbling under his breath and then something very unusual happens.

Jeno smiles. It’s not one of those tiny smiles or smirk but a full-blown smile almost a grin. His straight white teeth are out, nose scrunched up, cheek lifted and those pretty eyes are crinkled to equally pretty crescents and Jaemin feels breathless like he has been punched in the gut.

Jeno pats down space beside him eagerly asking Kreacher to sit, who vehemently shakes his head in disagreement but finally relents in. Jeno hands out a pasty to him and Debbie as they sit together by the warm and toasty fireplace. Soon one by one House-elves join in as they sit surrounding the boy in a circle chatting together enjoying their food. It’s a heartwarming picture and Jeno is smiling the whole time, occasionally his hand coming up to cover his mouth hiding his laughter. Jaemin wants to join in but he remembers Jeno’s cold look from the last Astronomy class and refrains from acting on it.

“What are you doing here?”

Jaemin was startled but was relieved to see that it was directed at Jeno. It was from Lee Taeyong. He was still in his uniform. He strode in from the entrance on the opposite side, holding a shawl in hand.

The elves greeted him but did not leave; it was an attitude of familiarity. He went straight to Jeno and put the shawl around his shoulders. The younger one offered him pasties. Taeyong took one while munching on it he continued to scold Jeno.

“Do you know how scared I was? At least tell me before going somewhere, so that I know your whereabouts. Are you still a kid?”

Jeno just smiled at him.

Taeyong huffed. He ruffled his hair affectionately and gestured him to get up.
“Let’s go it’s almost 10. First years should be inside the dorms by 10.”

Kreacher put all the pumpkin pasties in a container for him to eat later and put it in Jeno’s hand. Jeno surprisingly hugged his little body getting down to his level and with thanks as he gratefully carried the container away running after Taeyong to catch up with him.

When Jaemin returned to his dorm empty-handed, he was more confused than ever. He couldn’t decide which one was the real Jeno, the one he sees every day or the one he just saw. Jeno Lee is an enigma and Jaemin unknowingly was getting led on by his duality.

The next day Donghyuck woke up with a headache so did the ones who stayed at the party till late and had the spiked drinks. Jaemin was in a comparatively better condition. He saw Jeno in potions in the 1st hour perfectly dressed not a hair out of place and sporting a cold aloof neutral expression. Jaemin thought about last night, the smiley warm Jeno he saw in the kitchen. He sighed to himself and went back to his work. A nagging thought in the back of his mind.

Jeno looks best with a pretty smile on his face.

November came with the rapidly changing colors of fall. It was the month when Quidditch begins.

 Jaemin has already mastered the art of flying. His studies are going well compared to before. He got praises from Madam Sprout for having green hands in growing plants. The Bouncing Bulbs are relaxed in his hands and the Puffapods bloom easily at his touch. Herbology, Jaemin discovers is his element.

He also excels at charms, his feather flies at the first utter of Wingardium Leviosa getting praised from Professor Flitwick, and scores additional 10 points for Gryffindor.

His Astrology and DADA is manageable but what is in shambles is his Potions and History of Magic.

Renjun has promised him to tutor him in History of Magic but Jaemin is at his wits end with Potions. Jaemin knows by nature he is not a very patient person. He is passive, sure but that’s because he is a bit lazy regarding certain things. But the point remains he is not a really patient person. To add a cherry on top he is easily distracted. These two in combination is like an accident waiting to happen in Potions.

So he goes to ask his seniors for help.

Baekhyun just laughs and shrugs.

“Even I am not good at it. My boyfriend helps me out. To be truthful most people are bad in it except Slytherins. It’s almost like it’s their representative subject.”

Jaemin admits he is a bit curious about this boyfriend of Baekhyun’s. He has seen him in the Halloween feast but not close enough to recognize him again and Baekhyun is really careful about the identity of his boyfriend around first years like Jaemin and Donghyuck. Jaemin knows Baekhyun often has secret dates with his boyfriend but he hasn’t formally introduced him as of yet.

So it comes as a shock when he finally meets him.

It’s somewhere in the end of the second week of December when the Suho or Kim Jummyeon (as he is formally known as) decides to have a group meeting of the “chopsticks boy gang” as Baekhyun calls it. Doyoung thinks it’s a bit racist to call it such but Baekhyun just shut him up by saying that self racism is not racism or whatever weird logical it meant. Doyoung didn’t say anything again.

The meeting was scheduled was to be held after supper in the Great hall on a Monday evening.

 The main purpose is to introduce the members of the gang so that they can help each other out and spend some time bonding.

From Gryffindor t