Summoning and binding with a familiar was a big deal for a young mage. A good level of mastery of magic was needed to prepare for the ceremony alone, not to mention the skill needed to perform it. Unlike popular belief, a normal animal or pet could not be bind as a familiar. The familiar is meant to be an extension of the mage and their magic, so the ceremony was important to summon the right one.

Minho had been approached by his professors last month to inform him that he was in consideration for the ceremony. His written and practical exams were all of exemplary results, he was of the right age, and his magic itself showed signs of being ready to take on a familiar. In order to be approved for the ceremony, Minho needed to collect all the ingredients, prepare the spell, runes, and insignias first. To say Minho was anxious about it would be an understatement.

Getting the ingredients was easy enough, their school had just about all the supplies needed already, and the couple they didn’t could easily be found in town or in the surrounding forest. The hard part was figuring out what each of those ingredients were and how much he needed. Thankfully, his friend Chan had completely the ceremony just the previous year and was very open to helping Minho out. He didn’t straight up tell him, just helped lead him in the right direction just as another senior had done for Chan when he did his.

What Minho found to be the hardest was learning the insignias. Spells, both verbal and physical, were always very easy for Minho to learn and memorize. And runes were simple enough to practice and redo and had the benefit of being prepared ahead of time. Their placements were the only part he had to worry about. The insignias on the other hand, were to be drawn as part of the ceremony itself and having the ink prepared properly, the right amount of magic weaved in, and the sizing done right were quite tricky and difficult to practice ahead of time. If he were to put all the parts together to practice with, it would be a waste of the ingredients and could easily backfire. There are practice inks that can be used to practice insignias with spells without risk of activating them, and Minho definitely went through two whole jars during his prep time. One jar usually lasts Minho four months.

All of Minho’s preparations were approved and he was scheduled shortly after for his ceremony. Due to the nature of the familiar ceremony, Minho would be on his own. Firstly, because having other sources of magic too close could throw off the spell, and secondly, for privacy. Selecting a familiar was very personal, Minho was the only one who needed to know who he summoned, and which was the best fit for him. His professors would be monitoring nearby visually, only to make sure he performs it properly and there are no emergencies.

“Minho, you have been practicing for a couple weeks now, you’ll do well. The ink is right, the runes are ready, and you can draw the insignia blindfolded, literally. I saw you a couple days ago,” Chan pointed out in an attempt to calm the pacing Minho down.

“I know, I know. I just don’t want to mess it up,”

“I highly doubt you will. On the off chance you do, the professors will make sure you’re fine, you’ll have a break period before you start preparations again and they will supply you with pointers for what you need to improve on. It’s no big deal if it doesn’t go right the first time. But you won’t need to worry about that. I know you’re going to do it.”

“Thanks Chan. I kind of wish Changbin was here too.”

“Did you message him?”

“Only that I was selected to prepare,” Minho admitted, finally stopping his pacing to slump onto the bench next to Chan. Chan’s familiar, a little dog named Berry, immediately jumped up next to him. She nudged him a couple times to pay attention to her and as soon as Minho started petting her, she wiggled in excitement. This was normal behavior for her, she was always eager to help and was just a bundle of joy and tried to cheer up everyone around. She did a good job at it too. Chan never said who his other familiar options were, but he was sure that Berry was the reflection of who he wishes he could be. Minho is sure Chan is already a lot more similar to Berry than he believes.

“You’re probably making him anxious then. Almost as much as you are right now.”

“He’ll probably assume I haven’t finished preparing.” Minho was quiet for a minute after that, just focusing on Berry. But that in turn remind him of his other worry. “Chan? How did you know to pick Berry?”

“I just knew. You’ll know how you connect to each of them immediately, but there will be a point where you know which one just feels right for you. Some people it’s instant, others have taken close to an hour to feel it out. It doesn’t matter, don’t try to rationalize it, just go with what you feel.”

“Minho? Are you ready?” His professor asked, walking out of the room Minho would preform the ceremony in. Chan gave him a thumbs up and promised he would wait for him to finish. There was no pushing it off now, so Minho stood and nodded, letting his professor lead him back into the room.

The room was prepared for the ceremony, Minho’s items laid on a table to the side ready for him to use. His professors gave him once last run down for the process and reminded him of the emergency procedures. Once Minho confirmed he was ready, his professors left the room and Minho began laying out the runes and checking his ink. Once he was given the go ahead, he began. He took a few deep breaths, focused his magic on the ink and then started drawing it out on the floor. It wasn’t long before Minho decided to close his eyes and just draw it though feeling instead of focusing on visually trying to make it perfect. Chan wasn’t lying when he said he saw Minho practicing it blindfolded. It wasn’t an unusual technique for Minho, preferring to learn and do it through muscle memory alone.

Thankfully Minho’s practice did not go to waste, and he completed the insignia and spell perfectly. When he opened his eyes, he was met with three small cats staring back up at him. Minho was fully expecting his familiar to be a cat, he’s always loved them and has three at home already and none of them are familiars. He was however, surprised to see just how different they were from each other. The first was a long-haired white cat, the second, a tan short-haired spotted cat, and the third, also short-haired black cat.
Starting with meeting the first one, Minho knelt down so he was down on their level. The white cat was quite elegant looking, though seemed a little more standoffish and like it was sizing Minho up. He must have passed whatever test the cat had as they approached Minho, looking for some affection. Minho knew immediately that they were a representation of his personality. He’s been told more than once that he seems unapproachable at first but those who get to know him know he’s very affectionate with his friends.

Not wanting to spend too much time with each, Minho moved onto the next. They were lean and muscular and no doubt a fast runner. Minho could only assume they were meant to be his strength. He’s sure it’s not quite a literal expression as he himself is not very athletic but he does work out a lot and has no problem picking up his friend or performing spells that take more physical effort. He’s not sure he would consider it one of the strongest aspects of himself that would be reflected in a familiar, but that’s for the spell to decide. The cat was nice enough, but where the first one was looking for affection, the second kept walking back away. As mean as it may seem, Minho knew this one would not be his familiar.

The third cat, the black one, Minho wasn’t immediately sure what they were supposed to be to him. Even more shocking, was that it wasn’t himself he felt this cat reminded him of. They were the smallest of the three, and Minho noticed that instead of the typical long tail both the others sported, they had a short nub of a tail. They looked quite eager for Minho to give them attention too.

“You know, you remind me of my friend Changbin,” Minho told the cat. “He’s small just like you.”

Minho knew this was the familiar for him. He couldn’t really say why, but just as Chan said, it just felt right.

“You’ll need a name. How about Nubbins? You look like a Nubbins.” With giving him a name, Minho started the binding process, forever tying Nubbins to himself. Once it was finished, the insignia glowed again before disappearing and taking the other two cats with it, leaving Nubbins and Minho alone in the room. He was only alone for a moment before his professors entered again. They checked on the strength of the binding and reminded him that he would get his new schedule for extra training in just a couple days and then he was free to go.

Chan was waiting just as he promised when Minho walked out. Berry was the first to react however, immediately jumping over to greet Minho’s new familiar. Nubbins seemed to get Berry’s approval as she was quickly wagging her tail and trying to get him to play with her. Nubbins sat still looking quite confused at Berry. As he sat there, Chan took the chance to get a good look at him as well.

“Looks like Berry likes him,” Chan said, very amused and calming Berry down. “How do you feel?”

“Tired,” Minho admitted. “But the professors said I did well and that the binding is strong.”

“You didn’t take long to pick either. I kept trying to second guess myself.”

“It just felt obvious.” Chan nodded, completely understanding.

“Well, you up to introducing him to the guys? They’ve been nagging me nonstop since I said you started.”

“Of course they have. Is Seungmin complaining about his exams tomorrow yet?”

“Pretty sure he started that before you even went in.” Minho rolled his eyes, expecting that answer. Chan just laughed and started leading them both out of the building.

Their other friends were all waiting in the cafeteria for them. Jisung was the first to notice they arrived and called out to them. It’s not that they needed the help, this late in the afternoon there weren’t too many students hanging around anymore, so their group was easy spot. With Jisung’s announcement of their arrival, Minho and Chan quickly found five pairs of eyes zeroing in on Nubbins.

“He’s so cute! What’s his name?” Hyunjin asked first, going in to scoop Nubbins up.

“Nubbins,” Minho announced. That got him a few looks. “It fits him, don’t you think?”

“It’s a very you kind of name,” Jeongin stated which received a few chuckles from the group.

“Was it hard choosing?” Jisung asked.

“Surprisingly no,” Minho answered. He went on to answer their many questions about the ceremony and trying to get info about his other familiar options. Minho wasn’t saying much about the other familiars, it wasn’t important, but he was perfectly happy to share the other details.

 

In the following days, Minho got used to Nubbins being around. He wasn’t a stranger to seeing familiars, his parents each had their own around the house, but having his own was very different. Their house cats seemed to welcome the new addition well enough, and his parents were just pleased that the ceremony went well.

Chan reminded him a couple of times about messaging Changbin, but Minho hesitated and let a few weeks go by. Minho’s not even entirely sure why, but he keeps stalling. Even when Changbin has messaged him, he has failed to bring up Nubbins in the conversation. Minho wants to tell his best friend all about the ceremony and training and how things are slowly changing, yet he doesn’t.

“Do you want me to tell him? Or at least like lead him into asking you about it?” Chan asked one day.

“No. Cause then he’ll be mad I didn’t tell him.”

“I’m sure he’s already going to whine up a storm when he finds out it’s been two weeks.”

“Wait, you still haven’t told Bin?” Felix practically shouted when he and Hyunjin joined them.

“Why not?” Hyunjin asked.

“I don’t know. I want to, but I don’t know how he’ll react.”

“Happy for you. Disappointed he still has to wait a couple months to meet him. Sad he wasn’t here. Can’t really see him reacting any other way,” Felix pointed out. Minho knew he was right too.

Instead of arguing, Minho changed the conversation. He knew they wouldn’t let up on it, but they also didn’t need to keep focusing on the issue. A little later though, sometime after Chan had left them, the conversation popped back up, just not in the way Minho expected.

“You know, Nubbins doesn’t really remind me of you Minho,” Felix suddenly announced. “I don’t mean that badly. Just Berry really feels like Chan to me, but Nubbins not so much you.”

“Honestly, I felt the same during the ceremony,” Minho admitted.

“He reminds me of Changbin especially now he’s been around a couple weeks.” Minho nodded, agreeing. “Is that why you named him Nubbins? After Changbin?”

“Not entirely. A lot of it was because of his tail, but the similarities to Changbin did play a part.”

“But why would Nubbins be like Changbin if he’s Minho’s familiar?” Hyunjin asked, jumping back into the conversation. “A familiar is supposed to be a part of you, not someone else.”

“Yeah, that is a little weird. What part of you would make your familiar be like Changbin? Sure, you two have some similarities, but that would still make it seem like you.” Felix seemed really caught on this idea and would not be distracted while the others switched topics again. “Wait. I got it,” Felix shouted, getting their attention. “I know you have a crush on Changbin, but I really didn’t know it was this deep. It makes sense though that Nubbins reflects your-“ Felix was suddenly cut off by Minho covering his mouth.

“Don’t you dare say it,” Minho threatened but Felix brushed it off.

“Why not? What other option is there? Is this why you haven’t told him?”

“Wait, I’m lost,” Hyunjin announced. “Nubbins is what? And how does this relate to Minho’s crush on Changbin?”

“Come on Hyunjin keep up. I know I’m not the only one who noticed.”

Felix was in fact not the only one who noticed. Just a few days later, Felix brought it up again when the whole group was together. Minho kept trying to end the conversation, but none of them were having it.

“Dude, it’s obvious,” Seungmin announced after Minho wondered why they kept insisting on it.

“I’m not sure I’d say it’s obvious, but I’ve been suspecting it for a bit now. I’m really not sure of what other option there is,” Jeongin added.

“There isn’t another option. At least not one that fits for their relationship.” Miho rolled his eyes at Jisung.

“What does my relationship with Changbin have to do with anything. We’re best friends, that’s it.”

“So, we’re just ignoring the part of you being in love with him,” Chan said softly, not that it stopped any one from hearing him. There were a few snickers, and most were looking away from Minho trying to hide their expressions.

“I hate you all.”

“You know we are right. You came to this same conclusion yourself. Like it’s the whole reason you’re avoiding mentioning Nubbins to Changbin, you don’t want him to find out,” Felix said.

“There must be a different reason.”

“There really isn’t,” Jisung started. “Familiars are created from the caster and are a reflection of them. Usually this shows up as parts of their personalities, core values, how they present themselves, or physical traits. There are other options though that typically relate to strong emotions. Take Chan and Berry for example. Berry is who Chan hopes to be because he has the strong desire to be that person and that desire was strong enough to manifest as Berry when his familiars were formed in the ceremony.”

“But even then, that’s still Chan. So, how does that explain Nubbins being a different person?” Hyunjin asked.

“There are a number of cases of a familiar taking the reflection of someone else. Still rare, but it is well enough documented. Most situations involve twins as they have a much closer link in many ways. The cases that don’t, involve one of two emotions; Love,” Jisung said holding up his right hand and pausing. “Or hatred,” He finished holding up the left hand now. “These are of course the emotions most people consider the strongest. But while that’s not technically true, they are the two emotions that are typically strongly felt towards a specific person. There are a lot of records of people admitting that their familiar is that of their enemy or they had that as an option during their ceremony. Same for love. It’s even recorded as a reason that some bindings fail. As both Chan and Minho have mentioned, while technically there are no wrong answers with choosing a familiar, there is one you know is right just by feeling. And many of those who had their ceremonies fail during the binding say it was because they chose the wrong familiar, and a large percentage of those are said because the familiar they should have chosen was one that reflected their love or hatred, and they didn’t want to be constantly reminded of that.”

“Dude, why do you know so much about this?” Seungmin asks.

“I’m literally in a magically creatures class this year. We cover familiars much more detailed than in our regular classes. Anyways, obviously Minho loves Changbin and that was strong enough to manifest Nubbins as a familiar. In more technical terms, Nubbins is the reflection of Minho’s heart and Changbin is the strongest part of it.” Everyone paused when Hyunjin gasped, and everyone could see the metaphorical lightbulb turn on above him.

“Did you really only just now catch up?” Jeongin asked, shaking his head. Hyunjin just shushed him.

“This isn’t a new thing either,” Jisung continued, ignoring Hyunjin. “There have been lots of speculations for centuries as to what it means when someone has a familiar formed of their love. Soulmates, fate, and true love were all rumored to be the reason it happens, especially if both have familiars of each other. But there really isn’t any proof to any of that, and more so plenty of occasions where their feelings about the person changed after a couple years for whatever reason and thus their familiar was no longer an accurate representation. But of course, the process to change your familiar is very difficult so most don’t bother. Which of course is the reason some choose against that familiar even if it’s the right one.”

“Did any say how the person their familiar represented reacted?” Minho asked nervously.

“Some did. It’s all over the board though. Some it was positive, others negative.”

“If you’re trying to gage how Changbin will react, well that’s just up to how he feels about you, and I don’t think there is a problem there. I don’t think he could think badly of you, plus it took Hyunjin this long to figure it out and that’s because it was literally spelled out for him,” Felix attempted to reassure Minho.

After their talk, Minho knew there was no convincing that Nubbins could mean anything else. Minho of course knew how he felt about Changbin, their friends all knew it too, he just never expected it could be strong enough to form a familiar. He can’t say he has come to terms with Nubbins’ meaning, but he knew he couldn’t put off mentioning him to Changbin anymore.

As expected, once Minho messaged Changbin, he wanted to know everything. He was a little disappointed to find out Minho didn’t tell him right away, but let Minho blame it on random small excuses. Most details he wouldn’t tell Changbin, instead saying he was going to have to wait and see for himself when he finally returned home. But Minho gave him plenty of the basics to get by with including his name. Telling Changbin lifted a huge weight off his shoulders, but that didn’t stop him from still being nervous for when the two would actually meet in a couple of months.

The months flew by it seemed. Final exams made the last month almost a blur, but thankfully everyone passed with no issues and the year was finished. Minho had Changbin’s return date marked on every calendar he could. They hadn’t discussed any plans yet, but Minho knew they wouldn’t wait long to see each other again.

“Bins! Dori!” Minho shouted while walking through the garden at his home. The cats had certainly taken to Nubbins by this point and Dori being the youngest is the one most frequent to be found playing with him. The garden was their favorite place to be, and Minho can’t blame them, he also spends a lot of his free time out there, either to relax or help his mother with the plants.

Minho continued calling out for the two cats as he searched around the garden. There were a couple of spells he could use to either find them or call them to him, especially Nubbins, but he much preferred the old fashion way. They were good and always stayed on their property, never going too far. Aside from Nubbins, they were all mostly indoor cats, the garden being a special treat on good days. What Minho wasn’t expecting however, was to turn the corner and see Changbin standing there, just inside the gate, Dori in his arms and Nubbins at his feet. Changbin was looking down at Nubbins so didn’t notice Minho until Nubbins ran back to him.

“Uh, hi,” Changbin finally said, snapping Minho out of his shock.

“Hey,” Minho replied quietly. Neither spoke again until Minho cleared his throat. “When did you get back? It wasn’t supposed to be until next week.”

“About two hours ago? Something like that. Parents picked me up and then we dropped everything off at home and changed and now I’m here. The plan changed a couple weeks ago but I wanted to surprise you, so I didn’t say anything.” As they spoke the two slowly moved closer and Changbin let Dori escape his hold so he could finally hug Minho. “I missed you. It really not having you around to bug me constantly. Don’t let my parents talk me into that again.”

“Well, you’ll have to tell me everything now you’re home. And don’t tell me you didn’t bring me anything back.” Changbin laughed, breaking their embrace and Minho was ready to melt at the sound of it. It’s been nearly a year since he’s heard it in person.

“Of course, I got you something. I knew you would care about that more than me. But I haven’t done any unpacking so you will have to wait for it.”

“I suppose I can be convinced to wait a little longer.” Minho’s teasing earned him a punch in the arm, but he laughed it off. “Alright, let’s go inside. Mom will be happy to see you again too. Though I think she planned on giving you a mini welcome back party next week that you have now ruined.”

“I think she will forgive me. Your mom loves me too much.” Minho rolled his eyes, though he knew it was true. Changbin had been Minho’s best friend since they were young and constantly over at his house. His mother practically treats Changbin as a second son.

Thankfully the cats stayed close, so Minho didn’t have to search for them again. With just a quick call, they followed them inside. As expected, Minho’s mother was overjoyed to see Changbin again and immediately proceeded to ask him a million questions about his trip. Spending a year abroad to study at a different school was a major experience and Changbin had plenty of stories to fill them in on. Of course, Changbin kept in contact with his friends, especially Minho, but even then, there was still stories to tell.

“Alright, so since you didn’t tell me much at the time, tell me about the ceremony,” Changbin said, switching the topic off of himself after some time.

“Okay, I was a little late, but I did tell you about it.”

“Not much. You basically told me it went well and that he is a cat named Nubbins. Please tell me you didn’t do it blindfolded.”

“I didn’t do it blindfolded,” Minho scoffed.

“Good.”

“They don’t allow blindfolds. I just closed my eyes.” Changbin let out a long and deep sigh, muttering an ‘oh my god’ to himself. “Don’t give me that. I practiced it that way cause it makes it easier for me. No distractions and no overthinking, just muscle memory. Did shock a couple of the professors though since they’ve never proctored for me before.”

“You nearly gave me a heart attack the first time I saw you do it. I’m still not used it.”

“Not sure why.”

“Probably cause it’s not how my brain works so I can’t understand why it works for yours, regardless of how well I know you. It means I know you will do the thing, not why the thing works for you.”

Minho did proceed to fill in all the little details of his ceremony and the work leading up to it. Changbin of course had a thousand questions about it, especially since he will most likely be having his during the next year. It was only after he was done with explaining all the parts of it that he finally called Nubbins back in for a proper meeting.

“Bins!” Minho called out and Nubbins immediately came to join them.

“Bins?”

“Yeah, short for Nubbins of course.”

“Please don’t mix me up with your familiar.”

“I would never,” Minho gasped and faked being insulted. “You’re Bin and he’s Bins, not confusing at all.”

“You know, I wasn’t sure if this was Nubbins or not earlier.” Changbin changed focus back to the cat in front of him, ignoring Minho’s ridiculous comment.

“You barely interacted with him, only way you would know is just the magic presence.”

“I just assumed I would have immediately known it was a mini you. Like Chan with Berry or your parents with theirs.”

“Yeah, but you met all of their familiars with them at the same time, that makes it easier. And it’s probably cause of what type of reflection they are. I think mine is a little less obvious.”

“Are you going to tell me?” Minho shook his head. “What! Why not? I’m your best friend, you should be able to tell me,” Changbin whined and pouted.

“I’ve haven’t officially told anyone.”

“Yeah, but I’m not just anyone to you.”

“They all guessed by themselves. Well except Hyunjin but even then, I’m not the one who told him. You will just have to figure it out on your own. No cheating.”

“Rude. Can I at least get a hint?” Minho pretended to think for a moment before denying Changbin’s request.

Telling Changbin he would have to guess was not one of Minho’s smartest decisions. Changbin was quite relentless about it, taking a guess every couple of days. Just a few days after he returned home, they managed to get all their friends together and Changbin of course took the opportunity to try and pry the answer out of them. Thankfully, Minho warned all of them ahead of time and no one budged. It was easy enough for them to deflect the conversation as well, wanting to hear everything about Changbin’s year and to nag him for their presents, which Changbin of course remembered to bring this time.

Changbin brought everyone back at least one sort of typical tourist souvenir and then some other random items he thought each person would like. He had already managed to get Minho his gifts a couple days prior to them all meeting up, as well as his gifts to Minho’s family. He certainly bought the most for Minho, even starting a little figurine collection for him. Changbin said he picked up any little figure that reminded him of Minho. Minho was a little conflicting on his feelings with that. There were certainly a small few that he could agree had some sort of similarity to himself, but most were quite ugly and a little insulting. He couldn’t really be that insulted though, considering he would do the same to Changbin. However, the sheer number of them made Minho’s heart swell a little considering each of them represented a physical moment that Changbin thought of him.

Slowly, Changbin stopped guessing as much, mostly because he was running out of options to try. Their friends refused to even give him a hint and reassured him that Minho didn’t tell them either. It had been a few weeks since he returned and had plenty of time to spend with Nubbins, so he was very aware of all the familiar’s habits and personality at this point.

~

“So, how exactly does the school handle your abroad year?” Seungmin asked Changbin. They were waiting for the rest of the group along with Hyunjin and were discussing the upcoming school year.

“Well of course they sent my grades over with the class list of what I took. But additionally, all my practical exams were recorded and those were also sent over. That way they can see exactly how I did on the major points and compare it to our classes,” Changbin explained.

“You think you’ll still be picked for the familiar ceremony this year?”

“Should be. I don’t see why not.”

“Do you think it’ll be weird having a second ‘mini-me’?” Hyunjin suddenly asked. Changbin and Seungmin abruptly paused their conversation and stared at him.

“A second mini-me?”

“You know Changbin doesn’t have a familiar yet, right?”

“I know that,” Hyunjin confirmed, which did nothing to ease Changbin and Seungmin’s confusion, but their questioning Hyunjin seemed to confuse him as well.
That was what Jisung and Jeongin walked into. Three confused friends all waiting for the others to start explaining.

“What’s going on?” Jisung asked, taking a seat next to Hyunjin and Jeongin next to him. “Did someone try to explain particle physics to you?”

“Why would someone just come up and start explaining particle physics to us?” Seungmin asked.

“I don’t know. Seems like something that could happen. Would also explain why you all look like you got told something ridiculous.”

“Sure, but it’s not particle physics, it’s just Hyunjin.”

“So why does Hyunjin look confused?” Jeongin questioned.

“He’s confused that we are confused,” Changbin explained.

“Well now we’re just going in circles. What did Hyunjin say?”

“I just asked how Changbin would feel about having a second mini-me when he most likely does his familiar ceremony this year. And these two started looking at me like I’m crazy or grew a second head.”

“I’m staring at you like you’re crazy, cause you are,” Jeongin announced. “You have to have one mini-me to have a second.”

“Yeah, and the magic to be able to bind a second familiar is crazy difficult and rarely happens. Certainly not going to have some students doing it,” Jisung continued. Hyunjin let out a loud exasperated sigh.

“I know Changbin doesn’t already have a familiar. I’m talking about Nubbins.”

“Nubbins?” The rest questioned in chorus.

“What about Nubbins?” Minho asked, joining the table, Chan and Felix with him.

“Come on Minho, agree with me. They all think I’m weird for calling Nubbins Changbin’s mini,” Hyunjin pleaded. The rest besides Changbin immediately picked up on what Hyunjin was talking about at that point. Some where carefully looking at Minho for his response, while Seungmin and Jisung decided to take a different approach.

“Nubbins is my familiar, if you think he’s Changbin’s mini then it’s just cause he and I are similar.”

“Right, Nubbins can’t be anything other than like Minho,” Changbin confirmed.

“We had this chat already,” Hyunjin pauses when he suddenly flinches. “That Nubbins isn’t really that similar to Minho but is so much like Chang... Ow. Why are you two kicking me? Or are you two doing something weird with me in the middle.”

“Why would I do something with Seungmin?” Jisung questions, acting insulted.

“Hyunjin. First off, I’m dating you. Second, while Jisung has aim, I kicked you dead on, it was intentional.”

“Why? I’m not wrong.” Hyunjin continued trying to speak, but Jisung and Seungmin looked up at each other, rolled their eyes, got up and dragged Hyunjin away from the group.

“Well, that was weird,” Changbin announced once the other three were out of hearing range.

“Yeah, not sure what Hyunjin was thinking about. He must’ve misunderstood something.” Minho tried laughing it off, though he wasn’t sure if it came off sincere.

~

While Changbin had originally brushed off the comments and considered them impossible, he couldn’t stop thinking about it. He knows Hyunjin’s thoughts are sometimes a little out there, even more so than Minho’s at times, but he usually doesn’t completely make something up like that. He especially doesn’t insist that it was other people’s idea. Also, Changbin can’t help but somewhat agree that Nubbins isn’t as obviously Minho as he is used to other familiars being to their counterparts.

Changbin’s never really studied familiars on his own, only bothering to know the basics. So, the idea of a familiar being able to be anything other than a copy of the mage who created it, is quite wild to him. The longer Hyunjin’s words nagged at him, the more Changbin felt the need to look into it. He knows he can’t ask Hyunjin, Jisung and Seungmin probably made sure he wasn’t going to bring it up again, most likely for Minho’s sake. Which was another thought Changbin didn’t want to question at the moment.

“Hey Minho.” Changbin gently called out, unsurprisingly finding Minho in his back garden. Minho turned to greet him with a huge smile on his face, obviously enjoy his time gardening, but it fell once he noticed Changbin’s somber expression.

“Hey, what’s wrong?”

“Do you have some time to talk?”

“Yeah, of course, what is it? Did something happen?” Minho was rapidly asking his questions while leading Changbin to a more secluded part of the garden.

“Nothing happened, just researched something and need your input. Or rather, confirmation.”

“Okay,” Minho said slowly and drawn out, not feeling very reassured. He waited while Changbin took a deep breath and seemed to prepare himself to actually ask his question.

“Is Nubbins actually me?” Changbin finally asked. Minho opened his mouth like he was going to reject the idea the same way he did with Hyunjin, but Changbin stopped him first. “Honestly. After Hyunjin brought it up, I started looking into it and saw it was possible. So, you can’t deny that part. I’m your best friend, tell me the truth.”

Minho couldn’t face Changbin and seemed like he was trying to come up with a way out of the conversation, but Changbin wasn’t going to let it up. “He is,” Minho whispered and gently nodded.

“I’m sure I’m not your enemy. That would mean then that Nubbins is your heart.” Again, Minho nodded, still refusing to face him. Changbin gave a slight chuckle. “I’m surprised you didn’t try to deny it.”

“You asked for the truth. And I told you I would tell you if you guessed correctly.”

“Did you know immediately that’s what he was? Is that why you chose him?”

“Yes and no.” Minho sighed. “I wasn’t one hundred percent sure what he was during the ceremony, but I instantly knew he reminded me of you. After that I wanted to deny it, but the others realized it and wouldn’t let me. But I chose him because he was the right one. It didn’t matter what he represented, he was the right familiar. You’ll know what I mean when you have yours.”

“Would you have second guessed it if you knew during the ceremony?”

“No idea.” Minho could see Changbin’s confused expression out of the corner of his eye. “I knew at a glance Nubbins was the right one. There was no room to debate. I don’t reject or regret what he is, but I can’t say I wouldn’t have tried to avoid this moment.”

“Why?”

“Because who in the world wants their best friend to find out they’re in love with them and their feelings for them are so strong they manifested as a familiar?” Minho all but shouted, finally looking at Changbin again. “Especially when those feelings have never been discussed. And you’re standing here, questioning why I chose Nubbins instead of just turning me down. And sure, I could get over my feelings eventually, I’ve gone this long keeping them under wraps, but Nubbins will always be here as a reminder of it.”

“I just wanted to know what you were thinking at that time and if you regrated it. I wasn’t turning you down. But I guess I’m not making that clear.” Now it was Changbin’s turn to turn away, more embarrassed that he upset Minho than anything else. “Can I still ask. What would you have done if I never guessed it?”

“Either found the nerves to confess and mention it afterwards, or just never say anything.”
“Did you think I would be upset by it?”

“You’re not exactly proving that you aren’t.”

“Sorry. This wasn’t how I planned this to go. I just keep having all these questions. Mostly cause I wasn’t sure how to process it if you did say yes. I really thought you were going to say no, or that it’s changed, or that I was thinking that it meant more than it does.”

“I think it’s fairly clear now. What was your plan?” Minho questioned.

“Well, if you said I was wrong, I guess just apologize and try not to make it awkward between us.”

“Did you have a plan for me saying yes?” Changbin turned bright red as he thought about it.

“Not going to lie, my initial fantasy thought was to just make out with you right then and there.” That got Minho wide-eyed and turning a little pink as well. Changbin coughed and spoke again. “After I controlled that thought, I realistically thought I would at least return the confession. Try to be all cool like. But as we can see, I really messed that idea up.”

“Yeah, you lost any chance on the cool factor. You could, however, try to salvage the rest of it though.”

“Right. Yeah. Sure.” Changbin started stuttering out when he processed Minho’s words. “Sorry for really making a mess of this. But, uh, right the confession.”

Minho couldn’t help the fond smile and laugh he tried really hard to stifle watching Changbin becoming a nervous wreck.

“I don’t have anything like Nubbins to prove just how deep my feelings for you are, but hopefully I can still make you believe it. I’ve had these feelings for quite some time now, but I think they really came to a head when I was away. Before I could deny them and just say it was cause we were best friends that I felt like this, but I couldn’t while I was away. I constantly missed you and wanted nothing more than to come home and be with you. I missed our other friends too, but it wasn’t the same. And the more I lingered on those thoughts, the clearer they became that it wasn’t just simply hanging out and talking I wanted. We’re touchy with each other as it is, but I wanted it to be more. Mean more. I wanted to hold you, kiss you, and to not be only best friends. So, I hope you can accept my feelings as sincere and that I didn’t mess this up already.”

Minho just blinked, caught completely off guard by the speech. “Okay, I think you got a little bit of the cool factor back.”

“Minho. Is that all you’re going to say?” Changbin whined.

“Hey, at least I’m not making you play twenty questions and completely ignore the confession part. Geez. Are you sure you didn’t write that speech down ahead of time?”

“No. I did have one written down, but I left it at home on accident.” That finally cracked Minho and he couldn’t help but burst out laughing. Changbin followed suite not long after, not being able to avoid the infectiousness of Minho’s laughter.

“I’d say I can’t believe it, but I totally do. But yes Changbin. I accept your feelings if you accept mine.”

“Good, can I kiss you now?”

“Shouldn’t you take me on a date first?”

“No. I’m impatient. The date can come afterwards.” Minho rolled his eyes, but let Changbin pull him down anyways.


A/N: Well This was originally supposed to be done for halloween but work and changed my schedule so that didn't happen. Anyways, I thought it was a cute and funny idea and I hope it came across that way. And I didn't go into detail of how Nubbins and Changbin were alike cause otherwise this would have been much longer, so you'll just have to take everyone's word for it.
Hope you enjoy
^^♥