Half-blood.

Hyejin looks at the familiar words craved on the table she is working at in the library. She has a paper to hand back for tomorrow in Transfiguration and she is nowhere close to being done despite having spent her entire afternoon going through books. It is only as she takes a break to rest her eyes from her boring readings that she notices the words.

Hyejin has never enjoyed the whole conversation around pure bloods, half bloods, and muggle born. Your blood doesn’t define how powerful you may or not be. Case to the point, Byulyi’s mother who despite having been born in a long family of wizard, possess less magic than most. Not that she didn’t practice enough to become better, she just doesn’t have as much magic than others. Unfortunately for Hyejin, not everyone shares her thoughts.

She had the bad luck to realize it during her very first year at Hogwarts where two older Slytherins found it amusing to bully her when they learned that Hyejin had sisters who were born magic less. Their words were extremely mean and meant to hurt Hyejin in the worst possible way. Hyejin hated them but didn’t know how to fight back as an eleven years old facing two seventeen years old twice her size.

Instead, she avoided the common room as often as possible, sat as far as possible from them during meals, and would be careful when walking the corridors not to walk past them. She stuck to Byulyi the entire time, hoping her friend’s presence would keep the bullies away, but they always found a way to get to her.

It became even worst during her second year as they started to pull prank on her and she would often end up crying in the bathrooms because of them. She felt angry and powerless because of them, and it took Hyejin a really long time to believe into herself as wizard afterwards as their mean words got to her head.

It eventually stopped thanks to a certain Ravenclaw. Hyejin remembers having been cornered by the two Slytherins into an empty classroom. They had throw all of her stuff on the floor and ruined her homework she had spent the entire night working on and was due for today. As she was trying to get her stuff back from their grip, someone entered the classroom. Unfortunately for the two Slytherins, the Dual Tournament had just ended and Wheein’s reflex were off the charts, she threw her spell as soon as she understood what was going on and the two boys flew on the other side of the room, away from Hyejin.

They both seemed to recognize Wheein or maybe they got scared of her, Hyejin couldn’t say, but they ran off right after. Wheein helped her gathering her stuff back in her bag and asked her if she was okay with a very concerned tone. It felt rather strange, as despite meeting each other a few times through Byulyi, they had never truly talked to each other, still Wheein remembered her name.

Hyejin tried really hard no to but when Wheein told her to take care of herself, she bursted out in tears. Wheein didn’t say anything particular, she only listened to Hyejin quietly and frankly it was just what Hyejin needed at this moment. Something she knows Byulyi couldn’t have given her as her friend would have immediately went to confront the two boys and Hyejin would have felt even more powerless.

Wheein never talked to her about it, which Hyejin is very thankful for. One day, Wheein came to Hyejin at the end of their shared classroom and told her to meet her in the Potions Classroom after lunch. It was strange but Hyejin went. Wheein made them hide behind Mr. Greysom’s desk and five minutes later, the two Slytherins who have been making Hyejin’s life hell walked in.

Hyejin didn’t understand what was going on, all she could think about was that Wheein had betrayed her, so she punched Wheein as hard as she could. Wheein fell on the floor, while Hyejin had gotten out of her hiding to run far from this classroom but the two Slytherins boys had already spotted her. Hyejin froze when she met eyes with them, terrified of what was going to happen. Fortunately, Wheein had managed to ignore the pain of the punch and threw a spell before anyone could make a move.

« Avifors! »

The two boys started to become smaller and smaller, their nose became longer and their eyes changed shape and they were now birds. Two ugly crows that struggled to fly and bumped into each other before crashing on the ground.

Hyejin looked in horror at the two birds and then at Wheein. It changed into surprise when she spotted a white cat seating on one of the tables, looking at the two birds with appetite. The cat jumped in the birds direction, which managed to avoid it, but left a few feathers behind. The cat didn’t give up and kept jumping after the birds which were screaming in fear.

« Ggomo! Enough! »

The cat stopped before he could harm any of the birds and ran back to his mistress. His glowing golden eyes disappointed to have been forbidden a nice hunt.

« Next time, you will think before taking it on someone smaller than you. »

Wheein raised her wand again, making the two crows shake in fear, and turned them back into themselves. As soon as they could stand on their feet they ran away, telling themselves that this Ravenclaw girl was completely crazy. Yet, they never reported it to anyone, too scared the word would go around that a second year transformed them into birds.

« I am sorry. I should have warned you. »

Wheein looks down at the ground, now understanding that Hyejin thought she had bad intentions.

« It is fine, Wheein. You didn’t have to do all of that. »

« I wanted to be sure that they wouldn’t hurt you again. »

« Thank you. I appreciate it. »

Hyejin did really appreciate it. Even if she still felt powerless afterwards. In the end, she couldn’t handle her problems on her own, even if she didn’t ask for the help. It was frustrating to see that Wheein was better than her at magic despite them being the same age. Maybe this is why they didn’t grow closer even afterwards.

Maybe it is only now that Hyejin can count Wheein as her friend. It makes her smile. That is true, Wheein is her friend now.

« Yongsun, can you show me this charm? Can you check if I am doing the movement correctly? »

Lily Carter looks at Yongsun with big innocent eyes, waiting for Yongsun to come closer and correct her. As Yongsun agreed earlier on in year, she has been helping Lily with Charms. While, Lily really needed the help at the beginning, she no longer does, but doesn’t want to stop her private moment with Yongsun. So she plays dumb and messes up the Refilling Charm on purpose for the fourth time.

Yongsun patiently shows her how to do it for the fifth time, but Lily messes up once again. Yongsun comes behind her to show her the correct hand movement to do with her wand and Lily leans into Yongsun’s chest without the older girl seemingly noticing.

« See! You are doing it on your own. Come on. Try again, I am positive you can do it. »

Yongsun smiles at Lily and steps away to give her space to focus. Lily looks at the bottle she has to refill and at Yongsun encouraging her with her smile on the side. It is a pity that Yongsun is such a good teacher, making it difficult for Lily to not perform well. She does the move perfectly and fills up the bottle exactly as intended.

« Great! That was wonderful, Lily! »

Lily smiles weakly.

Yongsun walks to the bottle to collect it in order to put an end to their session and Lily does something stupid. It isn’t her fault, she was just a bit frustrated and her magic might have escaped her. The bottle explodes and covers Yongsun in water.

« Oh! I am so sorry, Yongsun! I didn’t- »

« It is fine. Don’t worry. »

Yongsun takes off her wet sweater, revealing her white shirt which has been spare by the water explosion. Lily feels herself blushing as she spots some of Yongsun’s skin in the process. It is impossible to look away, especially when Lily is a fourteen years old girl full of hormones who finds herself very attracted to Yongsun.

In her eyes, there is no one more interesting than Yongsun, and while all of her friends talk about the boys they find cute, Lily can only think of Yongsun. The older Gryffindor is intelligent, pretty, kind and hilarious to be around – as most Gryffindors will tell you. If only, Yongsun could give Lily a chance, but it seems that despite her best efforts, Yongsun doesn’t see her.

« Well. Good think it was just water. »

Yongsun smiles at Lily amused, before leading them out of the room with her sweater in hand. Lily follows her closely and they take the way of the Gryffindor’s Tower together. Yongsun congratulates her on her progress in Charm a second times, making Lily blush even more.

« Don’t be so loud! »

« You are the loud one! »

Wheein and Byulyi giggle together before rushing toward the Quidditch Pitch on their broom. They race each other to the pitch, laughing in the cold wind of January, pushing each other playfully, and then fly toward the Bell Tower. They then continue to the Gryffindor’s Tower, before diving away from the window of Mrs. Vera’s office, knowing the woman would scold them bad for flying without proper gear and in the middle of the afternoon when they should be doing their homework.

« Let’s race back to the pitch! I heard Hufflepuff have booked it! »

Indeed, the Hufflepuff Quidditch team is entering the Pitch as Byulyi and Wheein land discretely at the bottom of the bleachers. Their Captain is giving instructions on today’s training and her players are carefully listening.

« I dare you to spike up the Quaffle. »

« Dare. But you have to buy me Jelly Slugs afterwards. »

« Deal. »

Jelly Slugs are Wheein’s favorite candy for which she would do almost anything. It is also to be noted that Byulyi is well aware of it, having used it to bribe Wheein more than once in the past. Plus, Wheein is the perfect partner in crime, as she always manages to get them out of hard situations – that Byulyi and her adventurous spirit put them in to begin with.

Wheein waits for the Captain to open the heavy box of balls and when she takes out the Quaffle she points at it with her wand. The Quaffle immediately starts to move, rolling out of the Captain’s hands and into the ground before attacking the players’ feet. One girl who didn’t realize what was happening find herself lying down in the grass after the Quaffle crashed into her ankles.

Byulyi laughs at the Hufflepuff Quidditch team desperately trying to understand what is going on. When they finally realize that the Quaffle isn’t acting properly, they try to catch it, but to no avail as Wheein guides the ball away from them every time. Byulyi laughs even more when two players crash into each other and end up on their butts.

« Miss Jung. Miss Moon. »

Wheein and Byulyi freeze at the voice who just called their name. Wheein turns around and smiles at Mrs. Vera but the grey eyes of the woman are not amused by the situation at all. Byulyi groans, already knowing that she will spend the next half hour in the women’s office, a place she visits too often for her liking – but not as often as Yongsun.

« Before falling me to my office, I want you two to apologize to Hufflepuff team. »

Wheein and Byulyi groan but do as Mrs. Vera asks and apologize to the Hufflepuff players. They all give a dark look to the two Seekers for having prank them but it is nothing in comparison to Mrs. Vera long and harsh monologue they will face in a few minutes.

« I am at loss when it comes to you two. »

Byulyi doesn’t dare looking at Wheein, knowing she will end up smiling and it will make Mrs. Vera even more upset than she already is.

« Every year, you come up with new creative way to find the way to my office and always for the worst. Miss Moon, I am especially disappointed in your behavior. As you are now part of the older students, I am expecting a better behavior from your end. You should be showing the example and not doing pranks on other students. You should be helping the youngest feeling welcome at Hogwarts. »

Byulyi pinches her lips, knowing it is best not to answer when it comes to Mrs. Vera. The Head of Gryffindor is very different from the Head of Slytherin and she knows it is almost impossible to discuss with her.

« And you Miss Jung, I expected you to be smart enough to distinguish a good idea from a terrible idea. It is not because Miss Moon is your friend that you should always follow her lead. I believe you can hold some critical judgement for yourself on those kind of situations. »

Wheein nods at the words.

Mrs. Vera sighs. It is a mystery – and an annoying one – why the best students of the school have the tendency to get themselves in trouble. She feels like every single year she lives this scene in her office where she has to put some brains in their head.

« Miss Moon, you will help me grade papers on Saturday mornings. No negotiation possible. Not even Quidditch related, I let you all of your evenings to figure it out. You should have think of it before. »

« Yes, Mrs. »

« You can go now. I would like to talk to Miss Jung in private. »

Byulyi nods and leaves the room while glancing quickly at Wheein who avoid looking at her friend as a whole. Once Byulyi is gone, Mrs. Vera invites Wheein to sit down in front of her. Somehow it feels like it isn’t about the incident with Hufflepuff anymore and Wheein doesn’t know if it is a good thing or not.

« There is something I would like to discuss with you, Miss Jung. »

Mrs. Vera’s tone is entirely different than a minute ago and it makes Wheein raises an eyebrow. The woman pulls out a parchment from one of her drawers and opens it in front of Wheein on her desk. Wheein recognizes her dissertation on Conjuration.

Apart from being Gryffindor’s Head of House, Mrs. Vera is also the Transfiguration teacher. And Wheein has been asked in class to write about Conjuration, which is a particular branch of Transfiguration magic. It is also one of the most complex magic taught at Hogwarts. Everything in Wheein’s paper is accurate and the overall homework is well written, but there is something that caught Mrs. Vera’s attention.

« I read your parchment and I couldn’t help but notice your tone. I don’t know if you chose it on purpose, but it sounds like a warning. Is there something you would like to talk about concerning the matter? »

Wheein’s eyes go to the parchment to Mrs. Vera’s face and back to the parchment. It goes for a few seconds before she finally talks.

« I was just pointing out that magic is shaped by the one casting the spell. Intention matters more than magic in itself. It is what you do with it rather than what you are capable of doing. »

« I am not sure I am following you, Miss Jung. »

« I am not trying to make a point. You asked us to research on the subject and give our own thoughts. That is what I did, Mrs. Vera. »

« Hello, Hyejin. »

Hyejin’s breath is caught in for a second at the sudden apparition of Yongsun next to her. She was zoning out – as usual like Byulyi would say – while watching the view from the viaduct and wasn’t expecting anyone to be outside with this weather to be honest, so it is surprise to find Yongsun there.

« How are you doing? I haven’t seen you a lot around the castle, lately. I kinda feel like you have been avoiding me. Again. »

Hyejin feels guilty when she hears the pain in Yongsun’s last word.

« Is it because of what happened in the greenhouse? »

Hyejin’s cheeks turn red as her mind brings her back a month ago, before the Winter break, when she was trying to collect Bouncing Bulbs for Mr. Greysom and Yongsun came and helped her. Well, the reason of her red cheeks is rather what happened after, when Yongsun looked at her with those eyes full of hope and excitement just before kissing her.

« I didn’t want to do anything that would make you uncomfortable around me. I just… I didn’t know how to tell you some way else than… kissing you. »

Yongsun smiles shyly at Hyejin and it does nothing to lessen the red on her cheeks.

« I don’t think I have ever felt this way about someone before. I am being sincere with you, Hyejin. I wouldn’t have kissed you if I didn’t have all those feelings inside. »

Which is true. Yongsun usually lets the other person do all the work and with her physic she doesn’t have to wait long to have someone either confessing their feelings to her or taking the opportunity to kiss her. Taking the initiative to reveal her feelings to Hyejin is a first.

« What I am trying to say is that I thought about you during Christmas break. A lot. And… I would love for us to go out together. If you are okay with it? »

Hyejin is surprised to hear those words from Yongsun and flattered, really flattered, because Yongsun is the school’s heartthrob and she is just Hyejin. It seems unreal to have this conversation with Yongsun, which is more of a monologue since Hyejin has yet to say something. But still, it is crazy.

« Is it okay… if I think about it? »

Yongsun breaks into a smile, her warm eyes sparkling even more with excitement at Hyejin’s answer.

Hyejin congratulates herself on making a full sentence without stuttering despite the circumstances.

« Of course. Just… don’t ignore me again, please. »

Yongsun titles her head on the side, making her look cuter than Hyejin would expect her to be. She bites her lips at the sight and Yongsun’s eyes quickly follow the movement.