It’s definitely mutual. As far as anybody can tell from the harsh words and hexes thrown in the air.

{TaoHye}

-0-

There is a long list of things that Ji Hye finds funny. There’s also an equally long list of things she doesn’t find funny. At the moment, this is up pretty high on her list of things that decidedly aren’t funny.

“Okay, Xing,” she says impatiently. “You can remove the charm. I promise I won’t disembowel him.”

The Hufflepuff merely clears his throat awkwardly and fiddles with the wand in his hand, not looking at her.

“Zhang, remove the charm,” Tao growls next to her. She doesn’t hesitate to shove him, even though it almost causes her to fall over too.

“Don’t order my best friend around like that,” she huffs, attempting to cross her arms only to remember that she’s currently stuck to the most aggravating Slytherin in Hogwarts.

“Then tell him to remove the charm,” he grits out between clenched teeth, hand clenched in her robe and pulling her closer so they’re face to face. She wrinkles her nose, ignoring the pink blush that settles on her cheeks.

“I will,” she snaps, “if you get out of my face!” She shoves him away (well, as much as she can when she’s currently attached to him) and runs a hand through her hair, taking a deep breath to calm herself down. Getting angry at Yixing would only make him more nervous and he’d be more likely to mess up the spell. “Okay, Yixing,” she begins in a much calmer voice. “You can let us go now.”

Yixing merely shuffles his feet and rubs the back of his neck sheepishly. “About that…”

Ji Hye supresses the urge to sigh, squeezing her eyes for a brief moment. “Please tell me you know the counter charm.”

“Well, we kind of just learned it in class and – “

“And what?” Tao snarls, interrupting the elder. Ji Hye takes it upon herself to stomp on his foot just to shut him up. Honestly, he has absolutely no respect for his elders and it’s appalling. Then again, he is a Slytherin, so what else could she expect? Certainly not manners.

“Um, we haven’t learned the counter charm,” the sixth-year rushes out in one breath, stepping away from the two fifth-years.

She doesn’t know if she wants to laugh, cry or simply shoot herself in the foot with the Killing Curse. Rules be damned, because she’d rather be dead than be stuck with Huang Zitao for… goodness knows how long.

“For ’s sake, Zhang! Why the hell would you use a charm you barely even know?” Tao explodes, stepping forward to probably throttle Yixing. She plants her feet in the ground, successfully stopping him from moving forward to kill her best friend. As much as she may be irritated with the Hufflepuff, he’s still her best friend and he’s not about to let Huang the tosser harm him. Despite being younger, Ji Hye has always had this overpowering need to protect the elder. Maybe it’s just her Gryffindor tendencies showing up again. At the moment, she really doesn’t care.

“Don’t you dare lay a hand on him,” she hisses, tugging the back of his robe and almost causing him to topple over, which would have ended up with both of them on the floor – decidedly a bad thing.

“He stuck me to you!”

“As if I’m enjoying this! Stop being a prat and actually be nice.”

“What is going – bloody hell!”

The squabbling pair turns at the sound of a new voice, only to see Yixing diving behind the newcomer. Ji Hye scowls at Sehun, who is so obviously trying not to laugh (and failing miserably, if his obnoxious guffaws are anything to go by).

“How?” he chokes out.

“Him,” Tao snaps, glaring at Yixing.

“I didn’t mean to,” the elder wails, clutching at his hair. Sehun pats the Hufflepuff’s back, still chuckling.

“That’s fine,” Sehun reassures the distraught boy. “I’m sure getting them to Professor Key will help.”

Well, she certainly hopes it does.

•●•●•●•

The charms professor prods both of their arms before leaning back.

“Nope, I can’t do anything,” he says cheerfully.

“What.” No, this can’t be happening. Ji Hye refuses to believe this is really happening. She refuses to be stuck to Huang Zitao for the rest of the day.

“I’m afraid there’s nothing to be done,” Key repeats, sitting on his desk. “You two are stuck that way.”

“For how long?” Tao demands and it’s quite possibly the first time she’s glad he said something.

The professor taps his wand on his chin. “A week?” he offers. He opens his mouth to say something else, but anything he would have said is drowned out by the two infuriated students in front of him.

“What?” Ji Hye screeches. “I can’t be stuck with that for a week – “

“Professor, it’s impossible to spend more than ten minutes with her, let alone a week – “

“ – I’d rather be deaf, blind and mute then live with this – “

“ – You could cut my arm off – “

“ – He’s a Slytherin – “

“ – She’s a Gryffindor – “

“Silencio,” Professor Key barks, causing their voices to disappear. “Now, if you little ingrates will listen,” he shot a glare at both of them, “you’ll hear that I’m only guessing. Since Mr Zhang over there is still a novice with the spell, I assume that it isn’t as strong as it was meant to be and will fade in its own. From what I can tell, the bonds are already decaying.”

Ji Hye attempts to ask, “So how long?” only for air to escape . She waves her arms (well, arm) to gain the professor’s attention. With a roll of his eyes, he cancels the spell and she tries again.

He hums thoughtfully. “I have no idea. I guess we’ll have to wait and see. Now, run along. You’ll be late for your next class if you don’t hurry!” With that, he tossed the four students out of the classroom, nearly causing Tao and Ji Hye to squish a couple of second-years entering the room.

“Fat lot of help he was,” Tao grumbles, glaring at the door. His glare is redirected to Ji Hye as she tugs at his arm in an attempt to loosen the charm (or possibly tear her own arm off).

“Great, now I’m stuck to you,” she complains, fumbling to get her wand out of her pocket. With a huff, she tugs it out, elbowing the Slytherin in the process. “Accio bag.” She watches in glee as her bag zips down the stairs, hitting Tao’s head on the way.

“You did that on purpose,” he snarls. If looks could kill, Tao would definitely be free right now, or at least dragging a dead body around. It’s a good thing they don’t (unless you’re a Basilisk, of course).

“No one cares,” she shoots back cheerfully.

“It could be worse,” Sehun muses as they start walking towards the greenhouses.

“I’m stuck to this,” Tao snaps, jabbing his finger into her shoulder. “It can’t get any worse.”

“You could be stuck face to face.”

“Shut up.”

•●•●•●•

First Year

Ji Hye tripped over the last step, nearly falling to the floor. Jongin snorted, pushing the girl away once she regained her balance.

“You’re such a klutz, Song,” he teased. She stuck her tongue out at him, readjusting her robes.

“Shut it,” she retorted, grabbing his collar and pulling. “Hurry up or we’re going to be late for breakfast!”

He flailed in her grip, nearly tripping as they exited the portrait hole. “I can walk!”

Ji Hye almost bounced down the steps to the Great Hall. Her head wouldn’t stop whipping around, determined to commit every single nook and cranny of the castle to memory. It was nothing like the stories her brothers and sisters had told her – it was better.

“Ji Hye!” she heard someone cry and whipped her head around, waving at her best friend.

“Sehun, hey!” she greeted, hopping in place. Jongin groaned, turning to walk into the Great Hall without her, but was stopped by her fist balled in his robes.

“He’s a Slytherin,” he hissed, pointing at the green and silver in his robes as if she couldn’t see them. “Why are you still friends with him?”

She rolled her eyes. “Because he’s not like the others, duh,” she told him. “He’s been my best friend since we were kids. Play nice.”

“You sound like my mother,” Jongin muttered, only to receive an elbow to the gut in reply. “Violent. You are violent.”

Ji Hye’s face scrunched as she saw who he was with.

“What’s he doing here?” she asked, pointing at the cat-eyed boy standing next to Sehun.

“He’s my roommate,” he replied. “I thought I’d eat with him. He’s okay.”

No, he wasn’t. However, she held her tongue. Sehun was eleven; he was way too old for her to tell him who he could and couldn’t be friends with. All the boy had done, after all, was almost kill her owl and insult half her bloodline by badmouthing muggleborns. She wasn’t about to dislike him for it. She didn’t know him.

“Oh, it’s you,” the boy said flatly, mouth twisting into a frown. “I didn’t know you meant her when you said you wanted to meet a friend.”

Her eye twitched. She was wondering if she should really try out that spell her sister had taught her when Jongin tugged on her sleeve.

“I’m hungry,” the shorter boy whined. “Let’s go eat. It’s not like you can eat with him anyway.”

She made an agreeing noise in the back of and bid goodbye to her friend. He nodded (Sehun always was a stoic child) and the boy next to him (she hadn’t really caught his name, but it wasn’t Korean, she was sure) just rolled his eyes.

“He’s rude,” she commented as they pushed open the door and headed to their table.

Jongin rolled his eyes. “He’s a Slytherin,” he cried, almost spitting out the last word. “Of course he’s rude.”

She shook her head, clicking her tongue. “You were raised in one of those families, weren’t you?” she asked sympathetically, patting his shoulder.

“What is that supposed to mean?”

“You know, one of those families who – “ she was cut off by a shriek as her skirt floated up of its own accord. Hurriedly, she pressed it down, but it was too late to spare the Great Hall a flash of her underwear. She heard cackling behind her and whirled around, glaring into the gleeful eyes of the boy Sehun was with, his wand still extended.

“Huang Zitao,” Professor Minho’s voice boomed. “Five points from Slytherin!”

Ji Hye’s eyes narrowed as she whipped out her own wand. She didn’t hesitate to use the hex that she had been itching to use since her sister told her about it.

Her aim was dead on and she smirked as bat bogeys attacked the boy she now knew as Huang Zitao.

“Five points from Gryffindor!”

Worth it. Definitely worth it.

•●•●•●•

“I have to go to Care of Magical Creatures!”

“It’s my free period and I’m going back to my common room!”

“If you think I’m going to skip my lesson – “

“Well, too bad for you, go cry a river – “

“I will hex you.”

“I’d like to see you try, Gryffindork.”

Sehun sighs, seemingly resigned to watching his two friends argue. He watches them as if they were a mildly interesting tennis match, lazily shifting his gaze from one to the other as retorts were shot back and forth.

“How long have they been at it?” Jongin asks, shuffling next to the Slytherin.

“Too long,” Sehun replies before shooting a jet of water out of his wand, drenching them both.

“Hey!” they both yell, only to glare at each other once more. “Stop copying me.”

“Can it,” Sehun snaps. “Just go to Ji Hye’s stupid class and be done with it. She needs the grade, Zitao.”

“But, it’s with Gryffindors,” he points out. “And Ravenclaws!”

“Care of Magical Creatures is not stupid,” Ji Hye takes the time to say, offended. “It’s actually a very interesting subject!”

“You only took it because you fancied that guy from Ravenclaw,” Jongin exclaims. “What was his name? Sung – “

“Say a word and I’ll hang your underwear in the Great Hall during dinner,” she threatens, shoving him.

“Just go.” Sehun shoves his two sopping wet friends out of the school, watching as Ji Hye huffs and dries herself before linking fingers with Tao and dragging him (practically kicking and screaming) down to the Forbidden Forest, where there was a small gathering of students.

“They’re going to kill each other,” Jongin points out, scrutinising the retreating bodies of the two enemies.

Sehun shrugs apathetically, walking away. “Not my problem.” He looks over his shoulder at Jongin, smirking slightly. “You coming?”

•●•●•●•

“So… you fancied someone?”

If she wasn’t in front of a professor, Ji Hye would probably hex the boy she’s currently stuck to. Once again, she curses Yixing and his inability to use spells effectively. She honestly wonders how the Hufflepuff passed his OWLs (in a loving way).

“Shut your trap,” she hisses, trying to pay attention as the professor explained about unicorns and the importance of keeping them safe.

Huang Zitao is nothing if not persistent – a trait that she decidedly despises about the Slytherin. “Who was it?” he asks.

“Bugger off,” she breathes, shooting a glare in his direction.

He shoots one in reply. “I could if I would, but your stupid friend charmed us together, remember?” he snarls.

“He’s not stupid.”

He isn’t. Yixing is just dim-witted and forgetful.

Tao scoffs and attempts to cross his arms, but Ji Hye is quick to tug it back. She needs her arm too and she desperately needs to pay attention, but she just had to be stuck to Huang bloody Zitao on the one day she has Care of Magical Creatures. Jongin’s right – so maybe the reason she chose to take this class was because of a dumb crush, but she genuinely likes this class now and it’s not with Slytherins (read: Huang Zitao).

“Get into pairs and tend to a unicorn,” Professor Taeyeon orders and Ji Hye panics. She hasn’t been paying attention (damn Tao) and she has no idea what’s going on. What if she –

“Hey, want to be partners?” a familiar voice asks and Ji Hye visibly relaxes.

“Sure,” she’s quick to answer, smiling at Sungjong and tugging a scowling Tao along. “I haven’t really been paying attention, though…”

“I’ll help,” the Ravenclaw offers and she can’t help but thank Merlin for creating Lee Sungjong and allowing him into her life.

“You’re a lifesaver.”

“It’s okay.” His eyes flick over to Tao for the briefest of moments. “I see you have guest that’s been distracting you.”

She spares Tao a resentful glance. “More like parasite.”

The Slytherin kicks her shin with a glower. “I’m right here.”

“I wish you weren’t,” she retorts, before turning back to Sungjong, who’s watching them with an amused glance. A smile is quick to reappear on her face. “Ignore him,” she says cheerfully.

She resolutely ignores Tao’s frown.

•●•●•●•

Third Year

“Hogsmeade, Hogsmeade,” Jongin sang horribly off-tune at the top of his lungs, dragging an unimpressed Ji Hye behind him. He glanced at her, wrapping an arm around her shoulders and shaking her a little. She tried not to glare at him, but she was probably going to get another stern talking to from the president of Jongin's fan club (she honestly didn’t know why he was so popular, nor why she was still friends with him). “You’re not singing.”

“I’m not you. I can actually hold a tune,” she retorted, pushing his arm off. “What’s so good about Hogsmeade?”

He gasped dramatically, bouncing in front of her and walking backwards. “What’s not to like?” he exclaimed, waving his hands maniacally. “There’s Honeydukes, Zonko’s and the Three Broomsticks!”

“You just want to see Madam Rosmerta,” she retorted, crossing her arms. “Plus, it’s cold.”

“I thought you liked the cold?”

“I don’t like the long walk. Shut up.”

He rolled his eyes. “Only you.”

She glanced behind him and smirked slightly. “You know,” she drawled, “you might want to turn around.”

“Why?” Jongin asked, unaware of the danger he was in. “I’ve got good coordination. It’s not like – eek!”

Ji Hye burst into laughter at the girlish shriek her best friend (next to Sehun, of course) slipped on a patch of ice and tumbled into a pile of snow. Oh, if only his fangirls could see him now.

“Only you would laugh at the misfortune of your own friend,” Sehun mused, walking up next to her.

She grinned at him, nudging her best friend slightly. “You and I both know I could have made it in Slytherin.”

“Not with your bloodline,” Tao mutters, shooting her a glare. “Half blood.”

“Creature,” she spat in return. “Sehun, why did you bring that thing out of its cage?”

“Because it’s only fair that I get out if they let you out,” Tao answered snootily.

Sehun sighed. “Could you two please be civil for once?”

“The least you could have done was help me,” Jongin huffed, running up to his friend (almost slipping on another patch of ice; Ji Hye seriously wonders why Jongin has so many fangirls when he was a complete dork) and frowning at the sight of the newcomers. “Oh, Huang.”

Sehun returned with a curt nod. “Kim,” he says in reply. Tao didn’t bother to reply; he just settled with a glare.

“Why?” Jongin whined.

“Sehun is my best friend,” Ji Hye sighed, rolling her eyes slightly. She knew for a fact that the only reason Jongin protested anymore was out of pure habit; his family was in Gryffindor for generations and was almost bred to hold some sort of dislike for any Slytherin, justified or not.

Jongin grumbled under his breath. She just elbowed him. She knew he liked it either way. Her two best friends would warm up to each other eventually.

“Spending the day with us?” she asked.

Sehun glanced at Tao and shrugged. “Why not?”

Ji Hye figured that she was too tired to argue with Huang Zitao today and decided to just ignore it. Any insult thrown her way would simply be ignored (or maybe catalogued, so she could think up of a suitable revenge later). However, Tao seemed to be in the same mind-set as her and was surprisingly civil throughout the whole trip.

“I have to get going soon,” she told them, glancing at her watch. After visiting Honeydukes, Zonko’s and even the Shrieking Shack, they were currently huddled in a booth in the Three Broomsticks, trying to warm themselves up.

Sehun raised an eyebrow, frowning slightly. “Why?”

She rubbed her nose, hoping they would mistake the flush in her cheeks from the cold. “I just… I’m meeting someone,” she mumbled, tugging on a loose thread on her scarf and avoiding everyone’s gaze.

Jongin snorted. “Oh, I see.”

“Shut it, Jongin.”

“Who?”

Ji Hye tried not to stare. The question (well, more of a demand, really) had unexpectedly come from Huang Zitao and she really wasn’t obligated to answer.

“Uh, someone,” she muttered. “I don’t have to tell you.”

Her fellow Gryffindor snickered and she elbowed him again, silencing him with a glare. So what if she was going to meet up with Sungjong and Taemin? She was a thirteen year old witch and she was allowed to have a crush!

“Oh.” Tao’s expression was surprisingly sour, considering the fact that she had almost enjoyed his company for the day. Now he was looking anywhere at her and she couldn’t help but spare him a confused glance at his sudden change of attitude.

Sehun, however, gave her an amused smirk. “I didn’t know you had a boyfriend,” he hummed.

Her face flamed. “I don’t,” she protested, cursing her voice that had raised an octave in embarrassment. “I’m just meeting some friends.”

“A guy friend,” Jongin quipped, yelping when she smacked his shoulder. “I swear this is abuse!”

“Abuse is what’s going to happen if you breathe a single word of this to anyone else,” she threatened, getting out of her seat. “I’ll get going now. You guys go back without me.”

“You’re leaving me with them?” Jongin shrieked.

She knocked his head. “Get a hold of yourself. You like this.”

As she reached the exit of the pub, she couldn’t help but look back at their table. Her eyes widened slightly as she locked gazes with Huang Zitao, his dark eyes seemingly asking her to stay. Then, he looked away and she just figured she was imagining it.

Huang Zitao, wanting to be around her. How ridiculous.

Almost as ridiculous as her wanting to stay because of him.

•●•●•●•

Ji Hye slams their joined hands on the table, ignoring Tao’s curse.

“Just cut it off here,” she tells Joonmyun, who is still staring at Tao. She traces Tao’s wrist with a light finger and he jerks his arm back, almost hitting her in the face. “Watch it!”

“You are not cutting off my hand,” the Slytherin snarls, eyes flashing dangerously. “Why are we cutting off my hand, anyway?”

She rolls her eyes, blowing an unruly lock of hair away from her eyes. “Because I’m right-handed, duh,” she replies impatiently. “Joonmyun, can you do it?”

The elder is still staring at the two of them.

“You’re stuck to him,” he states, pointing at the two of them. “How?”

“Zhang ing Yixing,” Tao growls, glaring at Ji Hye as if everything that has happened to them at the moment is her fault.

“Language,” she says primly, following it with a hit to his head.

“!”

“Do you want to be hit again?”

“Stop, stop,” Joonmyun sighs, running a hand down his face. “What happened?”

Ji Hye pokes Tao’s shoulder one last time. “A failed permanent sticking charm,” she huffs. “It’s Yixing’s fault.”

The Ravenclaw prefect groans. “He didn’t.”

“He did.”

“Professor Key – “

“Said we were stuck like this for an indefinite amount of time,” she continues. “Cut his hand off now or I chew it off.”

“Try to chew my hand off,” the Slytherin snarls, “and I’ll hex you so hard you won’t be able to walk.”

“If I can’t walk, you’ll have to drag my immobile around school.”

There’s a thud as Joonmyun lets his head fall onto the table.

•●•●•●•

Fourth Year

Ji Hye never liked dances like the rest of the girls did, but she had to admit that there was a certain appeal of the Yule Ball that made her see why they liked dances.

Her date abandoning her wasn’t even that much of a bad thing. After all, Lee Sungyeol had merely asked her out of convenience and she just really wanted to show up with a date. Call her selfish, but he was being selfish too, so that was okay.

“You’re not going to dance?” Jongin asked, plopping down in the seat next to her. He was breathing heavily from his third bout on the dance floor and his eyes were bright in the way it always was whenever he got to dance. Then, he looks around. “Where’s Min Hee?”

“You got ditched, mate,” she teased. “She left with some Durmstrang guy.”

He eyed her in concern. “What about you?” he asked. “Where’s your date?”

She shrugged, smiling at him. “I got ditched too,” she quipped, smiling cheekily. “I wasn’t that into him anyway.”

“Could’ve fooled me,” he teased. “The way you two were all close and stuff when you were watching the Second Task says otherwise.”

She punched his arm. “Sungyeol and I have always been close, idiot.”

“I know. I just like teasing you.”

“Be gone,” she ordered. “Your favourite song is coming up soon, anyway.”

His eyes lit up once more and he almost shot out of his seat, but he paused. “You sure you don’t want to come with?” he asked, wriggling his eyebrows. “We could break out our funky dance moves.”

She laughed, kicking his chair. “Get out of here, you dork.”

He shot one last grin at her before bouncing off to the dance floor, grabbing Yixing on his way. She shook her head in amusement, leaning back in her seat. She should probably go back to her dorm, but it was fun watching everyone have fun and dance, even if she wasn’t participating. She was never much of a dancer anyway.

“You alone?”

She turned at the sound of the unexpected voice, her lips parting when her gaze landed on Huang Zitao. She had to admit that he looked… good. The dress robes he wore were black and just like everyone else’s, but they seemed to fit him in all the right places. His hair was unstyled, but his fringe was hanging in his eyes, causing him to flick them out of his eyes every so often.

Whoa, what. Ji Hye blinked, raising her eyebrows at him. She contemplated snapping at him, but he was being civil and she wasn’t one to start fights unnecessarily – even if it was with Huang Zitao.

“Yeah,” she answered. She glanced at the chair Jongin had just vacated. “Wanna sit?”

He didn’t answer, but sat down next to her. She tried not to gape. She honestly thought that Huang Zitao detested her presence and all that she stood for, but then again, would Sehun really be friends with anybody if they weren’t even remotely okay?

She fiddled with her drink, trying to ignore the silence between them. It wasn’t quite awkward, but it was far from the comfortable silences she shared with Sehun.

“Where’s your date?” he finally asked. She glanced up at him before shrugging.

“Somewhere,” she answered, lips quirking into a slight (very slight) smile. “I don’t really know. I’m not his keeper.”

He frowned slightly, but it was gone before she could blink. She wasn’t even sure if it had been there.

“Already scaring guys away?” he taunted, smirking at her.

“No better than you,” she retorted, not one to back down. “It seems that you’ve lost your date as well.”

“Can’t lose something I didn’t have.”

She blinked. Oh. She hadn’t known he’d gone stag. She had just assumed he had a date because, well – Ji Hye wasn’t blind, okay? She’d seen some girls hanging around him sometimes and it was obvious he was the kind of guy who wouldn’t have any trouble getting a date.

“Figures you couldn’t get one,” she sniffs nonetheless.

He grunted, crossing his arms and looking away. Ji Hye stared into her drink once more. Was it bad that she was kind of happy he hadn’t had a date?

“Do you want to dance?” he suddenly asked.

She jolted up, giving him a suspicious glance. “Why?”

He rolled his eyes, standing up and holding out a hand towards her. “Do you want to or not?”

Her brain tells her she shouldn’t. After all, this was Huang Zitao. He made it his personal mission to make her life hell. He was constantly picking on her, hexing her friends and herself when Quidditch season came (except for Sehun, of course) and she didn’t really like him. However, she found herself taking his hand and allowing himself to be led to the dance floor either way. A hand rested on her hips and with a jolt, she realised that a slow song was playing.

“You’re acting weird,” she murmured, glancing up at him from underneath her eyelashes. She had to look up at him and she wondered where were the days where she could glare into his eyes without needing to crane her neck.

“Sehun told me to be nice,” he replied nonchalantly, looking around the room and acting like he wasn’t dancing with his number one rival.

“Oh.”

Being nice didn’t normally entail asking her to dance. She didn’t say anything else. She just danced with Tao, humming under her breath to the music.

Maybe she didn’t like Tao very much. Maybe Tao didn’t like her that much either. Either way, she couldn’t deny that this one dance with him wasn’t so bad.

•●•●•●•

“Amortentia,” Professor Kyuhyun says, pointing at a cauldron lazily. The class was huddled around the front of the classroom, peering into said cauldron. “How do you identify Amortentia? Kim Jongin.”

“Uh…”

The potions professor rolls his eyes. “Song Ji Hye.”

The Gryffindor blinks. “Um, by its… mother-of-pearl sheen and characteristic spirals?” she guesses. She was sure that was a potion, but it might have ended up being for Draught of Living Death, for all she knew.

“Correct.” He doesn’t add on and Ji Hye honestly never expected him to. She rolls her eyes. If she was a Slytherin, he would have awarded her with points now. Biased prat. “Amortentia is a love potion, as you all know. If you didn’t, now you do.”

Typical Kyuhyun, throwing whatever sarcasm he can into everything he says. It’s no wonder he’s the head of Slytherin.

“I thought we were only taught love potions in sixth year,” Jongin mutters, pouting slightly.

“Amortentia,” the professor continues, “is the most powerful love potion and should never be messed with. The last thing you want to do is mess with a person’s feelings. Trust me, I know.” Yeah, Ji Hye would rather not find out how he knew. “It has a different scent for every person and normally allows the person to smell the person they love.”

“That sounds gross,” Tao mutters. For once, she has to agree. What if the person they were in love with had horrible body odour?

She can’t stop herself from taking a step forward to take a whiff of the fumes, though. She’s curious; she wonders how the person she loves will smell like. However, Tao refuses to move.

“I’m not going there,” he states. “Neither are you.”

“Don’t be a baby,” she scoffs. “Are you scared?”

His eyes flash and she knows she’s played him well when he’s marching to the front, standing right in front of the cauldron of love potion. She can’t help the smirk playing on her lips, delighting in the way he’s scowling.

Tentatively, she takes in the scent. There’s a hint of chocolate, tteokbokki, grass from the Quidditch pitch and… a masculine scent that she can’t quite place. A confused frown settles across her lips. What was that last scent? Before she can think about it, she’s being jerked back courtesy of Tao. He looks absolutely livid and Ji Hye wonders what she could have possibly done and if she should be proud.

His bad mood lasts throughout the whole lesson and she’s apprehensive. His expression is absolutely stormy and the fact that she has to spend the rest of the day with an angry Huang Zitao doesn’t sit well with her.

“What’s wrong with your face?” Sehun asks bluntly as they’re walking out of Potions. He slant his eyes towards Ji Hye. “What did you do?”

The Gryffindor holds up a hand. “I didn’t do anything this time,” she swears. “I figured that’s how he always was.” That’s a lie, but rather be ignorant than, Merlin forbid, look concerned.

Tao growls under his breath and laces his fingers with hers, tugging her forward. “We’re going to the hospital wing and we’re going to see about this goddamned sticking charm.”

“But Professor said – “

“I don’t care what Professor said,” Tao snaps. “We are getting unstuck and that’s final.”

She huffs, planting her feet into the ground and preventing Tao from moving further. He whips around, getting right in her face.

“There’s something seriously wrong with you,” she states, frowning at him. “You’re acting all moody and even though you’re hardly smiling and laughing around me, you’re being unreasonably grumpy.”

“Have you ever thought that maybe it’s because I’ve been stuck all day with you?”

The hurt hits her unexpectedly, but it hits her hard all the same. She reels back, but refuses to let the hurt bleed into her eyes for him to see. She hardens her gaze, pursing her lips.

“I may not like you very much,” she bites out, “but at least I’m not taking out my anger on innocent people.”

“You, Song Ji Hye, are far from innocent.”

“What did I do?” she asks, patience wearing thin. “What did I do during Potions that has offended you so much?”

“Your scent,” he roars. “It was in the ing Amortentia!”

Silence.

What.

His eyes widen ever so slightly and he looks furious with himself before he’s brushing past her, muttering under his breath. Their fingers brush against each other as she lets him go, staring into blank space with her heart beating uncomfortably fast. A familiar scent lingers in the air and Ji Hye breathes it in deeply, realising that she’s taking in Tao’s scent; Tao’s scent that was in the Amortentia.

Belatedly, she realises that they’re unstuck. And she might possibly be in love with Huang Zitao.

“Merlin’s pants.”

•●•●•●•

Ji Hye does not appreciate getting dragged out of the common room at eight at night when she has a Defence Against the Dark Arts essay due tomorrow, but she honestly can’t refuse when Jongin is throwing his hoodie at her and dragging her out of the portrait hole.

“What are you doing?” she asks, forced to jog along as he drags her to an unknown location. There’s a chill in the air and there’s snow falling outside. The Christmas holidays had snuck up on them and Ji Hye was suffering for goofing off most of the holidays, leaving her with two essays both due tomorrow. She was done with her Charms essay and halfway through her DADA essay when Jongin decided to be a weirdo.

“This is long overdue,” he mutters, glancing back at her. “I can’t take this awkwardness anymore and this is going to stop.”

She just stares at him in confusion and concern. Maybe he’s finally lost it.

She looks around, recognising the route. “Isn’t this to the Room of Requirement?”

They stop in front of a simple door, which Sehun is standing next to. Ji Hye can’t help but feel suspicious, eyeing the Slytherin wearily.

They stop in front of the door and Jongin turns to her. “This is for your own good,” he says solemnly. Before she can ask him what he means, the door is opened and she’s being pushed in. Thanks to her natural clumsiness, she trips and crashes into something.

“Get off me,” a voice grunts and she looks down, finding herself looking into the eyes of Huang Zitao.

Once she gets out, she’s going to kill Jongin and Sehun.

She scrambles off him, not bothering to apologise as she twists the doorknob, banging on the door when it doesn’t budge. “Let me out!” she yells. “Let me out so I can kill you!”

“No,” Jongin's muffled voice yells back. “The Room isn’t going to let you two idiots out until you sort out whatever thing you two are having!”

“Did you just call me an idiot?” Tao seethes. “Say that to my face, Kim!”

“Lalala can’t hear you!” She can practically hear the smirk in Jongin’s voice and doesn’t doubt that Sehun probably has a matching one on his pointed face. “We’ll be back in an hour so try not to defile the Room!”

Once the anger fades, Ji Hye is hit with the crashing realisation that’s she’s tuck in a room with Tao – who she’s been dutifully avoiding for the past two weeks – for one whole hour.

She really hates her friends right now.

She turns around slowly, subtly tugging Jongin's hoodie down and wishing she hadn’t decided to wear shorts. Then again, she hadn’t really planned on leaving her spot in front of the fireplace for the rest of the night. She presses herself against the door and taps her toes against the floor, looking anywhere but at Tao.

“You’ve been avoiding me,” he says after two minutes.

“You’ve been avoiding me, too,” she shoots back, huffing slightly. To be honest, they’ve just been avoiding each other. It’s a little obvious since instead of shooting insults at each other when they pass the halls, they only glance at each other and walk a little faster.

His gaze travels down and she fists her hands in the hoodie. Tao’s frown deepens. “You’re wearing Jongin's hoodie.”

He lifts her chin up, a hidden challenge in her eyes. “So what?”

“So I don’t like it,” he says, stalking forward with dark eyes to cage her between his arms.

She scoffs. “So what? I don’t care.”

He leans in until their noses are almost touching. Her heart is beating uncomfortably fast again and his scent is filling up the small space. It’s making her a little light-headed and how had she not noticed that Tao was actually pretty good looking?

Right, because up until two weeks ago, she was pretty sure all she felt for Huang Zitao was intense dislike.

She places her hands on his chest to stop him from coming closer – and feels the muscles he got from being a Beater, damn it – as her eyes flash in warning.

He smirks and it does funny things to her stomach. She has to wonder if he bewitched her or something, but there’s nothing to blame but Yixing and the damn love potion. “Do I make you nervous?” he whispers, his breath ghosting across her lips.

She wrinkles her nose and rolls her eyes. “No. You make me uncomfortable.”

He stares into her eyes intently before leaning back slightly. “Good,” he says smugly. “Only I’m ever allowed to make you feel this way, got it?”

“Who are you to tell me what to do?” she demands. “I’m my own person and I’m not yours.”

He’s quick to prove her wrong as his lips descend on hers, silently telling her that he owns her whether she likes it or not.

Surprisingly enough, she’s okay with that.

•●•●•●•

Jongin is nursing a sore arm and a pounding head the next morning, thanks to Ji Hye who had decided that he deserved a loving wake-up call by playing mattress sliding down the stairs.

“You should have been in Slytherin,” he mutters, shooting her a glare as he ruffles his freshly-dyed blonde hair.

“I almost was,” she muses, “but I told the Sorting Hat that would have been too cliché.”

He spares her a disbelieving glance before shaking his head. “Only you.”

She smirks. “Naturally.”

“So… what happened last night?”

She merely grins at him and shrugs. She’s been tight-lipped about what happened last night and she loves that it’s driving Jongin up the wall.

“Why are you so wicked?” he whines, stomping his foot.

“Because you dragged me out of my warm seat and almost made me not finish my DADA essay.”

“But you finished it in the end, so why am I suffering for it?”

“You’re a meddling idiot. You and Sehun both.”

Jongin flutters his eyelashes at her (she doesn’t have the heart to tell him he looks like a girl – yet) and grins boyishly. “Only because we care.”

She pushes the doors to the Great Hall open with a roll of her eyes. “If that is you guys caring, I’d rather you not care,” she says.

“Yah, Song Ji Hye!”

The two Gryffindors look up at the sound of her name being yelled halfway across the Great Hall. Ji Hye watches with a blank stare and a hand on her hip as Huang Zitao stalks towards her with a thunderous expression that promises death, Sehun trailing worriedly (well, as worriedly as he could look with his stoic expression) behind him. Jongin is utterly shocked next to her.

“What did you do?” he whispers in horror.

She doesn’t answer him, merely raising an eyebrow at the livid Slytherin.

With the Great Hall as their audience, Tao grabs the back of her neck and smashes her lips to his. There’s utter silence throughout the room and Ji Hye thinks she might have heard something shatter, but she’s a little distracted by Tao’s lips on hers at the moment.

When they separate, he smirks at her before pecking her lips once more. “Good morning,” he says, his voice husky.

She gives him a coy smile back, pulling him by the robes a little closer. “Morning,” she replies, planting a kiss of her own on his lips before pushing him away and grabbing Jongin to get breakfast. “Jongin, pick your jaw off the floor so we can go eat.”

“But you – and he – what the – in the name of – bloody hell,” her fellow Gryffindor sputters. From the corner of her eye, she notices Sehun in a similar state next to Tao.

She laughs to herself. Well, that was one way to make an entrance.

-0-

First off, I'm sorry for the swearing, but somehow I imagine Slytherin!Tao as someone who swears a lot. Sorry.

This is really random and I have absolutely no idea where this came from.

Okay, so I do. I got the idea from reading this and I don't even know. EXO in Hogwarts. I just couldn't resist.

I could've sworn I had KaiHye or KyungHye up next, but Tao demanded to be next so -shrugs- Tao simply can't be ignored (damn panda).

It's not idol!AU but I hope that's okay...?

(Nope, still selfish.)

(There's probably going to be other AUs coming because I don't even know.)

(I should be concentrating on Comparison, dang it.)