Chapter Text
Even after five years, the enchanted ceiling of the Great Hall was still the most magical sight he had ever seen.
It wasn't the most spectacular, the most beautiful or the most complex, but there was something about it that just made his breath hitch. Maybe it was the emotional connection he had to it - it never failed to bring forth memories of discovering that magic was real, that there was a place he actually belonged in, a place with other people like him. It was the same sort of feeling that blossomed in his chest whenever he passed by Ollivander’s or when he woke up too early and looked around his dorm room, gaze inevitably landing on his wand.
Unlike other mornings, however, the gentle and still sleepy morning chatter had been replaced with excited whispers, loud laughter, and the occasional shout. It wasn't every week or indeed every year that they received students from other schools, after all. The announcement of the return of the Triwizard tournament had left the student body positively abuzz and the excitement had yet to fade. It didn’t seem likely that it would die down anytime soon, if it did at all this year.
The other students were bound to arrive tomorrow and the buzz was at an all-time high. Most of them, the students of Hogwarts, had never met anyone from either Durmstrang and Beauxbatons. As a result, there was a lot of speculation about what they would be like, as well as a lot of ridiculous rumors - he really doubted that Durmstrang’s entrance exam consisted of fighting a full-grown dragon - floating around.
Jimin lifted his toast up to his mouth. His gaze flickered to the left and he caught sight of two of his housemates, leaning close and whispering excitedly to each other, their fingers laced together and their wands nowhere to be seen. Just like that, his appetite died - he lowered his toast back onto the plate, a frown tugging his lips downward. His stomach churned a little as he forced himself to look away and focus back on the news.
Right. Triwizard Tournament. Honestly, Jimin wasn't entirely sure what he thought about the entire thing. He was curious and a little excited, just like everyone else, but the idea of the tournament sounded... well, dangerous. Pretty much everything about magic, in general, sounded dangerous, but Jimin had hit the library after they received the news and looked up the previous tournaments. People had died during those, leading to the event being canceled, and while he was certain that things would be a lot safer this time around, it still made him feel nervous.
Not that he had any intention of participating, mind you. He was perfectly fine concentrating on his studies and extracurricular activities, although those might be canceled this year. Quidditch had been canceled, at least, something that Taemin had been complaining about since it had been announced. No doubt he'd be complaining still, if he wasn't off somewhere with his soulmate, being happy. Not that Jimin would know anything about that. Although, with the new students coming in, maybe-
No.
He took a deep breath and shook his head. No, there was no point in thinking about that, it would just upset him all over again. With a little more force than necessary, Jimin shoved the toast into his mouth and chewed vigorously. His still warm tea soothed him a little bit, at least. He had never been a fan of pumpkin juice, could never get used to the oddly sweet taste of it, so tea and water were his drinks of choice.
"Jimin?"
Blinking, he looked up from the plate. His gaze flickered briefly to the red and gold badge and tie of the person standing in front of him, making him smile even before he glimpsed their face. But who else could it possibly be, coming to check on him like this?
"Hey, Jin."
"Hello!" Seokjin wasted no time in sitting himself across from Jimin, paying absolutely no mind to the fact he wasn't supposed to be there. Then again, by now the entire student body was used to him sitting wherever he felt like. It probably helped that the entire school knew who he was and was on good terms with him, too. "Are you okay?"
"I'm alright," he replied automatically. Jin, who in true Jin fashion had already started piling food on his plate and was in the middle of stealing a bit of Jimin's own toast, paused in his actions and glanced at him. His normal happy, borderline cheeky expression was replaced with concern.
"You don't need to lie, Jimin."
If it was anyone else, Jimin would just double down on his answer. He had never liked having people worry about him and it's not like most of them could understand his struggle, paired off and bonded as they were. Jin, though... Jin understood. He hadn't found his soulmate yet, either, but he had never let it stop him from becoming one of the best and most popular students, or from achieving whatever he wanted to do. Jimin could never properly express how much he respected him for that.
"It's just hard, but I'll be okay," he said, his voice a little low, before pointing at the new shiny badge on Jin's robes with a smile. "Congrats, though! Ah, I guess now that you're Head Boy, you'll be too busy to check in on me."
"Don't count on it," Jin replied immediately with a lopsided grin, winking at him before starting to eat. Jimin resisted the urge to roll his eyes but couldn't help laughing at the silly gesture.
"How do you think they'll be like, though?"
"Uhm?"
"The new students."
"They're students," Jin answered after taking a sip of his juice. "So noisy, lacking manners and getting into too much trouble."
Jimin blinked at him for a few moments, then leaned back on the bench with a loud laugh.
"You've been a prefect for too long, Jin."
"And you did the right thing turning it down," Seokjin said, scrunching up his nose, a look on his face like he was recalling how many headaches taking up the position had given him during the last few years. "I swear, the amount of make-out sessions I had to break up in the Astronomy Tower - the tower! There are much better places to do that in, it's freezing out there, I don't know how they don't chafe-"
"Jin!" Jimin protested a little too loudly as he straightened up in his seat. He looked around, cheeks reddening at both calling attention to themselves and the topic of conversation, which Jin knew perfectly well going by his teasing smirk. "Don't- you can't just-"
"Oh, fine, fine," the Gryffindor replied, flapping a hand in his direction. Despite teasing him on the regular, Jin wasn't in the habit of actually embarrassing Jimin, thank Merlin. He already had Taemin for that. "But really, don't worry too much about them. They're people at the end of the day, just like everyone else."
Jimin thought about his words for a moment, then nodded. Despite his sometimes childlike demeanor, Jin did tend to be surprisingly sensible and down-to-earth. It made going to him for advice easier, because he trusted his friend's judgment quite a lot, despite his love of puns.
"Besides, we'll rise to the occasion."
Sometimes, Jimin wondered if just thinking about something could actually make it happen. Maybe it was a brand of magic that no one had discovered yet. Or maybe someone had discovered it by now but no one had been able to figure out how it worked quite yet, like soulmate magic. Case in point: he really should know better than to even think about puns around Jin. That was just asking for it.
"Was that a bread pun?"
"No?" Jin replied, innocently, the smile on his face and the hand holding up the piece of toast giving him away immediately. "It's crust your imagination."
Jimin paused, teacup halfway to his mouth, and bit down on his lip. The puns weren't funny. Really, they weren't. They were terrible and not a single one of them made him want to laugh. Honest.
"Jin-"
"Wheat a second before you accuse m-"
"Jin!"
An elbow nudged at his ribs. Jimin rubbed at the spot but didn't turn to look, his gaze fixed on the door to the Great Hall, much like everyone else's.
The excited, loud chatter that had permeated the room all throughout dinner had given away to nervous, furious whispering as soon as the Headmaster had announced the arrival of the other students. All speculation seemed to have died down and no one knew how they should act or what they should say.
"Bet you a tenner than someone trips."
"Don't be mean, Taemin," Jimin replied quietly, still rubbing at his ribs absentmindedly.
"You've been hanging around Jin way too much."
"That was an accident," he defended himself, still staring at the door. "And I didn't say Tae- mean , at least."
"Please don't. And please don't say that too loudly, I'm pretty sure he can hear you. Do you think he's using a spell to do it? Like he can hear whenever a pun is made anywhere in the castle?"
"I doubt it... there's not a spell for that, is there?"
"No," Taemin replied after a moment of thought. "But we could make one. Your Artihmancy is getting pretty good, we could-"
A couple of loud voices shushed them, causing Taemin to fall silent. Jimin straightened up, trying to stretch up as much as possible, as if that would allow him to see better. The sound of footsteps could be heard, faint at first, but growing louder with each passing second. It sounded like a lot of people. Not every single student in the school, not nearly, but still more than he was expecting. More than a dozen - a hundred?
Jimin tapped his fingers on the table, twisted around to be able to see, his nerves buzzing underneath his skin. A few more long, far too drawn out moments and they came in swiftly, led by the Deputy Headmaster and someone else that Jimin could only assume was the Headmaster of their own school. His breath hitched a little - whatever he had been expecting from Beauxbatons, it certainly hadn't been this.
For whatever reason, he had assumed their robes would look similar but they weren't. Rather, their robes were a shimmering light blue, light and sleek and seemed to flow with their movements. A few of the students had thin, silky pieces of fabric wrapped around their throats and quite a few were wearing jewelry of some description - dangling or floating below their ears, smoothly spinning and changing colors, with actually moving and animating animals or flashing runes.
They raised their arms, holding their wands gracefully, and launched into beautifully intricate spellwork. It had no purpose, as far as Jimin could tell, it was only designed to look pretty, but getting this amount of people coordinated enough to pull off such a gorgeous display left him breathless. It looked almost like fireworks, splashes of color and sparkles, but they actually made pictures - they seemed to be telling some sort of story, actually, although Jimin couldn't understand it very well.
The students seemed to be placed strategically, with the brighter spells closer to the centre. More powerful magic was a known side effect of finding your soulmate, he recalled, as something bitter settled on his tongue. It was the reason the Flamels were so powerful, the reason the best Auror partners were usually couples. In the very centre stood two girls holding hands, quite obviously a couple, their spellwork intertwining to form the brightest and most spectacular part of the entire display.
When it was over, all of the Beauxbatons students bowed and headed over to the Ravenclaw table. Jimin released the breath he had been holding. Belatedly, he realized that everyone else was clapping and quickly joined in, too. His gaze roamed over the new students but it was difficult to notice anyone in particular - they all struck him as very pretty, for some odd reason. Maybe it was just the different clothes or the jewelry?
There was no time to dwell on it, though. The Durmstrang students stormed right in, spinning staves of all things. Startled as he was, it took him a moment to realize they were using magic too, to make the sound of drums echo around the hall every time they slammed their staves - and then, suddenly, bright red wyverns sprung from the ground, spinning around the entire group.
Jimin paid no attention to their Headmistress at the front but his gaze automatically landed on the one person he had actually seen before, even if it had been in pictures. Right there, front and centre, was Jungkook - the youngest school seeker in over a century in any wizarding school in Europe, with teams already lining up to make him offers at the end of his education. His furrowed brows and his signature frown made him easy enough to identify. They also made him look as surly as his reputation suggested.
They finished to another round of applause and then headed towards his table, at the far end. Jimin merely watched for a moment, frozen, then turned around to focus on his plate. The Headmaster and Headmistress of the other schools went up to the head table, sitting on either side of Hogwarts' own Headmaster, and looked over their students. Jimin was so busy studying his plate that someone speaking next to him took him by surprise.
"-busy?"
"What?" he blinked and focused on the person looking at him, only to stare in surprise.
"Is the... chair... busy?" Jungkook repeated, speaking slowly, His brow furrowed a little further, almost as if he was concentrating.
"No?" Jimin replied, before realizing it had come out as a question and repeating it more firmly, offering him a smile this time. "No, the chair isn’t taken. Do you want to sit here?"
"Please," Jungkook replied. His expression eased off a little and he looked almost... proud?
It clicked, then: he must have thought he was saying it wrong or that his accent was too thick to understand, since Jimin had been too startled and then too surprised to reply properly the first time. Great. The last thing he wanted to do was make the guy self-conscious about his English.
"Sit, sit," he insisted, scooching over a bit. "You must be hungry."
Jungkook smiled before sitting down next to him. It was a small and quick thing but it had been the only time the scowl had disappeared from his face, so it was still striking. Jimin eyed him with amusement as he almost seemed to puff his chest out - was he that happy that he had been understood?
Before Jimin could think of a tactful way to ask, the Headmaster stood up and started his second speech of the year. It was unusual in a number of ways, mostly due to the introduction of the other Headmaster and Headmistress, as well as the explanation of how the tournament would work.
Like everyone else in the Great Hall, Jimin's attention shifted to the Goblet of Fire immediately. It was clearly not a normal goblet - although, honestly, it looked more like a trophy than any goblet he had ever seen - with sparkling blue flames rising from it. He couldn't help but feel a little bit skeptical.
Sure, some magical enchantments were incredibly old and incredibly complex, but how was it meant to pick the Champions? How would it even go about such a thing? Maybe the magic involved was beyond his understanding, like the Sorting Hat, but the Hat was positively ancient by now and made by four of the most brilliant wizards and witches of any age.
Who had even made the Goblet, anyway? He had forgotten to look up that particular bit of information, too shocked by some of the incredibly deadly tasks from previous tournaments.
"As such, I ask the students from the Ravenclaw and Slytherin Houses to please welcome and look after our new friends from Beauxbatons and Durmstrang, respectively," the Headmaster said, leveling a gaze at both Hogwarts Houses.
Jimin found himself nodding instinctively at the request. After a few more words, the Headmaster clapped his hands, signaling the beginning of the feast. Jimin shifted his attention back to the food, sparing a glance at Jungkook next to him - only to find him looking at the table in confusion. His gaze flickered from one dish to the next, only to stop at the rotisserie chicken.
"Are you okay?"
Jungkook started a little, looking at him with comically wide eyes. After a moment of speechlessness, he looked at the table again and then at Jimin.
"Ah," he said, brow furrowing again. "Food. Is- that is chicken, yes?"
"Yeah," Jimin replied with a smile before pointing at another one of the dishes. "That's corn on the cob, those are mashed potatoes, there's turnips over there - oh and pumpkin juice!"
Jungkook stopped in the middle of reaching for the chicken. His gaze flickered between Jimin and the jug of pumpkin juice quite a few times - and then a look of absolute disgust crossed his face. Jimin stared at the way he scrunched up his nose, at the way his lips pressed together, and couldn't help himself.
He leaned back and starting laughing, crossing one arm over his stomach.
" Pumpkin juice?" Jungkook repeated, looking even more disgusted. "Why? Why... pumpkin ?"
"I don-don't know," Jimin managed in between laughing, leaning forward now, trying his best not to call even more attention to them. "I don't- I don't like it either."
Jungkook eyed the jug as if it contained Manticore poison for a few long moments, then glanced at Jimin and nodded, as if deciding he had good judgment. Then, he reached for the chicken again. Jimin followed suit, going for some of the vegetables first and making sure to point out every other drink on the table.
Eventually, he even managed to stop laughing and eat calmly. Jungkook didn't make a lot of conversation but he seemed to answer okay. Every once in a while, he'd speak with his friends in a language Jimin couldn't really place and they'd end up all laughing together. It was nice to see him smile and Jimin figured that clinging to the familiar in an unfamiliar place was a normal reaction.
Still, he wasn't prepared for Jungkook to hesitantly turn to him at the end of the meal and slowly - almost shyly - tug on his sleeve.
"Ah... you. What is your name?"
"Jimin," he replied, blinking. Right, despite the small chatter, they hadn't really exchanged names.
"I am Jungkook," he said, as if he needed to be introduced. "I... have... need favor?"
"Sure, what do you need?" Jimin was quick to offer because he wasn't the kind to turn away someone in need, regardless of how famous they may or may not be.
Besides, he thought he could empathise with Jungkook a little bit - if he recalled correctly, there had been a few articles about how his soulmate hadn’t been found yet, either. Although maybe he shouldn’t trust the newspapers, given how they painted him.
"I... uhm... castle. It's big. I don't know..." Jungkook trailed off, furrowing his brow a little deeper. Jimin could see him searching for the right words but they were clearly escaping him, going by the frustrated huff he let out after an awkward minute. "Map? I don't know map?"
"Oh!" Jimin said, smiling at him. "You don't know the layout of the castle?"
"Yes!" Jungkook replied, surprisingly loud, smiling back and clasping him on the shoulder unexpectedly. "Layout? Yes. Your castle is very big."
"Do you need me to show you around?"
"Is it okay?" Jungkook glanced down for a moment before looking up again. It was odd, Jimin thought, that someone so famous and well-known was turning out to be so... shy .
Although, he actually hadn't really seen any newspaper articles directly quoting the guy. There were certainly things written about him but now Jimin wondered how much input he had in all of those things, if any.
"Sure," he replied easily, nodding for emphasis. "I really don't mind. I can show you around tomorrow and take you to your classes until you know your way around?"
"Please," Jungkook said, smiling a little wider now, nose scrunching up adorably. "Thank you."
"You're quite welcome," Jimin reached for his tea and took a sip, a thought rattling around his head. "You said our castle is very big. Is Durmstrang smaller?"
"Ah, yes, castle is smaller," Jungkook replied, tone brightening at the mention of his school. "But grounds, they're bigger! Do you... do Hogwarts play Quidditch?"
"Not me," Jimin replied, head tilted as he watched Jungkook draw what was probably a Quidditch Pitch on the surface of the table with his index finger. "But we do play it at Hogwarts, yeah."
"It is very important in Durmstrang," Jungkook said.
"Can you tell me more about it? About Durmstrang?"
Jungkook stopped for a moment, staring at him, before smiling widely and starting to talk about his school, too fast and overly eager and stumbling all over his words - choosing the wrong verb tenses, missing articles, but still understandable and so excited, so very much unlike how everyone else pictured him as, that Jimin couldn't help smiling at him and encouraging him along, even roping Taemin into it for the next hour.
"So you're participating?" Jimin asked after swallowing his piece of toast.
"Yes," Jin asked, eyeing the poached eggs. "I think I have a good chance of making it."
"You do," Jimin agreed. "I think Taemin is putting his name in the Goblet, too."
"He could be chosen, although I think his-"
"Jimin?"
He glanced over one shoulder at the sound of his name, finding Jungkook standing nearby, awkwardly shifting from one foot to another, gaze flickering between the two of them. Surprisingly, he seemed to be alone - Jimin really expected his friends to come down with him this morning.
"Good morning, Jungkook!" he greeted him cheerfully, gesturing to the seat next to him.
Instead of sitting down, though, Jungkook just stared at Jin, shoulders a little hunched, until Jin smiled at him too and offered him a wave.
"Oh, please sit down," he said. "Don't mind me."
"Thank you," Jungkook muttered quietly before taking his seat. He placed his hands on the table, then down on his lap, then up on the table again. Jimin and Jin exchanged a single look.
"How did you sleep?" Jimin asked. "Were the dungeons too cold for you?"
"No, Durmstrang is colder," Jungkook glanced briefly at Seokjin before timidly reaching for some toast. "We have big fires."
"Ah," Jin nodded. “That makes sense. But I thought you would use enchantments for that?”
“Ah.. yes but not… much? Many,” Jungkook immediately corrected himself, flushing a little. Once he saw that neither of them were going to comment on his slip-up, he continued, even if a little hesitantly. “But cold, it is… good for us?”
“I suppose it’s a cultural thing,” Jin mused aloud. “Do you think it makes you stronger?”
“Yes,” Jungkook replied immediately, not hesitating in the slightest. It actually took Jimin by surprise a little.
“I can see that,” Jin said, pausing to take a bite out of his food. “So, how different is Durmstrang?”
Surprisingly, rather than replying, Jungkook turned to Jimin, quite clearly shy and flustered. Maybe he just needed some encouragement?
“This is Seokjin, or Jin,” Jimin gestured towards the Gryffindor, making sure to smile reassuringly. “He’s very nice, don’t worry. You can talk to him.”
After considering his words, Jungkook nodded and turned towards Jin. His speech was slow and careful at first but Jin was easy to speak to and soon enough they were talking animatedly to each other, Jungkook showing the same fiery enthusiasm he had displayed the previous night and Jin laughing at some of his comments.
The other students slowly started filling up the hall. Some of Jungkook’s friends sat around the three of them. Taemin sat down opposite Jimin but was almost immediately dragged into a Quidditch discussion that was spreading across the entire Slytherin table - something about the World Cup. Jimin didn’t much care for that particular topic of conversation and so took his time eating and looking around.
The Ravenclaw table seemed just as lively, everyone smiling happily at the students from Beauxbatons, while the Hufflepuff and Gryffindor tables seemed a lot more subdued.
“First? The first year,” Jungkook insisted vehemently, catching Jimin’s attention again. “The first month. It is dark soon.”
“Ah, I guess that makes sense,” Jin agreed. “It would get dark sooner. So it’s almost second nature to you?”
“Second….”
“Almost automatic… not something you have to think about?”
“Ah, yes, yes,” Jungkook nodded, reaching for his wand. “ Lumos .”
A huge beam of light shot out of his wand.
Jimin startled, raising an arm up to shield his eyes. Some of the other students on both sides of him shouted, taken by surprise by the bright flare of light that blinded them - he was vaguely aware of Taemin cursing, of Jungkook panicking, of Seokjin calmly telling him to drop the spell.
Suddenly, the light was gone.
Jimin dropped his arm, slowly, and attempted to blink the black spots away from his vision. The Great Hall had gone absolutely quiet, absolutely still. At first, he thought everyone was just as shocked at the display. Then, everything started making sense, the thoughts aligning themselves in his mind - Lumos spells were never this powerful, not really - and leading him to the conclusion the other tables seemed to have reached already:
Jungkook’s soulmate was at Hogwarts.
Not just at Hogwarts but in the Great Hall somewhere, right now.
Jungkook was staring at his fallen wand, now resting on the table, eyes wide with shock, looking about five shades paler than before. Slowly, Seokjin stood up, the calm smile on his face only betrayed by the tightness at the corners of his eyes.
“How about we show Jungkook where the library is?”
The… library?
Jimin stared at Jin blankly, not understanding why his friend was suggesting that now of all times. Then, the whispers started reaching him. A subtle sort of wave rolled through the student body as everyone started murmuring, the rumour mill already rolling.
He nodded once and reached a hand to clasp Jungkook on the shoulder, successfully catching his attention and getting him to look away from his wand.
“Let’s go, okay, Jungkook?”
It took him a moment but Jungkook nodded, still looking stunned. Jimin helped him pick up his wand and stand up. He kept a hand on his shoulder as he guided Jungkook out, letting Jin lead the way.
The whispers seemed to follow them, growing louder and louder as they keep walking. Even after stepping out, Jimin couldn’t bring himself to relax, still too stunned. Neither of the others were talking, either.
They quickened up their pace, as if trying to outrun the rumours. Thankfully, no one stopped them and the library was even quieter than usual since it was the very beginning of the school year. Classes hadn’t even started yet so there was literally no one around except for them, not even a single Ravenclaw.
Seokjin lead them over to one corner of the library in the History of Magic section. Jimin pulled out a chair and helped a silent Jungkook sit down before taking his own seat. Vaguely, he wondered where his friends where - shouldn’t they have followed Jungkook out? Or were they trying to diffuse the situation, back in the Great Hall?
The silence stretched between them. Jimin looked around, trying to shake off his surprise. That specific area of the library seemed completely abandoned. There was dust clinging to the shelves, the spines of the books, even the surface of the tables. Noticing the last one, Jimin took out his wand and cast a brief cleaning charm around them. His magic must have been boosted by his shock, as after casting the spell, the surface was shiny clean - and so were the chairs and the closest shelf.
He had never understood why the library wasn’t enchanted to keep himself clean. Maybe that would interfere with some of the old enchantments in the books? Summoning charms sometimes caused a few bad reactions, depending on the book they were meant to be summoning.
“Are you alright, Jungkook?”
Jin’s question snapped Jimin’s attention back to the present moment. The random questions about the books and the state of their little corner of the library seemed to have helped him shake his surprise off - all Jimin felt as he looked at Jungkook was concern.
“I…” Jungkook shook his head and muttered something under his breath, presumably in his native language.
Jimin and Jin exchanged worried glances.
“Jungkook?” Jimin prodded, carefully placing a hand on top of one of Jungkook’s arms, currently resting on the table. “Are you okay?”
“I… my, uhm… my… how do you say…”
“Your soulmate,” Jin offered gently.
Jungkook nodded, staring at his wand, clutched tightly in one fist. “Yes… soul…”
“Soulmate,” Jimin repeated, growing even more worried. “Is that… okay?”
Despite all his concern, he couldn’t quite understand Jungkook’s reaction. Jimin couldn’t imagine being anything except ecstatic at finding out that his soulmate was nearby, not after year after year of seeing everyone around him finding their own soulmates.
Most found their pair somewhere in the rest of the student body, some found them during the holidays. A rare few only found their soulmates after leaving Hogwarts but they were the exception rather than the rule.
After six years, though, Jimin was resigned to being one of those cases. It was generally understood that magic influenced their meetings but no one knew how, exactly. It was still rather frustrating for him and he had never handled it as well as Jin.
“Do you mind telling us what’s wrong?” Jin asked, sounding calm and composed. “This should be a happy occasion.”
“Happy…” Jungkook muttered to himself but before Jimin could try to clarify what ‘occasion’ meant, he kept talking. “Ah, no… I… happy, yes. But… everyone… ah… papers. News? The news…”
It clicked. Jimin glanced at Jin, alarmed, only to see his friend nodding with a frown. He hadn’t even thought of that. In the span of a few hours, he had completely forgotten that Jungkook was famous . Maybe it was the fact that Jimin didn’t care about Quidditch a whole lot, maybe it was how surprisingly shy Jungkook had been thus far, but he did manage to forget how well-known his new friend was.
The rumour mill was going to be bad enough but the news was bound to leave the castle walls soon enough. Jimin didn’t want to think about what the newspapers and magazines would say. It must be hard, he thought, being famous while being this young, even without everyone trying to invade your privacy.
“I…” Jungkook shook his head again but this time, he looked a lot surer of himself. “I don’t care. She… he… is here. I want to find my… soul-mate. Can you… I want… need help. Please?”
He looked between the two of them. Jimin tried not to squirm in his seat. Out of everyone in Hogwarts, they were possibly the worst people to ask about this.
Neither of them had found their soulmate yet, which made it a sore topic for both of them. They had no experience of going through the process. All they knew came from hearing their friends talk about it, from popular tales or from reading what few books existed on the subject.
“I’ll help,” Jin offered. The look he sent Jimin’s way was reassuring and he understood at once that the Head Boy didn’t expect him to join in.
Jimin bit his lip and considered it for a moment. True, it was a sore subject for him. He just couldn’t help but feel a little bit bitter whenever the topic came up. But… Jungkook was new to Hogwarts, he was young and shy and in a foreign country.
Jimin took a deep breath and nodded, smiling at Jin’s surprised look.
“Yeah, I’ll help too.”
“Ah- really?” Jungkook asked, his entire face lighting up at the prospect.
Jimin kept his smile up and nodded again. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see Jin doing the same.
“Thank you!”
“You’re welcome,” Jimin replied.
Now if only they could find a way to find out Jungkook’s soulmate without calling too much attention to themselves.
If nothing else, Jimin thought, this sure was shaping up to be an interesting year.
The Great Hall was buzzing even more than usual.
For once, their attention wasn’t entirely on Jungkook. Jimin and Jin had tried to keep most people from going to bother him and it had worked somewhat. Jin had used his position as Head Boy to make the youngest students behave but a lot of other students still tried to approach him. Not to mention the letters.
Jimin had never seen that many letters in his entire life . Jungkook had seemed more confused than overwhelmed but maybe he was used to fans sending him that many letters? Still, there was no way to reply to all of them, not if they wanted to attend class. Jungkook’s friends helped in escorting him to class more often than not and they seemed intimidating enough to make the others keep their distance.
It didn’t stop the rumour mill, though. The fact that Jungkook’s magic had rather suddenly received a boost in the Great Hall meant that his soulmate was a student from either Hogwarts or Beauxbatons, otherwise it would have happened a lot earlier, back at his own school. Not that it helped a lot - short of making Jungkook stand right next to every other person there and cast a spell to see which one flared the most, there was just no way of telling who it was.
Well. There was one way to tell for sure but it would land him in a lot of trouble - as it did to a number of Hogwart students, every single year. The soulmate bound was magical in nature and as such, it affected everyone’s magic. Proximity to one’s soulmate made their magic stronger, it could even trigger flares of accidental magic, but more importantly, it was a well-known fact that soulmates couldn’t curse or hex each other.
That little piece of knowledge was the cause of many a detention whenever young, impressionable wizards and witches in their younger years learned of it and started trying to hex whoever their current crush happened to be.
Most of the time, it ended with someone in the Hospital Wing and someone else being lectured by the Headmaster, although that had actually worked on at least two occasions that Jimin knew of. Still, it wasn’t like Jungkook could go around cursing other students.
At least right now, the source of the excitement was something else, which gave them all a bit of room to breathe. Or it would have, if they weren’t personally invested in the tournament. Unfortunately, Jin, Jungkook and Taemin had all placed their names in the Goblet and so Jimin found himself at the edge of his seat, just like everyone else.
No one so much as uttered a single word, too busy staring at the Head table.
The two Headmasters and the Headmistress stood around the Goblet, having just finished their speech. The magical artifact seemed to be glowing brighter and brighter by the second, although still somehow not as bright as Jungkook’s Lumos spell.
After a few moments, the flames sparkled and flared and a single piece of paper flew out. The Hogwarts Headmaster promptly caught it, then took his time to unfold it before reading the name out loud.
“The Hogwarts Champion is… Seokjin Kim.”
The Great Hall erupted into cheers. Jimin practically jumped from his seat, clapping like mad as he turned around just in time to see his friend stand up from the Gryffindor table with a huge smile on his face.
Jin walked straight over, head held high and shoulders straight, then took the piece of paper and was directed to a door behind where the other teaches were standing. Before he went, Seokjin quickly glanced back to find Jimin and catch his eye, winking at him once he did so.
Jimin laughed and sent a small wave his way before continuing clapping, feeling incredibly proud of his friend for being chosen as Hogwarts’ Champion. Honestly, he couldn’t think of anyone better suited or anyone who deserved it more than Seokjin did.
After he disappeared through the door, the Great Hall quickly went silent. The students who had stood up to clap for Seokjin sat down again, Jimin included.
The Goblet of Fire flared once more; everyone sucked in a breath simultaneously. The flames flickered, sparkled, smoked. A piece of paper flew out, this time being snatched from the air by the Beauxbatons Headmaster.
“Yoongi Min.”
A loud cheer came from the Ravenclaw table, catching the attention of the entire student body. Jimin stood up again, clapping politely. It was difficult to see with so many in the people - he cursed his own height, not for the first time, trying to rise to his tiptoes to catch a glance of the newest Champion, but there were too many tall people in the way.
It wasn’t until he stood by the head table that Jimin was able to take a good look at him.
Pretty , was the first thing that passed through his mind. The boy’s hair was pitch black, the same colour as a thin piece of cloth wrapped around his neck and his dangling earrings, contrasting sharply with his pale skin.
Jimin only managed to catch a glimpse of a roundish face and a small nose before the Beauxbatons’ Champion walked off towards the door at the back. The clapping lasted until he was gone but this time, no one bothered to sit back down.
Tension was thick in the air and it seemed to grow heavier by the second. All of the Hogwarts students had been anticipating the choice of their Champion but the students of the visiting schools had only been mildly curious. Similarly, the Beauxbatons students had been excited to see which one of them had been picked but everyone else had witnessed the choice with mild interest and curiosity.
Durmstrang was another matter entirely.
Everyone had an inkling as to who their champion would be… or, at the very least, everyone knew whom they were hoping it would turn out to be.
Jimin glanced anxiously at the boy sitting next to him. His new friend didn’t seem nervous in the least but Jimin couldn’t help feeling a little worried. It bubbled away, right under his skin. After all, he had read about the previous tournaments, he knew how dangerous they had been.
The Goblet flared for a third - and final - time. The Durmstrang Headmistress snatched it up immediately, fingers brushing dangerously close to the flames. An edge of the paper caught on fire but was immediately put out by her shaking it a few times. Without preamble, she opened up the folded piece of paper and called out the name of her Champion:
“Jungkook Jeon.”
There was a second of silence. Then, the entire hall suddenly burst into applause, followed swiftly by shouts and chants. The sudden, tremendous noise snapped Jimin out of his stupor and he started clapping enthusiastically, laughter bubbling out of him.
Jungkook’s Durmstrang friends - one of which Jimin recognized as being in his Charms class, the red-headed one - dragged him up and shoved him towards the table, calling out something another foreign language, their tone both teasing and excited.
Jungkook straightened up and lifted his chin. His gaze caught Jimin for a moment and he grinned just a little at the encouraging smile and the double thumbs up sent his way. Then, Jungkook seemed to puff his chest out as he walked towards the teachers.
The Durmstrang Headmistress placed a hand on his shoulder, stopping him to mutter something in his ear before gesturing towards the door the previous Champions had gone through.
The noise died down as soon as all three of the chosen students were gone... only to flare up again immediately afterwards. The teachers tried to tell them to keep it down, gesturing strongly, but the entire Hall was abuzz with excitement and giddiness.
Students spoke loudly to one another, with their friends numerous seats away, even with students sitting at the other tables. A French song spontaneously started from the Ravenclaw table and Jimin chuckled as several of his housemates immediately started making bets on who would win the First Task.
“We don’t even know what the First Task is!” he protested.
Taemin leaned over and wrapped an arm around his shoulders, grinning widely, raising his pumpkin juice glass with his free hand.
“Doesn’t matter, Jimin! Come on, when does the House of Cunning ever miss a chance to bet on the major event of the year?”
Jimin laughed again and shook his head, finding himself unable to argue the point. It was true, after all, it just so happened that the major events of the year usually ended up being the Quidditch Cup and a bunch of gossip-inducing school rumours, not so much an international competition amongst European wizarding schools.
“Okay, okay,” he relented, glancing at Taemin. “Are you okay?”
“Yeah, I’m alright,” his friend nodded, taking a sip of his drink. “A bit disappointed but hey, Seokjin deserves it, we all know he’s the best in our school. He’s gonna make us proud.”
“Are you gonna bet on him, then?”
“Yep.”
“What happened to betting using your head, not your heart?” Jimin couldn’t help but tease his housemate.
Taemin raised a brow at him, pressing the glass against his chest, a fake affronted look settling on his face.
“Are you denying me a tiny bit of school spirit, Jimin?”
“No!” Jimin replied with a short laugh, shaking his head, his mirth dying down to fondness as he glanced at the door behind the head table. “No, not at all.”
Despite his apprehension, he couldn’t stop the feeling of pride sparkling in his chest. Seokjin truly did deserve this and he was happy that his friend had been chosen, that he had gotten the chance to prove how good he actually was.
Jungkook, despite having arrived just a few days ago, was already someone Jimin considered a friend and so he was happy for him, too.
All the stress and all the worries could come later. For now, Jimin let himself feel very proud of his friends.
The Demiguise, read the book, is found in the Far East, though only with great difficulty, for this beast is able to make itself invisible when threatened, and can be seen only by wizards skilled in its capture.
The Demiguise, continued the book, is a peaceful herbivorous beast, something like a graceful ape in appearance, with large, black, doleful eyes more often than not hidden by its hair. The whole body is covered with long, fine, silky, silvery hair. Demiguise pelts are highly valued as the hair may be spun into Invisibility Cloaks.
Jimin leaned away to rest against the chair, eyeing the open pages with more than a little skepticism. The sight was difficult to imagine which only made him try harder. A… graceful… ape, covered in silky and silvery hair with black, doleful eyes? That would certainly seem striking.
Their skill to turn invisible would be very useful to avoid all kinds of predators but if their hair was used to make invisibility cloaks, though, then it was really, really valuable. It was hard to believe that no one had crafted a spell that made them easier to track. Or did Demiguise - Demiguises? - also possess the skill to somehow avoid being tracked or followed by magic?
That had the potential to be even more useful but it wasn’t like Jimin could test it himself.
Besides, he was getting sidetracked. It was very unlikely that they would use one of these creatures for the First Task. They were apparently very difficult to capture, for one, and the book did describe them as being very peaceful.
With a sigh and a shake of his head, Jimin turned the page, eyes skimming over the headings, stopping two entries down. Doxxies . Now that sounded a bit more likely.
“Jimin?”
Someone called out to him but rather quietly, likely trying to avoid invoking the wrath of the librarian. There was hardly anyone else there, and when Jimin looked around, there was a single student in the same aisle, silently approaching his table with a wide smile.
His hair was different, so it took Jimin a few seconds to place him.
“Oh, Jin! What did you do with your hair?”
His friend laughed quietly as he took a seat across the table. His bookbag tumbled against the floor a little too loudly, falling to lean against one of the legs of the table.
Jin’s now black fringe fell in front of his eyes. It was a good colour for him, as it made his features stand out even more than usual. Jimin hummed approvingly.
“Ah, do I look handsome?” his friend asked, making a show of it by shaking his head.
“You always look handsome, Jin,” he replied with a small laugh, swishing the quill around. “But it suits you very well!”
“Thank you,” Jin hummed for a moment, eyeing him from across the table. “Didn’t you say you wanted to change yours again?”
“I do,” Jimin gently grabbed a few strands of his own brown hair, trying to look at them. “I don’t know which colour to go for, though.”
“I’m sure you’ll think of something. Your last choices were pretty inspired, the pink and orange both suited you very well.”
“Thank you,” Jimin replied, flushing a little but feeling rather happy at receiving such a compliment. “And thank you for teaching me that spell. It’s a lot easier than doing it the Muggle way.”
The lapsed into silence.
The windows high up in the walls let the faded, orange sunlight in, bathing everything in soft hues that only seemed to enhance the quietness around them. The edges of the table seemed less sharp and the distinctive lines of the bookcases lining up the aisle looked fuzzier, as if they stood in a dream. Above their heads, a few streams of light flickered, particles of dust and magic glittering gently.
Jimin looked up and smiled, peace and comfort settling over him like a warm blanket.
“Jimin?”
“Uhm?”
“Can I ask you for a favour?”
“Oh,” Jimin blinked, refocusing back on Seokjin. He leaned forward and rested his forearms on the table, giving his friend his undivided attention. “Of course you can! Anything you need, Jin.”
Was this about the tournament? It seemed likely.
None of the Champions had returned after going through the door behind the Head table in the Great Hall. Jungkook, from what Jimin knew, had returned pretty late and was excused from classes the following day as he had a few meetings to attend. Jimin didn’t know what the meetings were about and he hadn’t asked but it was likely information about the tournament.
Things seemed to be returning back to normal now, a few days later, but Jin had been either absent or swamped with people whenever he made an appearance, so Jimin hadn’t had the chance to catch up with him.
If a problem had popped up since they last talked, he didn’t know about it, but it seemed far more likely that Jin wanted to ask for his help with the tournament.
Not that he knew what kind of help he could even offer Seokjin, who was far more talented and experienced than Jimin despite the single school year that separated them, but he would still try his best.
Jimin had always prided himself of being there for his friends and doing what he could for them, after all.
“Do you think you could…” Jin faltered. He shifted slightly and started drumming his fingers against the table in a nervous gesture so unlike his usual assured self that Jimin couldn’t help but start to feel worried.
“Jin? What is it?” he gently pressed, leaning a little closer.
Seokjin tried to smile reassuringly at him but only half-succeeded. The corners of his eyes were too tight, his lips were pressed together too tightly.
“Can you… help Jungkook?”
Jimin blinked.
For a moment, in the dying light of the library, it almost felt as if time was suspended. Not a single sound reached his ears after his friend’s request, not a single movement caught his eye. Even the way Seokjin was staring at him, fingers stopped in place, so incredibly still, felt a little unnerving.
It made him want to look around and check that no one had cast Arresto Momentum around them or something.
“Help… Jungkook?” Jimin asked, confused. “I mean, sure, but… why?”
Not that Jimin was against it, not at all, especially not since he now considered Jungkook to be his friend, but it was a surprising request.
He didn’t think that Seokjin would be upset if Jimin ended up helping the other Champions, his friend was nothing if not fair-minded and kind-hearted to a fault, but he hadn’t expected him to outright ask Jimin to help them.
He hadn’t expected his friend to ask him to help the Durmstrang Champion , rather than himself.
“It’s just… I'm… a little worried.”
“Worried?”
Not that Jimin wasn’t worried himself. After all, the previous tournaments had been dangerous and two of his friends were competing.
He was even more worried about Jungkook, in particular, since he was new to the country and to Hogwarts both. It was easy to forget, too, what with his fame and the way everyone fawned about him, that he was only fifteen years old.
With that thought, it clicked. Of course Seokjin would be concerned - all the students had reacted with something akin to shock when it was announced that anyone in their fifth year and above could participate, rather than just the seventh year students as they had all been expecting.
Jungkook was young. Too young, possibly. That didn’t mean he would lose, not at all, but it did mean that Seokjin had the benefit of having more experience and more knowledge on his side.
“Yeah,” Jin said, expression turning a little troubled. “He’s… young. Younger than both me and the Beauxbatons Champion. I’d worry about him anyway just due to that but… I don’t think it’s fair. Unless one of the tasks is a Quidditch game or something of the sort, he’s clearly at a disadvantage.”
Jimin hummed and nodded in full agreement, but couldn’t help teasing his friend with a cheeky little grin.
“Fair? Are you sure you’re not a Hufflepuff?”
“Very funny,” Jin deadpanned, but his attempt at keeping a smile down was mediocre at best. After a moment he gave in, letting out a chuckle. Jimin joined in. “Yeah, alright, alright. But…”
“I know. I agree,” Jimin said firmly with a nod. “I mean, I don’t know if he’s gonna accept my help and I’m not gonna force him to but… I’ll offer.”
“ Thank you , Jimin,” across the table, his friend leaned back against the chair with a relieved smile, some of the tension he had been carrying leaving him and making his shoulders drop. “Really, Jimin. Thank you.”
“It’s fine, don’t worry about it,” he replied, honestly just happy to help Seokjin - and Jungkook - out.
Jin smiled at him again, this time in gratitude, before promptly standing up. Jimin blinked a little at the unexpected movement.
To be honest, he had expected his friend to stick around for a while longer to catch up, not just rush off, although Jimin knew he must be incredibly busy. The disappointment on his face must have been fairly obvious because when Jin spoke again, his tone was mildly apologetic.
“I need to go. I’ll see you at dinner, I promise. I’ll discretely sneak over to the Slytherin table and we can talk properly then.”
“You’re the Hogwarts Champion, you’re not going to discreetly do anything,” Jimin pointed out, ignoring the growing smile on his own face. “And you spend half your meals there anyway.”
“Ah, that’s because I need to keep an eye out for you, isn’t it?” Jin teased, leaning over to ruffle Jimin’s hair, doubling down at the sound of protests and laugher. “Oh, and to keep Taemin out of trouble, too.”
“Don’t worry about that,” he said, running a hand through his now disheveled hair, trying to comb it with his fingers. “I’ll be okay. Just promise to keep yourself safe, okay, Jin? The tournament it’s… it can be really dangerous.”
“I know, but they’ve assured us it’s a lot safer now. They’ve taken plenty of precautions this time. Not just wards and spells, but there will be Aurors present to make sure we make it through okay.”
The reassurance came in a whisper, low enough and quietly enough that Jimin implicitly understood that Jin wasn’t supposed to mention that kind of thing to anyone. He didn’t know why - surely, having some sort of security around was a good thing? Maybe the Aurors were meant to be in disguise or something... but he appreciated Jin telling him regardless.
“Thank you.”
“No problem,” Jin took a moment to smile at him again, even going so far as winking at him, but stopped on his way past the table as Jimin called out to him. “Yes?”
“Just because I’m gonna help Jungkook, it doesn’t mean I won’t help you, too.”
The Gryffindor’s answering laugh was a lot quieter than usual, probably on account of them being in the library, but it sounded entirely heartfelt.
“Ah, if you keep this up, you’ll end up helping all the champions, Jimin.”
“Not the Beauxbatons one, I don’t know him,” Jimin pointed out, although stating it so plainly made him feel a little guilty about it. “So how would I be able to help him?”
“Oh, you never know,” Jin replied lightly, sounding amused.
A brief paused ensued between them. Then, Jimin felt a hand curling around his right shoulder, squeezing once.
“Thank you,” his friend said, again, squeezing his shoulder one more time before straightening up and walking away.
Jimin didn’t turn to look but he focused on the sound of Seokjin’s footsteps. Despite his gaze being fixed on the surface of the desk, he was familiar enough with the library to picture it perfectly:
Jin walking softly and quietly towards the sunlight, shimmering in streams from the high windows, the scarf around his neck seeming almost ablaze with the light, before disappearing around one corner, into the corridors and corridors of bookshelves.
Without realizing it, Jimin smiled fondly and laughed to himself, just a little bit.
As the sound of footsteps faded, silence surrounded him again. Despite knowing that he should really return to his book, he couldn’t quite bring himself to do so quite yet.
It really was nice, the soothing sunlight streaming through the glass, the specks of dust glittering in the air, the old wooden shelves and the hundreds of books surrounding him. Everything was bathed in a gentle, warm glow that made him feel happy and safe.
And sleepy, Jimin thought, closing his tired eyes.
Only for the muffled sound of low cursing to reach his ears.
For a moment, he thought he was merely imagining things but no. It was there, just loud enough for him to be able to pick up. Blinking his eyes open, Jimin sat up properly and tried to focus on the sound.
Try as he might, though, he couldn’t seem to make any sense of what was being said. It was the only sound in the otherwise silent library, though, so he was at least able to pinpoint where it was coming from.
Briefly, Jimin glanced at the still open book resting on the table. There was no harm in leaving his things there, no one would mess with them. There was also no harm in packing his things before going to see if whoever was cursing needed help - he had been in the library for a couple of hours and it would be nice to have the rest of the evening for himself.
Soon enough, he’d be too busy studying to have much free time, it would be better to take advantage of it now.
With his mind made up, Jimin nodded to himself and started carefully and gently packing everything away in his school bag, including the three books from the library that he meant to check out to read during the rest of the week.
There was a spell that could have done it all for him but Jimin often forgot about magic when it came to mundane things due to having grown up the only magically abled person in his household. Most of the time, it still didn’t occur to him that there were spells for the simplest of tasks.
After putting everything away, Jimin shouldered his bag and listened carefully. Whoever had been cursing - or, at least, it certainly sounded like they were at aggravated at best - seemed to be in an even worse mood. He still couldn’t place any of the words, though, the sounds didn’t seem to be making any sense to him.
It was coming from nearby, of course, or else he wouldn’t have been able to hear it. On one of the next aisles, further away from the door?
Careful but curious, Jimin slowly made his way right. He didn’t go far enough to reach the main corridor of the library, the one that ran from one end to the other and allowed them access to most of the books, just far enough to be able to peek into the next aisle.
Sure enough, there was someone there.
Light blues robes, somehow looking almost a shimmering gold in the light. They were a Beauxbatons student, quite clearly, but Jimin didn’t know any of them well enough to tell who it was. Their back being turned didn’t help.
Silently, as to not disturb anyone else, Jimin slowly approached. For a moment, he thought the stranger had heard him, as they took several steps deeper into the aisle, away from the sunlight. It allowed him to see them better at least, even if it made him have to follow.
Black hair, looking somehow smoother and softer than the silk robes. The strands moved with the turning of their head, and Jimin was able to take in their features - a short button nose, the roundish jaw, sharp cat-like eyes, thin lips.
It wasn’t until he spotted the thin strip of fabric wrapped around their throat and the dangling earrings that it clicked, though.
Oh.
The Beauxbatons Champion.
Jimin stood, transfixed. The brief look in the Great Hall, during the ceremony with the Goblet of Fire, had not been enough for him to take a good look. He hardly had the chance to do it after, either, as all three of the Champions seemed to be swarmed by people whenever they went.
Jimin hadn’t cared too much, too busy worrying himself sick, but now that the guy was standing in front of him, he was fairly glad his first clear shot had been in the relative peace of the library and not the Great Hall because surely Taemin would never let him live his reaction down.
The guy was gorgeous .
Perhaps that shouldn't’ be surprising - he vaguely remembered thinking that pretty much all of Beauxbatons’ students were pretty, yet none of them had made his breath hitch quite like this.
Jimin rolled his shoulders, willing the sudden buzzing under his skin away. It didn’t work, he had to shift his weight from one foot to the other, full of sudden, nervous energy, even as he tried to move or shift discreetly.
There was just something about the guy, from his hair to the lines of his jaw to the way the light robes draped over his shoulders, that made him seem… ethereal? He even seemed to actually glow - a trick of the dying sunlight, surely .Despite the light colours and the jewelry, Jimin didn’t think that Beauxbatons students enchanted themselves to glow .
As if in a trance, Jimin didn’t notice that he had been staring for a quite a while now.
Not until the cursing.
The harsh syllables seemed to drag him abruptly out of the dreamlike state his mind had slipped into. They didn’t seem to suit the Champion or the air around them, shattering the momentary tranquility that had settled over Jimin.
It took him a few more seconds to realize why he hadn’t been able to place any of the words - it wasn’t just that they had been muttered, they had also been in French .
The Beauxbaton Champion didn’t seem to have noticed his presence, though. He kept looking around at the shelves with a mix of confusion and indignation, as if the books all around them had personally offended him and his entire family.
He took one step closer to one of the bookcases and peered at the spines. After a few silent seconds, he let out a huff - an actual huff - and straightened up, crossing his arms over his chest.
Then, he glared at the books.
A sudden laugh escaped Jimin before he could stop it.
As soon as the realization hit him, he slapped a hand over his mouth, mortified, eyes widening.
The Champion paused at the sound - far too loud in the otherwise silent library. Slowly, ever so slowly, he turned around. Jimin inhaled sharply.
Their eyes met.
His eyes were dark, his gaze was too sharp, too intense, pinning him in place. Jimin held his breath. Neither of them spoke, neither of them moved.
Something glimmered around him - the light again, Jimin thought very briefly. It didn’t seem important at the time, not with that gaze fixed on him. Its paralyzing effect seemed to seep away second by second and, eventually, Jimin found himself exhaling.
He should probably apologize for staring… and startling him… and for laughing.
His hand dropped away as his lips parted but the apology at the tip of his tongue never made it out because, suddenly, the guy in front of him looked down at the floor, scattering Jimin’s thoughts all over again.
A faint dusting of pink graced his cheeks as he curled his arms closer to his chest, his entire posture self-conscious and defensive. Embarrassed. For… what? Being caught cursing?
“I’m sorry,” Jimin offered, trying for a smile. “I didn’t mean to startle you.”
“Start me?” the guy asked, glancing at him with a confused frown.
“No, no, startle,” he explained, waving a hand as if that would make it obvious. “As in… surprise you?”
“Ah,” the champion said, nodding for good measure, then stopping and shaking his head. “No. No you didn’t… uh… sartle? Startle me.”
“Oh good!” Jimin rubbed his nape a little sheepishly. “I’m still sorry, I didn’t mean to stare, either. Although… do you need help?”
At the mention of help, the other student seemed to visibly hesitate. His gaze flickered all around them, pausing to stare at the innocent books in a rather accusatory manner.
Then, his shoulders dropped a little and his gaze returned to the floor as he nodded, the pink to his cheeks shining a little bit brighter.
“Yes. Please?”
“Of course. How can I help you- ah… sorry, what’s your name again?”
It was Jimin’s time to flush, embarrassed. Honestly, he should already know the name of the Beauxbatons Champion, not only because he has been there when it was announced but because the school had hardly talked about anything else for the past week. Jimin, however, never got into the habit of keeping up to date with gossip. To be fair, it had never been a problem until now.
His first answer was a mere blink. Then, the other guy smiled at him - a small thing, tentative and shy, but it seemed to transform his entire face.
Jimin inhaled sharply again, unaware of his own reaction.
“Yoongi.”
“It’s nice to meet you, Yoongi,” he said after a moment, forcing himself to relax and offer another smile. “I’m Jimin.”
“Min-” Yoongi stopped, brow furrowing in concentration.”Gee… min?”
“Ji-min,” he repeated, slowly, trying to pronounce the syllables clearly. “But you can call me Min if that’s easier for you. I don’t mind.”
“Ah… okay? Is it… is that okay?”
“It’s fine, I promise,” Jimin chuckled, grinning at him. “It’s cute. No one’s called me that before.”
Another flash of that shy smile almost ground his train of thought to a halt but he forced his mind to stay on track. He had offered to help Yoongi, after all. Gawking would help no one.
Still grinning, Jimin cleared his throat and gestured to the shelves around them.
“So, how can I help?”
“I am searching for a book,” Yoongi replied, a lot quicker than before. “About… magical… uhm…”
Not wanting to interrupt, Jimin just waited, but Yoongi seemed to have trouble finishing his sentence. His nose scrunched up rather cutely, gaze flickering to the ceiling as if that would help him find the words he was probably looking for.
After a long moment, the Beauxbatons student let out a frustrated huff that was a lot more adorable than it had any right to be. Jimin bit down on his bottom lip.
“Magical animals?” Yoongi tried.
“Oh, magical creatures?”
“Ah... yes? Yes! Animals, beasts... Cree… yes. Creatures.”
“Well, you’re in the right place,” or at least in the right section, although sometimes it was difficult to tell. Some books touched on several topics, so it was difficult to guess where you’d be able to find them. Jimin had the sneaking suspicion the library itself changed the books around, too, although he had never been able to prove it. “Are you looking for any creature in particular?”
“Yes,” Yoongi replied immediately only to hesitate. The flush to his cheeks deepened as he started at Jimin for a long moment before clearing his throat. “The ah… half… person- man? Half lion?”
That… didn’t sound like any creature Jimin had ever heard of. Puzzled, he glanced up at the ceiling, wracking his brain for something that matched Yoongi’s description. There were half-man creatures and half-lion creatures but he couldn’t remember any that combined both.
He looked at Yoongi again.
“Do you mean half-lion or half-eagle? Or half-man and half-horse?”
Scrunching up his nose again, Yoongi shook his head vehemently. His brow furrowed and he licked his lips, looking like he was trying to think of a better way to phrase his request.
Jimin wasn’t sure if he should give him time or try giving him more suggestions but his chest twinged in sympathy as he recalled Jungkook’s slight frustrations with the language and his pride whenever he made himself understood. Jimin couldn’t imagine how difficult it would be to go to a different country and having to communicate in a different language.
His musings were interrupted by a triumphant sound, his gaze was drawn to Yoongi again, who was pointing at himself - or, rather, at his own head.
“The head is the man,” he said, then moved his finger down to point at his torso. “The body is the lion. And the… the… uh….”
Silence. Yoongi trailed off, struggling to find words again. Jimin stared, still stuck, unsure of how best to help him. After a moment, the champion let out a frustrated noise. He lifted his hand, tips of his fingers touching the top of his thumb in a sort of very loose and open fist, and then he moved it sharply, as if striking something.
Before Jimin could break through his utter bafflement as the sight, Yoongi continued:
“A… scorpion?”
A scorpion. Jimin tilted his head. The head of a man, the torso of a lion and the… oh. Oh!
“Manticore!” he said, clasping his hands together. That had to be it! “The head of a man, the body of a lion and the tail of a scorpion?”
“Yes,” Yoongi replied, rushed, eyes wide as he nodded firmly. “Yes! Man-tee…”
“Manticore,” Jimin repeated slowly, trying his best to say it clearly.
“Man-tee-co-er,” Yoongi repeated back with another firm nod, seeming so utterly proud of himself that Jimin couldn’t help but smile.
The pronunciation was a little off but he wasn’t going to mention it for the time being. He didn’t know if Yoongi would appreciate being corrected and besides, compared to his own French, Yoongi’s English was brilliant.
“There are a few books that mention them around here, let me check…” Jimin pointed towards a bookcase further away from them before heading that way, glancing up as he went.
Not that he had ever searched for that creature in particular but he had, on occasion, looked up a few books in which they appeared.
Plus, the library was practically like a second home to him, being by far the area of the castle he spent the most time in, so he had developed a knack for finding the books he was after rather quickly without bothering the librarian.
“Why are you searching for that, if I may ask?” he stopped and faced the books to his right, craning his neck to look up. Oh, right, it was all the way up there .
That never failed to annoy him, although thankfully, he could just summon the ladder by tapping on the wooden frame of the shelves twice. “They’re not part of the curri- of our classes, they’re too dangerous. There’s really no reason to-”
He froze.
The Tournament.
Yoongi was a Champion. Whatever research he was doing, it might be related to that. Jimin had done plenty of reading about it, he knew that the First Task usually involved some kind of magical creature that the Champions had to beat in some fashion.
He had hope that, after the last champion had been killed by a Nudu, whoever had organized this new tournament had given up on the whole fighting-a-deadly-magical creature idea.
“Oh, Merlin,” he breathed out. The wooden ladder, summoned by his tap, smacked him across the hand but he didn't even notice. His gaze flickered from the books in front of him to Yoongi but he barely registered that the champion had followed him or that he was currently looking at him with utter confusion all over his face. “Oh, is that- is it for the First Task? Do you know anything- they’re far too dangerous! They can’t possibly expect you to- to-”
“Min.”
Something touched his hand again, gentler and a lot more careful than the ladder had been. The pain was just starting to register and Jimin glanced at it, only to find Yoongi gingerly holding it, moving it away a little.
“Your hand. Does… is it hurt?” his voice was quiet and worried, his tone oddly firm in contrast.
Jimin blinked, then shook his head at the question. His face felt warm as he realized he had just made a complete idiot out of himself in front of the other student. Not even just another student, at that, but a student from another school. A Champion from another school.
At least Seokjin was used to his antics.
“No, it’s…” Yoongi stared at him, tilting his head a little. Jimin found himself not hiding the truth as much as he meant to. “Just… just a little. It’s okay, I just got… distracted. Sorry.”
“S’okay,” he flinched a little as Yoongi prodded gently at his hand, the pads of his fingers carefully mapping out the red bruise, but shook his head when the Champion pulled out his wand. “No, don’t do that.”
Yoongi raised a brow at him.
“It’s just a bruise,” Jimin explained, shifting his hand a little to squeeze one of Yoongi’s fingers in thanks, smiling at him. “There’s no need to waste magic on that.”
The stare lingered on him for a few seconds.
Then, Yoongi nodded, putting his wand away and very gently letting Jimin’s hand drop, hanging onto it until the very last moment. Probably to make sure nothing else would smack against it.
“Thank you anyway,” Jimin said, grabbing onto the ladder as he glanced up. “I’ll go get your book, okay?”
JImin started climbing up the ladder before Yoongi had time to answer, both to hide his flushing face and to actually go fetch the book as quickly as possible.
Up amongst the high shelves, it almost felt like he was floating. The sunlight streaming in from the ancient glass windows was brighter, yet softer, almost solid against his skin. Specks of dust glittered right before his eyes; out of the corner of his vision, Jimin could swear he saw an actual circle of sunlight glow for just a moment but it was gone once he turned to look.
Shaking his head, he scanned the books again. Ah, there, just a little further. Carefully, very carefully, as he’d rather not hurt himself again or embarrass himself even further, Jimin stretched a little, up and towards the right.
His fingers brushed against the old leather cover first, before curling around the spine and gently pulling it out. After a quick glimpse at the title, just to make sure it was the right book, Jimin made his way down the ladder rather quickly. He had done it plenty of times before after all, since most of his time was spent in the library.
Once his feet touched the ground, Jimin turned around to face the sight of Yoongi holding his wand out again , a look of utter confusion etched onto his face. It took tracking his glaze from Jimin to the shelves to the book in his grip for him to understand; a laugh bubbled out of him before he could stop it.
“No magic, Yoongi!” he said, still laughing as he held out the book in offering, front cover up.
Yoongi reached for it but, rather than take the book, he merely rested his fingers on the top.
“Why?”
“Why what?”
“No magic?”
“Oh,” Jimin chuckled, flushing a little but offering him a smile. “It’s just… personal preference? I grew up without magic, so… so I don’t like using it for simple things. Besides, some of the books are enchanted and don’t react well to someone using magic on them, even if it’s just a summoning charm.”
Silence followed his answer, making Jimin momentarily worried that he had spoken too quickly or that Yoongi hadn’t been able to follow, but then the Beauxbatons student smiled at him.
Still small, but a little less shy, a little wider at the corners, his eyes squinting a little bit.
Gently, Yoongi took the book from him, his thin, elegant fingers long enough to warp almost all the way around it. They caught Jimin’s attention momentarily - there was a single, chunky ring that he hadn’t noticed on the index finger - but he forced his gaze away, not wanting to be caught staring. Again.
“Thank you, Min,” the words were slow and carefully pronounced.
“You’re welcome. There are more books, but I think that one is a good starting point.”
Yoongi nodded, then looked down at the book. His blunt nails traced the golden lettering on the front, drawing Jimin’s gaze to his fingers again.
It was almost reverent, the way he traced the title and all the thin, elegant lines on the cover, the little decorative details that most students didn’t even notice after their second week at Hogwarts. Briefly, Yoongi opened the book, gently skimming the first few pages.
Jimin visibly startled when the book shut rather abruptly, glancing up to find Yoongi’s concerned gaze already on him.
“Oh, uh, sorry… it’s… quiet?” he cleared his throat a little, gesturing around with his right hand. “There’s more but like I said, I think that’s a good one to start with.”
“Yes,” the Champion agreed, a small smile playing at the corners of his lips again. “Thank you.”
“Oh, you’re welcome.”
They lapsed into silence.
Unlike with Jin, earlier, this wasn’t a comfortable type of silence, although it wasn’t uncomfortable either.
Jimin resisted the urge to shift his balance from one foot to the other again, sudden, buzzing energy bubbling under his skin once more. It threw him for a loop - being embarrassed at being caught staring was one thing but this wasn’t embarrassment.
He didn’t know what it was.
Just an urge to move, to pace, to do something, but there was little he could do without making an idiot out of himself. Pacing would require an explanation, twisting his hands could make Yoongi think he has said something to make Jimin anxious and he couldn’t exactly start casting random spells in the library just to get rid of his unexpected burst of energy.
“Ah, well,” he ended up saying after several seconds of silence, trying for a smile. “I’m sorry, Yoongi, I have to go. If you need any further help, feel free to ask the librarian. She’ll be able to help you.”
“Ah,” Yoongi replied, then nodded again. “Yes. Goodbye?”
“Goodbye,” Jimin chuckled, waving as he took a step back. “I’ll see you later!”
Not that he wanted to assume anything. Merely helping Yoongi find a book didn’t mean they were friends or anything. Jimin would be more than happy to become friends with the Champion, of course, he just didn’t want to impose himself.
Without further ado, he turned around and walked off, book bag over one shoulder, ignoring the tingling spreading across his nape. Just as he was about to turn into the main corridor, a spark of bright sunlight coming from somewhere behind him made him pause.
Confused, Jimin briefly looked up at the windows, then back at where he had come from. There really wasn’t anything there that looked like it could have been the cause, that could have reflected the sunlight somehow.
Nothing but Yoongi - still looking in his direction, Jimin noticed - whose wand wasn’t even in sight so it couldn’t have been him either. Not that he had any reason to even do that in the first place.
As if realizing he had been caught staring, Yoongi slowly raised one hand and very hesitantly waved again, as if unsure of the gesture.
Jimin chuckled to himself and waved back with the biggest smile he could muster. But only for a few seconds, before proceeding on his way, ignoring the warmth he could feel spreading across his cheeks.
It hadn’t been too bad a meeting, he thought, despite his embarrassment.
On the way out of the library, Seokjin’s earlier teasing about ending up helping all the Champions came back to him.
Jimin couldn’t help but laugh.
“Help?” Jungkook asked, half a piece of toast shoved into his mouth.
“If you want to,” Jimin answered, sipping at his morning tea rather sleepily. “I’m not going to force your or anything but I can help.”
Jungkook didn’t answer him immediately, rather he seemed to be discussing it with one of his friends, the redhead from Jimin’s Charms class whose name he didn’t know as they hadn’t been properly introduced yet. The conversation went back and forth in rapid fire Danish and Jimin let them too it, stifling a yawn.
The post had come earlier that day, for whatever reason, while most of the student body was still engrossed in their breakfast. It inevitably resulted in a lot of spilled drinks, damp feathers and indignant hoots.
Thankfully, Odeng was surprisingly good at avoiding crashing into things while landing. Jimin petted its head with his free hand, more than happy to let one of Jin’s burrowing owls eat off of his plate in return for bringing him his parents’ letters.
As per usual, the Great Hall was full of chatter, most of it gossip but not as bad as the week before. Still, it was alarming how quickly Jimin got used to keeping an ear out for trouble in such a short few days.
Nothing really stood out, what with the first task being at the end of November and the newness of the champions starting to wear off.
“Okay,” Jungkook finally replied, bringing Jimin’s attention back to him.
“Thank you very much!” added the person singing next to him, the friend that Jungkook had been discussing the offer with, with a smile so bright that Jimin couldn’t help returning it.
“Oh, it’s nothing, really.”
“His name is Hoseok,” Jungkook offered before reaching for the water jug.
“And you are Jimin, yes?” Hoseok asked, happy and upbeat even while everyone else around him seems half-asleep.
“Yep,” he replied, putting down his tea to offer a hand which the Durmstrang student promptly grabbed and shook with an even brighter grin. “It’s nice to meet you properly, Hoseok.”
“You too!” he shook Jimin’s hand again a little too vigorously, making him laugh, before releasing his grip. “I heard you. You are very nice.”
“Oh, no, that’s… uhm…”
“You are nice,” the other student insisted. “The castle is nice, too. It is very big and very warm. And… ah… roof?”
“Ceiling?”
“Ceiling! Yes, it… is so pretty-”
In the middle of the quiet Slytherin table and the other sleepy students, Hoseok looked and sounded like a breath of fresh air.
His voice was loud, he laughed frequently and kept smiling, red hair swishing as he tilting his head whenever he searched for a specific word, and he gesticulated so much that some of the nearby owls turned their heads to stare at him.
His cheery comments were so entertaining that Jimin completely forgot his tea for the next few minutes, leaning with his forearms on the table instead, in order to lean closer. The effort to keep his laugh on the quieter side wasn’t going very well, judging by the way Odeng would sometimes hoot indignantly at him.
That barely registered in the face of his amusement, though, as did pretty much everything else going on around them - until something in the corner of his eye caught his attention and made him look away from Hoseok.
There was a rose growing out of the water jug.
Hoseok stopped talking rather abruptly; Jimin could only watch in confusion, fascination and increasing alarm as the rose kept growing.
It grew taller and taller and taller. When it stopped, a few other stems sprouted from the top, twirling around the handle and spreading to the nearby plates, small rosebuds blooming here and there, and curled around the wrist of the hand still holding onto the jug.
A hand belonging to Jungkook.
A wide-eyed Jungkook, mouth slightly open, staring off into the distance. Jimin tried to follow his gaze, to see what he could possibly be staring at, but the Slytherin table was at one end of the Great Hall so he could be staring at literally every other table there.
Utterly confused, Jimin’s gaze returned to the still spreading flowers, even as he grabbed Jungkook’s hand and tried to gently pry it off.
“Jungkook?”
The champion didn’t reply. Jimin was about to repeat himself, to see if he could snap him out of whatever this was, when the realization slammed into him.
Soulmates. Of course.
Accidental magic wasn’t uncommon when one was in close proximity to their soulmate and they already knew Jungkook’s was at Hogwarts. It usually flared up randomly or in response to emotional distress, just like any other kind of accidental magic, but persisted far beyond childhood, until both parties agreed to the Soulmate Vow.
It wasn’t usually triggered by just looking at someone, though, which was what seemed to be happening here.
Oh. That meant they knew who his soulmate was.
Or they would, if they could snap him out of whatever trance he had been drawn into.
“Jungkook,” Seokjin said, startling the magic out of Jimin.
He hadn’t noticed his friend getting up from the Gryffindor table or even walking over, for that matter. His hand was on Jungkook’s shoulder and there was a friendly smile on his face, but Jimin knew him well enough to notice the tightness at the edge of his eyes and the strain beneath his calm tone.
“Jungkook,” Seokjin said again, squeezing his shoulder. “Why don’t you go get ready for class?”
“Huh?”
Hoseok leaned over a little to catch Jimin’s eye and give him a nod. Carefully, but still trying to be quick, the three of them half-pushed, half-dragged Jungkook - whose eyes were still fixed somewhere else, was it the Ravenclaw table? - away from the Great Hall.
The realization of how utterly silent everyone was, that all the sleepy chatter had stopped, that not even the owls were making any noise, made the hairs on his nape stand up. It felt like a repeat of the day they had first met.
Except this time, Jimin knew, the rumours would be a lot worse.
“Jungkook?” Seokjin tried again with no success.
The Durmstrang Champion only seemed to snap out of it once Hoseok shook him by his other shoulder and started talking rather quickly in a language Jimin was fairly sure wasn’t Danish. Or German. Finnish, maybe?
Rather than try and make sense of it, though, he merely exchanged a worried look with Seokjin as they proceeded to make their way to the dungeons.
By the time they made it to the Slytherin common room, Jungkook was perfectly capable of speaking again, although his face had turned several shades of deep red, which only made Jimin wonder what Hoseok had been saying.
Seokjin elected to stay outside the common room, although he was both the Hogwarts Champion and the Head Boy so he could walk in whenever he wished to.
Jimin rushed up to his dorm and gathered his things as quickly as possible with none of his usual care. Once back down in the common room, however, it became clear that his rush had been for naught as neither Jungkook nor Hoseok were back yet. The room was, in fact, entirely empty except for him.
That always made the space look darker - the curtains, the black leather furniture, the dark wood of the shelves, the clear view to the inside of the lake through the windows, even the fireplace looked much less inviting without the hustle and bustle of a normal school day.
The stillness reminded him of the utter silence back in the Great Hall and, without any conscious thought, Jimin began to pace. Something bubbled under his skin, a pike of anxiety that wouldn’t let him keep still and wait patiently - this time, it really was due to his nerves.
It wasn’t even something that affected Jimin directly but he was worried about Jungkook, possibly for the same reasons Seokjin was.
Jungkook was young, only a fifth year, and he had been in the public eye before coming to Hogwarts. Being chosen as a champion called even more attention to him and now this? The entire school was going to be nothing but gossip again and just when everything was starting to calm down.
Thankfully, most of the Hogwarts students had already found their soulmate so they wouldn’t - hopefully - try to corner him somewhere. That didn’t stop them from making up rumours about it, though, and the ones that hadn’t found their soulmate yet…
The ones that… hadn’t.
Jimin paused. He glanced at the doors.There was still no sign of anyone returning, so he went to the nearest couch and sat down, leaning forward to brace his elbows on his knees, cradling his face in his hands. Something else shimmered in his stomach, not jittery and nervous, but sharp and bitter.
It just didn’t seem fair.
Jimin had been as taken with the idea of soulmates as any of the other young students. Some books might have helped him understand the phenomena better but only in an academic sense and they had done nothing to stop his imagination from going wild.
He had pictured and dreamed about it so often, all of it - finding his soulmate, how his magic would react, how they would instantly know each other, how their Soulmate Vow would be.
As the years went by and all his friends and acquaintances started displaying the tell-tale signs and finding their soulmates, every single one of his crushes sparked a sliver of hope in his chest that would be inevitably crushed.
Jimin had mostly made his peace with it but every once in a while, something happened that reminded him of the entire thing, that made that ugly, sharp, bitter jealousy rear its head again.
It just didn’t seem fair.
Jungkook was younger but already displaying all the signs and, even worse, this was the easiest case of finding one’s soulmate that Jimin had ever seen or even heard of. Most people had to go through some trial and error at least, they weren’t so lucky as to have their magic act up as soon as they looked at their soulmate.
It wasn’t fair.
It also wasn’t Jungkook’s fault.
Jimin pressed his hands against his face for a moment as he released a breath. None of this was Jungkook’s fault and Jimin wasn’t the type of person, much less the type of friend, that let petty jealousy get in the way of looking out for other people.
It was a hard admission to make, that he was very clearly jealous and bitter, but he had always believed that feelings and visceral reactions didn’t say as much about someone as what they actually chose to do about those things.
Slowly, he stood up and straightened up.
Right, then. There were too many important things to focus on to let this silly soulmate stuff get to him.
They had to try and keep Jungkook from being followed around, the First Task was quickly approaching and he had his normal classes to keep up with - no small feat in his sixth year, when homework seemed to just multiply if left alone for five minutes.
Maybe he was being overly pessimistic, Jimin thought as he glanced worriedly at the doors, and the rumor mill would die as quickly as it had last time.
His optimism lasted all through the day until the next morning.
Hoseok had met him downstairs and just told him to go on ahead without them which Jimin was reluctant to do but had accepted. They were probably just running late, he had thought. It wasn’t until he went to breakfast that Jimin realized something was off.
The first thing Jimin noticed when he stepped inside the Great Hall was all the noise . Granted, a school full of children and teenagers was never quiet unless they were all half-asleep but the chatter that usually made up the background noise of his mornings wasn’t so much a background noise as a full orchestra.
The second thing he noticed was that almost no one was paying attention to him but the ones that did notice him immediately fell silent and stared . It was a little bit unnerving, to say the least, and it resulted in him simultaneously trying to rush to his own table and to not bring attention to himself.
The third thing he noticed was that neither Jungkook nor Hoseok were sitting anywhere at the Slytherin table. Alarmed, Jimin looked around the Great Hall as quickly as he could, but he didn’t spot them at any of the other tablets, either. Although he did make eye contact with Seokjin who seemed just as troubled.
He turned his attention to Taemin and Onew, huddling even closer than usual.
“Hey, where’s Jung-” his words trailed off as the noticed the piece of paper on the table. Too big to be a letter, resting in front of his usual seat, folded but not neatly. He couldn’t help scrunching up his nose in distaste as recognition set it. “What’s the Daily Prophet doing at our table?”
“Yeah, about that,” Taemin answered with none of his usual cheer. Sitting right next to him, Onew - who had clearly forgone sitting at the Ravenclaw table to eat breakfast with his soulmate instead - looked worriedly at Jimin. “You should read it.”
Read it? He never read the Daily Prophet. The entire Slytherin House as a general rule refused to do so for as long as he could remember, except to make bets or keeps tabs on what kind of scandal was popular - and, usually, what said scandal was aimed at distracting people from. Taemin knew that perfectly well, better than Jimin in fact, so he quietly bent down and reached for the pseudo-newspaper.
SOULMATES BLOOMING?
Young Champion Jungkook has been seen leaving behind a trail of blooming buds. Witnesses say the Durmstrang wizard was unaware of the flowers and have described it as a form of uncontrolled, accidental magic. Has the young student finally gone down the path of finding his soulmate? Who knows? Stay tuned for updates on the Triwizard Tournament and the budding news of Jungkook and his soulmate!
It took him reading the article three times for everything to sink in.
He should have guessed.
After all, it was only logical that the Prophet would report on the tournament. In fact, he vaguely recalled something about interviews with the Champions after the Goblet of Fire ceremony but Jimin made it a point to avoid that newspaper as much as possible.
It made sense, though: it was a big event, this sort of thing would probably sell a lot of copies, and everyone knew that the only thing that traveled faster than magic was gossip.
Jimin shook his head and turned to Taemin.
“Where’s Jungkook?” he asked again.
“Back in the common room still.”
“With Hoseok?”
“I guess,” Taemin replied with a concerned frown. “I think they just want to lay low this morning. Until class, anyway.”
That made sense. It made even more sense once Jimin looked around and realized exactly how many copies of that day’s Prophet were making their way around the Great Hall.
His stomach churned uncomfortably, heavily, as Jimin dropped the newspaper on the table and stepped back. What little hunger he had felt earlier was utterly gone.
“I’ll… I think I’ll… escort them to class.”
“Use the corridors that are out of the way,” Taemin suggested with a nod. “Getting them away from the crowd is a good idea.”
“But you still have plenty of time, Jimin,” Onew protested. “You can still eat.”
“I don’t feel hungry,” Jimin replied, forcing a small smile on his face. “I’ll eat plenty at lunch, okay?”
Without waiting for an answer or acknowledging the worried looks exchanged by the bonded pair, he made his way out of the Great Hall as quickly as he could without attracting too much attention to himself.
For all his rush, though, his footsteps slowed down as soon as he made it past the huge double doors, stopping entirely a few moments later.
Where was he even going?
The idea of being hounded by people who knew he was friends with Jungkook made the option of going back very unappealing. He knew that Seokjin and Taemin and Onew and most of his House would shield him but he didn’t want to burden them.
Jimin started walking as he considered his other options.
Hoseok had told him to go ahead, so he didn’t want to go back to bother them either. Waiting in the common room would only make him feel even more anxious. The library would distract him too well, probably make him come back too late to escort the Durmstrang students to their classes. The greenhouse could work but he’d have to clean up and clear out before leaving.
His train of thought halted as he looked at the entrance doors. Unwittingly, he had walked over to the main doors but… some fresh air actually sounded good, chilly as it would be.
Jimin took a moment to fix his scarf and burrow his hands in his pockets before stepping outside.
The cold hit him immediately, sharp and undeniable. It served to wake him up, at least. Jimin looked up at the clear sky for a few moments before starting to walk again, deciding that going around the grounds for a bit wouldn’t hurt.
It was quiet this early in the morning, with nary a soul in sight. The sound of his footsteps was masked by the damp grass, adding to the silence - comfortable this time, unlike the unsettling lack of noise in the Great Hall the previous day. His breaths came out as little white puffs of wispy air, making him smile even as the cold made him shiver a little.
Without meaning to, Jimin stopped by the lake. It was smooth and calm, a very dark grey-blue that looked like glass. The giant squid must have been sleeping or swimming deep down as there were absolutely no ripples on the surface.
It was impossible to see the windows of his common room, of course, but it was amusing to try and guess where they could be. Probably deep down below the castle but you could never really tell with magic.
“Min.”
The word sounded loud in the stillness of the lakeside. It took a moment for realization to kick in - there was only one person who had ever called him that - and when he turned, sure enough, Yoongi was standing behind him.
Or, at least, he thought it was Yoongi.
It was a little difficult to tell with the puffy, white cloak that practically covered all of him, made entirely of feathers. At least until he pushed the hood back.
His skin seemed even paler in the cold, his hair darker, his gaze even more intense. A sliver of blue could be seen between his neck and his right shoulder, where the cloak didn’t sit quite right.
“Oh, Yoongi. Good morning.”
“Good morning,” Yoongi repeated back at him, furrowing a brow as he stepped closer to Jimin. “Are you okay?”
“Huh?” oh, maybe he had meant it as a greeting? “I’m good, thank you. How are you?”
“No,” Yoongi said, shaking his head and staring at him intently, lips pursed in something that looked almost like… concern? “You ran... at breakfast. Are you okay?”
Oh.
Jimin had hoped that his escape would have gone mostly unnoticed. Briefly, he wondered if anyone else had come after him but looking over Yoongi’s shoulder, in the direction of the entrance, didn’t reveal anyone else. Just Yoongi, then, who had… seen him leave and decided to check up on him?
Oddly touched, Jimin glanced down briefly before smiling at him.
“I’m okay. I’m just…. Worried.”
“Jungkook,” Yoongi said. It didn’t sound like a question but Jimin nodded anyway.
The Champion only hummed for a moment, dark eyes turned to look over the lake. The ridiculously fluffy cloak made him look tiny, almost delicate. Before Jimin could remind himself that staring was rude, Yoongi turned to him again with a raised brow.
“Walk? With me?”
Not seeing a reason to refuse, Jimin nodded.
Their first steps were hesitant, not entirely sure of which direction to head in or how fast to go but, soon enough, they fell in-step with each other. They walked in silence; Yoongi didn’t seem in any hurry to speak and Jimin couldn’t really think of anything to say.
A slight breeze was picking up, toying with the edges of his green scarf. The leaves of the trees by the lake rustled and Jimin smiled to himself, let himself imagine that they were somehow in sync, dancing to the same windy tune. A single leaf rolled onto the shore of the lake, disturbing the glass-like surface for the briefest of moments.
Next to him, Yoongi shivered.
“Cold?”
The Beauxbatons Champion muttered something that was definitely in French and hunched his shoulders, almost as if he was trying to hide his face behind the collar of his cloak. His cheeks, already pink with the cold, flushed darker.
Jimin couldn’t help but laugh at the endearing sight as he took out his wand.
“You know, Yoongi, there are heating charms. You could cast one instead of freezing-”
“No.”
Jimin paused mid-speech, blinking. “No?”
“No magic, Min,” his mouth pulling into a smirk and the teasing glint in his eyes was proof enough that Yoongi remembered their conversation in the library far too well.
“This isn’t a basic task, Yoongi!” Jimin argued even as he smiled, gesturing with his free hand. “You’re cold!”
“No magic.”
The insistence made him huff, even as he pocketed his wand again. Jimin was nothing if not stubborn, though, so rather than casting a warming charm, he stopped and unwrapped the scarf from around his neck.
Yoongi stopped next to him, staring in confusion, his eyes widening once Jimin offered him the scarf with the biggest smile he could muster.
“Min-”
“Please? You can give it back to me later, I just…” briefly, he wondered if this was too weird, offering a piece of clothing to a stranger, then swiftly dismissed the thought. It’s nothing he wouldn’t do for any other Beauxbatons student, after all. “You’re not used to it being this cold, so if you refuse to cast the charm, at least take this. Okay?”
Slowly, Yoongi nodded, but made no move to actually take the offering. Jimin stepped closer, just enough so he could wrap it nice and cozy around his neck, pointedly ignoring the way the Champion’s face flushed even deeper.
From what he could see, the hood was actually pretty good protection against the wind, but when pulled down it left the throat completely exposed to the elements.
Once he was satisfied with his work, Jimin stepped back. He glanced over Yoongi just once before nodding to himself.
“Less cold?”
“Yes. Thank you,” the other student gently brushed his gloved hand over the scarf, as if afraid to move it. “I will give it back.”
Huh. Yoongi’s English seemed a lot better than during their first meeting. Maybe he had been nervous back then? Or stressed? Jimin wasn’t going to call attention to it and risk making him feel self-conscious, though.
“Sure thing. I have more, so don’t worry too much.”
A rather strong breeze blew past them, ruffling Jimin’s hair. He brushed a hand through it, trying to get the strands to behave, but became distracted by the leaves swirling above their heads.
Red and orange and yellow, cracked and torn, they followed one after another. Jimin glanced over his shoulder, spotting the Forbidden Forest in the distance and, much closer, the glass walls of the Greenhouses.
How long had they been walking for? It didn’t seem that long.
“You are… you’re worried.”
The abrupt change in topic made something in his stomach twist. Jimin glanced up at the sky again and sighed.
“Yeah. I just… Jungkook is… he’s young. I’m sure he’s very capable but he’s young and I’m sure he has enough on his plate right now.”
“It is unfair.”
His gaze snapped, dropping down to stare at Yoongi whose mouth was pursed, eyes narrowed. His entire face had twisted, tightened somewhat - it was clear he wasn’t happy in the least.
Abruptly, Jimin realized that he had been worrying about a Champion in front of another Champion and wondered if he had just stuck his foot in his mouth.
“He is young,” Yoongi agreed with a firm nod. “I am worried, too.”
Just like that, his concerns dissipated, blown away like the leaves. Some of the students might take the rivalry a little too seriously but it was good to know that their Champions didn’t. At least, not enough to view Jungkook’s younger age and lesser experience as being an advantage rather than something to be concerned about.
“Do you know him?”
“No. But it-does not… it’s not important.”
If anything, Yoongi’s expression tightened further, threatening to turn into a scowl.
Jimin understood then, without the need for more words: it was the principle of the thing. It didn’t matter if Yoongi didn’t know Jungkook, he didn’t need to know him personally to find the entire thing unfair.
It was the exact same sense of fairness, the same moral backbone that made him admire Seokjin so much. Briefly, he wondered if that was a quality that the Goblet took into account. There really was no way to tell.
Endeared, Jimin smiled at him, reaching out with a hand.
“It’s okay, Yoongi, I’m-” his words faltered as his fingers brushed against the feathers.
They were very soft and a lot lighter than they looked. Peering more closely revealed that they turned transparent at the edges, almost as if fading to nothing. Huh. He wondered what animal they were from.
“Jimin?”
“Uhm,” he looked away from the feathers, up at Yoongi. Ignoring his own blushing face - one of these days, he was going to finally control his staring habit around Yoongi, really he was - to grasp the Champion's upper arm and squeeze a little. “Sorry. It’s okay, I’m helping Jungkook. And… and if it means anything, Seokjin, the Hogwarts Champion… he doesn’t think it’s fair, either.”
For a second, Yoongi looked surprised at his words. Then, he nodded firmly a couple of times, smiling as if his opinion had just been justified. Jimin laughed, lightly, and released his upper arm.
“I’m sorry for leaving abruptly, I didn’t mean to worry you,” he added, still touching at the concern. “I just… did you read that newspaper? The Daily Prophet? I’m a bit worried that they’ll keep hounding Jungkook.”
“... houding?”
“Chasing him. Not… leaving him alone, does that make sense?”
“Yes,” Yoongi replied, looking towards the left, seeming to mull the words over.
Following his gaze brought Jimin’s attention to the Greenhouses, mere feet away from the two of them. As with every building belonging to Hogwarts, it looked both positively ancient and very well-kept - even if the windows were smudged with dust and dirt. Why did they never bother with cleaning charms?
Thinking about it, probably because they would need to cast them every five minutes. Dealing with plants was always messy, it didn’t help when some of the plants were sentient and could start flinging things at you.
Jimin smiled a little at the memory of how unpredictable and exciting some of the classes could be. He really did miss Herbology, dropping it had been the hardest choice he had made the previous summer.
“People are like fishes.”
Yoongi’s voice snatched his attention back from the Greenhouses. For a moment, startled as he was, Jimin couldn’t make sense of the words. Then, after replaying them in his head, he realized he still couldn’t make sense of them.
“People… are like fish?”
“Short attention, short memory.”
Jimin stared at him, blinking a few times. Yoongi merely stared back, his face utterly serious - if not for the very right corner of his lips, trying valiently to not curl up. For a few seconds, the only sound between them was the rustling of the wind and the crinkling of the fallen autumn leaves.
Then, Jimin started laughing.
Only a giggle slipping by at first but he had never been any good at keeping it in. It turned into a chuckle, then several chuckles, then full blown laughter. Instinctively, he raised a hand to his mouth, trying to muffle it, but that never worked out well either.
Feathers. Beautiful, fluffy white feathers tickling his nose and pressing against his cheek - no, wait. The other way around. Jimin looked up at Yoongi, flushing at the look of amusement on his face and the wide hands curled around his shoulders to keep him from falling over.
Embarrassed, Jimin quickly straightened up again and cleared his throat. Honestly, he really did need to learn how to laugh without almost toppling over, no matter how charming Seokjin said it was. Falling onto strangers wasn’t charming at all, just embarrassing.
He sent Yoongi a smile, just to reassure him it was fine. The hands on his shoulders slowly dropped away.
“I don’t think that’s actually true, Yoongi.”
There was a vague memory of learning about how short goldfish memory was in the back of his mind and another of learning that it had been a lie. Although he hadn’t gone to check that, either, so he couldn’t be sure. The Hogwarts library, unsurprisingly, didn’t feature a lot of books on goldfish behaviour and physiology unless you’re talking about Transfiguration.
Yoongi merely shrugged as if the truth wasn’t particularly important.
“They will read some other news tomorrow and forget. It’s okay.”
Would it be that easy?
Jimin knew the British Wizarding press and that didn’t sound very likely to him. Not with the Prophet, anyway. Still… his anxiety seemed to ease off a little bit at the words, if only because Yoongi had sounded so sure about it all.
Maybe all he needed was to talk it out with someone.
“Yeah, I guess,” Jimin said, glancing down at his own boots. “Thanks, Yoongi.”
Something tapped at his head.
He looked back up in time to see Yoongi pull his hand away. Once he had Jimin’s attention, he smiled - his normal small, slightly shy smile, but somehow it seemed a lot sweeter. His eyes almost disappeared and Jimin could swear they sparkled, just a little, just for a second.
“You are a good friend to Jungkook.”
“Ah, why does everyone…” Jimin interrupted himself, shaking his head a little, then smiled back. “It’s not... I just want to make sure he’s okay - oh! Classes! I forgot!”
Yoongi tilted his head.
“Sorry, I want to escort him to his classes today. Hoseok and I, we sshould probably do that, because of what happened in the Great Hall…”
“... escort?” Yoongi repeated, an odd look settling on his face.
“Yes? As in… uhm… take him to class?”
“Oh!” And with that explanation, Yoongi’s face cleared. The smile returned as he nodded at Jimin - was it just him or was this one a little wider? “Yes. Yes, that is the good- a good idea.”
Not quite knowing what to say, Jimin only smiled once more before turning around and taking a couple of steps. It took him only a few moments to realize Yoongi wasn’t following and thus stop, looking over his shoulder, puzzled.
“Aren’t you coming?”
“No,” Yoongi replied, shaking his head. The movement rustled the green scarf around his neck just a little bit. Jimin ignored his own flushing face. Maybe that had been a little too much, after all. “My class is … later? More late?”
“Later,” Jimin confirmed.
It occurred to him, then, that he didn’t have any classes with any Beauxbatons students at all. It made sense when he thought about it because surely having students from two Hogwarts Houses and Durmstrang and Beauxbatons would be too much.
Especially as N.E.W.T. level classes were meant to be smaller. It also explained why he didn’t have any classes with Ravenclaws, as they were probably paired off with the Beauxbatons students for the rest of the year.
It all made perfect sense and yet, Jimin couldn’t help but feel mildly put off by this realization.
“Oh,” he said, fighting to shake off the slight disappointment that had creeped in. “That’s… okay. Uhm. Will I still see you later, Yoongi?”
“Yes,” Yoongi replied, short and to the point and with so much conviction that Jimin could only stare at him until the Beauxbatons student gently brushed his fingers against the scarf around his neck.
Right, yeah. That .
“Oh, uhm,” Jimin stuttered out with an embarrassed laugh, ignoring his own slightly flushing face. “Just keep that for today. You can return it to me later, okay?”
Yoongi merely nodded.
There was nothing off-putting in his expression, nothing at all, yet Jimin could feel something buzzing right under his skin. Probably just from being embarrassed, he thought, taking a few more steps back.
“Okay, then. I’ll see you later, Yoongi!”
With a flushing face and a far too enthusiastic wave, JImin turned around and started walking back to the castle. It was rude to just turn his back like that, honestly, but his sudden nerves wouldn’t let him stay still anyway and he thought he should probably go before he embarrassed himself in front of Yoongi any further.
Besides, he really was worried about people cornering Jungkook somewhere.
It didn’t really take him long at all to reach the castle again. Jimin looked back only once and found the Beauxbatons Champion still where he had left him, seeming to be staring at him. Suddenly feeling a little shy, he quickly waved again before quickening his pace.
Yoongi probably hadn’t really been looking in his direction, nevermind staring at him, but Jimin still stepped back inside the castle with a smile and flushing pink cheeks.
A flew owls flew past the window.
Inside the classroom, Jimin fought to keep his eyes open as their Charms Professor droned on about something or another.
It wasn’t that he didn’t like Charms, really it wasn’t. If he didn’t like it, Jimin wouldn’t have chosen to pursue them at N.E.W.T. level and he certainly wouldn’t have chosen to make a career out of the subject - well, along with Arithmancy, but still.
The problem was that doing revision was very, very boring. In theory, Jimin understood the need for it. They had all been away for the last few months, after all, and most of them hadn’t had the opportunity to perform magic. Certainly not him, in his non-magical household.
He was even willing to concede that it was a good idea to go over everything they did in the previous year, as well as give them a general overview of what they could expect going forward, especially as the sixth year marked a rather sharp turn in their education.
But all of that didn’t make up for the fact that it was boring. Even more so when the revision was purely theoretical in the interest of saving time. Maybe if they were actually casting the spells the Professor kept talking about, they would be able to focus on the lesson.
Next to him, Hoseok was bent over the desk, head nested in his crossed arms, lightly snoring away with no shame whatsoever. Having the ever bubbly and bright Hoseok just fall asleep like that was a true testament to how utterly bored they all were. In all honesty, Jimin felt kind of tempted to join in.
Their morning adrenaline from escorting Jungkook to his classroom, making sure that no one accosted him on the way, only lasted about ten minutes into their class. The anxiety, at least for Jimin, made him even more tired as soon as he was able to relax, leaving him fighting to keep his eyes open.
A far away rumble drew his attention to the door. Squinting sleepily at the dark wood, Jimin tried to place the sound. The staircases didn’t make that much noise and unless someone had unleashed a bunch of really heavy puffskeins…. Or, his tired brain suggested, a bunch of students.
That was a lot more likely but it still felt odd. After years of all his classes lasting roughly the same time, with everyone’s schedules being rather similar, the more specialized years with classes of varying lengths, starting and ending at differing times, was still rather new.
Those were probably the younger years, done with their first class of the day.
Mystery thus solved, his gaze found the sleeping Hoseok again before settling on the window. It wasn’t even October yet, but the temperatures had already started to drop. He knew, from experience, that it would only get colder until February. At least they would get some snow during Christmas.
For now, all they got was the creeping cold, making the younger years bundled themselves up in their heavy black coats and the older years casted warming charms on themselves after cursing at the chill permeating the castle.
Still, it wasn’t something he could be mad about. His parents’ houses were in the southwest, where they rarely had any snow even in the winter and it never got this cold. No, cold was his second home, cold was stone walls and old windows, cold was Hogwarts.
Jimin smiled to himself, slouching a little on his chair.
“But enough about that, let’s do something new.”
Only to immediately straighten up again, head turning from the window to the blackboard at the very front.
A couple of short chalk sticks were busy writing some instructions and drawing a few diagrams, no doubt following the intent of their Professor who merely watched in amusement as every sleepy student suddenly woke up and started paying the proper attention.
On the left, notes on the theoretical side of the spell. A… water-making one? Huh. That sounded pretty useful, actually, and Jimin thought he recalled some of the seventh years using it on occasion. He wondered why they waited until the sixth year to teach it, although it made sense if it counted as conjuring. It was interesting how often Charms and Transfiguration overlapped and- he shook his head and refocused before his own thoughts got away from that particular tangent.
There would be plenty of time for his independent study - not his "mad scientist experiments", as Taemin liked to call them, he should never have mentioned that particular term to him - later.
Right below, there were notes on the name and incantation for the spell. Jimin found himself mouthing the words, careful not to actually cast the charm. Aguamenti . That didn’t sound too difficult, not after five years of trying to wrap his head and tongue around the Latin pronunciation of these things.
Briefly, he wondered if that was easier for the Beauxbatons students to learn. And harder for the Durmstrang ones, maybe?
On the right side of the board now rested some drawings and diagrams exemplifying the necessary wand movements. Carefully and empty-handed, Jimin tried them a couple of times to get used to the motions, even though he didn’t really have to.
Wand movements had always come easily and naturally to him for one reason or another; Seokjin rather thought he might have a knack for wordless magic but Jimin was rather dubious about it. He wasn’t that talented.
After a few moment of flicking his wrist and silently mouthing the words, he felt ready to try it out. The Professor walked down the corridor that split the classroom in half, encouraging students to start practicing by using the bucket each one of them had been assigned.
Somewhere in the background, he registered more footsteps walking past. This time, it was likely to be the older students in other classes, who had either started earlier or whose electives didn’t last as long. No matter, though, he needed to focus on the here and now.
With a firm nod, mostly to himself, Jimin picked up his wand and, making sure to keep his movements fluid, pointed at his own bucket.
“ Aguamenti - ow!”
The bucket clattered against the nearest table, overflowing and tumbling over when he gripped his wand tightly and tried to direct it elsewhere. Rather than the expected jet of water, what could only be described as a beam of it shot out of his wand - and it wouldn’t stop.
The Professor rushed over, probably summoned by the screech of a now fully awake Hoseok, but Jimin couldn’t make sense of the woman’s words, as alarmed as he was. Gritting his teeth, he tried to fruitlessly to make it stop , until a hand grabbed his wrist and squeezed, forcing him to drop the wand entirely.
The water stopped.
Jimin stared at his fallen wand, confused and astonished all at once. His chest was heaving, he abruptly realized, as if he had run a marathon. His bangs were wet and so were his robes, possibly the top of his shirt.
The entire surface of his table, including his school supplies, was soaked. Even the nearby tables seemed to have been hit, glistering in places. There was a pool of water gathering at his feet and the Professor was asking him something, he was fairly sure, but Jimin struggled to pain attention.
As the shock faded, realization started to sink in.
A burst of uncontrolled water would have been one thing. But that hadn’t been a burst, that had been a very strong, sustained stream. It was the kind of thing that only happened with a sudden boost in power, an unexpected one at that.
Stumbling a little, still staring fixedly at his wand on the ground, Jimin didn’t so much sit back on his bench as staggered backward onto it. Rather than even out, his breathing kept up its erratic pace, now matched by his heartbeat as the realization settled in around him, almost like a physical feeling, wrapping around his neck, making his head feel heavy:
His soulmate was at Hogwarts.