Chapter Text
The first thing Minho noticed when the Hogwarts Express began slowing down was the rain.
Thin droplets slid down the compartment windows, blurring the dark green hills outside into watercolor streaks. The sky had already turned grey-blue with evening, heavy clouds hanging low over the tracks.
Across from him, Jisung had somehow fallen asleep sitting upright with his mouth open.
Hyunjin stared at him in visible disgust.
“Can someone wake him up before he starts drooling on me?”
“He already did,” Jeongin said without looking up from his book.
Hyunjin looked horrified. “What?”
“I saw it happen ten minutes ago.”
“Oh, that’s vile.”
Changbin snorted from beside Felix. “You’re dramatic.”
“I’m correct.”
Minho looked up from where he sat curled into the corner seat, knees tucked slightly against Seungmin’s leg. “You literally cried because your conditioner exploded last year.”
“It was expensive!!”
“That’s somehow worse,” Chan said.
The compartment dissolved into overlapping laughter.
It had only been two months since summer started, and yet being back together again felt strangely complete, like something clicking back into place.
Even after spending nearly the entire break together.
Minho still wasn’t entirely sure how that happened.
Somehow Seungmin had just… appeared at his house three days after school ended and barely left afterward.
Not that Minho minded.
Seungmin glanced sideways at him now, nudging his knee lightly. “You should sleep before we arrive.”
“I’m not tired.”
“You fell asleep on my shoulder an hour ago.”
“That was different.”
“How?”
Minho opened his mouth, paused, then frowned slightly. “I don’t know yet.”
Seungmin huffed a quiet laugh.
It was unfair, honestly. Seungmin barely reacted to anything most of the time, but around Minho he smiled constantly without realizing it. Small things. Tiny things. Soft corners of his mouth, quieter eyes, hands always drifting close without thinking.
Everyone noticed.
Especially Chan.
Chan noticed everything.
“You two are disgusting,” he announced from across the compartment.
“Thank you,” Seungmin replied calmly.
Minho blinked. “Why is that a compliment to you?”
“Because he’s in love with you,” Jeongin answered immediately.
Seungmin didn’t even deny it.
Felix leaned against Changbin’s shoulder with a grin. “I missed this.”
“You saw us yesterday,” Hyunjin muttered.
“That’s irrelevant.”
“It literally isn’t.”
The compartment door suddenly slid open.
A nervous first year peeked inside before freezing entirely.
Eight older students turned toward him at once.
“Oh,” the kid squeaked.
Chan smiled immediately. “You okay?”
The first year’s eyes widened further somehow.
Minho recognized the expression instantly.
Every year the first years looked terrified of Chan for approximately three seconds before realizing he was basically a giant golden retriever.
“S-sorry,” the kid stammered. “I was looking for an empty compartment—”
“You can sit here if you want,” Felix offered kindly.
The boy visibly relaxed before his eyes landed on Minho.
Then confusion flickered across his face.
“…Wait.”
Hyunjin sighed dramatically. “Here we go.”
“You’re Lee Minho.”
Minho blinked once. “Unfortunately.”
Jisung finally woke up. “Huh?”
“The Lee Minho?” the first year repeated.
“Oh definitely,” Changbin said proudly before Minho could respond. “Top student in Hufflepuff, youngest Quidditch seeker in years, nearly gave Snape an existential crisis in third year—”
“I answered one question,” Minho interrupted flatly.
“You corrected Snape’s potion ratios.”
“He was wrong.”
“You corrected him in front of Slytherin.”
“He was still wrong.”
The first year stared at him in awe.
Minho looked deeply uncomfortable with the attention and pulled his sleeves over his hands slightly.
Seungmin noticed immediately.
“You don’t have to interrogate him,” he said mildly.
The boy flushed bright red. “Sorry!”
“It’s okay,” Minho said quickly. “You can sit down if you want.”
The kid nearly tripped trying to do exactly that.
Hyunjin watched him fondly. “Min, you’re accidentally collecting children again.”
“I am not.”
“You helped three first years find their classes last year and they followed you around for two months.”
“They were lost.”
“You became their emotional support upperclassman.”
“That sounds fake.”
“It absolutely is not,” Jeongin said.
Minho slumped slightly lower into his seat while everyone laughed.
—
Hogwarts looked exactly the same.
And somehow completely different.
The castle rose through the rain like something out of a dream, warm golden windows glowing against dark stone. Boats skimmed across the Black Lake carrying first years while older students crowded the carriages.
Minho tilted his head back slightly as they crossed the courtyard.
Home.
Beside him, Felix bumped shoulders with him lightly. “You’re smiling.”
“I’m not.”
“You literally are.”
Minho ignored him.
Students filled the Entrance Hall in loud clusters, wet cloaks and owls and trunks everywhere. Somewhere near the staircase, Peeves zoomed overhead cackling while a group of third years screamed.
“Some things never change,” Chan said fondly.
“Unfortunately,” Seungmin muttered as Peeves threw water balloons at passing students.
The moment they entered the Great Hall, conversations noticeably shifted.
Minho almost didn’t notice at first.
Almost.
But then whispers started traveling down the Hufflepuff table.
“That’s him.”
“He really is tiny.”
“I heard he beat seventh years in dueling club.”
“My sister said Professor Flitwick calls him terrifying.”
“Why does he look so nice then?”
Minho immediately reached for his goblet to avoid eye contact.
Across the table, Jisung grinned knowingly.
“You’re famous again.”
“I hate this school.”
“No you don’t.”
“…Maybe not.”
The Sorting Ceremony started soon after.
First years stumbled nervously toward the stool one by one while the older students applauded politely. Minho rested his chin against his hand, only half paying attention.
Until—
“Mr. Lee.”
Minho looked up immediately.
Professor McGonagall stood near the staff table, posture perfectly straight as always.
“Yes, Professor?”
“Would you come with me for a moment?”
The table went silent.
Minho blinked once.
Then twice.
Beside him, Felix frowned immediately. “Did you do something?”
“No?”
“That sounded uncertain,” Seungmin said.
“I don’t think I did?”
“Min.”
“I returned the library book eventually.”
Chan put his face in his hands.
Professor McGonagall’s expression didn’t even twitch. “Now, Mr. Lee.”
Minho stood slowly.
As he passed Seungmin, their hands brushed briefly against each other under the table.
“You’ll be fine,” Seungmin murmured quietly.
Minho nodded once before following McGonagall.
The whispers started instantly the second they disappeared through the doors.
—
McGonagall’s office was warm.
Candles flickered softly against stone walls lined with shelves and parchment stacks. Rain tapped quietly against the windows.
Minho sat across from her desk trying not to overthink every possible reason he could have been called there.
Which was difficult.
McGonagall folded her hands neatly together.
“Mr. Lee,” she began, “you are aware your academic performance is exceptional.”
Minho’s stomach dropped immediately.
That sounded dangerous already.
“…Thank you?”
“Your O.W.L. examination results were among the highest Hogwarts has seen in recent years.”
He stared quietly at the desk.
Compliments always made him feel vaguely itchy.
McGonagall seemed to notice.
Her tone softened slightly.
“After discussions with the staff, we believe remaining at your current academic level would be… limiting for you.”
Minho looked up slowly.
“…I don’t understand.”
“You are being officially advanced into sixth year.”
Silence.
Complete silence.
Rain tapped softly against the windows.
Minho blinked once, genuinely certain he had misheard her.
“With the current sixth years?” he asked carefully.
“Yes.”
“With Seungmin and Felix and the others?”
“Yes, Mr. Lee.”
His brain stopped functioning for a solid five seconds.
“That’s—”
McGonagall almost looked amused.
“A surprise?”
“A little.”
“You’ve earned it.”
Minho immediately looked down again.
Right. There was the itchy feeling.
McGonagall’s gaze softened further.
“You should be proud of yourself.”
That somehow made it worse.
Minho rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly. “The others are going to make this unbearable.”
A very tiny smile appeared on McGonagall’s face.
“Yes,” she admitted. “Probably.”
—
The common room exploded the moment Minho walked in.
Felix was first.
“Well?”
Minho barely got two steps inside before Felix grabbed his shoulders dramatically.
“What happened?”
Minho looked at everyone crowded around the couches.
Chan leaning forward expectantly.
Changbin pretending not to look worried.
Hyunjin sitting cross-legged beside Jisung.
Jeongin holding a book upside down because he’d stopped reading five minutes ago.
And Seungmin watching him quietly from the armchair near the fire.
Minho suddenly felt warm all over again.
“I got moved up a year,” he mumbled.
Silence.
Then—
“You WHAT?”
Jisung nearly fell off the couch.
Chan looked genuinely shocked for once in his life. “Min?”
“You’re kidding,” Changbin said.
“I’m not.”
Felix stared at him for a second before immediately tackling him into a hug.
“MINNIE!”
“Felix— breathe—”
“That’s insane!”
Hyunjin looked personally emotional about it. “Our baby is academically terrifying.”
“I hate when you say things like that.”
Jeongin finally lowered his upside down book. “Do you realize how ridiculous that is?”
“No actually.”
“You skipped another year,” Jeongin deadpanned. “That’s insane.”
Minho rubbed the back of his neck again, ears faintly pink.
“I just studied a lot.”
“That is the understatement of the century,” Jisung said.
Seungmin still hadn’t spoken.
Minho glanced toward him uncertainly.
Seungmin stood slowly and crossed the room.
Then he stopped directly in front of Minho.
“You didn’t tell me they were considering it,” he said quietly.
“I didn’t know.”
A pause.
Then Seungmin smiled.
Small. Soft. Real.
“I’m proud of you, jagi.”
Minho immediately looked away.
Changbin burst out laughing.
“Oh he’s blushing.”
“I am not.”
“You absolutely are,” Felix said.
Minho looked genuinely betrayed. “Why is everyone against me today?”
“No one’s against you,” Chan said fondly. “We’re just impressed.”
“That sounds worse.”
Hyunjin leaned dramatically against Jisung. “He’s allergic to praise.”
“It’s embarrassing,” Minho muttered.
Seungmin reached over and fixed the crooked collar of Minho’s sweater absentmindedly.
“You’ll survive.”
“That’s easy for you to say.”
“You like hearing compliments from me.”
Minho opened his mouth.
Paused.
Then narrowed his eyes suspiciously.
“That was manipulative.”
“And yet I’m right.”
Unfortunately, he was.
Which made it worse.
—
By the third day back at Hogwarts, the entire castle knew.
Lee Minho had skipped a year.
Again.
Minho personally wanted to vanish into the Forbidden Forest.
Everywhere he went people stared.
Not cruelly, usually.
Just curiously.
First years whispered when he passed through hallways. Older students glanced toward him during lessons. Even some professors seemed more interested than usual.
Professor Flitwick looked delighted.
Professor Sprout hugged him so tightly he nearly lost oxygen.
Snape merely stared at him for a long moment before saying:
“Try not to let this inflate your ego, Mr. Lee.”
Minho blinked. “I don’t think I have one.”
Snape looked unimpressed.
“Yes. That is precisely why the staff likes you.”
Meanwhile, across the Slytherin table during breakfast, Sanghoon looked furious.
“A mudblood,” he muttered darkly.
Yoobin scoffed. “McGonagall practically worships him.”
“He’s not even pureblood.”
“He’s still smarter than you,” Minseo pointed out lazily.
Sanghoon’s glare sharpened. “Watch yourself.”
At the Hufflepuff table, entirely unaware, Minho was trying to steal strawberries off Felix’s plate.
“You have your own,” Felix said.
“Yours taste better.”
“That makes no sense.”
“Yet here we are.”
Seungmin slid another strawberry onto Minho’s plate without looking up from his tea.
Minho blinked.
“…Thanks.”
“You looked offended that you couldn’t steal them.”
“That’s because I was.”
Jeongin looked tired already. “It’s eight in the morning.”
“And?” Chan asked.
“You’re all exhausting.”
“You love us,” Changbin said confidently.
Jeongin took a long sip of coffee.
“Debatable.”
———————————
The Quidditch captain announcements happened that evening.
Students crowded into the Great Hall loudly, excitement buzzing through every table.
Minho sat unusually straight beside Felix.
Nervous.
Seungmin noticed immediately.
“You’ll get it,” he said quietly.
Minho frowned at his goblet. “You don’t know that.”
“I do.”
“How?”
“Because the Hufflepuffs would riot otherwise.”
That earned the tiniest smile.
Professor McGonagall stood at the front shortly afterward, parchment in hand.
“For Gryffindor—Christopher Bang.”
Cheers exploded immediately.
Chan looked simultaneously embarrassed and proud while Changbin nearly crushed him in a hug.
“For Ravenclaw—Yang Jeongin.”
The Ravenclaw table erupted next.
Jeongin sighed like this was deeply inconvenient for him personally.
“For Slytherin—Kim Seungmin.”
Slytherin practically shook with applause.
Seungmin nodded once politely while several younger students looked at him like he’d descended from the heavens.
Minho rolled his eyes fondly.
And finally—
“For Hufflepuff—Lee Minho.”
The Hufflepuff table exploded.
Felix actually screamed.
“That’s my brother!”
Several first years started clapping immediately while older Hufflepuffs cheered loudly enough that Minho wanted to disappear into the floor.
Across the hall, Chan was grinning proudly.
Changbin looked like he personally won the position.
Hyunjin looked emotional again for some reason.
Seungmin leaned slightly closer beside him.
“Told you,” he murmured.
Minho pressed his lips together, trying unsuccessfully to hide his smile.
Unfortunately for him, everyone noticed anyway.
And somewhere across the hall, four Slytherins watched the celebration with growing resentment.