Chapter Text
“Friendship is unnecessary, like philosophy, like art.... It has no survival value; rather it is one of those things which makes us want to survive.”
- C.S. Lewis
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JUNGKOOK
Jungkook sighed with relief when he finally found an empty coach on the train. He quickly slid into the open bench and looked out the window at all the other Hogwarts students who were still saying goodbye to their parents.
There was a boy who looked young enough to be a first year standing with his parents, face as nervous as Jungkook felt. Jungkook watched them as they gave their son one last hug, and his chest ached. His father’s goodbye consisted of one last warning, “Don’t let anyone find out,” and one last reminder, “You’ll always be a monster to them.” There were no smiles or hugs…but there hadn’t been any of those for a very, very long time.
Five years, to be exact. It was five years ago, when Jungkook was six years old, that his mother had been killed by a werewolf and he had been bitten by the same one.
Closing his eyes, Jungkook rested his forehead on the window.
He pictured what his father would do if someone did find out his secret. The burn scars covering his arms gave him a pretty good idea and he pulled his sleeves down out of habit.
Of course, there weren’t only scars that came from his father pressing silver forks to his skin. There were those that covered every part of his body that came from himself after every full moon. There was nothing he could do to hide the few on his face, although they weren’t as bad. Jungkook’s hands were a different story, but his tattered gloves would have to work to cover the damage.
The only thing Jungkook knew was that no one would ever see his scars if he could help it. Sharing a room with three other boys would be an obstacle, but not one that he couldn’t overcome. However, when it came to keeping the fact that he was a werewolf hidden, being in such proximity with three people every day would be a bigger hurdle to jump.
And it didn’t help that the full moon was only three days away. He could already feel his bones aching, and his pre-moon fatigue was ever present. The only thing that gave him hope was the fact that the headmistress Professor McGonagall, along with the nurse and a few other head figures in Hogwarts, already knew about his situation and were there to help him.
But before he could start to go over all the excuses he had planned for his monthly full-moon sickness and disappearances, the coach door quickly slid open and startled him so badly that he jerked, banging his forehead against the window.
Usually he would’ve heard and smelled someone coming, but Jungkook was too caught up in his worries to be properly aware of his surroundings. It had been a very long time since someone had snuck up on him like that, and it was enough to scare him out of his wits and make the wolf inside him hostile. He twisted around, eyes narrowed.
It was the same boy from outside the window. Jungkook’s eyes widened. Not a threat, said the wolf inside him. He tried managing a smile to hide his initial reaction and failed miserably, judging by the way the boy looked a little taken aback.
“Umm…” the boy sounded as if he was rethinking whatever he was about to say before sheepishly asking, “is that seat taken?” The boy glanced at the empty bench in front of Jungkook’s.
So, this was it. This was his first interaction with someone who wasn’t his father in five years. Stay calm.
Jungkook shook his head, “No, you’re fine.” He internally celebrated. No nervous stutter, no voice crack, and he added a smile for good measure. Well done.
The boy smiled back and took the seat. A little too late, Jungkook realized he would have to talk to this boy throughout the entire train ride. He clasped his hands together in his lap and chewed on his lip, trying not to seem like too much of mess.
Was he supposed to make eye contact or would that be disrespectful? Did a long awkward silence always proceed normal conversations? Were the benches always this close? When did it get so bloody hot? Jungkook thought before picking up his hand to fan himself.
“Cold, are you?” asked the boy suddenly and Jungkook jumped, hand now frozen mid-fan. Jungkook went to scratch his nose, as if that had been his objective all along.
Caught off guard and unprepared, a noise came out of Jungkook’s throat that he hoped sounded like “Hm?”
“Are you cold? You’re wearing gloves.”
Jungkook’s brain short circuited. Someone was already asking him about his gloves? He hadn’t decided which excuse he wanted to use yet: cold or germs. Germs made him seem a bit odd, but it was more reliable than cold. However, he didn’t want this boy to think he was odd.
“Yeah, I…get cold easily,” he lied. Truthfully, he was unnaturally hot most of the time. The boy passively nodded in understanding.
“Me too,” said the boy, tugging at his sleeves. He then looked at Jungkook like it was his turn to continue the conversation. Jungkook wrung his hands. It was much easier to answer questions than ask them, he decided.
“Um…” started Jungkook. He made a second’s worth of eye contact before darting his eyes away. “Can I ask for your name?”
“Kim Taehyung,” he replied, studying Jungkook’s face as though he should have a reaction. Jungkook had no idea what his reaction should be, so he settled with a shaky, “That’s a, uh, nice name.”
The boy – Taehyung – smiled brightly, as if that was the perfect thing to say. Jungkook made a mental note to compliment people on their names from now on. “And can I ask for yours?” asked Taehyung, eyebrows now raised and still smiling.
“My name’s Jeon Jungkook.” He sat up straight and stuck out his hand. Now this he had practiced. Taehyung gave him a boxy grin.
“Nice to meet you! I hope you don’t mind, but I’m going to call you Kookie from now on,” said Taehyung as serious as he could be while excitedly shaking Jungkook’s hand.
Jungkook blinked. Did Taehyung not like his name? Or was giving nicknames how a friendship usually started? Overcome with the desire to act as normal as possible, Jungkook just stared at him, still shaking his hand, not knowing what to say.
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TAEHYUNG
After a few seconds of his mother squeezing him a little too hard, Taehyung pulled himself out of her stiff grasp. Her eyes flashed as she grabbed his bare arm with her nails, digging them in.
“Try not to make it known how much of a disgrace you are,” his mother hissed in his ear. He ripped his arm away and pain quickly followed; he ignored it. He just wanted to get away from his parents.
After so many years of enduring their constant torture and abuse, he was more than ready to leave them. He walked away as fast as he could without making it look like he was, in fact, running away.
It was no secret his entire family despised him from a very young age, not just his parents. His aunts, uncles, cousins… they all wanted nothing to do with him. He really, really hated them and they really, really hated him, so he didn’t feel that sorry for himself. At least it was a mutual feeling.
Taehyung was the black sheep, the family disappointment. He was completely different than his power-hungry, manipulative, dark-arts practicing family, and they despised him for it.
And the sorting that would take place today would be the last nail in the coffin.
He would make the hat to put him in Gryffindor when his entire family was known for being Slytherin. If his plan worked, they would finally disown him. Even if they didn’t, it would still be known that Kim Taehyung was not like his family - that would be enough, no matter how much torture he had to endure because of it.
It would be hard shaking off the stigma of his last name, though. Almost everyone knew his family: his dad was a prominent figure in the Ministry of Magic as the head of the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures and his mother was the leader of the Werewolf Capture Unit. In other words, their main job was to find and exterminate dangerous werewolves. To them, that meant all werewolves.
It didn’t matter if a wolf was only six years old and his friend.
Taehyung shuddered, trying to block out the memories he had worked so hard to repress the past five years. Finally, he looked down at his arm; she had drawn blood. Taehyung pulled down his sleeves and focused on finding an empty compartment.
___
There weren’t any completely empty coaches left, to Taehyung’s disappointment. However, there was one with just a single boy who seemed around his age, which was good enough. He slid open the door and the boy jumped.
Taehyung tried not to laugh when the boy hit his head on the window, but when he twisted around, Taehyung’s smile immediately dropped. The boy’s face, while young, looked quite terrifying. His eyes were narrowed, his shoulders tense, and a part of his top lip was drawn up. Before Taehyung could even react, the boy’s eyes widened and he gave Taehyung a shaky smile.
Taehyung felt something inside his stomach flip. The boy was cute, thought Taehyung. A little rough around the edges, he noticed, as he took in the boy’s oversized sweatshirt, frayed jeans that looked a size too big, and his worn sneakers. But definitely cute.
Messy bangs slightly obscured his large eyes, which looked both innocent and tired. His front teeth were a bit bigger than the rest and his lips were rather thin. Taehyung took in the small scars on his pale face, the biggest one being on his cheekbone below his left eye.
Altogether, the boy gave him the distinct impression of a sleep deprived and slightly roughed up bunny.
“Umm…” Taehyung didn’t know why he was suddenly nervous. “Is that seat taken?”
___
Taehyung caught on quickly that Jungkook was shy. Well…was shy the right word? Maybe he was just nervous too. Either way, it was obvious Taehyung would have to keep up the conversation, at least at first.
But Taehyung didn’t mind. Jungkook didn’t seem to know who he was, so it would be much easier to just be himself.
“Are you a first year?”
Jungkook’s eyes widened. “How did you know?”
“I could just tell. I am too, by the way. So, which house do you think you’ll end up in?” Taehyung asked, wondering how he would feel if Jungkook straight up told him Slytherin.
“I have no idea,” said Jungkook, a bit of sadness in his tone.
“Well, what house do you want to be in?” Taehyung amended.
Jungkook’s face twisted in thought, as if he had never even considered the question. That was odd…Taehyung expected everyone had a certain house they wanted to be in before they ever sat on the stool and wore the sorting hat.
“I suppose anything is fine,” he finally said, shrugging. Taehyung drooped the corners of his mouth and raised his eyebrows. Did he really not care? Your house reflected you…each house had a different reputation and you would be stuck with that house and its people for seven years. It was a pretty big deal.
He must be a muggleborn, thought Taehyung, offhandedly. Muggleborns were witches or wizards who were born from non-magical parents, and from Jungkook’s lack of knowledge not only about who Taehyung was, but also the importance of your house, that seemed to be the case.
“What about you?” asked Jungkook.
Before Taehyung could reply, the door to their coach opened, startling him. A short boy was standing there, looking desperate and annoyed. Taehyung immediately recognized him. It figured, considering the boy’s face was often on the front page of the Daily Prophet.
Park Jimin was famous for being the son of one of the most powerful and famous wizards of a pureblood family almost as big as Taehyung’s own; all of whom were Gryffindors. Yes, Taehyung knew this face well. Taehyung’s family hated Jimin’s family almost more than they hated Taehyung himself.
“Is it okay if I sit with you guys?” asked Jimin, eyes pleading.
“Sure,” said Taehyung, wondering if Jimin knew who he was.
Taehyung glanced at Jungkook who was chewing on his lip, obviously uncomfortable with this new circumstance. If Jimin did know, hopefully he would keep his mouth shut about it; Taehyung had no interest in his family coming up in conversation, at least not until he made it to Hogwarts, where it would be inevitable.
Jimin slid in next to Jungkook, who tensed up and scooted over to make room.
“Sorry about barging in, it’s just people can be so…” Jimin ran his hands through his hair and sighed. He glanced at Taehyung and then Jungkook who were both staring at him. “Nevermind. I’m Park Jimin.” Jimin looked at both of them as if in search of a reaction.
“That’s a nice name,” said Jungkook, smiling and not adding anything else. Jimin looked embarrassed and Jungkook’s smile faltered.
“I’m Taehyung, first year,” Taehyung chimed in, purposefully leaving out his family name, “And that’s Jungkook, also a first year.”
Before Taehyung could judge Jimin’s reaction to his given name, Jungkook took this as his cue to sit up straight and stick out his hand, like he had done before with Taehyung. Jimin looked amused as he shook Jungkook’s hand.
“I don’t think I’ve ever shook hands with someone the same age as me before,” said Jimin, now grinning. Jungkook’s face flushed a little before he took his hand back, embarrassed. Jimin playfully pushed Jungkook’s arm and Jungkook flinched. “It’s fine,” said Jimin, “I’m just teasing. Your parents probably adore you for having such good manners.”
It was only for a second, but Taehyung saw pain wash over Jungkook’s face before he gave Jimin a stiff smile.
Because Taehyung had been around Jungkook enough already to know he would have no idea how to respond, Taehyung chimed in once again. “What year are you?”
“Oh! I’m a first year, too.”
Jimin must’ve been so used to everyone knowing everything about him that he forgot some people were pretending not to know everything about him and others were muggle-born who didn’t even know what house they wanted to be in. Not that Taehyung could blame Jimin; he understood having a lack of privacy quite well.
“Which house do you want to be in?” Taehyung asked, as if he didn’t already know the answer. Jungkook looked at Jimin in anticipation.
“Uh, I’m not sure…” Jimin furrowed his eyebrows and looked deep in thought. Taehyung wasn’t sure if it was an act or if he was being serious. Surely Jimin wanted to be in Gryffindor, right? “Maybe…Gryffindor? What about you guys?”
“I don’t really know,” said Jungkook, unsure.
Jimin gave him a curious look. “Really?” Jungkook shrugged helplessly. “Well, what about you?”
“Definitely Gryffindor,” Taehyung said immediately. Jungkook looked him in awe.
Jimin’s eyebrows shot up. “Oh…so not,” he hesitated, “Slytherin?”
Ah, so Jimin did know who he was. Taehyung glanced at Jungkook, who looked unperturbed, still unaware that two pureblood heirs, one notorious and one famous, were sitting with him.
Taehyung looked Jimin in the eyes, silently pleading not to bring up his family. He tried to keep his voice as steady as possible as he replied, “I don’t think I’m much of a Slytherin.” He gave Jimin a pointed look.
“That’s understandable,” replied Jimin, eyes full of something Taehyung couldn’t quite put his finger on, but at least it wasn’t malice. They shared a smile.
Suddenly, their coach door slid open once more and Jimin and Taehyung jumped.
“Anything from the trolley?” called an old woman, pushing a cart filled with all sort of magical candy and sweets. Taehyung and Jimin both jumped out of their seats. When Taehyung looked to see Jungkook’s reaction to Wizarding World candy he found him still sitting, looking longingly at the cart.
When Jungkook noticed Taehyung looking at him, he averted his eyes and became very interested in his sweatshirt sleeves. The tops of his ears reddened.
Of course, thought Taehyung. Muggle-borns didn’t usually have extra wizarding money. Having way more than he needed, Taehyung bought as much as he could to share with Jungkook.
Once he and Jimin sat back down, Taehyung with an armful of treats and Jimin with a few Chocolate Frogs, Taehyung dumped his stash on the bench beside him, in front of Jungkook. “Take all you want,” he said, handing Jungkook one of his own Chocolate Frogs, “I know muggleborns aren’t used to carrying around Sickles and Galleons.”
“I’m not a muggleborn…” Jungkook flushed. Taehyung froze, mortified, and Jimin’s eyes widened. How could I just assume something like that? But before Taehyung could sputter out an apology, Jungkook beamed at him like he had just given him a Nimbus 2000. “But thanks! I can’t even remember the last time I had chocolate.”
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JUNGKOOK
When it was finally time for the sorting ceremony, Jungkook felt a tad anxious. If he wasn’t still with Taehyung and Jimin, he would’ve been a ball of nerves. Yet, to Jungkook’s relief, they remained together even after they got off the train, so he wasn’t completely alone.
When they finally entered the Great Hall, Jungkook looked around at the four long, separate tables. The only difference between them were the colors that donned the students sitting at each one: red for Gryffindor, yellow for Hufflepuff, blue for Ravenclaw, and green for Slytherin.
Looking up, Jungkook’s breath hitched; the ceiling must’ve been bewitched to mirror the sky above them, giving the impression that they were standing under the night sky.
They followed a stout woman to the front of the hall and came to stop in front of a stool with a large, old hat on it.
“When I call your name, please come to the front where the hat will sort into your house,” said the woman, who now stood beside the stool and held the hat.
Suddenly, someone’s hand took Jungkook’s own and squeezed. Jungkook looked up to find Taehyung, eyes forward and eyebrows drawn in worry. He must really want to be in Gryffindor. Jungkook squeezed Taehyung’s hand back and took comfort in the fact he wasn’t the only one who was nervous.
Jungkook glanced at Jimin, whose face was unreadable.
“Lee Seokmin,” called the woman. Once the boy – Seokmin – was sitting on the stool, eyes darting around the hall, the woman placed the hat on his head. Seokmin’s eyes were only squeezed shut for a moment before the hat, now with what looked like a mouth made from folds, called out, “Hufflepuff!”
The Hufflepuff table erupted in cheers as Seokmin opened his eyes, smile stretching across his face. He cheerfully hopped off the stool and made his way to the yellow-clad table.
Jungkook became more nervous.
He was lying when he told Taehyung and Jimin he didn’t know what house he wanted to be put in. In reality, he thought Hufflepuff seemed like the best choice…they valued fairness, friendship, and hard work. They seemed the nicest, and he thought that they would be least likely to figure out his secret. Ravenclaw was his last choice: they would put the pieces together in a second.
But now, he supposed Gryffindor wouldn’t be so bad either, especially if Jimin and Taehyung were with him. He didn’t really have a strong opinion about Slytherin even though he knew it had a negative reputation. Who was he to judge?
A few more names were called: Xu Ming Hao, Gryffindor; Jung Jaehyun, Slytherin; Im Nayeon, Ravenclaw.
Then, “Jeon Jungkook.”
Taehyung gave Jungkook’s hand one last squeeze and let go. “Go get ‘em, Kookie,” he whispered, patting him on the shoulder.
Face warm, Jungkook briskly walked to the stool and sat down, ready to get everyone’s eyes off him as soon as possible.
He felt the hap drop on his head, and almost immediately there was a voice was inside his mind.
Oh, what do we have here? said the voice. A little werewolf.
Jungkook’s stomach dropped.
Don’t worry, only you can hear me right now. Now, let’s see here. Hmmm... You possess the ambition and determination of a Slytherin, yet you’re also very brave and chivalrous like a Gryffindor. You could thrive in either, but where to put you?
Jungkook pictured Taehyung giving him chocolate, holding his hand in comfort, and giving him a nickname. Taehyung’s voice answering, “Gryffindor,” without hesitation resounded in his head.
Oh, I see, said the hat, sounding amused. Before Jungkook could question what the hat meant, the voice spoke again, but this time out loud for all to hear:
“Gryffindor!”
Jungkook opened his eyes as he heard the cheers from the Gryffindor house- his house. Jungkook’s eyes quickly searched the crowd of unsorted first years and found what he was looking for. He smiled brightly at Taehyung, who looked as happy as he felt. Taehyung snuck him two thumbs-up.
------
TAEHYUNG
When Taehyung’s name was called, Jimin turned to him and smiled. “Go get ‘em, Gryffindor,” he whispered. Taehyung’s resolve was bigger than ever. As his wobbly legs carried him to the stool, his mind was repeating Gryffindor, Gryffindor, Gryffindor, even though he knew what everyone expected.
Hearing the whispers all around him didn’t help either.
“The Kim Taehyung?”
“We all know where this is going…”
“This should be fast.”
“I bet the hat will call out Slytherin before it even touches him.”
Gryffindor, Gryffindor, Gryffindor. The lion house. The house his family despised. The nail in the coffin.
He sat on the stool, squeezed his eyes shut, and felt the hat fall on his head as the hall fell silent.
Gryffindor, Gryffindor, Gryffindor.
Suddenly, a voice was inside his mind.
Gryffindor, aye? Are you sure? You do possess some of their characteristics, but I think Hufflepuff suits you best. If you weren’t so dead set on Gryffindor, I would’ve called out Hufflepuff the moment I touched your head. But I can see how much you want Gryffindor, and that means a great deal. So, tell me, which do you choose?
Taehyung’s heartbeat sped up. He hadn’t expected this. It would almost be easier if his other option was Slytherin. Should he choose the house that suited him the most? Or the house he had set his heart on and looked up to the most…
Then suddenly, for some reason, Taehyung thought of Jungkook, of all people. The look on his face when he had given him chocolate, the little oddities that made him so endearing, and his innocent eyes that had found Taehyung’s the moment he had been sorted.
Without any further consideration,Taehyung thought: I want Gryffindor.
I should’ve known, the voice guffawed.
Known what? thought Taehyung.
Very well then, the voice said, ignoring his question, “Gryffindor!”
Taehyung flung open his eyes and immediately saw the Slytherin table slowly sitting back down with looks of confusion. There were gasps from all over the hall. Taehyung himself could hardly believe it; did he really just do that? Taehyung glanced at the Gryffindor table, whose members were all frozen in shock, and he sheepishly hopped off the stool.
Then, the sound of clapping cut through the tangible silence. Taehyung looked down and saw not one, but two people clapping for him- Jimin and Jungkook, although Jungkook’s were more muted due to his gloves. As if breaking a spell, the whole Gryffindor table started to cheer while some not-so-stealthily flipped the Slytherin table off.
“You did it!” Jimin mouthed. Taehyung didn’t think he’d ever been happier in his entire life. He made his way to the Gryffindor table as if in a trance. Once he sat down in the spot beside Jungkook, something inside Taehyung snapped and he couldn’t hold his excitement in. He threw his arms around Jungkook, who gave a startled, “Oh!”
“We’re in Gryffindor, Jungkookie!” marveled Taehyung, pulling back to look at Jungkook, “Now we just need–”
“Park Jimin,” called the headmistress.
The hall fell to whispers again, most coming from Taehyung’s own table.
“Here we go, lads.”
“Does he even need the hat?”
“Honestly, he might be a Hufflepuff.”
“It’s either Hufflepuff or Gryffindor.”
Jimin sat on the stool and let out a deep breath.
------
YOONGI
Yoongi felt many eyes fall on him when Jimin’s name was called.
It was no secret Yoongi’s dad had almost killed Jimin’s father once, for they were essentially both leaders on opposing sides of the second war. Yoongi’s dad had been a Death Eater, someone who killed innocent people for power, and their kind made up the dark side, which had been defeated.
But Yoongi’s father had changed since then; he was even on speaking terms with Jimin’s father. Not that the rest of the world knew this, however, hence the intense stares coming mostly from the Gryffindor table.
Unfortunately, he was used to this. Yoongi’s past two years of Hogwarts were spent trying to distance himself from his father and his house’s reputation with barely any luck. Even with his determination to not make any trouble, do everything as perfectly as he could, and be respectful to everyone, he still found himself regularly hexed or being pushed in the halls by students in houses other than his own.
Now with Jimin added to the mix, he couldn’t imagine this year would be any better.
Yoongi watched upon Jimin’s sorting with a polite expression of indifference. Any second now, the hat would shout Gryffindor or Hufflepuff and they could move on to the feast.
But what came out of the sorting hat’s folds was not either of those.
Did Yoongi hear correctly? He glanced around at all the other bewildered faces around him. Maybe a fever dream, thought Yoongi, because Park Jimin was not just sorted into Slytherin.
More so than the shock of Kim Taehyung, Slytherin heir, being sorted into Gryffindor was the shock of the sweet, unassuming, cute, Gryffindor heir Park Jimin being sorted into Slytherin. No one even gasped; you could hear a pin drop.
At least with Taehyung, to the masses it appeared he was actually a good person, unlike his Slytherin family. But it was beyond them how Jimin could ever fit into Slytherin…
As Jimin hopped off the stool, a handful of students from the Gryffindor table jeered. And to counteract, the Slytherin table stood up and cheered as if they had just lured someone to the dark side. Just like Slytherins, to act on reputation.
Suddenly, it struck Yoongi-- Jimin really was a Slytherin. He just always acted how people expected him to.
Yoongi politely clapped, still sitting, while his mind was going haywire.
“Now, if I could have everyone’s attention,” bellowed Professor McGonagall, the headmistress, and the hall fell silent once again. After going over the usual rules, McGonagall cleared her throat. “This year we are doing something new concerning the rooming assignments to promote inter-house unity.”
Before even hearing what this something was, Yoongi knew it could only end very, very badly.
“Two students from one house will share a room with two students from another house. In each common room, there will be an equal distribution of students from each house. You will figure out your assignments tomorrow, so for tonight just go to your rooms from last year, as if nothing has changed. First years will take any empty beds. That’s all I have to-”
“Where will they be posted?” asked a girl from the Ravenclaw table.
McGonagall gave her a look. “Let’s just say you’ll know your roommates as soon as you wake up tomorrow. Now, that’s all I have to say. Welcome to Hogwarts and may the feast begin!”
___
Once the feast was over, Yoongi made his way back to the Slytherin common room along with everyone else who seemed to be wrapped up with the surprising new addition to their house.
“The looks on the Gryffindors’ faces were pure gold.”
“Who would’ve thought…”
“Looks like Gryffindor got one of ours and we got one of theirs, huh?”
“He’s so adorable,” was followed by a chorus of giggles.
Yoongi hadn’t seen Jimin the entire feast as he was on the same side of the table as him, so he hadn’t had any idea how he was taking to being put into the snake house. Yoongi glanced around trying to spot Jimin, but when he finally saw him, Jimin was in the back of the crowd, looking deep in thought. Or was he sad?
Yoongi glanced back one more time. Not my problem.
But Park Jimin really was too cute for his own good.
------
JIMIN
Jimin was in no mood to talk, so the moment he grabbed his trunk from the common room and found an empty bed in one of the boy’s rooms, he changed into his night clothes. Then, he shut the curtains of his four-poster bed.
Turning over and shutting his eyes, Jimin thought through the day’s most recent events.
The looks of pure shock of all the Gryffindors, followed by the looks of disappointment on his two new friends’ faces. Would Taehyung and Jungkook even still want to be friends with him now that he was sorted in the rival house? He really, really hoped so.
Taehyung seemed so intent on being a Gryffindor and had gotten it, which could only mean Taehyung was either trying his best to separate himself from his family or he just truly believed Gryffindor was the best house for him.
And then there was Jungkook, who Jimin had pegged for a Slytherin at first. Under his thin layer of innocence, Jimin sensed a strong feeling of self-preservation. But it didn’t matter- Jungkook was a Gryffindor, too.
Which not only made Jimin the black sheep in his family, but also the black sheep with his new friends. And that hurt a bit more.
To be honest, Jimin always knew he’d be placed in a different house then his family. In fact, Gryffindor was the house he least identified with. He thought Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw were strong contenders, but a small piece of him just knew he would be Slytherin.
Jimin didn’t really have anything against Slytherin, but he knew his family did. And to make matters worse, his family also had to be bloody famous.
By tomorrow, Jimin knew the whole wizarding world would find out that Park Minjae’s son was a Slytherin. Which also meant that Park Minjae himself would find out. Jimin sighed. He knew his family wouldn’t hate him for being in the rival house like Taehyung’s would, but it still felt awful to be so obviously different.
Poor Taehyung, thought Jimin. He definitely had it worse. Jimin knew about the Kim family; they were almost as famous as Min Yoongi’s for being pure-blooded Slytherin and harboring a dark reputation. But at least Min Yoongi’s family’s reputation wasn’t true anymore.
He rolled over and turned off the gas light beside his bed, ready for all this house nonsense of the day to be over. After casting a simple silencing charm around his bed, he closed his eyes once more.
Soon enough, Jimin fell asleep, dreaming of lions and snakes.
------
JUNGKOOK
Jungkook didn’t understand why it was such a big deal that Taehyung was a Gryffindor. He thought the reaction to Taehyung’s sorting was a little odd, but he brushed it off. It was when people flocked to him on their way to the common room that Jungkook started to wonder.
After about fifteen people came up to congratulate and pat Taehyung on the back, Jungkook finally asked him why.
“Well,” Taehyung hesitated, “My whole family is pretty famous and they’re all in Slytherin. It probably shocked a lot of people that I was put in Gryffindor.”
“Oh, I see…” An uncomfortable silence fell between them. “Famous for…what, exactly?” asked Jungkook, a little wary. With fame came attention, and Jungkook wanted to avoid that like the plague.
Taehyung’s face became unreadable. “Both my parents work for the Ministry of Magic. You’ve never read the Daily Prophet?”
Jungkook shook his head. His mom was a witch, and his dad was a muggle…when she died, all traces of the Wizarding World died along with her. No wonder Taehyung had thought he was muggle-born.
___
When they finally found two empty beds in the same room, Jungkook sat down and wondered when the upperclassmen in the bathroom would finish their shower- he needed to change into his night clothes and pee.
Taehyung, however, had been pulled into a conversation with another upperclassman – Kim Namjoon – from the bed beside his.
“So, you think your family’s gonna be upset with you?” asked Namjoon, hoisting his head up with his elbow as he lay in bed.
Taehyung gave a short laugh without mirth, “Yeah, probably.” His face was trained on the ceiling of his bed, hands folded across his stomach.
“Must be rough…your parents seem a little-” Namjoon stopped himself and gave Taehyung an apologetic look.
Taehyung barked a laugh. “Evil? Yeah, well. You’re not wrong.”
“I wouldn’t say evil. More like…intense,” Namjoon amended.
Another voice piped up from across the room- Jung Hoseok. “Well they have to be intense, don’t they? They’re the head werewolf hunters for the Ministry of Magic.” Jungkook’s head shot up. “That’s a pretty important job,” Hoseok continued.
Did I just hear that correctly?
“That’s true,” added Namjoon, “I heard you’re parents completely changed the game for werewolf hunting- before them, it seemed like there were werewolf attacks left and right. Now I barely hear anything about them.”
Taehyung rolled his eyes. “Yeah, I guess you’re right.”
The conversation continued in a different direction, but Jungkook wasn’t paying attention anymore. It was as if the air left the room, and his heart was beating double-time. He vaguely registered his hands starting to shake.
Taehyung was the son of werewolf hunters…Taehyung…his friend…was the son of werewolf hunters. No , said a voice in the back of his head, not your friend anymore. But he couldn’t listen to it. Not when Taehyung was one of the two people in the world who cared about his existence.
But Jungkook had only known him for, what, a few hours? Was that even considered friendship? And if so, were a few hours of friendship worth his bloody life?
“Jungkook, are you alright? Jungkook?”
Jungkook was pulled out of his thoughts. He didn’t even have the sense to act apologetic, as if he was just daydreaming and not on the verge of a panic attack. He must’ve looked quite shaken considering Taehyung and Namjoon’s worried looks.
Taehyung immediately got up, grabbed something from his backpack, and sat on the edge of Jungkook’s bed. Jungkook tensed up as every alarm was going off in his head.
Cut it off here. He’s not worth it. Find other friends.
“You good, mate?” asked Taehyung, who held out a Chocolate Frog he bought from the train. Jungkook gave him a quizzical look, wondering what the chocolate was for.
“You look really pale,” Taehyung explained as he put the golden box in Jungkook’s gloved hand. “Maybe more of this’ll help.” Before Jungkook could react, Taehyung placed his hand on Jungkook's forehead and his eyebrows drew in worry, "You are a little warm..."
No amount of internal warnings could’ve stopped the smile that slowly spread across Jungkook’s face. Taehyung was Taehyung, and Jungkook thought maybe just that was worth all the risk in the world.
------
JIMIN
When Jimin woke up, he assumed everyone was still asleep as it was completely quiet. He checked his watch - 6:34 a.m.
Sitting up, Jimin’s eyes immediately fell on the ripped piece of parchment on the foot of his bed. He leaned forward and grabbed it.
At the top was scrawled:
Park Jimin – Slytherin.
Then underneath:
Rooming Assignment: Room 7, Slytherin Common Area.
With a jolt, Jimin realized that was the room he was currently in. But there were no names of his roommates to be seen… What was McGonagall on about last night, then?
Then, a quick succession of knocks sounded at the door. Jimin didn’t move.
Another round of knocks came, but no one stirred.
Without warning, the door opened behind his bed. Jimin twisted around, but the side closest to the door had its curtain still drawn shut, so he couldn’t see who entered.
“Do you think they’re gone already?” whispered a familiar voice. Jimin held his breath.
“Seems like it,” whispered another familiar voice. No way.
Jumping out of his bed, Jimin made his way around to face Jungkook and Taehyung, still standing in the door frame.
“Jimin? ” said Jungkook, surprised. Jimin was surprised as well—Jungkook looked even paler than the day before. Is he okay?
“Were you sleeping here last night?” asked Taehyung, clutching the piece of parchment in his hand. Jimin felt hope rise in his chest.
“This is my assigned room,” he replied, choosing to get straight to the point.
As if on cue, Jungkook and Taehyung looked at each other in amazement and then back at Jimin before running towards him. Jungkook held up his parchment that read, “Rooming Assignment: Room 7, Slytherin Common Area,” the same moment that Taehyung, abandoning all tact, shouted, “We’re roommates!”
Jimin glanced around to see if anyone was awake by now, but there were no curtains opening. Taehyung looked unabashed as he made his way to a bed and carefully pulled back the curtain before ripping it open. There was no one.
Only just now, Jimin realized everyone’s trunks but his were gone. They must’ve all woken up before him and moved themselves to their new rooms.
Taehyung flopped on the bed beside Jimin’s and sprawled out, claiming it as his own. Jungkook went back to the door to grab his duffle bag and backpack, then sat them in front of the bed beside Taehyung’s. Now, the only bed left was beside Jimin’s. Which brought up a very important question:
“Who’s our other roommate?” Jimin wondered aloud. Not that it mattered now that he was with Taehyung and Jimin…
“We dunno,” said Taehyung. “It’s gotta be someone from Slytherin though. Two from each house, remember? But at least we’re all together!” he rolled over on his side. “How lucky are we?”
Jimin glanced at Jungkook who had a small grin on his pale face. Jimin sat down on his trunk and let out a sigh of relief. Not only did he get to room with Taehyung and Jimin, they seemed just as happy about it as he was.
------
YOONGI
Yoongi was awoken to the sound of someone ripping his bed curtains open and the sun shining in his face. “Rise and shine, Yoongs. This isn’t your room anymore,” said Seokjin.
“Shut up you git,” mumbled Yoongi as he sat himself up. An already-dressed-and-awake Seokjin pointed to the parchment sitting on his blanket.
Min Yoongi – Slytherin
Room Assignment: Room 7, Slytherin Common Area
“Lucky bastard. All of us are in other common rooms,” said Jin, now walking away.
Lucky, he was. Not only was he still in the Slytherin common area, but his new room was only a few doors down. Deciding to wait until someone came to claim his bed, he fell back asleep.
___
Eventually, Yoongi found himself dragging his trunk to Room 7, still half asleep. The door was closed and he didn’t hear any noise coming from inside, so against his better judgment, he swung the door open without knocking.
The first person Yoongi saw was a short boy whom he vaguely remembered from sorting the night before; the bunny face rang a bell. He also looked like he was about to pass out any moment. Yoongi couldn’t remember his house though…
Yoongi looked to the left and saw another boy lying in bed, propping himself up with his elbows. Now staring at Yoongi, wide-eyed, was Kim Taehyung, ‘The Slytherin Traitor,’ who was obviously a Gryffindor. And a first year.
Who thought it was funny to assign him to babysit two first years?
But before he could think any further, his eyes moved downward and landed on Park Jimin, who currently was staring at him like he was a ghost, mouth slightly agape.
Yoongi, now completely awake, backed up and looked at the number once again on the outside of their dorm. Seven. He looked down at his parchment. Seven.
He stared back into the room. His life at Hogwarts had turned him into stone. Not one piece of him was internally freaking out, surprised, or shocked. All he could think was, This might as well just happen.
“Hi everyone, looks like I’m your roommate. I’m Min Yoongi, third-year.”
Silence. Jimin and Taehyung didn’t move a muscle. Yoongi looked at the other first year who was glancing back and forth between Jimin and Taehyung, obviously confused as to why they weren’t saying anything. Then his eyes landed back on Yoongi who was still staring at him, waiting for a reaction.
The boy looked around, helplessly. “That’s a,” the boy squeaked, “That’s a nice name?”
Yoongi cocked his head. Well, that wasn’t what he was expecting. “Thanks…”
So not only was he now a babysitter for three first years, but also a muggleborn. Wonderful.
This was going to be an interesting year, thought Yoongi, as Jimin and Taehyung were finally broken out of their shock and began to snicker.
------
JIMIN
While sneaking glances of the silver-haired third year every few seconds, Jimin’s back rested against his bed’s headboard as he pretended to read. Jimin checked his watch - 7:05 a.m. Yoongi had been unpacking for twenty minutes... How long is he going to take?
After the initial shock of Min Yoongi being their fourth roommate wore off, Jimin realized just how ironic their situation was. The son of a wizard who once tried to kill his father would be sharing a room with him for the next five years and sleeping next to him until further notice.
Jimin thanked Merlin that classes didn’t start until the next day so they could have the day to get used to each other.
On all accounts, Jimin should be wary of Yoongi. However, as Jimin studied Yoongi’s unassuming demeanor, he didn’t feel an ounce of animosity. After all, the hatchet between their fathers was buried long ago.
Rather, Jimin felt almost excited. He didn’t know how else to describe the buzzing in his chest.
Yoongi, having finally finished unpacking, now stood awkwardly in the middle of the room as he eyed his bed. Jimin glanced to his other side where Jungkook and Taehyung were already going back to sleep and back to Yoongi. Their eyes met, and Jimin caught a flash of panic on Yoongi’s stoic face.
Neither of them said anything for an ungodly amount of time.
“So,” Jimin ventured, breaking the unbearable silence stretching between them. Yoongi slightly jumped. “This is a little strange, isn’t it?”
Yoongi gave Jimin a questioning look, his body now tense. They both knew he could be referring to several things.
“I didn’t think they’d put a third year with three first years,” Jimin explained. Yoongi deflated, obviously thinking the conversation was going in a different direction, and then shrugged.
“Yeah, well, I’m pretty used to stuff like this happening,” he said flippantly.
Now it was Jimin’s turn to be confused. “Like what?”
Yoongi gestured vaguely, “Just…stuff. You know?”
Jimin nodded in fake understanding, not knowing how to reply to that. More importantly, Yoongi hadn’t moved a muscle. “Well,” said Jimin, a little annoyed at the awkwardness between them, “don’t mind me, I’m just reading.”
Yoongi gingerly made his way to side of his bed farthest away from Jimin, flung himself on the mattress, and immediately shut his eyes. Jimin tried to suppress a smile that was fighting its way across his face as he watched Yoongi curl up into a ball from the corner of his eye.
Min Yoongi was not what he expected at all.
After a few minutes of comfortable silence, Yoongi’s rough voice ripped Jimin out of his daydream about how the wizarding world would react if Min Yoongi and Park Jimin became friends.
“Your book is upside down, just so you know.”