Chapter Text
Tonight would be the third time Yeonjun snuck out of the common room this week.
Before he came to Hogwarts, he had heard stories from his father about the forbidden forest. Being the curious person that he was, Yeonjun found himself sneaking out almost every night - if that's even possible.
"Third time's the charm, right?" Yeonjun whispered under his breath as he pulled out his wand to unlock the back door, "Alohomora."
"What do you think you're doing, Choi Yeonjun?"
"Holy shit!" Yeonjun fell forward upon hearing that familiar voice, opening the door which will lead him to the forbidden forest, "Sooyoung! What are you doing here?"
Sooyoung narrowed her eyes at Yeonjun as she took careful steps towards him, "I'm on patrol. You, on the other hand, have no excuse to be out here - especially not this part of the castle."
"Well, that, I can explain."
Before he could explain anything further, strong winds began to blow from out of nowhere, causing the door to shut behind Sooyoung.
The two exchanged looks of horror as they tried to pry open the door, "Alohomora!"
"It won't work, you idiot! Professor said you couldn't use the locking spell once you enter the forest!"
"And why is that so?" Yeonjun asked as they walked farther into the forest.
"Common sense Choi! Wouldn't it be easy for a dark wizard or witch to enter the castle through the forbidden forest by using the locking spell?"
Yeonjun stopped walking and stared at the girl beside him in confusion, "So to prevent them from entering, they have a door to lead us into the forbidden forest but not one to get out of it? Which smarty pants came up with this idea?"
Sooyoung rolled her eyes at the boy who is now standing in front of her, "The door has been there for centuries! Nobody in their right minds would even consider entering the forbidden forest; especially not unaccompanied at night. Look, I know a way to get us back into the castle, but by doing so, we will risk getting ourselves exposed."
With his nose scrunched up in annoyance, Yeonjun mumbled under his breath. He was annoyed that he got caught by Sooyoung and even more so knowing that he might have gotten the poor girl into trouble too.
Yeonjun might be a troublemaker, but he knows better than to get someone else involved in his mischief; which is why he is always getting into trouble all on his own.
As they ventured deeper into the forbidden forest, an eerie feeling crept through them. Even the trees seemed not to rustle as much. Out of a sudden, the rustling came to complete still, and soon enough silence engulfed the two students.
Sooyoung grew quieter, as did Yeonjun. She might look like she has everything under control, but deep down, the girl was scared of being eaten alive by whatever it is that lives in the forest. All sorts of thoughts rushed through her brains.
What if I get caught? What if someone or something murdered us here and nobody finds out about it?
Her train of thoughts got disrupted when she felt a tuck on her robes.
"Whatever it is that you have up your sleeves, I think we should put it into action," said Yeonjun in an undertone as he looked around the dark forest.
"We need to find the portkey."
"The what?!"
"The portkey! Don't you know what a portkey is?"
"Of course, I know what a portkey is!" Yeonjun gave an exasperated sigh, "What I meant was, how are we supposed to find it? And we have to do it fast!"
Yeonjun's eyes widened as he pointed at the black figure behind the trees - the fear seemed to rise behind his eyes.
Sooyoung quickly turned towards the direction Yeonjun was pointing. The dark figure emerged from behind the trees, revealing its true identity.
"We-werewolf?!?" A cold wave enveloped Yeonjun as the hairs rose on the back of his neck and his mouth ran dry. Yeonjun got ready to run as soon as the werewolf took a step towards them.
Sooyoung, on the other hand, stood rooted to the ground for a couple of seconds, her stomach churning, her eyes closed. She was terrified of the thought of getting herself killed by a werewolf when a pair of cold hands slid into hers. Soon she found herself running away from the beast.
"YEONJUN THE PORTKEY!" Sooyoung pointed at an old boot hidden right beneath a hollow tree.
Yeonjun grabbed his wand using his free hand and pointed it at the boot, "Accio!"
The boot flew towards them and the two students, with their hands held tightly, grabbed onto the portkey and allowed themselves to be transported back into what they hope would be a quiet place inside the castle.
"Professor Bang, we need to tighten up the security of this castle. God knows what might turn up-"
Oof!
In a matter of seconds, the two landed hard on the cold ground. It took both students a few seconds before they realised that they were in the headmaster's office.
"Choi Yeonjun? Park Sooyoung? What on earth is going on?"
Yeonjun and Sooyoung exchanged glances as the head of both Slytherin and Hufflepuff houses along with their headmaster looked down at them.
"S-sir, we can explain!" Yeonjun exclaimed as he got up from the cold ground, "I-"
All of a sudden, Yeonjun felt giddy. He could feel the bile coming up his throat. Yeonjun ran towards the nearest empty thing he could find and in this case a vase, and vomited into it.
Upon seeing Yeonjun's current state, Sooyoung couldn't hold back the feeling of nausea any longer and vomited into the portkey.
It didn't take the professors long to figure out that the two had been in the forbidden forest. Their headmaster, Professor Bang exchanged looks with both Heads of Hufflepuff and Slytherin and all three reached a silent consensus, "Detention! For both of you."
---
Yeonjun groaned as he rested his head on the table. Sooyoung, on the other hand, chose to suck on sugar quills. The aftereffect of travelling by portkey - nausea, giddiness, and whatever it is that the two were feeling right now, was an unpleasant one.
"Alright, kids!" In came their gamekeeper, Lee Hyun, who was tasked to deliver a message from Professor Bang, "Since neither of you is physically capable of doing anything right now, Professor Bang said to let you both off with demerit points instead."
Sooyoung's eyes grew more significant and she looked at Lee Hyun, "No please, I'd rather go through with detention than have my house points deducted!"
"Sorry about that kid, but it's final. Fifty points from Slytherin and thirty points from Hufflepuff."
Yeonjun kept stealing glances at Sooyoung as the two made their way out of the great hall. It was partly his fault Sooyoung got demerit points, and he knew he wouldn't be able to sleep well that night.
He might be a Slytherin, but he was different from the rest of his housemates. Unlike the majority of them who are purebloods, Yeonjun was a half-blood, and this was one of the reasons why he never felt like he belonged in Slytherin and not one housemate ever made him feel like he was part of them.
---
Sooyoung stumbled into Hufflepuff's common room. Everyone started crowding around her as they bombarded the poor girl with questions.
"We heard what happened!"
"How are you feeling?"
"What's it like in the forbidden forest?"
"Did you travel through portkey?"
"What did you see in there?"
Sooyoung ignored all questions as she headed to bed. All she wanted right now was some peace.
Sooyoung laid in bed, recalling the 'eventful' night she had experienced. It was the first of that kind for her and truth be told; she enjoyed it.
I wonder if he feels better now.