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Taehyung sighs, rubbing a knuckle against his forehead in frustration. He’s been trying to finish this potion for a while, the brewing process long and complex–he had to wait exactly thirteen minutes after adding the wormwood shavings before he could stir in the unicorn’s blood (and wasn’t that a bitch to get a hold of, he thought), and then he has to stir it continuously for another thirty. It’s been a long night, filled with energy drinks and a few tearful meltdowns–but he’s got this. He isn’t part of a group consisting of Korea’s most revered magic users for nothing.
He hears the gentle patter of feet, Yeontan trotting into the room; Taehyung smiles, watching the little dog jump onto his bed. Ah, his little prince, he thinks fondly, watching Tannie snuggle into his blanket. He goes back to stirring, humming under his breath to distract from his cramping arm. He hears the tinkling of his front door, the connected charms and wards alerting him to his visitor. Sure enough, Yoongi is walking through the door moments later, attention immediately on the resting puppy.
“Ah, Tannie,” he coos, hastily lying on the floor to rub the pup’s tummy, “my sweet little boy, how are you?”
“Yah, hyung, leave my dog alone,” Taehyung calls, grinning at the other man, “he just laid down.”
“Ah, but he’s so cute, I love him,” Yoongi says, pinching at Yeontan’s cheeks.
The dog lolls his tongue at him, panting and grinning; Yoongi lets out a small squeak of happiness, rolling onto his back as he picks up the dog. Taehyung shakes his head, checking his phone for the time. Only a few more minutes, and he can add the last ingredient. Yoongi lets Yeontan go, the puppy trotting back to his bed; standing slowly, Yoongi makes his way over, peering over Taehyung’s shoulder.
“Looks good,” he says quietly, patting the younger man on the back.
Flushing at the praise, Taehyung replies, “Hopefully it turns out. I just–I really want it to work.”
Yoongi nods, procuring a chair from Taehyung’s desk; he sits down on it, watching the other carefully. Taehyung checks his phone one more time, cheering as he finally stops stirring. Yoongi huffs a laugh, leaning back in the chair. Stepping around him, Taehyung goes towards his cabinet, grabbing a vial of honey. Taking the cork out, he spoons it into the potion, watching as it turns from blue to violet. Biting his lip, he gives the potion another couple of stirs, making sure the honey has dissolved completely.
“Is it done?” Yoongi asks, head tilted slightly.
Nodding, Taehyung grabs a vial to store it, carefully ladling as much as he can into the container. He puts the cap on, giving the bottle a quick swirl; it shimmers a bit, pearlescent in the light. Grinning proudly, he hands it to Yoongi, watching the other inspect it. The older man grins at him, grabbing Taehyung’s arm.
“Looks perfect, Tae.”
Taehyung looks towards the floor, cheeks pink. Yoongi chuckles at him, patting his arm a few more times before he stands. He gestures towards the remaining potion, sticking the vial in his coat pocket.
“Get the rest of that in bottles, Tae. Don’t let it go to waste.”
“I won’t, thank you,” he murmurs, quickly turning to grab a few more bottles.
Yoongi leaves a few minutes later, muttering about grabbing something to eat; he pauses, reaching up to ruffle Taehyung’s hair before he goes. The younger man lets out a huff, hands reaching up to straighten it out; Yeontan lets out a little yip, standing up just as Taehyung’s window rattles open. Jimin vaults into the room, a wide grin on his face.
“Taetae!”
“Chimchim!”
Jimin reaches for the other man, picking him up and spinning him in a hug. Laughing, Taehyung smacks a kiss on his forehead. The two turn towards the potion still simmering gently in the cauldron, Jimin letting out a sharp gasp.
“You finished it?” he says loudly, whipping his head around to face Taehyung.
The man nods happily, blushing as Jimin squeals.
“Oh, that’s great! I’ll have to tell the others–”
“Yoongi-hyung actually just left,” Taehyung snickers at Jimin’s pout, “so I’m guessing the others will show up pretty quick, now that the potion’s done.”
Jimin beams at him, reaching up to squish Taehyung’s cheeks.
“I’m so proud of you, Taetae.”
Taehyung waves him off, siphoning some of the potion into a bottle for Jimin. The shorter man is bouncing on his feet, watching eagerly as Taehyung gives the potion a gentle swirl–a very important part of getting it to settle.
“Here you go, Chim,” Taehyung says, tying a cord around the bottle’s neck, “just make sure not to drop it.”
“I would never!”
Taehyung snickers as Jimin heads towards the window again, settling on the window seat; raising an eyebrow, Taehyung turns back around, starting to put the potion in other bottles. He can hear Jimin keeping himself busy with his phone–probably texting the others, or playing a mobile game. Taehyung gets two more bottles filled when Jin waltzes in, a large grin on his face.
“Ah, my favorite dongsaengs!”
Jimin laughs, springing up to hug Jin; Taehyung shakes his head, watching as a mulish Jungkook trails in after Jin. He brightens when he sees Taehyung, a smile breaking across his face as he notices the potion bottles.
“Hyung, you got it!”
Nodding, Taehyung brandishes the bottles he’s filled, proudly handing them to Jin and Jungkook. The eldest makes an appreciative noise, turning the bottle to inspect it–Jungkook gives it a small shake, pocketing the bottle quickly after watching Jin fumble his. Taehyung smacks the elder man, a pout on his face.
“Hyung, I worked really hard on that–don’t drop it!”
“Ah, sorry, Taehyungie.”
Letting out a huff, Taehyung goes back to collecting the potion, smiling as he hears a swell of noise behind him. He can hear Jin cackling as Yoongi protests loudly–probably a summoning spell, if Jungkook’s smug tone is anything to go by–as well as a loud, distinct screech. Looks like Hoseok’s here, then.
“Tae, Tae, Taetaetaetae–”
“Hi, Hobi-hyung,” Taehyung laughs, stumbling as Hoseok flies into him.
The older man gives him a shake, putting his head on the other’s shoulder; Taehyung rests his head on the other’s, knocking his hip into the table as Jimin joins them.
“No fair, I want cuddles, too!”
“Yah, the potion–!”
Yoongi drags Hoseok away, the other letting out a disappointed sound; it takes both Jin and Jungkook to drag Jimin away, the short man laughing brightly as he smacks Taehyung’s ass. Letting out scandalized gasp, Taehyung turns to glare at the group, a high flush on his cheeks.
“What did I walk in on?”
Namjoon is standing in the doorway, a bemused look on his face. He’s holding a coffee in one hand, his phone in the other; he takes a step into the room, tripping–six hands shoot out, Namjoon’s body jerking as he’s stuck in place. His coffee sloshes ominously, Jin darting forward to take it from Namjoon’s frozen fingers. He’s glaring good-naturedly at them all, a pout on his face.
“I wasn’t going to drop it!”
The others start snickering as Namjoon’s body unfreezes, stumbling a little at the change. Depositing the last of the potion into a bottle, Taehyung cautiously hands it to Namjoon; he cradles it in both hands, holding it close to his body. He grins at the younger man, nudging him with an elbow.
“Congratulations, Taehyung-ah. We’re so proud of you.”
“Yeah, yeah! You’ve been working on this potion for months!” Hoseok interjects, slinging an arm around Taehyung’s shoulder.
He steers the young man into the center of the group, all of them smiling fondly at Taehyung. He looks at each of them, eyes stinging slightly–Jimin is grinning at him, arms linked with Jin and Jungkook; Yoongi is holding Yeontan again, rubbing a gentle hand over his head; Namjoon is still cradling his potion bottle, though he’s grabbed his coffee again.
“Thank you for believing in me,” Taehyung says, a wide smile on his face.
“So…remind me again, what’s this potion for?”
“Seriously, Kook-ah? This is why you’re not my favorite.”