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Shouta awoke to a knock on his window.
It wasn’t abnormal in any sense for there to be strange noises coming from outside his dorm, but the knock was more purposeful than a tree branch or a bird.
No, that was a knock of someone asking to be let in. Or, more likely, for Shouta to come out.
He sighed, dragging his blanket down from his face and stepping out of his bunk, careful not to wake anyone else in the room. The intention would probably be moot anyway if Yamada and Shirakumo intended on making as much noise as they usually did, but at least it wouldn’t be his fault.
Without even looking at the window, he held up a hand, indicating that he needed a minute. Fall was quickly fading into winter, the air around Hogwarts growing crisper each day. Midnight trips to the rooftop required more preparation now. He tugged his robes on, wrapping his scarf around his neck. Shouta ran his fingers through the red and gold tassels, breathing out through his nose when they knocked again.
“I’m coming,” he hissed, not that Shirakumo and Yamada could hear his voice.
He glanced around his room, walking to the window and carefully opening it. He shivered as the cool wind immediately blew into his room. One of his roommates made a noise and Shouta turned his head, eyes wide momentarily until it was clear that they were asleep.
Yamada and Shirakumo were on a broomstick.
“Absolutely not.”
“Shouta, you knew we were here when you opened the window!” Shirakumo at least kept his voice down a little. “C’mon! The stars are supposed to be awesome tonight! Not a cloud in sight!”
“You’re acting like this is the first time someone’s shown up on a broomstick at your window and begged you to come sit on the roof.” Yamada was holding on to Shirakumo precariously, only a loose grip between him and the ground.
“You could at least warn me,” Shouta muttered but shook his head. He climbed carefully through the window, balancing on the rooftop as he closed it behind himself.
“What’s the fun in warning you first?” Yamada grinned, offering Shouta a hand as he climbed onto the broomstick.
“You know I hate flying.” He wrapped his arms around Yamada’s waist, gripping probably too tightly on his robes. Shirakumo knew how to fly, enough for pro Quidditch teams to want to recruit him, but that didn’t quite abate Shouta’s intrinsic disbelief of the safety of flying on a broom.
“You come to school every year on a… what’s it?” Shirakumo kicked off of the roof, flying higher. Shouta leaned closer to Yamada, closing his eyes. His two friends were both Purebloods, and though constantly fascinated by the things he knew as a Muggleborn…
Well, his distrust toward things that were normal for wizards was always a talking point.
“Plane,” Shouta muttered, not lifting his head from Yamada’s back. “And planes are made to fly.”
“So are brooms!” Yamada laughed, letting out a call as Shirakumo swooped downwards, clearly showing off. “C’mon! You know he wouldn’t drop us!”
“I’m not afraid of him dropping us,” Shouta groaned. “You shouldn’t even have your broom. It’s late.”
“For a Gryffindor, you’re an awful big stickler for the rules.” Shirakumo stuck his tongue out at Shouta, landing on the rooftop. Shouta immediately stepped off, taking a few steps to be able to lean against the tower. Shirakumo and Yamada joined, sitting right up against his sides to stare up at the stars.
“We’re all going to have to follow the rules if you want any hope of all three of us somehow managing to be Aurors in a few years,” Shouta mumbled, pulling his knees up to his chest.
It had been their dream since becoming friends as first years, at least Yamada and Shirakumo. Yamada had picked up a few other side gigs, playing around with the idea of announcing Quidditch matches, running a shop, even teaching. Shirakumo joked he’d be the first pro Quidditch star to also be an Auror.
Ultimately, all three had the same goal: Bring a little more peace to the Wizarding World.
With the impending threat of Dark Magic that no one could put a stop to, every moment they spent as wizards was at risk. To be Aurors, to have the chance to seek out that risk, to crush it, and finally know peace as wizards…
It would be tempting to anyone, wouldn’t it?
“C’mon, not all the rules.” Shirakumo bumped their shoulders together, laughing loudly.
“Following all of the rules would mean getting rid of Sushi,” Yamada teased, eyes sparkling with laughter. “Considering the two of you kidnapped her and decided she was all yours.”
“We didn’t kidnap her – ”
“We rescued her,” Shirakumo laughed, tugging his scarf off of his neck. He laid it in a pile of black and yellow beside himself, laying down to stare up at the stars. How he wasn’t cold was unfathomable to Shouta. “It’s what she deserved! Plus, Shouta was the one that found her, I just made sure she was kept safe.”
“Rescued her and then deposited her directly into the Hufflepuff dorms, where she’d have most direct access to the kitchens?” Yamada laughed. “She could’ve stayed with Shouta! Or with me?”
“In the dungeons?” Shouta made a face, and something about it just made Yamada laugh harder. “What!? The Gryffindor and Slytherin areas are nice, but the kitchens made the most sense for how young she was. Shirakumo had the easiest access to – ”
“Spoil her,” Yamada finished for him, and he couldn’t exactly deny it. “It’s cute! Getting ready to save people by saving a poor defenseless kitten. You two may just have the makings of Aurors yet!”
“Yeah, if Shirakumo stops setting people on fire and accidentally Charming his hair away.” Aizawa snorted, hiding a much more genuine smile in his scarf at his friends’ jokingly indignant noises.
“I’m doing much better at Charms this year!” Shirakumo fussed. “Professor even said so! It’s been like a month since I accidentally set something on fire. And you’re not any better. Your Charms grades only match your Defense Against the Dark Arts!”
“At least that’s practical for an aspiring Auror. Shirakumo, you’re top of the class in Care of Magical Creatures.” At least their grades were passing, even if not exactly top of the class (well, other than Yamada).
If they truly wanted to be Aurors, the three of them together, they could.
It wasn’t such a bad dream.
When he’d first come to Hogwarts, Shouta was under the assumption that he’d make it through this extraordinary schooling and place out into an ordinary, Muggle career. He had no problem with that, until Shirakumo and Yamada threw themselves into his life: spinning tales of three Aurors and their cat; reworking the Ministry’s worst bits; saving society from a threat no one could even put a name to.
The idea of a generic Muggle career sounded much less exciting when it meant leaving Yamada and Shirakumo behind, and returning from this realm of magic he’d grown so used to.
“We’ll all just have to master different things! Shouta’s transformation magic is crazy, and his defensive stuff is through the roof. I bet he could beat anybody in a duel!” Shirakumo laughed. He was exaggerating Shouta’s skills a little, but it was nice to hear his friend’s unbreakable trust in his ability. “You’ve got your crazy amplification stuff, and you write spells, Hizashi! That’s so cool.”
“And you?” Shouta asked, eyeing Shirakumo.
“Oh. Hmm.” Shirakumo shrugged, turning back to them. “I’m transportation and entertainment.”
“When we’re professionals, I am not taking your broom everywhere. I’ll Apparate. Or drive a Muggle car, for that matter. Anything but that broom.” Shouta shoved at him, rolling his eyes.
“When!” Yamada exclaimed, reaching over to tap Shirakumo in excitement. “You hear that? Shouta said ‘when’! He finally believes in us!” Yamada laughed. “Now, c’mon, what’re you really gonna add to the team? You could maybe do transformation magic, too. We’ll need a lot of help with that. And your Care of Magical Creatures excitement might not be so bad, it’d be pretty nifty to have a Niffler on our side,” he laughed before pausing. “Oboro?”
Shirakumo wasn’t paying attention to their conversation.
His eyes were focused in the distance, slowly pushing himself up into a sitting position. “Shh, shh!” He threw a hand over Yamada’s mouth, leaning further still. “Do you hear that?” He kept his voice low, not turning his head from the Forbidden Forest.
Shouta raised his eyebrows but didn’t break the silence. Yamada jolted next to him as a high-pitched screeching drifted from the trees.
Or… well maybe screeching wasn’t quite the right word.
Even without a single clue of what the creature was, that was more a wail than a screech.
That was a cry for help.
“No,” Shouta spoke before either of his friends could, turning to them and shaking his head. “Don’t even suggest it.”
“It’s in pain .” Shirakumo hadn’t looked away from the trees until now, his eyes swimming with concern. “We can’t just leave it.”
“We don’t even know what it is, Shirakumo!”
Forget reckless bravery, this was stupid. Going into the Forbidden Forest without a plan, just because something was crying out?
The cry came again, and Aizawa bit down on his lip.
No. He wouldn’t do it.
“Shouta,” Yamada spoke this time, glancing between his two friends. “It really does sound like something’s hurt. And not that deep into the Forest. We could probably sneak right in, help whatever it is, and get out before anyone notices us!”
He wasn’t wrong. The probability of the three of them being about to jump to action, and help whatever it was…
And the noise was loud. It sounded like the mysterious creature was crying out from just behind the first layer of trees.
As long as there wasn’t another predator with it… they could help. Just like they had with Sushi, they could go into the Forbidden Forest and stop that horrible noise.
The cry came again and Shouta closed his eyes, unable to help himself from staring directly at the source of the noise.
“Shouta.” Shirakumo grabbed onto his hand, looking at him with begging eyes. “Please. I know you hear it too. I promise we won’t get caught.”
“I’m not afraid of getting caught,” Shouta muttered, tugging his hand from Shirakumo’s grip. “There’s a reason the Forbidden Forest is forbidden .”
Still, his eyes drifted toward the trees quivering in the wind. The creature cried out again, the sound sharper, pained. Shouta gripped the ends of his scarf, exhaling through his nose heavily.
“There’s three of us,” Shirakumo said, glancing at Yamada, then Shouta. “And since we’re on school grounds, we’re fine to use magic even if we aren’t technically supposed to.”
He knew what he was going to say before he even started to argue. Honestly, there had been no reason to argue to begin with. It…
It sounded like it needed help.
He was always going to say yes.
Shouta sighed, tugging his wand from his sleeve.
“Fine. We’ll go see what the noise is.”
“You’re the best!” Shirakumo bumped their shoulders together, grabbing his own wand and slinging himself over the broom. Shouta climbed on next, wrapping his arms around Shirakumo’s waist while Yamada took the very back, holding onto Shouta.
Three students walked into the Forbidden Forest that night, wands bared, ready to face whatever may come their way. A student donned in red and gold, hardly believing he lived up to the standards of his house’s inherent bravery. A student donned in silver and green, his spells echoing through the trees. A student donned in yellow and black, whose smile was never clouded by fear.
Two students walked back out, eyes downcast, robes torn, faces bloody.
They carried a yellow and black scarf with them.