Archive of Our Own

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Fifth year in Hogwarts, they said, is where the actual nightmare begins. All the professors are fully focused on them and would give extra homeworks. To prepare for the much anticipated Ordinary Wizarding Level Examination or OWLs for short.

But not for Zhang Hao, whose mouth was occupied with his mother's homemade moon pies and nose was buried in his Potions textbooks.

Kim Gyuvin sat down next to Hao's seat in the dining hall and said, "Care to tell me why aren't you in Ravenclaw again? It's not even half a week since we came back." While the fifth-year Slytherin ignored him, the third-year, who had evidently returned from his afternoon Care of Magical Creatures classes, dusted the mud off his shoes and took a piece of moon pie for himself.

Naturally, kids would prefer to lie down and spend time with their friends during their first week back at school. However, Zhang Hao, whose most relatives hold positions in the Ministry, could not afford to hang out. People's constant dread might have vanished, thanks to the most well-known wizard in the world today—who also happened to be their professor of Defense Against the Dark Arts. Despite being magical and all, what the majority of students fear about life is too mundane these days. Like his own father for example.

"I think… I've been sorted wrongly. Don't you think?" He pouted towards Gyuvin.

"You're fine where you are, jagi ." That was Sung Hanbin, messing up his brunette hair. His best friend since they were first years. He sat on the other side of Hao, also placing all his textbooks in front of him. With one slightly significant change from his last year's appearance. “I've brought soup from the kitchen, want some?”

"Your hair is pink." Hao commented instantly.

"Is this why you said ‘See you at the hall’ last night, hyung?" Gyuvin asked.

Hanbin grinned. "Cool, right?"

"Are prefects even allowed to dye their hair?" Gyuvin asked, touching it.

"I don't see it in the school handbook, so no?"

"And I think I saw someone with purple hair in the corridors earlier." Said Hao.

"See? Oh! Is this Mrs. Zhang's moon pie?" The Hufflepuff asked. Hao nodded.

He saw the purple-haired Ravenclaw kid again, this time chatting with none other than Kim Jiwoong, in front of their table. It seemed like they were trying on some funny spells as they had been laughing so loudly when cat ears appeared on the blond’s head.

“Are sixth years that free?” Hao asked no one in particular.

“Well, you can drop subjects if it doesn't align with the job you want after graduation.” Hanbin said.

Another student flopped down in front of Hao, their blond hair slicked back. Shen Ricky, a third year Slytherin, handed a piece of paper to Hao. He glanced at Gyuvin who didn't meet his eyes.

“This arrived with my mail, Gē. Your parents are sneaking stuff on mine again.” Shen Ricky muttered in Mandarin.

“And your parents are letting them.” Hao responded in Mandarin, taking the paper from Ricky. It's a recommendation letter from Mr. Shen, Ricky’s father. “And why are you still fighting?”

“I got one, too.” Ricky said, holding a similar piece of paper. “He's the one who doesn't want to talk.”

“I hate bilinguals, hyung. Don't you hate bilinguals, hyung?” Gyuvin said.

“You're bilingual, too. And Ricky’s multilingual.” Hanbin said.

“Yeah, he speaks English, Mandarin, and Nonsense.” Said Gyuvin.

“Maybe if you just lower your ego and start listening to me.” Ricky said, leaving the table without waiting for the third year’s reply.

“Why were they fighting again?” Hanbin asked, brows furrowed.

“Ricky said he doesn't see Gyuvin as a friend last summer.” Hao explained.

“Oohh Kimgyu, if he doesn't see you as a friend anymore, maybe you should talk about it? Perhaps he has his reasons,” said Hanbin. “Also, will your team be okay?”

"What other explanations might there be except he hates me?” Gyuvin sighed. “Don’t worry, hyung. We might even win the House cup.”

Hanbin glanced at his best friend who simply shrugged.

"By the way, have you seen my cousin anywhere?" Hanbin asked, changing the subject to avoid aggravating the third year further.

"If you're talking about Yujin, Professor Flitwick took his sweet time with first years again. He's always doing his 'Huge Involvement in the Second Wizarding War' introduction, you know." Gyuvin said. "Anyway, listen closely. On our first Hogsmeade visit, I'm going to show you something amazing. Bring Yujin, Hanbin-hyung!"

The days went by, albeit normally for Zhang Hao, who is always carrying a book under his arms. Although they had been inseparable for years, he also hardly saw his newly pink-haired best friend. Prefect duties, he would say with apology. He therefore spent time in the library, and occasionally Gyuvin and Han Yujin would stop by unless they were also caught up with their own homeworks.

More obvious was the fact that he consistently spotted the blond sixth year everywhere. In the grounds, in the library, in the corridors. He could even sense the Hufflepuff boy in his peripheral vision, as if he had unintentionally developed some sort of Kim Jiwoong detection charm. Although from the beginning of his magical study, Hao had never truly spoken with him directly.

But he will always remember the first time he ever interacted with Jiwoong, which was during the first Quidditch match between Slytherin and Hufflepuff last year. Hao had joined the spectator stands for the first time as Gyuvin and Ricky were both playing as the new Beaters of the team. The game ended with Hufflepuff winning, when Kim Jiwoong caught the Snitch just right behind Hao’s ear.

He could still recall the Snitch fluttering between his fingers, the light milky honey scent of his shampoo, the Hufflepuff's triumphant smile, and his nearly silent "My apologies," which left Hao stunned in his seat.

It took him an eternity to register what happened until Hanbin nudged him by the shoulder.

“Really thought you were done for, but Jiwoong-hyung is the best Seeker we've had in a while.”

Zhang Hao had no time, however, to ponder his lingering feelings for anyone. Or someone blond with a tall nose. He was almost finished with Hogwarts, and after it was all over, he could go anywhere. Everything was going according to the plan.

Or, so he thought.

"Kimgyu, if this is anything that will send us to the hospital wing—"

"Don't jinx it, Hanbin-hyung! Don’t you trust me?"

"Obviously not."

"Oh, come on!" Gyuvin groaned. "I swear this is safe! I tried and tested it the other night."

"What." Hanbin deadpanned.

"Okay, pretend you didn't hear it— Please!" He said it in his pleading face.

As they made their way to the restaurant, Hao and Yujin simply laughed quietly behind them.  While Hogwarts began to allow non-British or half-British children who were born or raised in the region, Hogsmeade had become more multicultural since the 2000s. Some bars and shops were not exclusively owned by Europeans anymore. Among them was Asian Fusion, a family-friendly restaurant that was established in 2010. Its specialty is pretty much everything; if someone asked for a meal they really missed from home, the owner would make it for them. (Even though South East Asian students would often complain that their mother's cooking was still superior, Mr. Shin wasn't quite sick of it yet.)

"This isn't just me, alright? You're all aware of White Tiger Society, yeah?"

White Tiger Society is a club centered for all Korean nationalities inside the school. Hao knew, of course, being friends with Hanbin and all.

"So, one of the current heads said that Lotte World is already finished with renovation."

"No way!" Yujin exclaimed.

"No. Absolutely not." Said Hanbin.

"Excuse me, what is Lotte World?" Hao asked.

"Simply one of the famous amusement parks in South Korea, hyung." Explained Gyuvin.

"In South Korea."

"Yes."

"I don't like this." Hao said. "And if we get caught?"

"Exactly." Hanbin agreed.

"We wouldn't be there for long! Just half an hour! Around this time, it's closed so nobody would be there!"

"Isn't it more dangerous if nobody was there?"

"No of course not,” said Gyuvin, “and Hanbin-hyung, Jaehyun-hyung is coming with us."

Hanbin's brows arched slightly. No way, he was getting convinced.

After a while, he sighed and said, "This is crazy." He had been fancying that seventh year Gryffindor student Jeong Jaehyun since god knows when.

"YES!!!!!!" Gyuvin and Yujin jumped.

Hao shook his head and rolled his eyes.

“They said one of the older Asian wizards did this for fun! They have already left school, but it wasn't used for years because of the full renovation.”

So there they are, Lotte World. A mere storage room inside Asian Fusion actually brought them there. The door would only be a storage room, if a Muggle stumbles upon it. As it turned out, if you knew the code, the restaurant could transport you to a variety of locations around Asia. It was only recently that the code for Lotte World was made.

Apparently, it wasn't just them today. There had been another group of students waiting by the bathroom entrance.

“The idea was like back in Diagon Alley, you know?” one of the seventh year students said.

It was marvelous, alright. However, the fact that it was too dark and that the only sounds were the wind and the clanking of metal made it a little unnerving.

“So how do we operate this? Obviously we can't do magic outside of Hogwarts.” A female student asked from the crowd.

“You see, Lili,” started Jaehyun, “Trace is gone after you turn seventeen.” And the boy started casting concealment charms everywhere. Another seventh year moved forward and helped.

In a moment, the entire amusement park started lighting up. “Alright! Which ride do we try first?”

Zhang Hao doesn't hate rollercoasters, but nothing could have prepared him for the French Revolution. It wasn't frightening, they said. It was fun, they said. Actually, only Gyuvin was enjoying it while Hao was fighting for his life beside him.

He went to the restroom right away and told Gyuvin he was staying out for the rest of the ride.

While he washed his face, he heard a noise coming from the last bathroom stall and noticed that the lightbulb was flickering. Someone seemed to be whimpering and speaking gibberish.

Hao drew his wand and whispered. "Are you alright?"

It stopped. At that moment, the final stall's door opened.

Hao inspected the stall, but found nothing.

“What happened?” Hanbin asked as he came out of the bathroom.

“My stomach hurt a little bit, but it'll be fine in a moment.”

“You sure? I've got some stuff here with me.”

“It's okay, Bin-ah. By the way, who did you go with? I thought you were with Yujin!”

“Well, he went with that first year Ollie.” Then Hanbin leaned closer. “I don't actually know his name. But he's definitely nice and cute. He must be from lower years because I've never seen him before.”

And Hao had never seen Hanbin this enamored with someone before.

“This is new.”

“Stop it. He's probably not gay.”

“What happened to not assuming what someone's preference is?”

“He's just too good to be true.” Hanbin sighed. “You're not going for another ride?”

“Yeah, I'll take a rest.”

“Alright— Ah, Yujin-ah, stop running!”

“Hao-hyung!” Yujin came barrelling down from the ship, ignoring his older cousin. “Do you mind holding my camera?” 

“Of course not, give it here.”

“Thanks! You can use it as well!”

“Sure, I'll take pictures of you guys.”

Hao sat on a bench in front of the Conquistador as the students dispersed all over the place.. He waved at his friends as they slowly made their way to the ship.

“Hey, not riding anymore?” Someone sat beside him.

“No, uhm— Oh, hi.” Hao couldn't believe his eyes. He tried his best not to be seen by the sixth year Hufflepuff student all day.

“I’m Kim Jiwoong, by the way.”

“I know.”

“Oh, really? Didn't expect that.”

Is he full of himself?

“I don't mean it in a rude way, Zhang!” Jiwoong rubbed the back of his head. “It's just I always see you studying even in the middle of a Quidditch match, so I thought you don't care.”

“You know me?”

“Of course, you're Hanbin’s friend. You're also the most talented student in your year. I naturally know you.”

Naturally. Oh . “Uh. Thanks.”

“Is this your first time in Lotte World?”

“Yeah. I've never been outside of England and China to be frank.”

“I see. I've been here once during a school trip, before the full renovation. Everything seemed bigger back then, but now they don't seem to be. Oh, and I accidentally set my teacher's hat on fire that day.”

Hao’s eyes widened. “Really?”

“Yeah, got scolded by my dad and all.”

“I almost didn't go to Hogwarts.” Hao suddenly blurted out. Whatever made him, he tried not to dwell on it for the meantime. “China had a better foundation, my dad said. But of course, maybe it's a shallow reason— I just wanted to meet Professor Potter. So when I received the letter, I didn't even think twice. My parents hadn't really moved on from that.”

“It's not shallow at all, Zhang. That's enough reason.”

“Thanks, Kim Jiwoong.”

“You can call me ‘hyung’. Wait, sorry I'm used to speaking with Koreans so—”

“It’s fine, I'll call you ‘hyung’ if you want. A lot of younger students call me that, too. And you don't have to call me Zhang. It's like you're talking to my father.” Hao laughed.

“Of course, Hao.”

Hao felt his heart beat faster.  That was… dangerous.

“Hao-hyung!— Oh, Jiwoong-hyung, hi!— You feeling alright now? Jaehyun-hyung said we have fifteen minutes more! Wanna go get some food?” Gyuvin said all of these while panting.

“Yeah, let's go. Want to come with?”

“Yeah, sure.”

The remainder of their impromptu trip to Lotte World went smoothly. Yujin never took the digital camera back from Hao, so he took his time capturing all the pictures of his friends.

He saw Hanbin make an unsuccessful attempt to approach the student he rode the rollercoaster with. The boy seemed to have a lot of friends, but it's weird that they hadn't seen him before. Especially Hanbin who practically knows everyone.

To everyone's dismay, Jaehyun called the students a few minutes later and announced that it was time to leave.

“It feels like we've been here forever.” The female student called Lili said.

“I really don’t want to leave yet.” Gyuvin said.

Everybody could relate to Gyuvin’s sentiments, but a one-way ticket to London would be the exchange for staying a little bit more.

“Alright! One by one, okay?— Don’t crowd the passage!— Don’t run, first years!— Hey!” The students were waiting for their turn when Hao felt something strange in his arm. He pulled his sleeves up but found nothing. It's just… tingling.

“You okay, Hao?” asked Jiwoong from behind. He pulled his sweater to the tip of his knuckles.

“Yeah.”

“By the way,” Jiwoong called as they exited the Asian restaurant. “Do you want to have lunch with me?”

“Now?”

“Yes.”

In any case, their Hogsmeade trip was not over. Hao looked back at his friends, who were all mouthing ‘Just go!’, especially Hanbin who was beaming ear to ear and teasing him all this time.

“Okay. Let's go.”

After Hogsmeade, Kim Jiwoong seemed to be spending more time with him. Sometimes, even though Hao protested that he could attend his classes by himself, the older boy would accompany him to his lesson. He loved giving endearments and for some reason, Gyuvin managed to produce a whole list of them and pass it onto him through his owl, Oolong.

It's also not uncommon to see students from different Houses hanging out on all four major tables, unless there were formal announcements or events.

So when Hufflepuff Quidditch Captain started to drop by the Slytherin table where Hao and his friends usually gathered, it did not totally create gossip. At least that's what Zhang Hao believed. Maybe he could cast a Disillusionment Charm to prevent other students from looking their way. Especially whenever Jiwoong did something like playing a stupid love song on the guitar, wooing him with handmade food from the kitchen… Well, was he? Courting?

“Hao-yah,” Jiwoong called in a most sickeningly sweet tone. Every student in the hall was anticipating the Hufflepuff Captain's latest courting ritual after he did it unfailingly for five days in a row.

Hao could feel his ears going hot. He smiled behind his book before turning to look at the Hufflepuff boy, whose all sleeves are pulled up. Is he about to dance or something?

“Yes?”

“I think there is a spell that you don't know yet.”

Hao just stared at him, his brows furrowed. “What?”

Jiwoong held out his hand and raised his wand.

“In the heart of the dungeons, under the moon shower

There I see, the most prettiest flower”

In his hand, a blue rose blossomed. As Jiwoong bent over and gave him the flower, every student began to clap.

“How was it?” the older boy asked, waiting patiently and smiling at him.

He felt a shock on his right arm at that moment. He looked at everyone who had been waiting for his response as well.

He took the flower and said, “Eleven-ten, would love to learn how to do it,” ignoring the increasing pain.

The students cheered and Jiwoong pulled him into a hug.

To everybody else, they looked like they were hugging for more than a minute now.

But to Jiwoong, it's a call for help.

“Merlin, Hao.”

“It's been hurting for days, but today it hurt exceptionally. Now it looks like this.”

They were inspecting Hao's arm while hiding in Myrtle's bathroom, which no one really used. Mrytle had been observing them herself and making her customary jokes, but she shrieked in horror and dove straight to her toilet upon seeing Hao’s arm.

“Doesnt she enjoy doing that?” Jiwoong said.

On his arm, there was an area that glowed like burned charcoal. They tried to get rid of it for days, relentlessly looking for a countercurse or a cure inside the library. It appeared as though some dark substance had latched onto his arm and was getting bigger. He was having trouble taking notes because it was affecting his writing hand.

“It's probably because of that place. Didn't you mention the pain started there?” Hanbin guessed, after noticing Hao's struggle during their lessons. “Listen Hao, I know you don't want to tell a teacher but I'm pretty sure Professor Potter would understand.”

“But we might get expelled, all of us.”

“I'll think of a way. Let's say we accidentally stumbled upon the passage and had no idea it existed until the last Hogsmeade trip. I don't mind if you include me in it, but let's not bring the lower years with us. It could just be the three of us.” Jiwoong said.

Hanbin nodded.

“I really don't feel good about this. And I don't want to drag you—”

But Hanbin held him by the shoulders before he could continue. “Hao, we care about you, okay? We're in this together.”

Jiwoong nodded intently.

When they knocked on the door of their DADA professor's office, he was occupied with a steaming cup of tea and the radio news. Despite his surprise, Harry Potter, who is now in his forties, grinned when they arrived.

“Sorry, didn't you hear knocking. Did you lot need anything?”

“Professor, please don't be mad.” Hanbin immediately pulled his pleading face. “I think we encountered something really bad during the last Hogsmeade trip.”

“What do you mean?” The professor who had greeted them just a minute before was already in his alert mode. Without hesitation, he switched off the radio.

“I'll show you, sir.” Said Hao, slowly pulling his right sleeves up.

“Merlin's Beard.”

It was throbbing, like it has its own heartbeat now. And it was definitely bigger than the last time they checked it.

“How many days?” Mr. Potter asked.

“Two, um.”

The professor stared at him.

“—Weeks.” Hao finished saying.

“Where exactly? And I want you to tell me the exact location.”

“It's a restaurant in Hogsmeade— Um — There's a passage inside the storage room.” Jiwoong explained.

“Which leads to where?”

“An amusement park.”

“I used one of its bathrooms and something was off there.”

“But Professor! We didn't make that passage! We just stumbled upon it accidentally and thought it was f-fun. W-We don't know what place it is.” Hanbin tried to say.

“I understand, Sung. May I ask what have you done to get rid of it?”

“We’ve tried all the counter spells, sir. But nothing worked. All that's left are serums but some of them would have taken weeks to be prepared.” Hao explained.

“Is this why Professor Slughorn came asking me yesterday if anybody stole from his cabinet again?”

The three students did not say anything.

“Well, does it hurt anywhere else? Do you feel anything? Any bad dreams?”

Bad dreams? Plenty.

“Only my arm hurts. My dreams, well, it's been exaggerated a bit. I've always had bad dreams, sir—”

“Always?” Hanbin couldn't hide his shock.

“It's true, okay? It's just I didn't think my dreams were anything weirder lately and my dad said I don't have to dwell on them. Unless I'm a Seer or something.”

“He’s right.” He nodded to all of them. “That's okay, Zhang. We'll speak with Madam Pomfrey. I'm sure we'll find out what's happening.”

Then he conjured a Patronus charm, his stag pranced around the room until making its way outside the window.

Madam Pomfrey might have stalled the progression of the curse in his arm (with a Bottle of Unknown Maladies), but she said that she didn't know what sort of magic had latched onto Zhang Hao. It looked smaller than before; however, she wasn't able to remove it completely. He was advised to rest at the hospital wing for a week. 

His friends dropped by occasionally. Gyuvin, most of all, got upset and blamed himself for making them come.

“Kimgyu, it's not your fault, okay. It could've been anybody. Someone else might have slipped inside the bathroom there and caught this. It's fine that it's me, I could take it. If it's Yujin or any other first years, they might not.”

After he had calmed down, he reached inside his pocket and held up a picture to Hao. "Oh, Hao-hyung! Remember the last time you took pictures? Take a look!"

It's a photo of his three friends in front of a food stall, munching those nuggets on a stick. But Hao vividly remembered why he took this, he was sneakily trying to capture Kim Jiwoong behind them.

“This kid!” Gyuvin said, pointing at the boy who was caught in the picture. “Hanbin-hyung likes him! He didn't want to say it because in his words, ‘That’s crazy and I don't like him’ . But we don't know his name and we all know he likes him. When we all went back, we didn't see him again. We asked around and no one knew which House he was in.”

However, Hao wasn't paying attention to what Gyuvin was saying; instead, he was fixated on something that swiftly passed behind them on the photo. Unless you look closely, it wouldn't be very obvious.

“Gyub, are you seeing this?” Hao asked, pointing at it.

“What’s it— Oh. Oh!!!” Gyuvin's eyes widened. “Merlin, hyung— What's that?”

“I don't know.”

“That looks like the direction of the bathrooms.”

Hao spent the rest of the day staring at the photo. 

“I sort of… want to go back there and check.” He said when Hanbin, Gyuvin, and Yujin, dropped by after their lessons.

“Nope! That's a no from me.” The prefect said immediately, popping the ‘p’.

“Let the professors know! They didn't expel you when you told them about it.” Gyuvin said.

“And find out you guys were with us? No.” Hao said.

“Well, they must have probably expected we were with you.” Yujin supplied.

Their brainstorming session was interrupted when Jiwoong, together with other students, approached Hao’s bed. Hanbin, who saw that Ricky was with them, gave Gyuvin a knowing look as he opportunely moved out of his seat to make room for Jiwoong.

“How are you, Hao?” Jiwoong asked softly.

“I’m good, hyung. You're with your friends?”

“Not just friends. I think they know who you're looking for.”

To everyone's surprise, Hanbin got up right away and returned to his seat as if nothing had happened.

‘They’ are composed of a Ravenclaw, a Gryffindor, and one infamous third year Slytherin by the glare Gyuvin had been giving him, who surely didn't need introductions.

“That one in red robes is Taerae, he's my younger brother. A fourth year. And that grape-haired Ravenclaw is Park Gunwook, a second year. You all know—”

“Shen Ricky. Good to see you here.” Gyuvin said.

“Kim Gyuvin.” Then an awkward pause.

“Seriously?” Hanbin whispered in Hao's ear.

“Well!” Jiwoong clapped. “It seems that everyone knows everyone. Shall we get started?”

The story went like this: The boy's name is Seok Matthew and he had been missing since their first year. Nope, he didn't quite manage to get into King's Cross the day of Taerae's first time entering the platform. Yes, he should've been a fourth year student by now.

Seok Matthew was a childhood friend, although he never seemed to stay for more than a year in one place. The Park’s family used to be neighbors with the Seok’s in a small city of Osan when Gunwook was five. Then Matthew had to leave and go somewhere else. (“Weren't you too young to remember his face?” Hanbin inquired.)

Ricky had been going to a Muggle school in Los Angeles when he met Matthew in first grade. He had no idea he was a wizard back then.

“Aside from Ricky, are all of you Muggle-borns?” Hao asked. Gunwook nodded.

“Not me. Well, my father never told us until Jiwoong-hyung got the letter. It was our mother who was magicked and she passed away when I was five.” Said Taerae.

“I met Matthew before we moved to UK,” said Ricky. “My parents only informed me and my sister when I turned seven.”

Therefore, it appeared that at some point throughout their early years,he became close to any other children who were unaware that they were wizards. Gunwook's most distinct memory is being saved by Matthew after nearly falling into the river next to their school.

“He doesn't seem to be a bad person.” Hanbin said. “More like he's guiding you, guys.”

“Rae, do you still have his letters?” Jiwoong asked.

“I do. But I left them in the house.” Taerae said. “Well, I could get them this holiday break if you want.”

“You guys didn't see him when we went to Lotte World?” Hao asked.

All of them shook their heads.

“Me neither.” Jiwoong added.

“So it's just us?” Hao said, pointing at himself, Hanbin, and Gyuvin.

“What about you, Yujin-ah?” The first year shrugged.

Many things ran through Hao’s mind that night. Who is Seok Matthew and what does he have to do with Lotte World? Is he even real? And what was the thing moving behind them? But he thinks of what his best friend would be thinking right now. He looked genuinely happy after meeting that boy. Hanbin told him how the boy was very funny but also very bad at puns. However, it did pique someone's interest. And why now?

“Good morning.” Jiwoong greeted when Hao woke up the next day.

“Hi.”

“Hi.”

“Don’t you have classes?”

“Not really. Most of my classes are in the afternoon. I can accompany you.”

“Thank you, hyung.”

“Are you hungry?”

“Yes, actually.”

“Hanbin said you liked this soup.” He picked up a large paper bag from the desk drawer and took out its content. “We had it made-to-order from Mr. Shin.”

Hao could smell a bowl of sundaeguk from a mile away. “Thank you.” He started to pick up the spoon with his left hand when Jiwoong stopped him.

“Let me do it.”

If Hao could list his top best moments, being fed by Kim Jiwoong was probably on his top five. He wished he could focus on the flavor of the food, but the boy in front of him was too distracting.

“This was how close you were to me last year.”

“What?”

“Quidditch.”

“You… remember?”

“How could I not? You were the prettiest person I saw back there.”

Oh.

“Your eyes were huge and your cheeks were cute and—” Jiwoong continued on and Hao desperately needed to disappear before the other could witness his reddening cheeks. And damn, he just talked about his cheeks.

Screw it.

“Hyung…” He said softly.

“No, that's too cute. That's too—” Then Jiwoong’s eyes landed on his lips.

Then he was leaning in, closing in, and Hao could feel his breath against his— and the door to the hospital wing opened.

Jiwoong looked dejected, rubbing the back of his head, while Hao was smiling. They exchanged giggles eventually and this time, Hao tried to focus on the sundaeguk.

The curse had stopped bothering Hao after staying for a week at the hospital wing. However, it was still there. When he went back to his lessons, it somehow kept on hurting whenever he practiced defensive spells.

“Mr. Zhang, may I ask you to go to Professor McGonagall's office after the lessons? I'll let Professor Longbottom know you'll be late.” Professor Potter said with a worried expression. After the class, Hanbin gave him ‘Let me know what's up, ‘kay?’ look and went on to conduct his usual prefect duties. When everybody left, he asked Hao to stay in his office for the meantime.

Harry Potter's office was the same as he remembered. Full of frames and paintings of his family and friends as well as posters of the Bulgarian Quidditch team. There were also news clippings from various cases all over the country. Including Muggle news. There was a huge wooden cabinet on the side that kept on thudding annoyingly. Boggart , Hao thought. The third years must have gone through it this morning.

“This is the boy?” a familiar feminine voice asked as the door behind him opened.

“Yes, Hermione.”

Hermione Weasley? The Minister for Magic herself? What the hell did he actually get into?

Mrs. Weasley was donned in beige, her long pleated skirt flowing seamlessly against the floor. She removed her hat from her head as she held both of Hao’s shoulders.

“Hi, there. How have you been, Mr. Zhang?” The Minister for Magic asked him.

“I’m… uh… g-good, madam.”

Mrs. Weasley gave him a fond look and rubbed his shoulders, nodding.

Aside from the Minister for Magic, the Headmaster made a visit as well, saying it's much better to discuss the matter in Potter's office than hers as the paintings gossip a lot.

“Let's all be seated.” Professor McGonagall said. “We've checked out the place you mentioned. I know you didn't want to tell me that your last Hogsmeade trip was planned. But school rules are school rules, and all your friends who were there with you will be getting detention,” the fifth year’s eyes bulged, “Yes, Mr. Zhang. Nothing will hurt them, don't worry.”

“Filch would have a field day, wouldn't he? Fifteen student helpers?” Professor Potter grinned.

“You’re going to clean the Room of Requirement.” Mrs. Weasley joked.

“If they find it, yeah.” The DADA professor added. Both adults chuckled and Hao found himself grinning with them.

“Now onto our business. Do you have plans for the upcoming holidays?” Professor McGonagall asked.

“I’d be staying here, madam. For OWLs.”

Hermione smiled at his answer. “I see. The reason why I'm here is… it's an international matter. Because the person who can help us is a shaman and that requires… er… a personal visit. Also, your parents—.” Hermione explained.

“No.” Hao protested immediately. “Please.”

“Why, Mr. Zhang?”

“They…” Going to scold him. Tell him it wouldn't have happened if he only followed what they told him. "Sorry, madam."

“I will be with you on that, okay? Don't worry. And we have already talked to your parents. They were the ones who recommended the shaman.” Hermione assured.

“Trip to Shanghai? With the Minister? That's awesome!”

On the evening of the Minister's visit, eight of them were packed into the Slytherin common room. While all the lower years were getting along, Jiwoong's brother, Taerae, must have taken a liking to him and listed his brother's bad habits, saying things such as, ‘I don't have an issue at all, but are you sure about him? ’

“Would you go the Muggle way or—?” asked Hanbin, notes and textbooks on his lap.

“They booked the flights and all. It seemed serious, but they were too vague about it.” Hao said.

“Can I come with you?” Jiwoong sulked next to him.

“Alright, that's disgusting.” Said Taerae. “And we promised to spend the holidays with Dad, so get a grip!”

Ricky, not glancing up from his notes on one corner, said, "I'll come with Hao-ge."  

“What?” Gyuvin asked, to everyone's surprise. “Why?”

“I'm going home obviously, idiot.” 

“Fine. Do what you want.” Gyuvin got up and left for his room.

When Gyuvin was out of earshot, Gunwook leaned closer to Ricky and asked, “Have you not told him yet?”

Ricky just shook his head.

Hao’s eyes widened. “Is Gyuvin the only one who doesn't know?”

All of them nodded.

“It was painfully obvious. They actually make me sick.” Taerae said.

The Minister for Magic, one of her staff, Shen Ricky, Zhang Hao and his parents were standing on the plane platform on the first day of the holidays. Jiwoong and Taerae had just departed for their flight to Incheon, and he and Ricky said goodbye to them, promising to message and phone each other once they landed.

He was hardly excited about going home. It was good that Ricky came with him, although his parents' house was located in another district.

His mother took the time to prepare all of his favorite meals and even asked the Minister to their house. He loved his mother, except for the times she would agree with his father. Which was all of the time. After saying "thank you" for the dinner, he locked himself in his room.

Hao met up with the exorcist the next day, whose name is Xiang Cheng. The first thing Hao might say is that he's attractive. He is dressed in Taoist robes and has hair that falls just below his shoulders. He criticized Hogwarts Education and mentioned that the reason they were easily penetrated by evil forces is because they value too many things. When they could have been focusing on one thing. Discipline.

He even slipped up that he was always welcome to be taught in the temple anytime he wanted to. However, Hao just listened to his blabber. Was he sent to cure him or talk him into transferring schools?

“Now the curse that latched on you wasn't just a simple curse. It's ancient magic and full of vengeance. The procedure might shake your core, but I will do my utmost best not to make it painful.”

As long as I don't lose an arm, Hao thought.

The shaman played a song about warding off evil on the qin for about fifteen minutes, during which time Hao nearly lost his sight from the shower of rice grains that Xiang Cheng's aide tossed on him. As soon as the rice ritual was over, Hao's arm began to feel hot. The burn began to peel away from his skin until it hovered above his arm. Xiang Cheng ended the song and the dark matter was sealed t inside a wooden box.

“Peach wood. Better than an AI assistant.” Xiang Cheng grinned.

“It can't be killed?”

“No. It will dissipate by itself. But the rest of it is growing.”

“What is growing?” Hao couldn't resist asking.

“Resentment.” Hao tried to make sense of what he said, but it seemed like Xiang Cheng was speaking another language.

“I don't understand.”

“That was a tiny portion of an avenging spirit, Zhang shào ye .”

Hao gasped.

“Your role in all of these is a mere passerby, but how many passersby do you know have survived the encounters between key players? The payment is three point five million yuan, if you don't mind telling everybody outside?”

Hao’s face furrowed. What is he talking about?

During dinner, he was now gradually growing accustomed to not feeling a tingling sensation on his arm. He watched the adults whisper among themselves, planning about what to do. And there went his father with, 'Maybe it's best for the child to study here. Near us.'  His parents glanced at him, but only his mother looked at him with concern. The wooden box in Xiang Cheng's palm caught his attention. Whose resentment did he catch?

He spent the rest of the holidays studying and chatting with his friends online. Gyuvin created one big Instagram group chat with all their new friends and decided to drop the news that his father gifted him the latest model, Firebolt 2011. After getting all the congratulations, Hao messaged them with the good news.

‘i met some weird exorcist. but the curse is gone’

The speed of the responses nearly made Hao dizzy. There was a ‘thank merlin, ur okay’ from Hanbin, cat emojis from the lower years, oscar award winner cheers gif from Gyuvin, and ‘do you have pics w the minister hyung?’ from Yujin flooded the chat.

Then another bubble popped up. ‘Want to talk about it?’ Jiwoong.

‘yes. only if you've got the time.’

‘I've got all the time in the world.’

Hao smiled despite himself. His arm might not be broken but the veins in his heart had no hope anymore. Just a few more days and he would see them again. And him especially.

While Hao was a thousand miles away, rotting in his bed, feeling as though he had missed out on so much since he had not spent the holidays at Hogwarts, he woke up in his childhood bedroom with the news that Hanbin was found unconscious in, none other than, the entrance to Lotte World.

⁂

“I heard him. Matthew's voice calling me for help.”

That was the last voice message Hanbin sent to their group chat, four hours and twenty-three minutes into Christmas.

But Hanbin was in another country, and there was no other way for Hao to get to him as soon as possible.

“It’ll be okay, Hao-yah. I'll take care of Hanbin. If we don't come back to you in an hour, please let the school know.” Jiwoong assured him from the other line. Him and Taerae were the first ones who came to his rescue as both of them were in Seoul right now. The older forbade all the lower years from using the passage in Hogsmeade.

The group chat was bombarded with messages.

‘how is he with matthew?’

‘gyub, did he say anything?’

‘dont do something rash’

‘no. the passage was sealed anyway hyung’

His first instinct was to rush to Hanbin's rescue. He couldn't stand waiting aimlessly in these four walls. At that moment, he heard the engine outside his house rumbling slowly. Shen Ricky knocked at half past eight outside the window of his bedroom.

“What are you waiting for? Let's go, Ge.”

He isn't surprised that Ricky actually came for him, but he was surprised to see his older sister, Xiaoting, piloting the levitating Mercedes-Benz beside him.

“Jiě…?”

“Just thank whatever deities I'm not practicing British Witchcraft.” Xiaoting said. “Hop in, Haohao.”

After settling into the backseat, Hao bent over to warn Ricky, but the other boy stopped him.

"If you're interested in knowing, Ge, we're not technically violating any school rules.”

Hao sighed with relief, although he knew. Maybe he just needed more reassurance.

“Ting-jiě, won't we need passports and all?” Ricky asked.

“Sometimes I wonder what Hogwarts has been teaching you, Shen Quanrui.” Xiaoting just fixed her make-up, letting the steering wheel drive the car itself. “But if you're that worried, just check your passports. Did that just in case we needed to stay a few more days, but I guarantee you. We don't really need to.”

Hao checked for it right away, digging through his blue crossbody bag. Xiaoting was right, there's a stamp indeed. They were headed for Seoul.

Except, they didn't have to go through customs. Xiaoting parked the car just right on top of Lotte World Tower. She quickly opened a portal with a snap of her fingers, making it simpler for them to enter the amusement park. However, the park seemed to be empty. Hanbin, Jiwoong, and Taerae were nowhere in sight.

Hao muttered ‘Homenum Revelio’ but nothing appeared.

“Draw your wands.” Xiaoting instructed immediately and the two boys did. “Keep your guard up. Call your school, please, Hao. Go back to the car, Ricky.”

“What? Why?”

“Please, dīdī.” Since his seventh birthday, Xiaoting has never pleaded or referred to his younger brother as "dīdī”. Ricky would likely cringe on an ordinary day, but instead he was deeply moved. “If we all can't escape, then at least one of us can.”

Hao quickly muttered, 'Vermillious’ , summoning red sparks with the tip of his wand.

Xiaoting stopped in her tracks and asked, “Can you hear that?”

A moment later, a car pulled into the park's main entrance. Immediately, the three of them crouched behind the statues and benches.

"Sorry, Xiaorui," said Xiaoting as she pulled Ricky. Then, behind him, a portal opened. "Stay in the car." She gave Ricky a gentle shove, making him lose his balance. The portal closed as he fell, screaming.

Three black cars began approaching the Tomb of Horror, and Xiaoting turned to Hao immediately. “Listen Hao, don't do anything rash, alright? I know you’re very capable but just do what I say.”

Hao gave her a nod.

One by one, all the men got out of the car. Then a cloaked man, who suspiciously resembled  that thing on the photo, went out of the horror house, dragging all their friends including Matthew. They were all tied up and unconscious..

“Fuck”, Hao cursed under his breath. They were too late.

Another man started approaching them, which was highly likely the mastermind judging by his expensive black suit. He was quite tall and wearing black tinted spectacles.

“You've got me four of them?” said the tall man in Korean.

“The others were his friends, Master.”

“They don't seem to be… natives here. But they all look pretty, especially this one.” The tall man sat in front of Jiwoong and started rubbing his face. “His skin looks good as well. He'd be a great commodity.”

And that's when he procured a knife. He positioned the blade at Jiwoong's throat. Hao reacted immediately but Xiaoting told him to wait.

“And where is the sinadul ?” The man asked, removing the blade from Jiwoong and looking around. Hao made a deep breath.

“Here, Master.” Hao was once more in a fighting stance after the man in the cloak kicked Matthew in the head.

“He really managed to hide from us for years. He's a good one.” He said, examining Matthew this time. “Now, make sure to deal with the rest. As for the sinadul , Youngpil-ah, you know what to do. We have places to be.”

“Sure, Master.”

The tall man returned to his vehicle.

Once more, the man in the cloak dragged them all to one of the vehicles.

Xiaoting gave Hao a nod. Everyone became motionless save for herself and Hao as she snapped her fingers again. “Let's go.”

They tried to untie the rope as fast as they could. But it appeared to be without a knot. Xiaoting also took note of this and muttered a spell to herself. Around Hanbin, the rope snapped.

“Fracto Strata!” Hao exclaimed, pointing his wand at Jiwoong's rope."

Slowly, the rope snapped, and he did the same to Taerae.. “Wake up, guys! Wake up!”

But they wouldn't. Their pulses seemed weak as well. Hao could feel his cheeks getting wet.

“Well, well. What do we have here?”

The tall man was about to raise his dagger when Hao yelled, ‘Expelliarmus!’ at him, catching the blade in his hand.

“Hmmm. Not so fast.” Zhang Hao was nearly stabbed by the dagger as it moved on its own, but he managed to catch it before it went through his chest.

Xiaoting procured her paper talismans and started casting spells on the man, her fúlù creating continuous explosives, causing the man to lose control of the blade.

“Leave immediately!” Xiaoting yelled. However, her immobile enchantment didn't last long and all of the tall man’s followers—including the cloaked man—began to move and fight back. “Fuck!”

Hao continued to hurl spell after spell and curse after curse. However, it seemed to have little effect on the tall man. All he and Xiaoting could do was hold him up until help arrived. Once more, he took possession of the dagger and swung it around until it was aimed at Xiaoting. But he seemed to change his mind and held his dagger instead. Just as Xiaoting was ready to call forth her talismans, a rope materialized everywhere and firmly bound her, causing her to scream in agony.

“No!” Hao screamed, pointing his wand at the man. With a simple wave of his hand, he was hushed and flung into a corner, colliding with a post.

The tall man bent over and stroked Xiaoting’s face with the back of his hand. “You're beautiful. Just be grateful I don't kill indiscriminately as I can see potential when I see one. I have heard of Taoists such as you, but I have never seen one. What a great asset!”

“Fuck off.” Xiaoting spat in English.

“If you say so.” She was flung aside like a rag doll on the side, deeming her unconscious. When Hao attempted to get to his feet, he was suddenly under control along with Xiaoting and the others, unable to move an inch of his body. The tall man’s followers had gathered around him. One of them grinned, staring at him maniacally.

“Put him to sleep.” The tall man commanded.

He instantly blacked out after taking a heavy kick to the head.

Hao woke up, heaving. He was no longer paralyzed nor tied up; however, his wand was nowhere to be found. He looked around to see where they were brought. It seemed like some dungeon and it smelled like rotten meat.

“Haohao, you're awake.” Said Xiaoting in front of him.

“Jiě, where are we?”

“No idea. I've been trying to send a message, but it's being blocked.”

Hanbin was the second to awake, and he hurried to give his best friend a hug.

With tears in his eyes, Hanbin muttered, "Hao-yah, I'm sorry."

“You have nothing to be sorry for, okay?” He cupped his friend’s cheeks and brushed the dirt out of his face. “We're in this together, right?”

Hanbin nodded. “Jiwoong-hyung and Taerae are here. And who is that?” Referring to the woman who had been attempting to summon another spell.

“Xiaoting. Ricky’s older sister. She brought us— Wait, where is Matthew?”

“Oh no, oh no. Matt—” Hanbin started panicking.

“Bin-ah, we'll find him, okay? I'll try to wake the others and see what we can do.”

Eventually, all the others woke up. Jiwoong was the most surprised to see Hao among them. “W-What… You shouldn't be here…” Hao pulled him instantly into a hug. “Merlin, Hao… I'm sorry—” and shushed him with his lips.

Kim Jiwoong was left stunned as he pulled away. “You took your sweet time dreaming, didn't you?”

The older boy pulled him in a hug once more. “Oh my god. Thought I'd never see you again.”

Taerae just looked around the surroundings and said, “Shall we give them privacy?”

“Alright, lovebirds.” Xiaoting said. “I tried to get in touch with the sect, but some enchantments were preventing me from doing so. But I managed to signal Ricky. He should be able to get my message.”

That had to be the well-known Shěn Lián Xì , an innate ability only their ancestry has.

“We need to find Matthew.” Hanbin said. “And an exit.” All of them nodded and stood up quickly.

“Are everybody’s wands missing?” Taerae asked.

“That’s fine. Don't you think we’ve never performed magic without a wand before? Remember third grade, Rae?” Jiwoong said, "Incendio!" as he pointed his finger on one of the shattered lamps in the corner.

At Jiwoong's command, the entire dungeon came to life, revealing a more hideous scene before them. The room was filled with rows and rows of corpses..

“Merlin, did they leave us here to rot?” Taerae exclaimed.

“Hyung, what’s wrong with your neck?” Hanbin asked Jiwoong. On the side of his neck, something was growing.

“What–” Just as Jiwoong reached for it, Hao grabbed his arm.

“Don’t.” He said hastily. “Jiě, it's resentment energy!”

“Hanbin, Taerae, come here! The room is full of it!” Xiaoting shouted, placing paper talismans on all of them. “A-Cheng anticipated this. I won't be able to remove that, but it won't harm you for now.”

She assured Jiwoong. She nearly fell, though, if Jiwoong hadn't caught her.. “W-we need to leave q-quickly.”

“Are you okay, Jiě?” Hao asked.

“I.. I am. Just find the exit.” This isn’t good. She had been using so much of her power.

“There’s not enough time,” Hao told the others.

“Hyung, I think I found the door, but those things are covering it.” Taerae said.

“Where?” Jiwoong asked.

“Right there.” Taerae controlled the lit lamp with his hand and directed it to the door he was referring to. Those dark stuff dispersed, revealing some sort of doorway. However, they all came back again to hide it.

“Blast it. They won’t be able to touch us.” Xiaoting said, leaning against Hao.

Hanbin nodded. “I might create a small…. disturbance.” He stepped forward, closing his eyes. Then he raised both his hands and yelled, “Bombarda!”

All the corpses awakened, the door in front of them exploded, and the ghosts began to scream.

“Where is Ting-jiě?” Hao looked around but it looked like she vanished as soon as they left the dungeon.

“Wasn't she just beside you?” Hanbin asked.

“They must have taken her,” said Jiwoong. “Hey, check yourselves if you've got some evil thing attached to you, too.”

Indeed, all of them had some dark patches on their legs and their arms.

“Hao-hyung, it didn't hurt when you had it removed, right?” Taerae asked.

“Only at the final process.” Hao stated coolly.

“What?”

“Leave it for now. Let's find Matt and Ricky's sister." Said Hanbin.

Outside of that foul-smelling chamber, was a maze of corridors. The walls were white, and it would take another block to see another door, yet every door they opened went into a new corridor.

“What kind of magic is this?” Taerae asked.

“It reminds me of the school staircase.” Jiwoong said.

“Should we blast them?” Hanbin attempted another explosion spell.

“Yep, I don't think so.” Taerae said after the debris reverted back to its original form.

“There must be some kind of exit. It doesn't have to be a door.” Hao said.

The corridors appeared to go on forever, yet they continued to run. As they continued, the number of doors was likewise decreasing.

“Times like this I wish I'd rather be doing Divination, and I hate Divination.” Said Taerae.

That's when Jiwoong stopped. “The walls.”

He extended his arm to touch the white wall and his whole fist disappeared. He moved forward, went through the wall, and vanished entirely.

Taerae grinned and followed Jiwoong instantly. Hao and Hanbin held each other's hands, nodding to each other before completely disappearing behind the white walls.

As they emerged from the other side, Jiwoong remarked, "Hanbin-ah, Hao-yah, I suppose we found Matthew and Ricky's sister."

It was a laboratory of some kind. While Xiaoting and Matthew lay on a bed, wires were attached to their temples. On top of them were blinking wires that were connected to two huge cylinders on top of them.

Hanbin hurried over to check Matthew's pulse right away.

Hanbin ran to Matthew's side immediately, checking his pulses. “It's weak.”

“Cut the wires!” yelled Taerae.

“I suppose, I have underestimated all of you.”

The man appeared in the room, along with the cloaked man and two of their minions. He waved his hand and all of them were stuck to the wall.

“How many bloody times are we gonna end up like this?” Taerae uttered under his breath.

“What are you doing to them?” Hao hissed.

“Simply getting a bit of their essence. You'll be next soon, don't worry.”

“You’ll be dead meat once I get my hands on you!” Hanbin yelled.

“That’s very funny.”

“Yeah, it would be very funny once—” Hanbin and Taerae were both quickly silenced.

The man seemed to be relying on mind powers alone, Hao thought. But he could not hold onto it for too long. What did he need Matthew and Xiaoting for? He seemed to be impressed when Xiaoting immediately displayed her abilities earlier.

“Hey!” Hao called the man, "You should let them go and use me instead.”

All his friends gave him a look. Jiwoong’s brows furrowed and Hao seemed to be signing something in his hand.

"What did you say?" the man said, turning to face him.

“I said, I'm more powerful than them combined. You wanted their powers, right? Why don't you take mine? You can test me.”

Hao dropped to the ground, freed from the man's grasp.

“Let’s see it then,” he opened his suit, revealing all their wands, and said, “without a wand.”

Hao only stared at him with a blank expression. “But can you actually do anything without borrowing someone's power?” He stood in a dueling pose and simply yelled, ‘Expulso!’ . Then Hao continued to throw all offensive spells. The man was starting to lose interest and just kept dodging him. Without hesitation, he lifted his dagger and swung it at Hao.

Before the man could do anything further, Taerae cast the Impediment jinx on the man, slowing down his movement. His shocked expression, looking comical as the jinx took effect.

“Thanks, Rae!” However, the dagger still flew straight at Hao, catching it with his bare hands. “Hyung! Confundus, now!” Hao yelled.

Once the man was fully distracted, Jiwoong cast the Confundus charm under his breath,  leading him to believe that Matthew and Xiaoting were finished and ready to be released. 

“Of course. Youngpil-ah, I've got what I wanted from those two. Now replace them.”

Youngpil limped his way to the beds, confused. 

The man released Taerae this time, and Youngpil grabbed him. But before he was plastered to the bed, Hanbin shouted, ‘Confringo!’. The walls collapsed when the man in the cloak was flung against them.

“I’m sorry!” Hanbin yelped.

“ Accio wands!” Hao said. And all of them sprung out of the man’s vest.

After he released Jiwoong and Hanbin from his control, Hao cast the full-body binding onto the man while he was still completely dazed. They worked quickly once all their wands were back in their hands, cutting all the wires from Matthew and Xiaoting.

“Hyung, look.” Said Taerae, who pointed at the hole made by the cloaked man.

Over the broken wall, was an even larger room. And there were humans, all hanging upside down. Hao wasn't quite sure if they were dead. They all looked as if life was sucked out of them.

‘Simply getting a bit of their essence’. If that was true, then the man’s powers must have come from these people. Matthew and Xiaoting would have ended up the way they did.

“How are they?” Jiwoong asked.

“They're not waking up.” Hanbin said.

“Let's carry them and leave immediately.”

“This is creepy, hyung.” Said Taerae as they waded through the room. It smelled like blood and the floor was moist, likely with blood.

“Just look straight ahead.” Said Jiwoong.

Nothing happened as they reached the end of the room. However, there was no exit as most of them had already expected. And they couldn't pass through the walls either.

Except all the hanging humans were now on their feet and staring at them.

“You're all seeing what I'm seeing right?” said Taerae, drawing his wand.

“Ghouls.” Jiwoong blasted up another wall while attempting to balance Xiaoting on his back.. “Let's make a run for it. Try any fire spells along the way.”

Almost relieved to discover that they were outside, they all promptly followed Jiwoong..

But it’s a dark forest. Where on earth were they?

Various stunning, explosions, and fire spells were thrown continually by Hao and Taerae, holding all the ghouls back.

“Expecto Patronum!” Hao tried, and a stream of mist from his wand caused all of the ghouls to momentarily retreat from them. “I'm still terrible at it.”

“Don’t worry, Hao. Try again with a different happy memory.” Hanbin said.

Happy memory. Meeting Hanbin for the first time, that one morning at the hospital with Jiwoong, being with his friends…

“Expecto Patronum!” He yelled even louder. At last, a larger wave of mist eventually emerged from his wand, making the majority of the ghouls fled from them.

“That's it!” Hanbin cheered, careful not to wake Matthew on his back.

As he launched red sparks into the sky, Jiwoong grinned at Hao. He held his hand as they ran through the pitch-black forest.

Ricky used the Mercedes-Benz to lead all of the adults to the potential location of his friends. He also served as their translator as he spoke all three languages.

He pointed at the lone, dark building located five hundred meters from the cliff they were standing on, saying, "My sister said they're inside that building."

Hanbin's mother, Mrs. Sung, and Mr. Kang Wonpil, both Seoul National Police, Special Division officials, stated, "We will enter first." A specialized rescue squad was assembled for this mission. "And while we capture the target, we need another team to bring the kids back."

Professor Potter pointed to himself and Cedric Diggory, the Auror he is with, and said, "We'll do it."

“Thank you, Professor.” Mrs. Sung bowed.

“We will secure the parameters.” Xiang Cheng and the other exorcists would be the second line of defense.

“Thank you, Mr Xiang.“ Mrs. Sung said and then turned to one of the officers. “Mr. Lim, stay close to the kid.”

“Yes, ma'am.” said the officer.

After giving Ricky a quick pat on the shoulder and saying, "Good work, son," Mrs. Sung turned to her earpiece and said, "Let's go."

Professor Potter and Mr. Diggory were both given earpieces as well. Although they both struggled with it for the first time.

“Don't judge us, Mr. Shen. We've never really needed something like this.” said Mr. Potter while he helped Mr. Diggory place it in his ear.

“Well, it's a bit interesting what Muggles can do. It's practically like magic.” The Auror said in amusement.

They all stayed on top of the cliff, waiting for Mrs. Sung’s signal that all the students were safe to be collected. As an agreement with the Ministry of Britain, the Korean government decided their team would be best to seize the perpetrator as well as close down the portal inside Lotte World that was leading to Hogwarts. Furthermore, there were many portals to other provinces created on the site alone. Which made it easier for the perpetrators to perform their deeds.

But what they didn't expect was that one of the Hogwarts students would go there willingly. And that a wizard had been hiding there for a long time.

Ricky told Harry and Cedric all of these, how they initially wanted to save Hanbin who answered Matthew's call for help. How they immediately got Jiwoong’s message and how they flew from Shanghai to Seoul.

“We didn't think he'd be involved, Professor. And Matthew was a nice kid. He would never bring Hanbin or the others to harm.”

Good intentions going awry was nothing new to Harry. His lover instantly understood when he looked at Cedric. He simply knew that these kids would be friends for a very long time, just how they had always been.

Mr. Lim and Ricky hopped into the car and flew all the way to the location after Mrs. Sung's voice came on the earpiece. "The kids are all safe."

"Let's go," Harry muttered, as he and Mr. Diggory apparated to the scene.

It seemed like the forest was never ending. Neither the burble of a river nor the sound of a breeze could be heard nearby. The ghouls had left, but they were all growing weary of searching for the closest highway. They all sat beneath a random tree, with Matthew and Xiaoting wrapped in their jackets. Jiwoong set up a campfire to keep them warm.

“How many red sparks have we sent?” Hanbin asked.

“The question is whether it's really going to them.” Said Taerae.

“Do you think we're still inside?” said Hao.

“Inside?” echoed Jiwoong.

“I feel like none of this is real and we're all inside of a simulation.” Hao explained.

“But we found our wands. Matthew and Ricky's sister, too.” Taerae said.

“Well, I agree. Something's off.” Jiwoong said.

“I have an idea.” Hanbin said. He pointed his wand in the sky and shouted, “Finite Incantantem!” At first, nothing happened. However, a minute later, the spell formed a circular angle and lit up halfway into the sky.

“That totally didn't work, but that explains it.” Taerae said.

“How about we keep trying to break that barrier and see what happens?” Hao said.

They all raised their wands. They knew the spell would be less effective, but it was supposed to end all types of enchantments. So when they heard a crack, they all grinned at one another.

That's when Hanbin noticed something moving inside the forest.

“Are you seeing that?”

“Ghouls again?” said Taerae.

“I don't know. It looks normal.” Hanbin said.

The shape approaching inside the forest turned from one to three to five before everyone had a complete view.

Hanbin gasped. “Mom?”

“Stay where you are!” Mrs. Sung pointed her gun at them and fired. The barrier was broken when the bullet split into four fragments, each of which was fired in front of them. Jiwoong instantly protected them from the shards by casting a shield charm.

The dawn burst through the concealment, illuminating the once-dark forest. Finally, they could see the light gently rising over the horizon and hear the sounds of their surroundings.

“Adeul!” Mrs. Sung came running to him and hugged him tightly. “My son, my sweetheart.”

“How did you find us?”

“You were all sealed inside. Hidden away. That's why it took too long to find you. But we heard the crack. It was you, right?”

All of them nodded.

“You all did great. Come here.” All the students were enveloped by her hug.

“Mom, Matthew and—”

“Yes, we know. Now, wait for your teacher here. We have a notorious curse-user to attend to.”

She gave him a forehead kiss, said something into her microphone, and then began to move toward the building they had just fled.

They were all wrapped in blankets provided by the Special Division when Professor Potter and Cedric Diggory arrived at that location.

"Professor!"

“You lot have broken hundreds of school rules and possibly several educational decrees.” He greeted them while messing with their hair, while all the O.W.L.s and N.E.W.T. students gasped.

“Not when I've finally decided to take Divination seriously, sir.” Taerae said.

“Don't mind him. He's just finally got the chance to say it.” Mr. Diggory remarked, "You have no idea how many school rules he broke back then."

“Alright, you win.” Mr. Potter sighed. “Now, we need to get out of here or Mr. Sung’s mother will have my head.”

Xiaoting woke up after a while, with the help of Xiang Cheng. The other exorcists aided Mrs. Sung and her officers.

A few minutes later, Ricky and Mrs. Sung's staff showed up, nearly throwing up as they got out of the car. Ricky giggled and told his sister how he panicked and said he would never drive a flying car again.

They all got inside the Mercedez that was enhanced into a mini bus.

Professor Potter took the initiative to drive the car this time (“I had prior experience with flying cars, you see.”) while Mr. Diggory stayed on the scene and called for other Aurors.

“Is Matthew going to be okay, Xiang-ge?” Hao asked Xiang Cheng.

Matthew was placed on a stretcher which was somehow procured by Mr. Lim.

“He was in there for too long and also extremely malnourished. But he will be.”

“He really likes saying something life-threatening, but he said he will be fine.” Hao started telling them in English when the exorcist was pulled into a hug all of a sudden.

Hanbin thanked him earnestly.

Even though Seoul was buzzing with life beneath them, the rest of the trip remained peaceful.

Xiaoting fell asleep again on her brother's shoulder. Hao could see his best friend checking on Matthew from time to time, while Ricky and Taerae had been chatting all night in front of them.

“This has been a really long night.” Jiwoong murmured next to him as Hao slowly rested his head on his neck. He could feel his eyelids drooping as fatigue and sleep gradually drained him.

“Sleep well, Hao. Merry Christmas.” He felt a touch of lips on his forehead before drifting off to sleep.

The news about the curse user was spread among the magical community like wildfire. The man's name was Park Cheolnim and he had been a wanted criminal for ten years. Him and his followers were abducting apprentice shamans, for he believed that they were pure and could give him abilities given by the deities. He would track and trap them, whether a child or not, whether inherited or not.

However, a growing number of shamans nowadays have chosen to stop involving their kids and would carry out the severance ceremony to prevent them from inheriting their role.

This meant that Park Cheolnim’s prospects have diminished over time. In order to assure that the ceremony would continue, he would trap them and release vengeful ghosts that the shamans had sealed.

Seok Matthew is a sinadul , a mudang apprentice. However, without his consent. His paksu father did not want for him to inherit his position so their parents planned to burn his ritual paraphernalia after he passed away years ago. But the ritual was interrupted by a male gwishin, whom his father once tried to suppress but was somehow released. Every time they leave a place, something awful happens. When he turned eleven, his mother died after protecting him and Matthew had nowhere to go. He really wanted to hide at Hogwarts when he received the invitation, but a Trace would be placed upon him so he decided against it. He also didn't have enough money to go there. He's been staying from one place to another, never went to school, and pretended to be a ghost at some point.

The renovation of Lotte World gave him a bit of rest. Some wizards placed an enchantment around it, but somehow they stopped going when there was ongoing renovation. Matthew found peace for over a year until the renovation was done and the passages were unsealed again.

In fact, the male gwishin wasn't the main issue. It's not even the countless spirits that were drawn by the ghost's hatred and trapped inside the amusement park. It was the deities who continued to plague him with illness and storms. He couldn't get out, but he didn't want to be seen by the deities either.

Until Korean Hogwarts students made a short trip to the park and he met Sung Hanbin. Whose hair is pink and cheeks turn into whiskers as he smiles.

Hanbin kept coming back for him, telling him that he could stay at Hogwarts if he had no other place to go. That the Headmaster would understand his situation and offer protection. ‘After all, you got the letter, didn't you?’

He shouldn't have made himself seen, that's what he'd been thinking all these times. Maybe he got too excited, when felt the familial vibe from the boy.

But getting close with Hanbin was dangerous enough. But the boy kept on coming. He had no idea how he managed to do it when the older boy said he had also monitoring duties inside the school.

That's when Hanbin talked about what happened to his friend.

‘You don't really know what might have happened to Hao?’

‘No, I don't think I can do something like that either. I can heal some small sickness though. Or make a mean pancake!’

Matthew then conducted his own investigation. That's when he found out about those people. They would linger outside the park, waiting for something. He knew they couldn't do natural magic. They didn't have an affinity for it. What he sensed were human souls trapped inside of them. On the cloaked man, the souls were unpurified and disfigured. It didn't work on him.

‘Then have you seen anyone else here? Other than the ghosts? Can you sense any evil presence inside?’

Hanbin was quite persuasive. Matthew wanted to talk about it, but he didn't want him to get involved.

‘If there is and I find it, I might not live for the next day. So better not.’

One Saturday afternoon, Hanbin visited him again, holding an old Blackberry. ‘This is my old phone. I can't use it at Hogwarts, so I'll let you borrow it. If you want to talk to me during the holidays, that is. Or message me if we could m-meet. I added a bit of charm there. Just press ‘one’ if you need me.’

Matthew didn't really want to. He kept the phone unused inside his pocket. 

He would tell Hanbin once this was all done. He promised.

He shouldn’t have pressed ‘one’ that night.

Hao and all their friends listened intently to Matthew’s story. On the fourth floor of The Seventh Hospital, a Korean counterpart of St. Mungos, they crowded around his bed. He woke up after Christmas day and was gradually getting his strength back.

This time, the younger kids were all with them. Matthew recognized all the students he used to play with immediately when he was younger.

‘I was on the run my whole life,’ said Matthew. ‘But I remember all of you.’

“You won't have to run anymore, Matthew-yah.” Hanbin said, taking his hand.

His friends were attempting to convince the Special Division that he should be admitted to Hogwarts next year, but his situation and well-being were still up for discussion.

Whether Matthew accepts his fate or not, he is still magicked. He can choose to be trained by an established shaman or enter a school. It was entirely up to him.

“Will I see you again?” It was all what Hanbin asked of him.

“For sure, Hanbin-hyung.”

“Message me, okay?”

“Okay!”

⁂

Sixth year might be the most nightmarish of all nightmares, is what Kim Jiwoong had been telling Hao. They were standing in front of the Prefect's carriage, leaning against the windows, in the train's corridors. With Jiwoong conducting his Head Boy duties right away (sort of). “But there is plenty of free time in the morning.”

“It didn't look like I’m going to have free time this year, hyung.” Hao held out all the subjects he was going to take this year to his boyfriend’s face.

Jiwoong’s brows furrowed. “Hao-yah, do you want to be the next Dumbledore? Why do you have Potions and DADA there thrice a week? Do you not want to see me anymore?”

“Jealousy doesn't look good on you, hyung.” Hao huffed. “And I just want to be better at defensive spells. I know how to say them, but I don't think I'm good enough.”

Jiwoong held both of his shoulders. “Stop. Of course not. You were quite good at it last year–” before turning to face a few students playing behind them, “—Hey! No funny spells on the corridors!— You saved all of us. You're good, okay?”

“Thanks, hyung.” Hao smiled. “I better go back to my carriage, before Yujin ever attempts to empty the trolley. With my money.”

“Before you go back, I've got a gift for you. I was thinking of sending it digitally on your birthday last summer, but…” Jiwoong said. After he fumbled in his robe pockets, the seventh-year put an earbud in his ear.

Right then, a soft sound of the piano started playing.

“Stay by my side, just as you are now

Just like the blue sky

So that I can always look at you

Whenever things get hard…”

“Hyung…” Hao gazed at him fondly, his mouth slowly turning into pout.

Kim Jiwoong might be the greatest wizard of the modern era, judging by his ability to make Hao feel as if they were the only ones in the train right now. His singing voice was delicate, instantly sending chills to Hao’s spine.

When the song finished, he pulled his brown hoodie up and tried to hide his blush. He started bumping his head on Jiwoong’s shoulder.

“Why are you hiding your face?”

He really has no idea what he does to Hao.

“I think you should go back to your carriage, hyung. Come on, come on.” Then took the Walkman from the Hufflepuff's robe and started running away.

“Hao! You haven't told me what you think of it yet!”

“I need to listen once more!”

Only Gunwook and Yujin were in the carriage when Hao dropped by, putting on his earphones connected to a Walkman on his pocket. Taerae was chosen as the new Gryffindor Prefect, so naturally he would be with Hanbin and Jiwoong.

Ricky and Gyuvin might be making out somewhere. Long story short, Gyuvin got so worried that he almost booked the quickest flight to Seoul that night. But the professors nor his parents did not allow him. So he waited until Christmas morning and received the news that they were all safe. He was on the earliest flight and hugged Ricky in front of everybody. The blond Slytherin might have slipped up and told him ‘I’ve been in love with you since first year ’ in between Gyuvin’s snots and tears.

“You're no longer grape head, Wook-ah.” Hao said, noting his jet black hair.

“Did you miss it, hyung?” The Ravenclaw grinned, making space for Hao while Yujin unwrapped his sixteenth chocolate frog.

“Sort of. I like it.”

“Hyung! Hyung!” A familiar Slytherin came barging in their carriage.

Hao groaned, pulling the hood of his hoodie up. Once Gyuvin starts talking, he never stops. He heard the door open.

“Hyung, Wook-ah, Yujin-ah! You won't believe this! You won't believe who's on the train with us right now!”

“Holy shit!” Yujin exclaimed.

“Matthew-hyung?” Gunwook said.

Hao quickly pulled his hoodie down. It was indeed Matthew. On the train with them. To Hogwarts. With Ricky and Gyuvin crowding the door behind him.

“I didn't know anyone but I've been talking to some students back there! They also gave me candies. But Ricky and Gyuvin found me, so here I am!”

Matthew grinned. His black hair was much longer now and, are those glasses?

“You can sit with us.” Gunwook offered. “Also you didn't say anything over the summer.”

“What can I say? I like the surprises!”

“Has Hanbin seen you at all?” Hao asked as Matthew sat beside Yujin.

“Well, I want to surprise him during the sorting.” He grinned. “I've already met Jiwoong-hyung and Taerae though.”

“And Jiwoong-hyung didn't say anything either.”

“So, how's that going to work? Are you starting as a first year? Are you going to start calling me ‘hyung’?” Yujin asked, putting his first Remus Lupin card on his stack.

“Nah, the Headmaster made me take some aptitude tests in order to rank my ability. It's not like I'm required to pass the test. But I'm starting as a fifth year! Same as Taerae.”

“That’s amazing!”

“You must be so good, hyung!”

“But I want him to call me hyung!”

As expected, Sung Hanbin (who had taken a liking to his pink hair and kept it up until sixth year)  nearly collapsed in his chair as Professor Jones announced Matthew's name. His mouth forming a huge ‘O’. He glanced at Professor Potter and Professor McGonagall who both gave him a smile.

When the Sorting Hat shouted “Hufflepuff!” Hanbin yelled the loudest on their table and he clapped so hard that Hao feared his hands would break.

Jiwoong, next to Hanbin, gave him a wink.

Matthew sprinted towards the Hufflepuff table, straight into Hanbin’s open arms. Professor Jones simply let them have their moment while they kept on hugging. The Transfiguration teacher started explaining that, ‘Matthew Seok is a special case, a pure talent, an apprentice shaman from South Korea who will be starting his fifth year in Hogwarts—’ when Hanbin cupped Matthew’s face and planted a kiss on his lips. A thundering roar erupted inside the Great Hall. 

Fortunately, Asian Fusion was not closed down. The owner, Mr. Shin had attended several hearings regarding the passage to his restaurant; however, it was proven that he had nothing to do with it and he was just a passionate cook.

The days went by as normally as they should. As for Zhang Hao, despite the encounters with ghouls and curse-users, there was only one thing left to fear. He sat by the steps of the Owlery, an empty parchment in hand, contemplating whether he should give a response already or not.

“Mr. Zhang, good morning.” His DADA professor greeted.

“Hello, Sir.”

“Having an early morning rumination?”

Hao simply smiled. “Professor, can I ask you something?”

“Fire away.”

“Can the Sorting Hat be wrong?”

“I thought it was wrong once, too,” said Mr. Potter. “The fact that Voldermort and I had too many similarities made me ponder if I should be in Slytherin. But I chose to be in Gryffindor and yet it did not deny my choice. Are you having doubts with your choices, Mr. Zhang?”

“No.”

“You answered quite fast. You have already had your eyes set on something, haven't you? Greatness? Freedom? An iced cold mug of butterbeer, perhaps?” Then he noticed something behind Hao. “Looks like your friend is here. Anyway, this parcel with Diggory’s beautiful penmanship is probably mine.”

The professor bid him goodbye and nodded at Jiwoong who had been waiting by the entrance.

“Ricky said you’d be here.” Jiwoong said. “Letter from your parents?”

“Yeah. They’re still pissed that Hogwarts is using the snail mail system. But I guess that works for me.”

“More like… owl mail system.”

Hao laughed as he folded the parchment in his hand and stored it in his pocket.

“Still asking you to switch schools?”

Hao took his hand. “Yes, but—” Jiwoong tightened his hold as he led him out of the Owlery. “I guess I’ll stay.”