Archive of Our Own ^beta

Raichi got his first message from his soulmate when he was eleven. Though, the message wasn’t really meant for him, he would take what he could get.

It appeared on the back of his left hand at 7:08 in the morning and it said, simply, floo powder in delicately messy handwriting with two lines underneath to emphasize its importance. His soulmate was also a witch or wizard! His stomach flipped and twisted in excitement as he stared down at the two simple words. Caught up in elation, he stared in wonder for so long that he almost missed his dad calling to him.

When he ran out of his room for his wizarding lessons, he nearly forgot about the message entirely. Nearly .

Throughout the day, Raichi was vaguely aware of the words fading from his skin as daily wear almost erased the ink entirely. As he was washing up for dinner, and his dad was preoccupied, Raichi grabbed a marker and wrote on the top of his right hand.

Did you remember your floo powder?

He nodded to himself and made his way to the dining room table where his dad was waiting with a tired smile and as good a meal as they had. Raichi smiled brightly back and sat down. Halfway through his first bite of food, he choked, seeing a messy, barely legible new message across the top of his left hand.

Shit!

Raichi could still feel laughter bubbling up as he tried to cough and clear his airway. How cute, even after his soulmate went to the trouble to writing it down and everything.

A warm hand patted Raichi’s back to try to help and he quickly covered his hand while he coughed. It wasn’t that he didn’t want his father to know about his soulmate, of course he did. But he wanted to at least have a real conversation with them first. Just a little longer.

Raizou sighed when he affirmed that his son was not, in fact, going to choke to death, and collapsed back into his chair. If his wife were still around it would be so much easier. She could use magic, or something, right? She would have been able to help so much more. And she would have been able to really teach their son what he needed to know before he went off to that big-shot wizarding school.

He tried with what he knew, but it was still hard. Raichi didn’t have the kind of education opportunities most of the other witches and wizards at that school would. They would be so much more prepared. Would Raichi be alright by himself? He would just have to hope.

Raichi could tell his father was worrying again, but he didn’t know how to make it better. They ate in relative silence and when Raichi went back to his room, he found a second note under the first on his right hand.

Thanks for reminding me. My mom would have had my head for that.

Raichi fumbled through his doorway and scrambled to find a writing utensil. In his haste, he managed to slam his head against his desk, trip over his chair, and drag his pen over his arm in a long, somewhat painful squigle

He laid in a heap in the center of his room, trying to catch his breath and lamenting the odd sting across his arm.

Are you okay? appeared a moment later on his other arm. He wheezed out a weak laugh as he reoriented himself and sat up, reaching for his pen once more.

Yes. I fell. No problem.

You fell? Why?

Raichi could feel his entire face lighting up with heat as he tried to think of an excuse that wouldn’t be completely embarrassing in any way. When he couldn’t think of one he just slumped his shoulders, a pout puffing his cheeks slightly.

I just tripped.

You just tripped? Are you usually this clumsy?

Raichi wasn’t sure why, but he felt that the second question was unbelievably snarky and wasn’t sure if he wanted to respond.

What’s your name? he asked instead.

Shun. Yours?

R-- he pulled his pen away from his skin when his father knocked on his door, peeking in a smiling.

“Can we talk for a little bit, son?” he asked. Raichi considered telling him ‘no’ so he could talk to Shun more, but shook off the thought almost instantly.

“Sure, dad, what’s up?”

“Well, since your eleventh birthday was a little while ago and you got that letter yesterday, I know that you need to buy supplies and a pet, I believe your mother said. I’m just...not sure of where--”

“Oh! That’s okay, dad! Miss-shima said that it would be alright for me to go with them if you wanted. That way...ah...you wouldn’t have to jump right into everything magic right away. A-and then next year I can take you s-since I’ll know where to go...a-a-and all.”

Raizou was silent for a moment before he let out a relieved sigh and sat down in front of Raichi.

“That’s a relief!” he said, reaching out to grab Raichi’s shoulder. “I was worried I would take you to the wrong place or buy everything wrong. You can show me how it’s done next year,” he said. Raichi smiled.

“Yeah, definitely!”

“Your mom left a little bit saved up for you. It’s not much, but it should get you through your seven years.”

“That’s fine, Dad. Thanks,” Raichi told him, smiling and looking down at his floor. He never knew how to show his gratitude for the things his father had done for him. He worked hard to get him where he needed to be and tried his best to teach Raichi all he could about the wizarding world.

“Go to sleep soon, son,” Raizou said, patting Raichi’s head and closing the door behind him as he left.

When Raichi glanced back down at his arm to finish his name, there was already another message waiting for him.

R, huh? I didn’t think my soulmate would be so coy.

Raichi wasn’t sure if he should complete it or just leave it. It would be awkward to try to take it back if Shun already thought that he was going for something on purpose. But was Shun just supposed to call him a letter? That seemed a little unfair.

Did you fall asleep? came in not a moment later, and Raichi decided to leave it, although his heart was beating heavily against his chest as he did.

No! My dad wanted to talk. sorry.

That’s alright. Since you knew about the floo powder…

I’m a wizard, yeah! Well, not yet. I turned 11 two weeks ago, so almost! Raichi wrote in a haste, excitedly dragging his pen across his skin, words damn near illegible.

I see, so I’m a year above you. Will you be at Hogwarts or…

Hogwarts. Raichi could feel the excitement bubbling up in his stomach again as his fingers tingled and his toes curled. What was Shun like? Tall? Smart?

Awesome, me too, they said. And then, It’s pretty late, shouldn’t you be in bed?

But I wanted to talk to you! he wrote back, pouting his lips again. Would he meet Shun at school? Would they get to talk? He didn’t want to stop talking, ever .

We can talk more later. Go to sleep. I can’t go being a bad influence on my junior, can I?

Fine. Goodnight, Shun.

Night, R.

When Raichi awoke the next morning, rays of sunlight falling across his eyes, he found a new note on his left arm. A warmth flooded his cheeks and a grin tugged at his lips. The handwriting was mesmerizing and he almost forgot to actually read the note before his dad knocked on the door.

“Raichi, time to get up, Mishima and his mother will be here soon.”

“I’m up!” he called, clutching his arm in case his father decided to open the door. He didn’t. When Raizou’s footsteps echoed further and further away, Raichi let his shoulders droop on a sigh. His eyes fell on the message once more, smiling despite himself.

Morning, R. Don’t trip again or hurt yourself today.

Despite the snarky tone, Raichi still felt his heart flutter at the words. His soulmate actually wanted to talk to him, and even sent him a message first ! He scrambled for a pen on his desk and began writing on his right arm.

Good morning, Shun! I’ll do my best! he wrote, tapping the cap of the pen against his lips before nodding and adding another message beneath the first one. Don’t forget anymore shopping for your mom today.

A tiny smirk tugged on his lips as he set his pen back on his desk and quickly went about getting ready, trying to cover the messages the best that he could. There was still a lingering warmth at the back of his neck even as he left his room. Raizou smiled to him and handed him a banana once he finally made his way into the kitchen.

“Are you excited, son?”

“Ah, yeah I think so...but I’m kinda...scared.”

“Scared, huh?” Raizou asked, sitting heavily in his seat and leaning back. He reached up and rubbed at his jaw for a moment, gathering his thoughts. The thought that his wife would have been much better in this situation hit him, not for the first time, and he nearly grimaced. “What are you scared about?”

Raichi fidgeted in his place, trying to avoid his father’s piercing gaze, feeling like he was in the spotlight.

“Well...Miss-shima and Akiba are r-really outgoing and brave and...we might get sorted into different Houses and...I’m worried that-that I’ll be alone again.”

“You can’t still talk to them if they’re in another...er...House?”

“I...I don’t think there’s any rules against it, but most people don’t.”

“Well you’re not like most people, Raichi. You’re special, you’re going to be famous with that broom of yours.”

Raichi shrugged, looking down and feeling heat rush to his face.

“I have to make the team first, Dad.”

“You will,” Raizou said, a wide grin on his face. “You’re too good for them to pass up!” Raichi just shrugged again, looking away and feeling small. He loved flying, and he loved Quidditch, but he wasn’t sure if he was really as good as his father said he was. He wanted to play Quidditch, but he didn’t want to fail or let his father down, either. He had very little time to dwell on it, however, since not a moment later, the doorbell rang.

Raizou and Mishima’s mother exchanged pleasantries as Raichi pulled his shoes on. Mishima loomed over him, eyes catching on the ink covering his arms. He kept his thoughts to himself since the adults were in hearing range, but made an effort to remember to ask when the two were alone.

“So how are we getting there?” Raichi asked, keeping pace with Mishima’s longer strides and leaving their chaperone in the dust.

“The floo network, obviously.”

Raichi just nodded, not having used the floo network since his mother was still alive. He unconsciously patted at the coins in his pocket.

__

Diagon Alley was much more than Raichi had ever expected. It was lively, and bright, and crowded .

Mishima’s mother guided the two through the shops, collecting their necessary robes and books and glassware, leaving them to look at potential animals while she went to the shop across the street.

“So...you’ve talked to your soulmate, then?”

Raichi physically jumped, gripping his arm tightly to try to hide the words and looking at Mishima with wide, guilty eyes. “Why are you so secretive about it? It’s a good thing, right?”

“I...yeah, i-it is…” Raichi whispered, looking down, unconsciously rubbing at his left arm.

“Oh, man, are they a muggle?”

“No! Shun’s...Shun goes to Hogwarts.”

“Oh, well then what’s wrong?”

“I’m worried they won’t be what I expect. I’m worried that...my expectations are too high.”

“Welcome to soulmates, everyone’s expectations are too high. I mean, they’re just people,” Mishima said, eyes catching on a particularly handsome brown owl. Raichi’s own eyes lingered on a small black cat who’s right ear looked like it had been partially gnawed off. The cat regarded him with wide, curious eyes before mewling and pawing at her cage, reaching through the bars to tug on his pants.

Needless to say, she won his heart in seconds. Raichi stooped down and ran a gentle finger over the cat’s head and scratched under her chin, feeling her purr loudly.

He felt immediately calmer. Having never felt so instantly relieved, he overpaid the shopkeeper for her and picked her up. He made a note to get her a collar, writing on his hand without thinking much of it.

She rubbed her head against Raichi’s jaw before climbing up and settling herself on his shoulder. The name Kumiko flashed in his mind and a weight of sadness came with it, but he felt that it might help. His mother probably would have found it amusing.

Mishima frowned at the cat before shrugging it off and purchasing his owl and leading Raichi to Ollivander’s.

As soon as the door opened, Raichi’s eyes widened in awe. Endless shelves of wand boxes lined the small shop and drew all of Raichi’s attention. He had never seen something so incredible before in his life and he was utterly taken aback.

“You must be a Mishima,” a gravelly voice said from the back of the shop. An older man emerged from the shelves and smiled kindly. Mishima grinned, puffing out his chest.

“But of course, and I’ll need a wand that will be able to keep up with my huge future,” Mishima boasted. Raichi had to hide a small smile as he looked around at the wand boxes somewhat aimlessly. Mr. Ollivander chuckled, moving up a ladder and picking out a dusty box.

“I think I have just the wand, my boy,” he said, gently pulling the box open and revealing a light brown, slightly bent-looking wand. Mishima took the wand reverently, holding it gently. “Hornbeam, ten and a quarter inches, slightly stiff with a dragon heartstring core,” he said. Mishima gripped the end and swished the wand slowly. Nothing exploded, so Raichi assumed that was good. Mishima started laughing loudly, holding his wand up in the air.

Mr. Ollivander looked Raichi up and down for a moment before moving to a shelf on his left. He looked around for a moment before smiling and pulling on the box, opening it and bestowing a dark want to him. Raichi took it with a frown, biting his lip and swishing it gently like Mishima had.

The light above him exploded and he quickly shoved the wand back into Mr. Ollivander’s hands. He twisted his fingers together, looking down as Mr. Ollivander tutted, moving to the ladder again. “Clearly not that one,” he muttered, tugging another box out from the shelf and handing it to Raichi.

This one was pure black and Raichi gulped, swishing it and jumping when a smaller shelf tipped over and slammed into the floor. He frantically handed the wand to Mr. Ollivander and stepped back again. “Nope, not that one either.” With a furrowed brow, Mr. Ollivander lifted a smaller box up and handed a nearly white wand to him. Raichi bit his lip and barely flicked the wand.

A chair to his left crashed through the storefront window and Raichi felt his heart drop. He went to apologize, but Mr. Ollivander was already making his way toward the back of the store. “Hmm...perhaps…” he muttered to himself as Raichi very, very delicately placed the light wand back into it’s box. He stepped back from the counter and felt his heart slamming painfully against his chest.

What if no wand was right? What if none of the wands wanted him to be their wizard? He put most of his energy into not breaking down or feeling too anxious. He had only tried three wands of the hundreds in the shop, there had to be one that would accept him, right? He really hoped so.

“I only ever carry a few of these wands at a time, because the wood isn’t very common...but just maybe,” Mr. Ollivander said, emerging from the back of the shop and handing a long box to Raichi, lifting the lid.

A reddish wand lay in the box and Raichi bit the inside of his cheek to keep himself from getting down. His fingers brushed the wood lightly before slowly pulling the wand from its box. He swished it and nothing explicitly bad happened. Raichi’s stomach swooped as he held the wand, and it felt like his hand heated up pleasantly around it. “There, you see? Acacia, fourteen and a quarter inches, slightly swishy with a phoenix feather core.” Raichi nodded, looking over his wand reverently.

All he could do was grin up at Mr. Ollivander, and then at Mishima. “You know, I haven’t sold an Acacia wand in many years, but you remind me of the young witch I sold the last one to,” Mr. Ollivander told him, and Raichi’s chest tightened, but not painfully. Did he mean his mother? Raichi glanced at the older man and saw the twinkle in his eyes, confirming his suspicions. He just smiled wider.

__

Raizou was more attentive than usual, listening to his son explain all the items he purchased and helping him pack them up into a trunk. Raichi was finishing settling his new school supplies in his room when a tingling sensation alerted him to a new message on his right arm.

So you got a cat? Or were you going to put a collar on your owl? Toad??

Raichi had to hold back a laugh as he shook his head and reached for the pen he had been keeping in his pocket just in case.

A cat. Her name is Kumiko.

That’s pretty, any reason for it? Shun asked. Raichi’s chest squeezed, but it didn’t hurt as much as it used to, just like in Ollivander’s. He bit the inside of his cheek as he gripped his pen slightly tighter.

It was my mom’s name.

The response took longer than Raichi would have liked, heart racing and wondering if he should have dumped that on Shun right off the bat. Was it too soon to talk about deceased loved ones? Was it too much? What if Shun didn’t want to talk to him anymore? Raichi was almost considering curling up and drowning in his thoughts when another message appeared.

I see. It’s a really beautiful name.

Relief flooded through Raichi like a tidal wave, air rushing into his lungs as a small smile spread across his lips. Something deep in his core was immensely grateful that he didn’t have to hear another apology.

Raichi went about getting ready for bed, pausing every few minutes to respond to Shun’s messages, arms becoming worryingly saturated with ink no matter how small he tried to write. Even deep into the night, hidden under blankets with a flashlight, they wrote back and forth, both smiling too wide.

__

Miyuki was sneaking through the library, long past curfew, trying to navigate the endless bookshelves and make his way back to the Ravenclaw common room. A light caught his attention and he paused, seeing a yellow emblem and grinning. It’s not every day you find a Hufflepuff skulking around the library well into the night.

Upon closer inspection, he had to smile when he realized who it was.

“For someone who tries to pass as a perfect student, you sure are in the library pretty late,” he lilted, throwing himself into the seat beside Sanada, noticing the abundance of ink adorning his arms and smirking. “Oh, well isn’t this interesting?”

Sanada rolled his eyes, still waiting for R’s next reply. Considering the time that had passed, it was possible that they had simply fallen asleep. “As if you’ve never done the same thing,” Sanada teased, leaning back in his chair and stretching his arms up before pulling the sleeves of his cloak down. Miyuki grinned.

“Well, since there’s three of us , I imagine communication between you two might be a little easier.”

“You’re very subtle when you brag about having two soulmates.”

“Thank you,” Miyuki said, smile bright and only slightly forced, following the tall Hufflepuff out of the library and looking over his shoulder every step. “So, what are they like? What’s their name?”

“They’ve just told me ‘R,” Sanada whispered, peering around a corner.

“Ooh, mysterious.” Sanada hummed in response, deciding that they were clear and making his way down another corridor.

“It seems like they don’t want to know too much, or tell me too much.”

“Maybe they’re worried that you won’t like them if you know too much,” Miyuki said, speaking from personal experience from the first time he had interacted with his own soulmates. Sanada shrugged.

“Possibly, but I still want to know more about them. They’re coming to Hogwarts next year, but I don’t know if they’ll want to meet at first.”

“Do you want to meet them?” Miyuki asked, watching Sanada’s face pinch slightly.

“I...I’m not sure,” he said, head bowed slightly. “I’m worried they’ll think badly of me if they meet me in person since I don’t really... act like myself in public.”

“Speaking from personal experience, I think they’ll be fine with it. They might even think it’s sweet that you only act like yourself around them.”

“But what if I can’t even act like myself then? Writing is easy because I don’t have to be there and they can’t read me. I’m worried that I won’t be able to stop acting even when I’m with them.”

“You’ll never know until you try,” Miyuki said. “I think that you’re overestimating how much of your personality is a front. Lies are the most believable when they’re based on fact, you know,” he continued, sly smirk pulling his lips as he backed away from Sanada and made his way, blatantly, toward Gryffindor tower instead of Ravenclaw tower. Sanada could only grin.

His hand gently ran over his right arm, wishing there was more room so he wouldn’t have to erase the words written there. R was a little awkward and reserved, but also had a good heart and a great sense of humor. Sanada really wanted to meet them, but the idea also sent anxiety rushing all the way down to his fingertips.

For the moment, just talking--or writing--was fine.

__

After escaping a too-tight hug and poorly concealed tears from his father, Raichi made it to Mishima and his waiting mother, all his belongings in hand. The summer had passed slower than he would have liked, but there he was. His heart was ready to beat out of his chest as he waved to his father and followed his childhood friend to the train station.

Platform 9¾ was much more exciting than he had ever expected, and seeing Akiba waiting for both of them in one of the train compartments was even better. Raichi packed away the last of his things, setting Kumiko on his lap and scratching under her chin.

The train jerked into motion a few minutes after they had all settled into comfortable conversation. A commotion drew Raichi’s attention from Mishima’s attempts at convincing Akiba that he would make the Quidditch team in his first year.

In a whirlwind of noise and laughter and thumps, another boy fell onto the floor of their compartment. He looked up, bright eyes curiously taking in their faces before a cheery grin broke out across his lips.

“Hey! Are you guys first-years, too?” he asked, voice loud and all-encompassing; it made Raichi jump slightly. Mishima and Akiba glanced over to him worriedly, but were soon distracted by their new arrival as he stood up and dusted his robes off. They nodded. “Awesome! I don’t know where my, ah, friends are, so would you mind if I sat there?” he asked, pointing to the empty seat beside Raichi and trying to flip his hair back into place.

Raichi could feel himself freezing up, eyes widening as his mouth felt like it was filled with cotton. He could feel sweat begin to break out across his forehead and his heart slammed against his ribcage. What was he supposed to say? Would it be rude to say no? But what if there was nowhere else for him to sit? What if his friends started looking for him and thought that Raichi and his friends were trying to take him away?

The loud boy made a frustrated noise and Raichi jumped again, looking up and fearing that he had upset him. What he found was the boy smacking his own forehead. “ Manners , Eijun,” he mumbled to himself, smacking his cheeks and bowing deeply. “My apologies, that was rude of me! My name is Sawamura Eijun! First-year Hogwarts student! It’s a pleasure to meet you all!”

“Ah, right, okay. Sawamura-san. I’m Mishima Yuuta.”

“I’m Akiba Kazuma, it’s nice to meet you, as well.”

Mishima and Akiba glanced to Raichi, trying to decide if they should make an introduction for him when Sawamura spoke again.

“I’m sorry for making so much noise earlier,” he began, looking to Raichi with a shy, kind smile. “If you don’t want to sit with me, that’s okay, you can just say so.”

Raichi was very rarely inclined to believe people when they said things like that, but for some reason Sawamura just seemed so genuine , it almost seemed like he had to believe him. “Alright, I’ll just go then--”

“W-wait,” Raichi whispered, feeling a tingle on his forearm. A message from Shun, no doubt. But he had to do this. He swallowed down his nerves and looked up to meet Sawamura’s sunny gaze. “Y...you can sit here. If...if you want. Bu-but you don’t...have...to.”

“Thanks!” Sawamura said, bowing again before throwing himself into the compartment and putting the rest of belongings up beside Raichi’s. He fell into his seat with a loud sigh, just like the rest of him.

“I’m...To...Todoroki R-R-Raichi,” he said, feeling the heat rising across his cheeks and making him sink down in his seat slightly. How embarrassing.

“That’s a cool name!” Sawamura exclaimed, leaning closer to Raichi’s face, completely ignoring the embarrassed grimace he was sporting across his lips. Sawamura just smiled, sitting back in his chair and striking up a conversation with Akiba and Mishima. Raichi felt more at ease as he settled into his chair beside Sawamura, feeling the calm, happy energy he exuded with every small movement and utterance.

“We’re gonna hunt down some snacks. We’ll be back in a few minutes,”  Mishima said, pushing himself up and looking between Raichi and Sawamura for a moment before following Akiba out of the compartment.

Once the sliding door clicked again, Raichi jolted slightly, pulling his sleeve up and smiling weakly at the writing on his arm.

Are you okay? I felt...weird just now. Scared?

He pulled his pen out of the bag at his feet and scribbled back a response.

Talking is kinda hard for me and I had to answer a question. But I’m okay now. Thanks...for checking in.

He sat back against his chair, blinking up at the ceiling with a faint grin. Shun cared a lot about him. It felt... good to be cared for that way. When his eyes darted to the side, he could see Sawamura examining his arm curiously.

“A pen...you write with a pen? Are your parents muggles, too?” Raichi’s eyes widened as he looked at Sawamura and felt his heart beat faster again.

“Uh...just...just my dad. My m-mom’s not really...around anymore, so he…”

“I’m glad that I met someone else like me, then,” Sawamura said quietly. “Being a wizard is super cool, but...everyone at this prestigious school seems to be...really different after growing up in the wizarding world their whole lives.”

Raichi nodded, looking down and twisting his fingers together tightly. Sawamura smiled again, pointing to Raichi’s arm. “So, you know your soulmate, too?” he asked. Raichi shrugged.

“Ah...o-only from the...writing so far…”

“Ah, making them wait, I understand,” Sawamura said, nodding sagely and making Raichi smile slightly. He was about to say that it wasn’t really about making Shun wait when Sawamura stiffened and shuddered slightly. With a dramatic roll of his eyes he shoved his sleeves up, finding two kinds of handwriting on his arms. Neither handwriting was like Shun’s. One was delicate and small, while the other was loud and a little messy, and big .

As Sawamura read, he scoffed.

“Miyuki Kazuya,” he mumbled, as if he had complained about this individual many times before. Which he no doubt had judging by the familiar way he pulled out a pen and wrote back shortly, his own handwriting surprisingly neat and tidy.

Bakamura! Where are you???

We agreed to meet and ride the train together Sawamura-kun~ Don’t you want to ride with your generous senpai~?

I’m with my new friend instead of you!! I’ll meet you at the castle!! Leave me alone!!!

Raichi thought the third exclamation point was a bit superfluous, but it was clear Sawamura didn’t agree. It almost seemed like he was considering adding a fourth one, but eventually decided that that was ridiculous.

“H-how come there’s...d-different—?”

“Ah!” Sawamura held up two fingers, or a peace sign, at that point Raichi was unsure. “I have two soulmates, apparently! They’re kind of annoying, but it’s fun.”

“T-two? That sounds scary…”

“Scary? Nah! It’s cool. Trios are way cooler than duos in adventure stories, anyway!” he said. “Why do you think it would be scary?”

“W...well you would h-have to impress two p-people instead of just...just one.”

“Impress them? Why should I try to do that? They’re my soulmates, aren’t they just supposed to like me the way I am? Why would I try that hard for the people who are supposed to like the way I am already, no matter what?”

Raichi shrugged.

“B-but you’re really likeable...and c-c-cool already...s-so…”

“Hey now! You’re cool, too! Don’t sell yourself short! Whoever your soulmate is, they’re gonna be so impressed by how cool you are they won’t even be able to stand it!”

“I...I don’t know a-about that.”

“Besides, I’m only 11, and my soulmates are 12, there shouldn’t be that many expectations when we’re still kids, you know?”

“I guess you’re right...but I don’t think I’m ready to meet Shun yet.”

“That’s okay, I’m sure Shun-san will be happy whenever they meet you!”

“I hope you’re right,” Raichi said. He turned his head to meet Sawamura’s gaze, and suddenly he felt like maybe he was telling the truth. Maybe he shouldn’t be so worried about meeting Shun. He smiled back, feeling his forearm tingle again and pulling his sleeve up to see another small message.

Good, I’m glad you’re okay. Sorry you were put in that situation, though.

__

Toward the front of the train, Sanada tried to ignore Miyuki and Kuramochi bickering, apparently something about their other soulmate. He wasn’t really listening as he waited for R to respond.

When he suddenly felt fear strike him out of nowhere, he had immediately worried that something had happened to R. For the few minutes that he waited for that first reply he was restless and couldn’t stop his mind from racing. What if R was in danger or had missed the train?

After being reassured that R was okay, he had sighed, deflating slightly and watching the matching smirks form on his friends’ faces.

“Trouble in paradise, Sanada-kun~?” Miyuki tittered, making Sanada roll his eyes

“I think you two need to be more worried than me, since your soulmate is MIA.”

“He’s just being a brat, that’s all,” Kuramochi said confidently, cracking his knuckles as if twisting their poor, unassuming soulmate into a pretzel was his only goal in life.

The two resumed their bantering as Sanada looked out the window, glancing down to his arm once he felt a burst of warmth.

That’s okay. I’m actually glad it happened. Something really good came from it.

Sanada found himself smiling out the window, lost in thought and feeling a warmth spread through his chest. For some reason all he cared about was that R was happy. He wanted to be annoyed by how sentimental that was, but he couldn’t even find it in himself to do that much.

__

“Miyuki Kazuya! Kuramochi-senpai!” Sawamura shouted, making Raichi flinch slightly, following the excitable boy closely as they disembarked from the train. Akiba and Mishima trailed back a few feet, keeping an eye on their shy friend as they made their way toward the carriages.

Beside a waiting carriage were three figures, which Sawamura approached unhesitantly. Actually, he leapt at them, physically throwing himself into two of the figures’ arms and laughing brightly.

The third figure was clearly trying to hide his grin as the three boys toppled to the ground. He was tall and donned in crisp Hufflepuff robes, and Raichi had a hard time keeping his eyes from lingering on him. He nodded politely to him, grimacing as he eyed Sawamura, Miyuki, and Kuramochi. The awkward, apologetic laugh falling from Sawamura’s lips somewhat reassured him that they were okay, though his heart was still beating too quickly.

“So, this must be your missing soulmate,” the third figure said, voice smooth and teasing.

“Unfortunately, yes,” Miyuki mumbled, pulling himself from the ground and dusting his robes off. Kuramochi twisted his legs around Sawamura’s middle and tugged him into an impressive wrestling hold, much to the first-year’s dismay.

“Ah! Kuramochi-senpai! I’m sorry! Not your new wrestling moves, please!” he whined, though trying very little to really escape the hold.

“Oi, Sawamura, who’re your friends?” Miyuki asked, calculating eyes drifting between Akiba, Mishima and Raichi.

“Oh! This is Akiba-san, Mishima-san, and Raichi!” Sawamura proclaimed, sliding his arm around Raichi’s shoulders with a big grin. Miyuki and Kuramochi tilted their heads and nodded to the other boys. Each bowed their heads and gave a proper introduction to their new senpai, Raichi’s more stilted and quiet than the others’.

“I’m Sanada Shunpei,” the third boy said, bowing politely after Miyuki and Kuramochi had made their own introductions. Raichi bowed his own head in response, following behind Sawamura as he made his way toward the carriages beside his soulmates.

Raichi paused as he came face to face with a skeletal-looking, horse-like animal at the front of the carriage. He met the creature’s eyes and smiled softly as it breathed loudly at him, ruffling his hair.

“It’s a thestral,” Miyuki said from behind him, making Raichi jump slightly and turn to stare at his calculating eyes. “They can only be seen by people who have seen someone die. I can see them, too.”

Raichi’s heart squeezed tightly at the realization, looking back to the thestral and frowning.

“Miyuki Kazuya!” Sawamura shouted, interrupting any attempt Raichi might have made to respond. “What are you putting in his head, you sneaky bastard?” Miyuki laughed obnoxiously in response, squeezing Raichi’s shoulder before sauntering back to the steps up to the carriage.

“Nothing, Sawamura! Do you really think so poorly of me?” he tittered, making Sawamura’s face puff out in an outrageous pout.

“Of course I do!”

“Hey, are you alright?” Sanada asked, drawing Raichi’s attention from the bickering trio in the carriage and up to the boy standing beside him.

“I-I...ah...mmhmm,” Raichi stuttered out, eventually looking down and just nodding. Why was it so easy for him to talk to Sawamura but now suddenly he’s tongue-tied again? He pressed his lips together and clenched his fists, trying not to get too frustrated with himself, but not doing a very good job of it.

“Miyuki didn’t say anything rude, did he? He doesn’t always think about what he’s--”

“N-no! H-he di...didn’t…”

“Oh, well good,” Sanada said, smiling kindly and reaching up to rub at the back of his head. “So...do you want to get into the carriage? It’s supposed to leave soon.”

Raichi nodded frantically, stumbling toward the steps and situating himself between Akiba and Mishima, who both shot Sanada warning looks as he settled down beside Kuramochi. Sawamura somehow ended up on one of Kuramochi’s and Miyuki’s legs, never stopping his conversation with Akiba about charms. They were Sawamura’s favorite subject, apparently.

The entire ride was filled with Sawamura’s excited voice, almost never lulling into an awkward pause, which Raichi was grateful for. His eyes still found themselves sticking to Sanada, no matter how hard he tried to force himself not to. There was just something about the older boy that drew him in, and he wanted to figure out what it was.

The carriage came to a sudden stop, pulling Raichi’s attention toward the big doors sitting before them. This was it, he was there . At Hogwarts . He could feel himself staring in awe, but he wasn’t sure that he really minded, either.

“It’s pretty fantastic, isn’t it?” Sanada asked, nudging Raichi’s elbow playfully and staring up at the doors as well. Raichi just nodded, not trusting himself to say anything without stuttering, blushing, or some horrible combination of the two. He had already done enough of that around three of his seniors.

“Come on, Raichi, we need to meet with the rest of the first years for the sorting ceremony!” Mishima called, waving to Raichi from where he was waiting with Akiba and Sawamura. Miyuki and Kuramochi were waiting further away and closer to the doors, watching Sanada with twin grins.

Raichi hopped down the steps and hurried over to his friends, cheeks heating up as he did. Sawamura slapped his back and laughed, telling him that it was totally normal to feel amazed. He just smiled, nodding slightly. He wondered, distantly, if Shun was just as awestruck the first time they saw Hogwarts up close.

The group was ushered further into the castle with the droves of other first years waiting to be led into the great hall.

In the entranceway, Miyuki and Kuramochi smirked, watching the way Sanada avoided their gazes and crossed his arms over his chest.

“You seemed pretty cozy with that shy first-year, Sanada-kun,” Miyuki sang, looking far too pleased with himself than anyone had the right to be.

“I was just being nice.”

“But you’re not nice,” Kuramochi pointed out. “You’re cordial, and you’re polite, but you’re not willingly nice to strangers.”

“That’s funny coming from you, Kuramochi,” he said, a warning edge to his tone. He knew that he had been uncharacteristically friendly to someone he hardly knew, but something about that first-year really drew him in. Obviously he was cute, but that couldn’t have been all it was, right?

I wonder if R is that cute , he thought before allowing himself to be dragged into the great hall by his two mischievous friends, neither of which was even in his house to begin with. He was almost worried that they would try to sit at a different house table for a formal meal, but was relieved when Miyuki eventually made his way to the Ravenclaw table and socialized with a few members of his own house. A rare sight.

He situated himself toward the front of the Hufflepuff table, close enough to actually see the new first-years being sorted. A few moments later, a small crowd of first-years piled into the great hall, all looking varying degrees of nervous or excited. Sometimes both.

Akiba was the first to step up.

“Ravenclaw!” the sorting hat shouted only a few seconds after being placed on his head. Akiba smiled, welcoming the roaring from the Ravenclaw table and making his way, surprisingly, toward Miyuki.

The names droned on, tables cheering when they welcomed another member into their house. There was a first-year Ravenclaw who beared a striking resemblance to a rather memorable pink-haired Slytherin third-year that Sanada knew.

Sawamura waltzed up to the chair a few more minutes later, wide grin on his face. The hat barely touched his head before it shouted “Gryffindor!”

Sanada had to hide his smile at Kuramochi leaping up to grab Sawamura in a chokehold as soon as he made it to the Gryffindor table beside him and Mishima. The next boy to walk up was tall and somewhat hunched. He sat down on the stool, looking determined as the hat was placed on his head.

Four and a half minutes passed before the hat declared him a Gryffindor as well. He almost looked disappointed as he made his way toward the rowdy Gryffindor table and sat beside Sawamura. That kid really did draw people to him. Sanada could understand why Kuramochi and Miyuki liked him so much despite his somewhat air-headed demeanor and loud voice.

Still, Sanada was much more interested in the next student to walk up the stool. Raichi was looking down, biting at his lip and shifting uncomfortably as he perched uncertainly on the wooden chair below him. His cheeks were dusted with a light pink and Sanada could feel his heart twisting in his chest. Why was he feeling this way about him? There was no way that Raichi was his soulmate, the world just didn’t work that way, right? Right.

Still, there was something pulling him in. It suddenly hit him that he wasn’t sure if he really cared about soulmates, for just a moment. The feeling dissipated almost immediately, leaving him feeling conflicted as he stared up at Raichi.

Raichi felt his stomach churning as he tried to ignore the huge crowd of people with all their attention on him. He knew that they would probably forget about him as soon as he was sorted into a house, but the feeling of being observed just wouldn’t leave him.

The hat was placed on his head and he twisted his fingers together. What if he didn’t fit in? He could barely speak to his own best friends, how was he supposed to communicate with an entire house of people. Sanada was in Hufflepuff, what if the weird feelings Raichi felt toward him got worse ?

“Not Hufflepuff, you say?” the hat asked. Raichi shook his head softly.

“I don’t know--”

“I suppose I could put you in Gryffindor...but do you really want to let this person decide the next seven years of your life? You’re a born Hufflepuff.”

“I don’t know what I would do if…”

No one person should change who you’re meant to be. Hufflepuff will encourage the most growth and draw out the most potential from you.

Raichi thought for another moment before nodding. It almost seemed like the hat laughed before declaring “Hufflepuff!”

The hall erupted with cheers and Raichi felt a wobbly smile spread across his cheeks, making his way down to the table. He could see Sanada smiling and clapping along and felt himself being drawn in, sitting himself down beside the second-year and smiling shyly. Sanada returned it in kind and Raichi suddenly felt his anxiety ebb from the forefront of his mind, relief washing over him as he turned to watch the next student take a seat.

This was bad.

__

That night, his mind raced as sleep eluded him, leaving him staring at the ceiling and thinking. Everything that had happened that day could be considered a breakthrough for him. Honestly, he had never been very good at talking to other people, and while he still wasn’t very good at it, he felt less pressure to speak after arriving at Hogwarts. No one got impatient with him when he stuttered or choked on his words.

Sawamura, especially, always seemed genuinely interested in what he was saying and understood what he was getting at if he stopped in the middle of a sentence. It was, in a word, refreshing. When he was home, the only place he was comfortable talking was with his dad or Mishima and Akiba.

Still, his strange fascination with Sanada was troubling. He had a soulmate, so why was he so interested in another person? No matter how hard he tried to ignore it, his heart still throbbed in his chest every time he thought of the mysterious second-year.

A tingling on his arm drew him away from his thoughts and he looked down, finding new ink across his left forearm.

I can’t sleep, are you still up? Shun wrote. Raichi’s chest squeezed as he reached under his bed to grab at a pen quickly.

Yeah, can’t stop thinking.

Me either, Shun wrote. Raichi bit at his lip, wondering if he should bring up another topic of conversation so that they could keep talking when another message appeared slightly further up his arm than the last. Are you really not going to tell me what house you were sorted into?

Rachi’s hands began to sweat. He wanted to tell Shun, he did, but he was so worried about disappointing his soulmate he wasn’t sure if he would have been able to handle telling them right then. They were both so young, they could wait. There was no reason to rush anything, right? It’s just so weird thinking that I must have seen you, but I don’t know who you are, Shun continued. Raichi smiled slightly.

I just don’t think I can say right now. It’s not like you’ve told me, either.

I was waiting until we both had a house to tell each other. A fair exchange, of course. Raichi rolled his eyes, still biting at his lip as he considered revealing his house.

I really want to tell you, but I’m scared.

Scared of what? I don’t come off that intimidating, do I? Shun asked and Raichi had to laugh. As far as intimidating people went, Shun was at the bottom of the list for Raichi. He was kind of snarky and liked to tease him, but Shun was the farthest thing from menacing as far as Raichi was concerned.

It’s not you that I’m scared of, you’re not scary at all. I’m...worried I won’t be what you want me to be. Writing...it’s so much easier than talking, I’m afraid I’ll disappoint you in real life.

Can I tell you a secret? Shun asked. Raichi frowned, wondering if Shun had actually gotten his last message or not.

Sure.

I feel the same way, Shun wrote. I’ve been worried that you won’t like me if you met me.

Raichi sat up, reading over the message again and again. They were worried about the same thing? Were they really so alike already that they had the same fears ? His thumb rubbed over the message softly, smiling as he thought about what kind of person Shun must be.

My friend thinks that it’s a silly thing to worry about, but no matter how hard they try to convince me of that, it’s still there, Shun added. Raichi remembered Sawamura’s words and smiled a little more.

My friend said something similar. They told me that we’re too young to try to impress people who are supposed to like us to begin with. I get that, but I still can’t make the thoughts go away just like that.

Let’s agree that for right now, we’ll just talk about non-personal things. Maybe we can meet in a few years. Who knows, maybe by then we’ll have met in real life too and just won’t know it,  Shun suggested. Something heavy in Raichi’s chest lifted as he read.

We can only hope that will be a good thing to reveal, maybe we’ll hate each other.

Hm, that’s pretty hard to believe, I’m very charming. Raichi couldn’t hold back a small laugh, smacking one of his hands over his mouth to keep quiet.

I’m sure you think so.

I can’t believe that my own soulmate is doubting my charm, even after experiencing it first-hand.

Is that what I’ve been experiencing?

What happened to the cute R who just wanted to talk to me?

Maybe you’ve influenced me, Raichi wrote, feeling his entire body pulse with flushed heat for a moment. He had never done anything like that before and embarrassment was already cracking away at him. Was he going too far? Would Shun dislike him if he was snarky? Or teased him back? He was almost considering taking everything back when another message appeared.

You make that sound like a bad thing, R. I kinda like it. Raichi could feel a soft laugh escaping his lips as he grinned down at his arm. Without even trying, Shun was able to ease his worries. Raichi could feel himself sinking deeper into his bed, just reading over all their messages.

That’s good, you would be pretty disappointed if you didn’t, Raichi finally wrote back.

They stayed up much too late, just writing and joking with each other. Raichi understood that he hardly knew anything personal about Shun. He knew that they barely knew each other, but despite that he could still feel himself falling harder and harder for his mysterious soulmate.

__

"Raichi!” Sawamura’s voice echoed off of the bustling hallway corridor and Raichi stopped mid-step, nearly toppling over as he looked around for his excitable friend. A brown mop of messy hair appeared down the hall and Raichi could only smile as Sawamura plowed his way forward until he could drop his arm around Raichi’s shoulders. “Let’s get breakfast together!”

“B-but you’re a Gryffindor,” Raichi said, brows furrowing as he glanced up to Sawamura’s smiling face.

“You’re only have to sit at your house’s table for feasts. Kazuya and Youichi basically always sit at the same table even though they’re not in the same house. Sometimes they even sit with Sanada-senpai, but I think they just do that to bother him.” Raichi frowned, unsure if he really wanted to risk breaking a rule in his first week at Hogwarts. If it really was okay, then it would make keeping in touch with Mishima and Akiba much easier.

Before he could really decide on accepting or denying Sawamura’s offer, another thought occurred to him.

“How come you don’t...call your soulmates by their first names when you’re w-with them?”

Sawamura’s face scrunched in frustration at that, pouting at the floor.

“They think it’s embarrassing for me to call them by their first names in public. I mean, we’re soulmates it should be expected, right?”

Raichi shrugged.

“M-maybe they want...for it t-to be a private...thing.”

“Maybe, but if they don’t tell me that, I won’t understand!” Sawamura shouted, making Raichi flinch slightly. A tingling on his arm alerted him to a new message from Shun and he smiled, quickly lifting his robe and pushing his sleeve up.

You’re not too tired are you? Sorry I kept you up so late.

“What were you and Shun-san doing so late, Raichi-kun?” Sawamura teased, leaning down slightly to grin right in Raichi’s face. He beared a striking resemblance to Miyuki, but Raichi was never going to say that to his face for fear of an outburst. Still, his cheeks flushed and he shoved at Sawamura’s arm that was still draped over his shoulders.

“Just t- talking ,” he said, reaching for a pen and finding one being held out for him. Sawamura grinned again and Raichi took it suspiciously.

I’m fine, Shun, are you okay?

Hmm, yeah. I would be better if my friends weren’t so loud, though. Raichi couldn’t help but laugh softly, glancing over at Sawamura who had started rambling about his excitement over their flying lessons that day. He had waxed poetic the previous night about his aspirations to be the official Gryffindor Seeker over dinner.

Raichi was just excited to get his hands on a broom again. He had practiced a lot when he was younger, mostly out of necessity. His shyness was even worse when he was young, and the only thing that could keep his mind off his anxiety about fitting in was flying. He knew that other kids thought that he was weird, and there was nowhere he could play Quidditch in his area, so he just practiced on his own, in seclusion. He’s actually gotten remarkably good at flying due to his constant practicing. One of his most prized possessions was the broom his mother had bought for him when he was five. He had always wondered how much fun it would be to play quidditch with an actual team, and after arriving at Hogwarts, he was even more anxious to find out.

__

“You have your own broom? That’s awesome! Can you fly it?” Sawamura asked as he and Raichi made their way to their first flying class. Raichi just nodded, flush overtaking his cheeks as he glanced around the field, seeing that most of the other first-years were already gathered around two lines of neatly placed broomsticks.

“F-flying’s...soothing,” he whispered. Sawamura laughed loudly, patting Raichi’s back and nodding in agreement.

“You’ll probably make the Quidditch team in no time if you can already fly pretty well!” Raichi just shrugged at the bold statement. There was no way he was that good compared to sixth or seventh-years, surely. Still, playing on the Quidditch team sounded amazing. Raichi wanted to know what that exhilaration was like. He wanted to play against strong teams and other houses and feel the rush of winning with teammates. “Oh! Harucchi! Furuya!” Sawamura called, running ahead of Raichi and meeting up with a small, blushing Ravenclaw and a tall, frowning Gryffindor. They started chatting, and Raichi was considering just leaving them alone entirely when he felt an arm sling over his shoulders.

“You haven’t forgotten about us, have you?” Mishima asked with a grin. Akiba stood behind him and smiled kindly, walking around to Raichi’s other side. Raichi shook his head frantically, of course he hadn’t forgotten about them. “You’re gonna impress everyone here when you start flying,” Mishima told him, though it sounded like the words were sort of being forced out of his mouth.

Raichi’s eyes lit up as he smiled, nodding seriously.

“Thanks, Miss-shima!” he called, already slipping into his Quidditch mode. Akiba laughed as Mishima recoiled slightly, pouting his lips out and crossing his arms.

“B-but I won’t lose to you! Don’t start thinking this means you’ve beaten me!” he hollered as Raichi laughed loudly and bounded toward the middle of the field as class began. After managing to get their brooms off of the ground, the real fun began.

Raichi took off, spinning and dodging and literally flying circles around most of his classmates. He narrowly avoided colliding with Sawamura and Furuya who were in the middle of a race, glaring at one another as they sped by.

Raichi sat stationary in the air as he looked after them, a huge grin spreading over his lips.

“Awesome,” he whispered, flying after them and successfully leaving many of his classmates behind. His loud laughter halted Sawamura as Raichi overtook him and Furuya, spinning mid-air and diving back down and toward the grassy field. Sawamura could hardly believe it as he stared after the normally quiet and reserved Hufflepuff.

Once class was over and the professor was done praising the class as a whole, Sawamura caught up with Raichi, who was talking with Mishima and Akiba on their way to their potions class.

“Raichi that was amazing!” he shouted. “I didn’t know you could fly like that!” Raichi blushed and shrugged as if the years of practice he had done were nothing special. Sawamura shook his head and gushed a bit more before rushing after Haruichi and Furuya when he remembered that he needed to get to Charms class.

“That was some amazing flying,” another voice said as Raichi, Mishima, and Akiba exited the flying field. Raichi jumped as he looked up to see Sanada smirking at him. “Are you going to join the Quidditch team?” he asked. Raichi felt his heart speeding up as he glanced between his friends, trying to find the answer he needed. After another moment of silence, Raichi just nodded, looking down and hugging his arms around his chest. “I’m glad, we could use someone like you. I’m the Hufflepuff Seeker,” Sanada said, trying not to come off as too intimidating.

Raichi suddenly looked up at him, wide-eyed and awed. Sanada was already cool in Raichi’s eyes, but knowing that he was the house’s Seeker made him even cooler . He was only twelve and he was already officially on the team?

“Awesome! So awesome!” Raichi gushed turning to face Sanada properly and smiled brightly. Mishima and Akiba stopped walking to watch the pair speak.

“Oh! Look at that, he slipped back into Quidditch mode.”

Sanada laughed, rubbing the back of his head as Raichi praised him unabashedly. It was a complete turn-around and Sanada was completely unprepared for it. Akiba and Mishima, on the other hand, found it hilarious. They had already become accustomed to Raichi’s shifts in shyness when it came to the sport he loved, so they merely found enjoyment in others’ completely shock and confusion.

“I’ll see you at the Quidditch tryouts,” Sanada said, moving away from the trio and making his way down the hallway. “Good luck,” he sang, turning around to smirk before disappearing down another corridor.

“Wow, he’s really cool,” Mishima said, seeing Akiba nod with a smile before looking to Raichi, only to find the other boy blushing and staring in the direction Sanada had left. He sighed.

Honestly, why did this guy always switch back to being so shy at the worst moments? They were going to be late to Potions if they didn’t hurry up, he thought rather grouchily.

He reached out and tugged on Raichi’s arm to snap him out of it and practically dragged him to Potions class. Unbeknownst to him, his shyness wasn’t what was making Raichi blush.

__

I think I’m going to try out for the Quidditch team.

Really? Shun relied quickly. Raichi hadn’t really been expecting an answer that late, but it still made him smile. Kumiko purred as she walked across his bed and rubbed her side against his shoulder.

Yeah. I’m alright on a broom, so thought maybe…

Good luck! I hope —

“Who’s still up?” someone whispered and Raichi jumped, putting out the light on his wand and trying to act asleep. A shadowed figure approached him and he could feel his body shaking. He knew he wasn’t supposed to be up, but he just couldn’t sleep.

As they got closer, the moonlight shining through the window illuminated their face and Raichi was met with a confused frown from Sanada. “Why are you still awake?” he asked.

“C-couldn’t s...sleep,” he whispered, trying to calm his racing heart. He gripped his bedsheets tightly and avoided eye contact as Sanada ran a hand through his hair and sighed.

“Just try to get to sleep and don’t light up your wand again.” Raichi nodded fervently, biting at his lip and watching Sanada move to the next room. Something in Raichi’s chest pulsed painfully as he watched Sanada go. He couldn’t have already developed a crush on him, right? That was crazy. And he had Shun. He could forget Sanada. Definitely.

He looked back down at his arm once he was sure that Sanada was gone.

—you make it, I’m sure you’ll shine on the Quidditch pitch.

__

Raichi’s hands were still shaking, body pumping with adrenaline as he looked down at the grassy field hundreds of yards beneath him. He was hardly aware of his surroundings as he came back to himself and looked around to find the rest of the Hufflepuff team staring at him wide-eyed.

That’s right, the Quidditch tryouts. Feeling all their eyes on him sent an eerie chill through his spine and he shuddered, letting off a nervous laugh to try and break the tension.

“Kahaha! How…how did I—ah—do?”

Sanada was the first to move, grinning so wide it almost seemed like his face would break right in half. He flew forward and grabbed Raichi’s shoulders excitedly.

“That was...incredible,” he whispered and Raichi grinned back. His stomach swooped and his arms tingled and he nearly thought he was going to fall off of his broom. Why did he feel that way? It was completely crazy . Still, he didn’t dislike the feeling,but he wasn’t about to say that out loud.

The team captain, a fourth year, Hirahata Ryou flew over after Sanada moved back and grinned wide with a thumbs up.

“That was some amazing flying, kid. We’d love to have you on the Quidditch team.”

Raichi was so overwhelmed, the only thing he could get himself to do was laugh awkwardly, reaching up to rub at the back of his head and bow slightly in thanks. It was really happening. He actually made the Quidditch team! It all felt too good to be true, and he did his best to ignore the voice in his head telling him that it was a mistake.  

For the moment, though, he was happy.

__

As the year went on and the days grew colder, Raichi couldn’t shake the strange feelings he had for Sanada. The more time he spend with the other Hufflepuff actually escalated them, and that was a problem.

He always drifted to Sanada. He wanted to know more about him, he wanted to know everything about him. Sanada was surprisingly gifted in academics and tutoring, which Raichi usually used as an excuse to talk to him and see him make funny faces while he thought.

Quidditch was good; it was fun and he and Sanada got to see each other practically every day, but that was practice. It was serious, and people didn’t just have conversations for the fun of it while running drills. Sometimes they would all go out afterwards, but Raichi almost always refused, wanting to get in as much extra flying time as he could before their games started. He had to be the best that he could so he wouldn’t let his teammates down.

Sometimes, when the rest of the team left Raichi to his individual practice, he could swear that Sanada would give him a sort of longing glance. He could swear that sometimes he even looked disappointed , but that was just his imagination. Surely .

__

Raichi was rushing to his potions class, running late after getting caught up in a conversation with Akiba after their Defense Against the Dark Arts class.

As he was making his way through a corridor, however, he heard something that made him pause.

“I don’t even know how he ended up in Hufflepuff,” someone said. “He’s certainly not what you would call typical .”

“Have you seen him playing Quidditch? I think that’s when his real personality comes out, he always looks so scary and mean,” someone else added. A group of three or four laughed and Raichi felt his chest tighten.

“Sanada doesn’t belong in Hufflepuff, it’s that simple,” a third, deeper voice declared.

“At least that other devious character Miyuki had the decency to get sorted into Ravenclaw,” the first voice said. Raichi could feel his blood boiling as the second voice spoke up again.

“Honestly, they both should have been in Slytherin.”

“Seriously,” a fourth voice insisted. “How is Hufflepuff supposed to keep putting out the fewest dark wizards when people like him get sorted here.”  That was all he could take. Raichi’s fists clenched as he stepped forward to tell the group off, when a soft voice stopped him.

“Don’t bother,” they said. Raichi spun around to see Miyuki leaning against a wall, near the entrance to the corridor.

“M-Miyuki-s-san. B-but they—”

“Roughing them up won’t make them change their opinions. And even if it did, there will always be people who don’t agree with something.”

Raichi looked down, still clenching his fists and grinding his teeth. “This isn’t even the worst, either. Sanada and I have both heard worse, to our faces, even.”

“H-how c-could people…?”

“Some people are just hateful,” Miyuki said. He turned his head to Raichi with a wide grin. “But I don’t believe them, so I don’t listen to them.”

“I-is it...really th-that easy?” Miyuki just laughed, shrugging.

“After a while, yeah.”

Miyuki’s words stuck with him throughout the rest of the day. How long had all of this been happening? Did Sanada feel the same way? Was he forced to just ignore people who said hateful things about him?

That night, in the Hufflepuff common room, Raichi brought up the encounter to Sanada, and the older boy just laughed. If Raichi were pressed, though, he would say that the laugh sounded somewhat forced.

“People really are shameless,” he said, a smile tightening slightly. “The hat wanted to put me in Slytherin, you know.”

“Wh-what?” Raichi whispered. Sanada just nodded, leaning back against the couch and looking up at the homey ceiling.

“I was well-suited for both Slytherin and Hufflepuff, so it took my input into account as well. There’s nothing wrong with being in Slytherin, obviously, there are really great people who come from that house. I just...I felt like I needed to be in Hufflepuff, you know?” he asked. Raichi nodded slightly. “It took me over five minutes to convince the hat to put me in Hufflepuff, but it did.”

“Th-those people today...they...they s-said that H-Hufflepuff w-w-wouldn’t be able to p-put out the fewest d-dark wizards wi-with you i-in it,” Raichi said softly, anger roiling in his stomach again. “I-I-I wanted t-to hur-hurt them for s-saying that, b-because you’re-you’re not evil o-or mean at all! Th-they don’t ev-even know you!”

Sanada looked taken aback as he stared at Raichi, huffing and flushed and scowling. No one had ever thought this highly of him, at least they hadn’t told him so adamantly. It felt...really good. He tried not to show it too much on his face as he smiled at Raichi.

“Thanks, Raichi.”

__

Deep into the winter season, Raichi was sitting beside Sawamura as they watched a Ravenclaw vs Gryffindor game. Sawamura had dragged him there, saying that it was no fun watching a Quidditch match by oneself, and both of his soulmates were playing. Sawamura had yet to make the first-string, but he was just more determined to make it the next year.

Still, it wasn’t that Raichi wasn’t enjoying himself, he just also sort of wished he could have been studying with Sanada in the library. Though it did give him an excuse to cheer Akiba on.

He wondered if Shun was there. Were they on one of the teams? Were they watching the match? Had they already met, like Shun had teased months before? All the questions in his head were making him dizzy. He felt Sawamura jostle him and jumped, looking back onto the pitch to see Miyuki diving and stopping a quaffle, nearly falling off of his broom in the process, but sporting a very proud smirk afterward. He sneered at Kuramochi, who had nearly scored and was glaring at him.

“Miyuki Kazuya, why do you look so cool when you’re being so stupid?” Sawamura shouted, still clenching Raichi’s shoulder. “Be careful, you idiot!” he hollered. Miyuki grinned, readjusting himself on his broom but not looking in their direction.

“Y-you’re no-not very good at s...scolding him, don’t c-compliment him.”

Sawamura waved his hand as he sat back down and tossed one end of the Ravenclaw scarf adorning his neck over his shoulder.

“There’s no point in really scolding him because he’s an idiot and he thinks that he’s always right.  Besides, I’m sure Youichi will give him a kick in the ass for it after the match is over.”

Raichi smiled softly, trying not to laugh as he noticed that Sawamura’s robes were just a bit too tight on him as well.

“D-do they know you t-t-take their clothes?”

The blush that overtook Sawamura’s face was swift and covered him up to his ears. He gave a loud, stilted laughed as he nodded and bit his lips and looked down.

“Yeah, Kazuya...gave me this scarf and told me to wear it to all his games as a good luck charm. N-not that I think that cheesy stuff would work or anything! It was just...kinda cute when he asked me like that s-so I…”

Raichi couldn’t hold back his laughter as he threw his head back and gripped his stomach.

“Y-you sounded like m-me for a second! Kahaha!”

Sawamura pouted before laughing as well a moment later.

“Youichi and I just switched robes by accident this morning since we’re in the same room and everything, so just the scarf is on purpose.”

Raichi nodded, turning back to the game, seeing Kuramochi zoom across the pitch almost too fast to track with his eyes. He saw Kuramochi laugh loudly as he threw the quaffle into the goal before Miyuki could catch up with him.

Raichi could see the Keeper pout softly, but he still looked thrilled. It was a strange expression, but he assumed it was because his soulmate did something cool. Sawamura also looked a little starstruck as he stared down at them.

“Youichi is so cool , don’t you think?” Raichi nodded as Sawamura nodded with him and looked back to the match, wiggling in his seat and shouting as the game went on. Throughout that year, Raichi attended more Ravenclaw and Gryffindor games than he planned on. But he still had fun. When either team was playing Slytherin, the other member of the trio usually joined him and Sawamura to watch.

Seeing Sawamura with his soulmates was... enlightening . They all looked so happy as they teased each other and laughed and joked around. It was so easy and comfortable and Raichi wondered if he and Shun could have something like that. Would they be able to be that comfortable with each other? Raichi wanted to believe in that so much, but when he did his thoughts always drifted back to Sanada.

Sanada was...comfortable. Raichi felt so at ease with him, he felt like he could conquer his fears, even overcome his shyness sometimes. He wanted that, too. The more time he spent over his first year getting to know little things about Sanada made him ache for a future with him even more.

Like the way he held his red oak wand delicately, as if he would break it. Or the way he always broke his suave facade when he was playing Quidditch and his determined, scary face came through. Or the times when his voice would get soft and gravelly when he was tired and it made Raichi’s body feel like it was made of hot molasses.

He didn’t know what he felt and it was so frustrating. It was only his first year and his head was already a mess. He was sure it would work itself out in the next year or so. He would get over Sanada, definitely.

__

He didn’t.

His crush on Sanada only got worse over time and it was starting to make Raichi’s body ache whenever he thought about it. He knew it was wrong and terrible to fall in love with someone who wasn’t your soulmate, he did , but it’s not like a he meant to. He’d tried to stop it, he’d tried to forget about the way Sanada’s smile made his heart leap in his chest, but he just couldn’t . He didn’t know what was wrong with him, but no matter how hard he tried, his feelings for Sanada remained.

It was his fourth year, during a Ravenclaw vs Slytherin game when Raichi brought it up to Sawamura. Kuramochi was getting them snacks when Raichi sighed heavily, leaning his elbows on his knees.

“Sawamura...I think I m-might be a bad person,” he said softly with his head bowed.

“You’re not a bad person,” Sawamura said confidently. “Why do you think you are? What happened? Did something happen with Sanada-senpai?”

Raichi laced his fingers together, laying his chin on top of them as he looked out over the Quidditch pitch. He shrugged. “Tell me what happened. I’m sure it’s not as bad as you think.”

Raichi pursed his lips and looked down again.

“I think...I think I m...might be in love w-with Sanada-senpai. I-I tried to stop, I did, but my f-feelings just won’t go away and I d-d-don’t know what to do, or how to talk to Sh-Shun about it. Doesn’t that m-make me a terrible person?”

Sawamura sat back in his chair and looked up at the sky for a long moment. Raichi felt his heart speeding up. Aside from Akiba, Mishima, and Sanada, Sawamura was his only other real friend. What if he thought Raichi was such a bad person that he didn’t want to hang out with him anymore? What if Mishima and Akiba thought the same thing? What if he ended up alone all over again?

“I don’t think that makes you a bad person,” Sawamura whispered, a drastic shift from his usual loud and boisterous attitude. “You can’t control who you love. Sometimes...sometimes I think that soulmates can be for other stuff. Like a best friend, or someone who’s always there for you, so I don’t think that soulmates always have to be about romantic love. They are a lot of the times, but that doesn’t mean that they always have to be. Sometimes love is unexpected. But you should talk to Shun-san. Just be honest, I’m sure they’ll understand.”

“Giving away life-advice, Bakamura?” Kuramochi asked loudly, plopping down on Sawamura’s other side and handing out assorted drinks and snacks. “Eijun’s right though, if you talk to your soulmate, I’m sure you two can work something out.” Kuramochi, nudged Sawamura’s shoulder shortly after speaking to Raichi and grinned. “How many death-defying stunts do you think that idiot’ll do during this match?”

Sawamura hummed contemplatively.

“Hmm...at least ten, he was acting really confident this morning.”

Kuramochi hummed, nodding.

“Agreed,” he said. The two fell into comfortable conversation and Raichi felt a soft longing in his chest as he observed them. They were right, he knew that, but having talked to Shun for four years made him nervous. He really didn’t want to lose the person who always encouraged him and made him feel better, but he didn’t want to lose Sanada either. He rolled his sleeve up slowly, re-reading the messages they had sent each other over the morning. It was mostly inconsequential, but they made Raichi’s chest heat up.

“Is this seat taken?” A voice asked surprisingly close to his ear and Raichi jumped, tugging his sleeves down and looking up only to be practically nose-to-nose with Sanada.

“N-Naada-senpai!” he gasped. Sanada grinned, taking the seat beside Raichi when he shook his head to indicate the seat’s vacancy.

“You look troubled,” Sanada whispered as the game officially began. Raichi’s spine stiffened as he glanced over to Sanada and shrugged.

“I-I’m okay, Naada-senpai."

“Hmm if you say so.”

Raichi could feel his heart trying to beat out of his chest the entire game, feeling Sanada’s warmth beside him.

At one point in the game, Miyuki was rammed into by a Chaser trying desperately to score and actually did fall off his broomstick after defending the goal. He had been closer to the ground than usual, but still made a sickening sort of thump when he hit the ground.

Everyone in the crowd was silent as they watched the coach descend onto the field and the team captain landed in the grass and ran over. Kuramochi and Sawamura were completely silent, both on their feet as they watched their soulmate be tended to.

Sawamura’s hand was desperately gripping Raichi’s shoulder as he watched. Sanada was also on his feet, watching closely. Despite his protests when Kuramochi and Miyuki were around, Raichi could tell that he really did care about them.

A few tense moments passed before Miyuki sat up and let off a nasally laugh and made his way to his feet despite his team’s insistence that he stay down. He waved off his team and seemed to assure them that he was okay. After another moment they seemed to believe him as he was allowed to get back on his broomstick and fly up to defend the goals.

Raichi had assumed that the crisis was averted until Sawamura’s hand squeezed his shoulder tighter and Sanada, Sawamura, and Kuramochi all remained tense, eyes trained on Miyuki.

“Youichi…” Sawamura whispered. Kuramochi just nodded and Raichi frowned looking at each of them in confusion.

“W-what…?”

“He’s lying. He’s injured, but he doesn’t want a healing spell or potion to disrupt the momentum they have more than him getting hit already did,” Sanada said. Raichi’s eyes widened in understanding as he watched Miyuki more closely and saw the somewhat pinched expression on his face.

“I’m gonna kick his ass,” Kuramochi said, glaring toward the Keeper sharply. Sawamura just nodded, and Raichi reminded himself not to anger either, or both, of the wizards to his right.

__

Sanada sat in the library past curfew again, staring down at the words written all over his arms. His head was pounding and he just wanted to sleep. His heart gave a painful beat and he sighed.

What was he even doing? He had a great, funny, adorable soulmate and he was falling in love with another person. It was ridiculous, but it was still happening. He laid his head down on a table and stared at his arms as his mind raced.

This was what he was afraid of. How could he ever face R when he was completely enamored with a shy fourth year? He was sure his soulmate would feel utterly betrayed. He wanted to be with R, something deep in his core yearned for it, but he was drawn to Raichi, like an instinct.

“Ooh skulking around the library after curfew again, Sanada-kun, how un-Hufflepuff-like,” Miyuki drawled from behind him. Sanada raised his head wearily, staring at Miyuki tiredly. The Ravenclaw just snickered as he approached and sank heavily into the chair beside Sanada. He was quiet, just staring at the bookshelf across from them and waiting.

“I love someone who’s not my soulmate,” Sanada finally said, reaching up and running a hand over his face and through his hair. “I knew...I knew this was a bad idea. R’s...R’s too good for me, I shouldn’t…” he trailed off, grinding his teeth and averting his eyes. Miyuki just hummed, waiting for him to continue. When he didn’t, Miyuki sighed, leaning forward and laying his arms on the desk.

“So?” he asked, as if it were that easy. “So what if you love someone who isn’t your soulmate? It’s not like it’s your fault.”

“I knew I was going to hurt them,” Sanada insisted. “I knew that this was a bad idea, but I kept talking to them, and I...I don’t want to hurt them.”

“Have you talked to R about it?”

“No, I...I don’t want to hurt them, how am I supposed to bring that up?” Miyuki shrugged.

“R is your soulmate...so no matter what, they’re supposed to accept you, right? No matter what you do…or what you say, your soulmate is supposed to help you and understand you and get through it with you. It’s not going to be perfect, that’s not realistic. But it’s supposed to be as close to that as humanly possible, right? Keeping it from them will probably hurt worse.”

Sanada glared at the table for a moment, just thinking. He was about to respond when a warmth spread over his arm and his spine stiffened.

Have you ever fallen in love? With...with someone who’s not me?

That message made his heart stop, and he could tell that Miyuki knew something was wrong as he leaned in and tried to see what had made Sanada freeze so quickly. Did R know? Were they trying to make Sanada admit it? Were they angry?

Sanada felt his heart squeezing in his chest as he responded quickly.

“They know,” Sanada whispered, body shaking. “R knows, and they’re probably furious with me.”

“Maybe they’re just curious,” Miyuki reasoned. “It’s not completely unheard of, you don’t know if they’re just posing a hypothetical question or not.”

“Why else would they ask right now? There’s not way it’s just a coincidence.”

“You’ll never know if you don’t ask ,” Miyuki told him. “Ask R why they want to know, you can’t just jump to conclusions.”

Why would you ask that? Sanada wrote, feeling the anxiety licking at his mind as he waited for a response, bouncing his leg.

“What if that just confirmed it? What if R was just waiting for me to act suspicious?” Sanada asked. Miyuki rolled his eyes.

“I really don’t think that R is that devious from what you’ve told me.”

Sanada was preparing a response when warmth spread over his arm and his heart sped up. He slowly, very slowly, raised his sleeve and felt his heart leap into his chest.

Because I have. I’m so sorry.

“Okay, that was unexpected,” Miyuki whispered, peering over Sanada’s shoulder and reading the message once more.

__

Have you ever fallen in love? With...with someone who’s not me? Raichi wrote slowly, trying to give himself time to back out but feeling the need to get this over with. He knew that it needed to be said, no matter how badly his hands were shaking.

He sat back against his bed while he waited, feeling the suffocating anticipation begin to close up his throat. Shun was going to be so disappointed in him. The tingling on his arm alerted him to Shun’s response, but he waited for a moment before he read it, trying to convince himself that he needed to tell him, knowing however badly Shun took it, it was worth it because at least he wasn’t lying. It was hard.

A long minute passed before he lifted his arm and stared at the words Shun had written him.

Why would you ask that? His heart felt cold as it beat faster and faster in his chest, his breathing shallow as he prepared himself to come clean. He gripped his pen tightly, fingertips losing their color and forced himself to just finish it in one swift movement.

Because I have. I’m so sorry.

Raichi reached up to cover his face with both arms as he laid back and tried to hide his shame and guilt beneath his blankets. He had finally told Shun. He had done it. He wasn’t even sure if he wanted to know what Shun had to say after that. His chest ached at the idea of Shun angrily telling him he was a terrible person. He already thought that, he didn’t need it confirmed by his soulmate.

Nearly five anguished minutes passed, wherein Raichi assumed that Shun was very carefully choosing the perfect way in which to tell him what an awful, terrible, shameful soulmate he was. Raichi felt the tingling sensation spread across his arm, even prickling against the cheek his arm was resting on. He felt prepared, he felt confident in what Shun would say, and how to cope.

But when he pulled his arm away from his face, his heart stopped, because there was no way .

I have, too.

It was rare to love someone other that your soulmate, but for both of them to have fallen in love with other people was nearly astronomical . How was that even possible? Because, it couldn’t be that easy. It couldn’t . Right?

__

The next day, Raichi felt an odd mix of anticipation and fear as he approached the dining hall. Shun was the only thing really keeping him from fully pursuing Sanada, but now that he knew that he and Shun had both fallen for other people, what was he supposed to do?

He stumbled into the hall and spotted Sanada wedged between Miyuki and Youichi, who appeared to be teasing him. Sawamura was sitting beside a Haruichi and Furuya and the Gryffindor table, and appeared to be heatedly bickering with the latter.

Raichi considered approaching Sawamura to let him know that he had finally told Shun, but he wasn’t really sure how well he would be able to talk in front of Haruichi and Furuya as well. It wasn’t that they weren’t all friends, but he talked to Haruichi and Furuya so much less frequently that he still stuttered badly and had a hard time.

He nodded, approached the Hufflepuff table and sat down across from Sanada, Miyuki, and Kuramochi. Sanada looked annoyed as Miyuki and Kuramochi nudged his shoulders and grinned at Raichi as he sat down.

“M-Morning,” he murmured, staring in confusion at the three fifth-years.

“Raichi, are you alright? You look tired,” Sanada said, leaning forward slightly and reaching out to inspect the bags under Raichi’s eyes. Raichi flushed as Sanada’s fingertips grazed his cheek and pulled back quickly, looking away. His stomach swooped and he felt slightly dizzy.

“U-um I’m o-okay, Naada-senpai. J-j-just didn’t s...sleep well,” Raichi said, picking at some food on his plate and trying not to look up and blush any more than he already was.

“Are you sure? You look a little pale,” Sanada pressed, but he was interrupted by Kuramochi and Miyuki snickering beside him.

“He said he was fine, right? Why are you so worried, Sanada-kun?” Miyuki drawled, throwing an arm over Sanada’s shoulder. Kuramochi nodded.

“Yeah, Sanada, why do you care so much, hmm?”

Raichi frowned, glancing up and feeling his eyes widen slightly. Was Sanada blushing ? It did seem like Miyuki and Kuramochi were teasing him more than usual, but was that really enough to make him blush? Raichi wasn’t sure that he had ever seen him get that embarrassed before. Suddenly he was caught between the desire to soak it in and look for as long as possible so he could remember how cute he looked and not wanting to meet Sanda’s eyes for fear of letting his crush be known.

“I’m...I’m r-really okay, Naada-senpai,” Raichi whispered, feeling his own face growing hotter as he continued to stare down at his own plate. This was a disaster.

“O-okay, good. I’m glad,” Sanada said. Miyuki and Kuramochi broke into fits of laughter as he stared at both teens blushing and looking away from each other.

__

For the rest of that year, Raichi and Sanada stayed closer to each other than was strictly necessary, laughing and meeting up with each other when they had any free moment at all. Kuramochi, Miyuki, and Sawamura watched them growing closer and closer, feral grins on each other their faces. There may have been excited high-fives shared between them, but that is neither here nor there.

Raichi still wrote to Shun, and Sanada still wrote to R. They shared small personal details each day, opening up more and more to their soulmates as they grew older. With the fear of hurting their soulmates gone, they felt more comfortable with each other, and grew even closer as they wrote back and forth daily.

Neither Raichi nor Sanada ever spoke about soulmates to each other. It wasn’t necessarily taboo to date someone who was not your soulmate, but it was still a new idea, and many found it distasteful. But the more they spoke and shared with each other, the less they really cared about all of that.

__

At the beginning of Raichi’s fifth year, he was leaving his Care of Magical Creatures class with a small group of classmates and chatting.

“I think we should meet up and study tonight, I’ve heard these tests can be near impossible without it,” Toujou said.

“Well maybe not for you, Furuya-kun,” Kawakami added. Raichi nodded along, smiling as Furuya mumbled his disagreement.

“I don’t think I could go without studying at all .”

“Th-then let’s m-m-meet up tonight i-in the li...library,” Raichi suggested. “W-we can s-study after dinner.” Toujou nodded with a wide, kind grin.

“Yeah! Maybe around seven? Let Akiba-san know, too, and he can join us, since he had to leave early today.”

Raichi nodded seriously, pulling a pen out of his pocket, having left his bag in his room that morning.

Meet at the library at seven, he wrote to make sure that he didn’t forget or get distracted. He smiled, seeing the time and leaving the group to meet up with Sanada before Quidditch practice.

Sanada looked distant and contemplative when Raichi found him near the Hufflepuff common room.

“Naada-senpai, are you alright?”

“Hmm? Oh, yes, I’m alright,” he said, not sounding very convincing. Raichi frowned, accepting the answer reluctantly as Sanada continued to frown and think.

As they caught up, the only thing Sanada could really think about was why R suddenly wanted to meet up. Why then? Had they been planning to meet up and just hadn’t told him? Was it a spur of the moment thing? What could it mean?

Raichi frowned as Sanada continued to get distracted and grow quiet, but tried not to let it get to him. For the moment, anyway.

__

Raichi was early, having finished dinner before his friends and retreating to his room to think. Sanada had been distant the whole day, not speaking and sometimes missing what Raichi was saying altogether. It was confusing.

Even Miyuki and Kuramochi had seemed worried when they tried to ask Sanada what was wrong and he almost never responded with a real answer. Raichi had seen them exchange a concerned look over Sanada’s head at dinner, but tried not to dwell on it.

If Sanada needed to talk about something, then he would tell Raichi when he was ready. They weren’t really together, technically, and they hadn’t shared much of their personal information. Maybe it was just something that he needed to sort out for himself before he told Raichi about it. Maybe it had something to do with his family. Raichi knew next to nothing about them, so it wouldn’t be a surprise, right?

Raichi shook his head as he came upon the library with a sigh. He needed to stop thinking about Sanada and study, he could dwell on it later.

As Raichi got closer and slowed his steps he saw a lone figure standing in front of the doors and tilted his head to the side. Upon closer inspection, he found that is was Sanada and frowned.

“Naada-senpai? Wh-what are you doing here?”

Sanada looked up quickly, eyebrows furrowing when he saw Raichi.

“I’m...supposed to meet someone here. What are you doing here?”

“I have a s-st-study group at seven here. We have a Care of Magical Creatures t-test tomorrow.”

At those words, Sanada seemed to freeze, realization dawning in his eyes as he stood up straighter.

“Raichi, did you...did you remind yourself about this meeting somehow?” he asked. Raichi frowned, tilting his head to the side.

“W-well yeah I wr-wrote it on my…” Raichi trailed off, understanding snapping in his stomach as he looked up and met Sanada’s gaze. “I wrote it on my h-hand.”

Sanada nodded, lifting his hand up and seeing the matching words written on Raichi’s own hand and staring between the ink and Raichi’s face.

“You...you’re my…” he trailed off, sagging his shoulders and stepping forward to engulf Raichi in a tight hug. “It’s you...it’s always been you. I’m...I’m so glad, Raichi.”

Raichi hugged back just as tightly, face buried in Sanada’s collarbone as he smiled, laughing and gripping Sanada’s robes tightly in his fingers.

“M-me too...Shun."

__

OMAKE

Raichi was making his way to watch a Ravenclaw vs Slytherin game with Sawamura during his sixth year when his back was suddenly pushed against a wall. His body pulsed with panic for a moment before he looked up and met a mischievous grin and gleaming brown eyes.

“Sh-Shun, you scared me!” he complained, shoving half-heartedly at Sanada’s shoulder. Sanada just grinned.

“Hmm, I’m sorry, Raichi. Would a kiss get you to forgive me?”

Raichi could feel a gentle blush decorating his cheeks as he looked down and pouted, crossing his arms over his chest.

“N-no, I can kiss you whenever I want, that’s h-hardly an apology.”

Sanada hummed, grin just growing broader as he leaned in and placed one hand on the wall beside Raichi’s shoulder.

“You have a point there, but can I kiss you anyway?” he asked. Raichi’s pout worsened before he sighed and looked up, dragging Sanada in by his jaw and kissing him softly. It was amazing what one year could do for his hesitance and embarrassment with physical contact and affection. Granted, he still grew flustered when any of their friends happened upon them in any sort of loving embrace, but he was still much better than he had been when they announced the fact that they were actually soulmates.

Raichi tilted his head slightly and Sanada lost his train of thought, all senses focused on the shorter teen before him. His hands dropped to settle on Raichi’s hips, pulling him slightly closer despite the way their teeth clacked and their noses rubbed together.

Sanada pulled back first, dragging Raichi’s bottom lip with him between his teeth. He opened his eyes as he released the plush flesh just in time to see the flushed, blissed-out look Raichi was sporting as he slid his own eyes open. Raichi’s fingers twitched against Sanada’s jaw once he saw the taller teen’s smirk.

“I feel like you were l-less devious last year,” Raichi commented, fingers moving around Sanada’s neck to tangle in the short hairs at the back of his neck.

“Oh, is that so? Maybe I was trying to impress you.”

“Why would you d-do that? I was already impressed wi-with you,” Raichi said, sporting a small smile of his own as he leaned up to press an innocent kiss to Sanada’s nose. Sanada reeled back slightly, lips turning down in confusion before he smiled, stooping down to wrap his arms around Raichi’s upper torso.

“That’s good, because I don’t think I did a very good job anyway,” he said, lifting Raichi up and spinning him around the nearly vacant hallway and revelling in the loud laughter that erupted from the shorter teen’s soft lips.

“Naada-senpai, w-we’ll be late for the game,” Raichi said as he leaned forward to tap their foreheads together, smiling bright and wide and sending Sanada’s heart into a frenzy.

“Just...let me look at you for a second,” Sanada whispered, taking in Raichi’s softly flushing cheeks, his slightly confused smile, the way his arms were casually draped over Sanada’s shoulders. Sanada could feel the way Raichi’s fingers tangled further into his hair and he wanted to look at and touch and kiss the beautiful person in his arms forever.

“Wh-what?” Raichi asked, smile drooping more as he pulled back in confusion.

“I was just thinking about how much I love you.”

The blush across Raichi’s cheeks deepened and spread up to his ears and down his neck as he laughed softly. Despite his blush, his smile brightened as well. Before Sanada could sufficiently take in the brilliant expression on his face, Raichi leaned in again, capturing Sanada’s lips once more and tugging on his hair as he kissed him slowly and tenderly.

“I love you, too, Shun,” Raichi breathed against Sanada’s lips before wiggling out of his grasp and settling his feet on the ground. “Now, come on! We’re already late,” he said, intertwining his fingers with Sanada’s and dragging him toward the Quidditch pitch.

When they finally found Sawamura and Kuramochi in the stands, they were met with twin smirks and Raichi tried his best not to blush as he plopped down beside Sawamura and pulled Sanada down beside him.

“What took you two so long, hmm?” Kuramochi asked, leaning over Sawamura’s lap and grinning mischievously, though the effect was somewhat lost without Miyuki there to back him up.

“I don’t kiss and tell, Kuramochi,” Sanada said breezily. Raichi huffed, turning to try to watch the beginning of the game only for Sawamura to cross his arms and nod sagely.

“You’re truly a man now, Raichi.”

“S-Sawamura...w-we’ve kissed before,” Raichi said, confused as he turned to look his friend over. Sawamura just nodded, as if his point was still valid. Raichi just decided not to question it.

After the game, Miyuki met up with them just outside the pitch, grinning broadly.

“Sawamura, I forgot to tell you that I let my dad know I would be staying with your family for the winter holidays, he said it was fine. He has a lot of work to get through, anyway, I guess,” he said almost immediately after greeting them.

“That’s great! You’re both finally able to stay over at once!” Sawamura exclaimed and Raichi could feel his heart start to beat faster. He still hadn’t told his father about Sanada. He had briefly mentioned that he had started getting messages on his arms during his fourth year, but hadn’t brought it up again after that.

He kept thinking on the subject throughout the evening, and it wasn’t until Sanada pinned him to a couch in the common room that he really snapped out of it. Sanada was hovering over him with a curious frown.

“What are you thinking about?”

“U-um...just...you haven’t met my dad. I-I haven’t told him about you, either, and I...I feel...bad…”

Sanada sat back at that, letting himself settle on Raichi’s hips and pursed his lips contemplatively. After a moment, he just grinned and leaned down again, adjusting his body so that he was laying on top of Raichi, chin resting on Raichi’s breastbone.

“Then why don’t you just introduce me, then? I’m sure I can get out of a week or two with my family over the winter holidays,” he said easily. “Although, my mom will probably demand that I bring you over for the remainder of the holiday.” Raichi jumped slightly, staring at Sanada with wide eyes.

“Wh-what will you tell your family?”

“That I’m staying with my soulmate, Raichi, what else would I tell them?”

“You’ve already told them about me?”

“Of course, I told them right after we found out. I was too excited to keep it in.”

“W-wh-what have you told them a-about me?” Raichi asked, suddenly feeling nervous and shy.

“Well,” Sanada began, leaning up and pushing his body forward to bring their faces closer together. He let a soft kiss brush Raichi’s lips before pressing his face into Raichi’s shoulder. “I’ve told them that you’re sweet, and funny. I’ve told them how beautiful you are. I’ve told them about how amazing you are on a broom. I’ve told them about how cute your laugh is. I’ve told them that you feel like home when I hold you.”

“W-what? That’s embarrassing!” Raichi protested, squirming as Sanada kissed his neck and breathed a soft laugh on his warm skin.

“That’s how I feel, though,” Sanada said, nuzzling at Raichi’s neck and sighing as his body began to relax. “I’m not too heavy, am I?”

“N-no...you’re fine.”

Raichi felt Sanada hum against his skin and adjusted his legs so they weren’t so badly entwined with the other teen’s. He grabbed at his notebook as he felt Sanada begin to fall asleep. He should write a letter to his dad to let him know that Sanada would be joining them,and that he may not stay at home as long as usual.

Dad,

I wasn’t sure how to tell you about this, and then a year passed without me saying anything. I found my soulmate. Outside of writing, anyway. His name is Sanada Shunpei. He’s an amazing person, and an even better Seeker. You’ll like him. I wanted to ask you if he could stay with us for a few weeks of the winter holidays? And if it would be okay if I went with him for the other part of the holiday.

I hope that when you meet him, you’ll see what I see in him. I love him a lot, and I didn’t want to keep hiding the person who makes me so happy from you. I know he’s excited to meet you.

--Raichi

Raichi set the pen and notebook down, glancing to the side to see Kumiko curled up around Sanada’s owl Yaku, both sleeping soundly. He would send the letter tomorrow.

He laid his head back against the couch arm, thankful that most everyone else was already in bed. With a small grin playing on his lips, he lazily ran his fingers through Sanada’s hair, chest warm and eyes heavy.