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callmedanquixote · 1 year

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Blooming even in the shadows - Chapter 2

~ Blooming even in the shadows ~

Pairing: Gryffindor Hyunjae x Slytherin Fem!Reader x Slytherin Younghoon (feat. a bubbly Ravenclow Juyeon)

WC: 5.5k

Synopsis: Synopsis: Almost all of the Hogwarts student body had made your stay at the school a big nuisance. Just a couple more of years to get out of that place, expecting to go unnoticed and staying away from bigger problems. Unless the popular and obnoxious Bermuda Line (whom you had avoided at max for five whole years), decided out of the blue one day they were going to walk into your life, which for sure, more than one person wasn't going to like.

Genre: hogwarts au, fluff, angst, smut, friends to lovers, enemies to lovers (in no particular order)

TW: swearing, injuries, school violence, mention of insecurities + (I’ll be adding more in the future probably)

A/N: Hello! It’s a me, the most inconsistent writer ever hehe. I’m sorry that this chapter took so much time to finally be posted. Being an adult and having my work it’s really hard sometimes and I don’t have a lot of free time as I would like. But I definitely won’t abbandon this fic, much less when Hogwarts Legacy is around the corner and will give me so much inspiration for it.

I haven't double checked for grammatical errors, but if I notice any, I'll edit it.

Series Masterlist: Blooming even in the shadows

What were you thinking? Yesterday was such a crazy day. Why did you let Younghoon walk you to the common room? Of course, he hadn't accompanied ONLY YOU, he also lived there. But anyway. You felt very nervous as you walked in silence.

It wasn't an awkward silence, but it felt suffocating. As if you both wanted to speak, say something, but neither dared. You walked with your head down that now you knew every stone on the floor from the clock tower to your bedroom.

You honestly didn't want to get in any more trouble, so you tried to prevent anyone from seeing you together.

Near the entrance of the Slytherin common room, one of your classmates looked frustrated and bored. When he saw you arrive, his face lit up and he quickly approached you.

"Hoon! I left very quickly early in the morning and forgot that today was password change. Let me in with you. I've been waiting for hours for someone to come in. Seems that everyone is far away from here." Said the new boy while he took his arm and pouted at him.

While your classmate was distracting Younghoon, you took the opportunity to go unnoticed, you went ahead and practically ran to your room without saying goodbye.

And today, you wanted to hit yourself so hard on the head. You asked for it by being careless. You could've wait for Younghoon to return your books and then run to your room. But you didn't. Now, surely he was going to look for you again to return them to you.

And it was exactly like that. Younghoon had no idea what happened since it was so fast. One minute he was walking with you, and the next one his friend Seonghwa was hanging from his arm like a little kid asking for the new common room password, and suddenly when he wanted to talk to you again, you were gone.

You definitely disappeared faster than the ghosts in the castle.

He first felt disappointed because if you saw each other again, he didn't know how to aproach you to talk again. Finding you in the tower had been a good coincidence, but he knew he couldn't be that lucky. Does he?

Probably yes, because a smile returned to his face when he realized that he still had your books with him. The books that you necessarily needed for your classes the next day. So Younghoon thought it was really nice to be able to have a golden excuse.

Only he didn't think that the next day it would be so difficult to find you in the morning.

The best plan that your silly head could think of was to sneak out very early in the morning to avoid running into that blond boy. It was so early that there weren't any students in the common room yet, so you left with the utmost peace knowing that you were free.

Or so you thought it would happen, if it weren't for the fact that outside, leaning against one of the walls, radiant and forming a huge smile when he saw you, it was Lee Juyeon. That boy really didn't give up, but at the same time, it was very hard to feel truly uncomfortable in his presence.

Apparently his silly head had the same idea as you. Leaving so early in the morning to be able to find you and accompany you to your class even if you didn't have the same schedule. So not wanting to fight, you reluctantly let him stay by your side.

As you headed to the classroom, you noticed that everything was noisier than usual. And it was because while every day you walked quietly and calmly on your own, going with Juyeon, was like making lumos in a completely dark corridor. You both inevitably called (no, shouted) the attention of others. Students from all the houses and all the years greeted Juyeon and wished him a good day at school, and the boy kindly smiled and exchanged a few words with everyone.

It looked like the fucking spring witches parade. And since you weren't used to it, you felt very uncomfortable. Especially for having the curious and not very good stares of people on you.

"I didn't think you were such a morning person. You have too much energy." You complained in the middle of a sigh, avoiding his gaze.

"You could get used to it from now on. The others will also get used to seeing us together because we are going to be friends." He spoke softly.

"According to whom?"

"Destiny. Never judge fate, YN."

Inadvertently, your chest heaved with excitement. But it was something you wouldn't even admit to yourself in thoughts. Don't flatter yourself, YN. You repeated to yourself not with much conviction. What bullshit and nonsense was this guy saying?

"Merlin’s pants! How fucking cheesy you are.

Arriving at your classroom, you quickly entered without looking back and Juyeon stopped at the door while he waited for you to take a seat (away from the entrance, but close to where the professor would be) and you listened to him saying –more like yelling- words of encouragement to you.

"Enough, Juyeon. We'll see each other in the next class." You yelled in a whisper with your head down and you felt a little embarrassed. It looked like the scene of a proud father dropping off his daughter on her first day of school.

Lucky you, there weren't many people yet. Your classmates laughed because Juyeon was like a walking vitamin. You ignored him so he would go away once and for all.

You weren't going to deny that it was nice to hear words of support from him. It was like being given a big gift on a day that wasn't your birthday.

When the blue haired boy left, you finally noticed the place. You started to feel very anxious but excited at the same time. Your heart was beating fast just with the anticipation, and you smiled inadvertently as you thought and thought. You were determined that today would be a good day.

Damn Juyeon with his good humor and all that contagious shit.

You were so engrossed that you barely noticed that someone sat behind you and gently touched your shoulder.

When you turned around, you didn't expect to see him so happy and confident. It wasn't very common to see that young Slytherin being like this. Much less, talking to someone who wasn't part of his elite few friends.

"YN, yesterday Hwa distracted me. That dummy forgot the password." He told you as if it were daily bread to tell you about his life or something as banal as that. "I didn't even realize you were gone. I have your books, but I can give them to you in the next class so you don't have to carry them and you'll be more comfortable."

Observing that strange exchange of words, Lee Jaehyun, who was sitting next to his blond friend, was perplexed. When had you two been together? Were you close enough to lend each other books?

Jaehyun inevitably thought about what happened the day before. He wasn't going to deny that he was embarrassed by the way he acted and by what he said to you without understanding what was happening.

He had to accept that he was deeply upset by what his Slytherin friend had said the day before. How come you didn't feel comfortable in his presence? You practically didn't know him well enough to say that. And then the situation where he found you later with those girls, he definitely didn't know what happened, but they were on the floor crying, and you just looked upset. He had no idea of what happened. It wasn't coherent that you alone had hurt five girls.

Something in all of this was off. But Jaehyun was too proud to ask you about what happened and much more to apologize for his attitude. He didn't owe you anything.

But Jaehyun was curious.

Without thinking, the Gryffindor boy took his stuff and moved to the seat across from him. Right beside you. Right at the moment when Professor Lupin entered.

You quickly turned to look at him with a frown as if he were a three-headed creature, and before you could say something and ask him to leave, you locked eyes with the new Gryffindor boy who was accompanying the professor to his desk. As soon as he met your stare, he gave you one of those huge smiles you always saw on him and waved at you as he helped set things up.

Your heart skipped a beat.

Lee Sangyeon. A sunbae who was a year older, prefect of the red house, and captain of his Quiditch team. He too, was one of the kindest and most attentive people you knew, and one of the few people you talked to in good terms at school. And that's not to mention that he was incredibly handsome and looked spectacular with that cute dimple and his perfectly pinned caramel hair.

Your hands trembled a bit and you closed them tightly to calm yourself down. You felt your cheeks burn and inevitably a smile formed on your face. A gesture that didn't go unnoticed by either of the two boys around you. Younghoon looked thoughtful and Jaehyun was quite surprised.

They both knew (from Jaehyun) that Sangyeon would be going to be a "helper" in Defense Against the Dark Arts class since the boy was excellent at non-verbal spells and that was what's going to happen in your class that school year. Basically any student in the class with the Slytherins and Gryffindors could come up and ask him for help so that the professor could pay better attention to everyone.

Younghoon frowned as he realized what his friend wanted.

"Yah, why did you change seats? A few minutes ago you told me not to leave your side and now you're leaving me." The other boy just gave him a mischievous smile. "At least consult it with YN first. Who told you that she wants to work with you?"

You thought irritably (because of the Gryffindor next to you) that he was right. Ever since Sangyeon mentioned to you last year that you would see each other in this class, you had been waiting impatiently for it. There was a reason you had chosen a seat so close to the professor's desk. Maybe not for anything you had taken a few extra minutes in the morning when you were getting ready. What was this guy doing?

"Juyeon said that his 'girl friend'" he said with a mocking tone the last word. "was very intelligent, wasn't she? This year I need to raise my grades, so with her it'll be easier. You can serve me for something YN." He finished speaking with a haughty air.

Wow, what a despicable guy. You closed your eyes to keep calm and not curse him out in front of everyone.

Younghoon on the other hand, had a lot to say.

"Dude, wtf? Jaehyun! It…it's for a long time." Poor boy looked quite frustrated. "Jae, you know I don't want to work with someone I don't know."

"Tell any of your fellow Slytherins. You get along with some, right? Didn't you say that you were even with Seonghwa yesterday?"

You looked at Jaehyun and thought surprised how was he able to abandon his friend like that. Younghoon clearly talked to a lot of people, but that didn't mean he was an open person. His seatmates had always been either Jaehyun or Juyeon and you had never really seen him during classes with someone else.

"What the hell are you planning Lee? Come back to your seat."

"This is my new seat." Jaehyun suddenly turned around and motioned for Sangyeon to come over. You wanted to hit this guy so fucking hard. "Hyung, will you help Professor Lupin in general, or will you work alongside someone else?"

"A bit of both, Jae." The Gryffindor captain gave you all a confused smile. He didn't knew you three talked to each other. When did you become close? "Hi YN." He gently caressed your head while smiling. You looked at him nervously but you also smiled and greeted him nervously.

"Hyung, do you need a partner?" Jaehyun insisted again towards his captain. Sangyeon looked at him and then directed his gaze at you looking determined. However, Jaehyun interrupted again. "No YN, hyung, you can work with Hoonie. Younghoon, stop complaining, you already have a new partner. And it's the assistant's professor, who better than hyung to be with in this class?"

You, Sangyeon and Younghoon look at him surprised. Why was he so bossy? Younghoon even wanted to tell him then why didn't he pair up with Sangyeon but he already knew, what Jaehyun wanted was what was done. And he knew that this had nothing to do with him or Sangyeon. It was a nuisance. No one there felt 100% satisfied but they didn't say anything else since Professor Lupin began to explain to the class that this course was in pairs because you would practice just non-verbal spells.

The first few classes he would teach you how to cast attack spells and defense spells, and then you would have to practice using them against your seatmates only inside Hogwarts.

"Sangyeon is a sunbae who will be helping whoever needs it in my class. Don't be shy, if you find him outside the castle and have any questions, you can also ask him, or come find me in my office." The professor spoke calmly. "Non-verbal spells are difficult to perform and control, they take a long time, so I encourage you not to lose hope during the class. I hope that maybe you manage to execute one at the end of the course, or at least, I hope that you can avoid the antics of your seatmates."

"Miss LN, I look forward to seeing your performance. I have heard very good things from the other professors about you and your use of non-verbal spells. I hope that Mr. Lee knows what awaits him in the following months, 'cause if not, Mr. Lee, you can consult the infirmary whenever you like. –The students in the class laughed at the professor's joke.

Jaehyun immediately turned to see you.

"So you know how to make potions that Slughorn likes and you're good at this too?" He asked surprised.

"You have no idea Jae, she's more than good." The captain Interrupted before you could answer.

"How come you two know each other?" asked the youngest of the Gryffindors with some suspicion.

Without even looking at him, you answered under your breath, "It's none of your business, Lee."

But it was his business, Jaehyun thought. He didn't understand his curiosity about you, but he was grateful when Sangyeon spoke again.

"Usually we met in nearby places when we studied in the library. YN always has her head buried in all kinds of books; some even very advanced. So there were some things that I needed help with for a class, and she explained them too well." Sangyeon spoke with a smile as he remembered how you had met. "She really is brilliant! And I really wanted to come back to this Lupin class to see what YN knows how to do."

Younghoon watched that exchange silently but his eyes looked very curious. It was to be expected that Sangyeon would have such a facility to approach and make anyone feel comfortable, including you.

"How can it be possible? I thought you were like an outcast who had no friends. Juyeon and Younghoon said it." You heard Jaehyun say with zero shame.

"Lee Jaehyun! What's wrong with you?"

"Yah Jaehyun! What the fuck is wrong with you?"

Sangyeon and Younghoon yelled in annoyance at their inconsiderate friend. You felt your cheeks burn with anger and humiliation because, okay, maybe he hadn't told any lies, but honestly, why did he care? You knew that there were rude people with you, you knew that that Gryffindor was rude, but it was completely different when he said it in front of a person whose opinion you did care about. And to you, Sangyeon wasn't just any person. Even if there was no chance, he was still the guy you liked and made your heart flutter.

"YN, you don't have to listen to something so silly… Jae has no manners." The older one whispered under his breath.

"YN, it's not true what he's saying, we never..."

Both boys were trying to caught your gaze, but you didn't want to see his pitying expressions.

You decided to close your mind and thoughts in a black box and ignore everything that happened in that class from now on. You concentrated on listening to the professor's words and pretending that the three boys around you didn't exist.

Jaehyun didn't stop moving the whole time in his place, but he didn't say anything. And even if he had, you wouldn't have listened to him either.

When Lupin announced the end of the class, your seatmate looked with every intention of opening his mouth again, but you took your things and left immediately without waiting for anything.

Jaehyun was bewildered. Not because of how you had reacted (cause honestly, who would want to talk after something like that?), but because of himself. He was a joker, and he knew some of his jokes were very heavy, but that hadn't been a joke, it had just been a nasty, rude and insensitive thing. Besides, he was like that with his friends, not with a person he didn't know or didn't have some trust in him.

Therefore, what was questioned the most was why he was being like this with you? Was it because you were the first person that didn't feel comfortable with him and it bothered him? Was it because he distrusted you because of what those girls told him a day before? Was it because on the contrary, with Juyeon, Younghoon and Sangyeon you were fine? Or was it because all of his friends were sticking up for you and they clearly liked you and he didn't know you?

Before he could leave the classroom, he felt a very strong gaze on him and without having to actually see, he knew that it was a very, very angry captain.

"What you said was really disgusting, Jae. You can be a bully to your friends, you can be a bully to our Quidditch mates cause that's how you all get along, but you can't be like that with her." The older one scolded him while frustratedly touched his temples. "Do you know how much she endures every day? YN is a really good person who doesn't deserve to be treated like this."

And without thinking, like a terrible verbal vomit, Jaehyun only managed to answer. "What do I care about a Slytherin who's an orphan and a mudblood? Or do you LIKE her, Sangyeon, and that's why you defend her so much?

Sangyeon looked at his hoobae and friend just disappointed. "I've seen too many things about you Jae. Too many. As many good as bad. But I never expected to hear you talk like that one day. Do you realize how unpleasant it is?" The brunette let out a tired sigh. "We can be friends, Jaehyun, but not cause we're close I'm going to let you talk to me like that. And I'm not only your captain, I'm your prefect and my duty is to take care that no student behaves like this. Those are not our values as Gryffindors. It doesn't matter who you are."

Jaehyun felt heavy. And yes, he felt very embarrassed. But since he was in a streak with unfiltered replies, he said: "Ok then, where were you yesterday when YN attacked five students with magic?"

Immediately Sangyeon's countenance changed to a surprised one and he asked. "What happened to her?"

Stupid Jaehyun, can't you keep quiet? He berated himself inwardly as he regretted having said too much. He was no fool, Sangyeon was a very good person, but as a prefect he was quite strict because he played by the rules very rigidly. And he knew that this could bring you a lot of trouble.

"Jae, explain to me what happened with YN."

"Hyung, it's getting too late for my next class, see you in practice."

"No practice today. Not all week. You're grounded so you can reflect on your attitude."

"What the fuck, Sang?! We have a game soon, I can't stay without practicing."

"Tell me what happened with YN and I'll only give you 3 days."

The younger of the Gryffindors remained grumbling but stayed silent and left angrily without saying goodbye to his captain.

He was looking like a complete fool. And on top of that he was grounded. He couldn't help but think that these consequences were because you were meddling in his life, and he wasn't going to sit idly by.

As soon as you flew out of the classroom, Younghoon took his things more than quickly and ran after you until he caught up with you.

"YN…"

"I don't want to hear justifications on behalf of your stupid friend." You answered defensively without letting the blond say more.

"I'm not here to justify him. In fact, he is stupid. YN, you really, really, don't have to feel bad about anything that comes from Jae's poisonous mouth." You heard him say firmly while he searched for your gaze.

You turned to the opposite side and remained silent. You didn't want to talk about it.

You kept walking towards your potions class and while looking at the floor you saw that Younghoon was still next to you.

"Don't let Jae get to you… it's not worth it." You heard him say in a pretty low voice that sounded sad.

"I… I receive comments like this, some much worse, every day. What Jaehyun said just joins to the huge list as one more."

The Slytherin boy probably didn't mean anything bad, but when he insisted on speaking again you looked at him and not knowing why, you spoke.

"Younghoon…"

He was startled to hear you say his name so softly.

"It's humiliating for me to have to acknowledge the way other people treat me. I don't want, I really don't want, to hear condolences of someone who has everything so easy in his perfect life." Your chest felt very heavy as you kept talking without thinking. "Juyeon doesn't understand that getting close to me has consequences. And not for him, for me it becomes worse! And if anyone else gets to hear the way Jaehyun is making fun of me, then they're all going to give themselves another free pass to tease me to death. And I… I'm just fed up.”

You felt your eyes sting but you tried not to blink so that no tears would fall. Younghoon was petrified in his place feeling all the sadness that emanated from you without you realizing it. It was heavy and gray. A very dark grey. And he didn't know why, but he just wanted to do something so you wouldn't feel like this anymore.

"You have no idea how horrible it is to hear something like that in front of one of the few people who speak well to me in this castle." You thought of Sangyeon and his worried face. "Mostly I'm afraid that he'll change his opinion about me… because then what will I have left?" You ended up whispering. You were so lost in thought that you didn't even know you were saying it all out loud.

Aloud. You started to panic. You shouldn't have said anything you just practically threw up. You stayed silent.

The two of you kept quiet and you panicked about everything you just spilled so you leave quickly. Younghoon stood there surprised and overwhelmed by the strong feelings of heaviness and sadness that he felt from you. He didn't get into your thoughts, but it wasn't necessary to know that you were feeling very bad even if you put up a strong front every day. And he knew it because he had been watching you from afar for years.

When Younghoon came to Hogwarts, he was even more shy and reserved than he is now. And not precisely because he didn't like to talk to people. On the contrary, he would rather talk to people than have to listen to them ALL the time in his head. But from a very young age, the young Slytherin developed strong abilities as a legilimens and it was very difficult for him to stop feeling or silence others. Also, his parents had constantly warned him about not being able to tell anyone how easy it was for him to get into people's minds because that information in the wrong hands could put him in danger.

So it was never his intention to get into any relationship with anyone other than his lifelong friends Jaehyun and Juyeon. This two guys who even though they knew about Younghoon's ability, always kept this knowledge only with them. And not only that, but they never treated him as someone different or showed that they had any hidden interest in what he could do.

Therefore, he had no idea why since his first day in Hogwarts, as his house prefect took them to their common room after the welcome dinner, he had been interested in the little girl who was frowning and stayed away from her other classmates.

Younghoon had felt something very strong when he met you and he didn't know how to identify it because it was very different from previous times with others. It had never happened to him that he didn't know the emotion emanating from a person, but he thought the easiest way to make it work was to name it after a color that was close enough. And because of that, most of the times he saw you, he subconsciously called you dark gray.

Throughout the years of the boy seeing you from a distance, he had realized how serious, scared, shy and annoyed you felt towards your peers.

He was no fool, he had soon realized the way they treated you, and sometimes he listened to what they said about you or even about your family. And he would always see how you "ignored" all that gossip, but he, far away and secretly, knew that you weren't immune to those attacks.

He also didn't understand the fact that someone genuinely enjoy spreading rumors with no idea where they came from or calling you names.

One of his favorites was the mudblood trash, cause they said you grew up in an orphanage without knowing who your parents were. He had also heard on other occasions that your parents had been drug-addicted Muggles who left you on your own. And still others said that your parents had died in the wizarding war for supporting the dark lord.

But Younghoon simply didn't think there was any truth to all those rumors.

After all, people liked to make up too much stuff about each other just to have something to talk about. They always thought it was okay, as long as it wasn't themselves. He knew it firsthand, and he kind of related because Younghoon wasn't the person everyone said he was.

Just like Jaehyun and Juyeon, but at least they knew each other and had each other for support, and it was still hard sometimes. So he didn't know how you'd put up with it for so long alone.

At first he didn't mean to poke around, and sometimes, even though he didn't like to admit it or was told it was wrong, he would dig a little inside for something he called "curiosity" because he wanted to know how you could look so composed and unruffled with so much on your shoulders. But inadvertently, that marked him when he began to notice your pain deep down when people annoyed you, he felt your loneliness, he felt your sadness, and he felt your anger almost as if they were from himself.

He had never felt a person like you.

But also, by observing you so much, there were moments he had seen that you smiled when you thought no one was seeing you, like when some difficult spell worked out for you, when you drank mint chocolate in winter or when you were in front of the windows of the common room and you saw the giant squid. And in those moments, dark gray didn't exist.

Nor did he think you were a bad person as many wanted to believe, because no one had to tell him that when he had seen you -while reading in the trees that overlooked the entrance to the forest- several times going in alone to play with some animals and to bring them food.

Or how you sometimes helped people behind their backs. Like when Ronda Patkins spent days crying in the common room because she couldn't find her cat and he accidentally looked when you found it and left it near her to make sure it came back to her. All so that days later he would hear the same girl talking bad about you.

He was very angry with people.

Younghoon didn't know why he cared so much about you, but he did and he had decided long ago that it was better to stop questioning him. In the end, no one but him knew and it was his own secret.

Now he knew that he had the opportunity to get close to you, the boy genuinely wanted you to feel safe and content in the company of someone. So you could have what you secretly yearned for inside.

The blond knew that he and Juyeon meant well, but with Jae being more of a jerk than usual, it was going to be hard for you to let them in.

You walked aimlessly just feeling panic. You were debating whether to get into your next class, where Juyeon would obviously want to talk to you, and you didn't feel confident enough to pretend nothing was wrong. And you couldn't see Younghoon either, who would also be there, after having blurted out everything you said to him. Damn, why did he have to be another stupid Slytherin.

So the most "prudent" decision that occurred to you was to quickly leave the castle and hide with a book in front of the black lake. At this time not many students would be in the area and it would help calm all the anxiety you were feeling.

You didn't even know where that explosion of words had come from and you felt too ashamed. For you, for a long time, having real human emotions had felt like something forbidden and wrong for you to do. And the worst thing is that you had dropped this whole facade in front of nothing more and nothing less than one of the members of the bermuda line. And not just any of the trio, but the quietest, most serious and most intimidating boy of them.

You didn't stop over analyzing the situation and probably right now he was thinking about how pathetic you were.

Your chest felt contracted, heavy. Your anxiety was still going at thousand miles. It was like you stripped naked in front of Younghoon and you just wanted to cringe the more you thought about it. And in the humiliating words of the stupid Jaehyun. And in the condescending face of Sangyeon, the boy you admired the most in that place.

As you walked along the shore of the lake, careful not to trip, going over a thousand conversations in your confused head, you felt someone tap your shoulder. You were so absorbed that you hadn't heard that someone was following you and you were so startled that without thinking twice or contemplating the consequences, you took out your wand and with a non-verbal spell (which you definitely couldn't use outside of class) you threw the person to the lake.

Oh no! Shit, shit, shit. What trouble did you just get yourself into? And if you ran from there? Did they know who you were? Have they seen your face? Would they accuse you? Of course they was going to accuse you. Would you help that person to get out of the lake? Of course, you weren't a murderer and you didn't even know if that person knew how to swim. What if one of the creatures in the lake hurt them?

You got as close as you could to the shore, squatted down, and stretched out your hand. Long fingers closed tightly around your wrist as you pulled and you heard:

"The fuck is wrong with you, YN!"

This couldn't be happening to you.

#the boyz fanfic #the boyz fluff #the boyz angst #the boyz imagines #the boyz hogwarts au #hyunjae fanfic #hyunjae imagines #hyunjae hogwarts au #hyunjae x reader #hyunjae fluff #hyunjae angst #younghoon fanfic #younghoon imagines #younghoon x reader #younghoon hogwarts au #younghoon fluff #younghoon angst #juyeon fanfic #juyeon imagines

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callmedanquixote · 2 years

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Blooming even in the shadows - Chapter 1

~ Blooming even in the shadows ~

Pairing: Gryffindor Hyunjae x Slytherin Fem!Reader x Slytherin Younghoon (feat. a bubbly Ravenclow Juyeon)

WC: 4.9k

Genre: hogwarts au, fluff, angst, smut, friends to lovers, enemies to lovers (in no particular order)

TW: swearing, injuries, school violence, mention of insecurities + (I’ll be adding more in the future probably)

A/N: Hope u enjoy this chapter. It probably contains a few grammatical errors, so sorry sorry.

Also, to make it consistent, bermuda line are the same age. There may be some Hogwarts inaccuracies, just ignore it for the sake of the story lol.

Series Masterlist: Blooming even in the shadows

The stares and whispers in potions class were starting to stress you out. You hated hearing so blatantly things that were out of your hands. “Look at how close they sit. He must feel bad for having to work with her. If I hadn't been late, I would've sat next to him. How dare you sit with our prince."

Almost all your girls classmates looked at you with disdain. As if it was YOUR plan to sit down with that person.

You had absolutely no idea why Juyeon, of all the people at Hogwarts, took the seat next to you in this class when you both arrived early and the classroom was full of free seats. You've never crossed in his path before, nor he in yours. Sure, you've taken a lot of classes together over the past few years, but really he was always too far away from you.

It's not that the Ravenclow boy was rude, apathetic, or a rambunctious student. More like the complete opposite. Lee Juyeon was one of the most loved, intelligent and popular students in school. He was good-looking and very polite. His bubbly and slightly clumsy personality meant that he was always surrounded by people who were eager to steal some of his time.

And now, people had a greater pretext to approach him, since this year he had been assigned as one of the prefects of the blue house.

Unlike you. The nature of your personality, your life situation and the stereotypes that still prevailed in Slytherin, were the main reasons that in the five years you had been studying at Hogwarts, only a few people spoke to you. And not that that was a problem for you. You had grown up alone, so really when there were people around, you naturally felt uncomfortable.

So, that's precisely why you were wondering what the guy sitting next to you wanted.

Opposite poles must stay in their own places where they belong.

Juyeon kept looking directly at you and he looked happy. With your cautious attitude, he imagined you were a kitten about to bristle and that caused him emotion and tenderness. In a way, you reminded him of his best friends. A defensive image, but innocent inside.

The boy decided to speak, purposely ignoring the whispers of his other classmates.

"Hi, I'm Juyeon." He said as if someone in the school really didn't know who he was. You ignored him. "I don't know if you've ever noticed, but we've shared so many classes. I think you're one of the brightest witches, YN. I've always wanted to talk to you but I didn't have the chance. I can't wait to work with you, so if you don't mind, I'm going to sit here this year." He spoke with the brightest smile you had ever seen being directed at you. The one all the girls talked about when you walked by the halls. And rarely, one that didn't look awkward and looked genuine.

You looked at him out of the corner of your eye… you sighed and answered firmly.

"It bothers me. You're drawing too much attention. I don't like it. Change your seat."

Instead of hearing a curse or look at his face turning off, you heard him laugh. So you looked at him like he was crazy. Was he coming to make fun of you just like everyone else...?

"I can count with my hand fingers the people who have called me annoying, and those are my closest friends. Do you want to join the list?" And without paying more attention to you, he began to accommodate his stuff in his place.

What a headache the new school year painted!

Before he could say anything else, Professor Slughorn entered at that moment and started his class. To no one's surprise, due to the school plan for the subject, he briefly explained that this year it was too important to work in pairs, so whoever you were with at that time would become your pair for the entire school year.

Helplessly, Juyeon was without a doubt your potions partner. It was just to work in teams, you thought. And he was good. As long as you limited yourself to having contact with him only for the tasks, there would be no problem. What could go wrong?

Those two tall boys walking with such confidence drew all eyes to them and raised dreamy sighs from the girls and even a few boys from the 4 houses. It was rare to see a Gryffindor and a Slytherin walking together because of the silly rivalries that still existed, but it was definitely very attractive to see that pair.

Those boys looked around the great hall until they saw their best frie... a blue head?

The loud whispers and excited giggles of the girls sitting at the tables around you alerted you to what you most wanted to avoid. Before you could get up from the table and walk away, you heard loud and clear.

"Lee Yu! What did you do?" A boy with brown hair yelled.

Lee Jaehyun.

The Gryffindor boy who, without a doubt, was currently the most popular student at Hogwarts. He had been a part of his house Quidditch team since his early years at school as a very talented Beater, and in fact, many thought he might become a professional player. He was charming and a joker. Without a doubt, it was known that next year, he would be chosen as the Head Boy. Very kind, but in a…cold way. As if he had a magnet that invited people to come closer whether they wanted to or not, but at the same time, there was a huge barrier so that they could only see him from afar.

Younghoon, the blonde guy walking next to him, was your housemate. And even if you lived in the same dorm, he'd never even looked at you before. The boy was probably one of the most serious and quiet people you had seen in school, but that mysterious aura attracted people more than it repelled them, unlike you. Maybe that's why people called him "The Golden Snake".

Both, ignoring the chaos around them, took a seat with you and your new seatmate who, unfortunately for you, still out of class was keeping you company.

Finishing potions, Juyeon left the classroom with you, and instead of going his own way, he followed you like a puppy to the tables in the great hall despite your complaints asking him not to go after you. There again, he had drawn too much attention that you didn't want.

And now, things got worse with the well-known 'Bermuda Line' bursting your bubble of peace.

That was how that trio of friends was known, who not only being attractive each in such different ways, belonged to families of wizards that were too important. Really influential people in the magic world.

Juyeon's mother and his grandfather had both been Ministers for Magic, and his older brother was expected to get the same position very soon. Younghoon's parents, following his paternal family line, were in fact the organizers of all the triwizard tournaments. And Jaehyun's father, was the head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement, which was rumored to have the true control of the ministry of magic.

Also, never denied but never confirmed, with a somewhat dark past (thanks to his great-grandparents); it was said that his family was once the mainstay of the Muggle-Born Registration Commission. It was an open secret that no one dared to mention out loud. Firstly, not to damage the reputation of dear Jaehyun who had nothing to do with that situation, and secondly, because of the fear of falling into the bad eyes of that family if it turned out not to be true.

The trio was undoubtedly untouchable. Powerful families. Pure blood. Destined to live the best lives. Best friends since childhood. The most perfect Bermuda triangle in person. Chaotic. Attractive. And quite a challenge for you who had tried to live quietly by going unnoticed as much as you could. So far away from them and now being thrust into the center of that mess.

Their ‘fans’ wouldn't be happy if you stayed longer than they liked there.

As you thought about how to get out without being noticed, Younghoon took Juyeon's strands of hair between his fingers, looking at them as if they were the boy's greatest rarity.

"Why is your hair blue? Rather, how's it possible! I thought I left you in your classroom earlier with black locks." Jaehyun spoke loudly.

Loud was a good word to describe him.

"Does it look pretty?" Asked innocently the one with the feline look. "I guess we started our potions class off right. Slughorn asked us to do something fun with our partner and if he liked it, he would give us 20 points and later, we could choose any potion we wanted. YN is the brightest girl in our class and she put us in first place with a potion that changes the color of your hair depending on your emotion while drinking it. Isn't that so YN? I guess I was still a bit sleepy so it turned out blue." He exclaimed excitedly as he looked at you and took all the attention towards you.

Shit.

"Who's she Ju?" Jaehyun said a little curious and for the first time looking into your eyes. In fact, barely noticing your presence there. You began to feel a knot of nerves in your stomach.

Before your classmate could reply, Younghoon spoke up. "It's LN YN. She’s form our same generation. If you would pay more attention, you would know that we have had thousands of classes with her."

At his response, you looked at him in surprise. It was rare to see him recognize you as he was one of the people you swore didn't have the slightest idea of your existence. Normal was Jaehyun's bewildered reaction. It was also weird when Juyeon recognized you, but it wasn't that incredible since he did pay attention in every class and the teachers constantly recognized your work so maybe he heard about you.

Also, you saw Younghoon so often, that you were one hundred percent sure that he had never even looked at you for a second.

"How come I've never seen you before?" and “Do you know her, Hoonie?” said Jaehyun and Juyeon respectively at the same time.

You moved a little uncomfortable in your place.

The blonde just said. "She's a Slytherin too. It's obvious I know who she is." And he gave you a shy smile quickly looking away from you.

Wow?

"And why did you win first place with a potion that only changes your color?" Asked the Gryffindor somewhat carelessly, whose tone you didn't like to hear at all.

"Probably if you don't know how you're feeling at that moment, your new color can help you. Also, it looks good. And it's fun, simple." Juyeon replied kindly.

"Who's so stupid not to know how they're feeling at that moment? Your opinion on fun is a bit… Ju. Your potion is useless."

You looked at him with a frown. Who does this guy think he is?

"Yah, Lee Jaehyun! I want to see what you come up with for your class with Slughorn. The theme was 'do something fun in a simple way' and that's just what YN did. Honestly, I can feel right now that it's going to be hard for anyone to top us this year. We're going to be the best team, right YN?" Juyeon raised his hand for a high five.

When you didn't, he stroked your hair like you were a puppy and you glared at him. He only managed to laugh.

"How difficult is it going to be to surprise the teacher if he liked something as mediocre as changing color hairs?"

In all your years studying at Hogwarts, you imagined that behind the facade of those perfect kids, there were unpleasant persons. Maybe it was a prejudice that you shouldn't have, but you couldn't help but think about it.

At least now you knew that with one, you hadn't been wrong.

You got up from your seat, took your things without looking at the trio, turned around and before leaving you said. "Tell us what Slughorn got you when you get out of class, Lee. I guess whatever mediocre thing you do, you can win it too." And without thinking about what you just did, you left.

"YN, don't go!" You heard Juyeon's scream in the distance, but didn't stop.

"Really?" Jaehyun started laughing as he watched you hurry out of the great hall with intrigue.

"Really what? Why did you have to say something like that Jae? She's my new friend and she's very shy." Juyeon said with a pout.

He and Younghoon were used to his friend's somewhat shocking and annoying personality. His whole life had been like that with them even though other people liked to think otherwise. He wasn't bad, but he was quite outgoing and a bit loud at times.

But he knew that not all people were going to put up with it the way they did.

Juyeon has really been trying to get close to you for years. He knew what other students said about you, he knew the quiet and aloof way you tried to lead your life, and he had no idea how you put up with all that shit. He didn't want to make any mistakes and make you suffer more than necessary.

People liked to judge a person based on their family, their status, or worse, on mere hearsay. But they were never interested in really getting to know the people they were talking about. He knew it better than anyone.

Juyeon genuinely wanted to see if he could form a friendship with you. And not out of pity, nor as a social experiment. He felt that you were much more than what you allowed your classmates to see of you. Your situation did not define the type of person you were.

So even though he loved Jaehyun very much, he wasn't going to let him ruin his first breakthrough with you.

"Shy? I would say arrogant. And since when is she your friend? Since a few hours ago? She doesn't even seem to stand your presence. Wake up Juyeon, she's surely thinking of taking advantage of you and…"

"She can't stand you, Jae. In fact, Juyeon's quite okay for her." The blue-haired boy widened his eyes and looked happy again. "And don't talk to Ju like that, he can trust whoever he wants. Maybe he's tired of seeing your whiny face every day and he wants to socialize. Just let him be." Younghoon spoke calmly, used to the wild comments his friend made from time to time.

And despite his harsh words, his tone didn't sound like that at all.

"Can't stand my presence? What are you talki...?" Jaehyun was mid-sentence until he realized.

"Younghoon! You know that you can't enter people's minds without their permission." Juyeon exclaimed noticing it too.

"Less than a minute ago I just saw you smiling precisely because of that." He addressed Juyeon. "And for your information, it wasn't on purpose. I didn't see her thoughts, only her feelings came to me." The Slytherin answered timidly, who had apparently been born with a great aptitude for legermancy.

Jaehyun was frowning.

"And you're telling me that she doesn't like ME? It was just a simple comment, she shouldn't have taken it so seriously."

"You're so dense, Jae." The blue-haired one said sighing and Younghoon just rolled his eyes.

The Gryffindor was left wondering why he had never noticed you before. Or maybe he did, but he didn't remember too much. Perhaps his friends were right and he was quite dense. What he knew until now, is that since he didn't recognize you, you weren't one of the people who tried to get close to them every day, so he didn't know your true intentions towards Juyeon. Why now?

And if he, Juyeon, wanted to be your friend that badly, he'd probably have to get involved a little bit. You know, to test the waters.

Finally you had been able to escape from the heavy atmosphere that you were beginning to feel in the great hall.

When the Bermuda Line were together, no one looked away from them. You wondered how uncomfortable it was for them since it felt so intrusive. But maybe they were already more than used to it.

You continued on your way to head towards the dungeons and down to your common room. You were thinking about Lee Jaehyun's annoying attitude and how the other students ignored his true personality when you realized that someone was following you.

You changed you direction several times to see if you weren't wrong, but that presence was still felt and it was getting closer and closer.

You stopped in a hallway that was practically alone and turned around.

A group of five girls quickly approached and looked at you very angrily. You knew they weren't there to talk to you on good terms so you thought if you stayed you might get in trouble. But if you left, you weren't sure they wouldn't come looking for you again later.

Trying to go unnoticed was your motto. And you really COULDN'T get into trouble. So to avoid a confrontation, you better turn around and after a few steps you felt someone pull your hair and push you towards one of the walls.

The cold stone received you.

A fourth year Gryffindor had your hair in her fist. A fifth-year Ravenclow swung her hand and your books fell to the floor with a loud thud. Still, there was no one else wandering around.

"Are you stupid?" Asked a Hufflepuff girl who you assumed was also a classmate of one of the previous two.

Next to her, two of your Slytherin classmates from the same generation, looked at you with mockery. Who the fuck were they? I mean, you recognized them by their faces, but you had never messed with them. You didn't even know their names. And in fact, you had never heard them whispering about you either.

You didn't answer. In all the years that some students had bullied you, you never gave them the satisfaction of being able to listen to you. “Your silence is your dignity, YN” you constantly repeated to yourself.

"Don't you know how to speak? Are you that dumb? We just saw you talking with complete confidence with the Bermuda Line. Do you think you're worthy of being with them?" Same Hufflepuff girl told you.

So the problems because of them came faster than you imagined. Would they be their friends or were they part of the girls who had never spoken to them?

"Answer, whore!" Said the oldest of all while she slapped you.

She made your blood boil. You started to feel immensely upset. Don't do anything to them, don't do anything to them. You felt burning on your cheek but you refused to touch it.

"Don't be silly. Did you pretend you never wanted to talk to them so they would come to you? Did you know that the only thing they can feel for you is pity?"

"You're nobody to approach them. You have very high expectations for being the dirt of the mudbloods."

They'll laughed while you got more and more irritated.

"If your ordinary Muggle parents didn't love you, neither do your classmates, much less they'll love you. Stay away if you don't want to make us angrier. Don't be looking for them!”

STOP. STOP. STOP. Your mind could only focus on that as you closed your eyes. The last thing you wanted was to keep seeing their mocking faces.

You stopped feeling pressed against the wall and your hair felt free. You heard several screams and thuds. You looked carefully and saw the girls scared and trying to get up from the floor. They looked puzzled. They had been thrown quite hard.

"What happened here?" A boy came running and helped them.

Now someone did appear. How lucky!

You looked at the boy who was glaring at you, and you were surprised to meet the eyes of the very person you were allowing to disturb you so much today. Lee Jaehyun. Who to be honest, also seemed surprised to see you there.

"You? What did you do to them?" The Gryffindor asked quietly.

You let out a small laugh and the group of girls looked at you like you were crazy. The situation was so ridiculous that you couldn't help it.

Of course you expected that the one who looked bad, were you. And this guy Jaehyun, who was he to come and assume culprits? Also, why was he here? What did he see? What did he hear?

You felt immense rage thinking that the reason this happened was indirectly him and that he was also here now. Blaming you.

"Jae, she's not a witch. She's a monster." Spit her Gryffindor classmate with poison.

"Monster! You hurt us on purpose!" The girl from Ravenclow shrieked.

You weren't going to stay and listen to any more nonsense. You picked up your books and as you turned to leave, you heard him say under his breath, "You turn out to be such a problem. Lee Ju doesn't deserve someone like you."

You felt your eyes sting but you endured as much as you could. You continued on your way without turning back.

You arrived upset at the clock tower. Students didn't usually go up there unless it was night and even then it wasn't a crowded place.

You were tired of everyone in that place taking the liberty of treating you however they wanted. You weren't a punching bag for the problems in their lifes. Nor did you were a thing with free access to humiliation just because they felt like it.

Every year you spent at Hogwarts it got heavier and heavier. You felt more and more alone. You had less and less desire to move on. And each time, you thought that maybe you were everything they said about you. You were beginning to genuinely believe that no one really deserved to have you in their lives because that didn't mean anything good.

You're just passing through. Finish school and get out of there. It was the only thing you thought about every day to keep you going on.

You had tried every day, so hard, not to get in the way of people who would make everything more difficult, and it hadn't helped because those same people would get in yours.

Lee Juyeon came over to talk to you. He made the decision to sit with you. His friends were the ones who went to the table where you were already. So why did everything fall as your responsibility?

And why did everyone think they owned the Bermuda Line? Why did they let other people behave like this because of them?

Your back ached and your cheek burned like hell. But even so, the words that Jaehyun said at the end were the ones that were hurting you the most from this whole situation: “You turn out to be such a problem. Lee Ju doesn't deserve someone like you."

From the beginning, you shouldn't have left him in even if he was insistent. Perhaps the emptiness you felt at that moment, the longing for closeness with someone that was deep within you was what made you act foolishly. You could have tried to push him away a little more.

"You're such a fool, LN YN!" You screamed with all your might.

Looking down at the courtyard, there was no one to listen. There was never anyone to listen.

You fell to the floor dropping your books and hugged your knees. Sometimes the darkness in your life was too much to bear. Don't cry, don't cry.

"I really don't think so, YN."

You startled when you heard a low voice. There was someone behind you but you didn't want to turn around to find out. What if they bothered you again? You felt a knot of nerves in your stomach. Who was there?

You felt embarrassed and scared right away.

"A…are you okay?" You heard a timidly familiar male voice as you felt that person kneel down and carefully pick up your books -again- scattered on the floor.

You really didn't want to turn to look at him, but what else could you do? Snatch your things and run away? You didn't want to look so childish. Although really at that moment, you -almost- couldn't care less.

A soft perfume like mint and honey reached your nose. Often that scent would come to you when you were in some classes, or even in your common room. You thought it was from...

"Kim…Kim Younghoon?" When you looked you knew you weren't wrong. There next to you the same blond boy who was recently in the great hall in front of you, was again in the same place as you. From your position, you felt his enormous presence. He looked between nervous and scared. He was no longer wearing his cape, now he was only wearing the gray sweater and his tie was a bit disheveled.

How many times had you personally encountered the Bermuda Line in your last five years at Hogwarts? None. How many times have you seen them today? Too many.

Too many wasn't good. You felt mentally tired.

Younghoon frowned as he looked like he was searching for something in your face.

"What are you doing here?" You avoided his gaze feeling all your blood come to your cheeks. It was too much to think of him seeing you in such an embarassing situation. You wanted to get out of there.

You startled when you felt a touch so light it was barely perceptible on your cheek. You looked at him with wide eyes. He with a little pout, showed you his finger. A small drop of blood stained it.

"Something scratched your face." He didn't say it as a question and he didn't answer you either. And it wasn't something, rather someone. Among so many things that had happened you didn't even noticed, and now that you were aware, you could feel a very slight burning.

You were going to touch your cheek and before you could, his hand stopped you by the wrist. You felt goosebumps and tingling on your skin as small shocks of electricity where the physical contact was.

Why was Kim Younghoon there checking you out so confidently? Honestly, his attitude had you more than surprised. Seeing him from afar all this time, you think he would be more… serious? Perhaps even rude like his other friend. But he was being quite… cute. Even if you don't want to consciously admit it. It was strange that someone treated you with such kindness and delicacy. You had no idea what to do. You didn't know where to look. You didn't even know where to put your hands.

"Don't touch it. You can infect it. Let... let me fix it. I mean… may I?" he asked while pulling his wand out.

Without looking at him, you slightly nodded and closed your eyes. You heard him mutter something under his breath and felt a slight itch on your cheek. Then nothing. There was no discomfort. You touched it softly and there was nothing.

"Th…thank you." You cleared your throat and throw the short answer. "What are you doing here?" You asked again.

Younghoon's cheeks turned slightly red.

"Ah… I… I usually come to this place. At this time it's not very crowded. Not long after you… left the great hall,” he said, avoiding meeting your gaze. "I decided to come. I didn't mean to intrude." He raised his hands denying. "When you arrived I was sitting there." He pointed to a quite hidden corner where sometimes you liked to sit and read. And apparently, you had that in common since there was a book in there.

"I'm sorry. I… I didn't notice anything."

"Did something happened?" He asked timidly.

You denied without looking him in the eye. You didn't want to talk about it, much less with him.

"It's okay if you don't want to talk. As I told you, my intention is not to intrude. I felt your discomfort so I was curious."

He felt? You looked at him in surprise and he widened his eyes quite a bit, noticing that he had talked too much. You didn't question it.

"It's getting late…"

"I should go back..."

You both said at the same time. The atmosphere felt quite awkward, but it wasn't uncomfortable.

Younghoon chuckled.

"We should go back to our common room." The sentence came out of him with such confidence that it made you nervous. We should? Like each one on their way, or… together?

Before you could say anything, he grabbed your books, went to get his book in the corner and motioned for you to get out of there.

"Let's go?" He smiled.

Warm. It was a new feeling, and it was nice.

People said that Jaehyun was charming and kind. They said that Younghoon was serious and cold. And they also said that you were a nuisance and a hindrance.

And for the first time in a long time, you questioned why you blindly believed so many rumours. Things weren't as simple as they seemed at first glance.

"Let's go."