❝You can't blame me for loving you unconditionally, my love❞

»»-----　♡　-----««

(Y/N) and Quirrell stood in the trophy room, facing each other. The Rosewood felt tense and nervous, but they didn't want to show it, especially in front of the man who has the dark lord at the back of his head.

Instead, (Y/N) grumbled silently and pulled up the note that he gave them this afternoon to start the conversation.

"How nice of you to invite me all the way here, sir." (Y/N)'s words made Quirrell smirk, letting all of the nervous and stuttering self that he faked in front of everyone disappear in a flash.

"Of course, my master and I would like to discuss this privately." The professor placed his hands behind his back, eyeing the Rosewood with a glint in his eyes.

"Could just invite me for dinner, but you do you. I guess." (Y/N) shrugged while observing the room, trying to keep their eyes away from the professor as much as they could.

They still felt nervous, and thought that this is most likely a bad idea.

"Let's get down to business, dear (Y/N)." Quirrell said, making the twin place all of their attention on him with a curious look in their eyes. "I assume you've taken interest in cooperating with us after reading the letter?"

This made (Y/N) scoff and roll their eyes, crossing their arms while leaning on a wall.

"Before I answer your ridiculous question, how did you and no nosed freak over there, know about me?" They nod over towards the turban that Quirrell wore. The professor laughed almost as sweet as honey of lies dripping from his lips.

"Let's just say that a child who has quite the sweet tooth, came over and warned us about you." He began to walk around the room slowly, his soft footsteps echoing gently around the room.

Quirrell never left his eyes from (Y/N) as he did this, and it only increased the tension around (Y/N)'s body. "You and your... ability of knowing everything that happens- the fate of everyone."

"Of course, my master and I are... intrigued," Quirrell stopped, smiling sweetly at the a Rosewood. "and we would like you to come and join us in our side."

"And what makes you think that I'll cooperate and join you?" (Y/N) tilted their head to the side, almost finding Quirrell's words to be amusing and ridiculous at the same time.

"Well, as of now, we are the only ones who know about your... otherworldly existence." His words made (Y/N) purse their lips and glare at him with a cold look since he's most likely aware that they are actually older than 11 years old. "Of course, you wouldn't want to expose yourself and get into more trouble now, would you?"

"So you're basically just threatening to expose me in front of everyone if I don't cooperate with you?" (Y/N) scoffs and smiles sarcastically at the older man. "You're not really giving me enough of a choice here, are you?"

"Oh, rest assured - we are just and fair when it comes to discussing matters like these." (Y/N) rolled their eyes at this, knowing well enough that Quirrell will most likely force them to join their side if they refuse.

It wouldn't even be a discussion anymore.

"We're not just people who make empty threats and not give the other side of the coin a choice." Quirrell added while making a close-eyed smile.

"So, shall I propose a deal?" The man opened his eyes softly, revealing a look that clearly says that he is plotting something mischievous.

(Y/N) almost shuddered when they saw how his eyes glinted and seemingly glowed in the dark, giving Quirrell a dangerous aura around him. The fact that the dark lord is right on the back of his head doesn't help.

"Which is?" (Y/N) shook their head to shake away the fear that they had for a few seconds.

"You will lend us your knowledge about everyone's fate and every outcome that is about to come, so we would plan ahead and ensure our victory." Quirrell clapped his hands with glee. "Your existence will remain as a secret, your protection from any harm will be ensured, and you will be able to rise as the master's trusty advisor, even at your... changed age." He trailed off in the last part of his sentence, eyeing (Y/N)'s small eleven year old form.

"You know, there's really a bunch of problems with your proposal, Quirrell." (Y/N) sighed. "Of course my existence will be remained as a secret if I cooperate with you; Dumbledore and The Order will most likely try to take me if they ever know about me."

"It's most likely that you and the Death Eaters will ensure my safety as I am your trump card - I know what happens, and I can help you plan ahead. If I get injured, to the point of being unable to work for you, it will surely damage your side." The Rosewood leaned away from the wall and began to walk around the trophy room with their hand behind their back.

"And of course, the 'promotion' type of agreement - of course, I get to be the 'trusty advisor'; I am singlehandedly the most useful person in your group. That's a no brainer right there." A chuckle escaped their lips as they finally faced Quirrell, who only narrowed his eyes at how easily (Y/N) caught onto him.

"There are other problems as well, such as; being hunted down by the Ministry, being shunned out of my own family and being considered as a traitor to everyone in Britain." (Y/N) brought their hand up and ticked off three fingers, listing every negative things that Quirrell's proposal will bring.

"Why should that matter, dear?" Quirrell quirked an eyebrow up as he scoffed in amusement. "Friends and family are not important; power is absolute, and like I said; your safety will be ensured. The Ministry will not be able to lay a hand on you."

"Erised might have forgotten to mention this, but I did not come here in this world to chase power and act as the villain or work with your 'master'." (Y/N) pointed accusingly at Quirrell with a smirk curling up in the corner of their lips. "And since I prefer to take the easy route, there's nothing easier than being the same (Y/N) as I am right now; the Ministry will not lay a hand on me as long as I'm good."

"Your objective is different from mine. I have a different route to follow." The Rosewood crumpled the paper that Quirrell gave them this afternoon and threw it at his feet, shooting the DADA teacher a gentle smile that's almost in a mocking manner. "So no, I will not accept your offer, although it was my intention to reject you in the first place."

Quirrell's fists tightened in anger when he saw how conceited and cocky (Y/N) seemed to be, just because they know everything that's going to happen.

However, he had to remain calm and not lose his temper, especially when Voldemort is listening to their conversation right now.

"Well, it seems that I don't understand what you mean by that, Rosewood." Quirrell lets out a small shaky laugh as he said that.

"Should I make it more clear for you, then?" (Y/N) removed their hands from behind their head and crossed their arms instead, almost making them feel a bit more confident.

"I want you, and Voldemort to fuck off." (Y/N) smiled gently again, but their glinting (E/C) eyes were half-lidded, making it seem like they're looking down at Quirrell for his attempts to bring them over to his side. "I've no intention to join your 'bad guy' squad."

"I will not tolerate any disrespect towards my master, you insolent and foul-" Quirrell growled, stomping over to (Y/N) with his fists tightened and teeth clenched.

He immediately stopped in his tracks when he saw the tip of (Y/N)'s wand on his jugular.

"Just try to lay your hand on me, Quirrell." The Rosewood wasn't smiling anymore. Instead, they were sneering at the DADA teacher with widened yet intimidating (E/C) eyes. "Despite my small form, I will not hesitate to send you flying across the room with spells that I've already known."

Quirrell clicked his tongue and took a couple of steps away from (Y/N), and arranged his clothes as he did so.

"Well, it seems that I will have to tell everyone who and what you are." Quirrell scoffed. "Are you sure that your brother and Potter will appreciate you lying to them?"

"All things considered, I think you are the one who should be sure if you were to expose my identity." They tut their wand towards Quirrell's direction. "You see, I'm not the only one who's hiding my identity right now."

The teacher felt like something was stuck in his throat when (Y/N) said that. He had completely forgotten that they know about Quirrell and Voldemort's motives and intentions in this school.

"So, if you were to tell the whole castle that I'm an alien from a different universe who knows about everything that happens, I will also expose you for who you actually are." (Y/N) said as they pocketed their wand. "What happens, when Dumbledore and the other professors, along with Harry, realizes that your master is being hidden right underneath your turban?"

When (Y/N) saw how troubled Quirrell was, and how he was backed into a corner. They smirk in victory, but they immediately removed the smirk away from their face so they wouldn't piss Quirrell any further.

"Yeah, I feel you." They suck in a breath through heir teeth, showing Quirrell a wincing expression. "So for both side's sake, try to keep your pretty mouth shut, sir."

A childlike smile crept its way up to their lips. Although, one could easily say that (Y/N) seems like a very innocent eleven year old with no intentions to bring anyone harm or to deceive them with their smile, Quirrell had to remind himself that this 'child' is actually eighteen.

They have seen how horrible and chaotic the world really is.

How unfair and unjust it is.

(Y/N) lived through it for eighteen years.

They surely know a thing or two about how to fuck up someone's life, and mean it.

"If you're trying to prove yourself and show that you are not as weak as you are, then you have chosen the wrong path, Rosewood." Quirrell spoke after a few seconds of silence and stared at (Y/N) with cold, frustrated eyes.

"No matter how well you do in your studies,"

Young Quirrell watched as the bullies threw his parchments that had results from his last quizzes, like Charms and Transfiguration. He begged them to stop, and that those results were important, but his begs were unheard by no one as he watched the parchments being torn in half in seconds.

"No matter how skilled you are in magic,"

Devilish laughs echoed around Young Quirrell's mind as he tries to focus his wand on the students that caused him so much pain and humiliation. However, the more the bullies cast their hexes and jinxes on him, the more blurry the Ravenclaw's vision gets. He might think that it's because he's on the verge of passing out.

But, he never realized that they were warm tears.

"If people see the tiniest bit of flaw in you, they will focus on that alone." The DADA teacher put up a bitter smile, almost out of pity for (Y/N)'s naivety. "You are not free."

(Y/N), of course, was aware of Quirrell's past and how he was wrongly treated by his peers.

They knew that; despite being in Ravenclaw, he's not very knowledgeable when it comes to dealing with bullies.

However, it was not the time to pity their DADA teacher. They knew that there's no way of saving the man if he's gone off to the dark side and became entranced by it.

"We both have different opinions of what a 'wrong path' is, Quirrell." (Y/N)'s smile became gentle but remained prominent on their face. "You chose to sought after Voldemort to prove yourself worthy and rub your discovery to the bullies who have ridiculed you for years. It wasn't long until you actually joined him, right after he's opened your eyes about how there is no good or there is no evil."

Quirrell felt unease crawl in his nerves when he realized that (Y/N) also knew his past. The past that he desperately wanted to bury in the depths on his mind.

"Unfortunately, even though I could somehow sympathize with your situation, I chose a different path to walk on." The Rosewood leaned on the wall again, crossing their arms while looking on the ground with a smile. "I've hope, and that hope built trust and friendship to turn my negatives into positives."

"I have Alem, Harry, Hermione, Draco and Ron and they are people who I've placed my faith in, despite them acting fairly mean to me at some point." (Y/N) raised their heads to meet Quirrell's troubled eyes. "They won't describe me based on my flaws alone."

"Oh, and why do you think so?" Quirrell asked, a tone of disbelief and ridicule becoming subtly visible in his voice.

"Because I trust them, professor." (Y/N) said, making the teacher sneer as he couldn't understand why this child could still remain to be this... naive, despite being exposed to the horrible reality of the world.

Quirrell, frustrated and confused, left the room without saying anything. (Y/N) sighed in relief when they managed to have a 'discussion' with Quirrell unscathed.

However, now they had to worry about the four meddling Gryffindors that seemed to be standing outside the door.

»»-----　♡　-----««

Harry was in disbelief - he didn't want to accept the fact that the mastermind was Quirrell all along.

He also found it weird yet surprising that (Y/N) was right about accusing Quirrell, even though there were many 'evidences' that will make them turn to Snape.

Of course he knows that they're smart, but they can't be that smart to think ahead.

'Did (Y/N) already know?' Harry thought, stealing a doubtful side glance from the Rosewood beside him. He shook his head and looked back at Quirrell in frustration. 'No, I shouldn't doubt them - if they knew everything, they would've already told me.'

"Ah, Potter. You seem to be doubting our cherry-eyed Slytherin over here." Quirrell's voice was sweet and mocking, yet it was somewhat filled with venom as he turned to look at (Y/N), who looked concerned and troubled as they didn't want Harry to find out their identity so soon.

"I'm assuming that they must've done quite... a lot of things that made you think, 'ah, how did they know that?'" Quirrell ended his sentence with a laugh. Harry looked back at (Y/N), who looked troubled.

This was enough for Harry to know that there is something going on with the (H/C) haired Slytherin, however, he shook those thoughts away as he tightened his grip on (Y/N)'s hand.

"This isn't about (Y/N) - stop changing the subject, you traitor." Harry scowled at the DADA teacher, who was taken aback from his words.

"I trusted you - I thought Snape was the one who was behind this all along!" The Gryffindor raised his voice in frustration, making (Y/N) a bit startled.

"Severus?" Quirrell's composure returned, laughing at Harry's assumption. "Yes, Severus does seem the type, doesn't he? So useful to have him swooping around like an overgrown bat."

"Next to him, who would suspect p-p-poor st-stuttering Professor Quirrell?" The teacher mocked his 'stuttering' act that he put up around the students, batting his eyelashes innocently at the two students in front of him.

"(Y/N), apparently - and they were right!" Harry frowned, looking down in shame. "If only I had placed every single inch of my trust on them, you would've been caught!"

"Oh, I really wouldn't recommend that, Harry." Quirrell laughed, while (Y/N) only pursed their lips and hoped that the teacher would shut up.

"If it's you, then why did Snape try to kill me during my Quidditch match against Slytherin!?" Harry ignored Quirrell's words as he was only fueled by disbelief and anger for his DADA teacher.

"No, no, no, boy. I tried to kill you." Quirrell said, narrowing his eyes at Harry. "That meddling snake had gone and rushed to fire to my robe while I was unaware of my surroundings. I broke my eye contact with you."

Quirrell bitterly turned his head towards (Y/N) for a brief moment, before returning it back to the disbelieved Harry.

The boy couldn't believe what he was hearing right now - had he been so easily tricked by the professor, who he thought was the bravest for standing up to Snape?

"Another few seconds and I'd have gotten you off of your broom. I'd have managed it before then if Snape hadn't been muttering a counter curse to save you." The DADA teacher added.

"Snape was trying to save me?" Harry shakily said as he held his head down.

"Of course," Quirrell said coolly. "Why do you think he wanted to referee your match? He was trying to make sure that I wouldn't do it again. Funny, really - he shouldn't have bothered."

"Because you can't do anything, especially when Dumbledore is watching." (Y/N) scoffed as they crossed their arms.

"Right you are, (Y/N)." The teacher muttered grimly at the (H/C) haired Slytherin.

"All the other teachers thought that Snape was trying to keep Gryffindor from winning. He did make himself unpopular... and what a waste of time," Quirrell shook his head sadly as he raised his hand. "when after all that, I'm going to kill you two tonight."

The teacher snapped his fingers, and in a blink of an eye, ropes sprang out of thin air and wrapped themselves tightly around Harry and (Y/N).

The two students began to struggle under the tight grip of the ropes, but they didn't seem to budge.

"My original objective is to dispose you only, Potter. However, as (Y/N) has deemed themselves as a threat to us, it has come to my attention that I have to dispose them as well." Quirrell smiled at Harry.

When the raven haired boy heard this, his green eyes widened in both fear and surprise as he growled and struggled against the ropes even further.

"You-!" Harry's facial expression resembled that of a rabid dog, who had escaped its leash and is now ready to bear his fangs against anyone. "Don't bring (Y/N) into this - they've done nothing wrong!"

"I'm the one that you want!" Harry added, now shouting angrily. Quirrell tutted while shaking his head disapprovingly of how animalistic Harry is acting.

(Y/N) could only look at Harry in surprise, as they didn't expect him to act like this just because Quirrell said that he'd kill them.

"Boy, if our dear snake hasn't done anything wrong, I wouldn't even tie them up right now." The teacher rolled his eyes in annoyance. "They are a threat that must be eliminated."

"And you, Potter, is too noisy to live. Scurrying around the school on Halloween like that." Quirrell added. "For all I knew, you'd seen me coming to look at what was guarding the stone."

"You let the troll in?" Harry's jaw was basically dropping at this point.

"Certainly. I have a special gift in trolls - you must have seen what I did to the one in the chamber back there?" Quirrell stopped until his expression became bitter again. "Of course, until (Y/N) killed it."

"Why do you sound so salty just because I killed your troll?" (Y/N) decided to speak up after a while of just watching Harry and Quirrell converse with each other. "It was speaking in some weird troll language I didn't know existed too. Did you teach it to speak or something?"

"Like I said, I have a special gift in trolls, and I can definitely unleash their inner potentials to be... better than just brainless creatures who can't speak." Quirrell said. "Of course, I had ordered the one, who your brother defeated, to catch you so I can kill you myself in the shadows. While the one in the chamber, who you killed, was ordered to catch you and kill you directly, if possible."

"Speaking of which, I find it quite troublesome that the Rosewood twins were the ones who... defeated both of my trolls." The teacher added. "You and your brother seem to be... inseparable, and quite dangerous if you were to unleash your magic potential."

"I have seen it in Mr. Rosewood; the way he can strategize and think clearly without having emotions to mess his logical mind." Quirrell remembered back to how calm and composed Alem was when he turned the teacher's Aguamenti into a clear block of ice, without the horrible side effects of the spell acting up.

"You, however, are not as strategic and composed as your brother, but you certainly have a skill when it comes to reflexes and quite a destructive amount of magic in you, judging from how you killed my troll." He then, remembered back to how (Y/N) managed to freeze his Aguamenti before it even left his area of vicinity, and how they were able to cast protective charms and counter spells for his spells before one could even see what they were.

"Which is odd, considering how you possessed a below average of magic power in you during your flying lessons." Quirrell quirked an eyebrow up in confusion. "Those red eyes must be the cause, but I suppose you don't know what they are supposed to be either."

"You're quite the stalker aren't you, you Barney the Dinosaur rip-off?" (Y/N) rolled their eyes. "If you were so obsessed with me, you should've said so."

Quirrell gave (Y/N) a scowl again, but remained his composure as he took a deep breath and turned around to face the mirror of Erised.

"Wait quietly, you two. I need to examine this mirror." Quirrell said, and Harry's face lit up in realization when he saw that it was the mirror of Erised that Quirrell was standing in front on.

"(Y/N)," Harry leaned closer to (Y/N), his voice barely above a whisper. "That mirror; it's the mirror of Erised. Dumbledore must've moved it here when he saw me- us, finding its whereabouts."

(Y/N) noticed how Harry immediately corrected himself, but didn't talk about it as this was no time to confront Harry about how he basically lied to (Y/N) about not returning to the mirror every night.

To the Slytherin, it's quite irrelevant now, all things considered.

"If Dumbledore moved it here, then the chances of it being important is high." (Y/N) responds. "Don't you think that the stone might be in the mirror?"

Harry thought deeply; the possibility isn't too far off, and it's quite plausible. Then again, how is the mirror hiding the stone?

He shook his head as that question will soon be answered. Harry had to keep talking to stall time and keep his attention away from the mirror, and hopefully figure out a way to get out safely with (Y/N).

"We saw you and Snape in the forest and in the hallways." Harry blurted out.

"Yes," Quirrell said, idly as he circled the mirror. "He was on to me at that time, trying to find out how far I'd get. It was quite annoying to have him confront me twice, and he wouldn't let me out of his sight."

"He suspected me all along; tried to frighten me - as though he could, when I had Lord Voldemort on my side..." Quirrell chuckled as he remembered how Snape threatened him; he seemed too desperate to catch the man who he thinks is the culprit.

"Now, I see myself presenting the stone to my master... but, how do I get it?" Quirrell came back out from behind the mirror as he stared hungrily at it.

"But, Snape always seemed to hate me so much." Harry spoke, trying his hardest to keep the teacher's attention away from the mirror.

"Don't worry, Harry; I've annoyed and kept him uncomfortable so many times." (Y/N) said, trying to lighten up the mood. "I think he dislikes me, just as much he dislikes you."

"You might find it surprising to know that Snape seems to have grown a soft spot when it comes to you, Rosewood." Quirrell responds to (Y/N)'s words. "Oh yes, I could see how his stare lingers on you for a moment before going back to what he was doing."

"I've seen that look before; it's the look of nostalgia." He added, making (Y/N)'s face scrunch up in confusion. They couldn't believe that Snape would grow soft on them, there's just no way.

Of course, they noticed the stares, but they always thought that it was only because he was ready to whoop (Y/N) back to the real world when they're going to do something wrong.

"Oh, and he does hate you, Potter." Quirrell said casually, turning his attention to Harry for a brief moment. "Heavens, yes. He was at Hogwarts with your father, didn't you know? They loathed each other, but he never wanted you dead."

While Harry wanted to ask more about Snape and his father's treated each other when they were in Hogwarts, he needed to keep the questions to himself first and put his mind to the present.

"But, I heard you a few days ago, sobbing - I thought Snape was threatening you!" Harry exclaimed as (Y/N) turned to look at him, confused.

"He was sobbing? I mean, I expected him to, but when did that happen?" They asked, leaning closer to Harry.

"You weren't there when it happened, (Y/N)." Harry answered briefly as he kept his green eyes on Quirrell.

The two couldn't miss the expression that the teacher made after Harry asked that question; a spasm of fear flitted across Quirrell's face.

"Sometimes," He said with a gulp, "I find it hard to follow my master's instructions - he is a great wizard and I am weak-"

"You mean he was there in the classroom with you?" Harry gasped and cut him off.

"He is with me wherever I go," said Quirrell quietly. "I met him when I traveled around the world. A foolish young man I was then, full of ridiculous ideas about good and evil. Lord Voldemort showed me how wrong I was. There is no good and evil, there is only power, and those too weak to seek it..."

He stole a glance towards (Y/N)'s way, as he remembered the conversation that they had in the trophy room.

"Since then, I have served him faithfully, although I have let him down many times. He had to be very hard on me." Quirrell shivered suddenly. "He does not forgive mistakes easily. When I failed to steal the Stone from Gringotts, he was most displeased. It only increased when I failed to bring (Y/N) on our side; that meddling, deceitful snake."

(Y/N) didn't say anything and could only roll their eyes when Quirrell's voice was full of venom and spite for them.

"Bring (Y/N) to your side? What do you mean?" Harry looked back and forth at the Slytherin and the teacher.

"You see, Potter, dear (Y/N) here is-"

"He tried to get me to his side because he believed the rumors about me being a seer." (Y/N) said quickly, cutting Quirrell off as a sweat dropped from their forehead. "Which is stupid, because I can't really see the future."

Quirrell smirks devilishly as he seemed to back (Y/N) into a corner. He could definitely use this to his advantage, while (Y/N) was shooting Quirrell the deadliest death glare they could muster.

'This bastard. He doesn't have anything to hide now.' They thought spitefully.

Harry, of course, believed (Y/N). As stupid as it seems. He didn't want to doubt them any longer.

After all, what kind of a person would he be if he didn't trust his crush?

"I don't understand... is the stone inside the mirror? Should I break it?" Quirrell shook his head when he realized that he was taking up too much time, and looked back at the mirror thoughtfully.

Harry's mind was racing, and so did (Y/N)'s.

(Y/N) was waiting for the right moment to strike, while crossing their fingers that Quirrell and Voldemort is too dumb to fall in their trap for their plan to work.

Harry was grumbling and trying to find a solution to save (Y/N) and take the stone away from Quirrell.

'What I want more than anything else in the world at the moment,' he thought, 'is to find the Stone before Quirrell does, while (Y/N) and I run off safely. So if I look in the mirror, I should see myself finding it - which means I'll see where it's hidden. But, how can I look without Quirrell realizing what I'm up to?'

He tried to edge to the left, to get in front of the glass without Quirrell noticing, but the ropes around his ankles were too tight; he tripped and fell over with a thud.

Quirrell ignored him and continued to talk to himself and observing the mirror thoughtfully.

"Harry, what are you doing?" (Y/N) almost laughed when they saw how Harry fell over, but held it in with a small smile. Harry glanced up at the Slytherin,

"(Y/N), the mirror." Harry winced as he tried to get up, and failed. "The stone... you can find it by looking at the mirror."

They thought that it's not a good idea to do that, as their desire right now doesn't lie with wanting to find the stone.

No, they just want their plan to work, if Quirrell is dumb enough to make that happen.

"Come on, get up." (Y/N) ignored Harry's words as they try to scurry over to him without falling over.

Harry struggled as he tried to lean on (Y/N) for support, all while taking this moment to smell them and feel their skin.

It took the Slytherin a while to bring Harry back up on his feet, but it certainly wasn't easy. Harry seemed a bit too heavy for (Y/N)'s own good.

"What does this mirror do? How does it work? Help me, master!" Quirrell exclaimed, now desperate to fulfill his master's wishes.

The two students turned their attention back to the teacher, their eyes narrowing nervously.

"Use the boy... Use the boy..." Harry's breath hitched when he heard a hoarse and scratchy voice coming from Quirrell, even though his mouth isn't moving.

"Yes, Potter - come here." Quirrell clapped his hand once, and all of a sudden, the ropes that bound him loosened. He felt like he can move freely again.

(Y/N) was still bound by the ropes, however. They weren't free just yet.

"(Y-Y/N)..." Harry stumbled up to his feet and scrambled over to (Y/N) to help them pry off the ropes.

"That boy..." Quirrell growled and stomped towards the two, roughly dragging Harry away from (Y/N).

The boy winced in pain as Quirrell's grip on his wrist was too tight, almost as if he was cutting off the blood circulation in his hand.

"Hey, don't drag him off like that; you're hurting him!" (Y/N) exclaimed as they took notice of Harry's discomfort. They could only watch as Quirrell roughly made him stand in front of the mirror.

"Be quiet, (Y/N). I shall deal with you later." Quirrell briefly told (Y/N) before turning his attention back on Harry, placing his hands on the boy's shoulders and peeking over to the mirror himself.

While Quirrell was asking Harry about what he sees in the mirror, (Y/N) struggled and slipped their feet out of their slippers, using the soles of their feet to pull the rope binding their wrist downwards.

They grunted when let out a sigh of exhaustion when they failed.

They bring their wrists up to their face and saw that tints of red were now visible, and they were starting to burn and hurt as well.

"Fuck." They hissed and brought their wrists down, flicking their eyes over to Harry, who is now walking towards (Y/N) with a mortified expression on his face.

They were about to ask him what's wrong, until Quirrell interrupted them.

"Potter, come back here!" Quirrell shouted while Harry stopped in his tracks, facing the teacher with the same mortified look. "Tell me the truth; what did you just see!?"

"Let me speak to him... face-to-face..." The hoarse voice returned.

"Master, you are not strong enough." Quirrell's voice became almost gentle, but the stern and strict tone that he had remained.

(Y/N) took a deep breath and tried to make themselves comfortable in their spot, despite being tied up.

"I have enough strength... for this..." The voice responded, and Quirrell remained silent for a moment before bringing his hands up to his turban.

Harry and (Y/N) shot each other looks and then looked back at Quirrell, who had now unraveled the turban from his head.

Slowly, Quirrell turned around to reveal the strange, monstrous pressed face on the back of the DADA teacher's head.

It was Voldemort, the same monster who had been responsible for James and Lily Potter's deaths.

His nose resembled like the nose slits of a snake, almost making him look like he doesn't have a nose at all.

The strangely small yet sharp teeth and the angry expression that Voldemort made was enough to render the two speechless, but for different reasons;

Harry was the most surprised and shocked; he couldn't move a single muscle, nor speak at all.

How could he speak up when the monster who murdered his parents was right in front of him?

(Y/N) was nervous, as it was their first time meeting Voldemort for real. They don't know what to do or what to say.

It doesn't help that their first impression with Voldemort is when they try to paralyze him and Quirrell, so the teacher would be caught by Dumbledore

"Harry Potter..." Voldemort greeted with a scowl, before his red eyes flickered over towards the nervous (Y/N). "and (Y/N) Rosewood..."

"It is nice to finally meet you in personal." Voldemort smiled creepily at (Y/N).

"Quirrell, release them." Voldemort said. "It is not good manners to treat our guest like this." With that order, the DADA teacher reluctantly clapped his hand once, making the ropes that bounded (Y/N) loosen and fall to the ground.

When the Rosewood can move freely again, they slowly stood up and flicked their wrists while rubbing it gently to soothe the burns that they acquired from trying to escape the ropes.

"...Thanks?" They scrunched their face in discomfort as they kept rubbing their wrists. "I don't think the feelings are mutual, though."

"It's quite a shame that we are both not on the same side." The dark lord's tone of voice seemed to be fake, as he tried to hide his anger for (Y/N), since they did decline his offer. "We truly could have accomplished greater things..."

"We could - the main problem is that I'm not like you." (Y/N) shrugged their shoulders nonchalantly while crossing their arms.

"You might think that you're not, but you are." Voldemort smiled again, and it only seemed to widen when he saw how (Y/N) looked so confused and uncomfortable at the same time. "Well, ignorance is bliss."

When the Rosewood heard this, they rolled their eyes in annoyance and glared at the dark lord.

"I have a body and a nose - you don't." (Y/N) scoffed. "So yes, I really am not like you."

Voldemort's red eyes narrowed, and his anger started to boil that even the room temperature started to get warm. (Y/N) noticed this and started to feel a bit worried for making that offensive joke.

"You little-" Quirrell seethed through his teeth.

"Stand down, Quirrell." Voldemort interrupted, making Quirrell breathe in deeply though his nose to calm himself down. "Keep your silence..."

"I have become... mere shadow and vapor." Voldemort spoke again after, what seemed to be, a minute of silence. "I have form only when I can share another's body, but there have always been those willing to let me into their hearts and minds..."

(Y/N) and Harry watched Voldemort intently as the dark lord's red eyes seemingly glowed in the dim chamber where the mirror stood.

"Unicorn blood has strengthened me these past weeks..." Voldemort continued as his eyes became half-lidded. "You two saw faithful Quirrell drinking it for me in the forest."

"Yeah, and that was disgusting." (Y/N) piped in while scrunching their face in disgust, as they remembered the trail of shining silver blood trailing through the forest like there's no tomorrow.

That, and the dead body of the unicorn.

Voldemort and Harry turned their heads toward (Y/N), both having different face expressions. The Rosewood glanced their eyes over towards the two, confused.

"What? I'm telling the truth." They said as they place their hands behind their head.

"Well, you don't need to worry, Rosewood. For once I have the Elixir of Life, I will be able to create a body of my own." Voldemort said, as if he was reassuring the (H/C) haired Slytherin in an eerie manner, turning his head towards Harry. "Now, why don't you give me that stone in your pocket, Harry Potter?"

Harry almost forgot that he had the stone in his possession, and his fight or flight response directed into his legs.

The boy took a couple of step backwards while pressing his hand over to the pocket where the stone was.

(Y/N) didn't move and just watched Harry, while wondering when they can use the apple they brought with them. They can't seem to find the right timing to use it.

"Now, don't be a fool." Voldemort spoke up, making Harry stop in his tracks. "Better save your own life and join me, or you'll meet the same end as your parents."

The dark lord smirked devilishly, and the look in his eyes were enough to send the two students chills. They were so heartless, and cold. No ounce of regret, shame nor guilt was present in his eyes.

He found amusement through his horrific actions.

"They died begging me for mercy, after all."

"You liar!" Harry shouted instantaneously, not wanting to hear any more words coming out of Voldemort's mouth.

"I suddenly remember why I dislike this fucking asshole." (Y/N) tore their eyes away from him, muttering things underneath their breath in contempt.

"How touching..." Voldemort chuckled darkly as Quirrell took a step backwards to get a closer look at Harry. "I always value bravery. Yes, boy, your parents were brave... I killed your father first, and he put up a courageous fight. But, your mother needn't have died; she was trying to protect you."

"I could still hear the screams - oh, how melodic they were." A maniacal laugh escaped Voldemort's mouth, almost taunting and mocking Harry while he felt proud to talk about how he killed the boy's parents.

Harry looked down, biting his lip while trying not to cry, as he did not want to show weakness in front of someone like Voldemort.

At the same time, he was angry and frustrated. The one thing that Harry wanted to do right now; is punch and curse Voldemort for what he has done to him.

He's the reason why he hadn't felt love and appreciation for eleven years.

I̶f̶ ̶h̶e̶ ̶d̶i̶e̶d̶ ̶t̶o̶d̶a̶y̶,̶ ̶n̶o̶ ̶o̶n̶e̶ ̶w̶i̶l̶l̶ ̶e̶v̶e̶n̶ ̶m̶o̶u̶r̶n̶ ̶n̶o̶r̶ ̶c̶r̶y̶ ̶f̶o̶r̶ ̶h̶i̶m̶.̶

"Shut up." Voldemort's laugh stopped abruptly as he brought his eyes over to (Y/N). The top half of their face began to darken and dim as they slightly lowered their head.

Their fists tightened in anger, that their knuckles began to turn white and the corner of their lips twitched.

"(Y/N)?" Harry called out to (Y/N) worriedly, but his concerned expression dropped when he saw how furious they were as they lifted their head to meet Voldemort's eyes.

"It's so sickening to hear you talk about how you killed Harry's parents, like it was just something that happened in a normal day." (Y/N) scoffed in disbelief before continuing. "Was it fun? Did it satisfy you? Did it not cross your mind that you almost destroyed any hope that Harry has for a nice family who could care about him?"

When they realized that they were starting to raise their voice, they stand back a little and slightly regained their composure as they closed their eyes.

"I actually don't care if you're the dark lord trying to resurrect yourself, or find a new body to latch yourself to." (Y/N) opened their eyes and shot Voldemort the same deadly stare that they gave to Quirrell a few moments ago. "And I can admit that I, too, am selfish and I have my own desires that I want to indulge myself in."

"But, I have feelings and emotions. I knew what it was like to be born in a shitty family with shitty people trying to take advantage of me because I was innocent," (Y/N) remembered their crumbling and destructive family, but shook their head away from the thoughts before it completely consumed their mind as they walk silently in front of Harry, almost shielding him from Voldemort. "and I don't want anyone else to experience the same thing."

The (H/C) haired Slytherin brought their finger up, pointing it at Voldemort accusingly while their slightly faded red eyes were narrowed angrily.

Their lips curled down that resembled something like a snarl of a dog as they let their emotions start to take control of them once more.

"'You might think that I'm not the same as you, but you are'? Don't make me laugh." They said before taking a deep breath to continue,

"A selfish thoughtless monster, who's drunk in his own desire for power, shouldn't be comparing himself to me."

(Y/N) watched as Voldemort became speechless with their words, to the point where his eyes became slightly widened.

No eleven year old, or a teenager who's almost eighteen years old, had ever told him off like this with pure venom and spite in their voice.

It almost... intrigued Voldemort.

"(Y/N)..." Harry breathed out, staring at (Y/N) with wide emerald green eyes that both held a look of awe and disbelief. He didn't expect them to be like this, especially around Voldemort.

The way they stood in front of Harry, the way they told him to shut up when he was mocking his parents' deaths - it made him gulp and shiver in excitement. His shoulders trembled, and he felt his knees going weak.

They care

They care

They care

They care

They care

They care

T҉h҉e҉y҉ ҉c҉a҉r҉e҉ ҉a҉b҉o҉u҉t҉ ҉m҉e

"I must admit; I did not expect you to be this... bold. You seem to have a distaste in authority." Voldemort's tone of voice shifted slightly, as if even (Y/N) had caught him off guard. "That doesn't really matter, does it? It's quite childish of you to get mad over something that isn't even targeted towards you."

"Childish or not, any decent-minded person would think that you are a heartless bastard." (Y/N) frowned angrily. "Just own up to it."

"It saddens me that I have to... kill someone from my own house. I have grown interested in you as well, Rosewood." The dark lord's dramatically sad face made the Rosewood roll their eyes in annoyance. "Alas, your fate... doesn't seem to be on your side."

Voldemort turned his attention back to Harry.

"This is your last chance, Potter; give me the stone." He asked impatiently. "I will not ask again."

Harry glanced towards (Y/N)'s way before taking a step beside them, grabbing their hand and locking it with his.

(Y/N) was shocked at his actions, but didn't say anything and just went along with it, as they couldn't really say anything in the first place.

"Never." This one word from Harry was enough to spill the pent up anger that Voldemort felt for the past few minutes.

"SEIZE THEM!" Voldemort shrieked loudly. The sound echoed around the room that it made the two students wince in pain and tightly closed their eyes, due to how loud and high it was.

(Y/N) was the first to open their eyes, and they immediately saw Quirrell dashing towards Harry with a scary indescribable look.

"Harry!" (Y/N) pushed Harry out of the way, right before Quirrell's hands landed on (Y/N)'s neck, instead of his.

As the DADA teacher tackled the Rosewood to the ground, the strong and firm grip that he had on their neck was enough for them to struggle and squirm below him, desperate to tear his hands away from their neck.

'I... didn't expect him to be this fucking strong..!' They gasped when his grip became stronger, and saliva started to drip from the corner of their mouth while shutting their eyes tightly as hard as they could and trying to keep their conscious. 'Holy shit, I can't...breathe!'

"(Y/N)!" Harry exclaimed and scrambled himself to get up from the floor. He ran over towards Quirrell and roughly pushed him off of (Y/N). "Get away from them!"

When Quirrell was shoved away from (Y/N), Harry crouched down and helped them get up.

Fits of coughing and wheezing kept escaping their lips as they placed their hand on their neck to try and soothe it, despite almost being wrung and broken by Quirrell.

"Are you okay? Can you breathe!?" Harry asked and horrifically stared at the red and slightly purple color that started to emerge from their neck. "Stay with me, (Y/N)!"

'I made a promise to Hagrid, but Salazar, I almost fucking died!' They thought while continuing to cough harshly.

After a few seconds of wheezing and coughing, (Y/N) looked up at Harry's eyes and forced a smile as they look like they're still in pain.

"I-I'm fine... Thanks." (Y/N)'s voice cracked and they continued to cough for a few seconds, until their eyes flickered over behind them. They quickly placed their hands on Harry's shoulders.

"Harry!" They exclaimed as they pushed him out of the way again. Quirrell's hand smacked (Y/N) over to the side, where the small set of stone stairs were.

Their head had hit one of the hard steps, and the harsh pain throbbed around their skull and resonated throughout the rest of their body before they blacked out almost immediately.

Their body became limp and it slowly slid down to the ground as blood started to form on the left side of their forehead.

"(Y/N), no!" Harry exclaimed as he could only watch the scene horrifically.

He couldn't do anything; they were always there to take the damage that should've been meant for him.

He couldn't take the thought of (Y/N) getting hurt, and with their limp body, he was almost convinced that they were dead. That, he cannot risk to happen.

His green eyes slowly lost its light, and his face seemingly darkened when he saw blood trickling down from their forehead.

"Worry about yourself more, Harry." Voldemort's misty yet aggressive voice snapped him out of his breakdown. "You're next."

Harry couldn't even react as fast as he could, when Quirrell placed his hands on his neck with the very intention to kill him as fast as possible. A needle-sharp pain seared through Harry's scar, that it almost felt unbearable.

He felt like his head was about to split into two, and it was driving him insane.

However, the pain abruptly stopped as soon as Quirrell removed his hands away from Harry's neck.

He squinted his eyes and tried to focus where his DADA teacher had went, when he saw him hunched over a few steps away from him.

His green eyes widened when he saw his hands; they looked burnt, almost as if it was being sizzled in a hot frying pan.

He could've sworn he saw Quirrell's tendrils popping and throbbing from his hand as the teacher continued to howl in pain.

"Master, I cannot hold him; my hands!" He exclaimed, staring horrifically at his raw and red hands. "My hands!"

"Then, kill him fool, and be done!" Voldemort screeched impatiently and angrily at the teacher.

Quirrell raised his hand to perform a deadly curse, however, Harry reached up and grabbed his face by instinct.

Quirrell screamed and rolled off of Harry as he tumbled down to the floor and bringing his red hands over his face to try and stop the pain.

The boy stared down at the man who was howling in pain, and thought about keeping him in pain, at least until Dumbledore comes.

However, Harry shook his head, trying his best to ignore the pain that started to build up around his lightning scar.

'Should he really be off this easily?' He thought, then flickered his eyes over to (Y/N)'s limp body by the stone stairs.

His mouth slightly parted open when the screams of his mother and the desperate calls of his father entered his mind, along with the blinding green light that always seemed to end those screams and calls.

He was brought back to reality and his lips quivered in fear when he thought about how (Y/N) saved his life twice tonight and stood up for him against Voldemort. They were acting exactly like his parents,

And what did they get?

Death.

But no, he wouldn't let that same tragedy happen again. Not this time.

Not with them.

He had to get rid of him.

He hurt them.

He hurt them.

He hurt them.

He hurt them.

H̷e̷ ̷h̷u̷r̷t̷ ̷t̷h̷e̷m̷

"You know, professor," Harry's voice was calm, almost soothing in a way, as he walked over towards the unsuspecting professor. "I learned it the hard way."

"When the person you care about is gone or hurt," He sat on Quirrell's chest and placed his hand on his neck, ignoring the shrieks of pain and how he desperately tried to push him off. "the world looks so monochrome and empty."

"But, that night over now." The sizzling sounds and the burn that Quirrell accumulated in his neck, had gone on for far too long, that blood started to seep out from the seemingly dissolving skin as he started to make gurgling noises.

Harry could feel Quirrell's bone after a few seconds of burning his neck, making him sigh and stand up.

The Gryffindor looked down to the professor, who had his wide, terrified eyes locked on his now toxic and lifeless green eyes.

"Good night, professor."

As those words left Harry's mouth, he swiftly stomped his foot on Quirrell's neck as hard as he could.

A sickening crack echoed around the silence of the chamber, making Harry sigh in satisfaction and gently remove his foot from his neck.

Without sparing any merciful glance towards Quirrell, he walks over to (Y/N)'s body, but he could feel his vision spinning and blurring.

The throbbing pain in his head returned, making Harry wince and groan in pain.

'Help...' He thought, while trying to walk over to them without falling to the floor. 'I need to help (Y/N)...'

However, the more they try to walk, the farther (Y/N) seems to be. As Harry took one sloppy step forward, his body felt like he wasn't stepping on anything, making him stumble on his feet and fall.

'Huh, why am I-'

Before Harry could even finish his thought, he already passed out with only one hand away from reaching (Y/N).

The chamber was now silent, with only sounds of fire crackling around the room.

»»-----　♡　-----««

My eyes slowly fluttered open, and was immediately greeted by a shiny golden ceiling with sun rays hitting through the window brightly. I bring my eyes away from the light since it was beginning to hurt my eyes.

"Ugh, what the hell happened?" I groaned as I sit up, trying my best to ignore the throbbing headache. My eyes flickered over to the familiar boy sleeping right next to me with messy (H/C) hair.

'Alem?' I thought, while noticing how peaceful he seemed to be when he's asleep.

He even looks like a girl when he sleeps. His somewhat feminine features are really prominent.

I divert my attention away from my brother and took notice of bundles of sweets and chocolates next to me.

They were wrapped up nicely with few notes placed underneath or on them.

'Huh, that's weird...' My eyebrow quirked up in confusion as I picked up the first note that I saw.

Get wELL sOon,
-NeViLLe

Neville's handwriting was shaky and almost seemed rushed, though I don't really mind. The note was placed underneath a pack of Chocoballs, making me smile as he was really thoughtful and so kind.

I swear to protect Neville from any harm, even if it's the last thing I have to do.

The next note was unexpected and surprising, since I didn't expect him to actually send me a get-well card. I thought he'd forgotten me already since the Quidditch match against Gryffindor and Slytherin.

I don't want my favorite twin to show up in the great hall looking like one of those mermaids in the black lake. So here, I brought you some more Honeydukes candies. You owe me an essay for this.
- Your favorite chaser, Adrian

I rolled my eyes as I finished reading the note. It was placed on a basket of Honeydukes candies - most of them were candies that I asked him to get me, back when he was asking me to do his Charms... homework or was it a project?

I don't really remember anymore.

I still appreciated the thought, though. It looks like he actually didn't forget me after I helped him.

The next note was also from someone I didn't expect. A soft blush invaded my cheeks as my slowly yet gently brought the note closer to me to read it better.

I came here as soon as I heard that you were admitted to the hospital wing. Though we haven't really talked that much before, I hope you're okay and get well soon!

(PS. I've never heard of a Slytherin heroine/hero before, but I like it!)

- Cedric Diggory

'Holy shit, he noticed me-' My thoughts abruptly stopped and thought about how cringey it is that I'm referring to Cedric as if he's my senpai.

Even though, technically, he is.

When I start to imagine how Cedric had rushed here in the hospital wing, with a panicked look on his face, my blush only worsened.

Salazar, get a grip of yourself! He's probably only interested in you because he thinks you're a seer!

I mean, as long as it keeps him interested, then I don't really care.

The note was placed underneath three small boxes of Chocolate Frogs and few packets of Sugar Quills.

I appreciate how Cedric took the time to actually give something like this to me, let alone write a note to say how he rushed over here when he got the news that I was injured.

"I..." I opened my mouth to speak as I placed the note back to where it was before. "It feels so weird to be smothered with gifts. It feels like I'm having my funeral or something."

Nonetheless, I smiled. It felt nice to wake up with gifts - I haven't really gotten many gifts before when I was in the real world, so this is a nice touch.

Though, I'm not used to getting many gifts, I would still appreciate it.

I shook those thoughts away when I felt pressure on the left side of my forehead. I bring my fingers up to it, feeling the slightly rough texture of a bandage in my fingertips.

I push my fingers slightly on the injury and winced when I felt a jolt of pain coursing through the veins of my head.

'Damn, that hurts...' I thought and brought my fingers down. I continue to scan the room for anything I could place my attention to, and my eyes caught two familiar boys laying down on their beds.

'Harry and Ron are over there...' I glance over at the Gryffindor boys, who were unconscious and seemed to be enjoying their slumber. 'That's weird - I thought Ron should be with Hermione in the Gryffindor common room right now.'

I blink when I realized that I haven't used the apple to throw Quirrell off guard. Salazar, it was practically useless.

I grumble and looked beside me to see if the apple was placed there, but there were no signs of the fruit whatsoever.

Only my wand was there, sitting peacefully as if nothing happened.

I raise the blankets up and grumbled more when I saw that I was in a clean hospital gown-like clothing.

Madam Pomfrey must've seen the blood in my pajamas and thought that I needed to change.

If the apple isn't here, then where is it?

I frown and thought it'd be best to forget about it now. If it's gone, then there's nothing else I could do.

Besides, I was using it for Quirrell, and since he's most likely dead by now while I was unconscious, there's really nothing else for me to do with it.

I bring my eyes over to Alem and thought I should wake him up now. He must've ran here when he got the news that I was admitted here as well.

I am so ready for the amount of scolding and questions I'm about to get from this boy.

"Alem, wake up." I place my hand on his shoulders, shaking it slightly. "Let my legs move for a while."

"Mmh..." Alem stirred in his spot and opened his eyes slowly, with a groggy and tired expression on his face. "Wha..."

My brother's expression changed almost immediately when he saw me looking at him with a deadpan expression.

He gasped and stood up from his seat, bringing me to his bone-crushing hug.

"(Y/N)! Sweet Merlin's beard!" He breathed out and gave me one tight hug before releasing me from his hug. Salazar, it felt like I was suffocating. "What happened to you!? I came here as soon as Professor Snape told me that you were admitted to the hospital wing!"

I opened my mouth to answer his question, but before I can even speak, he was already starting to ramble.

"Your head was bleeding when I came here!" He panics, and it looks like some memory flashed through his eyes as his expression changed into a horrified one. He's probably remembering the blood that gushed out of my forehead when he came here. "You don't have a concussion, do you!?"

"Do you even know how concussions work?" I ask, bringing my hand over to my ear and rubbing it since he was being so loud right now. I can feel my headache getting worse.

"...No, but I'm starting to freak out because you might have one right now!" Before Alem starts to panic and pace around the hospital wing again like a maniac, I shush him and placed a hand on his arm.

"Calm your butt, Alem - I'm fine." I reassure him, making him sigh and loosen his shoulders.

"At least I didn't die from blood loss or something." I continued with a shrug. "Because it would truly suck if I did."

"Don't even try to make jokes like that, (Y/N) - I was so worried about you!" Alem shot me a concerned yet somewhat annoyed glare.

"Since when are you not worried about me, though?" A smirk made its way to my lips when those words left my brother's words.

He was left speechless and silent for a while until he shrugged, pointing his finger towards me.

"...That's true." He said and stopped again, before continuing to talk.

"You know, now I'm really starting to think that I should just let Malfoy follow you if you're ever going somewhere dangerous." He said and leaned back on his chair while crossing his arms.

I thought he was only joking, and expected him to make a playful smirk or something, but he looked so serious and stern.

"What? That's stupid - why would you do that?" I scoffed when I realized that he wasn't joking around.

"Because you almost die when you do. I'm guessing Potter isn't doing a very good job of keeping his friends safe for the sake of protecting the stone." He scornfully pouted like an angry puppy. "Speaking of the stone, don't even think about saying 'told you so'."

"Geez, it's not Harry's job to protect us when the threat is literally trying to kill him every five seconds." I sigh, finding Alem's 'guess' to be completely ridiculous. "Since Harry is the only one who could've stopped Quirrell, of course he needs to prioritize in stopping him first."

"Besides, we're not that dumb to not protect ourselves." I lean on the bed's headboard while playing with the hem of my blanket.

"(Y/N), you're almost in the brink of having a traumatic brain injury right now." He said with a deadpan face, bringing his eyes over to my forehead.

I look at him for a while, until he raised his eyebrow as if he's saying 'am I right?'.

"...Okay, maybe I'm the dumb one but that's not my point!" I said, flailing my hands around as I heard him scoff playfully beside me. "Also, who said that I'm having a brain injury?"

"I don't know - you hit your head too hard that it bled. Don't you think that you might have a brain injury right now?" Alem kept his eyes on my forehead and his face seemed to be scrunching every five seconds.

I can definitely tell that he's imagining how my head bled, from that disgusted look of his.

"Oh come on, if I did, there would've been something wrong with me." I slap his arm, making him tear his eyes away from my injury. He slapped back, but on my leg.

"Well I'm not taking any chances - I'm going to look for Madam Pomfrey." He said, as he stood up from his seat while arranging his pajamas since it did look a bit crinkled. "She might be able to see if you have one."

"I mean, there's a 99 percent of chance that I don't, but sure." I rolled my eyes and fully laid myself on my bed, staring up at the ceiling with a bored and tired look on my face.

"Don't try to do anything stupid while I'm gone, you hear?" He said, making me turn my head towards his direction with a pout.

"You say that as if I always do stupid things when no one is supervising me." I said.

"Because you do." He replied back almost instantaneously. I groan and said nothing as I shoo'ed him away with my hand.

The sound of Alem's slippers eventually recede in the hospital wing, making me sigh at how silent the room is now.

I was just about to go back to sleep, since I have nothing else to do, but someone's footsteps made me snap my eyes open.

The footsteps were calm; they weren't rushing or anything. The soft clicking and gliding of their shoes were enough for me to identify who it might be.

Though, I might be wrong.

'Is that Dumbledore?' I thought, ready to flicker my eyes over to the source of the footsteps.

"You seem to have a very wonderful relationship with your brother, Miss/Mr. Rosewood." Dumbledore's mystifying yet calming voice made me sit up on my bed and turn my head over towards the headmaster.

"It's quite... refreshing to see two siblings being quite close with each other, especially you and Mr. Rosewood." He stopped on the foot of my hospital bed as he sent me a gentle smile.

"Oh um... Tha-Thank you?" I stutter as I scratched my cheek in nervousness. "I mean, we try our best to annoy each other as much as we can."

"Though it seems like you are the one who annoys Mr. Rosewood more often." A chuckle escaped from his mouth. "It's quite funny, forgive me if it offends you."

"No, not really." I said, waving my hand to reassure the headmaster. "It'll take more than that to offend me."

I blink and flickered my eyes over to the other side of the room, where Harry's bed was. He was still sleeping, and I figured that Dumbledore only came here to talk to him.

"Are you... here to see Harry?" I asked, and then almost forgot that I was talking to a headmaster. "Um... sir?"

"Well, it seems it'll take a while for Harry to come to his senses." Dumbledore turned around, facing Harry as he seemed to observe him for a moment before turning back again to place his attention on me. "It might be best to spend time talking to you until that happens."

"Oh, okay then." I said, a bit dazed. "I don't think I'll be fun to talk to, though."

"Such things don't matter to me, Miss/Mr. Rosewood." He begins to walk up to the chair where Alem sat before, and sat down. "I will always be able to find joy in talking to people who interest me."

"I find it quite flattering that I interest you, sir." I send Dumbledore a small smile. "I personally believe that I have no interesting qualities that intrigue people."

"You might find it surprising that the people who surround you are charmed by the interesting qualities, that you believe are non-existent, in you." He leaned a bit closer - his half-moon spectacles reflecting bits of sunlight from the windows. "I believe Harry and Malfoy are both equally charmed by these qualities, as I have observed that they are quite... different around you."

'Oh shit, is Draco the other guy who likes me?' I start to panic while piecing everything together. 'But, that doesn't make sense; I thought he was supposed to hate my guts or something.'

I shake my head, removing those thoughts away from my mind and brought myself back on this conversation.

"I mean, I think they're just 'different' around me because I'm their friend. Draco and Harry didn't have any other friends before, so yeah..." I said, shrugging unsurely. Dumbledore must've noticed this, as he chuckles again but his smile slightly disappeared when he stopped.

"Both Harry and Malfoy have friends, and none of them have ever been treated the way those two treat you." An indescribable glint flashed through Dumbledore's eyes for a moment, almost as if he was recalling things in his mind.

This glint disappeared as soon as it came, and the gentle smile that he held moments ago returned instantaneously. "However, I am in no position to judge nor tell you anything. It is your perspective, after all."

I return his smile with a nervous and somewhat crooked one. I was about to look back down on my blanket and ready to succumb myself into awkward silence, as I can't say anything at the moment.

However, Dumbledore proved me wrong by speaking up once more.

"I must applaud you for confronting Quirrell with Harry - I did not expect a Slytherin, such as yourself, to protect him." He said with a nod.

"He's my friend; it's only natural for me to come and protect him." I replied and leaned on the headboard of my bed, trying to ease myself from the unwavering tension of this conversation. I needed to be careful of my words. "It's really nothing for you to applaud about, sir."

"Ah, I guess that is true." Dumbledore said. "House prejudices really don't go inside your head, do they?"

"No offense, but only stupid and shallow people would let such things get inside their heads." I sighed and looked up to the ceiling. "In the end, they're still people. Being sorted in Gryffindor, Slytherin, Hufflepuff or Ravenclaw doesn't mean anything when you're a normal wizard at the end of the day."

I look down again to face Dumbledore, whose face is now neutral.

"Do you think Mr. Malfoy is shallow, then?" He asked, which made me scoff.

"He may be my friend, but I would be lying if I said that he isn't stupid and shallow." I shake my head in disappointment for Draco. I get that he can be a nice guy, but sometimes, he can be so dumb. "Though, I can assure you that he's quite... empathetic when you get to know him."

"I'll take your word for it, Miss/Mr. Rosewood." He nodded once more.

"You really seem to know a lot about Mr. Malfoy and Harry, (Y/N)." Dumbledore's words almost made me choke on my spit as the corners of my lips twitched in discomfort and nervousness. "It's both concerning and intriguing at the same time."

"W-Well, they are my friends, after all." I stuttered, fumbling with my fingers as I turned away from the headmaster. "I might've only known them for a year, but it feels like I've known them since we were kids."

"That might be the case, (Y/N)." Dumbledore chuckled, placing his hand inside the pocket of his long silver robe and retrieving a familiar red apple, lifting it closer to me so I can get a better look at it.

"W-Wait, how did... you...?" No proper words could escape my mouth as I gulped. I even grew confused at the large bitten chunk from the apple.

I don't remember anyone taking a bite out of that before.

"Mr. Weasley took a bite out of that apple when he came to visit here a few hours ago." Dumbledore said, and answered the question that was rumbling inside my head - almost as if he knew exactly what I was thinking. "It was very surprising to see him freeze up after taking a bite, which led me to believe that it was tampered with."

Dumbledore examined the apple with an observing look on his face. I could've sworn that I saw him giving me a side glance for a brief moment - like he's trying to see how I'm reacting.

"I... um. I don't-" I continued to stutter and fumble, not knowing how to respond to the headmaster himself.

I've never really thought about how I should respond to people whenever I'm backed in a corner or if someone is about to find out my secrets.

My anxiety just becomes increasingly higher.

"Oh don't worry - your secret is safe with me." He smiled, making me feel confused. Does that mean that he knows about me now? "I believe that the rumors are true, then?"

"R-Rumors...?" I asked.

"That you can, indeed, see the future." Dumbledore responded, and we both became silent for a while.

He's referring to the rumors about me being a seer.

Does that mean he doesn't know that I'm from a different world yet?

"Uh-" I said, until I shook my head and kept up the impression that I'm a seer.

"I mean, y-yes. But, please k-keep it a secret, sir...?" I clapped my hands together while smiling uncomfortably. It felt very odd to lie to a headmaster - a wizard headmaster at that. "It's a very... um, sensitive information - who knows what'll happen if Voldemort happens to know that."

"I admire your bravery for being able to speak Voldemort's name, Miss/Mr. Rosewood." Dumbledore seemed to ignore my words as he nodded at the fact of me calling Voldemort so freely. "If I recall, Harry also calls Voldemort by his name."

"Though it is quite risky to speak of his name out loud, in the end, that's what it is." I sighed, narrowing my (E/C) eyes when I remembered how Voldemort said that we were similar to each other - there's just no way. "A made up name made by someone who was willing to throw his old self and his own name all for the sake of fulfilling his desires."

I turned to look at the headmaster, and immediately sweat dropped when I saw how overly observing he was.

I felt discomfort, even though Dumbledore should have this powerful yet warm and calming aura.

For some reason, I can just feel a slight twinge of skepticism in him when I look at the lightly sunken eyes underneath his half-moon spectacles.

"I-I mean, Voldemort couldn't be his actual name." I stuttered, trying to clear up some tension from Dumbledore's shoulders. He blinked, and the skepticism that I felt in him was gone in a flash.

Instead, he smiled warmly, almost as if to reassure me about something that I'm not aware of.

"Well, that must mean that Snape might've been right about you." He mumbled loudly. His words were enough to make me quirk an eyebrow upwards as I started to wonder what Professor Snape has been saying about me.

Wait, he talks about me to Dumbledore?

"...what?"

"Oh, it's nothing, Miss/Mr. Rosewood." He shook his head as the warm smile remained the same in his wrinkly face. Dumbledore stood up from his seat, my eyes following his every moment to try and figure out what he's hiding from me.

"Though I'd love to chat with you a bit more, I'm afraid that time is running out and I must attend to some duties before coming back and check up on Harry." He continued. I snapped out of my thoughtful gaze when I realized that Dumbledore was about to leave.

"O-Oh, alright." I said, smiling at the headmaster as nicely as I could to cover up the slight suspicions I have on him. "It was nice talking to you, sir."

"Likewise." Dumbledore nodded. "I do hope we can converse again some other time, and always remember;"

He leaned closer towards me as he slowly placed the bitten apple on my lap. My eyes lingered over towards the apple, slightly surprised at the realization that he hasn't returned it yet until now.

"Never forget what you came here to do, (Y/N)." Those words were enough to make me turn and look back at Dumbledore, who had an indescribable look on his face.

I couldn't tell if he was being serious, if he was joking or anything that might make me see what he's currently thinking right now.

Though, the only thing that entered my mind when I heard those words were;

Erised.

Erised and their stupid mocking face.

Dumbledore left the room before I could even say anything in my speechless form. However, I didn't bother to call out after him as I returned my thoughts back on Erised, while placing the apple next to my wand in the desk.

Now that I think about it, I've never really gotten the chance to properly observe their features since I'm busy being too frustrated and angry at them for ruining my day.

It completely slipped away from my mind; the way Erised looked at me. Their expression was always in a mocking yet resentful one.

It felt as if they had a long-term grudge towards me - one that I don't know about.

A chill ran down my spine when I started to think about that, though I don't understood why I felt that small rush of fear when I did so.

Something continuously scratched at the back of my mind, and it was neither a question nor an answer that I've come up with to solve the mystery surrounding the hoodie wearing child.

It was more like,

A warning. A warning that not everything about this is not what you think it is.

Another chill ran down my spine that it almost made me uncomfortable. However, if my suspicions are correct, then there must be something more to Erised than just a 'dream figure' that popped in my dreams to fulfill my wishes.

Just then, I saw a small flash of familiar (H/C) hair on the doorway. I blinked as I immediately expected Alem to enter the room with his usual annoyingly stern voice, but to my surprise and confusion, no signs of the boy were to be found on the doorway.

All that was left in the spot where I saw the hair was a neatly placed white lily - which I'm quite sure wasn't there before.

Otherwise, Dumbledore or Alem or maybe even me, should've noticed it before.

"Alem?" I called out, trying to make sure that it wasn't my brother just trying to mess with me.

No response.

I frown and didn't say anything else since it might've just been my imagination. I have been thinking a lot recently anyway.

"Well, that was weird..." I breathed out, leaning on the headboard of my hospital bed to try and get my mind off of the things that just happened.

After banging my head on a set of hard and stone-y stairs, overthinking could lead to my headache becoming worse than a migraine.

»»-----　♡　-----««

It was currently 9 AM, and after Madam Pomfrey had examined (Y/N) with a few tests, she had concluded that the (H/C) haired Slytherin might have a mild concussion.

The mediwitch doesn't exactly know how concussions work, since it rarely happens with students in Hogwarts, the least she could say to Alem was to watch (Y/N), and if they feel lightheaded or their head begins to throb and hurt, let them rest.

Of course, because of this, Alem kept himself close to (Y/N), much to his other twin's annoyance.

(Y/N) figured that escaping from their brother would be the best choice, since they didn't want to deal with his continuous yammering about how they should've listened to him and not go with Harry.

"Hey, Alem. I might've forgotten something in the hospital wing." (Y/N) said, pushing the wizard candies they took with them to Alem's arms while scratching the back of their neck and thinking of multiple reasons to dodge Alem. "You should go ahead to the common room - I'll be following right behind you."

"I know what you're planning, (Y/N). Don't even think about it." Alem sighed in annoyance while adjusting his arms to not let any of the candies fall off as he faced his twin with narrowed (E/C) eyes. "I'm not letting you out of my sight because I don't you to die because of a mild concussion."

"Bloody hell, I'm not even trying to do anything." They frowned. "For your information, I know how concussions work so there's no way in hell I'm gonna be unsupervised."

"But I'm only going to check if I did bring my wand with me, and the apple that I, unfortunately, didn't use." (Y/N) said, bringing their finger up to stop Alem from saying anything.

"You brought your wand with you when we left, but please tell me why you're so keen on having that apple back." Alem groaned as he glanced over to (Y/N)'s hospital gown's pockets, which had the wand tip sticking out. "and if you didn't use it, how come it's bitten?"

"Ron bit it for some reason. He might've been hungry but I can't blame him for doing so, since he didn't know that the apple was 'poisoned'." (Y/N) made air quotation marks as Alem hummed understandingly and started to ponder if Gryffindors are actually stupid.

'So that's why Weasley was also there.' Alem thought.

"And if other professors found out that the apple was tampered with, who knows what kind of trouble I'll be facing." (Y/N) shrugged, making Alem think that professors wouldn't actually check the apple unless it's necessary.

Although, the Rosewood twin thought that it's better to be safe than sorry.

"Alright. But come to the Slytherin common room as soon as you get it back." Alem said, almost in a threatening manner. "If you don't, I'll give these away to Crabbe and Goyle."

"Alem, you wouldn't actually do that to your twin, would you?" (Y/N) sweat dropped as they started to become terrified of Alem's simple but very effective threats.

He knew that (Y/N) would rather jump off of a building than give those two humongous treats that they've gotten from other students.

"Try me." He scoffed. (Y/N) gulped and realized that he was being serious.

They sighed and nodded before walking back to the hospital wing without looking back to their brother.

The (H/C) haired Slytherin took a few twists and turns through the hallway to reach the hospital wing, until they've encountered a familiar black haired man, who is also walking over towards them.

Their walking pace slowed, wondering what Snape was doing in these hallways.

"Good morning, Professor Snape." They greeted the stone-faced man, who only stared back at them with half-lidded eyes.

Snape didn't say anything and continued staring, stopping in his tracks to quietly observe the Rosewood twin.

"Er..." (Y/N) stopped, now feeling awkward. Especially when they remembered that Quirrell said something about Snape having a soft spot for them. "Excuse me, sir?"

"...Good day, Miss/Mr. Rosewood." Snape finally said something after a few seconds of silence. His voice was as low and cold as ever, almost chilling the Slytherin in front of him.

"You are quite... the troublemaker, aren't you?" He continued, flickering his eyes over to the small patch of bandage on (Y/N)'s forehead.

Dried blood seemed to stain the center of it, and the Potions master almost scrunched his face in disgust.

"The most troublesome Slytherin I have ever seen, next to Malfoy." Snape looked away from their forehead and now focused on their (E/C) eyes.

"I guess Harry's influence got the better of me, Professor." (Y/N) let out a nervous and lighthearted laugh as they scratched the back of their head. "I'm not usually like this."

"I believe your acquaintanceship with Potter has led your life to a lot of risky situations." Snape addressed. "You are either a fool to not realize this, or ignorant enough to keep sticking to Potter like a piece of gum."

"Quite harsh, sir. But sure, I'll take it as a compliment." (Y/N) grinned, scoffing in the process. "Are you going somewhere, sir?"

Snape clicked his tongue at (Y/N)'s question and stared down at them, almost as if he was sneering in disgust.

(Y/N) paid no attention to his expression and kept smiling, since they know that Snape is always like that.

Besides, it's not like (Y/N) isn't used to such treatment.

"It's none of your business, Rosewood." Snape replied with a scowl, and didn't say anything else when the Slytherin student hummed understandingly, casting their gaze down to the floor to avoid his gaze.

The Potions master observed their disheveled hair and remembered how blood trickled down from their forehead and down to the pillow where they laid their head in last night.

They were admitted in as soon as Dumbledore came down to the chambers and reached the final room where the mirror was located.

Snape found it very unsettling when he saw the dirt around their body and the dried red blood on the lower half of their pajamas.

He didn't want to think about the possibility that (Y/N) had gotten hurt badly, but his anxiety subsided when Madam Pomfrey concluded that the blood came from something else, not from (Y/N).

He didn't want to admit it, but he couldn't help but care for (Y/N). He could always see Lily Evans in their eyes, and for quite some time, Snape started to treat the Slytherin as if they were Lily herself.

Obviously, this is very unhealthy on Snape's part, and he is aware of how wrong it is to think of them as the person who he loved the most in the world.

However, when it comes to desperation, you couldn't help but take whatever chances you have - as long as that desperation is quenched.

Snape recalled back to the night where Alem and Draco came rushing to the hospital wing, both having extremely horrified faces when they saw (Y/N) laid on the bed.

The head of the house would have scolded the two for being awake at such time, but he was aware of how much they cared for (Y/N).

He couldn't do it.

Alem kept holding (Y/N)'s hand while resting his head beside them, as the drowsiness began to take over him rapidly. He hadn't gotten any sleep, especially since he had to prevent Draco from following (Y/N).

Draco, however, was standing beside (Y/N) - across Alem. He was staring intently at the unconscious body of the Slytherin that he'd grown fond of over the year.

Snape immediately found it unsettling of how intense his glare was, almost as if he was spiraling deeper inside his thoughts.

The Malfoy's mouth was moving, muttering incoherent things that Snape couldn't catch in his ears. However, the expression that he held was enough for Snape to frown uncomfortably;

His silver eyes were widened, almost as if he was extremely shocked. The top-half of his face was darkened and seemingly gave his eyes a toxic and eerie glow in the dark.

The dim light around the hospital wing only darkened his features even more, and even Snape was aware of the dangerous aura that Draco was emitting.

Snape gulped visibly when Draco's eyes instantaneously flickered towards the bed where Harry laid in. The hardened and furious glare he held was so strong, that it almost pressured Snape.

The corner of his eyes were twitching erratically, and the darkened features became more visible as he turned his head, giving Snape a glimpse of his face.

Snape could immediately tell what that look held; he has seen it before so many times when he's with Voldemort or with other Death Eaters.

The look of wanting to kill someone so badly.

The look of bloodlust.

The head of the Slytherin house immediately regained his composure, shaking his head to shake off any ridiculous thoughts.

Draco is a child; there's no way he could think about something so malicious.

Or at least, that's what Snape thought.

Snape snapped back to reality, grumbling when he realized that (Y/N) was still there.

'What makes you so unusually important to other people here, (Y/N)?' Snape asked to himself. 'What is your purpose here with that child, Erised?'

The professor grumbled again and walked past (Y/N), his hands behind his back and the heels of his shoes clicking on the hallway.

"I advise you to keep your distance from Potter, Rosewood." Snape said, pondering for a moment before opening his mouth to speak again. "...and Malfoy."

(Y/N) turned their body around to face Snape, with a curious look on their face. They understand why Snape wouldn't want them to be with Harry, but they didn't understand why he had to include Draco.

"Draco?" They asked. "Why?"

"There are a lot of reasons why, Rosewood." Snape sighed in annoyance. "Though if I told you, you would not understand and will find it ridiculous."

"Of course I wouldn't understand; Draco's my friend." (Y/N)'s eyebrows furrowed even more.

"Hence why it is useless to tell you why." Snape said, dismissively. (Y/N) pouted in annoyance, knowing that they wouldn't be able to get a proper answer from the head of the Slytherin house.

When Snape heard no more replies coming from the Rosewood, he began to walk away to leave the conversation.

"Professor Snape," (Y/N) called out, raising their voice a bit for Snape to hear them. "You don't have to blame yourself; it wasn't your fault."

After those words came out of their mouth, (Y/N) began running towards the hospital wing without looking back. Snape, however, stopped in his tracks with his mouth slightly parted open.

He looked back, watching as his student ran off to their destination. Snape closed his mouth, scoffing in disbelief as he had forgotten that (Y/N) knows everything, possibly even about everyone.

He continued to walk, but his grumpy expression was worse than ever. It almost scared the students that passed him by, even Gryffindors and Slytherins.

Snape couldn't care less; he just didn't like the fact that he was being wrapped around the finger of an 18 year old.

Meanwhile in the hospital room, (Y/N) panted and stared at the empty stand that was beside the bed they were sleeping in. They bit their lip, looking troubled and confused.

"The apple's gone."

»»-----　♡　-----««

I clicked my tongue as I walked out of the hospital wing, feeling confused while starting to suspect other people of taking the apple I left in the stand.

Then again, why would anyone want to take something as useless as a bitten apple?

Maybe Madam Pomfrey took it and threw it away when we left? She was in the hospital wing when we left.

But I also bumped into Professor Snape on my way here, and there is a possibility that he might've passed through the hospital wing and took it when we left. However, it felt unlikely.

It's either that, or I'm just not sure if the two suspects in my mind are the real culprits.

I sighed, wondering why I'm being such a detective because of a single apple. It's practically useless to me now, so I should just let it go and move on.

Once I made up my mind, I began to walk back to the Slytherin common room or hopefully, catch up to Alem before he gets there. I don't want all those candies to go to waste and I'd rather die than give those to Crabbe and Goyle.

However, when I passed through the courtyard, I caught a glimpse of a familiar Gryffindor walking out towards the outskirts of the castle.

I squinted my eyes as I stopped on my tracks, watching as Neville was strutting away and was carrying a small bundle of red... blanket in his arms.

I tilted my head to the side, running over to Neville to catch up to him to see what he's up to.

He was being quite discreet about it too, but he also looked like he was trembling as he strutted away.

"Neville!" I called out to the Gryffindor, raising my hand up and waving it to get his attention. I could've sworn I saw him flinch before turning his head around to my direction.

"Oh, (Y-Y/N)..." When I eventually caught up to him, I could see his frown and the small bags underneath his eyes.

Hell, even his hair is not properly combed, and I know that Neville always combs his hair.

I started to take this seriously; something must've happened to him.

"Are you okay?" I asked, now concerned for the boy. "You're not looking so good."

Neville's lip quivered, and looked like he was about to cry on the spot. I mentally prepared myself since I didn't know how to comfort people, let alone eleven year old children.

"Neville?" I reached out to him, but he seemed to have snapped back to reality as he immediately wiped the incoming tears in his eyes.

"I... uh..." He sniffled, holding the red bundle closer to his chest. "I'm fine, (Y/N). Thank you for worrying about me."

"Well you certainly don't look fine to me." I frowned. "Is something bothering you or...?"

Neville visibly gulped for a moment. It felt very sad to see Neville like this - he doesn't deserve to be this sad.

Something bad must've really happened to him, and I don't know what's inside that red blanket.

"It's about Trevor..." He replied with a wobbly and shaky voice. I blinked, knowing that he was talking about his toad.

Neville started to tear up and sniffled uncontrollably, making me cast my eyes down to the red blanket he's been carrying.

I put the two and two together as my eyes widened in realization. I looked like I was horrified at the realization that the trusty toad that Neville treasured so much is gone and dead.

Though, I'm also confused - why did Trevor die anyway?

What changed in this world that made Neville's toad die?

"Oh, Neville..." My frown deepened as I walked closer to him, placing my hands on his shoulders to pull him into a small comforting hug. "I'm so sorry... I know how much Trevor meant to you."

I could feel his tears stain my clothes, but I paid no attention to it. I continued to comfort him, listening to his sniffles and small soft sobs while holding the blanket where Trevor's body laid in.

I couldn't say anything else, except listen and be here for him if he's feeling down. It's very heartbreaking to see Neville like this, and I started to wonder if someone is behind this.

I mean, Trevor was still around by the time the third year came. He was unharmed and no one really bothered to pay attention to this toad.

So why did he die this time? and why did it happen so soon?

"I-I'm so sorry!" I snapped back to reality when Neville pulled himself away from my body with a flustered expression on his face. He seemed very embarrassed to be so close to me just a while ago.

"I didn't mean to... I-I..." The Gryffindor started to stammer as his face began to become redder and redder by the second.

I send him a small smirk, most likely out of amusement for his reaction, but also because he apologized over something so small.

"Why are you apologizing, Neville?" I asked as I crossed my arms. "You didn't do anything that was worth apologizing for."

"But I was... so close to you." Neville looked away in embarrassment. "You won't... start to think that I'm weird now, will you?"

I blink at Neville's question twice, and then thrice before letting out a small laugh.

"Merlin, why would I find you weird over something like that?" I asked while grinning at his extremely flustered face. Neville looked like he's going to faint any moment now. "Besides, I pretty much invade everyone's privacy at some point, so I think you're fine."

Neville blushed and looked away for a moment, until the color from his cheeks faded and his smile curved downwards into a frown. His eyes began to droop, as if they were half-lidded.

"...I don't think I deserve to be happy right now." He said, making me frown as well. Since I couldn't say anything that would help cheer the Gryffindor up, I gently walked up beside him and softly grabbed his shoulders.

"Come on - let's give the little fella a proper burial." I tried to make my voice as gentle as I could while beckoning Neville to follow me to a secluded area in the castle. He could only nod while letting me lead the way.

None of us said anything to each other as we walked towards our destination. I don't really think that we need to, since it'll just be awkward and agonizing. Then again, it's not like silence isn't awkward.

When we reached the area, I gently removed my hands away from Neville's shoulders and let him pick a spot to bury Trevor in.

I could see the pain and agony in his eyes as he scanned the area; he didn't want to believe his friend was dead, and he didn't want to bury him either just to wipe the positive belief from his mind.

He stopped at a particular spot and stared at it for a moment, until he lifted his head up to look at me.

"I... um..." He stuttered while gulping nervously. "I didn't bring... anything that c-can help me d-dig..."

I almost find Neville's words to be ridiculous, but I figured he was too caught up with the fact that Trevor was dead to realize that he has to bring a shovel with him to bury him.

Still, it is a bit... odd.

I do remember that I brought my wand with me, so I figured I can just create a small hole with a spell or something.

"I did bring my wand with me, but will it work?" I asked as I walked over to Neville with a shrug.

"I-I think so..." He replied. I didn't say anything else since all I need to do is create a small hole with a spell.

I don't know why, but I'm starting to feel awkward since I'm using magic to create a hole for a toad to bury.

I can feel my ancestors staring right at me from the heavens, wondering what the hell am I doing right now.

But hey, Neville needs this more than ever, and it would leave a bad taste in my mouth if I didn't do it or helped him in any way.

I knew how it felt like to be helpless in every single little thing I failed to do.

There's no way I'm not gonna let anyone experience that.

"Defodio." I said as I pointed my wand to the neat patch of dirt. The patch of dirt that my wand pointed out began to hollow itself into a small hole, while small shavings of dirt threw themselves to the side, almost as if an invisible force is digging through it.

I continued to point my wand at the dirt until I lifted it up to stop the spell once the hole is big enough for Neville to put Trevor in.

I sigh, examining the small hole and noticed that it wasn't very 'clean'.

Most of the small patches of dirt inside the hole still had huge bumps inside them and thin but visible roots can be seen from flowers that were yet to be bloomed.

"That's amazing, (Y/N)." Neville piped up behind me until he was right beside me, examining the small hole I just made. "You always have a spell for everything - it's kind of scary."

Neville lets out a forced chuckle as I shrugged, tucking my wand back inside my pocket.

"I hate to admit it, but I'm just as much of a bookworm as Hermione is." I said, which is obviously a lie.

I don't do the book reading - that's Alem's job.

I just got these spells by listing them out from the Harry Potter wiki in my phone's notes, and I never really expected any of them to work.

"Well, I can see why you and Hermione get along so well." Neville said as he began to kneel down to the ground. "You two are most likely the smartest students in the castle. I do wish I was more like you two."

"You exaggerate, Neville." I said while letting out a small but nervous laugh. "I don't think I even have the brain capacity to be as great and smart as Hermione is. Now, when it comes to Alem, that's a different story - I can't compete with him when it comes to intelligence."

I bring my eyes down to Neville's kneeled form. "And you shouldn't say that you're not smart or something like that, Neville."

"Everyone is special in their own way." I said, but the Gryffindor didn't really respond to me. I didn't say anything else that will help him gain more self-confidence, considering the mood right now.

Neville quietly brought the red blanket down to the hole, his frown deepening every second until soft sobs escaped his quivering lips.

Eventually, his sobs turned into small cries as he brought his hands up to his face to cover and wipe the tears that flowed out of his eyes.

I frown and crouched down as well, rubbing circles on Neville's back as an act of comfort but I don't think it's working all that well.

I don't really know what to do or say when someone acts like this, except listen to them.

Of course, I always pretended to care when something bad happened to my classmates back in my world.

What happens to them is none of my business after all and they're pretty much irrelevant in my eyes.

But here, everything is so different. I didn't even know that I can be this genuine towards someone, or be caring to other people when they need help.

I look up to the sky and let Neville cry out for a few minutes before patting his shoulders as I stood up, lending my hand out for the Gryffindor to take.

"Come on, Neville; say your proper goodbyes to your friend." I said in a gentle voice. "Before he goes away forever."

Neville's cries decreased in volume as he flickered his eyes over to my extended hand. He sniffles and takes it before standing up wobbly.

The corners of his eyes are red and puffy, and his nose is also red - with few snots visible. Both of our hands were intertwined together, and neither of us refused to let go.

I didn't mind, since I do know that Neville needs every comfort he can get right now.

"T-Trevor, I...I-I..." He keeps pausing and hiccuping, eventually leading him to cry loudly again as his grip in my hand tightened. "T-Thank you f-for being m-my friend a-and... and being t-there for m-me, even... e-even if you b-bring me tr-trouble most o-of the t-time...!"

"I-I don't w-want you to g-go a-away...!" Neville continues crying, making me awkwardly look around to see if there are any students nearby to hear him and see us burying a toad in the school grounds.

When the Gryffindor didn't say anything else from that point on, I retrieved my wand from my pocket and pointed it at the small hole.

I casted Defodio again, but this time, to bury and cover the hole where Trevor was buried in.

"Rest in peace, little buddy." I muttered sadly as I felt Neville placing his head on my shoulder, sobbing uncontrollably. I could feel his tears staining my clothes, but of course, I didn't mind.

I didn't say anything and instead, I placed my hand on Neville's shoulder and pulling him gently towards me.

It took the Gryffindor a while to stop crying loudly, but when he did, he sniffled and retreated away from me while wiping his red, puffy eyes with his purple pajama sleeves.

He looked like a mess.

"Come, Neville." I gently opened my mouth while extending my hand out. "It's almost time for us to head to the Great Hall."

Neville raised his head, sniffling and hiccuping as he stared at my extended hand. He sobbed softly for a moment again before taking it with his shaky hand. I frowned, feeling the wobbly and trembling sensation in his hand.

I do wish I could have done more to help him besides helping him bury his dead toad and listening to him cry for 30 minutes.

Both of us didn't say anything as we were walking closer towards the spot where I approached Neville.

When we reached it, Neville gently tugged on my hand, making me stop on my tracks and turn to look at him in a soft confused look.

"T-Thank you for... coming with me..." Neville's voice was almost silent like a whisper, but gentle as water flowing down a stream.

I could still hear what he was saying, and since he's in a very vulnerable state right now, I send him a comforting and reassuring smile to tell him that everything is going to be alright.

"It's no problem, Neville." I said, tilting my head gently to the side. "I'd always be here to help you out if you need some help."

"Um..." Neville gulped before continuing. "Ron was supposed to come with... me, but I heard about what happened and I..."

'Oh shit' I mentally cursed to myself, since I am practically the one at fault for letting Ron bite that apple. If he didn't do that, he would be helping Neville right now.

"I... am sorry, Neville. I think that's my fault right there..." I scratch the back of my head bashfully while waiting for the Gryffindor's response.

"It's okay, (Y/N). I know that you four did all you can do last night to fight the bad guys." Neville smiled understandingly while sniffling. "Besides, you're a very kind person, (Y/N). Even if you did something wrong, I'd still forgive you."

'I'm... not a kind person, Neville.' I thought to myself while watching Neville smiling at me innocently.

I don't know if I should be glad for myself or feel pity for him because he doesn't know anything about the horrible things I've done to the people back in my world.

"You're really one of the sweetest person alive, you know that?" I shake my head with a smile. My words made Neville fluster as he started to cast his gaze downwards and to the hands that were still intertwined.

I could see his cheeks turning red for a second, lifting his eyes from our hands and gazing into my eyes with a very determined look.

"(Y/N), I-"

"(Y/N)?" Neville was interrupted by a familiar voice calling out my name. Both of our heads turn to the corridor and saw Draco walking over to us with his pale skin almost making him glow in the seemingly hot and clear day.

"Oh, Draco." I acknowledge his presence as he kept walking towards us with his usual squinted glare becoming more visible as he grows nearer.

He stops right in front of us, glaring right at me with his piercing dull silver eyes.

I blink and took notice of the slight bags that formed under his eyes, indicating that he hasn't been sleeping well.

I took my eyes away from his bags and looked back to his eyes, noticing that they're back to their usual stern yet lively glow.

Which is weird, considering he looked so tired and pissed when he first showed his face to us.

Draco didn't say anything as he flickered his gaze towards Neville and down to our intertwined hands with a scowl.

His eyes darkened, making me shiver for a moment but reasoned with myself that it was just probably the bangs that covered his eyes that made them darken or something.

Neville, however, visibly flinched and hesitatingly retracted his hand away from mine. The warmth from his hand disappeared, and I somewhat began to miss it.

"W-Well, (Y/N)," Neville spoke up. "I should head back to my common room. I-I'll see you later in the Great Hall."

"Oh, alright." I said and watched as Neville walked away while waving back at me with a nervous smile. "Take care of yourself, Neville!" I called out after him. He eventually disappeared into the corridor, making me turn my attention back to the Malfoy heir, who stopped scowling and returned back to his neutral deadpan look.

"I came to the hospital wing to see you, but you weren't there." Draco spoke up first.

"Let me guess; Alem told you the news that I was awake?" I asked while crossing my arms.

"Well, I did ask him first." He shrugged, casting his gaze somewhere. "That, and why he was carrying a mountain-full of wizard candies."

"He didn't give those to Crabbe and Goyle, did he?" I frowned and started to panic. Draco took notice of my nervous behavior and cocked his eyebrow up in amusement.

"No, and I don't really see any reason why he would give those two your candies." Draco replied, returning his gaze back on me. "If he did, then you must've done something to anger him."

He paused before throwing me a smirk. "You didn't make your brother mad, did you?"

I roll my eyes at his question and waved my hand, almost as if I'm shoo'ing him away from me. "I always make Alem mad, but he wouldn't do something like that." I respond, but clearly unsure because I know that Alem's threats can be real.

"I like to believe that he has standards when it comes to things like this." I added, making Draco hum understandingly while keeping the same smirk plastered on his face.

His look clearly says that he doesn't believe me and what I just said right there.

"Come on, knucklehead." I sigh and started to walk over to the outdoor corridor as I beckoned my platinum blonde haired roommate to follow me. "I'm going back to the Slytherin common room."

"Ah, wait for me!" Draco called out and started to jog towards me, stopping when he was finally beside me. We were oddly close with each other - I can feel Draco's shoulders touching mine.

What's weirder and awkward is that neither of us said a word as we walked over towards the Slytherin common room.

It almost felt very tense and suffocating.

It wasn't until I noticed his intense glare towards my forehead, making me assume that he was looking at the head injury I got from last night in the chambers.

I couldn't tell if his glare was out of concern, observation or anger, since I was trying to avoid his eyes until he stopped glaring so intensely.

I started to remember the words that Snape told me;

"I advise you to stay away from Potter and Malfoy, Rosewood."

I thought he was only saying that because I was starting to badly influence the Malfoy heir. I mean, Salazar, he is from a noble family of wizards and is part of the Sacred Twenty-Nine.

I don't think Lucius or even Narcissa would like it if their only son is being influenced by someone who is known to be a troublemaker already at their first year.

Now, picking up some weird vibes from Draco, I can somewhat tell why he would want me to 'stay away' from him.

Since I got the hints from Dumbledore that he might be the other boy that also likes me, I started to feel more awkward and unnerving.

Still, I ignored the somewhat eerie aura and vibe that I'm starting to pick up from him. I don't want to assume the wrong idea or anything; I have to know or make sure if he's okay and won't cause me any trouble.

If he will, then I just have to fix it and bring everything back to normal. Everything has to be played out exactly how it should be.

"Why did you ask your brother?" He finally spoke up after minutes of silence between the two of us. Our walking pace slowed down as we started to converse to each other again.

However, that was partly the reason why my pace slowed down; I was confused at his question and what it meant.

"Ask what?" I asked him back since I wanted more specific details.

"Why did you ask him to keep me in the room and not follow you?" Once his question became more specific, I gulped and looked away from Draco in guilt.

Damn, how should I spell out 'you're a tattletale and will mostly get the four of us in trouble again' to him?

"I...uh..." I stammered, not knowing how to respond to him since I don't really want to hurt his feelings.

"(Y/N)..." His slow yet gentle voice made me stop in my tracks since his tone of voice was out of place and odd.

I suddenly felt cold shivers running down my spine, and it almost triggered my flight and fight response.

"You don't hate me, do you?" His tone suddenly became sad, and the guilt that I felt is now becoming stronger.

I couldn't help but frown sadly; I didn't mean to hurt his feelings or anything like that.

"I don't." I replied truthfully. "I could never hate you; why would you even ask something like that?"

It's true that Draco has made some stuff in the series that made me think he's an asshole, but I wouldn't actually despise him. He is what Narcissa said to Snape; a child.

He's a bully, but how he was in the series was because of how Lucius raised him and made him believe that every other students, who aren't purebloods, are below him.

"I just asked Alem to do that, because you always tell professors about what we're up to." I sigh as I finally answered his question from before. "You did the same thing to Professor McGonagall last time; how could I risk myself and the others to leave you be, and expect you to do nothing this time?"

Draco hummed softly, as if he understood something in what I said.

The sad expression in his face loosened, which made me feel a lot better since I don't want to feel any more worse than I do right now with this boy.

"I understand, and... apologize for that." His face scrunched up in discomfort at the word 'apologize'.

He seems to be a bit uncomfortable with lowkey admitting that he was wrong, which is kind of funny but a huge progress in Draco's part.

At least, his pride isn't as big as it was in the series here.

"Though it's quite unbelievable, it feels like you're the only other person in this entire castle who can understand me." He said, making me blink in surprise of how straightforward he was with that.

I understand why he would think that though; Crabbe, Goyle, and Zabini are simply hanging out with him and respecting him because he's from a noble family.

How can you consider them to be 'friends' when it feels like they're being obligated to have manners when they're with you at all times?

"I don't want Potter and the others to ruin that for me by constantly getting you in trouble." He continued.

'I don't think he realizes that when he tells other professors about what we're doing, he's also getting me in trouble.' I thought to myself, but decided to shrug this thought away since I do acknowledge how thoughtful and concerned he is about me, and I appreciate that.

"It's still weird seeing you apologize, Draco." I said with a laugh, trying to lessen the tense between the two of us. The platinum blonde haired boy became flustered and pouted angrily as he looked away in embarrassment.

"D-Don't get me wrong; you're still just as annoying as the other students here." He muttered. I chuckle and patted his shoulder.

"I'll take that as a compliment." I said and turned around to skip away happily, until I felt his hand grab mine and tug me back to stop in my tracks.

"All jokes aside," His tone changed again, and made me turn my head around to place my attention on him. "If you're ever facing a difficult situation next time,"

My breath hitched when I saw his widened yet dull silver eyes staring right back at me intensely.

I could feel his gaze pierce right through my head, that it almost rendered me speechless.

"Please don't lie and push me away like that." His voice was small and soft, but held a very dangerous and eerie tone to it. I couldn't even say anything to him. "I don't know why, but I feel... strangely upset at what you did."

"SSdtIG5vdCB1c2VkIHRvIHRoZXNlIGZlZWxpbmdzIGp1c3QgeWV0LApCdXQsIHBsZWFzZSBkb24ndCBqdXN0IGlnbm9yZSB0aGVtIG9yIHB1c2ggdGhlbSBhd2F5LgpEb24ndCBkbyB0aGF0LgpEb24ndCBkbyB0aGF0LgpEb24ndCBkbyB0aGF0LgpJIGRvbid0IHdhbnQgdG8gZ2V0IHlvdXIgbGVncyBhbGwgbGltcC4KSSBkb24ndCB3YW50IHRvIGhhdmUgeW91IHN0dWNrIGluIGEgd2hlZWxjaGFpci4KSnVzdCBkb24ndCBkaXNyZWdhcmQgdGhlbS4="

I blink, not understanding what Draco just said, since it all sounded like a garble or a glitch of some sort.

However, when I turned to look at my housemate, he didn't look eerie or suspicious at all.

In fact, he looked a bit confused as well. He blinked twice before glancing down at our hands, and blushed heavily.

Draco immediately retracted his hand away and took a few steps away from me.

"I-I wasn't holding your hand or anything!" He stammered, but I wasn't paying attention to how flustered he was right now. I blinked again, confused at what just happened.

"Draco, what did you just say?" I asked, tilting my head to the side.

"Huh?" Draco stopped blushing, his facial expression changing into a more confused one, just like mine.

"What you just said...?" I asked again as I made hand motions for emphasis. "Just now? I didn't catch that..."

"What are you talking about, (Y/N)?" Draco scoffed, and seemed like he didn't like how I was asking too many questions out of skepticism right now. "I didn't even say anything."

"That's... weird." I frowned, crossing my arms as I glanced down to the floor in doubt. "I could've sworn I heard you say something, but I couldn't make them out."

'Was it an auditory hallucination or something?' I thought to myself, holding my head as it began to throb painfully again.

"You did hit your head pretty hard." Draco sighed. "Sometimes, I can't help but worry about you, (Y/N)."

"Let's just get back to the common room." I shook my head gently and walked beside Draco, resuming our way back to the Slytherin common room.

I was still pretty out of it, and started to think whether if everything what Draco said was real or not, especially with the 'upset' part.

"If you are feeling lightheaded, you can lean on me if you want." Draco said, making me look at him with an appreciative smile.

"Thanks, Draco." I said as we continued our way without saying anything to each other.

I don't know why, but I preferred it if Draco and I are now giving the silent treatment to each other when we're alone now.

»»-----　♡　-----««

Everyone gathered up in the Great Hall as the clock ticked to 12 PM. Students from different years chatted excitedly about what they were going to do this summer while tugging on their robes and adjusting their hats in their head to make sure they wouldn't fall off.

The Great Hall seemed very grand today; banners that are going to be used to represent the house that wins the house cup, were hung up from the ceiling.

The light and flame from each candle seemed to be brighter than usual, giving the hall a much more lively and merry atmosphere.

(Y/N) and Alem were both bickering on their way to the Great Hall as they were both confused about who owns the hats that were placed in their heads.

Apparently, they were switched out when (Y/N) thought that Alem's was theirs.

"Seriously, Alem - it's just a hat! Besides, if it fits in your head, then there shouldn't be any problem!" The older twin exclaimed and pulled the hat down to prevent Alem from forcefully taking it from their head.

"No. No way! If it's mine, it's mine! I don't want my hat to get any of your hairs, (Y/N)!" Alem had their hat in his hand while he tried to pull his hat from their head. (Y/N) shook their head as a way of prying his hands off.

There's no way they would take their hat back, especially when Alem already crumpled it under his grip like that.

"I'm too young to have any hair fall out of my head, you idiot!" (Y/N) exclaimed again, and thus, the Rosewood Twins' bickering continued up to the Slytherin table, where Draco and the other Slytherins were having their faces covered by their hands due to how embarrassing certain Slytherins were in the table.

Especially if they were going to win the house cup this year.

Though, they found it odd that the banners weren't changed into the design of their house.

Harry just got released from the hospital wing and immediately changed into his uniform to head over to the Great Hall, eager to see (Y/N) again and see if they're alright.

To his relief, they are fine. Though, the injury on their forehead made him bitter again, since he thinks that he wasn't looking after (Y/N) enough.

He wanted to come over and talk to them, but because the feast and the announcement of house cup winner is about to start, he begrudgingly sat down on the Gryffindor table, next to Ron, and across Hermione.

"I mean, honestly!" Ron sighed in annoyance. "Who would even put such thing as a paralyzing potion inside an apple? How did (Y/N) even get that thing?"

Hermione rolled her eyes as she leaned closer towards the two, but not too close that it would make it seem like she was whispering. "Maybe Fred and George gave it to them as a prank?"

"Come on now, Hermione." Ron looked back at her with an 'are you serious?' look. "My brothers do pranks, but trust me when I say that they wouldn't put something as dangerous as that, especially in something as basic as an apple."

"Really? How would you know?" Hermione cocked her eyebrow up.

"They're my brothers, Hermione." Ron sighed again, looking away from the girl to end the conversation. Harry didn't contribute anything to the conversation, and only listened.

He found it odd that he didn't know that (Y/N) was carrying something like that, but chose not to dwell on it since it doesn't concern him.

Meanwhile, in the teacher's table, Dumbledore scanned the Great Hall for a moment before glancing over to McGonagall to give her the signal that the announcing will start now.

McGonagall nodded and picked up the small golden spoon on her plate, before bringing it over to her goblet and clinking it loudly, making the students' attention gather towards the teacher's table, and to Dumbledore, who just stood up and walked over to his owl-designed podium.

The Rosewood twins stopped bickering and paid their full attention to the headmaster. (Y/N), however, took a deep breath and started to pray for themselves for one of the cringiest moments in the series.

Well, in their opinion, it is one of the cringiest moments.

'Oh, Jesus, take the wheel.' (Y/N) thought sadly to themselves before hearing the headmaster out.

"Another year gone!" Dumbledore's voice echoed around the Great Hall cheerfully, making other students smile due to how enthusiastic he was. "And I must trouble you with an old man's wheezing waffle before we sink our teeth into our delicious feast."

Some students laughed and chuckled at what he said.

Dumbledore paused for a moment before continuing. "What a year it has been! Hopefully, your heads are all a little fuller than they were; you have the whole summer ahead to get them nice and empty before next year starts."

The headmaster scanned the Great Hall for a moment before taking a deep breath to continue his speech. "Now, as I understand it, the house cup here needs awarding, and the points stand thus;"

(Y/N) quietly grabbed a goblet of apple juice from their side and began to sip on it, ready to hear all the point-awarding stuff Dumbledore is about to make.

(Y/N) kind of felt bad that they were badmouthing their headmaster in their head, but hey, they couldn't help it.

"In fourth place, Gryffindor, with three hundred and twelve points." The Gryffindor table groaned sadly and angrily at how they were in last place.

Harry, Ron, and Hermione looked down in shame, since they knew that they played a huge part in the reason why Gryffindor has the lowest points this year.

"In third, Hufflepuff, with three hundred and fifty-two points." The Hufflepuffs remained silent and indifferent about the announcement of their points.

(Y/N) glanced over to the Hufflepuff table, hopefully to stare at Cedric for a little while, since they won't be seeing each other for a few months.

They did see him,

But he was already staring back.

"In second, Ravenclaw, with four hundred and twenty-six points." (Y/N) blushed and looked away, loudly sipping on their apple juice to regain their composure after being caught by Cedric.

They didn't look back and kept their attention to Dumbledore instead.

"And finally, in first place, Slytherin, with four hundred and seventy-two points." When Dumbledore announced that, a storm of cheering and stamping broke out in the Slytherin table.

(Y/N) could only sigh and refill their goblet with another apple juice, and Alem felt somewhat happy, though this reaction from his fellow housemates are going overboard.

Draco was about to join in on the fun, until he saw that (Y/N) was only sitting and didn't look to happy about it, which made him skeptical and keep himself in his seat.

(Y/N) didn't even want to know how many lengths the Slytherins had to take in order to regain the one hundred and fifty points that they lost from a month ago.

The older twin didn't gain points during this year for the Slytherins either, which makes it harder for (Y/N) to celebrate since they practically did nothing,

and all of that will change in a few moments anyway.

"Yes, yes, well done, Slytherin." Dumbledore congratulated the house briefly until he raised his hand, indicating that there's something else he needed to address. "However, recent events must be taken into account."

The room went very still at this, and the Slytherins, who were celebrating, stopped with their smiles fading a little.

"Ahem," coughed Dumbledore as he scanned over to the Gryffindor table, eyeing the golden trio. "I have a few last minute points to dish out. Let me see..."

"First - to Mr. Ronald Weasley..." When Ron's name came out of Dumbledore's mouth, Ron's face became pale - either from the embarrassment or from the shock.

Ron had to look over to Harry, and Hermione to confirm that Dumbledore really did call his name.

"...for the best-played game of chess Hogwarts has seen in many years, I award the Gryffindor house fifty points." The Gryffindor's cheers were loud and echoed around the Great Hall, that it reached over to the bewitched ceiling.

(Y/N) took another large sip to drown out all the cringe that was starting to enter their body.

They were thankful that Percy helped them recollect their thoughts, especially after seeing the older Weasley brother telling other prefects of how proud he is that Ron, his younger brother, managed to get past McGonagall's giant chess set.

"Such a precious boy. Too bad he won't be as precious when he goes to the Ministry." The older Rosewood twin muttered to themselves while taking another small sip from their goblet.

"Second, to Miss Hermione Granger..." Hermione's face became red - her brown eyes widening in surprise at the mention of her name from Dumbledore. "...for the use of cool logic in the face of fire, I award the Gryffindor house fifty points."

The brown haired Gryffindor buried her face in her arms as everyone in the Gryffindor table congratulated and clapped for Hermione.

Both Harry and (Y/N) suspected that she was crying from joy, but they couldn't really tell for sure.

"Third, to Mr. Harry Potter..." The room suddenly became deadly quiet; everyone wanted to know what Harry did. "...for pure nerve and outstanding courage, I award the Gryffindor house sixty points."

The Gryffindors started to yell and cheer at the same time, knowing that the Gryffindors and the Slytherins are now tied for the house cup.

Draco, and Alem's eyebrows furrowed in skepticism, wondering why Dumbledore is giving so many points to the Gryffindors.

In the last minute too, might I add.

(Y/N) sighed again as they poured themselves another goblet of apple juice, until Alem slapped their hand away from the pitcher and told them to stop drinking so much.

(Y/N) rolled their eyes and stuck their tongue out, but complied, nonetheless.

Dumbledore raised his hand again, rendering the room silent as everyone listened to what he had to say next.

"There are all kinds of courage - it takes a great deal of bravery to stand up to our enemies, but just as much to stand up to our friends, even in our darkest of times." (Y/N) frowned and glanced over to the Gryffindor table, where Neville sat sadly. He wasn't even paying attention to Dumbledore.

"I, therefore, award fourty points to Mr. Neville Longbottom." Another set of loud cheers erupted in the Great Hall, as Neville snapped out of his daze and became pale with shock as every Gryffindor near him started to hug him in piles.

Hermione, and Ron pulled Harry into a hug, overcoming with happiness as they had just won the house cup.

The trio looked over to the Slytherin table, where (Y/N) sat with Alem. Their face was deadpan, as their head was rested on the palm of their hand while their gaze was targeted towards Dumbledore.

They felt bad that (Y/N) wasn't in Gryffindor to celebrate along with them; they were just as important when the whole stone issue happened, and they consider (Y/N) as part of their group already.

'Huh. I thought Neville only got awarded with ten points.' Meanwhile, (Y/N) thought skeptically and started to question everything they knew about their first year.

Dumbledore raised his hand to stop the loud cheers of the Gryffindor, making it seem like he still has something more to say.

"There's more?" Hermione questioned, until she remembered that one of the crucial people who went to the trapdoor with them were yet to be awarded with house points.

"When one is willing to step into harm's way for justice for their friends, this also takes a great deal of bravery, regardless of the divide between those friends." Dumbledore's eyes left the Gryffindor table, and flickered them over to the Slytherin table.

He watched as (Y/N)'s face became a mixture of confused and surprise; they definitely knew what was going to happen in the next few seconds.

"Therefore, I award fourty points to Mr./Miss (Y/N) Rosewood." The room was quiet for a few seconds, until the loud cheers of the Slytherins erupted and echoed.

They were congratulating and clapping at (Y/N) for giving them fourty points and not make it seem like Slytherin had lost to the Gryffindors.

Meanwhile, (Y/N) was shocked. They hadn't felt or known the feeling of being cheered by their peers or getting recognized for what they had done, so this was really new to them.

Alem was even patting and clapping for his twin's success, to his surprise. Draco was cheering for (Y/N) - he'd known that they'd be able to make the Slytherin house proud someday.

When (Y/N) started to take all of this in, with their mouth slightly parted open, their lips curled up into the most genuine and heartwarming smile they had ever done.

Small blushes of red were tinting their cheeks, and they felt the happiest they had ever been.

Harry, Draco, Neville, Ron, Cedric, and Hermione had seen this, and seemed to have blushed due to how precious (Y/N) really is if they're smiling genuinely. This was the first time they had seen (Y/N) smile like this.

Cedric, and Hermione were the first to look away and recover from (Y/N)'s smile, with a blush still visible on their cheeks.

Of course, Snape had seen the whole thing as well, and his dark eyes seemed to have been brought back to life. The way they smiled brought the potions master back to when Lily Evans would still hang out with him, and play with him when they were younger.

Snape shook his head and removed those thoughts away from his mind, as he took a mental note that there's no use in dwelling over the past, and avoid himself from thinking and comparing (Y/N) to Lily.

"It seems that both the Gryffindor and the Slytherin house are tied for the house cup." Dumbledore nodded in approval as he scanned the Great Hall again, eyeing the students who had confused faces as to which house would win the house cup.

"Now, I am aware that we do need to have a winner for the house cup..." The headmaster paused for a moment, before smiling at the students before him. "However, it does not mean that we can't have two winners at once."

(Y/N) almost spat out the apple juice that they were drinking out of their goblet. This was certainly a new scenario in this world, and they didn't know how to respond or react to that. Even the trio were shocked about this.

"I strongly believe that both houses deserve to win the house cup for their courageous and admirable performances this year." Dumbledore added. "Facing risks and danger, despite knowing that you might lose everything, all for the sake of justice and the unbreakable friendship from the students, who have done this last night, in each houses, I believe that's a very wonderful thing."

The Gryffindors and the Slytherins looked at each other, unsure of what to feel about this. They have always been the opposite of each other, and have been at 'war' for god knows how long.

They haven't heard of Slytherins being friends with Gryffindors before.

Some Hufflepuffs and the Ravenclaws certainly didn't see this coming; they expected Gryffindors to overthrow the Slytherin after that huge amount of points Dumbledore just gave to them.

They almost forgotten about the other Slytherin that helped Harry face Quirrell in the trapdoor.

"Therefore, I announce that Slytherin and Gryffindor wins the house cup!" Dumbledore's voice was loud and clear, yet the students who had heard his announcement didn't know how to feel about two houses winning the house cup. It certainly didn't happen before, up until now.

Everyone glanced at each other in troubled mutters, until a loud, slow clap came from the Hufflepuff table.

Everyone looked over, and saw Cedric Diggory clapping his hands slowly while smiling happily as he looked over to (Y/N) with a heartwarming look.

Anyone could obviously tell that Cedric was somehow proud of (Y/N) for accomplishing something like that - getting two house rivals to win the house cup together.

(Y/N) blushed and kept their head down, flustered at how the Hufflepuff was looking at them.

Alem playfully nudged them, making (Y/N) slap their brother's forearm for embarrassing them any further.

Cedric continued clapping, until another Hufflepuff joined,

and another,

and another,

until everyone just started to clap in appreciation and happiness for the two houses.

Eventually, everyone was now smiling and looking at the Gryffindors and the Slytherins, proud that they've managed to change something beautiful this year.

Even if it's not often seen when it comes to the four houses in Hogwarts, unity is something every student wished to have.

Laughter and happy yells started to echo around the Great Hall, as Dumbledore smiled at the students.

The headmaster clapped his hands while gazing up at the banners that were hanging up in the ceiling. The empty design of the banners eventually began to change;

The left side where a column of banners were hanging, changed and dyed into red. A towering lion, that represented the house of Gryffindor, was standing proudly at the center, with golden and seemingly sparkling laces were placed on the rim of the banners.

On the right side, the banners began to dye in dark green. A white serpent slithered itself into the center of the banner, as to represent the house of Slytherin. Silver laces were also placed on the rim of the banners.

Everyone cheered happily for each other, even (Y/N), who was now standing up and hugging Alem as tightly as they could. Happiness and a small twinge of love was coursing through every nerve in their body.

They were overcome with joy.

Draco could only watch (Y/N), smiling to himself when he saw the older Rosewood twin being so happy. The happiness of his crush, is also his happiness.

McGonagall and Snape shook each other's hands, acknowledging the victory of their houses.

Filch, Sprout, and Hagrid congratulated both of the heads of the houses that won the house cup, with a smile.

The sky was clear, and the sun was blazing up in the sky as everyone in the Great Hall grabbed their hats and threw it up in the air, as a way of celebrating the end of the year.

Meanwhile, Erised leaned from a nearby pillar outside the Great Hall, looking down to the floor with a thoughtful look on their face.

Their hands were tucked on their orange hoodie, and they seem to be biting the inside of their cheeks while they were deep inside their thoughts.

The strawberry haired child began to push their hair back while smiling bitterly, and glancing over beside them, where another pillar stood.

"This could be very dangerous for (Y/N), you know?" They asked, smirking over at the familiar figure from behind the pillar. If one could watch close enough, a strand of (H/C) hair could be seen from the pillar.

The figure's face became bitter and sour, as they crossed their arms and gripped their arm tightly out of spite. "I don't care about them." They spoke in a rather adult and mature voice.

"I just want Alem to..."

Before they could even finish their sentence, they already disappeared into thin air, leaving behind a single white lily from where they once stood.

Erised blinked, ruffling their hair in frustration as they began to walk away from the entrance and to the empty corridors of the castle.

"Both of them have always been so selfish..." They muttered spitefully to themselves, scowling, until they also disappeared into thin air.

»»-----　♡　-----««

The feast ended, and it was now 15 PM (3 pm). Everyone was in their common room, packing up and getting ready to go back home for the summer.

Some were crying because it was their last year. Some were happily chatting with each other, and savor their last moments this year in Hogwarts.

While some are being...

"That's gross! Why do you have my shirt in your drawer, (Y/N)!?" Alem shrieked while grabbing the red shirt from (Y/N)'s arms in a haste, stuffing it inside his trunk.

The other Rosewood twin suddenly became offended, and started to smack him playfully a few times.

"Stop acting like that! You're making it seem like I always dirty up any clothes I use!" (Y/N) shrieked back as they started to tear up out of embarrassment.

Draco could only sigh as the twins started to bicker once more, since he knows that he can't do anything about it.

'Honestly, when can I have a peaceful moment whenever I am with these two?' Draco thought to himself, but knew that he wouldn't even get a moment of peace when (Y/N) and Alem are with him.

"Oh shoot, we're going to be late, (Y/N)!" Alem exclaimed as he looked over to clock on the wall of their dorm room. (Y/N) winced and almost cried again, rubbing their ears in discomfort as their head started to throb in pain once more.

"Don't be so loud, Alem." They mumbled sadly. "My headache is getting worse."

"Sorry." Alem briefly apologized, his voice now lowered to comply to his twin's wish.

"But, we really should go. We should be leaving by 3:30." Alem continued, patting his trunk while going over to the corner of his bed, where Garrett, his owl, was sleeping peacefully inside his golden cage.

"Okay okay..." (Y/N) sighed, placing more clothes inside their trunk and some stuff, since they weren't done packing up just yet. "I'm almost done. You can go ahead, and wait for me by the Hogwarts Express train."

"Are you sure? Don't you want to go together?" The other twin asked worriedly. "Your headache is acting up, and I don't want you to faint on your way to the train without anyone catching you."

"I'll be fine, Alem." (Y/N) said dismissively.

Alem frowned, but didn't say anything, and trusted (Y/N)'s judgement. He nodded, tugging on his Slytherin robe as he walked out of the room.

It was now (Y/N) and Draco left in the room, making the Rosewood twin facepalm internally.

They forgot that Draco was still in the room.

"Ahem," Draco coughed out, trying to get (Y/N)'s attention. They turned their head around, wondering why Draco called them out again this time.

"I found this," The Malfoy pulled out a familiar diary that was in (Y/N)'s favorite color, and pushed it towards them while glancing away in a fluster. "under my bed. I figured it might be yours because of the stickers."

(Y/N) was shocked, as they have finally found the bloody diary they were looking for in the past few months.

They felt dumb when Draco said that it was under his bed, though they don't remember anything about dropping the diary somewhere this room.

However, they shook this thought away from their head, and took it from Draco's hand with an appreciative grin.

"Thank you, Draco! I was looking for it everywhere!" They said as they began to examine the diary.

For a diary that was stuck under a bed for months, it looks clean and untouched. Though, when (Y/N) flipped the diary where the lock was, the lock seemed to have a few dents on it.

Almost as if someone was trying to pry it open.

(Y/N) hummed and thought that Draco probably cleaned it for them, before tossing it inside their backpack. "Honestly, thank you for finding it, Draco."

"S-Stop thanking me a lot." His face scrunched up in discomfort, yet a small blush of embarrassment was tinting his pale cheeks. "It doesn't feel right, especially coming from you."

"The least you can say is 'welcome', you know?" They chuckled, and didn't say anything else when Draco went silent.

Once (Y/N) zipped their backpack close and gently slammed their trunk shut, they push their hair back with their fingers and looked over to the Malfoy, who was now wrapping his Slytherin scarf around his neck.

"I'm heading out now, Draco." They said. "Do you want to come with?"

Draco was surprised at their question, and shakily shook his head sideways. "N-No, I still have..." He paused for a moment, thinking what his next words should be. "Some things I need to take care of."

"Oh," (Y/N) blinked, noticing Draco's sudden change of behavior, before shrugging and ignoring it in the next second. "Okay then... I'll see you at the train."

"Ah, before you leave," Draco hastily called out to the twin, who was about to open the door. (Y/N) turned around with a hum of curiosity escaping their lips.

"Could you... could you wear the necklace I gave you at all times this summer?" Draco asked while fiddling with his fingers. (Y/N) thought that it was an odd request, but couldn't reject him, since those necklaces are a pair after all.

"Sure, why not." They said, nonchalantly. Draco smiled at this, waving at them as they waved back and left the room without saying anything else.

He stood idly in his spot for a few seconds before crashing down onto his bed, covering his eyes with his arms with a smile of satisfaction.

"At least, I'll know where you are at all times when we're not together this summer."

»»-----　♡　-----««

I stretch my arms and skipped happily down the stairs and into the Slytherin common room.

Many Slytherins were still gathered up here, hugging and chatting at each other. I couldn't care less about any of them, until a familiar dark haired girl walked over to me.

"Rosewood," Pansy called out my name, giving my full attention towards her with a deadpan look.

"Um-" I began to scratch my head, not knowing what to say since I don't want to deal with any of her bullshit right now.

"I know what you're thinking, so don't judge me right away." She spoke up first, sighing in annoyance. Well, that certainly caught me off guard. "I'm only here to say something, that's all."

"Well, what is it?" I tilted my head to the side, making sure that my tone of voice isn't coming off as rude to her.

Pansy's face became flushed red, as she glanced down to the floor to avoid my gaze.

"Um... I-" Pansy began to stutter. "Th...T-Tha...nk..." She continued to stutter, and I absolutely have no clue what she's trying to say.

All I can do is stand there, and look at her in the most confused face I can do.

"W-What I meant to say was...!" She exclaimed and finally looked at me, which caught me off guard once again. "I'll see you next school year!"

I blinked, and stayed silent for a while. I don't really know what or how to respond to that.

Since when was Pansy even nice to me, or told me something like that?

I was about to open my mouth to speak, until she started to make unintelligible noises and waving her hands around in embarrassment.

"G-Goodbye!" She ran off before I can even say anything.

I blinked again, and scratched my head in confusion.

What the hell was that all about?

I couldn't do anything but shrug it off. However, I took note of how 'nice' Pansy was to me today, which is a new thing. I thought she was going to insult and make fun of me again for the next five minutes.

I was about to get out of the common room, squeezing myself between some students who were blocking the way, until two people were standing right in front of the entrance.

I groaned and walked over to the students, poking one of their shoulders.

"Um," I called out for their attention, the girl was the first to turn around and look at me. "Could you please walk away from the-"

I stopped mid-sentence when I suddenly noticed how her face scrunched up in pure terror, as if she was completely terrified of me, and like I was a monster of some sort.

She brought her hands up to the boy, slapping his arm and grabbed it tightly.

"I-It's..." She choked out, and the boy seemed to have the same expression as well when he landed his eyes on me.

I tilted my head to the side, now confused and a little bit pissed as well.

"I don't know if I'm allowed to say this, but don't you think it's quite rude to look at someone like that?" I asked, toning down the hostility in my voice. They flinched, shaking and glancing away from me.

Good lord, what the fuck did I do? Is my face really that ugly and monstrous?

They look like they've been thrown around the room a couple of times; their hair was a mess, huge dark bags were under their eyes, and their uniform and robes weren't even worn properly.

If they weren't looking at me like I'm a demigorgon, or something, I would've assumed that they fucked in one of their dorm rooms and didn't want anyone else to know.

"P-Please d-do-don't tell..." She stuttered and immediately covered her mouth, like she just stopped herself in time to not say anything else up until that point.

"Miss, if you're having problems in general, please do get some help from Madam Pomfrey or Professor Snape." I said, ruffling my hair in frustration at this point. I don't know why I'm getting so impatient today.

Maybe it's because of my headache?

"You two honestly look like you've been taking way too many drugs in one day." I added.

"I..." The boy spoke up, covering his mouth as well as flurries of cold sweat started to invade his forehead. "I think I'm going to be sick."

The boy, then, dashed out of my sight with the girl rushing over towards him as well.

I had to take a moment to recollect myself after what just happened, while wondering if they simply mistook me for someone else.

I shook away any thoughts that I have for Pansy and those two weird upperclassmen.

I don't want to give myself anymore stress, and my headache is getting more and more painful as time passes by.

When I left the common room, I started to walk over to where the Hogwarts Express would be in the vicinity of the castle dazedly.

I didn't even bother to pay attention to any of the students as I walked towards my destination.

»»-----　♡　-----««

As everyone gathered around the platform, (Y/N) had to sit out in one of the nearby benches while breathing softly and slowly, while trying to drown out all the noises to calm their headache.

Alem was sitting right beside (Y/N), and offered to wrap up his scarf on them so they wouldn't feel too cold.

(Y/N) declined his offer, however, and kept huddling themselves with their oversized robe.

Harry was tip-toeing and scanning the crowd for any sign of (Y/N), and when he saw them sitting on a bench with a pained look on their face, with their brother beside them.

He suddenly became worried and walked over to them, squeezing past the students who were minding their own business.

"(Y/N), are you alright?" Harry asked, worriedly. (Y/N) looked up slowly, smiling softly at the raven haired Gryffindor and giving him a small wave of greetings.

"Hey, Harry..." They said. "I'm fine... I just need a little bit of some rest; I think my headache is getting worse and worse by the minute."

Even their voice was groggy and tired when they said this, which only made Harry's worry worsen.

Alem had to cough and interrupt the conversation, eyeing the Gryffindor with a hard glare.

It seems like he still hasn't forgiven Harry for what he had indirectly done to his twin.

Harry glared back, of course.

Alem may be their brother, but Harry couldn't care less about anyone else besides (Y/N).

"Alem, don't be rude." (Y/N) groaned with their eyes closed, not bothering to open their eyes since they just wanted to sleep. However, they know that they can't if they have a mild concussion.

The (H/C) haired boy stood down and lessened their glare towards Harry. He only adjusted himself in his seat and looked away, waiting for the signal for everyone to get on board.

"Come sit with us in the train later, (Y/N)." Harry smiled, and said that without any hesitation. Alem silently choked on his spit and looked at the Gryffindor with a look of disbelief on his face.

He was shocked because of how slightly inconsiderate Harry is; did he not hear what (Y/N) just said about needing to rest?

Knowing how the trio is, it's more likely that they'll try to pester and try to join (Y/N) on their conversation - how could they be able to rest with that?

Alem was about to speak up, until (Y/N) coughed and looked up to Harry apologetically.

"I'm sorry, Harry, but I think I should stay with Alem for now." They said, as Harry's smile faded for a while. "I'll be seeing you off in King's Cross once we get off of the train, though. So don't worry."

Harry didn't say anything for a few seconds, before pulling up a small forced smile and eyeing Alem in the corner of his green eyes, who seems to be sighing in relief because of how (Y/N) responded.

"Oh, that's okay." Harry slightly tilted his head to the side, still retaining the smile on his lips. "I do hope you'll feel better once we get off of the train."

(Y/N) nodded and pulled up a thumbs up. "Thanks, Harry. Very cool." They laughed, attempting to replicate PewDiePie's accent whenever he says 'very cool'.

Both Alem and Harry thought it was silly, but didn't say anything about it.

The raven haired boy waved (Y/N) goodbye, before walking around to find Hermione and Ron.

He still felt pissed that Alem was trying to keep him away from them, even though it was for a good reason.

Meanwhile, (Y/N) was just groaning and wanted to fall asleep right then and there, until Alem playfully nudged their shoulder gently.

"What?" They groaned again, shuffling in their seat and trying to cover themselves more with their robe as a strong wind passed by.

"Should I bring Cedric over here to make you feel better?" Alem asked while wiggling his eyebrows suggestively.

(Y/N) rolled their eyes while blushing softly, as they placed their hand on Alem's face and pushed him away form them.

"Shut up, bro." They muttered shyly, but still tried to scan the crowd for any signs of the Hufflepuff boy. Alem, obviously, noticed this, and started to nudge them again.

"But I can't help falling in love with you~" Alem sang in a weird, dramatic voice. A laugh eventually escaped his lips as (Y/N) groaned again, trying to smack Alem with their hand.

"Honestly, Alem!" They exclaim, while their brother is just avoiding any smack he might get from his twin.

It wasn't long until Hagrid announced that the train would now leave, and every student should now enter the train.

As students filed to enter the train, Alem held (Y/N) close to him, just in case his twin will fall off and get lost in the sea of Hogwarts students.

The twins had to search the train for a while, until they managed to find an empty train compartment.

Alem slid the door open, and gently let (Y/N) in first so they would be able to rest and sit down.

As his twin started to get comfortable on their seat, Alem slides the door close and takes a seat next to them.

"Phew," He huffed out, looking out into the window and watched as the surroundings outside the window start to move, indicating that the train is now ready to take them back to King's Cross Station.

Alem suddenly started to remember the day they first went to Hogwarts and took the train;

(Y/N) looked so clueless and lost in the middle of it all. They didn't know anything, or what they were even doing here in the first place.

When asked about things they should already know, they didn't know the answer to them.

Alem is still convinced that (Y/N) isn't what he thinks they are, and that there is something more to them. However, he continues to treat them like before - like they are still twins.

Before he could get deeper inside his thoughts, he felt a hand gripping his Slytherin robe tightly. Alem looked at (Y/N), who was leaning on his shoulder, with their eyes half-lidded and tired.

"Thank you for always being there for me." (Y/N) breathed out before turning to the window to look out into the moving terrains to distract themselves, and to not fall asleep.

Alem didn't say anything, but smile as he pulled out another The Neverland's Promise book to read and kill some time.

'In the end, they are still my dear twin brother/sister, after all.'

»»-----　♡　-----««

As the countryside began to get greener and tidier, it didn't take long enough for the Hogwarts Express to reach the King's Cross Station.

(Y/N) had almost fallen asleep during the whole ride, but luckily, Alem kept asking them if they're still awake every five minutes or so.

(Y/N) stood up from their seat and took off their Slytherin robe, revealing their casual clothes that they've worn underneath;

It was a simple black shirt with black jogging pants. They didn't really think too much of what to wear, since they were pretty much out of it when they were choosing clothes.

Alem did the same and swung his robe over his shoulder. He beckoned for his twin to hand over their robe so he could put them away as soon as they go outside.

(Y/N) complied, gently excusing Alem to step away from the compartment door so they would be able to get out first.

Alem wanted to stay in the compartment for a while, and made sure that it was tidy and clean before he left. He didn't want to cause any trouble for the staff in the train, after all.

Most of the students were already out of the train, so the train wasn't too crowded. The older twin waited outside, casting their gaze downwards to distract themselves for a while.

Once Alem finished checking, he went outside and nodded to (Y/N), indicating that he was ready to go.

When the two went outside the train, multitude of students were lining up to the ticket barrier with some old guard letting them out by threes or fours, so the muggles wouldn't be skeptical or get overwhelmed by the amount of people suddenly popping out of a wall.

Alem keeps (Y/N) and himself from a distance, so he wouldn't be able to lose his twin.

They aren't feeling well, after all. It took everyone a while, but they all got out safely without attracting any attention.

Alem looked around for any sign of their parents. Meanwhile, (Y/N) was getting pretty nervous about having to meet their parents in this world for the first time.

How would they even react?

The boy was about to pout sadly, thinking that their parents are not here yet, until large hands scooped Alem up from the ground.

"There's my little trooper!" A loud, masculine voice laughed as he carried Alem and ruffled his (H/C) colored hair with a grin. "Look at you; you've gotten taller while staying at Hogwarts, haven't you!?"

"D-Dad, stop!" Alem was embarrassed since he was getting some attention, yet happy that he was able to see his parents after a year.

(Y/N) looked up in both awe and nervousness at the (H/C) haired man. Their headache almost disappeared.

There's no denying that both of their hair color and their hair behaves came from their father. It's just overwhelming to (Y/N), seeing him this close.

Especially when (Y/N) never had a good relationship with their father in the real world.

"Oh, and look who it is!" Mr. Rosewood glanced down at the nervous and shocked (Y/N). His smile faded when he saw the bandage that was on his child's forehead.

He gently placed Alem down to the ground and leaned closer to (Y/N) in worry.

"(Y/N), what happened to your head?" He frowned, examining the patch of small dried blood on the center of the bandage.

(Y/N), who didn't like how close he was on their face, immediately skipped a few steps away.

"I-It's nothing, um..." They paused, staring right at their 'father"s blue eyes. They definitely held a look of confusion and worry at the same time.

I mean, no parent would be deadpan after knowing that their child just got into a head injury at school.

"...d-dad." The name rolled off of (Y/N)'s tongue in a weird way. They haven't called or didn't even bring themselves to call their father 'dad' before.

So, this was a foreign, yet oddly satisfying moment for the older twin.

Mr. Rosewood took notice of how uncomfortable (Y/N) was and sighed, knowing that there's nothing he could do. He stood up and looked down at his children with his hands placed on his hips.

"Well, if you say so, (Y/N)." He said with a smile. "If you do feel strange, tell me right away, okay?"

"O-Okay..." (Y/N) nodded, smiling nervously as they glanced away from their father.

They didn't know how to react to someone, who is supposed to be their father, treating them nicely like this.

"Oh my goodness, they're already here?" A feminine yet mature voice caused the three Rosewoods to perk their ears and look up to see the source of the voice.

(Y/N) felt even more awkward when they realized that that was their mother. Alem blinked and watched as his twin kept having these weird nervous expressions, before grabbing their hand tightly to reassure them.

The boy nodded, and (Y/N) paused for a moment before smiling appreciatively at their twin.

"Honey, why do you always take so long in the toilet?" Mr. Rosewood asked as Mrs. Rosewood stopped in front of them.

She rolled her eyes, and playfully smacked her husband's arm for asking such an embarrassing question.

"Lawrence, don't ever ask a lady something like that again." Mrs. Rosewood sighed before turning to her children, smiling happily at them.

"Merlin, it's only been a few months, and you two have already changed so much!" She leaned down and planted a kiss on Alem's cheek, grinning and arranging his messy (H/C) hair.

"I've missed you, sweetie." She said. "You've grown taller!"

"Thanks, mum." Alem chuckled, smiling back at his mother as she turned over to (Y/N), who started to fiddle with their fingers.

"What are you standing over there for, (Y/N)?" Mrs. Rosewood giggled as she opened her arms. "Give your mum a hug, come on!"

(Y/N) blushed before slowly walking over towards Mrs. Rosewood, and gently embracing them with their small arms wrapped around her neck.

"You're being so shy today, (Y/N)." She said while embracing the older twin tightly. "I figured it's because we haven't seen each other in so long, but still, this is a first!"

(Y/N) didn't know what to say, so they only became silent while taking in their mother's hug. It was warm and full of love, something that they were overwhelmed by.

She was the first to retract away from the hug, and her gentle face soon turned into a stern and serious one.

"Now, tell me what happened to you and your head, (Y/N)." Mrs. Rosewood's strictness took the older twin in surprise, since that was a huge mood flip from 0-100.

"Mum, let's discuss this when we're on our way home." Alem sighed, crossing his arms as Mr. Rosewood took their robes and examined them, staring at the embroidered Slytherin crest on the robe's chest.

"Well, you're right, sweetie." Mrs. Rosewood sighed as she stood up and smiled at her child. "Tell me everything that happened to your first year when we're going out to eat, alright?"

"Y-Yes, mum." (Y/N) responded, still looking away from her. Mrs. Rosewood shook her head and leaned back to (Y/N), planting a kiss on their cheek before retracting away once more.

"I've missed you too, (Y/N)." She said, as the older twin's blush became more red. Mostly from nervousness, and from the fact that they're about to tear up and cry.

They don't know why, though; they're just not used to being treated like this.

"I always thought that the Slytherin robes looked well," Mr. Rosewood suddenly said, while scrunching his face at (Y/N)'s oversized robe. "But, isn't this a bit too big for you, Alem?"

"Well, I do agree that it is too big, but it's not mine, dad." Alem replied to his father. "That's (Y/N)'s." He added.

"(Y/N)'s!?" Mr. Rosewood exclaimed in disbelief, his jaw basically dropping at how big it was for his oldest child. "There's no way that this belongs to either of you two; where did you pick this up?"

"I don't... recall having a different robe, d-dad..." (Y/N) finally spoke up, but stuttered at their words. "I mean, that robe has always been with me ever since I was sorted in Slytherin."

"That's odd." Mr. Rosewood responded to their reply, still examining their robe skeptically. Mrs. Rosewood walked beside her husband, examining it as well.

Needless to say, she wasn't pleased with how big it was either.

"Well, I assume they'll give you different robes next year, so try to tell Professor Snape if your robe is still big next time." Mrs. Rosewood gently took (Y/N)'s robe from her husband, observing it for a bit before slinging it over her shoulder.

"Yes, mum." (Y/N) nodded, now getting used to how to treat their new parents in this world.

"Before we leave, you two should bid your friends goodbye first." Mrs. Rosewood said, smiling down at her children. The twins looked at each other, as Alem scratched his head awkwardly.

"But, mum," He coughed. "I don't have any friends."

Mrs. Rosewood was speechless as she stared at her son in surprise. When (Y/N) said that they were making friends, she assumed that Alem was making friends too.

What on earth was he doing during his first year?

"Alem, we both have an undying love for books," Mr. Rosewood was the first to speak up. "But you really should start talking to people more often."

Alem scoffed playfully, since he knew that his father was joking. Mrs. Rosewood sighed and looked over to her oldest child apologetically.

"Sweetie, could you bring Alem with you?" She asked. "I do recall that you're friends with Potter and Mr. Weasley's youngest son; do say goodbye to them before they're gone."

"Potter? As in, the Harry Potter?" Mr. Rosewood blinked in surprise, while (Y/N) only nodded and confirmed their father's question.

"That's honestly brilliant, (Y/N)." He complimented while ruffling (Y/N)'s hair. "I never thought you'd be friends with someone that famous."

"Honestly, I never thought I'd be friends with him too." They replied, suddenly remembering how disastrous their first impression was on Harry.

If it wasn't for Hermione, Harry would still think of them as a weirdo.

"Well, go on, sweetie." Mrs. Rosewood smiled. "We still have a few minutes before Wallace comes over to join us in our family dinner."

(Y/N) nodded again, glancing over at Alem to see if he doesn't have any objections. When he showed that he has none, the twins started to scan the platform for any signs of Harry, Ron, Hermione, or any of their friends, really.

»»-----　♡　-----««

I sighed when I was finally a few feet away from my parents in this world. Everything was so new, and it felt some overwhelming.

I didn't know how to react, especially when I never had parents who took care of me like that before.

"You can rest easy, (Y/N)." Alem spoke up from behind me, making me turn around to look at him. "They're the best parents anyone could ever ask for." He said, smiling. I stare at him for a moment, before smiling back and nodding back at him.

"Yeah, I can see that." I said while bringing my eyes forward once more to try and look for Harry and the others.

If I remember correctly, they should be somewhere near the ticket barrier, since Mrs. Weasley and Ginny were already there waiting for them.

Once I got closer to the barrier, my suspicions were correct as I saw the trio gathered around Mrs. Weasley, Ginny, with the Dursley's right behind them.

Oh shit, I forgot that the Dursleys were also here.

Nonetheless, I put up a smile as I waved my hand to catch their attention. "Harry!" I called out, making the Gryffindor turn around. He smiled widely when he saw me, and waved back.

The Weasleys, Hermione, and the Dursleys, all turned their heads towards me. Though, the Dursleys all had terrified and uncomfortable look on their faces, especially Petunia.

When I finally reached them, Harry was the first to greet me.

"I thought you already went ahead, (Y/N)." He said. "You weren't around the platform when I got out."

Harry laughed, but for some reason, I couldn't help but think there was something more... meaningful in what he just said right there. I just couldn't put my finger on it.

"I wouldn't back out on a promise, Harry." I replied. It seems like it made him happy, which was good.

"Oh, you must be (Y/N) and Alem Rosewood!" Molly piped in on the conversation with her usual sweet and warm tone.

It was my first time speaking to Molly, so I need to make a good first impression.

"Aurelia's told me all about you!" She walks closer to us and pulled Alem and I into a hug. "Quite the troublemakers, I've heard!" Molly said as she retracted from the hug and examined us.

"Oh dear, are you okay?" She asked while eyeing my forehead. "Your injury isn't giving you a hard time, is it?"

"Oh, n-no..." I laughed awkwardly. "It's nothing, Mrs. Weasley, and nice to meet you as well!"

"Nice to meet you too, Mrs. Weasley." Alem said from behind me. Molly nodded in approval and gently walked back from us, and back to where little Ginny is. I looked over the female redhead and gave her a friendly wave.

Ginny waved back, smiling happily before looking back at Harry in admiration. I couldn't help but swoon.

In about five years, Hinny will officially be canon, and I honestly can't wait for that to happen.

"You must come and stay this summer," Ron said. "all three of you - I'll send you and owl." He, then, turned over to Molly for her approval. "Would that be alright, mum?"

"Yes, of course!" Molly said in a gasp, almost as if she was offended that Ron even had to ask that question. "They'll always be welcome in our home." She sent all of us a heartwarming smile.

I turned over to Harry. "I'll come visit you this summer - expect me to..." My words trailed off, as I started to remember how Dobby would intercept any letters that would get sent to Harry this summer.

"Well, I'll just visit you if I can." I chuckled, but Harry seemed to be unsure about this.

"I wish it would be that easy, (Y/N)." He said, nodding over to the Dursleys, who were starting to get sour at the fact that Harry was taking too long.

"Hmm..." I hummed thoughtfully before walking over to the Dursleys, while pulling off the nicest smile I can muster for this family.

I could hear Harry and Alem whisper-yelling at me to stop at what I'm about to do. Vernon was the first to react to me getting close to them, and he already seemed to be so cautious.

Petunia was very skeptical, but Dudley only seemed to be staring right back at me. Almost as if he was in a trance.

"Good afternoon. You must be Harry's family." I bowed down to show them some respect. Though I think they deserved none at all for treating Harry like a slave for eleven years. "My name is (Y/N) Rosewood, a friend of Harry's. Very nice to meet you...?"

My words trailed off, as I waited for Vernon, or any one of them to introduce themselves to me. "I've no intention of giving a wizard/witch my name." Vernon said spitefully. I could only look back at him in shock, while I was internally trying to hold myself back from strangling him.

I laughed nervously, keeping my cool. I need to give them a good impression if I want them to let me visit Harry this summer.

"Well, that is understandable, sir." I responded. "Though, I think it would be wise if you don't judge someone just because they're a wizard/witch."

Vernon scoffed, rolling his eyes at me. "You lot are all the same, no?" He said. "You may be more decent-looking than your friends over there, but I won't fall for your underhanded tricks."

Did this bitch really just-

I was on the verge of snapping and slapping this purple-faced eggplant to the train tracks. I don't give a shit if he dies right then and there. I swear to fucking god, I-

"I'm Dudley." I snapped out of my murderous thoughts, and looked over to Dudley, who was widely smiling at me with his chubby face.

"Nice to meet you, (Y/N)!" He added, walking around his parents and extending his large hand out.

Salazar, why can I see reflective lights from the sweat that formed in his large hands?

Nonetheless, I shook his hand hesitatingly. I had to prevent myself from openly cringing when my hand came in contact with wet, sticky sweat from his hands.

The handshake lasted for about two seconds because I quickly retracted my hand away.

"N-Nice to meet you too, Dudley." I said, making him smile even more. When he was walking away, I discreetly placed the hand that I used to shake his hand behind my back, and started to wipe it on my jogging pants.

Vernon and Petunia looked like they've seen a ghost. They probably were surprise surprised that their son just walked up to a wizard/witch like me, without any hesitation.

They were speechless, until Petunia grabbed her chubby son's hand. "L-Let's get to the car, Duddykins." She said, eyeing me with an indescribable look.

Dudley pouted, but turned around and waved me goodbye with a smile on his faces. I waved back, nervously.

Although, it's quite clear that I didn't want to interact with him anymore.

Goddamn it, (Y/N), why do you always bring the worst shit when you're interacting with people?

"Y-You..." Vernon started to get red, though I didn't understand what he was so angry for. The grip that he held on his car keys were so tight, until he turned away and marched to where Petunia and Dudley went.

"Come on, boy! We haven't got all day!" He yelled towards Harry, who was now clicking his tongue in annoyance by the time I came back to them.

"(Y/N), they didn't say anything bad to you, did they?" Harry asked, fuming in anger. "I've seen the way Vernon was looking at you."

"Eh, used to it, Harry." I shrugged it off and waved my hands around. "Your uncle acting like that is understandable, but pretty harsh and mean." I added, but Harry only seemed to get more angry.

"They shouldn't say such things to someone like you."

His voice was slow, and he was speaking through his seething teeth. Alem, whom I forgotten already, and I looked at each other skeptically.

"Well, I'll be seeing you again this summer, so let's just hope he won't be as cranky as he is today, the next time I see him again." I said as I looked away from my brother, and back to Harry.

"Really?" He asked.

"Really." I nodded.

"Promise?" Harry's look was intense, and I think he remembered when I said that I would never back down from promises from earlier.

I sigh and nodded once more, smiling at the raven haired Gryffindor. "Promise."

This seemed to have satisfied Harry, as he leaned closer to me and pulled me in for a tight hug. I chuckle and hugged back, wrapping my arms around his waist.

It took five good seconds, before I retracted, since I felt like Harry didn't want to let me go.

I take one last look at Harry's face before patting him. "See you, Potter." I said.

"See you, Rosewood." He nodded at me as he started to walk away and waved the rest of us goodbye. It was now only the Weasleys, Hermione, and I.

"My parents are waiting near the entrance of the station, so I should be heading there now." Hermione said, smiling up at Molly, Ron, and me. "I'll be sending letters, so make sure to read them."

"Of course we will, Mione." I laughed, pulling Hermione in for a hug. I think she didn't expect me to do that because I heard a small yelp escape her lips when I hugged her.

When I pulled away, she was blushing softly.

"I'll see you later, Hermione." Ron nodded at the brown haired girl, to which Hermione nodded back in acknowledgement.

"I'll see you next time, Mrs. Weasley." Hermione looked up to Molly, and down to Ginny. "and I'll see you next year, Ginny."

Little Ginny giggled and nodded happily at her soon-to-be school mate. Hermione flashed us one final smile before going off on her own as well.

I turned towards the Weasleys, scratching my head as I held Alem's hand. "Well, I should be going now too, Mrs. Weasley." I said, then turned to Ron.

"Expect me to send you letters as well, Ronald." I smirk playfully at the redhead, to which he rolled his eyes on.

"Of course, you would." Ron said, smirking back. "You won't stop thinking about me during the summer, after all."

"Hoho, how bold of you to say that, Weasley." I said but snapped my fingers at him. "But hey, that was smooth, so I'll give you a pass."

Alem's grip on my hand started to get tight, making me turn to look at him. His face was scrunched up in discomfort - I guess he doesn't appreciate me talking to someone like that.

Geez, how overprotective can you be?

"I'll be seeing you next year, Ginny." I turned towards the only daughter of the Weasley family, who smiled and nodded at me.

"Yeah! I can't wait to be friends with you at school, (Y/N)!" Ginny laughed. "You're awesome!"

"You flatter." I chuckle and then turned to give them one last smile, before waving them goodbye while taking Alem by the hand.

"Goodbye, (Y/N) and Alem!" The Weasleys called out from a distance. I figured that Fred, George, and Percy weren't there yet, so they were going to wait in that spot for a while.

As we were about to walk back to where our parents were, Alem suddenly took the lead, pulling me from the crowd gently, as if he was taking me into a new place I've never known before.

"Let's go home, (Y/N)." He said, looking back at me, smiling happily.

Something in my chest fluttered, and I was met by the foreign feeling of acceptance and warmth. The feelings that died with me back when my mother left me all alone.

It started to bloom again.

I smile back as I started to wish that I wouldn't have to leave this place. The only place that would've able to give me the life that I've always wanted. The feelings I've always wanted to feel,

and the love that I've always wanted to receive.

"...Let's!" I replied, ready to take on the new adventures that this world is going to give me; even if it's hard or tough at times.

Though, I wished that I should've just stopped right then and there.

Because what happens from now on,

Is only the beginning of something so horrible.

»»-----　♡　-----««

erised: year one

e n d

»»-----　♡　-----««

A/N:

hi please dont kill me for updating after three months

so hey, this chapter reached over 30,149 words, which is a surprise????

i thought it was only going to reach over 25k, but i miscalculated lmao

anyways, i hope you did enjoy the last chapter of the first year! im super drained, I've been writing for five whole hours and its 5 am here lmao

but hey, i did tell you guys that there will be no more delays and i really will update it today.

so here you go

I'll be posting extras and the epilogue soon before going to the second year.

I'll be taking a small break before I start year two, though. I also need to plan out more stuff so when i'll be writing them, I won't have a hard time.

By the way, that jumbled messed up words in this chapter during reader and Draco's dialogue?

It actually has... Something in them, and a little bit of spoiler??? I guess?

I already planned everything out for this book so I can't help it lmao

If you did manage to decode it, please do me a favor and not share it, i guess??? I mean, do it if you want to, but don't share it if you don't feel like it ;;

idk lmao

so yeA??? I'll also feature every single fanarts I've gotten in the first year in the extras so keep an eye out for that-

Speaking of fanarts, if you have one, do share it to me via gmail or tag me in your art book! My gmail is right on my wattpad bio, so yea!

thank you for reading and I'll see you guys again in the next three months lmao

I need sleep im so tIRED