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𝐀𝐍 𝐄𝐕𝐄𝐍𝐓𝐅𝐔𝐋
𝐇𝐀𝐏𝐏𝐘 𝐁𝐈𝐑𝐓𝐇𝐃𝐀𝐘
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Number Eight could appear an ordinary house as good as any across Privet Drive. However, in a single night, Harry had come across the oddest of things. From leaving sweets in a tray over a stool at the kitchen corner, which he found empty the following day, to moving pictures hanging off the walls upstairs. When a barn owl woke him and the twins up around early morning, he knew better than to show his surprise.
"Not another Ministry letter," Ji-yoon whined into her pillow.
"It's from Dalia," said Jin-woo right away, letting the owl land on his shoulder as he read the letter. "Oh, her father gave her an owl to celebrate that she was accepted to Hogwarts." He turned his head to the owl, gifting her a cookie from the stack the twins 'secretly' kept in the bottom drawer of their desk. "Nice to meet you, Gertrude."
"Who's Dalia?" Harry asked, peeking his head from the top bunk before sliding off the ladder. "A friend of yours?"
"Sort of." Ji-yoon let out a brief chuckle. "More his friend than 'ours'. She's nice, though. Maybe you'll meet her today." Her sight was soon on Jin-woo, whose eyes scanned the letter at an incredible speed. "Did she say anything? I guess we sent Òliba a bit too late. It'll be difficult to meet us in Diagon Alley so soon, won't it?"
"Leave it to her to appear before we ever get there," said Jin-woo lightly. "Her Manor just got connected to Floo Powder, so she can get to the Leaky Cauldron in a minute."
"Brilliant," replied Ji-yoon. "Tell her to meet us there at eleven sharp. Bet we'll be there by then."
Harry, who had barely understood a word the twins had exchanged, took a seat beside Jin-woo, petting Gertrude as she demanded more snacks. He wouldn't dream of going through the twins' belongings, let alone giving away the sweets they had snatched without their grandparents, or Cookie—whoever that was—knowing. Not a moment later, Ji-yoon tossed him a couple of plain cookies to feed the owl. Gertrude hooted loud enough to awake everyone through the house, including Òliba, who swerved into the room to inspect the unknown visitor.
"Òliba," Ji-yoon said in a warning tone. "Easy, girl."
Òliba listened, probably, and landed on Harry's lap to hoot at Gertrude, pecking at her soft feathers as if trying to tidy her up. Gertrude responded by leaning in to peck Òliba for a moment, but then she noticed that Jin-woo had finished the letter. With her beak, she took the letter and flew away, while Òliba watched until she disappeared beyond Privet Drive.
"What's that?" Ji-yoon got up from her bed, snatching a piece of paper neither Harry nor her brother had noticed before. "Oh, great. On the day we've got to go out, no less."
"What is it?" asked Jin-woo.
"You're on Witch Weekly's front page." Ji-yoon turned the paper to her brother, who winced at the article's title,'The Kims' Last Hope'. "That Rita Skeeter has some serious problems.'Nearing the start of his third year, first ever at Hogwarts, Christopher Kim has a great deal of expectations to live up to. After the unfortunate birth of his Squib mother—born on the sixth full moon of a leap year—who later on married her current husband, Squib Shavier Munoz, nobody had any hopes for their children.'She even wrote dad's name wrong!"
"Isn't Skeeter the one who wrote about the Manor?" Jin-woo took the page from his sister, reading Dalia's enraged notes on the sidelines of the article. "That woman has a talent for finding out things nobody's supposed to know. People are rarely, if ever, allowed inside the Manor, after all."
Harry had a peek at the newspaper. It was his very first time seeing a wizarding one. Somehow, the moving pictures didn't shock him as much as he would have expected. Perhaps because he had already seen younger versions of the twins' mother smiling, and he would swear wink, at him. Without giving it a second thought, Jin-woo put it away, focusing instead on their impending breakfast.
Grandma Ha-eun revoked Harry's rights as a visitor as soon as they reached downstairs and asked the three of them to set the table. Harry got in charge of the cutlery, while the twins handled the glasses and plates. Even Hagrid, who had slept on the sofa, had to help Avi Antonio to extend the table's sides and place the emerald tablecloth over it. Magic was outright forbidden to use, especially when they watched as the Dursleys left their home to march into theirs, demanding they 'returned' Harry.
Nobody could breathe a word before Dudley found himself with a pig's tail sticking out from his lower back. Harry burst into laughter just as the twins tried to stifle theirs, failing at it, of course. There was no further argument after that. Harry's uncle wrapped his jacket around Dudley's waist and awkwardly shuffled away to their car.
"Shouldn'ta lost me temper." Hagrid stroked his beard with one hand, holding his pink umbrella with the other, as his gaze travelled to Harry and Jin-woo. "Be grateful if yeh didn't mention that ter anyone at Hogwarts. I'm strictly speakin' not supposed ter do magic. I was allowed ter do a bit ter come here an' get yer letters to yeh and stuff—one o' the reasons I was so keen ter take the job—"
"Why aren't you supposed to do magic?" asked Harry.
"Oh, well, I was at Hogwarts meself but I, er, got expelled, ter tell yeh the truth. In me third year. They snapped me wand in half an' everything. But Dumbledore let me stay on as gamekeeper. Great man, Dumbledore."
While Harry continued to ask Hagrid about his expulsion—which he got no answer for—, Jin-woo couldn't help but glance at his sister. She was already looking at him, her brow furrowed, just as his. Hagrid's story didn't make much sense.
Neither of them would pretend to know everything about the wizarding world and its Ministry, yet it was clear, to a point, that wands were heavily linked to their users. Snapping one appeared to be equal to denying the person as a witch or wizard. So, naturally, the question "what did Hagrid do to deserve that?" became more than just a matter of curiosity. Specially if someone like Dumbledore—acclaimed 'Wizard of the Century' in Witch Weekly and the Daily Prophet—had seemingly pardoned him and even offered him a job at the school. And if Hagrid had been wrongfully accused or if his expulsion had been undeserved, why hadn't Dumbledore done anything to clear his name?
Hagrid took a seat at the table, causing the chair beneath him to crumble under his weight. The noise snapped the twins out of their daze, and they quickly darted to their seats as Grandpa Seok-jin repaired the chair so that Hagrid could use it. They were halfway through a plate of their father's best kimchi pancakes when their mother brought in a Cookie Tower and set it down in front of Harry. Their father pulled out a camera and started recording as the entire table sang 'Happy Birthday' in at least three different languages. Jin-woo hoped Number Four could hear their cheers as Harry blew out the candles.
"Happy birthday, kid," said Grandpa Seok-jin, sending with a flicker of his wand a neatly wrapped package over to the other end of the table. "You ought to wear this during your free periods."
Harry unwrapped it, glad to see his new set of emerald velvet robes embroidered to match the twins' ones. When Grandma Ha-eun ensured she would add more details as he grew up, Jin-woo was sure Harry was on the verge of tearing up. He darted his arm over to him, squeezing his hand with great care.
"Jin-woo... well, Christopher and I will get you something today at Diagon Alley," said Ji-yoon, showing Harry a gentle smile he attempted to reciprocate. "That reminds me, we should get going, shouldn't we?"
"Got everythin'?" Hagrid asked, stuffing himself with the bowl of pumpkin porridge.
Seeing as they were still in their pyjamas, they shook their heads and dashed upstairs. Harry followed behind them, closing the door just as he got to the room. They changed in a matter of seconds, which in Jin-woo's case hadn't been ideal, and went back downstairs to pick up their robes from the family set. The twin's grandparents kissed their cheeks to say goodbye, including Harry's. He almost froze in place at the gesture, which made the twins tease him about it for minutes on end until Hagrid had his fill.
Hagrid had likely never used the ordinary—'Muggle' as he called it—transport before. It would be a fair assumption to say he had never needed it. However, if Floo Powder was nearly out of the question since the twins doubted he would fit in most fireplaces, how did he usually go around? They couldn't stop for long to wonder as he complained for most of the way about something—first the seats were too small and then the train was too slow.
"I don't know how the Muggles manage without magic," he said, while they climbed a broken-down escalator.
"What obsession do wizards have with magic?" Ji-yoon whispered to her brother, who could only shrug. "We do just fine on our own without it."
They walked for several minutes behind Hagrid, who parted the crowd with no trouble. Once they passed the cinema, they finally arrived at the Leaky Cauldron, which Harry almost missed. Jin-woo had to grab him by the arm, just so he wouldn't keep on walking. Whispers erupted as soon as the bartender realised the boy standing directly behind Hagrid was no other than 'The Boy Who Lived'.
Jin-woo had to step back for a moment, revolted at the charge of greetings towards Harry, who couldn't seem any more confused by it. His sister hadn't the least bit of desire to watch supposed adults swarm a young child, and so she grabbed Harry and pulled him back, using Hagrid as a barrier. A man around his sixties narrowed his eyes at the twins, tearing open that week's edition of Witch Weekly—'The Kims' Last Hope'—before looking back at them. Whispers broke out again, mostly disapproving comments about 'Christopher Kim', as they called Jin-woo, letting his Muggle sister meddle in wizard matters.
Then Hagrid exclaimed, "Professor Quirrell! Harry, Christopher, Professor Quirrell will be one of your teachers at Hogwarts."
The three children turned to see a young man smiling nervously at them, and greeted him, though he refused to shake their hands. Professor Quirrell's eye twitched during most of their conversation, which Jin-woo wasn't particularly interested in. He was far too occupied with shooting glares at the crowd, trying to convey how little patience he had left. "One more word about my sister, and I'll put either of the Three Unforgivable Curses to practise," he wished he could say. Instead, he had to calm himself down as they moved on, leaving the pub to enter Diagon Alley.
They walked through the crowded street, trying to keep up with Hagrid while taking in their surroundings. Harry was having the time of his life. Neither of the twins could believe that Harry had never seen half as many curious things as he had in the past five minutes. As they passed by "Cauldrons—All Sizes," Hagrid mentioned that they would make their first stop at Gringotts to get Harry's money.
That reminded Jin-woo to check his own pockets. Grandpa Seok-jin had decided to cover all his school expenses for the year, but, of course, that came at a cost. As Grandpa Seok-jin said, Jin-woo would have enough money to buy everything he needed for his third year without resorting to second-hand items or hand-me-downs. However, there was a catch: to 'teach him the value of money', whatever was left after purchasing his things would be all he had for the rest of his school year.
"Morning," said Hagrid to a goblin once they were inside Gringotts. "We've come ter take some money outta Mr Harry Potter's safe."
"You have his key, sir?"
"Got it here somewhere." Hagrid patted his coat, then emptied his pockets one after another until he found a tiny golden key. "Got it." The goblin took it from him, watching it closely for a minute before accepting it. "An' I've also got a letter here from Professor Dumbledore. It's about the You-Know-What in vault seven hundred and thirteen."
"Very well," the goblin took the note and inspected it. "I will have someone take you down to both vaults. Griphook!"
Griphook guided them towards one door leading off the hall, where the marble walls turned into a narrow stone passage dimly lit with flaming torches. The twins fell back, letting Harry and Hagrid go up ahead while they looked around. Although, they were particularly more interested in listening as Hagrid explained that vault seven hundred and thirteen held something that he couldn't tell a soul what it was. Jin-woo caught his sister's gaze, wondering as he was, "Why send a man who couldn't legally perform magic, not even to defend himself, for something so secret nobody was supposed to know?"
They got through their Gringotts' visit sooner than expected. Though, as it was becoming tradition, the 'super secret' hidden in vault seven hundred and thirteen still confused them. What could such a small thing do for it to be guarded so urgently? Ji-yoon claimed it was a flask—some kind of brew, she figured, so potent that one drop could kill millions. Her brother wasn't so keen on betting what it was. It could be almost anything. From a pebble to a small comb, the options were varied.
The cart-ride back left them resting at the bottom of the marble stairs outside of Gringotts. Jin-woo couldn't quite open his eyes, while Ji-yoon needed to rest to keep her breakfast sealed in her stomach. Less than five minutes later, they were back on track. Hagrid left the twins in charge of Harry in Madam Malkin's as he stepped out for a moment under the excuse the cart ride had left him sick. They didn't mind, and accompanied Harry without complaints, watching him be fitted beside some blond boy that couldn't keep quiet for a second.
That left Harry asking a million questions later to Hagrid, who had bought them all ice cream on their way to buy parchment and quills. "School houses. There's four. Everyone says Hufflepuff are a lot o' duffers, but—"
"I bet I'm a Hufflepuff," said Harry, gloomily.
"Better Hufflepuff than Slytherin, if yeh ask me," continued Hagrid quickly, before the twins could start an argument. "There's not a single witch or wizard who went bad who wasn't in Slytherin. You-Know-Who was one. Not all go bad—the Kims didn't—but they're not many."
It wouldn't be the first time the twins heard their grandparents' house mentioned as the house for 'the evil ones'. From what little they knew about Slytherin, they understood part of the criticism. It wasn't very comforting to know it had a chamber somewhere in the castle with a monster who, upon awoken, would kill muggle-borns. However, they had learned from a very young age that nothing a Gryffindor said ought to be taken seriously.
At Flourish and Blotts, the twins helped Harry gather his books. Despite not having the two elective classes, he had quite a lengthy list to buy. When they were done and it was all paid for, they searched for the second-hand area for Jin-woo's books. Harry, who at first thought they simply couldn't afford to buy the regular first-hand ones, offered to pay for them, which the twins were horrified at. They appreciated the gesture, but if anything were to truly disgrace their family's honour, it would be to take advantage of an eleven-year-old who was fairly new to having his own money.
They rummaged through stacks of books, but none were second hand, and the prices were quite alarming. The third-year Defence Against the Dark Arts book alone was nearing six galleons, which they refused to convert into Muggle money so they could spare Harry some peace of mind. As they made their way up to the first floor, Hagrid spotted a forgotten corner filled with piles of books that reached up to the ceiling.
After considering his options, Jin-woo opted for some older yet well-preserved copies of his Defence Against the Dark Arts, Potions, and Charms books. He would have picked up the Transfiguration book as well, but there were very few copies left. It would feel wrong when who knew how many families relied on second-hand books alone, so he resigned himself to paying the four galleons for the regular book. He got a good deal on his Divination and Care of Magical Creatures textbooks; however, the History of Magic and Herbology books were affordable enough that he purchased them at full price.
It was nearing eleven o'clock when they made it to Eeylops Owl Emporium, where Hagrid bought Harry a beautiful snowy owl as a birthday present. The twins wandered through most of the shop, yet found nothing that caught Jin-woo's eye. He was doubting what pet to bring with him to Hogwarts, if he brought one at all. An owl would be useful, but he found it almost insulting how most wizards thought of living animals with feelings as inanimate senders of mail.
They were on their way back to the Leaky Cauldron, per the twins' request, when he halted at the shop window of 'Magical Menagerie', a pet shop. A fluffy black cat had her bright yellow eyes on him, where they stayed as she rolled over onto her back. Jin-woo walked out of the shop five minutes later, the cat perched on his shoulder. Naming her was oddly difficult. Ji-yoon and Harry tried their best to help, offering names every few seconds, but for someone who had named a barn owl 'Òliba'—which literally meant barn owl in Catalan—and another whose snowy owl's name was Hedwig, he paid little attention.
"How about Kitty?" said Hagrid after much thought and, especially, walking. They had reached the Leaky Cauldron, and they were no closer to figuring out a proper name for the cat. "Could be short for Katherine."
When Ji-yoon and Harry were politely declining the name, Jin-woo knew it was the best one any of them would ever come up with. "I like it. How about you, Katherine?" He reached over his shoulder to pet Kitty, who rubbed her head against his cheek. "Seems she likes it, too."
They went into the Leaky Cauldron, and, before Hagrid could ask for a butterbeer, the twins spotted Dalia across the pub. She sat at a nearly empty table along with Nana, who was reading Witch Weekly with great despair clear on her face. Contrary to the usual black scarfs she wore during her classes or during visits to the Manor, Dalia had an emerald green scarf gracefully wrapped around her head, which matched her robes.
"Well, don't you look dashing," Jin-woo said, leaving Kitty on the table to take a seat beside his friend. Harry and Ji-yoon sat across from them, leaning over the table to keep their conversation private while Hagrid introduced himself to 'Nana'. "Did you dress your best to see us? I'm flattered."
"You wish." Dalia chuckled, her arm captive of Kitty's need for attention. "Just tell me whatever that 'something important you have to tell me' is before Nana shakes off Mr Hagrid."
"Wait," said Ji-yoon, turning to Harry, who was trying his best to stay quiet and not interrupt their conversation. "Dalia, this is Harry. Harry, this is Dalia. She's the friend we talked about this morning. There's something... well, Harry, you'll hear some very strange things, and I want you to try not to worry about them. Just think of them as us going mad, if it helps. It's better not to drag you into this as well."
"Right, well, with that out of the way..." Jin-woo brushed the cold sweat from his palms against his lap. "We know about your mother, Dalia. We know she's very ill—likely so much that she might never get better."
Dalia was appalled, her face growing paler by the moment, which was concerning. "How do you know?"
"Do you know about House Elves?" Jin-woo paused, waiting for her to nod before continuing. "Brownies are similar to them; they're like cousins. We know a Brownie named Cookie, and they told us about your mother—they also mentioned that there's something that could save her."
"What is it?" Dalia's eyes widened with surprise and a glimmer of hope.
"It's something called Life's Elixir," Ji-yoon explained. "Jin-woo has looked into it, but it's tricky to find. It doesn't come up anywhere."
"Why not just ask Cookie?" Dalia suggested, her voice lowered to just above a whisper. "Make them tell us."
"It's not that simple," Jin-woo replied. "They've been forced to keep quiet. I guess the one who initially told them about it wasn't too pleased with them."
"The healers at St Mungo's say my Mom has a year at most to live, Jin-woo," said Dalia gloomily. "I'm sorry if Cookie's being forced, but if there's any way I can save her, I don't care what I've got to do."
"Give us a few months," Ji-yoon interjected. "With your help, I bet we can find the elixir in no time. Besides, you'll be going to Hogwarts. The library there must have books that date back hundreds of years. If there's any place where we can find it, it's at Hogwarts. Meanwhile, I'll go to the bookshop at Carrer Ró as often as I can. There must be something about life's elixir there. There are tons of Beauxbatons students around during Christmas break. I'll ask if they know anything about it."
"I'll give you until my birthday," Dalia stopped petting Kitty, who pouted and circled back to climb Jin-woo's robes to lie on his shoulder. "February twenty-eighth. If we find nothing by then, you'll gift me a moment to speak alone with Cookie. And, after that, it's up to me how we savemymother."
Jin-woo was the first to comply, muttering a brief, "Fair enough", before changing the subject to something lighter—Hogwarts. They chatted about classes for a while, making abrupt predictions of which they would surely fail, and those they could hope to pass without draining their energy. Harry was particularly looking forward to Charms, while Dalia shuddered at the thought of it, praying she would either be in the same house as Jin-woo, or their houses would be paired for that subject. Her Charms' qualification for her second year had been no other than Acceptable, and most credit went to Jin-woo for it.
They joked about exchanging identities to take each other's worst exams and carried on with their day. There were many things left to buy for Dalia, while Harry had only his wand left in his list of first-year essentials. The twins went around with both, closely followed by Hagrid and Nana, who seemed to enjoy their own private conversation. Dalia bought all of her books from first-hand and offered to buy Jin-woo snacks at Hogsmeade if he ever ran out of money, which he promptly declined. Soon, they were at Ollivander's, watching Harry mess up the shop until he found his rightful wand—paid for by the twins.
Ji-yoon wasn't disappointed to hear another of Mr Ollivander's prophecy-delusions. She had quite a laugh on their way back home after saying goodbye to Dalia and Nana at the Leaky Cauldron. "The wand chooses the wizard, remember! I think we must expect great things from you.That man's gone mad."
"It was fun, though," said Harry. "I'm curious what'great things'he thinks I'll do."
"Being yourself is already great enough," replied Jin-woo, ruffling Harry's hair as they got to the train station where Hagrid would drop them off. "Go say goodbye. Ji... Cristina and I will bring your things to the compartment. Don't be late, or we will have to pull you onto the train before it leaves."