The Ravenclaw Nine || BTS Harry Potter AU

Chapter 29

Chloe's Point of View

"He k-killed my... brother!" Aviela wailed, tears flowing freely down her cheeks. Chloe smoothed gentle circles into her back to comfort her, but her mind was elsewhere. The earring felt like a deadweight in her pocket, weighing her down with the severe burden Yoongi bestowed upon her.

Yoongi. How could she trust him after he threatened to murder Aviela and killed her brother all those years ago? How could she distinguish truth from his seemingly many lies?

"I don't even know him very well," Aviela whimpered, her mournful eyes red and puffy. "What reason could he possibly have for killing my brother?"

"He's dangerous," Jin piped in. He shifted his hand to drape across Chloe's thigh lazily, but she continued to avoid his gaze – during a time of such grief, she could not afford to become flustered. "He attacked me here, in the common room." That explained the lengthy burn marks and bloodstains on the floors and walls.

"I'm starting to think that sounds like something he would do," Namjoon muttered. His schoolwork laid beside him, forgotten – it was clear that Aviela wasn't the only one affected by the news.

"I can't believe that," Chloe admitted, her throat hoarse from desperate attempts to keep tears at bay. Jin's eyes darkened, and she found it difficult to continue speaking. "I'm sorry, but he is my friend, and he has been nothing but kind to me."

"No one truly knew him, I suppose," Jin shrugged. "He was a member of a gang when he was younger – I'm not surprised he turned to violence."

"I'm going to bed," Aviela mumbled. "I can't bear being awake any longer."

"I'll come with you," Namjoon offered softly, taking her hand and leading her up to the girls' dormitories. As it would appear, Hogwarts made an exception for the presence of a male – even the castle mourned the loss of Matteo Bianchi.

Jin sighed deeply. "It is heartbreaking to watch her break down like this."

Chloe shook her head somberly. "I have never seen her so dispirited. Between Jungkook and Yoongi, I don't know how much more betrayal she can handle."

"I hope you come to understand that Yoongi is a traitor. His father was put to death for treason against the Ministry of Magic, you know."

"I don't know what to believe anymore." They sat in silence, his fingertips tracing patterns on her thigh. Her face began to burn as his hand traveled higher, finally reaching her pocket. Fear coursed through her body as she suddenly remembered Yoongi's warning – "If this earring gets under the control of the wrong person, everything will fall to chaos" – and her instincts propelled her away from Jin. She disguised her awkward motion by stretching, feigning that her legs were sore from sitting for so long.

"You have no need to pretend with me, love," Jin said, his voice drowning with boredom. "I know Yoongi gave you the Horcrux."

"T-the what?"

He must have been able to sense her genuine confusion because his face lit up with a smirk. "He didn't tell you what the earring really is, then. Clever. It makes it easier to blindly trust him."

"He didn't give me anything," she insisted, but the reddening tips of her ears betrayed her lie.

Jin pointed at her pocket, unfazed. "That earring carries even more importance than Yoongi stressed. In the hands of the right people, wizards will be able to take their rightful place, exercising superiority over lesser peoples."

"Are you referring to Muggles?"

"Precisely." He looked uncharacteristically pleased with Chloe's quick understanding. "As wizards, we are forced to live in the fear that our existence may be discovered. I fail to see what we fear – retribution from an inferior civilization? Why should a boot fear an ant?"