𝐀 𝐇𝐎𝐆𝐖𝐀𝐑𝐓𝐒' 𝐌𝐈𝐒𝐓𝐄𝐑𝐘 (𝙎𝙩𝙧𝙖𝙮 𝙆𝙞𝙙𝙨 𝘼𝙐)

𝐓𝐄𝐑𝐑𝐎𝐑 & 𝐂𝐎𝐔𝐑𝐀𝐆𝐄

Jisung was pretty sure he had never felt more terrified than now.

Looking back, all those arguments he had had with his parents, all the nights spent sleepless because of an important test the following day, the time he had believed he and Felix were going to be beaten up by the entirety of the Slytherin team, even; compared to the scene his eyes were now witnessing, nothing could quite compete.

The Gryffindor wanted to scream – he wanted to so badly. But he couldn't, and he knew he couldn't because if he got caught, he would've had no way to help Minho out of this situation.

The Slytherin, thruth be told, was handling the fight rather well for how unprepared and unseasoned he was compared to the 'Maester' – whom, right from first watch, Jisung had immediately disliked: he was a tall man, with hair so fair that, more than blonde, seemed white, and who had a completely black mask emblazoned with many emeralds to cover his face.

That maks, however, must've had holes where the eyes were supposed to be, for the precision with which he was sending jinxes and curses was rather phenomenal.

The situation, since Minho's brave gesture to come out from what the Gryffindor judged now the most comfortable position on earth (and that was – where they couldn't be seen), had escalated quickly: apparently, neither the Maester nor the woman had particularly appreciated the boy's sudden appearence – although, as Jisung suspected, for different reasons.

The man, at the sight of the Slytherin, had had a second's surprise, but had recovered so quickly that, hadn't Minho developed through many quiddich trainings very good reflexes, the jinx would've hit him immediately.

But unluckily for him, Minho had good reflexes, and had therefore managed to roll uncursed down the Chamber's floor.

"Damned child! Who are you to dare come violate my private space?", the man had roared with anger, accompanying the words with another curse.

Minho had easily avoided that one too. "Your private space?" his voice had had a very mocking undertone, and he had sent a deadly glare towards the man. Jisung had been aware that the tone was not the appropriate one the Slytherin ought to have used, but the ladder had sounded so masterful that he couldn't help but find the ladder absolutely attractive.

"This is not your private space, it's Hogwart's. And I can go wherever the heck I feel like, especially when giant snakes are seen roaming around the castle" had spat the Slytherin, and this time he had sent a spell in the direction of the old man too: he hadn't voiced it, but Jisung had been sure that it had been a disarming charm when the man's wand had gone flying towards Minho.

The Slytherin had been about to grab it, but a few moments beforehand the entire floor had trembled, causing him to fall, together with the wand, that had rolled near where Jisung was standing: the old man, clearly, knew things about that place that, even with the most preparation possible, the two students didn't.

Before the Gryffindor could even think about anything at all, the woman had stumbled to catch her Maester's wand.

Oh shit oh shit oh shit. Jisung was really starting to panic: the sudden trembling seemed to have got Minho hurt, and the boy was struggling to get up. Besides, the woman had been on her way to hand the wand back to the Maester – although she'd been doing it very slowly, continuously glancing back as if she'd forgotten about something and she was looking for it.

Jisung, however, had reached his peak terror stage. He was not even noticing, for how terrorized he was, that the woman was glancing towards him. All he could think of was the terrible ending Minho might have if he didn't come up with something soon.