Finished You hungry? PV Hanako Tone

𝟸𝟹 . 𝟶𝟺 . 𝟸𝟹

𝚂𝚊𝚒𝚗𝚝 𝙼𝚘𝚝𝚎𝚕 - 𝙼𝚢 𝚃𝚢𝚙𝚎

There is always a common answer Hanako had whenever he asked himself ‘ Wow. Why did I do such a thing? ‘. The answer being: boredom. He was bored. And that was the main reason for his shenanigans. Most of them resulting in trouble for both him and others around him. A whole circus, and just because of his unease with having nothing to distract him. He always had to do something, say something, anything - to put his mind somewhere else. Particularly, off someone else. Strangely enough, even when he had done a spectacular job at avoiding everything that made him upset: his mother, Rainwood, and whatnot- it always managed to creep up behind him and fester in his mind.

Distractions found themselves to be the best medicines. And the best distractions involved other people. Especially ones who are easy on the eyes. And it was just his fortunate luck that Hogwarts had tons of them. His game was simple. Offer his own set of fun, and get entertainment in return. Whatever the variety may be.

His most recent target went by the name Eun-Ji Lee Hunt. A seemingly effortless beauty that managed to capture his attention from the first time they met. First impressions were a lot of things. And to him, she was basically the embodiment of his ‘type’.

Pretty. Dressed Fancy. Stingy with her facial reactions. A dueling opponent. Honestly, she had set his heart ablaze before she actually hit him with an Incendio Duo. This was not to say he had a ‘crush’ on her, per say. He had merely taken a liking to her and had no energy to pursue anything more than that. She would not be the first one, and certainly not the last. Hanako consistently had people just like Hunt. Pretty to look at, entertaining to joke around with. Nothing more, nothing less. He’d certainly actively keep it that way.

However, with recent developments, merely checking them out when they weren’t looking wasn’t going to cut it anymore. The higher distraction he needed, the more he showed action. Action was something he had been consistently giving Eun-ji for a few weeks now. Pretending to be unsure of class so he could ask her questions. Mindless joking as they pass each other in the hallways. Typical behavior of him. Perhaps his aloofness was the reason she had not really engaged with him despite all that. A shame, really. But the right opportunity will come, he believed.

And that opportunity certainly came knocking at his door. He was not one to visit the kitchens, but boredom has pushed himself to be curious of the unfamiliar smell that whiffed from the area. He had expected a student to be behind it, but he didn’t expect who.

In the kitchens was Eun-ji Lee Hunt. The last place he had ever expected her to be, to be honest, that he was caught off guard upon entering the room. The sight of her seemingly so comfortable cooking sorta shattered the ice queen image he had of her. She seemed like the type of person that would have butlers on her beck and call. An observation that he concluded was a pleasant surprise. It would not take long for him to regain his usual composure.

“ Wow~” he said gently as he fully entered the room “ Brains, beauty, and skills? Do have mercy on me, Hunt. People would think I just ran a marathon with how fast my heart is racing right now~” His heart was beating as regular heartbeats usually do. And it would show by how he dramatically sighs and places his hand on his heart. Jokes, he certainly loves telling them through theatrics. And he would hope Eun-ji picked that up. It would kill the mood to explain what humour was.

While he had entered her space, he made sure to stay a considerable distance from her. Not wanting to invade anything she may have not appreciated. From where he was standing, he could see just enough. That certainly didn’t look like the regular food that was served in the Great Hall. And not something only one person could eat. Unless she had some sort of big appetite that he was unaware of. “ Am I interrupting something? Believe it or not, this was 100 percent unintentional this time. I just smelled something unfamiliar and came to check it out”. It came to him that this would have been the first time they have interacted beyond classes and 30 second hallway meetings. What a..curious development. With that in mind, his usual cheeky grin returned to his face. “ Seeing you here certainly is a nice surprise, though~” he mused in a light flirty tone. One Eun-ji should have been used to by now.

@Eun-ji Lee Hunt

Date: April 23rd, 2023 - Blue in English, Red in Korean

Eun-ji was in the middle of cutting garnish when the door opened and someone entered the kitchen. Oh...think of the devil. She stopped herself just in time before she said so aloud. She could clearly picture the Slytherin's smug expression had she let that one slip past her lips. ‘So you've been thinking about me?’ Is probably what he would say, right? Better not say anything then. Loose lips sink ships and all that. She was a bit worried things would get awkward if she had no reaction whatsoever but one could always count on Hana to fill the silence... although there was a price to pay for that.

How does he come up with all this nonsense and theatrics? “Careful Tone. I'm holding a knife.” The Ravenclaw warned, her expression calm as always. Despite her words however, she wasn't really annoyed by his presence. Lifting the tool in her hand slightly, she pretended to inspect it for a moment. “Lucky for you, it's pretty sharp so you shouldn't suffer for too long.” The witch looked him in the eyes and raised an eyebrow, almost like a challenge. He was obnoxious but it was somewhat fun bickering with him like this. Not that she'd ever admit it aloud of course.

When Hanako approached the counter top, Eun-ji calmly resumed cutting her spring onions. She did not tell the young rogue to leave, instead she wordlessly let him observe her skills and creations. Most of the dishes were already plated, waiting to be served. The garnish was the last task to do. She should have been annoyed by the uninvited guest but she couldn’t help thinking the boy showed up at a perfect time. She was in over her head and he was loud. Loud enough to drown out some of her most intrusive thoughts. Eun-ji wasn't used being around someone like that. Her friends, most of which she'd lost at this point, all went well with her mild temperament. It was only natural they gravitated towards each other. Hanako, on the other hand, was the exact opposite of that...and yet... Why didn't she push him away? Well, it turned out he was a master of distraction. Whenever he was around, she had no time for wallowing in the miseries of her life. It was nice. Besides, I made too much. I might as well share.

'You are interrupting my peace of mind.' She wanted to say. However, her mind was anything but peaceful as of late so that would be kind of unfair. Throwing the garnish onto the delicious looking Korean pork dish, Eun-ji finally inspected her work. “No, you are not. I wanted to make dinner for myself…” She paused for a moment and sighed at the ridiculous amount of food in front of her. “…and for all the ghosts of my previous victims apparently.” Putting the knife away, the witch faced the Slytherin again. Following the smell... Sometimes he really reminded her of a dog. He might have been offended if he knew but to her that was not a bad thing. Dogs were amazing creatures. “Well, since you are already here. Are you hungry?” The witch asked, gracefully ignoring his blatant flirting. He did it all the time so she was used to it.

Some of the dishes for reference (there is more of them of course)

𝟸𝟹 . 𝟶𝟺 . 𝟸𝟹

𝚂𝚊𝚒𝚗𝚝 𝙼𝚘𝚝𝚎𝚕 - 𝙼𝚢 𝚃𝚢𝚙𝚎

To his pleasant surprise, he was not kicked out at first sight. His presence seemed to be accepted off the bat. Well, of course he was accepted. Hunt probably knew it was hard to get rid of him when something caught his attention anyway. “Careful Tone. I'm holding a knife.”

“ Oh, are you?” he chuckled. “ Sorry, Cutie. I get distracted oh so easily whenever you’re around~”

“Lucky for you, it's pretty sharp so you shouldn't suffer for too long.” Her words seemed to have an eerie meaning considering the way she skillfully raised the knife. Instead of focusing on the knife, however - he found himself much more interested in the way Eun-ji looked at his direction. He almost laughed at himself at how easily he enjoyed her gaze on him.

'Yep, definitely my type. '

It was her own cute way of joking, he figured. Growing up as a character most people despised, he could tell the difference between who was joking, and who was really eager to strangle him. Hunt, as chilling her poise was, definitely wasn’t serious. That- and he also found it hard to believe he had annoyed her to that extent..

“ I see someone’s eager to put me out of my misery “ he decided to joke along “ I didn’t know you were that concerned with my racing heart, Hunt. This is a very odd way of saying you care for me.” a short pause ensued. His gaze fell on her a tad bit more intently, while mischief gleamed in his eyes. “ I’m into it” Despite his playful stare, he certainly wasn’t planning to act like it was a lie.

She continued on whatever she was doing, and Hanako being her favorite pest (a fact he believed to be true himself), just stood near her and watched. The more he did, the less invested he seemed. Still, he was ultimately relieved that she didn’t make him help her. It was not because of his inability to cook. In fact, he was quite confident when it came to prepping, especially. But without a doubt, he would have refused her request. The hell would he go out of his way to help her cook? She was his type, not someone he was aiming to please at every given opportunity. A fact that he hoped Hunt had a silent understanding of. Given the way he made no attempt to offer his help, perhaps she already got the message.

Instead, his focus became more ‘her’ focused. The way his direction of thoughts went didn't surprise him at this point. For one, she certainly didn’t look like someone who rarely cooked. Those were the movements of someone who knew their way around the kitchen. It had been a while, but he was aware of the difference in cooking skills. His father moved around just like her. A mesmerizing mixture of habit and confidence. Uh oh, he wasn’t getting distracted enough. Back to the pretty lady next to him, it certainly was a nice surprise to know she cooked.

With the last garnish added, she seemed like she was done. Hanako hadn’t even realized he was just observing her.

“No, you are not. I wanted to make dinner for myself…” She paused for a moment and sighed. “…and for all the ghosts of my previous victims apparently.” He gave a small chuckle.

“ That’s quite a number of victims you got, Hunt” he jested, but didn’t disagree with what she said. There certainly was a lot of food. Would it be easy enough to share this with random strangers at the Great Hall? He refrained from the suggestion, thinking that not everyone could appreciate food like this. Information gained by experience.

He was close to making his exit, thinking there was nothing else to do. Course, Hunt was quicker. “Well, since you are already here. Are you hungry?”

Out of all the things she had said to him, this seemed to be the one that caught him off guard. And he would not be able to hide it well enough for a few seconds.

People inviting him to meals… he was strangely still foreign to the concept. Usually, he would just insert himself in group meals and make 5 minute friends. And even that, most days he’d just prefer to eat alone or with Cu Sith. It was not that he was bad company.

….

Okay, maybe it was because he was bad company. Another way to look at it is that he’s just picky with who he eats with. Still, it did nothing to ease his confusion as to why Eun-Ji would suggest such a thing. Logically, perhaps she didn’t want to waste food. But on the other hand…something was just not clicking in his brain.

As scattered as it was, he came to the conclusion that Eun-ji didn’t know what she was signing up for. And if she had enough of his irresistible personality by the end of the meal, then Hanako would need to find another target to have fun with. He wanted her to enjoy his presence, not grow to dislike it. A meal with him just seemed like one way ticket to do just that.

He looked at her a tad bit skeptically, expecting her to take her words back. When she didn’t, it took all his energy not to sigh. Perhaps he should remind her why it was a bad idea? Yep, good plan. He shook off his initial unease and showed her a familiar cheeky smile.

“ Wow. A meal? With you? With food you made? Someone better pinch me. I’m either having a wonderful dream, or very very dead” he glanced around the room, then at her. His smile became bigger. “ Well, I mean, this is certainly one of my versions of heaven” he refrained from winking.

“ Did you maybe actually use that dangerously sharp knife earlier while I wasn’t looking?”

@Eun-ji Lee Hunt

Date: April 23rd, 2023 - Blue in English, Red in Korean

Hanako continued to run his mouth while she moved around the kitchen effortlessly but Eun-ji remained silent. She was willing to indulge him once in a while but she wouldn’t respond to everything. If he thought, she was so easy to provoke, he would be very wrong about her. “I didn’t know you were that concerned with my racing heart, Hunt. This is a very odd way of saying you care for me.” Honestly this boy….what do I do with him? The witch huffed quietly, thankful she had work to keep herself occupied while he carried on with his shameless flirting. She didn’t think she’d be the one to shock him into silence soon.

The two of them didn’t speak until she was finished. Eun-ji listened to Hana’s chuckle upon hearing her comment. I’m glad you are amused. “Well…I’ve got skills. You said so yourself.” She shrugged eventually. The Ravenclaw briefly wondered why he was still sticking around. Usually, he would simply tease her in passing. The only long periods of time they spent together were during classes, when he constantly asked her questions. That much made sense however. They couldn’t exactly leave in the middle of the lecture. Eun-ji knew he wasn’t really eager to get his grades up but she dutifully answered everything anyway. As a Ravenclaw and someone, who genuinely loved learning she simply couldn’t not answer. Who knows, perhaps he’ll actually remember something one of these days.

When she plated the last dish and the boy still wasn’t gone, Eun-ji finally reached the decision to use his sudden appearance to her benefit. Oh…so he knows how to shut up after all. Eun-ji couldn’t believe a simple offer of meal would throw the Slytherin off this much. Then again, now that she thought about it, it was a bit surreal situation. Sitting down and having dinner with the one and only Hanako Tone? Sure, they weren’t strangers but their relationship was somewhat odd to say the least. Even so, she didn’t think it was that much of a big deal.

Of course, it didn’t take long for the chatterbox to reinstate and start spouting nonsense again. What have I gotten myself into? The witch picked up some of the plates and started setting them down on the table, whilst listening to his ramblings. When she was going back for the next batch, she took the opportunity to actually pinch his arm. Well, he asked for it, she thought without stopping to assess his reaction. A small revenge for his infuriating beaviour. “No, I’ll let you go this time since I’m wearing white.” She added.

Eun-ji's expression remained unchanged as she continued to set up the table. “If I’m lucky, you’ll choke on something and I’ll be free to live in peace once more.” At this point, she was back at the counter scoping some rice from big pot for herself. Once she was done with hers, she picked up a second bowl and paused. “So what it’s gonna be? I’m not going back on my word but I won’t offer again either.” Truth be told Eun-ji didn’t want to eat alone again however she wouldn’t force him to stay either. If her offer truly made him uncomfortable, she’d rather let him walk away. The Ravenclaw definitely wasn't someone to cling on other people.

𝟸𝟹 . 𝟶𝟺 . 𝟸𝟹

𝚂𝚊𝚒𝚗𝚝 𝙼𝚘𝚝𝚎𝚕 - 𝙼𝚢 𝚃𝚢𝚙𝚎

With Hunt, every miniscule win should be celebrated. Though she had chosen to ignore most of what he said, her little sigh was just enough to keep a smile on his face. Definitely a small win. So what was he winning exactly? Well, Eun-Ji Lee Hunt’s facial expressions, of course!

It simply fascinated him when he meets anyone who keeps their reactions to a bare minimum. Despite disregarding a few certain emotions, Hanako was someone who expressed a lot. So, of course it only made things more fun to irk people who weren’t used to it. Just watching a bit of them crack under his influence was a huge ego boost. A childish game he loved to play.

But with Hunt, the difficulty was set to a higher level than most. Which was why he made it his job to pay close attention to her face in particular. An action that he has no complaints about doing. Just to make sure he had the chance of seeing even the slightest change. But really, she was a tough nut to crack. Lucky for her, Hanako didn’t mind difficult games if they were fun enough.

What would she looked like if she was frustrated? Would she sigh a lot? Glare at anyone who crosses her path? What about if she was overwhelmingly joyful? She’s already this pretty as she is, imagine how mesmerizing she looked with a smile. A thought he decided to refrain at all cost, knowing telling people to smile more was just ..tacky. Even for Hanako. Whatever it was, it was a curiosity Hanako found himself having. Is it even a possibility that he’ll get to see all that in this lifetime? It was not a priority, but again- it would feel like he won something.

Perhaps all that staring at her and thinking of her expressions distracted him too much. He almost jumped from the quick pain that sliced through his skin. It did more mental pain to the boy than physical pain. Considering he was forced back to reality instead of thinking about Hunt’s face. “ You pinched me!” he hissed as if not really believing it himself, using his free hand to soothe where she pinched him. “ …..you pinched me..” he trailed off after he calmed down. With how his regular smile returned, Hunt could very well guessed he had managed to turn even this into a win. “ You knoooowwwww~” he snickered. “ If you wanted me to tell you stuff with actions over words as well, I could do just that if you let me ~”. Like duhh- his sudden surprise aside, that was probably the loudest reaction he’d ever gotten from Hunt. Definitely not just a small win. Not that he wanted to get pinched again, that was painful. But you gotta see the positives in every situation.

Sadly, that was the extent of her reactions. She merely continued to set up the table of delectable food as her usual stoic self. “If I’m lucky, you’ll choke on something and I’ll be free to live in peace once more.”

“ And if I’m lucky, ~” he countered with a cheeky grin. “ It’ll only take you a moment of peace before realising you miss me. Peace is so overrated. Admit it, Hunt. You’d totally miss me if I took a sick leave or something. “ he gave her a small wink, being a master at saying things he didn’t believe with full confidence. He would probably be the one to miss her. Who was he going to bother if she wasn’t there? He supposed he did have a few other candidates, but not all of them were his ‘type’. It was just simply different with Hunt.

Oh wow, she seemed serious about letting him eat with her even after his earlier comment. With better judgement, he refrained from making more jokes. Perhaps to her surprise, he was actually pondering seriously on the offer. He was…definitely thinking too much about it. To him, she was wasting her time. To her, she probably just wanted help finishing all this food.

“... Well who am I to refuse when such a pretty girl offers me a meal~”

On one hand, he would say he’s pretty satisfied from today's interaction already. On the other…what are the chances of this meeting happening again? Turns out, he was a greedy person. Allured by the possibilities of seeing more of her rare reactions.

‘I suppose it couldn’t hurt too much to have one meal. The first and last’.

Despite what people may think, he is actually capable of holding back on needless comments. With utmost politeness, he quietly sat down at the prepared table , taking the time to fully appreciate other things apart from Eun-Ji’s looks. Like the delicious food in front of him. Food you don’t see often definitely has its own charm.

Once Hunt handed him his own rice bowl and utensils, he uttered a ‘thank you’ that had a rare gentle tone to it. A stark contrast from their previous interactions. He figured the least he could do was the bare minimum.

Course that was the end of his plan to be on his best behaviour, when Hunt had given him the utensils. The utensils being a spoon, and chopsticks. Chopsticks. Of course, she would expect him to know how to use them. It would be a bit awkward if he bought it up, wouldn't it? It wasn’t a big deal, honestly. How hard could holding two sticks be? He had seen his mother use it. Granted, his eyes naturally avoid his mother during dinner. After 5 seconds of just him trying to getting them to stay on one hand, he gave up.

Okkkkkkaaaaaaayyyy maybe she wouldn’t notice if he just distracted her.

“ It’s actually been a while since I ate korean food “ he confessed to a question she didn’t ask. “ Even so, we just used to eat them at restaurants. This should be the first time anyone ever cooked home-made korean food for me “ his heart picked up a pace when he was frighteningly close to dropped the chopsticks. “ Oh wait, did I make your heart swoon?” Yea, this will definitely get her attention. He gave her a impish grin. “ Oh I definitely made your heart swoon~. I hear people like being someone else’s ‘firsts’. You can totally be honest, Hunt. I’ll gladly-” his voice visibly became more strained when the side dish effortlessly dropped back down on the plate from his chopsticks for the 5th time. He attempted to pretend it didn’t happen and cover it up with a grin. “ gladly help you out~”.

If he was lucky, maybe Hunt would pretend not to notice and he could continue his…attempt. He was very close to just using both the chopsticks and the spoon at this point. Or else the only available food for him would be the rice bowl in front of him.

Slight God Moding allowed by@Eun-ji Lee Hunt

Date: April 23rd, 2023 - Blue in English, Red in Korean

Eun-ji realised that she had gotten quite good at ignoring Hana. Well at least for a short periods of time. It wasn’t humanely possible to ignore everything he was saying. “…Admit it, Hunt. You’d totally miss me if I took a sick leave or something.” The witch didn’t pause her actions but she couldn’t help but consider this. Would she miss him? Probably not but she would definitely notice his absence and wonder what was going on. Such thing was unavoidable at this point. Hanako’s presence was too strong and she was slowly starting to get used to him being around. No way she would ever tell him that though. “Doubtful.” She said instead.

Eun-ji had to survive another onslaught nonsense before the boy finally agreed to eat with her. She was pretty sure she’s come to regret this but it was still better than eating alone. Or was it? She was having trouble deciding. “You are welcome.” Well, perhaps it wont’t be a complete disaster. The witch decided after Hanako thanked her. She could barely hear him but considering his character, it was truly an achievement and she couldn’t help smiling a little. Of course, she’d turn around before she did so. He’d be too smug about it if he saw. This was her small victory.

“잘 먹었습니다/Jal meogeotseumnida” “Thank you for the food” Koreans say this before eating. The Ravenclaw muttered quietly before picking up her chopsticks. It was simply something she had to do and she doubted that would ever change. Eun-ji was suddenly remained of the old times when her family actually sat down together and shared a meal like this. No matter how busy her parents were, grandma always made sure they ate together at least twice a week. The rest of the times Eun-ji would share the table with her grandparents. They made sure she never had to eat alone. Now that her grandma was gone and grandpa didn’t remember her, she had to eat alone all the time. Any leftovers would be put into the fridge and her parents simply took them whenever they had time to do so. Sometimes they didn’t even bother thanking her anymore.

Before her thoughts had a chance to spiral out of control completely, she was brought back to reality by Hana’s voice. This was precisely why Eun-ji didn’t mind his company as much as many others did. The Slytherin was actually a great help in that regard even if he did it unconsciously. “My heart is fine. Sorry to disappoint you.” She answered calmly before putting a piece of the vegetable pancake into her mouth. Even the way she was eating looked calm and graceful. Hana on the other hand… Does he not know how to use chopsticks? The boy kept on chattering so others might not have noticed but Eun-ji always wanted to see people's reactions when they tried her food. She highly doubted the boy would praise her efforts using words so she subtly monitored his expressions instead. Unfortunately for him, this also meant she’d catch on his struggle quite quickly. The Ravenclaw had to bite her lip to prevent herself from chuckling. “Honestly…” She made sure to stress the word properly. “…it seems to me that you are the one, who needs help.” Eun-ji really tried not to sound amused but she had a feeling, she wasn’t entirely successful.

After saying so, she finally got up and went to fetch a fork and a knife for the boy. At least she learned something new about him today. “By the way since I’m feeding you today. Let’s make a deal…” Eun-ji passed him the utensils and went back to her seat before elaborating further. “Could you drop the Hunt when addressing me? It makes my head hurt.” Truthfully, she absolutely loathed when somebody used that part of her name. It felt like she was stripped of everything good and only the bad remained. To her ears, it pretty much sounded like an insult. Only Cassandra called her Hunt but that was not surprising, considering their hostility towards each other. Eun-ji couldn’t really ask them not to do so because then they’d know it was her weakness and use it even more often. At first, she thought she didn’t need to bother with asking Hana either but now they were eating together and it was getting harder to ignore. “I’ll even let you call me whatever you want as long as it’s not that.” She didn’t dare to look at him while voicing out her request, resuming her eating instead. Even so, it would have been obvious that she was being sincere. “Still, I reserve the right to be annoyed if it’s something ridiculous.”

𝟸𝟹 . 𝟶𝟺 . 𝟸𝟹

𝚂𝚊𝚒𝚗𝚝 𝙼𝚘𝚝𝚎𝚕 - 𝙼𝚢 𝚃𝚢𝚙𝚎

“My heart is fine. Sorry to disappoint you.” She said instead. Hanako, being amused by her answer responded. “ It’s all good. With how you’re so eager to spend time with me, it’s bound to happen sooner or later “ As much as he liked Hunt’s attention on him, he thought she looked…way too closely for his liking. Even when he was trying to distract her from his failed attempts at holding two sticks, she looked so at peace with her utensils. Totally different from how Hanako was handling it. For once, her elegance was not appreciated by Hanako. Or it would be more accurate to say he was envious.

She definitely noticed it.

For this moment, Eun-ji would be blessed enough to see a sight not a lot of people see of Hanako. Frustratingly biting down his sheepish embarrassment by looking annoyed. Not a lot got to him, but this particular thing definitely did. “Honestly……it seems to me that you are the one, who needs help.”

Defeated. That was what he was feeling like. If he wasn’t busy fighting his own embarrassment, he would have sought amusement in Hunt’s change of tone. His shoulders tensed at the idea of staying here for too long. Get humiliated for knowing your heritage, and get humiliated for not knowing your heritage. That’s how it’s always been for him. Suddenly, he felt like a little kid again. Getting mocked when he tells people they pronounced his name wrongly.

It's not that it affected him as much now, but it would be a great shame if Hunt were one of those people when he had already enjoyed her presence this much. He stayed silent, waiting for some sort of snide comment from the girl, but nothing came. Instead, she gave him a fork and knife. No other comment was said.

Tch. It’s not like this is the first time. He thought so to himself as he begrudgingly accepted the utensils. He didn’t say thank you this time. Not even gaze at her, actually. A bit of an unusual act from Hanako, who takes every chance he gets to see her face more. If she was perspective enough though, she would be able to notice his shoulders losing tensing as well as the smallest smile on his face. It was different than all the other smiles he had given her so far. It was neither flirty nor cheeky. More like he was holding back the sincerity he felt. It disappeared the second Eun-ji said her next few words.

“By the way since I’m feeding you today. Let’s make a deal…”

“ Whatt?” he mocked a shocked surprised look as he finally added some side dishes to his plate. “ So you’re saying my adorable face and charming presence isn’t good enough value for these meals? Sad, really sad “ he playfully jested. Though once he actually did take a bite of the food, he realised what he said was just facts. ‘Yea, this certainly has more value than both my face and my charm’, he thought as he eagerly took another bite. Definitely different than how most restaurants do it. He did his best to mimic Eun-ji and kept his face neutral but clearly- that was not the case. Still he did not say anything. He merely enjoyed the bites of food that he would most likely never get to eat again. Asking her to cook for him would just be… too much.

But what Eun-ji asked for certainly made him actually surprised for a second. What is up with these purebloods hating their last names? Definitely a family thing. This was the 2nd time a pureblood had asked him to not call them by their last names. Alec Mason being the first. And Hanako would do just as he did last time. Not to question it. Shocker, really. But he was only interested in certain parts of Eun-ji, and none of them involved her family history - whatever it may be. They weren’t friends, nor were they just classmates. They were… well, Hanako was trying to figure that out himself really. But whatever it was, it wasn’t positive enough for them to know each others backgrounds, and not negative enough for him to refuse her request.

“I’ll even let you call me whatever you want as long as it’s not that.” Hanako’s eyes widened at her statement, while the biggest cheekiest grin started forming on his face. “Still, I reserve the right to be annoyed if it’s something ridiculous.” his grin dropped drastically.

“ Ah, soooo it’s a no to sweetheart? Honey? Babe?” He pondered for a solid few seconds, findhing himself more and more amused by his suggestions.” Ermm.. apple of my eyes? Love of my life? Precious little cutie?” he inspected her reactions to all of these but clearly he was joking. He would have just called her Eun-ji, for one. Instead of suggesting all these nicknames she certainly would reject. But he hadn’t been practising his korean pronunciations ( and frankly, he never started ). The chopstick fiasco was enough embarrassment for one day. He made a mental note to pay attention to when others are calling her by her first name. But for now, nicknames would have to do.

He refrained from asking her to give him a nickname too. He doubted it would be anything as positive as the nicknames he suggested to her.

“ I really didn’t take you for someone that’s so forward. We’re already on nickname bases already~. What about a date, then? When do you reckon we’d get to that base?” he teased with no signs of stopping.

@Eun-ji Lee Hunt

Date: April 23rd, 2023 - Blue in English, Red in Korean

It was somewhat fun watching Hana fumble with his chopsticks. The boy always liked provoke others and make them all embarrassed but it was clear he was no stranger to that emotion either. He was like a child, too stubborn to ask for help even if it ended up with him making fool out of himself. Of course, he was probably pretty bitter about that part too. It didn’t make sense really but that was Hana for you. Eun-ji figured quite early on that it might be better if she doesn’t try to find logic in his behaviour…for her own sanity’s sake.

The witch was fine when the knife and fork disappeared from her hand without a thank you. It was already a miracle she got one today and in any case, she was already used to it. Others didn’t say thank you to her very often these days. Such was her current reality. She wondered why her grandma never prepared her for this kind of scenario. Did she think she’d be always surrounded by like-minded people or was she simply expected to accept it and carry on even if they didn’t return the same courtesy? No matter…it’s not like she could ask her. Hmm? Busy with her thoughts, the Ravenclaw almost missed the hidden small smile on her classmate’s face. It looked foreign on his face but for a moment, it stirred something inside her. She always thought there must be so much more going on underneath that aloof exterior but she didn’t think she’d be able to witness it. It was a fleeting moment but Eun-ji felt like even that was entirely too much. However, Hanako didn’t want her to see. Of that, she was sure and so she pretended not to notice. It would be her little secret.

Mere seconds later, the atmosphere shifted again the Slytherin started grinning mischievously. This was of course because of her unexpected request. “You always keep telling me how pretty and charming I am. If that’s the case then why should your charms be anything special to me? We can call it square and move onto more interesting propositions, no?” The witch knew there would be a price to pay for asking anything of him but for this? She was willing to.

Once she was done with her offer, the boy grinned even harder. At least he didn’t for any explanation. Somehow, Eun-ji didn’t think he would but she wasn’t completely sure. After all, he always seemed to be asking her questions. Perhaps he was fine asking anything except for the serious ones. Good. That suited her just fine. “Ah, soooo it’s a no to sweetheart? Honey? Babe?” Eun-ji had to put a lot of effort in order not to cringe. She couldn’t stop the sigh escaping her lips however. Those were just so sleazy. Surely, he was not actually planning to use one of those? Her eyebrows perked a bit when Hana mentioned precious among the other nonsense. It was subtle but probably still somewhat noticeable. It was not that she liked it in its original sense but the picture of the ugly creature clutching onto his precious ring immediately came to mind and it was a little bit funny. I’d rather you didn’t call me any of those. She thought bitterly but refrained from voicing it out. She promised he could call her whatever he wanted if she could feel annoyed about it and she was going to keep her word.

Resting her cheek onto her plam she paused in her eating and looked at her strange companion. “I never asked you to give me a nickname though. I merely told you to call me whatever you want. I still have two other names; it’s you who chose to go in that direction.” She reminded him calmly. “So technically, you are the only one on nickname bases.” Eun-ji didn’t address the date request directly but from what she said, the message was most likely pretty clear. It’s not like he was serious anyway. Since that was the case, why would she bother actually answering the question?

𝟸𝟹 . 𝟶𝟺 . 𝟸𝟹

𝚂𝚊𝚒𝚗𝚝 𝙼𝚘𝚝𝚎𝚕 - 𝙼𝚢 𝚃𝚢𝚙𝚎

“You always keep telling me how pretty and charming I am. If that’s the case then why should your charms be anything special to me? We can call it square and move onto more interesting propositions, no?”

“ Ouchhh~” Hanako chuckled. “ Hits where it truly hurts. As true as that is, is it too much of a miracle for me to hold hope that you see me the same way?” Of course it was, but Hunt possibly already knew that. Many of what Hanako said were way too playful to be considered genuine in any possible way. And that’s what makes it fun. “ Suppose I need to work harder to change that, hm?”

At the lines of nicknames he offered, he seemed pleasantly amused at her almost bland reactions towards all of them. He was starting to get that a sigh from her is possibly the most reactions he’d ever get from her. Thankfully, he did not lose hope. Maybe one more sigh was one sigh closer to a frown? He’ll have to wait and see. Oddly enough, not all of the nicknames brought upon that reaction to her.

Subtle, barely noticeable. Honestly, if Hanako wasn’t paying so much attention to her face, he would’ve missed it. But only one nickname had a slightly different reaction. “ Precious?” he double confirmed, as if not believing it himself. “ Oh.. oohhhh..thats..” he trailed off while he did his best not to look at Hunt’s reaction, failing to hide his unexpected grin behind his free hand that now hovered around his mouth. A habit of someone who didn’t like people seeing his unexpected genuine smile. ‘That’s actually really precious. Adorable really’ the thoughts almost muttered out in a natural hiss of parseltongue, but he held back his tongue.

Adorable wouldn’t really be one of the descriptions he would use on Eun-ji. Pretty suited her features so much better than adorable. But at that moment in time, he certainly couldn’t help but see her as such. As someone who was not a fan of lord of the rings, he only saw ‘precious’ as it’s original meaning, and not the meme. A fact he will remain ignorant of unless Eun-Ji informs him. According to his view, she had a history of being called precious. It didn't suit his image of her, but that's what made it cu- amusing.

It took him a few more seconds of smiling to control his reactions once more and he eventually rested his gaze on her again with a more familiar cheeky grin. “ Well, since you like it so much, I suppose I’ll have to refrain myself from using it too much. Don’t want you hating the only nickname you liked~” Liked was too big of a word to use when Eun-Ji merely didn’t sigh at the mention of it. But it was something, so it meant something! He wouldn’t really be a fan of ruining it for her. Yea, he was well aware enough that he wasn’t one of her favourite people. An opinion he was ready to hide under jokes and flirting.

“I never asked you to give me a nickname though. I merely told you to call me whatever you want. I still have two other names; it’s you who chose to go in that direction.So technically, you are the only one on nickname bases.”

“ Ouchhhh. You’re really extra relentless to me tonight, aren’t you? “ To be fair, it wasn’t anything different than their usual reactions. He tries to woo her, she is unaffected, she blatantly rejects it, he laughs. That’s the sequence of their interactions. It was only that back then, those were just short comments she was referring to. Not full on interactions like this. Not that he complained. “ And why would I ever pass up on the opportunity for a nickname? I think it helps me be much more memorable in your eyes, don’t you think so?” He chuckled.

Oh jee, when was the last time he had this much fun? It was like, he was recharged with each interaction he had with her. Course, even before then his mood had already lifted with her, but now that he had not only a meal with her, but full on conversations- he was err… truthfully getting greedy. More greedy than he’d expected. Franky, it was kinda scary. The accelerating type. It got his head spinning, naturally wandering off to ideas on how to make this feeling last longer. All while doing this, he accidentally rested his eyes comfortably on Eun-Ji eating, but not in a ‘mesmerized’ sort of way. More like her face was a puzzle he was trying to solve. An action she proceeds to ignore.

Should he eat slower? No, that wouldn’t work. Hunt was too perceptive, as shown earlier by the chopstick fiasco. She’s notice right off the bat and he didn’t have the energy to be embarrassed again.

Is there really no other way except.. ‘that’ way?

“ Take a picture it’ll last longer “ the sound of her voice snapped him back to reality, the faintest tint of pink on his cheevks indicated that he didn't mean to stare at her. A sight he attempted to cover up by a sheepish laugh while his hands rubbed the back of his neck. “Psftt. Trust me I’d want to if cameras even work here “ he shrugged his embarrassment off.

“ You know, with how eventful this dinner way, I’m quite inclined to share something about myself. I understand you never asked but anyways -” he intended not to listen to any interruptions. Though he doubted that she would. After listening to all his nonsense, she certainly proved herself to be a good listener. Patient than most. “ I just get incredibly bored, you know? Its been a habit of mine since I was a kid. I just want to..experience things that made me entertained. So I suppose you could say I have a tendency to go after what I want. Especially if its fun. Alas, I have enough decency not to push it. Not without permission, that is ” he gave her a knowing gaze and a smirk. She could probably tell where he was going with this.

“ So with that in mind, would you mind hearing a proposition of mine, as well? If not for my charm and good looks, why not hear what I say as a good host?~”. Despite her hoping he’d choke on his food, she’s been nothing but a good host so far. Hanako had a feeling she’d be more of a good host if he wasn’t such an annoying guest. Still, he didn’t mind using that to his advantage.

@Eun-ji Lee Hunt