The pitch was way to large, way too open, and entirely devoid of the cold, comforting stone walls of the Slytherin dungeons. It really made her regret coming out here without a proper jacket but the cardigan was something Ryuo had given her a while back so she didn’t want to not wear it.
Minju stood near the center of the grass, her fingers clutching the handle of a school broomstick so tightly her knuckles were turne white. Every line of her posture remained impeccably straight , her back rigid, her black hair pinned back neatly with a white bow, and her black shirt smoothed down over her body without a single wrinkle. To anyone watching from the stands, she looked like she was posing for a formal pure-blood portrait.
On the inside, her stomach was grumbling .
If Mother saw me right now... The thought laced in her mind with hard clarity. Lady Sun-he believed a lady of the House of Jeong moved with deliberate, high-level grace. Clambering onto a wooden stick, flying dozens of feet into the air, and risking clamy skin or muddy knees was completely uncalled for . Yet, beneath the suffocating weight of her family’s expectations, a quiet, stubborn ambition burned within Minju. She wanted to fly. She wanted to prove to her older brother, Dohyun, that she wasn't just a soft, ornamental figurehead.
She took a slow breath, forcing her shoulders to drop half an inch as she turned her head toward the older girl approaching her across the field.
Avery Gray was a Gryffindor, a third-year, and an actual player on the gryffindor house team. Everything about Avery felt relaxed, athletic, and confident—the polar opposite of Minju’s tight, hyper-controlled demeanor. Minju swallowed down her anxiety, adjusting the pocket of her jeans once with a swift, nervous twitch before smoothing them flat against her legs.
"Thank you for... agreeing to meet me here," Minju began, her voice soft, delicate, and carefully measured. She bowed her head in a brief, formal sign of respect before looking back up at Avery with serious, dark brown eyes. "I know how to handle basic theory, but... I have not spent much time on a broom. My family prefers more traditional discipline."
She glanced down at the school broom resting beside her boots, her jaw setting in a quiet line of determination.
"I want to learn how to play properly. Where do we begin?"
