Chapter Text
It was a normal day for the teachers at The Academy, dealing with students, correcting papers, prepping for their lessons, gossiping about that one girl and boy who were currently off again.
It was a normal day for the students too. They were going about their day, listening to their friends’ rant, rush to finish incomplete homework, gossip about that one couple who were on again.
It was a normal day. The sun was out, the spring air filling the surroundings with the scent of flowers. The trees were bright green, as though they were happy, enjoying the day. Everything was perfectly fine.
Until it wasn’t.
Until there was a huge explosion and an even louder bang. Until the teachers and the students rushed to the east wing of the building only to find it in shambles, a huge gaping hole in one of the main walls meant to hold up the structure. Until they found Jeon Jungkook lying amidst the rubble, wand cast elsewhere and clothes in tatters, unconscious.
When Jungkook woke up, he didn’t expect to wake up to the face of the headmaster peering down at him. He didn’t even know where he was and to find the headmaster in his face shocked him enough to jolt out of bed with a squeak and fall onto the floor.
Catching his breath he tried to get up, failing his attempt at looking dignified when he proceeded to trip over a wire and almost land face-first onto the floor after having noticed the rest of the staff present.
“Headmaster, professors, what are you doing here?” He asked, trying to look even a tiny bit put together. It only then did he notice his blue hair slightly singed at the tips and his uniform ripped.
“We need to talk to you Jungkook.” came the reply and Jungkook knew that something wasn’t right. The poorly concealed rage in their eyes and their rigid posture was enough to tell him that he was in trouble and he wasn’t getting out of it this time.
“We understand that you are incapable of performing magic but must you still try? In the east wing especially where the dormitories are located?” The headmaster spoke, the edge in his voice not ebbing away. “We took you in because we pitied you. We gave you a home and instead of being ungrateful the least you could do is try to work on your studies. You can’t perform magic and you are failing your theory classes. If it weren’t for the orphanage giving us custody of you, you would have been sent back a long time ago.”
Jungkook hung his head, the sting barely there after having heard this very speech a dozen times over the years. He was grateful for them, he really was but they never seemed to understand that he would try his hardest to excel but nothing ever worked, having given up on a proper sleep schedule 5 years ago.
“This time you have gone too far,” the headmaster continued, “We have no choice but to expel you.”
Looking up in shock, Jungkook tried to protest, to no avail. “But I was only trying to help! I saw someone bullying a junior.”
"By trying to kill both of them? You’re lucky no one was hurt and that includes you. And as you know, the school has rules and regulations regarding bullying. You should have informed a teacher or me and we would have taken care of it.”
“Where do I go? I have nowhere to go.” No matter how much he hated it, Jungkook didn’t have any other place to go and this horrid place was his home. Had been for the past 10 years.
The hope in his heart diminished, giving way to something he had learnt to block out so as to not attract any attention from his classmates. Unfortunately, there was no getting out of this. He looked around the room and watched the eyes of those present, melt into finality, pity or sympathy nowhere to be found.
“You will never become a wizard. You can’t even cast a spell properly. You should have given up when you had the chance. I’m sorry. This is my fault. I shouldn’t have encouraged you.”
The moment those words left the Headmaster’s mouth, Jungkook knew what he meant. He had understood what wasn’t said. The ‘I regret taking you in, in the first place’ was loud and clear and Jungkook knew what he meant.
He remembered himself as a small child, barely 7 years old as compared to the handsome and strong 18 years old he was now. He remembered fumbling and being unable to cast spells properly. He had the power but he had no ability. He remembered crying at night and waking up in the midst of a nightmare of his classmates laughing. He remembered the headmaster taking him in his arms and caring for him, a father he never had. He remembers soft touches and loving caresses contrary to the rough shoves and hard slaps he endured now. Even the professors had one stared at him with the kindest eyes he had ever seen. Now replaced with harsh glares.
He sat there in bed as the company present walked out, leaving him to his thoughts and to rest. Jungkook sat there, unwilling to let the tears drip and unwilling to cry as the only family he ever had left him. He supposed it was for the best considering that everything had changed. His classmates had never been supporting and somewhere down the line, the staff had changed too. Ignoring him, scolding him, their condescending voices giving out saccharine comments that were obviously aimed towards him.
For the first time in years, Jungkook looked up in determination and got out of bed. Heading to his room, he packed everything up, not leaving a single trace of himself behind, not that there was much anyway. He made up his mind.
If they weren’t going to be his family and if they were so sure that he would never find a family, he didn’t need one. He would make a home for himself. He would make a name for himself. Maybe not as a wizard. But he had enough of the way he had been treated. He had stuck around for years hoping that they would come around. But if this was how they treated him. He didn’t need them. He didn’t need anyone.
He was Jeon Jungkook. This was his life and he was going to live it as he pleased. No matter what.