Summary: Ron likes Cho, Harry likes Cho, Cho doesn't know who she likes by this point. The weirdest things happen by a window, don't they?
Pairing: Active Intellect - Ron Weasley and Cho Chang.
Prompts: Tender, Sacrifice, Ancient window.
Song Lyric: What about love? I never mentioned love. The timing's bad, I know.
Phrase: kicks and giggles.
Written for the New and Improved BIGGEST challenge EVER on HPFC forum.Ron's POV:
Cho Chang. I don't quite know where to begin with that girl. She was pretty, smart, funny, and not mine. As soon as Harry confessed that he was crushing on her, I won't lie, I felt like someone had tied a rock to my heart and was pulling it downwards on a spring. What chance did the ginger side-kick have against the boy who lived? None, that's the answer you're looking for. I had about the same chance as a dead slug, or a stale biscuit.
It got me thinking, really. The only girl I was sure I loved was my mum, and even that was a bit hit-and-miss when she was having one of her moment. Women stuff, I'll never understand it. It got me thinking about why I hadn't acted upon my crush sooner. This was Cho Chang, after all. Cho Chang who was sweet and understanding. Cho Chang who was kind and tender. Cho Chang who was perfection, and then some. It took a lot of deep thought (by which I mean I sat on my bed, eating chocolate frogs and questioning my stupidity for a whole ten minutes), and in the end I realised why I hadn't. She had never showed any interest in me, except when she would help me out with Charms homework, and even then it was only friendly. And I couldn't act on it after Harry had told me. He was my best friend in the whole world, and I couldn't do that to him. Pals before gals, as Fred and George quite often said.
After taking everything into consideration, and having another of my deep thinking phases (which this time actually was quite deep, and I spent two whole days on this), I still hadn't managed to sort myself out. I loved Cho. Harry was crushing on Cho. Cedric had died last year. I wasn't sure what to do with myself. Would I just give her to Harry? Would I make my move? Would I explain my situation to Harry and hope on Merlin's name that he wouldn't hex me into next week? None of those seemed like the best option, in all honesty, so I went with all three, or none of them, depending on how you look at it. No, I wasn't being thicker than a plank of wood. I was being logical for once. I wouldn't tell Harry, I wouldn't go for Cho (yet), and I would find a way to prevent Harry going for her. I would find a way to accomplish all of these things. But, me being me, this didn't go very well.
I remember the next part of my story like it was only yesterday. I was sitting in the common room, wringing my hands, and worrying. I was still shaky on my plan of action. The only person I'd told my plan to was George, and that's only because he spotted me in the library and ran over to see if I was feeling alright. Since this might not explain itsself, I'll enlighten you. I never went to the library. If I needed anything from there, then I would ask Hermione to get it for me. She knew that place like the back of her hand, and if I could trust anyone to do something to do with the library, it was her. So, me sitting on my own, in the library, with a book open in front of me was naturally something my brother would worry about.
"Oi, Ronnie. What're you doing here?" George whispered, wearing the signature Weasley Twin smirk.
"Thinking, George," I replied simply, flipping the page of the book. A mixed look of amusement and mock-horror crossed his face and he put a hand to my head, checking my temperature. "I could ask you the same question," I sighed.
"Waiting for someone. What're you thinking about? Whatever it is, you can tell me,"George said, tapping the side of his nose twice and sitting in the chair opposite me.
"Girl troubles, my brother. Girl troubles. Harry likes Cho, I like Cho, Cho barely knows I exist and I have no idea what I'm going to do about it," I hurried. "But you don't care."
"Oh, I know you fancy her. I read your diary over the summer... But Ronnie boy, it's time for some good old fashioned brotherly advice. Use the Weasley charm. Worked for Bill, worked for Charlie, worked for Fred, worked for me. You don't want to pass up an opportunity, Ron, trust me. But, promise me one thing. Promise me that you'll bear in mind, 'is love worth the sacrifice?'" he said, standing up and walking off, leaving me with that. I stood up, reminding myself to thank him later, and walked shakily back to my dormitory.
"Ah, Ron, you're back. Right, I need some help with Cho. I was thinking of making my move on her at the last DA meeting before Christmas. You know, it's romantic and all that. But d'you think I should, or-?" Harry began the second the door opened and I stepped inside.
"Harry, if I'm honest, I don't give two. I've got too much to think about right now. Take your problems to someone who can help you with them," I snapped, climbing into bed and facing away from him. I didn't sleep well that night. I had to make my move before Harry did, and I spent the night thinking about what George had said. Weasley Charm... Pass up an opportunity... Love worth the sacrifice...
I got out of bed at around seven o'clock and got changed in silence. It was a weekend, and we didn't have lessons, so I went for a walk before the rest of the school got up. If I wasn't the amazingly observant person I am, then I would have missed her. But I spotted her alright. She looked beautiful. She was wearing a light blue polo shirt, a navy blue skirt and black tights: a simple choice of clothes, but very beautiful. Her hair was swept to one side in a loose ponytail, and she was perched upon a window ledge.
"Hi Cho," I said happily, leaning against the wall opposite. She looked up from the small book in her hands, her eyes red with tears. "What's wrong?" I asked.
"Oh, h-hello Ron. N-nothing. I-I guess I just... J-just miss C-Cedric, that's all," she murmured, trying to keep the pain out of her voice.
"We all miss him, Cho. He was a great friend, and I can only imagine how hard this must be for you... But you have to understand that he would want you to be happy, wouldn't he?" I said comfortingly, moving over to her and putting an arm around her shoulders. She nodded slightly, and if I had blinked, I would've missed it.
"Yes, he would... But I... I can't move on, Ron. I've got n-nothing to help m-me d-do it," she stammered, a lone tear making its way down her cheek. I wiped it away with my finger, and she looked up.
"You've got me," I whispered. She smiled and her mouth emitted a small giggle, but her face soon turned sad. "I mean it, Cho. I'll be here for you."
"Th-thank you, Ron. That... That's very sweet," she said, putting the book down behind her and turning to face me. I saw how her eyes threatened to spill more tears, and it broke my heart to see her so upset. Without thinking, I pulled her into a soft hug, which she returned, and cried soundlessly into my shoulder. "I miss him so much, Ron," she whimpered.
"I know, Cho. I know," I whispered back, not breaking our embrace. She pulled back, sniffing.
"I must look s-so pathetic right now... Crying into your shoulder..." she smirked, her voice still trembling. I shook my head in response. She looked at me with her big, brown eyes, and I knew then that this wouldn't work out.
"Cho, you should know... Uh... Harry really likes you," I said, my voice threatening to break. She remained emotionless, and shrugged. I stood up and held a hand out to her, and we went for a little stroll around the castle. We stopped at the bottom of the stairs to the Ravenclaw common room, and she turned to face me.
"Ron, have you ever been in that situation where you've been with someone, and just thought to yourself 'was it real?' Questioning if it was just for kicks-and-giggles, or if it was because it was genuine? And, when it was over, you haven't wanted to let it go, but you know you should?" she asked, her naturally quiet voice barely above a whisper. I thought back, and realised that I had never been in that position.
"No, can't say I have. Have you ever been in that place when you've liked someone, but you haven't wanted to tell them, because you don't know if they're ready for it?" I asked her. She shook her head.
"Oh," was all I could say. She leaned in to me and pressed her lips against my cheek, which, might I add, was absolutely freezing.
"What was that for?" I asked, genuinely befuddled, blinking to make sure this was real.
"I loved Cedric, Ron. I loved him with all my heart. But you're the one who has helped me through this. Call it friendly love," she smiled.
"Friendly love. Or as I call it, weak compared to how I feel about you," I said, speaking before I thought, turning and walking away.
I felt her hand touch my shoulder and I was spun back around. Her lips met mine in a bittersweet kiss that seemed to last forever. Her lips had the same salty taste of tears, but the same sweet one of strawberries and ice cream. When she pulled away, she flashed a quick, small smile at me and walked up off the stairs.
Love at Hogwarts can blossom in the strangest of places. In a bathroom, in a dormitory, in a classroom, by the lake. But for me, it was on an ancient window. That was the one place that I swore to myself that I would always remember. I remember the exact spot to this day, and if you asked me to show you, I would probably say "no". It was our special little place, just for us. Sure, it was fairly public, and everyone went there. But there were only two people who ever really belonged there. Me and Cho. Cho and me.
"What about love? I never mentioned love. The timing's bad, I know." is probably the only way I could sum that day up. Well, we did mention love. But still. Love bloomed in the worst of times, but maybe that's what made it happen. Awful timing usually leads to the best of things, as I would soon find out.