Written for Heroes Hunt (write about someone lending a listening ear) and Ultimate Patronus Quest (Swan- Write about Cho Chang)
Minerva comes to a stop when she hears the sound. It soft and pitiful, and so full of sorrow that she can feel her own heart breaking. However hard she may appear, her students have always been so dear to her, and she cannot let one of them hurt in silence.
She pushes open the door, resting her hand over heart when the young Ravenclaw inside looks up at her with wet, bloodshot eyes. "Miss Chang," she says gently, though she isn't surprised to find the girl hiding away in an empty classroom to grieve.
"Sorry, Professor," she sniffs, wiping her eyes with her sleeve, but it does no good. Fresh tears replace the dried ones. "I made people uncomfortable, so I found a new place."
Minerva waves her wand, transfiguring a button into a handkerchief and hiding it to her student. "It's quite alright, dear," she assures her quickly. "Few understand what it's like to lose someone who meant as much to you as Mr. Diggory."
Cho's body shakes at his name, and she makes a strangled sort of sound. "I- I loved him," she cries, pressing the handkerchief to her eyes. "I know you must think it's silly, and that I'm too young, but I know I did."
Minerva steps closer, a sad smile pulling at her lips. She rests a hand on the girl's shoulder. "Oh, I believe you. As some age, they forget what it's like to be young and to know," she muses.
She isn't one of those. Minerva still remembers the nights she'd spent with Dougal just beyond his fields, their picnics by the lake, their whispered promised and adoring eyes.
And now, seeing Cho mourning the loss of love, watching her try to piece herself back together, Minerva remembers the sharp sting the new of Dougal's death had brought.
Cho sniffles and looks up at Minerva, tears still clinging to her lashes. "I loved him," she whispers. "Before he… Before Cedric di- Before the final task, he asked me to go to Switzerland with him and his father. Just a little celebration of him finishing Hogwarts. But he d-didn't make. We had dreams, plans, a fu-" She cuts herself off, taking a deep breath.
Minerva wraps an arm around her student, making soothing sounds. "I know, dear. I know."
"We had a future," Cho says, wiping her eyes. "Everyone thinks I'm stupid for still grieving, but I can't help it. I loved him, Professor."
"You will always grieve, Miss Chang. It will always hurt, but over time, you will learn to carry on. It's what he would have wanted," Minerva assures her.
Cho nods, a hint of a smile on her lips. "He would," she agrees. "I'm trying. Really, I am."
"That's all that matters," Minerva says. "And if you need someone to talk to about these things, my office is always open to you. You may not be a Gryffindor, but you are still my student."
Cho's lips quirk into a smile, the first genuine one that Minerva has seen since Cedric's murder. "Thank you, Professor."
"Talking doesn't take the pain away completely, but I've found that knowing someone is willing to listen to you helps you to know that you are not alone."