Chapter Two: Spying on Harry

Disclaimer: Characters are not mine; I'm just borrowing them from Miss J.K. Rowling. No copyright or trademark infringement intended.

A/N: Thanks to those who reviewed, I sent replies to each one. This is the first time I ever published a fic online and I really need all the support I can get. So thanks you guys. Also, if anyone would like to beta my fic, let me know. Special thanks to fellow Potterbitch Shar for all the encouragement

Classes were simply uneventful that day. NEWT-Potions were harsh as usual, History of Magic was boring as usual, and Study Hall was well, as per usual, the time to gossip.

Cho chewed on the end of her sugar quill as she listened to Padma's emotional tale of yet another argument with her boyfriend Seamus Finnegan, an Irish bloke from Gryffindor.

"Jerk," Marietta concluded after Padma capped her story with how Seamus heartlessly left her crying in the Entrance Hall after a heated argument involving Seamus' very close 'friendship' with Lavender Brown, a Gryffindor in their year. "I never really loiked that prat." She said, taking the Mickey out of his accent.

"Look at him," Padma almost crushed the sugar quill in her hand to crumbs. "He's doing this on purpose."

Cho was relieved to be given a reason to glance at the Gryffindors. She has been trying hard not to look at Harry, (mainly because she once glanced at him and she was accused by Marietta of obsessing on him, although she kind of was, to be honest) Good thing the opportunity presented itself. After briefly scanning the table for Padma's boyfriend (He was sharing his book with Lavender) she found Harry bidding goodbye to his friends Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger, jerking his thumb toward the exit while mouthing something like, 'the owlery.'

Cho didn't know what came over her. Somehow, she saw this as an opening. An opening to what exactly? She didn't know. Excusing herself from her friends to go to the bathroom, she followed him out the study area.

Wary that she should be at least twenty or so paces behind him so as not to look suspicious, Cho walked slowly and casually, up the South Tower staircases, making sure her heels clicked softly as she went up.

What now? She asked herself. What was she to do? Ask him out. Hell no! Talk to him, for one. Be casual, she decided. Like you're sending a letter to somebody and he just happened to be there.

"Tsk, tsk," a female portrait called out to her, as though it knew what she was up to.

Cho ignored it and instead searched for an empty piece of parchment from her robe pocket. She found a small scrap paper where she had planned out a couple of Quidditch scoring strategies during a particularly dragging moment in History of Magic a while back. This should do, Cho decided. She'll just send it to Marietta…

Now how to greet him.

"Hi Harry." Or "Hello there." No, she scolded herself. Don't forget the 'Oh.' It adds an element of genuine surprise. "Oh hi Harry," would work just fine.

The fluttering and hooting of owls grew increasingly as she went up the last flight of stairs. She folded the piece of parchment and enclosed it in her right hand as she entered the Owlery. She tentatively walked inside. It wasn't a vast space, but the labyrinth of tall owl cages obstructed the view of the entire place. She walked toward the far right of the Owlery, and from a distance found Harry's familiar figure. She watched him from the corner as he tied something on the leg of his snowy owl. He seemed to be talking to it as he straightened some of it feathers.

Then she saw Ginny's flaming red hair appear from behind Harry's silhouette. "No flaming way," she told herself. But she just couldn't miss it—a stark contrast to everything in sight, Ginny's mane stood out against the backdrop of a clear blue sky.

Suddenly, Cho's eyes locked with Ginny's piercing, accusing stare.

Panicking, Cho walked quickly to the other side of the area, feeling her face grow hotter by each step.

'Great, now they think I'm spying on them.' She felt like hiding. She felt like jumping off the tower. Or maybe if the earth just swallowed her whole, it would save her from all the humiliation.

Now aptly obstructed by the cages, she put her elbows on the balustrades and slack jawed, looked at the view from below to calm her raging emotions.

Why was she doing this to herself? How embarrassing! She could already hear Marietta's all-knowing voice telling her to get over Harry sodding Potter and move on because she's better off without him. A different voice interrupted her thoughts.

"You ought to take points. See," Draco Malfoy pointed his cigarette towards the couple. "Snogging." He took a puff on his cigarette. Cho didn't bother to look at the couple and watched as he exhaled small rings of smoke that floated upward and disappeared. Then he turned his back on the stone barriers. If there was a way to coolly lean on something, he was definitely doing it. In a black jumper and trousers, Cho thought he looked very polished.

"I should give you detention for that." She pointed at his Silk Cut. "Not so much that you're smoking, mind, but because Silk Cut is very gay. Do try Dunhill or Marlboro."

"Clever," he said, bringing the cigarette held together by his pointing finger and thumb between his lips for a puff. But Cho knew Malfoy won't leave an insult as such unanswered. "This is Pansy's stash, I left mine in my room," he said casually, blowing the air of smoke toward the other direction.

"Of course it is," she smirked at him. "Where is she then? I didn't know the Owlery is the new Astronomy Tower."

"One, I left her in the classroom, and two, public snogging is for wankers like Potter," He shot her a look from the corner of his eye. "I'd rather have nobody watching when I work my magic." He winked at her.

She shook her head and tied the piece of parchment to the foot of the owl and told it to deliver the note to Marietta Edgecombe, Ravenclaw house. It gave a low hoot before flying downward.

Draco watched her interestingly, his lips curled to the sides in a manner of sarcasm. "The depths you go, Chang."

Cho felt herself flush. For a moment she thought about denying it, but there really was no point. Besides, it was only Malfoy, he won't blab. He isn't exactly the gossiping type.

"I don't know what came over me really," she said, glancing at him with pleading eyes, asking for any sort of encouragement or comforting words that her friends would have readily offered. But Cho should've known better than to seek solace from a Slytherin, much more a Malfoy.

For a moment his gray orbs stared blankly at her. He looked away as he threw the cigarette butt on the ground and extinguished the flame with his shoe. "All you need is a good shag," he lifted his brows at her and left.

Cho pondered the idea over the next few days.

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Chapter Three: The love pariah and her shag therapy, will be up VERY SOON. It just needs a lillte tweaking. ;)