Hi there! Long time, no chapter! Yeah, seriously, it's been too long and I've left you guys out here waiting for another chapter to roll in. I've been busy out the wazoo, but I'm trying to use some of my free time to write for you guys. You're welcome. ;P

Okay, now for a serious question. I've been thinking this over, but I want to know what you guys think. This is my first fanfiction story as you guys know, and sadly, this may come to a conclusion in the next couple chapters or so since my dream ended at the Yule Ball. I wanted to ask you guys, should I continue the story after the ball? (like the 2nd and 3rd tasks and whatnot) And should I do another series for this couple, like The Order of the Phoenix or a prequel? I'm open for suggestions. Just leave a review for me about your opinion of if I should continue or leave the story as is. THANK YOU GUYS!

All the characters and places mentioned in this fanfiction belong to J.K. Rowling. They are not my own except for my character!

Sorry for any misspellings or grammatical errors. Reviews are welcome and appreciated, but please be nice. Enjoy Chapter 8!


Chapter 8

Questions

I don't know if I can do this.

My heart was pounding loudly in my ears as I walked up the hill with Hermione. It was snowing and the wind was blowing an icy breeze as we trudged toward the owl tower.

She and I had been planning this for a few weeks and the opportunity came to us out of luck. Harry had wanted to meet me at the owlery tower, Sirius had sent him another letter, and he knew how much I loved seeing the owls.

Hermione had been giving me pep talks since that morning, but I was still completely nervous.

I stopped toward the top of the hill, "Maybe I should wait..."

Hermione turned and placed her hands on her hips. "And miss this perfect opportunity? No, Bella you can do this. Besides, you may never have another chance with Ron around asking about Quidditch."

I sighed; she was right, as always. But I felt too shaken,unconfident, and the cold wasn't helping. "But what if - "

"But nothing!" Hermione interrupted, "You are going up there. C'mon. You love Harry don't you?"

The question burned inside my head. I did love Harry. More than he realized. I loved him ever since he rescued me from The Chamber of Secrets….Hell..butterflies up welled in my stomach when he looked at me…but there was still that uneasy feeling in the pit of my stomach…

My heart began to sink again. I was being such a bloody idiot. I needed to be brave, to march up those steps with confidence and not take no for an answer.

Yeah right...I thought to myself.

"Well?" Hermione pushed, tapping her foot on one of the stone steps, "Come one, Bella…you can do this. You've been through worse y'know."

Her voice had taken a much softer tone; she was teasing me. I looked up at Hermione and chuckled. Again, she was correct. I'd done more dangerous tasks…like facing Professor Lupin when we found out he was a werewolf.

I sighed and clenched my fists, "Yeah…I've done worse."

Taking a deep breath, I marched up toward the steps. Hermione followed closely behind me, muttering,"Have confidence."

Once we reached the last set of stairs, Hermione sat at the bottom step where she would wait for me like we planned. I looked back at her and she gave me a small smile, gesturing me to go on.

I took a deep breath and watched as the air from my lungs made a misty cloud in front of my nose. You can do this, I thought…

Step by step, I slowly made my way toward the entrance, my heart pounding loudly in my ears again, but before I got to the top step, I heard a voice amongst the owl's shrieking…

"-ing ifmaybeyou'dliketogototheballwithme?"

"I'm sorry, what?"

That was a female voice…I shuddered, my heart jumping into my throat. It can't be…

I shuffled over to the entryway and slowly peeked into the room.

Harry was standing with his back to the entrance, his hair a jumbled mess, and he was wearing a long black coat with black slacks. Standing opposite him, looking beautiful in her long black robes and blue and silver scarf was…

Cho Chang.

Harry took a deep breath, saying the words more slowly, "I..was wondering…if maybe you'd like to go… to the ball with me?"

My eyes widened as I gasped and turned away. I should have known it would only have been a matter of time, but that didn't stop the tears from boiling up in my eyes. I was too late…

I ran down the stairs, my vision blurring, and the image of them still in my mind. I felt sick, nauseated. Questions began to burn in my mind. Why did I even try? Why didn't I see this coming? Why didn't he notice my advances?

Someone called out my name, but I didn't care. I didn't want to have to explain myself. I just wanted to be left alone…


For the rest of the afternoon I ended up staying in the girl's dorm of Gryffindor Tower, calling in sick. I knew I wouldn't be able to face anyone right now. I needed to get over the shock…maybe to try and forget about what happened…

I couldn't.

I ran scenarios through my head over and over again…one where I didn't run away but I stood there in shock, one where I got there before Cho and asked him…and he said yes…

I rolled over in my bed…what was I thinking, I should be happy for Harry, not sad. I felt a pang of pain in my chest. But you love him, a voice said in my head.

But he wants Cho, I argued, my throat swelling up. The tears began to flow again…

The memories spun around in my head... The moments where I thought Harry was catching on…

A knock on the door interrupted my thoughts.

"Isabella?" a soft voice asked.

I sighed, "Not now…" I mumbled. The knocking continued, so I slowly got up and trudged toward the door. "What?" I asked.

"I…I just wanted to check on you. Are you okay? You haven't been to classes…everyone's worried." It was Hermione.

I sighed again and leaned against the door. "Yeah…I'm fine." I lied, hoping my tone of voice wouldn't give me away.

"Are you sure?" she asked.

I wanted to scream at her. Tell her to go away and say that I wasn't sure. I was never going to be sure. I wanted to tell her my heart was broken to smithereens….but all I could say was: "Yeah."

I heard a long pause before she consented and walked away. I listened to the sound of her footsteps echo down the stairs before I turned back toward my bed. Walking slowly, I happened to catch myself in the floor length mirror the girls bought me for Christmas the year before.

I examined my features, mulling over my long curly brown hair, which was now a complete mess from being in bed all day. I stared at my sunken face. My evergreen eyes were slightly red and puffy from crying, and my nose was pink. I sighed again and rubbed my cheeks, wiping away the residue of salt and water. I needed to clear my head, maybe put on my plastic smile like I always had done when I was upset. It was the only thing I could do besides lay there and mope.

I walked over to my trunk and decided to walk the grounds for a while. Maybe the fresh air would clear my head, but as I was putting on my cloak, I heard another knock on my door.

Rolling my eyes I huffed, "Go away Hermione. I want to be alone." Couldn't anyone understand that?

Instead of a response, I heard the door open.

I whirled around, my anger rising and preparing to tell her to go away again, but I stopped in my tracks. The figure standing in the doorway wasn't Hermione. It was Harry.

I felt my cheeks burn as Harry looked me over. "Bella? Are you okay?" he asked softly.

I tried to recover from the initial shock and anger, but it was no use. He had me reeling again, and my throat was beginning to tighten. "Uhm…yeah, I'm fine." I managed to say. God please don't notice...I thought.

Harry frowned slightly, staring at me intently. I could see in his eyes that he knew I was lying, but I wasn't going to give in.

"Have you been here all day? Hermione told me you felt sick, but…" His voice trailed off.

I tried to act natural, "Yeah, I just have a bit of a fever is all." I tried to smile, "No biggie."

"Well you should have sent me a message. I was waiting for you at the tower for a while, and…I got worried when you didn't come." Harry said, walking towards me. There was something strange about him…he seemed...nervous.

"I'm sorry, I didn't think of it." I answered, playing cool.

Harry eyed me, his green-blue eyes peering over his round glasses. I could tell he knew something was up, then he came to the point, "Bella have you been crying?"

My heart sank. He knew, but I tried anyway, "No." I said softly.

Harry shook his head and came closer to me, "Yes you have, and I know why you didn't come. Hermione told me something happened, but you wouldn't tell her. What's going on? It isn't like you."

I could feel the tears coming again. Should I tell him the truth? I wasn't sure if I should. He might think I was pathetic for crying over such a silly thing about asking him to the ball...but…

Harry sighed, "I can tell you don't want to talk about it…but, I bet you're wondering why I'm here."

Harry shuffled his feet and seemed to look at me expectantly. He was right, I was curious as to why he was here. I sniffed and wiped my eyes with my sleeve and nodded, "Yeah, I am curious. What do you want?"

For a moment, Harry was silent. He took a deep breath and looked me in the eyes, "Well, you didn't come…so, I thought I'd come to you." He cleared his throat and his face turned a slight pink.

My head was buzzing with questions. What could this crazy boy possibly want? "What..is it, Harry?" I asked, curiously.

"Well," Harry said sheepishly, "I was wondering…If maybe you would like to go to the ball with me?"

My jaw dropped. I was dumbfounded, and confused, and excited, and overly happy. "What?!" I chuckled, "Wait wait wait wait. You want to go to the ball with ME? What about Cho?"

Harry shook his head in confusion, "Huh? Who the bloody hell said anything about Cho?"

"But I thought-" I cut myself off.

Harry's eyes widened slightly, and then he began to laugh, doubling over his abdomen.

I crossed my arms angrily. Why was he laughing at me? "What now?" I asked, annoyed.

He slowly eased into a chuckle before he answered my question, "So that's why you ran out on me. Hermione said you were running away crying from the tower."

My face burned and I punched his arm. "So what? What the hell are you getting at?!"

Harry flinched and grabbed my hands, holding them tightly in his. I could feel my heart racing as he looked me in the eyes, not out of anger, but of soft sympathy.

"Bella, Cho was helping me practice…to ask you to the ball. I asked her to do me a favor. She was exiting the tower anyway, and when I explained that I wanted to ask you…" He cleared his throat again, turning pink, "she agreed to help me."

I stared at Harry. His jostled hair, his crooked smile, and last of all, his beautiful eyes. The whole time… This was all just a misunderstanding? Could I truly believe this? Am I dreaming? Harry Potter wants to go to the ball…with me?

"I…I don't know what to say…"I managed to stutter, feeling light headed.

Harry smiled and wrapped his hands over mine, "You…could say yes?" He teased.

I couldn't breathe, but I could feel a smile creep onto my lips.

"Yes. Yes, Harry." I gasped.