Previously on 'The Redemption'... Cho has a chat with Dumbledore and tries to go home
Chapter 5- Home Is Where the Heart Is
This is absolutely ridiculous, thought Cho as nerves seemed to eat away at her insides. Why couldn't she just be sorted in the privacy of Headmaster Dippet or Dumbledore's office? Instead, she was thrust onto the stage in front of the entire Great Hall full of students who were eager for dinner.
After Dumbledore had strongly suggested her staying within the safety of Hogwarts, he decided to place her in the 7th year despite the fact that she had already completed it. He had laughed in that infuriatingly joyful way, claiming that he now fully expected her to obtain all Outstandings across her chosen subjects. Typically being an overachiever, Cho chose 8 subjects to complete: History of Magic, Charms, Transfiguration, Potions, Herbology, Defence Against the Dark Arts, Care of Magical creatures and Ancient Runes. Cho believed that by packing her lesson and study schedule, she would reduce the amount of time she would undoubtedly spend worrying about her current predicament.
Dippet cast an amplifying spell on his voice to grab the attention of the rowdy students as well as serving the dual purpose of shaking Cho out of her thoughts.
"Attention students!" he called, eying a loud Gryffindor boy who was still speaking to his friends "Hogwarts does not accept many transfer students but today we have allowed an exception. She will be studying in her 7th year and I would like you all to please welcome Miss Cho Chang!"
The crowd was deathly silent, the Gryffindor boy from earlier also ogling the new girl who looked almost ready to pass out. Concentrating on just putting one foot in front of the other, Cho made her way across the stage and sat on the wooden stool just as someone lowered the old sorting hat onto her head.
"Miss Chang, I see I have met you before? How curious… But I am not here today to question your circumstances, only to sort you into one of the four houses. Hmm… I can see that Ravenclaw has served you well in the past but is it time for change? Perhaps Gryffindor?"
Cho mentally shook her head, feeling that the house of lions was too courageous and passionate for her pragmatic mind and quiet demeanour.
"No? You are much braver than you believe yourself to be Miss Chang… But if you say so! What about Slytherin? Why the disgust? They are ambitious and if I am not mistaken, you are looking for more in life are you not? Oh well, what a picky one! How about Hufflepuff? You are undoubtedly loyal and kind… But no? Fine, perhaps familiarity is best for you-"
"Ravenclaw!" the hat shouted. Cho slipped off the hat, feeling relieved. The students with blue and bronze ties clapped politely, a few of them smiling at her. Cho urged forward her shaky legs and sat down at an empty space closest to the stage next to a girl with fiery red hair.
While the students all craned their necks to get a good look at the new girl, they left her alone for the most part, allowing her to eat her meal in relative peace. Not realising how hungry she was, Cho ate two helpings of chicken pot pie and fit in a large slice of pumpkin pie.
"Do they not have food where you're from?" asked the girl beside Cho, her tone amused as opposed to nasty. Cho blushed, setting down her knife and fork and reaching for her goblet of pumpkin juice.
"I just didn't realise how hungry I was" explained Cho, wiping her mouth with a stiff napkin. The girl just smirked at her before continuing to prod her own bowl of trifle that had begun to resemble sludge.
"My name is Arlene by the way, Arlene Stevens" she said casually, her grass green eyes flickering over to Cho for a moment as though appraising her.
Cho chanced a small polite smile, appreciating that Arlene was at least trying to be kind without prying or being intrusive "It's nice to meet you Arlene, I'm Cho"
She snorted with laughter, pushing her now unappetising trifle to the side "I don't think there's anybody in this hall that doesn't know your name now. I bet they're all dying to know why Hogwarts has suddenly decided to allow a transfer student"
"Are you wondering?" asked Cho, cocking her head to the side to see the girl's expression with more ease.
Arlene shrugged "Wondering, yes. But I'm not going to ask – everyone is entitled to their own secrets after all"
"What makes you think that my presence here is something mysterious? Perhaps I've been previously privately tutored and I wanted a change of scenery?" countered Cho, challenging the other girl.
Arlene laughed "Well if that's the story you're going to feed the sheep then so be it but you don't fool me Cho Chang, you really don't"
Cho, unsure of what to make of her new friend slash acquaintance and her odd sense of humour, continued to take sips out of her goblet as she stared at the royal blue coloured placemats on the dinner table.
The chatter in the room mounted as people finished their meals, followed by the loud scraping of benches as they were pushed back to allow the occupants an exit. The student body dissipated slowly out of the double doors and Cho was beginning to panic. Dumbledore nor Dippet had told her of which dormitory she was going to stay in and she didn't quite feel like poking her head through every single one of them till she spotted an empty bed.
As though she were reading Cho's mind, Arlene spoke up while she swung her legs over the wooden seat "Come on, I'll show you to your dormitory. You should be in mine since there's a spare bed ever since Leanne left last year"
Cho acquiesced, silently sighing with relief. Arlene trotted out of the doors, glancing back every so often to ensure that Cho was still following. Along the way to the Ravenclaw common room, Arlene acted as a tour guide, pointing out short cuts to different classes and areas of the castle as well as particularly interesting paintings.
"You see that one there?" she asked, her fingers waving in the general direction of a portrait. The man that occupied it was currently facing the other way though his nose seemed quite prominent. Cho nodded, walking up the stairs after Arlene.
"That's my great great grandfather. He discovered the first 4 uses of Dragons blood though I sure am glad I inherited his intelligence and not his nose" she said, wrinkling her own nose which was quite in proportion to her face.
A bout of laughter escaped Cho as Arlene grinned "It's not too bad" said Cho, recovering from her giggles.
Arlene just shrugged nonchalantly, passing a couple of first years and making her way to the bronze eagle shaped knocker that guarded the common room. At the sight of the two girls, the eagle regarded them carefully before opening its mouth to deliver the riddle.
"What is black before it is used, red when being used and grey after it has been used?"
Arlene frowned, mouthing the words to herself as she mulled it over. She had always hated the doorway to Ravenclaw common room. While the other common rooms used passwords, portraits and walls, her entire house had to answer silly questions before they could even enter. Frankly, it was exhausting sometimes.
"It's coal" piped up Cho, who was also thinking hard. She had grown accustomed to the riddles over her years, helping her to answer them much more quickly than when she struggled in her first and second years.
The eagle nodded its head once and swung the door open, allowing them admittance into the beautifully spacious room. The domed ceiling was painted with stars while the room was decorated lavishly in varying shades of royal blue and brassy bronze. Ceiling high bookshelves ran along the lengths and widths of the walls while elegant armchairs and couches gathered around the fireplace as well as several lacquered coffee tables. Up a flight of stairs, Cho noticed the familiar placing of the entranceway to the respective boy and girls dormitories.
The occupants of the room turned to see the patrons who just walked in, their eyes glued onto Cho as she uneasily ascended the stairs with Arlene. Cho hoped that they would get bored of her soon as she definitely was not use to being paid attention to especially after her lack of human contact for sustained periods of time back in her era. It put her on edge, making her feel self-conscious and paranoid.
"Just ignore them" said Arlene, "Or hex them. Whichever one takes your fancy"
Cho smiled a little as they finally reached their dormitory. Swinging open the door, Cho noticed that it looked much the same as the dormitory she had slept in when she was at Hogwarts. The room was rectangular, the four poster beds lined up against one long wall and separated by a bedside table and a fair amount of space. A small grate burned in one corner while the trunks sat at the end of their beds. Writing desks with chairs were also scattered around the room as well as a few windows that gave a lovely view of the mountains.
Arlene allowed Cho to get use to her room, drifting off downstairs to chat in the common room with some friends. Cho walked over to her bed that was right next to a window, unfastening her cloak and dropping it on her perfectly made bed. To her surprise, there was a trunk at the end of her bed with a piece of parchment on top that was addressed to her. Opening it up, Cho read the contents.
"Dear Miss Chang,
I have taken the liberty of buying your school supplies as well as clothing and other supplies for your stay here. I hope you find them satisfactory. If not, do not hesitate to contact me in my office!
Sincerely, Professor Albus Dumbledore"
Cho gently folded the letter back up and unlatched the lock to her trunk, surprised to find the sheer amount of possessions in there. There was clothing of every colour and style as well as 3 new pairs of shoes, uniform and scarves. In a separate parcel were quills, ink pots, parchment and books. As well as being immensely grateful, Cho wondered how she could repay Dumbledore for his kindness. She had no Gringotts account in the 1940's and no possessions on her that were of any monetary value. Perhaps she could search for some form of part time employment to pay him back?
Feeling suddenly very tired from the days events, Cho changed into her long sleeved cotton pyjamas and brushed her teeth and hair. She crawled into bed and drew the plush velvet curtains around her before flopping down onto the soft pillows.
She thought of her day so far, surprised to find it wasn't all too terrible other than the glaring fact that she was currently unable to return to her own time. She was back at Hogwarts, a place where many good memories were made as well as some frightening ones. She had been sorted into Ravenclaw, a place where she had once felt accepted and respected amongst her peers. She had also made one tenuous friendship with the strange but humorous girl named Arlene who had made her laugh the first time in months.
Flipping to her other side, Cho stared at the drapings around her bed, deciding that maybe the Room of Requirement did have her best interests at heart after all.