A/N: It's true everyone, I am the absolute worst at updating. Thanks again to anyone still following this story and loving it (and reviewing!)- you give me the kick in the rear I need to finish this! I'm also in the midst of editing my earlier chapters as I re-read a bit the other day and realised that took out my line breaks so the time jumps in the chapters make zero sense and there were typos which is obviously no bueno ;)
Chapter 38 - Graduation
Graduation dawned at Hogwarts, setting the castle into a buzz and flurry as students reached the peak excitement of finally achieving adulthood.
Cho was sitting next to Arlene and Henry, halfheartedly listening into Dippet's droning speech about greatness and pride while marveling how the last few months had unraveled. She had passed all her exams with flying colours (it definitely helped that the course material didn't seemed to have changed very much in 50 years), St Mungo's extended a paid Healer traineeship to her after graduation and she hadn't even caved by trying to speak to Tom again no matter how much she wanted to.
Sighing internally, Cho shifted in her seat as her backside started to become numb with how long they had all been there. After their frosty conversation that early morning where she found his hands bandaged, Cho had been trying with all her might not to think about him.
"He needs time," said Orion, his tone clearly exasperated, "He's not going to come back to you if you tag along and give him puppy eyes at every waking moment."
Cho frowned "If this is another 'Play hard to get' ploy, it didn't work the first time so why would it work the second time?"
Orion smirked, his normally dark eyes illuminated by the sunshine that lit up the fringes of the quidditch pitch, "This time we won't play dirty, just give him time to miss you Chang."
Cho was surprised by how easy her friendship was with Orion. After their slightly awkward encounter by the lake and her frantic thoughts about their situation, he surprised her but bringing up the topic himself. He apologised, said he understood she didn't return his feelings and that they can move on and be friends. It was so surprisingly adult of him that Cho could do nothing but nod at him with a slightly unflattering flabbergasted expression on her face until he started laughing and diffused the tension.
The appearance of mountains of delectable smelling food broke Cho out of her reverie, her attention turning back into the present as the students clamored for their favourite dishes as Dippet's speech finally came to an end. Cho herself wasn't particularly hungry but she did place a few roast potatoes on her plate for show nonetheless.
Henry didn't miss Cho's melancholy mood, frowning himself before layering a few succulent pieces of beef on her plate and pushing a freshly poured goblet of pumpkin juice towards her.
Cho gave him a small smile, taking a sip of her drink before trying her best to tune into the conversation her housemates were having.
"Headmaster Dippet, may I have a word?"
Dippet whirled around in surprise, his brows reaching his hairline as he regarded his model student with a fond smile. "My dear Tom, why aren't you enjoying the festivities?"
Tom smiled blandly, "I wanted to ask you something before graduation ended, if you don't mind."
Dippet waved his arms, "Of course Tom, ask me anything."
Tom pretended to be nervous, his intonation low and unsure. "Headmaster, I'm not sure if you know but I don't have a job lined up for me after graduation," Tom stared at the Headmaster, his deep blue eyes earnest and wide, "I know the position of Defence the Dark Arts is open and since I have always wanted to teach the next generation of students the subject, I would love to apply for the position."
Dippet looked mildly surprised, his mouth opening and closing several times before he managed to formulate a response to Tom's request.
"Dear boy, you know I would love nothing more to keep you in these walls as a credit to our school as a staff member but I'm afraid you're too young."
Tom was ready to rebuff Dippet's reasoning when the Headmaster interrupted, his voice unusually stern given his usual weedy demeanour, "Explore the world and your potential first Tom. You're a remarkable wizard who is destined for more than teaching. If you would still like the position in a few years time when I'm still Headmaster, I'll give it to you without a doubt."
Tom could see the resolution in his tone, the stubborness in every line of his wizened face. Deep inside, Tom knew that Dippet thought he was giving the best advice for a young, promising wizard but to Tom, it was a hindrance. Biting back the flash of annoyance, Tom plastered a smile on his face that betrayed none of his true feelings.
"Thank you very much Headmaster. I look forward to that day then."
Two years later
Cho stretched her arms above her, twisting to the left and right to shake off the weariness that had settled in her limbs. Her night shift at St Mungo's was finally at its end, and with it, her last shift of being an apprentice in the Spell Damage ward on the 4th floor. The next week, her light blue robes would be traded in for lime green and to celebrate, Orion had invited her out to dinner at some nice restaurant in Diagon Alley.
The two years had passed with a swiftness that alarmed her. To nobody's surprise, Henry and Arlene were married just a few months after graduation when Arlene had asked him the question before a very noisy quidditch match (where the Canons lost). Sarah and Lucinda opened up their own clothing boutique in Hogsmeade and Orion held a job at the Ministry in the Department of International Magical Cooperation where he (according to Cho), essentially charmed dignitaries into doing what he wanted (she wasn't wrong).
Things seemed to be going swimmingly in the Wizarding World, the threat of Grindelwald no longer apparent and the streets much safer because of it. However, Cho couldn't help but feel the twist of unease that unfurled every time she returned home alone to her thoughts. It was really only a matter of time -
"Come on Chang, I haven't got all night!"
Cho spun around, a wide grin on her face as she laid eyes on Orion who was casually leaning against the door frame. The mediwitches behind him tittered while Orion pretended not to preen like a particularly arrogant cat.
"Give me a minute," said Cho, taking her heavy woolen coat from the hanger and wrapping her long scarf around her neck before giving the ward a final once over. Satisfied, she shrugged on her jacket and waved goodbye to the staff, already indulging in an easy conversation with Orion.
"Peruvian food or Italian?" offered Orion, holding the door open as they exited the hospital.
Cho gave it a second of thought, salivating at the thought of roasted meats, "Peruvian!"
He smiled, the corners of his eyes crinkling as he held out his arm for her to take. "Peruvian it is."
Tom placed his suitcase on the floor, searching for the solitary key in his pocket to his new apartment. Feeling the cool metal against his fingers, he slots it into the lock and jiggles it a few times for good measure before turning the knob.
What greets him is expected - a small studio unit devoid of light, fresh air and any real furniture. He could have requested a grand home on the fringes of the city and Lestrange would have been all too happy to provide but Tom felt oddly at home here where he would have no room to feel as though he needed to fill it.
Frowning at the direction his thoughts were heading, he lifted his suitcase and entered the room, wandlessly illuminating the dim light bulbs that littered the ceiling. The dark olive walls reminded him of the Albanian forest where he had resided for the past year and a half, the shade echoing the greenery of the lush foliage.
Locking the door behind him, Tom dropped his suitcase near the weathered armchair and bats aside the gauzy curtains that hang limply by the window. Beneath him, the lights from the streets illuminate the late night patrons, their thick robes drawn tightly around their bodies to shield themselves from the frigid wind and wisps of snowfall.
Tom let himself linger longer, listlessly staring while he thought over his failed mission in Albania. After leaving explicit instructions to his followers post graduation, Tom embarked on his journey spurred on by Helena Ravenclaw and his search for the diadem. It had taken him many months to find the artifact, buried and concealed in an oak tree that looked identical to the countless others beside it. He had been so close to fulfilling another piece of his goal, creating and storing a portion of his soul in the priceless item when he faltered and allowed the peasant to escape.
She was a woman from a nearby town, unremarkable and an easy prey. It would take weeks for anyone to find her body in the woods and even then, who would suspect him, a traveller who would have long disappeared without a trace?
But he hadn't accounted for the pressure in his ribcage as she levelled her frightened eyes at him, the colour so dark it bordered on black. The shade acutely reminded him of someone he tried to avoid every night in his dreams, those familiar eyes wide with fear and helplessness. It was that memory that allowed the peasant woman to escape his clutches, rendering his conviction to create another Horcrux in that moment useless and stale.
Tom breathed deeply through his nose, exhaling noisily and watching the condensation of his breath fog up the glass before him. He could justify that as being a moment of weakness but if he were honest with himself, his life over the past few years were littered with moments of weaknesses. He was weak when he thought his interest in Cho was a platonic intrigue over her presence. He was even weaker when he thought he could bury the truth by altering her memories. But perhaps the biggest betrayal of all were all the little traitorous thoughts he had over the last two years when he hadn't seen her - he wondered whether she would enjoy a particular dish he was having at a small tavern or if the tea he was drinking was strong enough to satisfy her particular tastes. He thought about how she would love the open air of the forest, the trees sparser and much less ominous than those in the Forbidden Forest of Hogwarts.
He wondered how she was. If she was still pursuing her dreams of being a healer or if she had changed her mind. He wondered if she was still here in the year 1947 or if she had been whisked back to where she belonged before all of this started.
He turned away from the window, hating that he could see his own facial expression staring back at him. He swallowed thickly, feeling a distinct squeezing sensation in his chest that had become achingly familiar over the years. It was stupid and ridiculous and he really should be over it by now but as he stared down at the city lights beneath him, he hoped she was one of those huddled against the wind and cold. He hoped she was heading off to dinner with friends that loved and protected her and treated her well. He hoped she still existed in this time and place even if it wasn't with him.
Bitterness curled within him, unfurling and snuffing out the sentimental turn his thoughts had once again turned to.
What would it take for him to forget her?