A/N: Fair warning, this chapter contains…a little bit of romance. Nothing really serious yet, but it's on its way. Hence the chapter title. NO SLASH, I promise! (can't stand it, myself)
Silent Tears
Part VII:
Expressed LoveHa, ha!
Malfoy's voice taunted Harry in his head next Friday afternoon in Potions class. He was highly proud of himself for beating Gryffindor for the first time ever. Harry was struggling to ignore him, but constantly lost his temper. This was one of those times.
Malfoy, he repeated for the hundredth time, would you just DROP IT? You won a week ago, and you didn't see me gloating all month about beating you last time…
But this is too much fun! And we've never won against you before…or this well…Give—it—a—rest!
All right, all right.
Malfoy turned his head to look at Harry, grinning widely.
I will be so glad when we can't do this anymore, Harry muttered.
What?
Fred and George told us it could wear off, remember? Or that someone could…undo it.
And they also said that it would take really powerful Dark Magic to do that.
Oh, shut up.
********
The bell that rang ten minutes later couldn't have been more welcome, even though the schedule had been changed so it wasn't last lesson anymore, but the next to the last .
Rushing out of the classroom with everyone else, Ron, Harry and Hermione were the last ones out of the dungeon. But in the throng, Hermione and Ron were swept away, leaving Harry by himself. Harry scrambled around a corner so he wouldn't be late for Charms.
"Oof!" someone on the other side of him groaned as he smashed into her. Their books and quills scattered everywhere. [Yeah, I know its kind of cliché-ish, but every story's gotta have it.]
"Sorry," Harry muttered, picking his glasses up off the floor to see whom he had run into.
It was Cho.
Harry felt his face burn dark red as he gathered up his things.
"Here, let me help you with that," he offered once he had finished. He helped Cho pick up all her books and put them back into her bag.
"Thank you," she said. They stood there and stared at each other for a long time. Harry was still a head taller than her.
"You did a good job on Saturday," said Cho, "Even with that broom Malfoy's got."
"Thanks," Harry answered.
Cho clutched her books to her chest as she continued to stare into his eyes.
"Do you want to go to the ball with me?" they asked each other.
It was lucky that the corridor was empty, because the gales of laughter that followed would have burst anyone's eardrums, breaking the tension between the two.
"Will you go with me?" Cho asked again between giggles, her face red.
"Sure," Harry choked.
"That's great," she answered, finally controlling herself.
"I'll see you then," said Harry.
"Bye."
And Harry walked away, feeling more elated than ever before, that some things were finally going his way.
********
"You're joking."
It was around nine o'clock in Gryffindor tower. Ron and Hermione had finally gotten Harry to tell them why he had been so late for Charms, and why he spent the rest of the day with a dreamy expression on his face.
"Cho asked you out?" Ron repeated disbelievingly.
"Well, we sort of asked each other out," Harry explained, a look of sheer bliss in his eyes.
"Congratulations," Hermione said, somewhat stiffly. Harry didn't even notice, and Ron was still gaping at Harry.
"What about you, Ron?" Harry asked, "Are you going to ask Alex out?"
"Maybe…" Ron answered mysteriously.
"Well, you better get a move on, 'cos she'll be taken pretty soon by the looks of it," he said, nodding at a group of boys all clustered around Alex.
"You're right." And without another word, he got up from his armchair and marched over to Alex.
"I can't believe he just did that," Hermione muttered, staring at Ron as he approached the girl. The other boys, of practically every year, were all eager for her to accept their invitations to the ball, with her stunning beauty and American accent. Now they all scowled at Ron as he elbowed his way past them.
Harry and Hermione watched in amazement as Ron said something to Alex, causing her to open her mouth in surprise. She replied uncertainly, and Ron shook his head as they glanced at Harry and Hermione. Finally, Alex smiled and nodded at Ron, so he walked back to his friends triumphantly as the crowd dispersed, some shooting him looks of deepest loathing, others just disappointed.
"That went well," Ron sighed, plopping down in his chair.
"She said yes, then?" Harry prodded.
"Oh, yeah," answered Ron. "How could one resist my good looks?"
Harry snorted.
"So who're you going to ask, Hermione?" said Ron, ignoring Harry.
Hermione bit her lip as she stared from Harry to Ron.
"It's getting late," she murmured. "I better go up to bed…" She gathered up her things, Crookshanks at her heals, and slowly walked upstairs.
"It's only half past nine," said Ron, glancing at the grandfather clock in the corner. "Wonder what's up with her?"
Harry shrugged.
*******
Hermione lay on her bed, sobbing hopelessly. Crookshanks leapt up lightly on her bed next to her, nuzzling against her arm.
"It isn't fair, Crookshanks," she sobbed, sitting up and wiping tears from her eyes. She scratched the cat behind his ears. "He has a date to the ball! They both do! Viktor's not here, and I haven't seen him since…since…"
She dissolved again into tears of anguish, hoping against hope that some miracle would take place in her favour.
******
As the days went by, the cheer and spirit of Christmas settled over the school as thickly and surely as the snow falling outside. The Christmas decorations went up, as splendid and beautiful as last year. Around every corner, people could be seen asking one another out to the coming ball. By the beginning of December, nearly everyone had a date. Cho flashed Harry a big, genuine smile every time they passed in the halls. His feelings flew as if on wings every time.
Surprisingly, Parvati Patil, giggling madly, asked him, and her twin sister, Padma, asked Ron. When they both replied that they already had dates, they looked astonished.
But something happened about a week before vacation. Harry was on his way to lunch from Transfiguration with Ron and Hermione when a voice called to him from down the corridor.
"Um, Harry?"
The three turned around. It was Ginny.
"Yeah?" Harry replied, careful to keep his voice soft. Ginny had never looked this uncomfortable around him before, not since his second year. But she had grown, and matured greatly where her emotions were concerned. She was now nearly as tall as Ron, but still shorter than Harry. Her cheekbones set off the delicate features of her face, from her small nose speckled with freckles to her slightly slanted brown eyes. Her dark red hair was beautifully long and curled under at her chin and around her back like a curtain of fire. She had a full, slender figure now, starting from her hips, up her waist, to her chest, forming the traditional hourglass shape. Her beauty and charm were so winning that she had been asked by many boys to the ball, but declined all of their offers. She was saving for someone very special to her.
"Will you go to the ball with me?" Ginny whispered, blushing slightly. Harry opened his mouth. He would have said yes, but caught himself as he remembered he was going with Cho. It was odd. He had never expected this to happen. Hermione often mentioned how handsome he had become over the summer, finally gaining some sun and getting a tan, but he took it for granted as simply a self-esteem booster. Obviously, that hadn't been the case. He then realised that Ron and Hermione had continued on to the Great Hall without him.
"I'm really sorry, Ginny," he said as gently as he could, "but I'm already going with someone else."
Ginny was silent.
"That's okay," she mumbled after a while. Sighing heavily, she continued, "I guess I could always try Colin…"
Harry winced.
"I'm really sorry, Ginny," he repeated.
"It's fine, really," she assured him, though she looked as if she was holding back tears. Hermione certainly did that a lot, especially when she looked at him or Ron.
"Well, you better go on to lunch," Ginny said in a falsely cheerful voice.
"Yeah," said Harry, dropping his gaze.
"Bye, then."
"Bye." He turned to leave, but Ginny called to him again before he had even gone five paces.
"Who're you going with?"
Harry glanced back at her.
"Cho," he said, "Cho Chang." And he walked away.
Cho Chang? Harry's words echoed through Ginny's head. Cho Chang, that slutty Asian girl with false looks, the one on the Ravenclaw team who's Comet Two Sixty probably couldn't out-strip Neville Longbottom on a RapidFire3000? The same Cho Chang whose boyfriend died last year? She must have gotten over that pretty fast.
Ginny shook her head. Maybe she was imagining it, but she thought that Harry deserved better.
"Hey, Ginny!" Alex called. "Wait up!" Alex hurried up to her friend. "What's eating you?" she asked concernedly, catching the expression on Ginny's face.
"Nothing, it's just that…" She sighed, staring after the tall figure walking toward the Great Hall. Alex followed her gaze.
"Ahh…boy troubles," she said sympathetically. "It's okay, Gin, you won't have that much trouble finding someone who'll have you. Sure, Harry is quite hot—" Alex choked, now blushing furiously. Ginny stared at her.
"You think Harry's hot?" she breathed, now overcome with giggles. Alex glared at her. "Okay, okay, so he's hot. That's not the only reason why…"
"Oh, that reminds me. Ron asked me out last week."
Ginny's eyes widened.
"You don't mean, my—my brother do you?" she gasped.
"Yeah," Alex said casually.
"What did you say?"
"What would you have said?"
"Considering he's my brother? No."
"Come on, for real."
Ginny was thoughtful.
"Still no," she replied. Alex looked hurt.
"You—you mean—you said yes?" Ginny spluttered.
"Yes," she said, turning away.
"I'm sorry, Alex," Ginny said softly, putting a hand on her shoulder. "I didn't know…honestly, I thought you were joking…"
"Never mind," Alex muttered, now heartily embarrassed. "Let's go to lunch."
********
Harry sat in silence, poking dispiritedly at his food. He was usually in a very good mood since Cho asked him out, but now he was obviously very depressed about something.
"What's up, Harry?" Ron asked, ladling soup into his bowl.
"Ginny asked me to the ball," Harry mumbled. Ron dropped the ladle in surprise. Not only was this not the answer he expected, but Harry answered immediately. Normally, he would have kept it all bottled up inside him until he exploded.
"She what?"
Harry nodded glumly.
"She'll find someone else to go with," Ron reassured him.
"It doesn't matter," Harry said, still poking at his plate.
"That's right," said Ron, trying to cheer him up, "And you're going out with one of the hottest girls in the school."
Hermione made a noise of indignation. Harry sighed.
"I guess you're right, Ron. It's just that…I feel so bad for her. She's liked me ever since before first year. I just wish there was something I could do."
"Just let it go, Harry," Ron advised. "She will find someone, I'm sure of it."
"All right, all right," said Harry. He stood up.
"Where are you going?" Hermione suddenly asked. Harry started, glancing at her. He had almost forgotten she was there.
"I'm going…to class," he muttered, and he walked away.
"But there's still ten minutes until the bell rings," Ron said, staring after him.
********
Harry barrelled around without comprehending where he was going. Without warning, he crashed headlong into someone.
"Sorry," he muttered, looking down.
"Well, you do seem to have a habit of running into me, Harry," said Cho, grinning up at him.
"Oh, very funny," he said, holding out his hand to her. She took it, pulling herself up and straightening her robes.
"We definitely need to work on how we greet each other," she sighed. "We can't meet at the ball by running into each other, now can we?"
"I never knew you had such a sense of humour," Harry remarked. Cho grinned.
"You'll find out a lot of things that you never knew," she returned coolly, stepping closer.
"Oh?" said Harry, raising an eyebrow.
"Just keep it in mind for later," she said.
"Did Cedric ever let you seduce him like this?" Cho's smile faltered slightly. She looked away.
"No," she replied, her voice wavering, "We never even kissed."
"Oh," said Harry, softening his voice, "I'm sorry."
There was a silence, broken only by the chattering from the Great Hall.
"I'm sorry," he repeated.
"No—it's not your fault. I should be over him by now."
"That's not true. You have every right to miss him."
She looked at him.
"I've always liked you, Harry," said Cho. "Even last year, when I was with…with Cedric…I've always liked you. My admiration has grown stronger. I just want to be loved again."
"I love you, Cho," Harry whispered. Cho stared at him.
"What did you say?"
"I love you," he repeated, feeling his face burn. He suddenly noticed exactly how beautiful she was, beautiful in a different way from Ginny. Ginny was fiery and a little boyish, which probably came from having so many older brothers. Cho had delicate features, marble smooth skin, dark brown, almond shaped eyes, and long, straight black hair that ran down her back like a shimmering curtain. She might have been carved from marble, thought Harry, so white was her skin. She reminded him of a princess he had once read about in a fairy tale at his old Muggle school.
"Cedric never said that to me, either," she said at last.
Harry didn't know what to say. Cho took another step closer, so they were only a few inches apart. She leaned forward.
"I love you too," she whispered in his ear. Then, without another word, she departed, leaving Harry standing there, stunned, until the bell rang, signalling the start of afternoon lessons.
********
A/N: I warned you! I warned you! Besides this chapter being very short, I suck at romance! Go ahead, flame all you want! I don't care! (*makes sure that no one is looking and bursts into tears*) Okay, okay, so I do care. But I don't blame you if you think this totally sucks now (thank you for your insight, K.A. Joking!). I don't blame you if you will now refuse to read the rest…ick, Christmas Ball is coming, so that mean snogging. EEEEEEEK!!!!!