A Solace In The Silence

Part Four

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by Grace

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A/N: Well... this is strange. Not sure how good or bad it is... picks up right after Harry and Cho see each other. As always, please R/R, and thanks SO much to those of you who have been. I love you guys! Oh great, now I'm gonna cry... ^_^

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Harry was just as shocked to see me as I was to see him; his face was covered in confusion and it was all he could do to muster an awkward half-smile. Two of the Weasleys, I assumed Ron and Ginny, kept looking from him, to me, back to him again, with something of the same confusion I felt in their expressions. The twins, that I knew from Percy as Fred and George, or perhaps George and Fred, weren't paying any attention to the situation; they were gaping at some blond girl in rather too tight dress robes. Percy himself had been talking to his parents, but chose the exact moment Harry and I set eyes on each other to turn around.

Needless to say, it was a disconcerting predicament.

To be quite honest, even as close as it was to Cedric's death at that time, I didn't blame Harry. I didn't blame anyone. The reason I was so upset had nothing, or at least very little, to do with Harry himself. I think it was more the fact that seeing him brought back memories of Cedric, and the events of two weeks ago, that I wasn't ready to face.

Whether or not I was ready, though, facing them was the first step out of this... this... whatever it was. Some part of me must have realized it then, but it didn't matter. Seeing Harry made me feel like I'd dumped my head in a bucket of ice water.

I ended up seated next to Ginny Weasley at dinner, rather than the fat man. I was sort of glad of it, and sort of not, because Harry Potter was on her other side. Once, he even asked me to pass the pudding.

Images of Cedric seemed to be boiling up inside of me from the moment I saw Harry to the end of dinner; I felt like a volcano ready to erupt.

And erupt I did, in my own way.

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Harry and Cho. Cho and Cedric. Cedric and Harry. Nice going, Perce.

To be honest, the connection between the three of them hadn't crossed my mind, or maybe I just thought Harry and Cho wouldn't see each other. God only knows.

At any rate, they did see each other, and it was not a pleasant site. To say the least.

She kept getting paler and more withdrawn throughout dinner – I was watching her closely. I knew as soon as I saw her face in the entrance hall that she wouldn't deal with this very well, and I was quite right.

She made a run for it as the crowd was heading to the ballroom. I saw her leave through the shuffle, but the place was too crowded for me to follow her. I kept on into the dance hall, figuring that if she didn't come back in a few minutes, I'd see what had happened to her.

She didn't come back in a few minutes. She didn't come back in half an hour, during which time I danced a waltz with my little sister and attempted to prevent Fred and George from dismantling anything. My other reason for staying was to watch Harry, though I figured Ginny and Ron were doing enough of that as it was. Ron didn't leave his side.

While I was dancing with Ginny, who was remarkably more graceful than I would've guessed, one of the bigwig Ministry people pulled Harry aside rather forcefully and said something very jovial to him. Harry looked annoyed beyond reason.

The man, whom I later recognized as the Assistant Minister of Magic, did not merely stop at trying to talk to Harry. He actually pulled Harry to the front of the room by the band, performed a voice enhancement spell on himself, and quieted the band.

"Attention, ladies and gentlemen." He was tall, with thinning brown hair and a very well kept beard. I later noticed that his face was perpetually red.

"We have come here tonight," he boomed, "to celebrate a new era in the magical community. A time when we will continue to grow and learn as a society, to explore new spells and enjoy technology previously unknown to our forefathers. Yes, it is a happy time for us indeed. But there was a time," he continued in a faux grave tone, tightening his grip on Harry's shoulder so the poor fellow couldn't escape, "when it was not so bright and happy. The world was covered in darkness, until there came a light that extinguished forever the infernal evil. In short, I give you our savior, Harry Potter, ladies and gentlemen!" The crowd, with the exception of my family, clapped loudly. Harry got a couple screams and whistles, too.

Cornelius Fudge was looking more and more unhappy during this little speech, and he then motioned ever-so-slightly to his partner to cut it out. Harry, it seemed, quite agreed, and tried to break the man's grip. He succeeded, and very discreetly left the room. Ron had the good sense to let Harry wander off.

Ginny turned to me. Her eyes were glowing brightly; she well understood the situation.

"He'll be okay," I said reassuringly. She nodded; and I realized I'm an idiot sometimes. I underestimate my sister. She knew very well he'd be okay, but she was worried about him anyway, because she understood at least partly what was running through his head. She didn't feel the need to tell me this, though.

"Go talk to Cho," she said quietly. "She needs it, Perce."

I nodded and left the ballroom without another word, pushing my way past the silks and the cashmere and the cigar smoke to the doors in the hallway.

The air was cold, despite the fact that it was June, and I could instantly tell that it was going to rain in a very short while. It was very dark outside, and the small sliver of the moon gave off so little light that I could barely see. It was quite lucky that I had a feeling I'd find Cho where I did.

She was sitting on the bench we'd sat on at the first ball; if I imagined I'd find her distraught and weeping, it was nothing to the state she was actually in.

Her beautiful dress was torn in several places; the necklace she had been wearing was gone; she only had one sparkling diamond earring; her hair was positively standing up; she looked as though she was fighting tears; and she seemed for all the world to be so wrapped up in her thoughts that she noticed none of this.

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Percy came to find me, as I knew he would when I ditched the crowd. He stood in front of me. The wind whipped his hair; he was quite taller than I'd imagined. I looked up into his face and saw genuine concern there, and for a moment I didn't worry about Cedric. Only a moment.

"What happened, Cho?" he said softly. He still stood, gazing at me with a kind of pity I didn't want from him. I heard myself speak with a quivering voice that I felt no desire to control.

"I was ru-running... I had to get away from there, Percy, seeing Harry, it just brings back so much... I ca-can't help it!" I sobbed, finally letting the tears out.

He stood in front of me for a moment longer. His expression was hard to read in the dark. All I know is that I blinked, and then his arms were around me and I was crying into his shoulder and I just felt better somehow.

I don't know how long we stayed like that... I think I've kind of blocked it out. I do remember that Percy smelled distinctly of peppermint and evergreen trees, and that he mended my robes for me, and recovered my jewelry with a Summoning Charm. And then it started to rain.