Love in Excess 4: Bothered, Bewildered and Confused

A/N: Obligatory slash reminder. Perhaps an angst-alert is in order, too, for this episode, as there is rather less kissing and more moping. And (tipping my hat with a flourish) thank you to Wotan for beta-reading.

Love in Excess 4: Bothered, Bewildered and Confused

Hopeless and silent, I must still adore,

Her heart's more hard than stone whom I'd implore

You wrong your love, while you conceal your pain

Stones will dissolve with constant drops of rain.

- Eliza Haywood

Katie dashed once again from the greenhouse to Snape's dungeon, but this time she had cut it too fine and hurtled through the door minutes after the bell had rung. She stood gasping in the doorway, hand still on the knob, trying to catch her breath.

"Miss Bell," Snape acknowledged her, icily. "Five points from Gryffindor for tardiness. And where is that report you promised me?"

Katie turned wild eyes to him. "Report?" she managed to gasp out. "But I only got the book yesterday, and it's huge!"

"No excuses. I expect two pages of parchment by Friday. Feigning interest in advanced potions does not give you the right to be late to my lessons."

Katie slunk from the doorway to the back of the room, where Angelina and Alicia had saved her a seat. She expected Snape to move her, but he had already returned to the front board, where he was explaining a reaction between two key potion ingredients. When his eyes next sought her out he merely examined her with a look that a python might give to the rat it intended to consume.

"What's wrong?" whispered Angelina once they began working.

"Nothing."

"Don't even bother lying," snapped Angelina. "You look like you didn't sleep at all last night and now you come rushing into Potions late, losing us points."

"Are you okay?" Alicia leaned across the now-hostile Angelina and gave Katie a sympathetic look.

"No, not really," she admitted, suddenly afraid she was going to cry. She was so tired, and the full range of emotions she'd experienced - excitement, anticipation, despair - overwhelmed her, as did the bleakness of her situation. "But I can't talk here. I'll tell you later," she whispered, and tried to make her hand form into a fist around her pestle.

Seeing the tears in Katie's eyes, Angelina relented and took the mortar and pestle from her. "Just hold it together for two hours, okay?" she muttered, grinding away. "Snape keeps looking over here and if I'm not mistaken, the last thing you want is to break down in the middle of Potions."

Katie nodded and took a deep breath. She couldn't believe how much she had screwed up. Angelina would be furious with her for not telling about Cho, and for going ahead with the potion-making, as would Alicia. Katie honestly didn't expect much sympathy or assistance from them once they heard the whole story. The one person Katie thought might be able to help was Hermione, and Katie knew her reaction would be the same as the others once she found out Katie had ignored her advice as well.

**

"I just don't see how it could have failed," concluded Katie, hunched in a far corner of the common room. Angelina and Alicia were perched on the arms of nearby chairs, having just heard the whole story.

Alicia snorted. "Easy. It says the strongest passion will be subdued. Laura just had a crush on you, but it looks like Cho felt something more. I guess I should feel fortunate that at least you respected me enough to break up with me properly, instead of using a potion," she added with more than a trace of bitterness.

"It never even occurred to me to do something like that to you!" protested Katie. "Besides, I wasn't trying to break up with Laura - we were never going out."

Angelina shook her head. "Don't you trust us, Katie? You promised to tell me next time you were interested in someone, and instead of talking to me you just go off and concoct this hare-brained plan!"

"Maybe if you didn't tease me so much -" began Katie, but Alicia cut her off.

"Yeah, you promised you'd tell me if you were dating someone else and you didn't," she said, joining in Angelina's mood of betrayal.

"How many times do I have to say it? I wasn't going out with her!" Katie glared at her two friends.

"Who weren't you going out with?"

All three girls jumped and turned their heads to see Fred Weasley smiling at them.

"None of your business," muttered Katie.

"Oh, come on, Katie, he knows about you," said Angelina, hopping off the chair's arm and moving to Fred's side.

"You told him?" Katie tried not to yell, since as far as she was concerned there were already too many people in the common room who knew about her sexual orientation.

"Apparently she didn't tell me enough," grinned Fred, putting an arm around Angelina's waist. "What's up? Broken heart getting you down?"

Katie shook her head. "Nothing that simple, I'm afraid."

"She made an Indifference potion to get rid of one girl who had a crush on her, but instead it repelled the girl she wanted to go out with," explained Alicia succinctly.

Katie gave Alicia a sour look. "Thanks a lot. Can't a person have a private life around here?"

Alicia raised one eyebrow at her cattily. "Fine." She turned back to Fred. "Don't tell anyone else."

"Not even George?"

"Okay," sighed Katie, covering her face with her hands. "You can tell George. But nobody else. You have any bright ideas about how to fix this mess?" she asked Fred, removing her hands.

"Potions is hardly my best subject," he said. "What about asking Hermione Granger?"

Katie shook her head. "No. She wouldn't help me even make the potion, said it was too dangerous. She'll probably run to one of the teachers if she finds out I actually did it."

Fred settled himself and Angelina on the arm of a chair. "Well, you may have actually topped George and me for sheer stupidity – not that there's anything wrong with that – " he added hastily on beholding her angry expression, "but surely there's some way out of this jam. Go and read that book some more. It's only an Indifference potion – maybe it wears off after a while. Usually the stronger the emotion the more difficult it is to counteract. It's not as if you made her hate you."

"No, she'll do that on her own," replied Katie morosely. "But I may as well read some more. I still have to turn in a report for Snape by the week's end."

She stood up and headed for the seventh-year girls' dormitory, but had only just started up the stairs when Hermione dashed up beside her.

"I heard what you were talking about," she announced disapprovingly.

Katie stopped and turned to face Hermione. "Then spare me the lecture, okay? I know you don't approve, I know it was a stupid thing for me to do but I'll probably be miserable for the rest of my life so I hope that makes you happy."

"I don't want you to be miserable for the rest of your life," Hermione replied, looking startled at the vehemence of Katie's tone. "But it's not as though you two were even going out - maybe you're blowing this all out of proportion. Maybe it's not as bad as you think."

Katie stared at Hermione, all the anger and frustration of her day suddenly targeted at the other girl. "Blowing it out of proportion?" she repeated. "Who are you to tell me my feelings are out of proportion? You think you and Harry Potter are the only ones who can nurse some grand-scale, operatic passion for each other? I'm sorry I ever dragged you into this."

Hermione opened her mouth to protest, but Katie had already turned and was now running up the stairs. Leaning against the wall, Hermione both heard and felt Katie's door slam shut, the vibrations running all along the stairwell walls. She was about to return to the common room, then changed her mind and walked slowly up to her own dormitory.

**

The potion didn't wear off, and Katie was almost glad when temperate autumn days gave way to the beginnings of winter, with its darker days to match her mood. She sat alone in the common room, trying to concentrate on balancing an equation for Potions homework. The wind whipped against Gryffindor tower, gusting through tiny chinks between the windows. Katie burrowed down further into her chair and drew her robes around her.

At first she didn't pay attention to the tapping at the window, thought it was simply the wind, until she glanced up and saw an owl blowing by, then circling round again to tap once more at the window. Setting down her homework, Katie walked to the window and opened it. All nearby heads lifted up and glared at her as the open window let in a blast of cold air.

She quickly shut the window and carried in the owl, its feathers chilly to the touch. The note attached to its leg bore her name, written in a familiar hand. Setting the owl by the fire to warm up, Katie retreated to her chair and unrolled the parchment to read Cho's note.

Cho hadn't written to her in weeks, not since Katie had written and explained what had happened. They hadn't even spent any time together since that awful moment by the greenhouses. Katie found her hands almost trembling with anticipation as she flattened out the paper, hoping Cho had somehow recovered from the potion and was writing to tell her so.

Instead, the note simply told her to meet Cho outside in one hour's time. Katie cast a worried eye at the window, wondering to herself if Cho had also become indifferent to her surroundings to suggest going out in this weather. Still, Katie would have tromped through a blizzard to see Cho again, and had a difficult time concentrating on her homework for the next hour.

Bundled in her warmest cloak, Katie sat on a chilly stone bench just outside the castle and waited. Cho appeared from around the corner, looking tiny and dwarfed by her voluminous black winter cloak.

She sat next to Katie and in answer to her curious face explained, "The castle's too crowded tonight - I thought this would be the best way to ensure privacy."

Katie nodded, never taking her eyes off Cho. Even if all she got to do was look at her, it was enough.

"This is really hard for me," said Cho, drawing her hands up into the depths of her sleeves as the wind whistled past them. "The only thing that makes me even try to see you is the memory of how I felt. It's very odd. I don't think about you during lessons, I don't look for you in the corridors or at meals - but I used to do those things every day. There's a weird disconnect between how I remember feeling, and what I actually do feel when I'm right beside you. Which is nothing."

Katie nodded. She wanted to take Cho's hands in her own, warm them up, but she knew there was no point. "I've been reading," Katie began. "So far I haven't found anything that will reverse the situation but just give me a little more time and I'm sure I can change this."

Cho looked at her sadly. "That's what I wanted to talk to you about. I know you've been miserable, but so have I. I can't take this anymore. You don't know what it's like, being affected by this potion."

"It's not that I miss you, exactly," she explained, seeing Katie' face light up with hope at her words. "When we're apart I remember how I felt for you, but as soon as I'm anywhere near you those feelings go away and I just don't care. You did make a repellent, you know. Even sitting this close to you feels odd. I think for both our sakes we ought to stay away from each other. You'll meet somebody else, it'll be okay eventually."

"No it won't!" The anger of Katie's words cut through the chilly air. "You felt something for me, Cho, something strong - that's the only reason this stupid potion affected you. How can you walk away from that? Love is stronger than indifference. I can't, I won't believe things are over between us."

"You think love is stronger than indifference?" Cho smiled, but without a trace of humour or pleasure. "Indifference makes a person invisible to you. You just don't care. Hate would almost be better - at least then you feel something."

"Fine," snapped Katie, standing up. "Let me get you really angry and maybe you'll start hating me instead, give us something to work with."

Cho also stood and now she shrugged. "You can try but that's the point. I won't get angry with you. I just won't feel…anything. And that's worse."

"You don't have to tell me," whispered Katie, the anger draining out of her as she looked in Cho's eyes and saw the girl meant what she said. There was no emotion there.

It seemed impossible to Katie that Cho, who had kissed her so eagerly not so very long ago, could look at her now with such vacant eyes. Even a magic potion shouldn't be able to separate two people if they were really, truly meant for each other, should it? Impulsively she leaned in, took Cho in her arms and kissed her. But instead of kissing back, Cho ducked her head and pulled away, her expression nonplussed.

"It doesn't work like that, Katie," she said patiently. "There is no magic kiss that will undo the effects of the potion. It's always going to be this way, as long as I'm around you. Now do you see why I can't take it anymore?"

Katie nodded mutely, horror settling in as she realised she was what repelled Cho. Without another word, Katie turned and ran back to Gryffindor Tower.

By the time she reached the common room it had started to rain and the storm could be heard beating against the walls and the roof-tops. Katie felt Angelina and Alicia raise their heads and look at her as she climbed through the portrait hole, but she headed straight for their dormitory, taking the stairs two at a time.

The room was dark and chilly, just about matching her mood. Katie conjured a fire - which cast weird, flickering shadows across the hardwood floor - and climbed up into the window seat. Usually on such a night she would have avoided the perch, as it was the least insulated area of the room and you could feel the cold and damp whistle through the casings. But tonight she sat in silence and watched the large, fat raindrops hit the outer ledge, watched them strike against the window pane and run down the glass in furious rivulets.

She heard the door open and turned towards the sound, expecting to see Angelina or Alicia. Instead she saw Hermione peering uncertainly around the heavy door. "Katie?"

Katie relaxed and slouched back against the stone wall. "Yeah."

"Can I come in?" Hermione remained in the doorway, blinking in the darkness.

"Sure." Katie sighed, watching Hermione close the door and pick her way around the four-posters over to the window.

"I brought you something."

Katie reached out her arm to meet Hermione's hand and took a slender book from her. "Hegel Was An Alchemist: Towards a Dialectic of Potions-making?" she said dubiously, reading the book's title.

Hermione nodded. "I got it in the Muggle Studies section at Flourish and Blotts this summer. It's written by a Muggle-born wizard. I haven't read it yet myself, so I don't know if it has anything helpful, but I just thought…"

Katie forced herself to smile. "Thanks, Hermione." She flipped idly through the pages, then stopped when she realised Hermione was still standing before her. "So who's this Hegel?"

Hermione brightened visibly, even in the eerie red firelight, and embarked on a rushed explanation, concluding with, "I just thought those ideas might help you find a way out of your own binary thinking - love or hate, in love or not in love. You know, find the synthesis?"

"I never wanted to make anyone hate me," Katie said softly.

"I know. Just…read it. I'll let you know if I come across anything else that might help."

Katie slid down from the window-seat. "Thanks," she repeated, and looked down again at the book in her hands. As Hermione turned to go, Katie asked, "Why are you doing this? Helping me, that is?"

"Well, it is a very interesting situation you're in," Hermione began in her typical expository voice, but she suddenly became self-conscious, dropping her eyes as she added, "and it's not true, what you said before - about operatic passions, I mean. I never meant to belittle your feelings for Cho. That wasn't what I meant at all."

"I know. I'm sorry I got angry with you. I was just really upset that day."

Hermione nodded. "Oh, and just so you know, Katie, I'm not nursing some grand passion for Harry. Or for Ron. Or any boy, really. I've got my OWLs to study for this year and I really don't have time for romance," she explained with a return of Hermione-primness.

Before Katie could say anything else, Hermione turned again and made for the door, closing it swiftly behind her. Katie waved her wand at the fire so that it jumped up with a blaze of added warmth, lit the room more conventionally and settled on her bed to read Hermione's book.

**

The rain continued throughout the night and only let up late the next morning, in the midst of Transfiguration. When she trooped into the Great Hall for lunch, however, Katie noted the enchanted ceiling overhead remained gloomy and grey, with no hint of brightening sun.

Gloominess lingered the rest of the day and for once Katie didn't look forward to Quidditch practice. Low-lying, wispy fog gathered across the grounds and a wet, bone-piercing chill cut through Katie's heavy cloak as she squelched along the soggy grass, flanked by Alicia and Angelina. Katie knew it would be no good appealing to Angelina to postpone practice; she had become almost as fanatical as Oliver Wood once had been about the importance of playing in all sorts of conditions.

Once in the air, however, Katie forgot about the cold and became aware only of scrambling for the Quaffle, the physical demands of managing her broom through turbulent air and out-manoeuvring anyone who came her way. Only when they touched down again did she notice the moist air had soaked right through her cloak, leaving her limbs clammy and damp. The rest of her team-mates looked equally exhausted, Harry's black hair standing up in damp spikes at odd angles, his glasses fogged. The prospect of a hot shower, followed by tea in front of the common room fire, had never been so appealing.

She was just emerging from the changing-rooms with the other girls when Fred, George and Harry also appeared. They all walked companionably up to the castle, eyes on the lights shining from the many turrets and windows, all of them anticipating the warmth that would greet them. Katie let herself relax and feel the stirrings of something approximating happiness - an emotion that had been in short supply for her lately.

"Glad it's Ravenclaw playing Slytherin tomorrow, and not us," remarked Harry, inadvertently shattering Katie's peace. "They're awful to play in the best of weather – I don't envy Ravenclaw having to take them on in this."

Katie faltered for a moment. She'd become so obsessed with finding a cure for her potion she'd forgotten all about the match.

Now he was saying, "Cho will have a hard time finding this Snitch in this fog."

"So will Malfoy," pointed out Fred. Katie felt Angelina move to her side, and was thankful for her friend's presence.

"Yes, but you've seen the Slytherin Beaters in action. They always go for the Seeker, and there's no-one playing for Ravenclaw who can match them for size and weight." Harry shook his head, apparently thinking once again of Cho's difficult task tomorrow.

"I'm sure she'll be fine," announced Angelina, taking Katie by the elbow and propelling her forcefully through the front doors of the castle.

**

The morning of the match was marked by intermittent rain, leaving everyone feeling damp and chilled as they crowded into the stadium. Katie sat with her friends, everyone squeezing close together for warmth.

"Here," offered Hermione, handing Katie a small jam jar of blue flame. "Don't let the teachers see it, but if you keep it under your robes you'll be a lot warmer."

"Thanks." Katie accepted the fire and shared it with Alicia. She glanced at Angelina, on Alicia's other side, but decided Fred was doing an admirable job ensuring heat between those two and returned her attention to the pitch.

The game got off to a quick start, with early goals by both sides. Then the drizzle turned into a steady rain, making play more difficult. Predictably, the Quaffle became slippery. Katie watched as first Ravenclaw, then Slytherin made a number of unforced errors, dropping the Quaffle or missing passes due to the wet weather.

An hour into the game, the Snitch hadn't even put in an appearance. The Slytherin Beaters, however, had proved Harry right and took every opportunity to send Bludgers at Cho, even though she remained far removed from the main action. The rain was coming down harder and even from her position in the stands Katie could see Cho's blue Quidditch robes were plastered against her, making her appear smaller and more vulnerable, especially when Millicent Bulstrode drew near and smacked a Bludger straight at her. Cho seemed unperturbed and merely flattened herself against her broom, ducking the Bludger and shooting ahead.

It took everyone a moment to realise she hadn't just been ducking a Bludger but heading for the Snitch. A cry spread across the stands as the crowd took note of the glittering Snitch, winking and blinking against the fog and rain.

Draco Malfoy noticed, too, and moved to intercept Cho. He might not be able to reach the Snitch before her, but he could cut her off. Cho saw him and pulled up slightly, just skimming over Malfoy's head. The crowd was on its feet, cheering her on.

But Katie wasn't cheering. She'd kept her eye on Millicent and now screamed "Look out!"

Beater and Seeker collided in a sickening crunch, with Millicent literally flattening Cho and knocking her aside, despite the shrill sound of Madam Hooch's whistle. Katie pressed her Omnioculars hard against her eyes, only to see Cho's arm hanging at an odd angle. Cho gripped her broom with only one hand and was trying to pull herself up, but the downward momentum was too great. Katie dropped her Omnioculars just as Cho plowed into the wet turf.

Katie jumped to her feet and was ready to rush to Cho's side when she felt Alicia's hand clamp hard around her wrist.

"Don't," she muttered warningly.

"But she's bound to be hurt!" protested Katie, trying unsuccessfully to see what was happening at the far end of the pitch, where Cho and her broom lay in a heap.

Next she felt another hand on her shoulder, and heard Angelina say in her ear, "Alicia's right. There's nothing you can do for her right now."

Several more moments of confusion passed. While Madam Hooch warned Millicent Bulstrode against further Blatching, Madam Pomfrey bent over Cho's crumpled form.

Finally Lee Jordan announced to the crowd, "She's climbing back on her broom. Madam Pomfrey is saying something to her, and – oops – I'm afraid Professor McGonagall won't let me repeat their exact exchange but it appears the Ravenclaw Seeker is returning to play against the advice of Madam Pomfrey."

Katie snatched up her Omnioculars again to get a better view of Cho. Although her arm looked more normal, she was obviously still in tremendous pain, evidenced in her face. Katie also noticed she was still flying with only one hand.

The Snitch surfaced again soon enough. This time Draco spotted it first, and zoomed confidently towards the small gold object. Cho raced him determinedly. Katie could see it was taking all Cho's strength just to stay in the air. There was no way she could muster that last burst of speed she needed to overtake her rival.

Draco's triumph at capturing the Snitch was marred by Cho's fainting from pain and dramatically falling off her broom as she neared the First Aid tent. The match concluded amidst boos from the crowd and general pandemonium as supporters from both sides stampeded onto the pitch.

"I'm going to see her," announced both Harry and Katie at the same moment. They were sitting on either side of Hermione, who clapped her hands to her ears and gave them each a look. "What is this – stereophonic concern day?" she asked. "You'd both better stay where you are – it's turning into a brawl down there."

Looking over Hermione's head at each other, Harry and Katie nodded and bolted down the stands, Ron on their heels. Just as Hermione had predicted, the pitch was a madhouse. All the teachers were busy separating students, particularly those from Ravenclaw and Slytherin, but quite a few others had joined in as well. As Ron observed before pulling out his own wand, it didn't take much to start a fight with Slytherin.

Katie pushed her way through the crowd but soon realised Cho must have been moved already to the Infirmary. Dodging elbows and hexes, she jogged back to the castle. But she couldn't even get past the Infirmary door.

Madam Pomfrey opened it a crack, looking harassed in the extreme. "Injury?" she demanded.

"I just wanted to visit -"

"No visitors allowed!" announced the matron, sounding on the verge of hysteria. "It's enough trying to keep up with all my patients."

Dejected, Katie returned to Gryffindor tower and slumped next to Alicia on the couch. The teachers had finally cleared the pitch and all students were confined to their common rooms until dinner. George and Fred didn't seem to mind a bit, and bounced over to the girls in high spirits.

"Chocolate, Katie?" Fred offered, holding out a box.

She eyed the contents skeptically. "What've you done to them?"

"Nothing," Fred insisted, aggrieved. "Angelina told me about your continued broken heart, and in the spirit of friendship, George and I are offering you genuine Honeydukes chocolate from our own private reserve."

Katie turned from Fred to his twin, who nodded at her encouragingly. "Go on. They're fine, Weasley's honour."

With a resigned sigh, Katie took a chocolate and popped it into her mouth. Even turning into a giant canary seemed preferable to her current state of misery. For once the twins had told the truth, however, and Katie enjoyed the rich, dark chocolate. And in what they later claimed was a communication mix-up both of them placed cheering charms on her, with the result that Katie spent the hours until dinner laughing at just about anything anyone else said. It wasn't a bad way to spend an afternoon, she reflected, as the charms finally began to wear off and dinnertime approached.

"I'm starving!" she said, trooping down the stairs and smiling at her friends.

Fred and George exchanged knowing looks. "A double cheering charm often has that effect on people," George said. "Why do you think we're always running down after hours to the kitchens?"

Katie rolled her eyes at them but smiled nonetheless, grateful for their attempts to keep her mind off the girl who lay in the Infirmary under Madam Pomfrey's watchful eye.

**

Cho hadn't broken anything, although she had dislocated her right arm in the first collision. This was easily healed, but her torn ligaments put her on the sidelines for at least a week. Even if Madam Pomfrey had been able to speed up the healing of muscle injuries, it seemed unlikely she'd do so in this case, especially after Cho had gone back into the game against all medical advice. Katie heard this news third-hand, of course, since Cho still was not speaking to her. When they passed in the castle Cho was polite, but that was all. Smiling at Cho was like smiling at Ginny Weasley: they'd both smile back politely, then continue on their own ways.

In some ways Cho's injury made things easier for Katie. She'd been avoiding Thursday Quidditch, not wanting to be so close to Cho after their last talk, but now there was no danger of having to play alongside her. Still, she'd have to face all the other girls, most of whom probably knew what had happened by now. And Laura would be there. Katie considered bringing along Alicia and Angelina, but then felt bad; she hadn't asked them earlier, out of selfish desire to be alone with Cho and to ask them now would also be selfish.

Feeling thoroughly sick of herself, Katie avoided her friends and after finishing her homework, wandered the corridors of the castle. For such a large place it never ceased to amaze her how the school could seem so full at the moments she most wanted to be alone.

She climbed the many stairs to the Astronomy Tower, expecting to find it empty. To her surprise, Professor Sinistra was there, apparently having just finished an astronomy lecture.

"Oh, hello," she greeted Katie. "I just let the first-years go early. Too cloudy to see much tonight."

Katie nodded but couldn't help staring at the teacher's enchanted gold telescope, still set up and pointing skyward.

"Would you like a peek?" Professor Sinistra indicated Katie should look through the telescope. As she did so, the teacher commented, "Very difficult tonight. Cassiopeia is hopelessly in the soup."

Katie had to agree and backed away from the glass. "Sorry to disturb you. I didn't know there'd be an observation here tonight."

"No trouble." Professor Sinistra busied herself closing the observatory shutters and putting away her telescope. Katie remained uncertainly near the stairs, feeling she ought to leave.

"Is there something on your mind tonight, Miss Bell?" asked the teacher kindly, looking over at Katie.

Part of Katie wished she could tell the whole story to the astronomy teacher. Professor Sinistra was known for her left-leaning politics and would most likely be sympathetic to Katie's crush. Still, Katie had made an illegal potion - telling Professor Sinistra would put her in an awkward position. And what if Sinistra consulted Snape? The mere thought of Professor Snape finding out what she'd done left Katie momentarily speechless.

"Not really," she finally said. "I just was looking for a little solitude tonight."

"Well, I'm afraid you'll have to find it elsewhere. I've got to lock up the tower now."

Katie edged down the steep, narrow staircase, followed by the professor. "Katie," Professor Sinistra said, "You weren't planning on meeting someone up there, were you?"

Katie paused and shook her head, alarmed. "No, Professor. I wanted to be by myself."

"Ah." Professor Sinistra smiled again, showing crinkly lines around her eyes. "The Tower has become a very popular trysting place of late, that's why we're keeping it locked now. Don't want anything to happen to the astronomy equipment."

"Right."

"Of course, in my day everyone liked to use the rose bushes, or the shrubbery round the lake," continued Professor Sinistra, still smiling. "Though I suppose those spots don't work so well in this kind of weather."

They reached the bottom of the stairs and Katie paused, waiting to see which direction the teacher would go.

"Goodnight, Miss Bell." Professor Sinistra waved and turned down the west corridor, and Katie headed in the opposite direction.

Reflecting on the mention of the rose bushes, Katie decided that was one place where she would definitely be alone. Despite the cold, she pushed through the doors and walked out to the rose garden. In spring and summer the garden was beautiful, but tonight the bushes were barren, dark and thorny. Katie wandered aimlessly through the garden, wondering just where Cho had found Fleur and Roger last winter. She rounded a large piece of statuary and was surprised to hear what sounded like low murmuring coming from behind a decorative evergreen hedge. Peering over the hedge-top, Katie saw a small, hunched figure who appeared to be murmuring an incantation.

"Hermione?" she asked in amazement.

Hermione jerked around at Katie's voice. "What are you doing here?" she gasped.

"I might ask you the same thing." Katie quickly walked around the hedge and joined Hermione. "What's that?" Her eyes fell on a spellbook Hermione had open on the bench.

"Nothing." Hermione hastily closed the book and sat on it. "Just some homework. It's much too noisy in the common room to get any really serious work done, you know."

"You were practising that reversal spell, weren't you?" Katie asked, as if Hermione hadn't said anything. "The one that was referenced in the Potions book."

"Why would you say a thing like that?" countered Hermione, but her flushed cheeks - visible even in the darkness - told Katie she was right.

"Look, I'm really sorry I yelled at you. I know you weren't putting me down for liking another girl - you were really cool about it when I first told you my situation in the library. And I appreciate what you've done to help me make things right with Cho, but you don't have to do all this."

"I know I don't," snapped Hermione, her flush increasing. "Maybe I just want to."

"But why?" Katie looked down at her in confusion.

Stuffing the spellbook into her bag, Hermione jumped up and began walking back to the castle. She seemed to be muttering to herself; the only word Katie caught sounded like "thick." Speaking more clearly, Hermione said, "I just don't like seeing you - or Cho - unhappy like this. And I feel partly responsible. If only I had talked to you more, maybe you wouldn't have gone ahead with the potion."

They had reached the side doors and Katie pulled on the enormous iron handle. "None of this is your fault, Hermione. I'm sure I would have done it anyway, but thanks for your concern."

"It's nothing."

"So, do you think that spell will work?"

Hermione hitched her book bag higher up on her shoulders. "I think so. But you'll have to get Cho to agree to let me perform it on her. Think she will?"

"I don't know. Maybe you could teach me to do it?" Katie asked hopefully. It only seemed fitting that she extract Cho from the mess she'd landed her in.

Hermione looked awkward. "I suppose…but it might take a long time and since I already know how to do it maybe it's best if you let me," she explained in a rush.

"What if you just performed it on me? I'm the one who took the potion."

"That's exactly why I don't want to risk it. It's hard to predict how the spell might interact with powers of the potion within you. I think it will be more effective to concentrate on making Cho immune to the repellent," Hermione explained.

"Okay. I'll see if I can talk to her."

The girls walked up to the tower in silence, each lost in her own thoughts. When they reached the fat lady, who was dozing in her portrait, Katie paused and touched Hermione's shoulder.

"Look, I know we've never been best friends, but I really do appreciate all the effort you're putting in to helping me. If there's anything I can do -"

"Forget about it," interrupted Hermione. "Let's just hope it works." She gave Katie a slight smile, then turned to the fat lady and said loudly, "Phosphorescence!"

"That password's been giving poor Neville fits all week," Hermione said over her shoulder as they crawled inside.

Katie smiled and dashed upstairs to compose a note to Cho, asking her to meet them the following evening. Blowing on the ink to make it dry, Katie rolled up the scroll with trembling fingers. She had just enough time to run to the owlery to post the letter before lights-out. What if Hermione's spell doesn't work, she wondered uneasily, then shoved the thought aside. It had to work - it just had to.

****

Well chickadees, I hope you liked it. Just a friendly authorial note here informing you the next chapter may take a little longer than usual, as I am once again going to the land that brought the world Big Macs, Baywatch and other guilty pleasures. I know, I know, I haven't even been a model of speed in getting out the chapters without the burdens of travel, but humbly beg your patience and indulgence while I fly away and get caught up on my Buffy viewing. In the meantime, your suggestions and comments are always appreciated.