Mrs. Chang's Story

Late one night, Mrs. Chang was walking to her bedroom. On her way she heard her daughter, Cho, crying softly. Mrs. Chang opened the door quietly and walked in. She put a comforting arm around Cho and asked her what was the matter. Cho managed to sob out a very muffled, "Cedric."

Her mum nodded and said she understood. "No, you don't! You don't know what it's like to lose the one you love! He was my soulmate, mum!" screamed Cho on the verge of hysteria.

"Yes, I do," said Mrs. Chang softly as pain laced through her face, "I know exactly how it is."

Cho's features softened, "Oh, sorry, mum. I wasn't thinking; how else could I forget about dad- how he was killed and everything?"

"True," said her mother vaguely, "but he wasn't the one I was referring to."

"Who then?"

"The love of my life, Sirius Black-"

"You can't be serious, mum! He's a- a murderer!" cut in Cho.

"He is no such thing. He was framed, by Peter Pettigrew." said Mrs. Chang firmly.

"Mum, are you nutters?"

"No, quite the contrary. Peter did it." replied Mrs. Chang in a tone that said quite simply that the subject was closed.

She then went on to say, "Well, as I said, he was the love of my life- Sirius that is. It was as if we were made for each other, which we probably were. Anyway, he proposed to me in 7th year and I of course accepted. Well, imagine my surprise when I saw him with another girl in his lap one day. I was soooooooo mad. I yelled at him, then threw the ring at him. I ran out of the common room crying. He followed me- tried to explain- but I ignored him, sent him away- out of my life... forever. That was our last day of school and I never saw him again. Still, to this day, I don't know what happened. But I know, deep in my heart, that it wasn't his fault... and that he really did love me." She ended her story with a sigh as she brushed a stray tear away from her eye.

Cho looked up with large eyes and asked her mum if she had ever loved Mr. Chang.

"Well, um...yes. Yes, I did love him, it just... wasn't the same. I never fell in love with him, it was more like I learned to love him. Does that answer your question?"

"Yes..." mumbled Cho absent-mindedly, "but..." She trailed off as she looked up and noticed her mother gone. Mrs. Chang had left her daughter to soak in this new information in private.