Summary: This is what the Goblet of Fire would have been from Cho Chang's point of view. There's not much said about Cho in the first four books. This story is what I think Cho would have been, her character and what she went through during her fifth year at Hogwarts.
The story starts with HP Book 4 Chapter 22, up to the end of her fifth year.
Disclaimer: Harry Potter, Hermione Granger, Cedric Diggory, Poliakoff, Professor McGonagall, Viktor Krum, Padma Patil, the Weasley Twins, Canary Creams (and all other HP terminologies) are obviously not mine but JK Rowling's intellectual property. As a matter of fact, all characters in this story are JK Rowling's, except for the following: Pam, Jane, Crystal and Patrick (plus the Wise Old Man.)
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The Yule Ball
(Still, concurrent with GoF Chapter 23 - The Yule Ball)
Cedric held Cho's hand as they squeeze their way past the Hogwarts students waiting for the Yule Ball to start. The champions and their partners were needed by Professor McGonagall.
Cho felt a sudden rush of panic. How will Harry react when he sees her with Cedric? Did he manage to find himself a partner?
Well, he knows I'm going with Cedric. And Harry's a school champion, he shouldn't have trouble finding a partner, she thought. Would he be upset with her? She looked around. Harry was nowhere in sight.
"Cho?"
That brought her back to earth. "I'm sorry, Cedric. You were saying something?" Cho asked, embarrassed that she hadn't been paying attention to her partner.
"Nothing. I was just saying..."
She didn't entirely hear what he was saying. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Harry emerge from the crowd. He was with Padma, a fourth year student from her house.
No, she thought, it's not Padma. It's her twin sister from Gryffindor.
She looked away quickly and turned to Cedric. Cho, you're with Cedric, she told herself. He deserves a little more attention, even just for tonight.
But Cedric wasn't looking at her, he looking at the girl next to Viktor Krum, a surprised look on his face.
"Cho, isn't that Hermione Granger?"
Cho turned around. It was definitely Hermione Granger, only that she looked very different. "Yes, it is Hermione," she said, pleasantly surprised. "She looks beautiful."
Cedric was about to say something to her but Professor McGonagall beckoned them to follow her. They got in line in pairs and entered the Great Hall to everyone's applause.
Another rush of panic overcame her. She wasn't prepared for this. Not that she wasn't used to crowds. She was Raveclaw's Seeker and played Quidditch in front of huge crowds. But walking into the Hall in pale pink robes with a Hogwarts champion and everyone's eyes on you was totally different from being on a broomstick catching the snitch.
Cedric must have felt her grip on his arm tighten. "Nervous?" he asked.
"A little bit." She was lying. What if she slips and makes a fool of herself in front of all these Hogwarts students? Rather, make that Hogwarts, Beaubaxtons and Durmstrang students.
"Relax," Cedric said as he placed one hand on her hand that was now cutting off blood supply on his other arm. "We are just going to walk up the Hall, sit at the front, dance a little bit..."
Dance. Now is the time to panic. She knew that Cedric was to open the Ball with the other champions, but now it occurred to her -- what if she trips?
"Don't worry, if you trip I'll pick you up," he said, smiling. She smiled back. Somehow, she felt a little bit at ease. But did he just read her mind?
She didn't remember how she and Cedric reached the top table. The usual opening speeches had also gone by in a blur. All she remembered was she and Cedric holding what looked like a menu, looking at each other as if asking what to do.
Professor Dumbledore read something aloud and food appeared on the golden plate.
"Hmmm, that was easy," Cedric said with a grin on his face. "What should we get?"
Cho took a quick look at Professor Dumbledore's plate. "The pork chops look good."
"Pork chops it is!"
Going with Cedric wasn't so bad after all. Cho never knew they had so much in common. There wasn't anything under the sun they cannot talk about -- Transfiguration, butterbeer, Cockroach Clusters, dragons, Quidditch. Most of all, he was really funny.
"Oh, last year? That was a shame," Cedric sighed, pretending to look dejected. "We were doing great but here comes Ravenclaw's little Seeker." He was talking about their Quidditch match the previous year, where Ravenclaw trounced upon Cedric's Hufflepuff team.
"Oh, come on. You're not holding that against me, are you?"
"You think not? Why do you think I want you to be my partner? I can't hex your food if you're not right next to me," he replied with a mischievous grin.
At last, it was time to start the dance. Holding her hand, Cedric led her to the center of the Great Hall, which was now (magically) cleared of tables and chairs.
"I was just kidding about hexing your food," Cedric told Cho as they danced.
"I'll believe you if I don't turn into a canary before tonight is over." Both of them couldn't help but laugh. A couple of weeks back, Cho saw him burst into a flurry of yellow feathers. Apparently, a fellow Hufflepuff student offered him Canary Creams, an invention by Gryffindor's Weasley twins. He took a bite before realizing it was hexed.
"That was embarrassing," Cedric grinned. "Thank heavens I have molted. You wouldn't want to go a ball with a feathery partner, would you?"
Cho had to admit she was having a lot of fun. Cedric was really nice and dance very well. She saw her friends Pam, Jane and Crystal seated a feet away with their partners, waving at her. She waved back.
The Weird Sisters are now playing something slow, a love song.
"The buttons on my robes must be really interesting," Cedric said.
Startled, Cho looked up, "I'm sorry?"
"You've been staring at my robes for too long." He continued, "I'm starting to feel jealous. You barely looked at me."
"Oh," she said, finally getting what he meant. "You have to understand, I'm so small I'd break my neck if I look up too much." Indeed, she was more than a head smaller than Cedric.
"Ok, point taken." Then he asked, "Can I hold you closer then?"
"Er -- yeah, sure."
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"Girl, you have some explaining to do."
"What do you mean..."
"Something's going on, and we have to know."
"Nothing is going on!"
"You guys were awfully close when you danced"
"Oh, come on..."
Cedric had gone to get their drinks and Cho decided to walk over to her friends. The moment she reached their table, Pam, Jane and Crystal started badgering her with questions.
"We are not geniuses, but we can sense if somebody's falling for somebody," Pam teased her.
"Will you guys just stop it?" pleaded Cho. And they stopped, not because she asked them to, but because they spotted Cedric headed in their direction.
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The Yule Ball was finally over and students are now coming out of the Great Hall to retire for the evening. At a distance, Cho saw three girls she recognized as her friends beckoning her to come over. She waved back at them, saying she couldn't and that they go ahead without her. Cedric had to stop for a bit. He said he needed a quick word with Harry.
Harry. She just realized that she didn't think about him the entire Yule Ball, except for that instance right before they walked into the Great Hall. She looked up and saw him and Cedric talking. He saw her, and there was something about the way he looked at her. He looked a little... sad?
No time to worry about how Harry felt, she thought as Cedric was on his way back down the staircase towards her. If he were really the great guy Cedric thought he was, he'd understand Cedric asked her to the Ball first. Come to think of it, if Harry had asked her first, she might not have had the chance to be with Cedric tonight...
The story starts with HP Book 4 Chapter 22, up to the end of her fifth year.
Disclaimer: Harry Potter, Hermione Granger, Cedric Diggory, Poliakoff, Professor McGonagall, Viktor Krum, Padma Patil, the Weasley Twins, Canary Creams (and all other HP terminologies) are obviously not mine but JK Rowling's intellectual property. As a matter of fact, all characters in this story are JK Rowling's, except for the following: Pam, Jane, Crystal and Patrick (plus the Wise Old Man.)
=========================
The Yule Ball
(Still, concurrent with GoF Chapter 23 - The Yule Ball)
Cedric held Cho's hand as they squeeze their way past the Hogwarts students waiting for the Yule Ball to start. The champions and their partners were needed by Professor McGonagall.
Cho felt a sudden rush of panic. How will Harry react when he sees her with Cedric? Did he manage to find himself a partner?
Well, he knows I'm going with Cedric. And Harry's a school champion, he shouldn't have trouble finding a partner, she thought. Would he be upset with her? She looked around. Harry was nowhere in sight.
"Cho?"
That brought her back to earth. "I'm sorry, Cedric. You were saying something?" Cho asked, embarrassed that she hadn't been paying attention to her partner.
"Nothing. I was just saying..."
She didn't entirely hear what he was saying. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Harry emerge from the crowd. He was with Padma, a fourth year student from her house.
No, she thought, it's not Padma. It's her twin sister from Gryffindor.
She looked away quickly and turned to Cedric. Cho, you're with Cedric, she told herself. He deserves a little more attention, even just for tonight.
But Cedric wasn't looking at her, he looking at the girl next to Viktor Krum, a surprised look on his face.
"Cho, isn't that Hermione Granger?"
Cho turned around. It was definitely Hermione Granger, only that she looked very different. "Yes, it is Hermione," she said, pleasantly surprised. "She looks beautiful."
Cedric was about to say something to her but Professor McGonagall beckoned them to follow her. They got in line in pairs and entered the Great Hall to everyone's applause.
Another rush of panic overcame her. She wasn't prepared for this. Not that she wasn't used to crowds. She was Raveclaw's Seeker and played Quidditch in front of huge crowds. But walking into the Hall in pale pink robes with a Hogwarts champion and everyone's eyes on you was totally different from being on a broomstick catching the snitch.
Cedric must have felt her grip on his arm tighten. "Nervous?" he asked.
"A little bit." She was lying. What if she slips and makes a fool of herself in front of all these Hogwarts students? Rather, make that Hogwarts, Beaubaxtons and Durmstrang students.
"Relax," Cedric said as he placed one hand on her hand that was now cutting off blood supply on his other arm. "We are just going to walk up the Hall, sit at the front, dance a little bit..."
Dance. Now is the time to panic. She knew that Cedric was to open the Ball with the other champions, but now it occurred to her -- what if she trips?
"Don't worry, if you trip I'll pick you up," he said, smiling. She smiled back. Somehow, she felt a little bit at ease. But did he just read her mind?
She didn't remember how she and Cedric reached the top table. The usual opening speeches had also gone by in a blur. All she remembered was she and Cedric holding what looked like a menu, looking at each other as if asking what to do.
Professor Dumbledore read something aloud and food appeared on the golden plate.
"Hmmm, that was easy," Cedric said with a grin on his face. "What should we get?"
Cho took a quick look at Professor Dumbledore's plate. "The pork chops look good."
"Pork chops it is!"
Going with Cedric wasn't so bad after all. Cho never knew they had so much in common. There wasn't anything under the sun they cannot talk about -- Transfiguration, butterbeer, Cockroach Clusters, dragons, Quidditch. Most of all, he was really funny.
"Oh, last year? That was a shame," Cedric sighed, pretending to look dejected. "We were doing great but here comes Ravenclaw's little Seeker." He was talking about their Quidditch match the previous year, where Ravenclaw trounced upon Cedric's Hufflepuff team.
"Oh, come on. You're not holding that against me, are you?"
"You think not? Why do you think I want you to be my partner? I can't hex your food if you're not right next to me," he replied with a mischievous grin.
At last, it was time to start the dance. Holding her hand, Cedric led her to the center of the Great Hall, which was now (magically) cleared of tables and chairs.
"I was just kidding about hexing your food," Cedric told Cho as they danced.
"I'll believe you if I don't turn into a canary before tonight is over." Both of them couldn't help but laugh. A couple of weeks back, Cho saw him burst into a flurry of yellow feathers. Apparently, a fellow Hufflepuff student offered him Canary Creams, an invention by Gryffindor's Weasley twins. He took a bite before realizing it was hexed.
"That was embarrassing," Cedric grinned. "Thank heavens I have molted. You wouldn't want to go a ball with a feathery partner, would you?"
Cho had to admit she was having a lot of fun. Cedric was really nice and dance very well. She saw her friends Pam, Jane and Crystal seated a feet away with their partners, waving at her. She waved back.
The Weird Sisters are now playing something slow, a love song.
"The buttons on my robes must be really interesting," Cedric said.
Startled, Cho looked up, "I'm sorry?"
"You've been staring at my robes for too long." He continued, "I'm starting to feel jealous. You barely looked at me."
"Oh," she said, finally getting what he meant. "You have to understand, I'm so small I'd break my neck if I look up too much." Indeed, she was more than a head smaller than Cedric.
"Ok, point taken." Then he asked, "Can I hold you closer then?"
"Er -- yeah, sure."
-------------------------------------
"Girl, you have some explaining to do."
"What do you mean..."
"Something's going on, and we have to know."
"Nothing is going on!"
"You guys were awfully close when you danced"
"Oh, come on..."
Cedric had gone to get their drinks and Cho decided to walk over to her friends. The moment she reached their table, Pam, Jane and Crystal started badgering her with questions.
"We are not geniuses, but we can sense if somebody's falling for somebody," Pam teased her.
"Will you guys just stop it?" pleaded Cho. And they stopped, not because she asked them to, but because they spotted Cedric headed in their direction.
-------------------------------------
The Yule Ball was finally over and students are now coming out of the Great Hall to retire for the evening. At a distance, Cho saw three girls she recognized as her friends beckoning her to come over. She waved back at them, saying she couldn't and that they go ahead without her. Cedric had to stop for a bit. He said he needed a quick word with Harry.
Harry. She just realized that she didn't think about him the entire Yule Ball, except for that instance right before they walked into the Great Hall. She looked up and saw him and Cedric talking. He saw her, and there was something about the way he looked at her. He looked a little... sad?
No time to worry about how Harry felt, she thought as Cedric was on his way back down the staircase towards her. If he were really the great guy Cedric thought he was, he'd understand Cedric asked her to the Ball first. Come to think of it, if Harry had asked her first, she might not have had the chance to be with Cedric tonight...