Author's Notes: All credit for the HP storyline and characters goes to the wonderfully gifted JK Rowling. I'm just borrowing some ingredients and throwing them in a blender for a different flavor. I would like to extend my unending thanks again to all my reviewers. Thy praises and jeers (if any) keep me inspired so please keep them coming.

And now on with the story...

The moon shadowed his face as he gazed outside. It was a solemn night. Not deadly quiet, but it was the calming sort. He sighed lightly as if any louder noise would disturb the tranquility. His four other friends whom he shared his quarters with were asleep soundly, especially Ron.

Harry chuckled a tiny bit. 'Ron's definitely soundly,' he thought. His best friend was snoring but nobody seemed to mind. They were all in blissful slumber. He, on the other hand, could find bliss only by passing time staring at the dark-blue night sky. He should be trying to sleep as well but today was Saturday. No classes. And there's a scheduled trip to Hogsmeade.

'Dawn would come soon,' he thought. Soon, students would be up again bustling around but not with books and homework and tests and professors to think about. Normally, he wouldn't mind a trip to Hogsmeade, however today he needed to be alone again. Ron and Hermione would understand. They always did. He knew they would protest but his mind was made up.

He stood up from his place by the window and quietly got dressed. On a small piece of parchment he wrote,

"Ron,

I won't be joining you and Hermione today to Hogsmeade. The Firebolt and I have another date with the quidditch pitch. Just pick me up some sweets and treats.

Thanks,

Harry."

Harry left the note by Ron's bedside and readied himself for his venture. Instead of exiting the usual way from the Gryffindor House, he went back up the window that he gazed out from earlier. He closed his eyes and raised his right hand out. "Accio Firebolt," he quietly said.

Mere seconds later, his trusty broom, the Firebolt, was soon in his grasp. Chancing a glance one more time at his sleeping friends, he mounted the broom without sound and soon sped off to the quidditch pitch. He ought to have that place again to himself this early, he thought.

It was amazing, that sensation of flying. The morning breeze and sunlight was soon creeping on him, beckoning him in his flight. The warmth it gave off was life-giving, sustaining. The sensation was uplifting and liberating. He gripped his Firebolt and leaned forward, attempting to encapsulate more of the Saturday morning that was giving him life, refreshing his soul. A new day, indeed.

Seven a.m.

There was plenty of time for him to enjoy the field once again. The privacy was something he needed much of. Lately, he felt that he could not get enough of it and this was the only place that offered him the best escape. A slight frown crept on his face though, as he realized with his Seeker eyes that the field was not as secluded as he had assumed. Someone else was engrossed in flight round about the field.

'Who in Hogwarts would also be up at this hour?'

Curiosity got the better of him as it usually did and he found himself flying closer to determine who else fancied flying solo at this early time. On a Saturday.

Soon he found himself hesitating to get any closer as he was discovering who his quidditch pitch 'companion' was.

Raven-black hair.

. . . . .Close.

Small, lithe figure.

. . . . .Closer.

Ravenclaw practice robes.

. . . . .Close enough.

Quite skillful at flying about on the broom.

. . . . .Too close.

Stop.

Transfixed as he was, he failed to realize that he was staring at her unapologetically. Harry did not remain unnoticed for long as the object of his fixation must have sensed his presence. She stopped midair and directed her gaze in his direction.

"Ha-?...Harry?...Is that you?" a feminine voice called out to him.

"I…Yes…Good morning…I'm sorry…I didn't know somebody else would be here," he stuttered, regaining his composure…or rather, he tried to regain it. Taking a deep breath, he willed himself onward on his Firebolt to lessen the distance between them more as he felt somewhat silly talking loudly to each other when there was nobody else around.

"Oh, that's alright. I don't mind the company. It was too quiet anyway," she explained with a tiny smile.

He definitely couldn't stop himself. He knew he was smiling back. And in his stomach, he could have sworn there were maybe three butterflies fluttering about.

It was odd, but he found himself… cautiously elated.

*****

Sensing that she was no longer unaccompanied in the pitch, she stopped mid-flight and turned to where she sensed the other's presence. Cho's eyes widened when she recognized the figure on the Firebolt, looking at her.

"Speak of the devil…," she managed.

She really was not sure how she ought to feel when she caught Gryffindor's Seeker watching her. He seemed quite surprised, like he was caught doing something that he shouldn't be doing. Did she cause that, she wondered. Don't fancy yourself, she quickly chastised herself. Harry was just probably shocked to see someone else up at this unlikely hour.

Seven a.m.

Cho really did not plan on being here this early on a Saturday morning, but her broom and the quidditch pitch called out to her again. Since sleep eluded her for most of the night, she decided to not fight the urge to fly and discretely left her Ravenclaw quarters. Little did she know or expect that Harry Potter would become part of this unplanned 'date.'

Tentatively, she asked "Ha-?...Harry?...Is that you?"

"I…Yes…Good morning…I'm sorry…I didn't know somebody else would be here."

He flew closer to her location.

Thump.

"Oh, that's alright. I don't mind the company. It was too quiet anyway," she managed with a small smile. '…too quiet anyway…' Was that all she can say? Yesterday, she spent most of the time before sun set watching him, undetected. A pang of guilt affected her, recalling her conduct, and caused a slight blush to creep on her face. 'Why in Merlin's name am I blushing?'

"Cho?"

Beat. Beat.

"Oh…Sorry…Dazed out for a bit…Did you say something?" She swore under her breath. If she had a mirror in front of her right now, she was sure she looked quite flushed.

'What is wrong with me!?'

Forcing herself to suddenly summon Cedric's image in her mind, she quelled her startling sensations.

Cedric.

Beat.

"Oh, well I was just wondering if you would like to play around a little bit. You know…practice some feints and such, since we're both here?"

"Sure! That would be great," Cho piped. "But are you sure it would be alright for Gryffindor's star Seeker to be practicing with his average Ravenclaw counterpart?"

'He's laughing and it's addicting.'

"You, Cho Chang, are anything but average, if I may say so," his hearty chuckle rang.

'Stop. I shouldn't be laughing with him.'

'Right?'

Shaking her head, she decided to drop all these seemingly absurd thoughts about her companion. She forced her mind back onto the quidditch pitch. This time, she would be a participant, not a viewer. Frankly, Cho liked being a co-participant because it was quite more enjoyable. Harry led for several minutes, attempting numerous Seeker feints and Cho trailed not too far behind. His talent on the broom was not lost on her as she tried her best to keep up with him, tried her best to equal him. But she knew that no matter how hard she tried, at this time, at this level, at this pace, she could not even hope to do that. But that was okay with her. Because it was Gryffindor's famous Seeker.

About an hour and a half passed before they both conceded their practice and landed together near the middle of the field. When they were settled back on solid ground, Cho spied that the great Harry Potter was now greatly drenched with sweat.

'Quite a workout indeed.'

"It appears that Ravenclaw has been holding out on Gryffindor, Miss Chang," he amusingly asked.

She laughed. "Oh really, Mister Potter? I doubt that my person hardly kept up with you at all and if I'm not mistaken, Mister Potter did some holding back up there himself so the lady won't feel so inadequate."

"Now that would be an insult, wouldn't it?"

Cho shook her head. Harry was an amazingly easy person to talk to. 'Down to earth. I need to remember that. What else is there to know about the Boy Who Lived?'

8:45 a.m.

"..Ah…Well…That was a great workout though, wasn't it?" cautiously he asked.

"Um..Yes..Absolutely…Although, I believe it would be best that we keep this between ourselves. I don't believe the rest of our teammates would be too pleased with this…encounter."

He smiled and so did she. Keeping it as a secret rendezvous between the two of them seemed very intriguing indeed. He understood the need for it. Harry was pleased to have shared this morning with her but now he was somewhat disappointed that it was about to end.

"Er…I guess we ought to get back now since we're done…Right?" he said as he finished gulping water from a water fountain near a quidditch field shed.

"Harry…Do you need to get…I mean…Well…I brought some breakfast…and it's not much..but…," she took deep breath, "I would really like it if you…I mean…" she gathered herself, "Would you like to have breakfast with me?"

The green-eyed boy was speechless. His eyebrows arched up in surprise and his mouth hung slightly open. Then he realized that his shock must have been written on his face because Cho colored. To his embarrassment, he quickly recovered his wits about him.

"I…," he stuttered, "…You don't mind?"

"Actually, no, I don't mind at all. It's the least I could do since you accompanied me this morning," she colored more.

"But…I…"

"Really, Harry….Please?" She was sure that she was as red as a tomato now. 'Please say yes,' she quietly pleaded.

"Well then, I shall be a gentleman and accept the lady's offer, only because she insists," Harry smirked.

"Touché, Mister Potter," she amusingly returned. "There is no need for you to be smart about it." Cho stuck her tongue out at him.

They located a convenient place up on a small hill on the grounds that boasted a breathtaking view of Hogwarts Castle. The blue skies were almost cloud free. Birds flew over them, singing, basking under the sun. The sun shone on them graciously as they enjoyed Cho's meager breakfast: four breakfast rolls, some slices of honey ham, slices of cheese bought from a bakery in Hogsmeade, and a flask full of pumpkin juice.

Harry was quite astonished that she had so much food. 'Not much food, huh?' "When did you find time to get all this stuff ready?"

"Um…well I woke up fairly early this morning and snuck into the kitchens. Several of the house-elves were more than happy to help me out."

As they enjoyed breakfast, they found more and more things to talk about aside from house-elves. They were wagering against each other on the upcoming quidditch match between Gryffindor and Ravenclaw. They both expressed their dislike for Snape and his Potions class. The strategized on several Seeker feints on the field. They even found themselves talking about Hermione's S.P.E.W.

Harry discovered that Cho, like a curly-haired girl he knew fairly well, enjoyed burying her nose in a book if time permitting. Cho's father is an avid quidditch fan and he was the reason why she was able to go to last year's World Cup. She wouldn't have minded being sorted into Gryffindor but her family's history dictated that she was more suited for Ravenclaw. She was also the first female in a hundred years to earn the position of Seeker for the Ravenclaw House.

Cho Chang also found herself more educated in the subject known as Harry Potter. Harry disclosed how his 'natural talent' for flying was accidentally discovered by Professor McGonagall and that it led to him being Gryffindor's youngest Seeker in nearly a century. He also told her, with great reluctance, about some of his misadventures caught by Snape. Other than that, his real passion was quidditch and that nothing else really fancied him. Cho noticed how he avoided talking about his happenings with Voldermort, his parents, or last year's Tri-Wizard Tournament.

Cedric.

The thought of him arrested her heart. She's not over him completely, this she knew. And being with Harry right now, laughing with him, getting to know him, made her feel slightly guilty. To get past the hurt, to start moving forward again, to learn to let go, she knew she had to talk to Harry about him. She had to let it out.

Cho took a deep breath. "Harry, can I ask you something?"

That very instant, he froze. He recognized the change in her face, her tone of voice. She was going to ask him about Cedric. And it was inescapable, unavoidable. And he expected it, although halfheartedly. He wanted to, he wished to say no.

"Sure, Cho…Anything…"

"I…About…last year…The last test…Cedric…How…." She couldn't help it. She knew that tears were forming in her eyes. She didn't want to ask him but he was the only one who could give her answers, the only one who can give her real peace. Harry was the only one who could tell her what happened.

She was suddenly taken aback when he took her right hand in his and gently squeezed. She gave him a questioning look but did not withdraw her hand. It was warm and reassuring.

"What do you want to know?"

He was going to tell her what she needed to know. He owed her that much since he was the reason that Cedric was gone. Although Hermione has often scolded him for thinking as such, he could not help himself. It was the burden of being Harry Potter.

"Please…Just tell me…What happened…," she pleaded.

With a deep sigh, he squeezed her hand one more time before letting go. He got up from where he was seated and moved a couple steps away from her, and stared upward in the sky, as if searching. For a moment, Cho thought that he was going away, that he was going to leave instead of answering here. But his voice came out almost like a whisper.

"He had no chance. Voldermort gave him no chance. The only thing that Cedric was able to do was to look at his would-be killer. And that was it."

Harry closed his eyes, remembering that fateful day.
"Kill the spare…That was the only thing said about Cedric…And then they just forgot about him. Only I mattered to Voldermort. And the blood…my blood…that will give him life," he paused. "I was so…out of it…It felt like a dream…No…It was a complete nightmare."

Cho could feel the pain in Harry's heart. It tore at her.

He opened his eyes and directed his gaze back down to the ground. "I am sorry to say that I can't tell you that he mentioned you. While I was battling with Voldermort" Cho flinched at the name "Cedric's soul, along with the souls of two other people dearest to me, came to my aid. Cedric seemed to have accepted his fate back then. And he didn't blame me, not even once. He helped me and the only thing that he asked for in return was that I go back to Hogwarts with his body so that his parents might be able to have a son to bury." His voice was cracking and tears were forming in his eyes.

Harry was falling. He was succumbing to the sadness that has followed him ever since the death of his parents. He was beginning to drown in the sorrow that his was alive at the expense of others. He was breaking down.

But she caught him. She got up, ran to him and wrapped her arms around him, letting her smaller frame sustain him. His sorrow came out, he couldn't control himself. The pain in his heart was too much. Nevertheless, she was there. Albeit shaken and affected herself, she held him, comforted him.

They were crying in each others arms. They were crying to let the pain that troubled them out of their hearts. Before, it was only Harry who suffered death. It was only he who had lost something precious, something valuable, something loved. Now there was also Cho who had lost something. She could not let him blame himself and she did not want him to carry a burden that was not his to bear.

Sinking to their knees, they both held on to each other for dear life. Under the bright morning sun, they let the tears run as they shared their sorrows. They were starting to heal, and they both knew this inside. Calling out to each other's pain, their hearts were beating as one.

Harry was not alone.

And neither was Cho.

-Fin (for now)