Title: An Overture of Whispers
Disclaimer: No, I don't own Harry Potter, and you all should be thankful
for that because I probably wouldn't have been able to make it as
interesting as Ms. Rowling has. Yet, the poems are mine, and though they're
made up on the spot, if any of you try to steal them, I will personally
send botuber pus to your doorstep. So don't!
Author's Note: Alright, I'll admit it, this is my first fic, ever, and
you'll probably be able to tell...so flame me if you want, but I happen to
like my story, thank you. Cho and Harry are meant to be, in my opinion, and
there aren't enough fics for them out there! However, I am also very
partial to Cho and Draco becoming a couple, so we'll just have to see how
this turns out...
Title: Enchantment Chapter: One- More Than a Nighttime Stroll
"Petrificus Totalus!" She whispered hoarsely. Without a second look, she walked briskly ahead through the dimly lit corridor, faltering slightly as she heard her friend hit the ground with a thud and a stomach-wrenching crack, most likely the fracture of a bone. She debated over in her mind as to whether she should stop and go back to help her, as would be what she would naturally do, or keep going. She thought and thought, and much to her dismay, she forced herself to keep walking. She couldn't stop, not now. No matter how much she cared, there was too much at stake.
"So sorry, Mandy..." She whispered under her breath, continuing to stride down the hall. Mandy Brocklehurst was her best friend, and it pained her to leave her like that, on the cold marble floor of the hallway. But she got in her way... she tried to stop her. And she couldn't just stop. Not even for her best friend. Someone would find her soon, she reassured herself, most likely Filch or Mrs. Norris on their patrol of the grounds.
The light was fading, and the number of torches lighting the path was decreasing, so Cho was soon forced to whip her wand out of her robes. "Lumos," she whispered, holding her wand high above her head. She made it so that it provided some light, but only enough for her to see just a foot or so in front of her. The last thing she wanted was to be found all because her wand emitted too much light. She saw some moonlight ahead, penetrating the darkness, so she knew she was close. "Almost Cho. Almost," She encouraged herself, keeping her same, swift pace down the hall. She reached the door, gently pushed it open, and winced when it creaked. She looked around, and to her relief, no one was nearby. She stepped out, the cool night air greeting her as she reflexively took a deep breath. "Nox," she murmured, the light receding. She didn't need it anymore, the moon was almost full, providing her with enough light to make her way across the grounds. She checked her watch, and frowned when she saw that she only had a few minutes left to reach her destination. First she began to walk quickly, a feeling of urgency seeping through her. The feeling grew and grew until she found herself jogging in the direction of the Forbidden Forest, her black locks bouncing as she ran. She could feel the white ribbon that always held her tresses slipping slightly, but that wasn't important now. She ran and she ran as fast as her legs could take her. She suddenly collided with something, and was sent flying back, landing on the ground in a crumpled heap. A slight groan escaped her, and she rubbed the back of her head where it had made violent contact with the cobblestone ground. "Ow..." she murmured. She looked up to find this mysterious assailant, as no one was supposed to be roaming the grounds after hours, only to find nothing there.
~****************~
Harry sat in the Gryffindor common room, restlessly squirming in the large armchair that he was occupying. The fire was beginning to dwindle, and there were only three other people in the commons. "Come on...come on..." He coaxed impatiently, wishing for them to leave. He had to make sure no one was around when he left, as it would raise suspicion if he just left and never came back. Finally, after much yawning and slurred chattering, the girls finally became too sleepy to care even about who Alicia Spinnet had upset yesterday in Herbology. They retired to their rooms, trudging up the stairway to the girl's dormitiories. Harry listened hard, and when he finally heard their "Goodnight's" and the soft click of the door shutting, he sprinted towards his room, taking the stairs two at a time. He crept quietly into the shared bedroom, and made his way over to his trunk. Careful not to wake any of the boys, he gingerly pulled out his Invisibility Cloak. Then, as an afterthought, he grabbed the Marauder's Map as well. 'You never know when this can come in handy, Harry.' he thought to himself. Slipping his cloak on, he crept stealthily to the portrait of the Fat Lady. After a murmured, barely audible "Witch's Brew", the portrait swung aside, and Harry paused for a moment, thinking that he could still turn back. What did Professor Trewlaney know anyway? She was wrong about so many things, what made this any different?Well...even if she was wrong, he wasn't going to take the chance. He thought back to the day...
This prediction of hers wasn't like all the usual, overly dramatic productions she normally put on, making sure that there was a substantial audience around. No, this was when there was just Harry around, lagging behind the rest of the class, and even the words ensuing from her mouth didn't seem to come from her at all. She looked blank, her mouth barely moving, and at first Harry had to lean in close to her to try and decipher all the mumbles and murmurs that came from his Divination professor. That had been a terrible mistake though, Harry recalled. Not only did she reek of incense and tea leaves, but just as suddenly as she went into this strange trance, did she start screaming her message, straight into Harry's ear. Harry stumbled back, eventually tripping over a cushion and landing in it, clutching his ear defensively, as though he were protecting it from the strange rantings of the professor. Eventually her screams died down, and she began to recite, rather sing, a poem.
Take flight! The one you most adore, Will be harmed badly should you ignore, This warning I mercifully provide, Granted you're at your lover's side, For if you're not, her screams will pierce, Your dreams forever, strong and fierce, So go tonight, when the clock strikes one, 'Cause if you're late, then I'll have fun, With the girl you hold most dear, Her pain will be greatly severe, And you'll feel it as well when you learn what's true, That all this pain was because of you."
Harry sat there on the ground, reflecting on what he'd just heard. What was she talking about? 'So go tonight when the clock strikes one?' This all didn't make any sense. He continued to sit there, oblivious of all his surroundings, racking his brain for any ounce of logic that he could use to solve this. Hermione was good at this sort of thing, not him...but he was shaken from his thoughts by a strange, lilting tune that Trewlaney was humming. It captivated Harry, running a strange tingling sensation through him. It cleared his thoughts, and comforted him in a mysterious way.He wanted to hear more of it, forever and ever...
"Harry? What are you doing sitting there like that? We're going to be late!" Harry was brought sharply from his reverie by the shrill, panicky voice of Hermione. "We have Potions next! We wouldn't hear the end of it if we were late to Snape's class! Come on then, hurry up! We only have a few minutes!" Hermione was practically trembling with anxiety at being late. She was obviously so caught up in her dread, she hadn't noticed the unusual setting before her. Harry tried to reason with her, saying something was wrong, but she wasn't paying attention. She was already walking away, ranting about how late they would be.
Harry rubbed his forehead for good measure, then he stood to join Hermione and Ron, not saying a word. What had just happened? Was he going crazy or something? Sure, strange things happened when you were a wizard, especially a famous one, but this was strange, even for him. Professor Trewlaney had made two other predictions like this before, and they most certainly had been accurate. Absently, Harry thought back to what Dumbledore had said to him in his third year. Well, make the total of real predictions three, Harry mused. Looks like another pay raise. Harry smirked.
Yes, he had to go. Harry stepped through the outlet just provided for him, turning back just once to watch the Gryffindor common room disappear behind the portrait returning to it's rightful place. Facing forward, his emerald eyes flashing dangerously, he began a brisk pace down the hallway, only to stop in his tracks. Where was he going? He hadn't the slightest idea. This thought hadn't even entered his mind. Where was he to go? What was he to do? Anxiety and hysteria were creeping into his thoughts. If he was late, someone would be hurt. Who was that someone anyway? Harry sighed in frustration. Too many questions...okay, the only rational thing to do was to sort all these things out one by one. But rational was not going to help. Harry needed to get there fast. He swiftly checked the watch on his wrist. It was 12:39, and he was still in the corridor. And he didn't even know where to go.
A light, airy sound reached Harry's ears, distracting him. It sounded like...hissing. Harry listened hard, trying to focus on the sound. Words began to surface through the hisses. He vaguely realized what was going on. A snake was talking to him. The discovery that he had spoken Parseltongue was a surprise when he first learned this, but his mind was so cluttered with questions right now, he didn't have any more room for another one. Like why there was a snake loose in Hogwarts Castle. He didn't inquire why the snake was talking to him, or why it was even there, all he could concentrate on was what it was saying. He tried to filter out all the hissing noises, to separate them from the words.
The Forbidden Forest holds your dreams, The girl you love is heading there, But she's in danger, so it seems, All for your secure welfare. A warning sent to her in the night, About your danger, but it was fake, Unaware, she had a fright, To lose another, her heart would break. All this nonsense, for a little game, At your expense, my master desires, He'll play with your heart, it's all the same, He'll kill the one you most admire. So hurry, go fast, before she is killed, For this, my master will not wait. In the art of torture, he is skilled, But this, a different kind, will steal your fate.
Steal his fate? Surely it was supposed to be 'seal' his fate, right? Maybe he heard wrong...?Giving himself a mental slap, he scolded himself for dawdling around, dwelling on such trivial things. He knew exactly where he was going. He knew exactly what he was doing. And most importantly, he knew exactly who he was saving. He ran swiftly down the hall, descending the stairs, and straight through the next corridor. He stopped briefly there, to catch his breath, his lungs ached. A sudden idea popped into his mind, and he took out the Marauder's Map. There were tiny dots showing all the people he wanted to know the locations of, namely Mrs. Norris and Filch. Flich was all the way in the third floor corridor, near the door where Fluffy used to be, Mrs. Norris trailing at his heels. Snape was asleep in his room. He focused on Cho in his mind. He saw images of her climbing the stairs opposite of him, her going up, him going down, when all of a sudden, the stairs decided to change direction. He saw the look of surprise on her face as she lurched gently forward, keeping her balance, followed by a giggle. He saw her on her broom, the wind flying through her hair as she practiced at dinner time, when she thought no one else was out. He finally saw her looking back at him with her big brown eyes, right before he leaned in to kiss her that night under the mistletoe last year. Harry knew who he was looking for, alright. He knew it all along. A small red dot had appeared on the map, indicating that Cho was already outside, making her way over to the Forbidden Forest. He had to intercept her somehow...and fast. Her tiny dot was beginning to pick up speed, and before he knew it, it was racing across the map, getting dangerously close to the bold, black letters FORBIDDEN FOREST TRAIL. Luckily for him, there was a shortcut on the map, which, if he hurried fast enough, would lead him to intercept her right before she left the safety of the school grounds. He didn't waste a second, sprinting headlong to the secret passage between the two suits of armor in the first floor corridor. He didn't stop when he reached the outside, the frosty air biting at his face. He kept running, the inhalation of the cold air stinging at his lungs. All of a sudden, something, rather someone, collided with his racing form, but since he was apparently larger than the other person, he was merely nudged slightly, causing him to stumble. The other person had not been so fortunate, though, as he heard the soft sound of someone hitting the ground. He looked to see who it was, and his heart stopped and leaped at the same time. It was Cho.
~*******************~
Cho let out a small whimper of pain, rubbed the back of her head for a second, then effortlessly sprang to her feet. "W-who's there?" She asked, trying to sound brave. She knew she wasn't half as brave as she was pretending to be, and if the person she ran into was anyone from Hogwarts, they would know as well. She was known around school for being gentle, innocent, and caring, but she didn't like confrontation. She didn't worry herself with gossips and slanderers, she chose to make friends with all the nicer girls at the school. But nonetheless, she mustered up her courage and held her wand forward.
Harry had made a small noise, but he just couldn't bring himself to say anything. There were far too many reasons for that. First of all, as sick as it seemed, he told himself, he found Cho's feigned bravery to be rather amusing, endearing if anything. Also, this was the first time since they...broke up that he had ever really been able to see her without those awkward feelings he always got. It was a somewhat messy breakup, and it left them both very uncomfortable around each other. Their only conversations were strained, and about trivial things like classes. He had always had feelings for her, even after...Sirius's death, though the death of his godfather took up all of his heart and mind, leaving no room for anyone else. If it had been different, and Sirius hadn't died, he would've apologized to Cho and tried to rekindle their relationship. But it was too late. She had been going out with Michael Corner last he heard, though news from Ginny said that rumors stated Cho was seeing a sixth year named Terry Boot. Harry's heart pined for her, and he regretted everything he had ever said and done. Everything that mattered to him before Sirius died didn't matter nearly as much afterward. But over the summer holidays he realized just what he had done. And now, it was ruined. He could only watch her from the shadows now, and steal glances across the hall at mealtimes. Maybe if he stayed still, just like this, the moment would never end, and he would be able to gaze at her forever, without any uneasiness. He shook the thought from his mind. He had to get her back inside, before she was caught outside, or before someone else got to them...
Cho furrowed her brow in frustration, looking around and not seeing anyone there. She was getting more scared, angry, and annoyed at the passing of every second. She knew she had bumped into something, someone, but there was no one around. "Lumos," Cho said clearly. She shone the light of her wand around like a flashlight, and Harry noticed that the light emitting from her wand was a pure white, not the slightest bit of yellow or any other color tainting it. He was rather impressed. She tapped her foot gently against the ground in irritation. "If there's anyone out there, please come out?" she requested softly.
Harry tried to surpress a smile. He scolded himself, telling himself that he shouldn't find so much joy in poor Cho's confusion, but it was just so...cute. He debated over coming out and revealing himself to her, but that thought was short lived as Harry's wand began to shudder in his robe pocket. Soon it began trembling violently, and red sparks shot out of the end, straight at Cho.
Cho was looking around, and upon seeing no one there, was once more reminded of why she was here. She couldn't waste any time on this, she had to go to the forest. It was the only way she could save Harry. She didn't know what she'd do if she lost someone else to Voldemort, the pain would be unbearable. Just as she began to walk towards the trail, though, red sparks shot out at her from nowhere. She dodged them by jumping swiftly to the side, then she went into dueling mode.
She immediately, almost subconsciously, picked out a strategy in her mind, then she applied it to the situation.
"Locomotor Mortis!" She said firmly. Harry's legs froze. What was happening? Why was his wand acting up like this? And now she was attacking him? He was in trouble...
Cho looked out of the corner of her eye and saw a decently sized rock lying on the ground by her feet. She could've done much worse, but all she wanted to know was why this person was attacking her. And where this person was, for that matter."Waddiwasi!" She said, pointing her wand at the rock below her. The rock rose slowly off the ground, then shot at Harry, hitting him so hard in the stomach, it knocked the wind out of him. Cho still couldn't see anything, but at least she knew where her attacker was. Why couldn't she see anything? Was this some kind of Invisibility Charm?She had never heard of it, and her specialty was Charms, it was her favorite subject, you were going to get hurt and it was all my fault. They said that if I didn't come out here tonight, that they'd kill you. It was so scary..." she sobbed, burrowing herself more closely to Harry.
Harry was stupefied. He was reveling in the feeling of Cho in his arms, and at the fact that they fit together so well, like she was made for him. He couldn't respond or anything, all he could do was press his cheek against the top of her head, the feel of her soft, silky tresses under his skin, inhaling, trying to memorize, the smell of her hair, perhaps because he was afraid that he may never have this moment again, that she would leave him. Her hair, her essence, everything about her smelled of...vanilla. And buttercream. He had dreamed of this moment for so long, and now it was finally here. Eventually he regained his senses, and he tentatively hugged Cho back, stroking her hair.
With a considerable blush on his face, Harry finally managed to respond. "Shh. It's alright, I'm here now, don't worry."
Cho tightened her grip on Harry, then she suddenly went stiff in his embrace. She pulled away quickly and hit Harry as hard as she could on the arm.
It wasn't so much her strike that hurt him, she was rather...well, weak. But it was the fact that she hit him with all her might that hurt him slightly, emotionally anyway. "Ow! What was that for?" Harry asked woundedly.
"You scared the life out of me earlier!And to add to that, you started laughing , you...you..." Cho trailed off.
"Monster?" Harry ventured jokingly. He was suddenly very comfortable around Cho. She somehow had that effect on people. It vaguely reminded him of the time he asked her to the Yule Ball. He had started to lighten up around her, but then she left, breaking the spell.
"No, you-" Cho was searching for a word.
"Scoundrel?" Harry asked.
"No, you prat!" Cho cried.
Harry chuckled. "I-I'm sorry, it's just that you were so..." Harry didn't finish. How could he tell her that he still thought she was cute? That would be so awkward...
"So what?" Cho asked, irritation and curiosity hinting in her voice.
"Well...It's nothing, never mind. I'm sorry for scaring you. Now look, we have to get inside, I can't imagine how many house points we'd lose if we were caught out at this time of night." Harry said, casting his glance around, wary of all the noises around him.
Cho nodded. "You're right," she agreed. "We should go." Just as she finished these words, gold sparks set off just at her heels, nearly hitting her. She jumped back and Harry instinctively jumped in front of her, shielding her.
~*************************~
"You fool. What did you do that for?" a cold, emotionless voice asked.
"I- I'm sorry, master, I don't know what came over me," the boy replied. "They were going to leave."
"You could've gotten us caught, you idiot. I would have expected better judgement from someone from your family." the voice mocked.
"Well what the bloody hell was I supposed to do, let them just walk away?" Draco replied haughtily. He quickly regretted his outburst, and expected the worse to come...
"You insolent..." Voldemort began. But then he emitted a sick, nauseating noise. Malfoy discovered it to be...laughter. Voldemort was laughing. He should've expected the Lord of Darkness's laughter to be, well, dark, but Malfoy felt sick to his stomach from hearing the noise. It was more like someone dying, rather than an expression of happiness. "It's been a while since someone has dared talk back to me...somewhat refreshing." Draco sighed a sigh of relief. "But never, ever do that again, or you will have hell to pay." Voldemort boomed.
"My apologies. It won't happen again." Draco replied hurriedly.
"It had better not. Now quit simpering. We have a plan to carry out, and I won't allow it to be ruined by your incessant whining." the voice stated firmly.
"Yes sir. Should we take the girl now?" Malfoy asked.
Voldemort held out his hand to silence him. "No, not now. Let our Mr. Potter savor the company of his young friend, then snatch her away swiftly, so he won't even know what hit him." The dark lord smiled a cruel, lopsided smirk, wicked lines crossing his equally wicked features.
"Yes sir." Draco repeated softly.
The grin broadened across Voldemort's face. "Aww Malfoy, does it bother you to see her with him? Aha...aha..ahaha..." Voldemort snickered softly. A plan quickly concocted in his mind. He was rather enjoying this kind of torture. He had come to learn that although he fancied causing people immense physical pain, it hurt a thousand times more when wounds were inflicted not on the body, but on the heart. He quickly altered his original ruse, resulting in an even more wicked contrivance. It hurt Malfoy to see the girl with Harry, so to make him watch them together would simply tear at his young, supposedly unfeeling, heart. How sad...Ha. It hurt Harry to be without the girl, so he just had to take her away...At last, an excellent torture for the one who had thwarted him so many times before. He knew that this girl would prove a valuable asset. Harry Potter's Acheles Heel. Alright, first he would play with Harry like a cat, dangling a fish in front of him, letting him get close, possibly even have a taste, before snatching it away. All the while, he would make Malfoy watch them together. Then, he would kill the girl. Simple as that. In the presence of the boys, of course. Women. Nothing but trouble... but it benifitted him, so that's all that mattered.
"Malfoy, I have a new job for you." Voldemort said.
"Yes sir, what is it?" Malfoy asked, edging closer. Please be torture...please be torture...
"From now on, I want you to watch our hero Potter and Miss Chang. Make sure Cho doesn't do anything stupid, anything to...taint her value. Never, and I mean never, let them out of your sight. Got that?" Voldemort asked.
Malfoy swallowed. Torture. "Yes sir."
Voldemort smiled. Evil was fun.
~********************~
After a few moments of looking around, they saw nothing, and finally Harry deemed it safe.
"Er- here's your wand back, Harry. Sorry about that..." Cho said, handing Harry his wand, then reflexively bringing her right hand to her left elbow.
"Don't worry about it." Harry said, giving her one of his winning smiles.
Cho's knees went weak. Literally. Cho buckled and fell, coincidentally into Harry's arms. No one...no one had ever made her feel like that since...Cedric. Cho sighed. It pained her to think of him, but he was gone, and he was never coming back. All her friends told her to move on, and almost everytime they told her this, they gestured to Harry, bringing her attention to the fact that he was staring at her. 'He's got it bad for you, Cho.' their words echoed in her head. 'And a great lot of help that did...' Cho thought to herself. All she got from that was a hopeless relationship that started out very rocky and ended the same way. But now, after she had a year to mourn Cedric, she realized that she had truly loved Harry all along, and her feelings for Cedric just shadowed that.
"Cho? Are you alright?" Harry asked in a concerned tone.
"Wha...? Yeah, yeah, I'm fine." Cho said, flustered. She tried to pull herself out of Harry's grasp, but he wouldn't let go. "Uh...Harry?" Cho asked gingerly.
"Huh? Oh, right, sorry." Harry said, and even though it was dark, Cho could just barely make out the red tinge in his cheeks. He let her go, helping her stand upright.
"We'd better get back," Cho said, sounding worried. "If Filch finds us out here, we'll probably have to clean out the bedpans in the Hospital Wing," Cho shuddered. "without magic."
Harry smiled. Ron had to do that once... "You're right. Here, get under this," Harry pulled out his invisibility cloak.
"Wow! That's-that's-"
"An invisibility cloak." Harry finished for her.
"I know! Those are really rare...how in Grindelwald's name did you get one?" Cho asked, walking around Harry, inspecting it.
"It was my dad's. Dumbledore gave it to me my first Christmas here."
Cho picked part of it up. "How on earth did they get it to be invisible, I wonder..." Cho pondered to herself. "I doubt there's a charm on it...maybe they used the fur from a Chimaera...those are said to have been able to go invisible at will...but how does it stay invisible...goodness..."
Harry smirked. Spoken like a true Ravenclaw. "Er, Cho? I think we'd better get going..." Harry interrupted.
"What? Oh, of course." Cho said, still looking somewhat dazed. She slipped under it, and then she looked down. "Harry, you can still see my feet!"
"Well...er, that means you'll have to get," Harry swallowed. "closer." He tentatively slipped his arm around her waist, pulling her to him. He thought his face was going to melt, it was burning so much. 'She's going to think I'm some kind of pervert...' Harry fretted.
Cho smirked. Some strange part of her seemed to wake up. Something innate. She found herself acting in a way she never would, normally. She turned to Harry. "This is...kind of nice, Harry." She said in a husky voice, a voice she was sure wasn't her own. It was like she was watching herself do something, having absolutely no control. She didn't like it. She smiled at him a small, seductive smile.
Harry gulped. Yeah, steam was probably coming out of his ears by now. All he could do was nod. Harry had never seen this side of Cho before. Sure, Cho was...sexy, in a cool, sexy Cho Chang kind of way, but she was also very...innocent. Cho never tried to be seductive, she just was. It was an aura around her. But when she spoke to you, she was very sweet and kind. Her new behavior bothered Harry, yet at the same time, intrigued him. He realized his arm was still around her waist, and he quickly drew it back.
"Aww, Harry, I liked it there." Cho said, pouting. She reached for his arm, and put it back at her waist.
"Er- Cho?" Harry said, swallowing once more. He could feel the sweat trickling down the side of his left temple.
The sound of his voice made Cho jump. "What? Huh?" Then she noticed how close she was to Harry. "Oh dear..." Harry could see, even in the dark, that Cho was blushing. He vaguely wondered whether Cho could see him blushing too. She looked at his hand on her hip. "H-Harry? W-what are you doing?" Cho stuttered.
Harry once again drew his hand back, embarassed and confused. Didn't she just put it there? What was with her change in character all of a sudden?
Awkwardness practically surrounded them as the two headed back up towards the castle. They had to be sure to move slowly, so that the cloak would cover all of them.
Cho, trying to break the awkward silence, cast around in her brain for something she and Harry had in common. It didn't take her very long, because what they had in common just happened to be in Cho's mind every second of every day.
"So, remember the Quidditch World Cup year before last? It was wonderful! Though more violent than I would've expected. Marcus would've definitely fit in well there." Cho said, referring to the Slytherin house team captain. "Him, and that little git, Malfoy."
Harry beamed. Yes, Cho just may well be the perfect girl. "Yeah, I saw it! It was brilliant!" Harry exclaimed, turning to Cho.
Cho smiled. "Who were you rooting for?"
Harry thought for a second. "I think...well, I came rooting for Ireland, but I ended up cheering for Bulgaria, after their little show..." Harry trailed off, recalling the Veela.
Cho grinned. "Ah, the Veela. Hey, remember the Beauxbatons champion, Fleur Delacour? She was part veela! Even though she didn't seem like it, she was actually quite nice. Had a great sense of humor, too."
Harry snorted. "Fleur? No way! My friend Ron had a huge crush on her. He actually asked her to the Yule Ball. He said she just glared at him." Harry had no idea why he was telling her this, but he felt like...Cho was a really good friend or something.
"Ha, that's probably just because she was mad that he had broken her little spell. You know, trying to get Cedric to ask her and all. She just didn't know that I was..." Cho trailed off. She wasn't quite ready to talk about Cedric yet, and she also didn't want to remind Harry about him asking her to the Yule Ball.
"Yeah..." Harry replied.
Trying to break the ice again, Cho went back to the subject of Quidditch. "Well, Veela or not, I was rooting for Ireland. Lynch is an excellent Seeker, though that one tournament against Luxembourg a few years back wasn't exactly his best performance." Seeing the blank expression on Harry's face, Cho added. "What? Surprised that a girl could know so much about Quidditch? If you hadn't noticed, one of the Ireland Chasers, Moran, she was a girl." Cho stated, seeming somewhat put out.
"N-No, I'm not surprised that you know so much, it's just that..." Harry trailed off.
"That what?" Cho prodded.
"Well, I can't help but wonder why..."
"Harry, you have got to start finishing your sentences more often."
Harry sighed. It was a bad habit, he knew. "I can't help but wonder why I-" taking a deep breath, he continued. "Why I never tried to really talk to you sooner. You're-" he couldn't stop now, not while he had the ball rolling. If he stopped, he may never be able to tell her how he felt. "amazing."
Cho blushed, and at the same time, a tingling feeling filled her blood. Adrenalin, she thought absently. Finally, he had made the first move. She thought he'd never say it, that he still liked her, or that he didn't even like her at all. Cho was always an old-fashioned sort of girl. The boy had to chase the girl. That was the way it was supposed to be in her mind. But she had to be sure she wasn't jumping to conclusions. Cho stopped walking, and soon Harry stopped as well. "Harry, are you trying to say..."
Harry smirked. "Now who's the one who doesn't finish their sentences?"
Cho reddened even more. "Well I-"
Harry cut her off. "Yes Cho, I am. I'm saying that I- I still have feelings for you. Even more than before. I've loved you ever since the first time I met you. Out on the Quidditch pitch. Our first match against each other. Remember?" He hoped she remembered...it was a strange feeling, finally telling Cho how he felt.
Harry was brought back from his thoughts by the sound of Cho's voice. Her face came back into focus, and to Harry's great relief and surprise, she was smiling.
"Yes, I remember. How could I forget? Harry Potter, the Boy Who Lived, was facing little old me on the Quidditch field. I honestly thought it wasn't fair, that you got to be a seeker your first year, and I had to wait a whole year before I could get on the team. But when I saw you fly, I knew. I knew why you got to be a seeker. And every time you'd loop or spin or dive those dives of yours, I fell more and more in love."
Those last words went by in slow motion in his head. In...love? Did he really hear that? That meant that...that Cho, the most beautiful girl on the face of the planet, actually returned his affections. 'I must be dreaming.' Harry thought to himself. Absently, he pinched himself on the arm.
Cho searched Harry's face for a reaction. 'What? What is he thinking?' "Harry? Please, say something."
"Ow..."
"What?" Cho asked, slightly amused, and slightly annoyed. Cho wasn't the most patient person.
Harry just looked at Cho, taking all of her in. Her long black hair that reached down to her waist, her deep brown eyes that seemed to draw him in, her soft cheeks, and...blood. Blood! A small trickle of blood was making its way down Cho's cheek, like a tear, but it seemed to be coming from beneath her hair.
"Cho, you're bleeding! Quick, we have to get you to the hospital wing!" Harry whispered hoarsely. They were on the steps of the second floor staircases, and even though it was urgent, Harry didn't want him or Cho to get caught out of bed. Who knew what people would say...Harry wondered for a second if he'd mind...No, that would hurt Cho's reputation.
Cho's heart faltered. She was bleeding. Did he really not see? Cho panicked. She couldn't let him know, let him find out, not now. He might run from her, call her a freak. "N-no Harry, it's fine! I'll just fix it up myself. It must've been when I hit my head on the ground earlier. Besides, we can't go to the hospital wing now, they'll know that we were out of bed after hours!" Cho exclaimed, in that same hushed but urgent voice Harry used. She grasped at anything, any excuse to keep Harry from seeing her blood. It was dark, she was thankful for that, but if he went with her to the hospital wing...No, she wouldn't let it happen. If she were alone, then she could go, the Ravenclaw that she was, she'd just say she fell off her bed or something. But with Harry, of all people, he couldn't know about who she really was. Maybe she'd tell him later, after she was sure she could keep him, but not now...
"But Cho..." Harry pleaded.
Cho put her hand on Harry's shoulder. It was sweet how he cared for her. "I'll be fine, don't you worry. It's just a small cut, no problem!" Cho assured him, a smile on her face.
Harry sighed. "Alright..." Harry said reluctantly. He was really worried. This could be bad! Even if Cho had gotten a paper cut, he'd still feel somewhat...anxious. He smiled to himself. So, this is what it was like to be in love.
Eventually the two made their way up to the Ravenclaw commons. They had spent the rest of their trip chatting about various subjects, most of which always led back to Quidditch, and Cho noticed Harry's eyes flicker to her wound every now and then. Harry was much more caring than Cedric...Cho shook her head. No, she couldn't allow herself to think such things, especially about the dead...That was the ultimate form of disrespect.
"So...this is where the Ravenclaw commons are. I never would've guessed." Harry said, looking up at the portrait of a sphinx with its knees curled under it, the stars and a crescent moon behind it."
"Yeah, Parvati comes to visit Padma here all the time. It made some of us mad at first, we were afraid that she'd tell all the other Gryffindors where it was, but she didn't, so eventually we stopped kicking her out."
All of a sudden, things began to go in and out of focus, and the outline of Harry's chiseled features began to blur. 'Ooh, I definitely shouldn't have shaken my head like that.' Cho thought to herself.
Harry noticed Cho blink several times, as if trying to clear her head. "Cho? What's the matter? Are you alright?" Harry asked nervously.
Cho snapped back to the real world. "Huh? Oh, yeah, I'm fine. Just...tired, that's all."Cho said, a small smile on her face. If it were a bit lighter, perhaps Harry could tell how strained it was. "You worry too much." She added with amusement in her voice.
"Only about you." Harry blurted. Immediately after saying this, he caught himself, but it was too late.
Cho blushed. "You're sweet," and with a considerable pink tinge on her cheeks, and trembling hands, she stood on tiptoe and gave Harry a kiss on the cheek. It was awkward, kissing him again, even if it was on the cheek. She missed him so, and she only realized it at that very moment. What had she done? During their whole relationship, she had taken him for granted, gotten jealous, and talked about her ex-boyfriend. Was she crazy? Everyone knows that those are the main relationship breakers! And now, now that she longed for him, she wanted back what she had last year.
Harry stood stock still for what seemed like an eternity. She...kissed him. What did that mean? Were they back together? So many thoughts raced through Harry's head, but he overall felt this kind of buzzing, like the feeling he got after a great quidditch match. He could think about all this later.
Cho felt the heat rise into her face. Had she really just done that?True, it was something that she daydreamed about doing for quite some time, but to actually do it...that was different. Different, but good.
"Well...goodnight, Harry. And thank you." Cho said coyly.
Harry swallowed. He would definitely have trouble getting to sleep tonight. "G-goodnight Cho." and with that, he started to walk away.
Cho watched him leave, and when he gave her one last glance over his shoulder before descending the marble steps, she smiled. 'Wow...I don't think I've ever felt this way before." she whispered to herself. When she was sure that Harry had gone, she hurried in the opposite direction of the staircase, to an alternative route to the Hospital Wing. Little did she know that there was a certain someone watching her from the shadows.
A/N: Whew! And there it is, the first part! Yeah! So, who do you think it is in the shadows? Well, I'll just let you speculate about that one...I know, I know, I'm an evil one, I am. Okay, so here's the deal. I didn't really know if I wanted Cho to be with Harry or Draco, our two favorite boys, so I'm going to give you both! Not both at the same time, you sick, sick person, you. No, I'm going to let you choose! If you're a Draco/Cho shipper, then go back out there and find Slytherin's Aria, which will be the story featuring Draco and Cho as our couple. On the other hand, if you think Cho should choose our favorite hero, Harry, then I suggest you read Our Song, which is a story that has Harry and Cho getting together. Yeah, I know, I'm a people pleaser, compromise is always the way to go! So, I hope you liked it so far! Please don't flame me too much, I'm deathfully allergic to fire...Oh, and just another bit of information, I had actually started this story during that three year wait for OOTP to come out, so I had to revise it a bit to fit the events of OOTP instead of GOF. I tried my best, so I'm really sorry if there are certain things that don't check out. Enjoy!
Update-8 October 2003: Well, I've finally gotten a new computer! Yay! So, that means that I've been going through all of my old files on my current (depressingly slow, might I add) computer and saving them onto my floppy to transfer later. This is one of my older works, and I'm happy to be able to say that I've definitely improved! At least, in my opinion. So, I'm sorry to say that there aren't going to be any sequels to this story, so don't look for them! I'm just posting this so that all of my time doesn't go to waste. I also started a bit of Slytherin's Aria, so I'll just post that as well. I apologize again for doing this, but I'm currently working on another story featuring the character of Kikyou from the anime 'InuYasha', and I like to focus on one story at a time. As a wonderful (no word could ever truly describe their greatness, so I'm opting for one of my favorites) author once told me, if you invest your time and effort into a fic, it shows. Just a small side note, this brilliant (another favorite adjective of mine) author is EddieMunster! Go out there and read EddieMunster's fic! It's called All About Our Love. Whew, okay, I just had to share the greatness with the world. I feel that whenever I come upon a fic that is really really good, I have to tell everyone about it at every possible opportunity. So, enough of that! Anyway, I hope to eventually start an HP fic, as that is my main love, but for now I've got to focus on finishing the fic I've got at the moment. Till next we meet!
Title: Enchantment Chapter: One- More Than a Nighttime Stroll
"Petrificus Totalus!" She whispered hoarsely. Without a second look, she walked briskly ahead through the dimly lit corridor, faltering slightly as she heard her friend hit the ground with a thud and a stomach-wrenching crack, most likely the fracture of a bone. She debated over in her mind as to whether she should stop and go back to help her, as would be what she would naturally do, or keep going. She thought and thought, and much to her dismay, she forced herself to keep walking. She couldn't stop, not now. No matter how much she cared, there was too much at stake.
"So sorry, Mandy..." She whispered under her breath, continuing to stride down the hall. Mandy Brocklehurst was her best friend, and it pained her to leave her like that, on the cold marble floor of the hallway. But she got in her way... she tried to stop her. And she couldn't just stop. Not even for her best friend. Someone would find her soon, she reassured herself, most likely Filch or Mrs. Norris on their patrol of the grounds.
The light was fading, and the number of torches lighting the path was decreasing, so Cho was soon forced to whip her wand out of her robes. "Lumos," she whispered, holding her wand high above her head. She made it so that it provided some light, but only enough for her to see just a foot or so in front of her. The last thing she wanted was to be found all because her wand emitted too much light. She saw some moonlight ahead, penetrating the darkness, so she knew she was close. "Almost Cho. Almost," She encouraged herself, keeping her same, swift pace down the hall. She reached the door, gently pushed it open, and winced when it creaked. She looked around, and to her relief, no one was nearby. She stepped out, the cool night air greeting her as she reflexively took a deep breath. "Nox," she murmured, the light receding. She didn't need it anymore, the moon was almost full, providing her with enough light to make her way across the grounds. She checked her watch, and frowned when she saw that she only had a few minutes left to reach her destination. First she began to walk quickly, a feeling of urgency seeping through her. The feeling grew and grew until she found herself jogging in the direction of the Forbidden Forest, her black locks bouncing as she ran. She could feel the white ribbon that always held her tresses slipping slightly, but that wasn't important now. She ran and she ran as fast as her legs could take her. She suddenly collided with something, and was sent flying back, landing on the ground in a crumpled heap. A slight groan escaped her, and she rubbed the back of her head where it had made violent contact with the cobblestone ground. "Ow..." she murmured. She looked up to find this mysterious assailant, as no one was supposed to be roaming the grounds after hours, only to find nothing there.
~****************~
Harry sat in the Gryffindor common room, restlessly squirming in the large armchair that he was occupying. The fire was beginning to dwindle, and there were only three other people in the commons. "Come on...come on..." He coaxed impatiently, wishing for them to leave. He had to make sure no one was around when he left, as it would raise suspicion if he just left and never came back. Finally, after much yawning and slurred chattering, the girls finally became too sleepy to care even about who Alicia Spinnet had upset yesterday in Herbology. They retired to their rooms, trudging up the stairway to the girl's dormitiories. Harry listened hard, and when he finally heard their "Goodnight's" and the soft click of the door shutting, he sprinted towards his room, taking the stairs two at a time. He crept quietly into the shared bedroom, and made his way over to his trunk. Careful not to wake any of the boys, he gingerly pulled out his Invisibility Cloak. Then, as an afterthought, he grabbed the Marauder's Map as well. 'You never know when this can come in handy, Harry.' he thought to himself. Slipping his cloak on, he crept stealthily to the portrait of the Fat Lady. After a murmured, barely audible "Witch's Brew", the portrait swung aside, and Harry paused for a moment, thinking that he could still turn back. What did Professor Trewlaney know anyway? She was wrong about so many things, what made this any different?Well...even if she was wrong, he wasn't going to take the chance. He thought back to the day...
This prediction of hers wasn't like all the usual, overly dramatic productions she normally put on, making sure that there was a substantial audience around. No, this was when there was just Harry around, lagging behind the rest of the class, and even the words ensuing from her mouth didn't seem to come from her at all. She looked blank, her mouth barely moving, and at first Harry had to lean in close to her to try and decipher all the mumbles and murmurs that came from his Divination professor. That had been a terrible mistake though, Harry recalled. Not only did she reek of incense and tea leaves, but just as suddenly as she went into this strange trance, did she start screaming her message, straight into Harry's ear. Harry stumbled back, eventually tripping over a cushion and landing in it, clutching his ear defensively, as though he were protecting it from the strange rantings of the professor. Eventually her screams died down, and she began to recite, rather sing, a poem.
Take flight! The one you most adore, Will be harmed badly should you ignore, This warning I mercifully provide, Granted you're at your lover's side, For if you're not, her screams will pierce, Your dreams forever, strong and fierce, So go tonight, when the clock strikes one, 'Cause if you're late, then I'll have fun, With the girl you hold most dear, Her pain will be greatly severe, And you'll feel it as well when you learn what's true, That all this pain was because of you."
Harry sat there on the ground, reflecting on what he'd just heard. What was she talking about? 'So go tonight when the clock strikes one?' This all didn't make any sense. He continued to sit there, oblivious of all his surroundings, racking his brain for any ounce of logic that he could use to solve this. Hermione was good at this sort of thing, not him...but he was shaken from his thoughts by a strange, lilting tune that Trewlaney was humming. It captivated Harry, running a strange tingling sensation through him. It cleared his thoughts, and comforted him in a mysterious way.He wanted to hear more of it, forever and ever...
"Harry? What are you doing sitting there like that? We're going to be late!" Harry was brought sharply from his reverie by the shrill, panicky voice of Hermione. "We have Potions next! We wouldn't hear the end of it if we were late to Snape's class! Come on then, hurry up! We only have a few minutes!" Hermione was practically trembling with anxiety at being late. She was obviously so caught up in her dread, she hadn't noticed the unusual setting before her. Harry tried to reason with her, saying something was wrong, but she wasn't paying attention. She was already walking away, ranting about how late they would be.
Harry rubbed his forehead for good measure, then he stood to join Hermione and Ron, not saying a word. What had just happened? Was he going crazy or something? Sure, strange things happened when you were a wizard, especially a famous one, but this was strange, even for him. Professor Trewlaney had made two other predictions like this before, and they most certainly had been accurate. Absently, Harry thought back to what Dumbledore had said to him in his third year. Well, make the total of real predictions three, Harry mused. Looks like another pay raise. Harry smirked.
Yes, he had to go. Harry stepped through the outlet just provided for him, turning back just once to watch the Gryffindor common room disappear behind the portrait returning to it's rightful place. Facing forward, his emerald eyes flashing dangerously, he began a brisk pace down the hallway, only to stop in his tracks. Where was he going? He hadn't the slightest idea. This thought hadn't even entered his mind. Where was he to go? What was he to do? Anxiety and hysteria were creeping into his thoughts. If he was late, someone would be hurt. Who was that someone anyway? Harry sighed in frustration. Too many questions...okay, the only rational thing to do was to sort all these things out one by one. But rational was not going to help. Harry needed to get there fast. He swiftly checked the watch on his wrist. It was 12:39, and he was still in the corridor. And he didn't even know where to go.
A light, airy sound reached Harry's ears, distracting him. It sounded like...hissing. Harry listened hard, trying to focus on the sound. Words began to surface through the hisses. He vaguely realized what was going on. A snake was talking to him. The discovery that he had spoken Parseltongue was a surprise when he first learned this, but his mind was so cluttered with questions right now, he didn't have any more room for another one. Like why there was a snake loose in Hogwarts Castle. He didn't inquire why the snake was talking to him, or why it was even there, all he could concentrate on was what it was saying. He tried to filter out all the hissing noises, to separate them from the words.
The Forbidden Forest holds your dreams, The girl you love is heading there, But she's in danger, so it seems, All for your secure welfare. A warning sent to her in the night, About your danger, but it was fake, Unaware, she had a fright, To lose another, her heart would break. All this nonsense, for a little game, At your expense, my master desires, He'll play with your heart, it's all the same, He'll kill the one you most admire. So hurry, go fast, before she is killed, For this, my master will not wait. In the art of torture, he is skilled, But this, a different kind, will steal your fate.
Steal his fate? Surely it was supposed to be 'seal' his fate, right? Maybe he heard wrong...?Giving himself a mental slap, he scolded himself for dawdling around, dwelling on such trivial things. He knew exactly where he was going. He knew exactly what he was doing. And most importantly, he knew exactly who he was saving. He ran swiftly down the hall, descending the stairs, and straight through the next corridor. He stopped briefly there, to catch his breath, his lungs ached. A sudden idea popped into his mind, and he took out the Marauder's Map. There were tiny dots showing all the people he wanted to know the locations of, namely Mrs. Norris and Filch. Flich was all the way in the third floor corridor, near the door where Fluffy used to be, Mrs. Norris trailing at his heels. Snape was asleep in his room. He focused on Cho in his mind. He saw images of her climbing the stairs opposite of him, her going up, him going down, when all of a sudden, the stairs decided to change direction. He saw the look of surprise on her face as she lurched gently forward, keeping her balance, followed by a giggle. He saw her on her broom, the wind flying through her hair as she practiced at dinner time, when she thought no one else was out. He finally saw her looking back at him with her big brown eyes, right before he leaned in to kiss her that night under the mistletoe last year. Harry knew who he was looking for, alright. He knew it all along. A small red dot had appeared on the map, indicating that Cho was already outside, making her way over to the Forbidden Forest. He had to intercept her somehow...and fast. Her tiny dot was beginning to pick up speed, and before he knew it, it was racing across the map, getting dangerously close to the bold, black letters FORBIDDEN FOREST TRAIL. Luckily for him, there was a shortcut on the map, which, if he hurried fast enough, would lead him to intercept her right before she left the safety of the school grounds. He didn't waste a second, sprinting headlong to the secret passage between the two suits of armor in the first floor corridor. He didn't stop when he reached the outside, the frosty air biting at his face. He kept running, the inhalation of the cold air stinging at his lungs. All of a sudden, something, rather someone, collided with his racing form, but since he was apparently larger than the other person, he was merely nudged slightly, causing him to stumble. The other person had not been so fortunate, though, as he heard the soft sound of someone hitting the ground. He looked to see who it was, and his heart stopped and leaped at the same time. It was Cho.
~*******************~
Cho let out a small whimper of pain, rubbed the back of her head for a second, then effortlessly sprang to her feet. "W-who's there?" She asked, trying to sound brave. She knew she wasn't half as brave as she was pretending to be, and if the person she ran into was anyone from Hogwarts, they would know as well. She was known around school for being gentle, innocent, and caring, but she didn't like confrontation. She didn't worry herself with gossips and slanderers, she chose to make friends with all the nicer girls at the school. But nonetheless, she mustered up her courage and held her wand forward.
Harry had made a small noise, but he just couldn't bring himself to say anything. There were far too many reasons for that. First of all, as sick as it seemed, he told himself, he found Cho's feigned bravery to be rather amusing, endearing if anything. Also, this was the first time since they...broke up that he had ever really been able to see her without those awkward feelings he always got. It was a somewhat messy breakup, and it left them both very uncomfortable around each other. Their only conversations were strained, and about trivial things like classes. He had always had feelings for her, even after...Sirius's death, though the death of his godfather took up all of his heart and mind, leaving no room for anyone else. If it had been different, and Sirius hadn't died, he would've apologized to Cho and tried to rekindle their relationship. But it was too late. She had been going out with Michael Corner last he heard, though news from Ginny said that rumors stated Cho was seeing a sixth year named Terry Boot. Harry's heart pined for her, and he regretted everything he had ever said and done. Everything that mattered to him before Sirius died didn't matter nearly as much afterward. But over the summer holidays he realized just what he had done. And now, it was ruined. He could only watch her from the shadows now, and steal glances across the hall at mealtimes. Maybe if he stayed still, just like this, the moment would never end, and he would be able to gaze at her forever, without any uneasiness. He shook the thought from his mind. He had to get her back inside, before she was caught outside, or before someone else got to them...
Cho furrowed her brow in frustration, looking around and not seeing anyone there. She was getting more scared, angry, and annoyed at the passing of every second. She knew she had bumped into something, someone, but there was no one around. "Lumos," Cho said clearly. She shone the light of her wand around like a flashlight, and Harry noticed that the light emitting from her wand was a pure white, not the slightest bit of yellow or any other color tainting it. He was rather impressed. She tapped her foot gently against the ground in irritation. "If there's anyone out there, please come out?" she requested softly.
Harry tried to surpress a smile. He scolded himself, telling himself that he shouldn't find so much joy in poor Cho's confusion, but it was just so...cute. He debated over coming out and revealing himself to her, but that thought was short lived as Harry's wand began to shudder in his robe pocket. Soon it began trembling violently, and red sparks shot out of the end, straight at Cho.
Cho was looking around, and upon seeing no one there, was once more reminded of why she was here. She couldn't waste any time on this, she had to go to the forest. It was the only way she could save Harry. She didn't know what she'd do if she lost someone else to Voldemort, the pain would be unbearable. Just as she began to walk towards the trail, though, red sparks shot out at her from nowhere. She dodged them by jumping swiftly to the side, then she went into dueling mode.
She immediately, almost subconsciously, picked out a strategy in her mind, then she applied it to the situation.
"Locomotor Mortis!" She said firmly. Harry's legs froze. What was happening? Why was his wand acting up like this? And now she was attacking him? He was in trouble...
Cho looked out of the corner of her eye and saw a decently sized rock lying on the ground by her feet. She could've done much worse, but all she wanted to know was why this person was attacking her. And where this person was, for that matter."Waddiwasi!" She said, pointing her wand at the rock below her. The rock rose slowly off the ground, then shot at Harry, hitting him so hard in the stomach, it knocked the wind out of him. Cho still couldn't see anything, but at least she knew where her attacker was. Why couldn't she see anything? Was this some kind of Invisibility Charm?She had never heard of it, and her specialty was Charms, it was her favorite subject, you were going to get hurt and it was all my fault. They said that if I didn't come out here tonight, that they'd kill you. It was so scary..." she sobbed, burrowing herself more closely to Harry.
Harry was stupefied. He was reveling in the feeling of Cho in his arms, and at the fact that they fit together so well, like she was made for him. He couldn't respond or anything, all he could do was press his cheek against the top of her head, the feel of her soft, silky tresses under his skin, inhaling, trying to memorize, the smell of her hair, perhaps because he was afraid that he may never have this moment again, that she would leave him. Her hair, her essence, everything about her smelled of...vanilla. And buttercream. He had dreamed of this moment for so long, and now it was finally here. Eventually he regained his senses, and he tentatively hugged Cho back, stroking her hair.
With a considerable blush on his face, Harry finally managed to respond. "Shh. It's alright, I'm here now, don't worry."
Cho tightened her grip on Harry, then she suddenly went stiff in his embrace. She pulled away quickly and hit Harry as hard as she could on the arm.
It wasn't so much her strike that hurt him, she was rather...well, weak. But it was the fact that she hit him with all her might that hurt him slightly, emotionally anyway. "Ow! What was that for?" Harry asked woundedly.
"You scared the life out of me earlier!And to add to that, you started laughing , you...you..." Cho trailed off.
"Monster?" Harry ventured jokingly. He was suddenly very comfortable around Cho. She somehow had that effect on people. It vaguely reminded him of the time he asked her to the Yule Ball. He had started to lighten up around her, but then she left, breaking the spell.
"No, you-" Cho was searching for a word.
"Scoundrel?" Harry asked.
"No, you prat!" Cho cried.
Harry chuckled. "I-I'm sorry, it's just that you were so..." Harry didn't finish. How could he tell her that he still thought she was cute? That would be so awkward...
"So what?" Cho asked, irritation and curiosity hinting in her voice.
"Well...It's nothing, never mind. I'm sorry for scaring you. Now look, we have to get inside, I can't imagine how many house points we'd lose if we were caught out at this time of night." Harry said, casting his glance around, wary of all the noises around him.
Cho nodded. "You're right," she agreed. "We should go." Just as she finished these words, gold sparks set off just at her heels, nearly hitting her. She jumped back and Harry instinctively jumped in front of her, shielding her.
~*************************~
"You fool. What did you do that for?" a cold, emotionless voice asked.
"I- I'm sorry, master, I don't know what came over me," the boy replied. "They were going to leave."
"You could've gotten us caught, you idiot. I would have expected better judgement from someone from your family." the voice mocked.
"Well what the bloody hell was I supposed to do, let them just walk away?" Draco replied haughtily. He quickly regretted his outburst, and expected the worse to come...
"You insolent..." Voldemort began. But then he emitted a sick, nauseating noise. Malfoy discovered it to be...laughter. Voldemort was laughing. He should've expected the Lord of Darkness's laughter to be, well, dark, but Malfoy felt sick to his stomach from hearing the noise. It was more like someone dying, rather than an expression of happiness. "It's been a while since someone has dared talk back to me...somewhat refreshing." Draco sighed a sigh of relief. "But never, ever do that again, or you will have hell to pay." Voldemort boomed.
"My apologies. It won't happen again." Draco replied hurriedly.
"It had better not. Now quit simpering. We have a plan to carry out, and I won't allow it to be ruined by your incessant whining." the voice stated firmly.
"Yes sir. Should we take the girl now?" Malfoy asked.
Voldemort held out his hand to silence him. "No, not now. Let our Mr. Potter savor the company of his young friend, then snatch her away swiftly, so he won't even know what hit him." The dark lord smiled a cruel, lopsided smirk, wicked lines crossing his equally wicked features.
"Yes sir." Draco repeated softly.
The grin broadened across Voldemort's face. "Aww Malfoy, does it bother you to see her with him? Aha...aha..ahaha..." Voldemort snickered softly. A plan quickly concocted in his mind. He was rather enjoying this kind of torture. He had come to learn that although he fancied causing people immense physical pain, it hurt a thousand times more when wounds were inflicted not on the body, but on the heart. He quickly altered his original ruse, resulting in an even more wicked contrivance. It hurt Malfoy to see the girl with Harry, so to make him watch them together would simply tear at his young, supposedly unfeeling, heart. How sad...Ha. It hurt Harry to be without the girl, so he just had to take her away...At last, an excellent torture for the one who had thwarted him so many times before. He knew that this girl would prove a valuable asset. Harry Potter's Acheles Heel. Alright, first he would play with Harry like a cat, dangling a fish in front of him, letting him get close, possibly even have a taste, before snatching it away. All the while, he would make Malfoy watch them together. Then, he would kill the girl. Simple as that. In the presence of the boys, of course. Women. Nothing but trouble... but it benifitted him, so that's all that mattered.
"Malfoy, I have a new job for you." Voldemort said.
"Yes sir, what is it?" Malfoy asked, edging closer. Please be torture...please be torture...
"From now on, I want you to watch our hero Potter and Miss Chang. Make sure Cho doesn't do anything stupid, anything to...taint her value. Never, and I mean never, let them out of your sight. Got that?" Voldemort asked.
Malfoy swallowed. Torture. "Yes sir."
Voldemort smiled. Evil was fun.
~********************~
After a few moments of looking around, they saw nothing, and finally Harry deemed it safe.
"Er- here's your wand back, Harry. Sorry about that..." Cho said, handing Harry his wand, then reflexively bringing her right hand to her left elbow.
"Don't worry about it." Harry said, giving her one of his winning smiles.
Cho's knees went weak. Literally. Cho buckled and fell, coincidentally into Harry's arms. No one...no one had ever made her feel like that since...Cedric. Cho sighed. It pained her to think of him, but he was gone, and he was never coming back. All her friends told her to move on, and almost everytime they told her this, they gestured to Harry, bringing her attention to the fact that he was staring at her. 'He's got it bad for you, Cho.' their words echoed in her head. 'And a great lot of help that did...' Cho thought to herself. All she got from that was a hopeless relationship that started out very rocky and ended the same way. But now, after she had a year to mourn Cedric, she realized that she had truly loved Harry all along, and her feelings for Cedric just shadowed that.
"Cho? Are you alright?" Harry asked in a concerned tone.
"Wha...? Yeah, yeah, I'm fine." Cho said, flustered. She tried to pull herself out of Harry's grasp, but he wouldn't let go. "Uh...Harry?" Cho asked gingerly.
"Huh? Oh, right, sorry." Harry said, and even though it was dark, Cho could just barely make out the red tinge in his cheeks. He let her go, helping her stand upright.
"We'd better get back," Cho said, sounding worried. "If Filch finds us out here, we'll probably have to clean out the bedpans in the Hospital Wing," Cho shuddered. "without magic."
Harry smiled. Ron had to do that once... "You're right. Here, get under this," Harry pulled out his invisibility cloak.
"Wow! That's-that's-"
"An invisibility cloak." Harry finished for her.
"I know! Those are really rare...how in Grindelwald's name did you get one?" Cho asked, walking around Harry, inspecting it.
"It was my dad's. Dumbledore gave it to me my first Christmas here."
Cho picked part of it up. "How on earth did they get it to be invisible, I wonder..." Cho pondered to herself. "I doubt there's a charm on it...maybe they used the fur from a Chimaera...those are said to have been able to go invisible at will...but how does it stay invisible...goodness..."
Harry smirked. Spoken like a true Ravenclaw. "Er, Cho? I think we'd better get going..." Harry interrupted.
"What? Oh, of course." Cho said, still looking somewhat dazed. She slipped under it, and then she looked down. "Harry, you can still see my feet!"
"Well...er, that means you'll have to get," Harry swallowed. "closer." He tentatively slipped his arm around her waist, pulling her to him. He thought his face was going to melt, it was burning so much. 'She's going to think I'm some kind of pervert...' Harry fretted.
Cho smirked. Some strange part of her seemed to wake up. Something innate. She found herself acting in a way she never would, normally. She turned to Harry. "This is...kind of nice, Harry." She said in a husky voice, a voice she was sure wasn't her own. It was like she was watching herself do something, having absolutely no control. She didn't like it. She smiled at him a small, seductive smile.
Harry gulped. Yeah, steam was probably coming out of his ears by now. All he could do was nod. Harry had never seen this side of Cho before. Sure, Cho was...sexy, in a cool, sexy Cho Chang kind of way, but she was also very...innocent. Cho never tried to be seductive, she just was. It was an aura around her. But when she spoke to you, she was very sweet and kind. Her new behavior bothered Harry, yet at the same time, intrigued him. He realized his arm was still around her waist, and he quickly drew it back.
"Aww, Harry, I liked it there." Cho said, pouting. She reached for his arm, and put it back at her waist.
"Er- Cho?" Harry said, swallowing once more. He could feel the sweat trickling down the side of his left temple.
The sound of his voice made Cho jump. "What? Huh?" Then she noticed how close she was to Harry. "Oh dear..." Harry could see, even in the dark, that Cho was blushing. He vaguely wondered whether Cho could see him blushing too. She looked at his hand on her hip. "H-Harry? W-what are you doing?" Cho stuttered.
Harry once again drew his hand back, embarassed and confused. Didn't she just put it there? What was with her change in character all of a sudden?
Awkwardness practically surrounded them as the two headed back up towards the castle. They had to be sure to move slowly, so that the cloak would cover all of them.
Cho, trying to break the awkward silence, cast around in her brain for something she and Harry had in common. It didn't take her very long, because what they had in common just happened to be in Cho's mind every second of every day.
"So, remember the Quidditch World Cup year before last? It was wonderful! Though more violent than I would've expected. Marcus would've definitely fit in well there." Cho said, referring to the Slytherin house team captain. "Him, and that little git, Malfoy."
Harry beamed. Yes, Cho just may well be the perfect girl. "Yeah, I saw it! It was brilliant!" Harry exclaimed, turning to Cho.
Cho smiled. "Who were you rooting for?"
Harry thought for a second. "I think...well, I came rooting for Ireland, but I ended up cheering for Bulgaria, after their little show..." Harry trailed off, recalling the Veela.
Cho grinned. "Ah, the Veela. Hey, remember the Beauxbatons champion, Fleur Delacour? She was part veela! Even though she didn't seem like it, she was actually quite nice. Had a great sense of humor, too."
Harry snorted. "Fleur? No way! My friend Ron had a huge crush on her. He actually asked her to the Yule Ball. He said she just glared at him." Harry had no idea why he was telling her this, but he felt like...Cho was a really good friend or something.
"Ha, that's probably just because she was mad that he had broken her little spell. You know, trying to get Cedric to ask her and all. She just didn't know that I was..." Cho trailed off. She wasn't quite ready to talk about Cedric yet, and she also didn't want to remind Harry about him asking her to the Yule Ball.
"Yeah..." Harry replied.
Trying to break the ice again, Cho went back to the subject of Quidditch. "Well, Veela or not, I was rooting for Ireland. Lynch is an excellent Seeker, though that one tournament against Luxembourg a few years back wasn't exactly his best performance." Seeing the blank expression on Harry's face, Cho added. "What? Surprised that a girl could know so much about Quidditch? If you hadn't noticed, one of the Ireland Chasers, Moran, she was a girl." Cho stated, seeming somewhat put out.
"N-No, I'm not surprised that you know so much, it's just that..." Harry trailed off.
"That what?" Cho prodded.
"Well, I can't help but wonder why..."
"Harry, you have got to start finishing your sentences more often."
Harry sighed. It was a bad habit, he knew. "I can't help but wonder why I-" taking a deep breath, he continued. "Why I never tried to really talk to you sooner. You're-" he couldn't stop now, not while he had the ball rolling. If he stopped, he may never be able to tell her how he felt. "amazing."
Cho blushed, and at the same time, a tingling feeling filled her blood. Adrenalin, she thought absently. Finally, he had made the first move. She thought he'd never say it, that he still liked her, or that he didn't even like her at all. Cho was always an old-fashioned sort of girl. The boy had to chase the girl. That was the way it was supposed to be in her mind. But she had to be sure she wasn't jumping to conclusions. Cho stopped walking, and soon Harry stopped as well. "Harry, are you trying to say..."
Harry smirked. "Now who's the one who doesn't finish their sentences?"
Cho reddened even more. "Well I-"
Harry cut her off. "Yes Cho, I am. I'm saying that I- I still have feelings for you. Even more than before. I've loved you ever since the first time I met you. Out on the Quidditch pitch. Our first match against each other. Remember?" He hoped she remembered...it was a strange feeling, finally telling Cho how he felt.
Harry was brought back from his thoughts by the sound of Cho's voice. Her face came back into focus, and to Harry's great relief and surprise, she was smiling.
"Yes, I remember. How could I forget? Harry Potter, the Boy Who Lived, was facing little old me on the Quidditch field. I honestly thought it wasn't fair, that you got to be a seeker your first year, and I had to wait a whole year before I could get on the team. But when I saw you fly, I knew. I knew why you got to be a seeker. And every time you'd loop or spin or dive those dives of yours, I fell more and more in love."
Those last words went by in slow motion in his head. In...love? Did he really hear that? That meant that...that Cho, the most beautiful girl on the face of the planet, actually returned his affections. 'I must be dreaming.' Harry thought to himself. Absently, he pinched himself on the arm.
Cho searched Harry's face for a reaction. 'What? What is he thinking?' "Harry? Please, say something."
"Ow..."
"What?" Cho asked, slightly amused, and slightly annoyed. Cho wasn't the most patient person.
Harry just looked at Cho, taking all of her in. Her long black hair that reached down to her waist, her deep brown eyes that seemed to draw him in, her soft cheeks, and...blood. Blood! A small trickle of blood was making its way down Cho's cheek, like a tear, but it seemed to be coming from beneath her hair.
"Cho, you're bleeding! Quick, we have to get you to the hospital wing!" Harry whispered hoarsely. They were on the steps of the second floor staircases, and even though it was urgent, Harry didn't want him or Cho to get caught out of bed. Who knew what people would say...Harry wondered for a second if he'd mind...No, that would hurt Cho's reputation.
Cho's heart faltered. She was bleeding. Did he really not see? Cho panicked. She couldn't let him know, let him find out, not now. He might run from her, call her a freak. "N-no Harry, it's fine! I'll just fix it up myself. It must've been when I hit my head on the ground earlier. Besides, we can't go to the hospital wing now, they'll know that we were out of bed after hours!" Cho exclaimed, in that same hushed but urgent voice Harry used. She grasped at anything, any excuse to keep Harry from seeing her blood. It was dark, she was thankful for that, but if he went with her to the hospital wing...No, she wouldn't let it happen. If she were alone, then she could go, the Ravenclaw that she was, she'd just say she fell off her bed or something. But with Harry, of all people, he couldn't know about who she really was. Maybe she'd tell him later, after she was sure she could keep him, but not now...
"But Cho..." Harry pleaded.
Cho put her hand on Harry's shoulder. It was sweet how he cared for her. "I'll be fine, don't you worry. It's just a small cut, no problem!" Cho assured him, a smile on her face.
Harry sighed. "Alright..." Harry said reluctantly. He was really worried. This could be bad! Even if Cho had gotten a paper cut, he'd still feel somewhat...anxious. He smiled to himself. So, this is what it was like to be in love.
Eventually the two made their way up to the Ravenclaw commons. They had spent the rest of their trip chatting about various subjects, most of which always led back to Quidditch, and Cho noticed Harry's eyes flicker to her wound every now and then. Harry was much more caring than Cedric...Cho shook her head. No, she couldn't allow herself to think such things, especially about the dead...That was the ultimate form of disrespect.
"So...this is where the Ravenclaw commons are. I never would've guessed." Harry said, looking up at the portrait of a sphinx with its knees curled under it, the stars and a crescent moon behind it."
"Yeah, Parvati comes to visit Padma here all the time. It made some of us mad at first, we were afraid that she'd tell all the other Gryffindors where it was, but she didn't, so eventually we stopped kicking her out."
All of a sudden, things began to go in and out of focus, and the outline of Harry's chiseled features began to blur. 'Ooh, I definitely shouldn't have shaken my head like that.' Cho thought to herself.
Harry noticed Cho blink several times, as if trying to clear her head. "Cho? What's the matter? Are you alright?" Harry asked nervously.
Cho snapped back to the real world. "Huh? Oh, yeah, I'm fine. Just...tired, that's all."Cho said, a small smile on her face. If it were a bit lighter, perhaps Harry could tell how strained it was. "You worry too much." She added with amusement in her voice.
"Only about you." Harry blurted. Immediately after saying this, he caught himself, but it was too late.
Cho blushed. "You're sweet," and with a considerable pink tinge on her cheeks, and trembling hands, she stood on tiptoe and gave Harry a kiss on the cheek. It was awkward, kissing him again, even if it was on the cheek. She missed him so, and she only realized it at that very moment. What had she done? During their whole relationship, she had taken him for granted, gotten jealous, and talked about her ex-boyfriend. Was she crazy? Everyone knows that those are the main relationship breakers! And now, now that she longed for him, she wanted back what she had last year.
Harry stood stock still for what seemed like an eternity. She...kissed him. What did that mean? Were they back together? So many thoughts raced through Harry's head, but he overall felt this kind of buzzing, like the feeling he got after a great quidditch match. He could think about all this later.
Cho felt the heat rise into her face. Had she really just done that?True, it was something that she daydreamed about doing for quite some time, but to actually do it...that was different. Different, but good.
"Well...goodnight, Harry. And thank you." Cho said coyly.
Harry swallowed. He would definitely have trouble getting to sleep tonight. "G-goodnight Cho." and with that, he started to walk away.
Cho watched him leave, and when he gave her one last glance over his shoulder before descending the marble steps, she smiled. 'Wow...I don't think I've ever felt this way before." she whispered to herself. When she was sure that Harry had gone, she hurried in the opposite direction of the staircase, to an alternative route to the Hospital Wing. Little did she know that there was a certain someone watching her from the shadows.
A/N: Whew! And there it is, the first part! Yeah! So, who do you think it is in the shadows? Well, I'll just let you speculate about that one...I know, I know, I'm an evil one, I am. Okay, so here's the deal. I didn't really know if I wanted Cho to be with Harry or Draco, our two favorite boys, so I'm going to give you both! Not both at the same time, you sick, sick person, you. No, I'm going to let you choose! If you're a Draco/Cho shipper, then go back out there and find Slytherin's Aria, which will be the story featuring Draco and Cho as our couple. On the other hand, if you think Cho should choose our favorite hero, Harry, then I suggest you read Our Song, which is a story that has Harry and Cho getting together. Yeah, I know, I'm a people pleaser, compromise is always the way to go! So, I hope you liked it so far! Please don't flame me too much, I'm deathfully allergic to fire...Oh, and just another bit of information, I had actually started this story during that three year wait for OOTP to come out, so I had to revise it a bit to fit the events of OOTP instead of GOF. I tried my best, so I'm really sorry if there are certain things that don't check out. Enjoy!
Update-8 October 2003: Well, I've finally gotten a new computer! Yay! So, that means that I've been going through all of my old files on my current (depressingly slow, might I add) computer and saving them onto my floppy to transfer later. This is one of my older works, and I'm happy to be able to say that I've definitely improved! At least, in my opinion. So, I'm sorry to say that there aren't going to be any sequels to this story, so don't look for them! I'm just posting this so that all of my time doesn't go to waste. I also started a bit of Slytherin's Aria, so I'll just post that as well. I apologize again for doing this, but I'm currently working on another story featuring the character of Kikyou from the anime 'InuYasha', and I like to focus on one story at a time. As a wonderful (no word could ever truly describe their greatness, so I'm opting for one of my favorites) author once told me, if you invest your time and effort into a fic, it shows. Just a small side note, this brilliant (another favorite adjective of mine) author is EddieMunster! Go out there and read EddieMunster's fic! It's called All About Our Love. Whew, okay, I just had to share the greatness with the world. I feel that whenever I come upon a fic that is really really good, I have to tell everyone about it at every possible opportunity. So, enough of that! Anyway, I hope to eventually start an HP fic, as that is my main love, but for now I've got to focus on finishing the fic I've got at the moment. Till next we meet!