Disclaimer: SHArice doesn't own Harry Potter.

Author's Note: THANK YOU TO ALL MY REVIEWERS! I'M SO HAPPY YOU ENJOYED CHAPTER SIX! I especially want to thank indigal for your insightful reviews from the very beginning. My goal is to capture the more mature and adult side of Harry because a person grows up a lot after witnessing death. I can relate. Cho, on the other hand, didn't seem human in previous books, so I gave her a few flaws to start off with. It's been a challenge trying to work off J.K. Rowling's characterization, but I'm facing up to it.

According to a friend, J.K. Rowling made a statement that Harry and Cho were never meant to be during a chat on World Book Day…which really sucks due to the fact that I'm writing a fanfic with them as a couple. However, I will continue and hopefully finish this before moving on to another pairing.

Happy reading! Reviews are welcome.

ooooooo

The Melody of the Sphere

Chapter Seven: Our Brief Darkness

Harry lay awake in his bed. The events of the previous night at the Hospital Wing replayed in his mind over and over…

Flashback

"Cho," he said again, tightening his hold on her, "remember what I said before. I will never leave you."

In an answering squeeze, she whispered, "No…never leave me."

He just held her for as long as he could; savoring the sweet lilac fragrance that filled her hair. In the silent confines of the Hospital Wing, they were sharing one moment only to themselves. Harry tried to memorize everything – the dampness of her tears soaking his shirt, the soft sounds of her breathing, the rapid beating of her heart, and even the snuggling of her face where his neck met his shoulder. It really did feel like the end of the world. Or, more specifically, like their world was on the verge of war.

Cho felt him sigh. She wished with all her heart for time to stand still – to let them remain trapped in each other's arms forever. She wanted to live in the present for as long as time would allow. But time, forced to propel people forward along with it, could not grant her wish. Harry was not, could not, be in love with her. Expectation had already promised him to someone much more worthy; someone like Hermione Granger.

"Harry…" She would only say his name when she was free from the binds that people had placed upon her. When she truly no longer cared about what other houses, notably Hufflepuff and Slytherin, said as she passed down the hall, could she speak the name that gave her that freedom. And she would be content to say it.

This is going to sound so cliché, Harry thought. "I don't want this to ruin our friendship, Cho."

"It won't," she hastily replied, giving herself enough room to look up into his face. Even with gauze hiding his legendary scar, Harry's bottle green eyes were the trademark that Cho preferred to recognize him by.

Many of her dorm mates talked about and ranked the faces of guys they had thought were attractive. She remembered thinking that if that guy's face was distorted, her peers would never be able to identify him. It was a little sad. Cho, on the other hand, knew that eyes were windows to the soul. If there was a feature that anyone would be able to distinguish another by, then it was definitely their eyes. The various combinations of color, shape, emotion, and even habits or mannerisms one had when winking or smiling were what she loved.

Harry stared back at her, brushing his thumb across her cheek. They hadn't even exchanged those few words that would have marked the transition of friends to couple, yet there was a bilateral between them that was not easily broken.

"Mr. Potter! Miss Chang!"

End Flashback

Madam Pomfrey had released him from her care the next morning after another dreamless sleep draft. He had spent the day locked up in Gryffindor Tower doing homework and allowing himself an hour or so for his flute, going down to the Great Hall to only eat before returning to the sanctity of the common room or the dormitories. Thankfully, he hadn't seen Cho anywhere in the Great Hall. She probably refused to take a chance of seeing him.

o o o o o o o

"How long has he been up there?" Ginny asked the older Gryffindor prefect.

"All day," Hermione replied. "He's been in a slumped state for a long time."

"Has he said anything to you?" Both girls were returning to the common room from a rather interesting meal in the Great Hall. Hermione just shook her head. "I'm getting scared, Mione. He didn't come down for dinner tonight."

The bushy-haired girl sighed as she heaved her shoulders up and let them drop. Ginny was right. It wasn't like Harry to completely neglect his friends. At least he had sent one-sentence, mundane letters to let them know he was alive over the first month of summer.

I'll see you guys soon, so don't worry. That was usually the reply they would get. "Speaking of strange, have you seen Ron anywhere lately?" Ginny asked as they turned the corridor to the pink lady's portrait.

"Only in class and at meals."

"You don't think he and Harry are up to something, do you?"

Hermione quirked an eyebrow. She hadn't thought about that possibility, but the chance that Ron and Harry were planning something wasn't very high, especially now that they knew she would tell McGonagall without a second thought. "I think we would've figured them out by now."

Ginny chuckled. "Yeah, those two aren't that great at keeping secrets."

Hermione had to join in with the younger girl's mirth as she gasped the password out (chicken feet). "No, but seriously, Ginny – I think Ron's just up to his neck in work."

"I told him he would have it in for him with Advanced Transfiguration."

They took up two comfortable spots on the couch in front of the fire, giggling at the scenarios Hermione replayed with Ron turning his quill into a bunch of weeds instead of a bouquet of spring flowers. Their conversation lasted well into the night, even after many of the students had filtered into their respective dormitories.

"Oh my gosh! Did you see Michael Corner's face!" They had made it through to dinner when the "rather interesting" event had occurred in the Great Hall that night.

Ginny was grasping her sides and she answered, "I did. He looked so dumb just standing there!"

Hermione could feel the heat that laughing was having on her face. "I know! He didn't know what hit him when Cho just came out and slapped him."

Ginny had to immediately suppress her fits of giggles at the mention of Cho's name. "Oh no…"

Hermione was wiping the tears that were forming at the corners of her eyes as she asked, "Oh no what? What's up?"

The youngest Weasley looked up at her companion. "I just realized something." Hermione gave her a quizzical look. "It's Cho!"

"Yes, Cho hit Michael, so what?"

"That's it! She hit him!"

"Ginny, you're beginning to scare me," Hermione said as she took her little friend by her shoulders.

"No. No, you don't understand." Ginny waved away Hermione's hands and took a deep breath. "I ran into one of her friends last night. We got around to talking about Cho and Harry and she mentioned something about Cho also feeling down."

"You don't think Cho's the reason for Harry's misery?"

"I do think that's it. Why do you think he came back from the Room of Requirement and the Hospital Wing all down and stuff?" Ginny paused to let her friend think about the situation. She knew Hermione was no moron and could figure something out when needed.

Hermione spoke slowly as if forming the sentence impromptu. "The reason he's been isolating himself from us is because he's troubled by something; not because he's busy with school work." Ginny nodded. "The last time we really spoke was after his faint in Divination, which was the same time Cho was brought to the Hospital Wing. He ran into her in the Room of Requirement one night after I told him to remember to be a gentleman in case he – "

"Ran into her?" Ginny offered.

"Yeah." She continued, "And my guess is they had a bit of a row, but over what?"

"That's easy – Cedric Diggory."

"That's probably it," the prefect assessed, "but I think there's more. He would have come back furious if it was only about Cedric."

"Perhaps Cho just lost it for a moment or two, you know. Maybe he was just feeling dejected again like when he asked her to the Yule Ball."

Hermione didn't respond. She sank back into the warm softness of the couch, flipping away a hair that had gone astray once in a while. If I were Harry, she thought, what would I be thinking? I don't want to admit my feelings, if he has any, to her. I can't forget that Cho was once Cedric's girlfriend. I have a best friend that doesn't like her too well and I'm a famous wizard who is the only hope against Lord Voldemort. She sighed. "Being Harry must be tiring."

"I can only imagine," the red-head commented, cupping her face in her hands. "Getting a girlfriend would probably only complicate things further." Ginny exhaled deeply and loosened the elastic band in her hair, letting her hands massage her head.

Hermione jumped up. "Eureka!"

Ginny lifted her head. "What now?"

The Gryffindor prefect beamed with a huge grin. "Think, Ginny – Harry has always felt guilty when it came to things about Voldemort and putting us, his friends, in danger. Now, put Cho into the picture and what do you get?"

"An extremely guilty Harry…?"

"Exactly," she concluded. "If anything, Harry probably feels that he's endangering Cho by being with her. So it's our job as his closest female friends to help fate a little bit."

"How do you propose we do that?" Ginny asked, getting a little excited over the idea of playing matchmaker.

"Where there's a will, there's a way, Miss Weasley." Hermione slipped her arm through the crook of Ginny's elbow, bringing her up to the sixth-year girls' dormitory. "In this case where there's a quill, an inkwell, and spare piece of parchment, there's a chance of falling in love all over again."

o o o o o o o

A rapping noise came from the window. Harry looked out the large glass pane by his bed to see an eager Hedwig with a small piece of folded parchment in her beak. She was screeching excitedly, and when he opened the window, she swooped around the dormitory before perching on his shoulder.

"Hey there, girl." Harry stroked her as he pulled an owl treat from his trunk. The snowy owl happily accepted the dried meat after dropping the letter into his waiting hands. Unfolding the letter, Harry recognized the familiar, neat handwriting that belonged to none other than Hermione.

Harry,

I know you don't want to be bothered, but I couldn't wait. There was a big commotion in the Great Hall at dinner tonight between Cho and Michael Corner. I thought you should be aware because, according to Luna, Corner supposedly said something about you and Cedric that got Cho really angry. She slapped him before running off somewhere. None of the Ravenclaws that were heading down to the Great Hall when I left said they'd seen her. I understand that you don't want to put Cho in harm, but think of what she's feeling. I distinctly remember telling you what she could be feeling about you and Cedric last year. Please consider my advice about giving Cho an explanation about your reasons for not getting too involved with her. She deserves it. If you want to talk, remember that I'm willing to listen.

Hermione

Hedwig nipped at his ear affectionately. She seemed to be waiting for his reply. Harry shook his head. "Not now. Maybe tomorrow, okay?" The owl tilted her head to the side. She was obviously told to wait for his response.

Harry groaned, picked up his schoolbag and headed down to the common room where Neville's snoring would not be heard. Hermione would never hear the end of it in the morning.

Settling down at a table close to the fire, he pulled out his supplies and stared blankly at the blank page. Hedwig perched herself atop the fireplace mantelpiece. Should he take Hermione's advice and talk to Cho or hope that she'd forget about him? The latter didn't seem too plausible. Dipping his quill in the inkwell before momentarily contemplating his diction, Harry set to work.

Hermione,

Thanks for your concern. I didn't think you'd figure me out so fast. It's true what you said about me not wanting to put Cho in harm. I know Voldemort would use her to get to me like how his Death Eaters did last year with you and the others. Not only that, but I can't have the rest of the students ganging up on her for forgetting Cedric. Corner must have harassed her if it was about Cedric and me. I only promise to ask her about what happened at dinner – nothing more. I'm not ready to discuss heavy issues now.

Harry

Folding and setting his first letter aside, he took out the tiny, orange sphere and set it on the table beside his inkwell. It's so amazing, he thought, that this little thing has brought me both pain and pleasure. The orb seemed small, insignificant, and innocent to anyone besides Cho and himself. It definitely was a connection to Garrett and that woman. The only problem was – what was the connection?

The Gryffindor Seeker sighed and checked his wristwatch – 11:03. Tomorrow was Sunday, so it was no big deal if he stayed up a little later than usual. Hedwig was wide awake, staring intently at him from atop the mantelpiece. "Don't worry," he assured her, "I'll be done soon."

She hooted softly as Harry turned his attention to his second letter. How would he go about writing to Cho? He'd never really had to write such a serious letter before. Most of his serious-types were sent to people like Lupin, the Weasley family, Hagrid, or Hermione. Looking up from his quill, Harry held his arm out; a gesture the snowy owl had grown to recognize as come-here-I've-got-something-for-you. She obliged and landed gently on his forearm.

Harry handed the letter for Hermione and said, "Just give this to Hermione, okay? I'll have something for you to deliver tomorrow morning at breakfast." Hedwig plucked the parchment from his fingers and soared off through the window he had opened for her. Harry stared off at the white speck waning in the darkness of the night. Hedwig always enjoyed her flights even if her delivery was a mere thirty seconds away on the opposite side of the tower.

Closing the pane, he settled back into the cushions of his armchair. It would be well past midnight before Harry would hope to go to bed…perchance to dream.

o o o o o o o

A sunset? Looking around, Harry saw the lake in which the giant squid lurked. He was somewhere near the school grounds, but the place where Hogwarts castle ought to have been was a dense forest. He was sure that's where the castle was supposed to be because the Quidditch pitch was in its proper place. Turning around, he hoped to see Hogsmeade and its rooftops that spanned much of the horizon. And there it was; the wisps of smoke floating higher into the sky from numerous chimneys.

Where am I? he wondered.

Everything was where it was supposed to be except the castle. Harry kept staring off at the swollen sun fading into the tops of the trees. A breeze picked up and he had to shut his eyes at the loose strand of hair that whipped at his eyes.

Roughly moving his bangs from his forehead, Harry winced as his fingers got caught in his…long hair? What? It fell a little lower than his shoulders. He touched his face to find his glasses missing and the indent where his scar should have been was smooth. Harry held his hand in front of his face, letting his eyes travel down his arm, torso, legs, and finally rested at his feet. He was wearing a wine-colored tunic, black (and rather tight) trousers, a pair of weathered brown boots, and, a little more familiar, black robe.

Harry tensed as he felt hands tugging his hair back. "You never did like me playing with your hair." At once his chest tightened. He knew that voice anywhere.

Upon feeling his hair finally tied back, Harry turned around slowly to meet the pair of brown eyes he had last stared into at the Hospital Wing. She wasn't wearing the same white gown like in his last dream. Instead, she was wearing a simple silk gown – no elaborate ruffles, beads, or jewels adorned it. Its golden hue seemed to shine brighter under the light of the setting sun.

"What are you doing here?" he managed to ask. Harry wanted to choke. His voice wasn't his own.

Cho's smile dropped as she laced their hands together. "I heard about the Vicar's orders to amass an army. He's going to challenge the emperor."

"I'm going with them," he heard himself say.

"No…stay here in Hogsmeade where it's safe."

Harry didn't know what to say. Something was going on and the direction this conversation was taking didn't make it seem like the summer solstice. "It won't be safe if we continue to allow the emperor to take over our town."

"Then stay and defend the village," she cried. "You can't leave."

The sky was beginning to darken. "I'll tear that army apart before I would ever allow them to hurt you."

"Please, Garrett…you know we don't stand a chance against his legions." Harry reeled back at the name. Cho had called him Garrett.

"We're on the verge of war! I don't have a choice!"

"Yes, you do!" Cho was clinging to his robes, shaking her head, sparkles of tears flying from her face. "You said you'd never leave me."

Harry sighed and put his arms around her. The sun was halfway below the horizon and the cool dusk air bit at his face. What was going on? Why was he going off to fight when the only thing in the world he ever cared for was begging him to stay? Why the hell did she call him Garrett?

She drew slightly back from him, so she could see his face. "I guess I knew this would happen, but I didn't think today would come so fast."

Bringing his fingers to lightly caress her cheek, he smiled wistfully. "It seems like only yesterday that we were standing there," he said pointing toward the Quidditch pitch with her eyes following his arm, "when we first met."

A corner of her mouth lifted as she asked, "Will you sing for me now?"

"Here? Now?" No, you'll sound horrible, Harry thought. Don't agree with her! Harry wanted to groan in agony when he heard the bloke say the cursed word yes. He felt his feet begin to move as the young man's voice rang clear in the stillness of the sunset. "Some say love, it is a river that drowns the tender reed." Harry just listened. Garrett really didn't sound half bad. "Some say love, it is a razor that leaves your soul to bleed. Some say love, it is a hunger, an endless aching need."

"I say love, it is a flower, and you it's only seed," Cho sang. Again he wanted to choke. She sounded exactly like that girl in his dreams.

The couple had reached the outskirts of the pitch when Harry noticed the difference in the colors of the stadium. They didn't feature the four Houses of Hogwarts, instead, the banners and towers were cloaked in deep reds and blues with a golden stallion rearing on his hind legs. Cho continued, "It's the heart afraid of breaking that never learns to dance. It's the heart afraid of waking that never takes the chance."

As they walked onto the dewy grass, he noticed Cho's eyes growing misty. "It's the one who won't be taken who cannot seem to give…" Harry wanted to cringe at that last line. He had denied his feelings for Cho, and therefore his acceptance of her. "…and the soul afraid of dying that never learns to live."

Garrett took over as the young woman collapsed in his arms, bawling all her grievances out. "When the night has been too lonely and the road has been too long and you think that love is only for the lucky and the strong…" He raised her face to look at him, wiping away the streaks of tears on her face with his thumbs. "…just remember in the winter far beneath the bitter snows, lies the seed, that with the sun's love, in the spring becomes the rose…" (The Rose performed by Bette Midler. For copy-and-paste friendly lyrics, see bottom of chapter.)

Harry felt his eyes prickling with tears. This was the feeling that he felt whenever he listened to the sphere's melody – so in love, but so hurt by the thought of never having that love again. He couldn't help it. He needed to say it, to say how much she meant to him. Although Harry knew he wasn't able to talk of his own free will in these…visions, he knew Garrett would say it for both of them. "I love you, Belle."

Belle! That's her name? Harry had to wait until Garrett opened his eyes before he silently screamed in his mind. The girl standing before him was no longer Cho Chang, but Belle. Her wavy black hair and slightly different face contours didn't belong to the Ravenclaw Seeker, but nonetheless, she was beautiful.

Harry's eyes widened when she held up a music sphere to his eyes. Its surface glowed red. "What is it?" he asked, taking the sphere in his thumb and index finger.

"Do you like it?" Harry could feel his face contort into a mixture of confusion and curiosity. Examining it though the other man's eyes, he came to the conclusion that it wasn't his sphere.

"I have another one," she said, bringing Harry's attention back to her. Mentally wanting to curse, he saw it – the same tiny, marble-sized, orange music sphere that had caused him so much grief.

"Why do you have two?" Garrett asked as he took the orange one in his other hand.

The young woman bit her lip and shifted her feet nervously in the grass. Harry recognized those as mannerisms of nervousness. Taking his wrists in her hands, she took a deep breath and explained as she tried to control her emotions, "Garrett, you're going to have to choose."

He obviously wasn't paying much attention because he chuckled and replied, "Can't I have both?"

"You don't understand," Belle wailed. "This one," she said holding up the red one, "represents us together without the worries of you dying somewhere faraway where I can't reach you." She grabbed his hand that held the orange sphere. "And this…is the song you'll hear when you fight your battles far from me. Now choose."

Harry released the breath he hadn't realized he was holding when Garrett dropped the red sphere into Belle's trembling hands and the other closed firmly over the orange sphere. The last things he heard before being jostled out of his fitful sleep were the desperate pleas of an undying love and the slow, sad footsteps of a fool walking away.

o o o o o o o

"Oh, can you believe it, Cho?" Brie chided excitedly as she read the follow-up announcement posted in the Entrance Hall. "Only one more week 'til the first Hogsmeade visit of the year!"

Cho made a noise something between a grunt and a groan. Brie's little antics of trying to get her back into their usual weekend routine were beginning to annoy her. During the summer, after she had dumped Michael Corner, she and Brie had made up the time she lost to Marietta. She visited Brie's parents in America by means of Muggle transportation called flying. They spent the remainder of their holiday back in England at Diagon Alley where she also saw Hermione Granger and…

"Harry Potter?" Cho was about to ask how Brie had managed to say the right name at the wrong time when she saw her friend pick up a letter an owl had dropped in front of them. The red-head studied it for a moment then handed it to her. "I think it's for you."

The Chinese Seeker didn't want to believe it at first, but took the folded parchment. The handwriting she had never seen before was practically incised into the parchment from the hasty looking marks. Cho sat down in her usual place at the Ravenclaw House table and continued to stare at it.

"Aren't you going to open it?" her friend asked, filling both their goblets with pumpkin juice.

"I'm afraid, Brie," she said quietly.

"Of what? An offer to be his date this weekend?" she kidded, plopping spoonfuls of oat porridge into her bowl.

Cho didn't say anything. What Brie hadn't realized was Harry asking her to Hogsmeade was only part of what she was afraid of. The other part was him asking her out of pity or guilt.

Brie smiled oddly as she watched Cho finally open the letter.

Dear Cho,

It's the one who won't be taken who cannot seem to give and the soul afraid of dying that never learns to live. Please don't be afraid to meet me in the Room of Requirement this Friday after dinner. I think there are things we need to talk about.

HP

PS – I miss you.

Harry watched from his seat as Cho clutched his letter to her chest, hiding her face behind her hand. Waking up this morning to see the sun rise gave him enough hope to rewrite his letter and add in a little bit of his feelings for her at the end.

Ron had woken him up this morning and helped him to his feet after finding himself on the floor bound in the twists of his sheets. "I don't like it when you have nightmares," Ron had said, rubbing his cheek. "You always manage to beat me up."

Brie's odd smile turned into a face-splitting grin when Cho brought the letter close to her chest and lowered her head into her hands. As much as it pained to see her best friend cry over a guy, it made her happy to know that this particular guy wasn't a complete jerk. The memory of the previous night wiggled its way into her thoughts.

Flashback

Dinner in the Great Hall was never so quiet. She and Cho were quietly eating when a rustle of laughter was heard near the entrance to the room. A group of sixth and seventh years were snickering as they approached the Ravenclaw table where they were sitting. Among the group were a handful of the more famous faces – Draco Malfoy, Pansy Parkinson, Michael Corner and a couple of his friends, and the sneak Marietta.

"Good evening, ladies," Malfoy smoothly greeted. He was resting his palms on the table next to Cho, his lips grazing her hair.

"…" Cho said nothing. She had kept to herself for a while, but Brie didn't mind. Cho would open up to her when the time came. Her efforts to cheer Cho up were evident wherever the pair went; if she hadn't been accompanied by the Seeker, people could have sworn she was always talking to herself.

"Have you heard about the next Hogsmeade visit?" the blonde continued.

Cho nodded. Brie's eyes kept darting between her companion and the incompetent slime.

"Corner here wanted to know if he could be your date for the day," Pansy spoke up, stepping close to Draco.

Brie wanted to yell. "He can ask her himself," she curtly stated, keeping her gaze steady as the Slytherin girl looked at her with absolute malice.

"No one asked you, Brillyich," Pansy spat out.

"Now, now, Pansy," Malfoy said, bringing his arm around her waist to quiet her, "I believe she has a point. After all, four of us here have something in common. We come from respectable families, so there's no need to get hostile."

"Well I don't care if she is a pure-blood."

Michael just smirked and tapped Draco's shoulder, a silent query for some space. Draco nodded, his usual arrogant air lingering behind him as he left Michael with the two Ravenclaw girls. He took a seat next to Cho, leaning his forearms on the table. "Cho?"

"Hmm?" she responded, never looking at him.

"Would you like to go with me on the next Hogsmeade visit?"

Brie swallowed hard. The bastard probably figured he had Cho wrapped around his finger just because she was moping around a lot. If anything, Corner was thinking that the reason for her depression was regret for dumping him. Brie wanted to throw her drumstick at his head, followed by the whole pitcher of pumpkin juice, and, for good measure, the Jelly-Legs Jinx she had wanted to experiment with for a while.

Cho shook her head and made a move to stand up.

He grabbed her wrist. "You can't be serious."

Before anymore aggression could be administered to her friend, Brie stood up and firmly said, "I think she's answered your question. She doesn't want to go with you."

Corner just snorted. "No, you're wrong." He stood up and blocked Cho's path to the doors. "It's that Potter guy isn't it?"

Cho's stoic expression gradated into an angry glare. "Leave him out of this." Her voice was quiet, but dangerous.

"I can't believe you're still standing up for that freak! After…the Tournament, it wasn't him who was trying to help you out, was it?" Brie had made her way next to Cho, standing securely by her friend's side as Marietta never did.

"He was suffering just as much as I was," Cho replied, her tone never wavering.

"He just felt guilty after not saving Cedric…the murderer."

SMACK! Brie had to blink twice and when she had, Cho was halfway toward the doors. Everyone in the Great Hall was staring at them. The left side of Corner's face was red, his fingers lightly touching the swelling area.

"Good evening," Brie sarcastically remarked before chasing after Cho.

End Flashback

Her last encounter with Ginny Weasley was after Cho had come back from the Hospital Wing late that night. The Gryffindor Chaser had said that Harry had just returned earlier that morning. She had written a letter to Brie asking to meet in the library. The two fiery red-heads had discussed further issues concerning their friends, particularly their recent rendezvous.

"All right there, Cho?"

"Brie?" She lifted her face and, amazingly, her face wasn't tear-stained as Brie thought it would be. She motioned to the parchment Cho was clutching. "What's it say?"

"Hopefully…" Cho said looking longingly at her letter, "…the truth."

o o o o o o o

The week never seemed to pass so slowly. He waited as the days rolled by one after the other at the same, snail-like pace. However, to pass some of the time he didn't' spend trying to get ahead with his homework Harry went to the Room of Requirement. There, he let the feelings he had when he had heard Garrett and Belle sing wash over him.

Flashback

The night of the day he sent Cho the invitation to meet him he had taken the flute with him to the Room. The usual fireplace and plush couch were in its place. Harry sighed and put the delicate instrument to his lips. For a few minutes he just concentrated on the dream – Garrett, Belle, the melody of the sphere, and, finally, the pain and love he felt when he thought of Cho. His thoughts wandered further back in time when he had found the sphere in Diagon Alley. The way he let his finger fly across the keys and how his senses just seemed to increase was slowly returning.

He blew across the embouchure hole and a clear note resonated. Placing a few fingers down another sound emitted from the instrument. He continued until several moments later when he realized that he was actually playing the flute. Harry didn't dare open his eyes in fear of losing his newly found concentration and stopping the melody. He kept thinking about Garrett's mistake of leaving the only woman he ever loved and the pain his impulsive decision had caused. Harry didn't want that for Cho. He would have to make amends.

Suddenly, and without warning, he stopped. There was nothing left. He didn't feel anything – not anger, sadness, hate, or remorse. He looked at the sphere which he had placed beside him. The tiny object's light was fading.

Harry asked the sphere to play for him again. Those same emotions of an intangible pain hit him and putting the flute to his lips, he played…this time from the beginning. He kept his eyes on the sphere watching as its light pulsed with every note he played. Harry could feel that same hopelessness and immense heartache again. He was on the verge of tears when he faltered and the sphere's light died.

"It's broken," he said to the night. If the sphere was broken, so was the melody that was contained within it. If the sphere was broken, so was the chain of emotions that he felt. Somehow, this sphere that Garrett had taken from Belle seemed to harbor her emotions of longing and the bitter reality that he was leaving her.

"But why me?" he yelled, his voice reverberating off the walls. "I have enough to worry about!"

End Flashback

"Knut for your thoughts?"

Harry saw the little coin fall into his lap. It almost looked like a miniature Galleon from the light of the fire. The Gryffindor common room was beginning to empty out as people headed to the Great Hall for dinner, ready to indulge themselves into heaps of food after five long, hard days of classes. "I don't need it," he said, flipping the coin back to Ginny as she took a seat across from him.

"Good," she joked, "because I do."

Harry smiled at her jest. "How have you been, Ginny?"

She stretched her arms toward the ceiling and sighed as she said, "I'm just glad it's Friday."

"Yeah, same here," he replied, loosening his tie.

"Will you be going to Hogsmeade tomorrow?" The room had cleared out leaving them alone to bask in each other's company.

"Do you want to come with me?" he asked, remembering Ginny's crush on him since before her first year at Hogwarts.

"Sorry, Harry." Ginny knew he was just being polite in offering an arm, but she had gotten over her infatuation with the Boy Who Lived about two years ago. She wanted to giggle at her schoolgirl crush. "Mum ordered Ron and me to spend a little quality time together."

Harry raised an eyebrow. "And you're agreeing?"

Ginny shook her head. "I'm just taking him to get him to socialize a bit more. He's been acting like a hermit since day one."

He chuckled. "I think we all are…at least a little bit." They shared their week's events, including the incident between Cho Chang and Michael Corner. Harry's lips thinned into a line at the mentioning of it while his hands curled into fists in his lap.

"Guess what?" she asked, a mischievous aura glowing around her. Harry didn't say anything, but she continued, "Hermione got another letter after classes today."

He rolled his eyes. "Crimson Regret?" he asked, knowing full well what the answer was. Ginny nodded and squealed in excitement. Harry ran his hands though his hair. "That guy's name just makes my appetite vanish. He seems like a fake."

"I think he's a nice guy," she countered. Harry skeptically raised an eyebrow. "Well, I'm hungry," she said, clearing her throat. She stood up and straightened her robes. "Do you want to come?"

"No, I just want to stay up here," he answered.

"Don't you mean you're going to you-know-where?" she inquired, waggling her eyebrows.

Harry laughed. Ginny and Hermione could read him like an open book. It didn't surprise him that they were aware of his going to the Room of Requirement every night this week. He walked over to the smaller girl and pulled her into a hug. "You're the best, Gin."

Pulling away after hearing her stomach rumble, they shared a final laugh. "Just remember one thing, Harry," she said before stepping through the portrait hole.

"What's that?" She'd probably remind him about looking out for teachers or making sure that he returned before curfew.

The fifth-year grinned and said in her best mock Hermione tone, "Courting Cho Tactics 101."

o o o o o o o

"Do you think he'll be there tonight?" Cho asked for the umpteenth time that day.

Brie couldn't help but smile for the umpteenth time. "If what he wrote is true," she said, pointing at the letter Cho had carried all week, "then he'll be there." The poor piece of parchment's creases had deepened with constant opening and closing, its edges were a little battered, and there was a hole from a rather potent ingredient from one of their potions classes.

Cho had shared her letter with Brie during their Advanced Charms lesson. Under the cover of their desks and a distraction from a clumsy student, Brie read the short message. She wanted to swoon at his choice of words, especially the part where he wrote I miss you.

"Are people still staring?" Cho asked, feeling numerous pairs of eyes on her.

"Only a little," the red-head answered.

"Should I ask him to go to Hogsmeade with me tomorrow?" Cho hadn't touched her food for the past twenty minutes and Brie was getting a little agitated.

"Let him do the talking, Cho."

"Do you think he'll ask me?" she quickly cut in before Brie could put her fork to her mouth.

"I wouldn't be surprised if he did."

Cho bit her bottom lip. "What if he does it out of pity?" She watched her friend shake her head as she gulped down her pumpkin juice.

"We're getting a little anxious, aren't we?" she joked, placing her hand on the incessant drum rolls of her friend. Cho immediately stilled her hand and flushed a slight pink.

"I'm sorry, Brie," she said quietly. "I'm just nervous. That's all."

Brie checked the time on her wristwatch. Across the Great Hall, another red-head took it as a signal for their little alteration of fate to proceed. "He might be there already." Cho stared at her with a shy look of hope glimmering in her eyes. Brie smiled. "If you don't hurry up, I'm going to drag you there myself."

Cho took a deep breath and stood up. She nodded to her best friend and took off in the direction of the Room of Requirement, her heart racing with the frequent fall of her steps.

"Care to take a stroll with me?"

Brie turned around in her seat to see Ginny Weasley hovering over her. "You know," she replied, standing up, "we very well might be damned to hell for this."

The tall Weasley shrugged. "It's as they say – all's fair in love and war."

o o o o o o o

I guess I'm a little restless, Cho thought as she entered the empty former-DA meeting room. She walked over to the glowing hearth, a smile tugging at the corners of her mouth. As much as she was dreading Harry coming, she was looking forward to seeing him. He said he missed her. The thought brought a wave of heat rushing to her cheeks…and she knew it wasn't from the fire.

Out in the corridor, trying to gather courage, Harry looked at the invisible entrance to the Room of Requirement. He knew she was in there. Every single one of his Cho nerves were firing in all directions.

He clutched the sphere that was in his robes with his left; his other hand wrapped loosely around the flute. Tonight, he would let her hear the pent-up emotions he had harbored from the moment they had broke-up. However, words would never be enough. Music was the universal language.

Tapping his wand three times on the wall and asking for the place Cho was Harry quietly stepped into the room. She hadn't heard him come in; her back was facing him. The fire's light outlined her figure and Harry remembered the feeling of having her wrapped against him. Harry mumbled a shrinking spell and the tucked the flute in his back pocket.

Perhaps he should do what Garrett had done in all his previous dreams – sing. Harry thought about it for a moment. That's a definite no, he concluded. Humiliation wasn't the idea he wanted to give her. Harry walked up slowly and quietly behind her. She was humming. The tune was startlingly familiar. He listened as she sang out the only line she seemed to know, "…in the spring becomes the rose…"

Cho felt a hand on her back. She tensed up, but slowly relaxed as she remembered who she was meeting.

"Cho," Harry whispered. His hand slipped from her as he turned her to face him. His voice was low and ragged as he spoke. "I didn't think you'd come."

He hadn't slept well. She could tell from the slight hollowness beneath his eyes. She reached up to touch his cheek. "Did I cause this?"

Harry moved her hand over his rapidly beating heart. "No," he answered, "but you did cause this."

Cho closed her eyes and took away her hand. She stepped away from him. She had to know if he was being genuine – that he wasn't asking her to be here out of guilt. "Don't tease me."

Harry stepped toward her, which she equaled with another step back. He grabbed her by the shoulders before she had a chance to retreat. She gasped. "Please," he begged, "don't pull away like that." He pulled her into a hug, his shoulders slumping over as he rested his chin on the place where her neck met her shoulder. "I missed you."

She could hear the desperation in his voice, the unmistakable plead for comfort. A few minutes later, he withdrew and smiled as he looked at her. He watched her tuck a stray hair behind her ear before she shifted her feet nervously. Even in the concealment of the Room of Requirement, she always had to look her best. It doesn't matter, Harry thought as Cho lifted her gaze to meet his. This is enough.

He brought the flute out from his back pocket and returned it to its original size. Cho gaped at him quizzically as he put the instrument to his lips. Harry closed his eyes and released a breath of air, which was filled with affection, compassion, and undoubtedly hope. She gasped as the song vibrated through her being. It was amazing. The melody reminded her of Hogsmeade at sunset when people didn't care to rush. They merely strolled down the streets or paused to watch the sun recede into slumber.

Cho listened until his final note gradated into the silence of the night. Harry let the instrument drop to his side as he fought to catch his breath. "I played it," he whispered. He looked up at her, disbelief evident in his face. "I played all of it."

Harry pulled the sphere from his pocket. It was dull. He willed it to play, but there was no response. Cho took the sphere from his hand and set it on the mantelpiece of the fireplace. She turned back to face him and lifted her hands to his face. Harry felt his glasses being removed and the blurry vision that came with it. Cho's hands were moving along the contours of his cheeks, chin, and lips.

"Cho…" he began.

"Yes…Harry?" she replied, watching his face draw closer to hers. She closed her eyes. She could feel his cheek against hers as his warm breath tickled the skin beneath her ear.

"Can I have my glasses back?"

"What?" she exclaimed, stepping back. Harry had his lop-sided grin on again, a silent laugh that he directed at her. She smiled back as she tried to retaliate, "Well, by all means possible, come and get them yourself!"

"No!" he yelled as her fuzzy form moved away from him. She laughed as he crashed into a table near the place where she was a second ago. He was so cute when he was partially blind. He groaned and laughed playfully as he got up. "Oh…when I get my hands on you…"

"You'll what?" she taunted, jumping over a couch. Harry bumped into it and felt his way around the seat. His eyes were squinting and Cho clutched her sides as she failed to suppress her unremitting laughter. "Umph!"

"Gotcha!" Harry sat up on his forearms as he pinned Cho beneath him. Her fingers had loosened around his glasses and he pried them from her hand. Putting them on, he looked down to find her gasping for a proper breath. Harry smirked before nuzzling his face in her neck. "I said I'd never leave you," he whispered.

Cho brought her hands up to play in his hair. She turned her head so she could feel his ear against the corner of her mouth. "Harry…"

"Cho?" he asked, sitting up so he could see her face. She looked up at him. "I don't care about what others think of us. I don't want to constantly miss you like I did. I don't want to have any more regrets." Harry took a lock of her hair in his hand. "Can we try again? Will you be my date for the Hogsmeade visit tomorrow?"

She fought the doubts that were creeping up. Harry wanted them to make things work. He wanted them together. "I thought you'd never ask." Harry beamed and sat up fully, leaning against the couch before giving her a hand up. Cho sat beside him staring at the fire, letting her head rest against his shoulder. "Do you believe in miracles, Harry?"

He smiled and placed an arm around her waist. "Yes, Cho," he answered. "I'm holding one right now."

o o o o o o o

"Did they make up yet?" a tall, freckle-faced girl asked.

"Ssh! I'm trying to listen," another red-head hissed. A moment of silence ensued. The girl turned to face her companion who was keeping watch for anyone lingering in the halls after dinner. "They won't be coming back for a while," she assessed.

"They'll have to thank us for this one day," the first girl said as they walked away, leaving the couple to make up lost time.

ooooooo

Author's Note: Phew! I'm done! That took a while. Sigh Did I catch everyone at that last bit where Harry asked for his glasses? Ha ha! I just had to relieve all that tension.

Okay, there's one minor note I forgot to clarify. In the last chapter when Cho said her chest hurt, I was implying both the pain of heartache and the phantom-ish pain from her dream. If you want to know the song Harry plays on the flute, it's called Rydia from the Final Fantasy: N Generation album, composed by Nobuo Uematsu. Please review! I'm losing encouragement because I'm averaging only about four reviews a chapter.

Domo arigato Hotaru, Yashiro, and Ayu!

The Rose performed by Bette Midler

Some say love it is a river

That drowns the tender reed

Some say love it is a razor

That leaves your soul to bleed

Some say love it is a hunger

An endless aching need

I say love it is a flower, and you,

It's only seed

It's the heart afraid of breaking

That never learns to dance

It's the dream afraid of waking

That never takes the chance

It's the one who won't be taken

Who cannot seem to give

And the soul afraid of dying

That never learns to live

When the night has been too lonely

And the road has been too long

And you think that love is only

For the lucky and the strong

Just remember in the winter

Far beneath the bitter snows

Lies the seed, that with the sun's love

In the spring becomes the rose…