Disclaimer: See previous chapter. Except for a few new characters that will appear in this chapter for the first time. However, you'll know what I mean when you're reading this chapter.

Special Thanx: to ER Monkey and Sheen Rox for doing beta-ing.

Special Note: From now on, not every chapter will have Harry in it. I'm afraid this one's the first. I'll only do it if it isn't possible to write a chapter different. You'll survive it ;-D

Dedication: I want to dedicate this chapter to two girls, both of them named Agnes. One of them is my cousin, the other one a great fanfiction author, and both are great muses to me.

Big, slobbery kisses to my few reviewers:

Ferokeroberos: Hey, to shorten things is very useful, and even more useful as I know now what it means. #looks enlightened# Anyways, you asked you wondered what's going through my mind when I'm typing this fic. My answer: I don't really know myself. I've loads of ideas and don't know how to bring them all in... Or I just think of what the people in the radio are talking about... (Can't work without the radio running in the background...)

Bloomz-baby: Of course I will post more! Much more! Enjoy the new chapter!

Sheen Rox: Oh, my faithful Sheen Rox, I love your long reviews so much! #grins# And because of this you'll get a few extra information: This new woman (Anryn... she really exists, in a way, her real name's...whoops! I better don't tell ya! In the end she gets to read this and wants to strangle me...) will appear again on 31 July (Harry's birthday #grins#) and something really, really dreadful will happen on this day... And on the next few days, too... But it's going to happen to different persons and I'm not quite sure whether to post it (from the person's POV) or not. Whow, actually this were loads of unnecessary and confusing facts which won't help you in this chapter... Anyway, I loved your opinion about new characters, so enjoy this chapter!

Okay, three reviews for one chapter seems to be enough, but... Stop, stop, stop. New rule: You may give me flames, too, 'cause my hands are very, very cold...

On with the story! (And don't dare not to give me reviews!)

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Chapter 5

Rain

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Cho would have loved to go out that afternoon, but it just wasn't possible because it had started to rain. So she went into her room and looked for something to do. She saw Harry's latest letter lying on her desk. She hadn't opened it yet because it had arrived shortly before lunch. She'd taken it from a wet Marron, who had flown outside again immediately, mad at her for being forced to run an errand in this horrible weather. Marron had been a gift for her 17th birthday.

Cho read Harry's letter, getting more and more confused. In his last letters, she had learned many small details about him, which he hadn't told her then. Well, they really hadn't had many possibilities to talk. Harry had seemed to be beginning to trust her. But this letter, which Marron had brought to her, was totally different from the ones before.

Hey,

I think that I was very patient until now, but I'm not willing to continue this game any longer. Look at my situation. One part of the magical world worships me, they think that I'm kind of a hero because I caused You-Know-Who's 'fall' fifteen years ago. But the other part wants to see me dead. All the letters I've received... I don't get it. I know nothing of you, yet you seem to know everything of me. You could be my worst enemy, or at least some freaky kind of psychopath. So please become serious and tell me who you are or stop writing.

Harry

Cho was shocked; she had really liked writing those letters. She knew she would have told him who she really was some time, but the Death Eaters were very scary, so she hadn't dared it yet. Those guys were very impatient and didn't come to her home any more because Cho could always manage not to be at home alone. Therefore they had sent her letters with instructions, sealed with the Dark Mark in some black wax.

Cho had no choice but to obey them. They seemed to know everything about her and she was glad that the directions were only about things she should or should not mention in the letters to Harry.

She heaved a deep sigh, deciding to write another letter to Harry, but not mentioning her real identity. She took a piece of parchment, when suddenly the door opened and her little sister stormed in.

"Gwen! Haven't I told you to knock when you want to enter my room?" Cho shouted furiously. Gwen pulled faces at her.

"Mum said you should come and say good-bye to Uncle Simon and Aunt Lizzie. They're in the sitting room." She ran away without waiting for an answer.

Cho sighed again. She had forgotten that her Uncle Simon, the Auror, and his wife Elizabeth, wanted to go home again. They lived in the huge house near Lizzie's family, near Munich. Cho had only been there twice.

So, she went into the sitting room, where only her Uncle and her parents were.

"...no indications, but if they find out something new, they'll contact you. But I hardly think... Oh, Cho!" Uncle Simon smiled, Cho sat down beside him.

"Were you talking about Grandfather?" she asked.

"Yes, we don't have any news. They have already stopped the investigations," he answered sadly.

"Oh." Cho sounded disappointed, although she knew who really had caused the murder of her grandfather.

Her parents left for the kitchen and Cho was alone with the Auror.

"Cho...is there something you want to tell me?" he asked carefully.

Cho winced. Did her uncle know something? She had been sure that the Death Eaters had done their work properly. Now, how could he suspect something?

"Why do you ask?", she wanted to know.

"Well, you look so concerned since I have been here. Is it about a boy?" He really looked concerned.

Cho was getting uneasy. "What if?"

"Well, I'm not your father, but never forget that nobody has the right to hurt you and break your heart, do you understand? No-one ever has the right to hurt you, okay?"

Cho nearly told him everything. About Harry, about the Death Eaters, about her grandfather's death – he was Simon's father. She opened her mouth, but closed it quickly, when her mother came back. Cho turned back to her uncle and tried to smile. "I'm fine, Uncle Simon."

"Good." He smiled back at her, but in a way that said that he didn't really believe her.

Then Cho's father, Aunt Lizzie and Gwen entered the room.

"Come on, Simon," Aunt Lizzie said. "We have to go. We have been here much longer than we had planned it."

"Of course." Simon Chang stood up and they said good-bye to everybody. Then he Apparated with his wife back to Germany.

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A bit later Cho sat again in her room, her still blank parchment lying on her desk. She was deep in thought about what she should say to Harry. Eventually she decided to simply write whatever came to her mind. But she didn't write more than 'Hey Harry' because her door was opened by Gwen again.

Cho turned around and scowled at her. "What?" she asked the eleven-year-old-girl. The sisters didn't look like real sisters. Both had black hair, but Cho looked exactly like her mother and Gwen like her father. Cho was petite and small; Gwen nearly was as tall as her father. Cho was rather shy and reserved; Gwen was animated and imprudent.

"Someone wants to visit you," the younger one of the Chang sisters said, before disappearing again. Two seconds later Cho's best friend Marietta Edgecombe entered her room.

"Hi, Cho! Merlin, you don't look good. Are you okay?" Marietta frowned and looked at her expectantly.

"Yeah, yeah!" Cho shouted and tried to hide her letter without being seen. But Marietta didn't miss a thing.

"Oi, what are you writing?" She reached out for the parchment and her eyes opened in awe. "Harry? Like in Harry Potter?"

"Well..." She blushed.

"And what about Michael Corner?" Marietta asked.

"Oh, we...we broke up n-nearly four weeks ago..." Cho stammered.

Marietta's jaw dropped down. "B-but you were the ideal couple! You looked so great together... Like you were meant for each other!"

"No, Marietta." Cho got furious. "You know perfectly well that isn't true. Michael and I, we are like day and night..."

Marietta smirked. "And what about you and Harry Potter?"

"Um..." Suddenly Cho didn't know any more what to say. If she was honest to herself, she didn't know what she felt for Harry. He was shy and clumsy, but he always tried to be nice and obliging. She liked him. But did she love him? If there hadn't been the thing with the Death Eaters, maybe she would have an answer to this question.

She used to think that she was in love with Cedric Diggory. Many had told her that they were a perfect match. Cedric had also been intelligent and clever, witty and nice, and they could talk about so many things, not only Quidditch and mad teachers. Yes, she had loved him in a way.

When she finally had kissed Harry, it was like being hit by a bolt and being split into two parts. On the one hand, she had had a bad conscience because she felt like she was cheating on Cedric. But on the other hand, it simply had felt right. But that had been long ago, and in the time since then Cho had become confused, torn between Harry and Cedric, she didn't know what to think any more. But there was one thing she was absolutely sure about.

"I like Harry. And you can't change that." Cho looked defiant.

"But Potter is younger than you are!" Marietta shouted.

"But Marietta, what kind of friend are you when you can't accept that?"

"Cho, listen to me! Potter is a madman! It even was in the newspapers! Potter thinks that You-Know-Wwho is back! That isn't true! You-Know-Who is dead! And everybody knows it! Potter just wants to cause a panic!"

"Ah-ha? And what does this have to do with me feelings for Harry? Or that he's younger than me? You have seen how bad we were in Defence Against the Dark Arts and what Harry had taught us."

"And you really think that we will need this knowledge some time? For instance, which secretary needs defence spells?" Marietta wanted to know.

"Well, as You-Know-Who is back, soon every single secretary will be in danger and be glad to know some defence spells!" Cho cried furiously.

"So you believe what Potter's saying?" Marietta asked quietly.

"Yes, of course."

Silence.

Eventually Cho changed the topic. "Marietta, why have you come to me? I mean, what did you want to tell me?"

"Oh, right," the girl said. "You know, my family has good connections to the Ministry of Magic. I was offered a fix job for next year – when I have finished Hogwarts. I thought that if you also want to begin in the ministry, then..."

"No," Cho cut in hastily. "No, that is very kind of you, but it's my dream to play Quidditch professionally, but I don't know yet if a team would be interested in me. Anyway, I'd easily get a post at the Daily Prophet. My father would help me in..."

They talked on, but not one of them said a word about Harry. Eventually Marietta had to go home again.

When Cho was alone again, she thought about her discussion with her best friend. A job at the ministry... Voldemort had been back a little while now. Cho knew it from experience and Harry had confirmed it too, although he didn't want to tell her how it had happened. The ministry had tried for half a year to keep it a secret and they had made Harry look an idiot. Well, the Daily Prophet published those fairy tales, but the publishing company was still in charge of the Ministry of Magic. Cho neither wanted to work at the M.O.M. nor at the Daily Prophet.

Eventually she reached for her quill, put it into the ink bottle and decided to be honest to Harry and to try not to give him even more worries to think about.

Hey Harry,

Merlin, I'm so sorry that I've been such a fool. What do you think of me now? Yes, I never should have started writing those anonymous letters. I'll tell you the truth about me. My name is Cho Chang, and I can understand it if you want to have nothing to do with me any more. I'm honest. But everything that I told you in my letters was the truth, and I did it because I still feel something for you.

Cho

Well, the letter was shorter than she had planned it, but at least it was a beginning. Now she only had to wait for Marron, who was outside in the rain, probably seeking shelter away from her, because she was still annoyed.

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It was still raining. Rachel could hear the fine drops falling against the window, knocking like small fingers against the glass. It got dark very early and the mist coming from the sea and covering the city like a veil made the whole world look creepy. But the atmosphere in the sitting room of the small house was cosy. Rachel Turner was lying on the soft carpet and reading her favourite book for the fifth time. But today she couldn't concentrate on the text. The rain disturbed her, and even the constant breath of her father, who was sitting on the sofa, reading today's newspapers, was a bit different than on other days.

Eventually she stood up, putting the book on the desk and walking to the window. She looked out and in some distance she could see a figure standing in the darkness. The figure wore a black coat and a strange hat on their head. And they were watching the house. Rachel was sure, as she could see the bright spot marking their face, but fog and rain didn't let her see details. The figure stood stock-still.

"Dad? Dad, come here, quick!" Rachel whispered without turning around.

Her father ran his hand through his jet-black hair, folding the newspaper. "What is it, Rachel?"

The girl turned around, hazel eyes meeting hazel ones. Rachel had often been told that she was the spitting image of her mother, only her eyes were her father's. In this moment her widened eyes looked frightened. "Look out there, there's somebody."

He went to the window and together they looked out and saw...no-one.

"Nobody's out there, love", her father reassured her.

"But-" She was sure that she had seen somebody. Suddenly the doorbell rang, Rachel winced.

"Jake?" It was Rachel's mother calling from the kitchen. "Who is this? We aren't waiting for somebody, are we?"

"No...I'll get it," he said and left for the front door. Her daughter followed him.

He opened the door slowly, letting in air that smelled like rain. It was completely dark outside, at first Rachel couldn't see who was standing in front doorway. As the stranger stepped through the door, some light floated through between Rachel and her father and the girl shrieked. It was a man in black robes, with a pointed hat on his head. He came directly out of the rain and was...dry. Not a single drop of water was to be seen on his clothes.

"Dad! This is the man who was watching our house!" Rachel shouted, alerted.

Her mother hurried out of the kitchen, her hands were wet, carrying a damp tea towel. "What has happened? Why did you yell, Rachel?" She also got a glimpse of the visitor and stopped irritated. "Jake...?"

Rachel's father turned to the stranger and raised his eyebrows questioningly.

"It's unusually cold outside for the end of July, don't you think?" It was a woman speaking, and as Rachel looked a bit closer, she really saw that this couldn't be a man. "I am Professor Wilhelmina Grubbly-Plank, and I'm the substitute teacher for Care of Magical Creatures at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Mr. and Mrs. Turner, it's a pleasure for me to inform you that your daughter Rachel has been accepted."

For an instance nobody said a word. Then Rachel's father cleared his throat. "Did you just say School for Witchcraft and Wizardry?"

"Yes, I did," the woman replied happily. Jake dropped his newspaper which he had still been holding in his hand. "Look, I've got the official letters here, including the booklist etc..." She looked in her robes for an envelope and handed it to Rachel's father. "You know, Mr. Turner-"

But Rachel's father cut in. "No, my name is Preston. Jake Preston. Agnes...," he pointed at Rachel's mother, "...and I aren't married." He ran his hand through his hair. Rachel knew that this was a sure sign that he was preoccupied. Then he opened the letters, eyeing the professor questioningly. She smiled in agreement, so he unfolded the pieces of parchment.

"Dad? Mum? What's in there?" Rachel wanted to know. Jake and Agnes read the letter with their heads put together, then they handed it to their daughter.

"Our daughter is a...witch?" Agnes asked, her voice shaking.

"Yes, yes, of course! You know, it's quite frequently that young witches and wizards are from a Muggle family..."

"Muggle?" Rachel cut in.

"Yes, Muggle." The professor smiled at her. "This is the non-magical community. People who don't have magical abilities. Like your parents, I suppose?"

"No, we don't have any...magical abilities," Agnes said.

"No, no...," Jake murmured quietly, running his hand again through his hair. He exchanged glances with Agnes, then shook his head and looked back at the professor.

"And you're also...?" he asked.

"Yes, yes, of course! I'm sorry, I'm doing this for the first time, I'm just the substitute, but yes, I'm a witch. We bring the first years from Muggle families their letters in person, just in case you have questions, and you do have some, don't you? Of course I can show you some things your daughter will learn, for instance simple levitating charms and so on. But why don't we sit down at first?"

Professor Grubbly-Plank had answered all of their questions. She had levitated a vase and conjured up flowers, putting them into the china. Now the sitting room smelled a bit like a flower shop. Rachel got more and more euphoric of being something special, and she was happy from the idea of learning how to do such wonderful things herself. Her parents had discussed for a few minutes, but eventually they had agreed.

Jake had been asleep for a long time, but Agnes was still awake, thinking about a certain part of the conversation with the professor. She had been talking about the use of a wand. Agnes had felt rather uncomfortably because she had a little secret, lying in a box on the attic, together with a few other things she had received on an evening in November nearly 15 years ago. She was thinking about it until she drifted off into sleep.

A little later Jake woke up. He had had a very confusing dream about a creepy green light, which he knew was not a dream but rather a memory. And a strange feeling remained; a feeling of happiness and worry at the same time. He thought that once he must have experienced this green light and those feelings, but he knew that it hadn't happened; he really didn't know when it should have happened.

He had a scar on his chest, which was the only thing that had remained from an accident nearly 15 years ago. In this night his scar tingled a little. He had never felt it tingle, but he was too concerned about his dream so he ignored his scar. Eventually he drifted back into sleep.

TBC.

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A/N: This was the end for today. Hehe, have I mentioned that I love suspension? And hey, don't complain, this even isn't a real cliffie! This was all about Rachel for now, we'll meet her again on 1 September. I just had to put this in here. Anyway, everything in this chapter happened on 30 July 1996, so I think you know what will happen in Chapter 6, don't you? . Extra-long chapter will come in a few days, I promise!

PLEASE REVIEW!