~*~Of Our Magic Past~*~Chapter 2: New Girl part 2~*~ (Cho was the first "new girl" and Jade's the second)
Of course I don't own this thing. Wish I did though.
Somewhere in England…
A house in ruins. Total darkness. "What will we do now?" a small voice whispered.
"Our first priority is to restore our mistress," a stern voice announced.
"Sister, we need to think how to protect her at the same time," a calm voice said. She was one of the few who held the light.
"I suggest we hide the mistress while we nurse her to health," another proposed.
"But the elders are already worried about her. They will need to find her soon," another added.
"But if *HE* finds our mistress, he'll kill her for sure," a worried voice said.
"A false Mistress will be in her place while the genuine one heals," the stern one decided.
"But who will pose as Mistress?" a female voice questioned. Everyone turned to the girl. She could look like their Mistress.
"You will, but don't worry," one of the girl's siblings said. "I'll help you."
"We'll all help. Meanwhile, Mistress will be in with us, where no one can hurt her. Not even *him*," the calm one said.
"You'll help me?" the girl asked quietly. Everyone gave his or her agreement. "And you'll follow my orders?" she asked her older brother and sisters.
"As long as it's for a good reason," a new voice said. The guardians.
They all gasped. The one who held the power of the moon smiled, but it was neither for happiness nor for sadness. "We'll consent to your plan. But Kagami," he said to the Masquerading Mistress, "No fooling around this time. One slip, and the others will see through our facade."
"Let us begin," the moon guardian said. "Mirror," he said using the name of the poser, "Stay on the side. We will bind the others into the key."
"Good Luck, Mirror," the Sun Guardian said before the other cards vanished into the key.
Mirror changed herself to look like her mistress. She fingered the key around her neck. "Get well, mistress," she said. "I'll do what I can before Voldermort can change destiny. I must not let this all to go in vain." The card form vanished.
~*~Harry's Flashback~*~
"Somebody…help…please…" Harry heard her voice say telepathically. Harry watched in horror as Cho slipped of her broom and plummeted downwards.
Harry wildly looked around. The game was past done and people were leaving. It was up to him. He didn't think about using his wand. He only thought about Cho.
Racing to the other side of the Quidditch field on his Firebolt, Harry felt dread pouring into his stomach as Cho could reach her instant death. "Faster!" Harry murmured to his broom. He would not let Cho die without him to stop it.
Harry swooped down and grazed the ground. He caught Cho's small figure in his arms ^_^May I interrupt: KAWAII!^_^ and steadied the new weight by standing on the firm ground.
Cho's eyes were still closed and she looked as if she was in pain. "Make it stop! Please! Too many voices…too many thoughts… SHUT UP!"
Harry was surprised he heard Cho speak another language, but was alarmed when he heard Cho shout her last words in English.
"ARGH!" Cho cursed as her tears silently slipped down her cheeks. Her head was in pain. "Must gain control…" she said, kneeling on the grass.
"Harry!" a new voice called. Harry turned to see Dumbledore, Ron, and Hermione. "Move, Harry," Dumbledore commanded.
"Dumbledore…" Harry started to say but suddenly he was struck unconscious in the head.
~*~
"Oh, he's up!" a voice cheerfully said.
"No he isn't! Look, Harry's still sleeping," another voice insisted. Ron.
"Believe me, I know. He's awake. He's just getting used to his surroundings," Cho said.
Harry's eyes fluttered open. "What happened?" he said.
"See, Cho was right!" Hermione cheered. "Never doubt the telepath."
"What happened?" Harry said louder right before he received a headache.
"Ms. Granger and Mr. Weasley, may I ask that you please step out for a moment? The aftermath from the attack is affecting Harry," Dumbledore said.
When the two left, Harry's headache receded. Cho said, "I'm sorry Harry. Your head feels like it's jumbled because my attack accidentally hit you."
"You mean it was you who hit me?" Harry said, shocked.
"I'm really sorry. My powers were getting out of control and I couldn't handle it. Dumbledore tried to get you out of range, but I couldn't hold onto my powers and I let go before you moved."
"What happened?" Harry asked.
"I was doing too many things at once," Cho said quietly. "I speaking telepathically long-range with my brother, trying to keep control over my new powers, and trying to stay focused on the Quidditch game. It came too much to handle."
"How were you able to help Cho if you were on the other side of the field, Harry?" Dumbledore asked.
"I heard voices in my head," Harry answered. "A faint male's voice, Cho's voice, and then…"
"Voldemort. He contacted me again," Cho said quietly to Dumbledore.
"You mean you've talked to him before?" Harry asked.
Cho sighed. "With my powers, he just wants me to join his forces." Dumbledore raised an eyebrow at Cho.
"What language were you talking before I passed out?"
Cho looked surprised. "You understood me? I was talking Japanese."
~*~ End of Flashback~*~
"Morning to you, mate," Ron said behind Harry. They were walking to the Great Hall from their common room.
"Seems like we're the only students staying over break," Harry said.
"WATCH OUT!" a voice shouted as the two walked through the doors. The warning came too late, and Ron and Harry were covered with cold, white snow.
"I guess we're not alone," Ron said.
Ginny ran up to them. "I tried to warn you," she teased. With a simple spell, the snow disappeared.
"It's not my fault they were there," Hermione defended herself, appearing next to Harry. "You said you wanted snow, so I just teleported snow from outside to inside."
"What are you doing here?" Harry managed to say.
"Oh, we were decorating the Great Hall before breakfast," Ginny said.
"You should really see Cho's artwork," Hermione said, pointing to a Christmas village scene. "It's so amazing, it's almost real."
Ginny giggled. "The arts are in Cho's genes. It runs in the family."
"Oh yeah, her mother runs Taylor Fashions, right?"
~*~flashback~*~
"What do I do? What do I do?" Cho was pacing in front of the portrait to the Gryffindor room and muttering to the Fat Lady. "I mean, if I tell her, the truth will crush her. I want to spare her. She shouldn't know about it."
"My dear, I may not know what you are doing, but if she, or whoever you are talking about, has the right to know," the Fat Lady commented.
"What are you doing here?" Harry asked Cho.
"Oh Harry!" Cho turned around to face him. "Tellmehonestlyifyouhadtotelsomeonesomethingwouldyoudoiteventhroughthatpersonwillbereallysad…" she was saying this in a rush, and was totally not making sense.
"What she is saying, dear, is that if you had to pass on the bad news to someone, would you do it, even if you knew how it would impact your friend?" the Fat Lady improvised.
"That's what I was saying!" Cho snapped. Obviously her patience was short then. She turned to Harry. "So what would you do? Tell your friend or not?"
"I would…um…tell my friend the news," Harry answered.
Cho thought about it for a minute, then turned to face the Fat Lady. "Okay, I'll tell her. Quidditch Cup," she said the password. [Yes, I know, bad password]
As they went through the portrait hole, Cho said, "Don't worry, this is the first time I've been in a different house." Then she stopped.
Ahead of them was Ginny, sobbing quietly, and being comforted by Hermione and Ron.
"Ginny," Cho said wide-eyed.
Ginny broke through her brother and his girlfriend and ran to Cho. "You were talking about me, weren't you?" she said, tears falling down her cheeks.
Cho embraced Ginny tightly and said softly, "I didn't mean for you to find out like this, Ginny."
~*~
"Why is Ginny crying?" Ron demanded. Ginny stopped crying minutes ago, and now the five of them were sitting near the fire.
"Ginny, you got me soaked," Cho joked. Ginny smiled a bit. Cho waved her hands over her clothes, and soon they were changed. Her clothes had been changed to light red-brown skirt that reached a below her knees and a red top. The skirt had a black wolf howling at the moon and the top had green vines running across the top. ^-^Not your usual Tomoyo-made clothes, but what the heck. I'm not Tomoyo^-^
"That outfit…I saw that in a catalog of Taylor Fashions. They are a huge muggle clothing store," Hermione explained. "How'd you get that expensive one?"
"Mrs. Chang is the manager of the company," Ginny softly said.
"The designer made it in honor of Ginny," Cho said equally soft. "The red represents her, and the wolf represents…"
"Xiao-lang Li," Ginny said sadly.
Cho sat across from Ginny. "Xiao-lang is Ginny's boyfriend…and my younger cousin." She glanced at the older trio. "Remember something I said when we were with Malfoy?"
They nodded. "Please don't tell Ginny about Voldemort attacking my family."
"Ginny," Cho started to say. "I received a letter from my brother."
"It's bad news about Xiao-lang right? I could hear from outside," Ginny sniffed.
Cho nodded as she took a piece of paper from her pocket. "It was written in Chinese, so I had to translate it." She cleared her throat.
Dear Ginny and Ying Fa,
Cho made a face. "I hate it when he calls me by my real name."
Ginny smiled. "But I like it. It's sweet."
Dear Ginny and Ying Fa,
The worst has happened. The deadline is passed and now they are declared dead. Halloween was weeks ago… and they are still not found. Ying Fa, you have not told young Ginny the reason we have not let her see our cousin during the last weeks of the summer, so this shall speak for itself.
Virginia Weasley, one day you had wandered off and found yourself in the house of Kaho Mizuki. There you managed to meet your fellow schoolmate Cho and her family and friends, and in the process meeting the one whom you are destined to, Xiao-lang Li. Then we stopped welcoming you.
We knew he was coming. I had foreseen it and Xiao-lang agreed with me. For your safety, Ginny, we pushed you away. We were anxious, for his attack to be over and done with, and we were ready. His arrival was not put up without a fight, a fight in which we have won. Except in ways we had lost.
Everyone was there, Ginny, even they knew of the danger. The three wolves, the mothers and the fathers. The caring aunts, the guardians, and the priestess. The uncles, the grandfather, and the grandmother. And of course, the cousins.
Now that he has left, Kaho's grand mansion stands in ruins. The first four to stand again were Cho, mother, the calm aunt, and the priestess. Intent on finding the rest, Cho gave up her first day back to school. Mother sent her to school the following day.
Now we know for certain that the Chang family is gone. Three aunts and one uncle died protecting their elders. The elders are all alive but quite shaken up. The guardians happen to be alive. Three graduates are now reunited with old friends. But one family has no trace whatsoever. The one family we care about the most.
They shall be honored, protecting the rest of us to keep us alive. The powerful Card Mistress. The stubborn Li clan leader. The beautiful young daughter. And the young wolf.
It pains me to write this letter to tell you the truth about the people you care. And Ying Fa, it saddens me that you were correct. Unfortunately, it's too late. I will never be able to tell her how I feel. If this is how I feel, we three must share equal pain. But remember this, we must not dwell in the past. What they have sacrificed for us must not go in vain. Voldemort will never win.
With saddened grief and love,
Your dear oni-chan
Ginny's head was bowed, and the trio was filled with grief. Voldermort had destroyed their house and killed people close to Cho and Ginny.
Cho spoke first. "You should go to bed, Ginny."
Ginny nodded and looked up to Cho. "If you want to talk," she said quietly, "I'm always free." The she stood and silently walked the steps to her room. She cried herself to sleep that night.
When Ginny left, Ron said, "You want to tell us something," to Cho.
Cho made a deep, long sigh. "Yes. There are people who you know that died because of Voldermort."
That surprised the three of them.
She looked down on the sheaf of paper. "'Three graduates are now reunited with old friends,' " she recited and then looked up. "My brother means that three Hogwarts graduates have joined their old friends in eternal peace. To be more specific, their 'old friends' are Lily and James Potter."
Harry's eyes widened. Three friends of his parents died by the Dark Lord.
"'Three wolves…' " Cho mused. "One of these three is a graduate. Xiao-lang is one wolf. Xiao-lang means 'little wolf' in Chinese. My cousin was named after his father, Syaoran…"
"Which means 'little wolf' in Japanese," Hermione said. "The second wolf."
"The third wolf is someone we all know," Cho said in a dead voice.
Something dawned on Ron. "Professor Lupin!" Harry felt his heart drop.
Cho nodded solemnly. "You never got to know him very well," she said softly to Harry. "You didn't even learn that he was engaged to another Hogwarts student named Rhea Silver. The last graduate is Narcissa Malfoy."
Remus Lupin, Rhea Silver, and Narcissa Malfoy.
"Well, good then," Ron said, having the natural tendency to hate Malfoys.
Cho looked at him sharply. "Don't say that. Aunt Narcissa was the only thing between Lucious Malfoy and his son."
"What did she do?" Hermione asked quietly.
"Mr. and Mrs. Malfoy have been fighting for several years." Cho sighed. "Malfoys have set engagements before a child is born. Draco was betrothed to a distant cousin by the age of five. But when a school didn't accept her, Lucious made the point that Draco was not going to marry a squib and chose another fiancée for him. Except…"
"Malfoy liked her," a surprised Hermione assumed.
"By the age of 15, Malfoy has to renew the promise of their engagement to the one his father liked. Fortunately, Aunt Narcissa jumped in and postponed the engagement."
"Why was she at your house, anyway?" Harry asked.
"At age 15 new Death Eaters are recruited," Cho explained. "Aunt Narcissa prevented her son from joining, and her husband became so angry with her that he locked her out of their estate. And told her to never come back."
"So she came to your family…are they really close?" Hermione questioned.
Cho smiled a bit and said, "Narcissa's one of the few 'nice Slytherins'."
"So, with Malfoy's mother dead, he'll become a Death Eater soon?" Ron said.
Her smile dropped. "Not if he goes home."
~*~End Flashback~*~
Across the Great Hall were two people chatting and eating their breakfast. It was Cho and Professor Moon. Or more like Eriol was doing all the talking.
'This conversation is not exactly going the way I planned…I don't need to know the things he's talking about…I want to know several things without spilling all my secrets…I better steer him the correct way,' the girl thought.
"Eriol-san, are you married?" Cho asked, purposely looking at his left hand.
"Huh?" the teacher stopped ranting off and looked at Cho.
"That ring…amethyst twined with sapphire…very unusual," she commented.
"Hmmm," Eriol said, sending a sad, loving look at his wedding ring.
"Who's the amethyst?" Cho inquired.
"Excuse me?"
"The jewels of the ring must represent the two of you. You must be the sapphire, since your eyes are similar to the gem. Who stands for the amethyst?"
"Tomoyo Daidouji," Eriol sighed. "Someone who I haven't seen for years."
"The owner of Daidouji Toys? And friend of the Li clan?"
"You know of her?" a surprised Eriol had said.
"Not very well since she's on good terms with the Li clan," Cho lied between her teeth. "The Changs and the Lis never get along well." '
"Oh," was his response.
'Things are definitely are not going the way I planned!' an annoyed Cho thought. "You haven't seen her for quite a while? You became divorced?"
He shook his head. "Iie."
'But I already knew that you aren't divorced.' Cho angrily thought. What was the point talking to him, if he wasn't giving her answers? 'Ni-chan will tease me endlessly if I don't find out something.' "So what happened to your marriage?" she spoke aloud.
Eriol sighed. Thinking about her and what he had done brought painful memories for him. But Cho was someone he could trust. 'She's intelligent, sly, mysterious…she reminds so much of Tomoyo.'
Cho inwardly grinned. Because she was a telepath, she could read her professor's mind without him noticing it. 'We're getting somewhere…' "She left you for another man and you became heartbroken?" she pushed on.
"No!" Eriol burst out. 'More like the other way around…in a different way.'
"So what then?" Cho said, irritated. True, she could just shift around in his thoughts, digging up what she wanted, but it just didn't feel right. Besides, what was in the fun without a little torture?
Eriol turned serious on her. "I was the one who left her…not for another woman; I could never do that to her. I was just…keeping her safe. I was given a tip that the Dark Lord was after me, so I fled so she would stay alive. Then between the time he was defeated and the time he came back, I didn't know what to do. I was…afraid. I didn't was to see how badly I hurt her when I left. But now he's back, so I can't return…yet."
Relief filled Cho. "That's so sweet," she said, her gaze softening. 'Finally, the one thing I only wanted to find out.'
~*~Later, after Breakfast~*~
"I thought we would be the only ones here," Ron said.
"There is a project for two prefects who can speak Japanese. We have to take care of someone. Everyone except Professor Moon has left Hogwarts for the vacation. Dumbledore will be coming in and out," Hermione explained.
"That takes care of you and Cho," Harry said. "What about Ginny?"
Ginny got a sad look in her eyes. "Mum was going to pay her respects to the demolished house of Ms. Mizuki. I'm…just not ready to go yet."
Ron looked at his younger sister carefully while Cho said, "It's not good to keep thinking about the past, Ginny. My brother already said that."
Ginny raised an eyebrow. "You know, you have no right to say that."
Cho turned to Ginny with an innocent look. "I'm only quoting my brother."
The five of them were walking to the hospital wing, where the two prefects were supposed to find the person who they were supposed to take care of.
"We're here," Hermione said, unlocking the door. Inside revealed a girl lying on the bed unconscious, her black curls spilling on her pillow. Ginny inhaled sharply.
Cho frowned. "Dumbledore or Professor McGonagall should at least have the decency to change her clothers." The girl's dress was battered and worn, covered with dust. Looking closer, you would have seen that this dress was made by a professional designer, for its intricate designs of stars and flowers were remarkable. But, you couldn't tell anyway.
Looking at the boys, Ginny said, "Get out for awhile. We're going to change her clothes." The two males backed out.
While Cho created clothes suitable for the girl, Hermione removed her clothes and tossed it to Ginny.
Ginny checked the tag. "Daidouji Designs…" she said aloud.
Cho sent a wary look to her and said, "Throw it away. It isn't any good now."
Hermione spoke up. "This girl has a strange necklace," she said, unclasping the chain.
The girl sat up with her eyes wide open. "Okaa-san! Otou-san!"
Hermione passed the necklace to Cho after setting the girl back down on her pillows. "She's in a trance somehow. Her green eyes are blank."
"Something must have happened to her for her to say that in her trance," Cho said passing the clothes she created to Hermione. "A green jade star…" she murmured, inspecting the necklace. "And the words 'Jade Rose' in characters."
"Green jade is the rarest kind," Ginny piped up. "And she speaks Japanese, calling out to her parents like that."
"You understand Japanese?" Hermione said, surprised.
Ginny smiled, walking up to Hermione. "The language border between Xiao-lang and I…was easily broken." Inspecting the clothes that Cho handed to Hermione, she said, "Taylor Fashions, Cho? More clothes from your mother?"
"Why not?" Cho defended herself as Hermione put the clothes on the girl.
The boys came in, and Cho put the chain necklace back on. The girl sat up again. "Eli-kun!" she cried out. Fresh tears fell from her emerald orbs. On instinct, Cho reached out and hugged her. She instantly calmed down.
"Oy, that was strange," Ron said.
"She does that whenever we touch her necklace," Ginny explained.
Setting her back on her bed, Cho said, "Let's call her Jade."
AN: Yes, Naoko did marry a Chang…one reason why there was a rift between the Changs and Lis. Oh, and since Cho's mother has a lot of friends, it's easier for her to call them 'Aunts' (for example: Sakura would be Oba-san Sakura) or like -san, (Sakura-san) okay? And since she calls them aunts, their children are called her cousins, ne?