CHO CHANG'S EIGHTH YEAR
By monkeymouse
NB: JKRowling built the Potterverse; I'm just redecorating one of the rooms. And one of the great things about JKR telling the story from Harry's point of view is that stuff could be happening all over the wizarding world that Harry isn't aware of.
Rated: PG-13
Spoilers: Everything
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5. Auld Lang Syne
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The snow had started falling again when Cho took Penelope out of the house, down Diagon Alley, and out into Muggle London. Between the holiday and the rotten weather, Cho knew that they had almost no chance of hailing a taxi. Even if they did, she was nervous about who might be driving.
Mercifully, they hadn't far to go. Diagon Alley was within sound of St. James' cathedral bells and (on the worst days) within smell of the Thames, but Cho led Penelope just a few streets north to the West End. She went straight to a block of flats on Bolsover Street, stopped at an unmarked door, and knocked. Nothing happened at first. Cho knocked again.
"Maybe they're out celebrating," Penelope suggested.
"No, she would have mentioned it." Cho waited another minute as the snow kept falling, then raised her voice: "Happy New Year from the Captain!"
The door opened at once, although the corridor was dark and whoever opened the door stood behind it. "Get your arses in here, then," said a voice.
Once they were inside, a light came on. The apartment belonged to another Ravenclaw girl, Diana Fairweather. "Well!" Diana seemed mad at Cho, with her hands on her hips. "It's not as if you live three counties over; you could have visited before the year ended."
Cho stammered a bit, trying to reply, but Diana broke into a grin, grabbed Cho by the shoulders and kissed her on both cheeks. "Well, now you're here, but," she nodded toward Penelope, "you bring this troll's ear in with you."
"Sorry about that," Cho said, "but it was rather an emergency and I didn't dare try to reach you in advance."
"Well, hear all about it. Penelope, it's great to see you after all these years. I suppose we have you to thank for this reunion."
"In a manner of speaking," she smiled weakly.
"If you don't mind, there's a room upstairs: no windows, no hearth, no way for anyone to get in. Safe enough for a party, I reckon."
xxx
The three young women went to what seemed to be a guest bedroom. Diana Spelled up some butterbeer and Muggle beer. Cho took the former, explaining that she had to be able to concentrate.
"On what?" Diana asked.
"It's why Penelope's here. She came by my house; it's not my place to say why."
"I'll tell you, but not right now," Penelope said, as she took a small sip of beer.
"I suppose I can begin in the middle. While we were all talking, the door bursts open, and it's a couple of Death Eaters from the Ministry. They tried to take Penelope away, but my father made short work of them. Still, it was too dangerous for her to stay there. Someone else from the Ministry might come round looking."
"How would they know where?" Diana asked.
"Because," Cho stopped talking and started shivering. She put up one hand, as if to say, Leave me alone for a minute. Then she took a few deep breaths and calmed down. "Because I recognized them."
"From where, Hogwarts?"
"In a manner of speaking. I spent five years looking at their picture every single day. Diana, they were, well, they were the Fogglys; Libby's parents."
"You're still not working that turnip patch, are ye?" Diana said.
"Oh, they were real enough," Penelope said. "They tried to arrest me, for…"
"No need to say it," Diana interrupted. "I get it."
"But it was really them. I slept in the same dorm room as Libby, and she had a photo of them by her bed. I saw it every day for five years."
"Five?" Penelope asked.
Diana nodded in Cho's direction. "Right after the Tournament, Libby disappears. This one claimed she spoke with her."
"I did," Cho said, looking down at her drink. "This time, they rolled up their sleeves and showed off the Dark Mark. Libby showed me hers as well before she left. It was the time that You Know Who came back, so she said she was leaving Hogwarts to be with her parents."
After a minute's silence, Diana spoke up. "I still can't believe it. If they were Dark and all, what are you doing walking about instead of pushing up daisies?"
"My parents used Chinese magic on them. They had no idea what it was and couldn't counter it."
"What happened?"
Cho waited before speaking again. "I won't tell you. That way, if they trace us here, you can't tell anything."
"Meanwhile, I'm left holding onto the kit."
"Diana, just until morning, please. They might not yet be missed."
Penelope took a long draw on her beer. "This is all my fault. I can get out of it in the morning. It's just that my family's out of the country until then."
"No offense," Diana started, "but how can your Muggles stand up to…"
"Oh, I can cast the proper spells, right enough," she said. "It would just be easier if we were home." For Penelope Clearwater, "home" meant Cambridge University, where her Muggle parents were on the faculty.
"When are they getting in?"
"Around ten. There's always so much activity at Heathrow that we can get past the Death Eaters."
"And you're not worried about Snatchers, then," Diana asked.
Cho interrupted: "What are Snatchers?"
"Blimey, you've been under a rock or something. Well, the Ministry's let Magical Law Enforcement go completely to Hell, and a few nasties from Knockturn Alley have taken to kidnapping witches and wizards for fun and profit."
"Sometimes worse, from what I've heard," Penelope added with a shudder.
Diana went on: "They single out Muggle-borns because they know Minister Thickhead won't make a peep. They tried a couple of half-and-halfs…"
"Not you, I hope," Cho interrupted.
"Actually, I wish they'd muck about with me. Then they'd have to answer to my dear old dad. We halfsies are where their daft worship of Purebloods falls apart."
"Really? Wouldn't they get singled out as Blood Traitors?"
Diana looked at Cho curiously. "You have been under a rock. Well, they started to go that way at first, but a lot of Pureblood families have halfsies buried down in the family tree, and it's no fun picking on someone who's actually got some pull with the Ministry. To pretend the whole blood thing means anything, they have to create privilege, even if it chuffs them to do it. So they leave the halfsies be and call it a draw. They know nobody will protect the Muggleborns."
Cho looked at Penelope, and knew exactly what she was thinking. "It just shows that your blood's a thousand times better than his."
"Excuse me," Diana said, "but I seem to have left the password to this conversation in my other pants. Now, what are you on about?"
Penelope sighed. "Percy Weasley."
xxx
From there the talk went to boys and away from the Ministry. Diana didn't have a steady, and Penelope still couldn't let go of Percy, even though he seemed to have finally turned his back on her.
"For what it's worth," Diana was saying, "I don't know how much of that was really Percy talking. When's the last time you spoke with Percy's mum?"
"Used to do it all the time," Penelope sighed. "When Percy was refusing to see me, his mum would promise to get my letters to him. Of course, now I wonder if she ever did."
"Well, right now, Percy's her best chance, isn't he?"
"Best chance? For what?" Cho blurted out, a bit too loudly.
"Diana," Penelope began, "you don't mean…"
"I mean she's getting on and can't have no more nippers of her own. She wants to be Nana Weasley right quick, which won't be happenin' if she's seeing the sights of Azkaban. Am I right, Penny?"
Penny looked down at the bottle in her hands, and didn't say anything.
"I don't really know the Weasleys," Cho said tentatively. "I mean, I know what I've heard from Penelope…"
"Same here, and what I've heard is that Arthur Weasley has a big red target painted on his back. He's in Muggle Artifacts, which is a no-glamour portfolio; he's going to rise so high and no higher. Which is why Percy is suddenly marrying a Pureblood: to advance the family fortunes. It's clear his dad is in over his head."
Penelope shook her head. "There has to be some other way."
"Well, then, let's call the roll. Which one's the oldest?"
"Bill. Works for Gringotts; handles the magic, not the money. Wait; I suppose he's married now."
"To anyone we know?"
"Of all people, the Beauxbatons champion, Fleur Delacourt."
"Stop having us on, Cho," Diana chuckled.
"No, it's truth. It was in the Prophet; surprised me, too, but Luna confirmed it."
"Well, I wouldn't say much about Lovegood; that whole clan is a bit daft. Anyway, Molly Weasley won't be cooking much in that cauldron."
"It isn't really up to her, Diana, is it?"
"Think, Penelope; she's part veela. That makes her just as much a Magical Creature to the Ministry as one of Charlie's dragons. Not much hope there."
Penelope sniffled. "Next would be Charlie. Rather burly and handsome-built."
"And supposed to be a fair Seeker in his day," Cho added.
"Leave it to Captain Chang to remember that bit," Diana smiled. "But does he have a bird in the hand?"
"Only the kind with four claws and scales. He seems to prefer dragons to people."
"Who's next in the lineup?"
"Percy's next; leave him out of account. Then who?"
"The twins."
The word "Beaters" was out of Cho's mouth before she could stop herself. The other girls smiled at her as she went on: "But I understand one of them is seeing a Gryffindor Chaser, Angelina Johnson. Don't ask me which one's seeing her, though."
"You see where this is going, eh?" Diana asked rhetorically. "There's not gonna be a lot of ginger in the next century, is there, what with Bill and the veela, and Johnson with the twin. Who does that leave?"
"Ron, the Gryffindor Keeper. Last year he seemed to be having a bit with Lavender Brown, but that fell apart and he's probably back with…"
Diana raised one eyebrow. "Don't stop now, Cho."
"With Granger the Muggle-born."
"Bull's eye just got a little redder, I think."
"And the youngest is the only girl in the bunch, Ginny." Cho fell silent.
Penelope had to dip her head to try to look Cho in the eye; they both knew it was foolish. Penelope waited until Cho cracked a smile to ask, "What's the problem?"
"Nothing as big as yours," Cho smiled more broadly. "I just have this, well, interest…"
"In Harry Potter," Diana interrupted, "and you've done your usual splendid job of keeping it hidden. About as well as Harry disguised how he felt about you. You two did everything but put up placards in Diagon Alley."
"You did have a few months together," Penelope said to Cho softly. "If you don't mind my asking, how did it compare with Cedric?"
Cho's collar suddenly felt tight, but she didn't want to adjust it. "Honestly, that would be comparing honeybees to hippogriffs. And I have no idea about what would have happened if Cedric lived. Things are as they are. But I miss Harry," Cho sighed. "I miss him terribly."
"Yeah, well, last spring he moved on to Ginny, and you can bet Mama Weasley is going to make that the feather in her cap."
"Not as long as he's Undesirable Number One," Penelope replied. "Besides, what business is it of hers?"
Diana grabbed another bottle of beer. "Are you forgettin' she was your ally until Muggleborns got put on a list?" She opened the bottle, but spilled some on the rug. "Oh damn. Scourgifry."
The wet spot caught fire. Amid much laughter they finally put out the fire, repaired the rug and cleaned the mess. But by then it was three a.m. They all agreed that they needed some sleep.
"Wait," Cho said. "Shouldn't one of us keep watch?"
"No need," Diana said, her voice a bit slurred. "My da put wards around this whole apartment block. It would take the Ministry's worst wizards a day to undo them. Let's just kip it now, then get Penelope to Heathrow."
xxx
To be continued in part 6, wherein Cho becomes a Healer with only one patient…