T-Person: Thanks for hanging in there.

Frogge2: Thanks for your cheery attitude throughout.

Ravestna: Thanks for the spell check;), and thanks for the review:)

Well, here it is, Chapter 64. I'm not very good at romance, but I just wrote how I felt. Probably a bit of a let down… sorry.

Chapter 64: Irritating Miss Mac Alistair

Harry had been flying for three hours, and was just now reaching the outskirts of the great Capital of London. From time to time he had caught a glimpse of a Wizard or Witch on a broom flying in the distance on some late night business. He thought it odd that they did not seem to fear running into You-Know-Who… or was it that they again no longer believed that he had come back? Harry thought. Maybe their back to believing that Harry was an insane nutter that was bound to go off killing someone, or even possibly had already done so to a fellow student. He thought. And what will Cho think when I finally see her? I've been accused of being a liar by the Ministry and Profit before, but never of being a… murder. She didn't believe them before, but will she believe me now? Please… let her believe me. Deeper and deeper into London Harry plunged, hovering now and then to hover, and read the map in his numb hands, he felt that he could barely breathe from the cold air hurting every piece of him, and yet despite this several other witches and wizards were out flying tonight as well. The closer he got to the City's center the denser the broom traffic became, until he could see hundreds of people zooming around on brooms left and right. One person flew close to Harry and gave him a nod, then appeared to do a double take, and attempted to get a better look at him, but before he could Harry dived down to an empty street. Harry finally landed in a dark alley off a slowly trafficked street. It was too dangerous to fly anymore he reckoned because there were too many people flying around up there who knew what Harry Potter looked like, and the Polly-juice potion had long worn off. He couldn't even catch the Night Bus if he still looked like Ron, as his wand had been taken away by Mr. Walsh. He would have to catch a taxi if he wanted to continue. Harry stepped out onto the street, still bitterly cold from his long flight. When were they going to learn a spell to heat brooms? Didn't broom makers know that speed wasn't everything? He thought rubbing his hands together. He hoped that he wouldn't get frost bite, how would he explain to Madam Pomfree if he had to go see her about it when he got back? Harry read the address of Wellington Hospital once more, and the put the parchment back in his rather inadequate coat jacket. He moved over to the side walk, having to wait a full ten minutes in the cold before he saw a cab coming towards him. He then quickly pulled out some of the money that Hermione had given him, and waved it in his hand so that it was clearly visible In the cabs headlights. The taxi came screeching to a halt right next to him, and the driver smiled at him from inside. Harry flung himself in the back seat, instantly hit by the rush of heat that felt so wonderful. The driver had had his car heater on full blast for some time now evidently, as the windows were not the least bit fogged up. Christmas music came from the car radio, and the driver looked back to him grinning.

"Where to governor?" he asked smiling. Harry handed him the parchment from his pocket, and pointed to the address that was written on it.

"T… t… take me to the closest hotel you can find to hospital." Harry said. The driver, nodded, and sped on his way. Twenty minutes later, Harry had given the driver payment and a decent gratuity, and was checked into the Knight's Inn, a four story comfortable hotel with cable TV, and a small, all hours café situated next to it. He had sat his wakeup call for eight in the morning, feeling that it was too late to try and locate Cho at the hospital as the time was now two twenty AM. Harry flung himself on one of the twin beds, and began reflecting on his relationship with Cho over the past two years.

If like Hermione said I, hadn't been so tactless on our first date then maybe… How long did we stay there in silence at Madam Puddenfoots? I don't know. Everyone around us was snogging, and I guess that she expected me to as well. I guess any other guy might have. I was nervous, and I couldn't look at her. Guess that was my first mistake ignoring her like that because of it. How long did I act like she wasn't there? Too long I guess, but I didn't know what to do. I just wasn't really up for snogging at the time, but I guess that it was a date and she was hoping for romance. Well I was a big let down. And then I got upset that she brought up Cedric, crying and pleading with me to talk about it. I know she was wrong to bring it up on a date, but I should have also realized that she was hurting, trying to open up to me about her grief, and I just didn't want to talk about it. But what would it have hurt to listen to her, to be there for her? Now that I think about it, I didn't seem to have a problem telling Rita Skitter every detail about what happened that day, and I don't even like her.

Now another year, and look how I've treated her .False accusations, yelling… a racist slur. She was hiding something, but what? I understand about her mum, and how she couldn't tell anyone about her, but what of the late night visits to the potions room? What of the earring in the bewitched room, or the invisibility cloak… wait, she said she didn't have one, but how did she get back to her tower without passing Ron and I? I deserve to know these things, but I suppose I've been tactless again in trying to obtain an answer. Well that's finished. I'm going to be there for her. I'm only going to say the things that I should have been saying all along… if she doesn't believe the things about me that the profit has been saying. The last time on the train platform, I told her I loved her… I meant it. I kissed her, and she kissed me back, but she didn't tell me that she loved me. "God Damn you Harry Potter, how could you do this to me now?" What did she mean? I've got to find out, if I have another chance, I'm not going to blow it. Harry crossed his fingers. Third time lucky, third times a charm. Well, let's hope so anyway. Harry's thoughts were interrupted as the double-decker bus pulled up to the station, its breaks hissing as it stopped. He collected his things and walked up to the door, moving aside as a few people stepped off. Finally Harry stepped into the bus and took a seat in the center by himself.

The next day found Harry walking through the front, sliding glass doors of Wellington Hospital, a pristine white multi-storied building in downtown London. The foray lay adjacent to the lifts that accessed the many offices, and departments on the upper levels. The foray was full of people in all manor of dress, from staff in their work casuals or scrubs, to various patients coming in wearing anything from formal tailored suits, to t-shirts, and jeans. Just inside Harry spotted an information desk where a young black haired woman was typing away on a keyboard behind a computer; her ID card read Elizabeth Mac Alistair; Information consultant. Harry walked over to the desk, and smiled at her, though he wasn't really sure if he felt happy or not. Part of him was jubilant that he was about to see Cho again, and he wondered if she would let him kiss her again, and part of him was afraid that this time she would believe the daily profit. It was turning his stomach in knots trying to decide how he felt about the situation.

"Can I help you?" The woman asked politely.

"Err… yes; I need to know which floor Dr. Cho Chang is on please?" He asked in a kind tone.

"Certainly sir, which department is he in?" she asked.

"Department? Oh… I don't know exactly, and Cho is a she." Harry said a bit taken aback at the question.

"Oh, sorry, well is she a general practitioner, or a cancer specialist, or something else, what is her specialty?" she asked.

"Well, I'm not quite sure… I don't really know what she does exactly." Harry said at a loss. The woman behind the information counter gave him a funny look.

"What are you going in to see her for, a cold, flu, physical?" she asked.

"I'm a friend, and I just came from Scotland to see her. I found out she was working here, but I don't know the department. Is there a way you can find out without knowing the particular department?" Harry asked. The nurse smiled and nodded.

"Well, you don't sound Scottish sir, but I can do a general search for you, it will just take a minute." She said politely.

"Thanks, actually I'm English like yourself, but I go to boarding school in Scotland you see." Harry said as the woman looked at her computer screen, and typed in some information.

"Type in search… Dr... Cho… Chang… scanning… and…" The woman stopped typing, and looked at a list of Doctors names running her finger down the screen looking at the names. Harry could barely make out the names from his position, but could see it was a list. The woman's face turned to a frown. "Well I'm sorry sir, but she isn't here." She said apologetically, and moved the mouse clicking off the page of names.

"What?! What do you mean not here?" Harry said in surprise. The woman looked up at him confused.

"I mean there is not Dr. Cho Chang working at the hospital. Are you sure you got the right one?" she asked. Harry nodded, but started to panic, he didn't have a lot of time to find her.

"Well… could you check again please?" He asked sincerely. "Maybe you didn't do it right." Harry said in a friendly tone, but realized to late the manner in which he phrased it.

"Excuse me?" The woman said offended. Harry put his hands before him palms out in a jester of apology.
"No wait, I didn't mean anything by that, I just meant that… well I'm sure she works here, and it's really important that I see her. Please could you look again, please?" Harry asked with a tone of desperation. The woman gave him a funny look, and then gave a deep sigh. She moved the mouse to the computer, and began typing again, saying the words out loud.

"Searching… Dr… Cho… Chang… scanning… and… she's not here sir." She said to him. Harry lowered his head in disappointment. He thanked the woman and walked over to a row of orange seats against the wall, flopping himself down. Harry closed his eyes, and sighed. He had felt so close. Had Hermione been wrong? He tried to think of what he was missing, what Cho might be doing if she wasn't a doctor. Suddenly in a flash it hit as Harry remembered another position that Cho might have, he stood back up and rushed over to the information desk again, where the woman had resumed typing on her keyboard.

"Excuse me miss…" Harry stared. She looked up at him surprised to see his return, and waited for his request.

"… but could you look up Head Nurse Cho Chang?" The woman gave a sigh, and shot Harry a contemptuous look.

"I thought that you said it was Dr. Cho Chang?" she said in a harsh tone. Harry lowered his head.

"Yes, I did, but I haven't talked to her in a while, and I didn't know her position exactly, I just assumed she would be a doctor. Look I'm sorry to bother, really, but it's very important that I find her. The woman begrudgingly nodded, moved the mouse, and began typing again, she moved the computer monitor with her hand to allow Harry to see it better, apparently so he couldn't say that she had made a mistake.

"Head… Nurse… Cho… Chang… searching… and… she's not here, see?" The woman said, pointing at the five names of the department heads, of which Cho's name did not appear. Harry was surprised that he was able to feel even more disappointed, he was sure that Cho would have been in an elevated position, but clearly the computer had shown that she was neither a doctor, nor a head nurse." Miss Mac Alistair stated.

"Well could you …check for just nurse? Maybe…" Harry started, but was cut off.

"Look! Do you know anything about your friend? I mean the only thing that you seem to know about her is her name, and I'm starting to get agitated with you. Now if I agree to look again will you stop pestering me?" The woman said in a scornful voice, throwing away any pretext of calm. Harry simply nodded his agreement. The woman typed in Cho's name again in a general search for nurses. Harry looked at the list on the monitor as the woman moved her finger down the screen and not finding any nurse Cho Chang. About to give up, he had one final thought. The reason that Cho had left Hogwarts in the first place, the one thing that drew her to Wellington hospital in the first place. He spun around to face the woman again.

"Sorry just one more thing..." Harry started. The woman rose out of her chair her face red, and her hands balled into fist.

"Yes?" she said through gritted teeth.

"… but could you look for a patient by the name of Chang?" The woman shot her arm forward, pointing a finger at the door.

"Piss off, or I'll call security, and have you tossed out on your arse!" Miss Mac Allister shouted. Harry gave a sigh, he had been to specific in his request for information, and he had been to sure of what Cho would be doing at the hospital. He now had to make this woman understand that he wasn't trying to be a prat, and that he was serious about finding out about anyone named Chang that was in the hospital. He turned to her again and spoke in the most honest and calm tone that he could muster.

"Please miss, I'm sorry that I'm not sure what to ask for. My ex-girlfriend whom I love more than anything else in the world is working here in London at a hospital, before she left Scotland I was a prick to her, and… I've been regretting it everyday since she has left. I don't know if she's Dr. Cho Chang, or head Nurse Cho Chang or whatever, but I know that my friend said that she took a job here to be with her mum who has cancer. I can't go back without talking to her, I have to see her one more time, and tell her that I'm sorry, and tell her that I might not be able to see her for a long time. I'm certain that if I could find out where her mum was, than I could wait for her. Than I could see her, and tell her I love her!" Harry pleaded. It seemed he had done more groveling in the last few minutes than he had in his entire life, but how much time did he have? How soon to find her before he went up for trial for a crime he didn't commit? The woman eyed him coldly, for a moment, and then her face softened.

"Look, judging by your age I can't see you having an ex-girlfriend being old enough to be a doctor or a Head Nurse, how old is she?" The woman asked sharply.

"Seventeen." Harry replied softly.

"And did you know that it takes years of University to be a doctor, or a Head Nurse?" she asked. Harry hung his head low, and sighed.

"No, I guess I just forgot. I'm not very familiar with the qualifications you need to work in a hospital" He stated in a defeated tone.

"Well, I'm sorry about your circumstances sir, but I cant give out patient information to non- family members, and there is no Dr. Cho Chang, Head Nurse Cho Chang, or any other nurse Cho Chang of any type working here for that matter…" The woman said in a tone more instructive than harsh. "Perhaps your friend who sent you was mistaken about the hospital she was working at… have you tried"

"Excuse me, did you say You were looking for Cho Chang?" Interrupted a pleasant voice from behind Harry. He turned to face a smiling, fit looking black woman in green hospital scrubs. She looked to be in her late twenties, and her ID badge read Carol Kenyetta Nurse: ICU.

"Yes do you know her?" Harry asked hopefully.

"I know her, she…" The woman started, but Harry cut her off quickly.

"Where is she!!" Harry blurted out. "Oh, I'm sorry; I'm just in a bit of a panic. It's terribly important." Harry apologized for his outburst. The woman smiled.

"No problem, I just saw her, she's on the fifth floor rehabilitation room cleaning up." The woman said cheerfully. Harry gave her a tight hug out of nowhere.

"Thank you, thank you sooo much." Harry said, and with that he shot out towards the other direction in a quick run. He skidded to a stop at the first lift and began clicking the up button repeatedly. Come on, come on, I'm so close... What did that nurse mean... cleaning up? He thought to himself. It seemed to take for ever for it to come down, and once the doors opened Harry rushed inside the empty space and pushed the fifth floor button. The lift rose up, and Harry watched the green digital floor numbers count up on the panel above, as classical music played from speakers behind him. So close, he thought to himself. The elevator doors opened and Harry rushed out, and quickly surveyed his surroundings. To his left he saw a nurse's station lit by florescent lights imbedded in the ceiling, and to his right a waiting room with large windows that brought in a blinding sun light, obscuring a figure in a brown uniform with long raven black hair, who was mopping the floor with their back to Harry. Harry walked to the nurse's station, where a woman who appeared to be in her sixties sat writing something in a folder. "Miss, I'm looking for Cho Chang, I was told that she was on this floor. Harry said his voice carrying a mixture of exasperation and elation. The woman stood up and leaned over the counter that separated her from Harry, pointing down the opposite way he had come.

"I believe I saw Miss Chang head down that way." The woman said cordially, and pointed down the hall. Harry thanked her and headed down the hall looking for Cho in each of the open rooms for Cho as he passed. Finally he thought he saw a glimpse of an almond eyed girl through a half closed door on the left, but as he entered he realized that it was another ethnically Asian nurse who only slightly resembled Cho, and spoke with a distinct English accent as opposed to a Scottish one. Harry continued down the corridor looking left and right into each opened door for Cho as he went. Finally as he neared the end of the corridor he had to squint to protect his eyes from the sunlight. Through the rays the figure of the janitor, pushing a trolley with a wastebasket and mop bucket resting on it walked slowly towards him. The figure walked towards him, still blurred by the sun rays pouring in behind the man. Closer the figure approached, and now Harry could make out that it was not a man, but the shapely figure of a woman walking, closer and Harry felt something familiar of the figure walking towards him, but the face was still obscured by the radiant beams filling the corridor from the oversize windows around her, giving the illusion that the light was coming from the woman herself. Harry was drawn suddenly to the figure by some hypnotic force that he didn't understand. Closer still and he could see the figure was wearing head phones, a CD player attached to her belt, and the figure was now more visible, and Harry could see she was actually a young girl. She was so close now that her features quickly came into view, button nose… olive completed skin… raven black hair… eternally sad, almond shaped eyes lowered to the floor, not yet aware of his presents. Cho! The very thought of the name shot through him with overwhelming joy, and he rushed at her with full speed.

"Cho!!!" Harry screamed with a tone that was far beyond ecstasy, and it blasted louder than the music she was listening to from her headphones.

Cho looked up at the last second, her eyes when wide with the shock of Harry Potter rushing her. She was tackled full force by a tight embrace that knocked the earphones from her head. Harry pressed his face against hers, for a long moment, his tears streaming from his eyes to her cheek. His body was trembling against her as their arms embraced each other, they each held tight as if holding on to a dream that might slip away, as if holding on for dear life itself. Harry soon felt tears on his face not his own, as Cho's tears merged with his own. Quickly they were both crying together, sniffing back fluids in their sinus. After a moment Harry pulled away to look into Cho's eyes, watery though they were, they seemed now less sad to him. She wiped her face with her sleeve, brushing away the river of saline, and tried to speak.

"Harry, what are ya… muumph!"

Harry tilted his head and pressed his lips against Cho's, not giving her a chance to finish her question. He moved his hands gently holding the back of her head with this left hand, whilst rubbing the small of her back with his right. It wasn't a moment for words; it was a moment for action. It was a moment for physical expression, to show her how he felt about her. Too many times words had failed him; too many times he had used the wrong words or expressed himself in a foolish manner with disastrous results. Harry's tong moved into Cho's mouth, and for a brief movement her eyes went wide with shock, and he feared that she might pull away, but a dazed look suddenly replaced it, her arms pulled him tighter, and her tong joined his in an enchanted twirling mutual massage. Neither of them knew how long they stood there kissing and hugging each other in a passionate frenzy and neither cared. Harry wanted to stay locked in that moment for all eternity, but eventually they would have to come up for air and Cho pulled her head away, and rested it against Harry's chest, closing her watery eyes.

"Harry, what are… how did you find me here?" Cho asked him quietly. There was no sound of regret in her voice, but it more had the tone of relief.

"It doesn't matter." He said gently to her. "I'm here now. How's your mum?"

Cho hesitated for an instant, and seemed to ponder weather to answer, but she responded in a weak tone that her mother had stabilized, but not gotten better. Harry felt deep empathy for Cho. What must it be like to have your mum suffer so much right in front of you? He thought. He hugged her tighter.

"Cho I have to talk to you about many important things. I have to tell you about… things that… can we talk now?" Harry asked running his hand through her raven black hair. Cho looked back in the direction that Harry had come, then to her trolley, then back to Harry.

My shift ends in three hours, then… I can meet you wherever you want. Harry released his arms from around Cho's waste, and pulled a piece of parchment and a quill from his pocket. He attempted to write something down, but the quill had no ink. He looked up at Cho." Do you know where I could find an ink bottle in this hospital?" He asked softly. Cho reached in her breast pocket, and pulled out a black and white plastic ballpoint pen. It didn't look as stylized as Harry's quill, but he knew that you didn't need an ink bottle to write with it. He took it from her, and started writing. When he finished, he handed the parchment to her. "This is the hotel where I'm staying, and the room number, but there's a small Café on the first floor. Meet me there. I'll be waiting for you in the corner booth." He said quietly. Cho nodded.

Harry put his hands on her shoulders, and looked deep into her eyes for a long moment.

"I meant what I said at the train station that day Cho… I love you." Harry said again. Cho tried to speak; she choked up at first, but after a moment composed herself. Breathing heavily, as if each intake of oxygen was a struggle, Cho looked up at Harry as more tears ran down her cheek. She lowered her eyes to the floor for a minute, and then looked up at Harry again. Her voice was shaky, but sincere, and as she spoke, Harry felt fresh tears of his own falling from his cheeks.

"I… love you too Harry."

"Three hours… then the Café?" Harry asked softly. Cho gave a slight smile, and nodded. Harry wanted to kiss her one more time, but knew if he did, he wouldn't be able to pull away from her again. He would have to wait the agonizing three hours for her to show up at the Café, but it would give him a chance to think about what to say, and what to ask… a chance to reflect on everything he wanted for her, for him, for the two of them together. But what was she doing wearing a janitors uniform .Harry pondered.

"Authors note: If anyone can get the chance you should buy the "Little Britain" series on DVD."