A/N: Hi everyone. As you can see, I haven't forgot this story. I was just going through a huge block when it came to writing it and I'm not sure if it's over yet. I wanted to delete it and forget I had even started it, but that wouldn't be fair for the people who like this story, ight? So here is the Chapter 11. Considering how hard it was for me to write it, it didn't go out that bad. I hope you'll like it. The good news is after this, the story will be faster (it's not that long, by the way.) So, forgive me for the long, long, update.
Special thanks to all the people who has e-mailed me or left me reviews nagging me to continue this. And to Kris, who offered her help with this chapter. She even took time to correct the grammar mistakes. *Hugs to Kris*
Chapter 11- The Storm After the Calm
When I woke up the next morning, I felt wonderful. It was as if every problem in the world had faded and now there was only happiness. Sure, Harry and I hadn't even talked about what was bothering us (because I know he was, and is, hiding something), but at least there wasn't any doubt that our love was as strong as ever. With that, we couldn't be going wrong.
Harry's arms were tightly wrapped around me and I could feel his soft breathing in the back of my neck. I looked lazily at the clock on his nighttable. It was almost 8 in the morning. I rubbed my eyes.
"Harry," I said.
He buried his face deeper in my hair and mumbled something.
"Harry," I repeated, smiling to myself.
"Mmmm?"
"We have to get up."
"No," he protested and his grip around me tightened.
"Yes, you have practice and I have to work," I informed him, trying to keep my voice in a bossy tone, but it wasn't easy when all I wanted to do was kiss him.
"Can't we call in sick?" he asked, his voice muffled. I couldn't see his face, but I was sure his eyes were still closed.
"We could, but then Oliver would come here and dragged you out of the apartment, you know that. Being sick is not an excuse to miss a Chudley Cannons practice, specially not when you have to face Puddlemere this Saturday. And Mr. Weasley would get worried and-"
"Alright, point taken," he chuckled, and he backed a way a little, giving me space to turn around and face him. "Can't we just stay like this just a little longer?" he asked, pouting.
"No," I said, kissing him quickly and getting off the bed, "because if we do, then I'm sure we won't be able to get up at all."
"Fine!" he said, getting up too. "I'll go and take a shower then."
"I'll make some breakfast... And don't you dare say anything about that!" I warned him.
"I wasn't going to," he said, walking towards the bathroom. He closed the door behind him, and two seconds later popped his head out. "Hermione?"
"Yes?"
"Don't burn my kitchen, please," he smirked and closed the door quickly to avoid my wrath.
Despite myself, I laughed and went to the kitchen. I gave food to Aquiles, and then I put some water to boil. The mail had been left on the kitchen table. I scanned the envelopes quickly. Bills, fan letters, one from Sirius, and the Daily Prophet, which was actually directed to me. Harry wasn't subscribed, because he usually read mine. Below everything, was another newspaper. I looked at the title with surprise. It was "Whiz in the Spot", a really unworthy tabloid which based all its information in what the "Celebrities" in the Wizardring World did, and most of the things they said were a lie anyway. It was hardly something I would ever even look at, and I was positively sure that Harry would never subscribe to such a newspaper, especially considering that he was more likely to be in a lot of its articles.
My first thought was that it probably had been a mistake. Maybe the owl had mistaken the adress... That until the Head Title in the first page caught my eye.
HARRY POTTER: NEW ROMANCE ON THE HORIZON? By Cassandra Miller.
I rolled my eyes. Over the years, I have gotten used to the press making up romances for Harry, considering he didn't have a steady girlfriend. But one would have thought that since I had come into picture, they could be a little more respectful. Then again, journalists (if they could be called that) in that magazine probably didn't care about that. They didn't even know how to write an article, for that matter.
I would have thrown the newspaper into the trash if it hadn't been for the picture that was below.
I blinked a few times, thinking I wasn't seeing correctly. For a moment, I thought I saw Harry sitting with Cho Chang in some restaurant, laughing heartily, while she leaned forward to whisper something to him.
Maybe I should get glasses?
But no, it wasn't my imagination, and my sight was as good as ever. That was exactly what the picture showed. I stared at it in disbelief. But then I brushed away all the thoughts that were coming to my head. So what if they were eating together? They were team mates. I sometimes have lunch with the guys in my office. Of course, none of them is like Cho Chang.
Cursing myself for letting a magazine like that catch my attention, I started reading the article that followed the picture.
The Boy Who Lived and Star Seeker of the Chudley Cannons (oh, that's an original way to start an article about Harry) is also well known for being extremely reserved with his love life. There have been many speculations about several relationships, but the only one confirmed by himself so far has been the one he shares with Hermione Granger. (And here comes a brief description of myself, where I work, how Harry and I have been best friends since school, hints about our relationship in the past, etc. Nothing I've never read before). But, as our special reporters were able to find out, it seems that the so-called "perfect couple" could be over.
About a year ago, there were rumors about an engagement between Potter and Granger, but so far, nothing has happened. And it seems that our favorite Quidditch player has found a replacement for Hermione Granger in Cho Chang, the new chaser of the CC, who also happens to be Harry Potter's first girlfriend, back in their Hogwarts time.
Cho Chang and Harry Potter seem to share more than their mutual like for Quidditch. Potter has been seen coming out of Chang's flat in London. A close source to both of them said: "Harry is absolutely nuts for Cho. She's all he ever wanted. I think they make a great couple." Another source told us: "Hermione and Harry have been having a lot of troubles lately, and most of them are because of Cho."
I read the rest of the article with a frown. There were a lot of statements from "anonymous" sources, and three pages of a lousy investigation about Harry's love life and his relationship with Cho and myself. Normally, this wouldn't have upset me. It was stupid to even think in believing this junk. But the fact that it was Cho Chang who was mentioned bugged me. Still, I would have laughed if I hadn't read the lines below the picture with Harry and Cho.
This photograph was taken Friday 29th, August 2006.
I'm proud of my good memory, and the date ringed a bell in less than a second. That day was when I finished the inventory and went to look for Harry in the Canon's Pitch. He wasn't there and he had told me he had been with Ron. I knew he had lied to me about that... And finding out he had actually been with Cho, was not at all comforting.
"I hope you cooked something decent because I'm starving," I heard Harry's voice approaching to the kitchen. Two seconds later he came in with wet hair and a big smile that disappeared in a flash when he saw the table wasn't set and the look on my face.
"Something wrong?" he asked.
I threw the newspaper at him and he caught it in mid air, staring at me confusedly. After a second of hesitation, he looked at it. His eyes widened, then he frowned and his lips became a smirk.
"What a piece of crap," he said, shaking his head and leaving the newspaper on the table. "I can't believe you spend money in this stuff, Herm-"
"I didn't. It arrived along with the mail."
"Oh," he said, looking confused at the cold tone of my voice. He sat in front of me and grabbed my hand. "I suppose... You don't believe it."
I withdrew my hand and stood up. "You lied to me," I accused.
"What? What are you talking about?"
"You said you were with Ron."
He stood up with his mouth slightly open. "I really don't know what-"
"That day I went to look for you to the Pitch," I interrupted. "You weren't there. I asked you and you said you had had lunch with Ron." He remained silent. "I knew it wasn't true, because Ron had been with Liz. But still, I didn't say anything because I thought that if you had lied to me there had to be a good reason."
He looked startled. He cleared his throat a couple of times and approached to me slowly. "I'm sorry about that. I didn't mean to lie to you... There is a good reason."
"Really," I said, glaring at him. "I suppose sharing some time alone with Cho Chang is a good reason to you."
He frowned. "No, you're mistaking everything."
"Then why don't you explain it to me, because I don't understand!" I said, raising my voice.
"You're jealous of Cho?" he asked, as if the mere idea was the funniest thing in the world.
"That's not the point!" I spat. "Who said I was jealous? I'm angry because you lied..."
"I told you there's a good reason for that!" he exclaimed.
"Then tell me what it is!"
He fell silent and scratched the back of his head. I waited with my arms crossed for an answer. A whole minute passed. Finally, he looked at me with a hesitating expression.
"I can't."
Now I was angry.
"You can't. Wonderful! You don't need to say anything else, Harry, it's all perfectly clear to me now-"
"It's not like that," he cut me off. "I can't tell you now."
"Oh, that's fine!" I said, sarcastically. "Let's schedule some time when you can, shall we? Let's see in your agenda... Maybe you can give me a date when it doesn't bother your meetings with Cho Chang!"
"Hermione, you're being unreasonable," he sighed. I could see in his eyes that he was concerned, though.
"It's late, I have work to do," I said, storming out of the kitchen and grabbing my purse. He followed me to the living room.
"Wait, let's talk about this," he was saying. "Don't leave like that-"
I didn't hear anything else and I shut the door behind me. I went immediately inside my apartment. I was so mad! I felt stupid, feeling all happy because of what had happened last night... I actually thought that all our troubles were over. I took a quick shower and left for the Ministry, where I locked myself in my office and gave instructions to my secretary to not let anyone in.
* * *
"Weasley! You can't be here! We are playing against you this Saturday, I won't let you spy on us!" yelled Wood, trying to stop Ron from moving forward.
"Sod off, Oliver. Why would I want to spy on you? I pretty much already know all your strategies. This isn't the first time I come here, you know?"
"So you've been spying on us!!" accused Oliver, outraged.
Ron rolled his eyes. He really didn't have time for this. He had his own training to do. He was only there because Liz had told him to go and check on Harry. Apparently, she had seen something that had worried her in one of those crappy tabloids she liked to read (he would never understand how his wife could like to read that kind of stuff. Hmmm, maybe because she had inherited the gossip side of her mother). She hadn't even told him what it said!
He spotted Harry flying a few feet away from them. One look at him, and Ron could tell something had happened. He looked down and deep in thought and didn't seem to care about the Snitch, which was fluttering around him, angry for the lack of attention the Seeker was giving her. Ron sighed. If Harry had a problem that Quidditch couldn't put out of his mind for a while, it had to do with Hermione.
He passed by Oliver, who was still yelling at him and waved to Harry. He saw him and landed immediately.
"Potter, get back up there now! We have an important match coming soon!" Oliver ordered, glaring at Ron.
"Just a minute, Oliver," Harry said tiredly. He turned to Ron. "I take it you read that article too, right? Or did you talk to Hermione?"
"Neither. Liz told me to come and check on you. What is it? Are you guys having trouble again?"
Harry sighed and led Ron a little afar from Oliver's stare and the rest of the team. He sat on the grass and Ron followed. He told him what had happened in the morning.
"You told her you were having lunch with me, but you were with Cho?" Ron asked, shaking his head.
"No! That's not why I told her that! I was buying the engagement ring. I just ran into Cho and we had lunch together. I didn't even remember that until I saw the picture today."
"And what does she say about this?"
"I already told you, Hermione is-"
"No, I mean Cho."
Harry gave him a puzzled look. "I don't know, I haven't talked to her. Why should she say anything, anyway? That article was pure crap. Hermione would think so too if I hadn't told her I was with you."
"Why didn't you just tell her the truth? It would have been a nice opportunity to propose."
"I couldn't ask her then, Ron. She was looking at me as if she wanted to kill me."
"She would have changed her expression once you told her what were you really doing."
"I already told you, I want this proposal to be perfect. There wasn't a good atmosphere..."
Ron snorted and looked at him as if he came from another planet. "Atmosphere? I'm seriously worried about you, mate."
"For women this is one of the Top 5 important moments in their lives."
"Wait... You've been talking to Liz, haven't you?"
Harry shrugged. "Maybe..." Ron raised his eyebrows and Harry looked aht him sheepishly. "All right, yes, a couple of times. She have been giving me some advice, so what?"
"So what? Look, Liz is my wife, and I love her, but she is a woman, and a very cheesy one if I may add. She's one of those girls who wants her life to be a romance novel! Listen, you and Hermione always teased me in Hogwarts about my thickness, but you are scoring a new record here. Just. Tell. Her. Dammit!"
"But she doesn't want to get married yet, Ron!" Harry argued.
"Maybe she'll change her mind once you ask her. The worse thing that could happen is her telling you to wait a little. It's not like your relationship is going to end. I'm sure that Hermione wants to marry you, Harry. If it's not now, maybe next year, but at least she won't believe that you're cheating on her."
Harry frowned. "You know, that is so unfair! Why would she think I'm cheating on her? I have never ever given her any reason to believe that! She's supposed to know me, isn't she? I would never think that she was doing that."
Ron chuckled. "You two are impossible. Do you realize that even I'm starting to make more sense than Hermione and you? The world is going crazy."
Harry smiled half-heartedly. "Actually I'm starting to get worried. Don't you think you are too grown up now, Ron?"
Ron stood up. "I knew all along that I was more mature than you," he said, grinning. "Promise me you'll propose to her tonight. Please, so that Liz will give me a break, alright?"
"So now I have to propose to make your life easier?" Harry teased, standing up too.
"Yes." Ron shook Harry's hand and then became serious. "I mean it, Harry. It's time you get a grip."
"You're right," Harry nodded, feeling a lot better. "Thank you."
"Anytime."
Cho observed the two friends from her broom with concern. Harry had arrived with a glumly expression that morning, which meant that the article had worked. She would have to thank Cassandra for that. She had been very nice saving up the article until she asked her to print it. But now that Weasley had visited him, he was smiling. He had probably given him some good advice to work things out with Hermione. She couldn't let that happen. This was her golden opportunity.
As soon as Oliver gave them a break, she approached Harry slowly.
"Hey," she said.
"Hi," Harry replied taking off his glasses and cleaning them with his robes.
"Harry, I'm sorry."
He looked at her. "Sorry? For what?"
"A friend of mine called me and told me about the article. I hope that didn't cause trouble for you. If you want, I can send an statement..."
"Don't bother," he smiled at her. "It's a bunch of lies anyway. I don't think anyone took it seriously..."
"But... Wasn't Hermione upset?" Cho asked. She had to be upset.
"Well, to be honest, she was, but not because of the article." Cho looked at him quizzically. Harry gave her a brief explanation of what had happened and what he had decided to do.
"You're going to do it tonight?" she asked, flashing him a smile.
Harry nodded. "Yes. I'm sure this time it will turn out well."
Cho bit her lip. She had to think something, quick. If Harry managed to propose to Hermione, her whole plan would fail. Her brain was working at top speed. She hadn't been a Ravenclaw for nothing. She was smart.
"So what are you planning to do? For the Proposal, I mean," she asked.
"I'll prepare a nice dinner."
"At what time does Hermione get out of work?"
"Around 6. Why?"
"We finish the training around that time too," Cho said. Finally she had an idea.
"I know..." Harry said, confused.
"You won't have time to prepare anything. If Hermione arrives about the same time you do, she'll probably want to talk about this, won't she? How will you manage to keep her out of your apartment?"
Harry's mouth formed a small 'o'. He had been so busy thinking about how to propose to Hermione, that he had forgotten that small detail. He cursed under his breath. Cho smiled sympathetically.
"I have an idea," she said. "I could go to Hermione's office and entertain her a little. Invite her to have a drink or something. I could take the chance to explain to her that we just ran into each other that time when they took the picture. You know, soften her a little."
"You'd do that?" Harry asked, smiling at her. She had forgotten how charming he could be when he smiled.
"Of course. You're the only friend I have here, I want to help you."
"Thank you," he said sincerely. Cho was a nice girl after all.
"You're welcome," she said, barely able to hide a grin.
"OK everyone! Get your arses back in those brooms!" Wood yelled.
"Oh, Cho," Harry said, grabbing his broom. "You might want to consider where you take Hermione. She doesn't like to drink."
Perfect.
* * *
What a hell of a day. I couldn't concentrate at all on the research I was doing and even Mr. Weasley had gone to my office to ask if something was wrong. Harry hadn't even showed up, and that only made me feel madder and frustrated. It's not like I wanted him to go crawling in here, but I thought I deserved an explanation. If he had a good reason, as he claimed to, why wouldn't he tell me?
Liz had called. She had heard my ranting, looking at me patiently through the fireplace. The only thing she had said is "be patient, Hermy." Patient for what? Until he decided to tell me how he felt?
Damn! Who is knocking on the bloody door?
"Come in!" I growled.
"Sorry, your secretary already went home..."
I looked at Cho's head popping inside my office. It had to be an illusion. What was she doing there?
"Cho?" I asked stupidly.
She smiled and came in. "In the flesh. Listen, I was wondering if you had some time to-"
"It's not necessary," I said rudely. I scolded myself for my bad manners. "I mean, if you came here because of that article..."
"I didn't. Well, if you want me to explain, I can, but I wanted to talk to you about something else. If you don't mind, of course."
I was oficially curious. What could Cho possibly want to talk to me about? The last time we had 'talked,' it hadn't been nice. At least it hadn't been for me. And now that I was not in the best of moods - and she was somewhat involved in that - it was probably better if I refused her invitation.
But my curiosity won the battle. I wanted to hear what she had to say. Besides, I wasn't sure if I wanted to face Harry yet. It was a good chance to postpone my return home for a little while.
"Alright," I agreed, grabbing my cloak. "I don't have much time, though."
"Don't worry," Cho said, smiling. "This won't take too long."
* * *
Cho led me to a wizard pub that I had never even heard of. As soon as I stepped inside, I wanted to leave. I usually don't like those sorts of places; they're too noisy and smelly. But, after all, I was there just to talk to her; I could leave soon. There was no point in arguing about the place.
"Go and find a seat, I'll get the drinks," Cho said.
"A butterbeer for me, please," I said, but I'm not sure if she heard me with all the noise in the place. Shrugging, I went to sit down to the farthest corner, where I could be somehow secluded of the rest of the customers there.
What was Harry doing? Was he worried because I wasn't home yet? He hadn't even called me! Was he planning to tell me the truth or had he spent the day making up a good excuse? Harry is not like that. Even when I was really angry with him, I still trusted him. Probably the thing that upset me more was the fact that he had ruined all we had solved the night before.
But had we solved anything? We just had a nice moment... But what was there to solve? I still couldn't figure it out. Why things were so strange?
"Here you are," Cho said, placing a reddish liquid in front of me and sitting down in front of me with a similar one.
"Uh... This isn't a butterbeer."
"You wanted a butterbeer? I'm sorry, I didn't know... But Hermione, you can't come here and have a butterbeer!" she laughed.
"I don't drink... what is this, anyway?"
"It's just a soft drink, you won't even notice it has alcohol." I looked at it, hesitating. "Look, if you don't want to, don't drink it," Cho said, a little more serious.
"What did you want to talk about?"
Cho made a long pause while she played with the straw in her drink. I waited for her to start, while I held my breath. It was weird enough that she wanted us to talk, considering she never really liked me when we were at school...
"It's about Harry," she said then, staring at me.
Oh Lord. This can't be good. Absent-mindly, I took a sip of my drink, getting nervous. Hey it didn't taste bad...
* * *
Harry lit the last candle and took a few steps back to look at what he had done. The table looked nice, with fresh flowers. Hermione would love it. He sat on a chair, tapping the floor with his foot nervously. The ring was in his pocket and he couldn't help but take it out every minute to see if it hadn't vanished like the first time.
He had been trying to think of what he was going to say. He had spent at least an hour in front of the mirror, practicing. Now, he was still trying to figure out how was he going to propose.
Hermione, this time with you has been the happiest in my life. I want it to be like this forever. Would you marry me? No, too cliché.
Hermione, I don't see myself spending my life with anyone else. Please, be my wife. Too plain.
Hermione, I want you to be with me for all eternity. Marry me. Too pushy... And too cheesy... Wasn't there a way to propose that could be romantic but not corny? He was starting to think those two things just went together.
Where was Hermione, anyway? Cho was supposed to entertain her for a little bit, but it was getting late. Was she still angry with him? Was she trying to avoid him? He started to get anxious, and his eyes travelled constantly from the door to his watch.
A knock on the door startled him and he stood up with a jump. Hermione! Was his first thought, but then he realized that wasn't possible. She wouldn't knock like that, even if she was angry with him. Ron? Nah, he knew that this was the night, so he would never show up...
Another knock, more insistent. Harry walked towards the door, and opened it slowly.
He couldn't hold back his surprise when he saw that outside was, in fact, Hermione. But what shocked him the most was that she was completely drunk.
* * *
A/N: I know that you all hate Cho, and as Kris put it "while editing it, I wanted to rewrite it and kill Cho on the spot." Trust me, the thought has crossed my mind, but it wouldn't be fun. So, I promise I'll try to have the next chapter sooner. Thanks!