In which, we have some more clues dropped about Draco and Cho’s school days. Hey, subtlety! Pick up your feet, eh? [gets bonked by a shoe]
I disclaim references to the BeeGees, and insert standard disclaimer to HP here. On with the show!
!
“I can’t believe no one told me,” Cho muttered angrily to Su as she helped wash the dishes. “Do you know how embarrassing that was? That was really embarrassing. I felt like a total dumbfuck back there.”
“Cho!” Su gasped in mock horror. “Language, language.”
“That is not the problem,” Cho muttered, giving her sponge a particularly vicious squeeze.
“There, there. It all turned out all right, didn’t it? We had a nice dinner, and you have much more reason to smash Harry’s head in with a giant sno-cone now that it’s over, right?”
Cho smiled a little. “Yeah, I guess so.” She set the last plate to dry on the rack and wiped her hands on her apron.
Castor came into the kitchen, shaking rain water from his head.
“Quirke and Hopkins were smart to leave early,” he told them glumly. “It’s raining like sweet Jesus out there.” Su gave him a look and tisked tisked.
“What were you doing outside? My God, you’re soaked.” Su grabbed a dry towel from a rack and headed towards him.
“I was only taking out the trash,” said Castor, his voice muffled from Su’s vigorous hair drying.
“And I suppose you decided to dance the Irish jig while out they, hm? Young man, I know what is taking-out-trash wet, and this is not it.”
“I’m telling you, the storm is huge out there. Ouch! Su, don’t pull!”
“It’s not my fault you have that ridiculous little dangle on your ear! Here, don’t move!”
Smiling, feeling a bit more light-hearted as she watched the two bicker intimately, Cho left the kitchen quietly. She couldn’t resist giving Castor a knowing wink as she caught his eye over Su’s head. In turn, he gave her a look, as if asking what was so romantic about having his scalp rubbed off by a tiny, sharp fingered spitfire.
Her mood turned sour again as she looked out the café window, and saw the rivulets of water streaming down the window panes. The street outside, though lit by lamps, was barely visible in the downpour, and Cho realized that Castor did not indeed have to jig down the street to look like he’d been dipped into the lake several times over.
Shaking her head, she shouldered her purse, then heaved the boxes of leftovers onto the same arm. Apologizing silently to her friend, she took one of the plastic covered menus from its holder, and prepared to run home. In fact, she nearly had door open before another arm reached over her head and closed it.
“Chang, I really don’t know what to say about this blatant thievery of-all things- restaurant menus.”
“Oh, sod off, Malfoy. I’ll have it back by tomorrow. Besides, you can’t expect me to walk home without covering, do you?” Cho asked deliberately, turning around.
“Frankly, I’m not sure how a tiny, square plastic cardboard or lack of will affect the movement of your legs and feet, but I seriously doubt there will be any debilitating results if you don’t use one.” He smirked at her and placed the menu back.
“Damn you, righteous prig,” Cho muttered, looking helplessly out into the rain.
“Well, I better be off,” Draco said airily, and pushing in front of her, popped open his own umbrella and began walking off down the street. Fortunately, it only took Cho another half-second for her to race out from under the awning and catch hold of Draco’s arm, ducking under the spacious umbrella.
“Hey-! Wait, no, you walk yourself home!” Draco sputtered indignantly as Cho began dragging him off in the opposite direction.
“Come on, Draco!” Cho said cheerfully. “Be a gentleman!”
“If I wanted to be one, I would have stayed home,” he replied through gritted teeth. Making a face, Cho held on to him doggedly.
“Well, in any case, I want to go home with as little rain on me as possible,” she told him petulantly, and unable to resist, he closed the umbrella. Cho shrieked, and grabbed for his other arm.
“Draco Malfoy, you put up that umbrella right now or else I’ll-I’ll do something nasty to you!”
And despite his Slytherin mean streak, Draco laughed and obligingly put the umbrella up again. Immediately, Cho quieted, and gave him a sullen glare.
“Smart move, Einstein. Now we’re both going to catch pneumonia.”
“As long as you’re suffering with me,” Draco said with a smug grin.
!
It seemed a longer walk home than Cho remembered. Maybe it was just because the atmosphere was now severely blemished with recycled water coming down through toxic skies, she wasn’t sure. In any case, Cho didn’t mind too much.
“Hey, Draco,” she nudged him. He looked down at her with an eyebrow raised. She made a face.
“Don’t look like that. It makes you look like a smug know-it-all.”
“Which I precisely am, no?” he returned. She rolled her eyes.
“Do you remember the last time we were caught out in the rain?”
“We were?”
She nudged him again. “It was when I was in seventh year, and you were in sixth. Hogsmeade, remember?”
“Nope. No recollection.”
Cho looked thoughtful. “It’s not exactly a memory I’d expect you to have though, so I’m not surprised you don’t remember.”
“Maybe I don’t want to remember?” Draco asked dryly, but she ignored him.
“I was out in town to buy some supplies, some quills, ink, that kind of stuff. Oh, and candy. That marvelous stuff that gums up your teeth and looks like strings of drool? Remember? Great stuff. I used to buy it by the pound.”
“And you met me at the candy store,” Draco put in bluntly. Cho glanced up at him, then stared straight ahead.
“…No. I met-found you, really, next to the dumpster in the alley behind Madame Rosmertas.’. I think you were quite unconscious, and rather drunk too, so, me being the kindhearted, gentle, forgiving, flawless, benevolent-”
“The point, Chang?”
“I dragged your soggy, heavy arse up and I think I might’ve slapped you too, but you were pshhhhh, out of it. I actually considered just leaving you there,” Cho added. “But it was starting to rain, so out of the goodness of my heart, I backpacked you back to the Great Hall.”
“I don’t believe a word of it,” Draco said staunchly.
“You better. Because if I hadn’t stopped to pick you up then, I wouldn’t have lost the necklace I’d worn since I was seven,” Cho told him flatly, then elbowed him again as if reinforcing his blame.
“Ouch,” he glared. “Are you saying I stole the necklace?”
“Nooooo. I’m saying, I wouldn’t have lost it if I hadn’t had to stop for your sorry carcass.”
“You know that doesn’t make any logical sense at all, Chang.”
“I was a Ravenclaw. As long as I’m right, it doesn’t have to make sense,” she replied primly. “Besides, you might be a little grateful. You may have been shorter than me, but by god, you weighed a ton.”
Draco stopped, turned around, and looked at her with a raised eyebrow. Cho challenged his look, but he continued to stare. She sighed.
“Oh, all right, you were taller, happy? Geez. What a boy, to nit pick at details.”
“Shall I remind you that I was never shorter than you?”
“I’m an old lady. Let me indulge in my fantasies,” Cho replied grumpily. They continued down the street, perfectly in step.
“So let me get this straight. You found me, a poor drunken sop, left to be killed by alley rats and numerous other diseases, and actually took me back?”
“Hauled.”
“Whatever.”
“That’s right.”
“And you weren’t pissed or anything? Because I sure as hell don’t remember any demand for retribution.”
“Oh, actually, it wasn’t so bad. It was a good experience,” Cho looked up at Draco and smiled. For a moment, but only just, Draco’s childhood infatuation returned. But thank god that was over as she continued to talk.
“That was how I found out you could sing all the BeeGee songs down to the highest intonations.”
“Urk.”
“It was wonderful blackmail material. I think I sold that bit of information to Pansy Parkinson later on.”
That no-good, dirty, scheming-
“Just kidding.” Laughing, she poked his cheek. “You’re secret’s safe with me, you little disco freak.”
With an irritated jerk, he moved the umbrella out from over her head and felt a satisfied curl as she gasped in surprise.
“You fink,” she growled, ducking back under.
“My arm is spasmodic. After war effect,” he lied smoothly, grinning infuriatingly at her.
“Don’t talk medical with me. I know medical. That is not medical. That’s a severe case of ‘Iwantopissofthegirlnextomeitis,’ and can only be cured by said girl doing something painful to you.”
“Which is?”
“Tickle attack?”
“Impervious to tickling,” Draco said, and smirked.
“You really, really suck.” Fumbling with her purse, she came up with her keys and stepped up to the door. “Want to come inside to dry up?”
Draco eyed her warily, and shook his head.
“Maybe next time, Chang. I’ve still got some business to wrap up.”
Cho shrugged. “Suit yourself. Thanks for walking me home. Don’t get sick.” She disappeared into the apartment house, and Draco sighed. Despite the wetness, he sat down on the cement stairs in front of the building, his umbrella over his shoulder.
After a little while, he dug under his sweater, and tugged out the red string around his neck. A small jade figurine of a horned ram dangled from the end of the simple necklace.
“But I swear to God she made the Beegee thing up,” he muttered, tucking the necklace away and continuing down the street.
!
Notes!
Castor does have an earring [I made up for him]. A little dangly silver one.
The candy Cho was talking about is actually based on this kind I had before. I’m not sure what it was, but I think it was barley sugar or something. It’s sort of amber clear yellowish, and hard-sticky, and very stringy if you pull it while it’s still hot. Mmmm…so good. Good ol’ Asian candy.
Cho was born in 1979, which is the year of the Ram in the Chinese zodiac. It’s pretty common for Chinese kids anyways to go around with a bit of jade with them, whether or not the jade is in the form of the zodiac animal, just for protection from various spooklings.
And- oh, the BeeGees. Don’t know them? Remember the song “Ah! Ah! Ah! Ah! Stayin’ alive! Stayin’ alive!”
…that could be a good thing, depending on how you see it.
I know Cho and Draco’s relationship seem to be too close to be true, but it works into the plot [somehow], don’t worry.
Thank you so much for all your reviews! It’s a big comfort to know that in a few hundred thousand other fics swimming around about HP alone, people like you all still take the time to sit down and review one I love you all! [sobs dramatically]