Buried Secrets

Chapter 3 - At the inn

Harry looked around, making sure that no one was watching them. Then he said in a low voice, "It's a Death Eater, Cho, walking just behind us when we were in the street."

"Death Eater?" Cho exclaimed in a loud voice. She immediately smacked her hand against her own mouth; she didn't want Harry to suffocate her again!

"Sorry. I...I didn't mean to shout like that, Harry."

Harry smiled weakly. It wasn't easy to be angry at her, besides, she had already been a great help. In order to make her feel better, he continued, "I think it's Macnair, a Death Eater I saw last year. Wonder what he's doing here?"

"Nothing good, I'm sure." Cho was feeling worried, especially when she heard the words 'last year'. "Harry, you'd better put on your Invisibility Cloak."

"But what about you?"

"Oh, I'll be fine. It's you they’re interested in." Cho suddenly clapped her hands, a mischievous glint appearing in her eyes. "Harry, you're worth a fortune. Maybe I should auction you off, I’m sure a Death Eater would pay good money for you!"

"A million bucks wouldn't be enough to buy me!" Harry shot back. They grinned at each other in a rather silly fashion, feeling much more comfortable and relaxed with each other than last year.

Harry ducked behind a tree and quickly slipped into his cloak. "Okay, Cho, I’m ready." She felt pretty weird talking to an invisible person though. She took a few steps forward, and halted. Harry, for the first time in his life, found himself presented with a slender, girlish hand. "Harry? I'm afraid to lose you while we’re here, so--"

Cho felt his fingers curl tentatively around hers, then tighten as they proceeded walking down the alley. It was kind of distracting, to be holding hands with him. True, she had did this with Cedric before, but it was more normal with him; like being with a friend. Both Harry and her palms were sweating.

Every inn looks so expensive

, thought Cho, as she surveyed the handsome, sturdy buildings one by one. She was not accumstomed to the upper class life; her father had invested large amounts into an unstable business, which proved to be a total failure with the rise of Voldemort about twenty years ago. And there were so many people in her family! Cho did not mind of their poverty--at least they did not lack food--but when she was running for the Seeker for Ravenclaw's House Team, she had fervently wished for a better broom than the old Comet Two-Sixty she had used since she was nine.

"Excuse me, miss?"

Cho jumped, a middle-aged man dressed like a clown from the circus--except his face wasn't painted--was peering down at her, two golden teeth flashing like a offending sign in his wide, ugly mouth.

"What do you want?" she asked, backing away without thinking.

The clown-like man grinned. "Ever thought of an acting career, miss?"

"Never considered that before." She said in a rather haughty manner. The truth be told, Cho enjoyed acting with her friends, but in front of this stranger there no way was she going to admit that.

"Oh c'mon, you'd be a star with those looks, you'd make millions--"

"No, thank you." Cho said firmly, wishing the man in the clown suit would get the message and leave.

"Awww, don't be afraid, how about talking it over--"

Cho felt a sudden tug on her hand, she took it as a sign to leave and sprinted away, leaving the clown-like man standing in the middle of the street. It was rude to do so, but she was glad to get rid of him.

The Ravenclaw did not notice she was running jerkily because of the invisible force dragging her on; this brought some glances from various witches, their piercing gazes saying all too clearly that they thought this girl was crazy.

Five minutes later, they came to a stop.

They had come to a section in the town that was more secluded. Not a single soul was in sight, except for an elderly wizard smoking on a large pipe, sitting on a bench under a lamp post. It had become quite dark. Cho held her watch up to her face and managed to make out the time; seven o'clock.

"How about that one?" Harry whispered through his cloak. Cho started a bit. "Where?" she hissed.

"The red-brick house next to the bakery."

Cho squinted in the direction of the inn that Harry had suggested. It seemed to be less fancy than the other grand ones she'd seen on the main street. When she edged forward for a better look, she saw honeysuckle and roses bordering the rustic wooden door, and a polished brass doorbell on it. No gleaming, glaring lights came within the windows, which had pots of flowers and tiny figurines sitting on the sill. The inn gave off a rural atmosphere that was pleasantly inviting and warm.

"I think it's nice. You there Harry? Come on."

Inside was a small circular room, with a tiny counter off to one side. An enormous witch sat behind the counter, knitting in an old wooden rocking chair. She had short gray curls, and wore a white bonnet with long strings, making her look pretty old-fashioned.

It suddenly occurred to Cho that Harry was still unseen underneath cloak. Make him go outside and take it off, she thought, but the witch had already noticed her presence. "Good evening, my dear. You want to stay for the night?"

"Um...yes please." Cho replied as politely as she could. Her heart was pounding, and her Ravenclaw cleverness seemed to have vanished. Oh my god, I'll have to share a room with Harry, oh that's so unreal and what am I doing here...?

"Only one person? You're not running away from home?" The witch said half-jokingly, but Cho turned white. The remark brought her back to sanity, forcing her to use her head.

"No, indeed," she replied, trying to look as though the idea was absurd. "I'm just taking a little trip. This is my first time to England."

"Oh. I'm sorry, you look very young to me. Where are you from?"

"China." This was partly true. Cho's father was raised in England, but her mother had come from Shanghai, after receiving her letter from Hogwarts

"I see. You speak English pretty well for a foreigner." The old witch shook her head, looking impressed.

Cho's heart gave a quick beat. Thinking hard, she came up with a suitable answer. "Really? Thank you! I had an English tutor when I was in China. I'm so glad that my parents hired one for me."

"That's nice." The witch laid down her knitting and took out a piece of parchment. "Your name, please?"

"Jing Chang." Jing was her sister’s name, who would be starting at Hogwarts this year.

"Miss Chang. How many nights do you plan to spend here?"

"One. Yeah, definitely one." Cho replied, hoping that she had brought enough money.

The witch took a quill and scribbled down this information. "Thank you very much, Miss Chang. That'll be seventeen Galleons, please."

With a sinking heart, Cho involuntarily turned around and drew out her purse. Opening it, she counted nine Galleons, eleven Sickles, and four Knuts. A meagre thing it was; her purse never held more than a dozen Galleons. She was about to ask if there were any cheaper rooms, when she felt a tap on her wrist, and a handful of glittering coins dropped into the purse.

Cho could have whooped for joy. Fortunately, she kept herself under control. However, she did let her gaze rove over the beautiful heap of money before turning back to the innkeeper and handing over the rent.

After accepting the money, the witch snapped her fingers, and a dwarf appeared in the room with a weird zap. It seemed that this dwarf weren't very good at Apparating yet. The small creature wore a red cap, tipped at a jaunty angle, a yellowish brown tunic and matching boots.

"Lightfoot," said the witch, picking up her knitting again. "Take this young lady to red room eleven."

The dwarf looked at Cho, grinned, and held out his hand. "Pleased to meet yer."

Cho bent down slightly to shake hands, which was the first time she had to stoop to do so in her life.

"No luggage?" The dwarf asked, his eyes glittering as he surveyed her from tip to toe.

"Just this." Cho patted her blue satchel.

Lightfoot led the way up a spiral staircase, making polite conversation and then. Cho responded briefly but not rudely, for she was feeling rather tired, and she did not want to talk too much in case she gave something away.

"Here we are." Lightfoot stopped before a quaint, round door which was painted ruby red. There was a small figure of a lion's head protruding from a section on the middle of the door, which yawned at the sight of visitors.

Lightfoot turned to Cho. "What's your boyfriend's name?" he asked, smirking.

Cho was taken aback. What is with the personal question? "I don't have a boyfriend." she replied haltingly, forcing the thought of Cedric out of her mind.

"I don't believe you." Lightfoot smiled slyly.

Cho folded her arms, extremely irritated, and glared at the dwarf. "What's that got to do with you?"

"We need a password, Miss Chang."

"Oh, if that's what you want," Cho said, unfolding her arms. "Why don't you ask me what my favorite Quidditch team is? The answer is the Montrose Magpies, period."

Lightfoot looked mildly astonished, but refrained from saying anything. Instead, he reached out to stroke the lion head. "Cito Montrose Magpies!" he pronounced.

The lion head suddenly glowed, issuing tiny rays of golden light from it’s eyes, and the door creaked open. Lightfoot held the door open for Cho to enter, and explained, "Montrose Magpies shall be your password, Miss Chang, during your stay. If you forget it, come to the front desk. The spell will be taken off when you check out."

The room was just like inn; quaint, attractive, and pleasant. It wasn't big, but did not seem to lack anything. Apple-green curtains hung over the windows, the walls were the colour of shell-pink, and numerous candles burned in brackets situated all around the room. There was a large comfy rocking chair right beside the windows, a small three-legged table with a huge vase of fresh flowers arranged in it, and a big fireplace with a hanging crane and iron pot on the side of the room.

"If you need anything, use the fireplace. Just light a fire and call my name." Lightfoot gave a little bow and a smile, then disappeared.

As soon as the dwarf was out, Cho closed the door and leaned against it. "Harry, you can come out now."

The silvery Invisibility Cloak slithered down to the floor where it lay in a heap of gleaming folds. Harry stood beside the fireplace, looking a bit apprehensive. A babble of voices suddenly filled the room, startling them both.

"Ooooh--that's a boy--"

"Eloping, how romantic--"

Cho and Harry immediately searched for the source of these voices. They soon discovered the flowers on the table were wiggling and waggling their pretty heads and slender bodies in the vase, while gossiping about her and Harry. Cho stalked over to them and put her hands on her hips. She was half mad, half amused at the talking flowers. "Would you mind holding your tongues?"

A tall stemmed rose shook its magnificent head. "We were born with voices, you can not prevent us from using them." A velvety pansy added, "So you are eloping! Don't worry, we won't tell Lightfoot." Three little snowdrops nodded their heads. A violet with white streaks on its blue petals ventured a shy remark, "We've never seen an Oriental girl before. You're very pretty."

Any girl would have been flattered at a beauty compliment, and Cho was no exception. However, she refused to admit she was pleased. Instead, she chose to admonish them on the other topic. "We are not eloping," she stated firmly, though she still blushed at the word 'elope'. "It's not like that--what you're thinking."

She got another stream of cluttered replies. "Then why are you sharing a room together?" "I can see he likes you--he's blushing, he's blushing!" "Or are you already married?" "Nah-they’re kids. Hey, won't your parents be worried about you?"

"Stop!" Cho clenched her fists. She would have loved to give them a good boxing, but thought it better to keep her temper in front of Harry. "Can't you come up with something more sensible than gossiping?" she demanded. The flowers all giggled, apparently not at all influenced.

"Er--Cho?"

She whirled around. "What?" When her eyes met his, she immediately regretted snapping at him. He was stung by the harshness in her voice, but tried not to show it. "I--I just thought that you'd like to have something to eat."

The sound of his voice-- timid, gentle, and concerned--melted her. Cho forgot her verbal war against the flowers, and went over to him. He was holding a small brown book. "I found this on the bureau." he said.

Making sure that her back was facing the flowers, Cho clasped her hands together and mouthed "I'm sorry." Harry nodded in comprehension. Then they had a brief discussion on food, ignoring the whispering and tittering from the flowers.

Dinnertime was spent in a cheerful manner, despite occasional teasing from the flowers. Cho had summoned Lightfoot, giving him their order, and within minutes, the dwarf had returned with trayfuls of stew, muffins, sandwiches, and gillywater. He peered at Cho curiously. "Are you sure you can finish all this?" Harry, who had put on his Invisibility Cloak again, had to smile.

After dinner, Cho summoned Lightfoot again to clear away the dishes and leftovers. She wondered what she should do now, and looked at her watch. It was about half past eight, still too early to go to bed, which gave her a problem to ponder. There was no place to sleep except for the bed. She knew very well that they couldn't sleep together. Even if she didn't mind, she was sure that Harry would never be able to fall asleep. Her gaze fell on the big rocking chair, maybe she could use that.

Cho crossed the room heading towards the windows, making sure the curtains blocked the view into their room completely, and turned to the rocking chair. She sat down on it, drew up her legs, and curled up like a kitten. It seemed okay, she was small enough, and she liked cuddling the soft cushions on the chair. All she needed was a little magic to fit her sleeping needs.

"Hey, you're not thinking of sleeping there?" called the rose in a bossy tone.

"That's just what I'm thinking." Cho retorted, pulling out her wand. She uttered a few Latin words to an advanced spell and red and purple sparks emitted from the tip of the wand, showering the chair. It began to grow until the back was prolonged and the seat enlarged. She got on the chair again to test the new compatibility, and was fairly satisfied.

"Harry, I'll be fine here for the night. You can have the bed." She nodded to him, swinging her feet carelessly, but before Harry could reply, the flowers protested.

"You silly girl, why don't you sleep together?" "I thought you were a couple!" "Aww...come on, we want a scene!" "Don't tell me you haven't done it yet!" Harry turned bright red; but Cho remained calm. She had gotten used to their incessant teasing now.

"Shut up." Cho said loudly. "I am NOT interested in your nonsense, and if I hear another word of it, someone is going to end up in the rubbish bin."

The flowers did shut up, but only until Harry opened his mouth to say something to Cho. He had turned to the bed with some hesitation, because he wasn't sure that he should take the bed and let her sleep on the rocking chair, even so, there was no way would he let them sleep together, even if they totally had no inclination to 'do' anything. There were just too many reasons.

"Won't you need some blankets?" he asked tentatively, fingering the red velvet coverings.

Cho considered the matter for a moment; she wasn't cold now, but it would be chilly in the early morning. She jumped off the chair and walked over to him. She looked at the blankets, and had an idea. Giving Harry a wink, she twirled her wand and cried, "Effingo!"

The edges of the blanket suddenly glowed with a yellow light, and the next second poof! Another blanket appeared in midair, hovering just a few feet above the bed.

"Wow...what's that?" Harry asked.

"A Duplicate Charm." Cho held up the cloned blanket, inspecting her work. The corners were jagged and uneven, but apart from that, no fault was visible. "It's not very well done." she pouted. "If I hadn't skipped Charms to finish that boring History homework I missed, I might have fared better."

"You skipped class?" Harry looked incredulous, his hands in his pockets, staring at her.

"Of course, who can stay awake in Binns' class? I usually spend the last minute studying."

"Oh yeah--" Harry grinned, remembering the lectures Hermione gave him and Ron. "Hermione's the only one who pays attention."

"Hermione?" Cho decided to Duplicate the pillow too. "Isn't she the student who got top marks, four years in a row?"

"Yeah, she's my best friend. We didn't get along very well first, but she's really nice if you don't go breaking school rules--"

"No rule breaking? Count me out." A sudden question hit her. "Harry, you lost a hundred and fifty points in your first year. That's really a record! What outrageous crime did you commit?"

"I'm not telling. That's top secret." Harry replied, thinking it was better not to reveal to her that he was caught smuggling Hagrid’s dragon out of the castle at midnight.

However, Cho was not satisfied. Top secret, indeed! "Let me guess then," she said, picking up a pillow and waved it before him threateningly. "You burned Dumbledore's beard?" She threw the pillow at Harry. "You turned Draco into a toad? You drew a picture of Snape in class and wrote 'Lousy slimy git' on the magnified nose?"

Soon the two teenagers were pelting each other with pillows and cushions. Cho was having so much fun that she didn't care if this was childish play. All she knew was that it was worthwhile seeing Harry's face glowing with pure mirth and sincere joy, he always looked so burdened and somber. Cho often felt kind of sorry for him, knowing that he'd gone through some terrible trials. Which was why she always acted friendly towards him, but it did not occur that Harry maintained a secret crush on her until he asked her to the Yule Ball.

"Watch out, Potter!" she yelled, reaching for the biggest cushion.

* * *

The next morning, Harry woke up first. He sat up on the bed, rubbed his eyes, and held his watch close to his eyes. It was half past eight. They should have been up earlier. He noticed that the flowers seemed to be asleep, for their heads were drooping down. As his eyes finished roving around the room, he saw that Cho was curled up in the rocking chair, her eyelids tightly closed.

Harry got up, and went to the bathroom. When he was finished with making himself presentable, he came out to find Cho still fast asleep. Going over to her, he automatically stopped beside the sleeping girl. He couldn't help observing her, like a small bundle, sleeping peacefully. A few strands of raven black hair peeped out from the deep red blanket wrapped around her, her form heaving slightly as she breathed. It seemed like a sin to disturb her.

Harry scratched his head. How was he going to wake her? He swallowed, his heart beating furiously, and laid a hand on her shoulder. He shook her gently. "Cho--Cho? Wake up, it's time to get going."

Cho stirred, but instead of opening her eyes, she merely hugged the cushion in her arms more tightly, and flipped over onto her side. What a heavy sleeper. Harry had a sudden idea that he should scoop her into his arms and give her a thorough shaking, but finally resolved to use another method. Crossing over to the bathroom, he got a towel and soaked it. Then he went back to Cho and wrung the damp towel over her face, causing drops of water to fall on her forehead, her eyebrows, and her cheeks.

"Stop it." Cho muttered, opening her eyes with an irritated expression. Her gaze fell on the towel, and then on Harry. "Harry!" She bolted up into a sitting position, and snatched the towel from him. "How dare you do that!" she exclaimed, but Harry could see that she wasn't really angry. He grinned, letting her punch him on the shoulder playfully, but reminded her of the mission before them. Cho immediately sobered down.

While in the bathroom, Cho changed into wizard robes, which she had brought with her from her aunt's. She had conveniently thought that Draco Malfoy would look askance if she showed up wearing jeans and a T-shirt.

They had a quick breakfast, ignoring the newly awoken flowers' teasing. Then Cho went downstairs to check out while Harry followed stealthily in his Invisibility Cloak. Cho asked for a map from the elderly witch, who was dozing off at the counter.

"Hmm--here it is, but I can't find where we are--" Once outside, Cho opened up the map and ran her finger over it, talking to herself.

"Do you remember the way?" Harry's voice sounded beside her. Cho had given him a detailed explanation of their trip to Malfoy Manor the night before. They were to take a kind of transportation called the Pumpkin Ferry, and get off at a stop named Murrayfield, which was a region where many wealthy people dwelt. From there it would be a fifteen minute walk to Malfoy Manor.

"No, I've never been to this part of town, but we can always ask." Cho rolled up the map and proceeded down the street.

It was foggy and clouded this morning, but thankfully, there was no rain. Cho found it rather difficult to find her way in Farrington Gurney, as she seldom visited the place. Sometimes she was forced to grab a witch or wizard for directions. It was lucky that many people frequented the Pumpkin Ferry or they never would have found their way.

Half an hour later, they arrived at a winding river with a dozen snow-white boats shaped like pumpkins rocking gently in the harbour.Cho whistled to the nearest boat, and it came gliding toward the edge of the river bank. A small door on its side creaked open. Cho stepped into the boat, and settled down on the downy seats. She watched bits of grass appear on the polished wooden floor, knowing that Harry had entered, and told the boat in a clear voice, "To Murrayfield".

The boat began to move, gradually picking up speed. It skimmed along the water like a skater, with great speed but little noise. The wind ruffled Cho's hair, and she shivered a bit; it was chilly.

Neither of them talked; each were lost in their own thoughts. Harry didn't dare voice his anxiety about whether or not they’d succeed. Cho was thinking about Draco Malfoy. She did not like him very much, even though they were childhood friends. He treated her like an inferior, and she believed he never would have taken any notice of her if she weren't pretty, unfortunately her parents were constantly nagging at her to get close to him! No doubt they had the money factor in mind. Cho always refused her parents hopeful pleas; she didn't relish a life of being bossed around or looked down upon.

They arrived at their destination in a short time, due to the speed of the craft. Cho laid a small pile of Sickles--which were left over from the money Harry had given her yesterday--on a hollow carved on the inner side of the boat, and she sprang off. The pumpkin boat took a turn on the water, and within seconds, it was out of sight.

Murrayfield was a huge stretch of land where wealthy folk dwelt. Tall trees seemed to tower over people along the wide stone paths, large gardens showed off an abundant accumulation of blooming flowers and plants and the great manses resembled small castles and palaces in the fairy-tale books Harry had heard about, but had never had the opportunity to read in his childhood.

Harry and Cho trudged for quite some time in the cool morning air. Cho had difficulty finding the way, for she was not very good at directions, and Malfoy Manor wasn't easy to locate in the enormous expanse that was Murrayfield.

Finally, a huge grey mansion loomed into view. It stood surrounded in the shade of sturdy sycamore trees. Ivy covered the walls thickly like an enormous green net. The nearest house was at such a distance that from where Harry and Cho were standing, they had to squint to make it out.

It’s like they wanted to keep their residence out of sight

, Cho thought. Suddenly she felt a hand on her arm. She turned around, but of course, there was nothing to be seen. Harry's voice came from the empty spot she was staring at, "Be careful, okay? Even if he is your childhood friend--"

"I will." She smiled, even though she couldn't see Harry's face. "Don't worry."

A cold wind blew over them. Cho looked up at the stately Malfoy Manor, and owing to some reason other than the weather, shivered. An uneasy feeling crept over her, foreshadowing that something sinister was brewing; but she couldn't turn back now; not while knowing this could mean life or death to someone dear to Harry.

Cho started up the marble doorsteps, and reached up to ring the doorbell.