Chapter 9

The world just looked differently to me right now. Everything just felt dead, boring, dull, rigid, blank. It took me awhile to digest the things happened. Nothing seemed and felt right. I feel like I had been living in a world that I thought was just.

I thought wrong.

I don’t know how it happened but I ended up walking in the lake in the middle of the winter. I stared at the freezing water. Stared at it for minutes. My mind just flashing back things I used to remember. How come I never saw Cedric die? I was there. I WAS THERE. I saw him play. So why? How?

Suddenly, I heard footsteps approaching me. I didn’t mind it though. It could be the dark lord himself and I wouldn’t care. Nothing scares me anymore.

“Cho” It’s Harry.
I just stared at him as he stood next to me. My bland expression has been such a normal thing these days.
“I’m sorry” he spoke. Why did he apologize? All this time he did nothing but comfort me and I was too blind to see that coming.
“What happened?” I looked at him deeply. My eyes were probably swollen from the tears and my pale skin has now become even paler. “That night at the Triwizard. I tried remembering that night” my voice started to crack “Why is it t-that I can’t remember ANYTHING” and I mean the part where Cedric died without me knowing.

There has to be some sort of explanation to this. People in this school knew the whole time while I didn’t. I felt like the stupidest person ever.

“Hermione told me you went unconscious when Cedric died.” Harry started. “After I took Cedric’s body back to the starting line everyone just got crazy… crying… devastated…” I remembered that. I can remember that clearly. “You cried a lot and then after awhile you just fell from where you were.”

“I was unconscious the whole time?” that was even worse. “For how long?”
“About 2 days.” Harry explained “The healer told me that you might not be able to remember things that happened at the time since you bumped your head really bad.” Harry added.
I paused. At that moment I just looked at Harry. “You were with me?” I asked him.
“The whole two days.” He nodded.
“Why?”
“Because…” he held my hand “I care for you, Cho”

I resisted. I didn’t want to hold Harry’s hand right now especially that I’m in this state.
“I’m sorry Harry b-but I have to go.” I couldn’t help but cry. Cedric. I want Cedric back!

The next day I went to practice at the Room of Requirement. I wanted to get sober about this right? So I might as well do my part. I have to make myself busy. Make myself over work. Do things extremely if I must.

Levicorpus. That’s the spell we’re learning to day. I did well, got myself to concentrate and not think about Cedric for the 2 hours of practice. Everyone was doing quite well. I have missed so much of this experience. The DA was about helping each other. It was about being a family. I should have been more sensitive about this.

Then there was a bombing sound. The walls cracked and we felt an earthquake. Everyone didn’t panic, they looked around and was wondering what was going on. We could hear and feel it getting closer. Was there an actual earthquake?

Suddenly, a whole cracked into one of the walls. All we can hear were footsteps and Malfoy bickering.
“Bombarda Maxima”

And that was Umbridge. We all just looked at the cracked walls which are now destroyed by her. Silly old hag in pink. Remember I said we can hear Malfoy bickering? He had the culprit with him. The traitor. The spy. And that person happens to be my best friend Marietta.
“ALL STUDENTS REPORT TO MY OFFICE---- NOW!!!” she screamed at us.
They all stared at me and glared back at Marietta.

We all went up to Umbridge’s office. All of us who are in the DA.
“You think that I wouldn’t know where you silly children hide?” she smirked. Oh, that annoying smirk really ticks me. “because of your silly actions, this will cost Dumbledore and his head master position at Hogwarts” she added while sipping a cup of tea.
“No! Dumbledore had nothing to do with this” Hermione spoke up.
“We created this group ourselves” Harry added.
“SHUT UP!” Umbridge shouted. “Students should never interfere with this. What you did there is against the rules and you know what happens when students break the rules?” she said walking back and fort. “They get punished.”

What was the punishment you ask?
In a single piece of parchment we were forced to write down “I must never disobey”. At first we all thought it was a silly thing to do but when we started the write the sentence, that’s when we realized all of the quills were charmed. The sentence we wrote on that parchment was now engraved to our left hand.

I can see glare and scowl expressions from left to right. After our punishment, everyone treated me coldly.
“You weren’t suppose to tell anyone, that was the plan” Harry scolded me. We were the last one to leave the room. Everyone just went out immediately and didn't even bother talking to me nor to Harry anymore. “Marietta is your best friend Cho. YOUR best friend” he emphasized each word. “I don’t want to even speak to you right now” he stormed out of the room.

This is not happening to me. Bad luck has stroke upon me ever since the start of the year. Nothing has been going right. I just sat there on the chair looking at my hand with that scar ‘I must not disobey’. It’s a reminder of today. I can’t even begin to find myself asking for forgiveness to everyone. The DA just hated me right now. Period.