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Cho had taken a long hard look at the Wizarding World when she’d finally been about to leave Hogwarts and then she’d decided to try moving out of it. She wasn’t alone in stepping half out of the world that she’d known for her entire life. It felt like half of her year had decided that trying to slide themselves into the Muggle World might be better than watching the ruins of Wizarding Britain try to reassemble itself full-time. The problem, at its heart, was that there seemed to be very little to actually do in the Wizarding world. Cho didn’t want to work for the Ministry, and she didn’t want to become a Healer or a teacher, and she wasn’t good enough to play Quidditch for a living, even if she’d wanted to. Her mother sent her several very pointed letters about potential research pathways abroad, and her father shrugged it off as youthful folly and a need to rebel after the war. Cho packed her trunk, collected her N.E.W.T. certificates, and moved into a tiny flat in Muggle London. She tinkered with it a bit, using magic. The water pressure for the whole building was remarkably better about a month after she moved in, but there didn’t seem to be any point in doing anything about the flickering lights in the hallway. She’d fixed them a couple of times, and then come home the next evening to find them flickering again, and was starting to suspect ghosts.
The only real problem had been working out what on earth to do, now that she was in the Muggle world. Turning O.W.L. and N.E.W.T. certificates into something comprehensible to Muggles was easy, and shrugging off Hogwarts as ‘small boarding school, wilds of Scotland, very minor’ always worked. Either people didn’t want to admit ignorance of a public school or they didn’t agree with them. The more pressing problem was that eight years of Hogwarts had left her very deft at defensive magic, passable at Herbology and Charms, dismal, by Ravenclaw standards at least, at Ancient Runes and remarkably good at Arithmancy. Terry had told her she should do the same as him and use her Arithmancy skills in the service of finance. Cho had thrown the idea out of the water immediately, it felt like a small treachery to the pure beauty of Arithmancy, and Terry had rolled his eyes and reminded her about how much he got paid each month. ‘That’s not the point,’ Cho had said. ‘I have enough money. I just don’t know what I want to do.’
The answer to the problem of how to fill her time came, rather unexpectedly, from Anthony Goldstein. They were packing up after a game of pickup Quidditch, carefully dismantling shielding and invisibility spells one piece at a time, and casually stepping out into the October sunshine. ‘You know,’ Anthony said, ‘the café by the Magical Collections Wing needs another member of staff.’
‘Oh,’ Cho said, slinging her Quidditch bag over her shoulder. ‘I don’t have any experience.’ She pulled the invisibility shield apart a little and peered through. ‘We’re safe,’ she said, stepping out and holding it open for Anthony.
‘I doubt it would matter,’ Anthony said, wandlessly finishing the spell. ‘They do provide training, and you were good at Potions.’
‘Does being able to brew something in accordance with Golpalott’s Third Law really have any bearing on being able to make a decent cup of coffee?’ Cho asked flippantly.
‘Clearly you’ve never been in any of the British Library cafés,’ Anthony said. ‘The coffee is always abysmal. I think that’s the point. Make the coffee dire, everyone spends less time drinking it and more time doing whatever they’re supposed to be doing.’
‘Ah,’ Cho said. ‘Well, I can always poke my head in and ask, I suppose. I haven’t really got anything else to do.’
--
‘Oh, hello,’ Cho said. ‘A friend said you had a job opening.’
‘Yes, we do, I’ll just get the manager, she’s the one who handles all that. I’m solely responsible for sandwiches.’ She disappeared off into the small kitchen, poking her head around the doorframe a few seconds later. ‘Have a seat, she’s just sorting a small fire out.’
Cho frowned before perching awkwardly on the arm of a sofa. The sofa itself didn’t look as if it would be much more comfortable than its arm. It was all minimalist grey with chrome legs. No wonder, she thought, that the only people having a drink in the café were stood up by the window. One person had braved the mesh-backed seats, and had their parchment spread out in front of them. Funny, given how overstuffed and cosy all of Hogwarts had seemed, to make this place the very opposite.
‘Hello,’ a voice said in front of her, and Cho startled a little bit. ‘Sorry, I didn’t mean to scare you.’
‘No, don’t worry,’ Cho said, ‘I was just thinking.’ She stood up and shook the proffered hand. ‘Cho Chang,’ she said slightly belatedly. ‘Anthony Goldstein told me you might have a job vacancy?’
‘I remember you from Hogwarts,’ the witch said, and then seemed to realise that she hadn’t introduced herself. ‘Sorry, I’m Patricia. Stimpson. Fred and George’s year.’
‘Right,’ Cho said. ‘Year above Potter. Obviously.’
Patricia smiled, ‘Obviously.’ She pulled out a chair from the nearest table and waved a hand at Cho, ‘go on, have a seat. They’re a little bit more comfortable than they look.’ She waited until Cho was settled in one of the chairs, which were slightly less horrible to sit in than look at, and pulled a notebook from her apron pocket. ‘We’re open from nine in the morning until half past five at night, Monday to Friday. We open from eleven until three on Saturdays and we’re closed Sundays. Anthony told me that you’ve no barista training, but that you are exceptional at Potions.’
‘Yes,’ Cho said. ‘Although I’m not sure my Potions training is going to be particularly useful.’
‘You’d be surprised,’ Patricia said darkly. ‘Anyway, it doesn’t matter, we can train you in that. What I really need to know is if you can keep magic use secret and not get scared by the Muggles.’
Cho grinned. ‘I’m one of the Fearfully Fleeing,’ she said, referencing the latest Prophet article about witches and wizards stepping into the Muggle world. ‘Or at least I’ve sort of halfway fled. I live in Muggle London, but I do still play pickup Quidditch on the weekend.’
‘Excellent,’ Patricia said. ‘Trial run of two weeks, you start Monday. Make sure you’re here for eight.’ She stood up and shook Cho’s hand before walking back into the kitchen.
‘Okay,’ Cho said to herself before calling ‘Thank you!’ in the direction of the kitchen. She shook her head in slight disbelief before making her way home.
--
‘Umm,’ said the slightly flustered customer, clearly trying to do the currency conversion in their head. ‘Sorry.’
‘One Galleon, fourteen Sickles,’ Cho said and smiled at the relief on her customer’s face as she handed the coins over. ‘Take a seat, I’ll bring them over to you.’ She turned to the coffee machine, setting the cups on top to warm before grabbing plates for the brownies. It had seemed a little strange getting a job, when she didn’t particularly need one. Her grandmother had patiently listened to Cho’s mother railing about her daughter’s desire to throw it all away, ignore her heritage and her talents and had transferred a large amount of money into her Gringott’s account. ‘It would have been for your twenty first birthday,’ she’d said with a smile. ‘But, given how your mother is currently carrying on, it seemed more useful now.’ Cho had shrugged out an apology for her mother before being abruptly cut off. ‘No,’ her grandmother said firmly, ‘your mother should know that it is your life and your choice.’ Having a job had turned out to be unexpectedly satisfying, even if making coffee hadn’t been one of the things Cho had envisaged herself doing. The café was fairly busy, full of witches and wizards, and the occasional Muggle who stepped in and didn’t feel out of place. Or, Cho thought, felt only as out of place as they did in all the cafés around the Library. And because of its proximity to the Ministry, Cho was slowly catching up with people she’d known at school.
‘No, I do not want to talk to Philpoot,’ a voice said crossly from the door, ‘Philpoot is an idiot of the highest order, and I remain entirely at sea as to how he has remained employed for so long.’
Cho smiled as she finished the flat white and called the order out. She thanked the customer and pointed at where the sugar and spoons were kept on the back wall and then turned to the coffee machine again, setting it up for a triple shot latte on autopilot, before measuring tea into an infuser.
‘One triple shot latte, and one blood orange tea,’ she said as Pansy came up to the counter.
‘Yes, thank you,’ Pansy said fervently. ‘Although one day I will order something else and then you will be very confused.’
‘Yes,’ Cho said, placidly, ‘and then Merlin will reappear.’ She handed Pansy’s change back and looked towards the door. ‘Do you need the tea to go?’
‘What? Oh, no.’ Pansy said, ‘Luna is just coming, don’t worry. She got caught by Padma, who had a question about mapping charms and doxie infestations.’
Cho smiled, without thinking, and then caught Pansy’s eye. ‘Stop it,’ she said, with a warning in her voice. ‘Whatever you are thinking, stop thinking it.’
Pansy slowly grinned and took her coffee. ‘Now, now, would I interfere?’
‘Yes,’ Cho said, ‘you would. You live to interfere. Just ask Terry or Parvati or Millicent or Penelope.’ She looked up as the door chimed and filled the teapot with water before slotting the infuser in place, sliding it across the counter just as Luna reached her. ‘Blood orange this time,’ she said, and grinned helplessly as Luna’s eyes lit up.
--
‘How did you end up working for her? After, well, everything?’ Cho looked down at her cup, pretending to be fascinated by the dregs of her coffee.
Luna tipped her head to the side, and caught Cho’s eye. ‘After she tried to turn Harry over?’ At Cho’s nod, Luna sighed. ‘I needed a job, and she needed someone to be a buffer between her and the rest of the world.’ She kicked her shoes off and wriggled her toes as one of the butterflies attached to the strap landed on her foot. ‘No one has an unblemished record. Everyone has done something they aren’t proud of, or that they might think about changing if they could go back in time. Although, I don’t think it’s recommended. I’m sure it’s in the time-turner rules.’ She finished her tea and transfigured the cup into a crocus, tucking it into her buttonhole. ‘She’s not evil,’ Luna said gently, ‘she was seventeen, and scared. We were all scared, remember.’
Cho shuddered, suddenly cold, ‘I try not to.’ She swallowed heavily. ‘I try to not think about it, because then I don’t have to remember everything that happened, and how we all turned on each other, and I don’t have to think about how we blindly accepted a school system that made it possible so easily.’ She blinked back tears and startled as Luna reached for her hand, locking their fingers together and stroking the back of Cho’s hand with her thumb. ‘I’m sorry, I don’t usually cry on the customers.’
‘Do you cry on your friends?’ Luna asked, keeping hold of Cho’s hand.
‘Not really,’ Cho said. ‘Not anymore. I think I did enough of that when I was sixteen.’ Luna snickered, and then looked at Cho as if she was asking if it was okay to be laughing at this. ‘You can laugh at my sixteen year old self. I frequently do.’ Cho smiled wryly. ‘Right, I should probably get back. We’re about to get the “I forgot about lunchtime and now I need a sandwich immediately” crowd in.’
Luna stroked the back of Cho’s hand once more and let go. ‘I’ll see you tomorrow,’ she said before coaxing the butterfly back onto her buckle and slipping her shoes back on. ‘You can make me your guinea pig for another blend of tea.’
--
Luna kicked off her shoes, and gleefully clapped so that all the butterflies flew around her in a dazzling cloud. They scattered off, a few settling on her skirt and the rest flitting in and out of the people sitting on the grass. Cho scooped one up on her finger and looked at its wings until her eyes unfocused and all she could see was shimmering colour and scales.
‘Where did you learn this charm?’ Cho said as she sat down next to Luna. ‘It’s amazing.’
Luna tapped her nose and winked. ‘I couldn’t possibly reveal my secrets that easily.’ She stretched out, basking in the sun. ‘I promised Flitwick that I would take it to the grave. Although I’ll probably pass it on to someone eventually.’
Cho smiled and laid back, her arm behind her head, and dozed off to the sound of Luna gossiping with Marietta and Harry and Draco bickering behind her. She only woke up when Terry cast a shadow over her, handing her a broom. ‘Come on, Chang,’ he said, ‘all the concealment charms are set up. Time to show Gryffindor that we’ve still got it.’ Cho blinked against the sun, and took the broom as she sat up, looking across at where Harry and Ron were huddled with Angelina.
‘Okay,’ she said and nudged Luna awake. ‘Cheer for us?’
‘Of course,’ Luna said sleepily, and flicked her wand with a muttered incantation, causing a banner to spool out of the end reading “Ravenclaw, make them sore!” She sat up and the butterflies came shimmering over, somehow lifting the banner so it wafted in the breeze.
‘Ooof,’ Cho said, throwing herself down onto the grass an hour later. ‘I think I need to play more Quidditch. If I hurt this much now, I’m going to be in agony tomorrow.’
‘Good win,’ Harry said as he slumped down next to her. ‘When did Anthony get so vicious?’
‘He’s always been determined,’ Cho said. ‘Plus, I think he likes showing Joel that he’s not just good with dead languages.’ They looked across at where Anthony was gesturing wildly and causing Joel to collapse with laughter.
Harry looked at her steadily and nodded, obviously remembering Anthony’s steady presence in the D.A. ‘This is nice,’ he said, ‘just hanging out.’
‘Yes,’ Cho said. ‘You look tired.’ She summoned two bottles of beer and handed Harry one.
‘Work is, well,’ Harry trailed off. ‘It’s the Ministry, so.’ He clinked his bottle against hers and smiled wryly.
‘Pansy and Padma do seem to be more harassed than usual,’ Cho said. ‘I’d ask what’s going on, but I suspect that no one can actually tell me and that I don’t really want to know.’
Harry laughed hollowly. ‘No, you really don’t. I could probably tell you, but it wouldn’t help either of us.’ He finished his beer and turned to face her, ‘So, Luna then?’
Cho raised an eyebrow, ‘So, Draco then?’ She grinned at his slight scowl, ‘I think it’s nice.’
‘Well, as long as someone thinks we’re nice,’ Draco said from behind her, carefully dropping his jumper on the grass before sitting down. ‘I haven’t been called nice in a long time.’
‘Pansy said you were nice the other day,’ Cho said, only lying a little bit. Pansy had actually said that Draco had hidden depths of niceness that he concealed at all costs, but that could be revealed by plying him with copious amounts of brandy.
‘Pansy is a terrible person,’ Draco said archly before shoving at Harry until he could rest his head on his knees.
‘Perhaps none of us are nice anymore,’ Harry said. ‘Sometimes I don’t think I remember what being nice was like.’
Cho wrinkled her nose. ‘Nice used to mean wanton,’ she said, ‘perhaps we should bring that meaning back?’
‘It used to mean trivial as well,’ Draco said thoughtfully. ‘We could try being trivially wanton, or wantonly trivial.’
‘I think I prefer the idea of being trivially wanton,’ Pansy chimed in. ‘The pressure of being determinedly wanton does rather get to one after a while.’ She grinned sharkishly down at them all. ‘Come on, it’s getting chilly. I have a nice warm flat, that is just around the corner.’ She reached down to grab Draco’s hand and hauled him to his feet.
‘Do you have any food?’ Draco asked as they carefully cast reductios. ‘Or is that an unbearably stupid question?’
‘I have food,’ Pansy said. ‘I am offended that you felt the need to ask such a thing.’
‘The last time we came round, you had three bottles of cognac, a small loaf of bread and an avocado,’ Harry said. ‘I had to make a drunken trip to the corner shop.’
‘Oh yes,’ Pansy said laughing. ‘Well, I do in fact have food this time.’
Cho caught Harry’s eye and they both started laughing. ‘Shall we make a quick trip to the supermarket anyway,’ she asked under her voice. ‘I have work tomorrow, I don’t want to be catastrophically hungover.’
‘I think that’s probably a good plan,’ Harry nodded. He leaned over to whisper in Draco’s ear and Cho snickered as Draco tried to hide his laughter. ‘Come on,’ Harry said to Cho, ‘let’s go and see what delights the local Sainsbury’s holds.’
They stood in front of the fridge cabinets, idly dithering between types of hummus and taramasalata. ‘Or, we could get some pasta? Actually line our stomachs with something before Pansy forces endless glasses of wine on us.’ Cho shrugged.
‘Hmmm, probably,’ Harry said, continuing to stand in front of the fridge. He reached in and grabbed a pot of hummus. ‘Draco really likes it. He’ll never admit it though.’
Cho grinned and walked towards the fresh pasta. ‘We’re going to have to get something that doesn’t need any extra ingredients. I’ve seen the inside of Pansy’s store cupboard and it contained one jar of cayenne pepper, a box of expensive salt and half a bottle of lemon juice.’ She grabbed three packets and started to laugh. ‘What on earth has happened to us?’ she gestured at their clothes and the supermarket shelves. She dropped her voice, ‘We fought and killed people, and now we’re buying dips and breadsticks and pumpkin filled ravioli.’
‘I think we grew up,’ Harry said, laughing slightly, as they walked to the checkout.
--
‘Morning,’ Patricia said as Cho stepped through the door, rubbing her hands together and knocking ice off her boots onto the mat.
‘Hi,’ Cho said, hanging her coat up and grabbing an apron. ‘Can I have a word?’ She grabbed a mug from the shelf and filled it with filter coffee.
Patricia turned to face her, resting on the counter. ‘You’re quitting, aren’t you?’ she asked gently.
‘Oh, well, yes.’ Cho said hesitantly. ‘Sorry.’
‘Don’t be,’ Patricia clinked their mugs together. ‘I’m surprised you stayed this long, to be honest. What are you going to do?’
Cho laughed, ‘There’s a research position available in the Mapping Institute. Pansy told me to apply. Lots of arithmantic problems because of shielding charms and remnants of old magic keep hindering the project.’
‘How much longer do I have you for?’ Patricia asked.
‘Three weeks,’ Cho said. ‘Long enough to find someone else in need of safe haven, and teach them to make coffee.’
‘Shit,’ Patricia winked, ‘you caught on to my cunning plan.’
Cho laughed, and went to turn the sign from closed to open. ‘No one was very subtle about it.’
--
Cho laughed, ‘Oh, I already have three Galleons on Eleanor taking them both home.’ She looked at Luna and felt her stomach do its familiar flip. Luna was wearing a long green and gold dress, with a badger brooch that was climbing her shoulder slowly, and her hair had holly berries threaded into it. Cho put her glass down on the desk behind her, and carefully slipped her hand into Luna’s, smiling nervously.
Luna’s eyes glinted and she stroked the back of Cho’s hand with her thumb, pressing their forearms together before setting her glass down next to Cho’s and slipping her arm around Cho’s waist. ‘If you take me home tonight, Parvati wins eighteen Galleons and a kiss from Michael,’ she whispered into Cho’s hair.
‘What if you take me home?’ Cho said slightly unsteadily.
‘Ah, well then Pansy wins twelve Galleons and a night of dancing with Terry,’ Luna smiled and leaned back so she could see Cho’s face. ‘Who do you want to win?’
Cho licked her lips and caught Luna’s eye, reaching up to cup the side of her face. ‘Us, I want us to win.’
Luna grinned and stepped back, ‘Come on then,’ she said over her shoulder, weaving her way between people and heading for the coat hooks. She grabbed both their coats and held the door for Cho.
‘Where are we going?’ Cho asked, shivering as they stepped into the December night. She pulled her coat tightly around her, fumbled about for her gloves, and then squeaked slightly as Luna pulled her in close. Her squeak was slightly louder as they Apparated onto Southwark Bridge. ‘Warn a witch!’ Cho said, holding onto the railing and reminding herself to breathe slowly.
‘Sorry,’ Luna said gently, slowly dropping the shielding charm so that they could step into the Muggle world smoothly. She stroked a hand down Cho’s side and turned her so she could see the lights on the river. ‘I miss being able to see the stars,’ she said quietly.
Cho twisted round until she was facing Luna, tucking herself into Luna’s coat, and looked up. ‘They’re still there, hidden behind layers of light pollution. They’re still blinking at us.’
Luna tipped her head to one side, ‘How very profound.’
‘I know,’ Cho said. ‘I’m sure it’s an aberration.’ She slid one hand out from behind Luna’s back, reaching up to cup her cheek. ‘Now, did you bring me here to talk about stars, or to kiss me?’
‘Kiss you,’ Luna said, breathlessly. ‘Definitely to kiss you.’ She gently rested her hand on the back of Cho’s neck and softly pressed their lips together, keeping it light and airy.
‘I’m not made of porcelain,’ Cho said before pushing Luna back against the railing and deepening the kiss.
Luna leaned back against the railings, taking a deep breath. ‘I know, but it’s been a long wait. I wanted to make it memorable.’
Cho ducked her head, ‘I’m sorry for making you wait so long.’ She pulled her coat around her, and stuffed her hands in her pockets.
‘No, no, no,’ Luna said hastily. ‘I didn’t mind the wait, I wanted you to be ready. To be you again. We’ve taken a long time to get to this point, there’s no need to rush the rest of it.’
Cho looked at Luna, her expression of complete sincerity and the way she was twisting her fingers together nervously, as they turned blue in the cold air. ‘Thank you,’ she said, leaning in and kissing Luna gently. ‘Thank you, for everything.’
‘A thousand times and more,’ Luna said, kissing her again.