Secrets, Lies and the Daily Prophet (Alt. Fifth Year Fic)

Chapter Eighteen: Matters of the Heart

Disclaimer: This story is based on characters and situations created and owned by JK Rowling, various publishers including but not limited to Bloomsbury Books, Scholastic Books and Raincoast Books, and Warner Bros., Inc. No money is being made and no copyright or trademark infringement is intended.

A few days later Sirius and Harry were in the Professor Figg's front yard harvesting lavender. They had large buckets where they placed the fragrant stems after cutting with gardening sheers. Sirius brought the CD player outside and was blasting Steve Winwood's "Higher Love." He carefully used his wand over some of the lawn ornaments in front of the house.

"Harry, I just put a charm on the lawn gnomes so our voices will not be heard past them. All the neighbours will hear is this music. That way we can talk without worry, so it's okay to speak freely. You can ask me anything."

"Okay, thanks."

"So Harry, tell me about the girl you're interested in," Sirius asked in a casual tone.

Harry swallowed hard, he'd never talked to anyone about his feelings for Cho. Not even Ron. "Umm, she's a year older than I am. She's in Ravenclaw and - er - she's also a Seeker."

"What's her name?"

"Cho. Cho Chang," Harry replied.

"So, what do you know about Cho?"

Harry shook his head, "Umm, not much. She's really cute, but she's always surrounded by other girls. She seems nice though."

"Have you tried asking her out?" Sirius asked.

"Yeah. I asked her to the Yule Ball, but she was already going with Cedric."

"Cedric Diggory?"

Harry nodded.

"That's rough," Sirius sighed. "And now he's dead and you probably feel guilty."

"Yeah, I mean I know I didn't kill him and all, but...I still feel responsible in a way."

"That's because you're a decent human being. Harry, have you ever really talked with Cho?"

"Umm, not really. Just a few times in passing."

"Harry, I've got to let you know that when it comes to women, I made many mistakes in my youth. I'd like to help you to avoid some of them. First of all, you should know that being attracted to someone is important, but it is only one part. You need to like them for who they are and not just like how they look on the outside."

Harry started thinking of Fleur and how beautiful but haughty she was. He definitely didn't like who she was on the inside even though he barely knew her.

"You want to be with someone who likes you for who you are and not who they think you are," Sirius continued. "You'll have that problem more than most guys given your fame. I'm sure that many girls are interested in you just because of that and don't even know how kind and decent you really are."

Harry thought about the Yule Ball and how many girls had fallen over themselves to ask him out. Girls he had never even noticed before.

"Harry, I was afraid of falling in love," Sirius continued. "I didn't want to take the risk of letting someone get close to me and then reject me. I dated a lot of women. A lot of women. When I think back, I was a total jerk to them. At least I used protection and didn't get anyone pregnant or spread any diseases, but I was a real jerk. I regret that part of my youth and I don't want to see you treat women that way. You'd be much better off trying to follow in your father's footsteps."