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Cedric Diggory's name had just been pulled from the Goblet of Fire.

He couldn't believe it... Was he really the one it had chosen? He was the worthiest candidate? 

All he could do was stand up and smile. He couldn't hear for the blood rushing in his ears, but he could see his Housemates clapping for him, and he could see Headmaster Dumbledore smiling at him. He shook the man's hand before he was led into a side room off of the Great Hall. 

It was small and cozy, and he found himself standing in front of a small hearth. He faced it, staring into the flames, standing in between Durmstrang's Viktor Krum and Beauxbaton's Fleur Delacour. He felt no need to speak, as he was still in a bit of shock.

A Hufflepuff, as Hogwart's Champion. That sure showed them, huh? Like they can look down on our House now!

He didn't particularly feel sorry about thinking that kind of venomous thought. It was true, after all. He was a Hufflepuff, and he had probably surprised everyone. It was a huge achievement, of course. He and the rest of his House were tired of being thought of as inferior.

It was truly amazing!

Then, someone entered the room. His body was slow to react and look (still the shock), but he made out the French girl's accent as she asked if they were needed back in the Great Hall. Then his eyes caught up with the rest of him, and Harry Potter was standing in the room with them.

What? 

Then, Mr. Bagman bumbled into the room as well, blabbering about there being a fourth Champion. He was fawning over Harry--

No. 

That can't be it... Harry Potter is Hogwart's Champion?

Then, the rest of the Heads of School came into the room, and they were arguing over how Harry could have been chosen, and how could he be allowed to compete, how it was unfair to the other schools...

Cedric could not hide the bewilderment on his face as he spent the entire time staring at Harry Potter, wondering by what cruel strand of fate had his house had the spotlight taken from them... again.

But that didn't matter, did it? Because then they were talking about the fact that someone could be trying to kill Harry, and that was a bigger concern than Cedric and his House pride.

He was still baffled, but he watched Harry with sympathy now as the younger boy repeatedly sputtered and insisted that he had not put his name into the Goblet of Fire. 

Cedric believed him, too. And he couldn't help but feel sorry for him, because the last thing he looked like he wanted was to be in this room with the rest of them, being told how this Tournament could be the death of him.

And even Cedric knew that the death of Harry Potter would be colossally not good.

Once it was all set and done, they were told to return to their Houses to celebrate and get some rest. Harry and Cedric left at the same time, their shoulders brushing as they walked out of the small door frame and into the expanse of the Great Hall.

Once he was sure they were alone, Cedric spoke up.

"I believe you, you know," he whispered to Harry.

The other boy was staring at his feet as he walked, looking very dazed. He hardly even regarded Cedric, though, and he wondered if he had heard him.

"Does this mean we're playing against each other again?" Cedric teased him, nudging his shoulder with a slight smile. They had played as Seekers on opposing teams for quite a while now.

Harry frowned slightly. "I suppose," he muttered.

"We don't have to, you know," Cedric added suddenly. He didn't know what prompted it. Pity, perhaps?

"What?" asked Harry, suddenly staring up at him with clarity in his green eyes.

"We don't have to compete over this, I mean," Cedric reiterated, realizing that he meant it. "I believe that you didn't put your name in the Goblet," he elaborated, "and so I'm not exactly inclined to think you have any reason to hurt me."

"You're not upset?" Harry questioned, with an incredulous look in his eyes.

Cedric shook his head. "No, of course not." He stopped walking to completely grab Harry's attention. They stood facing each other, and Cedric grinned at him.

"If anything, I should be grateful, because between either of us, the school wins. Two can play for Hogwarts!" He laughed, and continued back to his dormitory.

"Good luck, Harry!" he called back over his shoulder, as Harry went a different direction to get to Gryffindor Tower. Cedric didn't think the dark-haired boy had responded, but it didn't really matter, anyway. 

They could talk later.

For the entire week, Hufflepuff had celebrated their victory. Cedric found himself surrounded himself by swarms of supporters at all times. Mostly Hufflepuffs, of course, but he had found that plenty of Ravenclaws had joined in, too. There were even several Gryffindors, and for reasons he couldn't fathom, a majority of the Slytherins.

He had never been unpopular, so to speak, but this was all a bit too much. He had wondered why so many people were flocking to him; it wasn't even as if he were the only Hogwarts Champion!

Not long after he had noticed the Slytherins being marginally polite to him, he had realized what was up.

People were choosing him over Harry. People were turning against Harry, and accusing him of cheating, of trying to steal the spotlight from Cedric.

He had tried to tell everyone that it was ridiculous, and that they ought to leave the other boy alone.

But then, he found that this wasn't about supporting him. It was about not supporting Harry. That much had been clear when the badges started showing up. Whole groups of people (namely Slytherins) could be found flashing fancy badges that said Potter Stinks!

It was immature, it was low, and he wouldn't stand for it. It went against every moral in his Hufflepuff code, and he told his friends so, too. In fact, he had announced it to his entire common room one evening.

No one listened, and Harry was beginning to look rather lonely. Even his best friend Ron had started to ignore him, he saw.

After another week, it was too much for Cedric to bear. If nothing else would help, he supposed he would have to go and apologize to Harry himself. So, he had found an opportunity to sneak away from his group of friends and found Harry alone with a friend of his in the library. He had seen her with him a lot. 

Are they dating? he found himself wondering.

"Harry," Cedric whispered, sitting down at the table. The girl and Harry looked up at him in shock.

"Cedric," said Harry, looking surprised.

The girl gaped at him, as if she had never imagined in a million years that he would be talking to them.

"Can I talk to you?" he requested, looking around to make sure none of his friends had found him yet. The brown haired girl with Harry seemed to take the hint, and she quickly left the table to leave them in private. Cedric took it upon himself to cast some privacy charms in the hope it would earn him a few extra minutes to talk.

"What is it?" 

"I wanted to apologize," explained Cedric. "For the other students' behavior. I tried to tell them to quit it with the badges, but they won't listen."

Harry blushed and ducked his head. "Thanks," he mumbled,"but it's ok. No one's bothered me too much, besides Malfoy, I mean... But other than that, I get left alone."

Cedric shook his head. "It's not really fair though, is it? The Goblet chose you, too. We're both Champions. You deserve some respect as well." He hoped he looked as honest as he felt.

He supposed he did, because Harry shot a smile at him. "Thanks, Cedric. That means a lot to me."

Cedric grinned. "Good, Harry. Perhaps we could meet up another time, soon? I really don't think we need to compete. I want to be friends," he added.

He didn't know where that last part had come from... But he supposed it was true, too. After all, he had spent so much time watching Harry from afar, hadn't he?

Harry smiled widely. "Alright. Not here, though," he added, looking around. "People are hiding in the bookshelves." 

Cedric would have thought that the privacy charms had covered it, but it wasn't enough for Harry, apparently.

Harry wrote something on a piece of parchment and slid it over to Cedric casually. 

"See you, Diggory." He stood up, gathered his books, and walked off.

"Good luck, Potter."

Cedric still held the note with him the day that he was seeing Harry.

See you at the lake. 2pm Saturday.

It wasn't much, but Cedric held onto it like it was a symbol of trust growing between him and Harry. He didn't what he valued more, though-- working together for the sake of the school, or just getting to know Harry.

Harry, the Boy Who Lived, and Cedric, the Hufflepuff who was the original Hogwarts champion. They'd make quite a team, wouldn't they?

He was walking towards the doors to get him out of the castle to meet Harry, when he bumped into Cho Chang, of all people. He'd seen a lot of her lately. She was one of his biggest Ravenclaw supporters, and she was nice enough. She didn't openly oppose Harry, at least, which counted for something.

He really wasn't in the mood to chat with her, though; he was busy. He forced a smile all the same for her, when she looked up at him with big brown eyes and said, "Cedric! What a surprise. I hadn't meant to run into you." She at him blinked in a strange manner.

"Oh, yeah. Sorry. I've, ah, I've gotta run, anyway. Carry on!" he told her cheerily, moving past her.

"Cedric!" she called after him, suddenly seeming like she most certainly had meant to run into him. Grudgingly, he stopped.

"Hm?" he asked her, trying to remain chivalrous while he felt so impatient.

"I need a tutor for Herbology; it's my worst subject. Would you mind helping me sometime?" she inquired, smiling sweetly. Her hair was falling softly in front of her eyes, and she was doing that ridiculous blinking again.

He didn't really know what to say, as he wasn't that fond of Herbology, nor so fond of the way she acted around him, but he also wasn't in the mood to argue with her about Hufflepuff stereotypes (and when was he?), either. So, he just gave her a quick, "Sure, of course," and moved on to find Harry, ignoring her protests as she chased after him.

He was a few minutes late after he had to take a few different hallways to chase off Chang. Harry didn't seem to mind, though. He had been sitting by the water, casting stones at the lake with a thoughtful expression. He looked small, out there alone, but when Cedric sat down next to him, he seemed more confident than he had looked in a while.

"Nice day out, isn't it?" Cedric asked him, watching as the other boy cast another skipping stone. He watched as it took three skips across the water, and Cedric helped it along with a spell.

"Yeah," Harry agreed, with a funny grin as he watched the magically enhanced stone skip even farther. "And the squid isn't anywhere to be found," he added, oddly cheerful.

Cedric laughed, because if it was supposed to be funny, he didn't want Harry feeling out of sorts. He wanted him to be comfortable. Cedric was comfortable. Wasn't he? He liked Potter well enough, so he decided he should feel comfortable. But he was also oddly nervous about impressing the boy, too, which was silly. Was it?

He was squirming when there was a moment of silence, but Harry looked fairly content, so Cedric decided there was no need to worry. Especially not when Harry spoke next, anyhow.

"Thanks for being so kind to me," Harry said at last. "Not a lot of people are being too nice with me lately, though some Gryffindors are starting to come around again." He explained.

"That's brilliant, Harry. I'm glad for you. I'd give you some of my fans, if I could, but they just don't leave me alone, it seems."

"Really?" Harry questioned, raising an eyebrow and looking at him. Cedric didn't know if he was being sarcastic or not, so he decided to respond anyway.

"Yeah, it's a little ridiculous. Like coming here, Cho Chang ran into me... She doesn't seem to leave me alone. She wanted tutoring in Herbology." Cedric tried not to scoff, but he did, and he blushed because he was being a little rude. "Not that it's a bad thing. I mean, she's nice enough..."

"Cho Chang, huh? Isn't she in Ravenclaw?" Harry asked absently, skipping another stone. It only went two skips. Cedric was still blushing when Harry looked at him, so he looked away at the water.

"Yes, she is." 

"Mmmh. Are you good at herbology, then? If she needs your help and all..." Harry trailed off, and Cedric found he didn't mind Ravenclaw stereotypes from Harry as much as he did the Hufflepuff ones from Cho.

"Not really, which is the funny thing," Cedric commented. He was one of the worst in his House when it came to the subject, but his Housemates were kind enough not to say anything.

Harry threw less flat stone, and it landed in the water with an unsatisfying plop. "You think she fancies you?" he asked. "It would make sense... You're handsome, popular, Quidditch player, and a Champion?" he added a queer glint in his eye.

Cedric laughed, and replied, "If that's what it was, then she'd be all over you, as well." He laughed lightly, and now it was Harry who was blushing. He looked Harry once over, and a strange voice in the back of his head noted that Harry certainly was handsome...

There was another silence. Cedric hoped he hadn't crossed any boundaries...

"Cedric," Harry said all at once, turning to face him. "There's something you should know." 

Cedric felt his heart thump a little faster, and he wondered why he suddenly felt so nervous. "What?" he breathed, searching Harry's face for any unspoken answers.

Harry looked away, his face unchanging. "The first task is facing dragons. I just thought you should know, since you've been so kind to me." He stared out and threw a thin, flat stone over the water. It went seven skips, without magic.

Then, all at once, Cedric realized that Harry was standing up, and then brushing his robes off. Is that all? Are we done already?

"Dragons?" Cedric repeated, springing to his feet immediately. "Are you sure?" Awe and terror had crept into his voice, but he noted a large portion of the disturbance came from the fact that Harry was already trying to leave.

Harry nodded, and lifted a hand to run through his dark, messy hair. "I saw them myself. I only thought it was fair to tell you. Since we're not competing, and all," he added clumsily.

Cedric grinned, realizing how he was watching the other boy's every move with relish. "Thanks, Harry."

"No problem, mate. Anyway, I think I ought to get going. Ron and Hermione are waiting for me." He turned to leave.

"Alright then. See you, Harry." A frown gathered on his face as he watched Harry walk away, and an odd feeling settled in his stomach.

Hermione... Is that the girl he's always with? 

Cedric shook his head. He wasn't feeling jealous of the girl, was he?

Harry was eating breakfast on Tuesday morning with Ron and Hermione, as usual. Ron had finally calmed down about the whole Harry-being-achampion thing, to his great relief. It meant he had one more person to talk to about... whatever was going on in his head.

He wasn't talking to his friends at this meal, though. Nor had he since his meeting with Cedric on Saturday. He had spent most of his time staring at the Ravenclaw table, assessing Cho Chang. Not because he was interested in her, he had realized by Sunday dinner. Because he was bitter with her.

Who is she to think she can bother Cedric like that?

He had gotten used to these odd, possessive thoughts. He realized he was jealous of Chang. She was constantly flitting around Cedric, talking to him, and probably not just about Herbology. And, most of the time, he seemed to be enjoying it, too. He was chatting back at her, grinning and laughing.

What, is it because she's pretty? Smart? Why is he paying such close attention to her?

He decided he'd ask Ron what he thought. Ron liked girls didn't he? He would know if she were pretty. Harry ignored the fact that this idea would imply that he did not like girls, as he didn't think he was ready to face that.

"Ron," he asked, "what do you think of Cho Chang?"

Ron looked at him wide-eyed through a mouthful of bacon. "Chang? I guess I haven't really thought about it," he admitted. He looked over to the Ravenclaw table (where she was now properly seated, finally leaving Cedric alone). "She's alright, I suppose. Why? D'ya think you fancy her?" he asked calmly.

Harry felt himself turn red, as he knew this wasn't true. But he wasn't sure what was true.

He heard Hermione groan next to him. "Harry, you don't really, do you?" she asked. "She's clearly all over Cedric. She only would want to date you because you're a champion. Like Cedric," she told him pointedly, pointing towards the girl with a spoon.

Harry looked over, seeing that Cho was indeed all over Cedric. He sighed, feeling a little dismayed.

Ron slapped Harry on the shoulder. "So, you do have a chance with her, you Champ!"

Harry buried his face in his hands and moaned in despair.

Cedric kept finding himself having himself to deal with Cho at breakfast... Again, and again, and again.

She kept coming to him with Herbology questions, as he had yet to actually tutor her. He didn't plan on it, either, because he was bollocks at Herbology, and he was beginning to get the feeling that Harry had been correct.

Cho Chang fancied him, and it was bloody annoying. Instead of spending his meal times closely watching Harry like he normally did, he had to deal with her. She kept on asking him about how to care for mandrakes, or enlarged venus fly traps, and other horrid plants that he hadn't known the slightest about. 

It was at breakfast, the Tuesday after he had met with Harry, that he had had enough.

"Cedric!" she chirped, squeezing next to him at the Hufflepuff table. He had asked his friends to sit closely to him so this wouldn't happen, but they were all polite and timid, so of course scooted over to give her some room. He suppressed a groan as she sat down next to him.

She leaned over, holding out a piece of parchment covered in Herbology notes. "I was wondering what you thought about how the acid level in the soil would change if you planted a quill prickled pine with a--" 

"Chang. I don't know," he sighed, stabbing at his eggs aggressively.

"I wasn't done!" she protested. "Anyway, I was thinking that perhaps the pine--"

Cedric groaned and dropped his fork. "Please, Cho. Be quiet. It's too early, and it's obvious that you know more about Herbology than I do." He was trying to be polite, but as was usual with her, he was finding it slightly difficult.

"Oh, thank you, Cedric, but I really don't think that's true!" She batted her eyelashes at him.

He rolled his eyes. "No, it really is. I have no idea what you're talking about half the time," he told her, meeting her gaze with as hard of a stare as he could muster.

"Oh." She blinked, but smiled again, apparently undeterred. "Then, perhaps I should tutor you?" 

Cedric set his jaw. "Cho. I'm trying very hard not to be annoyed with you, but you're trying too hard. And I think it's terribly rude that you would assume I know all about Herbology, just because I'm in Hufflepuff," he told her, his voice not wavering. He was done with this.

"Oh, it's not like that, Cedric!" She exclaimed.

"No." He cut her off. "I'm not interested, and I would prefer if you left me alone."

She gaped at him, as did the rest of the Hufflepuff table. 

"You inconsiderate prat," she hissed. She promptly stood up, left, and returned to sit with the Ravenclaws.

He ignored the murmurings from his Housemates, instead choosing to watch Harry banter about something with his friends. He smiled with pity as he saw poor Harry bury his face in his hands over something.

He's cute, he found himself thinking.

Not long after he had finally gotten Cho Chang out of his hair, Cedric found himself being pulled out of class for something about a wand-weighing. 

He didn't really mind missing out on classes, of course. Especially when it provided an extra chance to see Harry, with whom he shared no classes, because of their age gap.

Harry wasn't there when he arrived, though. He had shown up a bit later than everyone else, and they apparently had to wait on Harry to get started. They all had their pictures taken and their wands inspected, but Cedric didn't have a chance to talk to Harry, because he had been swept away by some blond-haired reporter.

He hadn't been too happy about that, but it wasn't like he could protest.

He almost did, though, when he saw Harry fumbling to get away as fast as he could. He looked shaken and a bit aggravated, so Cedric followed after him. 

"Harry!" he called, trying to catch up with the other boy.

He almost smiled as Harry nearly tripped, because it was adorable, but instead he ran over to catch him by the robes to prevent him from falling. Harry spun around to face him, looking flushed, flustered, and foolishly grinning all at once.

"Thanks, Cedric." He laughed, breaking away to brush himself off.

"You alright?" Cedric asked, and Harry raised an eyebrow. "Well, you did just save me, so I think so," he laughed again. His face lit up and his cheeks remain flushed as he met Cedric's eyes.

Cedric really liked that laugh, but he was thinking of other things right now. "I meant before," he said. "With the reporter." He had seen Harry's disheveled state, scowling and angered and put off.

With that, Harry scowled again, and Cedric found it wasn't nearly as appealing. 

"Oh," he muttered, his hair falling over his scar as he looked down. "It was awful. She's a prying, manipulative creature," Harry confessed. He crossed his arms, and shook his head as if to spook off a bug.

"That's terrible," Cedric replied, unable to think of anything else he could say. He wanted to, but he suddenly felt himself at a loss. 

"I think we have to get back to class," Harry told him, turning to leave with the same abruptness as he had at the lake.

"Oh," Cedric murmured. "I guess so."

Damn it.

 It wasn't long after the wand-weighing ceremony and Harry's unfortunate meeting with the reporter that an article about him was published. Cedric found he didn't quite like it; it didn't portray Harry in a anyway that he was familiar with. 

The one good thing that had come from the article, though, was that he had seen Harry blow up at Chang in the hallway. Though, even that had its downsides.

The boy had been storming through the hallway, probably after an entire day of uncomfortable encounters. Cedric had been hovering down the hall, waiting to approach Harry and talk with him.

He hadn't even noticed Cedric when Cho Chang called out to him first.

"Harry!"

He watched with delight and horror as Harry spun around on his heels. "What is it? Come to ask me if I've been crying about my dead mother? Ask me if I still sleep with a plush toy, too?" he demanded, turning on the wide eyed girl with hands on his hips. Cedric could only imagine the fiery look in his eyes. 

Thinking of the fire reminded him of the dragons, and the task at hand that he would be facing Tuesday. A stone dropped in his stomach, and he was left with a feeling of despair. For himself as much as for Harry, he noted.

Chang took a step back, blushing and wincing and doing that strange blinking at Harry. 

It was bad enough that she had been blinking at him... But watching her make those faces at Harry was far worse. The despair worsened, and he felt himself slump against the wall.

"N-no, Harry," she whispered, taking another step closer to him. Cedric watched with disgust, and was grateful that neither of them had noticed him yet.

"I just wanted to wish you good luck. For Tuesday," she  added, now standing rather close to him. She wouldn't stop blinking, dammit, and he could see it from here. It was somehow more noticeable than the annoying girlish flush in her cheeks, which she was obviously trying to use to her own advantage.

"Oh. Well. Thanks?" Harry asked, stepping away backwards. Cedric wished he had been facing a different direction, so he could watch Harry's facial expression instead of Cho Chang's, which he had already seen quite enough of.

He watched as Cho reached out to touch Harry's shoulder. "You'll do wonderfully," she told him with a wickedly sweet smile.

Harry recoiled, and Cedric smirked. "T-thanks? I'm sure Cedric will, too," he added.

Cedric felt a bit of warmth spread inside of him.

Cho tilted her head. "Oh, perhaps. But I'll be watching you." She was watching Harry now, too, and it made Cedric want to run over and snatch Harry away from he uncomfortable gaze. He knew how awful it felt to have her watching all the time....

"Oh. Well, I'm sure. You'll be in the stands, anyway, so you'll have to," Harry told her. Cedric noted with disdain that he even sounded... cheery. 

"Of course! Anyway, Harry, I have to go. I've got Defense Against the Dark Arts... It's really my worst subject," she confided Harry, leaning in a little closer, and making Cedric suddenly feel rather aggressive. How many 'worst subjects' can one person have?

He contained himself, though... Even when she chirped at Harry, saying, "Perhaps you ought to tutor me sometime? I've heard you do rather well." She turned and skipped away, giving Harry little option to say yes or no. Either way, Cedric had a bad feeling she would be pestering him often now.

He watched as Harry turned around, looking upset and perplexed. Cedric stepped away from the wall, standing in the middle of the hallway so Harry would notice him. He did, too. Right away.

"Cedric!" Harry exclaimed. "I didn't even notice you," he sputtered, his face turning red.

"S'okay." Cedric grinned at him. "Cho's on your back?" he asked good-naturedly as he fell into step with Harry. 

Harry shrugged, discomfort showing on his face. "Apparently. I thought she was after you?" he inquired, staring ahead at some unidentified point.

Cedric was quite content to stare to the side at Harry. "I told her off. I think she hates me now," he confessed with a laugh. "You think she just wants herself a Champion?"

Harry turned red again, this time to the tips of his ears, and Cedric wasn't sure what he had said to illicit that reaction.

"That's what Hermione told me," remarked, still not looking away from the ground in front of him. Goddammit, Harry, he thought. Look at me!

"Hermione?" Cedric asked. "She your girlfriend? I bet she'll be jealous," he added with a hint of uncertainty. He wanted to know if Harry was dating anyone, and he didn't care if he was being nosy.

Harry laughed, still sounding uncomfortable. "No, she's not. Not really my type, I don't think. I, ah... I've got my eye on someone else," he confessed, this time finally looking at Cedric through a side shifted glance.

Cedric stiffened, but he didn't let the casual charm leave his voice. "Oh. Is it Cho, then?" he blurted out, and hoped Harry didn't think he was foolish.

"No!" Harry exclaimed, letting out a bark of laughter. He definitely sounded even more uncomfortable than before, Cedric noted. "No, I find she's rather distasteful, anyway."

Cedric narrowed his eyes, wondering what Harry was hiding.

So, he's not with Granger. But he's not being honest with what he feels about Cho...

Half of Cedric wondered why he cared so much. The other half knew for sure, and it was screaming loudly in his head. Cedric wasn't in the mood to listen to either.

"So," Harry interrupted Cedric's chain of thought. "I was wondering if you'd want to go flying with me? On Sunday, maybe. It would help to unwind before the Tournament." He added the last bit as if it were an afterthought. He hadn't needed to, though. Cedric was already sold.

"That'd be great, Harry!" He beamed, looking down to smile at the younger student. "See you Sunday?"

Harry grinned back. "Sunday."

 The days seemed to crawl, and Cedric didn't know if it was in uneasy anticipation for the First Task, or with eager excitement for flying with Harry on Sunday.

But Sunday came, and he was standing by the broom shed, waiting for Harry. No one else was nearby, save for a Ravenclaw third year that he had sometimes seen with Cho. He also recognized her as the girl who wore the lion-hat to all the Gryffindor-Slytherin Quidditch matches. She was off in her own world, doodling or writing something in a notebook. It didn't really matter to Cedric; Harry had just shown up.

He didn't have his broom with him, which Cedric thought was a shame, because he owned a Firebolt. Cedric had selfishly wanted to try it out, and just as selfishly wanted to watch Harry on it.

"Hullo," Harry smiled, walking up to Cedric with his hands in his pockets.

"Hi." Cedric grinned. "Don't have your broom with you?" he asked him rhetorically.

Harry raised both his eyebrows. "No," he replied. "Not yet. I'm practicing," he added conspiratorially, taking his wand from his pocket.

"Accio Firebolt!" he exclaimed. There was nothing for a moment, and then there was a buzzing sound. Before he could fully understand what was happening, Harry's Firebolt smacked into his hand. Harry had a surprised smile on his face.

"That's the first time that's worked." He looked utterly elated as he held up the broom. 

"You're learning summoning charms already?" Cedric asked curiously.

Harry licked his lips (which Cedric had already been staring at). "Something like that," he muttered, hopping onto his Firebolt. "Grab a broom from the shed," he commanded. "I'll give you a go with the Firebolt in a minute."

Cedric was satisfied with that, and he ran into the shed to take one of the school's brooms. As an afterthought, he wished that he knew how to get into the rest of the supplies so he could find a Snitch for them to use. Wouldn't that be fun?

Harry was already up in the air, so Cedric didn't waste a moment in hopping on his own broom and joining him above the Pitch. "I wanted to get a Snitch, but I wasn't sure where to find one," he told Harry, flying up and hovering close to him.

Harry grinned, pulling something out of his pocket. "Oh, look," he winked.

It was a Snitch, fluttering and struggling in Harry's hand and trying to escape.

"How...?" Cedric asked, feeling impressed.

Harry didn't answer his question. Instead, he tossed it into the air.

"Catch!"

From below, Luna watched the two boys in the air. She was sketching them in her notebook, smiling at their apparent flirtatiousness. They were shy and uncertain around each other on the ground, but they both gathered a certain kind of confidence in the air.

Quidditch truly is the queerest sport, she thought to herself, looking up to note that they were trailing each other closely. They had resorted to flying in a circle together.

"Oh, clever, Harry!" Cedric teased, speeding up and closing the distance in the circle. They had traded brooms, and Cedric was trying out the Firebolt.

"Just look for the bloody Snitch!" Harry shouted back, diving down as if he spotted the thing.

Cedric chased after him. "Why would I, when I can just watch you?"

Luna knew for sure that the comment had more than one meaning. She smiled ruefully to herself, thinking that Cho had to be blind to think she stood a chance with either of the Champions. 

 Too soon, it was the day of the First Task. Cedric found himself unable to eat much at breakfast, and didn't even go to the Great Hall. Nerves prevented him from thinking of little else than Harry's warning at the lake. About the Task.

Dragons.

How the hell am I supposed to fight a dragon?

Of course, he didn't know he would have to slay it, but it was his best guess. He didn't bother fancy the idea that Harry had told him it was dragons just to throw him off; he trusted the other boy too much.

He relished the time alone; none of his friends had bothered question him on it when he told them he was going off for a walk. They didn't dare bother him, in fear of risking the effectiveness of the Champion.

He had been wandering the hallways, doing his best to ignore everyone who passed him. They didn't question him, either, despite the fact that he was usually a more sociable fellow. Today, he reserved his right to be reserved.

Not even fear of the match could stop him, however, when he encountered Ludo Bagman with Harry in tow.

"Hullo," Cedric stopped walking, looking at the two with surprise.

"Cedric, my boy! We were just about to head over to the tent and the arena. Would you care to join us?" Bagman asked him, grinning cheekily. 

"Is it that time already?" Cedric queried, turning to go on with them in their direction. He fell into step with Harry, enjoying the brush of their shoulders.

"It is indeed. Are you nervous, then?" Bagman inquired. Cedric wasn't sure if he was addressing him or Harry, so he waited a moment.

"Should we be?" Harry asked testily, casting a knowing glance at Cedric. Both of them were, and they had reasons to.

Bagman laughed. "The two of you? I think you'll be fine." Cedric wasn't sure if he meant that, though.

They walked off of Hogwarts grounds in an uneasy silence, towards a large, brightly colored arena. There was a tall, striped striped tent propped up next to it, and other Hogwarts students were already marching past it towards the stands.

"You and the other Champions will wait in the tent to start, and I'll be with you in a minute," Bagman told them. Harry and Cedric turned to face each other, and Harry nodded. They entered the tent, where the other two champions were waiting for them.

Viktor was pacing, looking particularly aggravated or nervous. Fleur had collapsed onto a beanbag on the floor and was muttering things in French with her face in her hands.

"Have you a plan?" Cedric asked Harry quietly, as the two resigned to a corner to sit together.

"Yes," Harry whispered. "I already told you."

Cedric frowned. He was sure he remembered every encounter he'd had with Harry, and he had no such recollection of any discussion of plans. "Did you?" he questioned.

Harry smiled wryly. "You'll remember when you see it. You're smart enough," he nudged Cedric's shoulder, almost affectionately. "Now, what about you? Have you any plans?" 

Cedric shook his head. "Not entirely. I've read plenty on slaying dragons, ever since you warned me... But all I've got is a couple Transfiguration spells," he muttered.

Harry looked at him with concern, but Cedric set his jaw, and said, "I'll be fine."

The fear gathering inside him told him otherwise.

Then, Mr. Crouch and Mr. Bagman entered the tent. Crouch scowled at them. "Our two Hogwarts champions aren't in cahoots over something, are they?" He snapped. "Cheating won't do."

Bagman laughed. "I'm sure whatever they're doing is completely innocent. Right, boys?" He winked at Harry and Cedric. "Now, get over here and let's talk about the task!" He clapped his hands together, and looked positively, sickeningly, giddy.

Bagman and Crouch talked at them, assuring them that they would indeed, be facing dragons. Only, to Cedric's surprise, they wouldn't be slaying them. They would be stealing an egg from them.

From what he'd read about dragons, this was even worse.

Then, they were told to reach into a bag, and they all pulled out a dragon. Cedric got a Swedish Short-Snout, which looked like your typical fairy tale beast. It's silvery blue scales shone as it slid around in his hand, and it glared at him with bright blue eyes the color of.

Harry, was tasked with a Hungarian horntail, and it's spiky tail looked like it could do a lot of damage to a person... Cedric shuddered, and felt himself suppressing the need to reach out and hug Harry. He sufficed with a quiet, "Good luck."

Harry swallowed, and contemplated the figurine in his hands.

Bagman clapped again. "Lovely! Now that that's done, Cedric, it looks like you're first!" he cried. "Lucky you." He winked at him, and then promised they'd have about fifteen minutes before the trial began.

Cedric was going to use it to think out his plan, but that idea went to hell when he saw something that he really did not like.

Harry's friend Hermione had darted into the tent, spoke fervently with him for a moment, and then abruptly drew Harry into a tight hug. The tent flap had ripped open, photographing their embrace. The photo had also captured Cedric's own envious glare, and Viktor Krum's incredulous one.

He had spent his remaining time sulking, though Harry had (for some reason) sat next to him and complained that now everyone would have the wrong impression, and that he and Hermione were "I swear to gods, just friends."

Then, in a surreal sort of trance, Cedric was being called out of the tent to face his dragon, the Swedish Short-Snout. He wasn't sure how he got there, but in a matter of minutes, he had stumbled into the arena.

The dragon was huge, towering over him like a building. Those fiery eyes glared down at him, and it let out a huff of intense, blue flames. At once, Cedric was spotted, and it saw him a threat.

He made a dash to run as it shot at him a bigger line of flames, and he watched the ground become singed. He had a feeling that if she kept that flame focused on a single part of the ground for longer than a few seconds, the earth itself might melt.

He gave himself a moment to hide behind a rock, and the beast fumbled around slowly. She wasn't swift on the ground, but from what he had read, she would be a true terror if she took to flight.

And there's students in the stands! What the hell were these people thinking? He thought angrily, ducking out from behind the rock as she located him and started blazing again. If it weren't for the loud noise the fire made, he would have known just from the rock's heat.

He summoned what ever quick thinking he had and remembered the spells he had learned, and any other useful knowledge he had of dragons. His survival instinct, however, could only supply him with ways to try and kill the dragon, and he knew it would lose him points if he tried something like that.

He couldn't think of anything. If only he could just distract her...

That's it!

He pointed his wand at an untouched rock from across the arena, and Transfigured it into a dog. He had always been good at Transfiguration, and it was the first thing that came to mind.

He had also become familiar with Disillusionment charms of late, seeing as he used them to avoid his "fans" (and possibly to sometimes watch Harry). He cast one on himself now, silencing his footfalls and making him blend with the ground. The judges would still see him, but the dragon's eyesight was poor and she would have trouble locating him with the charm making his footsteps practically weightless.

Without even thinking, he made a mad dash for the nest and the Golden Egg. He was halfway there, and then all of a sudden--

He shrieked. He felt blue flame meet his face, and his vision was blurred, and his steps faltered. Then, all at once, the pain faded. He knew he only had a few moments before the pain would come back and the shock would be over, so he ran.

He took the Golden Egg, sprinting, and ran for the gate to leave. The blue dragon behind him wailed in utter despair at the loss of a child, but Cedric didn't care. His face erupted in an explosion of pain and heat, and he collapsed.

When Cedric awoke from unconsciousness, the burning sensation had faded. He felt the cool, slippery sensation of a salve on his face, and he realized he was in a tent. Madam Pomfrey was hovering over him. 

"Oh, good. You're awake!" she exclaimed, handing him a potion bottle. "Drink this, dear. It will keep the pain from coming back before it's healed, which shouldn't be much longer. The salves work well," she told him. He swallowed the potion in one go.

"How long was I out?" Cedric demanded, wondering if the Task was already over, and he'd missed everything...

"Not long, dear. Mr. Potter is currently--"

She was interrupted as a loud cheer erupted. It was louder than any other he'd heard, save for perhaps the Irish supporters at the World cup. He stumbled out of the tent, and saw that Harry was flying a victory lap around the arena.

His Firebolt. He summoned the Firebolt.

"The cheeky bastard!" he exclaimed as he watched Harry land. Several professors grouped around him, but he didn't see what happened next. Madam Pomfrey had pulled him back into the tent, telling him to "Sit down, Mr. Diggory!"

And then Harry was ushered into the room, and Cedric gave him an unabashed grin, though he winced as the scab over the burn on his face stretched. Harry looked at him concernedly, but he looked away as Madam Pomfrey administered something to his shoulder. Cedric realized with horror that the Horntail must have nicked him with that awful, spiky club of an appendage it had.

"You alright, Cedric?" Harry asked, walking over once the nurse was done.

"Yes, Diggory, how does it feel now?" Promfrey asked, shuffling over to him. 

"Better, Mrs. Pomfrey," Cedric sighed, waving her away. He turned to Harry and smiled as widely as he could without affecting the burn. "And I'm fine, Harry. Does it look bad, though?" he asked sheepishly.

Harry laughed. "I'm afraid it's mauled your pretty face," he told him. "It won't be permanent, will it?" he questioned, worry gliding over his face for a moment.

"No, Mr. Potter. Though I can't see why you're worrying about Mr. Diggory's appearance when you should be worried about your shoulder!" she snapped at him, and both boys laughed.

"How're you, Harry? I didn't see until the last minute. You summoned your broom?" Cedric asked him.

Harry nodded eagerly. "Yes, I--"

"Harry!"

The sudden cry interrupted him, and Harry turned around as Cedric looked over his shoulder to see Harry's friends rushing into the room. The girl practically toppled him with a hug, and even the boy (who had seemed slightly bitter from Cedric's earlier observations) was exuberant. They chattered about some drama, and the girl burst out crying and the boy hugged Harry, too, as if in amends.

"They've probably got the scores ready. Let's go, Harry," the red headed boy said.

"Sure." Harry said. He looked over his shoulder at Cedric. "Coming, Cedric?" 

Cedric grinned and followed him out. They returned to the arena, and he saw the judges now at the edge of the dragon enclosure, which was now (thankfully) devoid of all flying lizards.

Harry had tied in first with Krum, Cedric soon found. Almost all the Hogwarts students were cheering for Harry, he found. He wasn't bitter or jealous, because hadn't that been what he'd wanted all along?

Then, they were informed that the next Task would be in the end of February, and they had until then to use the eggs to discover the clue for the Second Task.

Before they left, Harry brushed by him and dropped a note in his pocket.

After the festivities, meet me by the Quidditch Pitch. We can talk about the task.

Also, your face isn't too bad for the burn. But, in case you haven't noticed, it is covered in orange paste. It's not the most flattering color on you.

Cedric grinned. He would suffer through his House's adoration, as he was sure Harry would, too. But then, he'd get to see him again. 

Chapter Text

Cedric was waiting patiently for Harry by the broom shed at the Quidditch Pitch. He had managed to sneak away from his house after a few hours of celebration, gilded compliments, and countless congratulations.

It was quiet at the Pitch. The stars were bright and visible, aside from a few wispy, silvery clouds drifting through the heavens. He took a moment to lie down on the grass and breathe deeply. 

He was free. Free from the attention, from the stress, from the dragons. It was just him and his thoughts and the air. His thoughts kept on drifting to Harry, however, and he found himself feeling grateful that he'd be with the boy soon.

Soon after thinking that, he heard the soft fall of footsteps on grass, and it was as if Harry had materialized out of thin air. The boy heaved out a sigh, and plopped down onto the ground next to Cedric.

"How were the celebrations?" Cedric asked him, propping up on one elbow to get a look at the other boy. He looked exhausted, but blissful as he was lit up by the starlight.

"Rough," Harry moaned. "The horntail was worse, though." He laughed wryly. "Not that the several girls who tried to kiss me weren't," he added, and he looked shameful and mortified all at once.

"You were a hero today. Girls sure like that," he laughed, turning onto his back again to watch the stars.

"Not sure if I do," Harry muttered.

"Like what?" Cedric asked him, feeling altogether too relaxed on the cool grass and under the blue night lights to feel apprehensive about any words they exchanged. It was bliss.

"The girls," Harry replied. "All that crawling all over me," he added hastily.

Cedric huffed. "Believe me, I understand. It'll be tough getting Cho to leave you alone after today." He laughed wryly. He hoped that Harry didn't actually enjoy her. How could he?

"How'd you do it?" asked Harry.

"I stopped being a gentleman," Cedric replied, realizing how haughty he sounded.

"It was an act?" Harry inquired, sounding surprised.

"Yeah," Cedric replied, feeling a little perplexed. "I didn't actually like her. She drove me crazy," he confessed. "Do you like her?" 

"No!" Harry exclaimed. "Gods, no. I glare at her a lot in the dining hall, but that's just because I hate it when she--" he broke off. "My friends think I fancy her. I really don't."

Cedric laughed. "I believe you," he assured him. Then, "Do you fancy anyone?" He felt a little foolish, talking like a schoolboy about crushes and girls. But he justified it with the fact that he had a crush on--

Do I? Do I have a crush on Harry? Is  that what this is?

He was glad the other boy couldn't see his blushing face.

"I suppose I do," Harry replied thoughtfully. "But I don't think I'll tell you," he snickered. 

"Oh, you've killed me, Harry," Cedric replied dryly. "I shan't be able to breathe until I know." 

Harry snorted and laughed all at once. "If you turn blue and die on me, I don't think I can help you," he joked.

Cedric sighed all the same. It might not have been so dire, but he really did want to know who Harry fancied. Not that there was a chance it was him.

"So." He cleared his throat. "Did you open the egg yet?" he asked. He hadn't yet, as he had been a bit busy with the party. 

Harry sat up. "Oh!" he exclaimed. "I almost forgot. Yeah, I did. It screeched and terrified everyone in the common room. It gave me the opportunity to sneak out, though." He laughed, and Cedric saw he was staring at him. "Did you open yours?" 

"No, not yet. Though I shan't be inclined to, now that I know what's coming," he commented, sitting up.

"How'd you sneak out?" he asked in an afterthought. He turned to look at Harry, and he looked slightly uncomfortable.

"I've an invisibility cloak," he confessed, sheepishly. "Dumbledore lets me keep it," he assured Cedric, who was a prefect. 

Cedric chuckled. "Clever," he said. "You'll have to show--" he broke off, realizing that Harry had disappeared. Then, he felt a voice whisper in his ear.

"It's not really a matter of showing, you know."

With that, Cedric broke out in true, unhinged laughter. He wasn't sure why. Perhaps it was the stress of the day, finally deciding to release itself. Harry reappeared, laughing just as hard. He sat down next to Cedric, closer this time.

They sat there for a while longer, very close to each other. It was rather pleasant.

Cedric had been daydreaming again. It was about Harry, as usual. He had come to terms with the odd crush, as it made sense with his behavior as of late. He wasn't sure what other people would think if they found out, but he wasn't about to tell anyone, anyway.

But he snapped out of it, because Professor Flitwick was snapping his fingers in Cedric's face.

"Mr. Diggory! Where are you today? You normally are so attentive in class!" he trilled, glaring at Cedric non-threateningly (though perhaps it would have been threatening if he didn't need to stand on a pile of books to maintain eye contact with him).

"Sorry, Professor," Cedric apologized. It was true; Charms was usually his favorite class, and he was ashamed that he wasn't listening. Had he missed something valuable.

"No worries, Mr. Diggory. I was just informing the rest of the class about the Yule Ball," he said over the ringing of the bell. Everyone else left, but Professor Flitwick was not done with Cedric quite yet. When the room had emptied out, he spoke to Cedric again.

"As a Champion, I'm sure you've been thinking about acquiring a dance partner for the Ball?" Flitwick asked him, his bushy eyebrows shooting up on his tiny face.

"N-no, sir. I hadn't put much thought into it," he confessed, though his mind immediately supplied him with the image of what Harry might look like in dress robes.

Flitwick scoffed. "And you mean to tell me you weren't daydreaming about some girl with that far away look in your face?"

"No, sir. I wasn't..." Cedric assured him, his face turning red. It wasn't a lie, per say...

"Mmm. I suppose if you don't want to tell me, you don't have to." Flitwick sighed (rather passive aggressively). "Though, I should hope you ask her to the Ball soon."

"Professor..." Cedric began. He was usually very confident in himself... But he wasn't quite ready to talk about this yet. Even if Flitwick was his favorite professor, and Cedric normally felt very comfortable confiding in him...

Flitwick wouldn't be judgmental about this, would he? And he certainly wouldn't tell anyone, right?

"Cedric, is there something on your mind?"

"Yes, sir. I was wondering, if it were at all possible..." he stammered, realizing he wasn't ready to ask that question. He couldn't ask if he was allowed to take another boy... But he could ask something just as relevant.

"For me to take another Champion to the ball?" he finished, his face most likely completely red.

Flitwick laughed heartily. "You want to ask Ms. Delacour to the Ball? Well, I don't think there's any rules against it, though I don't know how the other students would take it..."

"She wouldn't go with me anyway, sir. But thank you." Cedric got up to leave, feeling quite flustered. "Don't mention this to anyone, will you?" he asked.

Flitwick laughed again. "Oh, Cedric. You're not the first of my students to come to me under the impression of her veela charm..." He shook his head, his laughter softening to a chuckle. "Good luck, my boy."

Thanks, thought Cedric, but veelas aren't my problem here.

 Cedric was behind a bookshelf in the library, looking for books on golden eggs. He had already read all the books on dragon-egg prophecies (which were not dissimilar to turtle shell prophecies), and nothing had come up. So, now he was going off of the obvious, and was staring at the cover of a book called The Golden Goose. 

But then, he was distracted, because he could see Harry talking to his friends at the table on the other side of the bookshelf. He could hear them talking.

"Another Hufflepuff girl asked me to the Yule Ball," Harry complained.

"Who knew they all had so much guts, huh?" Ron asked, chortling to himself.

"Ron!" Harry protested, slamming a fist on the table. "They're not all that bad. Cedric's one, after all."

Cedric found himself smiling. He actually wanted to giggle, but that wouldn't fly well when he was trying to hide.

"Yeah, yeah, yeah," Ron mumbled, pursing his lips. "Don't see why you're all chummy with him, anyway. He's the enemy, Harry! Hell, even Cho's after him; he's your competition in everything."

Cho? What about her? We're not competing over her...

He heard Hermione scoff. "Harry, why haven't you just ask her to the Ball, already?" she asked, looking up from her book.

Cedric felt his chest constrict. No....

Harry laughed uneasily. "I'd rather go with the next Hufflepuff that asked me than ask her," he told them, blushing and scratching his head in a way that was so typically Harry that it made Cedric feel butterflies.

He also reminded himself to tell the Hufflepuffs to leave him alone. Just in case he was serious.

"Oh, come on, Harry! Don't be so afraid to ask her; I'm sure she'll go with you!" Ron encouraged him, giving Harry a slap on the back.

"Cho really isn't my problem right now..." Harry muttered.

Cedric wondered what that meant. He was fairly sure Harry didn't actually want to go to the Yule Ball with Cho, and his friends were just being silly.

Maybe that was just his own naive hopefulness, though. He tucked the book under his arm and decided he'd better go and check it out.

Cedric had taken to carrying the golden egg around with him. When he wasn't thinking about Harry, he was thinking about the egg. What the screeching could possibly allude to, what horrors he might be facing next.

All of his research had turned up empty. All the tales of golden eggs were from fairy tales, and none of them mentioned screeching. He wasn't sure what to do next... He had just about given hope.

He heaved a sigh as he turned the water on in the Prefect bathroom. He had brought the egg with him, of course, though he knew it would do little good. He would just end up staring at it glumly, lost in thought and without any progress.

He slipped off his robes, placing the egg on the edge of the tub. Then, he slid into the water (which smelled of chocolate from the scent he had poured in) and heaved a sigh.

If only Harry were here, he thought. He might know what to do.

Then, his member perked at the thought of Harry being literally with him in the tub. That's new... He let himself hold onto the thought for a moment, having never let himself think of Harry quite that way before. But then, he chased it off. He had other, less enjoyable things to obsess over at the moment.

He picked up the egg and inspected it. He had yet to actually open it, taking Harry's word that it would just screech at him. He thought he ought to do so now, since no one could hear him. Besides the mermaid in the portrait, of course... but he was used to her.

He pried the thing open, and all at once, it began screaming. He dropped it into the water in surprise, because it was much worse than he had imagined.

Damn. The egg had probably rolled down to the center of the tub, where it was much deeper. The tub was the size of a swimming pool; the egg could be easily lost in all that water. 

He dove under the water to go retrieve it. As soon as he was under, however, he was surrounded by singing. He realized that it was coming from the egg, which was emitting a silvery-blue light from the bottom of the tub.

He listened to what it had to say a few times before permanently moving it back out of the water.

I have to tell Harry about this.

Harry was alone when Cedric bumped into him. It looked as though he were on his way to do something urgent, and he was apparently surprised to see him.

"Cedric!" Harry exclaimed, wondering what the matter with him was. Maybe he's off to ask Cho to the Ball, he thought glumly. She keeps on coming to me and blabbing about how Cedric's going to ask her and whatnot...

It was silly to believe her, and Hermione had assured him she was just trying to make him jealous. It was working, of course, but not in the way she probably intended. 

"Harry," Cedric panted. He must have been running. His cheeks were flushed red and he was breathing heavily, but there was an excited gleam in his eye. "I've been looking all over for you."

Why's he looking for me? Harry's heart rate sped up, and he secretly hoped that Cedric had been thinking of asking him and not Cho. It was silly, of course...

"Oh? Me?" Harry asked innocently.

"Yes. For the past few days, actually. You really know how to disappear, don't you?" He winked, and Harry realized he was referencing the Cloak.

"Oh. Sorry," he mumbled. He had been moping about the past couple days, after Cho had fluttered by his table for a good half hour chattering about Cedric. 

"Well, no matter. Follow me," Cedric ordered, grabbing Harry by the wrist and pulling him along.

"Where are we going?" Harry demanded, not protesting Cedric at all.

"We're going to take a bath." Cedric informed him, pulling harder.

"W-what?" Harry tried to keep his mouth closed and not gape, but it was hard. The prospect of bathing with Cedric had not been something that had crossed his mind, but it wasn't far off from some of his fantasies. 

What? He asked the judgmental voice in his head. I'm a teenager. 

Cedric laughed like a bell. "The prefect bathrooms. I figured out the egg," he announced animately, albeit cryptic. 

"When was this?" Harry demanded, pulling back on his arm so they'd slow down.

Cedric looked over at Harry, a sparkle in his eyes. "Three days ago. It was on accident," he added. "Now, come on. I want to show you this!" 

They hurried along with nary another word, until they had reached the door to the prefect bathroom. "Pine fresh," Cedric told it, and the doors opened for them. "Feel free to use that password when you like," he added. "It doesn't really get changed."

Harry was about to offer his thanks, but he was awestruck by the largest bathroom he had ever seen. He gaped at the tub, which was probably the size of Dudley's entire bedroom at home. "It's a bloody swimming pool." He gasped.

Cedric laughed. "It's quite nice. It's got some nice smells you can add, too," he explained, heading over to the tub and turning the water on. He turned a few other knobs, and soon the room smelled like sage and honey.

Harry watched as Cedric pulled off his robes over his head, revealing nothing other than his boxer briefs. Harry felt himself go red, and was not surprised that his body was in no way adverse to the sight.

"Er, Cedric....?" Harry asked, watching as the other boy took the golden egg from a pocket in his piles of robes.

"Well, come on. You have to get under the water to hear it." Cedric beckoned him forward, and hopped into the tub. Harry fumbled with his robes until he, too was virtually naked. He had brought his own egg from the First Task.

Harry had the egg with him when he climbed into the pleasant smelling water. Cedric was waiting for him with an odd grin on his face, and Harry smiled back tentatively.

He noticed that behind Cedric was the portrait of a mermaid. She was staring at the both of them and chattering excitedly. 

"What's she on about?" Harry asked. Cedric looked confused, and turned to look at the painting.

"Oh. Her," he laughed. "She likes to watch. But you get used to it," he added, blushing.

"Oh," Harry responded. Watch what? He thought he might know what, but he wasn't going to say anything.

Cedric carefully lowered his own egg under the water. Harry could see a light coming from it, lighting up Cedric's face above the water in an enchanting manner. 

"Put your head under the water, and listen," Cedric instructed. Harry nodded with wide eyes, and sunk under the water.

Singing. It's singing. 

When the egg had said what it had to say, Harry popped up from under the water, and met Cedric's excited gaze.

"You think the task will be underwater?" Cedric inquired eagerly.

Harry was still enraptured from the whole music thing, but he nodded slowly. "I think so," he agreed. "What do you think will be taken from us?"

Cedric frowned, and lowered himself into the water. He let out a satisfied sigh that sent chills up Harry's spine, and he joined him in relaxing in the water.

"I don't know," Cedric confessed. "And I'm a bit thrown off by the whole hour time limit," he added, closing his eyes and letting himself soak in the water.

Harry watched him for a few moments before replying. "Well"--he found himself sighing from the pleasant experience of the water and Cedric's presence--"I think we have to figure out how we can stay under the water for an entire hour."

Cedric opened his eyes. "Yeah. You're right." He consolidated the idea by adding, "I could barely hold my breath long enough to listen to the egg. But staying under the water that long, while trying to find something? Merlin..." He moaned in either despair or relaxation. Either way, it was a nice sound.

"I'll ask my friends for help," Harry mumbled.

"Me, too. I think I know a charm that can help, but I think I need something more solid than that." He replied. Harry noted that his eyelids were half open and possibly staring.

"Good idea. Perhaps we can meet again later and discuss it?" Harry asked.

Cedric grinned. "Yeah. This time next week? Let's meet here. I can tell you like it just as much as I do." 

Harry smiled shyly in return. "I think I do."

If Cedric was having a difficult time not thinking about Harry before, it was just about bloody impossible now. Every mention of the Tournament (which happened a lot; people used it as an excuse to talk to him) made him think about Harry. Every mention of the Ball (which also happened a lot; Cedric was a popular fellow) he really thought about Harry.

Oh, and not to mention he had taken a bath with him.

Well, to be fair, there hadn't been much bathing... But he couldn't say that, because that made it sound like something else, too. They hadn't done anything. They just talked about the Second Task. In their underwear. In wonderfully warm water.

But all the same, Cedric hadn't even been able to keep himself from moaning and groaning over nothing, just because Harry was in the water with him. And, blunder of all blunders, he had asked him to come back.

Cedric generally had confidence in his own self control, but he wasn't so sure this time. He had a feeling that next time, he would end up either with his hands all over Harry. Or himself. Either one would have been bad, considering he had no way of knowing if Harry had feelings for him. If Harry was that way.

Gods. I'm that way, aren't I? I'm gay. 

He could have shouted it to the rooftops: "Cedric Diggory is Gay!"

He needed to tell someone. But not now, no definitely not now. Right now, that Malfoy git was standing up in the Great Hall, still quoting that Skeeter lady's article on Harry. His friends were still laughing, but everyone else had stopped.

He marched right up to the Slytherin table, and looked at him in the way he remembered the Swedish Short-Snout had glared when he appeared in the arena. He wanted Draco scared. 

"Listen here, Malfoy!" he snapped, marching up to the boy and grabbing him by the shoulder. The blond git looked up at him in terror, and Cedric continued on. "No one wants to hear your shite. We're all sick of you picking on Harry. We all know you're jealous, alright? So keep your mouth shut and leave him alone." 

Malfoy opened his mouth and began to stutter, probably to deny the jealousy comment. Cedric would have none of it, however. 

"Shut it, Malfoy. We all know you're obsessed with Harry, but your material has gotten old, and we're all tired of it. So, get a life and stop talking about Harry," Cedric commanded, shoving the slight boy back into his seat.

"I can talk about Potter as much as I like!" Malfoy retorted, crossing his arms. "What's it to you if I'm obsessed with him, anyway?" He sneered.

It was a weak attempt. Cedric didn't even acknowledge it; the poor brat even admitted to his obsession. He just turned and walked away, catching an awed glance from Harry. He smiled at him, and Harry smiled back.

Cedric was waiting for Harry. He had already started the water, and he was sitting on the edge of the tub in nothing but his briefs when Harry finally entered. 

"Sorry I'm late," he said, the door shutting behind him. "Cho was following me," he added bitterly.

"S'alright," Cedric told him, swinging around to face him. The other boy was staring at him, blushing, and Cedric didn't do anything to stop it. He just quirked a smile at Harry. "The water's warm. Come on in."

Harry replied by pulling his own robes off, with much more coordination than last time. "Thanks for dealing with Malfoy," he said as he climbed into the tub. Cedric allowed himself the liberty of watching him closely.

"No problem. The prat was annoying me," Cedric told him, getting into the water himself. They didn't speak for a while, and they just soaked in the water. Cedric closed his eyes and relaxed, leaning against the edge of the basin. He thought he felt Harry staring at him.

"What did Cho want?" Cedric asked at last, opening his eyes to see that Harry had indeed been staring. That was satisfying to know, at least.

"She keeps coming to me to tell me how you're going to take her to the dance," he muttered, looking away. "Is that true?"

Cedric was shocked, and he let his surprise reach his voice. "No!" he exclaimed. "It's not true at all. I wouldn't ask her in a million years. Would you?" 

Harry shrugged, looking back at Cedric. "No, I wouldn't. She just wants a Champion as a date, I think. She must be trying to make me jealous." 

Cedric laughed. "Must be." Then, a thought came to him, and between the warm water and Harry's green eyes and his hormones in general, he had lost all filters on his words.

"Wouldn't it be rich if we went together?" he asked, unable to stop himself before it was too late. "Just to annoy her, I mean," he added quickly, searching Harry's face for a reaction.

Harry laughed, and it wasn't uneasy or put off. "That would be fun," he replied, with a twinkle in his eye. "Why don't we? It'll get the girls to leave us alone, I should think."

Cedric beamed. That wasn't nearly as bad as he had expected. "There's not any rules against it," he remembered his conversation with Flitwick, and he was fairly sure Hogwarts didn't discriminate... 

"It's a date, then?" Harry inquired.

"It's a date," Cedric replied with certainty, and the two stared at each other like drunken idiots for a while longer.

I'm actually going to the Ball with Harry Potter.

The mermaid in the portrait squeed in delight.

The Yule Ball was only in a two more weeks, and as far as Ron knew, Harry hadn't secured a date yet. Neither had he.

"Harry," he asked when they were at breakfast, "have you asked Cho to the ball, yet?"

Harry had been staring across the room. At the Hufflepuff table, of all places, with a dreamy expression on his face. "Harry!" Ron repeated, waving a hand in front of his face.

"Oh. Sorry, what was that?" he asked, looking at Ron and blinking.

Hermione sighed. "He was asking you if you'd gathered the guts to ask out Cho yet," she reiterated, glaring at Harry. "And I might add, if you don't ask her soon, I will for you!"

Harry laughed, and Ron thought he looked more carefree than he had in a while. "I told you to," he practically sang, "I'm not asking Cho! I don't want to!" He sounded so bloody cheery about it....

"Then who are you going to ask?" Ron demanded.

Hermione nodded in agreement. "Who?"

Harry sighed, looking over at the Hufflepuff table again for a moment. "I already have a date." 

"What?!" Ron and Hermione both screeched. 

"When did this happen?" Hermione demanded.

"Who is it?" Ron huffed, feeling slightly jealous.

Harry grinned mischievously. "I'm not telling you, yet. But you can tell everyone I already have a date, so they can leave me alone now."

Both of them groaned in frustration. "Why won't you tell us? Hermione, you'd tell us if someone had asked you, wouldn't you?" Ron asked, looking at Hermione for support.

She blushed, something that Ron had recently found adorable. But what she said next didn't make him feel quite so fond.

"Actually," she told him, "someone has asked me."

"What?" Ron demanded.

"So, I guess you'll have to wait to find out from both of us." Harry smirked.

Ron buried his head in his hands. "You two are bloody horrible!"

Flitwick had pulled Cedric aside after class again. It was the last class of the day, and Cedric didn't really have any plans immediately, so he couldn't protest. He wasn't going to tell Flitwick that he had to be two hours early to his now-daily meet up with Harry at the Quidditch Pitch.

"Diggory," Flitwick addressed him, closing the door with a flick of his wand. "Winter break starts in just a few days, and the Ball not long after that, and yet I haven't heard word of you asking anyone. Care to share?" 

Cedric groaned and sat down. Only Flitwick would say "care to share." 

"Yes, sir," Cedric replied. "I have asked someone." He hoped that would be enough, and the topic would be dropped.

"Who?" the tiny man demanded, planting both of his palms on the desk. "And did they say yes?"

"I have a date for the Ball, professor," Cedric clarified, not answering the first question.

"I don't see why you're neglecting to tell me their name." Flitwick crossed his arms, looking terribly testy.

"I'll tell you if you keep it quiet. We don't want too much attention, yeah?" Cedric admitted, forcing himself to lean back and relax.

Flitwick tapped his foot impatiently.

"I'm going with Harry Potter," Cedric informed him.

The man fainted on the spot.

It was the last day of school before winter break, and no rumors had spread about Harry and Cedric being together. They had continued to meet almost daily after school, either at the lake, the Pitch, or the Prefect Bathroom. They had yet to talk about anything other than the Tournament, classes, and other easy topics.

Suffice to say, they had yet to talk about their feelings, and the Yule Ball, and Cedric still didn't know if they were just going to get back at Cho. It was most frustrating, and Cedric needed to make sure this was what he thought it was.

They were by the lake, and school was out. They weren't completely alone, as there were other students running around the shore, rejoicing that they needn't worry about school anymore. But the two of them, sitting by the lake, looked to all the world as nothing more than the two Hogwarts Champions, probably quietly discussing the Task before them.

They weren't, of course. Cedric had had enough of that.

"Harry?" he inquired, as the other boy picked up a flat stone and skipped it over the water. 

"Hn?" He looked completely blissful, his mussed-up, dark hair gently blowing in the breeze. Dark, winter clouds had gathered in the sky, and the lake was beginning to look choppy.

"I asked you to the Yule Ball for other reasons than getting back at Chang," Cedric whispered. Harry didn't respond at first, and Cedric wondered if he hadn't heard him for the waves.

"I know," Harry replied at last. He pushed his glasses up the bridge of his nose, and he turned to look at Cedric. There was a gleam in his eyes and a wide grin on his face. "Why'd you think I said yes? Or stared at you in that bloody bathroom all the time?"

Cedric laughed. "I thought perhaps I was imagining things," he confessed, feeling lost all of a sudden in those green eyes. "So, you really do... have feelings for me, then?"

Harry grinned back, and reached out to hold Cedric's hand discreetly. "I think so," he murmured. "I haven't felt this way before," he confided quietly. 

Cedric stared at him, slightly shocked but mostly elated. "Neither have I," he whispered, allowing himself to scoot closer.

"Everyone will know after the Ball," Harry reminded him.

"Don't care," Cedric replied, chucking his own rock out into the water. It didn't skip, but Harry used his wand to make it fly out further anyway. They both laughed at that for a minute, and then it died out.

"I told Professor Flitwick," Cedric admitted, feeling embarrassed at the memory. "He fainted, but he woke up pretty quickly. I had to assure him a dozen times that I was serious. That, yes, I really did like Harry Potter, and that yes, I was aware that you're a boy." He chuckled wryly, and Harry squeezed his hand.

"McGonagall had a fit when I told her. She said it wasn't fair to lie at other people's expense." Harry moved a bit closer, and their shoulders were brushing. "She was convinced I had made it up just so I wouldn't have to ask anyone, and accused me of lacking Gryffindor courage. It took nearly an hour to convince her!"

Cedric shook his head. "Really?" He asked. "You should have just brought me in. Who knew our teachers were so unsupportive?"

Harry sighed, and placed rested his head on Cedric's shoulder. "Who knew?" Harry breathed, and Cedric felt a pleasurable jolt run through his body. He felt as though Harry was talking about more than just one thing.

Not far away, a mortified Draco Malfoy watched them in despair. No one heard him as he dashed away, asking himself, "Why? Why, Potter? Why did you have to be gay, too?"

It was the night of the Yule Ball, and Harry was getting ready with Ron. 

Harry had been given a beautiful set of emerald green robes, whereas Ron had been given a horrible set of maroon robes with laces and frills. It was dreadful, and Harry found it hard to mock because it was so sad.

"I think your mother hates you," Harry whispered. 

Ron just groaned. "And so will Padma..." he muttered. "Is there any way we can fix this?" 

Then, Harry was struck with an idea. "I think I know someone who can help... He won't mind..." He left Ron to glare at the mirror as he pulled out the Marauder's Map. He looked for the dot with Cedric's name on it. If Cedric could help Ron out with his robes, then maybe Ron wouldn't think of him as the 'enemy' anymore...

Cedric was already on the way to Gryffindor Tower, he saw. Being the gentleman he was, he had wanted to escort Harry all the way there. They had planned it so they'd only look like friends, good-naturedly walking together. And then, they'd surprise everyone with arriving on the dance floor together. Harry was sort of dreading the dance, as he had done terribly at all his classes with McGonagall, but Cedric promised to lead well.

He smiled warmly as he saw Cedric's dot appear at the portrait hole. "Wait one second, Ron. I've got someone who can help."

He ran down to the common room, which was mostly empty. Everyone was spending these last few minutes getting ready, it seemed. There were a few older students, but he doubted that anyone would care that Cedric came.

He opened the portrait door, and Cedric was waiting for him alone. "How do you always manage to show up right after me? It's like you always know where I am..." Cedric muttered, but he grinned up at Harry. "You look sharp, by the way."

Harry pulled him into the common room by the wrist. "Thanks, you too. Can't say the same for my mate Ron, though." He laughed and guided Cedric up to their dorm. 

"Slow down!" Cedric protested. "I've never been in your common room before. I want to see it!" 

"Later," Harry promised. "I need your exceptional Charms skills to save my friend," he insisted, tugging harder on Cedric, who obliged him.

"Is this the one that hates me?"

"Oh, stop whinging. This'll help you out with him, I promise," Harry assured him, shoving him into the room where Ron was staring into the mirror. He was holding a bonnet in disgust.

"Harry!" he cried. "Look at this. Does my mother know I'm a boy?" He looked ready to collapse.

Cedric stared at him, aghast. "Merlin..." he muttered. "I'll do what I can, Harry." He gave Harry a look as though he already thought it was hopeless, but he approached Ron anyway.

"Wait.. What are you doing here?" Ron demanded, looking at him defensively.

Harry moved to stand next to Cedric. "Swallow your pride, mate," he advised. "He'll help you fix your robes."

Ron grimaced, but he lifted up his arms like a scarecrow at Cedric's command, who cast several charms, changing the colors of the robes and vanishing the frills. He cast some illusions to make the puffy shoulders less noticeable, too.

Ron stared at the mirror, dumbfounded at the transformation. Instead of a hideous maroon, they were a dark, royal purple, and didn't look nearly as femininely hideous. "Thanks, Diggory," he muttered. "You're alright," he added in thanks.

Harry snorted. "Come on, it's about to start. We can't be late."

 Cedric walked closely to Harry, chatting quietly about mundane topics. Ron trailed behind them, butting in occasionally to add his say in Quidditch or teachers or weather.

By the time they had reached the doors, quite a fair crowd had gathered, waiting for the doors to be opened. He spotted Fleur clinging to an awestruck Roger Davies, and Viktor Krum was kissing the hand of Harry's friend Hermione, of all people. He noticed Harry was pleasantly surprised, but Ron was sputtering and angry. His date, one of the Patil twins, grudgingly joined the flustered boy. Cedric noted Ron's purple robes complimented her pink ones well, and he applauded himself silently.

"Alright, Harry," Ron spat, glaring at Krum and Hermione. "Where's your date? They're about to call you out onto the dance floor, aren't they?"

Cedric cast a knowing glance at Harry, as the doors opened and the other champions began to trail out onto the dance floor.

"My date is right here," Harry announced, taking Cedric by the arm. Cedric led them out onto the floor, followed by a cacophony of scandaled whispers. He smirked as he heard whom he thought was Cho Chang let out a shocked screech.

The music began, slow and formal, and Cedric took the lead by taking Harry by the waist. Harry gingerly placed his hands on Cedric's shoulder, and began stepping all over Cedric's toes.

"I told you I was no good at dancing," Harry mumbled, halfway through the first song.

Cedric chuckled into his ear. "No one will care," he assured him.

Then, in order to prove his point (and for the shock value, and to touch Harry), he pulled the other boy in far too close to him. "See? They're too busy staring at the nonexistent space between us." He let his lips tickle Harry's ear, and he heard some girls shout things along the lines of "You've got to be kidding me!"

After a few dances, and everyone else had come onto the floor, Cedric led Harry towards the punch. They past a sulking Malfoy, who was mumbling to his date. She had an annoyed look on her face, and Cedric thought it was rather amusing.

"We can sit down," Cedric told Harry. "I know you hate dances," he added.

Harry nodded in agreement, and smiled gratefully, taking a seat. Not long after, Hermione and Krum joined them.

"Harry!" she cried. "What was that? Why didn't you tell me beforehand?" she demanded, staring at Cedric. Krum was staring at them, too, unamused that they were interrupting his time with Hermione.

Harry laughed, and Cedric took the opportunity to slink an arm around Harry. He was enjoying the shock value while most people were to confused to confront them about it.

"It was a surprise?" Harry said hesitantly.

Hermione shook her head. "It was unexpected!" she protested.

"That's why it was a surprise," Cedric offered, leaning his forehead against the side of Harry's head.

Krum shrugged. "It es no big deal, Hermy-own. Happens all the time at Durmstrang," he told her, taking her hand and trying to drag her back to the dance floor.

"It's not a big deal! I just wasn't expecting it!" she shouted over her shoulder, and Krum dragged her out to dance again. The Weird Sisters were playing, and the music was more upbeat.

Cedric looked around the room, and found that Krum was right. A few of the Durmstrang boys had gone together, or had taken male Hogwarts date. "Who knew," he muttered.

Harry shrugged. "I didn't."

Draco Malfoy was in despair. He hadn't danced to a single song, instead choosing to sprawl himself out on one of the tables in despair. He wished the punch was alcoholic, but sadly, it was not.

Pansy, his "date," had come over several times to tell him to suck it up, but he didn't want to listen.

"Look at them," he whined, pointing to Diggory and Potter. "How did that happen? They don't even hate each other, and they're competitors." He buried his head in his arms. "Stupid Potter and his stupid happiness and his stupid gay habits..."

Pansy sighed. "Draco, I've been telling you all year to ask him out. We all know you love him. This is your fault," she reminded him.

"I know it's my fault!" Draco cried. "And I don't love Potter! I hate him!" He aggressively took another gulp of his punch as he aggressively thought of aggressively pushing Potter up against a wall. And hexing Diggory.

"Listen, Draco," Pansy snapped, smacking him. "You can stay here and cry like a six year old, or you can go and do something about it."

"No! I can't. I have a reputation. And he hates me," he added glumly.

Pansy rolled her eyes. "I can't believe I gave up asking Lovegood so I could come and nanny you. I'm going to go and dance," she informed him, getting up to leave.

"Fine! You don't have to nanny me!" he called after her, getting up and deciding to march over to Potter's table, where he and Diggory were giving each other the eyes while the Weasel asked them questions about their relationship.

Stupid Potter and his stupid pretty eyes and his stupid wonderful robes and his stupid boyfriend! 

Why was I so stupid? I could have been nice and we could have avoided this...

He sat himself down at Potter's table. "Move over, Weasel," he commanded, sitting directly across from Potter, though he was really across from Diggory, too because they were all smushed up with each other. He scowled.

"How did this"--he waved his hand at the two of them--"come to be?"

Diggory smiled his damned pretty boy smile and said, "I think you're to thank, Malfoy," he said smoothly, and Draco wanted to hex his brains out. "If you hadn't started making those badges and mocking Harry at every drop of a feather, I might not have taken notice to him."

Draco hated how calm he sounded. How utter fucking pleased he was.

Potter smiled, too, and it made Draco sick to his stomach. "And if he hadn't of helped me out, I don't think we would have taken to each other." He looked up at Diggory with doe eyes. "So, thanks, Malfoy. You're not so bad after all."

"That's not what you're supposed to say! Or why you're supposed to say that!" he shouted. 

The Weasel slid away from him, and Diggory and Potter just stared at him. 

"Well, Potter. Just you wait. It's obvious you like Seekers... Chang and now him." He waved a dismissive hand at Cedric. "Just you wait, Potter! One day."

One day, you'll want me. Damn it!

He stormed away, leaving the bloody fucking happy couple to stare at each other in confusion.

 After Malfoy had come over and started spouting nonsense, Harry needed to step outside. He was afraid that wouldn't be the first outburst they encountered. 

Cedric took him into the rose gardens, hand in hand. No one else had followed them, and there were several people in the bushes who were two busy to notice the Champion couple.

Except a strange pair. Two teachers, Snape and Karkaroff, were arguing about something. Karakoff was pointing to his arm. "Severus! You can't deny it. You feel it, too, don't you?"

Giggling behind another bush made Snape turn on them, and he took of points from both of their houses. Harry supposed what they were giggling about was a misinterpretation of the two adults' conversation. Harry realized they were talking about their Dark Marks, and horror clenched inside of him.

Snape turned to face them. "What are you two doing?" He snapped, Karkaroff rounding on them, too.

"Going for a walk," Harry replied quickly, letting go of Cedric's hand.

"Is that illegal?" Cedric demanded.

Snape narrowed his eyes. "Continue walking, then." 

Cedric grabbed onto Harry, and dragged him towards another corner of the garden. Harry noted that they avoided the corner where they could see Madam Maxine and Hagrid together. Harry shivered at the thought.

"You alright?" Cedric asked him, swatting a beetle away from Harry's head and resting a hand on his shoulder.

"Yeah... But you heard what they were talking about, right?" Harry asked, feeling his pace quicken. Both from fear of Karakoff's words's and arousal from Cedric's nearness. It was a strange mixture.

"Yes," Cedric replied, wrapping his arms around Harry's waist. "Karkaroff has unrequited love for Snape. Krum said it happens all the time there," he murmured, leaning in. Harry pushed him away, though, and Cedric looked offended.

"They were talking about their Dark Marks, Ced..." he whispered, his hand resting on Cedric's chest. 

"Hush," Cedric requested, pressing a kiss to Harry's forehead. "Don't worry about it. We're alone, we've practically outed ourselves now, and everyone else is partying. Can we celebrate?" 

"Yeah," Harry whispered, and Cedric gladly closed the distance between them.

Harry had never kissed anyone before, but he would be happy to do it again. The touch of their skin felt like static sparks, and Cedric's firm press of lips was constant and reassuring--

And then there was a rustle in the bushes. Neither boy broke away, too caught up in the moment. But, then, they heard the snapping of a camera, and they broke away. Rita Skeeter was standing behind a bush, with a maniacal smile on her face.

"Oh, this party has been so boring before I spotted you two! I was certain I wouldn't be getting any news!" she exclaimed, before running away with her camera.

Cedric fired a hex at her, but it was to no avail. She was gone.

"Well, that killed the mood."

Chapter Text

By the time the break was over, and classes had resumed, everyone had seen Rita's article about Cedric and Harry. It was published on the day they got back, and he had a feeling she had done that on purpose. Just to make them miserable.

Cedric had entered the Great Hall at breakfast, greeted with a near collective wolf-whistle from the student body. He caught a glimpse of Harry, who looked like he wanted to melt away from all the attention he was getting. He saw the Weasley twins teasing him and waving a paper in his face. He was about to go over and help him out, but Harry shot him a miserable look that warned him to stay away.

Confused as to what all the fuss was about, he made his way over to the Hufflepuff table. As soon as he sat down, his best friend Alfred Stoneshod shoved a copy of The Prophet in his face. "We all know what you did that night," he teased, but his voice was menacing.

Cedric looked down at the paper and groaned. The front page was Rita Skeeter's picture of Cedric and Harry kissing each other's brains out. We look quite good, don't we? Cedric thought, before he realized the gravity of the situation.

His relationship with Harry was about to get a lot more complicated.

The article was pointless, blabbering about "competitive passion" and how they posed as a "cooperative threat" to the the other Hogwarts Champions. Which was partially true, as they both assisted each other without a second thought. 

He looked over to the Slytherin table, where Malfoy was screeching, "Incendio! Incendio!" And burning up every copy of the article at the table. His House-mates seemed to be laughing at his expense, and Cedric even felt a little sorry for him... If not grateful for preventing any more copies of the damned picture to be spread.

Remembering Harry's other admirer, he glanced over to the Ravenclaw table, where Cho was apparently sulking. He smiled guiltily, but was secretly pleased.

"Sucks to be you," Alfred chortled.

"Not particularly. It was a good kiss," Cedric grinned, focusing on his plate. He flinched, though, when he heard Justin Finch-Fletchy moan, "I bet..."

He wasn't sure if that was credit to him or Harry.

"Well, isn't this interesting," Dumbledore remarked, reading the article that Bartimus Crouch had just handed him.

"This makes the fact that Hogwarts has two Champions even worse, Albus," Crouch hissed.

"Oh, come on, Grouch!" Ludo Bagman laughed. "This just makes it even better. Now, we've got everyone's attention!" 

"Zey are practically a unit now!" Madam Maxime protested, ignoring Bagman completely.

"This is unfair to the rest of the schools, Dumbledore," Karkaroff grumbled threateningly.

"This was not my doing," Dumbledore assured them. "Boys will be boys. I did not cause Harry's name to come from the Goblet, and I did not cause this."

"Boys will be boys!" Crouch scoffed. "This is a scandal! This is Harry Potter, Albus, not some boy! Other children will see this!" 

"You were singing a completely different tune when it was those two female Quidditch players on the front cover," Bagman laughed. Crouch only scowled.

"Albus! Just because you are that way doesn't mean the rest of us are okay with this!" Crouch protested.

"Whatever do you mean, Bartimus?" Dumbledore asked cooly, popping a candy into his mouth.

"You might be fine with men, but to the average, decent witch or wizard, this is outrage," Crouch hissed, and everyone in the room flinched.

"That, Mr. Crouch, is incredibly low," said Dumbledore.

"Zat is not ze issue." Madam Maxime huffed, her nose tilted to the air. "In wizarding France, we are much more accepting of our students!" she added indignantly. 

"It happens all the time at Durmstrang," Karkaroff muttered.

Bagman nodded fervently in agreement. "The boys being together isn't the issue, Barty," he said, almost solemnly. "It's great! The people are loving this! Harry Potter is gay! It's all everyone will talk about!"

Everyone gave Bagman a look that said just shut up, but it was Crouch who was flustered and melting into his seat. "You're all disgusting..." he muttered.

"That would be you, Crouch." Dumbledore raised his eyebrows. "Now, Madam Maxime, and Headmaster Karkaroff, is there any actual issues you would like to discuss?" he asked them, peering over the tops of his spectacles.

Both Heads of school shifted uncomfortably. "There is nothing you can do about the issue," Karkaroff conceded. 

"Exactly! There's nothing here breaking the rules!" Bagman agreed. 

"Ludo," Dumbledore said carefully, "you're enjoying this far more than would be appropriate."

Bagman turned red. "I made a bet on it, sir. And I won."

Cedric was relaxing on a soft black and yellow sofa in the Hufflepuff common room. Sunlight streamed in through the windows that revealed rippling grass, and he was surrounded by several plant specimens. He was supposed to be studying for his Herbology quiz, but of course, Harry was on his mind.

Then, speak of the devil, a blushing second year came in through the barrel doors and addressed him. "Harry Potter is waiting outside for you, Cedric," she whispered, and ran away.

Cedric grinned, amazed at Harry's uncanny ability to show up wherever he was when he was alone. He exited the common room through the barrels, finding Harry standing out alone, waiting for him.

"It repelled me when I tried to get in," he pouted. "Even when that second year opened it for me!"

"Only Hufflepuffs are allowed in," Cedric explained, admittedly with a hint of a smirk. "But I think the actual question is... How did you find it? And how do you always manage to find me when I'm alone?" he interrogated Harry, who smiled sheepishly.

"My invisibility cloak isn't my only secret weapon," he snickered.

"What did you want?" Cedric asked with mock irritation.

"Did you see The Prophet today?" 

"No. Wasn't the last one enough?" Cedric was referring to, of course, the front page of them kissing just a few days prior, on the first day of classes after the break.

Harry pulled a copy of the paper out of his pocket. They had made the front page again, this picture of them sitting by the lake again. Cedric had an arm around Harry, and pressing a quick kiss to his cheek, and Harry was shoving him playfully away. The headline was Hogwarts' Favorite Couple By the Lake.

"Don't they have any better things to report on?" Cedric sighed, leaning against the wall.

"Apparently not. We need better meeting spots," Harry grumbled. "Anyway, that's not really why I was here. Neville said he had an idea for the next task, if it's breathing underwater. He wants to meet us in the library."

"Fantastic. Isn't that another public place, though?" 

"We'll be discreet. Just walk with me," Harry urged him, taking his hand. He seemed urgent and perhaps slightly distant.

"Something else on your mind?" Cedric asked, watching him carefully. He squeezed his hand, trying to say You can tell me anything, you know.

Harry sighed, pulling Cedric through the corridors. "Plenty of things," he groaned. "For starters, everything that happened in the rose garden. What if Karkaroff and Snape are communicating with the Dark Lord?" 

They passed by a few armored knights on the wall, who chattered their helmets as the boys walked past. "But Harry," Cedric sighed, "how do you know that's what they were discussing? For all we know, Karkaroff's harboring a secret love for Snape, and he didn't want him back."

Harry stopped, and turned to face Cedric. "He was pointing at his left forearm! And someone had to have put my name in the Goblet. Someone wants me dead." He shook his head, and turned away slightly. "And before you call me paranoid, remember that at the end o every year since coming here, I've encountered Voldemort!" 

Cedric sighed. "Harry." He pulled Harry into a hug, kissing the top of his head. "You'll be fine. Let's worry about the task, yeah?" he pleaded, continuing their walk to the library.

Harry groaned. "That's the other thing," he replied. "What are they taking from us?"

"I've no idea. It can't be that serious..." 

"But the hour time limit... I just..." Harry shook his head. "Hermione was looking up things for breathing underwater. There was a potion that lets you breathe under water, but keeps you asleep. And it only lasts an hour."

Cedric nodded, and he saw what Harry might be getting at. "You think they might be keeping people under the water." 

"Yes! They can't do that. They can't hurt other people for this!" he exclaimed.

"Harry. It might not be that at all. An hour is a normal time frame," Cedric reminded him as they walked into the library. "I think it'll be okay," he added.

Neville was waiting for them, with an eager expression on his face. "Harry! Cedric!" He smiled, beckoning them over. "Look what I found here."

He pointed a book at them. "Gillyweed," he whispered conspiratorially. "It's so simple!" he exclaimed. 

"I don't follow, Neville... " Cedric muttered. "I'm bollocks with herbology," he added bitterly, hoping Neville hadn't just assumed. 

"Oh. I don't think Harry gets it either, do you?" he muttered, smiling shyly. "Gillyweed will make you breathe underwater. It will grow gills and fins on you," he explained.

"That's brilliant!" Harry exclaimed.

"Yes!" Neville cried in agreement. "Professor Moody gave the book to me. I was reading it, and I saw this, and I thought of you... Oh, I'm glad I could help." He smiled, but paused to look down at the book.

"But, it's rare. I don't know where we'll get any..." Neville muttered. "I reckon Snape might have some, but..." He frowned. "We can't do that."

Harry grinned. "Maybe," he whispered.

"Oh, no, Harry! Don't!" Neville cried. "You can't go about breaking the rules again."

"You are, by helping us." Cedric pointed out.

"And that's it! That's all I'm doing. Beyond this, no more," Neville announced, staring at them with steely defiance. 

"Fine. But you can't stop me," Harry added, looking at Cedric pointedly.

Neville just moaned. "Why do I bother?"

 Pomona Sprout paced around her office in great concern. Minerva McGonagall sat down with her, the picture of grace and assurance. Pomona wasn't quite sure how she managed it, though it might have helped that her House's Champion actually spoke with her. She had found out that Cedric had been going to Professor Flitwick instead of her, and it was rather off putting.

"And of the next task, Minerva? What am I to do?" she demanded. She had called Minerva in for her guidance, as she knew Potter was doing well.

"You shouldn't worry about assisting Cedric, Pomona. Flitwick is taking care of the boy's mental health. And I'm sure you know you aren't allowed to really assist him, anyway, don't you?" 

Pomona sighed. "I may know that, but it gives me little rest. Not that I'm adverse to your Potter winning, Minerva... But sometimes I like to think that my house deserves a little recognition, too."

"Of course, dearie," Minerva smiled, and Pomona imagined that had she been nearer, she would have reached out to her hand assuringly. They were old friends, and had been Heads of House together for a long time. "I'm sure he'll come to you if he needs it."

"Yes, yes," Pomona agreed, turning to face McGonagall. "I wonder what is to come of the next trial?" she inquired curiously.

"I've no idea. We'll be informed soon enough, I'm sure," Minerva assured her. "What I wonder is how the other schools are taking Cedric and Harry's... togetherness. And how that might affect the trial."

Ludo Bagman was pacing eagerly around the office, where Percy Weasley (Crouch's new and sudden stand-in) sat nervously in a chair. 

"I don't understand, sir," Percy muttered, reading the paper. "Doesn't this confuse the rules? I can't see how--"

Ludo threw his arms into the air in exasperation. "Where is your sense of adventure? Novelty? Humor?" he demanded. "This is brilliantly exciting!" 

"I really think we should show this to the Headmaster..." Percy mumbled, still staring at the paper which held the results of the spell cast to determine the main factor of the next Task.

"Don't you want to use your own brain for once? Figure out a solution on your own?" Ludo was practically buzzing with excitement, though the results hadn't exactly surprised him...

"I can't think of one on my own, sir," Percy replied with unusual coolness. "The two Champions' most important person turned out to be each other. How can we have that play out?"

Bagman slammed his hands onto the desk. "I don't know, Weasley! Why don't we think about it for a minute? We could put the two boys in a different task--"

"But we can't, because that would show favoritism towards Hogwarts," Percy interjected, once again proving to be zero fun.

"Alright, so then we have them both put under the lake! And then they have to find their way out," Ludo suggested, resuming his pacing and rubbing his hands together in anticipation.

"Which would nullify the clue you gave them with the egg."

"You're a real drag, you know that, Weasley? I thought someone younger would be more fun than Grouch, but you're--"

"Why don't we just select different people? Isn't there a variation to the spell where we determine the second most important person?" Percy suggested, ignoring Bagman's half-witted comments.

"Now, we're getting somewhere, boy. But who? Who can compare to the loves of their lives--each other?" Ludo asked, holding a hand into the air and speaking dramatically, as if narrating a drama. Which it was.

"I don't know about Mr. Diggory, but Mr. Potter is close with my brother. Perhaps he could substitute?" Percy suggested, ever the voice of reason. If not the blind-sheep, rule-following, stick-in-the-mud voice of reason.

"Look at you, Pragmatic Percy!" Ludo cried. "Willing to sacrifice his own brother." He sniffed and held a hand to his face as if to wipe away a tear.

Percy frowned. "But you assured me they'd be fine?"

"Hush! That ruins the drama of it. People don't want them to be fine, they want to sit on the edge of their seats and wonder if they'll perish!" Bagman corrected him.

Percy frowned even further, and this time it reached his forehead. "But, they can't be on the edge of their seats. They'll just be staring at the lake." 

Ludo sighed. "Details, details." He huffed. "Now, go and talk to Dumbledore and figure this out. I've a meeting with someone else." He booted Percy out of the chair, and he left the room.

Ludo waited a few minutes, and his next visitor came in. It was Professor Trelawney, looking as mantis-like and creepy as ever.

"Sybill!" he greeted her. "Ready to pay up on your bet, I hope."

"Oh!" she cried desolately. "The fates have betrayed me, but I still hold faith my predictions will hold true. They may have ended up together, but one will die, and their feelings will remain stagnant and untouched upon forever, just as I predicted."

Ludo rolled his eyes at the hogwash. "Yeah, yeah. At least pay me half? Until the other part fails? I've got a lot of debts to pay, including those awful Weasley twins. They've already turned my toes into miniature feet. Twice," he added with extra effect.

Trelawney sighed again. "As I have said, I am a woman of my word, especially my prophetic word. But here is your payment in full." She dropped bag of coins on the desk and turned away. She was just as dramatic as Ludo was.

"You're the best, Trelwaney!" he called after her. "Drinks sometime?"

She didn't respond. Oh, well. He'd win her over, loopy as she was.

But that wasn't all that was on his mind. Trelawney wasn't the only person who had been part of the bet. Professor Moody had been there, too. He had bet on the boys getting together, and Ludo owed him. 

Luckily, though, it wasn't money. He would just have to take part in all the meetings with the headmasters and tell him what they decided on. He was also supposed to make sure that Harry won, and while he didn't know why Moody cared, but he had no problem living up to that deal.

Even stranger, though, he had originally been the one to suggest to him that Harry just be Cedric's object to save, and that they used the traditional timer, and not the half-arsed spell that kept them asleep until they breathed real air again. He must have realized that Harry needed to be part of the Tasks, too, and he couldn't just put him into danger. He had to be part of it, not just risk it. That was part of the excitement!

He liked the idea of using the original spell, though. That would be thrilling.

Cedric paced earnestly in the Herbology greenhouse. As much as he hated it, he needed help getting the gillyweed fairly. Or, as fairly as one could in the Triwizard Tournamnet.

At long last, Professor Sprout emerged from the back of the garden. She saw Cedric, and immediately a smile glowed on her face. "Diggory! What can I do for you?" she inquired.

Cedric refrained from fidgeting, instead looking his Head of House straight in the eye. "I need your help. With something for the Tournament. Would you be willing to help?"

The woman almost jumped for joy, it seemed, but instead settled for wrapping Cedric in a hug. "Of course, of course! What can I do for you? Anything at all, if it's for the Tournament."

Cedric smiled at her winningly, knowing that old women like her adored it. "You wouldn't happen to grow any gillyweed, would you?" he inquired, hoping she might actually have the obscure plant.

Her face froze a moment, but then she smiled brightly. "Actually, I think I do! In my private garden; it's warded so students can't get to it. I'll be right back. You just wait right there, won't you?" She scurried away to retrieve the plant, and Cedric waited patiently for her.

In a few minutes, she returned with a small jar filled with water and a hideous green plant. "Here it is!" She cried, handing the jar to him. She began to list off a series of conditions and instructions of care, but he hardly listened. He was bollocks at herbology, and he was bound to kill it anyway. He'd leave it to Neville, he decided; the grand boy was sure to help him and Harry.

When Professor Sprout had finished spewing words he didn't comprehend, he thanked her profusely and hurried out of the greenhouse. As soon as he was out of the door, he bumped into a shorter, warmer body and almost dropped the jar.

"Dammit, Harry!" He laughed, looking into familiar green eyes. "How did you know where I was?" He inquired. Harry had to tell him eventually.

"A magician never reveals his tricks," he said mystically, taking Cedric's hand and walking him back towards the castle.

"What in Merlin's name does that even mean?" Cedric asked.

"It's a muggle saying," Harry replied as they entered the castle.

Harry didn't know where they were going, but Cedric definitely did. He had found a certain room a couple of days ago, and had meant to show Harry to it for a while. He led him into a corridor with high ceilings and stained glass windows, and it appeared to be mostly abandoned. There was a small door underneath one of the windows, and Cedric pushed it open for Harry.

Behind the door was a room lined completely stained glass, and the characters in the glass were constantly moving and interacting, causing a myriad shift of colorful light. 

"Whoa," Harry whispered.

"Whoa is right," Cedric breathed, placing the jar on the ground by the door. 

"This isn't on my map..." Harry murmured, spinning in a circle to observe the entire room. "How did you find this?" He asked, his face lit with awe.

Cedric shrugged sheepishly. "Er, Hufflepuffs are good at finding things?" he offered. Harry grinned immensely at this, immediately standing on his toes to kiss Cedric.

The light was enchanting, and it danced behind his eyes when he closed them. Or maybe it was because of the kiss; either way, Cedric didn't care. His lips played against Harry's, and after a few minutes, he had the nerve to add in his tongue.

Harry made a small moan of pleasure, which encouraged Cedric to continue, moving his hands along Harry's back. Harry reciprocated, and Cedric found himself to be feeling much better than he had...well, ever.

All too soon, Harry broke off, and his face was glowing in pink and gold light from the stained glass, and it shifted into green and red. "I forgot to ask. What's in the jar?"

Cedric pressed his face against Harry's again. "Your Hufflepuff," he breathed against Harry's lips, "found the gillyweed."

Harry kissed Cedric exuberantly but briefly. "That's bloody brilliant!" he cried, wrapping Cedric in a hug.

"I know!" Cedric agreed. "But," he added, a blush creeping to his already warm cheeks, "can we keep on kissing? I was rather enjoying that."

Harry apparently didn't need to be asked twice.

 Dumbledore had brought together the heads of schools again for another meeting. Bagman was there, too, but it could hardly be avoided.

"We've reached another dilemma," he announced. "Percy Weasley came in to inform me last week that the spell we used to determine the Champions' most valued person ended up... inconclusive for the Hogwarts Champions." He raised an eyebrow that sent a message along the lines of If you catch my drift?

Maxime sighed loudly. "Put ze spell on zem both! I could care less."

"Now, Maxime--" Dumbledore interjected, but was cut off.

"Non!" she interrupted. "Zis ees not fair! You cannot ask your Champions to sacrifice less zan mine!" 

Karkaroff nodded in agreement. "Change the Task. But make it fair."

Dumbledore buried his head in his hands. "It's not that easy, and you know it!" he protested. "For the last time, this wasn't my idea that the boys fall in love!" He was losing his temper, which was very abnormal. But the tension between the schools had put him on edge.

"The underwater sleeping spell will only work in accordance with the value spell," he reminded them. 

"I've an idea!" Bagman cried. "There's the other spell that works more traditionally... But it will use the time limit, instead of just waking when they get out of the water."

"But that's more dangerous--"

"Use it!" Karkaroff and Maxime exclaimed at once.

Dumbledore paled, but he pulled himself together, and forced a sly smile across his face. "Fine. But your Champions' people will have the same spell cast on them," he reminded the others.

The two exchanged an uneasy glance, but both nodded determinedly. 

"C'est juste." Madam Maxime murmured with resign.

"It is only fair," Karkaroff added, though Maxime had just said the same.

Bagman clapped eagerly. "Oh, this is wonderful! The excitement!" He laughed slightly maniacally. "You'd better be extra careful," he added ominously as he rose to leave the room.

"So, who's going to use the Gillyweed, and who's going to use the bubble head charm?" Harry asked Cedric. They were back in their now usual hiding spot in the stained glass room, where they had shared many wonderful snogs in the past week.

Harry was laying with his head on Cedric's lap, who was leaned against the glass wall. It moved beneath him, massaging his back in a curious manner that was not considerate of his spine or shoulder blades at all. But he wasn't about to move, because he enjoyed staring down at Harry's face like this.

Cedric sighed. "Don't know. But we can't do the same thing; people wouldn't like that."

"No." Harry agreed. "So, gillyweed or charm?" 

Cedric played with Harry's hair for a moment more, mulling over his options. Neville was currently caring for the gillyweed, so it would be easier for Harry to get to. Additionally, Cedric was better at Charms than Harry. So, that settled it.

"You take the gillyweed," he conceded. "I can cast a better charm."

Harry made a pensive face. "Alright," he agreed, pulling himself up to sit against Cedric. "You wanna see the map?" he asked, setting his head on his shoulder.

"Map?" Cedric inquired, tilting his head to press his cheek against Harry's in an attempt to be corny.

"Yeah. How I always know where you are," he elaborated, pulling a plain sheet of paper out of his pocket. He unfolded it, and some words from it's apparent creators popped up.

"My dad made it with my godfather Sirius and Professor Lupin when they were students," he explained.

"Is that why I don't see a map? Because I'm not your dad's son?" Cedric asked, waiting for something.

Harry chuckled. "And I'm glad you're not," he said, sitting up to press a kiss to Cedric's neck. "But that's not it. Watch this."

He pulled out his wand and tapped the map, saying, "I solemnly swear I am up to no good." And then, all at once, the map blossomed into existence on the paper. Cedric could see rooms all over the castle, and the entire thing was dotted with little dots with names. He saw their own two dots on top of each other, in a room that showed as outside of the castle.

"This room isn't on the map!" he exclaimed.

Harry laughed. "I already told you that. You must have forgotten after I snogged your brains out," he snickered.

Cedric snorted. "If I remember correctly," he whispered, "it was I who snogged your brains out."

Harry turned around and straddled Cedric against the wall. "Want to prove it?" He challenged.

Cedric dove into accept without another word. 

Life is good, he thought.

"Who are we using for Cedric?" Percy asked frantically. The Second Task was only three days away, and no one had determined the Hufflepuff Champion's second most valued person. Harry Potter was the easiest choice, but he was the first most valuable, and he was another Champion.

Ludo Bagman shrugged leisurely. Percy could see why Mr. Crouch had disliked him too much. He had little regard for the rules, and would play off of emotions and sense of adventure instead. He had a strange admiration for the power of the press, too, and would try to give information that was clearly confidential.

"How about that Chang girl?" Ludo asked absently, levitating crumpled pieces of parchment in the air.

Percy almost seethed with anger. "Pay attention!" he cried helplessly, referring both to his lack of understanding the Cho Chang situation and the paper balls. "Chang is not on good terms with either of the boys," he added more calmly.

Ludo shrugged. "Has he got a best friend? Isn't that what we did for Harry?"

"I've seen him studying with Stoneshod. I'll talk to Professor Sprout, considering you're obviously not thinking about anything," Percy muttered, just loud enough for Ludo to hear.

"Mmmh, yes," Ludo muttered. "You're the best, Weathersby."

Percy buried his head in his hands. I will come out the better for this. This will help me get a good job. I will be fine.

It was the day before the Task, and Hermione and Ron were in the common room studying. Or, rather, Hermione was studying and Ron was making faces as he stared into the fire. Harry was off with Cedric, as he oft was these days. Hermione didn't mind so much; he was very happy with it, though he didn't focus in class as well, and he always had a dreamy look on his face.

"You think he's forgotten us?" Ron asked glumly.

Hermione sighed. "He does need to balance his time better," she admitted, "but he hasn't forgotten us."

"Mmmph." Ron sighed, too, and continued staring into the fire.

Then, Professor McGonagall entered the room. Hermione was quick to notice, turning to face her immediately. "Hello, Professor," she said warmly. Ron didn't say anything.

"Would you two mind coming with me to my office?" When she saw the look of horror on Hermione's face, she added, "You didn't do anything wrong."

"Okay," they both replied, and cautiously followed her out of the fiery warmth of the common room, out the portrait hole, and into the chill of the corridors. 

When they were in her office, McGonagall sat them down and offered them tea and chocolates and biscuits. For once, it was Ron who noticed that something was off before Hermione did.

"You're being awfully nice to us," he mumbled around a mouth of chocolate. "Is something wrong?"

Hermione frowned. The situation was rather strange, she had to admit. Being pulled from the common room just before curfew? For sweets and tea? Yes, something definitely had to be wrong...

"Nothing is wrong," McGonagall assured them. "However, I do not want either of you to be alarmed. You will both be part of the next Task." She told them.

They both turned to face each other in shock, their mouths gaping.

"The Task requires that each Champions' most valued person be held captive at the bottom of the Lake. The Task is for the Champion to go and rescue their person," she explained calmly, taking a sip of tea.

Hermione and Ron smiled, both for apparently different reasons.

"So, we were right!" Hermione cried. "Will we be put unconscious under the Timed Sleep Charm? What happens if Harry's late?" she demanded, suddenly feeling worried.

"Now, don't fret--"

"Why would I fret?" Ron cried. "Harry hasn't forgotten us!"

McGonagall smiled painfully. "You will be fine, even if the time runs out. Dumbledore will take the necessary precautions," she explained. "Miss Granger, it will be left to Mr. Krum to rescue you. Mr. Weasley, you will be rescued by Harry."

Ron was positively beaming.

"Now, I will put you under the sleeping charm. When you wake, you will have been rescued. You've nothing to worry about." McGonagall murmured a few words and rotated her wand in slow circles.

In minutes, Hermione's world went dark.

Harry sat alone at the breakfast table, but he didn't mind the absence of his friends. They were probably sleeping in because of the lack of classes. Though he found it more likely that Hermione went earlier and was now studying in her dorm.

Harry's head throbbed with worry, and he was feeling really jittery. He had stuffed the gillyweed in his pocket earlier; he had gotten it when he found Neville that morning in the dorm, where he hand't slept.

Both he and Cedric hadn't slept well last night--he had known because he saw him pacing around his common room. Now that Cedric knew about the map, they had a system that if he was pacing anywhere, he wanted to see Harry. It did mean, that Harry had begun to obsessively check the map, but he had already done that anyway.

So, last night, he used his invisibility cloak to sneak up to Hufflepuff, where Cedric was waiting for him. Then, they snuck off to the Prefect's bathroom and practiced with Bubble Head Charms... among other things.

They had barely slept, but besides the headache and the anxiety, he felt fine. He managed a small amount of breakfast, but he was more concerned about Cedric. From across the hall, his face looked gray and tired. He wondered what was going on in his head to make him so worried.

Since yesterday, Cedric had been experiencing an inexplicable bout of paranoia and anxiety. It was most unlike him, too, but all the same, he had been noticing everything that seemed off.

Alfred wasn't at breakfast that morning, and he was not the kind to get up early when breakfast stayed open till eleven. If Alfred wasn't at breakfast, on the day of the task to support Cedric, where was he?

The more that Cedric thought about it, the more likely it seemed that it was people under the lake. 

It could have been worse, he thought. At least it wasn't Harry being held captive, because he could see him at the breakfast table, and he had stayed with him all last night. Cedric had this looming feeling of doom last night, and he couldn't sleep. He felt the need to stay near Harry, to keep him safe. 

He was terribly nervous about the Task. Not only was he concerned with making sure no one would kill Harry (because suddenly he couldn't stop thinking about Harry's jabber about the Dark Lord), but his own anxiety was messing with his magic. He wasn't sure how well he would be able to cast the Bubble Head Charm.

He was also worried about Alfred. The poor boy couldn't swim, and had a terrible fear of water as he had almost drowned as a child. He was probably horrified. 

He was distracted from his thoughts, though, because Harry was approaching the table. The Hufflepuffs didn't wolf whistle like they normally did as Harry wrapped his arms around Cedric from behind, whispering, "It's time to go."

Cedric blinked, taking a last sip of water before standing up. That had come fast. "I'm ready," he said, turning to search Harry's face for anxiety, but he looked... calm. He thought it was interesting how they had swapped places--in the beginning of their relationship, Harry was the antsy nervous one. But the comfort and presence of being with Cedric seemed to calm him down.

But, Cedric was suddenly worried about Harry. About losing him.

They walked out of the hall hand and hand, and everyone offered the courtesy of not making comments or staring. They didn't want to rile up their Champions, did they?

And then they were outside of the castle all at once, and the air was crisp and cold, and the lake was glimmering in the distance and looking frighteningly cold. Cedric realized that he would have to keep up a Warming Charm along with the Bubble Head, and all the while maintain his anxiety. He wasn't all together sure he could handle it. 

He realized his hand was shaking, and Harry had his arm around him to support him. He tried to tell himself that this was normal, and it was any other day he and Harry went to the lake, and he had nothing to worry about. It wasn't working though.

"Are you even worried?" he asked Harry, who's face was calm and composed. To all the world, he could have just been a spectator. But he's not. He's Harry Potter, and there are people who want to kill him. He had no idea where all these worries were coming from!

Harry laughed. "I'm nervous," he admitted. "But it can't be worse than a dragon, can it?"

"I guess not," Cedric murmured, but his mind suggested several ways in which it could be worse. A few of them included seductive mermaids. A few others included the Giant Squid.

"We'll be fine," Harry assured him, squeezing his hand. "Look! The bleachers are filling up." He pointed, trying to distract Cedric.

"Fantastic. More people to watch the impending doom." He muttered, watching the robed children in the distance chatter excitedly and take their seats. They didn't have to worry about the people important to them being stuck under thousands of litres of water.

"What's gotten into you?" Harry demanded. "You're not usually like this." He looked up at Cedric curiously.

"I don't know!" Cedric protested. It had been so sudden. He was fine up until yesterday, after dinner... He suddenly was terrified, and he couldn't keep a lid on his anxiety.

Harry was about to respond, but Bagman had suddenly appeared next to them. "Hullo, boys! I see you made it down without me this time," he grinned, prying them apart with a spell so he could walk between him.

Harry rolled his eyes. "Got a Calming Draught, Mr. Bagman? Or even better, Draught of Peace?" he asked, casting a sly glance over at Cedric. He was still shaking, and his palms were sweaty. 

Bagman frowned, and was about to reply, but Cedric interrupted him. "No, sir! I'm fine. I need to be alert," he added earnestly.

Harry groaned. "How are you going to be able to do anything with your magic when you're this anxious?" He demanded.

"I'll be fine!"

Bagman nodded. "Yes, Harry, your lover will be fine." He grinned with satisfaction at his obnoxious use of the word 'lover.' "He's smart, and I'm sure someone will swoop in and save him if something's wrong."

Cedric just grimaced. Everyone was making such a big deal out of this!

"Gotta run, boys. Hope you've got swimwear on under your robes. Go stand on the dock with the other two Champions; I've got an announcement to make."

The Champions were all lined up on the dock in bathing suits. That ridiculous Diggory fellow was practically shaking, and Draco didn't envy how cold he'd be soon. But he did envy the fact he was very close to Potter's half-naked body. He realized, with a shred of disappointment, that it was probably nothing new to Diggory.

Someone was announcing the rules of the Task. Something about not being able to see under the water, and just watching the clock. Boring. And then, something about the Champions having to rescue a person under the lake that was the most important to them.

He snickered as he noted that the Potter/Diggory couple wouldn't be rescuing the other. Then, he realized with a grimace, that there was probably a reason for that. The Champions couldn't be the unconscious ones.

"This is terrible!" someone cried, and he looked over to see Loony Lovegood shaking Chang's shoulders.

"I know!" Chang screeched, shoving Loony away (to which Pansy flinched). "Apparently, I'm not important to Cedric or Harry!"

Draco moaned. "Fucking tell me about it," he hissed at her, looking back down at the dock where fucking Potter was holding Diggory's fucking hand like he was fucking brilliant. Which he wasn't. Only Potter was even slightly brilliant, and Draco surpassed him by far.

"I meant that we can't watch them..." Loony mumbled.

"Oh, shut it! Let me moan about my unrequited love," Draco whined, realizing with dread he had said it aloud, and half of the bleacher full of people were staring at him. "Leave me alone!" he cried, burying his head in his hands.

Pansy sniggered next to him. "Oh, I'm sure you still have a chance." She patted his shoulder gently, but mockingly. "It's not like--oh. Never mind." She giggled profusely, and Draco's head snapped up.

"What?" he demanded, and then he saw it. Potter had stood on his bloody tip toes in a bloody adorable way and he was snogging Diggory right there on the damned dock. In front of everyone! With tongue. And the reporters were eating it up.

Draco knew he'd have to relive this dreadful moment when he read the papers next.

"You're ridiculous!" he cried. "Boo! Not in public!" He kept on shouting, but no one else would join him in protest. "I hate Diggory! I hate Diggory!" he chanted over and over, but no one caught on.

Pansy was laughing hysterically, and Draco didn't even care. Potter was whispering something to Diggory, and then there was a shrill whistle, and Potter was shoving something into his mouth, and Diggory was casting a charm, and then all four of them were diving into the water.

And Draco had an entire hour to brood on the bloody bleachers.

Cedric and Harry had taken off their robes and were in their swim trunks, standing on the dock. Cedric had seen Harry eat half of the gillyweed (it looked akin to rat tails, and he felt sorry for Harry) and stuff the other half into a pocket of his swim trunks.

Bagman was announcing something, but Cedric wasn't listening. 

"Swallow the damned stuff, Harry!" he whispered. "If you don't swallow it, you'll drown!" he added in a panic.

Harry didn't reply, and he just kept a foul look on his face and he refused to swallow the gillyweed. 

"Harry! I'm worried. Please swallow it," Cedric hissed, glancing around at the other Champions. They weren't paying attention, though. Their eyes were fixed with fear or determination on the gray, cold lake. 

Harry rolled his eyes, and in a moment he was on his tiptoes, and his hands were on Cedric's face. He looked like he were about to kiss him, and Cedric turned red. The sound of blood rushing in his ears drowned out all else.

Harry's mouth was aggressively on his, and suddenly his tongue was shoved into mouth. Except it wasn't pleasant at all, because Harry was actually shoving the gillyweed into his mouth, gods knew why. 

When it was in his mouth, and Cedric gulped dramatically, Harry hugged Cedric tightly. "That was a cover. Still cast the Charm, but take it off as soon as you're under the water. I know you're great at charms, but your magic feels off. I trust this better."

Then a whistle blew, and Harry put the rest of the gillyweed into his own mouth, and Cedric cast the Bubble Head Charm. As soon as he was under the water, he felt gills growing on him. They were begging for water, and he dove deeper as he removed the charm to avoid the gaze of the other Champions. He swam close to the bed of green grass (which looked a lot like the plants outside the Hufflepuff window), keeping a close eye out for grindylows.

Harry wasn't though. He realized in a moment of hyper awareness that one had grabbed Harry's ankle, and Cedric swam over as fast as he could to rescue him. But Harry freed himself in a moment. "Go!" he cried. "Don't worry about me."

Cedric nodded, and swam as fast as he could away. But his thoughts kept drifting back to Harry, whom he realized he had lost track of. He suddenly felt panicked, and swam around in an uneasy circle. 

Suddenly, there was a clawed hand gripping at his ankle, it was biting him and he was fighting off his own grindylow. He kicked it off, and used his newfound fins to give him an extra boost along. 

He swam along for what felt like an eternity, when all at once the grass was gone. Below him, the lake dropped off to reveal a village. The mermaid village, he realized. He could see Harry swimming into the village several hundred meters ahead of him. He chased after him, determined to catch up.

Soon, he was in the mermaid village. There were small stone houses, and small green-haired fish-children swam around him. The adults were there, too, staring at him with beady eyes and pointed teeth. 

He swam as fast as he could, though his ankle was swollen and bleeding from the grindylow and was becoming increasingly noticeable. He tried to occupy himself with staring at the strange carvings the mermaids had made on the walls.

Soon enough, he saw Harry in a clearing, where there were three people tied to a stone. He had Ron in one arm and was arguing with some mermen, who were pointing spears at him. 

"Harry!" he cried, and a burst of speed brought him closer to his boyfriend.

"I can't just leave them!" Harry was telling the merpeople. 

"Harry," Cedric repeated, crashing into Harry with a final burst of speed from his fins. "The other Champions are coming! I saw them!" he lied, trying to get Harry out of there. He didn't want him to be stabbed by any malicious mermen.

"But--"

"No buts. I ate the fucking gillyweed, and you're going to swim out of here with Ron," he ordered, pointing up towards the lit surface of the water. "Now," he added, shoving Harry.

Harry looked nervously at the rock and the people tied to it, but then he must have seen Cedric's steely resolve, because he nodded and made his way to the surface.

He swam to the rock, and cast a spell to unbind Alfred, who was tied to the rock with a peaceful expression on his face. The spell wasn't very effective, as it was underwater, so he had to try a few times. Then, Alfred was tumbling lose of the rock and Cedric had to catch him in his arms. He realized that Harry's friend Hermione was tied to the rock, too, and he remembered that she was Krum's date to the dance. 

Poor Harry. He must have felt like he was leaving his other best friend for dead.

He saw Krum coming, and he didn't want to be beat by him, so he made a quick kick and was speeding up vertically towards the surface of the lake. The sudden depth change made him feel sick, however, so he slowed down and started heading towards the shore instead. He could see Harry not far ahead of him.

Just before they emerged from the water, Harry pointed towards his own head, and Cedric realized he needed to cast the bubble charm to keep appearances again. He did so, and as he got closer to the edge of the lake, he felt the gillyweed's effects fading.

Harry, who was ahead of him and had swallowed it after he did, showed no sign of slowing. He was going to win. Cedric did not look behind him to see where Krum and Fleur were. 

He saw Harry reach the shore, disappearing from the water. Not long after, Cedric felt his feet go back to normal. He suddenly felt vulnerable and slow and unnatural, so accustomed he had become to the gillyweed's gift.

But he was at the top of the water, soon, and Alfred was gasping for air. Cedric did, too, and removed the bubble charm once he reached the shore. There were people cheering, and he found himself being led to the dock.

Harry was next to Ron on the edge of the dock, both of them wrapped in towels and watching the water nervously. They were waiting for Hermione.

Cedric turned to Alfred once they were both toweled and on another part of the dock. "You okay?" he asked his best friend.

"Yes. Thanks for saving me," the broad, dark haired boy laughed. "I almost hexed Sprout when she told me I'd be underwater." His eyes glazed over as he apparently fully realized he had been underwater for over an hour.

"You survived, though," Cedric reminded him, as Krum popped out of the water with Hermione. Ron and Harry cheered loudly. In a few moments, Fleur emerged. The silver haired girl she was pulling along looked very close to death, her lips blue and her face pale. Fleur was distraught.

"You think she'll be okay?" Alfred whispered.

Cedric didn't know. He felt a sudden pounding at his skull, and he couldn't breathe, and all at once he was full of fear. He heard a scream, and he didn't realize it was coming from his own lips until he felt someone holding him upright.

Someone slapped his face. "Diggory!" 

Cedric blinked, and he was looking up at Moody, who was forcing a potion through his lips. He yelped and accidentally swallowed it all, pushing himself away from the man.

"What was that?" he demanded, his heart rate suddenly turning to normal. His head felt clearer, and he could breathe.

Moody scowled. "Draught of Peace. You were acting off, and Bagman mentioned Potter requesting one for you." He didn't even wait for a reply from Cedric, instead getting up to talk quietly to Harry.

Later, when he was escorted back to the castle, he was informed that someone had tainted his drink last night with an Paranoia Potion, which had addled his brain before the Task.

"Which is why I only drink from my own flask," Moody grumbled.

Alfred, who was still with him, muttered. "I would have thought it was in his flask."

Cedric would have laughed, but he was unsettled. He had known people wanted to sabotage Harry...

But why him?

Chapter Text

The days after the Task were miserable, just as Cedric had expected. Not only were there photographs of Harry's risqué method of getting Cedric to eat the gillyweed everywhere, but there were even more articles about their unfair alliance and advantage. And no one even knew they had worked together on the gillyweed part.

Honestly, it was getting a bit old. Cedric wondered how many times people would be willing to read the articles about them, how many times the papers could try and bash them. Witch Weekly currently couldn't get enough of them, or of Hermione and Krum. So, at least the burden was shared.

But, worst of all, were the hate letters. He had received dozens of them that morning, all along the lines of: You're obviously just using Harry for the attention--that's why you kissed him right before the Task! You're probably using him to betray him so you can win, too.

There were a couple more that he suspected all came from Malfoy, essentially saying he didn't deserve Harry's love and had stolen him from the more worthy. He found himself glaring at the Slytherin table a lot.

Still, as bad as they were, they distracted him from what had happened after the Task. How he had been drugged, how he had become all anxious and unstable.

He felt as though the tides had certainly turned. Wasn't it just a few months ago that everyone hated Harry? That Harry was the paranoid one?

Not that he cared; Harry was acting happier than Cedric had ever seen him, though he did credit some of that to himself. He had just spotted him on the way to a class in the hallway, and was busy whispering excitedly with his two friends.

"Hey," Cedric said, pulling him aside. Ron and Hermione stopped, and looked as though they might draw their wands (probably still paranoid from back when everyone hated Harry). But then they saw it was Cedric and let them be, waving Harry goodbye and continuing on their way.

"Hi." Harry grinned, reaching up to peck Cedric on the cheek. He saw a couple of nearby girls glower, but he ignored them.

"You're in a good mood," Cedric commented, bending down to return him a kiss.

"Yeah. Sirius wants to meet me in Hogsmeade this weekend!" he exclaimed. Cedric smiled at the light in his eyes. He knew he had been writing his godfather, but he didn't know about what. He was glad they'd finally get to see each other again.

"Well, let me know how it goes. I'll see you later this evening?" he inquired.

"Definitely. Usual spot?" Harry snickered when a passing sixth year raised his eyebrows at them. Cedric smiled jovially at them, trying to say, Like you didn't know already, with the coverage our relationship gets. He honestly didn't see the need to act reserved about showing affection publicly anymore. It's not like they had any privacy, anyway.

Cedric leaned in to whisper in Harry's ear. "Actually, I was thinking Prefect's Bathroom. We haven't done that in a while."

Harry raised his eyebrows. "I could use a bath."

Harry met Cedric at the Hufflepuff common room's door, bearing his Invisibility Cloak. They snuck to the Prefect's Bathroom, just barely missing Mrs. Norris. Cedric couldn't help but note that it was much easier maneuvering under the Cloak than the first time; he wasn't sure if it was because Harry had gotten taller and there was less of a height difference, or he had just gotten used to it.

They made it into the bathroom safe and sound.

Once they were in the door, Cedric immediately began to strip, and Harry watched him curiously. "What?" Cedric demanded. "Aren't you going to strip, too?" 

Harry blushed. "Yes!" he exclaimed. "I mean, it's just that... we haven't done this since before we were... together." He looked completely flustered.

Cedric decided to alleviate that. Now only in his skivvies, he walked up to his fully-clothed boyfriend. "Worried it's going to be different this time?" he whispered, slinking his arms around Harry and kissing him softly. Harry opened his mouth with a moan, and Cedric carefully helped him remove his robes. "Come on. We won't do anything crazy," he assured him, though he found himself blushing as well.

Before he and Harry were dating, he had imagined plenty of things happening in this bathroom. Now that the barriers were down, he didn't know how well he could control himself. They both climbed into the basin, and Cedric turned on the hot water and scents.

"I fantasized about you a lot," Harry confessed.

Cedric rounded on him with a smirk. "Oh, did you?" he inquired, waggling his eyebrows. "I'd never have guessed, given the stares we shared," he said sarcastically.

Harry slid into the water, and Cedric watched him with relish. "You know you did, too," Harry chuckled, smirking in a way Cedric hadn't recognized from before. He didn't focus on the smirk, however, and found himself staring at Harry's body.

And now they were dating, he could touch that body.

He got into the water next to Harry and straddled him against the edge of the basin, kissing him soundly and with tongue. This time, it was much more pleasant than it had been with the gillyweed. Now with only a few layers of fabric between them, he could feel Harry's arousal as he groaned. The water sliding between them felt fantastic, and so did touching someone else like this. It was nothing he had ever experienced.

He began to move himself against--

He was interrupted. There was a giggle. Both Harry and Cedric tore away, and found Moaning Myrtle watching them with delight.

If that wasn't a turn off, Cedric didn't know what was.

Harry had come back from his visit with his godfather looking distressed. Cedric didn't really know what that had meant, or what they had discussed, but he planned to interrogate him about it. He found him in the library, once again whispering fervently with Hermione.

He sat down at the table and grinned as kindly as he could at the girl, even if sometimes he couldn't help but feel jealous that she got to spend practically all day with Harry. All he got was stolen moments in the hallway and late night trips sneaking about the castle.

"Hullo, you two." He hadn't seen Harry since the night in the Prefect's Bathroom, which meant he hadn't seen him all weekend. He slipped a hand on Harry's knee from under the table, and he blushed.

"Hey, Cedric," he murmured. "We were just talking about what Sirius told us. About Crouch and his elf," he specified. Cedric had no idea what that meant, so he just nodded.

"And Skeeter!" Hermione exclaimed. "She somehow knew that Viktor had invited me to visit him in Bulgaria!" She looked very frustrated, but also very pleased. Cedric thought she might have liked the attention.

"He invited you to visit?" Cedric asked with curiosity. He thought he might give Harry a similar offer...

"Vot is it to you, Diggory?" A voice behind him snapped, moving around the table to Hermione. "Hermione," he hummed, carefully enunciating her name. "Vould you like to take a valk with me? The sun is out."

Hermione nodded, and shared a glance with Harry before leaving.

"So, what's this about Crouch?" Cedric asked, placing an arm on the back of Harry's chair. "Well, he's sort of gone missing, you know," he mumbled. "And he might've put my name into the Goblet. Or his house elf," he added dryly. "Don't see why Hermione loves them so much."

Cedric chuckled. "She's an odd one."

"Yeah," Harry sighed. "We went to see the elf, and she told us something about keeping Crouch's secret. So, that was scary." He shuddered, and Cedric wondered if anything else was going on. He was probably still worried about the whole Voldemort thing... He decided it was best not to broach the subject.

"I meant Hermione," he teased, nudging Harry in the shoulder.

"Oh. Yeah." Harry grinned sheepishly, but frowned. "She thinks someone's bugged Hogwarts, to get all this information about her, Krum, and us." He sighed.

"That's an interesting idea." Cedric frowned. "Those articles are starting to get to me, you know. I keep getting ha--" he began, but Harry cut him off.

"Oh, damn. Ced, I gotta go. I promised I'd help Neville and Ron with a potions thing. See you later? Pace about if you need me," he added, before gathering his things and running away.

Cedric heaved a sigh.

I helped him out when people were against him. Can't he help me this time?

Cedric and Harry were out by the Quidditch Pitch. There were strange little bushes growing out of it. It looked wrong to see his precious pitch desecrated like that, Cedric thought.

"It's for the Task," Harry told him.

"Looks like a maze." Cedric nodded lamely. "No golden eggs to crack this time?" he inquired, wondering if it would be worth it to try and memorize the layout while it was still growing. It would probably grow fast, he thought. It might even be enchanted to switch around.

"Nope," Harry replied. "But we better bone up on our Defense curses. That's what I was told we'd need," Harry reminded him.

Cedric nudged him and laughed. "You're fine with Defense. There's plenty of other things we could bone up on." He smirked as Harry turned bright red.

"Ced..." he murmured.

"You're right. We need to be serious. Get ready for the task." He sighed as he looked up at the sky. "Be vigilant. I can't have anyone slipping any more anxiety inducing potions into my drinks, can I?" 

Harry looked at him closely, and Cedric felt like his gaze was poring into his skull, reading his mind. "Who do you think did that?" Harry asked, looking concerned.

"Probably one of your rabid fangirls. They hate me," he muttered sorely.

"I don't have fangirls!" Harry protested.

Cedric rolled his eyes. "They're always writing me about how much they hate me for stealing you," he muttered. This morning's mail had been particularly harsh...

Harry just laughed. "Are you sure it's not just Malfoy? Everyone was telling me he was trying to start some sort of protest when we kissed at the Task," he snickered.

"Harry..." Cedric muttered. Not helping.

"Cedric," Harry returned with a grin, looking him into the eyes. "It's fine, I'm sure," he assured him, giving him a kiss that made him forget about his bitterness.

Despite the fact that Cedric would have been content to waste his days kissing Harry and moping about fangirl hate, he had classes to pass and finals to study for.

He also had to practice spells now, for the final Task. He knew plenty of charms, of course. He'd always been good at them, and he was grateful that this Task wouldn't require any Herbology skills. He had practically fallen asleep on his feet last class. Alfred didn't let him hear the end of it.

Harry was off with his friends studying, so Cedric was in his dorm reading about offensive curses. In case there was anything dangerous in the maze, which he was sure there would be.

"Whatcha reading?" Alfred asked, flopping onto his own bed and staring at the ceiling.

"Defense," Cedric replied. "For the Task."

Alfred perked up with that. "Really?" he inquired. "Do you wanna practice? We can pretend to duel," he added with a grin.

"Sure," Cedric replied. He got to his feet, and stared his oldest friend in the eye. "You're a monster, I'm a Champion. Fight me," he grinned. It sounded like one of the silly games of their childhood. Only now, instead of wrestling, they were pretending to cast spells without their wands.

Cedric practiced the incantations and pictured the wand movement. It was actually very good for relieving stress. He found himself no longer imagining evil fangirls or sulking Malfoy's or Harry's who didn't know what was going on. It was also fun.

After an hour, he and Alfred had collapsed onto their respective bed in a fit of laughter when their other dorm mates came in and found them "play dueling."

He had never felt so at ease about the Tournament than he had in that moment, and resolved to continue practicing like this for the final Task.

Harry was going to meet Cedric by the Quidditch stands tonight. He thought he might enjoy some stargazing.

Or something else. He felt something inside him shiver at the memory of the Prefect's Bathroom. If only Myrtle hadn't interrupted...

Oh, well. Maybe we're not ready yet, anyway. He thought, and then he wondered, Ready for what?

Before he could think too deeply on that (as much as he would have liked to), he was out in the fresh air. The stars were bright and brilliant, like pinpricks in an indigo blue canopy. The air smelled like wind and fresh water from the lake.

He saw a figure crouched on the edge of the hedged Quidditch field, sitting with their legs hugged to their chest. Cedric. He thought with a grin. He snuck up behind him, still in his Cloak, and placed his hands on his shoulders.

"Good evening," he breathed into his ear. Cedric jumped in shock, knocking off the Cloak, and let out a throaty yelp that was much deeper than usual.

"Potter?"

It wasn't Cedric. It was Krum. "Vot do you want?" he demanded, reeling away and looking scandalized.

Harry turned red and fell backwards. "I thought you were Cedric," he mumbled.

Krum nodded as if that satisfied him, and sighed. "And I hoped you vere Hermione." He sighed. "She just left. She is like a banshee ven she is angry." He grunted.

Harry laughed. "What did you do?" he asked him, raising an eyebrow. The wrath of Hermione was never fun.

"She thought I vos talking vith Skeeter," he groaned. "But I am not. You believe me, Harry?" he inquired, still looking dismal.

"Of course," Harry assured him. "You don't seem like the type to roll in fame." He was only half sarcastic.

"Exactly!" Krum cried. "She is not even knowing me, it feels like." The poor bloke sounded like his mother had just died, he was so miserable.

Harry was about to reply, but he froze. "Did you hear that?" he snapped, looking around for the source.

Krum nodded, standing up and reaching for his wand, all at once losing his sad demeanor. "Over there," he hissed.

Harry heard it more clearly this time. It sounded like some sort of insane, babbling drivel.

"Weatherby! Fetch the papers, dammit. I don't have all day." The voice snapped, and Harry saw the speaker. It was... It was Crouch?

"Weatherby! You're useless. I've lunch with my wife and son in less than an hour. Hop to it!" He was talking to a tree.

He's gone mad.

"Mr. Crouch?" Krum called tentatively, lifting his wand into the air.

Harry had a closer look now, seeing that Crouch looked malnourished and ill. His clothes were torn, and he looked like a shell of the man he'd been.

"Just a minute, Weatherby. Someone else--" he started, but broke off with a sharp, raggedy breath, and looked up at the two boys. "Dumbledore! Get Dumbledore," he gasped.

"Mr. Crouch--" Harry tried to help the man stand, but he held up a wavering hand.

"I need to see Dumbledore. Bertha Jor--" he broke off again and babbled about 'Weatherby' some more. Harry exchanged a glance with Krum.

"I'll get Dumbledore," he whispered.

"I vill vait here," Krum responded firmly.

Harry began running back towards the castle.

The soft air was now bitter in his lungs, and he did not want to falter to think about Cedric and the stars. Until, of course, he ran past Cedric, who was on the way to meet him.

"Harry! What's the rush?" Cedric called.

"Come with me! To the castle! We have to get Dumbledore," Harry panted, turning to grab his arm.

They both ran.

Barty Crouch Jr. had been trailing the Diggory boy. He'd seen him walk past his office, and he had a feeling he would lead him to Potter. And after the letter from his Lord, he had a feeling that he would find his father, too. Those sorts of things tended to gravitate towards Potter.

He snuck behind the hapless Hufflepuff, doubting he'd be spotted. If he was, well--he was Polyjuiced as Mad-Eye Moody. He could just tell him he was trying to figure out if he was up to something so late at night.

Once they were outside, it didn't take long for Potter to come rushing past, screaming about Dumbledore. Crouch knew then that his father was there. What else would have Potter all astir?

There was his father on the ground, by the Quidditch Pitch. A young man was leaning over him. Krum.

"Harry?" Krum asked tentatively.

"No," Crouch growled, casting a Stunning Spell at the boy. He crumpled into unconsciousness immediately despite his large frame, and Crouch was free to get to his father. He was babbling insanely, curled up on the earth beneath him.

He was talking about his family. Ha. As if we're still a family.

He stood by his father's broken figure. He didn't have much time until Dumbledore came, he knew, but he wanted to enjoy this while he could. The death would be a painful one, to have revenge for all the trouble his father had caused in the First War.

"Hello, Daddy," he hissed, kicking the old man in the ribs. "Bet you don't recognize me, do you?" he asked. His father let out a groan. He was about to say something, but Barty silenced him. By stomping on his face. "Don't talk," he hissed, grinding his heel into his nose. There was a satisfying crunch, and some squelching noises.

He grinned in delight, pulling his foot away to see the crushed face. "I could do so much more," he breathed, "with my magic. But that was more personal. This? This is not." He cast a spell that would make his father's blood boil, literally, instead of the metaphorical sense he had achieved with his crimes. His father hated those crimes.

He cast another spell that was just as Dark, this one tying his intestines in knots. He cast another one to melt his muscles and snap his tendons. His father writhed in pain for a few minutes more, until his muscles were so destroyed he could no longer move.

This was much less satisfying, so Crouch decided to end it. "Avada Kedavra."

Then, he transformed his father's corpse into a bone, and ran off to bury it where no one would find it.

Harry had little sleep the night after Bartimus Crouch. Krum had been taken to the hospital wing after being stunned by someone, and Crouch's corpse had disappeared. Hermione was beside herself, and Cedric had almost refused to remove himself from his side. But, eventually, after being interrogated by teachers and Madam Pomfrey, he had gone back to Gryffindor Tower for some sleep.

He hadn't slept, though, and instead pondered the implications of Crouch's madness. What if they had been wrong? What if Crouch hadn't put his name in the Goblet? What did that mean?

There was also the memory of Cedric getting drugged before the Second Task. Did that tie into all this?

He didn't know.

By morning, his mind had slowed down and he was in a sluggish haze. He hadn't been able to focus throughout the day. His classes drifted past him, and his head was in a hazy, sleepy dream world.

When Divination came, Trelawney's voice mixed with an odd buzzing sound lulled him to sleep. He dreamed of Voldemort, of tales of dead men, and the Cruciatus curse.

He awoke with a scream.

Cedric hadn't heard about Harry's accident until dinner. He was still shaken up from finding out about Harry's finding Crouch, and the interrogations that followed. And now this? He had seen Harry from across the hall, looking as pale as a ghost and Ron patting his shoulder reassuringly. Cedric had wasted no time in moving to the Gryffindor table to talk to his boyfriend.

"You look awful," he whispered, sitting between him and Ronald. "Still upset over Crouch?" he asked.

Harry shook his head. "I had a vision. From Voldemort. My scar is killing me," he added, rubbing his forehead painfully. "Can we talk about it somewhere more private?" 

"Of course," Cedric replied, immediately getting up and taking Harry's hand, who apparently hadn't meant now. Cedric didn't care; he was tired of being out of the loop with his love's troubles.

He dragged him to the corridor with their secret stained-glass room, planting himself down on the middle of the floor. He patted the ground beside him and told Harry to join him, laying down to stare at the colorful ceiling.

"I went to Dumbledore after the dream. He and Moody and the Minister were arguing over Crouch's death, I think.," Harry said at last, pressing his body close to Cedric's on the stone floor. "And I looked into a Penseive." 

Cedric made an acknowledging sound. He knew about Penseives. "What did you see?" he inquired.

"Lots of trials after the War," he murmured. "Karkaroff betrayed the other Death Eaters. So, that's why he and Snape were talking. And Bagman worked for Death Eaters, but he made it off innocent." 

Cedric was a little surprised that Bagman would work with Death Eaters. Then again, the man would do anything for a galleon. Or a game.

"And..." Harry took a deep breath. "Crouch put his own son into Azkaban. It was awful to see."

"Oh." Cedric murmured.

"Anything else? What about the dream?" Cedric felt Harry choke, and he rolled onto his side and pulled him closer. "Shh," he hushed. "What was it?"

"Voldemort's coming back. Dumbledore thinks he killed Crouch. And a muggle, and Bertha Jorkins."

Cedric didn't know what to say, so he just held Harry for a long time. Suddenly, his frustration with Harry for not helping with the hate letters didn't matter. And he didn't want to bring up his concern with the Second Task. He just breathed and held Harry close, kissing him wherever there was skin for him to reach.

He didn't even want to think about the Third Task. Or who would try to sabotage it.

Crouch Jr. was growing restless. He hated Mad Eye's body, even if the eye was useful. He hated talking to all these cowardly wizards who couldn't even say the name of the Dark Lord. He hated not being able to kill or torture or mutilate--he had had a long enough time without it in Azkaban. Now he was free, and he should have been living it up.

But his Lord had told him to come here and deal with Potter, to get him into his clutches. There were many times where he had wanted to kill Potter, or to make him suffer. The Second Task was one of them--he had hoped that he could somehow ensnare Potter at the bottom of the Lake and drown him. It would have been delightful to watch the ensuing chaos.

But it was just as well to settle for the Diggory boy, so he had given him the potion before the Task. He had been jittery and anxious, and he was supposed to mess up and get himself killed under the Lake. It would have hurt Potter, and it would have been delectable. But it hadn't worked out, and he was settling for stalking the boys instead.

The Third Task was coming very, very soon. The maze was fully grown, and the Portkey was in place. He had set up some particularly nasty traps for Diggory, because he was tied closely with Potter. He couldn't afford to let Diggory win, and if he died or was severely hurt in the process... Well, that was even better.

Potter, of course, would be given the easiest path, if he could help it. Potter needed to be the one to get to the Portkey, to be sacrificed...

And then his Lord would rise.

It was the morning of the Final Task. Another article had been published about Harry, and Skeeter was now calling him unstable and dangerous. Harry had told Cedric that Hermione had figured something out, and had dashed off without telling anyone what she was doing. So, now, he was waiting by the Lake with Cedric.

Cedric was slightly nevous. His parents would be there any minute, and they wanted to meet Harry. He saw them coming down the pathway. "Here we go," he breathed. He knew his parents had not been pleased about Harry becoming the other Hogwarts Champion, as he had taken the spotlight from Cedric and Hufflepuff. He had no idea what they had thought about them dating. Or all the articles about them. Snogging.

"Cedric, my boy!" Amos Diggory called, and Cedric pulled himself to his feet, taking Harry's arm as he approached them.

"Mum, Dad. Hullo." He smiled. "This is Harry Potter," he announced, gently nudging Harry forward.

"Hullo, Mr. Diggory. We've met, haven't we?" he asked cheerfully. "But I'm afraid I haven't met you, ma'am," he added, awkwardly shaking Cedric's mother's hand. He should have kissed it, but Harry was oblivious as usual.

"Pleasure to meet you, Harry," she said. "I've heard all about you. From secondary sources, of course," she added, shooting Cedric a glare that made him cower.

"Sorry, Mum," Cedric muttered. "I've been a bit busy... With begin a Champion and all," he added, feeling his cheeks flush with shame.

"And with this one!" His father bellowed with a laugh. "You could have come out to us before, Cedric," he laughed. "Instead, we were given the Christmas gift of our boy and Harry Potter snogging in print! Who'd have thought?"

Harry was blushing, too. "Do I have your, er, blessing?" he asked timidly.

"Well, there's nothing we can do to stop you, is there?" Cedric's mum snapped, though she was smiling. "Come now, boys. Tell us about your adventures."

They walked for several hours, until Harry had to leave to visit with the Weasley's. Cedric stayed with his family, casually discussing the school year with his parents. His mother had broken away eventually, declaring she had a headache.

"So, how'd it happen?" Amos asked him. "You and Harry."

Cedric was glad he'd asked when his mother was gone, but he didn't want to tell the whole story. "We helped each other out for the Second Task," he explained.

"Even though he was the enemy?"

"He's not the enemy, Dad." Cedric sighed. "Anyway, we worked together. And Cho Chang was pursuing me--"

"Chang? She's from a good family. Why not date her instead of Potter?" his father demanded.

"She was only after me for the fame, Dad. And she went after Harry once I wasn't good enough. So Harry and I joked about going to the Ball together to spite her... And we actually did," he confessed, feeling embarrassed.

"And how did you know that you were attracted to him?"

Cedric groaned. "Same way you knew about Mum, Dad," he muttered. "Good old pointer kept me in the know," he snapped, pointing to his groin. His father let out a chuckle.

"Oh, to be young again," he sighed. He cast a tempus charm. "We ought to get you going. The Task starts soon."

Cedric nodded in agreement. They wandered back to the Pitch, where the maze was tall and wild looking. Before Cedric wandered off to join the other Champions, his father took him by the arm.

"Cedric," he whispered. "You're still my champ, no matter who you love. Remember that. And good luck out there."

"Thanks, Dad."

Cedric looked up at the maze, and unease coiled in his gut. This Task would be different. He knew it.

The shot rang, and Harry was the first person to enter the Maze. Cedric hoped with all his heart that Harry would be safe, that no one would be trying to sabotage him. Then again, someone might be trying to sabotage him, too.

The second shot rang, and it was Cedric's turn to enter the Maze. His stomach fluttered and his head spun, and he felt off the minute he stepped into it. It was as if there were wards around him, altering his thinking...

Snap. He turned around and found himself facing a house elf-like creature. The only difference was that it's eyes were black and rimmed with red, and inky veins seemed to bulge underneath it's flesh. It was repulsive.

He lifted his wand to cast Petrificus Totalus, but it drew a silver knife from nowhere and thew it at him. He dodged it, and it began to apparate all around him. Snap. Snap. Snap.

Then, his stunning spell finally hit home. The elf was unconscious, and he began to move on. 

That was easy.

He felt a presence behind him, however. When he turned to look, he saw the knife the elf had thrown was chasing after him, as if it were sentient. Dark arts, he scowled, speeding up his pace to avoid it. It reminded him of a nightmare he used to have as a child...

He pushed the memory away. He didn't need that distracting him now. He needed to figure out a way to defeat this possessed object. 

He was distracted again, however, when a hag appeared in front of him. Another thing straight out of his childhood night terrors, she was gray skinned and bony, with long fingernails and glimmering black eyes.

"Give me a taste of your liver, little boy," she hissed. 

He felt the presence behind him again, and flinched out of the way last minute as the dagger flew by and lodged itself in the hag's breast. She froze, staring at Cedric with confusion. Then, she cackled.

"You can't defeat me with one of my own kind, boy!" 

Her own kind? He wondered.

Knife. Hag. Nightmares. He realized quickly. Are these some kind of... boggarts?

Before he could cast a Riddikulus, however, the knife flew out of the hag and straight into Cedric's side. It ripped and twisted and pulled, as if it were alive and hungry to disembowel him.

In a panic, he cast the spell. The hag turned into a harmless old lady and the knife into a bouquet of flowers sticking from his side. He pulled them out and tossed them to the woman.

He kept on running, his hand clutching his side.

Harry had gone past several monsters already, and he had yet to properly tire. He felt alive, awake, and alert. All of his senses were heightened, and his mind sang of one thing: winning the Cup.

It was all he thought about as he slay the final beast between him and the cup. One transfigured sword brought down on the acromantula's neck, and he was standing in a clearing. The Cup gleamed in front of him, taunting and alluring.

Success. Victory. Achievement. Glory.

Word after word sung in his head, and it consumed his being to an unnatural level. It was enchanting.

The spell was broken, however, when he heard a familiar cry. His eyes snapped away from the Cup, and he saw a giant's head peeking over the hedge. Cedric was wailing beneath it, he realized.

He could not get through the hedge.

Unless...

He cast a stinging hex at the giant, which stumbled backwards to give Harry it's attention. The hedge broke beneath it, and Harry darted between its legs before it could notice. It spotted another champion and fumbled to attack.

Meanwhile, Harry caught sight of Cedric. He was lying on the ground, blood pouring from his side and deformed pixies gnawing at whatever flesh they could reach.

The former promises of victory vanished, and Harry vowed to not leave Cedric's side.

He cast away the pixies with a repelling hex, and knelt on the ground next to Cedric. He realized with regret that he did not know any healing spells. He lifted his wand, and red sparks flew into the air. Help would be on the way.

"What are you doing?" Cedric wheezed. "Go get the fucking Cup."

"No way," Harry replied. "What happened?"

Cedric didn't respond. He only squinted and held a hand to his red-stained side.

Harry forced himself to look away. He saw Krum fall the giant, and Fleur appear into the clearing. The two standing Champions made fierce eye contact, and they both ran for the Cup.

They reached it at the same time, and then they disappeared.

The maze walls fell at once, and the creatures inside were gone. Harry couldn't even bother wonder where the other two had gone--probably to some final part of the Task. 

All he could focus on was Cedric, growing limp in his arms and bleeding out fast.

Chapter Text

Fleur Delacour had been so close to winning. She hadn't thought she would, after placing last... But she had touched the Cup and now she was--

Je suis où?

She had no idea where she was. The Cup lay dejected next to her--no, between her and... Viktor Krum. So, she hadn't won. She would probably have to duel him. Just her luck. 

They both sat up and looked at each other in confusion.

"It vos a Portkey," Krum muttered. "Did you know this?" he asked her.

"Non," she muttered. "No one told me. But we should 'ave our wands out. It feels... dangerous."

Krum grunted in response. 

"Is zis part of ze Task?" she wondered aloud.

Again, Krum didn't answer. He was moving ahead, his wand in hand. She saw what he was after. A figure was walking towards them in the mist. It was carrying something.

"Krum!" she called. "Wait."

He froze, and turned to look at her curiously, but held back. "I don't think this is part of the Task," he whispered, taking a few steps back to stand next to her. "There is Dark magic here."

The figure they watched stopped by one of the headstones, and Fleur realized for the first time that they were in a graveyard. This did not make her feel any better.

"We need to go to back. Maybe ze cup will take us back." She turned around.

"No," Krum hissed, taking her wrist. "First, ve find out vot is going on."

Then, a voice cried out into the fog and the mist and the gravestones. It was high and sharp, and made Fleur's skin itch like nails on chalk board.

"Harry Potter!" it cried. 

"He is not here," Krum called back. "Ve are the vinners." 

The figure crept closer, and a different voice called out, and it was nearly as unpleasant. "Where is Harry Potter?" 

Fleur saw what he was holding now. It looked like a baby wrapped in cloth. She wondered what a baby would be doing in a graveyard with... this unfortunate looking man. 

She began to wonder if what everyone had said about Harry Potter was true. Perhaps someone was out to get him... And everything all led to this. Her breath quickened, and suddenly, she wished she had never touched the Cup.

"Krum," she breathed, pulling on his grip on her, pulling towards the cup.

"No!" he hissed, glaring at her. "Ve cannot run. Ve are not cowards."

The voice in the fog laughed. "No, you're not. Are you, Krum? You come from Durmstrang. I'm sure you know of many people who have followed me. Brave people, Krum."

"Who are you?" Fleur cried.

The voice laughed again, and everything inside of Fleur felt like it ached, and she began to tremble. It spoke again. "Harry Potter's worst enemy. And you're smart enough to know what that means."

Non... Ce n'est pas vrai... Voldemort....

The voice laughed, and the man drew his wand. "They are not Harry Potter, my Lord. They cannot help you Rise. What shall I do?" His voice quavered, and his wand hand shook. Fleur felt herself wishing that he would drop whatever was wrapped up and he was carrying.

"Don't kill them. Yet," the voice commanded. "They can help us."

"Vot do you vont?" Krum demanded, and Fleur saw fear in his eyes that she would never have expected.

"I need Harry Potter, of course," the voice--Voldemort--hissed. "I need him so I may come back. You could help, me Krum. You would be exalted in my ranks. A true follower, like Wormtail here."

"T-thank you, my Lord." The man--Wormtail--stuttered.

"Hush, rat," the voice snapped. "Now, Krum. Can you get Harry Potter for me?" he asked, apparently ignoring Fleur. Of course he was. Everyone ignored her. She was just the pretty girl from Beauxbatons. She was nothing to worry about, they thought. She would show them.

"I--I--" Krum stuttered, unable to make a decision. Fleur was quicker, already devising her plan in her head.

"I will," she announced. "I can bring you Potter. He will never suspect me," she added. 

Krum spun on her, and she saw the betrayal in his eyes. She was surprised. She had thought he was some sort of coward; she didn't know he had morals. 

She smirked as Voldemort above her spoke. He was like a god. He want her to bow. He wanted to rule.

"Good. I will need you to--"

She did not listen, and instead she ran towards Wormtail. He screeched, and dropped the thing in his arms. Voldemort in the air wailed. She cast a Stunning spell at Wormtail, and he crumpled to the ground. Krum cast an extra spell at him, and she thought it might have killed him. She hoped so.

Then, the screech turned louder. She felt something descend upon her--a sickliness, a griminess, a pain... It writhed within her like a parasite, and she felt herself falling to the ground. 

It was Dark magic.

She felt strong arms on her shoulders, dragging her to the Cup. She felt the hand lift, and another curse was cast, and then they were touching the Cup.

There was a deafening screech and the familiar tug of a Portkey, and she was free from the graveyard.

 Cedric felt several healing spells on him, and warm hands touching his body. He heard a buzzing sound, and was vaguely aware that the world was still in motion. He was not dead.

And then, he felt his side knit back together, and it felt as though something grimy and fluid was being pulled from him. Once it was gone, his eyes snapped open, and he could hear chaos erupting around him.

"Cedric!" Several people were crying. His parents, Dumbledore, Alfred, Harry....

"Harry," Cedric whispered, his voice a croak. "Did you win?" 

Harry's face was above his, looking down into his eyes. "No." Harry choked, but it wasn't from regret. "Fleur and Krum reached it at the same time, and it was a Portkey. We don't know where they went."

Cedric's eyes widened, and he tried to sit up, but a churning, stitching pain prevented him from doing so on his own. Harry helped him up, using a hand to support him by the small of his back. "Was it the Dark Lord? Was it for you?"

"Perhaps," Dumbledore's deep, calm voice boomed next to him. "We are about to find out. It appears as though our Champions have returned."

Cedric turned his head, and he saw Fleur on the ground, clutching her head and screaming. Krum was standing next to her, holding her up. A wild fear danced in his eyes.

Dumbledore drifted away to help, and so did several other people that had crowded around him. In a moment, it was just him and Harry, and his parents, and Ronald. 

And Professor Moody. "Harry. You must come with me," the wild old man urged him. "If the Dark Lord is risen, we must get you somewhere safe." He hissed, his eye spinning around.

Cedric was grateful when Harry didn't move. Instead, he gripped Cedric tighter. "I'm safe here. Everyone else is here, and the Dark Lord won't come after me as long as I'm at Hogwarts."

Cedric closed his eyes, because his head throbbed terribly, but Mad-Eye Moody kept on talking.

"Harry! Don't be a fool. This is the Dark Lord we're talking about. We need to get you somewhere, away from this school, so that He--"

Cedric heard his father interrupt him. "What are you talking about?" he cried. "The Dark Lord has not risen. Leave my son and Harry alone." 

Moody made a hissing sound, and he was probably about to say something. But then Dumbledore's voice filled the air under a Sonorous charm.

"Everyone must remain calm. No one is to leave the school grounds. Your Heads of House will escort you back to your dormitories," the Headmaster announced. The charm dropped, and Cedric chose to open his eyes again.

"I'm not leaving you," Harry assured him. "Let's go figure out what's going on. Can you get up?" 

Cedric groaned. He didn't think he could. "No. Just hold me up like this," he requested. He felt Harry wrap himself around Cedric completely from behind, and he was now sitting in the smaller boy's lap, being held up.

Cedric's father was still arguing with Moody. They were shouting over something, and Moody was gradually beginning to sound less and less stable.

"I need Potter to come with me!" he screeched. "He wasn't the one who touched the Cup! He's still here!" 

Dumbledore strode over to confront them now, and Cedric felt as though he were watching from very far away. Harry was stiff beside him, evaluating the situation before him.

"We should be grateful that Harry did not touch the Cup. Fleur and Viktor have just informed me that Voldemort was there, claiming that he needed Harry to resurrect him," Dumbledore explained calmly.

Amos Diggory rounded on Moody. "And how did you know that beforehand?" he demanded, referring to Moody's prior drivel.

Harry stiffened around Cedric. "They saw Voldemort," he gasped. Cedric was worried he might dash away, so he grabbed his boyfriend's wrists to keep him in place.

"That's what this has been all about, then," Cedric whispered. 

Harry nodded, pulling Cedric closer. "I wonder what's the matter with Moody..."

Crouch was upset. Very, very, very upset.

His Dark Lord had not risen, and Harry Potter was not dead. Neither were the scummy spares who went to replace Potter. They had seen his Lord, and they had lived to tell the tale.

He blamed Wormtail's incompetence. He was the only other follower who knew his Lord was trying to rise, the only other one he could speak to. And if Wormtail had failed, it was Crouch's responsibility to warn the others. He had to get them out of Azkaban, the ones who were loyal enough to still stand for his Lord. The rest were cowards.

Perhaps it was better this way. Those cowards would not have the right to meet his Lord newly risen.

But for now, he had to get away. Away from Hogwarts, away from Dumbledore, and out of Moody's body. And he needed Potter to come with him.

Dumbledore had come over now, too, and Crouch was being assaulted on all sides. Why wouldn't they just listen?

"Give me Potter," he seethed, "and no one gets hurt." He whipped out his wand. He was still Moody, people still feared him, no one suspected who he was yet....

He was about to cast a spell towards the Diggory boy that Potter was so enraptured with. If he didn't have to cling all over Diggory, then Potter would just come with him... And he could lead him to his Lord....

He screamed. There was a spell being cast on him, dammit, and he hadn't even heard it. It must have been Dumbledore. He was the only one powerful enough to cast something wandless like that.

He was now in a full body bind, and all he could do was scream.

And then, unable to reach his flask, he felt the Polyjuice fade out of effect as he morphed to become Crouch again. He tried to shut the world out, to will himself out of existence, but three drops of liquid hit his tongue. The body bind was released, and it was replaced with ropes. He felt his body slump into submission as they asked him questions, and he had no choice to but to betray his Lord.

Yes, he had put Potter's name into the Cup.

Yes, he was trying to resurrect the Dark Lord.

No, he was not the only one doing it.

There was only one other. Wormtail. Oh, they killed him?

Yes, he had rigged the Tasks.

Yes, he had tried to kill Diggory. Many times. He sabotaged him often.

Yes, he had killed his father.

No, Alastor Moody was not dead. He was in a trunk in his quarters. Dying, but not dead.

No, there were no plans to free the loyal Death Eaters.

No. He did not think his Lord could rise now. 

Not for a while. We must inspire the cowards. 

My Lord cannot be killed easily.

Ludo had failed.

Not only had he failed to win over Trelawney, but he had also not paid off a single one of his debts. There were goblins after him still, he knew, and they would probably want him dead.

He could have dealt with all that before, of course. But today, it was too much, because Ludo had failed in an even greater manner than he had ever anticipated.

He had let Moody--who turned out to be Grouch's Death Eater son Barty Crouch Jr.--manipulate him. He had let a Death Eater make him fail, make him put his Champions into mortal danger.

No. He could not live with himself. He had to go. To run. To hide.

I have failed.

Harry didn't know whether to be relieved or utterly terrified.

Mad Eye Moody had never actually been Moody, but a Death Eater. But the Death Eater had been apprehended by Dumbledore before his plan could fall through. 

However, his plan had been to resurrect Voldemort. And if that wasn't terrifying, he didn't know what was. Krum and Fleur were safe, though, and even though Crouch Jr.'s attempts to kill Cedric had been horrible, he was still alive and in his arms.

He winced as he heard Crouch's last words. 

"I hate you, Potter!" 

Then, the Dementors had come in all their chill and gloom, and gave Crouch The Kiss. While they were there, Harry wrapped himself around Cedric even harder and sobbed. Visions of Cedric dying at the hands of Voldemort flashed before his eyes, of Voldemort rising, of his world falling apart...

And then they were gone. The world was bright and clear again, and Cedric was breathing in his arms.

"We didn't die." Cedric reminded him.

Viktor watched the Dementors leave. He felt little effect once they were gone--despair and fear still clutched his heart. He had seen the heart of Darkness. He thought he had almost seen innocent Fleur succumb to it, but she had been a hero.

But Viktor? He had almost given in to the Dark Lord. Beneath his booming voice were whispers of promises of fame and glory and greatness. Of power, and protection for those he loved.

He was back now, and Hermione was with him, and her eyes shone bright as always. The light within her made him question why he could have been so weak. How could he have possibly given into the Dark when it would have destroyed this beautiful Light before him?

Hermione held him in an embrace. "I'm glad he didn't kill you. Or kill Harry. I hope he never Rises." She breathed into his ear, and he felt a chill go down his spine.

He never wanted Voldemort--IT--to rise. He wanted IT gone from this earth. He felt so much power when he had resisted it, he saw the pain Fleur was experiencing, as if she had been under the Cruciatus curse. He felt the rage IT had given him, telling him to kill Fleur, which he had used to kill 'Wormtail' instead.

Oh, he was glad he had killed him. 

But I have killed.

"Hermione," he choked. "Vill you ever forgive me?"

Of course she would. She was his Light.

The Dark Lord had almost risen. He had almost come back to power.

Draco felt a shiver go down his spine. He would never tell his father, but he was glad it was not so. His father was already a cruel man; he didn't need a cruel king commanding him. 

As long as the Dark Lord never rose, Draco still had freedom. He still had hope that he would not become his father, that his father would not force him to follow that path. There was still hope he could be happy, that his mother could be safe--

And that Potter can live.

Oh, Draco knew the Dark Lord would rise, eventually. His father had whispered to him of prophecies, of Potter's power, of the Dark Lord's vengeance. And until Potter and Voldemort faced each other, he could never rest.

But he could hope that Potter would win out in the end, even if he could never tell anyone.

He choked back the urge to kill something when he looked over and saw that Potter was still wrapped around Diggory. His father must have felt it, because he placed a hand of his shoulder.

"I am enraged, too, Draco," he whispered. "We were so close. He could have risen. I hate Potter just as much as you do. Our Lord will kill him in due time." 

Draco bit his lip to fight back a bark of laughter. You have no idea who I hate.

"I will write my contacts. We will see what we can do about helping our Lord." His father laughed deeply. "And we will hurt Potter. You can help me with that, I know."

No.

No.

NO!

Cedric was in the hospital wing. Harry was beside him, awake but breathing softly. Cedric himself had just woken up.

"How are you feeling?" Harry asked him.

"Better. Still shitty, though." Cedric laughed, and he blissfully stared into those green eyes.

"Hermione and Ron and Krum just left. Fleur is still basically in comatose, though," Harry murmured. "That could have been one of us," he whispered.

"But it wasn't," Cedric reminded him. "We're alive, and everything is okay."

Harry laughed wryly. "Yeah. It's a good thing we didn't win, huh?" 

Cedric laughed too. "It is," he agreed. "And thanks for not trying. Otherwise you'd be dead, and we'd have a Dark Lord on our hands."

Harry groaned. "I don't even want to imagine. I did enough of that already," he confessed. 

Cedric frowned. "I did, too," he muttered. He tried to sit up, and found that he could this time. He looked Harry in the eyes. "Will you come stay with me this summer?" he asked. "I don't want you going back to the Dursleys."

Harry frowned. "I have to," he muttered. "Their blood magic protects me."

Cedric scoffed. "And a fat lot of good it's done every year since you came here. It wasn't blood magic that protected you today, either. In fact, if I had anything to say in the matter, I'd call it on our love."

Harry blushed. "They say that's what did it the first time."

"Then come stay with me," Cedric urged him. "You'll be safe."

Harry flashed him a corny smile. "Well, I can't exactly say no to that, can I?"

~fin~