YELLOW

5. the goblet of fire

Cedric and Nessie were roaming the halls of the quiet castle, mostly those which prefects wouldn't look at, talking softly to one another, when Cedric stopped in the middle of the hall, making the girl look at him with a raised eyebrow. She walked back to him and sat on the floor, leaning her back against one of the walls.

"Something's on your mind." the girl commented, making Cedric chuckle. He sat next to her and shook his head lightly. "Tell me," Nessie said, making the boy look at her. At this very moment, as their eyes locked, he felt his stomach doing flips. She looked stunning, light barely hitting her, but she still managed to take his breath away.

"It's nothing," he began, looking down at his hands. "It's just that, I'm thinking of submitting my name for the tournament." He said quietly and looked back at his best friend, which best friend held a very confused look on her face. "Why?" she asked, turning her whole body towards him, Cedric doing the same.

"Why not?" he asked back, furrowing his eyebrows. "Because it's dangerous." She said as if it wasn't obvious. Cedric huffed out a breath and rubbed his temples. "I want to do it! I just want to try and do something that could do some good to my house!" He said loudly, making the girl squint her eyes at him.

"I might not even be picked! It doesn't matter, let's just drop it!" He said, huffing and standing up, Nessie quickly following suit.

"There are other ways to bring some good to your house! Why does it have to be the tournament?" the girl followed after him, as he quickly tried to walk away from her and from the argument he knew was coming. Before he could walk too far away, Nessie reached out and grabbed his hand.

He turned around harshly and looked down at her, shoving her hand away. She just noticed that he'd gotten taller, but she also noticed how his usually calm self was now on the verge of leaving his mind and body.

"Because I want to do it, Vanessa!" He said angrily, to which the girl's breath hitched in her throat. "Leave me be! Goodnight!" He stormed off to where he was headed before, leaving the girl alone in the dark corridor.

⁜

"He did what?!" Nessie loudly said as she and the Golden Trio sat at their table at the Great Hall, having lunch. Hermione shushed her, as a few of the teachers' heads turned their way and huddled in the middle of the table again. Hermione and Harry sat on one side, while Ron and Nessie sat opposite them.

They were just telling her about their class with Moody and to say that Nessie was furious, would be an understatement. She didn't know Neville well, they spoke from time to time, making small conversations, but it still angered her. How could a teacher show something so traumatizing to a student!?

The older girl angrily stabbed at her food, slightly scaring the red-headed boy, who silently reminded himself to never anger her.

"Did you tell someone?" She asked after a long silence, to which the three all shook their heads. The older sighed and nodded lightly, before pushing her plate forward and placing her arms on the table, resting her head on them. "Hogwarts is filled with mad people, I'm telling you!" She mumbled, her head resting on her left cheek, her eyes locked on the doors of the Great Hall. And in this very moment, Cedric walked in.

The two made eye contact, but Nessie quickly turned her head, now laying it on her right side, looking at Ron, who was quietly eating. She sighed loudly and closed her eyes, attempting to rest them for a bit.

After their argument the night before, the girl couldn't fall asleep, so she roamed the halls for a while, went to the kitchens for a bit, went back to her room, stayed in the common room, where she was accompanied by Crookshanks and George Jr, then repeated the same actions over and over again. And just as she closed her eyes on one of the couches, Fred and George came down the stairs and quickly pulled her out of the common room and to the Great Hall for breakfast.