The Girl In The Mask (George Weasley Love Story)

The Girl In The Mask Ch.24

Ch.24

            It was the day of Cedric's memorial; there wasn't any laughter or chitchat. We moved in silence and without happiness. All we knew was that Cedric was dead and that this had happened because of the tournament.

            I wore a spaghetti strap, black dress with a twist-front. Plain black heels, a black bag, a black beaded necklace and a small snake ring were all I put with it. My hair was down and I made sure to put light green eye shadow on, as well as some clear lip gloss. Elena was dressed all in black too, just like everyone else that was here.

            When you walked down the hallway you could hear the crying and sobs from friends and others that had known him. My friends and I continued into the great hall and took a seat as we waiting for Dumbledore to speak.

            "There is much that I would like to say to you all tonight," Said Dumbledore, "but I must first acknowledge the loss of a very fine person, who should be sitting here," he gestured toward the Hufflepuffs, "enjoying our feast with us. I would like you all, please, to stand, and raise your glasses, to Cedric Diggory."

            "Cedric was a person who exemplified many of the qualities that distinguish Hufflepuff house," Dumbledore continued. "He was a good and loyal friend, a hard worker, he valued fair play. His death has affected you all, whether you knew him well or not. I think that you have the right, therefore, to know exactly how it came about. Cedric Diggory was murdered by Lord Voldemort."

            The gasps of horror that came from all the people around us wounded me. It wasn’t my dad that had killed Cedric, it was the prophecy’s doing. We could do anything about that and sadly I wasn’t able to tell any of them. George seemed to notice that there was something wrong and wrapped his arms around as he always did when he saw I was nervous or sad.

            "The Ministry of Magic," Dumbledore continued, "does not wish me to tell you this. It is possible that some of your parents will be horrified that I have done so - either because they will not believe that Lord Voldemort has returned, or because they think I should not tell you so, young as you are. It is my belief, however, that the truth is generally preferable to lies, and that any attempt to pretend that Cedric died as the result of an accident, or some sort of blunder of his own, is an insult to his memory. There is somebody else who must be mentioned in connection with Cedric's death," Dumbledore went on. "I am talking, of course, about Harry Potter."

A few heads began to turn towards Harry before turning quickly to hear what more Dumbledore had to say. I noticed Hermione placing her hand on Harry’s shoulder as we noticed him become even more upset. It was understandable considering he had been blaming himself since the last task when he should have been blaming me.
            "Harry Potter managed to escape Lord Voldemort," said Dumbledore. "He risked his own life to return Cedric's body to Hogwarts. He showed, in every respect, the sort of bravery that few wizards have ever shown in facing Lord Voldemort, and for this, I honor him." Yet again everyone raised their glasses, murmuring Harry’s name as they had with Cedric’s.
            Dumbledore continued, "The Triwizard Tournament's aim was to further and promote magical understanding. In the light of what has happened - of Lord Voldemort's return - such ties are more important than ever before." He looked around at all the different houses and schools.

"Every guest in this Hall," said Dumbledore, and his eyes lingered upon the Durmstrang students, "will be welcomed back here at any time, should they wish to come. I say to you all, once again - in the light of Lord Voldemort's return, we are only as strong as we are united, as weak as we are divided. Lord Voldemort's gift for spreading discord and enmity is very great. We can fight it only by showing an equally strong bond of friendship and trust. Differences of habit and language are nothing at all if our aims are identical and our hearts are open.