mahogany ; d.m

36 - temptation

"Gosh I'm a mess," she laughed.

They talked for a while, catching up on what it was they had been doing over the past few weeks since they had last written to each other. Eventually, Greta stood, ending the exchange.

"Right well I best be off. I've got a casserole in the oven."

They said their goodbyes before both departing with a breeze of contentment. Athena headed back to her dormitory and when she met Cedric he greeted her with delight by placing a kiss on her forehead.

She noticed however, something about his mood from before was now different. He seemed somewhat reserved and quieter. But for the means of a nice evening, she put her suspicions aside and disregarded it as they set on their way to Hogsmeade.

Once they had arrived, they went into the Three Broomsticks as usual and inside settled themselves onto a secluded table in the corner which was further away from the other customers. The lighting was rather intimate and brought about a cosy atmosphere. They ordered food with their drinks, simply a large bowl of chips between the two of them, and both partook in casual conversation.

However as they talked, Athena could tell that something was troubling him and she could no longer resist to find out what it was.

"Is there something wrong?" she asked before taking a sip of butterbeer. "I couldn't help but notice you seem...distant all of a sudden."

"Erm- well perhaps," he sighed. "Though I don't know if I should be concerned about it at all."

She waited for him to elaborate but instead of speaking immediately, he reached into his pocket and pulled out a black velveteen box in the shape of a cube. She recognised it almost straight away and felt a pang to her chest.

"While I was waiting in your room, I happened to find something," he spoke with solemnity.

She stared at the box with underlying panic when he opened it and as expected, appeared the beautifully jewel encrusted signet ring with the letter 'M' engraved into the silver.

"I just wanted to know if it means anything to you," he said, sounding slightly hurt.

"What? No. It was simply given as an item to pass down to..." her words trailed off as she could not bring herself to speak the words. And then a realisation hit her. "How did you get that? I made sure to put it away where it could not be crossed so easily. You wouldn't have been able to find it if it weren't your intention to."

An expression of guilt mixed with panic crossed his features. He avoided eye contact with her as he hesitated in his reply. Though she spoke before he could.

"What were you doing going through my things Cedric?"

"I–er—Harry accidentally let something slip about a gift. He said he saw something being given to you by Malfoy on your birthday," he said. "Don't blame him. He was wasted when he said it."

"So you thought you would go through my belongings and locate the evidence yourself?" she gaped outragedly. "You could have just asked me! You never needed to invade my privacy."

"I know. It was wrong of me, I'm sorry. But why did you go to such length to hide it?"

"To avoid situations like this. That ring meant... nothing," she hesitated but it was barely noticeable. "I only wanted to leave it buried in the bottom of my trunk to be forgotten about."

Her words were not completely untrue. She had not thought of the ring for quite a while. The one thing from that night that was stubborn to escape her mind was what had nearly happened shortly after her receival of the gift.