Best of Three | Cedric Diggory x maleoc

Prologue

It's been one month, three weeks, and 6 days. That's how long Rowan Tachibana had been living in England. He counted every day since he left his home back in Kyoto.

England was still too quiet.

Not the comforting quiet of Kyoto mornings, where cicadas buzzed and temple bells echoed faintly through open windows.

This quiet felt empty, stretched too wide between houses and hills, like the world itself was holding its breath along with Rowan.

Rowan sat on the edge of his bed, tugging on his green jumper while staring at the white ceiling above him. His new room smelled of packing crates and new paint.

None of his books were arranged the way he liked. His grandmother's lucky sprout sat on the windowsill next to his bed, valiantly trying to survive the English weather.

Rowan missed home.

He missed running down the roads, finding the old convenience store around the corner. He missed hearing Japanese in the streets. He missed knowing where everything was.

Mostly, he missed feeling like he belonged somewhere.

Today, he was meeting his parent's old friends. People his parents said would help him "settle in." Rowan wasn't convinced.

He adjusted the strap of his satchel for the third time, mentally checking through its contents: wizard's chess, spare socks, and two books he'd already reread twice.

He was prepared for emergencies. Not for social interaction.

"Rowan?" His mother called gently from downstairs, "we're leaving now!"

He followed his parents to the entryway, where coats and wands were already waiting.

His father knelt in front of him. "Same as last time, hold on tight okay?"

Rowan hesitated, "I still don't like apparition"

His father smiled. "That's normal."

Rowan suspected many uncomfortable things like apparition were considered normal. They linked arms and the world folded in. Pressure, spinning, and that awful squeezed-through-a-keyhole feeling.

Rowan stumbled slightly onto the grass, coughing into the cool coastal air. He tried to stabilize himself immediately, he didn't need his parents fussing over him.

The Diggorys' house was a few meters away, sat between green hills and flowering hedges, sunlight warming its stone walls. It looked peaceful in a way that Rowan did not trust yet.

Peaceful places were often suspicious.

The front door opened before they reached it. Mr. Diggory greeted Rowan's parents warmly and Mrs. Diggory hugged Rowan before he could prepare himself.

"Oh, you've grown so much!" She said.

Rowan nodded politely, standing off to the side while the adults talked. He wasn't sure exactly how this woman knew him, he had no memories of meeting her or her husband before.

"This is Rowan," his mother said, "our son." Rowan offered a careful smile.

Mrs. Diggory beamed. "It's wonderful to finally meet you properly. I've seen you in the few photos your parents sent over."

Rowan murmured a hello. And then—

"Mum? Are they here yet?"

Footsteps approached, slower this time. Rowan turned as a boy appeared from the stairs. He had sandy-blonde hair that refused to lie flat and an awkward posture, hands tucked away into his pockets.