❝Listening to you speak is absolute torture, Diggory.❞
❝Oh really Malfoy? Just looking at your unfortunate dye job is torture!❞
Arden Diggory is one of the most popular girls at Hogwarts, known for her kindness, loyalty, intelligence, and nev...
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For most, Christmas was an enjoyable holiday for Hogwarts students, being able to leave their studies and visit their families; however for some students, Christmas was anything but a time of comfort and love. Arden spent most of her break back on her routine from last summer, sleeping nearby Cedric to be ready to soothe him when he'd wake from one of his night terrors. The two slept in the downstairs living area, so Cedric's screams of agony and cries for help wouldn't be heard by either of their parents; neither of them knew of Cedric's trauma.
Meanwhile Draco and Lena found the two of them being in each others' presence more often. Their fathers constantly planning joint family outings along with Narcissa's never ending persistence to see Draco and Lena bond. Narcissa's wishes may have come true but certainly not in the way she'd hoped, as Draco and Lena bonded over their shared disdain for what both of their families were forcing upon them, thinking they hadn't noticed their plan. When Lena and her father weren't around, Draco would constantly complain about Lena to his parents in attempts to get them to call off their plans. At one point Draco told his father that he would rather die before being associated with her, reluctantly calling her a 'filthy Half-Blood' to sell the act, but Lucius had just slapped him upside the head for daring to call an Oxton filthy regardless of how pure their blood was.
While Lena was trying to sway her father's decisions, she was also struggling with the tension building in their relationship upon discovering her father had been lying to her for her entire life. The entire Christmas break was filled with raging screams and ended with slamming doors as the two argued endlessly over Charles not telling Lena of her heritage, and now using her to redeem himself and regain status. Poor Blaise and his mother simply would observe the fights in silence, treading lightly with their words around the two as a means to not anger either of them.
Arden kissed her mother's cheek goodbye as she clutched onto her bag tightly; she'd managed to grab Christmas presents for her friends and hoped she could hand them all out on the train ride back to Hogwarts. She watched as her father berated Cedric for looking so untidy, flinching at his words.
"You're a champion, Ced! And you've got your N.E.W.T's coming up! You can't be looking like you've rolled around in the dirt!" Their father exclaimed. While he did so with a grin, and ended his sentence with laughter and a playful nudge to Cedric's shoulder, Arden knew it was hurting Cedric's confidence. Their father, Amos Diggory, was always very persistent in both of them achieving greatness and being their best, his intentions were always in good nature, but often they were heavy on Arden and Cedric's shoulders and instead made them feel worse about themselves. While Cedric was constantly trying to improve and live up to his title of Triwizard Champion, Arden lived in his shadow, the child that was berated for not being like their older sibling, especially since he was talented at magic while she was not. The two suffered in their own way, which was why instead of being competitive sibling rivals, they were close as could be.
