ALOHOMORA | CEDRIC DIGGORY

56〝fifty-six〞

"I was not," insisted Cedric, but Margaery flashed him a don't-bother-denying sort of expression.

"You were awfully worked up when Lee Jordan made that jibe about her. But perhaps you'd've remembered it better if you'd lost half a cupful of your favorite candy to it," she added as a somewhat bitter afterthought.

"Sorry about that," said Cedric sheepishly, "but I told you—it was an accident."

He was guilty of inadvertently upending some of her snacks. Lee's commentary had triggered Cedric to leap from his seat not unlike the argument in the common room had not so long ago, though in the former he had swiftly attributed it to the presence of an imaginary creepy-crawly instead of proceeding to address the jam-packed arena.

"Yeah, like you're ever jumpy."

"We're all twitchy at games," said Cedric defensively.

"Nobody else knocked over my Licorice Wands," countered Margaery, smirking triumphantly.

Cedric knew his case was lost. He glanced nervously toward the doorway, just to check that they were truly alone—it was wide open and empty.

"You're sure the others don't know?"

He couldn't help worrying. Margaery was, ultimately, not the only one who had witnessed his little uproar. The clique had been grouped with the Hufflepuff Quidditch team in the stands, and if this was a girl thing—

"Well, I can't speak for the squad, but the guys—they bought your spider story all right." Margaery seemed to realize this answer did not satisfy to ease Cedric. "It's okay," she reassured, "I don't think any of them had eyes for anyone who's not on the pitch, not with orders from Sansa, which someone—I must say—was very glad to follow..."

"So," said Cedric, trying to ignore Margaery's waggling brows, "you're saying I gave myself away at the match?"

"Only a bit," she admitted. "It was, overall, a very convincing act—I'll give you that—but I noticed other things as well."

"Like what?" said Cedric in horror.

"Like your shoelaces somehow always coming undone whenever we have back-to-back classes with her."

Flabbergasted, Cedric gaped at Margaery as though seeing her for the first time. She laughed.

"She was the one who illuminated things for me, funnily enough," said Margaery. "I caught her smiling once in the corridors. I thought she was crazy at first—I'm sorry!" (Cedric had looked offended.) "But then it occurred to me: it wasn't the ground she was smiling at. You never seem to miss any of her trainings too, no matter how much homework we had.

"And then I remembered how you're always saying we shouldn't believe those rumors about her, that there's no proof, etcetera... So I pieced everything together, and it did kind of make sense. Except I couldn't think how you'd've any time to meet her—you were always with us or at practice. I guess something must have happened over Christmas break...?"

There was no mistaking Margaery's hinting tone, but Cedric trusted that his lack of denial was adequately indicative for this newfound acuity of hers. That was all he was willing to divulge at this point anyway.

"Marge, I need a favor," he said earnestly, "please, you can't tell anyone."

To his mild astonishment, for he had not expected her to oblige so readily, Margaery nodded, albeit looking concerned.

"Are you at least going to tell me why?"

"You heard Rolf," said Cedric, sighing, "she doesn't like to attract attention to herself—she gets enough of it without even lifting a finger—and I'll be contributing to that, apparently."

"Definitely."

"Not helping, Marge."

"Oops, sorry," she said, simpering. "What else?"

Cedric surveyed Margaery warily; her shrewdness was now bordering on being Legilimency itself. Suspecting he might snap if he didn't confide in someone soon, however, Cedric yielded.

"She's under the impression that her reputation's going to ruin my image...as if I care for that," he mumbled that last part.

"That's really sweet," said Margaery admiringly.

"Her heart's in the right place," said Cedric, smiling wistfully, "she just doesn't much like to show it."

"What, it's going to ruin her image?"

"Something like that."

"I was joking," said Margaery, looking taken aback.

Cedric shrugged his shoulders listlessly, but then narrowed his eyes at her.

"Hang on—were you agreeing with her?"

"After seeing Rolf's example, I don't think you can exactly blame her for wanting to leave you out of the picture, Ced," said Margaery reasonably. "If it were me, I'd probably do the same thing."

"Seriously? You won't want some support at least? Someone to stand up for you?"

Margaery hesitated, then said, "I suppose I would...but do you honestly think I'm a good gauge for what she wants?"

No, Cedric thought immediately, nobody would be...