A Dozen Fallen Roses // Cedric Diggory

chapter forty. the tree.

wednesday, december 24.

I walk through the halls in a daze back to the Gryffindor Common Room. My entire body and mind are numb and I fall into the simple rhythm of step after step. The hallways are empty and cold, but they don't faze me like normal until I run into someone.

"What the hell are you doing here?" the blonde boy sneers, then notices the tears streaming down my face. "Hey, Ava, what's wrong?"

I don't have the words to answer him and simply ignore him, heading into the common room. He follows me as I curl up on the couch next to the fire.

"I've been a horrible person," I sigh, staring into the mesmerizing flames of the fire. I watch the orange and yellow faded streams intertwine and dance with one another, my mind both void of and filled with thoughts.

"You have," he replies shortly.

"I've pushed away everyone that I love," I continue. "I seem intent on destroying everything good in my life and I don't know how to stop."

"Stop trying to force things. You make everything so complicated for no reason. Get up the courage to be honest with people," Malfoy replies, sitting on the arm of the couch beside my head.

"I'm sorry I hurt you, I was so stupid," I look up into his eyes and he smiles slightly.

"You're not stupid, you're in love," he replies.

"Huh, I guess you're right," I chuckle. "Well, look where that got me."

"You know, you're one of the lucky ones. That thing you have, it's rare, and I wouldn't go throwing it around for anything," he says. I'm not sure I follow and I look at him questionably. "You need to fight for it. Stupid decisions or not."

I sit back into the couch letting what he said resonate with me. While I don't want to intrude on his space while he's processing all of this, I don't want him to realize that he's okay being without me. Pulling a nearby blanket over me, I snuggle up to the pillow on the couch and let my exhaustion come over me.

thursday, december 25.

The sun shines through a window, hitting me directly in the face and I sit up, rubbing the sleep out of my eyes. I instinctively look around for Draco, but he must have gone back to his room after I fell asleep. My stomach growls and I decide to go down for breakfast, but I still don't know if I'd rather see Cedric there or not.

I reach the entrance of the Great Hall, but hear an argument coming from the staircase leading to the Hufflepuff Common Room, and shuffle towards the source of the yelling. Peaking around the corner of the wall, I see Malfoy yelling at someone, but the other figure is hidden. I can't exactly make out what he's saying, but when the other voice responds, I recognize it as Cedric.

"I don't care what happened," Malfoy's voice echoes down the hall. "Hold onto her."

I gasp, assuming they're speaking about me, then notice Malfoy turning and heading up the stairs straight for me. I duck behind a statue as he storms past me into the Great Hall. Assuming Cedric isn't far behind him, I follow Malfoy into the Hall and take a seat by myself, spooning eggs onto my plate.

There is, at most, 10 other people in the room in small groups, speaking in hushed whispers. Flitwick is at the front of the room, observing everyone while crunching on a piece of bacon. He gives me a curt little nod and I smile slightly at him, then quickly return to my food. I scan the room searching for Malfoy who's sitting in the opposite corner, biting into a piece of toast and staring into my eyes. Instinctively, I give him a little wave and he returns with a slight smile.