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To be left to the earth was never a part of the game
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Rose felt herself slam flat into the ground; her face was pressed into grass; the smell of it filled her nostrils. She had closed her eyes while the Portkey transported her, and she kept them closed now. She did not move. All the breath seemed to have been knocked out of her; her head was swimming so badly she felt as though the ground beneath her was swaying like the deck of a ship. To hold herself steady, she tightened her hold on the two things she was still clutching – the smooth, cold handle of the Triwizard Cup, and Cedric's body.
Her hand let go off the cup, but her arm was still draped over Cedric; beautiful, kind, Cedric. Her Cedric. The Cedric she'd never see again, the Cedric that was dead because she couldn't move faster; she couldn't do something. Her arm only tightened.
A torrent of sound deafened and confused her, there were voices everywhere, footsteps, screams ... she remained where she was, her face screwed up against the noise, as though it was a nightmare that would pass ...
Then a pair of hands seized her roughly and turned her over.
"Rosie! Rosie!"
She opened her eyes.
She was looking up at the sky, and Adrian Pucey was crouching over her. How did he get here so fast, she thought, but her mind left her as she felt the ground beneath her reverberating with the people's footsteps.
She was back at the edge of the maze. She could see the stands rising above her, the shapes of people moving in them, the stars above.
She gripped Cedric even tighter, her knuckles turning white over the strength she used to grip his shirt. Adrian, however, was holding at her waist; trying to pull her off Cedric.
Harry was holding Cedric's other side, he was screaming in agony, spluttering about Cedric and Voldemort. But all Rose could do is try to fight off Adrian's hands and not let go of Cedric; that's all she could do. Her head was buried in his chest, her body almost fully on top of him.
Words and screams passed her ears "He's dead!" she heard, along with "Cedric Diggory! Dead!"
"Rose, let go of him!" Someone was telling her. It was not Adrian; he had stopped trying to pull at her waist and instead was kneeled next to her, rubbing small circles on her back. "Let him go!"
She didn't care if the minister himself was asking her to let go of Cedric, she wouldn't do it. She felt fingers trying to pry her off Cedric, but she resisted. "Touch me again and I'll burn you straight into hell," she rasped, her voice muffled by the fabric on her face. Still, the person seemed to have heard her, because they let go off her fingers and didn't try again.
"Harry, you can't help him now. It's over. Let go," she heard Dumbledore tell Harry, but still she knew he was wrong. She could help him, he couldn't be dead; he couldn't be dead; he couldn't be dead. She saw him!
She knew it was a lie.
"He wanted me to bring him back," Harry muttered, face digging into Cedric just like his sister was doing. "He wanted me to bring him back to his parents ..."
"That's right, Harry ... just let go, now ... Minerva, get Rose."
Rose could hear herself crying over the voice of Dumbledore, her heart in her throat. Adrian's hand on her back was the only form of comfort she could feel, but soon another hand settled on her shoulder; a smaller dainty hand.
"Come along, dear," the voice of Minerva McGonagall reached her ears, her hand not pulling her backwards. "Step away from him."
"NO!" She screamed, red hair burning up quickly before it died down just as fast. She hugged Cedric close to her. "You step away!"
"You need to go to the Hospital Wing, Rose," McGonagall insisted, her hand was now putting pressure on her shoulder. "You're injured and bleeding."
"He wanted me to take him to his parents," she sobbed, not raising her head and her body shook violently. "He will go with his parents!"
"Darling," it was Adrian who spoke next, his hands were back on her waist. "His dad is walking this way; you need to let go."
Rose raised her head. Girls were screaming, sobbing hysterically ... the scene flickered oddly before her eyes. Sure enough, Amos Diggory was walking towards her, he seemed to tremble with each step he took towards his son.
Rose quickly pushed herself back from Cedric as Amos kneeled down before him, but her hand still held the boy's.
"That's my son!" Amos cried, his breathing coming quicker as he stared down at Cedric. His hand brushed carefully at his cheek, a gasp escaped his mouth. "That's my boy!"
Rose gripped her stomach, she felt as if a knife had been dug into it; maybe it had been and she hadn't noticed. Amos fell over his son, his sobs echoing through Rose's mind like a song she'd never forget; she was sure the sound had been engraved in her mind for eternity.
Slowly, as if handling something extremely gentle, Adrian pulled her off the floor. Rose tried to hold on to Cedric's hand as far as she could, but her hand eventually dropped his own, and she was left with staring at her empty hand as if a piece would forever be missing.
"Killed Cedric," she mumbled, but her hoarse voice seemed to be miles away from her ears. Adrian held her tightly, slipping his arms under her knees and behind her back before he lifted her off the floor and onto his arms. "He killed him."
"Shh, darling," he cooed as he started walking, his eyes set as stone in whatever was before him. "We will get you some help."
"We have to help Cedric," Rose insisted, her eyes connected with Adrian's. He gasped, surprised to find her irises fully black.
"We will," he promised, recovering quickly from the shock of her metamorphmagus back after a year. "We will help him, but we have to help you first, alright?"
Rose stayed silent, her mind was working and spinning quickly. She needed to lay down, to stop moving. But Adrian had other plans, he held her tight as he took her up the castle with four people in tow; Rose only saw them as she turned her head to catch another glimpse of Cedric.
"Charlie," Rose breathed, watching as he hoovered over Adrian with Seraphina and Amara on either side of him; Avalon was walking a few steps behind.
"I'm here, Rosie," Charlie quickly said, bringing a hand to brush the hair off her face. "What happened?"
Rose shook her head, burying her face in the crook of Adrian's neck as she sobbed. Voldemort was back, and he was coming for her.