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EBONY HAD REALIZED THAT SHE SHARES A ROOM THIS YEAR WITH NADINE. It was good to know since she finally has made a friend in her own house. She also got to know that Nadine had befriended some Ravenclaw students and that's who she hangs out with a lot.
When the two girls enter the Slytherin common room that morning, a bunch of students stand in front of the notice board. They squeeze themselves in there to look at the new notice that had been put up overnight and caught everyone's attention.
NEW RULES.
All Slytherin students are from now on expected to show the right example to other less-rewarded students around the school. Each and everyone of them shall wear their uniforms correctly at all times and never come late or a heavy punishment will await them.
"Are they absolutely crazy?" Ebony hears someone say from behind her. "They can't just come into our common room and put up this nonsense, can they?"
"This is unbelievable!" Someone else shouts.
It's clear that many people aren't really agreeing with the new terms on the notice board. Ebony and Nadine leave the common room and walk to the Great Hall in silence. Once they arrive, they wave 'goodbye' to each other and go to their friends. Nadine sits at the Ravenclaw table and Ebony kisses her boyfriend's cheek before sitting down next to him.
"Good morning, Freddie."
"Morning, pumpkin." Fred replies, happily. "I saw you made a friend at the Slytherin table yesterday."
"Nadine is chill. We share a dorm now." Ebony replies. "Did you guys have a notice on your board too?"
"Be more specific please." George says.
"We are expected to wear our uniforms perfectly and to be the best examples for other houses."
"What?" Lee asks, confusedly. "Why?"
"I don't know." Ebony replies, she shrugs. "We'll figure it out, though."
Professor McGonagall is moving along the table, handing all the students their schedules. She hands one to Ebony as well and winks at her. She smiles and takes it.
"This year is going to be a nightmare." Lee mumbles.
"Not if you're here just to do some marketing and advertising." George replies, smirking.
Ebony rolls her eyes, playfully. They had gotten a bunch of galleons from Harry because he had won the Triwizard Tournament. The twins already bought a shop in Diagon Alley and are currently waiting for it to be able to open up. Ebony had to find out when she heard them talk late at night. Apparently they didn't want to talk about it around her considering what happened to Cedric.
"I'm going to finish my studies like a boss. It means I'll have to study a lot." Ebony says. "I also have to manage to Quidditch Cup this year. I'm not leaving unless I win that thing."
"Good luck, you'll be playing against us." Fred says, grinning.
"I'm very well aware, I will still win." She leans closer, kisses his lips and stands up. "I'm off to Ancient Runes. See you later."
"Want me to walk with you and carry your books?" Fred asks, laughing.
"Don't you dare."
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EBONY HAD BEEN WALKING THROUGH THE CORRIDORS FOR A FEW MINUTES, she walks past the Hufflepuff barrels when a very familiar voice calls out her name. She stops dead in her tracks and stands frozen. A bunch of emotions wash over her to which she shakes her head. She must've misheard it.
"Ebony?"
She moves slowly, turning 90 degrees to her right and faces the wall. Her breath gets caught in her throat and a tear rolls down her cheek at the sight. The portrait in front of her has a familiar blond boy inside of it with grey eyes. Cedric Diggory.
"Ced~?" Her voice breaks halfway through the name.
"Hello." The boy in the portrait replies, nodding softly. "How are you?"
"Late for class." She walks backwards before she starts running towards her Ancient Runes. She tries her best not to cry but when she arrives at the marble stairs, she can't stop the river of tears anymore. She reaches up, drags the torch down and hides herself in one of the secret passage ways.
She leans against the wall with her back, trying to calm herself down. He was there. . . he was right there talking to her. It felt like he was back but she knows she'd never be able to hug him again. Even talking hurt too much that she just couldn't stay.
It takes a little while before she has calmed down again, she looks at the time and realizes she has two more minutes to get to class. She wipes away her tears, makes sure she looks presentable and walks to the end of the passage way until she's in class on time. She sits down and stares at her books before Professor Babbling walks inside again.
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MANY PEOPLE HAVE NOTICED THE WAY HER SMILE HAD DISAPPEARED. Luckily no one was stupid enough to ask her what had happened. It was like a time-bomb. As if people were waiting for her to snap. Nobody needs to know that already happened today. She had gone through all her classes, very slowly.
"Ebs?" Fred asks when she joins them for dinner. "Did something happen?" Well. . . one person was stupid enough to ask. Ebony shakes her head. "You can tell me everything, you know that, right?"
"I just. . . I don't want to talk about it." Ebony replies, looking down at her food. She starts to poke it without actually taking a bite. Fred continues to give her worried glances but he knows he can't really do anything except for being there whenever she needs someone to talk to.
Dinner goes by slowly. Ebony decided she wanted nothing more than to never pass that haunted corridor ever again but she manages to shake Fred and George off to walk past it again. She watches from a fair distance how many Hufflepuff students walk past the portrait and greet Cedric happily who of course greets them back. When the coast is clear, she walks over.
"Why did they hang you up here?" Ebony asks, unsure whether she wants him to answer or not. She is not Merlin's strongest soldier so she also won't be able to just have a normal conversation with him as if she hadn't just missed him for months on end.
"Professor Dumbledore found it a good idea. He made sure I continued to live in my legacy." Cedric in the portrait replies. Ebony hums. "I missed--"
"No." She interrupts him, holding up her hand to empathize that she doesn't want him to continue. "No, you don't get to miss me."
"Ebs, please--"
"No, Cedric!" Her sadness has turned into anger and it sucks but she can't help it. "You weren't the one who had to watch the other participate in a series of dangerous events for what? Honor? Fame? You weren't the one who had to watch the other's body come back without their soul. You weren't the one that was left behind by the man who promised to always take care of them. You don't get to tell me that you missed me because hell I am the one who missed you!"
"I'm sorry." She sobs. "I thought I could do this but I can't. I can't do this." She turns around and walks away. Her head screams at her. Whoever is stuck in that portrait isn't her Cedric. He isn't the same playful Hufflepuff boy she grew up with, he isn't the same idiot that crashed into her with his broom at one of their Quidditch games and he isn't her brother.
She settles inside her dorm room. She hadn't seen Nadine and honestly, she's really happy for that. Why would they possibly hang a portrait of Cedric near the Hufflepuff common room? Why couldn't they just honor his death in a normal way?
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Written: 05/05/2023
Word Count: 1310