Left Behind
Written for Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry (Challenges and Assignments) Alchemy Assignment #6.
Task: Write about someone who doesn't want to live anymore.
Entry for Word Prompt Express.
Prompt: (225) Die.
The ending is AU, although the story stays true to many canon events.
I want to die.
I want to die.
I want to die.
Michael is talking to me, but I don't hear a word he says. That horrendous dream I had about Cedric is haunting me at every moment and I can't shake it whether I'm asleep or awake. Memories I thought I'd buried were digging their way back up to the surface, forcing me to remember them, as if I could ever truly forget. Although it pains me to admit it, Cedric took a piece of me with him when he died, and I can't seem to function properly without it.
"Cho! Are you even listening to me?" Michael finally manages to break me from my thoughts, and he sounds angry, but it takes too much energy to care. "You weren't, were you? Not that you ever do, so I don't know why I'm surprised. Call me when you've re-joined the land of the living. Goodbye, Cho."
He kisses me on the cheek as I try not to flinch at his touch. Mercifully he leaves me alone with my thoughts.
"You look so beautiful tonight, Cho, I almost wondered if you were real when you came down the stairs towards me." His words sank into my skin as simple as ice cream melting into a hot chocolate fudge cake, and I fell helplessly under his gaze.
Why is it that the only boy who's ever really got under my skin was so cruelly taken away from me? Did I do something wrong in a past life? Am I a bad person? Harry Potter was a sweet boy, and I liked him a lot, but he was no Cedric Diggory. I cringe a little at how pathetic I was in my sixth year, for it's a wonder I didn't put him off girls for life. I was a crying, moody and jealous wreck. I think the reason for my behaviour was that I wanted him to be Cedric, and when I realised he could never be what I wanted, I became angry with him. I'm ashamed to say that I still held tightly to him because it was better than being alone. I overreacted about his friend, Hermione when I feared that my lifeline would be taken away, but in hindsight, I pushed him away myself.
I was the thing that he'd miss most, and it thrilled me to no end, as I felt the same way about him. For the first time I was beyond the point of just having a crush; I loved him.
"I love you, Cho, and it was hell not knowing what was happening to you during that second task."
"I love you too, Cedric, so much that it hurts." His lips met mine in a tender but passionate kiss, and I felt my knees go weak as I wrapped my arms around him.
And then there was Michael Corner, a boy from Ravenclaw who'd asked me out when his girlfriend broke up with him. A proper rebound relationship; Michael because of Ginny Weasley, and me because of Harry Potter. How ironic that the two of them ended up together in my seventh year. The news didn't hurt me as much as I'd expected it to, and I was just shocked that it wasn't Hermione Granger. She was the cause of most of my insecurity and jealousy in my sixth year.
I was dreading and looking forward to the third task in equal measure. Would Cedric be able to win? I was certain of it, and I didn't doubt it for a second. Would Cedric be likely to get hurt in the maze? Most definitely, and I couldn't stand the thought of him being hurt while I would be unable to do anything about it. He did his best to put me at ease, but he knew how nervous I was for him. "I'll be fine, I promise. After all, I've got the most beautiful girl in the world waiting for me to return, and I want to make her proud of me."
I pulled him closer to me and kissed him tenderly on the lips. "I'm already proud of you, and I just want you to return safely, okay? While it would be great to see you holding that cup, I have to admit I'm worried about you."
He laughed softly. "It'll be fine, Cho. Dumbledore's there, remember? Nothing terrible is going to happen, but I'm sure the task won't be easy if the last two are anything to go by. Now stop panicking and give me a proper kiss."
And I did.
I scream and wake up abruptly, looking around the room with my eyes on stalks. What a terrible dream I'd just had (the same one as before.) Cedric was in the graveyard with Harry after grabbing the cup, and a man appeared out of nowhere; next thing I see is a blinding green light while a voice shouts, "Avada Kedavra!" Cedric lies stiffly on the ground, staring glassily ahead like a statue. I now sit frozen on my bed, with tears falling down my cheeks in quick succession. "Please, make it stop," I whisper, feeling stupid because no one is around to hear my plea.
Everyone clapped as we saw Harry and Cedric return with the cup; 'How nice,' I thought. 'They've won the Triwizard Tournament together, and what a great victory for Hogwarts. Harry's sobbing first clued me in, and I waited anxiously for Cedric to get up. Why wasn't he moving? What had happened to him? Cedric's dad hurried over to the two boys, and I waited with baited breath. I knew the worst had happened when I heard Amos Diggory sob as he clutched his son tightly. No! No, it couldn't be true! Someone, please tell me they were mistaken. A hand lands on my shoulder, trying to reassure me; I shake it off and stand up. He will get up, for he promised me he would come back and make me proud. He still lies there motionless, and the truth slowly starts to sink in; Cedric's dead, and I've been left behind to pick up the pieces of my broken heart.
"I'm so sorry," my best friend Marietta whispers softly to me.
"No! No! Not Cedric!" I sob loudly and can't keep the tears at bay as I watch my boyfriend being hugged by his father. Marietta hugs me, and I cling tightly to her like a shipwreck survivor, desperately holding on to a piece of furniture floating in the sea.
I gasp as I see my bedroom door open slowly and in walks the man I love. Rubbing my eyes furiously and opening them, I see that he's still there; haunting me when I'm awake and asleep. "Cho, come with me and we can be together for always; that's what we promised each other, wasn't it? You and me together until the end."
His words are soothing to my muddled thoughts. It's almost like an invisible thread has wrapped around my waist and pulled me towards him. "Is it really you?"
He nods and smiles the smile I love so much, the smile that's like no other. "Yes, it's me," he whispers softly in a voice as smooth as silk. "Come with me."
I nod as I find myself unable to resist him, and I look around for parchment and a quill. This will be my last night on this Earth, the last night I will be without him.
Tonight is the night I die; tonight is the night I'll come alive again.