Chapter 7
Derailed
.:&:.
There weren't many people who kept their dates after the Yule Ball but those who did were few and that included Cho. I could not see why Cedric would be interested in her besides the obvious but I knew that he must have had a good reason because he wasn't much of a serious dater. During our Christmas Break, Cho had visited our home and vice versa with Cedric. Though I wasn't around at that time, I knew that whatever was happening between them was serious.
As for my situation, Neville and I did not turned out to be a couple. It was not that I didn't find him charming and sweet but I wasn't interested in a boyfriend at that time. Instead he was that guy friend I frequented to whenever I needed help in one of the classes we shared. Creevey, who had taken a picture of us in the Ball had given Neville the shots, in which he had given me one when he received an extra. I swear, we looked quite cute together back then.
Though the Yule Ball was an event not to be forgotten, everyone was now looking forward to the last tournament; the last where the true champion will rise from the rest.
The arena was much farther than that of the Quidditch field but the short, if not long, walk was worth it. Instead of sporting a banner of the person I would be cheering for, I made one for the "Hogwarts Boys", after all, whoever of those two win, the school would win.
Lisa and I have arrived earlier than the rest of the students, mainly to get the best seats in the front. I was disappointed though that we did not have a clear view of the whole arena. What stood before us was the entrance to the maze and whichever champion that reached the cup first would be declared the winner. Though I couldn't see the whole field as I wanted, I was still quite glad to be close.
Thirty minutes must have passed before the four contestants as well as those of important standing were standing at the front entrance of the maze. Though I didn't find it necessary, Dumbledore had presented everyone, followed by a speech before everyone, except the four, left. Minutes later, those four had suddenly ventured into the maze.
People around us did not want to leave their spot in case the champion was to surface and miss the big celebration that was sure to happen. I had similar thoughts, because I never did leave my spot in the front. Thankfully, it wasn't warm outside or I'm sure some of us would have left to get something to drink.
I remembered earlier, back when the term began, that I would have been nervous if Cedric was to have been picked as one of the contestants. Well, I was, especially during the first tournament. Now, I was quite thrilled that Cedric had been picked for the Triwizards and so was my father, who I was sure his pride in his son must have swelled than before. If Cedric was to win The Cup, that would not only be great but fantastic, considering that this year he would also be graduating from Hogwarts and that was a festive in itself. It never had crossed my mind that something bad could result from this. How could it when everything was going so well? That is what I had thought…
"How long do you think they'll still be in there?" I asked, as I wrapped my Ravenclaw scarf around my neck for what must have been the thirtieth time.
"It has been fifteen if not twenty since we last seen Viktor signal" Lisa said, referring to the red light that the champions needed to cast up the sky if they needed to leave the Maze. Fleur had already been pulled out from it, so that only meant that Cedric and Harry were still in there.
I turned to look up at the crowd and I was surprised that all of them still had that look of excitement in their faces when they haven't even seen the boys for nearly an hour. Though we were seating in the front, I was the one that was seated at the end, except for a chaperone. Across from the walkway, was another line of students and the person who was seated at the end (closest to me) was none other than Cho.
It has amazed me how quickly their relationship had grown between her and Cedric. One minute they were strangers (or that is what I thought) and the next they where a well known couple around school. He was handsome and she was the pretty one, which had automatically made them perfect, or so that is what the others had said. I completely thought otherwise. Whenever I saw him walking in the hallway during those free times, I would always see him with her. I'm sure Harry must have seen them as well which must have been something for him.
It was when I was about to comment about her to Lisa that a sudden flash of what appeared to be lighting distracted us. Looking toward the front, at the center, I saw Harry kneeling beside Cedric who I thought was injured and that is why he was beside him. Everyone had suddenly erupted in cheers and claps. I noticed, as I was sure others did, that Harry was shouting for someone or something while Cedric laid still.
There was something wrong, I thought as I started to rise from my seat. A sudden, strange but awfully familiar feeling was starting to rise from within me. The claps and cheers had suddenly ceased before everything became quiet. My palms were slowly becoming damp, my breath was becoming short. My surrounding had suddenly become suffocating. No… it couldn't be…
"Saria…" I heard someone call as I leaned onto the railing as I watched Dumbledore rush over to Harry.
"No… no…" I choked, my throat suddenly swelling up with a feeling I did not want to admit.
I heard them. Everyone was talking, they were whisperings. My father had rushed from his seat and was trying to make his way to the grounds but he was suddenly held back. Automatically, I stepped over the chaperone only to suddenly be held back by him.
"You need to stay in your seat, Miss." He said.
Harry was pushed to the side as others surrounded and blocked the view. He was screaming about something.
"Please, let me go!" I exclaimed as I struggled to free myself from his grasp.
Dumbledore had suddenly turned toward me. Had he heard? He had only looked at me before turning away. I suddenly screamed for Cedric, for my brother whose body was being taken away by others; my father was at his side, I could see he was frantic while others were trying to lead him away. They were leaving without me, I needed to be there… with him…
"He's my brother…" I wailed, not caring for those who were listening or observing me. He still would not let me go, but instead had soften his grip on me.
"He's back, Voldemort is back!" Was the last thing I heard Harry scream as he was being led away by Professor Moody.
"I'm really sorry…." Lisa said or was it someone else? I didn't care. I was being held from seeing my brother… To be comforted by my father, the only person I now realized was the only one left in this world.
They could not, did not know what I was feeling at that moment. I was literally being torn away.
.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.
I had stepped off from the last step of our stairs when I noticed my father sitting on his favorite arm chair in the living room of our home. It has become a familiar sight whenever I would come down from the first floor of our home to see him facing what could only be the fireplace. That is how he has been in the last couple of days right after the burial of Cedric; just sitting there, staring into the fire. He was in his own world, a world where I could not enter.
The day after tomorrow I would be returning back to Hogwarts, after I had spent my last two weeks away from school. I had to, thought it wasn't necessary, but I had three more weeks left of school and in the last week it'll be solely dedicated in exams. I was sure enough that I would be able to pass my classes, though that wasn't exactly on top of my mind. It was to be the end of my Fourth year in Hogwarts, and that was just something I could not pass. I knew that if Cedric was here, he would have wanted me to graduate from school and make him proud.
I was worried about my father; it was after we had buried Cedric beside my mother's grave, that he was still far away emotionally from this world. It had been Cedric who had supported me when our mother had passed away. This time around, I had no one except for a few close friends, especially The Weasley's, who lived farther down the road from us.
He had acknowledge me when we returned home after he had picked me up from Hogwarts; had said he wanted to be alone, that I should handle it as best as I could. I had given him that space and he had not, or couldn't, see how I was hurting as well. It was a fact that he had been much closer to Cedric than to me, after all, I was a girl, but I didn't care about it. I had cried for Cedric's loss as any other loved one would have done, but what hurt me the most was how my father was physically here but wasn't emotionally available as he should have been.
I had prepared his breakfast, lunch and dinner and at the beginning he would barely touch any of it. He had only said that he did not have much of an appetite and would just leave the dining room. There was one person though who have sensed I was having trouble handling this and that was Mrs. Weasley. It was that wonderful woman who had comforted me when my father couldn't. Had told me that I should try to understand my father's pain, which I told her I did. She had smiled as she dabbed a handkerchief on my moist cheeks. She had reminded me so much about my mother, the way she talked and the way she comforted, that had started a whole new set of tears.
Mrs. Weasley was a busy woman, but whenever she could, she would stop by to see how we were doing. I was doing much better thanks to her and my father was now eating as he once did, though he would still "disappear" from the physical world whenever he sat in front of the fireplace.
"Father?" I called out to him.
He slowly had turned around on his seat. The look on his face appeared to be the kind one shows when first acknowledging a person, "Saria, would you be kind enough to make me a sandwich?"
I nodded, "I will."
"Thank you, dear." He said before returning back to face the fireplace.
This was better than being ignored.
A/N: It had to happened, I just couldn't find a way how to avoid Cedric's death in the maze, not that I would have changed it if I could. Hopefully you guys enjoyed reading this chapter, and will continue to do so in the upcoming ones.
Much (heart) to those who left a review.
