A/N: Ok, I'm kind of excited about this chapter because it's sort of pivotal. There's a mixture of both Fred and Cedric in this one, and kind of a surprise twist at the end. I really want to know what you guys think of this chapter, so make sure to review it at the end. Give me your opinions, I always take them into account.
Disclaimer: I own nothing but my character and my plotline. Everything you recognize belongs to JK Rowling.
--- CHAPTER NINE ---
Missed Opportunities
The next morning I hauled myself out of bed bright and early in order to head down to breakfast before classes. I would have loved to sleep in and skip breakfast all together, but I find that I am particularly irritable if I don't eat properly. Thus, when Alicia and Katie were ready to get up, I did so as well.
I had nearly forgotten about Dumbledore's announcement about the Triwizard Tournament until Katie, Alicia and I had descended the stairs to the common room. As soon as we entered the room we noticed a lack of red-headed twins. The two of them had gone down to breakfast without waiting for me.
"I guess I'm still in trouble," I muttered.
"They'll get over it soon enough," Katie told me. "You are right, after all. There's no way they'll be able to get any judge to consider them for the Tournament."
"Not if Dumbledore has anything to do with the matter," Alicia added.
I nodded in agreement and followed the two girls out of the common room and into the corridor. I was certain it wouldn't take the boys long to forgive me for what I had said. I was only being rational, after all.
As we began to make our way to the Great Hall I noticed Katie and Alicia exchanging looks between them. I groaned inwardly. I had forgotten that the girls would want to question me about Cedric…
"So, Juliet…" Katie said, confirming my suspicions that they would want to bring it up now.
"Alicia tells me there's something going on between you and Cedric Diggory," she said, trying to sound casual and failing miserably.
I glared at Alicia. I specifically told her not to say anything about the matter.
"Yeah, well, Alicia's a twit," I replied harshly.
"Oh calm down, Julie," Alicia said, "I only told Katie—and she's not going to say anything."
Katie nodded along, promising not to speak a word to anyone.
"Plus, this is kind of big news," Alicia added.
"How on earth is it big news?" I asked irritably.
"Because," Katie said, "This is Cedric Diggory we're talking about."
"Thanks for the confirmation, Kate," I snapped, "All this time I thought we were talking about Lee."
The girls rolled their eyes at me.
"You know what I mean," Katie said, "Cedric Diggory is gorgeous, and I'd wager at least eighty percent of the female population would give their left foot to be in your position."
"Well they wouldn't be very attractive with one missing foot now would they?" I said, "I reckon ol' Diggory wouldn't give them a second glance."
Clearly Alicia and Katie could tell that I was stalling. They knew once we reached the Great Hall there would be no discussing this matter, as the boys would all be present.
"Fine," Katie said firmly, "You don't have to tell us if you like him—"
"But you do have to tell us what happened," Alicia finished.
"You already know what happened," I told her. "You made me tell you when we got back from the party."
"What happened at the Cup?" Alicia clarified.
"And what happened when Fred found out about the two of you?" Katie continued.
"How do you know Fred found out?" I asked.
"Because you're no good at keeping secrets," Alicia said, "It was bound to get out one way or another."
I chuckled at the girls' detective work. Clearly they were not going to let this go until they had gotten the details out of me. Figuring I had been bested by the two of them I let out a sigh and proceeded to tell them what had gone on.
"Well it was Cedric's dad who spilled the news to the twins," I told them, "We met up with the Diggorys on the way to the Cup and he recognized me. He immediately started blabbing about how Cedric was so 'taken with me' at the Ministry party—"
Katie and Alicia giggled at this.
I rolled my eyes at the two of them.
"…naturally, Fred flipped out."
The girls stared at me with wide eyes.
"What happened?" they asked simultaneously.
"He got angry with me, saying I had no right to be talking to other guys without discussing it with him first," I replied.
Alicia and Katie's mouths dropped open in shock.
"He said that!"
"The nerve!"
"I know, trust me, I know," I told them, "So anyway Fred was being a total prick the whole day and I didn't speak to him again until the whole Death Eater scare."
The three of us entered the Great Hall and headed towards our table.
"What about Cedric," Katie said, "Did you meet up with him after that?"
I bit my bottom lip.
"Jules?"
"Well, when the chaos began I got separated from the Weasleys," I started.
"And?"
The three of us were now only a few feet away from our usual seats where Fred, George, and Lee were already stuffing their faces full of breakfast.
"And Cedric sort of saved my life," I said hurriedly, taking my seat and filling my plate as quickly as I could.
Katie and Alicia sat down on either side of me and stared at me in awe.
"That's all you're going to tell us?" Alicia asked.
I gave her a sideways glance.
"Not now," I muttered.
The three of us pushed aside the matter for later, and I grinned at the boys.
"Good morning," I said cheerily.
Fred and George (and Lee, too, in fact) glared at me.
"Did you hear something guys?" George asked, looking back and forth at Fred and Lee.
"Nope," the two of them answered, shaking their heads.
I rolled my eyes at them, wondering how long they were going to keep up the angry act.
---
The boys ignored me for the remainder of breakfast, and all through our morning classes. They didn't speak to me at lunch either.
They were really pulling out all of the stops, as I was partnered with Fred for our afternoon potions class. He spent the entire time miming everything he wanted me to do, but refused to utter a word to me. I could tell the entire thing wasn't serious. If any of them were really mad they wouldn't be having so much fun with it.
It wasn't until our last class of the day that Fred and George decided the game had run its course. We were all seated in Defence Against the Dark Arts, and they simply couldn't help but express their excitement over having Mad-Eye Moody as our teacher.
Personally, the man scares me…a lot. That man's lessons are even more horrifying than his appearance. And that's saying something. I think what ultimately turned me off of him was his habit of barking 'CONSTANT VIGILANCE' at random intervals during the class.
The boys all thought he was brilliant, of course. They sat through class clinging on to every word he spoke—an extraordinary occurrence for the three of them—and when we were dismissed they exchanged animated high-fives to express their enthusiasm.
So, by the time dinner had rolled around, Fred, George, and Lee were back to their usual boisterous selves, chatting with us girls animatedly as usual. Of course, they mostly wanted to talk about the Triwizard Tournament and methods in which to fool the judge, but it was good to have them back to normal nonetheless.
"So, tell us what else happened," Katie whispered as the six of us walked back up to the common room that night after dinner.
I looked at the boys. They were ahead of us a few paces and were talking loudly about Aging potions. Thinking the coast was clear I turned to the girls.
"Well like I said, I got left behind," I muttered, trying to keep quiet.
"Right," Alicia replied.
"So I was right out in the open, and these Death Eaters were coming in my direction," I said, "And I was sort of rooted to the spot—you know, transfixed—and it wasn't until I was nearly hit by a curse that I snapped out of it."
The two of them urged me to continue. I smirked. I kind of liked having them hang on to my every word…and I was starting to believe this thing with Cedric kind of is big news.
"So I ducked to avoid being hit, and then I couldn't stand back up, and someone grabs me from behind," I continued.
"Cedric?" the two asked in unison.
I nodded. "He pulled me back up and led me to the forest—"
"By the hand?"
"—by the hand," I confirmed, and the girls clapped their hands together excitedly, "And when we reached the wood he asked if I was all right. Then he hugged me and we both tracked down Fred, George, and Ginny."
"You brought him to Fred?" Katie asked, wincing.
"Yeah," I replied, "And by that point Fred had obviously realized what a dunce he is and managed to talk to Cedric like he was an actual human being."
Alicia placed a hand on her chest, "Oh, Jules, you are so lucky!"
I rolled my eyes at her but chuckled nonetheless.
The girls were giggling madly as the group of us made our way to Gryffindor tower, and it was because of their inability to control themselves that I almost failed to notice Cedric coming towards us on the opposite side of the corridor.
Alicia spotted him first, throwing her arm out ungracefully and pointing directly at him.
"There he is, Julie!" she practically yelled, causing Katie to wrench her arm down in an attempt to teach her discretion.
Cedric quite clearly noticed Alicia's call of attention to him and he approached us.
My eyes widened in embarrassment as the boys turned around to see what was going on. I immediately noticed Fred's features sink into a frown. George looked at me with interest, while Lee looked indifferent. Katie and Alicia were once again giggling madly.
"Good evening, girls," Cedric greeted as he stopped next to us. I hadn't realized that our entire group had halted in the middle of the corridor.
I tried very hard to keep my face from flushing up and greeted him as casually as I could, "Hi, Cedric."
He grinned at me and Katie spat out an excuse about needing to finish unpacking as she hauled away our friend. If anything this only increased my embarrassment. I looked towards my group of friends as the five of them began to continue towards Gryffindor. Fred shot me one last thoughtful look before following the others away from us.
Cedric was the first to break the awkward silence that followed.
"So, any particular reason Alicia was pointing at me and yelling my name?" Cedric asked, grinning cheekily.
I covered my face with my hand, wincing in painful memory of Alicia's flailing arms.
"She's insane?" I said. Cedric laughed.
"Or the three of you were talking about me," he replied, moving to lean up against a window ledge nearby.
I moved next to him, feeling butterflies build in my stomach. I envied Cedric's ability to play it cool. I also cursed Alicia and Katie for getting me so worked up over the boy. Up until now I had been fine in his presence. Now I was a jittery mess.
"So what exactly were you girls talking about?" he asked.
I let out a sigh, "Well you know how girls are. Leesh let it slip to Katie that you and I danced together at the Ministry party. I've been getting interrogated ever since."
Cedric chuckled, "So what did you tell them?"
"Well…Mainly a retelling of the fact that you swooped out of nowhere to save my life." I grinned at him, feeling incredibly stupid, wondering why on earth I was sharing this with him.
Cedric flushed, "I wouldn't say I saved your life—I was just helping you out."
I looked at him seriously, "You saved my life. And I never fully thanked you for it."
Cedric turned toward me, his hazel eyes staring into mine.
"So…thank you," I said awkwardly.
Cedric smiled at me brightly.
"You're welcome," he said.
I felt myself blush as he took my hand in his and began to lead me away from the window.
"I would hate to give you girls more to gossip about," he told me, "So I think it would be in my best interest to bring you back to your common room."
"The fact that you're holding my hand will be enough gossip for the two of those girls," I told him, silently hoping he wouldn't take it as a signal to drop my hand.
He smirked at me, and gripped my hand even tighter…again causing me to blush profusely. Damn those girls and their ability to turn me into a giggling fool.
"Are you planning on entering the Tournament?" I asked after several minutes of silence.
"Yeah, I am, actually," he replied. I could see a sparkle of excitement in his eyes, "You?"
I shook my head, "Not of age."
"Just as well. I can't afford to be saving your life all of the time now, can I?"
I scoffed at him in mock anger and he laughed as we neared our destination.
"Alright, now that I've returned you safely to your tower, I think I should be getting back to my own," Cedric told me. "You're not the only one with friends who gossip."
"Really?" I asked with a smirk.
"You've got the seventh year Hufflepuffs chattering about you almost unceasingly," he told me.
"Then you better get going," I agreed, attempting to remove my hand from his.
He resisted, and instead, lifted my hand up and kissed the back of it softly.
"Goodnight Juliet."
With that he gave me one last charming smile and hurried off towards Hufflepuff, leaving me feeling positively giddy.
I took a deep breath once he was out of sight and tried to regain my composure. I shook off the jittery feeling I had developed in my stomach and tried to calm my nerves.
"Balderdash," I said to the waiting Fat Lady portrait, and stepped into the common room.
I was met by the turning heads of my five best mates whom were obviously waiting for my return. Katie and Alicia were looking excited—clearly wanting a play-by-play of everything that had happened. Fred was looking strangely determined, and George and Lee were trying to signal something to me with varying hand gestures from behind Fred's head. Their arms were flailing back and forth, pointing vigorously at Fred and then back at me.
I didn't get much time to decipher their code, because nearly as soon as I had made it to the centre of the common room, Fred stood up and ushered me back out the portrait door.
"What is it?" I asked as he gently pushed me back out the way I had come.
"I want to talk to you," he said calmly.
"Oh, alright," I said feeling a bit confused and nervous.
The two of us walked in silence for a few minutes before Fred stopped walking and turned to me. He looked serious, like he had something important to say.
"Are you all right?" I asked.
He nodded, "Juliet…"
I looked at him expectantly.
"Ok. I don't know what's going on between you and Diggory—"
I opened my mouth to say something, but Fred hushed me.
"I know it's none of my business," he continued, "But at the same time, I kind of need to know."
"Know what, exactly?" I asked.
"If you—If you like…him."
I stared at Fred silently, trying to figure out what was going on. He was confusing me to say the least.
"What does it matter?" I questioned. I didn't raise my voice, because unlike last time Cedric had been brought up, Fred didn't seem to be accusing me of anything. He seemed—upset.
"Because," he said quietly, his eyes on the floor beneath us, "Because…I thought you liked…me."
I stared at him in disbelief. For an entire year Fred had avoided talking to me about our relationship, and now, here it was. Right in front of me. And it couldn't have come at a worse time. Sure, I still have feelings for Fred, but I was also beginning to like Cedric—of course it was nothing compared to Fred—I love Fred…
"I do," I spat out, causing him to meet my eyes.
"And Diggory?" he asked.
"Him too."
At this he began to look a little hurt.
"Why?" he questioned.
"I don't think I really want to go into why," I told him.
"Why do you like him if you already like me?" Fred clarified, and I suddenly understood. He didn't care that it was Cedric Diggory, he cared that it wasn't him.
"Because I waited for you for an entire year," I told him, sadness flowing over me.
I began to feel tears welling up in my eyes. Fred must have noticed them too because he pulled me into a hug.
"I was an arse, wasn't I?" he asked, his face buried in my hair.
"To say the least," I replied, wiping my tears on my sleeve.
Fred pulled away from me and before I knew what was happening he had pressed his lips to mine. It was a gentle kiss, and it only lasted a moment before he pulled away again.
"Listen, Julie," he said softly as I tried desperately to regain my composure. My mind was swimming. Just ten minutes ago I was ecstatic over my conversation with Cedric—and now all I wanted was for Fred to kiss me again.
My heart was pounding hard against my chest as held my gaze.
"I know I don't deserve you," he said, "I know I haven't been the greatest friend—and I certainly haven't displayed boyfriend material…but I just had to tell you before it was too late…"
I stared at him wide-eyed, waiting for him to continue. My heart was racing. Could this really be it? After all of this time could he actually finally be ready to tell me the truth about how he feels? I was almost bursting with anticipation and excitement. It didn't matter if I had a stupid crush on Cedric—if Fred was willing to smarten up and have a real relationship with me I was all for it.
His eyes flickered away from mine, looking at something down the corridor.
"Tell me what, Fred?" I urged, trying to catch his eye once again. We were this close, and I didn't want to let him back out of it.
His eyes snapped back to mine suddenly.
"Fred?" I asked.
He opened his mouth to speak, a small smile growing on his lips.
"Angelina," he said with a smirk.
I screwed up my face in confusion.
"What?" I asked, pulling away from him.
He nodded his head towards the end of the corridor. I turned, following his gaze.
There, making her way towards the Fat Lady portrait—making her way towards us—was Angelina Johnson.
She must have spotted us because she suddenly broke out into a sprint, running towards us with all of the strength her long legs could muster. Neither Fred nor I even had the time to speak before she had flung herself onto us.
"Ange—" I managed to gasp out.
"Juliet! Fred! Oh it's been too long!" she said, enveloping me in a hug.
"Wh-what are you doing here?" I asked, shocked at the prospect of seeing her again after almost two years.
"I heard about the Triwizard Tournament," she said excitedly, throwing herself on to Fred next. I cringed in anger when I saw her place a kiss on his cheek, "And I didn't want to miss my opportunity to enter!"
I stood gaping at her in shock, unable to say anything in reply.
Fred, on the other hand, looked positively ecstatic. He was grinning widely as he greeted Angelina back to Hogwarts. I couldn't even register what they were saying. I was still confused about what had just happened. I was certain Fred was just about to tell me…that he loved me…before Angelina showed up that is.
"I'll meet you guys in the common room," Angelina said as she gave Fred one last hug and took off in the direction of the Fat Lady portrait.
"The password's Balderdash!" Fred yelled after her, and she waved back to him in thanks.
I watched her go, staring after her with a mixture of anger, confusion, and unexplained hatred toward my friend.
"Well that was unexpected," Fred commented cheerily.
I snapped back to reality, turning towards Fred quickly.
"So, you were saying?" I asked, determined to get the truth out of him.
He smiled at me broadly, "Oh right, I'd forgotten."
"Well, it doesn't look like there will be any more interruptions," I spat out hurriedly, "So, feel free to continue."
Fred grinned at me again before wrapping his arm around my shoulders.
"I think it can wait for one more night," he told me, "We'd better get back to the common room before we miss out on any of the excitement.
"No, Fred, seriously, what were you saying?" I pushed.
"Merlin you're eager," he commented, "Come now, Ange won't take to it kindly if we miss out on her reunion party."
I allowed Fred to lead me back to the common room, feeling as though I had had the wind knocked out of me. I felt my spirits sink.
If Fred had been waiting for the opportune moment to tell me the truth about his feelings…and to ultimately stop me from developing a relationship with Cedric…he had just missed it.
"I think everyone'll be glad to have her back, don't you think Jules?"
My jaw clenched. In my case, Fred's prediction couldn't have been more wrong.
---
A/N: This chapter depicts a side of Juliet that we really haven't seen yet. As I'm reading it over she seems really unlike herself, but I think it's natural. The boys have her confused to say the least.
I hope no one hates Juliet for flipping so quickly from Fred to Cedric and back to Fred, but I was trying to be realistic. Juliet is in love with Fred, so even if she is trying to get over him by allowing herself to have feelings for Cedric, she's not going to forget about Fred immediately.
At the beginning of Strange Things Come in Threes I introduced the idea of Angelina having moved away. I had planned from the beginning to introduce her into the story at this point…you can let me know what you think.
Are we all right with the return of Angelina? Is everyone ok with the idea of Juliet and Cedric? Reviews would be appreciated!
