Chapter 29: The Silence Says It All


"I'm surprised you haven't heard from Charlie in so long," Angelina said conversationally one day a few months later, as she and Alicia sat in the library. "Surely it's all water under the bridge now- I mean, seeing as it's nearly the end of the tournament. You've both forgotten all about your little quarrel, haven't you?"

Alicia looked at Angelina in disbelief. "Merlin, Angelina, sometimes you are just so-"

"So?" Angelina raised an eyebrow.

"I can't explain it," Alicia said, turning away before Angelina could see her smile. "You're just so…matter-of-fact. You think that quarrels can't last longer than a few days. You think problems solve themselves in a matter of weeks. You think people forgive each other as easily as they hurt each other."

Angelina looked surprised. "Well, why not?" She glanced over at Alicia and caught the sad look in her eyes.

"Ali, please tell me what's wrong," she said softly.

Alicia shook her head and looked down at her parchment. "I can't…because I don't know myself. I'm still so angry at him for what he did but I'm also confused."

"You love him."

Alicia looked up at Angelina sharply. "What?"

"You love him," she repeated simply, as though it were the most obvious thing in the world. "Come on, Alicia, you can't deny it. Why else can't you stop thinking about him since he went back to Romania? Why else do you keep moping over him?"

Alicia looked indignant. "I am not moping over him. I promise you, that's not the problem. I can stop thinking about him whenever I want. Get it into your head once and for all, Angelina Johnston. I. Do not. Love. Charlie. Weasley."

"Alright, alright," Angelina said, rolling her eyes. "Fine. You don't. I get it."

"I don't," Alicia said mutinously, stabbing her quill into her inkpot rather viciously.

"Alright," Angelina said, looking unconvinced. "Whatever you say."

They sat in silence for a moment.

"She totally loves him," Angelina whispered to a Ravenclaw fifth year who was studying "Achievements in Charms" intently beside her.

"Alright, that's it!" Alicia exclaimed, slamming her books down on the table. "I'll see you at dinner."

And she stormed from the library, a furious scowl on her face.

"Merlin, it's so obvious," Angelina said gleefully to the Ravenclaw, who looked at her vacantly before turning back to her book.


The final task was approaching fast and Alicia became more and more worried for Harry's welfare. The poor boy seemed to be getting paler and thinner by the day, and she knew the pressure was getting to him. More worrying still was the feeling she couldn't seem to shake that something terrible was going to happen.

It wasn't some sort of premonition, more just a feeling that history would repeat itself, as it had done for the past three years of Harry's Hogwarts life. It seemed to be a given thing; Harry couldn't get through a year without something happening to him.

Alicia also knew that Cedric was feeling the pressure too, though he did his best not to show it. She often saw him in the Library, poring over dusty old books when everyone else was back in their cosy dormitories, with not a care in the world. She often went to help him, wishing that there was something more she could do to ease the burden of the impending task.

But despite her sympathy for Cedric, it was so completely different to Harry's case. Cedric had signed up for this, knowingly, willingly. Harry had been forced into this, against his will and had had to face not only the strenuous hardships of the tasks themselves but also the reactions of the rest of the school that accompanied the drawing of his name from the Goblet. So it was for this reason that she did her very best to help Harry wherever and whenever she could, teaming up with Hermione and studying books late into the night.

And finally, after weeks of worrying and anxiety, the day of the Final Task dawned.


"Ok, so you won't forget that to perform the Flame-Freezing Charm, you have to-"

"Alicia," Harry interrupted hastily, putting his hands on her shoulders and looking her firmly in the eye. "I've got it. I'm fine. I remember everything you've told me. Don't worry about me."

"Don't be ridiculous, Harry," Alicia said, in a choked voice, her face white. "Of course I'm going to worry."

Harry sighed and gave her arm a squeeze. There was nothing more he could say.

"Just be careful, Harry," Alicia said, giving him a hug before turning away.

As she hurried over towards the stands where her friends were sitting, she caught sight of Cedric, standing alone, behind the stands, his back to the Quidditch pitch.

Glancing up at her friends briefly, she walked towards him.

"You're a champion, Diggory," she said softly.

He turned at the sound of her voice, and gave a weak smile. "How's Harry doing?"

"He's ok," Alicia said, glancing back over at the black haired boy, who was now talking to Ron and Hermione. "He's had worse."

Cedric nodded mutely.

"Come on, Diggory, pull yourself together," Alicia said firmly, seeing the defeated, fearful look in his grey eyes.

He gave her a surprised look.

"Look, I know you're not a Gryffindor, so you're not brave or anything," Alicia began, with a wry smile. He gave a little chuckle. "But you're a great wizard, Diggory, you're strong and you're a champion," she said simply. "Don't tell Harry I said this," she said, with a wink. "But you're the true champion of Hogwarts."

Cedric just gave her a look.

"No, Cedric," she said, adopting his first name. "I mean it; the Goblet didn't choose Harry's name because it thought he should be the Hogwarts champion, it chose yours. You were who the Goblet intended."

A fleeting smile passed across his face.


"I don't like Diggory," Charlie decided, watching the handsome Hufflepuff talking to Alicia.

"Why not?" Fred asked, chomping on some Honeydukes as they waited for the Final Task to start. Charlie had returned to Hogwarts briefly to watch the Final Task. He had avoided Alicia and persuaded the twins to come and sit with him on the opposite side of the stadium from Alicia. "I mean, besides the obvious."

"He's so full of himself," Charlie said, glowering at him.

Fred looked up and followed Charlie's gaze, before letting out a bark of laughter. "Oh I see," he said, chuckling still. "You have a perfectly good reason to dislike Diggory. You're jealous because you think he's stealing your girl."

"What?" Charlie said, his gaze snapping away from the pair talking behind the stands. "What are you talking about?"

Fred nodded over to where he had been looking just a moment ago.

"Don't be ridiculous, Fred. Why on earth would I be jealous?" he said indignantly. "Firstly, I am far more handsome and charming than that idiot Hufflepuff, secondly she can talk to whoever she likes and thirdly since when is she my girl?"

Fred snorted. "Oh yeah right, so you haven't been in love with her for about two years then?"

Charlie narrowed his eyes at his brother. "No, I haven't. I don't know what you're talking about."

"Come on, Charlie, you can't exactly deny that you're completely-"

"Cut it out, Fred," said Charlie sharply. "Anyway, the Final Task is starting."

And with that, he turned away from his brother, glancing briefly over at where Alicia had now taken her seat beside Katie and Angelina. His gaze did not linger long on her and she did not look over.


It was over an hour since the champions had entered the maze and nothing was happening. Alicia was worried. Of course.

The time ticked by as slowly as it possibly could and still no one emerged from the maze. Then suddenly, after about an hour and a half, a stream of red sparks shot into the sky. Alicia gasped and gripped Angelina's hand tightly.

"Merlin, Alicia!" Angelina exclaimed, pulling her hand from Alicia's. "Cut it out! If they're able to send up red sparks, they're obviously not dead."

Alicia nodded absently but she wasn't paying any attention to what Angelina was saying. All her attention was focused on not imagining the worst case scenarios.

Hours passed and nothing more happened. Fleur Delacour had emerged from the maze a few minutes after the stream of red sparks, carried on a stretcher but she had soon regained consciousness and was sitting amongst her family, wrapped up in a blanket, looking shaken but unhurt.

Then, all of a sudden, as Alicia was beginning to think this suspense would never end, there was a sudden glow and two figures suddenly burst out of the maze, tumbling to the ground. She leapt to her feet with a gasp, her eyes squinting but unable to make out the figures.

Then there was a sudden terrible scream of grief and somebody rushed forward. One of the figures was frighteningly still. Alicia felt awful for thinking it, but she could not help but pray that it was anybody but Harry.

And then there seemed to be complete silence, save for the terrible wracking sobs of the person holding the still body in their arms. And through the silence, she could distinctly hear the sound of Harry's voice.

Thank Merlin he's alive, she thought. That is, until she heard what he was shouting.

"He's back! He's back! Voldemort's back!"

Suddenly a hundred voices broke out at once, all questioning, shouting, an utter chaos of fear and confusion.

As Alicia heard these words, she felt a terrible chill come over her. Like someone had wrapped a cold hand around her heart. It couldn't be true. It couldn't be. Yet there was Harry, saying it, desperately saying it, and there was a body, a still body.

Heart pounding, Alicia made her way through the terrified crowd, trying to get to Harry. But when she reached the bottom, he had disappeared.

"Where's Harry?" she kept asking, but everyone shook their heads, they didn't know.

She found Hermione, whose face was so white Alicia thought she might be about to faint. "Where's Harry?" she yelled, over the noise. Hermione shook her head weakly.

Alicia could not bring herself to look over at the other figure that had appeared with Harry. She could not. For she knew exactly who it was.

She felt a terrible surge of grief come over her, but for now she pushed it away. She needed to find Harry; she had a horrible feeling he was still in danger.


"Professor Dumbledore!" Alicia exclaimed, in relief, seeing him standing not far off, talking urgently to Professor McGonagall. "Where's Harry? Is he ok? I need to see him."

A sudden look of shock flitted across Dumbledore's face.

"What is it, sir? Where is he?" Alicia asked desperately.

"Minerva!" Dumbledore said quickly. "Fetch Severus and the others. Meet me at Professor Moody's office as soon as you can."

"But Professor, where are you going? Is Harry in danger? Can I help?" Alicia said, her white face small and afraid.

Dumbledore hesitated and put a kindly hand on her arm. "Everything is fine, Miss Spinnet. Do not trouble yourself. I will take care of Harry."

Alicia nodded. She trusted him. She trusted Dumbledore. She knew he would not fail Harry.


"Harry! Are you alright? I was so worried about you," Alicia said, hurrying into the Hospital Wing half an hour later. She had heard what had happened; with Professor Moody and Harry, that he had been a Death Eater all along, that he had put Harry's name in the Cup, and that he had just tried to kill him yet again.

Harry looked up with a weak smile. She could practically see the terrible pain and fear in his eyes. It was not right. It made her so angry. It was not right for someone so young to have to go through such terrible things.

"I'm fine, Al, I'm alive," Harry whispered. "That's enough for now, isn't it?"

Alicia nodded tearfully, giving him a careful hug.

"So is it true?" she asked tentatively, after a moment. "Is he really back? You-Know-Who?"

Harry nodded slowly. "It's true. I – I'd like to tell you more, Ali, of what happened in the graveyard, but…but I don't think I can. It's just too…"

"I know, Harry," Alicia said, squeezing his hand tightly. "I understand. If it were up to me, I wouldn't have you relive it ever again."

"I don't know what things are going to be like now, Alicia," Harry said weakly. "Now that he's back. I'm scared, Ali. I'm really scared."

"I know, Harry," she said softly. "I know."


"We'll be seventh years next year," sighed Angelina, throwing a few things into her trunk. They were packing the night before they left Hogwarts.

"Yeah…" Alicia looked thoughtful. "Who d'you think'll get Head Boy and Girl?"

"Oh I don't know…Fred maybe?" Angelina said, snorting with laughter. "I promise you, if Fred Weasley gets Head Boy I'll get up on the tables in Great Hall and dance the Macarena."

Alicia laughed. "Now there's a sight I'd love to see," she said, hunting under her bed for her Sneakoscope.

"Charlie's coming back from Romania for good this summer," Angelina said matter-of-factly. Alicia jerked upwards abruptly, smacking her head on the underside of her bed.

"What?"

Alicia looked up sharply at Angelina who was sitting on her bed looking smug. "I thought you'd be interested," she remarked.

"I...I'm not interested," said Alicia hastily. "I don't care what he's doing."

"Just admit that you miss him," Angelina said in exasperation.

"Don't talk to me about him, Ange. I don't want to hear it." She turned away and started folding her socks.

"Are you ever going to forgive him?" Angelina said quietly.

She glanced over at where Alicia was focusing very intently on folding her socks.

"Wow, those socks must be very important with the amount of care you're putting in there," Angelina remarked drily.

There was no answer but she could have sworn she heard Alicia sigh wistfully.


"Miss Spinnet. And where are you working this summer?" asked Professor McGonagall, checking her clipboard over her square spectacles.

Alicia picked up her bag and peered at the list over McGonagall's shoulder.

"St. Mungo's," she said.

"Ah yes, that's right. I trust you have all the necessary requirements?" McGonagall said in her usual brisk fashion.

"Yes, I have all the papers I need," Alicia said. She gave a contented sigh. "I'm just so excited. Finally living my dream of being a Healer."

McGonagall gave a rare smile. "I think you will do extremely well there, Miss Spinnet. If you get good results in your N.E. next year, which I strongly expect you will if you continue your current high standard of work, you will be well on the way to becoming a Healer. A few years of training and you'll be there."

Alicia smiled joyfully. "Oh I do hope so! Have a good summer, Professor!" she said happily.

"And you, Miss Spinnet," said McGonagall, shaking her head with an amused smile and turning to the next student wielding her clipboard.

Alicia walked over to where Angelina and Katie were waiting to take a coach down to the station.

"Last year next year," grinned Katie. "For you two, that is."

Angelina and Alicia smiled. "Exciting stuff," said Alicia, smiling as she thought of the summer ahead of her.

"And you, little Miss Bell, are starting NEWT work next year. I warn you, it's no walk in the park," smirked George, clambering into a horseless coach as it pulled up.

"Oh shush, George. Let's just enjoy this summer. May it be happy and blissfully uneventful!" Alicia grinned, climbing in after her.

Famous last words.


A/N. Sit tight! Seventh year on its way! Thanks everyone for reading : )