Chapter 21: Leaving Hogwarts

Neither Cedric nor Harry was about to return to the Great Hall for meals just yet; they took breakfast in the Hospital Wing around Hermione's bed. Ron was sitting next to her on the bed, and Harry and Cedric were situated at the foot of it. Various comfortable seats had been transfigured by the Seventh Years around the bed. Ginny, whose mended ankle was held in a magical brace, was curled up on a loveseat with Luna; Neville was situated in an armchair; and James and Gavin were sharing a sofa with Kayla curled up against Gavin's side.

Earlier, Umbridge had occupied a hospital bed across from them, after Dumbledore had strode into the Forest to rescue her. He had emerged without a scratch on him, though the same could most certainly not be said of Umbridge. Harry tried to feel sympathetic, and could find very little room in his heart for sympathy for someone who had hurt Cedric. She hadn't been there long, Dumbledore had her taken to St. Mungo's quickly, and while she was there she had still been hysterical.

Now Hermione was reading out loud from the Daily Prophet, if Harry was being honest he was really only half-listening to her.

"He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named Returns...Minister of Magic Cornelius Fudge confirmed that He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Name has returned...report the mass revolt of the dementors of Azkaban...remain vigilant...Details of the events that led to the Ministry turnaround are still hazy...Ministry of Magic itself on Thursday evening...Mass Murderer Sirius Black believed to be in custody, to stand trial (see page ten for more on Sirius Black)...Albus Dumbledore...Meanwhile the Boy Who Lived and his soulmate, soon-to-be Hogwarts graduate Cedric Diggory-"

"Course they'd drag you two into it somehow," Gavin muttered.

"Harry's the 'Boy Who Lived' again now though, isn't he?" Ron said, helping himself to a Chocolate Frog. "Not maniacs anymore, eh?"

There were still welts on his arms from the brain tentacles, but thanks to Gavin's quick reflexes, it was not nearly as bad as it could have been. Harry remembered a conversation with Cedric third year, that felt like a lifetime ago, in which Cedric had said having an older student around might help with the trouble they kept getting into. Cedric had been right, and Harry shuddered to think what the battle might have been like without James and Gavin.

"Yes, they're very complimentary about you both now and how you stood up to the slander," Hermione said, scanning down the article. "Hmm...they seem to forget to mention the fact that it was them doing all the ridiculing and slandering though.."

She winced slightly and put a hand to her ribs; Ron turned immediately, his expression concerned. The curse Dolohov had used on her, though less effective than had it been cast aloud, had still caused significant damage. Madam Pomfrey had, after Cedric's descriptions of the potions he had included in the D.A. first aid kits, (and after reprimanding them for not telling her why they had been stealing from her stores so she could have properly helped them) remarked that Cedric probably saved Hermione's life too. Still, Hermione was going to be taking a variety of potions for the days to come.

Belatedly, Harry realized he had zoned out over part of the conversation.

"So who's the Divination teacher now?" Hermione said. "Is Firenze staying?"

"It looks like both he and Trelawney are going to teach," Ginny said.

"The whole subject's useless if you ask me, Firenze isn't a lot better anyways," Ron muttered.

Hermione scowled at him, "How can you say that, after we've just found out that there are real prophecies? Speaking of which, Harry, did you ever figure out what the prophecy even said?"

Harry's heart began to race. They had not yet told Ron, Hermione, James, Gavin, or anyone what the prophecy had contained, only that it had smashed while they were fighting the Death Eaters. He did not know how to tell them, his family of friends, that his involvement in this fight was inevitable, that in the end he would either be murderer or victim, that fate would pull him again and again into confrontation with Voldemort…

You see now, Harry? A small, cold voice whispered within him. Look around you, at the pain, at all the hurt that people drawn into your life feel. They deserve to know, if only because it means they will make the right choice and leave you…

Cedric's hand tightened around Harry's, and his presence reminded him of how everyone had made the choice to follow him into the battle. He hadn't forced any of them. This fight was theirs, no matter what, but they still deserved to know...if only because they were some of the most important people in his life.

"Yes," Harry said finally, his voice tight. "Yes, I know what the prophecy said."

And then the truth came out in a river of words. Cedric stepped in at several points to expand on the explanation of what Dumbledore had told them and what had happened with Voldemort and what the prophecy meant. By the end of it, their friends were staring at them, shocked. Hermione looked ready to cry by the end of it.

"We'll help you," Ron said sternly.

Harry grimaced, "I can't...I don't want you in danger-"

"That hasn't stopped us before, has it?" Hermione said sharply.

"Cedric's going to get himself dragged into it every time, so we've got your back too," James added. "No one gets to mess with the Diggorys and not deal with us."

"What he said," Gavin muttered. "Bloody Gryffindors with hero complexes. Harry, you're not alone in this. This isn't your fight. It's our fight. Don't forget that."

"Harry...Cedric.." The group turned abruptly to the source of the new voice. Remus had spoken, and he was trying to push himself up to look around. Harry's eyes met his informally adopted father, and felt tension leave his chest in a rush."Harry?"

"Remus," Harry's voice was strained. "Remus, you're okay."

He was on his feet, rushing over to the older wizard's bed in seconds, and when he got there he collapsed on the side of the bed. Cedric was a heartbeat behind him. Remus pushed himself to an upright position and wrapped his arms around them.

"Thank Merlin you're alright," Remus said softly as they broke apart. "What happened? I can't remember anything after Malfoy...are Amos and Thea okay? Where's Sirius?"

It seemed to take hours to tell Remus all of it, though it probably only took the majority of one. It wasn't necessarily the number of words, it was the weight they carried. When Remus learned that Cedric had saved his life he seemed to trip over his tongue thanking him.

The news of Thea's death left him speechless at first, his words caught on the breath hitching in his chest before he pulled them both back into another hug. Harry distantly realized he had not seen Remus cry-not like this at least-ever before.

Remus was just as anxious as them about the outcome of Sirius' trial, especially learning that Sirius didn't even know he was okay. Then came what had happened with Voldemort and the truth of the prophecy. Remus looked like he might faint.

Cedric and Harry spent the rest of the morning in the Hospital Wing with their friends and Remus. Madam Pomfrey helped Cedric through the physical therapy for his hand, showing Harry and Remus how to help him with the process. It was frustrating to no end, he could not move his fingers past a certain extension before his joints erupted with fiery pain.

The thought of walking up to a piano was downright depressing.

Various D.A. members came by to see Hermione and the rest of them. Cho Chang, like several people, said that next time they should bring more people along. Though it was heartening to hear their support, it was depressing to think that there would probably be a next time.

Eventually Harry and Cedric left the Hospital Wing to see Hagrid. Visiting Hagrid was nice, especially since Cedric could tell it was good for Harry. The world seemed to shrink a bit during that time; over tea with Hagrid life was just a little bit simpler.

That evening, for the first time all year, Umbridge was absent from the Great Hall for dinner. For the first time all year, they sat together in the Great Hall; Gryffindor table hosted three Hufflepuffs and one Ravenclaw. That Ravenclaw, Kayla, had tackled them in a hug that rivaled the strength of her brother Gavin's the moment she saw them.

Harry and Cedric did try to sleep apart that night, knowing someone would inevitably object if they found out. Perhaps part of that was lingering paranoia-Cedric still found it difficult to hold Harry's hand in the hallways. Umbridge was gone, yet she lingered, and Cedric hated that with every fiber of his being.

There were too many ghosts hanging over them.

That night, Cedric lay awake staring at the photos in the album Harry had given him for Christmas, pictures of all the people most important to him. Recent events had made it painfully obvious how easy it was for death to rip those people away from him. He kept returning to the Christmas photos, staring at his mother's face as if it might disappear from the page. It was inconceivable that when they returned to Grimmauld Place she would not be there.

And neither will Sirius, Cedric thought with a wave of fresh anxiety. He didn't know what they would do if the Wizengamot didn't proclaim him innocent; they were already falling apart at the seams. Sirius, despite all his rough edges, was someone they needed.

They needed Thea too, but she was gone. Belatedly, Cedric realized he was crying.

After failing to fall asleep for hours, Cedric had resigned himself to not sleeping at all and opened a book. A small part of him realized he was afraid-afraid of falling asleep and being locked in that nightmare again, but dealing with that meant dealing with everything and that was just too much. An hour after he had opened the book, his pendant vibrated.

Cedric felt a sharp stab of panic hit him in the heart, the worst possible scenarios all flitting through his head. His hand shook as he wrapped it around the pendant. Harry's voice, when it sounded in his ear, was tired but not terribly distressed like Cedric had feared it would be.

"I hope I didn't wake you up, love...I had a nightmare and I can't sleep. Meet me in the Room?"

A couple of years ago, Cedric would have hesitated before sneaking out long after curfew. That was long before he met Harry Potter and learned there were far more important things than breaking a few school rules. At least if anyone caught them this time, they wouldn't be slicing open their hands to prove a point.

With Harry curled up around him, Cedric eventually did find some sleep that night. It was not peaceful, but Harry was there to wake him up, to hold him as it became too much and he cried. Again, Harry asked if he was ready to talk about it and again, Cedric wasn't.

So Harry talked for a bit, about nothing in particular. Cedric really wasn't listening to the words, he was listening to the sounds. It was a rhythm and pattern of pitch uniquely Harry, proof they were both still alive.

Cedric didn't sleep any of the final nights of his Seventh Year in the Hufflepuff dorm. His dormmates surely noticed, as did Harry's, but they got the feeling James, Gavin, and Ron likely shut them up. If any staff noticed, they didn't say anything.

Three days before term ended Hermione and Remus were released from the Hospital Wing. Cedric's dad came to take Remus; the moment Remus saw the older wizard he pulled him into a hug. Cedric saw mirrored in his father's face the same grief he felt in his heart.

Cedric could tell people were worried about him, and on some level he knew he needed to talk about what had happened but he just...couldn't. Not even to Harry, who he would quite literally trust with anything. It wasn't even a matter of trust…

To talk about it, somehow, was to make it more real. Every time his mother's name came up, he felt a stabbing pain in his chest as he was forced to come to terms with her death. Every time someone skirted around the subject of what had happened, of what Bellatrix had done to him-like they were afraid of breaking his fragile emotions-Cedric just felt weak.

Bellatrix's voice never quite left him. It was there in his dreams, whispering. It was there in his waking moments, in his memories and flashbacks, taunting. It was easier to pretend he could ignore it than admit how it made him feel.

Cedric wasn't the only one who needed to talk about things; he could feel the pain Harry was shouldering, the pain that mirrored his own. Neither of them seemed to know how to get the other to talk, but silence did not remove what had happened.

It was most often in the safety of the Room of Requirement they fell apart, after waking from the night terrors that plagued them. But Cedric found it was not limited to there. His panic attacks, for the first time in over a year, were back with a true vengeance, worse than before. He found he could not go anywhere without James, Gavin, or Harry, because without them it was almost impossible to pull himself back together.

They always asked if Cedric wanted to talk about it. The answer was always no. James and Harry seemed to understand the need for space, though they could not mask the pained concern on their faces. Gavin pushed, as was his nature.

One time Cedric and Gavin ended up shouting at each other. Minutes into the argument, they were both in tears. If James hadn't shown up, Cedric wasn't sure what they would have done.

In the meantime, Harry, in true Gryffindor fashion, managed to get himself into a fight with Malfoy in which wands were drawn. Harry showed up to the Room of Requirement seething with rage-he wouldn't say exactly what Malfoy had said, but it had clearly gotten to him. Snape had shown up to break apart the fight, but Professor McGonagall ended up saving him.

Before Cedric knew it, the last day of term had arrived.

Cedric, James, and Gavin were sitting underneath the old ash tree on the side of the Black Lake for the last time as Hogwarts students. The day was slightly overcast and there was the taste of rain on the air, the tension of a brewing storm hung over the grounds. The leaving feast was only hours away.

"Are you going to talk about it?" James said quietly, looking at Cedric. "Any of it? You don't have to but...y'know we're here, yeah?"

Cedric grimaced, leaning his head back against the trunk. All the guilt that had sunken roots into his heart was bubbling up and threatening to spill over. On some level he knew it was illogical to blame himself for everything that happened, but that would never change the fact that he was the reason they had all gone to the Ministry. "I know it's just...you guys could have gotten yourselves killed and-"

"Oh, shut up," Gavin said sharply, looking over at him. "Cedric, absolutely none of that was your bloody fault. Everyone who was there at the Ministry made the explicit choice to be there-except you, come to think of it. You were...you were tortured, Cedric. You were hurt."

"You lost someone really important to you," James added in the quiet moment that followed Gavin's words.

With a pang, Cedric realized his best friends, to some extent, did understand the chasm of sorrow that was his grief for his mother. James lost both of his parents when he was just a kid. It would have almost been easier if Gavin's father had died, and he was facing losing his mother too.

We're a bloody mess, Cedric thought bitterly.

"And nothing is going to make any of that okay," Gavin said. "It's okay if you're not ready, just...don't feel like you're alone, alright? We've got each other, and that's the only way we're going to get through this shite."

"Okay," Cedric said quietly, holding back tears. "Thanks."

After a long silence that made it clear Cedric was not going to say anything on the matter, James spoke, his voice wistful,"It's incredible how fast seven years go by, isn't it?"

"Yeah," Cedric said softly. "And it seems impossible that it's over."

"I can't believe Kayla's going to be coming back next year without me," Gavin added, and Cedric could tell the matter had been weighing on his friend's mind.

"Hey," Cedric smiled, "It's not like she'll be alone, Gav."

"Yeah," Gavin chuckled, "But it's a pack of Gryffindors she's got looking after her. That might be even worse, to be honest."

James grinned, "Ah, they're not so bad. Cedric certainly likes them."

Cedric snorted a laugh, "Well, I won't deny they get into trouble. A lot. But I think sometimes the world might need a bit of troublemaking."

"I'm…" Gavin sighed. "I'm not really worried about that, to be honest. Kayla's got a good head on her shoulders, and they'll look after her, I know, but...I'm worried about this summer."

"You and Kayla have a place to stay," James said firmly, resting a hand on Gavin's shoulder. "You'll always have a place to stay."

"With both of us," Cedric echoed.

When it came time for the Leaving Feast, Cedric almost didn't go; Harry had to get James' and Gavin's help to drag him along. Harry understood why Cedric didn't feel up for it, Harry wasn't feeling up for it in all honesty. But Harry knew, on some level that refused to reconcile with the pain of losing her, that Thea would want them to go to the feast.

So, for the last time, Harry and his friends walked with Cedric and his friends to dinner together. For the last time, Cedric, James, and Gavin sat at the Hufflepuff table as Hogwarts students. Ravenclaw was awarded the House Cup; Dumbledore made a speech-Harry didn't have the energy to really pay attention to it; and Cedric was formally reinstated to the records as Head Boy. Of all the cheers in the Great Hall, the D.A. cheered the loudest at that.

In light of everything, at surface value, that seemed such a small thing to be celebrating. But, Harry thought, happily looking at the smile on his boyfriend's face, sometimes the little things are important too.

At some point during the feast Ginny walked in with Luna, and before they broke apart to their respective tables, Luna pulled Ginny into a hug. Harry found himself smiling slightly-he had never seen a Weasley blush the color of their hair.

The commencement ceremony for the Seventh Years was held early in the morning after the feast. Harry had never had a reason to go to it before-Ron had described it as incredibly boring when he went to it for Bill. This year, however, he joined the handful of students that were following the Seventh Years to the docks of the Black Lake. Hermione and Ron followed behind him, and Harry was grateful they silently understood his need for support.

Gathered around those docks were family members and friends. Amos and Remus were there, waiting for Cedric, and Harry went to join them. There were silent tears running down Cedric's face by the time he reached them.

Sirius should be here, Harry thought as the four of them embraced. Thea should be here.

"She was so proud of you, son," Amos said, resting his hand on Cedric's shoulders. "And I am so proud of you."

Minutes later, Cedric left them, waving goodbye as he caught up with Gavin and James and followed Hagrid down to the boats that had carried them across the lake. Harry stayed to watch as the boats slowly shrunk smaller against the shining surface of the lake. It was unthinkable that next year, Cedric would not be returning to Hogwarts.

"That will be us in two years," Hermione said softly, a hand resting gently on Harry's shoulder.

"Yeah," Ron smiled. "The day we leave Hogwarts is just around the corner, isn't it? We've got to make the best of the next two years."

How can we do that, Harry wondered bitterly, when we don't even know what the world will look like in two years?

As First Years, the boats had carried them across the water at night and Hogwarts became a shining beacon of light in the darkness before them. Harry still remembered the feeling looking up at the castle the first time; even as weak and battered as the Dursleys had left him, he had felt-really for the first time-the feeling he now knew as hope.

Now the boats carried Cedric and the other Seventh Years across the water at dawn, Hogwarts a pillar of their past behind them. Harry had felt everyone draw in a great breath of air the past week as the reality sank in; the Second War had begun-the world beyond the ground of Hogwarts was not certain or safe for anyone. But, surprisingly, watching his soulmate journey across the water, Harry felt that feeling of hope again.

Soon it was time for Harry, Hermione, and Ron to join the other students; Remus left him with a promise that they would see each other again soon at the station. Harry walked along with his friends, consciously valuing every moment with them, knowing they had a fight ahead of them and such moments would soon be precious and few.

But when they arrived at the carriages, Harry found himself stopped in his tracks. On a logical level, he knew what they had ridden to London were the same creatures that pulled the carriages; Thestrals. It was one thing to know that and quite another to see the creatures.

Recovering from his shock, Harry reached up to gently stroke the closest one's head. One might assume creatures associated with death to be violent and skittish, but the Thestral before him was nothing but gentle-beautiful.

Suddenly, Harry's heart clenched painfully and he felt tears fighting to leave his eyes. Thea…

"That woman the Death Eaters killed was Cedric's mother, wasn't it? You were close with her," a familiar voice, quiet and soft, said beside him. "Ginny told me."

Harry turned to see Luna Lovegood. "Yeah," he said, wiping the tears on his sleeve. He found he did not mind Luna talking about Thea; she saw the Thestrals, she heard the voices in the veil. There was an unspoken understanding in the air she carried about her.

"It's a horrible thing to lose a mother," Luna said gently, running a hand across a nearby Thestral's neck.

"You…" Harry trailed off, searching for the right words. "You lost your mother?"

"Yes," Luna said simply. "She was quite an extraordinary witch, you know, but she did like to experiment and one of her spells went rather badly wrong one day. I was nine."

"I'm sorry," Harry mumbled, knowing those words never helped much, but not knowing what else to say.

"It was rather horrible," Luna said conversationally. "I still feel very sad about it sometimes. I imagine you and Cedric are feeling like that now. But I've still got Dad, and you've still got people too, don't you? And anyways, it's not as though we'll never see them again, is it?"

"Er-isn't it?" Harry said, uncertain.

Luna shook her head in disbelief. "Oh, come on Harry. You of all people know there are bonds far stronger than death. We should go now though, our friends are waiting for us."

The journey home-and for Harry, for the first time it truly was a journey home -was eventful early on. Firstly, Malfoy, Crabbe, and Goyle, who had clearly been waiting all week for the opportunity to strike without a teacher witnessing, attempted to ambush Harry halfway down the train as he made his way back from the toilet. Frankly, they were lucky it was the D.A. members closest that got to them first and not Cedric-and lucky Gavin and James were there to hold Cedric back after the fact.

The rest of the journey was relatively peaceful. They made their way back to the compartment after buying a few things from the trolley. Hermione was reading the Daily Prophet again, Ginny and Luna were discussing something in an article of The Quibbler, and Neville was looking over one of his plants.

Harry, Ron, Gavin, and James spent most of the journey playing wizard's chess while Hermione read out snippets from the Prophet. There wasn't any real news yet, but as Hermione reminded them, it was coming. Cedric returned a bit shaken from his rounds as Head Boy, but seemed alright once he sat down next to Harry and opened a book.

When they finally arrived at King's Cross, as Harry and Cedric hugged their friends goodbye and promised to write, there was a group of people waiting for them. Remus and Amos both looked nothing short of exhausted; Remus seemed to have aged years in days, Harry thought. Maybe that was something to do with the magic Cedric had used to save his life, or maybe it was just the stress of...everything.

Sirius' trial, scheduled for the following day, loomed.

Beyond them there was Mad-Eye Moody, looking quite sinister with a bowler hat pulled low over his magical eye and his gnarled hands clutching a long staff. Tonks stood just behind him, wearing heavily patched jeans, her usually bright pink hair somewhat dull. Just to the side of Amos and Remus were Mr. and Mrs. Weasley, dressed in their Muggle best, and Fred and George, who were both wearing brand-new, strangely green jackets.

Harry and Cedric found themselves surrounded by people who cared about them, greeted by firm hugs and sad smiles. Even Mad-Eye was gruffly sympathetic. Somehow that made it easier to return Grimmauld Place, which felt so strangely empty without Sirius...

Without Thea.