Chapter 26
-Seventh year, pt 4-
The next two months were spent in constant tension as to if Harry's Cruciatus Complex would get worse.
It got worse.
Harry had come racing into the Hufflepuff common room screaming at Cassie that Bellatrix Lestrange was in the hallway.
Cedric had quickly investigated and whispered to Cassie that nothing was there.
Cassie had realized, horrified, that Harry was hallucinating and didn't even know it.
It had taken an hour and a half for Harry to fully calm down. Cedric had gotten Ginny and she had sat with Harry, quietly talking about their past dates and experiences.
Cassie wrote a letter to James and Lily, telling them that the disease was getting worse.
Lily wrote back saying that they had been trying to find a therapist to help Harry, but were having no luck.
Harry's condition only got worse, even with the potion he took every morning to help lessen the paranoia and hallucinations.
Cedric and Cassie were both studying for their final exams that they would ever take at Hogwarts, and Cassie was also helping Harry, Ron, Hermione, and Draco study for their O.W.L.'s.
On top of all of this, Umbridge was tightening her grasp on the school.
She had issued five more educational decrees in the past two months, and had fired Professor Trelawny, tried to fire Hagrid and ended up putting McGonagall in the hospital in the process, and had forbidden students of the opposite sex to come within five feet of each other.
Cassie and Cedric were both put into detention frequently because of this rule, and even started doing this on purpose just to annoy Umbridge.
They would also use the Weasley twins original products (such as Nose Bleeding Nougats) to get out of detention, which annoyed Umbridge even more, which then gave Cassie and Cedric something to laugh about.
Two months before school ended, Cassie stood in the Room of Requirement with Cedric, Harry, Ginny, Minnie, Draco, Ron, Hermione, who all looked very confused and somewhat amused.
George and Fred, who had asked them here, stood in front of them, grinning widely.
Fred cleared his throat. "As some of you know, George and I are not interested in the world of academic achievements."
George grinned and continued the thought. "We're opening our very own joke shop in Diagon Alley-"
"And we don't need to graduate for that." Fred finished.
Cassie looked at them, guessing what their plan was.
George confirmed her guess. "We're leaving."
"For good." Fred added.
They were both silent, allowing this to sink in.
Cedric took a deep breath. "I'll only let you do this on one condition."
George smirked. "And what is that?"
Cedric grinned. "Make your departure infuriate Umbridge as much as possible."
The twins smirked identical smirks.
"You read our minds, Ced." They answered in unison.
The next day, Cassie sat down at the Hufflepuff table next to Cedric and grinned in anticipation.
A few minutes later the doors of the Great Hall burst open and Fred and George raced in on their brooms.
Fireworks exploded in every corner and the room was filled with brightly colored sparks.
Umbridge came running in, panting and out of breath. She looked furious and tried to stun the twins but they deftly avoided it.
They swooped around the hall, then zoomed out the doors, followed by a screeching Umbridge.
And with that, the Weasley twins flew away and into the distance, securing their Hogwarts legacy.
Two weeks later the DA assembled for a meeting.
Harry was getting worse and Ginny stayed behind with him, as she was the only one he wasn't paranoid and suspicious about.
Cassie looked around at the group and noticed that Harry and Ginny weren't the only ones absent.
She made her way over to Cho Chang. "Hey Cho."
Cho looked up. "Oh, hey."
Cassie felt a bit awkward. Cho had had a crush on Cedric in their second and third year and had never really liked Cassie.
Despite this, Cassie kept going. "Where's Marietta?"
Cho shrugged. "She said she wasn't feeling well and she stayed in her dorm. Why?"
Cassie nodded. "Oh, I just noticed she wasn't here."
Cho nodded. They stood in silence for a moment until Cedric started talking.
The meeting went smoothly, despite them being in one big group with Cedric teaching them all different levels of dueling.
This was a lot easier when Harry could teach the younger ones. Cedric thought.
The meeting ended two hours later, and the members all made their way towards the door.
Cassie opened it and walked out. She was immediately grabbed.
The moment she felt someone touch her arm, she screamed. "Run! Everybody run!"
Chaos ensued as Cassie was dragged to Umbridges office and students ran in all directions.
Cassie struggled against the strong hands that were gripping her wrists and realized it was Theodore Nott.
They paused outside the office door. He whispered in her ear. "I've always wanted to do this."
He leaned down and kissed Cassie hard. She tasted a strange metallic something on his lips. She tried to pull away but he held her there.
One hand stayed on her wrists but the other slipped up her shirt and wrapped around her.
He finally pulled away and she tried to kick his shin, but that only resulted in him conjuring ropes around her ankles and wrists.
He opened the door and shoved her inside. Umbridge smiled, pleased that her least favorite student had been apprehended.
Cassie looked around and realized that Marietta Edgecomb sat in a chair, looking very guilty.
Cassie's head was still spinning from Theodores kiss. He was definitely good at it, but something was off.
Moments later Cedric came in, dragged by Zacharias Smith, a fellow Hufflepuff.
Cedric looked at Cassie, concerned. Cassie offered a slight smile to let him know she wasn't hurt.
Minnie and Draco were dragged in next, Draco thrashing and struggling.
Umbridge stood up and smiled. "Well then, I think we have enough students here to make an example."
She gestured to Theodore and he shoved Cassie over to her, the ropes around her ankles disappearing.
Theodore forced Cassie on to her knees and Umbridge nodded at him. He smirked at her and stepped back.
Umbridge smiled at Cassie, who was very unnerved by the almost insane looking smile.
"Well Miss Potter, what do you have to say for yourself?"
Cassie was silent for a moment and then spoke. "I regret nothing."
Umbridges eyes seemed to glaze over with impending insanity. She gave a little laugh. "Then I won't regret this. Crucio!"
Minnie hit the floor screaming and Draco and Cedric struggled against the iron grips that held them.
Cassie maintained eye contact with Umbridge, her heart thumping wildly. Umbridge cut the spell off a couple of minutes later, looking defeated and triumphant at the same time.
Draco yelled and wrenched himself out of his captors arms. He grabbed Minnie and someone's wand and cast a protective bubble around himself and the trembling girl in his arms.
Cassie shouted to Draco. "Go! Get out of here, now!"
Draco stared at her for a moment then ran out the door.
Umbridge didn't even glance at them. She was breathing hard now, and was clutching her wand with fury.
She waved it at Cedric. "Crucio!"
Cedric screamed and the familiar pain ripped through him.
Cassie swallowed hard and stared into Umbridges blazing eyes. Cassie's head felt fuzzy and dull but she ignored it.
Cedric kept screaming. "Please! Stop, just stop!" He moaned.
Cassie resisted the urge to struggle against the ropes and strangle Umbridge herself.
Three minutes passed. Umbridge pulled her wand away and broke the curse off.
Cedric lay, twitching and panting.
Cassie wouldn't have acted so rashly, except that Theodore Nott had the nerve to kick Cedric in the ribs with a laugh.
Cassie lunged at Theodore, knocking him off balance and making him trip over a pink rug. He landed with a thump and an indignant huff.
Cassie grabbed his wand, released the ropes form her wrist, and pointed it straight at Umbridge, who looked mildly amused.
Cassie's vision blurred and she felt sleepy all of a sudden. "What's..happening..."
She fought to keep consciousness, but failed and collapsed next to Cedric, who was promptly stunned into unconsciousness.
Umbridge smiled and turned to Theodore. "Good job Mr. Nott. Now these two will become examples for the rest of the students."
Suddenly the door burst open. Lily Potter fired a stunning spell directly into Umbridges chest. Theodore yelled and ducked.
James Potter and Sirius Black came in from behind Lily and disarmed the rest of Umbridges accomplices.
James dropped down next to Cassie and Cedric. "They're only unconscious, but Cassie looks like she's been poisoned."
Lily knelt down and saw that James was right. Cassie was pale and her lips were a dark brown color instead of red.
James levitated Cassie up and hurried her to the hospital wing, while Sirius took Umbridge back to the Auror headquarters and did the same with the students.
Lily stayed with Cedric, gently shaking him every so often. His eyelids fluttered open a few minutes later. "Lily? Where's...where's Cassie?" He sat up and looked around, fear in his eyes.
Lily put a calming hand on his shoulder. "It's alright Cedric, James has taken Cassie to the hospital wing. She'll be okay."
Cedric relaxed a bit then stood up and hurried to the door. Lily hurried after him.
They reached the hospital wing and found James pacing outside the door. Cedric reached for the handle but James shook his head. "Madam Pomfrey isn't letting anyone in there." He looked at Lily. "It's not looking good."
Cedrics heart seemed to stop. "What do you mean?"
James sighed. "Cassie was poisoned with something Madam Pomfrey hasn't even seen before. She's sent a message ahead to St. Mungos, and she's preparing Cassie for apparition."
Cedrics head was still spinning from being knocked unconscious. His memories flooded back to him. "Where's Minnie and Draco?"
Lily smiled. "They're fine. Draco is the one who alerted us. He left Minnie with Ron and Hermione then contacted us through the floo network."
Cedric nodded. The door opened and Madam Pomfrey appeared with a stretcher floating behind her. "We will have to be quick, her condition is worsening."
Cedric looked at James, a question in his eyes. James sighed again. "Cedric, I know you want to be with Cassie, but something tells me you're needed here. The castle is in chaos."
Cedric knew James was right. He nodded and turned away, glancing back at Cassie before running down the hall.
He quickly found the rest of the DA gathered in the Room of Requirement. They all looked scared and angry.
Harry and Ginny were also there, sitting beside Minnie, who was pale.
Cedric took a deep breath. "The Aurors have taken Umbridge and the students who were helping her back to the Ministry for questioning."
The group seemed to sigh with relief.
Draco spoke up. "Where's Cassie?"
Cedric swallowed hard. "She's been poisoned. Her aunt and uncle are taking her to St. Mungos right now."
Harry looked up. "My parents were here?"
Cedric was glad to see that Harry was sane for the moment, and nodded. "Right now we need to help everyone stay calm and keep people from hexing each other."
The group nodded and they left the Room of Requirement.
Cho Chang came up to Cedric, tears welling in her eyes. "Cedric, I'm so sorry. Marietta is the one who told Umbridge, and now Cassie's sick, and Minnie was tortured, and-"
Cedric cut her off. "Cho, it's not your fault. Minnie is fine, and Cassie will be. Don't worry about it."
Cho smiled and left. Cedric felt his muscles relax. He hadn't even realized he'd tensed them. Cho had had a crush on him and she didn't really like Cassie for that reason, but that seemed to be fading away.
He walked over to where Minnie and Draco were sitting next to Harry and Ginny.
"Are you feeling okay Minnie?" He asked.
Minnie nodded. "A little tired, but I'm fine."
Draco frowned. "I keep telling her to go to the hospital wing, but she won't."
Cedric grinned. "The Potters are pretty tough, Draco. Minnie is probably just fine."
Draco looked like he didn't quite agree, but he nodded.
Harry was staring at the wall intently. "Why are there thestrals over there, Ginny?"
Ginny bit her lip. "Harry, there aren't any thestrals, it's just the sickness." She said gently.
Harry's face fell. "Oh. I'm sorry."
Ginny looked close to tears.
Harry looked up at Cedric. "Is Cassie okay?"
Cedric nodded. "She'll be okay. She should be at St. Mungos by now."
Ginny spoke up. "How was she poisoned?"
Cedrics face went hard. "Theodore Nott was the one who grabbed her. It was probably him. Cassie's lips were a weird color, I think...I think he kissed her," his fists clenched at this. "And that's how the poison was transferred."
Ginny looked stunned, but also mildly impressed.
Cedric still felt angry at Theodore, and promised himself to save his best hex for him.
The DA successfully kept the rest of Hogwarts under control, and two hours later Sirius and Remus arrived.
Cedrics heart leapt at the sight of them. "How's Cassie?"
Remus grinned. "She's fine. Been asking for you."
Cedric smiled with relief.
Sirius smirked. "So, when's the wedding?" He said loudly.
Cedric went red and glared at Sirius as a bunch of seventh year girls who knew Cassie came rushing up to him asking about the wedding.
Sirius grinned and he and Remus walked away, leaving Cedric to the masses.
One month later Cassie and Cedric sat under the oak tree, watching the sunset.
Cassie thought back to all the times she had sat under this tree, and concluded that this was the best time.
Cedric was thinking about how for the last month people had kept harassing him about a wedding that wasn't even happening yet.
"Ced, you know those rumors about a wedding that have been floating around?"
Cedric nodded and sent annoyed thoughts in the direction of Sirius Black.
Cassie spoke slowly. "Well, I know we've never really discussed this, but when do we want to get married?"
Cedric thought for a minute. "Well, I don't really know."
Cassie smiled. "I thought sometime in spring might be nice."
Cedric nodded. "Yeah, I like spring."
Cassie leaned against his shoulder. "I love you."
Cedric kissed her hair, which smelled of flowers, specifically hollyhocks. "I love you too."