I've finished writing Book Six, however it will be undergoing a third draft rewrite in order to add some things, remove what's unnecessary, expand a couple concepts, and make sure everything makes as much sense as it can. There will be a hiatus after Chapter 50 and I'm not sure how long it will last, but I assure you it won't be forgotten.
They ended up landing in Perth and took a bus to Glasgow where they then bought tickets on a train to London. The car was strangely empty, allowing them to talk freely.
"Mum's going to go ballistic when we get home," said Fred.
"Might be best if we stop by Diagon Alley and shop for store fronts," said George. "Cedric, you in?"
"Are you mad?" Cedric asked. "I can't go house shopping in Diagon Alley, I'm going to be wanted for murder any moment now."
"But you didn't do it."
"I know that, but you think the Ministry will care about the truth? I don't have Hermione Sanchez-Granger, Junior Lawyer to help me and even then… Fudge wants anyone speaking up about Voldemort locked up. Hell, I bet if Voldemort were taking a dump on his desk Fudge still wouldn't believe his return."
"True," said George. "Where will you go?"
"Not sure yet, but I have an important package to send before I do anything else."
"We'll send it for you," said Fred. "What do you need to send?"
Cedric shrugged off his backpack and brought out the video and audio recordings going back from when Dumbledore left.
"This is proof of Umbridge's abuse," he said. "Not just to me but to other students."
"Right-o," said Fred. "Send it to Hermione then?"
"No. I don't want her to see what's on these," he said. "It will break her heart. No. Send them to Viktor. Use his real last name: Zdravkov. It will go directly to his house instead of to his P.O. box."
"Think Viktor can help?"
"He's a celebrity. He can at least make it known so that if the Ministry does nothing then the ICW will."
"True," said George, bringing out packing supplies from his trunk. "We'll express them. Get the fastest owl we can."
"Thank you."
"Maybe if she gets arrested you'll be allowed back to finish your N.E.W.T.s," Fred suggested.
"Maybe."
Fred expertly wrapped the crystals and tapes while Cedric dictated the instructions on how to view them and what they contained to George.
"I think you should go to HQ," said George. "Fidelius Charm and all."
That wasn't a bad idea. None of the Order Members, except maybe Snape, would offer him up to the WCU. He could hide out there until everything came to light. Or at least until he saw what kind of order there was. If it wasn't Kiss on sight then he could surrender and explain to Madam Bones what happened.
They fell silent as the door leading to another car opened. An old man hobbled in with a twisted cane. He had on thick coke-bottle glasses and patched up clothes. If it weren't for his meticulously trimmed beard and mustache and shiny shoes, Cedric might have thought him homeless.
The teenaged boys watched him shuffle further into the car. He briefly caught Cedric's eye and that was all he needed to know who this was.
"Hello, Albus," he said.
"Ah, I suppose I'll have to expel you for calling me Albus," Dumbledore teased, sitting down next to him.
"Too late," Cedric, George, and Fred chorused.
"How did you know we were here, sir?" asked Fred.
"He saw us boarding in Glasgow," Cedric replied before Dumbledore could give a vague response that would make him seem powerful and all-knowing. "Decided to follow us. Isn't that right?"
"Very perceptive, Mr. Diggory."
"So, what do you want?"
"Cedric," Fred hissed. "I know you're dealing with some stuff, but you should still be polite. Dumbledore is a great wizard."
Sure he was. Cedric could see that Dumbledore was only talking to them because he wanted something. Why wasn't Dumbledore blocking him? After all, he was a legilimens too. Hermione always knew when someone was entering her mind, but she was sensitive to magic.
"No, Mr. Diggory is right," said Dumbledore. "I wouldn't have come to you if it weren't absolutely important. After all, the three of you are members of the Order."
George and Fred straightened up with importance. They so badly wanted to be treated like adults and taken seriously. They would jump at any chance to be given a mission. Cedric couldn't let them go into it alone.
"I'll bite," he said.
"I've been in hiding," said Dumbledore, seemingly unperturbed by Cedric's attitude but deep down he wasn't happy about the lack of reverence he had grown used to. If asked, he would deny any such feelings and claim that people should stop treating him like the next Merlin, but really anybody would love and get used to such attitudes. "I have also been keeping an ear out in lower circles and a source of mine has said that Voldemort is going to be staging a break-in at the Ministry of Magic very soon and I have an inkling as to what he's after."
"Is it the prophecy concerning him and Harry?" Cedric asked.
This time Dumbledore looked shocked.
"How do you know that?" he asked.
"I've been teaching Harry Occlumency, remember?" said Cedric. "And then you had to ruin months of hard work by letting Snape at him."
"I would trust Severus with my life."
"Yeah, because you're giving him a cushy job with tenure," Cedric retorted. "But would you trust him with my life? Or Harry's? What about Neville's?"
Cedric caught a memory. Snape on his knees, with tears in his eyes begging Dumbledore to save Lily's life. Dumbledore agreeing as long as Snape agreed to spy for him. Hmph. So that was why.
"What's so important about this prophecy anyway?" Cedric asked.
Another memory. Professor Trelawney, much younger, was sitting in front of a crystal ball. She was unimpressive at first, giving wrong and hilariously dramatic predictions. Suddenly, her eyes clouded over and a green mist curled out of her mouth as she spoke in a voice that didn't belong to her:
"The one with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord approaches… Born to those who have thrice defied him, Born as the seventh month dies … And the Dark Lord will mark him as his equal, but he will have power the Dark Lord knows not … And either must die at the hand of the other for neither can live while the other survives … The one with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord will be born as the seventh month dies… And it will take the soul inside him to ensure that it is so…"
Huh…
"It gives the key to Voldemort's defeat," said Dumbledore, only evading eye contact. "He only knows the first half and he desperately wishes to learn the rest so he can avoid his demise."
"So, if we get this for you, then you're going to give it to Harry, won't you?"
"I'm not sure Harry is quite ready for this information," said Dumbledore. "Right now, we just need to be focused on getting it before Voldemort does."
Ah… so that's why Harry was getting all of those strange dreams. Voldemort wanted him to get the prophecy for him. Perhaps he sensed that he was getting nowhere with these visions and had decided to take matters into his own hands.
"There's just one problem," said Fred.
"Actually, several," said George.
"You can't take a prophecy that isn't yours."
"The Ministry is really well guarded."
"Cedric is going to be wanted for murder any second now."
"Only Unspeakables can go into the Department of Mysteries."
"Actually," said Dumbledore. "You can access prophecies. I know the spell that will bring down the guards so you can take them. However, what is this about murder?"
"Oh, well, since you left, Umbridge has been a dictator," said Cedric with a mirthless smile. "Bailey Todd committed suicide after she agreed to let his parents pull him from school and she's pinning his death on me. So, thank you so freaking much, for not covering your ass better so that we were all left to her mercy."
"I see…"
Cedric knew that getting that prophecy was important. If they didn't try to get it first then more people would die. That wasn't worth a few more lines worth telling him what he had already concluded. That either he or Harry would have to die. Though the bit about Harry's soul was means for concern. If Harry died then would Voldemort be easier to kill? No… Harry shouldn't have to sacrifice himself like that.
"We'll do it," he said.
"We will?" George and Fred asked.
"On a couple conditions," he continued. "Number one, give us some time to prepare. Ask Kingsley to add a few more group shifts around the Department of Mysteries until May 3rd. That's when you, Albus, create a distraction to draw everyone away that night. The three of us will go in and get the prophecy. Just to be safe, draw them back to the Ministry after two hours and then disappear. They'll still see that something is hinky and might take matters more seriously with a prophecy missing."
"Hm… a clever plan," said Dumbledore with mild surprise. "Any other conditions?"
"Yes. You have to tell Harry what the prophecy entails," said Cedric sharply. "He has the right to know what he's up against."
Dumbledore stared at him a long moment, his thoughts racing a million miles an hour, setting up pieces on a chessboard containing rules and pieces only he knew about. Well, he and Cedric at this point. He really needed to guard his mind better. Or did he think you just needed to make direct eye contact? Cedric had been leaning his leg against Dumbledore's this whole time and knew exactly what was going on in that manipulative mind of his.
"Very well. What else?"
"I want you to promise that none of us will be seen or get caught. George and Fred need to open their joke shop and I can't have anything else against me right now."
"Promise you'll help clear Cedric's name once all is said and done," George added.
Dumbledore needed them to get that prophecy for him. If they did him this favor, then they were involved and at his disposal. He could tell them what a great job they did and sign them up for other missions he didn't want to do.
Bastard.
"I promise," said Dumbledore.
"Cross your heart?" Cedric asked.
"What a silly request," Dumbledore thought and crossed his heart with an indulging smile.
If the wizard had done his research, then he would have known that crossing your heart was a Tier Three Unbreakable Vow. If he broke his promise then there would be serious repercussions. Ones he might not be prepared to handle.
"Hang on," said Fred. "The third is a full moon."
"That's right," said Cedric.
"So how are we gonna break into the Ministry if it's a full moon?"
"I have a special potion that will push back my transformation," he replied. "I was hoping to use it for a moonlight boat ride with Hermione this summer and ask her if she'd like to be promised to each other, but this is fine, too. If we're going to pull this off, no one can know that I have it. On the fourth, they're going to be searching for werewolf attacks."
"Well, it seems you know what you're doing," said Dumbledore. "I will stage a distraction at eight o'clock in the evening on the third. You will have two hours to go through the Department of Mysteries and find the prophecy."
He wrote down the spell to lower the barrier protecting the prophecies so that they may be taken down and studied. Usually only the prophecies that came to pass could be studied, but it should work for one in the process of coming to fruition as well. Cedric knew exactly where the prophecy sat. Row 97, Shelf G. The biggest difficulty would be navigating the Department of Mysteries, but the three of them should be able to figure it out together. And maybe commit a little vandalism along the way.
"I appreciate your help," said Dumbledore, rising to his feet. "I will see you all soon. Make sure when you get the prophecy you bring it straight to me."
"Of course, sir," said Cedric.
The old wizard returned to his feeble old man disguise and shuffled back to the other car leaving the three of them alone again. Cedric narrowed his eyes. There was no way he was going to let Dumbledore get that prophecy.
"Guess we'd better start fine-tuning our plan," said George. "But why does he want us to get the prophecy?"
"Everyone else in the Order is a member of the Ministry," said Cedric. "None of them are willing to put their jobs at risk. And could you imagine him trying to rope your mother into going into the Department of Mysteries after… after your dad died trying to protect it?"
Their faces grew tight with grief.
"And without me there to help Harry with Occlumency, I imagine Snape might try "teaching" Harry again and that will only open up his mind to Morty," Cedric continued. "I wouldn't put it past him to lure Harry there in some way, maybe by making him think he kidnapped someone he loves. If not Sirius then maybe Roger or Beatrice or Chibuzo. Or worse yet, he actually would kidnap one of them. And if Harry goes on a rescue mission then you know Ron is going to go, too."
Neither of them liked the idea of their littlest brother getting into danger like that. As much as they gave him a hard time, they loved him and would do anything to protect him.
"Alright," said Fred. "We'll break in and wreak as much havoc as possible along the way."
"We can set up disguises," said George, lighting up. "What about polyjuice?"
"I might have enough," said Cedric, checking his potions box in his backpack.
"Why do you have polyjuice?" asked Fred.
"I brewed some up right after Dumbledore left," he replied. "I worried that Winnifred or Bailey would get trapped in a detention with Umbridge and if that happened, then I would just polyjuice as them and take the punishment."
"You're so good," said George admiringly.
"I know, that's why I'm in this mess in the first place," he muttered bitterly and tapped the bottles as he counted. "Yeah, I have enough, but if I'm going to have to hide then I need to keep as much as possible. We'll just do it the old fashioned way for you two. Bleach. Hair dye. Facial reconstruction spells. Creative clothing to distort proportions."
"That would be better," George agreed. "I will be Reginald Saunders. I'm new to the Ministry, and while I'm starting off as a lowly custodian, my dream is to one day be a proper official. Fred, you can be Lester Cox."
Fred made a rude gesture. "I am not calling myself Lester."
"What about you Cedric?"
"Listen, when we get to London, you two go ahead to Diagon Alley and find a shop front. I'll go straight to Grimmauld Place and tell Mrs. Weasley what's up so that by the time you get home, she'll have cooled down a bit."
Fred sighed with relief, "You're a saint, mate."
"Just, please send that package off for delivery."
"Absolutely," George agreed, patting the parcel in his lap. "First thing we do. Viktor…" he peered down at the writing. "Zdravkov. Why did he change it?"
Guess they didn't pay much attention when Mr. and Mrs. Zdravkov visited. Then again, minute details were probably forgotten after the Jerry Springer-esque family reunion Cedric was caught in the middle of.
"Karkaroff made him change it. Krum is actually his dad's first name and therefore his middle name."
"Huh. What's his Mum's name?"
"Lulu. Though if Viktor and Esperanza get married then he'll probably change his last name to Sanchez," Cedric mused. "Diego and Greg told me that they took on the name Sanchez."
"Not the Diego we know, right?"
"Correct."
"When you marry Hermione, which of her last names will you take?" George asked while Fred paled at the thought of marriage. "Or would she add yours on?"
"Well… Lotulelei-Sanchez-Granger y Diggory is kind of a mouthful," said Cedric. "Besides, my dad disowned me. He wants to believe I'm not his son? Fine, the Diggory name dies with him. I'll be Mr. Hermione Lotulelei-Sanchez y Granger."
He wouldn't actually marry Hermione for a while. They were still kids and yes, they both knew they wanted to be together, but it was still important to see how they managed with long-term distance. If everything went according to plan, then he would be working at his dream job by autumn. He clung to that thought like a lifeline, especially now that most of his savings were gone.
When they finally reached London, the three of them parted ways. Fred and George apparated to Diagon Alley, while Cedric went to buy some supplies then apparated to Grimmauld Place. He looked over his shoulder to make sure nobody was watching the place and entered the house. He looked around and listened for chatter to indicate that somebody was home.
His stomach growled, so he headed for the kitchen. The door swung open, clonking him in the face.
"Ow!"
"OH!" Mrs. Weasley cried, dropping her tray in surprise. "Cedric? What are you doing here? Oh, what happened to you?"
"So you haven't heard yet?" he asked, tearing up and rubbing his injured nose.
"Heard what? Oh, come and have a seat," she said, stepping over her fallen lunch and guiding him into the parlor. "I think Fred and George left behind some of that bruise gunk." She eyed him. "Though I don't think one tube would be enough."
His injuries must have set in. He was certain he looked terrible. Mrs. Weasley fetched her emergency kit and helped him the best she was able. Mending bones he hadn't realized were broken and patching up cuts.
"Now, what's going on?" Mrs. Weasley demanded. "Shouldn't you be at school?"
"Well… a few days ago, a kid committed suicide in the Hufflepuff boys' bathroom," said Cedric. "Umbridge is claiming it a murder and she's pinning it on me. She's going to be sending the Werewolf Capture Unit after me. But I didn't do it, Mrs. Weasley, I know what you think about werewolves but please believe me that I didn't do it. I cared about Bailey, I was trying to help him!"
"Wuh- Oh, Cedric," Mrs. Weasley wrapped him up in a hug. "Of course I believe you. I know what I thought about werewolves before but… well, I should learn to see past the end of my own nose. Not to worry, this house is under the Fidelius Charm so you can hide here."
"Thank you." Cedric sniffled and scrubbed the tears from his eyes. "You should be proud of George and Fred. It's because of them that I was able to escape."
"Was it?"
He nodded. "They made sure I got out safely."
"Where are they now?" she asked.
"They're at Diagon Alley looking for a store front," he said. "They're going to be expelled anyway for helping me. I think with Percy as the Minister's assistant that's the best outcome you could hope for."
"I see… and Ronald?"
"He's none the wiser about this whole thing. Harry and Ginny, too."
She sighed. "Good. I will be honest with you, I never thought Fred and George would have made it this far in school. The both of them are such clowns."
"And I'll tell you a secret," said Cedric. "They really wanted to make it. They wanted to get their N.E.W.T.s, however few in number, for you, but they decided to help me instead even at their own risk. I know it will be tempting to yell at them, ask them what they were thinking, but don't focus on what they didn't finish. If they hadn't come in, I would likely be dead by now… or worse."
She pressed her hands to her mouth and breathed deeply.
"I'm going to make a run to the market," she said at last, blotting tears from her eyes. "Do you need anything, Cedric? Anything at all?"
"I'm fine," he said. "Thank you."
He let Belle out of his backpack. She gave him a disgruntled look and stretched before slinking off to do her own thing. Cedric rubbed the back of his neck and sighed before going upstairs to one of the guest rooms. He kicked off his shoes and sat down on one of the beds.
"Show me Hermione," he said.
Her face appeared. "You're beat up again."
"I know," he said shortly. "Please, put your vigilantism on the back burner, I'm not calling about that."
Her face twitched with hurt at his tone, but she didn't push the issue.
"What are you calling about, then?"
"My arm is still busted and I need Noa to walk me through how to fix it."
"Fine. I'll give the mirror to her and I have to get to my driving lesson. My test is next week. I'll talk to you after, okay?"
"Sure."
She went out to her balcony and knocked on a glass door, which slid open a moment later.
"Hey, Noa," she said. "Can you help Cedric remotely fix his arm? Or are you busy?"
"I mean… I was studying," said Noa. "I have eight highlighters out, I drank two cups of coffee, and I organized my notes."
"And?"
"Yeah, I can help him."
"Thank you, thank you."
Noa placed the mirror in her lap and maneuvered around her room to her desk. She propped it up against a book and brought out some of her papers. For the next hour, she walked Cedric through fixing his arm. It was tough, and at some points he had to hold the prosthetic still between his feet so he could carve the proper runes and cast spells to fix the joints. When he was done, he put it back on over the sock and tested it out. He touched the tips of his fingers to his thumb one at a time, flexed them, rolled his wrist around.
"How's it feel?" Noa asked.
"My phantom limb pain isn't as bad," he said.
"Yeah, I'm working on a spell that simulates feeling to get rid of that," she said. "Maybe we can try it out in full this summer."
"Yeah. Sure."
She tipped her head and studied him. "Are you okay? I mean… you look like shit, but Ceci is still bringing you home, right?"
He forced an easy-going smile. "Yep. Peachy-keen. Listen, I got some stuff to take care of before I leave the country, so can you tell Mimi I'll call her later?"
"Sure, but you know she's about one bad news away from taking the next portkey to Scotland right?"
"I'm handling it," he said and snapped the mirror shut.
There was no way he was going to get Hermione involved in all this. He heard a creak in the hallway and drew his wand. Sirius entered with his hands raised.
"It's alright," he said. "Nobody knows you're here and I doubt anyone in the Order will turn you over to the Ministry. You're welcome to hide out here. We'll set up a room for you, okay?"
"Thanks." Cedric drummed his fingers against his arm. "Hey, Sirius, are you good with tattoos?"
Sirius grinned. "Well, sure. I have my own tattoo gun and ink and everything. James gave it to me when we graduated school." He rolled up his pant leg to show his first tattoos. Some looked smeared, others were shaky, some had muddy colors, and a few spots were scarred where he had gone too deep. "Took some time to get the hang of it. I eventually got better." He rolled up his sleeve to show neat, crisp tattoos. There were two sets of paw prints and two sets of hoof prints. "The Marauders and Lily. Though since Pettigrew betrayed me I changed the rat prints to otter prints. I think Hermione earned her place as a Marauder. Our creed was to raise hell and she certainly accomplishes that." He rolled his sleeve up more and showed Cedric the lion he gave himself. "I have a few more on my back. I made those with a spell. It still requires my concentration and at least two mirrors."
"Very cool," said Cedric. "Manny has tattoos from his wrist to his chest on his right side. I always admired the turtle on his shoulder and I was hoping you could do something similar. Not a turtle, but see…" He reached into his backpack and took out Bailey's drawing. "Can you do this?"
Sirius took the drawing and studied it. He nodded. "Yeah, I like the geometric designs. Do you want solid black or colors?"
"I was hoping for rainbow colors. I'd also like a few other tattoos. Think you can apply them to me before the next full moon?"
"I think so, but we won't be able to take a lot of breaks," Sirius warned. "Can you handle the pain?"
"I'm a werewolf, Sirius. I eat pain for breakfast."
"Alright. We'll map them out after dinner. So you definitely want the badger on your shoulder? How about the lunar phase on your forearm so you can never lose track?"
"That would be brilliant, thank you."
He followed Sirius downstairs to the kitchens where the Weasleys who weren't at school had congregated. Bill, Charlie, and Percy were interrogating Fred and George about what exactly happened. Percy noticed them enter and stood up.
"Cedric," he said and held up a poster.
Cedric took it and frowned. They had taken his annual photo and blown it up. Ugh, did he always have that stupid grin on his face? The poster read: WANTED! Cedric Diggory. And below his picture in smaller font: Cedric Diggory is a known werewolf and a suspect for murder. *Approach with Extreme Caution* If you have any information concerning this person, please contact your local Auror office.
"Not exactly one for the scrapbook is it?" he said and plunked down next to George.
"Maybe we can help," said Bill. "Clear your name, I mean."
Cedric shook his head. "No, you guys have been through enough. Fudge is looking for any excuse to hurt those who are making waves."
"That's true," said Percy, rubbing his face tiredly. "Cedric. If the Minister suspects that we are harboring you, he might use veritaserum on me and Bill."
"That's okay," said Cedric. "They're going to be watching Roger and Beatrice's place first. After the full moon, I'll go hide out somewhere else. Gather supplies in the meantime."
"Whatever you need," said Sirius. "Just ask and I'll get it for you."
"Thanks. I think I might actually want to talk to you about that in private later."
He nodded. "I understand. I'm immune to veritaserum, but the less everyone else knows the better."
"How did you get to be immune to veritaserum?" asked Fred, thinking about how that would be a good skill to acquire.
"Well, you see, my mother would slip veritaserum to me and my brother as children whenever one of us did something she deemed wrong," said Sirius. "Which was often. Both of us actually gained an immunity to it. I learned how to lie, Regulus learned to always tell the truth."
This was a source of bitterness for Sirius. Cedric wondered that if he had a sibling if they would have stood by his side or rejected him like Amos had. He was making himself sad from the thought so he decided to move on to a new topic.
"What's for dinner, Mrs. Weasley?" he asked.
The older witch put on her oven mitts and brought out small, ceramic dishes from the oven, placing beautifully golden pies onto the table.
"Well, though I am slightly disappointed Fred and George weren't able to take their N.E.W.T.s, I am proud of them for being brave and helping someone in need. So, I made their favorite. Shepherd's Pie for Fred." She slid the dish in front of him. "And creamy beef and mushroom for George." She kissed them both on the heads and hugged them.
They looked at Cedric in shock and he winked at them. They wouldn't say that they were planning on bailing anyway and that rescuing Cedric was just happenstance. They'd let Mrs. Weasley believe what she did.
"The other pies are divided between the flavors," she continued. "Shepherd's has the crimped crust and the mushroom has the flat edge. Everyone tuck in."
"It smells wonderful, Molly," said Sirius. "Thank you."
Cedric hadn't realized how hungry he was until he started eating. He ended up devouring three pies while Fred and George had two each. Though the motherly affection was not directed at him, he still latched onto the emotions wishing that someone would have looked at him in these past few months with an emotion other than pity, suspicion, or hatred. He hated how they felt, boring straight into his heart or prickling across his skin like stinging nettles or burning him like a freshly opened oven respectively.
Even if he did get his name cleared, nobody would really believe him innocent would they? It's easy to think the worst of someone if you never thought highly of them in the first place. He would go about the rest of his life with complete strangers recognizing him from his wanted poster and thinking him as that slimy git that got away with murdering some poor innocent child in cold blood.
He wasn't sure he could live with that hanging over him. Nobody would let it go. They'd quietly insist that it was only a matter of time before he committed some atrocity he couldn't weasel his way out of.
Hopefully the news wouldn't spread to his future employer. No doubt being a suspect for murder would nullify his contract, whether or not he had his N.E.W.T.s.
Bugger.
"WHERE IS HE?"
Cedric jumped as the kitchen door slammed open. At first he thought it was Hermione and he nearly jumped to his feet to embrace her before realizing it was Cecilia. She set those Sanchez eyes on him and hugged him tightly.
"I'm so sorry, Cedric," she cried. "I was supposed to get you last night and I didn't. I'm so, so, so sorry!"
"It's my fault," said Tonks, crashing in on his other side. "I wanted to come, too, but my mission ran long and we—I—didn't think much trouble could happen overnight. I just… how can anybody think you'd kill someone? I mean, I know how, but HOW?!"
Cedric whimpered and tapped their arms. They quickly let him go and he worked his jaw.
"I'm normally up for smothering, but I'm a little…" he gestured to his bruises… "Tender."
Their guilt and sadness fell off them in waves. He didn't want their pity. He didn't want anyone's pity. Why was everyone pitying him instead of, oh, taking action against Umbridge? He and Hermione had to do everything themselves didn't they? No wonder she left.
"I'm gonna tell Nia," said Cecilia, digging into her bum bag.
"No!"
"Cedric…"
"Just… give it until after the full moon," said Cedric. "Give me a chance to recover and a chance for us to handle proving my innocence here. If we can't do that then… yeah, we'll call her in, but I'm terrified that if we're not careful then the Ministry will look for an excuse to hurt her. I have a Kiss on Sight order on me, right?"
"That's what I heard," said Tonks unhappily.
"If my girlfriend, who has a habit of shaking things up, arrives in England ready to raise hell, what makes you think they won't have her questioned? They'll probably use the most corrupt Aurors who aren't afraid of unsavory methods. What makes you think they won't arrest her for obstructing justice? The Wizengamot knows exactly what she's capable of and doesn't want someone who will shatter the status quo running around. Umbridge knows how to release and control dementors! What makes you think she won't be Kissed?"
Cecilia shivered and pressed her fingers to her mouth. Everyone in the room knew he was right. While Hermione was likely able to help, they couldn't risk something happening to her.
"So, what is the plan then?"
"I hide out here," he said. "All of you make up sightings in other places, mention in a public place how worried you are and hope I'm okay wherever I'm hiding. Make it seem like I'm too smart to come to my friends for help."
"I'm sorry that you're in this position Cedric," said Sirius. "We'll keep you safe, here. Okay? Do you have anything we can use against Umbridge?"
"Sure."
They waited for a follow-up and Fred and George didn't clarify. Cedric rubbed the back of his neck and grunted when it popped.
"I'm exhausted," he said. "And I had, like, three pies. I'm gonna go slip into a food coma."
"You only heal when you sleep," Cecilia agreed. "Cedric, if we can't make any headway until—when did you say?"
"May Fourth."
"Right, if we can't make any headway by then… then I'm gonna call the family."
"I won't stop you."
Cecilia hiccuped a small sob and Tonks held her tightly.
"What do I tell Nia?"
"I told her I have to prepare to leave the country," he said.
"Mm, yes, good." She nodded. "We can work on setting you up with a disguise so we can sneak you out of the country and home to D.R."
"Way ahead of you," he said. "Until the morning of the fifth, stay with Roger and Beatrice. Make sure nobody hurts them and please… don't let them tell Hermione what's going on."
"You can count on me."