All these characters are owned by J.K. Rowling. I own nothing. Here is a quick update for all of you.
Chapter 5
The next day was not pleasant for Hermione. She had detention with Snape soon, she had been really busy all day working on a parchment for Transfiguration, which she knew she would have to help Harry and Ron with at some point, she hadn't seen Cedric all day, and Harry and Ron left her alone to get answers from Dumbldore about why he who must not be named was in the dark forest. They didn't find out anything though. Dumbledore didn't even talk to them about it. When they got back to the common room they grabbed their brooms to go and practice Quiddich. She would never understand the appeal of Quiddich. Cedric liked Quiddich too. Cedric didn't start yet, but he was the backup Seeker, and Harry just became the seeker for the Gryffindor team, so Quiddich was always a topic of conversation with her group of boys.
Hermione finally stopped doing her assignment to go to her detention with Snape. She was dreading it. She would never admit it, but Snape scared her. She was just thankful that she didn't have the detention alone. Cedric would be with her, and that thought almost made her look forward to going to detention… almost.
At 8:00pm when all classes were over Hermione said goodbye to Ron and Harry and made her way into the dungeon. She still hadn't seen Cedric all day and was worried he wasn't going to show up. As she went down the stairs Hermione felt a little scared. It felt like she was being watched. The hallways were dark and empty. The only light came from a few torches on the walls. Hermione walked towards Snape's office until she heard someone take a step behind her. Hermione turned quickly as a figure at least a foot taller than her yelled boo.
Hermione nearly jumped out of her skin and she let out a little squeak. The person behind her was now in a fit of giggles, and Hermione went from scared to happy to annoyed in three seconds.
"Holy cricket Diggory are you trying to kill me!" Hermione yelled.
"Sorry Granger… actually I'm not. That little squeak you made was well worth your fury. I thought Gryffindor's animal was a lion not a mouse!" Cedric said failing to hold in his laughter.
The laughing stopped when Snape's door opened and the young students were face to face with the meanest teacher in the school.
"Mr. Diggory do you think that you can lower your voice so that the students in the Astronomy tower can't hear you?"
Cedric gave a short nod.
"Good now you two get in my office I have many cauldrons that need cleaning." Snape said.
"But professor can't you just use magic?" Hermione asked.
"Did I ask for your opinion Ms. Granger? The cauldrons will be cleaned however I say they will be cleaned now I suggest you keep quiet and get started. You don't want to be here all night." Snape said as he went to sit behind his desk and began writing something.
Cedric rolled his eyes at Snape and turned to the cauldrons. There were about 30 cauldrons in piles all over the back of the classroom. Some sponges along with buckets of soap and water were next to them.
Hermione picked up a bucket and began to scrub a cauldron with a sponge. Cedric followed her lead and grabbed his own bucket.
"What is this thing?" Cedric whispered holding the sponge.
Hermione smiled despite the hours of work ahead of her. "It's a sponge. Muggles use them to clean things like dishes." Hermione said like it was the most obvious thing in the world.
"Oh." Cedric mouthed and went to work.
About an hour and four cauldrons later Hermione yelped and dropped the cauldron shaking her hand.
"Careful Ms. Granger some of those cauldrons had very harmful potions in them. We wouldn't want to have to send you to the hospital wing." Snape said not even looking up from his desk.
"What kind of teacher willingly endangers his students!?" Cedric yelled as he took hold of Hermione's hand to see what harm the potion had done.
"Mr. Diggory I suggest that you never raise your voice to me again unless you would like to have detention with me for the rest of term." Snape said angrily.
Cedric ignored Snape and was looking at Hermione's hand.
"Are you alright?"
"Yeah it just burned a bit. I'll be fine." Hermione said.
Cedric lightly rubbed the little red mark the potion left.
"Don't worry she'll live. None of the potions were deadly Ms. Granger is fine Diggory now get back to work." Snape said annoyed.
Four hours later they were finally finished. Their hands were pruned and cramping but it was finished.
"Alright I will examine these cauldrons tomorrow morning and if they are not as clean as they should be you will come back tomorrow night and finish. Now get back to your common rooms." Snape said.
Cedric and Hermione nodded and all but ran out of the room. Once they were out of the dungeon they breathed a sigh of relief.
"Merlin's beard that Snape is a nasty git!" Cedric exclaimed.
"I think my hands are going to fall off." Hermione said rubbing her wrist.
"Is your hand alright?" Cedric said grabbing her hand and looking at it.
"Yeah it's just red." Hermione said pulling her hand back.
"Maybe you should go to the hospital wing just to be safe."
"Cedric please it's a little red circle on my palm. Don't worry about it." Hermione said crossing her arms so Cedric couldn't look at the hand anymore.
"Fine but when your hand falls off during the night you'll be sorry and then I'll tell you I told you so and you'll want to hit me but you won't be able to because you won't have a hand!" Cedric shouted in mock horror.
"Shut up you goofball." Hermione laughed at his antics.
They were on the Hufflepuff common room floor but Cedric insisted on walking Hermione to her common room.
"It just makes no sense to walk all the way to the seventh floor and then walk all the way back down." Hermione complained.
"Do you ever stop nagging? What if you fall down the stairs or if some bloody lunatic is hiding behind a statue and tries to kill you? What then Granger. Do you want me to live with the guilt of knowing I could have saved you?"
"All those things can happen to you on your way back down. Then I'll live with the guilt." Hermione pointed out.
"I'm the guy I can't let you walk to your common room alone. You're supposed to live with the guilt and I'm supposed to die." Cedric said.
"You are so weird. I wonder what your little fan club would do if they knew how much of a weird goofball you really are." Hermione said teasingly.
"They'd probably just love me more. It's all part of my charm." Cedric said cockily.
"So modest too. You're just the perfect catch." Hermione said sarcastically.
"You know it Granger." Cedric said with a wink that made Hermione blush.
They walked in silence for a few minutes before Hermione spoke again.
"Did you tell anyone about last night?" Hermione asked Cedric.
"No way. If I told one of my friends the whole school would know." Cedric said.
"Why do you think he's here?" Hermione asked.
"I don't know" Cedric said with a shrug. "Hopefully Dumbledore finds out or we're all going to be in big trouble."
"Do you think Dumbledore is going to get in trouble for not telling anyone about this? I mean shouldn't the ministry know? Your dad works in the ministry don't you think you should tell him?" Hermione asked worriedly.
"Whoa calm down. My dad wouldn't be able to do anything either. I think we should just do as Dumbledore says. He is the greatest wizard in the world for a reason you know." Cedric said.
"I've been thinking about this since last night, and I can't think of any reason why a weak Vo.. why he would come to Hogwarts while he is so weak. Why would he come here to a place where the only wizard he ever feared is? I think he's here because there is something in the castle that can bring him back. Or maybe he's back to get revenge on Harry." Hermione whispered on edge.
"Hey relax. Even if there is something in here he wants he won't be able to get in." Cedric said.
"Unless he has someone working for him in the castle." Hermione said.
"Do you really think someone could be working for him in Hogwarts without Dumbledore knowing about it?" Cedric said to Hermione like she was stupid for even suggesting that.
"Dumbledore can make a mistake. He's not perfect you know." Hermione said irritated.
"Yeah I know but I think we should let Dumbledore handle it. Even if he's not perfect he's still better equipped to handle it than you, me, Potter, and Weasel." Cedric said pausing at the top of the staircase.
"Why don't you like Ron?" Hermione asked curious.
"He's just a bit of a git that's all. He makes you do his homework, he makes fun of my house, and he was mean to you at the start of term so I like to give him a hard time." Cedric said with a shrug.
"Well please don't give him a hard time because of me. I've forgiven him a long time ago." Hermione said passing Cedric and continuing to walk up the stairs.
"He likes you, you know." Cedric said from behind her.
"What?" Hermione said turning around to face Cedric. "Ron? Don't be daft. He has hardly given me a reason to believe he likes me as a friend let alone likes me… like that!"
"Exactly! Granger you're too young to know it, but the meaner he is to you the more he likes you." Cedric said knowingly.
"Well even if you're right which you're not what does that have to do with anything?" Hermione said blushing.
"Nothing I'm just letting you know incase a future with ginger kids and having the name Weasel appeals to you." Cedric laughed at his own statement.
"Shut up." Hermione said smiling too.
They finally reached the Gryffindor common room and both were hesitant to leave.
"Don't worry about you know who in the forest. Dumbledore will take care of it. You'll see." Cedric said.
You're probably right. I just worry too much." She paused and tried to think of something to keep Cedric there longer but couldn't come up with anything.
"Um thanks Cedric… for walking me." Hermione said nervously looking at the ground.
"Don't mention it Granger." Cedric said.
They both just stood there looking at each other for a minute until Cedric broke the silence.
"Well Granger I'll see you tomorrow." Cedric said as he waited for her to go in the common room.
"Yeah I'll see you tomorrow. Goodnight Cedric." Hermione said as she told the fat lady the password and walked in. "Thanks again." Hermione said with a wave as the door closed behind her.
"Anytime…goodnight." Cedric whispered to himself not really wanting to leave. As he turned and started walking to his own common room Cedric wished for the first time in his Hogwarts career that he wasn't sorted into Hufflepuff.