Thirty-Two:

This would be the second year in a row that the Diggorys would be spending Yule without their son. While Amos was not pleased with this, he could at least be grateful that it is under better circumstances than the previous year.

In fact this would likely be for the best as Cedric ought not be present for the conversation that Amos was hoping to have with his parents this evening.

"Oh Amos if you're going to laze about could you at least do it somewhere out of the way?" griped his Elena as she bustled by, their house elf Tinky following close behind with a freshly laundered table linen clutched in her spindly, green arms.

"My apologies, dear." Amos chuckled as he moved out of their way. "Anything I can help with?"

"Put on your dress robes!" she called over her shoulder. "And for Merlin's sake, please make sure to be near the floo when your father arrives."

He sighed at the mention of his father. He was not looking forward to having to spend yet another holiday with his father without Cedric around to distract him. Even still, he did as his spouse requested and put on the russet colored dress robes that his sweet wife laid out for him, taking extra care to make sure there was not a hair out of place; no need to give his father any extra ammunition against him.

Amos' trek to their entrance way was not a pleasant one as he did his best to fight down the mounting dread that always seemed to ail him whenever he had to spend an extended amount of time with his parents.

He elected to stand just next to the fireplace, rather than sit on one of the tufted benches near it; at the very least he would not be immediately berated for laziness.

After a moment's wait the fireplace flared emerald green and his father came tumbling out, closely followed by his mother.

Amos opened his mouth to greet them, however before he could get a word in he was met with a face-full of his father's overcoat when the man carelessly tossed it in his direction.

"Eldritch." hissed his mother. With a flick of her wand the coat floated off of Amos and onto the coat rack nearby.

"Oh, you must forgive me." stated his father in quite possibly the least apologetic tone Amos had ever heard. "I mistook you for a coat rack, with the way you were lingering around the floo."

There was truly no winning against this man.

Such had always been the case for Amos. While Eldritch Diggory was known to many as a rather intimidating individual with his heavy silver brows and piercing blue eyes to Amos Eldritch was the embodiment of all of Amos' insecurities. The man truly took every opportunity to belittle and disparage every aspect of his son. Amos had no clue what he'd done to earn such hatred, but over the years he'd eventually grown used to it.

"Yes, well it's good to see you both." Amos said with a strained smile as he herded them towards the parlor room, letting out a sigh of relief when he noticed a freshly prepared tea service on the refectory table.

"I've missed you, darling." said his mother, patting him gently on the cheek as he helped her settle into her seat. "Have you been well?" The question was genuine, as she inspected his form. "Oh dear, I see you've lost a bit of weight."

"I'm fine, mother." Amos soothed with a patient smile. For all the love his father lacked, his mother made up for in spades. Ametie Diggory was a well of kindness and gentleness, everything one would want in a mother.

"However," began tentatively, occupying himself with serving tea, eyes trained firmly away from his parents' face. "I fear ah- ...well, I believe a conversation needs to be had."

"And what exactly are we having now, a rodeo?" snapped Eldritch. "If you've something to say, boy then say it, I've not the patience for your usual stammerings."

'When have you ever?' thought Amos resentfully.

"It is regarding Cedric." Amos finally stated. "He is... unwell."

"Ah." said his mother softly, her tone strangely positive given the news. "Then I think this conversation is best had with Elena present as well, don't you agree?"

Amos ignored the guilt in the pit of his stomach as he replied. "I'd rather it just be the three of us. I don't want to worry her."

Eldritch was having none of this. "Absurd. Get your wife now or we'll both be leaving."

"No father, I won't have her worrying unnecessarily, this is my burden to bear."

"Indeed it is, your burden," hissed the elderly man, a cruel smile snaking its way onto his face, a repugnant sort of excitement shined in his eyes. "and I won't allow you any sort of reprieve from it. I want to see the look on your face when Elena realizes just how badly you've screwed up."

"What?" Amos sputtered, blinking incredulously. "What do you mean I've screwed up?!"

"Yes, what do you mean by that?" said a quiet voice from the doorway behind him. He turned to find his lovely wife standing in the entrance, looking as radiant as ever despite her unreadable countenance.

"Elena!" Eldritch greeted happily. "Come take a seat, my lady, it seems your husband has quite a revelation for us."

She entered the parlor cautiously, taking a seat on an unoccupied chaise. She startled, a moment after, realizing herself. "Oh, where are my manners? I've yet to even properly greet you! It's good to see you both again."

"The same to you, my dear." Ametie responded sweetly, serving up another cup of tea with a flick of her wand, which Elena took gratefully. She then leveled her son with a stern look, "Now what were you saying Amos?"

"I-" Amos couldn't help but glance at his wife, who stared back, her entrancing eyes curious and the slightest bit fearful.

There was truly nothing on this earth he feared more than that gaze, than the thought of those eyes one day looking back at him with disappointment. He'd do just about anything to keep her happy. Anything to keep her love.

But, his parents were right, as Cedric's mother, she deserved to be a part of this conversation. She would be disappointed in Amos if she found out he'd lied to her.

He looked back at his parents. "It has come to my understanding that Cedric is... unusually fixated on another student at Hogwarts."

"Oh is that all?" Elena said in a relieved tone. "Amos, you needn't get so worked up over a little crush."

"That isn't what this is, my love." Amos stated firmly. "Cedric is ill." He inhaled a shaky breath doing his best to regain composure. "I have been in correspondence with Jonathan Davies-"

"Amos!" Elena exclaimed. "Do you not recall how angry Cedric was when we read a letter of his? Talking to his friends behind his back is a complete invasion of his privacy!"

Amos nodded. "I'm fully aware, but it was necessary given the circumstances. You see, I- I recently happened upon a pair of omnoculars that Cedric had purchased at the Quidditch World Cup. They stuck out to me because Cedric had acted... strange during that event. I'd noticed he hardly paid any attention to the match and I wanted to know why he bothered to purchase the omnoculars when he hadn't any interest in the game." He paused to take a sip of his tea. "...The footage I found there was deeply disturbing. At no point did he even turn to look at the game, it was simply hours upon hours of footage of this person he is fixated with."

"Well, that is odd." admitted Elena tentatively. "But, I hardly think that gives you the right to claim he's- he's mentally unstable or whatever it is you're implying."

"I realize. This is why I decided to reach out to Jonathan. He's Cedric's closest friend and given how distant Cedric has been with us lately I doubted that he would divulge anything to me if I confronted him directly."

He sighed, reaching into the pocket of his robes to pull out a folded slip of parchment. "To my dismay, Jonathan was in complete agreement with my assessment of Cedric." He extended the letter for Elena to read aloud,

Dear Mr. Diggory,

I must admit that I am very grateful to finally have someone to confide in about this matter, though I am somewhat surprised that it would be you of all people. I mean no offense, but to my understanding your relationship with Cedric is somewhat strained and Cedric is generally very good at hiding his emotions. I suppose I ought to applaud your observation skills.

I have also seen evidence of Cedric's obsession with Potter-"

Elena glanced back at Amos at this, expression incredulous. "Potter? As in Harry Potter?"

"Yes." Amos confirmed. Out of the corner of his eye he could see his mother cover her mouth with her hand, eyes wide.

Elena continued.

"I have also seen evidence of Cedric's obsession with Potter. It seems to be that gaining Potter's regard has become Cedric's driving force in life. Every decision he makes is made with that goal in mind. In a way it has actually benefited him greatly as it is the reason he's taken his education much more seriously. But, I fear it is not sustainable if Potter were to reject him. I don't know if Cedric would be able to cope.

I will add that I don't think that Cedric is a danger to Potter, more so that he is a danger to himself. Despite this, I ask that you divulge this information to as few people as possible. Cedric would not react well to the thought of others knowing of his fixation. I am entrusting you with this information because it's my hope that our combined knowledge of Cedric will be enough to figure out how to help him. Please don't make me regret this letter, Mr. Diggory. Cedric is my best friend and with the way his mind is right now, he needs someone to keep him from spiraling further. If he finds out that I've shared this with you he will surely push me away.

Regards,

Jonathan Davies"

They sat in silence for a long moment, before Elena spoke again, "This- I- I don't understand-"

"That's alright, dear." soothed Eldritch with a gleeful little grin. "I do."

"This is no laughing matter, father!" Exclaimed Amos.

Eldritch swished his walking stick to and fro, the action reminiscent of a dog wagging its tail. "Oh quite the contrary, boy. You must afford me a chuckle at least. You know how hilarious I find any evidence of your incompetence."

Ametie placed a hand atop her husband's, stopping the man's cane wagging immediately. "Enough Eldritch."

All mirth slipped from the man's face as he sent an apologetic glance in his wife's direction. "Of course, darling." His already stiff posture straightened even further as he turned to address his son.

"Cedric's ailment does not come as any news to us. In fact I did attempt to circumvent this outcome, but just as you do with everything else you couldn't help but ruin it, boy."

Amos elected not to respond to the barb, waiting for his father to continue.

"Perhaps you are not aware of this, Elena, but the Diggorys were once known as the Sewlyn family up until the turn of the 18th century."

"The Sewlyn family?" Questioned Elena. "Of The Sacred 28? But, weren't they a-"

"A dark family? Indeed they were. Magic blacker than the Blacks, many say."

He paused to take a sip of tea, grimacing when he realized it had cooled. With a tap of his wand the cup was steaming again. "The pursuit of dark magic brought great power and fortune to the Selwyn line, however they were not above the consequences of wielding the dark arts. Eventually we became afflicted with a blood sickness."

"Blood sickness?" questioned Elena solemnly.

Eldritch nodded. "A blood curse may be a more apt way to describe it, but it has always been referred to as blood sickness. Since you were born into a family so firmly ensconced in light magic, this concept must be fairly foreign to you, Elena, but think upon the characteristics of all the people you know who hail from long lines of black magic. What do they have in common?"

"Well," Elena began in a diplomatic tone. "They're often quite ambitious-"

"Ambition often causes people to turn to forbidden magic, rarely is it the other way around. Think about the negative aspects of these people."

Elena, ever the angel, looked uncomfortable at the thought of intentionally thinking poorly of other people, but even still, she spoke again after a moment, "Mean-spirited comes to mind." she said tentatively, glancing in Amos' direction for affirmation. "Cruel even. And sometimes... well, sometimes they're a bit... disturbed aren't they?"

"Indeed." Eldritch nodded. "Such is the nature of black magic; continued use will permeate your blood and twist your mind in ways that will make you more dependent upon it, going so far as to befoul your entire lineage. The Black family is of course a great example, their blood sickness manifested as an unparalleled bloodlust. The Gaunts, meanwhile, were so fixated on blood purity that their incestuous couplings ended their line entirely. And the Selwyns were as mad as the rest of them, known for their obsessive nature and a propensity for cruelty. But, my darling son's namesake, the first Amos Diggory saw these traits for what they were; the methodical poisoning of our bloodline. He knew that if we continued on this path our bloodline would undoubtedly die out."

He paused to refill his teacup, taking his time adding sugar and milk. He took a leisurely sip before he continued. "He took measures to distance the family from black magic and take on an entirely new moniker, one that, with time, would not be associated with the negative traits that permeated the Selwyn family after years of misuse of dark magic."

"I- I see..." Elena looked shell shocked, her small hands twisting anxiously in her lap. "Well, his methods were clearly very effective. I see no evidence of a propensity for dark magic in Amos or Cedric."

"Well, Amos doesn't have a propensity for any sort of magic, my dear." Sniped Eldritch, unable to resist any opportunity to insult his son. "But, I fear your assessment of Cedric may not be entirely accurate. You see-"

Ametie placed a gentle hand atop his own and immediately, his mouth snapped closed, as he turned enraptured eyes upon his wife.

"Have you ever wondered," began the woman in her usual demure, almost sleepy tone. "why we had your marriage arranged at such a young age?"

Elena blinked at the sudden pivot in conversation.

Ametie continued. "It was before either of you were even born. The moment I found out I was pregnant, Eldritch immediately approached your father with a proposal for your hand, Elena, love."

"Well it was-" Elena began haltingly, still a bit confused. "Eldritch called in his life debt, yes? In exchange for saving my father's life I was... promised to your family." She said the latter part with a small measure of discomfort. Though she was happily married to the love of her life, she and Amos had always disapproved of the concept of an arranged marriage and agreed that their son deserved more agency than they were ever afforded.

"Yes." nodded Ametie slowly. "You were even named after Eldritch in honor of that debt. However, Eldritch had served as an Auror for many years before your conception and had amassed many life debts in that time. Why do you think you were chosen specifically?"

"Well, that's because you were close, yes? You and father. The best of friends."

It was not often that Eldritch laughed, but when he did it always had a way of catching everyone off guard, perhaps because of its infrequency. It was booming, cacophonous, as though Elena had just told a very good joke.

"Is that what he told you?" He snickered, wiping a tear from his eye. "What a silly man! Rest his funny little soul. No no, we were not close. In fact he could hardly stand me and my, I quote, 'callous and unyielding approach to law enforcement.' No, if anything I think he likened himself to something like a rival, or maybe even an enemy in his more dramatic moments. I can assure you, we did not select your family due to any sort of camaraderie."

His tone was fond, like someone speaking of a valued pet or an amusing child. Elena could see why her late father would not have gotten along with someone who patronized him so.

Ametie continued, "It was your magic. Or rather, your family's proclivity for light magic, more specifically cleansing and neutralizing magic."

"Indeed." Eldritch agreed solemnly. "Your mother was a renowned curse breaker in her heyday while your father excelled at defense against the dark arts. They were the perfect combination, you were the perfect combination."

Elena wasn't sure what to say to this, she'd come to terms with the fact that her whole life had been planned since birth, but something about it all playing a role in a larger scheme made it feel even worse. To think that her love life was the result of this strange family's machinations rather than a display of gratitude on her father's part was sickening.

"Enough, Eldritch." scolded Ametie lightly. "You're disturbing the poor girl." she turned a sympathetic smile in Elena's direction. "The fact of the matter is that the more light magic introduced into the bloodline, the less dark magic there is for the blood sickness to feed on. However, I'd like to make it clear that it was only our hope that you and Amos would fall for one another. If either of you had ever expressed that you were unhappy with one another we would have broken the engagement immediately and found a different suitor for our son."

The thought of being so easily replaced irritated Elena, but she did feel somewhat better about the arrangement. In truth, though she had never liked the concept of an arranged marriage, she had always been happy with her spouse, so she supposed it all worked out in the end.

"But, I am grateful that things went the way they did. As Eldritch stated earlier, the Selwyns were known for their obsessive nature. If you had not returned Amos' feelings, it would have been very hard to wean him off you."

Amos scoffed, the first time he'd made any noise in awhile. "I'm not obsessive, mother." he snapped, in perhaps the coldest tone he'd ever used towards his own mother. "You compare me too often to my father. If Elena had ever-" he faltered, suddenly unable to put his thoughts into words. "If she... if she hadn't wanted to- wanted me-"

"You can't even say it." stated Eldritch neutrally. "You needn't. She loves you despite your many shortcomings."

Amos felt ridiculous, finding comfort in those words, but even still he breathed a shaky sigh of relief.

"But you're not entirely wrong." Eldritch admitted. "You have far better control over your darker nature than I. And it is due in no small part to the fact that you grew up knowing that Elena's hand was promised to you."

"I did not have that luxury. When I met Ametie it was not a gradual succession into love, it was not even a sudden passionate ardor. It was an obsession, a slow agonizing descent into madness."

Amos had never heard his father speak so earnestly. For once the man had relaxed his stiff posture, hunched over in perhaps shame or maybe even a physical manifestation of his twisted thoughts. The grip on his cane was slack, but he held Ametie's hand tightly, as if she were the crutch.

"I did everything in my power to prevent you from going down the same path and asked you time and time again to do the same for Cedric. But as always, you ignored me and now here we sit."

"Well," said Elena softly, a determined glint in her eyes. "What can we do to help him now?"

A/N: I'm not really sure how a chapter featuring only tertiary characters ended up being one of my longest ones yet, but I apologize.