Gen felt as if she had been walking for hours. She was going in circles, she had a strange suspicion that the trees tried to fool her into thinking she was getting somewhere. Night was coming on and it was getting steadily colder, she guessed it to be midnight when she stopped and sat down, her lips chattering with the frostiness that carried through the wood.
She heard a soft, silent padding on the ground and screamed as she saw the figure of a man, just a silhouette with the shadows of night, and judging by the short hair she feared it to be Draco. She began pushing herself away, not able to tear her eyes from the figure. He stepped into the moonlight and she stopped moving. It wasn't Draco, nor was it Lucius, Rabastan, or Rudolphus. It was instead a strange, unknown figure, a sling of arrows strung across his muscular bare back and a long wand visible in his wand belt. His head was tilted slightly and deep-blue eyes looked curiously at her, though his face was hidden in the deep shadows of twilight.
"Who are you?" she demanded indignant. "Were you sent by the Death Eaters?"
"My name is Cedric and I don't know Lucius…personally at least," he said. "I know of him however. Foul vermin that he is"
"And?" she asked, wondering if he had come down to be the giver of her death sentence.
"Well, I was just going to watch your way out to make sure you didn't cause trouble," he shrugged. "But when you sat down in the middle of the forest I thought you looked cold and alone and I couldn't leave you to sleep in the middle of the path. You can wear this if you'd like," he said, holding out a dark green cloak.
"I'm not cold," Gen said stubbornly, hoping he didn't notice her freezing shudders. She was unsure of this man, despite his great looks, Cedric, not knowing who he was or what he was doing in the forest.
"You're blue," he said kindly. "Go on, take it. I can find a place for you to sleep for tonight, and you can continue on your way in the morning." Gen shivered and put on the cloak, warming quickly again. "You look tired," he said, "so I won't take you far, but it will at least be warmer." Genevieve stood and followed, wishing she could see his subtle features more clearly than the shadows of the forest seemed willing to show to her.