Author's Note: Here's a pretty long one for you  There won't be more up until Monday probably, we really hope you like this chapter 

One Month Later

Faye, Hailey and Lissa found a seat in the front row for the first task. The champions were battling dragons for their next clue which lay inside a golden egg.

Faye sat down, looking over at the tent where all of the champions were and nibbling on her bottom lip nervously.

"I'm sure he'll be fine," Hailey mumbled, sensing her nervousness. She looked over at her friend and smiled a little before looking back at the champion's tent.

The past month had left Faye in the same position than she had been before. Nowhere. She wasn't anywhere with Cedric at all, she barely looked at him when he said hi.

She often caught him gazing at her in class or at meals. She always wondered what it would have been like if she had just told him why she couldn't be with him...would he accept her or push her away?

She sighed and felt her heart begin to race as Cedric stepped out of the tent and into the arena, staring up at her briefly before going on to battle his dragon

She swore that she held her breath the entire time, jumping as the dragon almost got him once. She screamed in horror as he got burned on the side and her hands flew to her mouth, staying there as she watched with bated breath until finally he reached the egg.

After the task, she had to restrain herself from running over to the medical tent to make sure he was all right.

She sighed and slowly walked back to the castle along with everyone else, her head looking back now and then, as if trying to see if he was alright.

"If it's bothering you that much, why don't you just go over and see if he's ok?" Lissa said snobbily.

Hailey hit her on the arm. "Lissa, shut up!" she hissed.

Faye sighed and walked ahead of the two as they continued to bicker, ending up the first person in the common room. She sat down in front of the fireplace and warmed her hands.

Ten minutes later, all the Hufflepuffs were in the common room, celebrating Cedric's victory in the first task. A few times, Faye caught Cedric glance at her but he looked away immediately.

"Alright, let's see what this thing is all about!" Cedric's exclaimed a moment later, holding up the egg for everyone to see.

Faye looked up in interest. Everyone cheered and he opened the egg to reveal a loud shrieking sound.

She immediately clapped her hands over her ears to shut the sound out, sighing in relief a moment later when Cedric shut the egg.

The party carried on for several hours. By midnight most people where up in their dormitories. The only ones left in the common room were Cedric and Faye.

She was seated in the same place, writing out the essay that was due in potions the next day.

Though her back was to him, she could feel his eyes on her. They hadn't been alone together since that day in Hogsmeade.

She swallowed thickly as he heard footsteps advancing towards her, stopping when they were about right behind her.

She jumped a little as Cedric placed a hand on her shoulder.

"I'm sorry," he said softly as she turned around to face him. She shrugged and her eyes darted back down to her potions parchment.

"What are you writing?" he asked, taking the chair next to her.

"Potions essay," she mumbled, forcing herself to concentrate on the essay.

She scribbled something onto the parchment, nearly groaning as she realized she was finished with it, blowing it dry slowly before setting it down on the table.

They sat in an awkward silence before Faye stood up. "I...I should go," she mumbled. Cedric stood up with her. "No, please, wait," he said, causing her to stop and turn around to face him.

"What is it Cedric?" Faye asked, pushing a strand of hair behind her ear as it ticked her neck.

"We can be...friends, can't we?" he asked. "I don't want things to be like this forever...so awkward."

"Of course we can," Faye replied, wringing her hands as his gaze intensified, "So yeah...um, I'm going to go to bed, night."

"Good night," he mumbled, sinking back into a chair as she ran up the stairs.

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Faye quickly ran inside as the rain pelted on her back, soaking through her clothes. It was an icy rain, it being early December. Surprisingly, they had yet to have a snowfall, just this icy rain.

She ran into the Great Hall, spotting Hailey waiting for her at the Hufflepuff table. "Sorry I'm late," Faye mumbled, taking her seat.

"Don't worry, I saved you some dinner, and Dumbledore made an announcement...on Christmas Eve, we're having the Yule Ball...it's like this big deal for the Tournament." Hailey told her.

"Ugh, great," Faye mumbled, wringing out some of the excess water from her hair and sitting down, grimacing as she looked down at her soaking clothes.

She knew that this Ball was going to bring back old feelings between her and Cedric. He was definitely going to ask her to go with him.

She sighed and dug into her dinner, finishing it in mere minutes before standing up, groaning as she realized she would need to go back outside if she wanted to get to the Hufflepuff dormitory quickly.

She took a shortcut back to the Hufflepuff common room. It was nearly empty...there were a few first years scattered around the room. She sighed, thankful that Cedric wasn't there. She planned to avoid him at all costs especially now because of the Yule Ball.

She pulled off her robes, hanging them over the fire to dry, sitting down and removing her shoes next, not caring if anyone came in, it was only her shoes and robes; she still had on her jumper and skirt.

About a half hour later, the common room started to fill. All the girls were whispering excitedly about the ball and all the guys were talking about who to ask.

Faye stood up to check on her robes, glad that they were dry. She slipped them on and rolled her socks off, putting them and her shoes in the crook of her arm before walking over to the dormitories entrance.

"Faye!" someone called and she stopped at the foot of the staircase, knowing exactly who it was and what he wanted.

"Yeah Cedric?" she replied, turning around a little bit even though she really didn't want to.

"Can I talk to you for a moment?" he asked.

"Sure...just let me change," she told him.

She came back down and they left the common room to wander the castle aimlessly. "I suppose you know why I want to talk to you," Cedric began.

"I think I do, but I don't know, I could be wrong," Faye told him, though a sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach told her she was probably right.

They were silent for a while until Cedric asked, "Do you wanna go to the Ball with me?"

"I'm sorry but no," Faye replied almost instantly. She didn't want to look up and see the disappointment on Cedric's face; she knew it would make it even harder.

"Just give me one chance," he said, stopping and turning to her. She looked up and saw the hurt in his eyes.

"No," she said firmly.

He sighed in frustration and swiped a hand through his hair quickly, messing it up a bit. "He looks even better angry," she thought.

"Is there...any chance at all of us in the future?" he asked. "I have to know." She bit her lip and avoided his eyes.

"I really don't think so," she told him, her hand messing with the cuff of her sleeve as she looked to the ground.

She could hear him walk away and fell back against the wall, sliding to the floor. She saw him walking away, her vision blurred from unshed tears.

She let out a breath and stood up, regaining her composure before looking down the hall after him. He didn't deserve all the pain he was feeling, didn't she owe him this? "No you can't...you can't get involved with him...or anyone," she reminded herself.

She closed her eyes and let two tears slide down her cheeks. After a minute she ran down the hall toward the Hufflepuff common room and straight up to her dorm.

On a stroke of good luck, no one was in the room and she quickly pulled off her clothes, throwing on a large t-shirt before slipping in between the covers and going to sleep.