"Only a powerful Seer like myself can handle the burden of the eye. Seeing past the veil would drive any ordinary witch to an early grave. But when you are like me, your third eye is wide open, your chakra is strong, and the link to the paranormal necessary already exists. For a creature too weak to bear it, having their third eye pried open, well, it would drive them mad. Don't go tempting fate dear. You're either born with it, or you aren't."

-Sybill Trelawney

Chapter 12: I'm Still Not Kissing Cedric Diggory

In our small study room, Professor Sprout, the first years, and the third years met to exchange our vows. We first years were given special Hufflepuff ceremony robes and Badger masks for the occasion. We were really doing a lot just to make a magic promise to always be best friends. I was made to hold hands with Cedric, his large ones almost swallowing my own, and speak some words I had to memorize just a few moments before. They stressed it was very important I get it right the first time. Anyway, blah blah I said some things, Cedric said some things, and Professor waved her wand over our joined hands. Is this what it felt like to have a magical best friend? The pulse in my wrist seemed to match Cedric's. It felt…nice. Like we were…really close.

Closer than me and Dean.

Everyone had to do it, this unbreakable vow. The older kids seemed really serious about it but the rest of us, well, we just did it. I didn't think any of us thought we had a choice about it. Hannah Abbott almost seemed to be having a panic attack. She stuttered through her vow.

This all seemed really like a wedding so I could understand her being nervous. In America, child brides are illegal I think. Maybe not in England? Didn't matter.

I still wasn't kissing Cedric. Not even if they said I had too.

That's when things began to change.

"Ernie," I whispered. The boy in question peered up at me through his fringe. "Which one of these," I asked holding up two similar looking leaves, "is a Pipli leaf?"

We were in our regular evening-super-secret-not-sure-why-lesson. Ernie looked for a moment like he was going to answer, but then there was a cough and a nasty glare from his Guide, Sarah. She sat beside him filing her magenta claws, turning those ferocious cat eyes on me. Ernie gave me a small shrug before going back to his leaf diagram.

When my eyes met Hannah's, she promptly ducked behind the book she had set up on the table in what I think was an attempt to stop anyone from seeing her paper. I wasn't just being paranoid.

They were purposely avoiding me.

I mean I know when I'm being avoided. After the incident when I was five, everyone in my kindergarten class pretended like I didn't exist. The ones that did pay me any mind, threw sharpened pencils at me.

"This one," Cedric plucked the leaf from my right hand. "They look almost identical to each other but remember, the Pipli leaf is always perfectly symmetrical." Cedric loomed over me, preferring not to sit. He leaned over my head, gangly arms on either side of me, to show me as he folded the leaf in half vertically. All the lines and dents met in perfect symmetry down to the little scratches.

"That's so cool!" I held the leaf up to Leanne. She seemed to like me well enough. "Look! Weren't you having trouble too?"

"I wouldn't say that," She blurted out immediately before mumbling "…out loud." But she still smiled at me and folded her leaf in half too, awing at how every detail seemed to match up perfectly.

Leanne's Guide wasn't so thrilled by it. "Geez, what are we a bunch of Saps?" Cedric would later explain to me how Sap was what you called a pre-school-entry child learner, that doubled as an insult for older kids that seemed a little slow on the uptake. "Diggory, control your Muggleborn. This isn't a field trip you know and she's distracting Leanne."

Justin seemed to flinch slightly at the Muggleborn comment but otherwise remained uninvolved. He was a muggleborn, being born magic while having regular parents. I thought that was kind of cool. That even if I didn't have super rich dead devil-worshipping parents, there was a chance I could have been born magic anyway. I wished briefly that Jackie had been born with magic but we didn't part on good terms exactly. I had asked Justin once how his parents felt about him coming to Voodoo school, but he said they weren't very religious. So, I suppose I wouldn't have anyone to talk to about the occasional conflicts I had personally about my faith and what I was born, and where I was headed. Dean Thomas' mom was a Christian he said, but they mostly just went to Church on Easter and he didn't really see why you couldn't be a witch and a Christian.

I didn't want to laugh at him because I didn't think he was joking. I didn't want to tell him he was wrong because even though I had a pretty good idea that we were all hellbound, we had yet to cut open a goat or sacrifice any newborns. So, I could be wrong.

Not likely. But I could be.

The thing is, most of the group still spoke to each other. Whispering to one another. But no one was talking to me. No one was talking to Leanne either but her guide seemed to be blocking her off from the rest of us. Any time she so much as looked at anyone else, Maxwell Creevy, a short bulky third year boy, would physically grabbed her by the head and put her nose back in a book.

"This is a group lesson," I interjected. I don't know where sudden bravery came from. Maybe Justin's flinch, maybe Leanne's smile, or maybe I was just upset that it seemed like all my friends didn't want to be my friends anymore. "We were just fine before any of you third-years came along! Why can't we help each other? Hufflepuff are kind, right? Hufflepuff are-" I was rising out of my seat when Cedric clapped a hand on my shoulder and pushed me back into it.

"You've been a Hufflepuff for all of two seconds. You don't know what Hufflepuff are. You don't know what it takes to be Hufflepuff," Catwoman sneered. Then she turned her sharp gaze on Cedric. "My money's on Diggory's egg cracking first. I reckon she'll be this year's sacrifice. Go off and get topped by the Whomping Willow or some shite."

Cedric folded his arms with a smirk. "You're just upset that you wanted the McGowen and I got to her first. And now you're stuck with your one-trick pony. A fine chef you're going to be looking after."

Another older boy sniggered at that. Justin's guide had been silent the majority of the study hour with a few utterances of help for Justin here and there. "Oh what are you laughing at? Mind your muggleborn. We all remember when the last time one of those was crowned. Oh, that's right. NEVER." I was a bit confused. I thought the staple of being a Hufflepuff was kindness. This girl was-was-was nasty. "Be proud of your precious McGowen all you like, Unibrow. It's a dud. She's defective. Most little Trelawney jr'll be good for is Carnival parlor tricks and kissing Ernest here's feet. And that's if she doesn't top herself first. The unstable creature." The rant seemed to do it. Sarah had leaned back into her seat, quite proud of herself.

I didn't fully understand the exchange. I'd only heard of drinks getting topped off but it didn't make sense. And I knew she was calling me stupid. She was definitely calling me stupid. "I'm not defective!"

Sarah's perfectly arched brow raised. "When was the last time you contributed anything to your group lessons? When was the last time you helped Ernest or Hannah with anything?" I grew silent. Everyone was silent. "That's what I thought. I know who my competition is, and it isn't you, Sap. So don't go thinking of slowing my Golden Goose down, eh Humpty Dumpty?" She flipped her hair again and turned her attention to her goose. "You finished squirt?"

Ernie, who had hunched over his scroll in embarrassment, nodded. "Erm, yeah-yes."

"Right then." Her hand waved to the front of the room where Professor Sprout sat, ignoring us. "Professor! Ernie's done his leaf diagram! He's finished first!"

"Hannah has finished too!"

"Susan's almost done!"

"Who gives a flipping broom stick about almost, Ding-bat?"

I could feel the tears swelling in my eyes but a finger reached up to catch one before it hit my paper-parchment- WHATEVER. "Careful, Mary," Cedric cooed. "Don't let them see you weak. By the time we're finished with these arses, they'll be at your beck and call. You're going to make them regret ever calling you a Dud."

I turned my large baggy glassy eyes on chapped-lipped Cedric. "Yes," I smiled. "I will."

But first, my leaf diagram.

After school lessons in the first-year training room were never the same after that. It was tense, silent, and we were always competing to see who could finish their work first. Who could master a spell first. I was always last. Cedric was so patient, but I could tell I was sort of embarrassing him. It made me want to try harder. I wanted him to once, just once, be able to smack his hand on the table and say "Mary's finished! Mary's finished first!" But that never happened.

Our after-class lessons seemed to make regular classes feel easier. It was like everything we were learning always in some way, had to do with class. We used the Pipli leaves in potions and I immediately knew which was which. Dean believed I'd had it right and we were both able to make a beginner's antiseptic solution for cuts and scrapes. Seamus didn't want my help and chose the wrong leaf. The Kettle plant leaf, used as an accelerant in most explosives. See I knew things! I was even learning words like accelerant, and antiseptic! But part of the reason why lessons took me so long, was because of the extra time I needed to look things up and stay on task. Cedric was really good about helping me pay attention. He said he could tell when I was "drifting away from the dock" because he said I made a sort of face.

I hope it wasn't an ugly face.

Seamus! Yes, so Seamus didn't want my help. And so he used a Kettle leaf by mistake and it blew up in his face. I think by now we all know it literally blew up in his face. Professor Snape dipped a vial into Her-my-knee's cauldron and dripped it onto Seamus' angry red cheek. The skin seemed to pinken and the little trickle of blood stopped. "…Well done Miss…Granger." It seemed like he had a hard time giving compliments. "Five points for Gryffindor for Miss Granger's good work." A quiet round of hoots and yeah's went around the room. "And five points deducted for Mr. Finnegan's dangerous display of stupidity." The cheers stopped. Zacharias chuckled briefly but stopped immediately when Snape swiveled around to see who was laughing. When he couldn't find out who, "Five points from both Hufflepuff and Gryffindor."

I didn't fully understand the point system. There was a House Cup we could win at the end of the year if we tried but Cedric told me not to worry over things like that. Hufflepuff House never wins the House Cup and for the better. It draws unnecessary attention to us. Attention we don't need. None of us needed the distraction.

At weird times, Cedric would ask me about Dean. How our relationship was coming along. "We're friends," I would shrug. "We get along like friends should get along I think." Cedric was also asking me if I'd made any other friends. "I don't know. I don't think I'll need any more right now? I need to focus on being smart."

Cedric would grimace and pat me on the shoulder. "Making friends couldn't hurt, Mary."

Finally, Cedric sat me down in our usual abandoned classroom on the third floor. "Did you hear a howl?" I asked, sure that I'd heard the loudest dog noise just then.

"Focus, Mary." Cedric sat beside me again. "Today we're going to talk about your tasks. What Helga will be looking out for to prove that you deserve to be crowned."

"But isn't Helga-"

"Don't interrupt. Listen. You'll learn all about what Helga is or isn't later." I snapped my mouth shut and nodded. "There are seven things you must complete to prove that you are worthy of being crowned Queen Sow." I wonder what the crown looked like? I wonder which was better, being a princess in a tower or queen in a cellar? I wonder if the other houses have to worry about things like this too and just aren't allowed to talk about it with anyone else the same way we weren't. I found myself wanting to tell Dean sometimes but something in my head told me not to. That now wasn't the right time for that. "You have to prove that you are a true Hufflepuff by completing seven Acts. Hardworking, Fair, Patient, Kind, Loyal, Accepting, and Unafraid of Toil. You must prove that you are all of these things in order to win over your other housemates."

"But how do I do that?" I asked, confused on how I could prove that I was kind. Aren't you just…kind? If I do something to prove it, for the purpose of proving it, is that true kindness? I wonder if being crowned queen means I'm queen of all of Hogwarts, or just the Hufflepuff? Does each house have their own queen? Or King? I bet Dean would be the King of Gryffindor. He's super kind and sort of smart and when you wave at him, he actually waves back instead of looking at you like you have a second head like Hermione Granger did to me in Transfiguration. That is, I thought she waved at me, but she was actually waving at Harry Pottery The-Boy-Who's-Alive and the other redhead boy I've been avoiding since the sorting hat ceremony and so when I waved back she just made this kind of face that made me realize what was really happening and it was just sort of awkward and who needs her as a friend. You, know?

"I'm not sure exactly," Cedric admitted, "But I'll be here to help you every step of the way while we figure out for you, how best to go about that. There are only a few things right now that we do know for sure we can control. One, you have to make it a point to study really hard. No one daft ever makes-"

"Daft?"

Cedric blushed a bit. "You know, stupid? No one with poor marks is ever crowned." There I was sitting on my hands again. Cedric could tell immediately that I was doubting myself. "You're not stupid, Mary." Well I sure say an awful lot that I'm not, but I have been last in every private lesson we've had. If I didn't stay up all night and wake up with the impressions from the pages of my Charms book pressed into my face, I'd hardly be able to keep up with the rest of the class. One day after a bath, when I returned to my room with Professor Sprout, I found a palm sized dictionary on my pillow. Professor denied it was from her, but I don't know who else would have left it for me.

"What else can we control?" I asked, steeling my resolve.

"Your fitness. Everyone ever crowned has always shown some sort of physical prowess."

I thought for a moment. "I'm a pretty fast runner! Kingsley told me so."

"Who?" I explained my trip from Mississippi to England to Cedric and he nodded in understanding. "Maybe we can get you extra flying lessons? It would be better if you were a skilled flier."

I briefly recalled our first flying lesson as first years with Ravenclaw. I got my broom up before anyone else. It was the only thing I'd been able to do better than anyone since I'd gotten here. But flying was something else. I couldn't stay on the thing at all. I had terrible balance. Susan and Ernie, on the other hand, seemed like they were born to fly. Maybe they were. All witches should be able to ride a broom. I suppose I wouldn't be able to do all the witch things that should come naturally until I could completely banish our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ from my heart. In fact, I think it is guilt that is knocking me off my broom, and not just clumsiness. "I'll try," I conceded but my hopes weren't high. "Anything else."

"Well, one of the most important. Relationship building. Hufflepuff are renowned for our ease at building strong friendships that help us strengthen our network of information and our influence throughout the wizarding community. Making friends comes naturally to us," Cedric shrugged at that last part. I wasn't so sure. Making friends always seemed to be a struggle of mine. "Every King and Queen needs it's advisors. Specifically, two. You'll have to make two friends and get them to make a vow with you the same way you did with me."

I waved my hand at that. "Just hold hands and repeat the magic vow again? That should be fine. All I need is Dean to go along with it too and bam! Two advisors."

Cedric shook his head and almost looked disappointed in me for a moment. "You really won't understand the significance of all of this until after a sacrifice is made, will you?" Then he moved on. "Anyway, I don't count. Your Guide can't be considered as an advisor. We're two years older than you. We'll graduate before you and then you'll be left behind for two years to fend for yourself. You'll need two people, diverse in thought and character but on a similar wavelength to yourself, to rely on for the tasks you'll be given during your time here."

I still wasn't sure exactly what tasks I'd be given or what the point to all of this was. "Then who if not you?"

"You have to choose two people your own age, from two different houses. That means no Hufflepuffs." Not that any of the other Hufflepuff first years were even talking to me. Leanne was still kind and even greeted me when her Guide wasn't around being a big bully. "It's good that you've made friends with Dean. I've been watching him. He seems like a solid bloke." I didn't know what that meant. "So that covers Gryffindor. Now you just have to find a Ravenclaw that won't mind your-er-shortcomings with your studies. They may even make a good study partner."

"What about Slytherin?" Cedric laughed at that. I mean a genuine loud laugh that almost hid the noise of another dog howl. We picked up and got ready to leave. I was meeting Dean and Seamus in the library so we could try to get our Transfiguration essay completed together. The basic properties of matter for Transfiguring one object into another. See how smart I sound when I talk about school stuff.

"Keep feeling things out with Dean and see if there's someone else you might be able to have a similar connection with. Choose wisely."

Just before Cedric walked out the door, I stopped him. "Hey Cedric! Wait! I have a question." Hand on the door knob, he looked at me over his shoulder. In that pose, he almost looked princely. "What did you mean by a sacrifice being made, Cedric?"

He smiled a small sad smile. "We spoke in the beginning about how only seven of you are eligible. And yet there are eight. It's because one of you is going to die before the school year is out." And with that, Cedric left me to my stunned silence.