A/N: I know… I know… I leave off at inopportune times in the story… I figure if I've made it this far I may as well throw in a loop to keep you all hooked. Don't threaten me! The next chapter is well on its way to being finished! You can slaughter me in my sleep /then/. You may want to… (There's nothing too evil, I promise.) Cedric was a seventh year, he was 17. Well, actually there's some debate over that but I can't find proof one way or the other anywhere so…we're assuming he is a seventh year. Thank you all for the reviews! They make me all warm and fuzzy on the inside! There's some random stuff in this chapter but it all has a purpose, I promise. Well, now without further ado…
Warnings: Even more m/m, some angst, and nosy paintings.
Pairings: Harry/Cedric Diggory
Disclaimer: I do not own these characters. (I wish I did!) Don't sue me! I'm only babbling on in sappy smut. I am making no profit from this work; the characters belong to J.K. Rowling and Warner Brother's studios, I have only borrowed them for a test drive. I don't even write them very well! I'm sorry!
... ... ... Chapter 4 ... ... ...
Harry was walking to the library the next day with Ron and Hermione after lessons, when he noticed Cedric moving down a side corridor. He told them he'd meet them there and took off after the seventh year. Turning down the stone hallway, he approached the Hufflepuff unnoticed. Harry placed a hand on his shoulder to get his attention. The other boy turned, smiling slightly as he became aware of the fourth year.
"Hi, Harry," greeted Cedric.
The Gryffindor returned the smile, but it was replaced by a look of concern. "Hey. Is everything alright, Cedric?"
"Everything is fine, why do you ask?" queried the prefect.
"Last night… You were acting odd, and then you just kind of left… was it something I, er- that is, is something wrong?"
Cedric jerked his head and shrugged dismissively, looking away slightly. A portrait on the wall showed a plump witch who waved at them excitedly. "No, everything's fine."
Harry didn't take this statement at face value, but decided that he should let it go. He wasn't sure how to respond, surely he couldn't say, "Oh, that's all right, then." or, "Were you interested in kissing me, by any chance?" because both comments seemed to lack something… mainly decency.
"Asked anyone to the Yule Ball yet?" said Cedric, breaking the silence after a moment.
The fourth year blushed. "No, not yet," he responded. "You?"
"I'm thinking about asking a few people. People who might say yes. Basically anyone who might say yes. I think that includes anyone below fourth year, for example."
"Cedric…" Harry began, but stopped. The older boy turned to look at him, waiting for him to finish. "You'll – you'll find someone to go with you."
"Thanks. I just don't know who." said Cedric. "A Slytherin? If they think it'll be a statement that they aren't supporting you in any way, then they would agree… But that's rather nasty. I don't particularly enjoy the company of Slytherins."
"Neither do I," concurred Harry, "but, look- your friends will come to their senses, surely… I mean you obviously must not want to talk about it, but they can only be insane if they don't get over themselves – you are a great friend, and I suppose I hardly know you. Don't – don't let it get to you." he finished lamely, and took a breath; he had spoken in one rush so that Cedric wouldn't interrupt him. The plump witch in the portrait turned to whisper to a member of an adjoining frame, pointing at the two boys.
Cedric stopped walking, looking at the floor. After a long pause, "Harry, if only it was that simple…" started the Hufflepuff.
"How is it complicated? Can I help? I want to help, Cedric. I see how much it bothers you, and you shouldn't need to deal with this on top of the tournament– it's ridiculous."
The seventh year turned to look at Harry, smiling sadly. He just shook his head, and then turned his head down to look at the floor again. The Gryffindor put a hand to Cedric's chin, tilting the other boy's head up until he was looking at Harry again. He could feel a little stubble on the older boy's chin, but the skin was smooth under Harry's fingers.
"Tell me. Please. I want to help." stated Harry, trying to push the distractions out of his mind.
"You can't." declared Cedric firmly. "There's nothing you can do."
"Alright. I can't do anything to help your friends realize how crazy they are to abandon you. You're right. What can I do to help you? You aren't at top form, and you should be. I don't know. You need to tell me."
Cedric was facing Harry, whose hand was still holding his face from falling to the carpet – but his eyes were looking to the side and not at the younger student. His gaze shifted to Harry for a moment, his eyes sad, but set. The Gryffindor knew that there was nothing more he could say right now. He had done enough for now, just by bringing it up and being here. He dropped his hand slowly, so not to hurt Cedric, but the older boy's face didn't sink to the floor again.
"Never mind, I'll let it go for now." relented Harry.
"Thanks, Harry," said the Hufflepuff quietly.
"Anytime." replied the fourth year. "Where were you headed?"
Cedric now realized they had stopped walking. "Oh, I was just wandering."
Harry suddenly remembered why he had been in the area himself. "Oh, I was on my way to the library – Ron and Hermione are waiting…" He gave Cedric an apologetic look.
"Don't worry, I'll be fine. Go on, don't keep them waiting any longer." said Cedric. The seventh year raised an arm to wave, but Harry caught it and pulled the older boy into a hug. Slightly surprised, Cedric smiled. "Thanks, Harry." he said quietly, and hugged the Gryffindor back tightly. "You are too cute," he said, almost under his breath in Harry's ear.
Harry blushed, his mind racing. Before he could say anything, he felt Cedric tense and release him from the embrace.
"You should go. I'll… see you later," said the Hufflepuff quickly and started walking off again.
What was that? He said I was cute? Why is he running away from me again? Why does he keep doing this? thought Harry, moving to follow Cedric.
"Cedric!" called Harry, in confusion. "Stop doing that!" he shouted, as the Gryffindor started to pursue the seventh year, until he caught up and put his hand on the other boy's shoulder, stopping him and turning him around again. This was as far ahead as Harry had planned, he didn't know what to do or say now. He just stood there for a moment, gripping Cedric's shoulder just firmly enough to keep him from running away again. When he spoke again, it seemed as though the words were coming from his mouth before he'd had a chance to think about them. "So, you… well, that is to say… you have, um – feelings… for me, then?"
Diggory looked afraid, then confused as Harry stood gripping his shoulder- staring at the floor the whole time. He took a slow breath, and then lifted his eyes to meet the Gryffindor's bright green gaze for a moment, before dropping them to the carpet again. Cedric blushed, and nodded barely – looking embarrassed now. Harry felt more confused now than before. He looked out of a window in the corridor, watching the falling snow as he tried to gain some order in his thoughts.
The members of the nearby paintings were all conversing in excited whispers with the round witch now, several looking disapprovingly or surprised at the two boys. Wizards on the whole were not as biased about sexual preferences as their muggle counterparts, although 'pureblood' purists strongly discouraged any relationship that would not result in heirs to perpetuate the family's line. Several students at Hogwarts were known to fancy the same gender, or both – but Harry had never deeply considered either his own feelings or that the object of his affection (Is that how I feel about him? When did that happen?) might possibly share them. Much less that his affections could be returned.
…Well, at least not in a realistic context.
"Bugger off!" shouted Harry at the portraits.
He has feelings… for me? But why? It's ME we're talking about! What do I do now? What do I say? Does he expect me to be upset? Consoling? What does he want from me? I can't just ask things like that, can I?… Am I supposed to tell him about any feelings I might have? How much does he expect me to tell him? What do I say! I have to say something… do I kiss him? NO! What am I doing? Why did I chase him, I should have let him sort things out on his own first… but what if he wants to talk to me? I want to talk to him, right? What do I say!
Biting his lip slightly, Harry turned back to face the seventh year. "Right, um. I don't know what to say, I mean… I dunno…" he started, but as the first words came out of his mouth Cedric flinched slightly. His shoulders were sagging, almost as though he was trying to cower away from a telling off. Harry took in Cedric's appearance, looking concerned. "I'm not going to yell or anything…" he started again. He stopped thinking, and wrapped his arms around the Hufflepuff again. He whispered, "It's alright Cedric." in what he hoped was a reassuring voice. The older boy was just standing there, slightly shaking as Harry held him in an embrace.
"Harry… don't…" he said quietly, in a choked voice.
The fourth year interrupted him, though. "Don't what? Don't care? Don't hug you? Don't return your feelings? Don't reject you? Does this seem like rejection to you…?" he trailed off.
Cedric pushed the fourth year away enough to look at Harry's face. His own was a mixture of confusion and anticipated pain, while Harry's was a countenance of determined confusion.
"What?" asked a clearly surprised Cedric, quietly.
The younger student loosened his arms, staggering backward into the wall as he realized exactly what he had just said. He sank to the floor, leaning against the cold stones of the hallway.
"I don't know. Um… I have feelings for you too?" he replied, looking up at Cedric. He was looking up at the other boy almost hopefully.
"What?" repeated the Hufflepuff. Stunned, Cedric moved over to the wall and sat himself next to Harry. He opened his mouth a few times as though he was going to start talking, until he finally said "R- really?" in almost a whisper. Harry nodded silently, looking over at the other boy. "Well, um. I don't know what to say." stated the seventh year.
"Me either." said the Gryffindor. "What happens now?"
"I don't know… I mean, what do you want to happen?"
Harry shrugged. "I've never… I haven't… seen anyone before or anything, and I suppose I haven't really thought about it before…"
"Do you want to see me? Er, you know – romantically?" asked Cedric quietly. "It's alright if you don't… just for, er, reference I suppose…"
"I…" Harry stopped, dumbfounded. In the last few minutes he had learned that Cedric had a crush on him, and then confessed his own feelings to the seventh year. Now was he being asked out? Had someone slipped something into his pumpkin juice? This couldn't be real…
"Are you asking me out?" he managed after a minute.
"Um." started Cedric eloquently. "I guess I am…?"
The Gryffindor reeled. Before his mind could interrupt, his mouth took over. "Sure," he answered. "How…? When…?" stuttered Harry.
"Um. I hadn't actually worked that much out yet. How about we call it an available option and go from there?" suggested the Hufflepuff.
"Er- that sounds oka… Yeah. That'd be great." answered Harry.
After a moment of silent thought, Harry's mind caught up with his mouth. "Me? You aren't confusing me with anyone else, are you?" asked the Gryffindor.
Cedric blushed brightly, his cheeks turning deep crimson this time. "No, Harry. I'm sure. I just can't believe that you… I mean… I never would've thought…"
It was the fourth year's turn to blush now. "Well, er, yeah."
They sat in silence until Cedric checked his watch. "Harry, you were supposed to meet your friends in the library, weren't you?"
"Bugger!" cursed the Gryffindor, leaping to his feet. He reached down to help the seventh year to his feet before hugging him again. "Talk to you later?" he confirmed.
"'Course. Go on, then." replied Cedric, returning the embrace shortly.
--x--x--x--x--x--x--x--x--x--x--
Rushing down the passageway to the library, Harry felt as though he were on autopilot. His mind was racing, running over what had just happened. He asked me out! He wants to date me! Cedric Diggory, of all people, wants to see ME!
Elated, he found Hermione and Ron at a table near the corner of the library with a large stack of books scattered on the table. He felt a twinge of guilt as he noticed how frustrated the two looked, and took a seat across from Ron.
"Sorry, guys." he apologized.
"It's not a problem. Is everything alright?" asked Hermione.
How should he answer that? Everything was better than alright! Everything was excellent, everything was perfect. Not even Snape could ruin his bliss-like state of mind right now. He smiled and settled for a simple response, answering, "Yeah." Hermione peered at him over the tome, then at Ron. The red-haired Gryffindor read on in his volume, oblivious in his intent on a page. Harry took one of the books from the pile and opened it to begin reading. Tearing a small piece of paper from her notes, Hermione scribbled a short message and passed it to Harry quietly.
"Harry, are you alright? What happened? You're smiling as though you've just seen Malfoy expelled."
Sobering, Harry tried to calm down a little. He jotted a reply and passed the parchment back.
"Don't worry, everything's fine."
It was swiftly returned to his hand.
"How's Cedric doing?"
Blushing, the dark haired boy answered the note.
"He's doing well. Why do you ask?"
"Just asking. Have you asked anyone to the Yule Ball yet?"
The bushy-haired girl observed him shrewdly as he wrote his response.
"No, should I have? It's not for few weeks yet…"
"I'm surprised that no one has asked you. You should ask someone before too long, Harry."
"I will, I will…"
Ron looked up for a moment and noticed Harry passing the note back to Hermione. He looked suspiciously at them both, muttering under his breath.
"You two always do that. What am I out of the loop on this time?"
Hermione giggled and Harry blushed, smiling.
--x--x--x--x--x--x--x--x--x--x--
The next task wasn't until February, which was still a long way away; and the Yule Ball was near the bottom of his list of priorities - as far as Harry was concerned, anyways. However much he ignored them, they were creeping nearer all the time, looming events in the back of his mind. He didn't dwell too long on his lack of a partner, or the egg; instead he found himself looking forward to the upcoming Hogsmeade weekend more and more. The day before they would be cleared to leave for the nearby town, he was only slightly surprised when Cedric approached him towards the end of lunch.
"Harry, can I have a word?" he said, looking rather serious.
"Sure," said Harry. He followed Cedric out into the entrance hall, then down a quiet corridor. Cedric looked around, and then leaned towards Harry a bit. Cedric smiled at him nervously.
"Er – Harry, I've been thinking about what we talked about the other day…" began Cedric hesitantly. He chewed on his lip for a moment.
"Yeah?" asked Harry. "You haven't changed your mind or anything, have you?" he added, noticing Cedric's behaviour.
Cedric started again, "Well no, actually, I was wondering if you – well… Would you like to go to Hogsmeade with me tomorrow?" he finished, blushing now.
Harry smiled and answered him without uncertainty, "Yeah. Yeah, I would. That'd be great, Cedric."
"Really?" said the older boy; and looking relieved.
Harry nodded.
Cedric smiled back nervously. "Thanks, Harry. I'll meet you tomorrow morning in the entrance hall?"
Harry nodded again, still grinning. "What time?"
"How about 8:30?"
"Sounds great." said the fourth year.
He turned again and walked back to the Great Hall, and he was sure he was grinning like an idiot once more. He heard Cedric sigh behind him before he reentered the bustling room full of students on lunch. He moved down the Gryffindor table to sit next to Ron and Hermione, picking up his cup to take a drink and hide his expression before they noticed.
He wasn't swift enough to avoid Hermione's glance, however, and she turned a questioning look at him. He firmly ignored it, taking another mouthful of food.
--x--x--x--x--x--x--x--x--x--x--
The trio finished lunch, and the three of them went to walk by the frozen lake outside. The water around the lakeshore was frozen solid, while in the center remained choppy waves. The trees were bare, moving in the cold wind that blew over the landscape. Harry wrapped his scarlet scarf tighter around his neck, the chill wind was strong. While they were walking, Ron started to drift ahead, and Hermione pointedly fell into step beside Harry. She leaned in and whispered succinctly,
"He asked you out, didn't he?"
Harry stopped walking in shock, his face surely a dead giveaway as he looked back at Hermione. She just smiled at him vaguely, stopping a few paces away from Harry. Ron, now a fair distance ahead, realized he was alone and started to backtrack. They could hear him calling: "Oi! Why'd you two stop walking?"
"You know, you really have a knack for figuring things out you shouldn't. You do know that, right?" said Harry, smiling shyly at Hermione.
She nodded. "It's an awful habit; I've been trying to stop." she kidded. "I've known about you since the beginning of second year, you know. Don't worry, I haven't told anyone. That's up to you and Cedric."
"How did you know that I… that he…?" started Harry.
"Fancied you?" finished Hermione. When Harry nodded, she replied, "Well, it was something to do with the way he looked at you. It was subtle, but it was there. I wasn't going to say anything until you two had finally done something about it. And by the way you couldn't keep your eyes off of him…" She grinned again as Ron walked up to them.
"Why'd you lot stop walking, then? It's bloody freezing out here." complained Ron. He looked from Harry to Hermione, and then said, "What've I missed this time? You two are always doing that, sharing your little secret looks and smiles like that." At this point Harry and Hermione burst out laughing. "What? What! Someone fill me in! No one ever fills me in…" grumbled Ron sourly.
--x--x--x--x--x--x--x--x--x--x--
The two friends continued to laugh all the way back to the castle, with Ron sulking, remaining quiet for a while as he tried to remember what he might have overlooked.
"Did you figure out your clue?" he asked Harry.
Harry smiled vaguely and said, "Well, I suppose I have." and patted Ron on the shoulder; his friend was getting more frustrated with his and Hermione's secret. He still hadn't even come close, though the redhead had been trying to guess about every twenty minutes or so.
"Well, if no one's going to tell me I can't be blamed for my ignorance if it comes up." Ron huffed at last.
Harry and Hermione just stifled another fit of laughter, returning to the Gryffindor common room to study and finish their homework. Ron left it alone at last, and changed the subject to the next day, and the Hogsmeade trip.
"Well, what are we going to do tomorrow?" asked Ron.
"Er – you and I," said Hermione firmly, "Are going to go and have a look at all of the usual places."
"What do you mean, 'you and I'? You're going, aren't you, Harry? You aren't staying behind, are you?" said Ron, looking confused again.
"Not – well, not exactly…" started Harry. "I've got other, well, other plans. I said I'd spend the day with Cedric." he finished meekly.
"Cedric? Cedric Diggory? You'd rather hang out with him all day than with us, your two best friends? Cedric Diggory, whom I might remind you, is your competition in the tournament, and who I suspect is a bit of a prat?"
"Yes, that Cedric Diggory," said Hermione.
"He isn't a prat!" said Harry, getting a little upset now. "And it's not that I'd rather hang out with him than with you, it's just… well, I'm going to tomorrow. Alright? Do you have a problem with that?"
"No, mate. I didn't know you two were friends now… sorry." apologized Ron.
--x--x--x--x--x--x--x--x--x--x--
A few minutes later, a little light went on behind his eyes. He asked Harry in what sounded like a horrified whisper, "You fancy him, don't you!"
Hermione tried to restrain herself from giggling, and failed miserably. Several others in the common room turned to see what was so funny. Harry turned very pink, and nodded weakly.
"Blimey! Really? I didn't know!" said Ron, looking bewildered. He lowered his voice and said so only Harry and Hermione could hear, "I don't care if you like blokes, it's no big deal. Between you and me, I always thought that Fred was a bit… you know…"
Hermione's giggles turned into full-fledged laughter now, attracting more stares from around the room. Harry turned a deeper pink, shrugging and starting to chuckle nervously himself. He tried to give Hermione a dirty look that would clearly say 'you're not helping' in an accusatory tone of voice, but her eyes were screwed up with her cries of mirth.
She choked out, "Ron – you – are – HELPLESS!" between laughs.
He looked a little offended at this and leaned back into his seat, scowling at her.
"What?" said Ron.
Hermione calmed down after a few minutes, clutching her sides and sighing loudly. "Never mind, Ron… Well, enough for tonight, I think I'm going to turn in. And don't forget to finish your star charts! And Ron, you still have that essay to do for Snape…" and with that she excused herself and went up to the girl's dormitories for bed.
Harry was still rather pink, and Ron's ears were colouring themselves now as well.
"Well, I suppose I should turn in too… I'll finish my chart tomorrow evening… it is the weekend…" said Harry, and he made his way to the boy's dormitories to ready himself for bed.
--x--x--x--x--x--x--x--x--x--x--
The next morning, Harry woke up early to get ready, bathing and deliberating over how to dress himself. He was very close to just donning his dress robes and calling it even, but in the end he dressed just as though it were a normal weekend day, not wanting to appear too anxious. He met Ron and Hermione in the common room. Ron gave him the thumbs up, Hermione hugged him tightly, and he set off down the stairs for the Great Hall for breakfast.
He was so nervous when he got to the Gryffindor table that he almost knocked his pumpkin juice into his lap – a bad start for the day. The mail owls swooped into the Great Hall from either end, landing in front of their owners to deliver parcels and letters. Harry didn't see Hedwig's white plumage anywhere, so he assumed he wouldn't have any mail. He hadn't heard from Sirius since before the first task, and he was starting to worry about him. He surely would have heard if Sirius had been caught, right?
He served himself a helping of eggs and sausage, and took a piece of toast. He ate the lot rather swiftly, pushing the worries to the back of his mind. He wanted to be ready to go early. He wasn't the only one it appeared, because the flagged entrance hall was already full of upper class students for the Hogsmeade trip. He didn't see Cedric anywhere, but he persevered, looking around the other students. He felt a hand on his shoulder after a few moments and turned, coming face to face with Cedric.
"Oh, hi. I was just looking for you," he said. Cedric smiled at him, and Harry returned it reassuringly. "How are you feeling today?" he asked.
"I'm doing pretty well. And you?" replied the Hufflepuff.
"I am feeling great." said Harry. The Gryffindor looked at the forming queue to be checked off Filch's list, and Cedric and he moved into it. "So, where are we going to go?" asked Harry after a moment.
"I thought we could just wander a bit, you know." said Cedric. "Stop by Zonko's, Honeydukes, and the Three Broomsticks. All the main sights in Hogsmeade."
Harry nodded. "Sounds great." he said.
After Filch had checked them off on his list, they started down the path towards the small town.
Cedric yawned, then said, "Mind if we stop and get a cup of coffee first? I'm still not quite awake yet… and I know a great place in Hogsmeade."
"Sure," answered Harry.
--x--x--x--x--x--x--x--x--x--x--
