(GoF) CHAPTER NINE: Dangerous

When they crossed onto Platform 9 ¾ a few days later, Cornelius Fudge, Barty Crouch, and Ludo Bagman were all there, waiting for Ellie.

"Whatever is the meaning of this?" asked Arthur when he saw them, looking bewildered. "I told you, if you wanted to speak with her—"

"We just want a quick chat, Arthur—nothing to fret about," said Bagman jovially. "Come along, now, Miss Prince—right this way."

Ellie glanced up at Arthur, who gave her a reluctant shrug, before following Bagman, Fudge, and Crouch off to a corner where no one could hear them.

"Have you seen it, then?" Bagman asked Ellie. "The article in the Prophet?"

Ellie nodded. "I saw it." Then she added mechanically, "I'm not Black's daughter."

All three of them exchanged a bit of a look at that. This time, Fudge took over. "How long have you known about your Perelli charm, Miss Prince?"

If not for her mother's warning, she would have been honest with him. But, knowing that it was quite illegal, she fibbed, "Just since that day."

They exchanged another look.

"Well, it was an admirable thing you did, at any rate," admitted Fudge. "You shouldn't have done it, though. The Ministry had things under control."

Ellie decided that the smartest thing to do would be not to snigger at that. "Right. Well, my apologies, Minister, sir. Is that all?"

Crouch—the most serious of the three—looked incredibly frustrated by that question. "Do you have any idea how much danger you're in thanks to that little stunt you pulled, Miss Prince? How many Dark wizards will be after you now?"

She did her best not to sound quite as bored as she looked. "Thank you for your concern, but I'll be fine. Hogwarts is safe from Dark wizards, last I checked."

They exchanged yet another look at that—this time as if they knew something she didn't.

"There's going to be a certain… event… at Hogwarts this year," Bagman explained carefully to Ellie. "Top secret until its announcement, mind you… but it will involve certain… groups of witches and wizards… that aren't normally in attendance at Hogwarts."

Event? This was certainly news to Ellie. "What—"

"We just want you to be careful, is all," said Fudge. "Don't go wandering around by yourself, or at night. Stick close to your friends and teachers. Understand?"

She desperately wanted more details, but she also desperately wanted to get away from them—and over to the train before it departed. So she flashed her best smile and promised to heed their warnings, and then, finally, they let her go.

Before she reached the twins, though, she bumped straight into Cedric Diggory—whose eyes lit up at the sight of her.

"Quite in demand these days, aren't you?" he joked as he greeted her with a hug, nodding to the Ministry men.

"Just the usual—grumpy, old wizards telling me to be careful," she said with a bit of a grin.

"I'm glad I ran into you," he said as they headed toward the train. Fred and George, who had been waiting for her, fell into step just behind them; the others had aleady boarded. "I'd really like to talk to you, Ellie."

She glanced behind her at the twins, neither of whom looked pleased. She didn't particularly want to abandon them, especially if it meant having to sit with Cedric and whoever his seventh-year friends were. But inviting him to join them wouldn't be out of the question, would it?

"You're welcome to sit with us, if you like," she told him politely.

He glanced at the twins, too, looking rather hesitant, as they loaded onto the train. But then, to her surprise, he nodded. "Just for a few."

Ginny, Ron, Harry, and Hermione had already found a compartment, which, with Ellie, Fred, George, and Cedric added to it, made for rather close quarters.

"Cedric," greeted Harry with a tone of surprise when Cedric took his seat. "Slumming it with us this time around, are you?"

Cedric gave any easy laugh at that. "For a bit, at least. Wanted to check up on Ellie after all that chaos at the Cup."

"I'm fine," she said for what felt like the thousandth time. "Sorry I dragged you into it with me. Was your dad upset?"

"A little—but prouder than I've seen him in a long time, too. I was worried about you, though, when that article came out."

"You mean, the article that gives no mention of the three other people who helped her save those Muggles?" grumbled George. "Thanks, Rita Skeeter."

"That's the one," said Cedric with another chuckle. "Is that what Fudge and the others wanted to talk to you about, Ellie?"

"Yeah. Warning me that I'm in grave danger and all that. Made me feel a little like a certain Boy Who Lived."

Harry grinned at that, but Fred didn't look remotely amused. "They're right to be worried. Did they say anything else?"

"Well…" She glanced hesitantly at Cedric. This wasn't usually the sort of thing she'd say to an "outsider," so to speak, but she supposed she didn't have much to disclose, anyway. "They did mention some sort of event. Wouldn't go into details, but said it would mean certain 'groups' of witches and wizards that aren't normally at Hogwarts being… well... at Hogwarts."

"Dad's dropped a few hints about that sort of thing, too," said Ron. "But I can't make sense of it. What could they mean by 'groups'?"

"I don't know," said Ellie with a shrug, "but they can only be better than last year's Dementors, right?"

Most of the compartment chuckled at that, but Cedric, to Ellie's surprise, was holding Ellie's gaze thoughtfully. There was more he wanted to say to her, she could tell, but he wasn't comfortable doing so around all of them.

She wasn't entirely sure she should want him to say those things, but her curiosity got the better of her, and she cleared her throat, rising to her feet. "Got to run to the loo," she fibbed, deciding to leave the ball in his court.

She managed to make it all the way to the loo without him chasing after her. She splashed some water on her face, cleared her throat, and allowed herself one, small glance into the mirror.

She had purchased some new clothes for herself while in Diagon Alley, but she still felt a bit uneasy in her own skin. It wasn't just her body that had changed; her hair had gotten thicker and longer, too, and her face had become more angular. More than any of that, though, she was struck by how tired she looked. Was it lingering damage from the Perelli overuse, or was it just… how she looked now?

Shaking these questions away, she exited the bathroom. She didn't get far, though, before being pulled into a nearby compartment by Cedric.

"Sorry," he said when he saw her look of surprise. "Wasn't quite sure your trip to the loo was an invitation, but thought it might be a good opportunity to get you alone."

He really wasn't putting any ice on the flirtation, was he? In fact, he hadn't even released his grip on her arm. He was rather close to her. How had he even managed to find a compartment that was entirely empty?

"I wanted to write you," he said in a quieter voice. "But Dad told me to give you some space and time to recover."

She couldn't help but chuckle at that. "You seem quite fond of taking your parents' advice."

His blue-grey eyes flashed a bit at that as if excited by the challenge. "I wouldn't be so sure. If he had it his way, I'd leave you alone altogether. He seems to think you're a bit… dangerous."

The word seemed exceptionally sexy coming out of Cedric's lips, and she found it increasingly hard to think about anything other than those lips.

That… and what he had said to her the night of the Cup.

Pick the person who makes you happy.

Did Cedric make her happy? Did Fred not make her happy? Sure, she had quite nearly spiraled into a panic attack the last time she had kissed Fred, but he still made her happy, didn't he?

"You know," Cedric continued that same low, sexy voice, "if I learned one thing from Oliver Wood's mistakes, it was not to kiss you without permission."

Her heart started to pound. It was admirable, of course, what he was saying—respectable. But at least if he had taken her by surprise, she wouldn't have had to decide.

"I don't… know how much I'm ready for," she told him carefully, looking down at the fabric of his robes. "If you're expecting—"

"I'm not expecting anything," he assured her. "I know you're in a complicated situation, and I don't want to rush you into any decisions." A small grin returned as he added, "I just think a kiss might help you decide."

He was being sweet, she reminded herself as she tried to calm her pounding heart. He always seemed to be sweet. And the lack of pressure was what she needed, right? She needed to figure out what it was she even wanted.

And maybe he was right—a kiss could help. For example, if she didn't spiral into a panic attack from kissing him, it might be an incentive to pick him.

"Okay," she heard herself say as a small grin of her own crept onto her face. "Worth a try."

And with that, they kissed each other.

Cedric was a very good kisser, she learned quickly—not quite as sloppy and overzealous as Oliver, nor as shy and timid as Harry. It wasn't like kissing Fred, of course—nothing would be like kissing Fred—but there was something undeniably nice about it—almost like being taught by an expert.

"Figures you'd be good at kissing," she teased after a few seconds, pulling ever so slightly away from him. "Prefect, Quidditch star, expert kisser—anything I'm forgetting?"

"You're one to talk," he said in husky, yet smiling, amusement. "World famous, utterly mysterious, drop-dead gorgeous, and—"

"Oh, stop," she said, rolling her eyes, but before she knew it, he was grabbing her and kissing her again.

"—and an excellent kisser, too," he finished after another few seconds of snogging. "Sorry—wasn't quite ready to stop yet."

This felt too good—dangerously good. There was guilt hanging over her, of course, but panic? Panic was nowhere to be found.

"Right," said Cedric, seeming pleased with whatever expression she was making. "Well, I'd better get to the prefects' compartment. Hopefully that gave you something to think about."

And with that, he took his leave.


I know, I know - the Ellie/Fred shippers are not happy right now. But she hasn't made up her mind yet, has she? Stay tuned to find out what she decides, and don't forget to review and follow!