CHAPTER THIRTEEN

MAD-EYE MOODY

The storm had blown itself out by the following morning, though the ceiling in the Great Hall was still gloomy, heavy clouds of pewter gray swirled overhead as Rose, Ron and Hermione examined their new course schedules at breakfast.

A few seats along, Fred, George and Lee Jordan were discussing magical methods of aging themselves and bluffing their way into the Triwizard Tournament.

"Today's not bad… outside all morning." said Ron, who was running his finger down the Monday column of his schedule.

"Herbology with the Hufflepuffs and Care of Magical Creatures... damn it, we're still with the Slytherins…"

"Double Divination this afternoon." Rose groaned, looking down. Divination was her least favorite subject. Professor Trelawney kept predicting Rose's death, which she found extremely annoying. "You should have given it up like me, shouldn't you?" said Hermione briskly, buttering herself some toast. "Then you'd be doing something sensible like Arithmancy."

"You're eating again, I notice." said Ron, watching Hermione adding liberal amounts of jam to her toast too.

"I've decided there are better ways of making a stand about elf rights." said Hermione haughtily. "Yeah… and you were hungry." said Ron, grinning.

There was a sudden rustling noise above them and a hundred owls came soaring through the open windows carrying the morning mail.

Instinctively, Rose looked up, but there was no sign of white among the mass of brown and gray. The owls circled the tables, looking for the people to whom their letters and packages were addressed. A large tawny owl soared down to Neville Longbottom and deposited a parcel into his lap… Neville almost always forgot to pack something.

On the other side of the Hall Draco Malfoy's eagle owl had landed on his shoulder, carrying what looked like his usual supply of sweets and cakes from home. Trying to ignore the sinking feeling of disappointment in her stomach, Rose returned to her porridge.

Was it possible that something had happened to Hedwig and that Sirius hadn't even got her letter?

Her preoccupation lasted all the way across the sodden vegetable patch until they arrived in greenhouse three, but here she was distracted by Professor Sprout showing the class the ugliest plants Rose had ever seen. Indeed, they looked less like plants than thick, black, giant slugs, protruding vertically out of the soil.

Each was squirming slightly and had a number of large, shiny swellings upon it, which appeared to be full of liquid.

"Bubotubers." Professor Sprout told them briskly. "They need squeezing. You will collect the pus…" "The what?" said Seamus Finnigan, sounding revolted.

"Pus, Finnigan, pus." said Professor Sprout. "And it's extremely valuable, so don't waste it. You will collect the pus, I say, in these bottles. Wear your dragon-hide gloves, it can do funny things to the skin when undiluted, bubotuber pus."

Squeezing the bubotubers was disgusting, but oddly satisfying. As each swelling was popped, a large amount of thick yellowish-green liquid burst forth, which smelled strongly of petrol. They caught it in the bottles as Professor Sprout had indicated and by the end of the lesson had collected several pints.

"This'll keep Madam Pomfrey happy." said Professor Sprout, stoppering the last bottle with a cork. "An excellent remedy for the more stubborn forms of acne, bubotuber pus. Should stop students resorting to desperate measures to rid themselves of pimples."

"Like poor Eloise Midgen." said Hannah Abbott, a Hufflepuff, in a hushed voice. "She tried to curse hers off."

"Silly girl." said Professor Sprout, shaking her head. "But Madam Pomfrey fixed her nose back on in the end."

A booming bell echoed from the castle across the wet grounds, signaling the end of the lesson, and the class separated, the Hufflepuffs climbing the stone steps for Transfiguration and the Gryffindors heading in the other direction, down the sloping lawn toward Hagrid's small wooden cabin, which stood on the edge of the Forbidden Forest.

Hagrid was standing outside his hut, one hand on the collar of his enormous black boarhound, Fang. There were several open wooden crates on the ground at his feet and Fang was whimpering and straining at his collar, apparently keen to investigate the contents more closely.

As they drew nearer, an odd rattling noise reached their ears, punctuated by what sounded like minor explosions.

"Mornin'!" Hagrid said, grinning at Rose, Ron and Hermione. "Be'er wait fer the Slytherins, they won' want ter miss this… Blast-Ended Skrewts!"

"Come again?" said Ron. Hagrid pointed down into the crates.

"Eurgh!" squealed Lavender Brown, jumping backward. "Eurgh" just about summed up the Blast-Ended Skrewts in Rose's opinion.

They looked like deformed, shell-less lobsters, horribly pale and slimy-looking, with legs sticking out in very odd places and no visible heads. There were about a hundred of them in each crate, each about six inches long, crawling over one another, bumping blindly into the sides of the boxes.

They were giving off a very powerful smell of rotting fish.

Every now and then, sparks would fly out of the end of a skrewt and with a small phut, it would be propelled forward several inches.

"On'y jus' hatched." said Hagrid proudly. "So yeh'll be able ter raise 'em yerselves! Thought we'd make a bit of a project of it!"

"And why would we want to raise them?" said a cold voice. The Slytherins had arrived. The speaker was Draco Malfoy. Crabbe and Goyle were chuckling appreciatively at his words. Hagrid looked stumped at the question.

"I mean, what do they do?" asked Malfoy. "What is the point of them?"

Hagrid opened his mouth, apparently thinking hard, there was a few seconds' pause, then he said roughly.

"Tha's next lesson, Malfoy. Yer jus' feedin' 'em today. Now, yeh'll wan' ter try 'em on a few diff'rent things… I've never had 'em before, not sure what they'll go fer - I got ant eggs an' frog livers an' a bit o' grass snake - just try 'em out with a bit of each."

"First pus and now this." muttered Seamus.

Nothing but deep affection for Hagrid could have made Rose, Ron, and Hermione pick up squelchy handfuls of frog liver and lower them into the crates to tempt the Blast-Ended Skrewts.

Rose couldn't suppress the suspicion that the whole thing was entirely pointless, because the skrewts didn't seem to have mouths.

"Ouch!" yelled Dean Thomas after about ten minutes. "It got me." Hagrid hurried over to him, looking anxious.

"It's end exploded!" said Dean angrily, showing Hagrid a burn on his hand.

"Ah, yeah, that can happen when they blast off." said Hagrid, nodding.

"Eurgh!" said Lavender Brown again. "Eurgh, Hagrid, what's that pointy thing on it?"

"Ah, some of 'em have got stings." said Hagrid enthusiastically, Lavender quickly withdrew her hand from the box.

"I reckon they're the males… The females've got sorta sucker things on their bellies... I think they might be ter suck blood."

"Well, I can certainly see why we're trying to keep them alive." said Malfoy sarcastically. "Who wouldn't want pets that can burn, sting and bite all at once?"

"Just because they're not very pretty, it doesn't mean they're not useful." Hermione snapped. "Dragon blood's amazingly magical, but you wouldn't want a dragon for a pet, would you?"

Rose and Ron grinned at Hagrid, who gave them a furtive smile from behind his bushy beard. Hagrid would have liked nothing better than a pet dragon, as Rose, Ron, and Hermione knew only too well… he had owned one for a brief period during their first year, a vicious Norwegian Ridgeback by the name of Norbert.

Hagrid simply loved monstrous creatures, the more lethal, the better.

"Well, at least the skrewts are small." said Ron as they made their way back up to the castle for lunch an hour later.

"They are now." said Hermione in an exasperated voice. "But once Hagrid's found out what they eat, I expect they'll be six feet long."

"Well, that won't matter if they turn out to cure seasickness or something, will it?" said Ron, grinning slyly at her.

"You know perfectly well I only said that to shut Malfoy up." said Hermione. "As a matter of fact I think he's right. The best thing to do would be to stamp on the lot of them before they start attacking us all."

They sat down at the Gryffindor table and helped themselves to lamb chops and potatoes. Hermione began to eat so fast that Rose and Ron stared at her.

"Er… is this the new stand on elf rights?" said Ron. "You're going to make yourself puke instead?" "No." said Hermione, with as much dignity as she could muster with her mouth bulging with sprouts. "I just want to get to the library."

"What?" said Ron in disbelief. "Hermione… it's the first day back! We haven't even got homework yet!"

Hermione shrugged and continued to shovel down her food as though she had not eaten for days. Then she leapt to her feet.

"See you at dinner!" And she departed at high speed.

When the bell rang to signal the start of afternoon lessons, Rose and Ron set off for North Tower where, at the top of a tightly spiraling staircase, a silver stepladder led to a circular trapdoor in the ceiling and the room where Professor Trelawney lived.

The familiar sweet perfume spreading from the fire met their nostrils as they emerged at the top of the stepladder. As ever, the curtains were all closed, the circular room was bathed in a dim reddish light cast by the many lamps, which were all draped with scarves and shawls.

Rose and Ron walked through the mass of occupied chintz chairs and poufs that cluttered the room and sat down at the same small circular table.

"Good day." said the misty voice of Professor Trelawney right behind Rose, making her jump. A very thin woman with enormous glasses that made her eyes appear far too large for her face, Professor Trelawney was peering down at Rose with the tragic expression she always wore whenever she saw her.

The usual large amount of beads, chains and bangles glittered upon her person in the firelight.

"You are preoccupied, my dear." she said mournfully to Rose. "My inner eye sees past your brave face to the troubled soul within. And I regret to say that your worries are not baseless. I see difficult times ahead for you, alas… most difficult... I fear the thing you dread will indeed come to pass... and perhaps sooner than you think..."

Her voice dropped almost to a whisper.

Ron rolled his eyes at Rose, who looked stonily back.

Professor Trelawney swept past them and seated herself in a large winged armchair before the fire, facing the class. Lavender Brown and Parvati Patil, who deeply admired Professor Trelawney, were sitting on poufs very close to her.

"My dears, it is time for us to consider the stars." she said. "The movements of the planets and the mysterious portents they reveal only to those who understand the steps of the celestial dance. Human destiny may be deciphered by the planetary rays, which intermingle…"

But Rose's thoughts had drifted. The perfumed fire always made her feel sleepy and dull-witted, and Professor Trelawney's rambling talks on fortune-telling never held her exactly spellbound… though she couldn't help thinking about what she had just said to her.

"I fear the thing you dread will indeed come to pass...'" But Hermione was right, Rose thought irritably, Professor Trelawney really was an old fraud. She wasn't dreading anything at the moment at all... well, unless you counted her fears that Sirius had been caught… but what did Professor Trelawney know?

She had long since come to the conclusion that her brand of fortunetelling was really no more than lucky guesswork and a spooky manner. Except, of course, for that time at the end of last term, when she had made the prediction about Voldemort rising again... and Dumbledore himself had said that he thought that trance had been genuine, when Rose had described it to him.

"Rose!" Ron muttered.

"What?" Rose looked around, the whole class was staring at her. She sat up straight, she had been almost dozing off, lost in the heat and his thoughts.

"I was saying, my dear, that you were clearly born under the baleful influence of Saturn." said Professor Trelawney, a faint note of resentment in her voice at the fact that she had obviously not been hanging on her words.

"Born under… what, sorry?" said Rose.

"Saturn, dear, the planet Saturn!" said Professor Trelawney, sounding definitely irritated that she wasn't riveted by this news. "I was saying that Saturn was surely in a position of power in the heavens at the moment of your birth. Your red hair… your mean stature... tragic losses so young in life... I think I am right in saying, my dear, that you were born in midwinter?"

"No." said Rose. "I was born in July."

Ron hastily turned his laugh into a hacking cough.

Half an hour later, each of them had been given a complicated circular chart and was attempting to fill in the position of the planets at their moment of birth. It was dull work, requiring much consultation of timetables and calculation of angles.

"I've got two Neptunes here." said Ron after a while, frowning down at his piece of parchment. "That can't be right, can it?"

"Aaaaah." said Rose, imitating Professor Trelawney's mystical whisper. "When two Neptunes appear in the sky, it is a sure sign that a midget cursed with the paralyzing fear of spiders is being born, Ron."

Seamus and Dean, who were working nearby, sniggered loudly, though not loudly enough to mask the excited squeals from Lavender Brown.

"Oh Professor, look! I think I've got an unaspected planet! Oooh, which one's that, Professor?"

"It is Uranus, my dear." said Professor Trelawney, peering down at the chart.

"Can I have a look at Uranus too, Lavender?" said Ron.

Most unfortunately, Professor Trelawney heard him and it was this, perhaps, that made her give them so much homework at the end of the class.

"A detailed analysis of the way the planetary movements in the coming month will affect you, with reference to your personal chart." she snapped, sounding much more like Professor McGonagall than her usual airy-fairy self. "I want it ready to hand in next Monday, and no excuses!"

"Miserable old bat." said Ron bitterly as they joined the crowds descending the staircases back to the Great Hall and dinner. "That'll take all weekend, that will…"

"Lots of homework?" said Hermione brightly, catching up with them. "Professor Vector didn't give us any at all!"

"Well, bully for Professor Vector." said Ron moodily. They reached the entrance hall, which was packed with people queuing for dinner. They had just joined the end of the line, when a loud voice rang out behind them.

"Weasley! Hey, Weasley!" Rose, Ron, and Hermione turned. Malfoy, Crabbe, and Goyle were standing there, each looking thoroughly pleased about something.

"What?" said Ron shortly.

"Your dad's in the paper, Weasley!" said Malfoy, brandishing a copy of the Daily Prophet and speaking very loudly, so that everyone in the packed entrance hall could hear.

"Listen to this!"

FURTHER MISTAKES AT THE MINISTRY OF MAGIC

It seems as though the Ministry of Magic's troubles are not yet at an end, writes Rita Skeeter, Special Correspondent. Recently under fire for its poor crowd control at the Quidditch World Cup and still unable to account for the disappearance of one of its witches, the Ministry was plunged into fresh embarrassment yesterday by the antics of Arnold Weasley, of the Misuse of Muggle Artifacts Office.

Malfoy looked up.

"Imagine them not even getting his name right, Weasley. It's almost as though he's a complete nonentity, isn't it?" he crowed. Everyone in the entrance hall was listening now. Malfoy straightened the paper with a flourish and read on.

Arnold Weasley, who was charged with possession of a flying car two years ago, was yesterday involved in a tussle with several Muggle law-keepers "policemen" over a number of highly aggressive dustbins. Mr. Weasley appears to have rushed to the aid of "Mad-Eye" Moody, the aged ex-Auror who retired from the Ministry when no longer able to tell the difference between a handshake and attempted murder.

Unsurprisingly, Mr. Weasley found, upon arrival at Mr. Moody's heavily guarded house, that Mr. Moody had once again raised a false alarm. Mr. Weasley was forced to modify several memories before he could escape from the policemen, but refused to answer Daily Prophet questions about why he had involved the Ministry in such an undignified and potentially embarrassing scene.

"And there's a picture, Weasley!" said Malfoy, flipping the paper over and holding it up. "A picture of your parents outside their house… if you can call it a house! Your mother could do with losing a bit of weight, couldn't she?" Ron was shaking with fury. Everyone was staring at him.

"Buzz off, Malfoy." said Rose.

"C'mon, Ron…"

"Oh yeah, you were staying with them this summer, weren't you, Potter?" sneered Malfoy. "So, tell me, is his mother really that porky, or is it just the picture?"

This incited a loud, hostile growl from Ron and he leap forward, to be stopped by Rose.

"You know your mother, Malfoy?" said Rose… both she and Hermione had grabbed the back of Ron's robes to stop him from launching himself at Malfoy.

"That expression she's got, like she's got dung under her nose? Has she always looked like that, or was it just because you were with her?"

Malfoy's pale face went slightly pink.

"Don't you dare insult my mother, Potter."

"If you dislike it so much, why the hell are you insulting other people's mothers then! Hypocrite!" Snapped Rose loudly, venom in her voice.

This stunned Malfoy for a second and Rose had to suppress the urge to scratch his eyes out. Normally Malfoy didn't infuriate her this much, but she was getting murderous at his behavior now, she had seen a different side to him this summer and it made her blood boil that he buried that side so deep within him. She calmed her nerves, turning away.

BANG!

Several people screamed… Rose felt something white-hot graze the side of her face.

She plunged her hand into her robes for her wand, but before she'd even touched it, she heard a second loud "BANG", and a roar that echoed through the entrance hall.

"OH NO YOU DON'T, LADDIE!" Rose spun around.

Professor Moody was limping down the marble staircase. His wand was out and it was pointing right at a pure white ferret, which was shivering on the stone-flagged floor, exactly where Malfoy had been standing.

There was a terrified silence in the entrance hall. Nobody but Moody was moving a muscle.

Moody turned to look at Rose… at least, his normal eye was looking at Rose, the other one was pointing into the back of his head.

"Did he get you?" Moody growled. His voice was low and gravelly.

"No…" said Rose, stunned about what Malfoy had done. "He missed."

"LEAVE IT!" Moody shouted.

"Leave… what?" Rose said, bewildered.

"Not you… him!" Moody growled, jerking his thumb over his shoulder at Crabbe, who had just frozen, about to pick up the white ferret.

It seemed that Moody's rolling eye was magical and could see out of the back of his head. Moody started to limp toward Crabbe, Goyle and the ferret, which gave a terrified squeak and took off, streaking toward the dungeons.

"I don't think so!" roared Moody, pointing his wand at the ferret again, it flew ten feet into the air, fell with a smack to the floor and then bounced upward once more.

"I don't like people who attack when their opponent's back's turned." growled Moody as the ferret bounced higher and higher, squealing in pain.

"Stinking, cowardly, scummy thing to do..." The ferret flew through the air, its legs and tail flailing helplessly.

"Never… do… that… again…" said Moody, speaking each word as the ferret hit the stone floor and bounced upward again.

"Euhm… professor, i… isn't that enough?" Rose couldn't help but stutter while watching the fear and pain in the ferret's eyes. This was a bit harsh.

Before Moody could react though another voice cut through the great hall.

"Professor Moody!" Professor McGonagall was coming down the marble staircase with her arms full of books.

"Hello, Professor McGonagall." said Moody calmly, bouncing the ferret still higher.

"What… what are you doing?" said Professor McGonagall, her eyes following the bouncing ferret's progress through the air.

"Teaching." said Moody.

"Teach… Moody, is that a student?" shrieked Professor McGonagall, the books spilling out of her arms.

"Yep." said Moody.

"No!" cried Professor McGonagall, running down the stairs and pulling out her wand, a moment later, with a loud snapping noise, Draco Malfoy had reappeared, lying in a heap on the floor with his sleek blond hair all over his now brilliantly pink face. He got to his feet, wincing.

"Moody, we never use Transfiguration as a punishment!" said Professor McGonagall wealdy. "Surely Professor Dumbledore told you that?"

"He might've mentioned it, yeah." said Moody, scratching his chin unconcernedly. "But I thought a good sharp shock…"

"We give detentions, Moody! Or speak to the offender's Head of House!"

"I'll do that, then." said Moody, staring at Malfoy with great dislike.

Malfoy, whose pale eyes were still watering with pain and humiliation, looked malevolently up at Moody and muttered something in which the words "my father" were distinguishable.

"Oh yeah?" said Moody quietly, limping forward a few steps, the dull clunk of his wooden leg echoing around the hall. "Well, I know your father of old, boy… You tell him Moody's keeping a close eye on his son... you tell him that from me… Now, your Head of House'll be Snape, will it?"

"Yes." said Malfoy resentfully.

"Another old friend." growled Moody. "I've been looking forward to a chat with old Snape… Come on, you..." And he seized Malfoy's upper arm and marched him off toward the dungeons.

Professor McGonagall stared anxiously after them for a few moments, then waved her wand at her fallen books, causing them to soar up into the air and back into her arms.

"Don't talk to me." Ron said quietly to Rose and Hermione as they sat down at the Gryffindor table a few minutes later, surrounded by excited talk on all sides about what had just happened.

"Why not?" said Hermione in surprise.

"Because I want to fix that in my memory forever." said Ron, his eyes closed and an uplifted expression on his face. "Draco Malfoy, the amazing bouncing ferret."

Rose and Hermione both laughed, albeit a bit hesitant, and Hermione began doling beef casserole onto each of their plates.

"He could have really hurt Malfoy, though." she said. "It was good, really, that Professor McGonagall stopped it…"

"Hermione!" said Ron furiously, his eyes snapping open again. "You're ruining the best moment of my life!" Hermione made an impatient noise and began to eat at top speed again.

"Don't tell me you're going back to the library this evening?" said Ron, watching her.

"Got to." said Hermione thickly. "Loads to do."

"But you told us Professor Vector…"

"It's not schoolwork." she said. Within five minutes, she had cleared her plate and departed. No sooner had she gone than her seat was taken by Fred Weasley.

"Moody!" he said. "How cool is he?"

"Beyond cool." said George, sitting down opposite Fred.

"Supercool." said the twins' best friend, Lee Jordan, sliding into the seat beside George.

"We had him this afternoon." he told Rose and Ron.

"What was it like?" said Ron eagerly. Fred, George, and Lee exchanged looks full of meaning.

"Never had a lesson like it." said Fred.

"He knows, man." said Lee.

"Knows what?" said Rose, leaning forward.

"Knows what it's like to be out there doing it." said George impressively.

"Doing what?" said Ron.

"Fighting the Dark Arts," said Fred.

"He's seen it all." said George.

"Mazing." said Lee.

Ron dived into his bag for his schedule.

"We haven't got him till Thursday!" he said in a disappointed voice.

Rose shrugged and concentrated on her food.

She wasn't looking forward to the lesson as Ron did. She couldn't deny that his lessons probably will be sensational but something really bothered her about what he had done.

Malfoy may not be her most favorite person in the world but that was cruel and probably traumatizing.

The thought of being forced into an animal form unwillingly made her shudder.

Swooning sounds suddenly filled the table and Rose looked up. The girls at the table made big longing eyes at a point behind her and Rose had to smirk.

"Hey Cedric." She said without turning around.

"W… how did you know?" Cedric said surprised.

"Oh I've discovered last night that I can read minds." Rose said smiling while turning around and standing up.

Cedric seemed shocked and Rose couldn't help enjoying teasing him. She got on her toes and kissed him on the cheek bringing her lips faintly to his ear.

"Oh my, I didn't know you had such thoughts Ced, you surprise me." Rose whispered teasingly.

When she pulled back Cedric was bright red and stammering.

"I… what did you... why… are you…"

Rose laughed loudly and looked at Ron.

"I'll be up later okay?"

She pulled Cedric by the hand and left the great hall with him.

When in the entrance hall she looked up at Cedric and he was still bright red and wide-eyed.

She couldn't help but laugh again, almost crying while doing so.

When her fit of laughter dried down she put his mind at ease.

"Don't worry, I was teasing you. I can't read minds. Although seeing your reaction, I sorta wish I could, what were you thinking about?"

Cedric frowned.

"Then how did you know I was standing behind you."

"Oh, I don't know, maybe because all the girls at the table suddenly made swooning sounds."

"So you can't…?"

"No silly."

Cedric groaned.

"But now I'm really curious, what were you thinking about?"

Cedric pulled her into his arms and brought his lips to her ears like she had done moments ago.

"I was thinking that I want to kiss you senseless."

Cedric pulled back with a happy grin as it was Rose's turn to blush like an idiot.

He laughed and put an arm around her while they continued walking through the halls.

"Too bad the weather isn't nice." Rose muttered while trying to keep her blush under control.

"Yeah, we can't really relax outside. We'll have to roam the halls."

"Too bad the sofa's are only in the common rooms."

Suddenly Cedric pulled Rose behind a column in a corner. His lips crashed on her and his arms gripped her tightly towards him. Pressing their chests together.

Rose hummed and responded to the kiss.

This kiss felt needy and hungerly. Pulling each other closer, igniting each other's skin with each touch.

Rose felt as if her heart was swelling and it was beating at a peace as if she was running a marathon.

One hand grasped his clothes to pull him closer and the other was roaming his chest.

His hand was around her waist and the other had found solace in her hair.

After an eternity that passed too soon they broke apart, panting.

"I've been wanting to do that for so long." Cedric muttered softly.

"I'm glad you did." Rose answered brightly.

They held each other for a while, hearts beating in unison.

"After this summer with you, I feel like a drunk whose alcohol has been snatched away." Cedric confessed.

"I feel the same, I miss your sofa." Rose said teasingly.

Cedric chuckled.

The heard footsteps approaching and the couple swiftly sidestepped from behind the column, continuing their walk as if nothing had happened. Trying to keep what they had just done just between them.

"Hey Cedric!"

The footsteps started running.

Cedric and Rose turned around to see some of his friends running towards them.

"Hi Rose!" A gold blonde boy with blue eyes greeted her. If Rose remembered correctly his name was Dave. Two other boys greeted her as well, both with raven black hair. One was a bit heavier than the other. He was also a head taller and had a soft round face. The other had a harder face with a jaw like a square and a big nose.

The bigger one was Anthony and the other was Tim.

Both greeted her as well.

"Cedric, we heard that Luke wants to sign up for the tournament as well." Dave said.

"You don't have to worry though, he's a total sap. I'm sure they'll pick you." Anthony added.

Rose's heart sank, so he wanted to sign up. She tried her best to keep the happy smile on her face while her stomach turned to ice.

Cedric quickly shot her a glance. Was that worry?

"You still want to do it right?" Tim exclaimed.

"I told you, I…" Cedric started.

"Yeah.. yeah check with your girl." Dave said, turning his attention to Rose, his look a bit stern. "You'll support him right? With all the adventures you have endured?"

Rose's eyes widened. She hated this.

They put her on the spot and she had wanted to discuss this privately.

"I…"

"Common guy's, I haven't gotten the chance to talk with her."

"You do now." Anthony said. All three boys were looking at her, waiting.

Cedric's jaw clenched and he took a step forward.

"Yes, but I'd rather do it privately."

"But…" Anthony said.

"Guy's I think that's our cue to buzz off." Tim suddenly said.

Dave and Anthony looked from Cedric to Tim and seemed to get the message.

"Well see you in the common room?" Dave said.

"Yeah sure…" Cedric said with a sharpness in his voice.

Anthony just turned around and started walking.

"See you later Rose." Dave said a smile back on his face, an apology in his eyes.

"Yeah see ya." Tim said with a wink and they left.

When they were out of earshot Cedric turned towards Rose.

"I'm sorry about that. I told them… I wanted to talk to you about this. Without them budding in."

"So you want to compete in the tournament?" Rose asked with a small heart.

"Yes."

"And this is what you want, not them?" Rose added, a bit scared.

"This is what I want to do, yes." Cedric said without hesitation. "But only if you agree."

"Why? I've never asked." Rose said surprised.

Cedric chuckled.

"That's what they said as well and I'll tell you the same thing I told them. It's not like you had time to ask the moment it happened. It's not like you had a choice, because if you did you wouldn't do it."

Rose smiled, he knew her so well.

"So what do you want me to do?" Cedric asked.

She looked at him and hesitated, his face was kind of hopeful and her stomach dropped even more.

Rose sighed.

"Listen, me, I'd rather you didn't. It's dangerous and I've had enough of danger for a long time, even though I don't think that's going to end for a while…"

Cedric's face fell, hope being flushed out.

"But… I support you no matter what. If you want to do this, I'm not going to be the one holding you back. I can see you really want to do this, so go for it." Rose said, smiling softly at him.

Cedric hesitated.

"Besides, better danger with supervision and precaution then what I've been going through. I have no doubt on my mind you have a great shot at winning."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes." Rose took his hand and squeezed it softly. "Besides, could be a good training for what you'll have to face when you stick with me."

A bright smile appeared on his face and he kissed and her.

Rose was holding on to him like she was adrift and he was the only thing keeping her above water. A cold fear settled in her stomach but she loved him, and she'd never stand in his way.