Author's Note: First, welcome! Second, this chapter will be a little shorter because f the last one. I want to keep the lengths of these to around 4k with some chapters longer if it feels right! Thanks for the support and encouragement so far.

Hope you continue to enjoy where I take this and what I have in store for both Harry/Cedric and Harry/Charlie. Though, it will be a while off because I am not comfortable having a 14/15 year old with a 22/23 year old. Also, I will treat Harry/Cedric like a first relationship where the emotions are so intense but then they will start to see they aren't really right for each other. If you are interested in a Harry/Cedric fic – just go read Soul Magic.

On another note, I just had my first flame. While I have no problem with constructive criticism or even telling me point blank what you think I'm doing wrong, I do have a problem with hurtful. And to answer your question about whether I am a 'gay moron or a girl, a stupid one full of perverse fantasies,' I would respond with I am a human being that you did not treat as such. I clearly stated what this fic would be about in the summary, and then again before the story even started (so that people did not waste their time reading something that they didn't care for). I can't be held accountable for you not bothering to read that, and if you did and then commented solely for the fact that you disagree with something that doesn't affect you, then have fun with the thousands of slash fics on this site. There was no need for your comment, and certainly no need for you to click on this story and then insult not only me, but everyone else reading it also. And the sad thing is that you won't even read this response because you commented anonymously.

Posted 8/2/15

Standard disclaimer about not owning anything; I am so thankful for JKR and all that she did for us. She gave us one of the greatest gifts, and so many people have taken to this site and played brilliantly with her creation. We should have a JKR day and it should be a global holiday!

Harry lost count of how many kisses that Cedric and him exchanged, the dizzying rush of those soft lips against his own pushed every other thought to the background. He had never known that something besides flying could be so exhilarating; it was as if every nerve was firing at once with excitement.

Eventually, they had to separate; both boys were partially out of breath and their cheeks were very red, but they still didn't take their eyes or hands off of one another.

"Wow," Cedric exclaimed softly. "I mean, I had kissed Cho before, but never like this, just wow." He continued rambling in an adorable manner, caressing Harry's cheek with his free hand and running his fingers over the small of Harry's back, making sure that the younger boy stayed right where he was.

At first, Harry had been taken aback slightly at the mention of Cho, but Cedric was practically gushing about what had just occurred between them. He liked to think that he was better than Cho, and it didn't matter: Cedric was kissing him now, not her.

Harry leaned into Cedric's embrace and let himself be held, both of Cedric's arms now wrapped around him and holding him tightly.

"That was incredible," Harry blushed into Cedric's neck, taking a deep breath of this scent that he could just not get enough of.

"I never want to stop doing that," the younger boy said, before initiating a second series and continuing his indescribable first kiss, again losing count of how many times their lips met.

But they couldn't keep doing that forever, reluctantly stopping but remaining close to each other. Cedric led them away from the balcony to sit on the opposite wall and Harry was content to rest there, seated between Cedric's legs with his back to Cedric's stomach.

"What are we going to do for the summer?" Cedric mussed, already beginning to feel a slight pang at the thought that they would soon be leaving Hogwarts for a few months. It was cruel that he and Harry had just discovered the connection between them and this wondrous new activity and then were forced to take time apart; however, the older part of Cedric's mind told him that it might not be such a bad thing. At least they wouldn't be rushing into anything, whereas he could easily see that happening here at Hogwarts. If just kissing felt this great, he could only imagine how the other stuff must feel.

"I don't know," Harry said quietly, thinking that any visits while he was at The Dursleys would be simply out of the question.

"Dumbledore thinks I can start living with Sirius soon, so in a few weeks maybe we can get together or something at Grimmauld Place or somewhere else." Harry didn't see another way around it.

"Hmmm, I don't know if I can go that long without kissing you; it's my new favorite thing you know." Harry didn't have to look at Cedric to know there was a huge grin on his face.

"Well, we still have a little while," Harry said, starting to get tired, though not wanting to do anything about it.

"A little while," Cedric agreed and he moved in and rested his chin on Harry's shoulder so that their cheeks were resting against one another. He wrapped his arms around the other boy and held him tightly, trying not to think about the future. Both were quite content to remain in this moment and once or twice even stole a few additional kisses before they headed back to their dormitories and parted ways for the evening.

It was very late when they made it back to their respective rooms. Both were incredibly happy and had these ridiculous smiles etched onto their faces, no longer questioning how these feelings had developed between them over such a short amount of time; they were just glad they had survived the cemetery to discover them.

Meanwhile, many miles away, a fuming Dark Lord sat, barely able to contain his desire to maim the man that sat before him. No matter how useful Barty Crouch Jr. had been, Lord Voldemort did not take kindly to failure when it cost him the object or person of his desire. It didn't even matter that Crouch Jr. was not the reason that it failed; he didn't have what he had wanted and he desperately wanted to take his anger out on someone to make up for it.

The only thing that kept Barty living now was that he was useful to him going forward, and he had a real need for someone that he could trust as he gathered his former strength. Well, perhaps not trust because he didn't trust anyone, but someone that he was reasonably sure would not fail him, and someone that was certainly more competent than Peter Pettigrew could ever hope to be.

Initially, his plan would have been to call on his Death Eaters, summoning them to the cemetery to watch his triumphant killing of Harry Potter, once and for all proving that he was above all others. Lord Voldemort would no longer be beholden to some insufferable prophecy or some snot-nosed brat.

But that hadn't happened and so his Death Eaters remained unaware; well, as unaware as they could pretend seeing as how he knew his mark had been growing steadily darker on Pettigrew throughout the year. He didn't even have to look at Barty's arm to know that his followers would be able to discern that he was around once more.

They had failed to come look for him, to help him even though he would have loathed them for it; and, so now, he would delay his call to them, punishing them for not believing that he could ever be truly vanquished.

"Barty," he called after the long silence, knowing that he needed to salvage the fact that his return had not gone unnoticed. It would have been perfect to kill the little brat in secret with no one the wiser, and now, the boy lived and Dumbledore knew of his return. Dumbledore would surely begin moving against him like he had last time, but then, so would Lord Voldemort.

"Yes, master," his eyes twitched uncontrollably and his tongue flicked out. The man was clearly demented on some level, but he was useful and so it was overlooked.

"Tell me everything you know about Azkaban," Lord Voldemort commanded. "I have a desire to free up some of their cells."

"Of course, my Lord," he cackled in delight, happy that he was able to serve his master and provide for any requests.

"Good." He leaned back and took it all in, noting that he would need to see if anything had changed in the years that Barty had been out or that he had been unavailable. He wouldn't act tonight; no, that would too rash.

'But soon,' he hissed to himself, a rare uptick to the side of his mouth. 'Yes, soon.'

The next morning dawned rather early for Harry and Cedric, and both boys had only had a few hours of sleep before they were awoken by the rush of classmates who much preferred to spend their remaining time at Hogwarts outside and enjoying themselves. Many of them were glad to be done with classes, but they also would dearly miss the castle and their friends. It was a little sad to think that they would be leaving in a day.

But first they had to eat breakfast, and even though Harry was tired – he couldn't help the peaceful grin that settled onto his face because he had just had one of the best nights of his life. His lips still had a faint sensation of being kissed, and it took all of his willpower not to stare longingly at Cedric.

Hermione knew something was different with Harry but she was having trouble putting her finger on it. It was paradoxical that Harry was so calm this morning considering what had befallen him a few nights prior.

"Harry, how are you doing this morning?" she asked amid small bites of her porridge, pointedly trying to hide her curiosity in the hopes of not giving anything away. She had learned that the best approach with Harry had been to catch him off guard.

"Harry," she called again, even more curious now at finding out what was going on.

"Huh, what was that? Did you say something, Hermione?" Harry replied, ending his daydream about the older Hufflepuff.

"I asked how you were doing today, you seem really out of it." Her statement had been calculating; she had wanted to appear concerned, which she was, but knowing that Harry didn't take overt mothering too well – even from her.

"Oh, yeah, I'm fine." He looked around the table to give him time to think of an adequate response because he noticed that he would have to explain the smile he found on his face. Again, Harry was thankful that thinking was easier for him now.

"I was just thinking of my mum," he said suddenly, knowing that emotions on his face could be explained by having a once-in-a-lifetime reunion with his deceased parent that finally gave him something other to remember her by than her pleading for her life.

"Oh, Harry," Hermione said sincerely, not expecting that response, but seeing how it made sense.

Harry felt bad for the small white lie, and while he was and did feel incredibly happy and fortunate to have experienced that – it wasn't the real reason for his current mood. Though, now that he was thinking about his mum, that now became the reason for his lifted spirits whereas thoughts about Cedric's kisses fell to the sideline.

Hermione leaned in closer to Harry, Ron failing to notice what was going on until he had demolished the towering plate of food before him.

"I'm here for you, you know that, right? I mean, if you ever wanted to talk about things." Her warm brown eyes and loving features directed towards Harry, who she considered to be like a brother.

"I know Hermione, thanks. It means a lot." He reached to the side and squeezed her hand, easily returning her sentiment. She was like a sister to him as well.

"So what now?" Harry asked, finished with his breakfast. He had surreptitiously caught Cedric's eyes, and had managed to give him a quick smile while Hermione was busy getting Ron to chew his food before asking her a question.

"I don't know. I suppose we will have to be there to watch the students from Durmstrang and Beauxbatons leave." Her eyes drifted off to where her new international friend, Victor Krum, sat at the Slytherin Table.

Ron rolled his eyes; he had been coming to terms with what his jealously over Victor had been about, which was also one of the reasons why he was so keen to put a little more interest into his studies.

They sat there until breakfast was over, Ron compromising and giving into Hermione's incessant need to talk about the exams that were finished and she found herself actually interested in some of Ron's viewpoints on some of the questions.

Harry was thinking about how the school had almost returned to normal in such a short time; he remembered back to when Sirius was on the loose and all that anyone could talk about was him breaking into the castle. But now, even with Pettigrew's unexpected return, the students had seem uninterested in knowing exactly what Harry or Cedric had gone through in the maze and were simply happy that a Hogwarts' student had won.

Indeed, there was little fanfare in the crowning of Harry and Cedric as champions with only a brief mention before everyone departed breakfast and they were quietly given their winnings before the student body exchanged goodbyes with the other schools. It was still fascinating to many how the other school traveled and they watched in awe as the boat sank beneath the surface and the large carriage took flight into the sky and soon rose above the low-lying clouds.

The rest of the day was pretty leisurely for the trio as they strolled about the grounds and talked about their plans for the summer.

"So, Harry," Ron put forth, "how long are you at The Dursleys again?"

"Dumbledore said two weeks at the longest," Harry replied, wondering when he was going to share the news with his friends about the information that Dumbledore had. Ultimately, he decided that he would wait until he had something to share.

"And then it's onto Grimmauld Place?"

"Yeah, Hermione," knowing that she was with him last year when the offer of a new residence was first made to him. She knew just how important this was for Harry.

"It'll be nice to have a home," Harry sighed, looking off across the still water with the only ripples being caused by Ron throwing stones.

"We'll come visit mate, you know it."

"I know Ron; maybe this year, everyone can stay the rest of the summer there instead of at The Burrow? I'm sure Sirius will be okay with it."

"Be a bit harder to play quidditch in the city though," Ron smartly commented.

It was Hermione's turn to roll her eyes.

"I'm sure you two will think of something. I can just imagine you boys flying throughout the house and your mother yelling at you, 'Ronald, you come down form there this instant.'"

Harry snorted. "That was a brilliant impression, Hermione."

Ron was slightly horrified as her impersonation had been perfect, "it was eerie how similar that was."

"Well, it's the truth."

"I never disagreed with that," Ron admitted.

"Come on guys," Harry put his arms around both of them and guided them back to the castle as they needed to pack before dinner.

"Besides, with you guys there we can start planning out our training. You know, Hermione, I hear the library at Grimmauld Place is huge with a lot of rare books."

Her eyes grew dreamy and Harry had to stifle a laugh because he was looking forward to it as well so he couldn't really make fun of her reaction.

"Heck, even I am looking forward to that," Ron announced, again causing Hermione to slightly reevaluate her opinion of him.

"What?" Ron looked at her indignantly, "think of the spells in there that Fred and George don't know. I'll finally be able to start getting them back."

It was Ron's turn to take on a dreamy expression.

"Well, at least you will be willingly learning Magic," she chided, as they made their way into the castle.

Packing didn't take them that long and dinner was a short affair as well. The atmosphere in the Great Hall was full of chatter with the school year officially coming to a close. Before being dismissed, however, Albus rose and parted with a few words in the hopes of preparing his students for the return of Voldemort.

"Another year, gone. One full of new friends and new experiences, and hopefully, you learned something along the way. With every passing year, those friendships grow and your capabilities with magic increase." He looked out over each table, deliberately increasing the impact that his words would unconsciously have. He had chosen those few words carefully to maximize impact while knowing that their attention span was short.

"And someday, those friendships and that magical knowledge can do wonders – even in the face of the unknown." Then it was time for his usual phrase, "and get those heads nice and empty before filling them once more next year."

Soon, everyone was dismissed and the trio returned to their common room and relaxed on one of the couches until it was time for bed. Harry, however, waited up again tonight, for Cedric and him had briefly discussed meeting at midnight one last time before the summer truly began.

Harry wasn't as nervous this time making the trip to the Astronomy Tower; if anything, he was a little emotional at this being the last time that he would get a chance to be alone with Cedric for who knew how long.

This time, Cedric was there before Harry and they immediately came together, kissing with such intensity at their upcoming separation.

They didn't sleep at all that night, but they were able to talk and kiss and be close to each other, making some plans for staying in touch over the summer.

"I'll miss you, Harry," Cedric breathed while holding Harry, his voice slightly breaking from the intense emotions threatening to overtake him. The thought of two months away was unbearable now that he had this new relationship.

"Me too," was all Harry managed to say before a single tear managed to fall down his cheek.

"Until next time," Cedric said before kissing him one last time and very reluctantly letting the younger boy return to Gryffindor as the sun, along with the students for an early breakfast, were beginning to rise.

Let me know what you think! I love reviews; especially those that help me get better. In fact, the person who leaves the 50th review will get a request from me about a special scene that they would like to see in an upcoming chapter. Thanks for reading!