Chapter 5
Selected as Champion

Stone steps were not made for sitting on, especially for long periods of time. Considering the circumstances, Sophie did not seem to care. The torches that lit the spiral staircase cast dancing shadows against the opposite wall; they were the only entertainment she had sitting in a stairwell. It seemed like an eternity had passed by while she waited, but finally from the top of the stairs she heard the distinct sound of footsteps against stone. The sound echoed in the narrow passage and grew louder until a tall figure appeared around the bend where Sophie was sitting. A loud shout reverberated against the walls at her discovery.

"Sophie!" Cedric yelled in an exasperated voice, but smiled all the same. "What are you doing down here?"

"Waiting to congratulate you, of course," she replied, throwing her arms around him and smirking. "I had to be the first to do so."

"Thanks, Sophie!"

She watched him for a moment as he took in a few calming breaths. "I should have seen it coming, but I still am having a hard time believing it – you're the Hogwarts champion. I bet your mum and dad will have a fit when they hear. Will you write to them?"

Cedric shook his head. "Professor Dumbledore mentioned something about letting me use the fireplace in his office – that way I can tell them in person. He thinks it would be better than in a letter."

"Definitely. I want full details of the reaction. I imagine you're dad is going to be beside himself." Sophie grinned. "Alright, well, I had better be getting back. Have a good night, Cedric."

The two parted ways; Cedric continued down the stairs and Sophie went up the stairs to the Entrance Hall. The hallways were completely empty, except for an occasional appearance of a ghost. Sophie enjoyed the silent journey back to the common room, knowing that once she got back to Ravenclaw Tower it would be anything but silent.

The room was buzzing with activity, but Sophie did not stop to talk to anyone and instead went straight up to the sixth year dormitory. She figured it wouldn't be empty, but at least it wasn't the entire house. Upon entering her dormitory, she found the other girls all sitting on Janna's bed. Sophie's presence had silenced them. They all stared at her. She frowned.

"What?" she asked loudly.

"Nothing," Coralia replied. "We were talking about the tournament is all."

Sophie's face fell. In her excitement for Cedric, she had completely disregarded Aaralyn's feelings. She moved toward the bed, apologizing profusely.

"It's all right," Aaralyn said with a shrug. "I don't mind so much. I'm not actually sure I could handle all the pressure. I'm really glad Cedric got it."

"So what did old Cedric have to say about the tournament?" Janna asked with a smirk. "Since you didn't come up right away, we assumed you had gone to see him."

"I didn't want to keep him long, so we didn't really talk about it too much. He seemed very happy. I am so proud of him. He is going to be brilliant," Sophie replied simply. She really hoped to talk with him about it more tomorrow.

"Of course he will be brilliant." Coralia chuckled. "Cedric is a great Quidditch player, an excellent student, and an all around nice guy. I sometimes wonder why he was not placed in our house."

"And you forgot, by far one of the best looking boys in school," Janna squealed, blushing furiously. She buried her face in her pillow when all the other girls reacted.

Aaralyn smiled and sighed. "He does have some pretty stiff competition though. I mean, we're all skeptical about Harry Potter since he is so young. The Beauxbatons girl might look frail, but she must be up to par or the Goblet wouldn't have chosen her, and Viktor Krum, well, he's not the world's best Quidditch player for nothing."

Janna let loose a high pitch squeal and nearly fell off the bed. With all the girls looking at her curiously, she said sheepishly, "That Viktor Krum is really good looking too."

Sophie rolled her eyes and slid off the bed. "Is that all you ever think about, Janna?"

With everyone in their own beds, the girls continued to gossip and speculate about students at Hogwarts until all had fallen asleep.

"Morning, Sophie," Cedric said with a sleepy smile, sitting down next to her. It looked as though he hadn't gotten much sleep the night before.

"Hi, Cedric," she replied, leaning back on the on the windowsill. She smirked after taking in his appearance. "Rough night?"

Cedric laughed. "I don't think it has ever been that loud in the Hufflepuff common room before – at least it hasn't been in the last six years – not even when we beat Gryffindor in Quidditch last year."

"Did you have fun?"

"Yeah!"

"Good. That is all that matters."

"I wish you could have been there, Soph." Cedric gave her a small smile.

"It would have been nice, but we can celebrate together after you win the tournament." Sophie grinned. "So when will you get to talk to your parents?"

"Professor Dumbledore said to see him after lunch, so I think then."

"Will you tell your mum thanks for the sweets for me?"

"When did she send those to you?" he demanded.

Sophie shrugged. "A week ago, I think."

"She never sent me anything!" Cedric complained, looking slightly crestfallen by the news.

"That is because she likes me better!" Sophie teased, nudging him in the ribs.

Cedric stuck his tongue out at her and finished up the last slice of toast from his pile. He was just brushing the crumbs from his hands when two girls trotted around the corner, giggling. Their eyes lit up when they spotted the school champion. The one elbowed her friend rather severely before they both hurried toward him. Cedric greeted them with a nod and a pleasant smile. Sophie recognized them as two Gryffindor sixth years that she didn't particularly get along with.

The girl who had done the elbowing cleared her throat and spoke. "Erm…Cedric, we were wondering if you might sign our handbags?"

The second girl nodded silently, her mouth hanging slightly open as she stared at Cedric. Sophie had to keep from sniggering while Cedric obliged the two and scribbled his name onto their bags. Once the girls had retreated around the corner, Cedric turned on Sophie; his cheeks had turned a visible shade of pink.

"Don't say anything," he demanded stiffly as he gathered his books from the windowsill.

Sophie feigned a shocked look, her eyes wide with sarcasm. "I wouldn't dream of it!"

Cedric could tell she was itching to make fun of him. He turned away from her and set off down the hall. Sophie quickly gathered her own things and jumped off the sill.

"Cedric, wait up! I want you to sign my handbag too!" she called, snickering as she ran to catch up with him.