Viktor was the first to be released from the hospital. Esperanza had a tearful goodbye with Hermione, Amalea, Hana, and Manuia but promised she'd see them in July. At least… she would see Hermione in D.R. Fleur was next, off to France, but something told Cedric it wouldn't be for long. Before they left, she sat down on the edge of his bed, her parents behind her.

"How long have you known about…" Apolline glanced at the eavesdropping Healers and switched to French. "About our relationship with your mother?"

"For a long time," he replied. "I don't even remember when I knew. When my father started ignoring us, I know she often thought about returning to France but… it would mean leaving behind her family home." He chuckled wryly. "Guess that's moot now. It's going under anyway and there's no way I can take care of it by myself anymore… Not that you should worry about that, I'm just talking to myself."

"Well, you're always welcome to visit us in France," said Bastien.

"Isn't he a werewolf?" said Gabby. "Everyone says that all werewolves are evil. I don't—"

"Hush, Gabby," scolded Apolline. "Werewolves are just people with an illness."

Fleur kissed Cedric on the cheek and left with her family.

Harry left soon after to go to a safer location. Hermione had arrived as they were leaving and spoke to Sirius before entering the room to be with Cedric.

"So, any news on when you'll be able to get a prosthetic?" she asked.

"Prosthetics cost money," he said glumly. "It's going to take most, if not all, of my C.D. Products—my business name—profits to pay for a good one."

"Then don't get a good one," said Hermione. "Just get something that's functional and we'll ask my cousin Noa to make it better."

Chiara—the nice Healer—walked into the room pushing a cart. Her expression was apologetic.

"Good afternoon, Mr. Diggory," she said. "So, we have a variety of low-cost prosthetics. They have simple grab-and-release but can't do much more than that. Since it's a simple model you can wear it out in public around Muggles since they have similar things."

"How much?" Cedric asked.

"Twenty galleons, not including your hospital bills."

"Oof," said Hermione. "How much would a good one cost?"

"About a hundred."

"Why are prosthetics so expensive?" she muttered. "Arms, legs, glasses. A lot of people need those things, shouldn't they be free?"

While she jotted that down in her notebook, Cedric wracked his brain trying to figure out how much he had saved. Surely, he had enough in his vault. At least a hundred galleons. Maybe one-fifty. He'd recently stocked up on supplies for orders and that had seriously put a dent in his savings. How was he going to fill in orders now?

"Now, we'll just fit you," said Chiara, lifting one up. "It adjusts to your stump."

"Residual limb," Hermione corrected crossly.

"Yes, of course."

Cedric held out his arm, still feeling sick anytime he looked at it. The skin was angry and raw. He glanced at Hermione who wasn't sick or disgusted when she saw it. Just angry that it happened. Chiara held up a prosthetic and pushed it onto his limb.

"Ow!" he cried, his scars screaming with pain as the cold metal connected. It shifted and clamped down hard almost biting onto him.

"I'm sorry, it will hurt for a bit," said Chiara. "It'll get easier as the scar tissue heals. Now, don't get it wet and, if it needs to be cleaned, wipe it down with a damp cloth. I wouldn't recommend using it to cast magic and writing will be a bit tricky. Go on, try it."

Swallowing back the pain, Cedric focused on making the hand open. It pushed back.

"Guess not," said Chiara. "Let's try another."

This rather reminded him of Ollivander's wandshop, though it hadn't taken him nearly as long to find a wand that suited him. It took four tries for him to find a prosthetic that worked, and it was significantly shorter. Dajuan would probably call him Clock.

"It's fine," said Cedric, studying the basic fingers, they didn't even look realistic. "For now."

"Alright," she said, putting the rest away. "You can be discharged in a few hours should you wish."

"Can't afford not to," he muttered.

Chiara rested her hand on his. "If you need someone to talk to, I'll be here."

"Thank you, Chiara."

Hermione ran her fingers through his hair. Basically, the only place she could touch him that didn't hurt. He knew there wouldn't be getting rid of her and, honestly, he didn't want to be alone right now.

"I need to go to the farm first," he said. "Can I borrow your purse to pack things?"

"Yes, of course," she said.

"What did you do with the Cup?" he asked.

"Sold it to a pawn shop," she said, removing the money from her pocket. "I told them it was a vase from the 1800s and that it glowed due to a special paint that was no longer in production due to its makeup being so rare."

"Brilliant," he said, accepting the notes she gave him. "Where's my wand?"

She faltered and avoided looking at him.

"Mimi… where's my wand…?" he asked.

"Well, um, I didn't see exactly what happened to it, but…"

"Where's my wand?" he asked again.

Avoiding his eyes, she dug into her bag and brought out his wand case.

"When did you get that?" he asked.

"Professor Sprout brought your things to my house," she said gripping it in her hands. "I was going to give it to you later but…"

Cedric took it and fumbled with trying to open it. It hurt to rotate his prosthetic, so he just set the case on his lap and worked the clasp open though it was tough as all of his nails had broken off. Resting inside was what was left of his wand and the handle so lovingly carved for him. It had completely splintered, and the core was burned up. He touched it lightly, the pieces fell apart even further almost into ash. Tears filled his eyes, but he blinked them back. Now was not the time to lose it. He could swallow back any emotion. He was the poster-boy of 'Grin and Bear It' he could make it through this. He refused to break down in public again.

Hermione stayed with him while he was discharged and signed out.

"Right," said the Greeter witch, looking at Cedric in a way that made Hermione seethe beside him. "When it comes time for a refill on your Wolfsbane potions, we will send you a notice and you, or a representative, will need to come and pick them up. You'll sign off with the witch in charge of that: Chiara."

"Okay," he said. "Thank you."

She hummed and the subtext told him that he needed to leave immediately, or she would cause trouble for him.

Since he couldn't apparate without his wand, they made use of the connecting floo network and took it to Rosehill Manor. The place was quiet.

"Hello?" Cedric called.

With a sharp crack, Tavi appeared and threw her arms around him.

"Cedric!" she cried. "Tavi knew you would be home! Tavi missed you so much! Where are your things? Tavi will unpack them right now."

"I- I'm sorry, Tavi," said Cedric. "I'm not staying."

Tavi's ears fell with her face.

"Where are you going?" she asked.

"I'm staying with Hermione," he said. "Where is jidha? Hasn't she explained any of this to you?"

"Tavi— I have not spoken to her much," she said. "I know she is taking over Mistress's office for the past week. Master Diggory has not been happy either. Always muttering and being unkind."

Cedric scowled. His father had never been kind to Tavi. Always treating her like a slave rather than the loving nanny she'd always been. Maybe he should see about getting her used to the idea of freedom, along with choosing where to work. Of course, he couldn't free her that went to the head of the family. Or could he? There were documents in Mum's office that put the farm and house in his name when he came of age. Wouldn't Tavi fall under that? His stomach twisted and he involuntarily shuddered. She wasn't property. No matter how well he treated her, he couldn't own someone. It wasn't right.

"We're just here to pack some things up," he said waving off their questioning looks. "Take care of loose ends. See… I can't take care of the farm anymore." He held up his prosthetic and Tavi shrieked with despair.

"Oh, Cedric!" she cried. "What have they done to you? Do not worry! Tavi will be taking care of you! Tavi has always taken care of Cedric."

"Tavi, calm down," he said, resting a hand on her shoulder. "While I take care of the animals, will you help Hermione put Mum's favorite things in her bag to take to the family vault?"

"Of course," she said. "Come along, Miss Hermione."

Cedric went through the house and out to the barn, stuffing his feet into a pair of work boots. If the farm was being sold then he needed to make sure that those who needed the wool, milk, and eggs still got a final supply with enough to make arrangements for a new supplier.

It was slow going but he managed to tie his favorite cow Daisy, her best friend, Trixie, and two sheep to Jigsy and it took another frustrating half hour for him to get the saddle on. Daffodil wouldn't be able to make the ride now, but she still looked miffed at this and snorted, stomping her hoof as if to say, "How dare you?"

"You're too old, Daffodil," he said. "I don't want you to get hurt. I promise, we'll go for a short walk before I go. Okay?"

She tossed her golden head and turned her butt towards him.

"Classy," he said, mounting Jigsy. "Come on, Jig. Let's go pay the Weasleys a visit."

The day was hot and dry with the promise of a drought. Perhaps it was a good thing they were selling now before it was too late, and nobody would buy it. Sweat poured down his face, leaving him feeling as if he'd jumped into the pond and gotten dressed without drying off. When he reached the gate to the Burrow, Cedric dismounted his horse and walked up to the door. The chatter inside halted when Daisy lowed and shook her head, ringing the bell around her neck. Cedric knocked softly, minding his bruised knuckles and Mrs. Weasley answered looking rather surprised and… wary.

Of course, the Weasleys didn't like werewolves either. Still, he wasn't going to break his resolve.

"I thought you should know that the farm is being sold since I can't stay," he said. "I brought you my best cows and two sheep. They're all rather young, so they should provide you with enough for a while. I already sheared the sheep, so the wool is on Daisy's back."

"Thank you, Cedric," said Mrs. Weasley, blinking with surprise. "That is very kind of you."

"What do you mean you can't stay?" Ginny asked, squeezing beside her mother. "What happened?"

Cedric started a little when Mrs. Weasley held an arm out as if he would go rabid and attack the youngest Weasley.

"It doesn't matter," he replied. "Anyway, if you keep the cows, just move them between fields every so often, so they doesn't get bored. And they have to be milked twice a day or it could hurt them. I gave you both because cows do better if they have a friend and you can still make butter and cheese and other stuff with the milk. Just make sure you boil the milk and skim stuff off first. You shouldn't drink raw milk. If you sell them or the sheep, keep the money. I don't care. I'll… I'll just tie them to your fence."

He did as he said he would and left, taking Jigsy to a near gallop to get back to his place.

When he entered the house, his father was there waiting for him looking angry.

"So, you're back," he said.

"Yes," Cedric replied flatly. "You could have visited you know. Why didn't you visit? Aren't you proud that your son went through such lengths for you?"

"Proud?" Amos scoffed. "How could I be proud. My only son is a crippled werewolf!"

"And whose fault is that?!" Cedric snapped. "If you had just said you were proud of me for my Order of Merlin, then I wouldn't have felt the need to enter that stupid Tournament! If you hadn't been so outspoken about werewolves, then I wouldn't have been transformed into one! Have you changed your mind yet now that your only son is a werewolf?"

"You know?" said Amos. "I'm not even sure you are my son! I know everything about France. I know that she married me so she could keep the farm. I also know that she visited Paris just before our wedding and, next thing I know, she's pregnant with you."

"How can you say that?" Cedric growled feeling his cheeks burn. "She was loyal! If she didn't care about you then— then— well, she wouldn't have stayed. I am your son!"

"As far as I'm concerned, I no longer have a son," said Amos coldly as he drew his wand. "I'll give you ten minutes to gather your things and if you aren't out by then so help me…"

"It's my house!" Cedric shouted, feeling as if he were punched in the gut. " You get out! I get to sell it with jidha! I get to keep the money. You get nothing! You never even cared about this place so why should you get to take the profits?"

Amos's mind went red and one intrusive thought flashed in his mind. Acting on it, he turned to the house, expression full of rage and hate and waved his wand.

"Incendio!"

Flames shot out of his wand and broke through the windows, lighting up immediately.

"HERMIONE!" Cedric shouted, racing into the house. "TEITA! TAVI!"

The flames moved faster than they should, climbing up the walls and overtaking the furniture. They'd consume something that would make them bigger. He hurried through the doors before he could get trapped and skidded through a stop in the foyer looking around for them.

"Hermione! Tavi! Get to the floo! Hurry!"

"Cedric?" Her voice came from upstairs. "Cedric, what's going on? What's that smell?"

Smoke filled the room, and he could see a glow where the fire was coming up next, from the dining room, the parlor, and coming around to the office.

"Fire!" he shouted, racing up the stairs. "Fire! We have to go!"

He bumped into Hermione and Tavi outside his mum's library.

"What do you mean fire?!" she asked.

"I mean, that the house is on fire and we have to go!"

The shock caused Hermione to not compute the danger of the situation. Guilt that she had browsed through the items in interest rather than just packing them away immediately flooded her stomach.

"But… your mum's things…"

"Just leave them!" he said, taking her hand and racing towards the stairs.

"Wait!" said Tavi. "I need to grab just one more thing!"

"Tavi, there's no time!" he said. "We have to leave! Get out of here! Now!"

"In a moment!" she said, apparating.

Cedric hurried down the stairs with Hermione towards the floo. The rooms were heavy with smoke causing both teenagers to cough. Cedric's lungs and eyes burned. He flung open the doors to the reception room and found their path blocked.

"Out the front?" Hermione cried, grabbing onto his hand.

A horrible groan reached his ears and the ceiling collapsed from the way they came, blocking their path to the foyer. Hermione coughed and looked around wildly for a way out. The heat and the smoke was making her head fuzzy.

"Give me your wand!" Cedric shouted, feeling dizzy himself.

Hermione gave it to him, he pulled her in tight and apparated. He felt the both of them get sucked into a thin tube. If either of them got splinched, hopefully Hana had some dittany to help. They landed in the reception room and lay there holding each other tight. Hermione gasped like a fish out of water and he saw that she couldn't breathe when she was apparating.

Footsteps came up from the basement and Manuia entered the room.

"Oh, my God!" He rushed over to them and knelt down. "Nia, Cedric, what happened?"

Hermione coughed and sat up.

"Papá," she rasped. "There was a fire… at Cedric's house. I… I don't know how it happened."

Cedric couldn't sit up. Jidha must not have been home, but where was Tavi? He told her to get somewhere safe. Did she ignore him and get hurt trying to retrieve the item that was so important? His house was gone, most if not all of his mother's treasured possessions were gone, his father disowned him, people now thought he was a monster due to something he had no control over, and he was missing an arm. His stress became too much and the dam broke. Curling up, he began to cry, despair taking over any positive thoughts he might've tried to grasp onto.

Hermione rested a hand on his shoulder, but he jerked away, finally understanding why she couldn't be touched when she was upset. If he wasn't left alone, he might freak, lashing out to whoever was closest.

She stepped away, holding her hands up.

"Go clean up, precious," said Manuia. "Amalea and Hana are at the grocery store, but I'll let them know what happened."

"Alright. Um, yell if you need me."

Cedric closed his eyes, unable to stop his sobs. His lungs hurt, his heart hurt even more, and he just couldn't stop the spiral of bad thoughts. After Manuia puttered around the kitchen for a few minutes, he return and sat down, but didn't make any contact. Cedric couldn't detect anything except patience and calm. He reached out for it, grasping on and hoping he could use some of it. Ground himself.

Belle came into the room and curled up by her owner, purring to comfort him. At least she was here with Hermione's family. He wasn't sure he would have been able to handle losing his cat. Oh, God, Amos was probably gonna turn his horse into glue! He pressed his forehead into the carpet and wailed.

The front door swung open and Amalea burst in with two grocery bags.

"We're home- oh, my God, what happened to you?"

Manuia hissed and waved her and Hana along. They said nothing and just unloaded the groceries in the kitchen before going downstairs. Hermione passed through, but she was waved along, so she went down into the basement to sit with her Mom and sister.

After crying for who knew how long, Cedric finally trailed off. He wasn't sure if his tears were spent due to dehydration or if he was just too exhausted to cry anymore.

"Here," said Manuia. "Sit up. Drink some water."

He sipped at it, wincing at the pain swallowing brought. Manuia wrung out a damp cloth over a bowl of water and began wiping the soot off Cedric's face.

"Are you okay to tell me what happened?" he asked.

"I… I don't know," said Cedric, feeling fresh tears bubbling up.

"That's fine then. How about a hug?"

Cedric nodded. Manuia wrapped an arm around him and continued pushing calm and patience towards him. It occurred to Cedric that Hermione told her dad of his legilimency which is probably why he was thinking loudly.

"My father disowned me," he said at last.

"No!"

"Because I'm a werewolf," he said. "I was turned into one by Greyback's followers."

"Ugh, it's like those people who wish a gay child on homophobic parents," Manuia scoffed. "It's a punishment for the gay child and pushes the notion that having a gay child is a punishment! I mean, I'm not implying that lycanthropy is like homosexuality, it's just… bigotry seems to have a pattern."

Cedric sniffled. "I probably would have been disowned a long time ago if my dad found out I liked both girls and blokes. I only told Hermione and now you, but I think my mum suspected."

Manuia hugged him again and ruffled some of the soot out of his hair.

"Listen," he said. "As the saying goes, the blood of the covenant is thicker than the water of the womb. You have family in Herminia and the Grangers, the Sanchezes will happily accept you, and I think you're cool enough to be part of my family, too. You have a group of people behind you, Ced."

"But… my lycanthropy."

"Do you really think a Sanchez cares about a little once-a-month issue?" he said. "Don't be a lolo. And while you're surrounded by love, Amos is going to grow into a sad and lonely old man and then, when you achieve happiness again and, maybe, have a family started yourself, he'll come back. Beg for your forgiveness and you know what you do then?"

"Forgive and forget?" Cedric muttered, the thought pissing him off.

"No," he replied. "Forgiving someone who abused you is overrated. You stand your ground and tell him, 'no. I don't forgive you,' and then you move on with your life. Live spitefully."

Cedric blinked, not expecting that answer.

"I don't have to forgive?"

"Nope," Manuia popped the 'p,' "Forgiveness should happen because you mean it, not because you feel obligated. Forgiveness where it isn't deserved is bullshit. I mean, I never forgave my old man, and I don't lose a wink of sleep."

"Huh…"

Hermione came out of the basement dressed in shorts and a t-shirt.

"I need to go out," she said.

"Where are you going, precious?"

"I have some business I meant to attend to a week ago," she replied.

"Is this business dangerous?"

"No." She dug into her purse and removed a plastic container containing a bug and a miniature ecosystem. "Just some blackmail. I'm going to a public place to settle this matter."

"Nia, did you transfigure a person into a bug?" Manuia asked, alarmed.

"No, Papá," she said. "No, it's Rita Skeeter. She's an animagus and I kept her in this container for months."

"Ah, I see," he said. Cedric could see that he wanted to pitch a fit about this, but his hatred for the woman outweighed the questionable conduct of his daughter's revenge. "Just… be home before dinner."

Hermione came over and kissed the two of them on the cheeks.

"See you soon." She put Skeeter back in her bag and left.

"I'm going to go shower," said Cedric.

"Your trunk is in the office," said Manuia. "I'll whip you up some food."

"Thanks, Manny."

Once he finally felt clean, he awkwardly dressed and went downstairs, leaving his arm on the bathroom counter. A fragrant and sweet scent filled the downstairs making Cedric inhale deeply. The familiar sound of boiling oil came from the kitchen along with the voices of Hermione's family. They were all sitting around the table, though Amalea was hanging over her father's arm, looking at what he was cooking.

"Hello, Cedric," said Beatrice, taking notice of him. She stood up and gave him a warm hug before sitting him down in her spot.

"First batch of andagi is ready," said Manuia, placing a wooden bowl filled with round donut-like pastries on the table. He put a couple on a plate and gave it to Cedric. "Eat up."

Cedric lifted it and took a bite. The outside was crispy, but the inside was soft. He closed his eyes and chewed slowly.

"Mmm."

Manuia patted his shoulder and went back to the stove to make the rest so he could clear out the kitchen for dinner to be made.

"They're good with powdered sugar, cinnamon, or chocolate," he said. "But we didn't have any of that."

"These are perfect," said Cedric, taking another bite.

~o0o~

Hermione stopped at a Costa and entered, standing in the queue to order her drink. The place was crowded enough that it would protect her from Skeeter, but not too crowded that she wouldn't be able to have this meeting. She ordered two cappuccinos and a sandwich, sat down at a table in the corner, and opened the container.

"Run and I leak your secret," she said, placing it on the ground.

Skeeter returned to her normal self under the table and sat in her chair stretching out and cracking a crick in her neck. She was rumpled, but otherwise looked fine. One person did a double-take wondering when a lady in a hot pink suit and blonde beehive entered.

The barista, who had witnessed this tacky lady transformed from a bug, placed their cappuccinos on the table. She didn't care about the obvious magic before her because it was five minutes until two hours before her shift was done and she could go home. Being a barista, she saw a lot of weird stuff and dealt with stupid people. The girl with the bug lady had thanked her and put a £5 note in the tip jar, so she wasn't going to say a word.

Skeeter glared at Hermione and crossed her arms.

"Suppose you think you're clever," she said.

"That seems to be the general consensus," Hermione replied, breezily sliding a contract over to Skeeter. "These are my terms for your release. I won't tell the aurors about your little secret, you will disappear for a bit and wait for a letter from me or Cedric to write asking for an article of the topic of my choice. You'll be stuck writing fashion columns for a while. I know you need to work, I'm not a monster."

She'd spent several days perfecting the contract and biding Skeeter to do her bidding. Since she was leaving, she would entrust the contract to Cedric when he went to school, but for now, it would remain in her safe in her bedroom.

I, _, hereby agree that I will not write any articles, pamphlets, books, or any other published material about the personal lives of people, celebrities or otherwise, for two years starting today June 20th, 1995. Failure to do so will result in my outing as a Blue Beetle Animagus to the authorities. The exception to this rule is one designated interview by the choice of the holder of this contract.

She already signed it as witness and placed several enchantments on it that would bind Skeeter to follow it lest she suffer consequences.

"You can't do this to me," said Rita, baring her yellow teeth.

"I can and I will. I'm very tenacious you know."

"Why do you want an article from me?"

"You are very influential, Skeeter," said Hermione. "Besides, I think a couple years of living off of beans and rice is better than four months in Azkaban and a 100 galleon fine, yes? Not to mention everyone you ever wrote an article about will know that you had spied on them." She hummed and tapped her chin. "I wonder how much your sentence would extend for spying on little kids."

Skeeter paled considerably and Hermione knew she caught the beetle in her web.

"Why aren't you in Slytherin?" Skeeter asked, picking up the contract and examining it. "You'd be a rather good one."

"My parents are No-Majs," said Hermione simply. "Doesn't matter that both of my grandmothers have magic, it still doesn't make me a half-blood."

Skeeter harrumphed and took the pen from Hermione, scrawling out her name and initials in the designated areas. She threw the pen down and sipped the cappuccino. Hermione pushed the sandwich over to her which Skeeter scarfed down having eaten nothing but leaves, larvae, and bits of fruit for the past several months.

"By the way," said Hermione. "Here's what you missed. A man was posing as Barty Crouch Sr. and he tried to kill me and infiltrate the school. The real Barty Crouch was murdered by the imposter whom, I believe, was his son, Barty Crouch Jr. It turns out Junior didn't really die in Azkaban and I bet his mom traded places with him but there isn't really much to confirm that. Cedric Diggory beat Viktor Krum in Quidditch, but Viktor won in a game called Seeker's Bombardment. They were equals in a duel, however, and Fleur kicked everyone's butt. All four Champions got seriously injured and an ancient ritual was formed on Cedric turning him into a werewolf. Both he and Harry Potter witnessed Voldemort returning and Ludo Bagman and Barty Crouch Jr. orchestrated the entire thing. What else… oh! Lucius Malfoy is out of Azkaban and, surprisingly, Draco hasn't been strutting around like a peacock, so I think there's some estrangement going on there.

Skeeter's jaw dropped. All of this juicy information and she wasn't allowed to cook any of it.

"I have to go," said Hermione. "My boyfriend is living with me now because his father disowned him and burned down their house."

The person behind her choked on their smoothie.

Skeeter growled as Hermione waltzed out of the café.

Feeling smug, Hermione headed home and played with the locket Cedric gave her while she was on the Tube. Gasping a little when it gave away, she was worried she broke it, until it kept on turning and became a heart. Neat! She slid it open and saw a picture of Cedric. This must've been from a couple summers ago.

Picture-Cedric opened his eyes and brightened up when he saw her, breaking into a wide grin. Aww, this was so sweet! She could see why he didn't show her the secret to the locket when he gave it to her, though. He would have basically been declaring his affections with a bullhorn. Smiling, she touched the picture lightly, Cedric leaning into her.

"Interesting locket there, missy."

Hermione looked up at a man and said nothing, closing up the locket and letting it drop back to her chest. She would have to free Cedric and put a non-semi-sentient one in its place.

"Boyfriend give it to you?" the man pressed.

Pursing her lips, Hermione opened her book and ignored him. He kept standing right in front of her even though there were three empty seats and wouldn't stop talking to her.

"Come on, love, where you going?" he asked, leaning closer. "I'd be happy to walk you home."

Uncomfortable to the point of tears, she removed the emergency medallion from her purse and tapped it against the page in her book.

S.O.S. O.N. T.U.B.E. S.E.N.D. H.E.L.P. K.I.N.G. C.R.O.S.S.

"That's a nice coin," he said. "Was it a gift?"

She got up, intending to get off at that stop and wait for Hana before getting back on the next one.

"Going already?" said the man, already holding his arms out. "At least give me a hug before you go."

Hermione took a deep breath and screamed before breaking out into tears. Heads snapped towards the creepy man.

"Oh, shit, stop crying!" he said. "Stop it!"

He grabbed onto her arm, so Hermione screamed louder. Nobody intervened but they were staring.

The doors opened and people filed out to King's Cross Pancras. To her surprise, Cedric entered the tube and stood behind the creepy guy. Even though it was clear he was freshly showered and had changed into jeans and one of her dad's Hawaiian shirts, he still looked like hell.

"I suggest you leave the lady alone," he growled.

Creepy Guy froze and barely cast him a look before he scrambled off the tube just as the doors were closing. Cedric stumbled and grabbed onto a nearby pole as the tube lurched forward. Hermione swiped her crocodile tears from her eyes and threw her arms around him.

"My hero."

"Are you okay?" he asked. "I got your… page. I'm glad I could get to you quickly."

"Me too," she said, grabbing onto the pole as the train moved around a bend. "It's nothing new, but I couldn't handle three more stops with him, what if he followed me home? It's exhausting to be my own hero all the time, you know?"

Cedric nodded and Hermione smiled.

"Did you see his face?" she said. "I think he peed his pants."

"Does this really happen all the time?" he asked.

"Ever since I was eleven."

"Why didn't you tell me?"

She shrugged. "What could you have done? It's just one of those things I have to deal with. I don't have to like it or put up with it, but I don't see it changing in my lifetime."

He reached for her and realized he couldn't.

"I like the locket you gave me," she said to distract him. "The picture inside is cute, too."

"Ah, you figured it out?" he said, cheeks going red.

"Mmmhm," she said. "If you'd like, Abuela would teach you more about jewelry making."

"Um, I kinda had something handy when I was making that," he said.

Hermione snorted and rolled her eyes at the pun.

"It's just temporary," she said. "Noa will make you a really good one."

"If you insist," he said.

"I do insist."

Hermione rested a hand on his cheek, gently running a thumb over a scar. He leaned into her touch, much like his picture did and her heart swelled. Almost losing him made her realize how much she would have regretted not kissing him enough, not hugging him enough, and not letting him know how much she cared enough. She stretched up to kiss him, but the tube slowed to a stop at Chalk Farm. He turned his head anyway, so he wasn't up for smooching. That was okay.

She took his hand and exited the car with him.

"How did your meeting with Skeeter go?" he asked.

"She signed a contract stating she won't write or publish any stories about people, celebrity or not, for the next two years," said Hermione. "Unless I ask her to, anyway. And then I told her all that she missed while she was my captive. She was so ticked off."

"I imagine so," he said.

Hermione rested her head on his shoulder as they walked back. It was getting pretty muggy out and, while it wasn't any cooler in Hawaii or D.R., at least they were by the water and that brought a pretty nice breeze.

"We're leaving the day after tomorrow," said Cedric. "Jidha called with the floo and we're going to Gringotts tomorrow to settle some matters. Thankfully, the barn didn't catch fire."

"Any sign of Tavi?" Hermione asked.

He shook his head. "No."

She hummed. "I know she's fine. She's probably… er… well, she's fine."

He already heard her thought. Tavi was probably bound to his ex-father and was not allowed to see him. She regretted the thought, but it was more difficult to stop your thought process than to just not say it.

"If you'd like," she said. "We can take a trip to the mall tomorrow, get you some climate appropriate clothes. Or clothes that don't belong to my dads. Whose shirt is this anyway? It looks like Roger's."

"My clothes are fine," he said, letting go of her hand so she could get her keys.

"Love, you'll burn up in your stuff," she said. "You at least need a couple pairs of shorts—"

"I don't want new clothes!" he said sharply.

Hermione stepped away, holding up her hands in surrender. When they entered the house, he went into the back garden without a word to anyone else. Before she could follow, she was engulfed by her parents.

"Are you okay, love?" Beatrice asked. "What was the S.O.S.?"

"This creep on the Tube," she said. "It's not anything new, but I was scared he was going to follow me. Cedric scared him off."

"He took my wand to apparate," said Hana. "I'm going to go get it back."

"Er— give him some space," she said. "Something set him off. I'm a little tired myself, how soon will dinner be ready?"

"About an hour," said Roger, running back into the kitchen. "I just started it."

"Great, I'm going to take a rest," said Hermione, pulling away from their fussing.

She jogged upstairs. went into the office-slash-Amalea's room and skimmed her dad's bookcase until she found what she was looking for. She removed the book from the shelf and went into her room, closing the door behind her, then opening it so that it wouldn't seem like she was mad or anything at Cedric's outburst when he came inside. Frankly, it was a little unexpected and she didn't want to make things worse.

Stretching out on her bed, she rested her pillow on her stomach and propped the book up on that. She decided she was going to let Cedric sleep in her bed for the next two nights and she would just tough it out on the couch. He needed the comfort more than she did.

While there are many self-help books in dealing with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), it is equally important to have people in life who will understand and provide support. This book will assist you in learning the signs of PTSD, how to recognize when your loved one is on the verge of a panic attack, and how to help them not only come down from their attack, but to make it through everyday life. It's not easy to move on alone and while their pain and trauma won't fully go away, they can eventually learn to overcome their feelings of grief, despair, anger, hopelessness, and helplessness.

By the time she got through Chapter 5: Volatility and Anger, Cedric knocked on the door and poked his head in. Hermione quickly held the book against her chest and covered it with her pillow.

"Yes?"

"What are you reading?" he asked, diverging from his original train of thought.

"Just a book," she replied, sitting up. "Anyway, did you need something?"

"Oh… no. Not— I'm sorry for snapping at you."

"It's all right," said Hermione, thinking about what she just read. "I mean… I would prefer it if you didn't, but I'm not upset or anything. You've had a tough few days… weeks… years. I know better than anyone that your breaking point can be something small."

"It hasn't been easy for you either," he said. "Anyway, um, dinner's ready."

"Cool." She got up and tossed the book on her bed, Crookshanks and Belle cast her dirty looks for disrupting their nap.

Just a little bit longer in this cramped house and then they'd be in paradise.