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II. DIVINATION
Right before sunset, and before curfew, Winnifred, Cedric, and Prim sat on one of the stone benches. Prim had turned her nose into a pig's snout. Prim was the the only one who knew Winnifred's secret - that she was an shifter. Prim and Remus were the only ones that knew she had been under Dumbledore's protection since she had been very young. The Malfoy's had their suspicions, but never really found out. Winnifred didn't like the fact that she favored the Malfoys so much. Her platinum blonde hair made her unmistakable. She could pass as Draco's sister if she wanted to. Even if her dad wasn't innocent - a murderer like every one said - she still rather have him as a father than Lucius Malfoy. Narcissa wasn't the worst, she was a mother before anything else, and Winnifred respected that. Winnifred looked up at the sky, seeing the dementors roaming around.
"Your father will be proven innocent. Don't worry, Winnie. All of this will be over soon." Cedric said, putting his hand on Winnifred's shoulder.
"I just wish people would stop staring." Winnifred sighed. She couldn't walk through the halls without someone whispering about her dad.
"Diggory, the wise." Prim chuckled.
"Tonks, ever the sarcastic." Cedric quipped back.
"Now I feel left out." Winnifred joked.
"Black, the beautiful." Cedric smiled, causing her to blush. "Anyways, I'm off. I've got loads of homework. Stop by the Hufflepuff table in the morning?" He asked the cousins. Prim grinned, as she watched Cedric put a hand on Winnie's shoulder. Once Prim was sure he was gone, she clapped her hands together.
"You two are so cute!" Prim exclaimed. "What do you mean?" Winnie asked her cousin.
"Please, it doesn't take a Ravenclaw to tell you guys like each other." Technically, Winnie was supposed to be in Cedric's year, but she had started two years late. Her mother, who passed not long after Sirius had gone to Azkaban, just a couple of months after - had pleaded with Dumbledore to watch over her.
Evalina Elm, Winnifred's mother, was a phoenix like all of her ancestors had been before her. They were considered animagi, though they had no choice of what they wanted to shift into. A phoenix was very special in the wizarding world - as their tears could save a life. However, they were extremely rare, and there could only be one person possessing the ability at a time.
So, when Evalina was killed that fateful night in Godric's Hallow, the ability was passed on to Winnifred. This was kept a secret from everybody, even the Malfoys. There were only six people who knew, and one of them was dead. Evalina's body never showed up, but it was said that a death-eater killed her.
While in the phoenix shape, they were gifted immortality. Not even a killing curse could take them down. However, if they were in their human form, this gift ceased. Winnie couldn't help but to wonder what would have happened if her mother wouldn't have gone to the Lovegood's house that day.
"There is no way Cedric likes me. I mean, why would he?" Winnie had never had great confidence.
"Look, I could list a million reasons of how I can tell that boy likes you, but I'm going to let you see it for yourself." Prim smiled at her cousin.
"We should head to the dorms, it's starting to get late, and you've got quidditch practice tomorrow." Prim reminded her cousin. The nearest match was Ravenclaw versus Gryffindor.
***
After meeting Cedric at the Hufflepuff table, and then sitting next to Sabrina and Luna at her own table, she had her first class of the day; Divination. Winnifred found it interesting, but it wasn't her favorite subject. Seeing Harry Potter and one of the Weasley boys sitting at a table, she figured now was her chance to approach them. She knew how close her father was to James Potter, and that Harry was her father's godson. She wanted to have a relationship with him, but he wasn't aware that Sirius was innocent.
"May I sit with you guys?" Her voice was slightly quiet, but Harry seemed to have heard her.
"Oh, sure. Go ahead."
As Trewlaney started teaching, it was obvious that Harry and Ron didn't find this subject interesting, as they were dosing off.
"Hello, I am Professer Trewlaney. Together we shall cast ourselves into the future. This time, we shall be focusing on on Tessomancy, which is the art of reading tea leaves to the cup of the person sitting opposite with you." Trewlaney was, well, odd.
"First you must broaden your minds. First you must look...beyond!"
"Oh, what a load of rubbish!" Winnie nearly jumped out of her seat, when Hermione spoke up, because she knew she had not been there before. However, Winnie went on with the lesson, reading Hermione's cup while Hermione read hers.
***
On her way to quidditch practice, she accidentally tripped over someone's foot, practically causing her to fall on her face.
"Oi, Fred, look what you did!" Winnie stood up, dusting off her robes.
"I am so sorry, Ravenclaw girl whom I do not know."
"It's okay, Gryffindor who is oddly lanky." This caused the two identical twins to chuckle. She'd seen them before, of course. They were Weasleys.
"Fred Weasley. This is the less handsome version of me, George." He said, extending his hand.
"Winnifred Black. You can call me Winnie, if you'd like." A look of realization hit their faces, knowing who her father was. The smile suddenly fell from her face. "Right, I'll be on my way now." Winnie waved, and scurried off before either of them had a chance to say anything.
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i've changed a lot of things about phoenixes for the sake of the story, and i hope you guys will like it. i'm really excited to write this. to be clear, this is a fred weasley fic, but there will be a relationship with cedric. it may seem fast paced, but i want to establish their relationship, and cedric doesn't exactly have a lot of time. anyways, please leave a comment letting me know what you think!!
