my champion

ten

Just as I had expected, Mrs. Diana Diggory was beautiful. 

She looked no taller than 5'6", with her golden blonde locks falling just above her collarbones. At the focal point of her face, her eyes were the same color as Cedric's, with only a wrinkle around them from smiling. 

Mrs. Diggory opened her arms to hug me, and I was overcame with warmth and comfort. Everything about her was maternal, from her smile to her mannerisms. "It's very nice to finally meet you, Bella." Her voice reminded me much of my mother's, maybe she's from Cambridge too. "Cedric hasn't been able to stop talking about you for a very long time."

We scooted into the booth as Cedric whined, "Mum."

"So, how are you feeling now? I can still see a bit of a scar on your face.", she said, reaching her hand to her son's cheek. 

Cedric nodded, "It's doesn't hurt as much, but it's going to look like that for a little while."

"Well, you did a very good job, and we will always be proud of you, win or lose.", she said with a smile. Another smile arrived on Cedric's face as he thanked his mom. "Bella, tell me about yourself."

Suddenly, it felt like a test. One wrong answer and I'm out. "Uh, I'm a twin, I just turned 16 in September, I was born in America, but my mom is English, she's from Cambridge, uh...", I suddenly ran out of things to say, before I looked at Cedric. He looked like he knew what to say. 

"Bella is the best chaser in school history, she holds the record at Hogwarts for most points scored. Everybody is trying to convince her to go pro, but she's hesitant.", he explained. 

I felt like rolling my eyes. He really had to bring up quidditch? "I just don't know if I can handle that level of intensity and still enjoy playing. Also, at a certain age, I would have to stop and join another career."

"What else would you want to do?", Mrs. Diggory asked. 

"I did good on my O.W.L.s, I would like to be a healer."

"Good? Mum she got a perfect score. And not just on a few, EVERY SINGLE ONE." I looked up at him with pleading eyes, almost like my eyes were saying you're getting a little excited here, calm down. "I went a little mad there."

The Diggorys just laughed, "So you're a good student?", his mother sighed. "And a stellar athlete, what can't you do? What's your mother's name?"

"Megan Clifford. She was in Ravenclaw.", I explained. 

Both of their eyes widened, "From what I can remember, Megan Clifford was a fine athlete herself, except she was a keeper, right? She was a year or two behind us.", Amos said. 

"Yeah, that's Mom. She became an auror in New York, she met my dad there, and that's when my brother and I take the scene."

"Does your brother go to Hogwarts too?", her curiosity had been genuine, but the answer to her question would ruin the mood. 

I shook my head, "No, um... he and my dad got into a wreck 8 years ago, so he never got his letter."

My hands rested on the table, before she reached across the table and took them into her own. "I'm so sorry dear."

After the topic of Jack and Dad's death passed through, we talked about the tournament. How Cedric was trying to work on his egg already(despite getting it less than 12 hours ago), and more about our thoughts on Harry competing. Amos didn't like that it took spotlight from Cedric, yet his mother thought that maybe it would be good for Cedric to share the shine. 

At one point, Diana pulled a newspaper out of her purse and was discussing how she was unhappy with how they were talking about Cedric in the article. It was about how he draws in girls, which is true, but wow, this article was more like a gossip column than a professionally written article about his magical abilities. 

But eventually, it came time for us to go back. We had to catch the train, and the last train was scheduled for 8, which was 5 minutes away. Cedric took my heels so we could run through the rocky streets of Hogsmeade onto the platform, before heading into the heated cabin. 

"I'm glad we could catch the train, but I think my feet are going to freeze off.", I set my feet safely back inside my shoes. Cedric chuckled before he put his head on my lap. He stared up at me and turned his head, before pressing his nose against my hip. "What's up?"

He yawned again, "It's been a long day, I wanna fall asleep."

"Alright. I'll wake you up when we are back at school." Cedric smiled as his eyes got heavier and heavier and heavier. But his hair was messy. What kind of person would I be if I let him sleep with nobody around with messy hair? I took my fingers and started to comb them through his soft, golden brown curls. 

One thing is for sure, he fell asleep quickly and he crashed. In just a few minutes, Cedric was softly snoring, something I didn't know him to do, and mumbling a little bit. In our almost year of dating and the going on 7 years of friendship, I had never known that he snored. 

****

Cedric slept for the rest of the train ride, and woke up just as the train was arriving back at school. The quick, but bumpy ride had provided him the power nap he had needed to survive the walk back to the dorms. 

"Hello, sleepy head.", I said as he lifted his head out of my lap. "You feel any better?"

"Loads.", he said, running a hand through his hair. "Hey, thanks for coming to dinner. I know that we could've done something more fun tonight, but I think it's important that they know you."

I furrowed my eyebrows, "Cedric, you don't have to explain. They're your parents and you're competing in the Triwizard Tournament. This is a big deal, and they wanted to celebrate with you."

As we stood up from our seat in the train, he smiled and kissed my forehead, wrapping his arm around my waist and pulling me close. "You're amazing. I love you."

Taking in the moment, I felt the chilly air hit my face and breathed in the cold air. "I love you too."