In The Water

Pixie

"Finish your coffee and take a shower.You need to be sober for this conversation." He said as he took a seat in the living room. I groaned and did as he said. I came into the living room still rubbing my head with a towel.

"You ever going to cut your hair, you look like a hobo." I shrugged my shoulders and sat in the chair across from him.

"Now about Hermione."I changed the subject by to his sister.

"She left you this." He handed me an envelope with my last name printed on it. "I didn't read it." I raised my eyebrows and took it from him.

"You're stalling Potter." I say sternly, he's not wanting to talk.

"I know damn it." He growled as he looked at the ground clenching his fist.

"Potter, you've been my only friend for the last four years, but I'm exhausted. I think I'm going to leave before she comes back." I said and he nodded his head. It hurt for him to agree with me but blood is thicker then water. I nodded myself and got up to go pack.

"Sit down Cedric, she wouldn't forgive me is I let you leave." He groaned at the ceiling.

"Talk Potter ." I repeat, whatever he's hiding it's killing him.

"Shit." He groaned again rubbing his face. "Hermione is special."

"I'm very aware of that." I said studying him, he's always been straight forward and focused. This was an unusual sight.

"No, she's. Well I can't give away all her secrets." He got up and started pacing by the large window looking at the ocean. " See that small inlet about fifty meters out?" He was stalling again. "I use to play there a lot when I was younger.

"Okay, what does that have to do with your sister?" He's never been this frustrating.

" My sister?" He laughed. "You're not as smart as I thought you were." He rubbed his straight black hair. His green eyes had shadows under them.

"She's not your sister." He nodded at my statement.

"She'll always be my sister but no we aren't related by blood." He hung his head and sighed.

"Being adoptive isn't a bad thing." Still not understanding what was going on.

"Cedric , like I said her secrets are hers to share. But the family decided that you can be trusted with some of them." He said hesitantly.

" Okay, how many secrets can she have she's barely twenty." I asked sitting back down.

"She's been with us twenty years. But she was probably around four or five when she turned up. Everyone has secrets, I know you try to hide your injuries from everyone. Especially the PTSD." He challenged me. I pursed my lips and glared. My injuries wasn't something we talked about it.

"So she's older then she looks." He rolled his eyes and my simple response.

"Like I said I can't tell you everything. Just that she's different and you need to keep that in mind. She didn't go to public school or Hogwarts. She's not a. Squib. Her job as a children's book writer allows her to work from home.You saw how she acts at social functions." He was right she was fairly isolated.

"Does this rambling have a point." I paused him to get him back on track.

"The point is, she doesn't let anyone close enough to touch her let alone hold her. Within one day she did that with you. She lets you touch her, she talks to you. It took almost two years to say more then five words at a time to Ginny." He came and sat back down in front of me.