The Black Family Legacy

The Hospital Wing

"It seems I owe you an apology, Miss Black." The headmaster said to her.

"Why? What's the matter?" She asks, "What's happened."

"It seems Professor Moody was, in fact, an imposter." The headmaster explains, his twinkling blue eyes almost stone cold ice blue when they peered at her from beneath the half moon glasses he wore.

"What about Alastor is he-" She asks worriedly.

"No, he is not dead. Nearly there, but we found him in time."

"He was in the trunk of trunks, wasn't he?!" Cygnus gasps, remembering the moaning and the screaming she would hear.

"Smart girl." The headmaster comments, smiling.

Cygnus took off sprinting, making him chuckle.

She barreled into the Infirmary doors, making them crash into the walls and scaring the living daylights out of Madam Pomfrey.

"Miss Black!" She began to scold, but she paused when she noticed that the girl was crying.

"Where is he?" She asked, and Madame Pomfrey gently led her to the back of the room, where a large section of curtains blocked off the corner. That was where Cedric was, she could feel it.

Cygnus swallowed past the lump in her throat, her mission having so suddenly changed, and slipped between the curtains, her hands clamping over her mouth to attempt to quell her sobs.

Cedric lay in the hospital bed, his arms crossed on his chest, his eyes now peacefully closed, so unlike the horrible state in which he was in the Graveyard.

Cygnus sank to her knees by his bedside, sobbing.

Unnoticed, Kidan, the miniature Swedish ShortSnout, crawled out from under the boys side, where he had sought respite from the rush of activity earlier in the evening. He crawled to the edge of the bed, where he trumpeted a greeting, making the girl's head snap up.

"Kidan!" She gasped, the dragon flapped his wings. "Kidan." She scooped him up gently, and he sank deep into the pocket of her shirt.

Cygnus sighed and smoothed Cedric's hair, pressing a kiss to his too cool forehead.

"My foolish boy." She says meekly, tears falling into his hair. She stands, trying to run the tears from her eyes as she exits.

"And Professor Moody?" Cygnus asks thinly, trying to clear her throat. "Is he here?"

Cygnus thanked her and then cautiously slipped in between the seconds set of curtains.

She gasped and covered her mouth in shock when she saw the Auror laying on the bed. He was so thin, frail even, so unlike the man she had known.

His eyes opened, and a small smile graced his face.

"Cygnus." He said, lifting his hand. She sat next to him and took his hand in both of hers.

"My clever girl." Alastor sighs in relief, smiling at her. "But you have been crying. Why are you crying?"

Cygnus smiles through her tears, and Alastor frowns.

Cygnus curls up next to him, and he wraps a protective arm around her.

"Little One, it's alright." He comforts her.

"It isn't alright, I should have made Dumbledore believe me. I should have saved you, I should-"

"Have done nothing. You did the right thing, little swan. You didn't trust him and you told your superiors. At your age no one can expect any more from you than that." He interrupts, a measured frown on his face.

"Cedric's dead." She choked out, burying her face in the fierce Auror's side.

Alastor frowned and rubbed circles on the young girl's back.

"Little bird." He hummed softly. "Little bird."

Eventually Cygnus fell into a sorrow-filled sleep, and so did the Auror, free at last, and reunited with the girl who had won his devotion.