Cedric Diggory Imagines!

You Comfort Him

You entered the hufflepuff common room with Susan. She was flooding your ear with excited words about you and Cedric. She was so glad the two of you finally became a couple. She was one of the only girls who didn't have a crush on him, and was very happy for you. She fell silent, and you looked at her curiously, then followed her gaze to the fireplace. Cedric sat, drenched from the rain, warming his hands by the fire. There was a stern look on his face.

You and Susan exchanged looks, and she whispered, "I'll leave you two alone," then left to go to her dorm room. You walked warily over to Cedric.
"Ced?" He turned to you, smiled briefly, then turned back to the fire. You crouched beside him. "Is everything okay?" You watched his eyes dart to the floor. He took in a slow deep breath, exhaling twice as fast. "Zach quit the team today." You furrowed your brows. "Zacharias Smith?"
He nodded briskly. "Yeah." You remained silent, allowing him to talk about it.
"He said that he didn't see the point in playing if the team nearly never wins. And the captain won't do anything about it." Your eyes softened, and your heart ached for Cedric. You knew he cared about his team, and he always wanted to be his best self out on the field for them. You watched him fiddle with his fingers. You were sure that he wasn't angry with Zach for quitting, but rather he blamed himself for letting things get to such a low for the team.

"He's been out chaser for five years—I just can't believe I failed him. I'm the captain," he said, looking at you, "I'm supposed to be a strong leader for my team. D'you suppose the rest of the team feels the same way as him?"
You shook your head and shifted to sit beside him. "Of course not, Cedric. If they felt the same way, they would have taken advantage of Zach's words and included their own concerns."
Cedric shrugged and placed his hands behind him to lean back. "They're Hufflepuffs. Chances are they wouldn't tell me until I'm in a good mood."
You scooted closer to him. "Well... why don't you have a team meeting next practice? So everyone can say what they need to say, and maybe even throw out some suggestions."

Cedric looked at you, knitting his brows together. "That's actually a good idea."
You nudged him, "I have them on occasion," you smiled playfully. He smiled and looked to the roaring fire, "Do you think I'm a bad captain? And give me your honest opinion. Don't just tell me what I want to hear because you're my girlfriend," he said, smiling small.

"Yes, Ced, I think you're an incredible captain." You'd been to a couple of his practices, just for the hell of it. Also because you loved the boy and he always was happy to have you there. You continued, "I've seen how happy your team is. That's a huge part of being a captain. Winning has nothing to do with it." Cedric smiled at the ground, then at you.
"You have a point."
You inched closer to him and placed a quick kiss on his cheek, "Now go change! You'll catch a cold!" Cedric laughed warmly and took your hand. "Thank you, (y/n)." He then released you and stood up, going to the dorms to change into dry clothes.