𝗺𝗲𝗿𝗺𝗮𝗶𝗱 𝗹𝗮𝗴𝗼𝗼𝗻, cedric diggory

˗ˋ 59

CHAPTER FIFTY NINE
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-: sixth year :-

── IN WHICH IT ALL COMES TO A HEAD 

. . .

The practise occured daily, or at least every other day now. Almost every night for the past few weeks, Cedric and Rosie had left their last lessons of the day and headed straight for the Room of Requirement. 

It was incredibly lucky that they seemed to be the only ones who knew about it - or at least the only ones who needed to use it. It was the perfect place to practise, as it could quite literally transform into whatever you needed. 

A little over a week was left until the final task of the Triwizard Tournament, and to say that Rosie was overworking herself was an understatement. But of course, she would never let anyone know just how much she was doing.

And what she was doing - hell it was a lot. Of course, she had her usual every day things like eating and going to school. Then, during lunch and break, would have to do a mix of checking on the potions, homework and messing around with the twins. After school she would go straight to the Room of Requirement for about three hours until dinner, then after dinner would have to check on the potions and do anything with them.

She would return to the common room to spend times with the twins, which included a lot of planning for their products and shops, writing out long lists of ingredients for them to somehow get and then make products with, she would also need to do homework and somehow figure out more spells for Cedric so that he didn't end up dead.

Felix Felicis took up a lot of her time, and as did school work and figure out ingredients that wouldn't blow Fred and George up. As well as that, she had to actually sleep - which seemed the least necessary thing ever at that moment.

But like any normal human, this was beginning to pile up on Rosie. And she wasn't even thinking about it, too preoccupied with everything else to switch her schedule so that it was the tiniest bit more relaxed. 

It all seemed to finally come to a head as Rosie entered the Room of Requirement ten minutes late, Cedric waiting on the usual couch that sat at one edge of the room. He stood up as he saw her enter, and the smile he had on his face faded as her bag dropped to the floor, and the girl soon did the same, crouching with her hands covering her head. 

"Rosie-" Cedric quickly rushed over, abandoning whatever he had been doing on the table in front of the sofa. He crouched by her, the girl's shoulder shaking and hesitant breaths leaving her lips. 

"What's wrong? What happened?" He asked, gently taking her arm and pulling her up, eyes averted to make her feel as comfortable as he could. 

Cedric pulled her carefully down onto the couch, arm around her shoulders as she cried - or at least her thought she was. Rosie was shaking like crazy, her breathing stilted and face hidden by her hands. But as Cedric tried to comfort her, he remembered something, and was almost exactly sure what was happened. 

"Rosie, we're going to do some breathing ok?" Cedric said quickly, remembering something that an old Quidditch captain had told him. Rosie nodded after having taken a moment, and Cedric began the excersise. "Ok, Rosie, in... and out." He said, repeating it multiple times. 

Eventually, Rosie had managed to calm down enough, and was curled up on one end of the sofa, hugging one of the yellow pillows. "Sorry." She mumbled, staring down at the floor. 

"Oh Rosie, you don't have to. You know that." Cedric quickly said. "It's silly to apologise for something like that."

"I know." Rosie hiccupped, wiping under her eyes. "It's my fault - or Rita Skeeters at least." If the girl had glanced up at Cedric, she would have seen the muscle jump in his jaw. 

"What did she do?" He asked, and if Rosie hadn't dissolved into a state like she had, then her focus most certainly would have been on just how mad Cedric sounded or looked. 

"I came out of Charms and I was coming here just like normal and I turned the corner and she was just there-" Her words were interrupted with a sniff. "And she started asking me questions about things I have literally no idea how she knows and I had to get rid of her and just everything is too much and... yeah." Rosie hiccupped, Cedric reaching out and wrapping an arm around her shoulder. 

"I'm just so worried and trying to do everything to make sure you don't die or something - not that I don't trust you I just don't want you to be unprepared." She frowned, and her eyes widened as Cedric gently tilted her head towards him, using his thumb to wipe away the remnants of her tears. 

"I won't die, Rosie. I promise you." He said and smiled. "Ok, I promise? You have no need to worry at all, nobody's dying." 

"Promise?" Rosie asked softly, and he nodded. 

But promises weren't necessarily supposed to be kept.

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