Letters- Cedric Diggory

42

T.W: Blood/ wounds and dark thoughts.
June 1995

"The bathrooms down the hall. I'll get you some clothes and a towel." Cedric rubbed his thumb over mine. A simple, but meaningful gesture. I walked down the hallway, walking into the bathroom.

Cedric joined me a few minutes later, clothes and a towel in his arms.
"Can you help me with my dress? If you don't mind." I smiled lightly, turning my back so he could undo my dress.
"Anything for you my love." He said, stepping towards me.

He had finally gotten the buttons on my dress undone. The pressure was released from my body, I could finally get a good breath into my lungs. The dirty fabric fell onto the tile, pooling around my ankles.

"What happened to your leg?" The color had left Cedric's face, his eyes were glued to my underskirt. I looked down at my thigh, my blood staining the fabric. My heart was pounding once again, the realization of my injuries were setting in.

My legs were weak, the wound stinging violently. My body shook with each breath. Nothing compared to the exhaustion I felt. Not only physically, but mentally as well.

"Don't tell Molly, I don't want her to know." My tears fell for what felt like the millionth time today.
"I can tell you how to do it, I used to help my dad all the time." My cheeks burned red. Cedric closed his eyes for a moment, before grabbing his wand. He muttered the healing incantation, my leg looking just as it did the day before.
"Thank you." I whispered, pressing my forehead against his.

I stripped the rest of my clothes, climbing into the warm bath Cedric had started. He knelt beside the bathtub, washing the dirt from my skin with a washcloth.

***

Molly had come in after I got dressed to take my vitals.
"No worries, just a few scrapes and bruised. Rest up, I'll come by tomorrow morning to check on you again." She said, giving me a light kiss on the top of my head before leaving.

Everything felt hazy. I couldn't believe that any of this had actually happened, it felt like I was walking through a nightmare.
"Hey, I'm gonna go home with mum. I'll come by again tomorrow." Bill gave me a hug before walking down the stairs.

I walked towards Cedric's bedroom, already knowing he wouldn't be there. I didn't want him to have deal with me.

I'm a chore

Nobody actually wants me

I always have to be rescued in the end.

I sat on the floor, by back pressing against Cedric's unmade bed. I cried. Again. My head fell against my knees as the tears fell rapidly down my face.

I felt so out of control. I had nothing I could keep steady. There was nothing that stayed good for long. It would no doubt get ruined at some point.

"Alexandria, I brought some extra blankets just so you don't get cold." Cedric called from the hallway. I wiped the tears from my face, trying to make it seem like I hadn't been crying.
"Hey, you can talk to me about how you feel, you shouldn't keep it all inside." He had noticed my puffy red eyes instantly.

Merlin, why did he always have to be so perfect.

He always knew the right things to say. Even if I didn't want to talk when things got hard, he would stay with me. I didnt want to talk about how I felt right now. I just needed to not be alone.

"I don't think I'm ready to talk about it yet, but can you stay with me?" I sniffled.
"I'll always be here my love." He said, sitting down next to me and wrapping his arm around my shoulder.

My cuddled up against him, resting my head on his shoulder. I closed my eyes, trying to help myself calm down. He rubbed comforting circles on my arm. We stayed like that for a while, before climbing into bed and falling asleep.

***

I woke up alone in Cedric's room. I could smell someone making breakfast downstairs. I lied in his bed for a few minutes, taking a moment to recall everything that happened yesterday. I took a deep breath as I stood up and walked towards the bathroom.

I vaguely remembered where it was, but considering the house wasn't huge, it was easy to find. I ran water over my puffy face, my eyes were dry and red from crying so much. My face felt stiff from wiping the tears. I dried my face with the towel from last night, walking out to find Cedric.

I walked back into his bedroom to see Cedric changing his shirt.
"What did you do?" I smiled, gesturing to what had gotten all over him.
"Pancake batter." He shrugged, flipping the clean shirt in his hands. I shook my head, laughing at how clumsy he can be occasionally.

"Uhm, dad asked if it would be alright if your family came over later today." He said, finishing getting dressed. Before I could say anything, Cedric spoke again. "Only if you're ready of course, we don't have to do it so soon." He added frantically.
"I'll be okay, we can do it today." I nodded.

I didn't know if I was ready, but I missed them more than anything. I wanted to be ready, it was all I wanted. But I knew it would be overwhelming.

***

I had showered, and put on some of Cedric's clean clothes. They were pretty baggy, but they did make me feel slightly more comfortable. He sat next to me on the couch in his living room, while we waited for Amos to return.

Their footsteps could be heard while they were walking up to the house. My anxiety grew with each moment, I didn't know why. I shouldn't feel so scared, they're my family.

I was shocked at who came walking through the door.
"Dad?" My heart dropped at the sight of him. His hair has gotten longer. The bags under his eyes more prominent than ever. He looked tired, worn out.
"I'm right here honey." He sobbed,
holding me in his arms. I cried tears of joy for the first time in what felt like years.

"H-how? What happened?" I looked up into his glossy eyes, realizing how much I missed them.
"Do you remember Peter? He helped me get out." He sniffled, running his hand through my hair. I wrapped my arms around him tighter, savoring the feeling of his hug.

I felt more arms wrap around me, joining into a group hug. We stayed there for a moment, our hearts bursting with love. The love I felt in that moment was unexplainable, the love of a family was indescribable.