Work of Karma || Cedric Diggory [2]

Chapter 11: A Sweet Surprise

A/N: Hi everyone! Apologies again for such a late update. Postgrad life is hectic and free time just doesn't come by as easy as before :'( I'd actually like to ask y'all for more feedback if possible so that I'd know what you think of my works + it would motivate me to keep writing tbh :>

Thanks again for reading and being so patient. I really missed writing and interacting with everyone ♡ Hope you like this chapter!

The new term began the morning following the students' return to the castle, just fresh after the holidays came to an end. It was as bittersweet as always. Students dreaded having to get back into the routine of studying and taking exams, and they missed the warmth of their homes and comfort that their families brought them. However, Hogwarts had a special air that felt like home in its own regard that many looked forward to as well.

That day, the sixth years woke up to a pleasant surprise: a large sign had been pinned to the common room notice boards overnight.

APPARITION LESSONS

If you are seventeen years of age, or will turn seventeen on or before the 31st August next, you are eligible for a twelve-week course of Apparition Lessons from a Ministry of Magic Apparition instructor. Please sign below if you would like to participate. Cost: 12 Galleons.

As some of the early risers that morning, Analeigh and Hermione were the firsts to see the sign and decide to write their names down.

"This is going to be so worth it," Hermione said as she excitedly scribbled on the initially empty list.

"It is. I just hope it doesn't feel as nauseating as Side-Apparition," Analeigh shuddered, recalling the many times she had done it with Cedric recently.

"Or maybe it's something we'd get used to. Either way, it's a life skill we need for sure," said Hermione determinedly.

"You do have a point. So, when can we take the actual test?"

"As soon as we're seventeen, which we already are. It's a shame we didn't make the cut-off for the age requirement last year, though... we could have taken the test early and be able to legally Apparate by now."

"And we could've rubbed it in Harry and Ron's faces," Analeigh chuckled, though she trailed off when she noticed Hermione stiffen up at the mention of Ron. Clearing her throat, she quickly changed the subject and said, "Er, should we have an early breakfast? The common room's kind of packed now, anyway."

It wasn't a complete lie. The common room was indeed beginning to fill up with more Gryffindors, and the sixth years in particular were starting to crowd around the notice board too.

"Breakfast sounds like a good idea," Hermione said simply, already making her way out of the portrait hole. Analeigh sighed, wondering when her friends were ever going to kiss and make up.

The rest of their first day back at school went by pretty uneventfully. Classes dragged on, new sets of homework were given, and the group of friends continued to be divided because Ron and Hermione still refused to speak to one another. It was only Harry who was up to something interesting that day: another private lesson with Dumbledore. Naturally, he made sure to report what he found out to his best friends afterwards, but he did it separately to avoid any more awkwardness.

It was in between classes that Harry gave a rundown of what happened at Dumbledore's office, which was basically a trip down memory lane to see the young Voldemort, once known as Tom Riddle. What made it even more intriguing was that Professor Slughorn was in one of these memories – and he seemed to have played a big role in the villain's life, though the details were unclear. And so, in the middle of a deserted, snowy courtyard as it neared the evening, Harry divulged how the young Riddle was a guest in one of Slughorn's dinner parties, how he had stayed behind after to ask the Potions Master a question about Horcruxes (a magical term that Harry himself had not heard of until then), and how it ended with the garbled voice of Slughorn angrily shouting that he had no answer to give him.