The Slowest Heart

Real Friend

Ginny and Keoghan sat underneath their tree, looking out at the lake.

"Look," Ginny began. "I'm sorry for losing it about Cedric the other day."
Keoghan knew she wasn't.

"I just need you to remember who's been with you since the start."

Ginny, Red, May, and Clementine.

"And it isn't Cedric."

But she felt happy around him. She felt like she wasn't a Mercury, but just another silly Hogwarts girl with a silly girl brain.

"You're right," Keoghan told her automatically. It had become a habit. Ginny was always right.

"On another note," Ginny said, "I found out from my brothers that Granger got a jumper from Mum this year."

Keoghan could feel the anger in the younger girl's voice. It was boiling, ready to explode out at any other inconvenience.

"And you didn't?" she asked. Ginny nodded.

"They're replacing me, Kay. Because I'm a fucking Slytherin."

Keoghan patted Ginny's hand. "I'm sure that's not true."

"It is, though. Potter and Granger spend their holidays with my family and I'm left to rot. All because of my house."

Even though they were in vastly different situations, Keoghan felt a pang of understanding. Her family had stopped sending her letters, stopped inviting her to the Mercury-Malfoy gatherings she used to hate. Oh, how she longed for them now. How she wished to take Draco's place as their perfect heir.

"I'm sorry, Ginny," Keoghan responded after a minute of silence. "I really am."

Ginny sighed. "It is what it is, I guess."

"Yeah. It is what it is."

~

Cedric and Keoghan sat in the library in silence. Keoghan was immersed in her homework, and Cedric was in his reading. Every so often, one would glance at the other and look away again, turning a varying shade of red.

What are some of the uses of Mandrakes in medicine?

Keoghan thought about her and Ginny's conversation earlier. It was likely that the other girl had simply been jealous that Cedric was taking up so much of Keoghan's time and, when combined with the hurt of not recieving a Christmas jumper, had taken it out on him. Surely she didn't mind that much that Keoghan spent time with him? Perhaps she should plan a Hogsmeade outing with her, just to even things out again.

Her musing was interrupted by Cedric's soft laugh.

"What's so funny?" she asked.

He looked away before responding, "You're pretty when you're thinking, Keoghan."

Keoghan flushed red and covered her face with one hand.

"Thanks, I think."

"Always."

They fell back into silence as she continued to work and Cedric threw himself into his reading. Keoghan was distracted every few minutes as she felt his gaze on her and looked back at him, only to be met with the cover of his book.

You're pretty when you're thinking.

She didn't say it aloud, but she thought he was pretty when he was reading, too.

~

The next afternoon, she and Ginny went to Hogsmeade. The two girls walked to the Three Broomsticks for butterbeer and sat in a corner.

"I wanted to apologize for not spending as much time with you lately," Keoghan told Ginny. "Cedric and I have been trying to figure out the clue for the Second Task."

Partially true. Some days, they worked on it, and others they spent like that day in the library. They'd gotten scores closer to figuring out what to do, however. The pair had already decided that the task was to involve merpeople, their only thing left to figure out was how to survive it and what, exactly, was being stolen in the first place.

"It's alright," Ginny replied breezily, though Keoghan suspected she was jealous underneath the surface.

They continued to sip their butterbeers and discuss things such as the latest Slytherin gossip. Blaise had dated and broken up with Daphne, Pansy had her sights on Draco. All things that Ginny cared about and Keoghan humored her with discussion about.

After they finished their drinks, they descended upon the village, window-shopping and imagining themselves in some of the fine dresses, taste-testing at Honeyduke's, and having an overall enjoyable afternoon.

"You know, Kay," Ginny began as they hiked back up to the castle, "It's been a while since we had an outing like this. Thank you for taking time away from Cedric."

Keoghan nodded. Even though she knew there was a jab underneath the statement, she truly enjoyed the afternoon as well. Sometimes, she thought, a good time with a good friend is all you need.

~

Not every day Keoghan spent with Cedric was joyful. One morning, two and a half weeks before the Second Task, the pair sat outside the castle, enjoying the winter sun, when Keoghan noticed silent tears sliding down the boy's face.

"What's wrong, Cedric?" she asked, taking his hand and using her other to push his face to look at her.

He said nothing for a minute, simply letting the tears fall. Then, he began to speak.

"Keoghan, I'm terrified that this competition is going to kill me."

Keoghan shook her head. "I promise I won't let that happen. We can train for every task, do whatever we need to do. You're making it out of this alive."

"But what if that doesn't do any good? I'm the weakest wizard in this competition. I can't keep up with Viktor or Fleur or even Harry. I'm dead meat."

She pulled him closer and gave him a gentle kiss before fully pulling him into a hug.

"I promise," she murmured, "you're going to be fine."

"You can't promise that."

"But we can try."

~

The middle of February brought with it desperate research for the Second Task. Keoghan and Cedric had already decided that he would be using the bubble-head charm to breathe underwater, but they still could not figure out what possession would be stolen.

"Maybe they're going to ransack your room," Keoghan suggested for the twentieth time.

"I doubt it," Cedric responded. "Nothing I have with me is so important to me."

"What else could they possibly do? Steal Cho from you?"

The mention of his closest friend and the girl who was essentially his sister being held hostage sent Cedric into a fit of shaking his head.

"They would never do that, right? Someone could get hurt."

Keoghan shook her head, but a small voice was telling her that maybe, just maybe, she was onto something.