I'm not a coward, just shy (Hogwarts fanfic)

ch 23 - end of the year

I was dark in the castle, the flickering torch only able to reach so far. I sniffed loudly, wiping tears from my eyes. In the darkness and empty, I give in and allow myself to cry. For Cedric, for this cursed I was 'blessed' with, for my helplessness and most of all, I cried for myself. All the tension and pain and for all the unanswered questions that will forever go unanswered. For fear and grief, I would cry and then, I would harden and grow and remember Cedric for who he was.

Professor Moody had turned out not to be the real Mad-eye Moody, he was the puppeteer the whole time. He was going to kill harry but Snape and Dumbledore cottoned on and put a stop to it. My static outburst hadn't gone unnoticed and Rita Skeeter had jumped on the horse and was pumping out articles faster than I could read them. The school had buzzed with the news and the whispers weren't just in my head anymore. Rumours fought claiming I was the next Cassandra Trelawney and some claimed I was into dark magic or just simply crazy. I simply ignored it. I couldn't deal with them at the moment. The ministry of magic had had a field day with Dumbledore taking the force of it. Only Fudge and his body guard Kingsley, knew of my true ability but as it sat I was considered unregistered seer and now I had to go through the ministry so that they can keep me under their thumb.

Fudge was also covering up the fact that 'he that should not be name' was back. Claiming that Harry was in shock, Dumbledore was senile and that because I was unregistered my visions didn't count. Cedric's death was simple an accident. A series of unfortunate events and that was the end of it. The end of year ceremony had been over cast. The house colours replaced with black and the meal was eaten without the usual buzz of excitement for the summer. The only really out roar was when Dumbledore had his speech and spoke the truth. That Voldemort had killed Cedric. After that most of the student began to turn on Dumbledore and believed the ministry, that Dumbledore was just a paranoid old man.

I buried my head into my arm and let the tear drop into fabric.

"Oh... son" I jumped a little and looked up to see, Sirius, my dad.

"Dad, w-what are you doing, you could get caught" I hiccupped, unsuccessfully hiding my tears.

"You wouldn't let that happen, Plus you need me at the moment" flashing his familiar dog like grin. Slowly I let him pull me into his arms.

"Do you think... I'll see him again, will he wait" I asked.

"Yes, he will wait for you. So you have to continue to live, live a life Cedric would be proud of and when the time comes he will greet you with open arms" He said and I knew he was thinking on my mother and ones lost long go. I nodded.

"...Would you stay with me... just for a while..." I asked and he nodded.

"I will stay as long as you need me."

We fell fast though the fields on the way back to kings cross station. I was sitting in a compartment with Lee Jordan and Fred and George. I was watching them play exploding snap on the floor of the compartment as they had decided that seats were not worth the time of day. I sat spread across one side strumming the Music watches tune, humming along. My tears had dried and my fingers plucked mindlessly. I was thinking about harry, reminding myself I wasn't the only one suffering. He blamed himself for Cedric's death and had refused the Triwizard winning, ending up giving them to Fred and George to be able to make Weasley Wizard Wheezes a reality and the boys excitement overrides the guilt had on taking the winning. They did their best to not remind me of Cedric however that was impossible. They however were successful on sheltering me from the rumours, giving anyone who so much whispered in my direction a glare, if they didn't stop they give the victim a double diose of mischievous sass which had almost got them into two fights and many laughs. Having the Weasley twins in my corner was turning out to be huge advantage.

Even though Rita Skeeter articles had stopped mysteriously, other papers had pick up the ball even before it was dropped. Even when I got off the Train I greeted by half a dozen reporters, blinding me with their cameras and asking me questions about everything. About my family, about my Curse, if I was a fake, if it was true and about Cedric. This was the last straw for the Weasley family in a whole. Mr Weasley dumped his long coat over my head and Mrs Weasley was in full mother bear mode. We burst into kings cross station and straighten ourselves up and walked swiftly to the exit where the reporters couldn't make a scene.

We were finally got to the peace of the burrow, it was almost a relief. Sirius was already inside, he and Mrs and Mr Weasley having been explained the situation by Dumbledore himself and like a puppy himself wanting to make up for lost time, even speaking of teaching me how to ride a broom after being informed that I hadn't mastered it. Ron, Fred and George and Ginny, Delighted in telling everything that had ever happened when I had even tried to get onto a broom and by the time they were finished my face had turned about 50 different shades of red and pink. After a time of embarrassing stories, laughs and a whole lot of delicious food, I was stuffed and falling asleep as I made it up the stairs, Sirius, preferring to sleep as a black dog on the floor of the living by the open fire. Ron was asleep as soon as his head hit the pillow and was snoring loudly as I got into bed, taking off my glasses and turning off the light.

I lay there, in the inky blackness, the corner of my vision seeming be enclose in shadows. I laid there and listened to the whispers, clutching a hold of the music watch.

'What will the future bring.....'