Hogwarts: The Next Generation

Chapter 4: Scrofungulu

It was there first Christmas break from Hogwarts and it felt good to Annabel and Cedric to leave. Cedric was thrilled he would be away from all the teasing and Annabel to try to straighten things out. Both Parents were waiting for their children to exit the Hogwarts Express.

"Mum!" Cedric said running up to Trinity as she bend down a little to give him a big hug. Her eyes was pledged with a sadness but she still smiled.

"Wow Ceddy you must of grown while you were away!" Trinity replied. Shortly after Annabel got off the train with a textbook in her hand. It was smaller than the other books but seemed very familiar to Kayden.

"Glad to see you honey." Alyssa said to Annabel. Annabel giving her mother a big hug but before long she let go.

"Achoo!" Annabell sneezed and dropped the book and quickly scrambled to get it before either parent could read it. She than wiped her nose

"Let's get you home you don't sound well." Alyssa said in a worried voice. "Trinity you guys are more than welcome to come to our house, I made your favorite muggle pizza"

"Yum if that's not a good reason to go over there than I don't know what is!" Trinity replied while rubbing her stomach. Cedric laughed holding his mother's hand.

When they reached the Scamander's house, Alyssa ordered Annabell to her room.

"But mummy I feel fine. Achoo! Achoo! Achoo! ACHOOO!" Annabell could not stop sneezing

"Scrofungulus." Trinity said suddenly, snapping her fingers. "I haven't seen anything like that since-"

"Umbridge" said the three adults in the room, while the two children exchanged confused looks.

"Good thing I have just the remedy." Kayden goes into his office grabs a bottle and hands it to the sneezing girl. "Drink it up." Kayden said. Annebell's face turned green as if she just tasted the worst thing ever.

"Yuck!" She protested pushing the bottle towards her dad while holding her nose. Kayden just chuckled.

"It's not that bad wait until you have Polyjuice, that's bad." Kayden said laughing.

"Don't encourage what we did!" Alyssa smacked him on the head. Kayden quickly escorted Annabel to her room still laughing. Annabel quickly grabbed her new book and hid it under her robe. Trinity noticed Annabel was intrigued with the book but didn't dare mention it to Alyssa or Kayden. Trinity believed they were being a bit overprotected by not telling Annabel about her Grandfather, but it wasn't her place.

"May I go check up on Annabel while you are cooking that pizza?"

"Sure thing Trin". Alyssa nodded. "Pizza will be ready in 20!" Alyssa called after Trinity as she disappeared into her house. Alyssa was cooking with Cedric in the kitchen, while Kayden was in his office finishing his work.

"Hey Aunt Alyssa," Cedric said, sitting at the counter a piece of paper in his hands.

"Yes Ced?" Alyssa asked moving over to him.

"Who is this man?" He pointed to the photo. Alyssa took it and blinked in surprise looking at the man who was dancing with Trinity. It had been years since she had seen his face other than in her dreams or memories. Her mind raced with memories of the man and she felt her eyes water as they all calmed leaving one replaying in her mind.

It was Harry gripping his lifeless body.

"Uhm he was a very brave man, Ceddy." Alyssa answered.

"Who is he?"

"Well you are named after him, Ced." Alyssa moved to sit down next to her nephew. "This man is Cedric Diggory. He was a very close friend of your mother and I."

"Did he love my Mum?" Cedric asked, looking up at her with wide green eyes.

"Well, he did. Very much." Alyssa smiled, sadly. "He was very protective of her."

"Did she love him?"

"I believe she did." Alyssa answered his questions as carefully as she could. "She and him spent every moment they could together, and when he wasn't with her he was with me." Alyssa swallowed the lump forming in her throat. "He was like my brother." Alyssa rubbed his back. "He was the most wonderful Hufflepuff, just like you. On the shy side but had a huge heart."

"Why isn't he with my mother?" Cedric asked looking back at the photo. Anger seemed to cross his face. "Was his heart not big enough to love my Mum since she was a death eater." Cedric said harshly putting down the photo. Alyssa was surprised by his change of emotions.

"Well, I would think he would, but he wasn't around when your mother made that choice."

"What happened to him?"

"Well a very bad man named Voldemort killed him when he was very young. He didn't have a chance to marry your Mum."

"Who would want to marry her? She's a death eater."

"Cedric did." Alyssa said, recalling the night after the Yule ball. He had confessed to her that he had kissed Trinity, while flopping across the Hufflepuff couch like a man in love. He had grinned at Alyssa and placed her hand on his heart so she could feel it pounding out of his chest. He hugged her, tightly, and vowed he was going to be the one to marry Trinity. Oliver had done a good job of sticking pieces of Trinity's shattered heart back together. That man had such a good soul and loved Trinity to his fullest capacity. "Your father did, and he loves her very much." Alyssa said. "Where is this coming from Ced?"

"The kids at school talk about her. That she is evil and should be in Azkaban or dead."

"Your mother is a hero, Ced." Alyssa said sternly. "I need you to understand that without her, Kayden, Matt and I wouldn't be alive. Annabel and Jonathan would have never been born. More than likely, you wouldn't be here either if she didn't make the choices she did. Your mother made many sacrifices for the greater good." Alyssa picked up the photo and looked over it again. "She gave a piece of herself, of her sanity, so we would live." Alyssa passed the photo back to Cedric. "She accepted disgrace in the place of honor, she still does."

"My mother was a good guy?"

"She was, no matter what others say." She said kissing his head. "Be proud to be a Hufflepuff because there is so much good that can come from that house, and be proud you mother is your's. Don't ever doubt who you are." Right after she finished the timer dinged. "Hungry?" She asked the smiling boy looking at the photo