Ethereal [George Weasley]

𝙖𝙘𝙩 𝙩𝙬𝙤 𝙨𝙘𝙚𝙣𝙚 𝙤𝙣𝙚 - 𝙝𝙖𝙧𝙡𝙚𝙮'𝙨 𝙝𝙤𝙢𝙚

A few days later, I was ready to leave my house. Grandma kissed my cheek and sighed.

"Are you sure you don't want me to come with you?" She said in worry. "You've never been before by yourself."

"I'll be fine, Grandma." I laughed. "They only live past the hill."

She looked at me in concern before ultimately deciding to let me go.

"Okay. But if you get lost, come straight home!"

"Alright." I laughed again, before hugging her. "See you at Easter."

She waited at the door until I had left her sight. I noticed that it was still snowing, but now it was less than before. Shivering, I pulled my cloak closer to me and dragged my trunk along the ground.

I loved my village. It was small and peaceful and only two Wizarding families lived there - my family (the Montgomery's) and the Diggory's. Mr and Mrs Diggory had one kid - Cedric, the Hufflepuff Seeker that grabbed the snitch when Harry fell. Grandma and I used to visit them when I was younger, but I hadn't gone since Cedric started Hogwarts due to timing and everything. I realised that it had actually been nearly seven years!

As I walked past their house, I noticed Mr Diggory reading the Daily Prophet. He caught my eye and waved. Before I could respond, he quickly got up and rushed out of the door.

"Young Jessica!" He said in his usual, jolly tone. "What a pleasant surprise!"

"Hello, Mr Diggory." I said in a polite manner. "It is a surprise, yes. I haven't visited for a while now."

"Come in, come in!" Mr Diggory said. "It's far too cold to be outside. Where are you headed?"

"I'm visiting my friend in the next village over." I explained. "Harley, the daughter of Eric Withers."

"Ah, Eric! Quiet old chap! Haven't heard from him since his wife left him!" Mr Diggory said.

I shuffled uncomfortably.

"Well, you can't go there by yourself!" Mr Diggory said, almost astonished. "Why don't I get Cedric to take you? He's upstairs in his room, studying."

"Oh no!" I said. "I can go by myself, honestly, it's fine-"

But Mr Diggory was already calling for his son. Cedric came down and smiled politely at me.

"Hey, Jessica." He said as I nodded awkwardly.

What? I hadn't spoken to him since I was 10. And Gryffindor was still bitter about the loss.

"Cedric, could you be a good boy and take Jessica to the Withers home?" Mr Diggory said to his son.

"Of course." Cedric said obediently. "I'll just go grab my coat."

I shuffled my feet again, not knowing what to do. He didn't have to come - I was perfectly capable of going by myself. Cedric reappeared in his coat and Mr Diggory waved us off as we began our trek.

"So..." Cedric said, trying to start a conversation. "You visiting your friend?"

"Yeah." I replied. "We'll be heading off back to school together."

"Is it just you two?"

"No, my three other friends will be coming too."

Cedric nodded as we trudged through the snow. The journey wasn't long, in fact it was only five minutes. Finally, we had made it to Harley's. I could see the redhead through the window and she grinned. I also noticed that Evelyn had arrived early. They both rushed out to greet me.