A Hufflepuff and a Slytherin

Chapter 31- Frozen and Numb

(I cried writing this)

~Anna's POV~

I held on to Draco's hand tight as we approached the final task. It was a massive green maze. I saw Cedric and I ran over to him leaving Draco behind. Lily ran over to Harry. Cedric had a scared expression on his face and it was obvious why.

"Stay safe, think smart, do your best. Promise?" I asked.

He smiled and held out his pinkie and we did our hand shake. Hook pinkies, touch thumbs then kiss our thumbs. I smiled back at him with hope, hope that he will be safe and maybe even win.

"I love you." He said with the same smile painted across his face.

"I love you too. Good luck!" I said and slowly walked back to where Draco was sitting.

The air was colder than usual. The gusts of wind were stronger. Lily soon joined Draco and I. Slowly more and more people started to come and take their seats. Soon the crowd was flooded with people talking and cheering. You could hear how everyone was scared for what was about to happen. The band came and started to warm up a few notes. I kept rubbing my hands together hoping to warm up. Everyone went silent when Dumbledore stood in front of us. He said a few words, explained what was going to happen and the cannon blew. The four competitors turned around and looked at the pathways in between the hedges. Slowly each walked into their own pathways and the space where they had just gone through started to close, they were gone. The band started playing and everyone started talking again. I found myself shaking. It was a mixture of being cold and being scared. I would have felt better if I could see what was going on and how Cedric was doing but I had to trust. Trust that everything would be okay.

"You alright?" Draco asked while turning towards me. I guess he noticed my shaking hands. I nodded.

"You look cold. Here take this." He reached into his pocket and pulled out a small green container.

I looked at him with confusion and opened it. Inside there was a pastry, it almost looked like a croissant in the shape of a brownie. I have never seen anything like it, I had no clue what he had just given me.

"C'mon. It's only a pastry. I knew it was going to be cold and my mum used to pack these to keep me warm." I slowly picked up the pastry.

It was hot. It was slightly hotter than warm but cold enough that I could touch it and eat it. I brought it up to my mouth and took a bite. Almost instantly warmth rushed over my body like I had gone into a hot tub. It was delicious! It was sweet in a way that wouldn't make me feel sick but you could taste the sugar. It was fluffy on the inside but flaky on the outside. I looked straight at Draco with my eyebrows risen.

"I told you." He said with a small smirk.

We looked back at the maze where the competitors were once standing and getting ready. It slowly got colder and darker. Clouds faded away the sun and the warmth. I kept taking bites of the pastry until eventually it was all gone. Lily didn't speak a word. She never took her eyes of what had been where Harry entered the maze. She was scared and worried. She didn't typically show these emotions or tell me. I could just sense it in her.

"Lily you alright?" I asked.

"Ya, just a bit scared." She said while never losing eye contact with the maze. A few moments later the crowd started cheering. I turned to see Harry carrying the cup and something else but I couldn't make out what. I saw professors rush towards him and the crowd and band went silent. I could see it was a person Harry was holding.

I froze and went numb. My heart thumping slowly took over my ability to talk and breathe. I felt dizzy like the world was rushing around me. Each breath I took was getting deeper and deeper.

"Cedric!" I screamed at the top of my lungs. I felt cold tears starting to stream down my face. I pushed past everyone in my row and down the stairs. The professors surrounding Harry backed away.

"Cedric!" I called out again. Then I saw his cold, frozen face. Harry backed away and held back his screams. I put a hand on his chest hoping and praying that I could feel his heartbeat just one more time. But there was nothing. It was like he was frozen and hollow. My tears dripped down onto his dirty yellow shirt. His face frozen with fear. I took my other hand and traced my fingers through his dusty brown hair.

"Please. C'mon." I said trying to believe he wasn't gone.

"You promised." I said mad to his cold grey face. I took my pinkie and hooked it onto his. I pressed my thumb into his and kissed it. I collapsed onto his chest.

"You promised." I whispered one last time.

I could feel Professor Dumbledore and McGonagall slowly creeping closer and closer towards me. It felt like everything stopped. My heart, time, the world. I didn't want to let go of Cedric but Professor McGonagall put her hands on my shoulders and forced me to stand up. Emotions kept pushing through me. I didn't care how it happened. I just wish it didn't. My eyes were blurred with tears but I could see Draco running towards me. He wrapped his arms around me and rested his chin on the top of my head. I wanted to cut my self off from the rest of the world and just collapse. He kept whispering stuff into my ear but I couldn't hear past my heart beat which kept getting slower and slower. He's gone. I allowed myself to calm down and for a second the world felt new and fresh.

He's gone.