#appologies

Prologue (recommended to read)

Chapter 9 (previous)

Pair: Cedric Diggory x Male Slytherin Reader

Word count: 2.6K words

Summary of the book: You and Cedric Diggory hate each other. It has always been this way. But everything changes one night when you kiss each other at a party. Now, it seems you can’t escape each other — from being partnered up in Herbology for an important project to having to help Cedric during the Triwizard Tournament.

Summary of the chapter: Cedric just finished his second task; you've been ignoring him for nearly a month. But how long can you keep up the act?

Notes: Please comment on anything I should change to improve this. Also, I am not British, so I am not 100% sure how to correctly write people from the UK. Also, let's ignore that I'm a few hours late; I fell asleep while finishing the chapter.

Content warning: Swear words, usage of slurs, and possible kissing.

!PLEASE DO NOT REPOST ANYWHERE WITHOUT PERMISSION OR CREDIT TO ME!

...

Cedric stood in the middle of a crowd of Hogwarts students, his brown hair sticking to his forehead like glue, beads of water trickling down his glowing face. Not even a month ago, you’d be standing there beside him, convincing yourself that he was just a friend.

But you stood afar, smiling at success with pride, secretly rejoicing that you had helped him win the second challenge. You listened to Elsie’s advice to take care of yourself first, and for you, Cedric was the root of your problem. At least, that was the conclusion you came to; ever since you became friends with him, everything went to hell. 

Or was it Professor Sprout’s fault? It was that night that your friend group started distancing themselves from Alistair. But you couldn’t blame a professor, could you? And you could have befriended Alistair again if it weren’t for having to spend time with Cedric. Besides, there was no way he’d ever like you back. You could just wait for the feelings to go away and then hang out again. You did miss him. Although you weren’t sure whether that was your head or your heart talking.

You felt bad, too; whenever Cedric came to chat with you, you made up some random excuse for you to leave. The look in his eyes made your stomach clench in guilt. You told yourself that you just needed time. But how much time do you need?

You turned away from Cedric and his joyous fans. The other champions hadn’t returned from the water yet, but it wasn’t as if you cared.

The rest of your friends were still there — Alistair included — but they’d find you soon, even if you left early. You’d been hanging out for the past few months; all that time you'd have spent with Cedric was instead spent with your closest friends.

In a way, you were happy. Unlike your fears, they had welcomed you and forgiven you for straying. Apart from Destiny joining the group and Alistair barely acknowledging you, it was like you never left. Destiny was really sweet and cheerful, like a less whimsical and odd Winnie. You got to know her and even spent some time alone together; she was nothing like the girl who dated Alistair back in September. In fact, all of your friends seemed happier without him around. Winnie seemed more present, Brian laughed, and Elsie was more physically affectionate with everyone — especially the two other girls.

You flipped through the books in the library, skimming the titles on the shelves for something fun to read. Your homework had been completed over an hour earlier and with no one to talk to, your only option was to read. There was a pile of around five books on the table next to you, but you had barely even touched any of them.

But it had been hours now, and you were surprised that your friends hadn’t found you yet.

“Maybe they were in the Slytherin common room…” you mumbled to yourself, lightly rubbing the back of a novel about a love triangle between a werewolf, a vampire and a human girl. “Wait, have I read this one before?”

Silently, you placed the book back onto the shelf and, grabbing the pile of books that seemed interesting to you, headed to the librarian’s desk. 

As Madame Pince checked out your books, you glanced out of the window. The sky was painted with warm colours of red, orange and yellow, and clouds were sparse, letting the golden light of the sinking sun. The second task of the Triwizard Tournament must have finished hours ago, for not only did the skies clear, but it had been early afternoon when Cedric had come out of the water.

“It’s dinner time. Maybe my friends are in the cafeteria.” You reflected, taking your books off the librarian’s desk. You waved goodbye to Madame Pince and headed to the Slytherin dormitory, wishing you had brought a bag. There were only five books, but they were all relatively large and heavy.

Since you couldn’t see past the books blocking your vision, you couldn’t tell if anyone was walking in your direction, so you hoped everyone was eating dinner.

Suddenly, just as you rounded a corner, you collided with someone. Your books slipped from your arms, and you frantically tried preventing yourself from falling from the sudden force.

“Shit! Sorry, I didn’t see you there, man,” a voice you recognised apologised.

You looked up to meet Alistair’s gaze. The soft look on his handsome face turned steel-cold when he registered the person he was talking to. You quickly averted your eyes and bent down to collect your books, alarmed at the sheer intensity of his stare; although Alistair had attitude and dislike towards certain things, the way he looked at you was full of disgust, and restrained fury, as if he were looking at a deformed mutt who just shat on his favourite rug. What on earth had you done to him to deserve such a look?

“(Surname),” he sneered, “I was just looking for you.”

WHAT THE FUCK.

“Ohhh, what do you need me for?” You asked politely as you got up with only two books in your arms, attempting to mask your fear and confusion. Did he just use your surname? He even called some teachers by their first name, so why hadn’t he used yours?

“I’ll get straight to the point,” he crossed his arms, “It’s about the party back in September.”

You shifted nervously, replaying the events of the night with Elsie storming out and later informing you that she had kissed Winnie. Certainly, it was about that. “What about it? Is it about Elsie?”

“Why would it be about Elsie?”

“I just thought, nevermind.” You quickly responded.

“Ziggy was talking about it — “reminiscing”, he called it. Then, he mentioned something after I went to help Elsie.” Alistair’s jaw tightened.

You inhaled deeply, forcing yourself to look at him. You felt your heart drop; you knew what it was about. 

“It was just a game.” You stated calmly.

“I want you to tell me exactly what happened.” Alistair ordered. “Ziggy only mentioned it.”

“How did Ziggy tell you? He casted a curse, so that he couldn’t tell anyone who wasn’t in the room.”

“DON’T AVOID THE FUCKING QUESTION!!”

You flinched at the volume, quickly glancing around for someone — anyone — to help you, but the hallway was barren. Of course. The students must be eating.

You hesitated before answering while trying to mask the unease in your voice, “I think you know exactly what happened.”

Alistair paused, then backed away with surprising calmness. “You said he cast a spell so that he couldn’t tell anyone who wasn’t part of the Spin the Bottle? Well, I was there. Just not at the time when you-you—” he struggled to say the word, running his hand through his red hair, “kissed that stupid Hufflepuff. Which also means that I don’t have a spell on me. I can tell whoever I want of your little secret.” He hissed, and your eyes widened.

“Alistair, it was just a kiss,” you attempted to appease him, “It meant nothing, in fact, it was probably absolutely torturous—”

“You fucking liar!!” He spat, “And don’t you call me that. We aren’t friends, I don’t even know you, I don’t think I ever did.” Despite his absence from your group, Alistair was one of your closest friends. He was funny and relatable. So you felt the stab right in your heart when he spoke those words. Well, it was bound to happen. “Didn’t I warn you to not fall for that dickhead? Now, look at you. Disgusting faggot. I hope you rot.”

You gaped at him like a fish.

“Oh don’t be surprised,” he rolled his eyes, “Why would I ever want to stay friends with someone like you?”

“Maybe because (Name) is a lovely person to be around, unlike you with your prissy, entitled attitude.” A familiar voice said from behind you. A voice that made your brain go wild and your heart frantically take control of your every move. Cedric Diggory.

“Oh look, it’s the boyfriend,” Alistair shifted his focus to the taller student. “Oh, (Surname), your prince is here to save you. Go kiss him again, don’t be shy.”

“Piss off, Campbell, I need to talk to my friend, and can’t have a homophobic bigot bothering us.” Cedric barely addressed his presence, instead turning to look at you — who seemed to be very interested in the architecture of Hogwarts.

Alistair laughed — something so cold and deranged that it sent shivers down your spine. “So it’s true, faggots. God, I’m sure everyone would love to know the two ex-enemies stopped their little battle to go have a shag with each other.”

“You’re disgusting,” You finally snapped, “And we’re not together.”

But Alistair just shrugged, a cold smile plastered on his handsome face, and walked away.

When he was out of sight, you sighed and went to pick up your books that were still on the floor. Cedric bent down to help you out, but instead of giving you your books, he held them for you.

“Thanks,” you mumbled, unsure whether or not you preferred Alistair’s aggression or the awkwardness between you and Cedric. It had been a while since you’d had a proper conversation with him, and you weren’t sure whether he’d be upset or pretend like nothing had happened. Not to mention the ordeal with Alistair; he called you and the Hufflepuff boyfriends and made some crude comments that were sure to unnerve Cedric. You had a crush on your ex-rival, but that didn’t mean you didn’t feel uncomfortable at Alistair's inappropriate imagery.

To your surprise, Cedric chuckled, “So, do you want to stand here in silence or shall we go to your dormitory?” You nearly smiled at the sound of his silly voice but refrained yourself. “I mean, I’m assuming you were heading there with this heavy pile of books.”

You nodded and walked with him.

The trip to the dungeons was awkward, to say the least not a word was spoken between you two, and the only sound was the echoing of your footsteps. It took everything in you not to look at Cedric, but you could feel his intense stare and the tension between you two.

When you arrived at the entrance to the dorms, Cedric placed the books he was carrying into your arms. You turned back to the door, a large stone door with two snakes intertwined in the middle.

“Legacy.” You spoke the password, and the snakes separated to reveal the barren common room. 

“Thanks for helping, Cedric, you can leave now.” You said, stepping into the dorm. But before the doors could close, you heard footsteps following you. Of course. He did say that he needed to speak to you earlier, but at this point, you didn’t care enough to shoo him off, so you placed your books on the couch and turned to him. “What do you want?”

He seemed taken aback by your reaction but quickly recovered, “At first, I was going to ask you about why you were avoiding me so much, lately—” Oh, so it was bothering him, “—but now I can’t stop thinking about what Campbell said. Is that why you stopped hanging out? Because you didn’t want to be seen as…” He trailed off, unsure what exactly to say, but you knew what he meant.

His silver eyes met yours, and he looked away. Guess he felt the tension in the room. If it were a calm conversation, you’d be sitting on one of the couches or even up in your room. Come to think of it, this was his first time in the Slytherin common room. “Hopefully not his last time,” a small voice from the back of your mind prayed.

After a long pause, you responded, “That’s not the reason. And I’m sorry, it’s just-”

“(Name) do you like me?” Cedric looked at you. You saw the doubt in his eyes and felt a pit of dread forming in your gut. You were about to refuse, but something in his eye convinced you not to lie.

“What do you think?”

He paused. “Can you answer my question? Please? Or at least tell me what’s been going on?”

You don’t know what made you do it maybe it was the way he looked at you, or you were tired of hiding your feelings for him. 

“There is a reason why.” You mumbled, unsure of yourself, “It’s stupid, but I just couldn’t spend time with you because I needed time to myself, time to figure out my emotions.”

“So you ditched me?”

“Yes.” You hugged your arms, realising that you did the same thing to Cedric that you did to your friends, “I’m sorry, I thought I was working on myself, but instead I was escaping from what I truly felt.” You met his gaze. “Cedric, I think I love you.”

His eyes went wide.

“I know you probably don’t feel the same way.” You mumbled, unable to look at him in the eyes. Your cheeks were red, and your neck felt hot in embarrassment, “After all, I kind of ditched you and we aren’t really close enough to you, and I’m sorry I feel this way, and it’s okay if you don’t want to be friends anymore; I understand how awkward this is for you and-”

“You oblivious idiot.” He chuckled.

Before you could respond, you felt his warm hands on your cheeks, lifting your face to look him in the eyes. In that moment, time slowed. He was so close, his lips fanning over yours, the air between your mouths mingling. Your eyes widened. The only time you were this close was… the party. Was he going to—

You let out a squeak as he crashed his lips onto yours. It wasn’t like you’ve never kissed someone before — you’ve kissed people on dares, Spin the Bottle, and in old relationships — and you did it with Cedric at the party. But this was different. You had no feelings for those whom you kissed on dares and games, and all of your past relationships with girls felt fake, and you had to convince yourself to act lovingly towards them. It was also quite different at the party; you had been enemies back then and both of you were hesitant to share that moment of intimacy.

But, now, when Cedric kissed you, your heart felt as if it leapt out of your chest. When you kissed back, you could feel him relax. One of his hands travelled to your waist, pulling you closer to him, and your hands rested on his shoulder and in his brown hair.

When you two pulled away, breathless and giddy, he grinned at you like a little boy who just received a rainbow-coloured lollipop. “Sorry I kissed you without permission.” He apologised, biting his lip.

You chuckled, unable to wipe the smile off of your face, “Oh it’s quite alright. But… I know a way you can truly apologise.” You teased, looking at his lips once more.

He seemed to understand what you meant and leaned in to offer you another kiss. This one was different. Less passionate, more careful and sweet, as if a butterfly were tickling your lips. When you parted — his hands still on your cheek and waist, yours now both on his shoulders — you asked Cedric, “Wanna go up to my room for more privacy?”

...

Chapter 11

Sometimes I dream that I was shrunk down to the size of a peanut, got mailed to Antarctica, and started a prep school for penguins.

New theory everyone!

So, you know that theory I had where all of the dark sides had a name ending in -el or -il?

That’s dead because of Remus

But fear not, I have something else.

Something that sounds more like a conspiracy theory, but is a theory, nonetheless.

So, Virgil seemed very defensive when Deceit brought up the topic of his name.

At first I thought this was just hinting more towards him being a dark side with the name of a dark side, but then I rewatch it with the notion it’s not of what his name is, since there are little to no similarities between Remus and Virgil.

Deceit brings up Virgil’s name and is immediately shut down.

Why?

Because Virgil isn’t his name.

Virgil. Is. Not. Anxiety’s. Name.

Patton, Roman, Logan.

They all have some amount of uniformity.

End in -on or -an, have an “o” in them, just look similar and come from the same area of the world.

But Virgil.

Virgil and Remus have nothing in common.

So, why would their names be so uniform, only to break the uniformity with the dark sides?

They’re shushed when they bring up his name because they know it’s something not to be mentioned.

They know they shouldn’t say it’s not his real name. Look at their eyes when Virgil reveals his name, they know that’s not his real name, but they let him get away with it.

Virgil’s real name (and Deceit’s) will end in -us or -is.