by Pepper Imp
[ s o n g f i c ]
*******************
I knew the pathway like the back of my hand.
I felt the earth beneath my feet,
Sat by the river and it made me complete.
Cara Wright took swift, short steps towards the Black Lake. The seventh year girl was alone, which was an unusual sight for anyone that knew her “ Cedric Diggory was normally found by her side.
Contrary to popular belief, they were nothing more than best friends, as much as Cara wished that there was something more between them. All the girls at Hogwarts wanted Cedric to be their man, and to have him look at no other girl.
All Cara wanted was to have him notice that she was a girl.
I'm getting old and I need something to rely on.
So tell me when you're gonna let me in,
I'm getting tired and I need somewhere to begin.
She jogged the last few feet, kicking up morsels of sandy dirt as she neared the water’s edge. The lake was as dark and murky as ever, yet she could see the thin tentacle of the squid waving at her from underwater. She smiled “ the water had always fascinated her.
She removed her shoes and lowered her olive-skinned feet into the water, flinching as the cold liquid connected with her toes. Screwing up her eyes, she plunged the limb into the icy cold and sat herself down. The squid tickled her toes, allowing her to have a short chuckle before she got down to studying.
The old parchment was curling at the edges, and she read over her notes about dragon anatomy and their fire breathing “ and she found herself fuming. How could Dumbledore allow them to bring nesting mother dragons into the school for seventeen-year-olds to steal an egg from? Was he losing his marbles?
She had tried to stop Cedric from putting his name into the Goblet; she had wanted to stay in front of him and force him away from the magical cup. But she couldn’t “ she was far, far too short to stop the tall and incredibly handsome Cedric Diggory from doing what his father wanted him to do.
She slammed the book shut, allowing herself to cringe at the crumpling of paper from inside the large volume. She straightened the pages, then carried her schoolwork towards one of Cedric’s and her favorite places to sit and just relax.
I felt the branches; are they looking at me?
Is this the place we used to love?
Is this the place that I've been dreaming of?
Cara lay back on the trunk, dumping her bag on the grass as she slid down the trunk into a sitting position. She let her fingers linger over the area where she and Cedric had scraped their initials into the bark, smiling at the memory.
She cast a glance around the Hogwarts grounds, the air heavy with the mist that came each May. The shadow of a pair of people arm in arm caught her eye, and she thought that she could make out the tall frame of Cedric and the shorter one of his current girlfriend, Cho Chang.
Cara did not like Cho “ Cho was a nice girl, like all Cedric’s girlfriends were. It was the fact that whenever any of them saw Cara with Cedric it was obvious that their first thought was, “What is she doing with him?” It angered Cara that their first thoughts were accusations against her. But she never said anything “ she never did.
And that evening, it wasn’t anything huge that caused tears to spring to Cara’s eyes “ it was the fact that, for the first time in seven years, Cedric had forgotten her birthday.
He’s too wrapped up with the Tournament and with Cho, she told herself. Don’t be angry with him. It’s okay for him to forget.
She wiped the unshed tears from her eyes to prevent them from falling down her face and looked up again. She saw the taller figure raise a hand in greeting and start to jog towards her. Raising her hand in return, she dried her face with a Charm and looked up to see the handsome features of Cedric coming rapidly closer.
Talk about it somewhere only we know?
This could be the end of everything.
So why don't we go, somewhere only we know,
Somewhere only we know.
“Hey, Ceddy,” she said, grinning playfully. She forced the veneer of happiness, but her smile was genuine “ even if she couldn’t have Cedric, she still cherished every moment with him.
Cedric grinned right back at her and laughed, plopping down beside Cara, “How’d the pre-exam examination for Flitwick go? Did you feel like you had to triple check it?”
She slapped his arm gently, grinning as Cedric keeled over in mock agony.
“That was uncalled for! What did I ever do to you?”
“You forgot what day it is.”
“How thick do you think I am, eh? I know it’s Thursday.”
Cara had decided to be blunt, but Cedric’s words had brought tears back to her eyes. Her best friend couldn’t have really forgotten her birthday.
Could he?
“It’s not just any old Thursday,” she murmured, her voice barely above a whisper. And the tears fell - one by one, she wiped them away when Cedric wasn’t looking.
“Too right it isn’t,” said Cedric, turning back to her with a delicately wrapped box in his outstretched hands.
One of Cara’s hands flew up to her face and covered her mouth, attempting to smother a gasp. He hadn’t forgotten! She could feel the face light up with unconcealed happiness as she tried to stammer a response. “Oh, Ced… oh… you didn’t -”
“You thought I forgot,” Cedric stated simply, an amused smirk on his face. “As if you’re so easy to overlook.”
Blushing, she snatched the box out of her friend’s hands. She laughed at his positively astonished expression as he mimed looking for the box, and set to work unwrapping the gift.
Unlike most people, she liked to keep wrapping paper intact; and, because of that, she took a lot longer than an average person to unwrap any gift that she was given. When she finally got the white tissue paper off, she opened the box and gasped.
A white rose lay on what looked and felt like snow. The petals were tinged with the faintest tint of lilac; the stem had no hint of a thorn.
“Oh, Cedric…” Her voice trailed off, as no words existed that could have described her feelings for that simple flower.
In many books that she had read, a white rose had been said to represent a new beginning. Lilac roses were said to signify enchantment. And thornless roses were said to represent…
Love at first sight.
Talk about it somewhere only we know?
This could be the end of everything.
So why don't we go, so why don't we go,
She turned her face to look at Cedric’s, her already large eyes wider than they had been in a long time. Her fingers trailed over the silken petals; she was still too shocked for words.
No, she thought, still confused. This can’t mean what I think it means.
Cedric wordlessly took the rose from the box and tucked it behind Cara’s ear, the snow white contrasting drastically with her ebony (and disgracefully curly) hair. “Do you like it?”
“Cedric, how couldn’t I? It’s wonderful!” she said, and leant over to give Cedric a peck on the cheek.
But Cedric moved his head at the last moment. And Cara found herself with Cedric’s lips on hers, stunned. This was the moment that she had dreamed about for months, but she was too startled by one fact “ Cedric felt the same way?
She decided that she didn’t care “ it was Cedric’s choice, not hers. They shared a sweet, innocent, simple kiss. And as they broke apart and drew back delicately, Cara remembered the meaning of a single rose “ simplicity.
So why don't we go, somewhere only we know,
Somewhere only we know
Somewhere only we know.
There were no words for the rest of the evening “ nor were there any worries. Cho was spending the evening inside the castle, revising for her O.W.Ls.
Cara lay on the grass, her head resting on Cedric’s chest. She knew what was going on in Cedric’s head “ he was fretting about the situation with Cho. He hated going behind a person’s back, but Cara knew that he’d do the right thing. Even if that meant pretending that that kiss never even happened.
Well, she thought matter-of-factly as she fingered the rose that was still tucked behind her ear. Our friendship is effectively over.
But Cara didn’t think that she minded that too much.