Author's Note: Hello all! I am so sorry that it has taken me so long to update. I got a new job and helped out with a theatre production that stole away all of my free time. It was a fabulous experience though. Anyway, here is the next installment of my story. Please let me know what you think!!!!

Chapter Three: Changes at Hogwarts

Cedric left the start of term feast with a queasy feeling in the pit of his stomach. This was not an uncommon occurrence, as he often ate far too much at the feast, but for once his unstable insides had nothing to do with delectable food. First, the Sorting Hat had kicked things off with that song. He wondered if he was the only one who had found it creepy as all bloody hell. Then, that Umbridge toad-looking woman had interrupted Dumbledore. She had actually interrupted Dumbledore!!! He was certain that interrupting Dumbledore had to be illegal and if it was not, then it should be. At the very least it was utterly reprehensible. The more he played her little speech over in his head, the worse he felt in his stomach. Many of the students had lost their patience with her and not paid attention. He was not one of those students. He had certainly lost his patience with her, but he had listened intently to every syllable that had come from that hideous woman's mouth. She worked for Fudge. He had sent her here to keep an eye on Dumbledore. That did not bode well for the students at Hogwarts. He rubbed a hand over his flat stomach; a vain motion meant to somehow sooth his acidic insides. It did not work. More students filed out of the Great Hall as the feast was coming to a close and soon he noticed that Angelina was keeping pace beside him. They were meant to report to their respective offices and wait for the prefects to come and tell them how the first years were handling their first night. Having both been prefects themselves, they knew where the offices were located on the fifth floor.

"So," Angelina started, "what did you make of that?"

"Not entirely sure." Cedric answered honestly, not wanting to give too much of his thoughts away.

"Can't believe she broke in on Dumbledore." She continued, "Thought for a minute there that McGonagall was going to tackle her outright."

"That would have been a sight." Cedric chuckled, unable to keep the smile from touching his lips as he developed the mental picture in his head.

They reached their offices and from that point, it took approximately one hour for all the prefects to gather and make their reports on the first years. Cedric's heart gave a little stutter when Hermione came into sight, then plummeted when the seemingly ever-present Ron Weasley was right at her side. He shook the thoughts away though. He should not be feeling that way toward Ron. He was Harry's mate and, in a way, by extension, his own. However, that rationale did not stop the pulsing sting that went through his abdomen as he observed the calm familiarity with which the two younger students interacted with each other. They made a quick report before turning to head back. They were the last to report that evening and from the corner of his eye, Cedric saw Angelina heading off in search of her chamber. The Head Boy and Head Girl had their own individual suits and it was tradition that they were not informed as to their location. They were told how to get into their rooms but they had to find them on their own; he would be going off to search for his own shortly, but he figured there would be no harm in a quick, completely platonic, innocent little conversation.

"Oi, Granger." He called.

Hermione stopped and turned back to him.

"Have a chat?" he asked. To his disdain, Ron halted and turned back to him as well, so he tacked on, "Privately?"

Hermione turned and mumbled something under her breath to Ron. He nodded to her, but once Hermione had turned away from him, he shot Cedric a possessive glare that Cedric understood all too well—and decided that he would completely ignore. He led Hermione into his personal office, which was set up much like a smaller, less formal version of a teacher's office. A work desk and chair for him accompanied by two simple chairs that faced his desk. He sat down in his chair and Hermione gracefully folded herself into one of the other chairs provided.

"I'm curious as to your thoughts, Granger." Cedric admitted after a moment of silence.

"On what?" Hermione asked. She was not being coy, as many girls her age would have been with him. Rather, she was concise. She wanted the specifics of the question in order to give him a better detailed answer. He smiled.

"Professor Umbridge." Cedric said rather softly.

Hermione stiffened in her chair, making it clear to Cedric that this was not a topic that she was comfortable discussing. "She's a professor."

Cedric smiled again. Still, she was not being coy; but evasive. "Come now, Granger." He coaxed, "You're the cleverest witch in school. Tell me what you gathered from her speech tonight."

Hermione fixed him with the familiar glare of scrutiny that he had come to expect from her, only this time he allowed himself the simple pleasure of memorizing the details that went along with the expression. Her brow furrowed, causing the slightest crease to form in the middle of her forehead, her lovely dark eyes narrowed, her lips pursed and her nose scrunched up ever-so-slightly. How had she escaped his notice? How had he let four years pass him by and not have spoken with her? How had he missed this smart, capable, lovely creature? Her soft looking lips parted, which sent a whole new flurry of dizzying emotions swarming through his brain and…other areas of his body.

"I think," she began, pulling his attention back to the discussion at hand, the discussion that he himself had started, "that she is a clear indication that the Ministry is interfering at Hogwarts."

One corner of Cedric's mouth tipped upward. Her reputation was well deserved.

"In all honesty," Hermione continued, "I found her entire speech rather disconcerting."

Hear, hear! Cedric thought to himself. He struggled to think of something else to say to her, desperate to keep her there with him. He needed to keep her talking. She spoke again, much to his relief.

"As Head Boy," she said, her eyes, he thought, again seeing much more than she would let on, "how do you think the situation will go?"

"The diplomatic answer is that it is too early for me to have formed an opinion," Cedric answered smoothly.

Hermione granted him a small smile. He would make a hell of a politician someday.

"However," Cedric continued, a gentle smirk touching his handsome mouth, "my initial response is that I don't trust that woman as far as I could throw her."

Her dark eyes locked with his and again he found himself lost in her gaze. The studious way that she stared him down forced him to look away in order to regain some of his composure. "So," he said, "you say the first years are adjusting nicely?"

"They're absolutely terrified." Hermione said, "But weren't we all on our first night?"

"I find it difficult to picture you being terrified of anything having to do with school." Cedric chuckled.

"I'm concerned for us now." She stated flatly.

Their eyes met again and this time Cedric did not look away. In that moment, a connection was formed between them. Cedric felt a knot form in the pit of his stomach as he looked at Hermione. Something was growing inside of him; a fierce attachment for this young witch was steadily enveloping him. This was maybe the fifth time that he had spoken to her but he knew that if it came to it, he would put her safety before his own. There was strand of wavy hair that had come free from her ponytail and fallen in her face. He wanted, with a desperation that he could not even describe, to reach out and push it behind her ear. He wanted to touch her. To feel if the smooth skin of her cheek was as soft as he imagined it was. She blinked at him, confused by his silence. He opened his mouth to speak, having no clear idea as to the words that would come out of his mouth—luckily, the sound of a throat clearing saved him from talking. They both turned at the same time to see Dumbledore standing in the doorway in all his elegance.

"Good evening, Mr. Diggory," Dumbledore said, "Miss Granger."

"Professor," Cedric and Hermione said in unison.

"Miss Granger, I think it's time for bed check." Dumbledore said, a subtle hint that he wanted to speak with Cedric in private.

"Yes, sir," Hermione said, "I was just on my way."

To Cedric's dismay, she rose from her chair and glided out the door without so much as a look back to him. It injured him that she did not look back. Did she not feel the connection between them? Perhaps the attraction he was feeling was his and his alone. He pushed the thought aside and turned his attention fully to Dumbledore.

"Professor," he said.

Dumbledore took another step into Cedric's office, "Mr. Diggory, have you discovered your private suite, yet?"

"Er, no, sir." Cedric said, his cheeks flushing, "I haven't started looking."

"In that case, perhaps we should walk and converse at the same time." Dumbledore said, turning slightly toward the door and waiting for Cedric to join him.

Cedric stood from his chair and he and the Headmaster of Hogwarts started down the corridor together. They walked in silence for a length of time until they reached the end of the particular hallway that they were in. They could make either a left or a right. Cedric started to go to the left, but Dumbledore stayed where he was until Cedric halted and turned back to him.

"Perhaps, to the right." Dumbledore suggested.

Cedric could not be certain, but he thought he spotted a smirk on the older man's mouth. He grinned sheepishly and trotted back toward him. Once they were on their way to the right, Dumbledore began to speak, "I assume that you have deduced that things are going to be very different here at Hogwarts this year, Mr. Diggory."

"Yes, Professor." Cedric said.

"I have a task for you, son." Dumbledore said, "Professor Umbridge has been assigned to Hogwarts by the Ministry."

"I gathered, sir." Cedric nodded.

"I fear that students here will take a disliking to their new teacher. I need you not to."

"Sir?" Cedric was confused. Dumbledore wanted him to like this woman?

"More accurately, I need you not to openly oppose her." Dumbledore looked from the corner of his eye, "Stay on her good side, if you will."

"You want me to play teacher's pet to Professor Umbridge?" Cedric replied incredulous.

"That is a colorful way to put it, but yes." Dumbledore said, his pace slowing.

Cedric matched his steps, "But, why?"

"All will be revealed in due course," Dumbledore said cryptically, coming to a complete stop, "For now, all you need to worry about is staying close to the Professor and making quiet note of everything that you see."

"Yes, sir," Cedric said, still unclear as to the reasoning behind Dumbledore's request.

"I think you'll find a doorway hidden behind the dark blue tapestry, Mr. Diggory." Dumbledore said before turning and walking back in the direction from which they had come.

Cedric stepped up to the tapestry that Dumbledore had referred to and pushed it aside. Sure enough, there just on the other side of it was a large wooden door. He knocked on the door six, distinct times as he had been told to do and it swung open at once. His room was marvelous. The bed was twice the size of the ones in the house chambers with great purple velvet drapes. He had personal desk and chair, a bureau, a closet and a large window that looked out into the Forbidden Forest. He even had his own private bathroom. Apparently, being the Head Boy did not come without its perks.

…

Cedric walked through the corridors of school searching for the Weasley twins. In his hand, he clutched a Gallons of Galleons flier. Personally, he thought it was hilarious. He pitied anyone who was foolish enough to sign on to serve as their test subject. However, as Head Boy, he had to address the situation. He doubted very highly that either Fred or George would pay him the slightest attention—unless it was to offer to let him sit in on one of the experiments. There was another matter that he wanted to discuss with them, as well. Suddenly, the flier was ripped from his hand.

"What's this, then?" Cho asked, un-crinkling the paper that she had just stolen from him. "Are they mad? Do Fred and George honestly think that anyone in their right mind would sign up to be their guinea pig?"

"Probably not," Cedric chuckled, taking the flier back from her, "I've got to say something, no matter." He looked around her, "Where is your usual gaggle?"

"Don't know. I've been—looking for someone." Cho answered, her cheeks turning an instant shade of crimson.

"Do I even need to ask?"

"Probably not."

"Have you thought of something to talk to him about, then?" Cedric asked, amused.

"I thought I'd give that whole 'hello' thing another go."

Around the corner ahead of them, Cedric locked in on a voice that was steadily becoming as familiar to him as his own.

"Oh, don't give me that rubbish." Hermione's clear voice rang out just as Cedric and Cho rounded the corner and came to halt directly in front of the trio.

"Hello, Harry!" Cho said, again just a little too quickly, making Cedric wince for her.

"Hi," Harry said, his face turning bright, bright red.

Cedric rubbed a large hand over his face, trying to wipe away the urge to laugh at both of them for their ridiculousness.

"You got that stuff off, then?" Cho asked and Cedric felt his head snap in her direction in disbelief.

No, no, no! He thought. Why would she bring up his former humiliation to him again? Did she not understand that he was probably spending night and day trying to forget that that little scene had ever happened? He looked over at Harry and saw him desperately trying to keep a smile on his face. Cedric's heart went out to him.

"Yeah. So did you…er…have a good summer?" Harry asked, wincing at his own lameness.

"Oh," Cho responded, "it was all right, you know…"

"Is that a Tornados badge?" Ron Weasley suddenly interjected, pointing to the badge that Cedric himself had given to Cho two Christmases ago. "You don't support them, do you?"

Taken aback, Cho looked from Ron to Harry to Cedric to Hermione and back to Ron, "Yeah, I do."

"Have you always supported them, or just since they started winning the league?"

Cedric and Harry both glared at Ron and Hermione covered her face with her hands. Cedric wanted to smack the younger Weasley upside the head with a book—a heavy one. Cho, however, he knew from experience, was perfectly capable of taking care of herself.

"I've supported them since I was six," she said, fixing Ron with a cool stare. "Anyway…see you, Harry." She touched Cedric's arm before starting to walk away, "Later, Ced."

"Cho—" Cedric said, trying to get her to stay.

"It's fine." She said simply and continued walking.

Hermione wheeled on Ron, "You are so tactless!"

"What? I only asked her if—"

"Couldn't you tell she wanted to talk to Harry on her own?"

Cedric could not stop his smile. Merlin's beard, but she was perceptive.

"So?" Ron said, "She could've done, I wasn't stopping—"

"Yes, you were, mate." Cedric chimed.

"How do you reckon?" He demanded, turning on Cedric.

"Who gives a tiff what Quidditch team she supports?" Hermione said.

The response from Cedric, Ron and Harry came in unison.

"Actually—"

"Are you kidding?"

"It is important."

Hermione stared at them all as though they were all talking heads from the same body. She shook her stunned expression off and continued, "Well, there was no cause to attack her."

"I didn't attack—"

"You attacked her!"

"What's up, Ced?" Harry said, trying with desperation to steer the conversation onto another subject and away from the exchange that had just occurred with Cho.

"Looking for your brothers, actually," Cedric said, pointing at Ron with the twins' flier.

"Oh, that." Ron said, looking at his feet.

"I told you something would be done about it." Hermione said, a triumphant look on her face.

"Brilliant, isn't it?" Harry grinned.

Cedric almost broke into a smile, but he managed to suppress it, "And against about fifteen school rules."

"Technically, we've already talked to them about it." Ron said, "Don't think you'll have much more luck."

"Why is that, exactly?" Cedric asked, folding his arms across his chest.

Hermione shrugged, "Their minds did seem rather set."

"Did they?" Cedric said, his intent gaze focusing fully on her now.

Hermione seemed to falter slightly under his stare, her hands falling from their position on her hips to sway by her sides. For just a moment, Cedric let himself feel a little smug. Perhaps he had managed to make her feel even a fraction of the sensations that she always sent trilling through him. The bell suddenly chimed and Hermione jumped slightly where she stood.

"Oh, goodness," she said, quickly, recovering her composure, "there's the bell. Mustn't be late for potions." With that, she breezed past Harry and Ron and Cedric towards the dungeon where Snape held his class. Her shoulder brushed against Cedric's arm, leaving the skin beneath his school robes ablaze at the contact. Every muscle in his body seemed to tighten at once. He felt as though he might burst at the seams.

"Off to class," he said, straining to keep his tone casual. He headed off in the opposite direction to his advanced charms class with Professor Flitwick. It was one of Cedric's favorite classes of the day. He had always had a particular gift with charms and Professor Flitwick had loved him since first year. He was able to coax through the class with little thought or even effort, which served well for the day because he was still reeling from Hermione's touching, however thoughtless or accidental it might have been. He was so distracted, in fact, that he did not notice the bell signaling the end of class when it rang. His former suite mate, Corey Tindlestick slapped him on the back--none too gently.

"Ced," he laughed, "have you taken too many bludgers to the head and gone deaf?"

Cedric looked as though he had just woken up. Shoving one hand back through his hair, he could feel the blood rushing to his cheeks. He wanted to deliver a snappy quip in return to his friend, but his mouth reacted before his brain was fully functioning and all that came out was, "What?"

"Diggory," Corey cackled, "are you all right, mate? The bell just rang."

Cedric blinked a few times, "It did?"

"Who is she?" Corey asked instantly.

Cedric felt his guard go up, "Who?"

"Whatever bird has got you so distracted that you didn't notice the lunch bell?" Corey said, tugging Cedric out of his chair by the arm and dragging him from the classroom.

Corey was too perceptive for his own good sometimes. His floppy blond hair bounced in his light brown eyes as he bodily shoved Cedric through the classroom door with a laugh. Cedric turned with a grin and shoved the Weasley twins' flier into his hand.

"Think you should try for this, oi." Cedric laughed.

Corey read the flier before looking back at Cedric, "Do I look daft?"

"Think seriously about that question," Cedric said, his tone darkening though his eyes were still laughing, "do you really want me to answer it?"

On their way to the Great Hall for lunch, Cedric was slammed into by Harry, who seemed to be paying attention to neither where he was going or who was around him. Cedric caught him by the sleeve of his robes and pulled him to a halt. When he caught sight of his face, Cedric was taken aback. Harry looked as though he were ready to murder someone. It was not a look that Cedric would often attribute to the younger boy. His temper was really starting to get out of hand.

"Oi, Harry," he said, "what's the matter?"

Harry shook his head, averting his eyes to the floor as he answered, "Just fed up with Ron and Hermione's incessant bickering."

"Hello, Potter," Corey chirped, "ready for Quidditch? How is the team going to fare without Wood?"

Cedric wanted to whack him.

"I think we'll do all right." Harry said, "Angelina will make a great captain."

Corey smiled challengingly, "We'll see." He was a chaser for the Hufflepuff house and one of the more competitive members of Hufflepuff. Nobody saw it coming from their house, but when it did, it was strong. And it was made all the stronger because the entire house would back the competitive member.

"You've said before that Ron and—Hermione have always been that way," Cedric said, ignoring his mates jabber and steering the conversation back to what was irritating Harry. He also did his best to pretend that his throat did not tighten when he said Hermione's name.

"And?" Harry demanded.

"—and," Cedric said, drawing out the word for emphasis, "why should it all of the sudden bother you, now?"

"Because—" Harry started with fervor, but whatever else he was going to say seemed to get strangled in his throat and his rage seemed to taper off for a moment. "Just, leave it be, Ced." With that, Harry continued on his way.

Cedric watched him disappear up the staircase and felt a pang of sympathy for the poor kid. He had so much to deal with and he was only fifteen. It wasn't fair. Most fifteen year olds weren't mature enough to deal with the pressures of school and hormones; meanwhile, Harry was having to deal with a frighteningly powerful dark wizard who had murdered his parents come back from the dead with the specific goal of torturing and destroying him—and O.W.L.s as well! Cedric blew out a frustrated breath on Harry's behalf and then turned to continue on to lunch with Corey.

The two entered the doors of the Great Hall just as Ron blew past, presumably in pursuit of Harry. He jerked his head at Cedric in acknowledgment but didn't pause to say 'hello'. Cedric's gaze landed on Hermione who lingered behind, sitting alone at the Gryffindor table, poking at her untouched shepherd's pie with a fork. He allowed himself a lingering look at her. She was propped up on the table with her arm, her cheek resting against her hand. Her light brown hair was pulled back in an untidy ponytail, several strands swaying loosely against her face and neck. He once again imagined tucking a strand back behind her ear. He was just about to slip himself into the seat beside her when it was suddenly occupied by the youngest Weasley sibling, the pretty little redheaded Ginny. Hermione's entire demeanor seemed to change when Ginny appeared. Her face lit up. Her body seemed to relax. She was no longer putting forth the effort that she normally seemed to be applying to life. The change was astounding—and Cedric felt his attachment to her grow even more—if that was even possible. He wanted to be the one to put her at ease in that way. He wanted to be the person that she smiled at the way she was smiling. He forced himself to distance himself from her, allowing Corey to lead him over to the Hufflepuff table to eat his lunch. He couldn't keep himself from keeping an eye on her, though.

Cedric shoveled his food down his throat. Ernie Macmillan sat in front of him, staring at him in awe as Corey laughed. It didn't take him more than five bites to clear an entire plate of shepherd's pie and only two for a bowl of chocolate pudding. As he was polishing off his pumpkin juice, Hermione stood from her table and headed for the door. Cedric gulped down one last swallow, slammed his glass on the table and rather clumsily got to his feet.

"See you in class, mate." He said to Corey and without further explanation, he hurried off after her as discreetly as he could manage.

"Granger," he called once she was in sight.

She stopped and turned where she was in the hall and waited for him to catch up to her. When he reached her, he found her big brown eyes staring up at him expectantly and he completely lost his train of thought.

"Er—where you off to?" he asked, feeling like a complete tosser.

Her eyebrows drew together in obvious confusion, "Er, class. Advanced Transfigurations. Yourself?"

"Same, actually," he replied, trying with everything he had in him to conceal his joy at the prospect of getting an entire class with her, "Advanced Transfigurations, huh? Would have thought you'd be in divination this hour."

"I don't take that class." Hermione said simply.

Cedric waited for her to go into further explanation. When she didn't, he moved on to something that he thought she might talk about.

"So, I bumped into Harry," he said.

Hermione's face dropped, "Was he terribly upset?"

"He was somewhat out of sorts," Cedric said with a nod, "How are you?"

Her cheeks flushed a lovely shade of red. "I don't enjoy serving as his punching bag if that's what you mean."

Cedric nodded with understanding, then flashed her a devastating crooked smile, "Might I walk you to class, Granger?"