"Open it Cedric!" The entirety of the hufflepuff house had gathered round the beautiful golden egg that he had retrieved from the dragon.

"Alright then." Cedric grinned. He twisted the top and the egg fell open. It screeched blue murder.

"Woah! Someone stop that thing!" Someone shouted, Cedric forced the egg shut.

"Well that's a great clue." Hannah said sarcastically.

"I don't get it, what's it supposed to mean?" Leah asked.

"Maybe Ced has to fight a Syren." Sirius mused, his friends all looked at him, everyone else had gone back to whatever they were doing.

"What?" Ernie asked with a laugh.

"You know, a murderous mermaid that charms sailors with their voice and then drags them to their death." Sirius explained, confused by the blank looks he was receiving.

"Did you just make that up?" Edward asked.

Sirius shook his head. "No its Muggle folklore. What we have werewolves and ghosts and even Vampires but not mermaids?"

"We have mermaids Sirius, but I've never heard of a Syren." Cedric replied.

"Seriously? I thought nothing could surprise me anymore." Sirius shook his head with a laugh. "So not a Syren then?"

"I don't think so." Cedric wrapped an arm around him.

"Maybe it's a code." Justin considered.

"I don't see how you could get a code from that noise." Hannah sighed. "And over my dead body are we listening to it again."

"I thought a clue was supposed to help." Sirius sighed, resting his head against Cedric's shoulder.

"Well, they said that it wasn't going to be easy." Cedric shrugged. "I guess they didn't just mean the tasks."

"You must have to prepare something for the task, they didn't give you a clue for the last one." Leah said, She pulled out a box of liquorice wands from her hiding place under the sofa and handed them round. It was a miracle no one had stolen any.

"I wonder what it is, I mean maybe you have to take it somewhere that replicates the conditions of the task." Sirius mused, they all stared at him.

"I forget you're quite smart." Hannah commented, Sirius pouted at her.

"You're so mean."

"You're brilliant Sirius, if only we knew how."

"Go up the astronomy tower and hold it up in the air?" Ernie suggested at once.

"Or take it swimming in the black lake?" Edward added.

"Or bury it in a hole." Sirius gave the most questionable suggestion. "What? My brain only works so far."

"I mean, I think we're on the right track. What do you think Cedric?" Leah asked. Cedric sighed.

"I think we don't need to worry about it right now." He replied. "Let's play a game of gobstones."

"Theres seven of us Ced." Ernie pointed out.

"We could always ask Susan." Sirius suggested. Susan Bones was another girl in their year, most of her friends were in Ravenclaw and she kept herself to herself, although she had always been friends with Hannah and friendly with the others.

"I'll go and ask her." Hannah agreed, getting up.

Susan agreed and their gobstone tournament began, stretching most of the night and won eventually, by Ernie and Justin.

^^^
Cedric lay awake that night, Sirius tucked firmly into his side, resting peacefully in the crook of his arm. His head was against Cedric's chest, one arm slung over his stomach, Cedric had to smile at him. Since his turn in the tournament, Sirius had barely let go of him, and he was indeed sleeping more peacefully than he had in weeks.

He couldn't stop thinking of that dragon, how he had felt genuine fear for the first time in the tournament, it had become so real at that point. And yet he had thought of Sirius in that moment, and it had solidified his determination to finally ask him, ask him to be his boyfriend.

It had changed very little between them, they hadn't spent a long time apart in ages, Sirius sleeping by his side since the summer, Cedric knowing exactly what to do to help calm him down, not finding his fears annoying, but simply helping him through it. He hadn't even felt angry that Sirius hadn't told him everything he was going through, he just stayed at his side, stayed there for him.

Yes, his bruises, scratches and burns still hurt him, but he would not have spent a night in the hospital wing for anything, not when he could be in his own bed, with Sirius by his side. He looked over at the boy beside him, leaning over to kiss his forehead. This boy, this strange, kind boy, who he had spent half the summer with, who had caught his eye with a simple smile. Who had frantically checked up on his just in case he had been hurt at the world cup.

This boy who did not deserve the torment he went through, but he kept that smile anyway. And Cedric loved spending time with him, this boy had his heart and he would gladly let him keep it.