Derek Diggory and the TriWizard Maze

[Derek Diggory]

PART I

Derek rose early, the morning of the final task, as the sun was rising. Though no actual sunlight could filter through to the Hufflepuff boy's subterranean dormitories, Derek could somehow feel it was time to rise. It didn't seem possible to wake up too early on a morning like this. Donning his dressing gown, Derek tiptoed out of the room, careful not to wake Ryan, who was slumbering peacefully in the bed next to his.

Leaving the second year's room, he wandered the few steps to the door which led to the cellar-like common room. Upon opening the door, he was greeted with a familiar sight.

"Morning Derek, not too excited are we?" asked Cedric, flashing his impeccably white smile. Derek marvelled briefly at how his cousin and friend had managed to get through his extensive toilette regime whilst all the other Hufflepuffs were still hours from rising. Still, Derek reflected, he probably had even more nervous energy than I do.

"It's an exciting day," said Derek, matter-of-factly. "Looking forward to proving yourself the true champion?"

"Less of that, Derek, you know that Potter says he didn't enter himself, and having seen what we've had to do so far, I believe him." Cedric gave his younger relative a stern look.

"I suppose so," said Derek, grudgingly. "Though it's typical of the smug Gryffindors to steal Hufflepuff's thunder. Got any idea what the last task will involve?"

"No idea, mate. It'll be on the Quidditch pitch again, no doubt, but they haven't built that screen around it for nothing. The only other sure thing is that it'll be hard. Speaking of which, don't you have your potions written exam this morning?"

Derek grimaced. All the lower years' exams had been scheduled to finish the morning of the task, and it was just Derek's luck that he had this one last, when he couldn't take his mind off his cousin and the tournament. No doubt Professor Snape would have something particularly fiendish up his sleeve. After all, he'd been in a bad mood lately-even by his standards.

"Don't remind me," said Derek, sounding downbeat. "I just know I won't be able to concentrate. I'll be trying to remember how much leech juice a shrinking solution needs, and all I'll have on my mind is you and that flaming task."

"Just a dash," said Cedric jovially. "Don't worry, you'll be fine. Neville Longbottom passes potions every year, doesn't he?"

Derek smiled at the mention of the famously-inept Gryffindor in the year above his. "Yeah, but he does have Granger to help him."

At that point, the door that led towards the boys' dorms opened, and a bunch of Ced's sixth-year mates appeared. Derek decided to make his excuses and leave- Cedric's friends were OK, but they were all a bit too grovelling towards the older Diggory for Derek's tastes. Still, the girls were worse.

Derek hugged his cousin goodbye, and whispered "Good luck mate," in his ear. "You too," Cedric said back quietly. With this, Derek took his leave, heading off to have a wash, then do some last-minute cramming before breakfast.

[Derek Diggory]

PART II

Breakfast that morning was crowded and noisy, a hive of worry and excitement. At each table, students were crowding around their respective champions, trying to wish them luck, offer advice- or in the case of the Hufflepuff girls, just to get close to their idol. Derek tried to keep his head down and look over a sheet of key potion facts that he had scribbled down earlier, but it was no use, there were too many distractions. Catching Ced's eye, Derek winked at him, then gathered up his notes and made his way to somewhere quieter, still desparately trying to commit a few more details to his memory. As he was leaving, Derek saw Potter and Malfoy having yet another of their regular slanging matches. He sighed. Not for the first time, Derek wished the pair of them every misfortune under the sun.

The morning's potions exam was every bit as difficult as Derek had predicted, and his ability to concentrate on the task at hand was hampered still further by the bright sunshine outside. As he tried to remember the best length to chop the daisy roots into when preparing Shrinking Solution, Derek found his mind wandering not only onto Cedric and the final task, but also Quidditch, his forthcoming holiday, and the relative merits of the last two Weird Sisters albums.

Derek was snapped out of his daydream as Professor Snape walked past, and fixed him with an icy glare. Glancing at the clock with alarm, Derek realised that there was now less than twenty minutes left, and, panicking slightly, began to write down whatever vaguely plausible-sounding information came into his head as quickly as he could. Before he knew it, the Professor was announcing "Quills down," and it was with a great sigh of relief that Derek dropped his. Handing his paper to the Professor, Derek got up and walked briskly out of the Hall.

Once he had gotten out of the castle, Derek's mood improved immensely. Derek was pretty sure he had just about scraped an A, and that would certainly do him on this occasion. He wandered down towards the lake, where a number of students were relaxing. A few were setting down picnic cloths, others playing catch. One or two of them had jumped into the water, fully clothed, and were splashing about.

Derek found himself a spot by the edge of the water, and lay down, shielding his eyes from the sun with his hand. With the exams over, the final task tonight and the long summer ahead, Derek yawned contentedly. His father was going to come up later, once he had finished his shift at St Mungo's, and they would watch the last task together. Right now, it was time to kick back, relax, and enjoy the combination of a lovely day and nothing at all to do.