HP:per aspera

June 1995

Lilith ate her chocolate frog, ignoring the judgmental look her great-great-great-great uncle sent her from the card which she promptly stashed in her pocket. She watched Cedric as he walked alongside her. Something was off. Cedric liked to talk but it wasn't like him to talk her ear off. And sure, he had a lot of energy but it wasn't like him to twist with his fingers so much. Finally, he noticed her silence.

"What?" she squinted her eyes at him.

"You're scared."

"What are you talking about?" he tried to give her a playful smile but she knew him too well. It was faked. She just shrugged and took another bite.

"You're scared about the third task." he tried to protest but she silenced him with her index finger. "And don't try to bullshit me, you idiot. I've known you since you had your diaper on." that seemed to work. Cedric finally dropped the act, a frown finally appeared on his face.

"You know, sometimes I hate you." Lilith shrugged and took another bite.

"And living with that knowledge is tragic. Now, do I have to give you a pep talk or do you have that one engraved in your brain by now?" Cedric squinted his eyes at her.

"If you mean the fact that I have a mini-you living in my brain 24/7, then no, you don't have to." Lilith smiled.

"Good, then I'm doing my job well."

"Maybe too well." he grumbled. Lilith rolled her eyes but reached into her pocket and gave Cedric another chocolate frog she stole from Sebastian's stash. It seemed to brighten his mood a little as he opened it and took a bite.

"You're scared and it's completely natural, Ced. But think of it this way. They at least showed you what you're up against this time, we're training for it, I AM training you for it, and it's the last task." she bumped his shoulder which earned her a small smile from Cedric. "It doesn't matter if you win or not. You made it this far. Just ride that train until the end and this time next month, we'll laugh about it and scream our lungs out at Dylan's concert. What do you say?" Cedric chuckled and shook his head.

"Yeah, you're right." he smiled but within seconds it turned into a frown as he tilted his head.

"What is it?" Cedric motioned for her to be quiet.

"Do you hear that?" Lilith frowned.

"Hear what?"

"Listen." Lilith blinked and concentrated her hearing in the direction he was pointing at. It took her a moment but she heard it. Girl's yelling and a few deep voices laughing. She exchanged a look with Cedric before both of them started running in that direction.

After making a few turns they finally saw it and stopped dead in their tracks.

"What the fuck?" she heard Cedric whisper as they watched the scene unravel in front of them. Two large Slytherin boys stood laughing in front of a small blond girl laying on the ground and a ginger girl that hung in the air in front of them. The girl's yelling they heard earlier belonged to her. To their horror, they watched as one of the boys made the girl turn in the air, slowly turning her upside down. Lilith felt the rage burn inside of her as she noted that the girl was wearing a skirt.

"You get those boys, drag them to Snape." she whispered towards Cedric as they both pulled out their wands. He nodded and they started running once again.

"Hey!" she heard Cedric shout. The boys finally noticed them. In a panic, the taller of the two stopped the spell and both of them quickly started running in the opposite direction with Cedric hot on their heels.

"Molliare." Lilith whispered the cushioning charm, softening the fall of the ginger girl. She heard her grumble a bit as she finally reached them. Her face softened once she noticed who the blond on the ground was.

"Hello Lilith." a dreamy voice greeted her as she sat up.

"Luna, hey. Let's get you up, huh?" he outstretched her hand and gently pulled Luna on her feet. Lilith looked at the ginger girl who got up on her feet rather quickly.

"Weasley, right? Ginny?" the girl nodded and made her way towards Luna.

"What happened here?" Lilith took note of the stance she took next to the girl; protective. It warmed her heart a little bit. Luna deserved more people standing up for her. She remembered Pandora Lovegood. The woman was always kind to her so when her daughter showed up at Hogwarts and was sorted to Ravenclaw, Lilith immediately took the little blonde under her wing.

"They... made fun of Luna." Ginny mumbled, not meeting Lilith's eyes.

"So you stepped in?" she watched as Ginny bit her lip and nodded. Lilith sighed.

"Against Montague and Rowle?" Ginny's eyes shot up at her, and widened in surprise. "Yes, don't think I didn't recognize them. They're in my year, Ginny, and yes, they might be stupid like trolls but that makes them even more dangerous." Ginny blushed and ducked her head. Lilith would've continued but she caught Luna's small smile.

"I don't know whether it was stupid or brave but it was definitely Gryffindor-like so five points to Gryffindor." Ginny blinked in surprise before smiling, her cheeks still red. Lilith's eyes inspected Luna, finally stopping at her feet.

"Did someone take your shoes again, love?" Luna looked up to her and shrugged.

"They will turn up." Lilith sighed and motioned for Luna to sit on the window ledge nearby. The smaller blonde paddled towards it and happily sat down with Ginny in tow. Lilith waved her wand with a wordless spell and in a matter of seconds, Luna's shoes came flying into her outstretched hand. She kneeled in front of Luna, carefully putting her shoes back on.

"Luna, we've talked about this." she always made sure to use a soft tone with Luna, that girl was a sweetheart. "When this happens, you come to me."

"Why bother you when they always turn up eventually?" Lilith shook her head.

"You wouldn't bother me, Luna. I'd have taken care of it."

"Nargles aren't ones to negotiate." Lilith gave her a small smile.

"Maybe but I'm very good at persuasion." she tied the last knot on Luna's shoes and stood up. "Any news on Crumple-Horned Snorcack?" Luna smiled.

"Daddy heard about its appearance in Sweden so he's saving for an expedition."

"Well, when you go, I wanna hear all about it, alright?" Luna nodded. "I have to catch up with Cedric. I'll see you later, Luna. Bye Ginny." she heard the girls' goodbyes as she continued down the corridor. She managed to find Cedric later than she thought. For a Quidditch player, he was out of breath, wheezing as he leaned against his knees near Snape's office.

"Please tell me you caught them, grandpa." Cedric continued to catch his breath but gave her a weak thumbs up. She gave him a few moments before he finally straightened up and looked at her. His face was red and a few droplets of sweat glistened on his forehead.

"Either I'm out of shape or they got faster."

"Oh definitely the former." Lilith patted him on the back.

"Shut up." he swatted her hand away.

"I hope you..."

"Of course I took the points from them before giving them to Snape, I'm not an idiot."

"Good. Now, have you talked to Hagrid yet?" Cedric finally smiled.

"Just this morning."

"And?"

"We can do it." Lilith smiled back. Their plan excited her ever since they came up with it. Cedric threw his arm around her, pulling her towards him.

"You're amazing." Cedric smirked.

"So first I'm dumb, then I'm a grandpa and now I'm amazing? Can you make up your mind?" Lilith rolled her eyes.

"You're a dumb grandpa who's secretly amazing?" Cedric pinched her arm.

"That makes you my mean grandma." Lilith poked his ribs.

"I swear, when you get a girlfriend, she's gonna hate me." Cedric rolled his eyes.

"Oh please, before I get that said girlfriend, you're gonna background check her, interrogate her and give her a heart attack. Of course, she's gonna hate you." Lilith shrugged.

"I'm neither confirming nor denying that." Cedric chuckled.

"Of course."

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Lilith made sure she had everything before making her way out of the Ravenclaw dormitory.

Jumper? Check.

Cigarette case? Check.

Flask? Check.

Hair tied back? Check.

Her little gifts? Check.

She ignored the looks her dormmates gave her as she walked out the door. It wasn't hard ignoring their looks and whispers. She'd been doing that for six years at that time, ever since she heard them gossiping about her mother in the first year. She already had Cedric by her side, and Fleur was only a letter away. She didn't need more. So her dormmates of six years remained only that, dormmates.

She enjoyed walking around Hogwarts at night. The only thing that made them better was Hermione's presence which became less frequent after they were caught two times in a row. She almost forgot to tell Hermione about her plans for the night but thankfully remembered and scribbled a note to their linked notebook halfway through Charms so no harm was done.

Cedric met her at the entrance and together, they made their way towards the Beauxbatons' carriage where they could already see a tall blonde looking their way.

"Finally, what took you so long?" they made an agreement to only speak English that night so Cedric could understand them, it wasn't fair to him. But to his credit, through the year, he picked up some basic French and could make a short conversation with Fleur in her native language which made the French witch incredibly happy.

"We're here, aren't we?" Lilith smirked. "Let's go." Fleur wrapped her arm around Lilith's and together, the trio made their way towards Hagrid's hut. Cedric took the initiative and knocked on the large door. They waited only for a few moments before they flew open and they were greeted by Hagrid's smiling face.

"Ah! I thought yeh lot won' show up." Lilith smiled at the half-giant. He was always kind to her and Cedric. To their luck, Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff always had Care for magical creatures together so the duo always partnered up. And when Hagrid took over, he liked how they worked together in sync and we prepared for his lessons. "I have it prepared fer yeh in the back." he gestured behind his hut. Lilith pushed Cedric and Fleur to go and stayed behind.

"Thank you so much for this, Hagrid." he waved her off.

" 's alright. Yeh're adults so i don' have a problem with tha'."

"But still, it's really nice of you Hagrid. Actually, there is something I have for you for that." Hagrid seemed intrigued by her answer. "I've spoken with Mrs Puffings from the Department for Regulations of Magical Creatures some time ago, and she told me they caught a hippocampus near Sunderland. They're keeping it for the moment because it caused some disturbance in the area but they can't release it back to the Mediterranean because it already adapted to cold water. Would you be interested in having it here? Keeping in the Black Lake?" Hagrid grinned immediately, his eyes sparking like child's on Christmas Eve. Before Lilith knew it, she was swept up by the half-giant into a crushing hug. She had to tap Hagrid's arm a few times before he released her, coughing a few times, catching her breath.

"A 'ippocampus! 'ere! o' course!" Lilith smiled.

"Great. I'll write to Mrs Puffings then. Once again, thank you Hagrid. We really appreciate it." she waved Hagrid goodbye and followed after her friends. She smiled as they came into view. The lit fire illuminated Cedric and Fleur sitting in front of it who were talking with ease with butterbeer in their hands. Lilith pulled out a bottle from the case nearby and sat in between them on the soft grass.

Cedric came up with the idea and she had to admit, it was perfect. The summer night was warm, thousands of stars illuminated the night sky, the soft cracks of fire filled out the silence and she was with the two people she loved with her whole heart. Hagrid was nice enough to lend them the space and wood for it, even bought them butterbeer when they gave him money for that, and Dumbledore only winked at them when they came to ask. Everything worked out perfectly.

"To this crazy year." Cedric raised his bottle.

"To new friends." Fleur clinked with his bottle.

"To both of you idiots making it so far." Lilith joined them, giggling as they glared at her but clinked with her bottle anyway. Lilith kept the smile on but shook her head. "But seriously," she sighed and looked at her friends. They both looked so young but old at the same time. The Tournament took its toll on them, there was no doubt about it. "Even though I was against it, and rightfully so, I'm incredibly proud of you. Both of you. You did so well, and no matter what happens tomorrow, you'll always be my champions." Fleur hugged her arm and Cedric wrapped his arm around her shoulders.

"We're proud of you too, Vala." Fleur pushed a loose strand behind her ear. "You finally listened to your heart." Lilith blushed at the mention of that.

"Like I said, crazy year." Cedric chuckled.

"Yeah, you got that one right." Lilith smiled slightly. It was a crazy year. So much happened in the span of that one year that it felt like a decade. This time next year, they will graduate. Cedric will start his healer training, Fleur will work in Britain, Lilith will go on with the family business, and Hermione will stress herself out with O.W.L.s. But first, her two friends would have to tackle the third task.

"I have something for you two." Lilith dug up her two little gifts from her jeans pocket and presented it to Fleur and Cedric. On her palm laid two necklaces, almost identical. Both were small silver three-leaf shamrocks, the only difference was that one had a C and the other had an F engraved at the centre. Lilith watched her friends' surprise as she reached behind her jumped and pulled out an identical shamrock necklace with engraved L.

"I already have one, so these are for you. I know how much you worked for tomorrow but you could still use some good luck in there too."

"Lili." Cedric whispered as he took the necklace and held it against the fire, admiring its shine.

"It's beautiful, Vala." Fleur held it closer, inspecting it with her keen eye.

"It's not just for luck but you know, as a reminder. I'm really happy you two became friends because I love you both the same and us three being together... it means everything to me." it wasn't easy for Lilith to say it out loud so she kept her eyes on the fire the whole time but she was immediately enveloped by their arms. It surprised her so much that it knocked her off balance and all three of them fell onto their backs, letting out a laugh.

"We love you too, Lili." she continued laughing. No matter what the future would bring, she wanted nothing more than to imprint that image into her mind. The three of them laughing like children on the grass by the fire under the beautiful summer sky.

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Lilith didn't bother climbing into the stands with other Hogwarts, Beauxbatons and Durmstrang students. She stood with Cedric and his father at his spot, watching their surroundings. She gave Fleur a supportive smile when she caught her eye from across the field, and noted how pale all the champions looked even though they tried to look unbothered. Potter especially looked sick. She couldn't blame them. The tall walls of the maze made her feel uneasy just by looking at them. From her spot, she caught Hermione's eyes, winking at her girlfriend and enjoying how quickly it made her blush before swiftly turning her attention to other directions.

"You'll do fine, Ced. I believe in you." she whispered as she squeezed his arm, smiling slightly when she noticed the shamrock around his neck. She didn't know when at some point during the night, they exchanged their necklaces so Cedric now had a shamrock with an L and Lilith had a shamrock with a C.

"She's right, Ced. You'll be great!" Amos Diggory patted Cedric's back with a large grin. Lilith knew he was incredibly proud of Cedric but it felt more like he put more pressure on him because of it. Their attention was quickly pulled towards Ludo Bagman who motioned for the champions to walk forward. Lilith quickly reached forward and hugged Cedric tightly.

"Good luck." she whispered and pushed him forward. He gave her a last smile before taking his place next to others. Bagman started speaking about the positions that the champions held and soon, the first whistle blew and Cedric along with Harry ran forward, disappearing into the maze. Something squeezed Lilith's chest, dread filling her up the same way it did before the first task. Another whistle blew and Krum dashed forward, leaving Fleur standing in front of the maze alone. For the final time, she caught Fleur's eyes and gave her a supportive smile before another whistle blew and Fleur was enveloped by the maze too.

Waiting was worse than she imagined. During the first task, they could at least see what was happening but waiting without the visual image was pure torture. It could've been at least twenty minutes before a scream sent an electric shock to her bones, freezing her into her spot. It wasn't a deep voice but a high one. Fleur. Soon enough, red sparks flew over the maze and within minutes, she saw Professor McGonagall walking around the corner, supporting a blonde figure in Beauxbatons jersey. Her shock soon faded and her feet carried her towards her hurt friend. Once she was close enough, she noticed a bloody gash on Fleur's head, colouring her blond hair into ruby red, and her limp. She immediately slipped Fleur's other arm around her shoulder and helped McGonagall carry her towards Madame Pomfrey. Once Fleur was finally seated and McGonagall left to patrol the maze once again, Lilith noticed tears streaming down Fleur's cheeks.

"Hey, it's alright." she whispered softly as she wiped the tears away. "You're alright. You're safe." Fleur wrapped her arms around Lilith's middle, hugging her tightly. She was shaking. Lilith had no idea what happened inside the maze but soon enough, Professor Snape appeared, levitating Viktor Krum who also looked way worse than he did entering the maze. Lilith gaped at the sight. What in Merlin's name was happening in that bloody thing? She soothed Fleur who was still shaking as Madame Pomfrey healed her leg and her head injury but the blonde was still silent.

Lilith didn't know how much time had passed but after a long while she finally heard cheers and music playing. 'Cedric or Potter.' she thought as she gave Fleur's temple a small kiss before running towards the maze entrance, her heart beating million miles per minute.