A group of Ravenclaws, each of them straining their eyes towards the Quiddich field, murmured among themselves quietly.

"They've been gone a while," a girl remarked in a soft Yorkshire accent.

"Could be jus a part o zee test," a Beauxbeatons girl suggested hopefully.

"I 'ope you're right," a boy commented, thick Cockney accent creeping into his voice.

Another girl reasoned in a Chinese accent, "It's the only logical explanation. It has to be right. I think."

A boy with a lilting Irish accent shook his head. "I dunno. It don seem very likely, don it?"

The Yorkshire girl made a small huffing sound. "The fact is, they've been gone a while, and it should not have happened."

The boy with the Cockney accent looked worried. "I 'ope so, I really 'ope so. Ifin its anyfing else…."

The Chinese girl shot him a glare. "Don't say things like that."

The French girl raised an eyebrow. "Ah, you're… um, boy freend, was he not in zee maze? My friend Fleur was, but she got pulled out."

The Irishman shook his head. "Krum went berserk a while ago tu. Then it was dun tu Cedric Diggory and Harry Potter-"

"And den they vanished," the boy with the Cockney accent interrupted.

"We already know that," the Yorkshire girl snapped. "Weren't you paying attention, Mark?"

"Ow, shove it, 'Liza. I'm revistin' the facts," the boy with the Cockney accent elaborated.

The Yorkshire girl stiffened. "It's Elizabeth, you know. I hate being called 'Liza'."

"If you two wouln't mind acting your age," the French girl cut in, "perhaps, we 'ould ee able to 'ear what was 'appening."

"She started it," Mark grumbled churlishly.

"Like you can ignore the facts of the argument," Elizabeth murmured breezily.

"Both of yu are acting very immaturely," the Irish boy protested.

"Bugger off Patrick," the feuding Ravenclaws snarled.

Patrick raised an eyebrow, and looked over at the Chinese girl, who was scrutinizing the maze.

"What's the matter, Cho?" Patrick questioned, looking at his friend.

"The cup's gone too," she announced finally. "Maybe it was a… portkey? I know Cedric could apperate, but Harry Potter…."

"It 'as to ee a portkee," the French girl determined. "Or else zee cup 'ould not 'ave taken zem somewhere else."

"True," Elizabeth admitted. "But where did they go? And why have they been gone so long?"

"That's what I'd like to know," Cho murmured, straining her eyes to the farthest reaches of the Quiddich field, just as if the two champions were a highly elusive snitch.

"I still say 'Arry Potter was abducted by angry Death Eaters. Make a lotta sense, now wouldn't it?" Mark thought aloud.

The French girl gave a small shudder. "I zink not. Zee professor, Dumbleydore, was it not? He zaid dere 'ould be no danger."

"Wait a moment, Marine," Patrick interrupted. "Look, dun in the maze. The Headmaster of Hogwarts an' the Headmistress of Beauxbatons look worried. Fleur and Krum are knocked oot."

Cho took in a deep breath. She was worried. In this situation, who wouldn't be?

"Cheer up," Elizabeth advised. "Cedric probably won. He's the favorite."

"No," corrected Mark. "'Arry Potter is."

Elizabeth glared at him. "And you wonder why I hate you so."

Mark made a face. "All I ask is-"

"Zey're back!" screeched Marine. "Observé! Look!"

Cho jumped up, and peered over the railing. "That's strange. They're both… face down. But, oh, at least they're back!"

"Professor Dumbledore will help them," Patrick reassured her. "Luk, there 'ee goes nu."

"And Cornelius Fudge too?" Elizabeth wondered. "Now, why's he there?"

Mark shrugged. "To congratulate the winners, I cor. At lease it's all over now."

"Look! Zey're turning over 'Arry Potter! Zey see Cedric, Cho! Zey're 'elping up 'Arry Potter…. No! My English mus be bad, for zey're saying, zey're saying…." Marine trailed off. Everyone could now here the terrified screeches of, "Diggory's dead!"

Cho paled. "No, he, he, can't be dead! I just talked to him. Only an hour ago, at the most. Is this some kind of a joke?"

"This wasn't supposed to happen," Elizabeth whispered hoarsely.

"Nu," Patrick responded, clutching his seat with terrible ferocity.

"Cedric's… dead?" Mark muttered, looking dazed. "No on's supposed to die."

Cho pressed her hand to her forehead. "Cedric, he's not supposed to be dead. We were supposed to meet after the… this thing. It's not supposed to be like this. It can't be like this. And his parents are here! He introduced them to me during lunch."

"Pauvre Cedric," Marine murmured, sniffing slightly. "Look, his father's coming onto zee field. Zoze two are going to tell 'im about his son. Zat peg-legged professor is taking off 'Arry Potter too. 'Ospital wing, I zink."

"Harry Potter's wounded, and Cedric Diggory's gone," Elizabeth announced croakily. "At least it wasn't worse. Just looks like someone Avada Kedavraed him. No pain, like Professor Moody told us. Cedric wasn't in any pain when he died. That's good?"

Tears crept down Cho's cheeks. "Don't say things like that! Cedric was… Cedric is-"

"Really no 'ore?" Mark interrupted dazedly. "That was really sudden."

"He can't be dead!" Cho raged, a rare outburst of fury from a normally indrawn individual. "It's Cedric! Cedric Diggory! He couldn't die like this."

Patrick gave her a small gaze of pity, but seemed too shocked to do anything else. He clutched the seat tighter.

Cho dashed her tears away fiercely. "I have to go see what's going on."

"Not alone," Marine insisted shakily. "I'm coming wit you."

"They'll make an announcement soon," Elizabeth continued on, almost obliviously. "They'll just tell the whole school what's going on. All of the schools. All the details. Mr. Diggory's down there, talking to Dumbledore. Probably talking about Cedric's death, maybe how long he's been gone, his final words, something."

"Bloody 'ell," Mark swore in disbelief.

Cho shoved her way through the violent mob of students, Marine following close behind. Through minutes that felt like hours, the two stumbled onto the crowded Quiddich field. Members of Hufflepuff house clustered on the Quiddich field, sobbing, wailing, and letting everyone know their grief over Cedric.

Mrs. Diggory was staring at her son's body in disbelief, as if she were trying to pretend he was sleeping. Mr. Diggory seemed to be crying, and yelling at Cornelius Fudge. Cho sank to the ground by Mrs. Diggory.

"Cedric?" Cho whispered, tears creating a tremor in her voice. She looked at Mrs. Diggory, wishing, hoping, and praying that Cedric would be alright.

Mrs. Diggory took on the saddest smile Cho had ever seen. "I- I'm sorry, my dear. My son, my Cedric…."

Cho's hands flew to her mouth. "Not Cedric." Cho burst into tears. Mrs. Diggory's grief was beyond all emotion. She patted Cho on the back.

Mr. Diggory's voice crescendoed into a roar. "Why is my son dead? What have you done, all of you! You said he'd be safe! You said no one would die!"

Marine looked speechlessly between the Diggory parents. Such grief… such a loss. She had liked Cedric Diggory. He was kind, always kind. And he treated others equally. Many didn't treat the Beauxbatons students with respect. Cedric was one of the few who did. Marine let a tear slip down her cheek. She mourned the loss of Cedric. Such potential wasted. Such a good person… vanished.

Cho wept uncontrollably. Mrs. Diggory murmured quietly to Cho. She knew how deeply Cedric had cared for Cho. Strange as it was to admit, Cho had thought she and Cedric were meant to be. Dare she even acknowledge it, Cho had loved Cedric Diggory. But she was only fifteen. No one would believe her anyway. Cho cried on, weeping for failed opportunities, and the things that might have been, but will never be. Thanks to a madman who killed without any set of moral standards at all. Thanks to him, Cedric was dead. But Cho's love for Cedric didn't die. That would live as long as Cho did.

"My son!" raged Mr. Diggory. "My only son! Dead!"

"Calm down, Amos," Professor Dumbledore commanded, placing a consoling hand on Mr. Diggory's shoulder. "We can ask Harry what happened. Harry?" Dumbledore turned to face Harry Potter, savior of the Wizarding world. Only Harry was gone.

A girl with bushy hair looked scared. Harry being gone was not a good thing. A group of red heads scurried away, looking fearful, the bushy haired girl trailing closely behind. They headed towards the Hospital Wing. Professor Dumbledore headed after them, but he saw that Professor Moody was gone, and stormed off to confront the Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher. Professors McGonagall and Snape followed, listening as the Headmaster told them what was going on. Anger radiated from every pore of the ancient face of Professor Dumbledore.

Mr. Diggory sat down heavily by his wife and Cho. All three wept. Cedric was worth every tear. The Hufflepuffs cried with them. The rest were shocked, or did not yet know. Aside from the Slytherins, who did not care. That, or they knew what had happened, and did not know how to react. Quite a few of them had liked Cedric Diggory.

Up in the stands, Patrick loosened his grip on the seat. "It'll be hard on Cho," he whispered. "And the Diggorys. My sympathy is with them tonight. And the Hufflepuff house." He began talking under his breath, an old Irish prayer for fallen comrades on the battlefield. Patrick was Keeper on the Ravenclaw Quiddich team.

Elizabeth babbled on incoherently. "Oh, the Hufflepuff house won't be happy. Cedric was real popular, or so Sarah tells me. He was like a leader for their house. Everyone knew and liked Cedric. Cedric was one of the only members of the Hufflepuff house to ever bring them glory. Now, he's not. No more recognition for the Hufflepuffs, now that Cedric's gone. He was their… hero." She burst into tears, sobbing hysterically. The use of the word 'was' in association with 'hero' had done it. Nothing is sadder then a dead hero. Especially for a girl whose best friends lived in an unrecognized house that seldom got any glory what-so-ever. Not for a house whose heroes came seldom. Heroes were a rarity in Hufflepuff. It's devastating when you lose one.

Mark kept shaking his head. He couldn't believe Cedric Diggory, reliable, dependable Cedric Diggory, was gone. The same Cedric that had dated Cho, who had been Mark's partner in Herbology assignments, and had sat in front of Mark in Potions, would never be in class again. At least, Mark reasoned, Cedric got out of Potions next year. It was supposed to be a nightmare. Mark immediately felt ashamed. Cedric Diggory, one of life's constants, just like Patrick being allergic to strawberries, was not so constant anymore. Mark felt dazed. His orderly life tilted wildly out of its organized pattern. Mark was… he didn't know himself. Order had shattered.

A forth-year Gryffindor sobbed onto his toad. Cedric Diggory was one of the only people outside his house who liked him as a friend, who was kind to him instead of treating the clumsy Gryffindor like a perfect stranger. He was one of the many who grieved for the loss of a friend.

A witch with untidy wisps of graying hair, sobbed into a yellow and black house banner. Cedric was one of her favorite Hufflepuff students. He was a leader. She could rely on him to draw the shyer Hufflepuffs out of their shells, and to get some of his Ravenclaw friends to tutor the Hufflepuffs falling behind. He was always kind, and every Christmas, without fail, Cedric had left a small potted Christmas tree on her desk, and always inflicted good spirits into everyone. True, he was not the most intelligent person, someone once said he had only enough brains to fill an egg cup, but he was loyal and true. The ideal Hufflepuff.

Cedric Diggory, boyfriend, son, student, hero, friend, Quiddich player, constant, hero, and above all, a Hufflepuff, would be missed.