Youth Cannot Know [Harry Potter; Albus, Cedric]
Title: Youth Cannot Know
Characters: Albus Dumbledore, Cedric Diggory, cameo appearance by Fawkes
Rating: PG
Summary: Dumbledore and Cedric speak before the Third Task.
Word Count: 634 words
A/N: late entry for the omniocular January Challenge. I chose Albus and Cedric in the character roulette. Thank you to waxrose, bloodybrilliant, and paradise_loved for the beta-reading! :)
(*)
I sat in his office and told him, flat out, that I wasn't scared.
It was two days before the Third Task was set to begin. Dumbledore had invited me to visit him and when I arrived, he asked me to take a seat in a cozy leather armchair. The wall was adorned with portraits of the old headmasters and mistresses and I looked up at them just as Dumbledore asked, "How are you feeling, Mr. Diggory?"
"I'm not scared," I replied quickly, and I immediately wanted to retract the reply. The portrait above my head looked down at me with heavily-lidded eyes and I thought, he knows. But Dumbledore just smiled.
"I know," he replied, calmly.
He knew, too; of course he did. But he didn't say anything, wasn't going to say anything. It wasn't that Dumbledore was overly trusting, it's just that he seemed to want me to work it all out for myself. I wondered, briefly, if Harry Potter were in my place, what Dumbledore would have done. Would he have told Harry it was all right to be scared? I wasn't Harry Potter, and the Headmaster just smiled strangely and told me that I had nothing to worry about. He laughed as he added that no one had died in this tournament for centuries. I told him I wasn't worried. He said he wasn't either.
"Just make your best effort," he said, "and above all, have fun!"
I smiled and nodded. I thought, then, about asking for advice on the next challenge - the maze. He was already ahead of me, reading my thoughts as if he was an accomplished Legilimens. On second thought, he probably was. He was Dumbledore, after all. He could do anything.
"Stay calm," he told me, "and take each challenge and obstacle you face as its own individual task. Do not get overwhelmed by size or shape or power. You have your wand, and a healthy supply of spells and hexes at your disposal. I have faith that you'll come out all right in any confrontation." I thought that I saw another twinkle in Dumbledore's eye, like he knew something I didn't.
"Do you think I'll win?" I asked, bluntly. Immediately I rethought the question. It made me look pompous. But then I decided that the other Champions were probably asking their advisors and mentors the same thing. Do I have a chance?
"I have every confidence in you, Mr. Diggory."
I sighed, relieved, and wondered if Dumbledore had said the same thing to Harry. I knew the old man played favorites, and I'd heard what the more skeptical members of my house had said -- that he had something to do with Harry's name being in the Goblet. It didn't matter now. I was the better athlete. I was older. Harry was a sport, but he wasn't competition. I'll win, I thought, and Dumbledore's eyes met mine as if in challenge, or maybe agreement. I couldn't tell.
"Thank you," I said. I wondered if the conversation was over. The Headmaster's phoenix, Fawkes, was squirming on his perch, making small, hungry noises. The bird cocked his head and looked at me, as if questioning my resolve. He doubted me. I knew there was nothing left for me to say. I could sense that maybe Dumbledore had something more to tell me, but perhaps it could wait until after the Tournament was over, after I went back to being just Cedric Diggory.
Dumbledore nodded and smiled again, before rising from his chair. "Don't worry too much about winning, though, Cedric. The competition will be fierce in there as it is. Don't get carried away. It's just a game; a tournament. As long as you manage to come out not too scratched up, you'll have done Hogwarts proud."
(*)
Characters: Albus Dumbledore, Cedric Diggory, cameo appearance by Fawkes
Rating: PG
Summary: Dumbledore and Cedric speak before the Third Task.
Word Count: 634 words
A/N: late entry for the omniocular January Challenge. I chose Albus and Cedric in the character roulette. Thank you to waxrose, bloodybrilliant, and paradise_loved for the beta-reading! :)
(*)
I sat in his office and told him, flat out, that I wasn't scared.
It was two days before the Third Task was set to begin. Dumbledore had invited me to visit him and when I arrived, he asked me to take a seat in a cozy leather armchair. The wall was adorned with portraits of the old headmasters and mistresses and I looked up at them just as Dumbledore asked, "How are you feeling, Mr. Diggory?"
"I'm not scared," I replied quickly, and I immediately wanted to retract the reply. The portrait above my head looked down at me with heavily-lidded eyes and I thought, he knows. But Dumbledore just smiled.
"I know," he replied, calmly.
He knew, too; of course he did. But he didn't say anything, wasn't going to say anything. It wasn't that Dumbledore was overly trusting, it's just that he seemed to want me to work it all out for myself. I wondered, briefly, if Harry Potter were in my place, what Dumbledore would have done. Would he have told Harry it was all right to be scared? I wasn't Harry Potter, and the Headmaster just smiled strangely and told me that I had nothing to worry about. He laughed as he added that no one had died in this tournament for centuries. I told him I wasn't worried. He said he wasn't either.
"Just make your best effort," he said, "and above all, have fun!"
I smiled and nodded. I thought, then, about asking for advice on the next challenge - the maze. He was already ahead of me, reading my thoughts as if he was an accomplished Legilimens. On second thought, he probably was. He was Dumbledore, after all. He could do anything.
"Stay calm," he told me, "and take each challenge and obstacle you face as its own individual task. Do not get overwhelmed by size or shape or power. You have your wand, and a healthy supply of spells and hexes at your disposal. I have faith that you'll come out all right in any confrontation." I thought that I saw another twinkle in Dumbledore's eye, like he knew something I didn't.
"Do you think I'll win?" I asked, bluntly. Immediately I rethought the question. It made me look pompous. But then I decided that the other Champions were probably asking their advisors and mentors the same thing. Do I have a chance?
"I have every confidence in you, Mr. Diggory."
I sighed, relieved, and wondered if Dumbledore had said the same thing to Harry. I knew the old man played favorites, and I'd heard what the more skeptical members of my house had said -- that he had something to do with Harry's name being in the Goblet. It didn't matter now. I was the better athlete. I was older. Harry was a sport, but he wasn't competition. I'll win, I thought, and Dumbledore's eyes met mine as if in challenge, or maybe agreement. I couldn't tell.
"Thank you," I said. I wondered if the conversation was over. The Headmaster's phoenix, Fawkes, was squirming on his perch, making small, hungry noises. The bird cocked his head and looked at me, as if questioning my resolve. He doubted me. I knew there was nothing left for me to say. I could sense that maybe Dumbledore had something more to tell me, but perhaps it could wait until after the Tournament was over, after I went back to being just Cedric Diggory.
Dumbledore nodded and smiled again, before rising from his chair. "Don't worry too much about winning, though, Cedric. The competition will be fierce in there as it is. Don't get carried away. It's just a game; a tournament. As long as you manage to come out not too scratched up, you'll have done Hogwarts proud."
(*)