Where is everyone? Cedric thought as he arose with a lingering pain in his chest. He was laying on a black, shiny floor that looked as if he could see a blurred image of his reflection in it. Around him were millions of unique mirrors; some small, tall, large, round, square, golden-framed, and some with a vintage and old look to their essence. He seemed to be in a very large and ancient house with golden ringed walls and ceilings which seemed to have a magical presence. He could sense that this house was not of the muggle sort and that wizards and witches must have been where he was standing before.

Cedric’s thoughts were rushing about in his mind. Where am I? Am I dead or in a coma or maybe just in some unknown corridor at Hogwarts and someone is looking for me right now? He called “Hello” but it seemed that his voice just echoed back to him with no reply. He kept calling and was about to give up when the shadowy image of a tall figure appeared walking slowly towards him in the distance. 

The figure started to take shape in front of him and a few seconds later, he was standing in front of a middle-aged woman with black hair and a determined look on her face. 

“Hello there,” the woman gestured, “you must be a newcomer. Name please?”

“Uhhh…” Cedric replied with a confused and shy voice, “Who-----a-----a----are you?

“Oh, sorry! I forgot to introduce myself,” the lady now stood straighter as if ready to make a speech, “I am Miss Willowood, guardian and keeper of the Realm of Mirrors. You must be----” she looked down at a scroll of parchment that had appeared in her hand only a moment before, “Cedric-----Cedric Diggory.”

“Yes mam,” Cedric answered politely, “That’s me.” He gazed around the large room that looked as if it had once been a ballroom or maybe a hall where wealthy wizards came to eat food and drink butterbeer. “Uhh… Might I ask, where am I?”

“I already told you dear,” Willowood responded without hesitation, “Now, come along. I will show you to your room.” She walked a fleet of stairs that were made of air, nothing else. These invisible stairs led to an elegant black door with the number 502 engraved in shiny, golden letters. “Well, here we are,” she handed Cedric a golden key, “In the closet you will find many freshly washed shirts and robes with a dozen leather boots to go along with them. Lunch is at 12:00 sharp in the Mystic Corridor. You will find a map in the chest at the foot of your bed along with many mementos from... the before. And beware not to go wandering around the Oakfire Wing at night. There are certain…”, her voice wandered, “things that are best unseen. See you at lunch and don’t forget to look through your chest. It might be a bit of a help in times of need.” Willowood winked and walked down the stairs of air until she was out of sight. 

Cedric just stood in front of the opened door for no less but no more than 2 minutes until finally walking inside his new quarters. This room was nothing like his dormitory at Hogwarts. The walls were made of a foggy glass that looked like they were painted with clouds from the morning sky. He glided over to the chest at the foot of his bed that Willowood seemed to be obsessing over. He wondered what she meant by “mementos” from Hogwarts. Where is Hogwarts anyways? Why am I here? Cedric still had so much confusion and mind-boggling questions going through his head.

Cedric moved his right hand slowly and cautiously towards the mysterious chest. His hand gripped the latch and with a click he unlocked the chest. Then, he moved his hand to the lid of the chest and closed his eyes, scared of what was inside. The top creaked open revealing the secrets inside. Cedric’s mouth dropped. He saw his favorite yellow sweater, his trusty wand, the tie that had once been wrapped around his neck on the night he danced with his perfect and amazing girl, Cho, and the lock of hair Cho had given him the day of the 3rd trial of the Triwizard Tournament.

The memories came flooding back. That fateful day was the most prominent memory in his head. The day when he… well… Actually he doesn’t really know. Follow the steps Cedric. Follow each minute, hour, second of that day. What did they lead up to? He remembers running through the maze, scared and fearing for his life, but still trying to keep it together. He feels himself being pulled into the brush of the maze by very clingy vines. The vines tighten around his chest as he can barely breath. ‘Harry! Harry’ he says, ‘Save me!’ Harry looks at the cup then looks at Cedric and for a while he just stands there not knowing what to do. Harry runs over to Cedric and frees him from the vines just as he was about to be sucked in.

Cedric remembers touching the cup with Harry and ending up in a very strange place. A graveyard, in fact. He remembers seeing… well… you know the name---Voldemort. He hears the sound of Voldemort’s voice, ‘AVADA KADA---’ and then the sound fades into the air. The sound disappears like a broken memory, not wishing to be thought of any longer.