Warning: Spoilers.
Cedric Diggory is a character in
J.K. Rowling's Harry Potter series.
He has a minor role in Book Three, a
major role in Book Four, and is mentioned often
by name in Book Five.
The only son of Mr. and Mrs. Amos
Diggory, Cedric was in Hufflepuff House,
two years above Harry Potter. In his
fifth year, he became a prefect, as well
as captain and Seeker of his House
Quidditch team. Under his leadership,
Hufflepuff became the first (and so far,
only) team to beat Harry at Quidditch (to
be fair, Harry was taken ill during the
match when a pack of dementors
appeared).
Cedric has been described as "strong
and silent" and "tall and good-looking".
He therefore caught many of the eyes and
hearts of Hogwarts' female contingent
during his years at the school. However,
his only documented romantic interest was
Cho Chang, the Ravenclaw seeker, whom
he dated during the second term of his
sixth year, having asked her out for the
Yule Ball. The two were inseparable,
and Cho never completely recovered from
his loss.
To the delight of Hufflepuff House,
Cedric was chosen as one of two Hogwarts
champions for the Triwizard Tournament,
held at the school during his sixth year.
Cedric comported himself very well during
the first two tasks, and was tied for
first place with Harry Potter, the other
Hogwarts champion, at the start of the
third task. However, negotiating the
maze did not break the tie, as
they both arrived at the Triwizard Cup at
the same instant. Exemplifying the traits
of their two houses, fairness and
chivalry respectively, Cedric and Harry
agreed to grasp the cup together and share the prize. The cup was a portkey, which transported the pair to
a graveyard where Voldemort was waiting.
On his command, "kill the spare," Voldemort's lackey,
Peter Pettigrew, aka
Wormtail, performed the
forbidden Avada Kedavra curse, killing
Cedric instantly.
Harry successfully thwarted the Dark Lord (mostly) (for the time
being) and returned Cedric's body to
Hogwarts. Cedric Diggory's unknowing,
senseless sacrifice stands as a reminder
and a warning to Hogwarts students and the
entire wizarding world of the terrible
danger in remaining at ease in the face of
Lord Voldemort's undying evil.