cedric had absolutely no idea what he had just walked into. one second, he and harry had finally reached the Triwizard Cup together, and the next they were standing in a graveyard with Voldemort’s followers surrounding them.
and cedric’s instinct wasn’t to run. it was to raise his wand and fight alongside harry. he was only seventeen, yet when faced with the man responsible for years of terror, his first thought was still “we fight.”
that’s what makes his death so heartbreaking. cedric didn’t die because he was weak. he died because he was brave enough to stand beside harry when he had every reason to be terrified.