Title: The Diggory Papers
Author: Machiavelli Jr.
Rating: T
Genre: General/Comedy
DLP Category: General
Pairing: Cedric Diggory/Cho Chang; Cedric Diggory/Fleur Delacour
Chapters: 15
Words: 54,578
Updated: July 29, 2008
Published: March 16, 2006
Status: Complete
Rob's Warning: This is not Harry Centric! Read at your own risk!
Summary: Cedric Diggory tells the story of his last year at Hogwarts, the Triwizard Tournament and Wormtail's manifest incompetence. Because Cedric Diggory did not die in Little Hangleton. Nor was he anyone's hero. Coward, lecher and cheat, but never hero.

Cedric is just too perfect, in canon and in the very occasional Cedric fic. So what if he survived GoF by being a complete coward and all-round bastard? You might get something like this. NOT repeat NOT AU; everything in it is consistent with canon.
Link: http://www.fanfiction.net/s/2846963/1/

It's a real pity that no one has done for Harry quite what Machiavelli Jr. has done for Cedric. This reads as such a clever fic that it's easy to forget that it isn't Harry centric. If you can put aside prejudices and actually sit down with this fic, it's a great read. It is very reminiscent of Draco664's Apprentice/Journeyman Potter fics in terms of atmosphere; the entire thing is filled with dark humour and shows Cedric to be a complete and total bastard, but a hero that would fit in quite well with the tastes of many here. My only objection is that one of the future Weasley children acts as editor, but the footnotes are still very interesting and amusing.

5/5, for sure, and makes me want to go read CD/FD smut.


Checked by Minion, July 28, 2013

 

I usually dont like non-harry centric storys but this was pretty good. very well written and it gave me something to do while i was bored. 3/5

 

In canon, Cedric dies. He doesn't die; thus, AU. Duh.

Whatever. 3/5, nothing special.

 

In canon, Cedric appears to die, and that is what the author means when he says that it is not AU, because although we have no reason to disbelieve JKR when she says he dies, the author explains how he managed to escape death in a totally plausible way that does not contradict the canon.

 

Different, but good. I likes - 5/5

 

Thanks for the kind reviews guys - unexpected but always welcome. I always try to answer reviewers so, in order of points raised:

i) I chose Cedric because my chosen conceit wouldn't work with anyone else. Draco is too obvious, Moody is too absent, Lupin is too much like hard work, Hermione would be so smug I'd kill her off, all Weasleys are too open, Dumbledore is too cliche and Sirius is too dead. I'd love someone to try the same thing with Lupin and I think it can be done, especially after HBP. Harry has a severe problem, namely that I don't think he's got a scummy bone in his body (dark yes, lowlife no). Oh, and canon is from his POV so unless he's schizophrenic *stamps on bunny*...
ii) There will be no smut, because I can't write it to save my life. Ch.9 is the nearest you'll get. And yes, I meant it about the details of Cedric's bath being cut from the final version of ch.11. I wrote it, it's painful, it would get me flamed a/o banned. It will stay cut, against the day when I need to torture someone with really bad smut.
iii) It's a Weasley editing because I have at least two plans for sequels and both involve Hermione and her daughter. Unfortunately for me (and maybe her) I *ducks* quite like Ron, hence Weasley. The name 'Miranda Charity' should tell an observant reader something. Like I don't like Ron all that much.
iv) Rob said it for me - Cedric's survival doesn't make the fic *quite* AU. I only had to handwave a very little bit to make Harry and Dumbles see dead!Cedric in canon.

 

I like it
I find it amusing that the editor verifies and expains Cedrics Jokes in a dry humorles manner
I also thought it funny when the editor was outraged at Diggory's comments regarding Hermione

 

Machiavelli Jr, just out of curiosity, how do you keep all you facts straight? Because not only are you putting in almost every freakin' detail or sentences from canon, you're also adding in Cedric's coward ways.

I like the originality of the story and the flow is good. I'm still waiting for a lot of hints you left around to be revealed. I hope you get to it, fast. I think I left you a review a while back about that.

5/5

 

This is an excellent story. Cedric's character is turned inside out. Its well written. The story is hilarious. Cedric is a very amusing narrator. Overrall the fic is original and wonderfully entertaining.

4/5

 

Alexx, the last post was five years ago. There was honestly no need to make a comment as bland as the one you did.

 

This thread had only a few reviews and I bumped it because I think it deserves a reconsideration for a spot in the Library.

 

While noble in concept, it's kind of frowned upon in reality. If it didn't pass muster the first time around in 2006-7, there's little hope it will now.

 

Meh, I'm not a fan of Alexx but it's not a true necro, it'd just be nice if there was more substance after this long in his review.

Alexx: try going into detail on each of your comments, talking about where in the story you really felt that way. Not necessarily for this story, just as you go through old Library threads keep that in mind.

 

I don't mind, personally, since I'd never heard of this fic and it looks like it might(?) be worth reading.

The only time I really care about library necros is when the bump makes me think a story updated and I have to experience a 10-second burst of elation followed by disappointment and rage.

 

Sorry Oz. I was just irritated at seeing posts in two old fic threads, and what I thought wasn't really a constructive review. Didn't intend for it to come off as me trying to be the DLP police.

 

I am absolutely loving this, and I think that it would have a decent chance at the library had it been posted for review a few years later than it was.

Although the premises is a bit strange, I think that more outlandish changes have been made to canon in the best to a better reception. Also, it's no more odd than what Rowling ended up doing with Diggory in Cursed Child.

The author's take on Diggory is hilarious, and I think that the editor of the papers is written with just the right blend of formality and dry wit.

Generally speaking, I'm a huge fan of footnotes in novels, with my favourite example being the Bartholomew Sequence by Johnathan Stroud, and I'm pleased to say that The Diggory Papers makes particularly good use of them.

5/5 (It's worth noting that this story has already achieved a score of 3.5, and could be moved to the library if a friendly moderator was in a particularly good mood.) @Halt


P.S There may be additional stories in this 'verse to be found on 'Livejournal' under the name jjmarsden. The account seems to have been deleted though, and existing links seem to disagree with my adblocker for some reason.