Neville Longbottom fell lifelessly onto his unmade bed. After walking away from the common room and up to the dormitories, having seen - who he considered - two of his best friends kissing (as had most of Gryffindor House), he was feeling rather lonely.
He didn't know why it had made him feel so sad.
He'd asked Ginny to the Yule Ball once before, but that had only been as friends - he didn't feel anything more than friendship for Ginny, and he most definitely was not head over heels for Harry, who he certainly felt no jealousy towards. After all, why should he? He'd been there with Harry at the Ministry, helping him alongside the Death Eaters, and Harry treated him as if they were no different, but then Harry had never considered himself superior over anybody. His problems, as terrifying as they were, were not more important than friends and family, and he never seemed to let them become so.
Neville was in his group. He was a part of the DA with Ron, Hermione, Ginny, Luna, and...
Luna.
Neville's stomach seemed to perform several back flips just from thinking her name. He wrapped his arms around his middle, not caring what he looked like to anyone who might have walked in at any moment. His eyes were fixed on his bedside table which was not that far away from Ron's bed. He just stared, not concentrating at exactly what he was staring at, just travelling through his thoughts.
The way she spoke, mostly stating things as they were rather than asking questions, and the way her long blond hair travelled down her back reaching her waist made him smile. He'd spent so much time with her recently, especially since the DA was formed last year; it was hard not to have become close with her.
She helped him in ways that he thought she did not recognize, and Ginny was always pushing them along, linking them together. It was as if she was playing Cupid. Neville's frame jogged slightly as he chuckled.
With Ginny, Neville and Luna made their own Golden Trio.
How he wished he had Harry Potter's courage. With it, he would just walk up to Luna and kiss her in front of everyone, and he didn't care who, and he didn't care if he got teased for it for the rest of his life because all he wanted right now was Luna and if he didn't know her any better, she probably already knew that he loved her. Luna was so perceptive of others and in being so, she barely recognized herself for all the amazing things she was.
It was a shame Luna wasn't in the same house as he was because it would have made things a lot easier, and, he thought, she suited Gryffindor a lot more too. Her bravery overwhelmed his, and as different she was, Luna could have given Harry a run for his money any day.
During their friendship, she had bought back Neville's ability to imagine, which had long ago disappeared, way before he started Hogwarts. He was a timid boy, always the one who got picked on. She taught him never to give up hope or give up on life because in the end things always worked out, even if you didn't believe in Nargles the way she seemed to. She made him fight, if not for himself then to fight for everyone else in the world, for what they believed in and their existence; for their relationships. To fight for his parents, his grandmother, and the possibility of being able to call her his own.
They were both so alike and yet they were so different. He always laughed at her, how she concluded her theories and how she believed in things on faith alone. Even while Hermione grounded her views and how Hermione consistently said that her beliefs were nonsense, he still loved Luna and felt that he needed to protect her in every way possible. She was terribly blunt with the truth, and that made him smile, even if the truth was directed at him, whether it be about how messy he appeared or how troubled he looked.
He hated the way people also picked on her, too. Stealing and hiding her things, calling her 'Loony'. This was something they had in common, although Neville cared about what people thought more than Luna seemed to. She allowed herself to fade into the crowd; something Neville also admired about her.
He'd punch down the whole of Slytherin to make them leave her alone. He'd take on Malfoy just to let her be rid of the dangers she faced. Maybe then she'd notice him, well, properly. She'd see him in the light in which he saw her.
Neville didn't know if Luna really noticed how he looked at her and how he acted around her. He was still himself around her, of course; otherwise she would have run away by now, away from the Neville he wasn't. She seemed to always look through him, yet she was comforting, Luna was always in her own world and you could never read her expressions, but you could be sure that she was analyzing things in ways you never thought possible. That's why he didn't doubt she knew already, though there was a just as even chance that she didn't know.
He sighed deeply, and rolled off his bed, standing quite weakly on his feet. Just as well too, for Ron walked in the room, grunting and shaking his head, not really sure of what to make of his best friend and sister becoming a couple.
Neville longed to be the equivalent to Harry and Ginny with Luna, as he secretly knew how Ron wanted to be it with Hermione. Maybe Harry and Ginny were just the start of things. He hoped so. Merlin, he hoped so.
"Neville," Ron said, looking at him with no real interest, "Ginny said to me that Luna was looking for you.. after the match.. before.."
He mumbled something under his breath. Neville caught the words 'bloody', 'it will never work' and 'complete disaster', but he took little notice and instead smiled and jumped at the chance, bouncing on his feet. He darted out of the room, his forever growing hair falling in his face. The weakness he'd experienced was gone because Luna wanted him. He hastily scraped the hair out of his eyes and slammed the bedroom door shut enthusiastically, beaming. He didn't catch what Ron said, nor his confused face and his comment on how the whole world had gone mad.
Pushing through the crowd and walking over the spot where Ginny had jumped into Harry's arms, Neville forced his way to the portrait hole where he clambered through it and walked briskly down the corridor.
He always enjoyed seeing Luna, and he was more excited now, wondering why she was looking for him. It had mostly been the other way around, or they had just simply walked into each other during classes, something that happened a lot, and something that they did just then.
Neville rubbed his head, and looked around to see who he had collided with. All he'd caught was a flash of yellow.
"No matter," Luna said before Neville could even look at her and apologize. She didn't notice that it was Neville who she had knocked into.
He shook his head, smiling, and got to his feet, offering a hand to Luna to help her up.
"You were looking for me," Luna said, only just then processing in her head who was standing in front of her. "I told Ginny..-"
Neville had pressed his finger against her lips. "I know," he interrupted as he stared into her blue eyes. She looked up towards him, and her expression seemed to confirm that she knew what was going on in Neville's head.
"I know, too," she said airily, breaking the short silence.
"You do?" Neville whispered. He didn't mean to, although it was a mystery to him as to how she always seemed to know more than she should.
"Yes, Neville. I don't see how I couldn't." She laughed, and grabbed his hand, pulling herself up. He looked at their entwined hands and swallowed. He didn't speak.
"Professor Flitwick confirmed it all." She beamed, starting to walk off, giving no indication that she was going to let go of his hand. He liked this contact. But how could Professor Flitwick know of his feelings? He had only really just found them himself.
"He d-did?" Neville stuttered, confused.
"Yes, Neville. You are daft," Luna said, rolling her eyes but still staring down the corridor down which they were walking. She never got impatient.
"How?"
"Stop looking so bewildered, Neville." Luna smiled. "Flitwick said that I should tell you."
"But how di..-" he started, but Luna cut across him.
"Dirigible Plums are back, Hogwarts is absolutely infested with them. That's why Harry's being accepted by so many recently."
Now Neville was sure Luna did not know. He was slightly down hearted. He thought that her already knowing would have given him the chance to admit everything. Despite this, though, he managed to laugh.
"Oh.. Flitwick? Why Flitwick?"
"He saw me writing in my Charms book. I was seeing what Charms I could use against Nargles. But it didn't seem to work." She forced a laugh, and Neville looked at her sadly. He was never going to tell her that she was the only witch who he knew to believe in all of this. He simply didn't have the courage – he was low in that department.
"We got into a discussion, and, well, I told him how Dirigible Plums give people the ability to accept the extraordinary."
They carried on walking, turning a corner. Their hands were still linked, and Neville was partly glad the corridors were empty.
"I came to find you, but you seem otherwise occupied. Or were you really looking for me?"
"I was looking for you," he replied, nodding. "It doesn't matter."
At this point Luna titled her head up at Neville who was quite pink in the face. "You found me now," she said, squeezing his hand. Neville nodded happily, and his smile widened.
"Let's go and find these Plums, then."
Luna grinned radiantly, and Neville could have sworn he'd never seen anything so beautiful. "Really? Together?"
"Well, I am your friend, aren't I?"
Luna brightened up even more at Neville telling her this, as if it had needed confirming. "Really?"
Neville shook his head, dumbfounded. "Really," he answered, and they carried on walking hand in hand down the corridor in comfortable silence.
Disclaimer: As much as I love Harry Potter and want everything to have been my creation, unfortunately, it's not, and I do not own anything written here.
I'm considering at making this more than a one-shot, seeing as how Neville doesn't really get with Luna, and he marries that bitch Hannah what's-her-face. If I do carry on with this, I will be canon, and I'll say now that it probably won't be a very happy ending.
Review, love, hate, critique, anything. It's all welcome. Thank you for reading.