Notes:
This was written by my friend Carlie, who does not have a fan fiction account any more and asked me to post it.
I own nothing but Talia. She's mine! Everything Potter related belongs to Jo Rowling.
Reviews are appreciated :)
Train rides are unpleasant as it is. However, train rides spent in a lonely compartment are just shy of unbearable. Especially when it's your third year repeating this experience. Despite the beautiful weather, Talia scowled out the window at the blurred trees zooming by the Hogwarts Express.
"Stupid train..." she mumbled. The rickety track jarred the train and it's contents. Several compartment doors flew open, and complaints from the other students could be heard from the hall. She looked at the door, but decided against getting up and shutting it again. Too much effort.
It was around this time that a small toad hopped into her compartment, and onto the seat next to Talia; not something that happens everyday.
"...Hello." She stared down at the toad curiously. The toad said nothing. Not that she was surprised. A smiled found its way onto her lips, despite her previously bitter attitude towards the train. She leaned down, closer to the toad.
"Why are you here, little guy?" The toad just croaked, staring up at her. She giggled a bit. "If I give you a kiss, will you turn into a prince?" The toad croaked again. "I'll take that as a 'no'." Talia laughed at herself for even asking that. She sat upright. The toad didn't move. Glancing down at the toad again, she picked him up and promptly gave him a kiss on top of the head, squeezing her eyes tight. She held her breath for a moment, then opened her eyes and let out her breath. "Goodness I feel silly." She laughed a bit, smiling at the toad, who stared blankly at her.
"Oh, you found Trevor!" Talia looked quickly at the open door, where a brown haired boy who had just spoken stood smiling slightly.
"Er, yeah." She smiled back, handing him the toad. She studied him carefully, her brain working to decide whether this was a ridiculous coincidence, or whether the toad was secretly magical.
The boy tilted his head. "Erm... Are you alright?" He shuffled awkwardly on his feet, not sure what to do as she drifted off.
"Oh sorry!" she frowned. "I'm Talia."
"Neville." he smiled a bit at her, traces of a blush forming on his cheeks. "Uh... Do you think I could sit down? Everywhere else is full."
She nodded, smiling. "Be my guest."
Being in a different house than your friends made it very difficult to see them. Study breaks and Hogsmeade trips were about it. Talia sat in the library with Neville, both concentrating on their textbooks.
Talia frowned, flipping through a few pages. "None of this makes any sense!" Neville nodded. "Believe me, I know."
Giving up, Talia closed the cover on her book, placed in on top of more books, and pushed the entire stack away. "I give up. I'll just fail the tests Moody gives us." She leaned back in her chair.
Neville looked over at her, and turned back to his book, laughing lightly to himself. Talia decided to entertain herself by poking him.
"Must you?" He asked, without looking up from his book.
Talia pretended to consider it for a moment. "Yes, I must." She laughed as he smiled begrudgingly, still staring at his book. Eventually, she stopped poking him and started reading what he was reading. She sat on her knees in her chair, leaning over his shoulder. "Does any of this make a bit of sense to you?" She asked. He laughed, shaking his head. "Not at all," he replied, turning his head a bit to look at her. Upon doing so, he realized she was much closer than he anticipated. He blushed quite a bit, turning back to his book quickly. "Nev? You ok?" She peered down at him. He nodded a bit, risking a glance at her. He blushed more, noticing she looked honestly concerned. "Yeah," he said, smiling just slightly. "I'm fine."
"That was very stupid." Talia said softly. "Very brave, but very stupid." She held a bandage up to a cut on Neville's face as he lay in the Hospital Wing. He rolled his eyes.
"I know, I know. Are you sure you're alright?" he asked for the sixth time in the past twenty minutes.
"Yes yes I'm fine..." she replied, intent on keeping the focus off her.
(At this point, it should be made very clear that Neville Longbottom, as a rule, did not act particularly brave. Not that he wasn't a brave person, he just chose to take the back seat. The very quiet, shy, passive backseat. Usually.)
Talia held the bandage against his face, and they made eye contact for the first time since they'd been in the Hospital Wing. In that split second, Neville leaned foreward, placing a gentle kiss on Talia's lips. Before she had time to even react, he had leaned back again, blushing furiously. Talia blushed back, and couldn't supress an uncharistically girlish giggle. Neville laughed nervously in return.
The ride home was long and painful for most. It always was, but even more so with the dark cloud hanging over the Hogwarts Express. It is very difficult to be cheerful when you've just attended the funeral of the greatest headmaster Hogwarts had ever known. But in one compartment, three misfits were determined to enjoy their last hours together before summer. The petite Hufflepuff girl sat next to a sitll injured dark haired Griffindor boy, who happened to be her best friend and boyfriend. They were both watching a wide eyed Ravenclaw girl with polite interest as she talked about some odd creature neither had heard of. Though most would find this an unpleasant situation, Talia couldn't be happier. As trees blurred past the window, she smiled to herself, giving Neville's hand a gentle squeeze. Train rides weren't so bad after all.