Notes: Thanks to my beta gaeilgerua for looking this over.
Disclaimer: Harry Potter characters are the property of J.K. Rowling and Bloomsbury/Scholastic. No profit is being made, and no copyright infringement is intended.
New DirectionsNeville rubbed his hands together, breathing on them heavily. Hands shaking, he pulled out his wand and cast a Warming Charm on himself. It was getting colder as the night wore on, but he had to finish tending to the plants or else they wouldn't survive the frost that night. Charms were in place to keep the greenhouses an appropriate temperature, but this year, they were reaching record temperatures. He didn't want to take any chances.
He carefully trimmed the leaves on the plant in front of him before covering it with a light blanket. It would keep the plant warm without weighing it down. "There you are," he murmured aloud. "Nice and warm." He glanced down the row. Just a few more left and then he would be done.
"There you are," a voice said, interrupting Neville.
He paused in his work and stood up. Turning, he grinned when he saw Charlie standing in the doorway. "Hey."
"It's bloody freezing out here," Charlie said, casting a Warming Charm on himself. "How long have you been out here?"
"A few hours," Neville responded, returning his attention to his plants.
"Hours?!" Charlie explained. "Shite, Neville, you must be freezing."
"It's cold, but I'm nearly done," Neville said with a shrug, though his teeth chattered, giving away just how cold he really was.
"No, I mean you probably have frostbite," Charlie said, coming over. He took his mitten off and placed it against Neville's bare cheek. "You feel like ice!"
"I'm nearly done," Neville repeated, brushing off Charlie's concern.
"No, you're done now," Charlie insisted, his tone of voice leaving no room for argument. With a wave of his wand, he covered the last few plants with blankets.
"You need to do it by hand!" Neville immediately protested. He looked to Charlie angrily. "You could have just killed those plants."
"Better those plants than your life," Charlie retorted angrily. "Now, stop being an idiot and get indoors." He narrowed his eyes. "You have three seconds to go indoors or I'm taking you straight to Poppy."
"Fine," Neville grumbled angrily. As he looked around the greenhouse, he shivered. A small part of him admitted that Charlie was likely right… he had been outdoors far too long. But the other part of him was mad that Charlie had just bossed his way in and interrupted what was a very delicate process.
He made his way inside the castle and to his rooms, Charlie following closely behind. "You know, I was fine out there," Neville said over his shoulder.
"The color of your cheeks and nose tells me otherwise," Charlie retorted. When they arrived at Neville's quarters, Charlie arched a brow. "Well, let's go in."
"I'm going in," Neville said, turning around to face Charlie.
"Nope, I'm coming in to make sure you don't fall unconscious as soon as you can get warm."
"That's not going to happen," Neville said with a roll of his eyes, but he allowed Charlie to come in anyways. "I'm going to shower."
"No, you need to warm up a little first," Charlie immediately protested. "Go sit by the fire."
"Did you come find me just to boss me around?"
"Maybe," Charlie said, flashing Neville a cheeky grin. "Now go sit. I'll ask the elves to bring us up some dinner."
Neville grumbled under his breath, but he moved towards the sofa near the fireplace. He took a seat on it and began to unlace his boots. Slipping them off, he removed his large cloak and hung it on the edge of the sofa. Grabbing a blanket from the back of the sofa, he wrapped himself up in it. As he snuggled into the sofa, he let out a small sigh of comfort. "Charlie was right," he murmured quietly to himself.
"What was that?" Charlie asked, sitting on the sofa next to Neville.
"I said you were right," Neville admitted. "I was out in the cold for far too long. I should have taken more of a break and come indoors."
Charlie tried not to look too pleased with Neville's comment. "The house-elves are going to bring us some sandwiches and tea. Something light that will fill you and warm you up a bit."
"Thank you," Neville whispered.
There was a loud pop! and a small elf from the kitchen appeared. She placed a tray of food on the small table near the sofa. "Anything else, Professors?"
"No, that will be all," Neville said.
"Thank you," Charlie added. He helped himself to a sandwich and took a bit. "Mmmm," he muttered, closing his eyes.
Neville fixed himself a cup of tea. He then made Charlie a cup, remembering just how Charlie takes his tea. "Here you are," he said, handing the cup to Charlie.
"Did you-?"
"Three sugars, very sweet just like you like," Neville said, blushing slightly.
Charlie looked at him. "Thank you," he said softly, unable to keep the smile from his face.
The two of them ate in silence. Neville nibbled at his sandwich and sipped at his tea, though his gaze kept drifting to Charlie. Why was he being so kind? The two of them had been friends since their time in the Order during the war, and Charlie had always been kind, but lately, something had changed. Neville just couldn't put his finger on it, though.
"I'm going to shower," Neville announced, standing up and unwrapping himself from the blanket.
"You look better now that you've warmed up a bit," Charlie said. "I think the chance of anything bad happening has passed."
"I feel fine," Neville assured him. He missed Charlie's lingering glance as he headed towards the bathroom.
When Neville emerged from the bathroom nearly thirty minutes later, he was surprised to see Charlie still on the sofa. "Charlie?"
There was no answer.
Neville moved towards the sofa, chuckling softly when he saw Charlie had fallen asleep. Picking up the blanket, he went to put it on Charlie, freezing when Charlie's eyes opened. Charlie smirked, reaching up and grabbing Neville's wrist. He pulled them forward, chuckling when Neville crashed down onto the sofa with him. Charlie repositioned himself so that he was now cuddling Neville.
"What are you doing?" Neville whispered, looking into Charlie's eyes. His heart hammered wildly in his chest and he suddenly forgot how to breathe.
"You worried me today," Charlie murmured. "I always admire how dedicated you are to your plants, but still…"
"I already admitted you were right," Neville said, blushing. "I just… this? What? I don't…"
Charlie leaned forward, kissing Neville and cutting off whatever he was going to say next.
The kiss was soft and gentle, but it ignited a fire inside of Neville. They broke apart all too soon.
"Charlie," he whispered. "Kiss me again?"
"It would be my pleasure." Charlie smirked, leaning forward. He captured Neville's lips in a kiss and pulled him close.
The two of them spent the rest of the evening entwined in front of the fire, tentatively exploring the new direction of their relationship.