I wrote this for the Buffy the Vampire Slayer Quote Challenge on the HPFC forum. My quote was, "Hey, no, look at me. I... love you. You're all I bloody think about. Dream about. You're in my gut... my throat... I'm drowning in you" I had three prompts which were: garbage, flower and twinkle.
He isn't quite sure when it happens. It doesn't occur right away, of that he is sure. It is slow going, something that builds slowly but surely throughout the years, picking up speed as it goes along. If forced to pick one moment where it all began, it would be the day the two of them truly became friends, during his fifth year and her fourth.
It is a chill winter day. The world wears the virgin snow like a sweater, wrapping it tight. All around, students are playing in the snow, having snow ball fights and making snow angels. The air rings with peals of laughter. Neville can't help but smile as he watches them. Despite everything, there can still be happiness in the world. There can still be laughter.
"It's beautiful," says a dreamy voice behind him, startling him. Hand on his wand; he whirls to see a pink cheeked Luna Lovegood standing there, staring at the scene before them. He relaxes slightly, but he still remains slightly wary. To Neville, Luna is an enigma wrapped in a riddle tied with paradox for a bow. All in all, he just can't understand her.
The two stand in awkward silence for some time, watching the happiness in front of them, not sure of what to say. Then, Luna begins talking, her quiet voice almost inaudible in the wind. "My mother and I used to play in the snow together. We would make snow angels and when we were done, we would wish on them. My mother always said that snow angels could make our wishes come true, because they were angels in Heaven come down to play in the snow. She called them wishing angels."
"Did they? Make your wishes come true, I mean?"
"No."
"You said used to? What happened?"
"My mother died." Those three words convey more than all the soliloquies in the world. Neville feels like an idiot. He should have recognized her tone. After all, of all people in the world, he should know what it is like to not want to talk about your parents. He wants to slap himself for his stupidity, but more so, he wants to do something to make up for it. So he finds himself telling her about his parents, the Lestranges and the bubble gum wrappers. Anything and everything. After all, if you get an eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth, you should get a story for a story.
When he was finished, Luna hugs him. "Thank you," she whispered. Then, she walked away. Neville found himself frozen. This was the first time he had ever told anyone his story. It feels like the weight of the world has been lifted off his shoulders
That moment of shared grief is where something beautiful begins. But Rome wasn't built in a day and neither is their relationship. After that, they become friends, close ones. They spend their days sitting by the Black Lake talking about everything and nothing at the same time. He tells her about the plants he is helping Professor Sprout grow, and in turn, she tells him stories about the fantastical creatures she believes in. He never makes fun of her, or calls her Loony Luna, for he knows what it is like to have no one believe in you. One cold winter day in his sixth year, they even make wishing angels together. The relationship begins as something innocent, platonic However, the feelings come soon after their friendship begins.
Every time he looks at her, his gut twists and his stomach feels like the home of a kaleidoscope of butterflies. His throat feels like it is stuffed full of cotton. His mind has a hard time thinking of words and his mouth has an even harder time making them come out. He is surprised he can even manage to hold a proper conversation with Luna Lovegood. He finds himself
thinking of her at hours of the day and she sashays her way through his dreams. He can barely breathe when she is around him. It feels he as if he drowns in her.
At first, he attributes it to shyness. But it keeps happening, and as they grow closer, he can't use it as an excuse anymore because he's told her things he has never shared with anyone before and in return, she has shared with him some of her dark secrets. He never comes up with a new excuse. Instead, he shoves the feelings into the deepest reaches of his soul, the place where Neville keeps all the things he does not want to think about
It is his seventh year, her sixth, and Hogwarts has become a veritable Hell. The younger kids look up to Neville, Luna, and Ginny. It is almost as if, in Harry's absence, they replace him. But it's hard. They never really realized what Harry went through until this year. The three friends, the Silver Trio as many call them, lean on each other more than they ever have before. Perhaps that is what makes it so much darker after they take her.
It hurts. That kaleidoscope of butterflies transform into knives that slice into him whenever he thinks of her. Neville can't talk about her either. His voice just doesn't work. In fact, he discovers it is nearly impossible to breathe when she enters his thoughts. Neville finds himself breathless a lot during those few months.
When she climbs through the portrait hole that day, he wants to run up to her, hold her in his arms, and never let go. It takes all his restraint not to. But he knows that there is a battle to be fought and that is more important. Not by much, but it is. In consolation, he promises himself he will hold her when this is all over. That is, if they both survive.
The battle is long and hard. There is many a time Neville should have died, but against all odds, he doesn't. Not even when he defies Voldemort to his face and then kills his snake. It is almost as if the universe knows of his unfinished business and lets him continue living solely because of that.
Harry kills Voldemort and for a moment, there is simply shocked silence. Then, there is an explosion of noise. He's dead! Voldemort, the most feared dark wizard of the age, has been killed! Neville can scarcely believe it. It seems too good to be true. He keeps expecting to wake up in his hammock in the Room of Requirement. But no matter how hard he pinches himself, he stays where he is. Neville feels like a child on Christmas Day, excitement and adrenaline coursing like a sugar rush through his veins. Then, he remembers his unfinished business.
Luna isn't hard to find, even in this horde of people. Her long blonde hair shines like a beacon in a storm. He shoves through the crowds until he reaches her. When she turns to look at him, the first thing he notices it her brilliant blue eyes have lost some of their twinkle. His heart breaks, just a little.
"Hello, Neville." Her lyrical voices is still as beautiful as it was before.
"I missed you."
"I missed you, too."
For a moment, he wants to kiss her soft-looking lips, but he doesn't. Instead, he pulls her into a bone crushing hug. They stand there for a while, talking and hugging, paying no attention to the celebration around them. Then, she leaves him, and in that moment, he is struck by how beautiful she is.
That is also the moment Neville Longbottom realizes he might just be in love with Luna Lovegood.
Time passes. Seven years to be more exact. People begin to move on. The pain they hold in their souls begins to dull slightly and holes in hearts start to repair themselves. Neville walks into the diner in Muggle London, where he meets Ginny for lunch every Saturday. The two discovered it by accident once while wandering aimlessly through town. They quickly grew to love it there for it is private and the French fries can simply not be bested, not by anything in the Wizarding World.
Ginny runs late but Neville doesn't really mind. He sits in their booth in the back of the place and the waitress, who knows them both by name, puts their usual order in front of him, two cups of tea and a large serving of the fries. Neville stares out the window, picking at the food, not noticing a very pregnant Ginny Potter come in. Brushing the snow off her jacket, she manages to slip into the other side of the booth.
"Earth to Neville. Are you here?"
Snapping back to reality, he sees Ginny for the first time. "Sorry. Didn't see you there?"
"I can tell." She chuckles a little. "So, did you hear about Charlie?"
For a while the two gossip about their friends. Ginny talks about how she bored she is now that she was unable to play Quidditch, and complains about pregnancy. Neville tells her, in great detail, about the plants he grows in his greenhouse. Somehow, the conversation turns to Luna.
"So, when are you going to tell her?"
"Tell who what?"
"Luna."
Deeply confused by the turn this conversation has suddenly taken, Neville asks, "What are you talking about, Ginny?"
"When are you going to tell Luna Lovegood that you are in love with her?"
"I'm not in love with her!"
"'Thou doth protest too much.' Don't lie to me. Anyone with half a brain can see that you are madly in love with her. So that means everyone knows, with the exception of Ron and that's only because he has emotional range of a teaspoon. So, when are you going to tell her?"
"I don't love her," he protests again weakly.
"Yes, you do. Believe me, I know has this works, Neville. When you see her, you can scarcely think. You can't speak. Butterflies flutter around in your stomach. She fills your dreams and you can't even stand the thought of somebody else with her. If that's true, then you are most definitely in love with her."
He blushed and Ginny smirked, almost reminding him of that git Draco Malfoy. "I'm right. You should tell her, soon. Someone will soon realize what an amazing person she is and you'll miss your chance. I here Rolf Scamander has his eye on our Luna."
The Scamander comment sets him on edge, but he knows what his friend is trying to do and he will not be provoked. Instead, he decides to offer her the simple truth. "Ginny, I can't."
"Why not?"
He bites his lip, trying to find the best way to voice the concerns that fester inside every moment of every day. "Luna, she's like a flower, a beautiful, shining flower. I'm…not. I'm that piece of rubbish on the side of the road that no one wants to pick up. I don't deserve her. She deserves another flower, not a piece of rubbish like me."
"You're an idiot, Neville. I'd expect that kind of thinking from Ron. You are not rubbish. You are a twinkly star that shines bright in the sky. I know that. Luna knows that. And you need to tell her how you feel before someone else realizes how amazing she is and you lose your chance."
Eating the last fry, Ginny maneuvers her way out of the booth. As she walks out the door, she calls back, "You are not rubbish. Remember that."
Neville had been awarded the title of Honorary Weasley years ago; thus, he receives an automatic invitation to the annual Weasley Christmas party at the Burrow. When he arrives, he finds the party already in full swing. Toddlers run around the house shrieking; most of the adults are already slightly tipsy from the Firewhiskey. While placing his multitude of gifts under the tree, someone taps him on the shoulder and he whirls. Ginny stands behind him, an expectant smile on her face. "Luna's here."
"So?"
"So, you are going to tell her. Tonight. You are not leaving this house until you do."
"I hope your mother doesn't mind me moving into the Burrow."
Sigh exasperatedly, Ginny grabs him by the arm, and marches Neville to where Luna sits talking with little Teddy Lupin, the oldest child in the room. She nudges him forward. "Do it, now."
"No," he hisses.
"You will tell right this minute or I swear I will-"
Luckily for Neville, Luna chooses that moment to notice them. "Hello, Neville," she says with a smile.
It's now or never, I guess. "Um… Luna, can I talk to you? In private?"
"I suppose." She turns to Teddy and tells him she will finish her story later. Nodding, the turquoise haired child scampers off the play with Victorie. The two go outside into the frigid night air. "What did you want to tell me, Neville?"
He's not sure what to say so he just says the first thing that comes to mind. "Luna, do you think I'm rubbish?"
Wide-eyed, she answers him. "No. Why would you think that?"
"It's just…never mind. It doesn't matter."
The two friends stand in awkward silence, neither sure how to continue the conversation at this junction. "Well, if that's all, I'm going to go inside."
She starts back to the house, and at that moment, his Gryffindor courage returns to him. He touched her shoulder and this time, when she turned around, he knew exactly what to say. "Hey, no, look at me," he said, cupping her chin in his hands. "I... love you. You're all I bloody think about. Dream about. You're in my gut... my throat... I'm drowning in you"
At that moment, under the starry winter sky, their lips meet and nearly a decade of pent-up feelings are released in that one moment. When oxygen becomes necessary, they break apart, but their foreheads still touch.
"Neville, do you remember that day we made the wishing angels?"
"Yes. Why?"
"This was the moment I wished for."
There was a beat of silence before Neville speaks. "I guess snow angels can make wishes come true, because I think this is the moment I wished for too."
"I guess so." The two look up at the sky and thank the angels for giving them this.
"Would you make to make another, Neville?"
They make two snow angels with great care and when they are done, they stand beside them and wish, harder than they wished for anything else. Funny enough, they both wished for the same thing once again. Both Neville and Luna wish they could stay together forever.
Perhaps snow angels really can grant wishes, because what they wished that night came true. Neville Longbottom and Luna Lovegood stayed together forever. I guess we have the wishing angels to think for that.