"See you in potions?" He said hopefully as he kissed her knuckle. She smiled slightly, and he frowned. "are you sure you're alright?" She'd been off since before the scuffle at breakfast, and he couldn't work out why.

She nodded as she glanced at the floor.

"It's nothing. See you in a couple of hours." Pansy smiled sadly as their fingers slid apart. "Now go and get your handsome face fixed" He watched as she walked off, disappearing through the door.

Neville sighed as he wandered through the corridor towards the hospital wing. He felt like there was a storm cloud looming on the horizon. He thought back over the things he'd done in the past couple of days and couldn't think of anything specific that he had done wrong. He took a deep breath and pushed the green hair out of his face, bearly avoiding a couple of first-years who were running late.

"Sorry," One called back as they carried on running.

"Was that Neville Longbottom?" He heard the other ask as they looked back before disappearing through around the far corner.

He shook his head. He hated how the first years looked at him now; like he was some sort of celebrity. He had never experienced it before the war, but now, he wondered how Harry had managed it all these years. He'd started to notice that even some of the older students watched him in awe when all he wanted to do was disappear back into the shadows. He guessed he could understand some of the kids he'd managed to protect last year being thankful to him, but the others just made him feel creepy and strange.

He turned a corner and found himself outside of the hospital wing. He paused before pushing the doors open. It occurred to him that Hannah could be in there. It had completely slipped his mind that she was being trained up by Madam Pomfrey. The anxiety rose in his throat like acid as he thought about her touching him. He wouldn't be surprised if he came out more injured than he went in.

He stepped to one side as he swallowed. He really didn't feel strong enough to face her. He tried to remember what her lesson plan was. He sighed with relief as he remembered that, between the two of them, he was the only one that had a free period on a Friday morning. He took another steadying breath as he gathered himself and pushed into the hospital wing.

There were a few other students in the beds. What appeared to be a first-year Ravenclaw covered in nasty red welts lay in one. In the other sat a disgruntled looking fifth-year Gryffindor, he vaguely recognised, who had a tongue the size of a feast serving platter. He nodded to the Gryffindor boy who waved back. He smiled weakly at the Ravenclaw girl he walked through towards the office.

He knocked and waited, feeling their eyes on him as he stood staring at the frame of the open door. He waited patiently as he glanced back to the other kids. They looked bored and miserable as they lay there. He could only imagine how dull it would be, to be lying there all day.

"What's the emergency? Ah, Longbottom." Said Madam Pomfrey as she appeared, her grey hair tied back under her usual white cap. "If you're looking for Miss Abbott, I'm afraid she's not here. She'll be in during last period." She said politely before looking at him in the face. Her face flittered between pleasant, shocked, and concerned in the blink of an eye before she took his elbow.

"I'm not here for Hannah, We're not-" he paused, feeling awkward.

"Oh, never mind that. I didn't notice your face before. Tell me what happened to you. If you're here about your hair, I'm afraid there isn't much I can do, it looks like it's a bloody Weasley product."

"No, the hair's fine, It's my face,"

Madam Pomfrey stepped closer, raising her hands to his face and pressing gently as if to feel where the injury lay. He tried not to hiss and squirm as she prodded the most painful point.

"It appears you have a fractured cheekbone. Some Skele-gro will sort that out. Go and sit on the bed," She directed, pointing to the nearest bed. He turned and caught the other patients eyes again before turning his back to them.

Her long burgundy sleeves floated behind her as she rushed off to the potions cabinet. When she returned, she carried the telltale skeleton-shaped bottle, and he cringed at the thought of it. "I'm afraid it will be painful, and the bruising will remain for a few days." She looked him in the eye, her bright blue eyes piercing him. "How did this happen?"

He felt sweat start to build on the back of his neck as he rubbed it away. He didn't want to tell. He didn't want to see the pity.

"I fell in the shower this morning." He explained, hoping that she would take the explanation at face value. She continued to look at him a fraction longer than was comfortable before she nodded and turned to open the Skele-gro. The pewter hourglass on her chest, bouncing as she turned.

He remembered Harry's reaction to it after Lockhart vanished the bones in his forearm. He had his own experience with it last year when a particularly bad beating resulted in several broken bones. The Carrows hadn't pulled their punches, nor had they worried about school furniture. The bookcase he'd been thrown into hadn't lasted the beating.

He cringed as Madam Pomfrey poured out the dose and offered it to him. Her face seemed to soften as he looked at the clear liquid.

"Come now, Mr Longbottom. We both know that you're brave enough to handle the bad taste." She smiled.

He rolled his eyes and held his breath as he knocked it back. It tasted like charcoal and rotten eggs with a hint of cream. He almost gagged as it went down, leaving behind a distinctly alcoholic afterburn that made him shudder.

"There, that wasn't so hard now was it?" She smiled as she took the bottle and glass away again in another flurry of cloth before returning. "Now if you have any problems concentrating in your lessons you have permission to miss them. However, I would suggest trying to endure it, as lying down and resting could cause the would to heal incorrectly." He nodded as he tried to ignore the hideous taste in his mouth.

"If the pain persists past breakfast tomorrow, see me immediately. And try not to slip in the shower again." She smiled as he stood to leave. She followed him as far as the other patients before starting to fuss over the poor Gryffindor. Neville nodded to the student again before he left.

Once outside, his stomach started to churn, threatening to return the dose. He swallowed, there was no way he was going to take that medicine again in a hurry if he could help it. If Stephen, Oliver and Hannah kept up their assault, he might not have a choice. He sauntered towards Lumos tower listening to the rain as it pounded the courtyard. He wasn't sure whether it was his imagination, but his face was starting to throb already.

Back in the common room, he was relieved by how quiet it was. He looked around in all the nooks and cranny's, and he really was alone. Knowing there was no one else I the room eased the tension between his shoulder blades somewhat as he made himself a cup of tea.

He curled up in the window seat again as he watched the rain and tried to forget the intense throbbing in his cheekbone. He closed his eyes as he listened to the pattering of rain on the window. A loud slam jolted him from his reverie as he looked around for the danger. His heart beat rapidly as he watched Pansy storm into the common room. She sniffed loudly as she rushed to the stairs. He watched as she rubbed at her face before she started to climb.

"Pansy?" He called as he swung his legs off to stand. She stopped on the stairs without turning around. "Are you alright?" He asked as he went to join her at the stairs. She nodded without speaking. He watched as she tried to pull herself together before turning around, her fists clenching and unclenching. When she turned around, she looked almost normal. Her face was slightly blotchy, and her eyes were red-rimmed as she smiled at him. He watched as the façade crumbled as she started to cry. She turned around again, covering her face.

He rushed to her in a panic. Fear gripping his soul. He had never seen Pansy cry before, she had always been so collected before; so strong. He reached out and touched her quivering shoulder.

"Don't touch me," She shouted as she stepped away from him. He felt the words sting but refused to be put off. Since the war, there were so many small, insignificant things that could cause someone to break down. His memory flashed back to the incident with his clothes as an example.

"What happened?" He asked nervously. She shook her head in response.

"Please, I might be able to help," He offered as he tried stepping closer. Pansy shook her head again but seemed to resign herself to something. She wiped at her face and turned. Her pale cheeks were even more mottled now, and some of her emerald hair had stuck wetly to her face.

"I think we should break up."