Title: Assumptions

Author: Catsncritters (Adrienne Wolter)

Disclaimer: Potter is JK Rowling's, not mine. If you don't know that by now, you're probably not going to want to read this. The plot is miiiiiine, although the characters are hers. No moolah is being made, as this is a work of fan fiction.

Summary: This is what could've happened during the Yule Ball is GoF. It's some lovely, angsty, slashy goodness. Percy's lonely. So is Neville. You can pretty much figure the rest, can't you? :)

Rating: PG. Just in case. (There's one kiss, folks.)

Warnings: SLASH. As in male/male romance. There's also a slight age difference. Percy/Neville stuff, y'know. Flames will be used to light Hagrid's woodstove. If you don't like SLASH, simple, don't read it.

Chapter: This is the second chapter, called Chaos. Probably last. Might be a sequel, dunno yet.

.~*~.

Neville had run.
Breathing sharply, Neville stopped himself just inside the Entrance Hall doors and gasped for air.
Why did I run? He asked himself, stopping to consider his actions for the first time. I thought... I thought that was what I wanted to happen?
Neville couldn't answer that.
Oh god... what did I just do?
His eyes went a little wider, and he peeked out the doors. All he could see was the very nearest cobbles and the lamp on the distant tree. Percy wasn't in the flood of light from it.
What if he... drowns himself? Neville shook his head. Percy wouldn't do that... right?
He sighed. He'd already done the damage. Curse stupidity, curse being scared, curse me.... He then proceeded up to Gryffindor tower, where he went to bed early. And slept in late.

Dean and Seamus supposed that it was because he'd seen Ginny following another boy. They didn't question him, just let him sleep.
Neville thought it would be odd if he asked if Ron's older brother was still there, so when he removed himself from his hiding place shortly after lunch, he dissolved into a fit of tears.
This time for a completely different reason.
He sat there, sort of in his dress robes, which had gone crooked from his fitful sleep. He didn't hear Seamus coming in behind him.
"...Neville?"
The boy looked up, tearstains in his eyes. Seamus opened his mouth, but nothing came out, so he closed it again. He tried again. "Neville," the boy closed his eyes for a few seconds. "Is this... about Ginny?"
Neville looked up again sharply. He had all but forgotten the girl.
"N–no," he answered, stuttering like an idiot. He didn't particularly care anymore, however.
"Then... what...? I – er – brought you lunch...." Seamus handed him a napkin with two slices of toast in it. The boy muttered a thanks and bit into one. Seamus didn't question him further, just left.

During dinner, not feeling hungry, Neville went down to the empty common room with his Herbology book, sighing. Reading about plants always made him feel better.
But he couldn't concentrate. By the time the first students returned, he had completely given up, and the book was across the room, dangerously close to the fireplace, where he had thrown it.
"Neville," Hermione sat next to him on the couch, looking concerned. "Are you okay?"
He gave her a look that told her he obviously wasn't. "If this isn't about Ginny, why are you...?"
"You wouldn't understand," he snapped, sounding more severe than normal, and Hermione jumped, bitten by that remark. There were very few things she didn't understand, and Neville was now one of them. She didn't say another word, and left when she saw Ron glaring at Neville because Hermione was sitting next to him.

When lessons started again, Neville got constantly yelled at by teachers for his slow, sad attitude. Dean and Seamus took it upon themselves to keep an eye on him, and Neville always pretended to be asleep to make them go away. He didn't like how they watched him so carefully.

In February, Neville noticed how Harry, Ron, and Hermione talked late into the night, looking for something, anything, that would help them. By the end of the month, the three were spending hours in the Library.
Then it was just Harry. Ron and Hermione seemed to have disappeared.
Then the second task was there, and Neville nervously seated himself far back in the Gryffindor crowd. Percy was there, judging for Crouch. Once, when all the champions were down in the lake, Percy looked up at the crowd behind him. Neville sunk so low in his seat that he thought he'd fall out of it, and Dean raised an eyebrow from next to him. Percy didn't look back at the crowd again.
Harry came up last, bringing with him not one, but two people. Ron and some girl. Neville wondered who she was, but soon realized who from Fleur's wild yelling. Percy, now soaked because he had gone out into the lake to help Harry get Ron out, was smiling and talking to Dumbledore. Then the five judges went into a small group and discussed the scoring.

Then they made their decisions, and the crowd started dispersing, going to the castle, or throwing slushy snow at each other until being chided by McGonagall. Neville was the last to leave the deserted stands, trying to stay out of sight.
And then, just as he turned to leave the stands, he stopped right in front of Percy.
The redhead, in new robes that weren't soaked, opened his mouth to say something. Neville backed away again, scared despite himself.
"Percy, I...."
"I'm sorry," the boy interrupted, looking at the slush on the ground. "I wasn't feeling right. It was stupid of me to have – I mean, you're Ron's age, and...."
Neville looked up at him, and as he was still babbling, Neville stopped him by hugging him. Percy stopped awkwardly, and stared down at the slightly shorter boy.
"What are you trying to do to me?" Percy demanded, pushing him away. "Once, you run, and now you're...."
Percy shook his head and turned to leave. "Wait!" cried Neville, and he came closer again.
"What do you want?" Percy asked, his voice hinting at hysterics. Neville heard the tone of voice and backed down.
"Never mind," he sighed. Percy left. Neville kicked the Quidditch stadium with his foot as hard as he could. Then he scrambled around, trying to keep his balance with an aching foot.

He struggled in his studies, not quite as bad as before, but more hollow than he had ever felt. He asked Harry when the next task was, as he couldn't remember, and then wrote himself a note on a slip of paper, which he promptly lost. That was fine, however; the date of the next task was probably his last chance to set something right, and Neville could remember it easily.
March rolled around. Then April. Then May. Then June came, and Neville was more scattered by had a clearer mind than normal. He sometimes climbed onto the roof of Gryffindor tower, and just looked up at the stars or the moon. And sometimes he did this in rain just to feel cold.
Then June 24th came, the day he'd been both dreading and waiting for. He couldn't explain it; he wanted to see Percy there, but would rather be doing something else. He liked Percy but was very, very scared of him and what he would think.
The last task was a maze, which could've easily been seen from springtime onwards. Neville watched the students filing into the stands. He sat up near the front, directly behind the judges, trying to appear braver than he felt. Percy didn't look at him when he came up to his seat with the other judges.
The champions started into the maze, and it was silent except for the whispering of people in the crowd. Occasionally Neville could see spells being cast above the high hedges, but most of the time they saw nothing. He watched the back of Percy's head, feeling somewhat out-of-place.
Percy was talking quietly to Dumbledore and Bagman, while Maxime and Karkaroff just listened. Just once, while Percy was turned to his left, talking to Bagman, Neville thought he saw the boy's eyes glance his way. But Neville supposed it was just wishful thinking, and stared at his shoes for a bit.
They saw a cloud of red sparks, and McGonagall, atop a hippogriff that Hagrid had let her borrow, rescued Krum from the maze. Neville thought he heard Hermione in frantics behind him. Karkaroff left the stands clutching his arm and didn't return.
They brought Fleur out too. Now only Cedric and Harry were in the maze. Madame Maxime looked disappointed.

What seemed like hours passed. Dumbledore allowed them to walk around, as long as they stayed outside and away from the maze. Percy and Neville looked at one another for a second, and Neville walked down the row of seats to ease himself into a conversation between a Hufflepuff and three Gryffindors. He nervously listened, and then sighed and went back to his seat, feeling awkward. Percy was still talking to Dumbledore. When their conversation ended, Dumbledore urged him to talk to some students.
Percy nodded and stood, looking over Neville's head at the crowd. He was looking for his mum and Bill, but couldn't seem to find them.
Neville sighed and kept his eyes averted, and finally moved away to a different, empty place at the top of the stands. He couldn't see anyone walking past on the rows underneath him, but he was alone to think what he wanted to think.
He leaned on the wood and looked out. He was very high up, and felt dizzy if looked down, so he looked out at the forest. He was so absorbed in this that he didn't hear Percy coming up behind him.

"Oh... hi, Neville," Percy said, and the other boy jumped, banged his head on the wood, and, embarrassed, turned.
"Hello Percy," he said, leaning back against the wood, trying to appear not as nervous as he felt. He wasn't doing too well, as Percy's eyes landed on his shaking hands.
"Um... how are you?" Percy asked very formally, and he crossed his arms.
Gods, Percy, what are you trying to accomplish? Percy asked himself. Wanting to talk to him but pushing him away?
"Okay," Neville answered, the corner of his mouth twitching. His eyes were still glued to the floor.
Percy inwardly urged himself to say something. "Looks like Hogwarts is guaranteed victory in the Triwizard Tournament, now," he said, racking his brains for more to babble on about so there wasn't such large gaps of silence.
"Mmhmm." Neville was still very nervously eyeing anything but the boy in front of him.
Think, Percy, think!
"Er... Neville... I've been thinking...." He stopped. How in the world was he going to phrase this?
The younger boy looked up at him for the first time since he'd came up on the stands. Neville's eyes were slightly red, and he was biting his lip very forcefully.
There was silence. "Yes...?" Neville wanted Percy to keep talking, then he himself wouldn't have to come up with something to say.
"I don't know." Percy ran his hand through his hair, sighing, trying to think of some way to say this. Neville's eyes followed his hand. "I don't know what I'm supposed to say... I mean, I'm scared as you are, and I don't know what to do because I don't know what you want me to do...."
Neville's mouth opened and he stood straighter. He watched Percy silently, closing his mouth since he couldn't think of any way to respond to that. "What do you want me to do?" the redhead asked him, worry in his eyes.
"I... don't know...."
Please, Percy thought. Please, please don't say you want me to stay away....
"I can go if you want me to," Percy said, taking a step backwards. He was unconsciously saying the exact thing Neville had said one day less than six months ago.
"No, please don't," Neville whispered, reaching a hand out to Percy. "I don't know what I want to do either, but please, please don't leave again."
Neville hugged Percy, feeling extremely lost, but not quite alone. Percy was with him. And maybe he didn't mind that Neville loved him.
I love him? Neville realized for the first time. He nervously shivered inwardly, and Percy held onto him so he wouldn't fall. Then the boy realized something else. Percy wasn't pushing him away.
The brown-haired fourth year looked up into Percy's face. Percy was about four inches taller than he was, but if he stood on tip-toes....
Percy and Neville knew what was happening, and they both let it happen. Percy sank onto a bench, and Neville sat in his lap, and they kissed.
Percy felt hands keeping them close, felt them in his hair, trying to get him closer. Neville felt Percy's light touch keeping him there, not shoving him away, but making him feel less alone. Their lips worked together, although without very much experience on either boy's part.
They stayed like that for about a minute, and then they stopped for air. Both were very red. Neville, feeling heat going to his ears, looked up at Percy, who gave him a weak smile. But it wasn't a fake smile like the ones Ginny gave him, no, it was a real smile, worth a million other ones. In return, Neville smiled back and leaned against Percy again. He felt like he'd never be lost again, and hoped that that wasn't too far from the truth.

And then it happened. Percy and Neville, having sat together in silence for a few minutes, heard screaming, and both jumped up and looked over the edge of the stands to see what it was.
Neville could just barely see Harry and Cedric before they were surrounded by students and teachers. Cedric wasn't moving, and Harry was clutching him tightly, not willing to let go, although the portkey he had practically thrown away from him.
Percy's mouth opened, and he looked back at Neville. "I've got to go help them," he whispered. "I'll be back, Neville."
Neville nodded and followed him out onto the field, the pit of his stomach feeling like someone had flipped it over.
Oh god, Percy told himself. Cedric's dead.
"Someone get help!" "Diggory's dead!!" "Get Madame Pomfrey!"
Moody broke the crowd, helping Harry up and taking him back towards the castle. Dumbledore's white eyebrows lowered and he muttered something to McGonagall, who looked very surprised. They turned to Snape, who was clutching his arm and cringing. As soon as the words had come out of Dumbledore's mouth, Snape's eyes widened and he ran ahead of them towards the castle. Percy turned and was facing Neville again, and he shuddered.
"Did you hear what he said?!" someone was shrieking. "You-Know-Who's back!!"
Percy gaped for a few seconds, and he and Neville exchanged equal looks of horror, having heard the same thing at the same time, Percy put and hand on the other's back and led him out of the chaos, to a clear patch of ground. They could still hear hysterical girls screaming things back and forth.
"Diggory's dead!" "He's back!" "Harry killed Cedric!"
Percy saw Ron and Hermione running back to the castle, terrified. The Ravenclaw Seeker, Chang, she was sobbing openly.
Neville and Percy shivered, and the older boy put a comforting hand over Neville's hand. He squeezed it twice reassuringly, and Neville gave a small smile.

Percy could remember the terrible times when Voldemort was in control of everything and everyone.
He knew that it was going to happen again.

.~*~.

Review, please. :)