A/N: Thanx a lot to all who reviewed!

New Neighbor

Chapter 15

'Damn it, Sirius, you were all I had left!' Harry mentally screamed as he slammed the back of his head against the wall he was leaning against. Pain shot through his neck and shoulders but Harry felt some of his rage dissipate.

Yes, it had been over a year since Sirius' death. But to Harry it was still as fresh as the day his uncle was lost.

'Sirius! You didn't tell me coming back here would be so hard!'

'He can't hear you, he's GONE for the millionth time!'

'Shut UP!'

'And he wasn't all you had left. Look around yourself, idiot! There are plenty of people who care for you, you're just too ruddy thick to figure that out!'

'I said, shut UP!'

Still angry, Harry surrendered to his thoughts and leaned up against a statue.

'Maybe there are people who care for me, but it's not like they would ever understand what it's like.'

'You've never given them a chance to understand.'

'They can't understand. They weren't there.'

Harry shut his eyes, trying to block out the memories. So much evil, so many lives lost. If only he could've fulfilled the prophecy sooner…

Harry kept his eyes closed, afraid a tear might escape. Preventing any images from entering his mind, Harry sighed, exhausted. He'd better go, as it was past curfew and he owed Hermione and Ron an apology.

As he stood up, he heard a jarring noise, the sound of a door creaking open. Suspecting a teacher and not wanting to be caught, or for that matter, congratulated, he squeezed behind the statue he'd been leaning against.

"Stupid boy, that was not your place," a voice whispered. Harry frowned. It wasn't a voice he was familiar with. It was a feminine voice though, that was for sure. He peered out and saw two figures at the end of the corridor, one tall, one short.

"Don't be wandering around, and for goodness sakes don't talk to her!" the shorter one continued. Harry squinted, but couldn't decipher who the figures were. He made a mental note to clean his glasses the next time he had a chance.

"Nothing will come of it, I was merely making relations." Harry's eyes widened. Malfoy?

The shorter one sighed in exasperation.

"Still, I expect you to follow the… rules."

"As you wish," Malfoy drawled, turning to leave, "goodnight, then."

The short figure hushed him and watched him go. Then she looked around, as if checking to see if anyone had heard. Harry felt her gaze and squeezed as far as he could behind the statue.

The form turned away and pulled out her wand. She flicked it, and Harry wondered what spell she had cast. Opening a door, the short silhouette disappeared.

After a minute past, Harry inched out from behind the statue and headed back the way he'd come.

'Strange,' he thought, 'I wonder what Malfoy is doing this time.'

After Lucius Malfoy had been detained two years prior, Draco Malfoy seemed to disappear from the limelight. He was quieter, and didn't seem as arrogant or boastful as he had once been. However, Harry and his friends still suspected he'd done that as not to be discovered working with the forces of Voldemort. No one had ever been able to pin anything on him or the rest of his family, which Harry considered more than suspicious.

'Should I tell Dumbledore?' he wondered.

No, the war is over. What can Malfoy do? Plus, it's not as if Dumbledore would take him seriously anyway.

Disregarding Malfoy and whoever he'd been with lightly, Harry soon was able to reach the Gryffindor common room without being caught be a teacher.

As he entered, he saw that only one person remained. And when he saw Harry, Neville leaped up and ran to him.

"Harry, have you seen Kira?" he asked worriedly.

"No, I haven't."

"Oh gosh, Gran's gonna kill me if she's lost," he mumbled, scratching at his head.

"Er," Harry said intelligently, wanting to get off the subject, "she could already be in bed, you know."

"No, I haven't seen her since she left and I've been in the common room the entire time!"

Harry furrowed his brow, wondering about Kira. Nothing could've happened to her… right?

"Relax, Neville…" Harry said, trying to reassure himself.

Neville wrung his hands. A moment later, his expression changed to one of resolve.

"I've got to go look for her," Neville said determinately, and headed towards the door.

Harry watched him go, wondering if he should accompany him.

'Calm down, Neville's not the klutz he used to be. Besides, she's not your responsibility.'

And with that resolution in his mind, Harry forced himself to go up the stairs to the Boys Dormitories, no matter how much it hurt him.

XXXXXXXXXX

'Gah, Gran'll kill me!' Neville thought worriedly as his small eyes searched the corridor. He'd been searching for half an hour, with no sign of his friend. But three corridors later, he heard something.

"Mmmph!"

"Hello?" inquired Neville, searching the hallway.

"Neville?" Kira's voice called. Neville looked to his left. In the middle of a stairwell stood Kira. Upon further inspection, Neville saw that her right foot had sunk into the step almost up to her knee.

"What happened?" asked Neville and he ascended the stairwell.

Kira frowned in annoyance, "a small, floating man came up right as I was heading back to Gryffindor Tower! He threatened to tell a teacher I was out so late, but I protested. So then he did this!" She motioned towards her sunken foot.

Neville tried to hide his smile.

"I'll bet it was Peeves, Kira. He's always trolling 'round these halls at night."

"Peeves?"

"A jokester who lives at Hogwarts. Likes to pull pranks on people, students and staff alike. He's done it to me plenty of times. Wish Dumbledore would just kick him out."

"Well, with all this new knowledge in this head of mine, I don't know a single charm to de-sink my leg!" the blonde exclaimed angrily.

"Hold on for a second," Neville said, thinking. His expression lightened, a solution had come to him.

"Garlipilus," he murmured, and a silver mist drifted from his wand. The mist, surrounded Kira's leg. Seconds later, Kira was standing normally, no longer attached to the floor.

"Thank you, Neville," giving him a quick hug, "let's go back now, alright?"

Neville nodded, proud that he'd been able to help.

They walked in silence down the corridors for a few minutes before they heard a bump followed by a meow.

"Mrs. Norris!" whispered Neville, terrified. He frantically looked around before he spotted a painting down the way.

"This way," he whispered frantically, pulling her towards the painting.

Kira, well aware of who Mrs. Norris was, obediently followed. He pulled out his wand and tapped at a green vase within the painting. He mumbled a few words and the painting dissolved, revealing a wide tunnel. They ran inside, but Neville, too preoccupied with escaping from Mrs. Norris and playing the "hero" in the current situation, stumbled on the ledge and fell forward, landing violently on the hard floor. He cried out but Kira had already placed a silencing charm on the now-present painting.

Neville sat up, holding onto his nose. Kira squatted beside him.

"Are you alright, Neville?" she asked anxiously.

Neville pulled his hand away and wiggled his nose about.

"Don't think it's broken," he mumbled, squinting down at his nose.

Kira giggled at his crossed eyes and stood. She helped him off the hard floor and asked, "how did you know to come in here?"

"Oh, um, you know Ron Weasley?"

Kira nodded.

"His older brothers, Fred and George once tried to pull and prank on McGonagall, but I actually walked into the trap instead," he flushed, "after my skin sprouted green fur, Fred and George apparently heard someone coming and yanked me into this tunnel."

He saw Kira stifle a laugh and he blushed again.

"Well how do we get back from here?"

"Uh, it's kind of long, but I think I know the way," said Neville, furrowing his brow, trying to remember.

Kira raised her eyebrow skeptically but followed him when he started down the tunnel.

XXXXXXXXXX

"They set your Gran's hat on fire?!" Kira exclaimed, clutching her stomach with laughter.

Neville grinned, "yeah, but they suffered Gran's wrath afterwards."

Kira smiled, "that is too funny."

They'd been walking for fifteen minutes, and Neville still insisted he knew the way. Kira decided to go with it.

After a few moments of silence, Kira asked, "Neville? What's up with Harry Potter?"

Kira watched him gulp out of the corner of her eye.

"Uh, what do you mean?"

"Oh, come now. I can't be the only one who notices that he is a total hermit!"

Neville didn't saw anything for a minute, just gulped a few times.

"Well, er, he's gone through a lot, Harry has."

"Like what?" persisted Kira, determined for answers.

"Uh, haven't your aunt and uncle told you about--"

"About what, Neville! Honestly, whatever it is, I think I can handle it. Tell me!" she insisted.

So Neville told her.

XXXXXXXXXX

"That's lunacy, Neville," Kira said breathlessly from the hard floor on which she sat. Neville was seated beside her, still uneasy, but not as uncomfortable as he had been at the beginning of their chat.

"I know…"

Kira put her head in her hands and sighed.

"He went through all that?"

"It's not as if he was the only one… But yes, he went through all that."

"Did-- did you go through any of that, Neville?" the blonde asked timidly. Neville tensed.

"Uh, yeah. Well, I-- I tried to help some. But a lot of people died anyway," he said with a twinge of anger, "a lot of people."

"But how can one man, like Volde--" Kira stopped because she saw Neville wince, "uh… how can one man like You-Know-Who be so powerful? His whole life seems like one of a dark fairytale or something."

"Fairytale?"

"Yes, fairytale… A false story."

"Yeah, they're kind of similar. But no doubt, it happened. At the price of…" Neville's voice faltered, "a lot."

Kira purposely overlooked the discrete sense of loss in his voice and continued, "why was Harry 'the one' who had to stand up to Vol-- I mean, You-Know-Who?"

"Nobody knows… I think. Harry found out some stuff in our 5th year. A prophecy, but I didn't hear it."

"Oh… Poor Harry," she murmured, "I never knew."

Neville didn't say anything for a moment. When he did, his tone was curious.

"Remember on the train? Harry told me you two knew each other before Hogwarts. Might I ask how?"

"No," the blonde answered all too quickly, "I mean, we were just neighbors."

"And?"

"There is no 'and'," Kira snapped, "we just knew each other, that's all. We saw each other around the neighborhood. Goodness, it's like you're… you're suggesting something…"

"Is there anything to suggest?"

"No!" she replied. Neville didn't say anything.

"There isn't!" she continued, determined to convince him.

"I didn't say there was, Kira."

"So? You were suggesting it."

Neville laughed.

"C'mon, we need to get back to Gryffindor tower," he stood and reached down to help her up, "and now that you know about the war and all, you've got something to sleep on."

XXXXXXXXXX

"Told you I'd get us back here," boasted Neville when they entered the empty common room. The fireplace was almost dark, glowing red sparks the only remnant of what had once burned brightly.

"Yes, but we wouldn't have gotten back anyhow if I hadn't remembered the password," Kira taunted. Neville flushed.

"Well, I'm off to bed," Kira said, turning towards the girl's dormitories.

"Kira?"

"Yes, Neville?"

"How are you going to explain to Seamus why you ran out on him tonight?"

Kira opened her mouth in protest, "I didn't run out on him--"

Neville raised an eyebrow and it was Kira's turn to flush.

"He really fancies you Kira, it's obvious. You are going to make amends with him, aren't you?"

Kira giggled, her eyes twinkling in the dying light, "we'll have to wait and see, won't we?"

Neville rolled his eyes and climbed the left stairwell.

A/N: So here's chapter 15. And just to let you guys know, chapter 16 is well under way! Lol, I'm good aren't I?

Sorry if you guys thought this chapter was a bit boring, but the content was necessary.

As always, PLEASE REVIEW!