Author note: Hello there, another chapter for you!

This one took a little longer than I anticipated but school has been keeping me busy so apologies for the delay.

I really hope you enjoy and please review- they honestly make me so happy!

Stay safe, stay healthy and remember- keep smiling , you beautiful humans xx

Ebony jerked awake, panting and holding her hands over her ears to block out the screams that weren't really there. She rubbed her eyes and took a couple of shaky breaths. She couldn't even remember who was screaming, all she remembered was her mother's wand pointed at someone that might have been her or might have been someone else. She wrapped her arms around herself. One good night's sleep was all she wanted, was that too much to ask?

She climbed out of bed to use the toilet when she noticed the date on the calendar pinned to the end of Hermione's bed. Ebony almost laughed at herself. It was her fourteenth birthday and she'd completely forgotten.

Ebony thought about how the other girls in her dorm woke up on their birthdays - small pile of presents at the foot of their beds, cards in the post. Instead, she had woken up from a nightmare, no pile of presents or cards and had only realised what day it was when she got up to piss. She was lucky if her parents even remembered it was her birthday at all.

"Happy fucking birthday." She muttered under her breath.

...

Ebony was just stumbling into the common room when Neville, who seemingly came out of nowhere, tackled her with a hug. She was so caught off guard that she lost her balance and the two of them fell behind the sofa.

"Morning to you too?"

"It's the 19th of March today," he said, his face inches away from hers, his hands either side of her head. "Happy birthday Eb," Ebony just smiled as she stared into his emerald eyes. She felt her cheeks going pink.

"You remembered?"

"Of course I did, "Do you think I'm that stupid? ," he said. Ebony was about to say that she found it interesting that he remembered a date that she didn't even remember telling him but he constantly forgot where he put his quill two minutes after he put it down but Neville saw the slight smirk on her face and got there first. "Actually, don't answer that." They both burst out laughing. Neville rolled over to sit next to her, stretching his legs out in front of him.

"Tackling someone to the ground is an interesting way to say happy birthday it has to be said." She said, elbowing him lightly.

"Not my finest moment."

"You've done worse." She snorted, "The number of times you have sent both of us tumbling down a staircase is honestly concerning." Neville just shoved her in response.

"Any presents so far?"

"You're kidding?" She said, raising her eyebrows.

"Your parents not send you anything?" He said, a slight look of surprise on his face. Ebony just laughed.

"What do you think," she said, "Honestly, I doubt that they remembered."

"Really?"

"Is it surprising?" She flopped her head against the back of the sofa. "If by some miracle they remember then they'll probably send a pile of books or something. Nothing special."

"What sort of parents don't even remember their daughter's birthday?" Ebony couldn't help but notice that he looked almost angry as he spoke.

"Seriously it's not a big deal." She said, giving her friend a small smile. "Besides, it means I can pretend they don't exist and that is a present in itself."

Neville looked like he wanted to say something else but it was just then that Seamus came down the stairs and tripped over Neville's outstretched legs, which were inconveniently right across the doorway, with a cry of, 'Bloody fuck,'

"Watch where you're putting your obnoxiously long legs, Neville." He grumbled as he picked himself up.

"You're just bitter I'm taller than you," Neville replied with a smirk.

"Only by an inch." He muttered as he walked away. The two of them just laughed.

"Well then," Neville said, slinging his arm over her shoulders, "Since it's a Saturday, I thought that we could go and hang out by the lake."

"That sounds lovely," she said beaming at him, "I've just got to drop a book off at the library first."

"Fine by me, I've got somewhere to head first anyway."

She knitted her brow as he got to his feet, "And where might that be?"

"Doesn't matter," he said helping her up. "I'll meet you down there."

Ebony just stared at him as he hurried into the portrait hole smirking.

...

Ebony was just coming out of the library when she heard someone shouting. She turned to see Draco coming towards her.

"Hey," he said, a little out of breath.

"Not got the cronies today then?"

"Piss off," he muttered, rolling his eyes.

"Sure you don't want to flush my head down a toilet?" She said, arching an eyebrow.

"That was one time."

"It was bloody disgusting." She retorted. He chewed his lip.

"I came to say happy birthday actually." He said, smiling softly at her.

"Oh," Ebony's gaze softened, "Well thanks, it's nice to know someone in my family remembered."

"You not heard anything from them?"

"It's for the best," she said with a sigh, " I doubt either of them would have anything pleasant to say."

Draco shuffled his feet for a moment before digging into his bag and hesitantly thrusting a small decorated box in her direction. "I.. err, I got you this." Ebony took it, turning the dark brown wood over in her hands. She ran her finger down the silver edge which closed with an intricate pattern in the middle. "You set up a password and no one else can open it."

She gave her cousin a smile, "Thank you, Draco."

"Its got an extension charm on it. I thought it might stop you getting in so much trouble, you know if you had a place to hide things." He said, "I don't know what you did at Christmas but I can guess you had a 'disagreement'."

Ebony shrugged, "You know how they are, I'll spare the details."

"Piss off Auntie Bella?" Ebony shook her head.

"No it was all father this time, mother had disappeared for a couple of days and he was in a grump about it."

"Really?"

"Yeah." Ebony paused for a moment, "I think my mum might be having an affair."

Draco's mouth dropped open. "What on earth makes you think that?"

"She disappeared then wouldn't tell father where she'd gone and she was in an unusually good mood, well for her anyway. Not to mention the first day she was gone dad was the drunkest I've ever seen him, its what put him in a foul mood on the first place."

"Fucking hell." He breathed.

Ebony just shrugged. "Doesn't surprise me, they've never really gotten along. Well, not in my lifetime anyway. Although, I probably don't help things."

"You could try and just tell them what they want to hear for once."

"You don't think I tried that?" She scoffed, "Makes no difference so I might as well not bring myself down to their level."

"Malfoy mate, you coming?" Ebony looked over her shoulder to see Blaine Zambini leaning against the wall near the stairs.

"I gotta go," Draco said, straightening his tie. He was just walking off when she grabbed his arm.

"Seriously though," she said, clutching the box to her chest. "Thank you."

He gave her one last smile and hurried off down the corridor.

...

Ebony made her way down to the shore of the lake, squinting her eyes in the sun. It was surprisingly warm for March, she'd already shed her cardigan on her way down. She saw Neville waving her over and walked over to where he was sitting before stopping dead in her tracks.

Laid out on a blanket was a magnificent picnic. The was a pile of sandwiches, crisps, Butterbeer, and, to top it off, a small white cake with purple flowers around the edge.

"You like it?" Neville was grinning widely, a nervous look on his face.

Ebony kept opening her mouth to speak but she couldn't get any words to come out. Neville came over and took her hand, leading her to the blanket.

Ebony was still shocked. "You...you...you did all this, for me?"

"I mean, I may have had some help for the house-elves," he said, still looking rather pleased with himself. "Hannah showed me how to get to the kitchens, which reminds me, I need to show you where they are, it's really good if you ever want a snack."

Ebony was still staring in awe at the display in front of her as she sat down. "This is quite possibly the nicest thing anyone has ever done for me." She grinned as she watched Neville blush.

"Oh, before I forget," he said, digging around in his trouser pocket. "Happy birthday Ebony." He held out a small velvet bag.

"I told you not to get me anything." She muttered, taking it from him.

"And I told you not to get me anything but you still snuck Aconite seeds and a dozen chocolate frogs into my trunk for my birthday last year."

Ebony just smiled guiltily.

"Oh, open it already." He cried, watching her with eager eyes.

She just laughed at him and slowly undid the bag and poured the contents into her hand. "Neville..." on her hand lay a small flat piece of silver about the size of the tip of her thumb. It was decorated with gold trim and hung on a thin silver chain. "It's beautiful."

Neville grinned and reached into his shirt, pulling out an identical one on a thin piece of brown leather. "They belonged to my parents, you have my mum's. They charmed them themselves, watch." He squeezed it between his thumb and forefinger and Ebony felt hers buzz in her hand. "So now, even when you can't write I'll know you're okay."

Ebony just stared at him, gobsmacked. If her parents got her birthday presents they were for the sake of presents. They were never anything she actually wanted, not that she was being ungrateful, it was more to do with the fact her parents didn't really seem to know her at all.

She looked back at the necklace in her hand. She had never been given something so thoughtful, so meaningful. It was a part of Neville's family and he had chosen her of all people to give it to. She flung her arms around his neck, clinging on and fighting the urge to cry.

"Thank you," she muffled into his chest, "thank you so much."

Neville squeezed her back and she felt him chuckle. "You're starting the hugs from now on because this is a damn good one."

She finally pulled away and held the necklace out to him, "Can you help me?" He took it and she turned around, holding her hair up.

The feeling of his fingers brushing her neck and the coolness of the chain sent shivers down her spine.

"There," he said, smoothing the collar of her shirt down.

"Are you sure I should have this?" She said, twisting it in her fingers, already loving the feel of it against her skin."I mean it was your mum's and-"

"-You're my best friend and I could think of no better person to give it to." He said firmly. "Now I don't know about you, but this food isn't going to eat itself."

Ebony couldn't stop smiling.

..

They steadily made their way through most of the food and Neville had managed to only spill his butterbeer, Ebony did have to help dry his trousers with a drying charm to save him from walking around looking like he'd peed himself.

Only the cake was left.

"All right then," Nevile said, sticking a candle in the middle of it. "Time to make a wish."

She sat and watched as he lit the end of it with his wand.

"That fact that you did that without burning anything else is honestly a miracle."

"Birthday miracle just for you," he grinned, "Now go on."

She knelt in front of it and closed her eyes and wished the first thing that came into her head.

Please never let me lose him.

...

Neville was laying on his back, squinting at the sky and Ebony was lying on her stomach. They were both in hysterics.

"I wish you could've seen Gran's face when she found the plant pots hidden under my bed."

"I thought you had a garden and a greenhouse," she said between laughs. "Why the hell were you growing Gurdyroots under your bed?"

Neville just grinned. "Because Gran said I had too many plants already, so I was trying to be sneaky."

"I really don't think she would've noticed another plant in amongst the others."

"Oh, you'd be surprised how observant that woman is."

Ebony just laughed and shook her head. Neville turned onto his side, leaning his head on his elbow.

"What's something you've done then?" Ebony thought for a moment.

"One time," she said, " I did accidental magic when I was seven. The living room had all these weird glass decorations and I sneezed and they flew off the wall and smashed."

"Blimey," he said, raising his eyebrows, "that's some powerful magic, what did your parents think?"

"That's not important." She was not about to explain that that incident had led to a night spent in the cellar.

"They really not do anything for your birthday?"

She shrugged. "They used to throw a party and invite a bunch of people round but that's just what everyone does. I guess now I'm at Hogwarts they figured they didn't need to bother anymore."

"That sucks."

"I mean a room full of my relatives when I don't have a valid reason to sneak away isn't really my idea of fun anyway," She said, propping herself up on her elbows. "Besides, I don't want to talk about them today."

"Fair enough."

"C'mon," she said, climbing to her feet. "Let's go skim stones on the lake."

"I don't know how."

She just grinned and held out her hand, "I'll show you."

...

It was almost dark by the time they got back to the common room and they both seemed ready to fall asleep. Before they parted ways at the stairs, she pulled him in for a hug.

"Thank you," she murmured into his chest, "this has by far been the best birthday I've ever had."

"Oh, just you wait until next year." She lifted her head to see him grinning. She beamed back at him.

"Goodnight Neville."

"Night Eb."

...

Ebony had just gotten into bed when she felt three small pulses against her chest and she smiled. There was something about having a way to him, a connection with him at all times that made her feel safe and comforted. A constant reminder that he was always there. She picked up the necklace and squeezed it three times.

It buzzed back - three pulses again. She sighed happily and dropped it onto her chest. The coolness of the metal felt at home on her skin, as if it had always been there.

It had most definitely been the best birthday ever.

...

Neville smiled as he tucked the necklace back into his pyjama shirt. He had had them for a while, Gran had given him them shortly after he started Hogwarts. She told him that his parents would've wanted him to have them and give the other to his best friend. He'd forgotten about them till now.

He just thought it better not to mention to her who he'd given it to. He talked about Ebony a lot to his gran at first but she either raised her eyebrows at him or changed the subject. She clearly did not approve of his choice of a friend but Neville thought she seemed more relieved that he had made a friend at all so decided to hold her tongue. Instead, he found that it was easier to just not mention who he was talking about.

Neville lay back against his pillows. He couldn't help thinking about the fact that Ebony's parents had sent nothing to their daughter at all - not even a simple card.

He knew that Ebony's relationship with her parents - or lack thereof- hurt her a lot more than she let on. She made jokes and laughed and shrugged it off but Neville could always see her eyes cloud over whenever they were mentioned. He had tried to get her to talk about them countless times but ever since the argument in the hospital wing, he was nervous about pushing her too much. He wanted to help and the last thing he wanted to do was upset her.

He could never imagine having parents that would want to hurt their child or who barely remembered them half the time. Gran was a strict woman and could be fairly scary if she wanted to but Neville knew that she loved him and just wanted the best for him, even if she struggled to show it sometimes.

That's why he wanted to make Ebony's birthday perfect. To show that no matter how useless they made her feel, she was worth so much more. And it had been worth all the effort to see her smile. She had a pretty smile, it lit up her whole face, made her eyes and nose crinkle. And it made his chest jump when he was the reason it appeared.

He would protect her, no matter what. After all, she more than deserved to be happy.