The Lion and the Eagle |Neville Longbottom|

39. "You Chose Me, and I Chose You."

I wasn't sure who was more nervous: myself or Neville.

It was good to be together again for something that didn't require running from Death Eaters. Mum had made more than enough food for four people. There was little conversation about Auror work, to which I was sure brought Neville relief.

No, instead, we had to talk about my younger years. Neville kept throwing tales of his own past to help ease my obvious discomfort. At times, I wasn't entirely sure, but I thought I felt his fingers try to reach for mine under the table.

It's an unspoken thing. The Death Eaters saw it long before we had the talk. I don't think our feelings have changed since. But we haven't brought it out into the open, either. Really, this felt like Neville's first time meeting my parents though he had met them before.

Maybe I was freaking out a little too much. Maybe Dad's words hadn't left my mind. Sweetheart, that boy likes you. As someone who's been married for a while, I know what love looks like.

How far back did it go? When did Neville's protection of me become more from feelings than Auror duty? If I'm bold enough, I may get those answers.

Even though dinner had long been done, we never migrated out into the living room. Conversation was all held at the kitchen table. Since we hadn't moved, we'd lost track of time. Neville was the one to take notice.

"I'll walk you out," I told him.

The December air had a bitter chill. The clouds threatened snow...or maybe it was just a cloudy night.

"So, here we are again," I sighed.

"Yeah," Neville said awkwardly. "I guess so."

"Since everything is settled with me, that means you can get back to usual Auror business. Keeping the peace and all that."

"Yeah, I suppose."

"Do you think we'll see each other again? I mean, you'll probably be busy catching Dark wizards. I'll work on repairing the pieces of my life, again." I frowned.

"Who knows? Fate has a way of bringing people together." He shrugged.

"You think it was fate that made all this happen?" I asked, inching forward. Ah, snow it was. Flakes started to trickle down slightly from the sky, catching my hair. "I hope not, because fate seems to hate my life."

"I don't think it hates you entirely, there are some bright spots."

Yes, one of them is you. It sounded too sappy to say out loud. "I better get back inside."

I didn't know why I did it. Maybe it was some kind of impulse. Whatever the reason, I hugged Neville. I thought he would've pulled away, but he did the opposite. He gave in, hugging me back.

"Tell Ron and Hermione I said 'hey' the next time you see them. Tell the others the same, even though I didn't get to meet them all," I said.

"I will. Speaking of Ron and Hermione, they told me a roundabout date for their wedding. They're still arguing over a late summer, early fall timing for next year. Regardless, they are allowing plus ones. I was hoping maybe you'd want to be mine?"

"S-sure." I didn't know what was going through my mind today, but I was doing all sorts of unusual things. I kissed Neville's cheek quickly, and he went red. "Goodbye," I whispered. I turned back and headed for the door.

"Wait, Jenelle!" Neville called.

I stopped, my hand hovering over the door knob. I turned to see Neville had closed the distance between us in three strides. "Neville, what—?" I never had the chance to ask my question, because my lips were too occupied. My heart raced and heat spread through me along with electricity, my eyes completely shut.

Neville seemed really cautious about it, taking his time. He was no horrible kisser.

My lips burned in a good way when we finally broke apart.

"I-I didn't mean to!" Neville stammered. "Honest, it was just—"

I kissed him back softly, shutting him up. His arms snaked around my waist. This feeling right here, I didn't want to forget. "You meant to."

"I must be dreaming."

"What makes you say that?"

"You're one of the prettiest girls I've ever met. One of the fiercest. It just...it almost seems too good to be true."

"You don't give yourself enough credit, Neville. This is not some dream, or delusion. You chose me, and I chose you."

Neville gave a crooked smile. "This seems like such an odd pairing."

"In what sense?" I asked.

"Well, if we were still in school, it'd be a Ravenclaw and Gryffindor. It's rare for people in different Houses to date."

"But we're not in school."

"It was still a thought."

"So what would that be considered? A Ravendor or Gryffinclaw relationship?"

"Well since you brought up the fair point of us not being in school, it'd be neither."

"Aw, come on. Oh! Wait, I think I got one! It'd be a lion and eagle dating."

"What?" Neville scoffed.

"Do I need to explain it?"

"No. It just sounds odd, the way you put it."

"So, maybe you can pop in for a visit in the near future?" I asked. "I don't want to keep you too much longer. I'm sure you've had a long day and want some time to relax."

"Just tell me when I can."

"Well, I need to go back to the Three Broomsticks and see if they'll take me back. I'm not sure if being on the run from Death Eaters is considered a reasonable excuse for not coming to work. But I'll do that early tomorrow. If you feel up to it after work, stop by. You know where my house is, so—"

"I get the picture."

I gave Neville one more hug before he Disapparated.

Dad gave me a triumphant look when I got back into the house. Mum stopped in the kitchen entrance to cast looks between Dad and me.

"Not a word," I told him.

"Ooh, Jen, I'm so happy for you!" Mum exclaimed. "You should invite him for Christmas!"

"Mum, that's coming up awful fast. We...we just got together."

"He got over the big hurdle of meeting your father and me. We like him. Invite him and his family!"

"Okay, okay," I said, laughing. "I'll make sure to bring it up the next time I see him."

Which, hopefully, would be soon.