Nothing But You // N. Longbottom

Twelve: Hogwarts Changes

As the school year had come to an end, and in Albus Dumbledore's absence, Norvina Evergreen and Neville Longbottom had much to be excited about; the summer.

From the darkness that seemingly dwelled on school grounds, the duo had high hopes that getting away for the summer would do them both some good. 

As the pair boarded the train home, they were eager to sit next to each other, as tradition. As they sat down, they sat side by side. 

"It's been such a long year, Nev." Norvina spoke, looking out the train window. She watched as the castle quickly disappeared and the only thing that was visible was waves of blue and rolling hills of green.

"Yeah," Neville spoke as he looked down at his lap, "but this summer will be amazing, I just know it." Neville grasped Norvina's hand, giving it a comforting squeeze. Norvina smiled at this, and met Neville's eyes.

"I hope so," Norvina spoke with a smile, before smirking, "my Dad is so excited to see us. He said he has a lot of work to do over the summer, but that he will try to spend as much time with us as he can."

"Oh," Neville smiles to himself, "that shouldn't be a problem."

X

When Neville and Norvina arrived at the train station, Timothy Evergreen rushed to meet them, as did Neville's grandmother, Augusta Longbottom. Augusta had brought Neville's things in a small bag that had the extension charm.

"Have fun, my dears." Augusta handed the boy the bag, and smiled at the young couple. 

"Of course, Gram." Neville spoke, as he smiled at the woman who had raised him and then turned to a very giddy Norvina. He sent her a smile, letting her know it was okay to leave now.

As the couple turned to leave, Augusta quickly pulled Neville in. This sudden movement caused Norvina to let out a surprised sigh. What was she going to tell him?

"Take care of her, will you? Don't let anything happen to her, she's a good one." The woman whispered in his ear, and sending a friendly wink towards the girl.

"Of course, Gram. Nobody is going to hurt her." Neville quickly replied, in the same hushed whisper as his grandmother. With a smile, they pulled away.

"Well, you two best be off. Have a great summer!" Augusta spoke loudly, waving at them as they apparated back to the Evergreen household, "Please write to me more often, young man!"

"Wow, your house is beautiful." Neville spoke in awe. He had never seen Norvina's house despite the fact that they had been best friends for six years and dating for about three. They had always gone to Neville's house, for Christmas and for holidays. This was a first.

"Thank you, Mr. Longbottom," Timothy spoke, placing his things on the kitchen table, "I'll let you two get settled and unpack. That should take a while, considering that little bag is holding more than I own." Timothy smiled as he spoke.

Norvina led Neville up the stairs and to her bedroom, one of the only two bedrooms in the house. Neville's heart thumped in his chest, he didn't know he'd be sleeping in her bedroom. 

"This is my room," Norvina spoke as she opened her door, "I have a queen bed so there should be plenty of room for the both of us." Neville's eyes were drawn to her bed, a beautiful quilt of white and green.

Neville scanned over her room, seeing herbology posters scattered over her walls, with spell pages stuck to walls and books everywhere. He felt more at home, seeing how similar their rooms were.

"You like what you see?" Norvina asked, watching her boyfriend analyze her entire room. She wondered what he was thinking, if he thought she was too messy or maybe too green. 

"Of course I do. I didn't realize we had such similar interior design skills." Norvina laughed, walking over to her boyfriend and placing her arms around his shoulders.

"I guess we'll have to design more things, huh?" Norvina spoke, standing on her tippy toes to bring his face closer to hers. 

"That's an offer I'll have to take you up on." Neville smiled as he spoke, his hands resting on the small of her back and her neck.

"Right now? Mr. Longbottom, my father is just downstairs!" Norvina joked playfully, feeling the warmth of his hands on her body. She loved the way his hands felt on her body, and she regretted ever letting him stop. 

"That never stopped us before-" Neville spoke confidently, making Norvina's stomach swirl. 

"Nev!"

The pair laughed, being happy for the first time since they had left Hogwarts.

X

As quickly as the summer came, the fall followed which meant it was time to go back to Hogwarts for the final year. Timothy had spoken to the pair, urging them to be careful and to try to keep to themselves. And if at all possible, keep the rest of the kids safe.

Boarding the train felt surreal, knowing it was the last and final time made Norvina's heart skip a beat. She knew Neville felt the same. Hogwarts was their home. 

"I can't believe it's our last year..." Norvina spoke, looking over at Neville. She couldn't mistake the dark circles under his eyes, knowing how much worry he had been experiencing about this year. He was scared of what would happen now, but he knew he had to be strong. For her.

"Hopefully it will be good." Neville spoke, trying to cheer up his worried girlfriend.

"I wouldn't get your hopes up, Neville. Some people were saying that the death eaters are going to be in charge this year." Ginny spoke from the other side of the train. Norvina looked at Neville, begging for the information to not be true.

As Neville was going to calm her down, the train comes to a complete stop. Norvina's hand finds Neville's in a panic. Neville takes Norvina into his arms, reaching for his wand. They were not at Hogwarts, so why were they stopped? 

As the death eaters entered the train, they searched each and every cabin. They were looking for Harry Potter.

"Hey losers," Neville spoke, standing from his seat, "he isn't here."

X

The welcoming feast was not at all welcoming. Snape was announced to be the new headmaster, making both Neville and Norvina shiver. Without Dumbledore to keep the man in check, they knew that Snape had nothing holding him back from being cruel.

"This year," Snape spoke with absolutely zero emotion in his voice, "there will be changes."

The only thing that was worse than that was the fact the Carrows were in charge of discipline and were set to teach a majority of the classes. The staff looked horrified, knowing what the death eaters were going to do with that power; abuse it.

Norvina looked at Neville and he took his hand in hers, both of them hoping that they would wake up from this nightmare. But, they never did.