You and Neville had been friends since your first year of Hogwarts. You were both placed in Gryffindor house and you noticed that he wasn't talking to anyone so you had introduced yourself. You always believed in being there for others.
You two became best friends and in your third year, you developed a crush on him. You liked him for his honesty. You liked that he was always there for his friends. And you just loved that you could trust him with anything. You tried to show it, but he always passed it off as an act of friendship. You never thought he would like you. It seemed as if he was oblivious to everything. You didn't give up though.
In your sixth year, you discovered that he had developed a thing for Luna Lovegood. You were hurt and decided to tell him how you felt. You thought maybe if you did he would say he liked you back. Or maybe he would just tell you that he never really liked Luna. You invited him to meet you at the Black Lake.
You were pacing back and forth figuring out how you would go about it. You had no idea. You just figured to get it out in the open as soon as possible and pray he felt the same. You didn't know what you would do if he didn't.
"You said you needed to talk to me?" Neville asked, walking up next to you.
"Neville, i need to tell you how i feel," you said, taking a deep breath for confidence.
You couldn't believe you were actually doing this. But you were a Gryffindor. You had bravery and strength. This was one of those times where you had to show it.
"How do you feel, Y/N?" He asked, confused.
It didn't shock you that he didn't understand what you had meant. It almost made you smile. But then you remembered the severity of the situation.
You sighed.
"I like you, Neville. As more than a friend. and i have for a while now," you admitted.
"Oh, Y/N," Neville said nervously, "I only see you as a friend. I like Luna."
You felt your heart break and tears threatened to spill. You held them back and just nodded. If you spoke, you were sure that you'd cry. So you remained silent and fought back tears.
"Maybe we shouldn't be friends anymore," Neville said, walking away.
That hurt more than anything. You didn't care that he didn't like you back. You didn't care that he liked Luna. You didn't care that you would never be with him. You cared that he didn't want to be friends anymore. You cared that the only person you could truly trust just walked away from you. You cared that someone important just walked out of your life.
You couldn't hold your tears back anymore. They flowed freely down your cheeks. Hermione and Ginny walked down to where you were.
"Are you okay?" Hermione asked.
"Neville just told us what happened," Ginny explained.
"I just lost my best friend," you sobbed.
They held you and comforted you until you managed to pull yourself together. You wiped away your tears and held your head high.
"See? Gryffindor," Hermione said.
"Yeah. I just have to be strong," you nodded.
"And we're always here if you need us," Ginny reminded.
Then things got more hectic in Hogwarts. Dumbledore had been killed and Snape became headmaster, allowing death eaters to infiltrate the school. Harry, Ron, and Hermione were fugitives for fighting against Voldemort. You were stuck in Hogwarts.
You, being the kind to fight when angry, were constantly getting beaten and cursed by the staff. You had the words "I must change" engraved on the back of your hand from the magic quill you had been forced to use as punishment. Ginny had introduced you to the DA, Dumbledore's Army. You were one of it's most contributing members.
When the battle of Hogwarts approached, you were fighting hard. You were angry and had it all bottled up inside you.
"Expelliarmus!" You heard.
Your wand was blown out of your hand and lost in the crowd. You turned to see a death eater behind you. They aimed their wand and you prepared for your death.
There was a flash and the death eater was paralyzed. You quickly picked up their wand and you looked to see who had helped you. You saw Neville. You felt pain in your heart, but you shook it off.
"Thanks, Longbottom," you said.
Neville seemed hurt, but he ran off somewhere. Just as he disappeared, the battle had stopped. Harry's limp body was easily seen as Hagrid carried it. You felt worry and fear seep through you.
Neville spoke up and you smiled at his speech. You were proud that he had spoken up and you felt strong again. He met your eyes and smiled back.
He killed Nagini as the surviving Harry fought off Voldemort. You watched Neville fall to the ground with the sword of Gryffindor in his hand. You ran over and offered him a hand to help him up. He smiled at you and took it. You pulled him to his feet just as the Death Eaters ran off.
"Harry did it!" You exclaimed.
"We all did it," Neville's corrected.
He pulled you into a tight hug, nuzzling into your neck.
"I've missed you, Y/N," He said.
You didn't respond. Neville took the wand out of your hand and threw it to the ground. He took your hands in his.
"I made a mistake on the Lake that day," he began, "I chose someone who didn't like me as more than a friend and someone i barely knew over someone who loved me for everything i am and someone who i knew better than anyone."
You looked into his eyes.
"I love you Y/N. And i should've never walked away," he said.
You kissed his cheek gently.
"I forgive you," you said.
You both smiled and Neville kissed you deeply. You pulled away and went to find all of your friends hand-in-hand.
You had definitely won that day.
