Briar and Neville were sitting in the Gryffindor common room after everything at the department of mysteries, but Briar hadn't said a word since her father apparated away. She was still in shock and completely petrified.

If Voldemort hadn't arrived when he did, she wouldn't be alive anymore.

From the relief the other members of Dumbledore's Army seemed to be feeling, Briar knew that she should be happy. She should be relieved that no one died, and everything was being set right in their world. Umbridge was being escorted from Hogwarts, many of the death eaters who were at the ministry were being sought out by aurors to be taken to Azkaban, and names were being cleared. Dumbledore was returning to Hogwarts; Sirius was a free man; and Harry was finally being trusted and respected again.

But Briar still felt as though a Hippogriff were sitting on her chest.

Neville tentatively reached a hand out and murmured, "Are you okay?"

He winced at his question, knowing that she wasn't, but he didn't know what to say to help. He had seen everything, but the purple-haired auror wouldn't let him rush back into the room to help her. He was there as soon as Voldemort apparated from the room, at her side to pull her in close, but she was limp and unresponsive to everything he said.

He couldn't imagine what it was like for Briar living with that man for 15 years.

Briar didn't respond to his question. She wasn't okay, but she didn't know how to tell him that. She still felt a horrible stabbing pain in her stomach and a haziness in her brain that made it hard for her to focus. Sitting on the couch beside Neville and staring into the crackling fire was helping, but it couldn't solve her problems or take away her trauma.

She blinked every so often and just stared into the dancing flames that threw their shadows around the room carelessly. She wondered what it would feel like to not have a care in the world. She wished she could know what it felt like to make a foolish decision and not worry about the outcome. She couldn't believe that some people just did reckless things for the sake of doing it. That was simply never an option for her.

The portrait opened swiftly, and Briar flinched hard at this. She didn't notice how she immediately reached for her wand at the noise, but Neville's eyes watered at the sight.

Professor McGonagall stepped into the common room and scanned the area before her eyes fell on Briar's slouched form on the couch. She looked at the other students in the room and announced, "All of you back to your beds at once."

She stepped closer to Briar and hesitantly murmured, "But not you, dear."

Briar just barely nodded at her Professor, her mind was still coming back to reality after the day. Her body was still starting to feel like her own again, and she knew that Neville's calm and patient presence beside her was helping tremendously.

So when Professor McGonagall tried to shoo Neville from the room, Briar croaked, "No. I'd like him to stay."

Professor McGonagall froze for a moment, but she nodded in understanding soon after. Neville was surprised that Briar wanted him to stay, but he was happy to do so.

Once the room emptied out, Professor McGonagall took a deep breath and explained, "I was sent to inform you that your father, Gideon Davies, has been..." She halted her words for a moment to look at Neville, but Briar nodded for her to continue. McGonagall hesitantly finished, "He's been captured and taken to Azkaban."

Briar let out a shaky breath, and she was shocked at how much lighter she felt with this news. Her breathing was a little easier, and the slight chattering in her teeth had started to slow.

She was safe now.

Professor McGonagall gauged Briar's relief and murmured, "Dear, we're all here to protect you. You're safe here, and my office is always open to you, Miss Davies."

Briar nodded and gave her a half-hearted smile as she began to process what this meant. Just as Professor McGonagall had started to turn towards the door to leave, Briar uttered, "Can I stay with Sirius this summer? He's...he's my real dad."

Professor McGonagall whipped back around and stared at Briar with a gaping mouth. She demanded, "How do you know this, dear? Did he tell you himself?"

"From my mother's journals from before she...died," Briar admitted. She swallowed hard, her throat feeling like sandpaper with her utterance.

Professor McGonagall nodded stiffly before murmuring, "I'll discuss this proposition of yours with Dumbledore, dear. I'd like to see this journal in the meantime."

After Briar explained to Professor McGonagall where it was in her dorm, the room settled into silence again. This time, Briar looked over at Neville and exhaled, "They caught him."

Neville nodded empathetically and agreed, "He's gone. He can't hurt you now."

With his gentle words, Briar began crying. It felt like a tidal wave of emotions had rammed into her as she heard his comforting comment. She was a blubbering, wet mess, yet she hardly cared that Neville saw anymore.

He scooted closer to her on the couch and hesitantly wondered, "Would you like-"

Neville didn't even get to finish his question before Briar launched herself forward and into his side. He briefly startled, but he quickly wrapped his arms around Briar's shoulders as she pushed her face into the place between his neck and shoulder. She needed to feel his touch, to not feel utterly alone and helpless, to have something to give her hope.

And Neville satisfied all of those things with his warm hug and gentle fingers that began to trace patterns into her back instinctually.

She fancied him something awful, but in that moment, she didn't care what it looked like. She was tired of pretending that she didn't need support and crave his touch specifically.

Briar was twisted around a little awkwardly in this state, but she didn't mind. She just needed to be near him. Holding onto Neville helped to ground her, and her tears began to slow, but not from avoiding them. This time, it was because she felt safe, and her earlier anxieties started to diminish, even if they hadn't erased completely.

Neville noticed her awkward position, so he scooped up her legs and pulled them over his lap to reduce how much her upper body had to be twisted around to remain in this position. He didn't think anything of it until Briar froze.

Goosebumps arose along her legs, and Briar slowly pulled back.

Her face was mere centimeters away from his, and they both seemed to hold their breaths as they stared at one another. Neville's eyes flickered down to her lips and then quickly back up to her eyes, but Briar didn't miss it. He gulped hard and stared at her in the near silence of the common room. The only other sound was the quiet crackling of the fire.

Briar looked down at his lips too, and she heard his breath catch in his throat.

With her anxieties dripping off her like lake water and her inhibitions long gone after that chaotic day, she breathed, "Could I kiss you?"

Neville's eyes grew to the size of saucers as he stared at her. He managed to stammer, "Yes, please."

His two words sent shivers down her spine, and she felt her heart happily speed up. Without a moment's delay, she leaned forward to close the little amount of space between them as she put her lips on his.

Neville seemed nervous at first since his hands were unsteady when he started to kiss her back, but he quickly gained confidence when Briar shifted closer to him and put her hands on his face.

Briar had never kissed anyone before, but she was convinced that no other kiss would make her feel as euphoric as this one. She couldn't help but smile into the kiss as all of the new feelings washed over her. She felt electricity running up and down her spine, and her stomach was tossing and turning like a bad night's sleep.

It felt as though their lips were pleasantly on fire as they kissed, and they both pulled away at that point, panting and grinning.

Neville looked down at his slender fingers in his lap and shakily murmured, "Was that, um, an okay kiss? I know I'm probably not as experienced as other boys you've kissed."

"I've never kissed anyone else. I've never wanted to kiss anyone but you," She insisted. She added after a moment, "And yes, that was an amazing kiss. It was perfect really."

Neville shyly grinned at her for a moment before he wondered, "Did you feel, um...the burning on your lips too?"

Briar slowly nodded in confusion.

"Gran told me that's what it feels like when you kiss your soulmate for the first time," Neville confessed in a whisper so quiet that Briar nearly missed it.

They both sat in a tense silence for a moment until Briar murmured, "You think we're soulmates?"

"Well, um, I hope so," Neville stammered as he scanned her face for a sign of disappointment.

He didn't find one there.

She slowly grinned. She admitted, "Me too."

They both stared into the fire for a moment before Briar wondered, "Does that feeling happen on the second kiss too?"

"I think Gran said it was just the first," Neville replied as he picked at a loose thread on his sweater.

Briar failed to contain her sneaky smile as she trailed, "Would you like to test that theory then?"

He looked up at her and blinked. He tilted his head to the side and questioned, "How?"

Briar put a hand on each of his shoulders and put her face just in front of his again. "Like this?" She offered.

Neville immediately nodded then, his head bobbling up and down quickly as he stared at her. She grinned and leaned forward, capturing his lips in hers once again.

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