They pulled apart from one another after their teary reunion, and Neville stared down at Briar's face with his red rimmed eyes scanning her features. They stayed quiet, unsure of what to say because neither felt okay after the recent events, but they didn't want to cause the other to worry anymore.

In the process of their hug, Briar's sleeve had ridden up her arm slightly, and this revealed her darkened skin from her horrible stay at the Davies Manor. Neville's watchful eyes eventually fell on this mark, and his breath caught in his throat.

Fresh tears formed in Briar's eyes when she too looked down at it. Her bottom lip quivered with her next words. "I didn't want to."

He tugged her into his arms again and murmured, "I know, love. I know."

Briar held onto his torso tightly as a deep breath pushed its way out of her chest. Even though they stood in a strange makeshift living room inside an abandoned building, Briar felt at home in Neville's arms. Her soul clicked into place in the presence of its mate, and she felt warmth wash over her once again.

-

Neville had just packed some things with plans of leaving their safe house. He had stayed with Briar, Sirius, and Gran in the days following the incidents at the Davies Manor, but Briar could see that he was antsy to get back out there and do more to help the cause.

They all knew that they were preparing for a war, and Neville didn't want to sit idly by as this loomed over their heads.

So, Briar helped him pack his things, but she knew that she couldn't go with him this time. It was too dangerous for her since she could put both of them in danger if any death eaters saw her. Many of them had seen her face that night in the dining room, so she had to hide now.

It caused her considerable anxiety to know that she wouldn't know if Neville was okay, but she had to let him do what he needed to do. She had to let him go.

It was early morning now, and neither of them felt very alert as they stood in the bathroom and grabbed his toiletries. Briar hadn't been sleeping the greatest with all of the stress, so when she tried to grab one of the slippery shampoo bottles, she wasn't surprised that it slipped through her fingers and hit the ground with a thud by her feet. The round bottle rolled to the other side of the bathroom, but Briar didn't chase after it. She leaned her head down onto her hands on the countertop and sighed in frustration.

Neville picked up the bottle and covered the distance between them with a couple large steps. He rubbed wide circles on her back, and she straightened up at his touch. She lifted her eyes to the mirror and stared at her long, knotted hair in her reflection. For a moment, she felt like she was back at the Davies Manor again, and with that memory plaguing her, she blurted out, "I want to cut my hair."

He blinked in surprise but gave her a small smile. "Will that make you happy?" whispered Neville. Both of their eyes settled on her unruly hair and exhausted features as she decided on her next words.

"I just...I need a change, Nev."

He placed a kiss on the top of her head and sighed, "Then do it, love. You will look beautiful to me either way."

Briar nodded at their reflections. She turned around then and wrapped her arms around Neville. She pressed her face into his chest, and he lifted his chin to rest it on the top of her head. They fit together like lock and key, as if their bodies were made to embrace one another this way. It felt a shame that they were about to be apart.

As if both realizing the gravity of the situation at the same time, they both pulled back briefly before they each moved towards one another to close the distance between them. Briar lifted onto her toes while Neville dipped his head to meet her lips in a frantic kiss since neither of them knew what the coming weeks would entail or when they would be able to see one another again.

Briar's hands ran up and down Neville's arms, and he gripped her hips as if he was scared that the moment he let go would be the moment he lost her again. It was too close before, and he couldn't stand the thought of losing his soulmate forever.

Even though it wasn't his life, Neville had been just as terrified that Briar's old fears would come true. He knew that Euthalia had lost her life because she fought for a better life for Briar and for Sirius, and he knew that Briar had that same fire and determination. Briar would have rather died than let him or Sirius suffer at the hands of the death eaters, and knowing this, he owled Sirius and Remus as soon as he found the forgotten letter on his dresser.

He was so scared of losing Briar that day, and it was shattering his soul to know that he was leaving when Briar needed him, but he needed to do this. Voldemort was preparing an army, and so was he. Voldemort was preparing for war, but Neville planned to win. He was finding and training his army. He was finding the necessary supplies to support those on their side. He was searching for information to help the trio.

All the while, he was working tirelessly, but he pushed on knowing that they had lost so much already, and he wouldn't stand for more senseless losses.

So, as they stood in a dingy bathroom long before the sun would rise, Neville kissed Briar as if it would be their last. It was a kiss that they would both cling too in the silence, in the not knowing, in the anxious-filled mornings and the sleepless nights.

Into her lips, he murmured, "I love you, Briar."

Gripping the front of his t-shirt, she muttered back, "I love you too, Neville."

This was their last conversation before Neville wordlessly left their safe house and ventured back out into the danger to resume the fight.

———