It is already dark when Neville finds her. He hears the whimpering noise first, the strangled crying that he now associates with victims of the Carrow's vindictive torture. He pushes open the door to the classroom softly, so as not to startle whoever it is, and it shocked when he sees Lavender, huddled in the corner, clutching her knees to her chest and rocking back and forth.
The bruises are ridiculous. There's a massive blue one on her forehead that dips down over her eye. A purple one runs over her jaw and down her neck, and her lip is cut and bleeding in several places. Her arms are littered with them too- her beautiful, delicate arms. A soft sigh escapes Neville's lips as he bends down in front of her.
Lavender's breathing is struggled, as if it pains her to do it, as she whispers "I'm fine."
Neville shakes his head, taking out his wand. "No. But you will be," he promises, and places the tip of his wand gently on the first bruise on her arm. Non-verbally, he heals it, and proceeds to do so with all the others. When her arms are done, completely healed, he looks at her. "I'm so sorry you had to go through this."
She looks down, avoiding his eyes, and he starts on the next bruise, the large one on her forehead, leaning over her as he does so, so her face is inches away from his chest. "So what did you do?" he asks, and he knows she'll answer this time, because she'll be proud of it.
She swallows and winces as the blue bruise disappears, and he sits back, looking at her, concerned. "A first year Hufflepuff was being submitted to the Cruciatus Curse. I found them doing it in the Entrance Hall, of all places. I was going to see Hagrid- I was wondering if he had any news about- about- Harry, Hermione and- and Ron, but I never made it. He was screaming and I- I couldn't leave him there."
She pauses, remembering, and closes her eyes before carrying on. "I stunned Alecto and the first year got away, thank goodness, but Amycus came for me. He didn't even use his wand- said he wanted to relish the feel of his flesh on mine. He says that- that next time, it'll be much worse."
Neville closes his eyes too and exhales. "There won't be a next time," he says decidedly, gritting his teeth and opening his eyes. He lifts his wand. "I can sort out the last bruise- but I'm afraid Ginny's better with cuts. I'll probably make your lips worse, knowing me."
He knows it is a cheap joke and is surprised when Lavender laughs weakly. "Go on then," she says and offers her chin, closing her eyes again. He takes it in his hand softly and raises his wand to it, muttering the incantation to make it disappear. He watches it do so, the purple fading slowly until it is replaced with the pale white it is supposed to be.
Even though the bruise is gone, he still leans over her. He peers at her face, at her sore lips and her once rosy cheeks, realising how lovely she is to look at. The once annoying, bitchy girl shifts, her new kinder, softer face suddenly coming closer to his. "Is it done yet?" she says, unaware of his staring because her eyes are still closed. She opens them and they widen at his closeness. He blushes and fumbles with his wand, stowing it away in his pocket.
Despite still pining for Ron, Lavender sees something in Neville she hasn't seen in anyone for a long time and takes her hands away from around her knees, putting them behind her on the floor and using them to push her knees to the floor and her lips to Neville's, catching them in chaste kiss that neither of them expected but at the moment needed so badly. She's shorter than him, but for once they're the same height, because Neville's kneeling down and she's kneeling up. It's a perfect moment, considering why they are together in this dark classroom anyway, and when Neville pulls away, they're both blushing.
"I'm sorry," Lavender says immediately, sinking so that she, too, is kneeling down. "I shouldn't have- that was-"
"Thank you," Neville says abruptly, and stands up. She looks up at him and he extends a hand to her; slowly, she takes it and he pulls her up. "Are you feeling better now?"
Lavender blinks at him but nods anyway. "I'm fine."
"Then let's go back to the common room," he says, taking his wand out of his pocket and whispering lumos into the dark.
They walk back quietly, because it is a necessity for them not to get caught, but also because both of them are deep in thought. Neville holds her hand the whole way back but releases her when he gets to the common room, although not before pressing a soft kiss to her forehead.
Lavender knows, as she watches him climb the boys staircase, that this is not romance. This is not some love story where in the midst of the battle you find love and live happily ever after, forgetting all your cares. She knows that tonight is the be all and end all of NevilleandLavender and that tomorrow they will go back to normal, even though part of her doesn't want to. She knows that Neville is braver than her because he has walked away, saving them both from something which, struck up in the middle of a war, could end so very badly. She also knows, though, that if he would let her, she could grow to love him.