Wizarding World One-Shots!

Partnered Up (Neville Longbottom x fem!Malfoy reader)

You never asked for any of this. You didn't ask to be part of your family. In fact, you hated that your father supported You-Know-Who. You wanted nothing to do with them. So, when you overheard Ginny Weasley and her brothers talking about a meeting at Hog's Head Pub to convince Harry Potter to teach everyone to fight back, you snuck your way in.

Students were glaring daggers at you. Well, except for Luna. She gave you a smile that you happily returned. "What are you doing here, Malfoy?" Ron snapped. It was obvious he didn't like you. Not that you blamed him. Your brother was absolutely horrible to him and his family. "I want to help." Several students started to argue, but they were silenced by Harry. He spoke up for you, but that didn't seem to make anyone trust you.

They trusted you so little that, when you began to meet in the Room of Requirement, no one wanted to be partnered up with you. When Harry told you all to grab a partner, they all quickly paired up, leaving just two of you. You and your very ill-advised crush. Neville Longbottom.

The crush ill-advised not because of Neville as a person or even as a wizard. It was because of your brother. Neville was often the target of Draco's bullying. It made Neville wary of you. Plus, with You-Know-Who being back, your father insisted there was no time for anything like romance. So, getting close to Neville was not an option...or was it? There was nothing saying you couldn't at least be friends and you could keep your crush a secret for a while longer.

"Uh, h-hi," Neville greeted softly as he turned to you. "Hi, Neville." He looked so scared, but surprised that you knew his name. You sighed. "You can relax. I'm not my brother. I have no desire to torture you like he does. I really am just here to learn." Neville's shoulders visibly relaxed and he gave you a small smile.

"O-Okay. I guess we should, uh, get started then." You nodded and took out your wand. Neville looked nervous as he raised his toward you. You smiled. "It's okay. You can do it." Neville licked his lips and you had to force yourself not to look at them. Why was he so darn cute? "Ready?" He gave a nod and you both cried, "Expelliarmus!" Neville's wand flew from his hand, but yours stayed put. Neville looked dejected. "Don't worry about it. Try again," you encouraged.

*time skip*

"Longbottom's been acting strange," Draco commented one morning at breakfast. You shrugged, trying not to look over at the Gryffindor table. You'd been working with Neville in DA for a while now and your crush had only gotten stronger. "Don't you have better things to worry about, Draco?" you asked nonchalantly. You weren't in the mood. Draco gave you a grin. "No. Now that I'm part of Umbridge's Inquisitorial Squad it's my job to watch out for people like Potter and his friends." You shot a look at him.

"You joined the Inquisitorial Squad?" Draco's smile widened as he nodded. "You should too. Maybe we'll catch Granger doing something against the rules." You snorted. "Get real, Draco. Granger is this school's golden child. She'd never break the rules." You hoped you sounded convincing enough. You needed to get him off your back so you warn Neville and the others. Luck seemed to be on your side when Draco dropped the subject.

As soon as classes were over for the day, you ran to the Room of Requirement. Once again, people glared at you. You rolled your eyes and scanned the room. Harry wasn't there yet, but Neville was. "Neville!" He jumped and turned to you. "Hey, Y/N," he greeted with a smile until he saw the look on your face. He gently took your elbow and lead you away from everyone else.

"Is everything alright?" You shook your head. "We're in trouble. Draco's joined the Inquisitorial Squad. He won't rest until he catches you all doing something, anything against the rules. We have to be extra careful now." Neville nodded. "Thank you." You brows furrowed. "For warning me. You could have kept it to yourself." You shook your head.

"No I couldn't. No one here really trusts me as it is. I don't want to anyone to get caught if I could have stopped it." Neville's face broke into a grin. "That's really brave of you. Are you sure you're not a Gryffindor?" You giggled, causing everyone to look your way. You cleared your throat and pulled out your wand.

"Should we get started?" You turned to put some space between you. Neville grabbed your arm again. You looked back at him in confusion. "For what it's worth, I trust you." You beamed at him as you felt your face heat up. "It's worth a lot. Thanks, Neville." He squeezed your arm gently before his own face turned red. "I, uh, guess we should tell the others." You told him to do it. "They may not believe me."

After practice that evening, Neville hung behind. "Maybe you should talk to him, Y/N. You're closer to him now than any of us," Harry suggested as he packed up to leave. Neville was hanging around by the corkboard. You nodded even though you weren't sure what good it would do.

You slowly approached Neville. "You alright, Neville?" He looked at you from the corner of his eye for a second before returning his gaze in front of him. You looked at the pictures tacked up there. "Are those your parents?" Neville nodded. You looked at them and smiled. They looked kind, just like Neville. "I don't like to talk about what happened to them,' he whispered. You reached down and grabbed his hand and gave it a squeeze. "You don't have to. I'll be here if you ever want to talk."

Neville turned to you, not letting go of your hand. His hazel eyes met yours. "You were right. You're not like your brother at all. You believed in me from the beginning. You kept encouraging me, even when I accidentally hurt you. And now you're being kind enough not to pressure me about my parents." You smiled and opened your mouth to say something, but he spoke again.

"I like you, Y/N. Quite a lot, actually. As more than a friend." You blinked in surprise. You couldn't believe it. You thought he might be putting you on, but the tips of his ears were bright red. That told you he was nervous and most likely telling the truth. "It's alright if you don't like me back. I didn't expect you too, honestly," he said and then started to ramble.

"Neville, stop," you said, placing your free hand over his mouth. "I like you too. Have done for a while now." Neville's face turned even more red, if that was possible. "Really?" You laughed and assured him that you were serious. Neville swooped down and pressed his lips to yours excitedly, but pulled away before you could kiss back. "I'm sorry! Sorry!" he squeaked and you rolled your eyes. He was too cute. "Neville! There's nothing to apologize for. I like it." He laughed nervously. "Does that mean I can do it again?" You barely nodded before he kissed you again.