How to Forget

He liked them best when they screamed. Piercing and shrill, the cries would eventually taper off into heart-wrenching sobs. He enjoyed the unadulterated power that washed through his entire being- rushing from his cruel smile down to his tingling toes that curled with pleasure at every pained gasp.

But then, there was always silence. The human body could only withstand so much, after all. He frowned in disappointment- he'd thought this one would last longer. With a sigh, he rolled the body over with a sharp kick, rubbing his hand gently. He would have to look for a new toy. Ah well...he supposed he should meet with the Dark Lord beforehand. It wouldn't do to murder an ally after all.

The man turned on his heel and swept from the dungeon, tugging his blood-stained robes closer to his body. Tsk- such messy business.

~~~~~~~~~~

Neville wasn't quite sure he knew what he was doing. Wincing, he cast a glance at his partner- the dark-haired girl studiously ignoring him and taking notes- and warily tipped the chemical-filled container over the beaker.

The green-tinted liquid hissed as it mixed with the new addition, bubbling slightly in outrage. Neville exhaled in relief as it settled, and allowed a small smile to grace his face. No explosions- this could turn out to be an alright day!

His partner broke from her routine and tapped the beaker with a pen. "You know, it's supposed to be blue."

He blinked and looked closer- the murky brown substance seemed to glare back defiantly. "Oh."

She sighed and tugged on a pigtail anxiously. "I don't think we'll get a perfect score today, Neville."

Nodding, he raised his hand for the teacher and smiled self-depreciatingly at her. "No explosion today though, Sarah. We're sort of getting better..."

After a stern lecture on the importance of exact proportions, Neville managed to drag himself out of the school and toward his house. He had never had much talent for Chemistry, as evidenced by his need for the summer school course...or directions, he reflected as somehow he managed to get himself lost on the route he had used everyday for the past week.

He glanced at his surroundings warily. "Well, where am I now?"

Rows of nearly identical houses stared back at him, their only individuality being expressed in the form of a strategically placed lawn gnome or stubby bush. Shrugging, Neville continued his pace down the sidewalk- he just had to find a bus stop, and then he'd be all sorted out...hopefully. Sucking in an exhausted breath, he thought of the zigzagged lines of the bus routes. On second thought, maybe a pay phone was safer.

Well, there was no use being so gloomy about these things! He remembered his Gran's lecture on happiness being a state of mind and consciously put a bit of a spring to his step. Don't knock it until you try it, he decided.

Inner conflict resolved, Neville absent-mindedly noted the street sign he passed. 'Privet Drive' wasn't such a notable place- it wasn't as if it gave him any clues as to where he was anyway.

He hummed to himself as he counted the house numbers to pass the time. 'Seven, Six, Five, Four, Thr-"

"Neville!"

Eh?

A flushing boy with messy raven hair stared wide-eyed back at him. "Neville? Is that you?"

"Um..." Neville panicked and tried to place the boy with a name- was he in one of his classes? Bugger, it was so rude to have forgotten someone who knew you...

"Sorry." He barely held back a flinch as his mind sputtered to a stop. "Do I know you?"

The other boy's face fell, and Neville ridiculously felt shame at having let this complete stranger! down.

"I'm Harry, don't you remember? Harry Potter?"

So...apparently that was supposed to mean something.

"Um-? Do we attend class together?"

"Yes!" 'Harry' grinned and gave a sort of wiggle, looking as if he were barely restraining himself from lunging forward. "Hogwarts! We share a dorm- or we did until you-"

The boy chattered on nervously, inching forward even as Neville stepped back in disbelief. Good god- what was this kid on? 'Hogs warts?'

He continued to shuffle away carefully, the other absently following his every move. Neville frowned and shifted to the left, then to the right when Harry persisted in matching him.

Right, what were his escape options?

Plan A) Make a feint to the right, then run like mad to the left and around past. Ack! No good- damn those hedges...

Plan B) Vice versa- feint left, run right and into the street. And...wait. When did a car park there?

Plan C) Just turn tail and run, dammit!

Neville sighed in relief, waiting until he knew the other was preoccupied with memories of him (falling into a lake with a giant squid?), and then turned on his heel and sprinted down the lane.

...Or that was the plan up until he pivoted and sprinted- or lunged, really if he had to be completely honest- into a very large, angry, and mauve man.

"DAMMIT, BOY! CAN'T YOU KEEP YOUR BLOODY QUEERNESS TO YOURSELF?!"

Neville squeaked in fear, before realizing that for once he wasn't the target of the screaming. Harry didn't look terribly pleased however...Oh, bugger.

"Um...it's alright, really, sir. H-he wasn't bothering me- Eh..."

Bloodshot eyes turned to him furiously, inspecting his respectable ensemble of khaki's and a polo before shuttering closed. A deep calming breath later, the man unclenched his fist and forced a smile. At least...Neville thought it was a smile- the twitching in his top lip made it hard to tell.

"Ah, I have to apologize for the boy here. He's a bit off in the head, you know."

Neville blinked, glancing at Harry. That would explain some things...

Harry seethed at the man, "I am not. We know each other from school, Uncle Vernon."

Vernon grimaced, giving Neville a look that suspiciously resembled Oh-so-you're-one-of-them, before walking off with a disgusted snort. Neville didn't quite know what he had done to offend the man.

Grinning brightly, Harry threw an arm over his shoulders, fingers clenching spastically with excitement as Neville watched warily.

Eh-

The other boy embraced him tightly, burrowing his nose into Neville's neck. "Nev, I've missed you. So, so much. I never realized how much I-"

Neville stiffened, going rigid in the other's arms. The boy was kissing him! The possibly psycho boy was kissing him!

Neville's eyes widened, arms flailing as much as he could manage. His mouth opened to protest, maybe call back that angry purple man, and something wet and rather slimy tasting entered his mouth. Bloody hell- it was his tongue!

He wondered if it was possible to hyperventilate while being French kissed. Ah...apparently it was.

Harry pulled away- looking just about like the cat that ate the canary, Neville thought with resentment- and dragged a gentle caress down his cheek.

It was at that point that Neville passed out.