Author's note:

I didn't think this through at all, so it kind of sucks, but I decided it's time to be done with this.

This time, title by Johann Sebastian Bach.

Badinerie

"Maybe I should have thought this plan through," Neville sighed out loud. He accidentally flew through a small cloud a few kilometres ago and his lips were still blue from the cold.

The broom was harder than he expected and he was sore all over.

He's been riding the whole day. He had no idea where he was. There was some water beneath him some hours ago, so he guessed he was somewhere in Ireland. Or France. Depending if he took the right turn from London. He was pretty sure it was Ireland, though. He could see more sea further in the distance.

But what worried him even more was the fact that he hadn't eaten in over 24 hours. He supposed it was good for his line-he's put on some weight during all those months in the hospital, and he didn't want Ginny to see him like that. However, he felt like he was about to faint, and he really didn't have the time to fall off the broom, fall into coma again and wake up in another few months. By then, Ginny could be married or something.

So he decided to land and seek something to digest. He turned the broom down but lost control and ended up falling through sharp branches. He landed on his butt. Worn out by the long journey, though, he didn't even have the strength to yelp so he just silently whined for a few minutes. Then his stomach growled, reminding him of the cause of this mission. He stood up and but the broom over his shoulder. His knees felt weak but he recalled Ginny's face into his mind. Her flowing hair and eyes that were sharp and gentle at the same moment. So he kept on going.

He reached a farm house. A toddler was playing in front of it. The boy had some toy soldiers in his hands and he was currently trying to bite one's head off. When he saw Neville approach, he pointed a soldier at him and started making shooting sounds.

"Ra tatatatatataat tatatatatata mummy there's a stranger looking at meeeee," the sound was loud enough to wake up the whole neighbourhood.

Fortunately, there was no neighbours-the house was situated in a way that there was no other houses for kilometres on each side.

Unfortunately, there were toddler's parents. Mother came around the corner when her son screamed and father followed soon after, with an axe on his shoulder. His sleeves were pulled up and Neville could see his hairy arms. The man looked like a bear.

"What the hell are you doin' here, lad?" He asked, as the woman picked up their son and glared at Neville with her small piggy eyes.

"Less droolin' and more explainin', lad," the man took the axe off his shoulder and was now playing with it. That triggered Neville off and he started talking really fast.

"I just wanted to ask, Sir, a question, Sir, you see, I'm on this trip, Ma'am and I'm stupid and I didn't bring food because I'm fat but I'm also very very hungry and feel bad and could you please, Ma'am, please, give me something to eat? An egg or a piece of bread would do or anything, really."

She wrinkled her nose in disgust, "You have a Firebold on your shoulder and you expect me to believe you have nothing to eat? Or did you steal it? I have 4 mouths to feed. Get away now, you lying beggar."

They didn't give him time to be surprised about the fact that they aren't muggles. They shooed him off their front porch. He wanted to point out the fact that food was one of 5 things you can't conjure up with magic, a fact he heard from Hermione, but he was too weak and he didn't want to be a beggar. However, the injustice of the situation hurt him more than the gaping pit his stomach has turned into. He knew his clothes were dirty, he felt twigs tangled in his hair and he could taste his foul breath. But that still didn't mean he was less worthy. It didn't mean they could shoo him away with axes and cusses. It wasn't fair.

He went back to the tree that marked the place of his landing. He just decided to lie down for a while. Although it's been long, bottom still hurt him. He lay on his stomach, in hoped of muting the growling. He inspected the grass and ants. One crawled at his face, but Neville didn't have the strength to get it off.

An owl startled him and he woke up. It was so dark he couldn't see anything farther than 5 centimetres. But maybe it was his hunger-he started seeing black dots and finally decided that he can't do this anymore. To hell with being fit, he needed food and if those people weren't going to give it, he's going to take it away.

10 minutes later, he was standing among sleeping chicken and he had no idea what to do. He picked up one hen and saw two precious eggs that looked like nothing he's seen before. They looked like heaven.

He quickly got out off the farmer's property and went back to his tree. There he poked one egg with a wand and muttered a spell his Grandmother taught him. He swallowed both eggs in less than two minutes.

Feeling infinity times better, he supposed he could continue his trip. He jumped onto the broom again, made himself as comfortable as possible and flew off.

By morning, he was over the Atlantic Ocean. He noticed a ship sailing in a general direction of America and thought, Why not? However, by nightfall he had to hit the air again, because the ship made a sudden turn toward Arctic. Or Kanada. Same thing.

And then, he was in America. The promised land. The land of freedom and justice.

"Watch it, dude!" A car almost ran him over. Neville sighed. America, the land of humanity.

Around that time Neville realised that he had absolutely no idea where he was or where Ginny was. And he had no way of finding that out. He sat down in the middle of nowhere, surrounded by hundreds of people, but feeling all alone in the universe. He didn't care anymore. He started crying from the bottom of his heart. And it wasn't a pretty sight. But no one was there to see anyway.

"You look like your spirits need a lift," a voice said. Neville looked up-a short, plump, dark-skinned girl was standing over him.

"What?" he asked, intelligently.

She sighed, "You look down."

"I am down."

"Well then," she smiled, you just need a hand to pull you up again, eh?"

"It's not that simple."

"Really? Why? I think," she paused, "that you are unhappy because you choose to be unhappy."

"But what am I supposed to do?"

She shrugged, "Do what makes you happy."

Neville knitted his eyebrows. Was the solution to his problem so easy? Was the solution to all universal problems that simple?

"Hey," she woke him up from his pondering, "Wanna see something cool?"

"Sure," he said, expecting her to do a flip or something.

"Come on, then."

"Uh, I don't think I'm going to follow a complete stranger through a strange city."

"Don't be a sissy. And wipe your nose."

She sat him on the bus and made herself comfortable besides him. He tried to pay attention to the outside world, but everything moved too fast and he felt himself fall asleep again.

"Wake up, sleepy," she lightly shook him, but he almost jumped out of his skin. He wasn't used to gentle waking and girls in general.

"Look where we are," she pointed through the window. His eyes widened and he hurried off the bus. In front of him stood a wonder of nature. The Grand Canyon was really grand. It was breathtaking. He felt his breathing calm. What are we compared to this? This majestic creation that's been here since forever and will stand here, untouched, until we are swallowed by the Sun. What are we compared to the ever-expanding universe and starlight and Sun and clouds and rain and dusk and dawn and hail and rainbows?

But then again, what is Grand Canyon compared to the butterflies that invaded his stomach when his eyes landed upon a lonely figurine by the fence? A lonely redheaded figurine. Neville turned to look at the black girl but she had already gone. He frowned but there wasn't time to think. If he starts to think, he might lose his courage. He ran over to Ginny as she turned around and there was nothing in this world that could stop him.

Thank you for bearing with me, this is the last chapter.

Probably.

Credits to Jaxam for the "unhappy because he chooses to be" line. Sorry I made you a girl. I forget.