Hogwarts: Neville's Insert Chapter 59
Hermione bit her lip, falling into step beside them."You shouldn't have said all that in front of everyone," she said, voice low. "Now they'll be targeting you." Then her eyes widened, and she looked at Neville seriously. "That's what you're planning, isn't it? You want the Heir to come after you."
Neville grinned and nodded. "Heh... easiest way to end this, Hermione," he said. 'Play on Voldemort's fragile ego, and he'll come running.'
Hermione wrung her hands, worry etched all over her face. "That's dangerous. What if... what if—" She bit her lip again, unable to finish.
"I'll be fine, Hermione," Neville said, cutting her off with a reassuring smile.
Wanting to change the subject, Neville said, "Looks like Dumbledore's not planning to buy Mandrakes from an apothecary. He's gonna wait till the ones here mature."
Harry ran a hand through his messy hair, looking uneasy. "She's right, Neville," he said. "It's dangerous, making yourself a target."
Neville just grinned. "Well... are you sayin' I'm your target, then, Heir of Slytherin?" he teased lightly.
Hermione huffed, folding her arms. "We're being serious, Neville," she said firmly. "How are you going to face a ba—"
But Neville cut across her smoothly. "Like I said, Hermione, I'll be fine. We'll worry about it when we get to it," he said, giving her a reassuring smile.
"Now—how about we go practice some spells instead?"
…
Sunday, December 20th – Central Hall
Neville munched on a croissantwich stuffed with eggs, bacon, and sausages as he strolled toward the carriages, his jumper tugged over a long-sleeved tee, brown trousers slightly crinkled at the knees.
Harry walked beside him, looking downright miserable.
Hermione matched their pace, bundled in a long red scarf, her eyes scanning the Daily Prophet as she walked. All three had their trunks shrunken down and tucked into their pockets.
"Anything good in there?" Neville asked, glancing at her.
Hermione shook her head, frowning. "No, and that's what's odd. Not a single mention about the attacks," she whispered.
Neville gave a curt nod. "Best we talk on the train."
As they reached the waiting area, they spotted Luna standing alone, humming quietly to herself. Her large luggage sat beside her, untouched.
Neville raised a hand and called out, "Oi, Luna! Come join us, yeah?"
Luna turned, her dreamy smile stretching as she nodded. "Hello, Neville. Hermione. Harry."
Hermione offered a warm "Hi, Luna," while Harry managed a small nod and, "Hey."
Neville stepped over and offered, "Want me to shrink your trunk for you?"
"Thank you," Luna said brightly, then tilted her head at Harry. "Why does Harry look all grumpy?"
Harry sighed, rubbing his face. "I'm not grumpy."
Hermione leaned in and said gently, "He had a bit of a row with Ron, that's all."
"Ah," Luna said with a knowing nod, just as a carriage rolled to a stop in front of them.
She walked over to the Thestrils and fed one an apple. Neville followed suit with the second.
"You can see them too, then?" he asked, though he already knew the answer.
Luna gave a small hum and nodded. "They're beautiful, aren't they?"
Harry and Hermione stared at the spot where the Thestrils stood, still unable to see anything.
"You can see them as well, Luna?" Hermione asked, clearly surprised.
"I can," Luna said simply, brushing her fingers down the invisible creature's muzzle.
Neville climbed into the carriage and held his hand out to help Hermione up. Harry did the same for Luna.
As they settled in and the carriage pulled away, Hermione turned to Neville, her voice hesitant.
"You said… only people who've seen death can see Thestrils, right?"
Neville nodded, looking a bit puzzled. "Yeah… why?"
Hermione hesitated. "I get that Luna can see them, but… how can you? Were you able to see them before?"
Neville shrugged. "I don't know, Hermione. I lost my memories, remember? But… I could see them last year too, during Yule."
He scratched the back of his neck, then added casually, "So I suppose I always could?"
But in his head, Neville was thinking, 'It's probably 'cause I died in my last life… I don't reckon the original Neville could see them.'
Hermione gave a small nod, not pressing further.
Harry frowned. "But if you're right — if only people who've seen death can see them — then why can't I? I mean, Quirrell died right in front of me last year, didn't he? Wouldn't that count?"
Neville rubbed his chin thoughtfully. That had bugged him before too.
"Did you actually see him die, though?"
Harry thought about it. "Well… I'm not really sure. It all happened so fast. I think I fainted before he… y'know… died."
Neville nodded slowly. "Yeah, I reckon that's it, then. You didn't actually see him die. That's probably why you can't see the Thestrals."
Luna, sitting beside Harry, tilted her head. "Quirrell?" she asked. "Who's that?"
Neville answered like it was the most normal thing in the world. "Oh, he was our Defence Against the Dark Arts professor last year. Harry killed him."
He said it with a shrug, like he was talking about the weather.
Harry's eyes went wide. "What?!"
Hermione gasped, then whacked Neville over the head with the folded-up Daily Prophet.
"Neville!"
"Oi—what was that for?" Neville asked, grinning cheekily.
Luna blinked slowly at Harry. "You killed someone?"
Hermione quickly leaned over. "It's not like that, Luna. Harry didn't kill anyone, not really—"
She launched into a flustered explanation of the whole incident with Voldemort and Quirrell, how it had all gone down at the end of last year.
All the while, Neville sat back with his arms crossed and a wide grin on his face, thoroughly enjoying the chaos he'd stirred.
…
Another attack happened — the very same day Neville had openly taunted Voldemort.
This time, it was Justin Finch-Fletchley, a second-year Hufflepuff.
It had happened during their spell practice sessions during herbology since the class was canceled. They'd been going over spellwork when Harry suddenly froze, eyes wide, before dashing out the classroom door.
Neville, Ron, and Hermione had raced after him.
Harry had heard the Basilisk again.
They found Justin — petrified — in a corridor near the moving staircases, one floor below the second. Lying beside him, equally frozen, was Nearly Headless Nick, the Gryffindor house ghost.
The hallway was eerily quiet. It was class time, so there was no one else around.
Hermione gasped, her hands flying to her mouth as she stared at Justin's stiff body and Nick's floating, unmoving form.
Harry dropped to his knees beside Justin, checking his face, his breathing — anything.
Neville quickly let go of Hermione's hand and turned sharply. "You lot need to leave. Now."
Harry looked up, startled. "What?"
"You lot need to leave. Now," he said urgently. "Hermione, stay with Harry and Ron. Get back to the common room."
Hermione frowned, trying to argue. "But Neville — what about you?"
But Neville cut her off with a serious look. "Hermione, staying here will only make things worse for us. It'll look bad. You being here, me, Harry — all of it. Just go."
Harry's voice came sharply. "Neville."
Neville turned, and Harry stared at him. "Take Hermione and Ron back to the common room," he said firmly. "I'll meet you guys there. Hurry."
Then he turned on his heel and sprinted up the stairs, bolting for the second floor.
He reached into his bag and pulled out the Invisibility Cloak — the one he'd borrowed from Harry — draping it over himself as he moved quickly and silently through the corridor.
He slipped into the girls' bathroom and pulled the door shut behind him.
"Homenum Revelio," Neville whispered, wand raised.
Nothing. The spell returned no presence. The bathroom was empty.
Neville lowered his wand and walked over to the row of sinks, eyes scanning until he found it — the one with the little snake etched into the tap.
He crouched and took a small, shrunken stool from his pocket, enlarged it, and sat down beside the sinks. His wand was gripped in his right hand. In his left, the silver dagger glinted faintly in the torchlight.
He waited. 'I'll wait here till whoever it is comes back.'
The plan was simple. Stun them, take the diary, destroy it.
So he waited. And waited. The minutes crept past, then hours. The orange sunlight through the bathroom windows deepened, casting long shadows across the cold floor tiles.
Neville sighed. 'Just like I thought,' he mused, rubbing his temple. 'The books and films only ever showed the one entrance. But that doesn't make sense. If the Basilisk's been getting all over the castle, there must be more than one passage… another way into the Chamber. There has to be.'
He glanced once more around the room. Four hours had passed. Whoever it was, they weren't coming back. Not through here.
Neville stood up, stuffed the stool back into his pocket, and left the girls' lavatory quietly, slipping the cloak off once he was a floor down. His footsteps echoed faintly as he made his way back to Gryffindor Tower.
As soon as he stepped through the portrait hole, he was immediately barreled into by Hermione, who crashed into him with a tight hug.
She pushed him back, her eyes misty and puffy red. Her voice came out in a sharp whisper, just short of shouting. "Where the hell were you?! We thought you'd been petrified — or something worse! We were about to go looking for you ,but—!"
Neville gently patted her on the head, trying to calm her down. "Hey, hey, easy. I'm fine, Hermione. Look at me — not a scratch. No need to worry, yeah?"
Hermione swatted his hand away and huffed. "What were you even thinking? You could've got yourself killed! Where did you go, anyway? You just ran off after telling us to get to the common room."
Harry stepped up beside her. "Yeah, where did you go, mate? You've been gone for four hours."
Neville sighed and nodded toward a quiet corner of the common room. "Come on — let's talk over there."
He led them to a free desk and, after casting a quick Muffliato around them, finally spoke. "I followed the voice," Neville said. "Ran in the direction Harry heard the snake. Didn't see it, though."
He reached into his robes and handed Harry the Invisibility Cloak. "Thanks for lending it."
Harry took it slowly, brows drawn in.
Hermione stared at Neville like he'd grown an extra head. "You were under the cloak wandering around looking for a giant magical snake that can kill a person with just a gaze? Are you mad, Neville? That's beyond reckless!"
Neville just shrugged. "So, what happened after I left?"
Harry replied, "We went back like you said. Lucky we did, too. The bell rang just after, and someone found Justin."
Hermione nodded, arms still crossed. "Otherwise Harry might've been expelled… or worse — especially now that the whole castle thinks he's the Heir of Slytherin."
She shook her head. "Professor McGonagall cancelled all the classes and told everyone to return to their common rooms. I think the staff are searching the castle now."
The next day, Professor McGonagall had asked anyone who planned to stay over the holidays to sign their names on a parchment pinned to the notice board.
Almost the entire school had signed up to leave. After all the attacks, hardly anyone wanted to stay behind.
When Ron found out that Harry, Neville, and Hermione weren't staying for Yule, he was confused—not about Neville or Hermione, he had expected them to leave for Yule, but Harry. He'd assumed Harry wouldn't be heading back to the Dursleys, which he wasn't.
Harry had explained to Ron that Augusta Neville's gran had invited him to spend Christmas with them.
Ron hadn't taken it well. Because he was stuck at Hogwarts, alone with his siblings. His parents were off to Egypt to visit Bill, Ron's eldest brother, who worked as a Curse Breaker for Gringotts. Ron had tried to act fine about it, but the more Harry spent time with Neville and now was even going to his house for the holidays, the more bitter Ron became.
He'd tried inviting Harry to the Burrow for the coming summer.
Harry had hesitated. "I'll think about it," he'd said. "Dumbledore wants me to stay at the Dursleys for at least part of the summer."
Ron had shrugged. "Fine. Come to mine after that."
But Harry still looked unsure. "We'll see, Ron… Neville's gran's invited me as well."
That was it. Ron's face darkened in an instant.
He'd accused Harry of ditching him for a "rich friend," and before anyone could stop it, it turned into a full-blown row in the common room.
…
They arrived at Hogsmeade Station just as the carriage came to a gentle stop in front of it. Climbing out, they joined the stream of students making their way onto the train. After a bit of searching, they found an empty compartment and settled in.
Not long after, the train gave a lurch and began to move, wheels clacking steadily as the countryside rolled by outside.
Neville leaned forward, glancing at Luna. "Hey Luna, can you do me a favour?"
Luna smiled dreamily and nodded. "If you need a place to hide the body, I've got the perfect one. It's near the lake. No one will ever find it."
Neville blinked. "Right... I'll keep that in mind. But that's not what I was going to ask."
"Oh," she said simply, still smiling.
Neville pulled out a small pouch of Galleons and handed it to her. "Could you get me something from the trolley lady? Honestly, I'd go myself, but I feel lazy. Mind helping me out?"
Luna nodded, taking the pouch. "What would you like?"
Neville shrugged.
"Anything sweet. Wait—does she sell sandwiches? If she does, get me one. If not, something cakey, but not too sweet. And buy something for yourself too, there's enough in there."
He turned to Harry and Hermione. "You two want anything?"
Hermione shook her head. "No thank you. I don't eat many sweets."
Harry gave a small smile. "I'm not hungry."
Neville looked back to Luna. "Alright, just something for you and me, then. Maybe grab a few Chocolate Frogs for these two — just in case they change their minds."
Luna nodded and skipped off down the corridor with the pouch in hand.
As soon as she'd left, Neville flicked his wand and cast a non-verbal Muffliato around the compartment.
Hermione arched a brow at him. "You sent her to get food because you didn't want her overhearing, didn't you?"
Neville nodded.
"Yeah. She doesn't know Occlumency yet. Not safe, not with stuff like this — especially when it's about Dumbledore."
Hermione sat forward. "This is about the Prophet, isn't it?"
Neville nodded. "Yeah. I'm pretty sure Dumbledore's keeping things under wraps. If not him, then someone else is. Would've been in the news already otherwise. Remember — Lucius Malfoy, Draco's dad, he's on the Board of Governors. Either Dumbledore's blocking it, or the Ministry's trying not to start a panic."
Hermione frowned thoughtfully, then asked, "But… wouldn't some of the students have written home about the whole Heir of Slytherin thing? It's hard to believe not even one parent knows."
Harry nodded. "Yeah, you'd think at least someone would've said something."
Neville shook his head. "Dunno. Maybe the Ministry or Dumbledore's interfering with the mail — or maybe the parents do know and just aren't bothered. It's only Muggle-borns getting targeted, right? Maybe the rest of the wizarding world doesn't care…?"
He sighed. "I'll have to ask Gran. See what she's heard."
Hermione looked disturbed. "That's… awful. Would they really be that indifferent?"
Neville shrugged helplessly. "I dunno, Hermione. I'm only guessing. But there's something else, something important I've got to tell you."
Harry leaned forward. "What is it?"
Neville looked them both in the eye. "I think I've found the entrance to the Chamber."
Both Hermione and Harry froze.
Hermione practically shouted, "What?! Where?! Why haven't you told us?! How do you know—" She fired off questions one after another, barely pausing for breath.
Neville sighed and held up a hand."Calm down, Hermione. Let me finish, yeah? I said I think I've found the entrance — or, well, at least one of them."
Harry blinked. "One of the entrances?"
Neville nodded. "Yeah, think about it — there's no way there's only one. The Basilisk's been attacking students in different parts of the castle. It must have more than one way in and out."
Hermione frowned. "I thought it used the plumbing — through the pipes?"
Neville nodded again. "Right, but it's not like it can just slither out of a sink in front of everyone. It'd need exit points. And even if it's moving through the pipes, it still has to come out somewhere to actually petrify someone."
Harry leaned back, thoughtful. "Makes sense... So where did you find the one you're talking about?"
Neville scratched his chin. "Second-floor girls' bathroom. When I went after the snake the other day, I came across where we found the fifth-year Ravenclaw girl. Right across from the spot, I noticed the bathroom and thought I'd check it out. Used your Invisibility Cloak, by the way," he nodded to Harry. "I didn't want anyone seeing me go into the girls' loo and thinking I'd lost my mind or worse, start calling me a pervert."
Hermione giggled. "You're safe. That bathroom's not in use. It's haunted by a ghost — Moaning Myrtle. Hardly anyone goes in there."
Neville nodded. "Good to know. Makes it even more suspicious, then. While I was looking around, I found one of the taps had a tiny snake engraving on it — like, properly carved in."
Harry's eyes widened. "You think that's the entrance?"
Before Neville could answer, Hermione's eyes went even wider. "Wait, that's why you came back so late! You were waiting for the Heir to come back through the entrance you found, didn't you?"
Neville gave a small nod. "Yeah. I waited in there for about four hours, hidden under the cloak. Nothing happened, though. Either there's more than one entrance... or maybe the Basilisk doesn't need the Heir to move around."
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