The Last Potion
The flaming red hair that rested on the black silken dress had shown up so vibrantly that Ginny had donned the wide brimmed black hat in an attempt to hide it all. The pumps that she had only worn once before sunk into the freshly turned over ground. She was crying openly and freely.
She hadn't stopped crying since she received the owl from Harry that explained the death of her husband. No one had felt more sorry than Remus Lupin, whose gnarled and knotted hand, aged before its time rested on Ginny's shoulder. He was trying to comfort her, but in a sense he was trying to absolve his own soul of the death of the fine, young man, the death he felt responsible for.
It was a sun filled day, one on which the folks gathered should have been enjoying a dip in the pool, or barbecued chicken and corn on the cob. But here it was that they were all gathered to mourn the passing of their peer and friend.
Ginny rested her hand on her belly. The child that clung to life inside of her was a child who would never know its father. She knew that if it was a girl she would name her Molly, after her own mother. If it was a boy she would name him Neville, the name of the child's late father.
She mourned for her baby, who would never know how fantastically brave its father had been. She mourned for herself having lost the one man who had loved her so completely. She mourned for the world that would lose someone so exceptional.
~~~~
The mourners had spent the rest of the afternoon in the cool interior of Ginny and Neville's house. It had been a lovely reception wherein the people who knew Neville best could recount his clumsiest days at Hogwarts and his brilliant work later for the Order of the Phoenix. He had become a wizard of skill and even Harry Potter found himself well pressed to better him.
As the funeral party began to leave Ginny stood to receive their well wishes and kind blessings. Ron stood beside her, concerned for his little sister, trying to help usher out her guests. Fred and George stood off in a corner in their nicest black jackets, leather by look, snakeskin by the feel. Bill was arguing with his mum about cutting his hair again. Charlie was talking with his dad about the latest Order activity. It seemed like a regular Weasley gathering, minus that git Percy who hadn't spoken to his family since Ginny's fourth year at Hogwarts.
Except that this gathering was filled with sadness. The Weasleys had truly embraced their new in-law and couldn't wait for the birth of their grandchild, nephew or niece. The last few months had been really hard, what with Neville's condition and the pregnancy of his wife. No one knew what would happen now, not now that Neville and Remus' work had failed.
Hermione forced a smile for Ginny, feeling the pain of her sister-in-law so raw and real. She too feared that every time Ron left for work she would become a widow. It had just worked out that Ginny would be the one to mourn a husband. She squeezed her hand and said something nice about Neville, remembering how grateful he had always been for her help in potions.
Ginny nodded her heavy head and attempted a smile. It turned into a grimace, holding back more tears and Hermione simply moved to her husband's side, giving Ginny a moment to collect herself. Harry had not been so mannerly.
He stepped over to Ginny amid the tears and snuffles and began to speak softly. He didn't know if this was the right place or time but he felt like he needed to explain what had happened that day. He wanted to tell her now that he had never doubted how great Neville was, not once he had proven his strength in their fifth year, not after he had learned of Neville's involvement in the prophecy.
~~~~
Harry closed his eyes and had woken in the memory he had been repeating in his head for days. Traveling back from the Ministry, having sent his owl on ahead of him he could think of nothing but Neville's last words.
"Tell Ginny I'm sorry I stepped on her feet." He had said.
Harry couldn't understand what on earth he meant, but there was no time to ask.
Neville groaned. His breath was coming fast and hard and he knew that this potion was not the one. This potion was the last he would ever test. This one was his undoing. He blinked one last time before his eyes rolled back into his head and the struggle, the fight he had been waging for months was finally over.
Harry closed his friend's eyes, an act of respect and the rite of a true friend. He looked over to Remus Lupin who was stricken with grief. It had been Lupin after all that had bitten Neville. He had been the one to doom Neville to his fate, shying from the full moon and drinking stinking potions to curb the werewolf from taking him over.
It was such a freak thing, not remembering to take his potion, Remus thought months later. It had been odd, looking back that the moon should pick that very moment to come out from behind the clouds and strike him. The night had been so peaceful, perfect really for the mission that they were on. Yet the peace should have held some foreboding for all of them. That lack of vigilance had found Neville unprepared to handle a werewolf in the height of his power.
For days after Lupin paced the hall in St. Mungo's, waiting for word back on Neville's condition, which the young man had braved so boldly. He did not let it get him down, not like the many others who had been bitten before him. Neville had decided to turn this tragedy into something useful. He was going to work with old Professor Moony on a potion that could cure a werewolf.
They had tested so many with some results appearing in a positive direction, others causing pain or no results at all. This was to be one of the greatest yet, a potion of potency that had seemed worthy of testing in the prototype stages.
Neville took it in his shaking hands, Harry standing guard should something go wrong. Lupin was nearby watching and praying that this would be the one. He had wanted for so long to make this happen and only Neville's enthusiasm had kept him afloat.
This potion however was too strong. Taken in a smaller dosage it was a great inhibitor, easy to make and with less side effects than the current potions on the market. Neville thought that if taken at a higher dose it could prevent the transformation for several months, and not just the three day period that it did at a lower dose.
There was so much wolfsbane in the potion that it could kill a grown wolf in the wild.
Neville, now part wolf, was no match for the strength of the potion.
His noble efforts to help a misunderstood population had ended in his death and Harry had witnessed it first hand, with Lupin beside him, horrorstruck at the results of their hard work.
~~~~
Harry opened his eyes to find Ginny looking at him. There was a veil of curiosity about her, just below her shroud of sorrow. He started at the beginning and explained to Ginny about the last potion, the potion they all thought would be the one to work.
"He wasn't going to give up." He said. "It wasn't about just him. It was about all werewolves. He wanted to help them. He wanted to be prepared in case…" Harry couldn't bring himself to add: in case his child turned out to be a werewolf.
Ginny nodded. She didn't need to be reminded of her growing fear. It had happened before when werewolves had conceived children. Sometimes they turned out ok, other times they were infected.
Harry changed gears suddenly. "He said he was sorry he stepped on your feet."
Ginny hiccuped, caught between a laugh and a sob. It was so like Neville to think of something so minute as the most important apology he had to make before he died. She smiled despite her tears. "He kept stepping on my feet at the Yule Ball years ago. Leave it Neville to remember something so silly."
Harry wrapped an arm around her. He had no sweet or comforting words to help her, but he was determined to get her and her baby through this. Harry was going take care of Neville's little wife and he was going to help Lupin finish Neville's work on a curative potion.
~~~~
Neville played on the lawn, his red hair beaming in the summer sun.
Years had gone by and Ginny thought that now little Neville might be able to understand who his father was. She gathered him into her arms and carried him over to the well-kept grave that was only a few blocks from their house.
Her hand grazed over the cool marble marker, tracing the letters of his name lovingly. "This was your daddy." She said, placing a handful of fresh lilies on the clean grass.
"Was he wonderful?" Neville asked of his namesake.
"He was." Ginny said, kneeling down and hugging her precious baby close.
"I always dream of him mommy." Neville said, plucking a lily from the pile and tucking it behind her ear. "I always dream of him on the full moon."
Ginny looked down and nodded. "Yes. I know. I dream of him then too. It's because of him that you can grow up strong and healthy. It's because of him that werewolves don't have to be werewolves anymore."
She looked up to the sky and thanked whatever it was that had given her this beautiful child and had given her a loving husband whose life had not ended in vain. His last potion was the one that would work when it was reformulated by Lupin and Harry. His last potion was the one that would save so many lives and make so many lives that much better.
She squeezed Neville Longbottom Junior and smiled that his memory would live on.
The End