A/N: Welcome to the first chapter of Living a Lie. This is the actual first chapter, I may add a prologue later... Yes, I know I should be working on my other stories, please don't hurt me! This is just a plot bunny that's been going around in my head for way too long, I just needed to get it out. This is a bit darker than... pretty much anything else I've ever written, but I thought I'd give it a shot.

Warnings: Some mild language in later chapters, premarital sex (nothing explicit), and minor mentions of abuse in later chapters.

Dilclaimer: Harry Potter is the property of J.K. Rowling, no money is being made by me, no copyright infringment is intended!


Living a Lie

Neville Longbottom slowly made his way home. He lived above the Leaky Cauldron in a small flat with his wife Hannah and baby Charlotte. Hannah had taken over the pub from Tom, the former barkeep and owner, only a few months before they had gotten married. There were still unpacked boxes sitting in various odd spots, Neville was beginning to wonder whether they would ever be fully moved in.

The streets passed slowly as Neville walked through London. He didn't really need to walk; he had just been to the Ministry building and could have easily gone via floo powder. Hannah would probably ask about that. Oh well, he could just say he needed the exercise, that's what he would always say when he would go out on walks. It seemed to work.

He turned a corner, then another. Ten more steps and he stopped and sighed. The sign for the Leaky Cauldron was just above his head. He pushed open the door and went into the cozy warmth of the little pub. A bell rang as he entered. Hannah was sitting at the counter, her blond hair up in a messy bun. A small girl, with hair as blond as her mother's, sat on the counter playing with a small toy wand. Both looked over at the door as Neville entered. Hannah smiled. "Welcome home, Neville. How was it at the Ministry today?"

Neville shrugged. "The usual, some loon tried conjuring up some great dark force and a few muggles had to have their memories modified," he said as he walked over. "How are you and Char?" he asked giving Hannah a peck on the cheek.

"The usual," Hannah said, "Charlotte and the cat got in another fight, the cat won in case you're wondering, and somebody had to have three chocolate frogs to make herself feel better about the whole mess, and I don't mean Charlotte."

Charlotte held her arms out to him. "Papa!"

Neville smiled and scooped up the child and ruffled her hair. "And how did my little Char loose to that nasty old kitty-cat?"

Charlotte giggled. Being only two, Charlotte had a limited vocabulary. "Kiddy cheated, Papa."

"I'll bet he did, I've always told your mother that we should have stuck to toads, but no, she had to get a cat."

Hannah rolled her eyes. "Well, at least Muffins keeps the mice away. What good has Trevor done lately, hmm?"

"Aw, Mama's grumpy, isn't she Char?"

"Gwumpy Mama."

"Don't encourage him," Hannah grumbled.

"Gwumpy, gwumpy!" Charlotte cheered.

"You heard her Hannah, grumpy it is," Neville said, lifting Char up onto his shoulders. Hannah rolled her eyes again.

"You two, you know sometimes I almost think…" Hannah trailed off as she realized what she had almost said. A strange look appeared on her face. "Um, I'll just go clean things up in the back. Best be ready for tomorrow today."

Neville sighed as he watched her go. Char looked down at him. "Wha's da madder, Papa?"

With another sigh, Neville lifted Charlotte from his shoulder and set her on the counter. "Char, you know that… your mother and I have told this before haven't we?" he asked desperately. "That I'm not actually…"

Char tilted her head to the side.

Neville sighed again. "You know I'm not… your father, don't you Char?"

"Oh dat?" Char nodded. "Yeah, das why I calls you Papa an' not Daddy."

"Right," Neville said with a forced smile. "It's getting late, you should be in bed."

"Ah, but I don' wanna, Papa," Char pouted.

"I'll read to you."

Charlotte's eyes lit up. "Okay, bedtime!"

Neville chuckled. "That's what I thought you'd say." He scooped her up and carried her up the stairs to her small room. Their flat above the pub was divided into several rooms, Char's room was right between Neville's and Hannah's.


About an hour or so later, Neville finally managed to escape from Charlotte's room. He lent against the door and sighed.

"Is she asleep?"

Neville turned and saw Hannah standing at the top of the stairs. He nodded. "I think so; she always manages to stay awake for at least a hundred pages."

Hannah smiled. "What were you reading to her?"

"One of Luna's new books," Neville said, holding up the book that he still held in one hand.

"What's it about?" Hannah asked, her face softening.

"Just about her latest adventure, oh, and Nargles," he gave a slight laugh, "after all these years, she actually found one."

Hannah blinked then frowned. "Neville, I think there's something important I forgot to tell you."

"What?"

She put a hand to her forehead and lent against the railing of the top step. "Th-there was a letter from Luna this m-morning. Neville, I'm really sorry."

"What is it Hannah?" Neville asked, walking closer.

When Hannah looked up at him there were tears in her eyes. "She… she's getting married. We've been invited to the wedding. Neville, I'm sorry, I know you…"

Neville swallowed the lump that had formed in his throat and sighed. "I'm fine Hannah, I'm fine."

"But you two… don't you…"

"Hannah, I can't expect her… we're … she should get to be happy with someone she loves."

A tear slipped down Hannah's face. "But you shouldn't? We shouldn't?"

Neville's expression grew hard. "You made this choice Hannah, we made this choice. We have to live with it."

Hannah wiped away the tear just as more started falling. "I'm sorry Neville, I'm so sorry. I wish… I wish… I want to love you…"

He wrapped his arms around her and pulled her close. "I know, Hannah."

Hannah sobbed against his shoulder. They had spent many hours standing together like this over the past few years. When Hannah's crying had stopped, they pulled apart. Neville kissed her forehead, Hannah pecked his cheek; they would never go further than that. He walked silently to his room, she silently to hers. Neville sighed as he lay down on his bed, not even taking off his shoes. He didn't get a lot of sleep now, and the sleep he did attain was troubled and uneasy, but he felt even worse for Hannah.

There they were the two of them, trapped in a marriage with no love, a daughter that wasn't his, and a live not properly lived. Neville knew it wasn't right, but the alternatives weren't any better. The girl he loved was going to be married, but what was he, a married man, supposed to do. He couldn't leave; he could never to that to Hannah, to Char, to Luna. And then, of course, what would his Grandmother think?

His Grandmother didn't know the truth about Char. The only people who knew the truth had been sworn to secrecy, no matter how painful it was. But what did the truth matter, when they were all just living a lie?


A/N: At this point I'm leaving a lot of stuff open to speculation. If anyone thinks they might know why this stuff is going on, I'd love to hear what you think. This is eventually going to be Neville/Luna and Hannah/? but that's all I'm going to say. If people like this story, expect the next chapter either today or early the week.

This whole story will be somewhere between... oh 5 and 10 chapters, so stay tuned!

Reviews are love!