A/N: Written for the Ancient Runes Assignment!
Prompts: Write something in the perspective of a character who is seen as a leader of something. This can be a good or a bad character.
Restriction: Anyone other than Lord Voldemort.
"So, Neville. What are we going to do about the Carrows tonight?" a small, determined face looked up to him, grim and carrying lines on his face that seemed too deep and wise for a boy of his age.
"It's a dangerous operation, Adam. We'll be handling it tonight." Neville said, giving a reassuring smile to him.
"But I want to help. My sister's in there, probably being tortured right now, and I want to do something!" he fairly trembled with rage.
"I know, Adam. I know." Neville knelt down, so that he was at eye-level with the second-year instead of towering over him. "You trust me, don't you?"
Adam nodded, wiping away a quiet tear that had crept out unseen.
"I need you to be a brave Gryffindor for me. I need you to stay here and help keep everyone safe, so that the Carrows don't find us." he gestured to the white and safe walls of the Room of Requirement. "Can you do that for me, please?"
Adam nodded, pointedly not looking at Neville and wiping away his tears furiously.
"Good. Now go and finish your Transfiguration homework. I know we're in the middle of a war, but you can't slack off, remember that. It's what Hermione would have said." Neville straightened, and led the boy back into one of the rooms of the magically expanded Room of Requirement.
"You're a good leader, you know, Neville?" Ginny said, as she soothed a younger girl back to sleep after she had woken from a nightmare.
"A leader?" Neville asked. The word was foreign on his tongue, and he had to think about it for some time.
"I've never really thought of myself as a leader… I was always just following in Harry's footsteps." he said uncertainly.
"Well, we've all grown quite a bit since Harry left Hogwarts. The world doesn't exactly revolve around him, no matter how important he is, Neville." Ginny said fiercely, her eyes glinting with tears, as they usually did whenever Harry's name was mentioned.
Neville was silent, and he walked at Ginny's side as they made their way to the entrance of the room, where the rest of their rescue team would be waiting for them.
"So, what's the plan, chief?" Seamus Finnegan asked, his wand already out and at the ready.
"The usual— one team will storm them while the others work on rescuing. I trust that you all have your defensive spells at the ready?" Neville asked sternly.
The team nodded silently.
"When you begin attacking them, I want you to divide yourselves into two— the offensive and defensive team. I want one offensive member and defensive member to be paired together at all times. The defensive member will be in charge of defending your offensive member, so that they do not need to worry about stray spells hitting them. I want all of you to make as much confusion as possible, so that means sparks, gas, some of those dung bombs that Fred and George gave us, basically, all the works. Anything to distract them from the prisoners, understood?"
They nodded once again, and Neville caught a gleam of respect and admiration glowing in their faces, and he was reminded of Ginny's words.
"You're a good leader, Neville."
Well, he'd have to do his damnedest not to let them down, then.