Neville the Brave

After the battle and the following celebration, Neville returned home with his gran and slept for about a week before he was able to muster enough energy to get out of bed. He didn't want to talk about what had happened, for it had been too terrifying to live through once; he certainly didn't want to keep dwelling on it. It was after quite some time of walking around in a daze that he even noticed he still had the sword of Gryffindor. Nobody noticed that he'd still had it when he'd left the school that morning. Apparently it wasn't needed by anybody at the moment, so it was staying with whom it had last been used.

Neville picked up the sword and really studied the details on the metal. The red rubies shone even when there was no light directly upon them. It was beautiful. He couldn't believe he'd even used it. Flashes of the battle returned to him and he reeled at the thoughts. He saw Voldemort standing before him, looking down into his eyes, and remembered how, beyond the red slits, there had been nothing. Empty, soulless. Until the end of Neville's days, there would never be anything more horrifying than that emptiness he'd seen.

He shivered even though it was nearly July, and the weather was quite hot outside. The flash of memory left him within seconds, and when it did, he was filled with a desire to visit his parents. It had been almost a year since he'd last seen them, and told them about joining the fight. As much as he thought it would be fun to show them the sword, he decided in the end that it would be too dangerous to let his parents near such a sharp object, nor would he probably be allowed to bring such a weapon into a hospital. He'd return it to Hogwarts in a few days' time.

With a hug to his gran, he flooed to St. Mungo's. His parents looked the same as they had the last time he'd seen them, though they seemed more vibrant than before. "Mum, dad, hello," he said in greeting.

Alice looked up and beamed to see her tall son walking over to him. "My boy," she breathed while holding her arms out to him. Neville scooped her up into his arms, nearly crushing her, and covering her face in kisses. When he set her down again, she had to sit down on her bed in order to regain her balance.

Neville then turned to his father and wrapped his arms around him. He kissed his father's cheek before letting go and sitting down next to Alice.

"Mum, dad, you have no idea how happy I am to see you. A lot has happened out there, and I was a part of it. I know you'd be proud of me…" he said as Frank settled in next to him.

Frank wrapped his hand around one of Neville's and squeezed it lovingly. "Proud," he said with a nod of his head.

Alice leaned in to rest her head against Neville's chest. "Happy boy," she murmured. "Good boy."

Neville smiled as tears filled his eyes. He knew that everything he'd done, had been for the two people who were now wrapping him in their love. He would have given his life for them, and not blinked an eye. He was happy, though, to have returned to them.

As painful as it was, he began to tell them about the war, and the battles he'd fought in. He knew they couldn't really understand him, but he found that the fear and the pain dissipated slightly as he said the words out loud.

When he was finished, he took a deep cleansing breath, and looked at his parents. Alice looked at him with wide eyes, and Frank's mouth was slightly agape. Alice patted her son's cheek and smiled. "Brave boy," she said firmly.

Frank squeezed Neville's hand more tightly. "Brave," he echoed.

Neville puffed his chest out proudly and smiled. "It comes from you two, you know," he said in a wavering voice. "You are the bravest people I know. The best examples a man could have. Thank you."

Alice and Frank smiled and bowed their heads. A moment later, Alice pulled a gum wrapper out of her pocket and held it out to her son. He happily accepted the gift.

Neville stayed the entire afternoon with his parents. He decided to make it a weekly visit, in between his work up at the school. There was a lot of rebuilding that needed to be done, and he was going to continue helping out.

What the future held, he couldn't say, but for now, he was content with spending time with his loved ones, and his beloved school. The future would take care of itself, when it was time.

A/N: The title of this story comes from The Lord of the Rings.