November 23, 2022
The sun had set on Hogwarts castle a little while before. Students were in bed, the grounds were quiet. Professor Neville Longbottom, a middle-aged, clumsy man, was patrolling the trophy room. A couple minutes earlier, he had heard crashes there and was checking to see if it was a student out of bed or just Peeves, the school's poltergeist. As he walked past the nearby window, something caught his eye outside near the lake. A shadowy figure was strolling along the shore, with what looked like a wand in his hand, pointed at a nearby monument, which was especially important to Professor Longbottom personally. It was the tomb of Albus Dumbledore, headmaster of Hogwarts during most of Professor Longbottom's tenure as student there, and the greatest teacher the professor had ever had. There was another reason, however, someone suspiciously approaching the tomb would be worrisome for the tired professor. Buried in the tomb, along with Dumbledore's body, was the Elder Wand, the most powerful wand ever made.
The shadowy figure approached the tomb. He waved his wand, but nothing happened. He looked at the tomb, and exclaimed, "What?"
After a bit of thought, he muttered, "Yes, of course. They must've put protective enchantments on it after the first break-in. This'll be harder than I thought."
He brandished his wand high in the air, and the air fizzled, sending sparks every which way. He brought it down, pointing at the tomb. A thin, blue energy beam sprung from the tip of his wand, and shot towards the sealed entrance towards the tomb. Just before it was about to meet the marble walls, it met a magical barrier. As the continuous stream of destructive energy poured onto the shield, cracks began to appear onto the latter's surface. The steam never broke, and the shield withered away under the pressure. The shadowy man stepped forward cautiously, but met no resistance, and he waved his wand. The tomb's entrance was revealed by a large marble block separating from the rest and floating backwards until a staircase had been uncovered and made accessible. He entered the tomb.
Suddenly he heard the grating of marble on rock, and looked back towards the entrance. The marble block was magically resetting itself, trapping him in the tomb. He pointed his wand again at the entrance, and said, "Depulso!".
The marble block was blasted into pieces. Then a figure emerged, also with a wand. The man presumed this was his foe, whoever was closing the tomb, and said, in a loud whisper, "Who are you?"
The figure answered. "Professor Neville Longbottom. And you?"
The man smirked and lowered his hood. Professor Longbottom could see he was a very old man. The man was completely bald, and very wrinkled. His skin was quite pale and devoid of birthmarks or freckles. His nose was pointed. He was frail, but his eyes (dark brown) glinted with a malicious intelligence, and, Professor Longbottom, knowing whose tomb he was standing in, knew outward appearances of age did not denote power in the wizarding world in the slightest. The man spoke in a slow rasp, but enunciated all his word so they were very clear. "I am called Neldrond."
Professor Longbottom pointed his wand at Neldrond. "Leave. You are trespassing."
Neldrond sneered. "You are the Herbology professor here, right?"
"Yeah," Professor Longbottom said indignantly.
Neldrond chuckled. "Shouldn't be that hard."
The professor lashed out at the insult, sending a burst of flames at Neldrond. It dissipated at a wave of the old man's wand. They engaged in a battle of curses and hexes. Neldrond blocked anything and everything Professor Longbottom sent at him with ease, and almost laziness. Longbottom had grown tired after a while, and Neldrond could sense it. Immediately he went on the attack. His opponent was staggering backwards, unable to repel the relentless attacks being thrown at him. Eventually Neldrond was able to disarm him, and smiled. Professor Longbottom lunged forward to retrieve his wand, but was blasted backwards by a flick of Neldrond's. He scrambled until his back was against the wall, and stood up, defiant. He shouted, "You'll never get the Elder Wand! Not truly! Harry Potter is its master! You'll never defeat him!"
Neldrond laughed. "Wrong on three counts. I will get the Elder Wand. Harry Potter is not its master. And I could defeat that man with the ease that I have disposed of you."
Longbottom cursed him. Neldrond laughed once more, and pointed his wand at the professor. As he turned away, he casually said, "Avada Kedavra!". A green light flooded the room behind him for a fleeting moment. After he heard the body slumping to the ground, Neldrond picked up the Elder Wand from Dumbledore's corpse, twirling it lazily in his hand. He smiled and Disapparated from the Hogwarts grounds. It wasn't until noon that Neville Longbottom's body was found.
