A/N and our story continues, this chapter covers an event that I really find pretty difficult to swallow so through the medium of fanfiction I am attempting to correct it.
Thank you as ever for reading, reviewing, adding to your favourites and following. An unbelievable 61 of you are now following this story… I love you all :)
Year Three Chapter Two
Neville was standing in the corridor waiting for the first Defence against the Dark Arts lesson of the new term. Having seen Professor Lupin in action on The Express he was fairly certain he was already in with a good shout of being the best Defence instructor to date.
He cast a cursory glance over at Hermione who was organising her study planner ahead of being assigned homework, probably in a state of rapturous delight at the very idea. He noticed the little pink hearts he had caught glimpses of on the Defence section in last year's timetable were absent this year and he felt... relief… well it was silly for her to have crushes on Professors, especially ones like Lockhart. Professor Lupin opened the classroom door wide and stepped outside into the corridor
"Hello third years, welcome to Defence Against the Dark Arts, we have a special practical lesson today so when you go in please leave your bags at the edge of the room and stand in the centre of the cleared area"
Before anyone could move anywhere the dark figure of Professor Snape appeared in the corridor presumably on his way to the dungeons.
"Possibly no one's warned you, Lupin, but this class contains Neville Longbottom. I would advise you not to entrust him with anything difficult. Not unless Miss Granger is hissing instructions in his ear."
Despite now being thirteen Neville hadn't lost the dread of Professor Snape, he didn't hate him like Ron and Harry he wished he did, he was afraid of him. It was an irrational fear almost like a phobia, irrational as it wasn't as if Snape was going to kill him, at least most of the time he was sure.
As he got older the fear deepened, he had expected that over time his fear would have alleviated if not from having grown up at least lessening through prolonged exposure. However, while he may not have gotten over it he did feel like he understood it better. It wasn't so much fear of the man, though the Professor retained his ability to intimidate him, it was what his thinly veiled disdain for Neville represented. The Potions Master brought out all of Neville's biggest insecurities, he made him feel clumsy and awkward, stupid and simple and most damaging of all irrelevant. Being in his presence and failing to deliver was like all of the voices he had heard as a child, the admonishments of his Gran the whispered conversations of his Aunts over tea 'such as shame he's not gifted like his father', voices Neville could still hear, were right and with that pressure growing in his chest each Potions lesson Neville would crumble.
Outside of his Potions lessons Neville was still not the brightest student but he was never made to feel small or weak, He felt his heart sink into his shoes at Snape's words, he didn't want another teacher to write him off.
He was broken out of his thoughts by Professor Lupin responding "I was hoping that Neville would assist me with the first stage of the operation, and I am sure he will perform it admirably".
He perked slightly though he was sure the new Professor would be forced to agree with Snape by the end of the lesson.
Filing into the corridor an hour later Neville couldn't wipe the grin off his face. The image of Professor Snape in his Grandmother's best outfit, including stuffed fox stole and vulture trimmed hat, could never be taken away from him. He wondered if Hermione would help him with extracting the memory so he could view it in a pensieve at a later date… over and over again.
Neville had confidently dispatched the Boggart winning ten points for Gryffindor and he was pretty sure he felt a little taller as the rabble made their way to lunch.
At Christmas he had suspected but by mid-March he was certain, something was going on with Hermione. He didn't know what exactly, she was more harried than usual, he hadn't even been aware that it was possible to study more but she was. Her timetable didn't make sense, she seemed to be taking all the available O.W.L. subjects, apart from Divination how was she finding time to do them all?
When he noticed that she seemed more agitated and distracted he watched her. She wasn't eating properly, sure she would come to The Great Hall and sit down with everyone else, to someone that wasn't paying particular attention it would appear like nothing was wrong but she wasn't eating anything. She would put some food on her plate and pick at it uninterestedly before leaving to scurry off back to the library again. He wasn't even sure she knew she was doing it.
How had no one else noticed that she had clearly lost weight? That she spent every waking moment in The Library? Was she truly so invisible to everyone?
Then came the incident with the Firebolt, she had taken it to Professor McGonagall because she was worried. Harry was in danger, their Head of House had confiscated the broom to run tests and when she had told the boys there had been a big blow up in the common room. Harry and Ron weren't speaking to her at all and it had gone on for weeks.
Following the third week of her 'punishment' from the boys she got worse. Where she had been irritable and snappish she became quiet and withdrawn, Neville wasn't certain he had even heard her speak this week. In classes she had moved to sit towards the back, she kept her eyes averted and answered none of the Professor's questions, even when they asked her for the answer she would simply shake her head or shrug.
Her face that had been drawn through weight loss now became pale, eyes that had bags under them now had circles so dark it looked like bruising. She looked perpetually on the brink of tears like a strong wind would blow her right over. Neville had had enough, he could understand their frustration, it was an awesome broom but to ignore her, to act like she didn't exist, both of them… it was too much. They had to see the state she was in. Hermione didn't have many friends so when she fell out with Harry and Ron the effect on her was always dramatic, coupled with whatever had been going on already this was clearly too much for her.
He sought her out in The Library but she wasn't there, marching around the castle for ages he finally found her in the Astronomy Tower, surrounded by books, shivering despite being wrapped in a thick woollen blanket.
"Hermione are you ok?"
She looked up at him, her hair was piled up on top of her head though most of her springy curls had escaped the confines of her hair tie, her skin was so pale she looked like she had been petrified again. Her eyes looked impossibly large in her small face.
"Yes" she said but her voice hitched
Neville moved to sit down, carefully navigating the books litters all over the stone floor, he moved slowly as if approaching a small wild animal that would startle and scamper off if he got too close too quick.
"When was the last time you ate? or slept?"
"I'm... I'm not sure" her brows furrowed, she wasn't being evasive it would appear that she genuinely didn't know.
"You're not looking after yourself" Neville asserted.
Her bottom lip started to tremble and Neville felt extreme panic, her trembling lip gave way to heartfelt sobs and at a loss of what else to do he very woodenly put his arm around her shoulders and pulled her into him, letting her cry against his chest.
"Why didn't you come and speak to me if you were upset?"
"I thought...I...I thought you would be ang...angry about the broo...the broom too" she choked out between sobs. He pulled her tighter.
"Never Hermione, never, I'm never not speaking to you ok?"
"O...Ok"
"Hermione what's all this about?"
"Told y...you… broom"
"No not that, this started before then, you're killing yourself"
"Taking a… a lot of classes...and need to do well….Professor McGo… McGonagall… she put her tru… trust in me...need to do well… and now Buckbeak… have to help... Hagrid"
There were several more sentences but by that point her words were almost unintelligible. Half an hour later once she was all cried out he moved slightly and started gathering her things.
"What are you doing?" Her voice was thick from having cried for so long, her little face was blotchy, her eyelids almost welded together.
"I'm collecting up your stuff come on" his voice was more authoritarian than he had heard previously and she looked a somewhat stunned before she scrambled to stand and went to take her bag. Neville waved off her hand and put her satchel onto his shoulder then grabbed her hand and headed to the common room.
When they entered the portrait hole most of the occupants turned round to look at the scene, Neville only then realised that they were still holding hands. He felt Hermione attempt to pull away but in a moment of bravery, knowing that she needed him he gripped her small hand tighter.
Hermione flushed under the scrutiny of their housemates, he could see she was aware it was obvious she had been in tears. He was moving her further into the room when Ginny came bounding over, the fiery red head looked at the both of them and quickly eyed their joined hands but said nothing. She smiled kindly at Hermione.
"Hi Hermione, I haven't seen you for a little while, Luna and I were wondering if you wanted to come down to the kitchens with us after dinner and have some cocoa?"
Hermione looked a little sheepish but Neville tugged on her arm pulling her forward almost like you would have done to a shy child.
"Yes Ginny that would be lovely" Hermione answered finally, Ginny beamed at her and Hermione smiled a shaky smile back.
Neville's heart lightened slightly at the improvement that made to her appearance.
"Hermione go to bed for a couple of hours yeah? I will wait for you down here before dinner" He wanted to capitalize on the compliance he had probably managed to achieve through shock in the last couple of hours and get her to eat and sleep before it wore off. She nodded then let go of his hand reaching to take her satchel from him. Neville stepped back from her, moving the bag from her grasp and shook his head.
"You won't need that for sleep"
She was straightening herself out getting ready to protest until tiredness must have won out and she sagged.
"Ok"
He and Ginny both watched as she trudged slowly up the stairs, when she had disappeared from view Ginny turned to him.
"Thank you Neville, I don't know what you did but I have been so worried about her, I've been trying to get her to talk to me for days but it was like she couldn't really hear me"
"That's ok… would you mind going up to check she has actually gone to sleep? I know she's probably got some more books up there"
Ginny smiled knowingly "good idea, I'll go check"
"And will you help me get her to dinner? After she has some rest she might go back to her old self and hex me for having bullied her into sleeping"
Ginny laughed and promised she would bring her back downstairs before dinner. Neville turned to find a vacant chair and saw Ron and Harry eyeing him. He walked over to where they were sat, abandoned chess board between them.
"What are you playing at Neville? Hermione…"
Neville was exhausted, he wasn't sure he had ever seen anyone as upset as Hermione had been earlier and he didn't have the energy to deal with one of Ron's explosions so he cut him off before he could get started "Make up with Hermione"
"Neville you can't be serious, what about what she did? What about the Firebolt?"
"I don't care about the broom"
"The broom... It wasn't just a bloody broom it's a …."
"Make up with her… She's crumbling, she puts herself under ridiculous pressure to be the best to prove that she should be here, that she has a right to be here. She's so skinny I could have probably carried her down the stairs from the Astronomy Tower this afternoon"
He turned to face Harry who had so far remained silent "How can you not care? She is supposed to be your friend"
Harry flushed "Erm...we'll speak to her Neville"
"Good" Neville was glad the confrontation was over, the adrenaline was wearing off and the shock that he had argued with both the boys was settling in.
"Has she really not been eating?" Harry asked hesitantly.
"No" Neville sighed, sitting down next to them "Or sleeping"
"Ok, we'll talk to her" Ron said with reluctance seeping into his tone.
"Great" Neville said without enthusiasm, he rubbed his face, he wanted to defuse the tension "can I play winner" he pointed to the chessboard.
"What you mean is can you play Ron next?" Harry said with a smile and they all laughed.
