Title: Neville Longbottom And Dumbledore's Army
Setting: Mainly Hogwarts between September 1997 and June 1998.
Summary: Neville Longbottom goes back to Hogwarts in his 7th year, and leads a rebellion against Snape, along with Luna Lovegood and Ginny Weasley.
Author's Note: So Hogwarts finally starts today, what awaits Neville? As you probably can guess nothing good! Read and review please )
Disclaimer: I am not JK Rowling, these are her characters. If I was JK this story would be better written and be selling millions of copies not gathering 4 reviews
Chapter 3: Start to a New Term
Dawn seemed to follow midnight with indecent haste.
"You look terrible," was Ron's greeting as he entered the room to wake Harry.
"Not for long," said Harry, yawing.
They found Hermione downstairs in the kitchen. She was being served coffee and hot rolls by Kreacher and wearing a slightly manic expression that Harry associated with exam revision.
"Robes," she said under her breath, acknowledging their presence with a nervous nod and continuing to poke around in her beaded bag, "Polyjuice Potion ... Invisibility Clock ... Decoy Detonators ... you should all take a couple of these just in case ... Puking Pastilles, Nosebleed Nougat, Extendable Ears ..."
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Magic is Might – Page 194 – UK version
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As dawn broke sunshine crept through the Gryffindor tower, into the 7th years dormitory, Neville woke up with a start. He groaned, after last night he didn't want to get up, the prospect of lessons, never mind punishments, with the Carrows made him understandably a bit annoyed. He battled with the thought of just staying in bed but - like at his house the previous morning - the thought of Harrys and his hardships made him push himself up.
He pushed open his curtains round his bed and looked round. As he looked around his almost deserted dormitory he began to realise that it was quite big. In his previous years with 4 other rowdy boys he always thought it was quite small, too crowed, yet with only depressed Seamus, he longed for some company.
"Sleep well?" asked a voice. Neville jumped and felt quite foolish when he realised it was only Seamus. Neville shook his head, it had taken him hours to get to sleep, and his head was still swimming about what Snape had revealed the night before. "Me neither," said Seamus "this place is going to be really bad this year isn't it." It wasn't a question.
In silence Seamus and Neville got ready and headed of into the common room, where they bumped into an equally depressed and downcast Lavender and Parvati, they said their hello's and headed downstairs to the great hall. It was an unnerving walk for Neville; he didn't hear the girls giggle once, which was highly irregular. 'Just another sign of change' he thought to himself. They settled themselves at the end of the Gryffindor table and started to have breakfast. Ginny entered a few minutes later, she exchanged waves with Neville but went and sat down the table with some 6th years, Neville felt a slight pang in his stomach at this, Ginny was probably his best friend left at Hogwarts after Luna.
After breakfast the school waited for their heads of houses to come round to organise their time tables. Neville was continuing with his 3 subjects from last year; Charms, Herbology and Defence Against the Dark Arts. McGonagall gave him the timetable accordingly with a bit of an angry expression on her face, "oh and you'll be also doing Muggle Studies as our Headmaster said last night." She said Headmaster with such bitterness, Neville was surprised she wasn't drooling venom. He glanced at his time table for today. At first he was happy, he had only 2 lessons. Unfortunately, he had the 2 Carrows; a single period in Muggle Studies and a double in The Dark Arts (as it was wrote on his timetable). He glanced at Seamus.
"You got the Carrows today too?" asked Neville.
"Yeah and transfiguration," replied Seamus, "C'mon we better get to Muggle Studies before whichever Carrow we've got decides that we deserve to be punished..." Seamus and Neville hurried off towards the Muggle Studies classroom.
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"Now wait here," Hermione told Harry, who was still under the Invisibility Cloak, "and we'll be back with some hairs for you."
He had to wait ten minutes but it seemed much longer to Harry, skulking alone in the sick-splattered alleyway, beside the door concealing the Stunned Mafalda. Finally, Ron and Hermione reappeared.
"We don't know who he is," Hermione said, passing Harry several curly, black hairs, "but he's gone home with a dreadful nosebleed! Here, he's pretty tall; you'll need bigger robes ..."
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Magic is Might – Page 197 – UK version
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Neville had never been in Muggle Studies before because he had decided against taking Muggle Studies according to his Grandmothers wishes. His first impression upon entering of the classroom was how dark it was. Even darker than Snapes room had been, the windows had been closed and blocked up so no light whatsoever was coming out. There was only one source of light in the whole room, which was from a fire at the front of the room.
In front of the fire was the ugly and evil Alecto Carrow. She gave Neville and Seamus the most twisted smile Neville had ever seen which sent them scurrying to some seats at the back of the classroom. Neville noticed that the Hufflepuffs were also in the lesson with the Gryfindor's.
"No," whispered Carrow rather hoarsely, "Longbottom I want you up in front." Neville had no choice to come and sit at the front, Neville could imagine what was coming next.
"A good friend of mine had the pleasure of meeting your parents Longbottom," she said rather sneeringly as she lent over him, "she said they were weak!" she spat out the last word and walked away to speak to the rest of the class. Neville had set his face into a stony expression which gave nothing away. Inside Neville was full of anger and hate, resentment at the Death Eaters overwhelmed him. 'Attack him,' Said a small voice in his head. 'Don't be an idiot!' replied the stronger part of his head. He had expected to be taunted about his parents but not on the first day.
Eventually his common sense won out, he resisted the urge to blow Carrow apart with a well placed Jinx, and rejoined the lesson.
"We will be learning all about the filthy muggles in these lessons. You will take notes." Neville caught carrow saying. She started to "teach". The lesson started of bad and just descended into utter madness. It was basically the biggest anti-muggle hour he had ever sat through, Carrow describe Muggles as if they were animals, with no real feelings. Neville knew this was insane but resisted the urge to shout out, a mixture of common sense and fear kept his mouth shut; unfortunately it didn't keep Seamus'.
"Muggles, are primitive, their minds are teensy, they are blissfully unaware of our existence, yet we have to hide from them! Why?" asked Carrow.
"Because they'd be wanting magical cures for everything!" cried out Seamus from the back. The class drew its breath, they knew something was coming. Carrow sauntered over towards Seamus and spat in his face:
"Then we kill them! They are no match for us!" Carrow replied. Seamus stood up:
"You can't just go around killing people because you don't like them! That's insane!" he exclaimed. Neville groaned, saying that to a Death Eater is like calling someone who is ugly "ugly" but think they're good looking, they won't accept it.
"CRUICO!" cried Alecto Carrow. Seamus instantly fell to the floor and began to wither in pain. "I am not insane, and neither is The Dark Lord who is planning such things. If I EVER here you insult the Dark Lord again, you will be dead!" Seamus stopped withering and got up shakily and sat on his chair. Neville was shocked, an unforgivable curse used as a form of punishment in Hogwarts, he couldn't believe it.
"Class dismissed. For homework I was 19 inches on muggles and their filthy habits." Carrow bellowed. The class quickly scuttered out of the room, Seamus was shaking so bad Neville had to carry him out of the room with the help of Ernie Macmillan of Hufflepuff.
ooo
Harry looked too and rage reared in him like a Snake. Where there might have been a peep hole on a Muggle front door, a large round eye with a bright blue iris had been set into the wood; An eye that was shockingly familiar to anyone who had known Alistair Moody.
For a split second Harry forgot where he was and what he was doing there: he even forgot that he was invisible. He strode straight over to the door to examine the eye. It was not moving. It gazed blindly upwards frozen. The plaque beneath it read:
Dolores Umbridge
Senior Undersecretary to the Minister
Below that a slightly shiner new plaque read:
Head of Muggle-born registration commission
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Magic is Might – Page 206 – UK version
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Neville and Ernie carried Seamus all the way to Transfiguration, his next lesson. When they entered the room with him Professor McGonagall stopped teaching at once and looked around horrified:
"What's happening to him?" she asked instantly with a look of concern on her face that Neville had rarely seen. Neville couldn't reply he was still shaking with anger; he hated the crucio curse more than any other curse in the world.
"It was dreadful Professor," replied Ernie shaking his head, "We just had Muggle Studies and Seamus, well he disagreed with Carrow and she crucio'd him." McGonagall was severely distressed by that news:
"I can't say I'm surprised," she said (more to herself) while staring at Seamus, she then turned and addressed Neville and Ernie "Longbottom! Macmillian! Do you have a lesson now?"
"No professor," replied Neville, however Ernie nodded:
"Potions miss."
"Fine, Longbottom take Finnigain to Madam Pompfrey and give her this," she passed him a roll of parchment. Make sure our Headmaster or the Carrows do not see it. Macmillan get to lesson before they do this to you gesturing at Seamus." She turned around, back to her class that had all been trying to listen in, but failing. As Neville and Ernie came to the corner where they would have to split up, Neville remembered something:
"Ernie," Neville said grabbing him with his free arm, he had a quick glance round, "You want to do something about this? I mean the mess Hogwarts is in. With Snape. And the Carrows. Or at least try too?" Ernie made a confused face:
"Course I do Neville, but I don't see what we can do?"
"Remember that galleon Hermione gave you in our fifth year? Have a look at it tomorrow morning if you want to do something about it..." Neville replied. He gave Ernie a little wink and wandered off towards the Hospital Wing.
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AN: So we're half way through the first day, what do you think so far? Tell me! I was planning on making the first day a whole chapter but there is still a whole chunk of stuff to go in this day so look forward to it D btw does anyone know whether Neville does any other subjects other than the 3 he chose last year (and now muggle studies)? Thanks. Tell me what you think people!