Bonus 6 - Gran

…I received your report card Ronnie. Only one P in History of Magic, A's in most of your classes, and even an E in Defense Against The Dark Arts! Dad even tells me that you're one of the best duelists of your year! You're doing almost as well as your brothers, I'm so proud of you! You must be working hard with the professors to accomplish so much! With love,

Mum

Ron put the letter in his pocket, paid Errol, watched the old menace collide into a floating candle like a blind bat, and eventually make his way out of The Great Hall. A couple of kids next to him were laughing. Stupid bloody arses, Errol was worth twice them, even if he really did need a new bir-

"Bad news?" Ron asked Nev.

Nev stared at his letter miserably, slouched in his chair. "It's from Gran. She's picking me up this Friday to visit Mum and Dad."

"Shame," said Ron, chewing on a breakfast sausage. "You'll miss the Gryffindor Ravenclaw match."

"That's right," said Nev, perking up. "We were going to watch the game together! I've given you my word, and I have to support Harry! I'll-"

"Go see your parents," said Harry sharply. "They're more important than some stupid quidditch game."

Nev looked at Ron expectantly.

"They're your parents Nev," said Ron. "Harry's right. They're more important than quidditch."

Nev sank back in his chair. "Guess yer right. Course you're right." He picked at his sausage miserably for the rest of supper.

The next morning, in Transfigurations Ron, Lavender, and Seamus managed to turn their mice into gold snuffboxes. Everyone could. Except Nev. His mouse just grew gold fur and bit him. In Potions, Nev forgot to add flobberworm mucus to their herbicide potion, and when they'd tested their brew on a daisy it had jumped out of its roots and tried to burrow up Nev's nose. And in Herbology, Nev pulled out their asphodel and left their roots to dry out in the sun to give the nettles more room to grow.

"Neville, what's wrong?" Asked Harry, that evening, in the privacy of The Gryffindor Boy's Dormitory.

"Nothing," said Nev. "I'm fine. Without Hermione's help, I'm just going back to where I ought to be. Failing doesn't even bother me anymore, I'm used to it. How do you think you'll do against Ravenclaw?"

"Oh, we'll beat them for sure," said Ron excitedly. "And if we do well enough, we've even got an outside chance at The Cup. Everyone who knows quidditch knows that Cho Chang is-"

"You failed a lesson in Herbology," said Harry. "Don't tell me everything's fine. What's going on?"

"Fine…" Nev sighed. "It's… It's Gran, I don't want to go with her…"

He was surprised Nev had even answered Harry's question. Maybe Nev actually did want to talk about it. But Ron had no idea what to say, Mum and Dad may not have been perfect but he'd never doubted they loved him, so… so he'd been happy before coming to Hogwarts, even if he wished some things had been different… Harry, Hermione, now Nev… He didn't really understand what it was like… So he just patted Nev's back.

"They can't make you go back," said Harry fiercely. "Not until Summer... And then it's only a couple months until you're back… And eventually, once you're seventeen…"

"Harry," said Nev. "Make sure you catch the snitch. We've still got a chance at…"

Nev wasn't really interested in quidditch. Sure he'd talk about it if you asked him, but he'd never bring it up on his own. Ron knew that. Harry knew that.

"Yeah," said Harry, smiling gently. "I hear you Nev, but I don't think Cho's as bad as-"

"I could go for a game of exploding snap," said Ron brightly. "How 'bout you?"

Harry and Nev nodded, and soon the three of them were playing cards on Ron's scarlet threaded bed. Ron connected two trolls to add to his points. Harry connected two serpents, Nev two spid-

The cards exploded, and the three boys laughed. Harry and Nev enjoyed the games, and maybe Ron didn't know the perfect thing to say to make everything better, but at least he could put a smile on his two best friends' faces, even if only for a little while. But time didn't stop. Soon it was Friday. Nev looked pale, and hadn't touched any of his bacon.

"You gonna eat those?" Ron asked, snatching the bacon off Nev's plate. "Thanks mate."

"I'll meet you in potions," said Harry, leaving The Great Hall a bit early.

Nev started trembling.

"Let's head out," said Ron, pretending not to notice.

Ron jumped out of his seat, and made his way to The Grand Staircase, but instead of walking down it- to Snape's classroom- he went right on past it. He spit into the lake as he crossed The Stone bridge, walked down a flight of stairs leaping down the last four, and strutted through The East Wing like he wasn't blatantly skipping Potions, and opened up Greenhouse 3 without a care in the world.

Nev glanced around uneasily. "We shouldn't be here. What if Professor Sprout catches us?"

Ron wasn't worried. Professor Sprout had told him it would be alright to take Nev here if things got too bad.

"Watcher Ron," said Nev. "You almost stepped on a mandrake. Their cries can be fatal y'know?"

It just looked like a normal patch of grass to Ron. "Cries?"

Nev stooped down, and brushed off some soil, revealing a face made of roots. "Sentient plants," said Nev, as the mandrake opened its eyes. Nev's wand sprinkled a few drops of water into the mandrake's mouth, and he gently covered the mandrake back up. "When they've fully matured they can be cut up and used to unpetrify students. I used to think it was sad. They're just as aware as you and me, but because they're labeled as plants we act like it's okay to raise them to be slaughtered. It always seemed like murder to me, I always thought it was wrong, and to say otherwise would be logically incoherent. Now I know better. Everyone has a place. This is theirs."

"Nev," said Ron. "What's going on with your Gran?"

"..." Nev said, watering a mandrake with his wand. "Gran is fine… It's just… It's my parents, everyone tells me how great they are…"

"And you know you'll never live up to it," said Ron.

"No, it's not that," said Nev, looking through the mandrake patch. "It's that… What if you hadn't saved me during flying lessons? What if I woke up, but I never really did? What would you say about me? Would you talk about how I was basically a squib?

"You wouldn't. You'd say I was brave. Kind. A good person." Nev blasted a nettle. "But when you visited and I didn't recognize you- I didn't even realize you were there… How long are those feelings supposed to last? How long would you look at me like I was some kind of bloody hero? I'd have all the feelings of a vegetable… Less… Who would you be hurting if you admitted I was a doll, and that I'd never really been that great to begin with?"

Something really, really bad must've happened to Nev's parents. Something worse than death.

"I… I don't know why you're telling me this Neville," said Ron. "But I dunno what to say. My Mum and Dad have always been there, and I was happy in The Burrow. I was a happy kid. Maybe talk to Harry? He'd understand better than me."

Nev shook his head. "Harry wouldn't get it. He loves his parents. I would too, if mine were dead." Nev stood, and brushed himself off. "I never expected you to get it, and I'm happy that you don't.

"I s'pose I told you, because you're my best friend, Ron."

That evening Nev left Hogwarts with his grandmother to visit his parents.

Author's Note: Thanks for reading!

ViviTheFolle - Voldemort definitely has his eyes on Ron, but not just Ron... He's been biding his time, but he'll make his move soon. Thanks for the review!

merendinoemiliano - Hermione's next project will be a very big one, but she has a fairly large hurdle to clear before she can feasibly accomplish it.