Trying Times (Harry)

[Neville Longbottom]

Neville had been watching Ian and Astoria for a few moments, a knowing smile on his lips. He truly was happy for his friend for having found someone special. After Hannah's death, Neville had not really been interested in dating anymore and at the moment, all of his thoughts were about how to protect his friends and how to end this horrible situation they found themselves in. There had to be a way to get back some control, but try as he might, Neville could not find any loophole in Voldemort's power. It also had been weeks since he had heard anything of the order and if they had already managed to make new plans on how to proceed. As he kneeled on the ground, collecting some monkswood, he kept pondering and did not hear anyone approaching.

[Harry James Potter]

Strolling through the forest Harry played with his wand as he searched for Thestrals, it was usually something he did with Luna but he had no idea where to find her and she was probably being punished for what happened. But he knew she was strong and she would most definitely not blame him for what happened before, "Neville?!" Harry said with a smile when he saw his friend in the forest.

[Neville Longbottom]

Neville looked up from where he was kneeling when he heard someone call his name and he dusted off his hand and got back to his feet when he saw a friend approaching. “Hey Harry!” he greeted with an easygoing smile, as always feeling completely relaxed when he was gathering ingredients in the forest. Even if he failed at making them work as a potion, he still enjoyed growing the plants and then harvesting his hard work. “Are you looking for someone or just getting away from the craziness at the castle?” Neville asked the other Gryffindor, making a face as he thought of who was in charge of Hogwarts now.

[Harry James Potter]

Harry gave it a thought of what he should respond, if he was going to be completely honest, it was more a search for thestrals to see if they were still alright and no one had touched them. Surely many death eaters could see them, and perhaps they were being harmed every minute Harry was not with them. The boy who lived owed it to Luna to take care of them when she wasn't able to, "A little bit of both," he answered with a small smile on his face. "Searching for a few creatures," he added, "What about you?" Harry then inquired.

[Neville Longbottom]

It took a few moment for his question to be answered and Neville had to smile slightly at Harry's reply; giving an explanation without really saying anything in particular, very smart. "I see, Mr. Mysterious." he commented, chuckling and shook his head slightly at his friend, though he wasn't going to ask for more information. Neville really wasn't a noisy person and if someone wanted to keep something to themselves, they usually had a good reason for it. "If you need any help, just say so." he offered. "And be careful..." Neville knew that Harry could look out for himself, but still, they never knew that Voldemort was up to.

"You know me, always digging in the dirt, Harry." Neville chuckled with a slightly sheepish expression, knowing that many wizards looked down on Herbology because it was not as flashy as defense or potions or most other subjects. But he didn't care, taking care of the plants was both soothing and tiring and it had given him the confidence he had never possessed. "I often come here into the forest to gather some ingredients for potions. I'd rather lot have to rely on the Carrow's or Snape's good will to restock the hospital wing all the time. And I found some people good enough to brew the potions, so that's covered at least." he explained.

[Harry James Potter]

Harry chuckled softly when Neville addressed him as Mr. Mysterious, shaking his head thinking that he had enough nicknames to go by, and thinking about it he had not chosen any of them, not even one. When his fellow gryffindor offered assistance if Harry required it, the boy who lived gave it a thought but decided to let him finish speaking before answering, not wanting to interrupt Neville. He knew the man loved his plants, just like Harry loved quidditch. "Well if you do want to come along, I'll just be seeing if the thestrals are in good condition," he revealed whispering this time. "I am afraid that now that Luna isn't out here twenty four seven, many death eaters may just take advantage of those innocent creatures, and I'm not letting that happen," Harry narrowed his eyes slightly, "If you want I can help you with your ingredients first though," he offered not really minding on aiding his friend so they could quickly wrap up this visit to the forest before any unwanted attention came along.

[Neville Longbottom]

Neville chuckled along with his friend and shot him an amused smile. It wasn't often that his friends had something to laugh about lately and though he wasn't really the kind of person to crack jokes all the time, Neville always tried his best to cheer them up if he could. At the mention of Thestrals, his interest was spiked, as he remembered their excursion in his fifth year and he gave Harry a nod. "Of course, we owe them, kind of, don't you think? And Luna is taking so much of her time to care for them." he agreed, knowing that his Ravenclaw friend would be heartbroken if something where to happen to the horse-like creatures.

"Oh no, thanks, Harry, I'm all done for today." Neville shook his head at the other Gryffindor with a slightly awkward expression. He didn't know how good Harry was at Herbology, but he really didn't like anyone messing with his plants, even a good friend. "Let's head off before someone gets suspicious of us hanging around here..." Neville narrowed his eyes as he surveyed their surroundings, but so far, no one was in sight, so he threw his back over his shoulder and started off into the forest.

[Harry James Potter]

Nodding when Neville mentioned he did not need assistance with his plants, Harry was glad his friend could tag along with him for the ride. Sure he wasn't afraid of any student or teacher around, but he was much more secure by being with someone, secure from what? His thoughts.

"Really hope I didn't bother you, Neville," Harry said with a small smile on his face as they walked in stride throughout the forest to one of the deeper, darkest clearings, where the thestrals hid, now protected by a few centaurs Harry had enlisted. "Down there," he motioned with his head as he stepped slowly onto a pile of leafs, spreading them around, forming a path for them to follow on their way out as he descended into the clearing.

[Neville Longbottom]

Neville snorted and waved the other boy's concerns off. "Nah, don't worry, Harry, I'm always glad for a little company." he told his friend with an answering smile. At times like these being out on your own wasn't the smartest idea even though Neville was quite confident that he could give most of the Death Eater students here a good fight. Still, company also meant comfort and distraction and both were quite useful in such times.

Following Harry deeper into the forest, Neville couldn't help but glance at him from time to time. "You seem somewhat subdued, Harry. I know asking if everything is alright would be rather stupid at the moment, but still, did something happen?" he asked, not out of curiosity, but out of concern for a friend. Harry had always been someone who inspired Neville to believe in himself, with his courage and positive thoughts, but the past years had changed many of them.

[Harry James Potter]

Continuing to walk after Neville inquired if something was the matter with Harry, he simply breathed deeply, not wanting to sound negative with the words he had in mind, no matter how honest and realistic they were, Harry inspired others, many looked at him as their leader and savior, his friends looked at him as the chosen one that would get them out of this trouble. "We can all die," he stated bluntly as he came across a centaur in the middle of two trees, and at the sight of Harry allowed him passage, along with Neville.

Arriving at where the Thestrals now could somewhat peacefully live, Harry slipped his bag off his back, opening it and taking out a large piece of meat hurling it at the closest Thestral, whom grabbed the food with its mouth, making Harry smirk at the animal. "Truth is, even if we do win, even if Voldemort is defeated, what then? Are we supposed to oppose Marvolo's death eaters with our twenty men order, and a bunch of good retired aurors?" he asked looking at Neville. "We need to be able to fight back, now and later.. Having Sirius and Remus won't save us all.. Having me won't save anyone," he clenched his fists.

[Neville Longbottom]

For a while, the two young men walked in silence, getting closer and closer to the thestrals. He nodded politely at the centaurs they passed by, grateful for their assistance in protecting the innocent creatures and took the time to let his own thoughts wander a bit. Only a few years ago, he had been quite frightened to get on the thestrals back to fly all the way to the ministry and while he still preferred to stay on solid ground, he now enjoyed seeing them and wanted to make sure they were alright.

He and his friends had come a long way already, but sometimes, Neville felt like all that would be nothing compared to what they would have to face in the future. Harry’s next words made him look over again and he nodded gravely. “I know, trust me, I know. We already lost so many and the thought of losing even more sometimes makes me wonder why we even bother.” He said quietly, looking down at his feet with a heavy sigh. If he already felt exhausted, he didn’t want to imagine how Harry felt knowing that most people still looked at him as their savior.

Dropping his bags to the ground near an old tree, Neville carefully walked closer to where Harry was feeding the Thestrals, chuckling when one of them snatched a large piece of meat. “I don’t think I’ll ever get used to that.” He admitted with an easy grin before Harry’s words turned his expression serious again. Of course the other man was right and Neville knew that their allegiance with the Gaunts wouldn’t last long after Voldemort’s demise and yet … “We need an army, you’re right. We need to mobilize people to actually fight back. Voldemort has many people under his command, but I’m quite sure that there are even more who are just bowing down to him in fear. If we could convince these people to pick up their wands and fight with us … “ he trailed off.

That was a subject that always managed to enrage even his placid nature, but knowing that so many people just hid in their houses like cowards while his friends, some of them still children, actually risked their lives, pissed him off. “Your godfather doesn’t happen to know some secret army that would like to fight with us?” Neville tried to joke, though it came off as rather desperate.

[Harry James Potter]

Hearing that Neville was quite aware of the big possibility of many of their friends perishing in all these wars, Harry nodded whilst he took a deep breath, “It was enough for me losing my parents...I figure you think the same...” he admitted, often forgetting that whilst Neville's parents didn't die when he was a baby they were not very far from it and he lost them either way, just like Harry had done, Neville as much as him could have been the chosen one from the prophecy, and although many denied it due to Neville being a supposed coward when he was a child, although Harry knew well he wasn't. He still remembered when the other man had tried to stand up to him, Hermione and Ron back in the first year, not wanting for them to get into trouble or worse. He valued that in his friend, and overall, he had always thought of Neville as someone he could trust, and a man who could definitely carry the weight of being a savior alongside him. He knew the other lion had what it took to be the chosen one to tear Voldemort to pieces.

When Neville asked if Sirius knew of any army capable of helping the order establish peace after Voldemort's death Harry sighed knowing his godfather had all but exterminated the templars... "He may!" The Nexus suddenly invaded his mind as he thought of how well their soldiers were trained, and Sirius had once told him the Nexians would never throw the world into chaos like Voldemort and his nieces would.

[Neville Longbottom]

“Yes … “ Neville agreed, his mind rewinding till it arrived at the last time he had visited his parents at the hospital. He was always happy to see them and see that they were alive and more or less happy, even if it was in their own world which he couldn’t enter, but at the same time, it hurt not to be able to talk to them, not to have the chance to actually get to know them, to grow up with them. He was robbed of that chance. To grow up with loving parents, with a family and Harry had been robbed of the same thing. “We lost more than that … we lost our childhood, our family. And nothing will ever give it back to us.” He said quietly, his eyes reflecting the pain he felt.

Even if the impossible would happen and his parents would one day recover; he would never be able to experience how it felt to have a normal childhood. To have parents praise you for getting something right, to have parents help you learn to speak and take your first steps in life. His grandmother had been there for him, but she was strict and standoffish and like Harry, he had never experienced how it felt to be loved unconditionally by someone. At least, he could not remember. And for that, he would never stop fighting back against Voldemort and his people. Not till Voldemort and Bellatrix were dead. It gave him a strength that many people could not understand and since he had finally become more mature, Neville also started to believe in himself which gave him a confidence and courage, he had not been able to feel before.

Luckily, he had been blessed with friends that felt just the same but just his friends would not be enough to defeat the Death Eaters, so Neville felt some more hope when Harry mentioned that his godfather might know someone who could help them. “We need to get in contact with them then. We can’t just keep waiting here, all holed up while the Death Eaters pick us off, one after another. They have already hurt Luna and Astoria! The sooner, we have a plan and start acting, the better.” He commented forcefully. Neville was probably the last person to run headfirst into danger, but the past few weeks, even the whole last year at Hogwarts, unable to do anything, had been suffocating. And he felt helpless that he couldn’t protect his friends as well as he wanted to.

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