Chapter Text
Neville lay paralyzed on the floor staring up at the ceiling of a dark room. A shadow shifted and his eyes darted to the movement, straining to see.
A young Neville Longbottom looked down at him. He was wearing pajamas, his face doughy and innocent, eyes concerned.
“You know…You used to care about doing the right thing.”
Neville woke with a gasp. His chest heaved as he felt around in the darkness for his wand. A cold sweat pricked down his back.
homenum revelio he murmured, watching only himself light up on a map of his flat.
He stood and paced his home. Windows, one, two, three, locked, locked, locked. Front door, locked.
He dug through his entry way drawer pulling out his sneakoscope. It was silent and still.
“Finite Incantatem.”
Nothing changed. It hadn’t been tampered with.
He checked the one in his bedroom.
Finally he got a nearly empty bottle of fire whiskey from the kitchen and returned to bed.
He stared into the darkness for a long while, checking his bedside drawer for the vial he’d stolen from work. He clutched it to his chest.
“Yeah. Well.. People change.”
He watched the sun rise over the horizon through his window.
The vial had just enough for two lucky days. He sighed, and drank exactly half.
———————-
At work Neville kept his head down.
“Don’t you look cheery.” Edwin nudged him.
He ignored him, and finished signing off on a parcel.
“Can you drop this off at the curriers for me? It’s fragile so don’t be careless-“
“Can’t.” Edwin smiled cheekily.
Neville frowned, his agitation plain on his face. Edwins smile dipped,
“What, haven’t you heard? Currier department’s currently being ravaged by dragon pox. They’re all called out til this weeks end. Yesterday’s post has been delayed as well.” He said seriously.
Neville stared at him eyes wide then smiled.
“Right….I hadn’t heard. I’ll…send my condolences.”
I have time.
“What’s that smile for?” Edwin ribbed him laughing, “Never took you for the sort to relish another man’s misery..!”
I’m not losing my job today.
“Right, sorry” Neville said still grinning.
Edwin looked genuinely confused but didn’t press the issue and Neville spent the rest of the day in a far better temper.
Business was uncharacteristically slow, and when he’d finished his rounds in the green houses and ran out of orders to fill Mrs Grenswollow sent him home early.
Neville got home and shucked off his work robes and ran the shower.
He stared at himself in the mirror for a minute as he towel off his hair. Tensing isolated muscles, watching the way they moved critically.
His dark blue eyes were shadowed. They looked a little haunted. He blinked and looked away.
“I’m going out tonight.” He announced to his plants. “Nobody eat each other while I’m gone...” he glared pointedly at the snapper which twisted away from his attention guiltily.
“Right.” He nodded, checked his cigarette clip and was gone.
————————
“Neville!”
He been walking head down with a lit fag when he looked up and saw Hermione.
“God, you again? You’re stalking me.”
She laughed opening her arms for a hug, which he obliged.
“I promise I’m not-“
“I’m just taking the piss-Twice in one week after 10 years. Wild, that.”
“Must be fate. What are you doing tonight?”
“Nothing really.”
“Come have drinks with us- it’d be nice to catch up.”
“Who’s all here- Harry and Ron?” He asked hopefully. Her smile faltered.
“Erm, no actually…it’s Draco, Blaise and Pansy.”
What the fuck?
“Oh.” Neville frowned, finishing his cigarette and banishing it.
“I’m not sure-“
“Just come. They’re actually terribly nice, I think you’d get on with them. We’re all adults now, it’s not like when we were kids-“
“You and Malfoy…is that a thing?”
“Erm, well…we’re sort of seeing each other. For a while now, actually..”
“Huh.” Neville’s fingers twitched for another cigarette.
Granger was turning out to be bad for his little habit.
“Just come with, I promise they won’t bite. Besides, you’re not one to back down from an adventure now, are you?”
He rolled his eyes and allowed himself to be dragged into the pub.
——
“Look who I found.” Hermione said with a grin, dragging Neville by the sleeve.
Malfoy and Blaise stood by the bar, both with whiskey in hand. Malfoy nodded in greeting. Blaise smiled,
“Longbottom- long time no see, how are you lad?” Blaise offering him a hand to shake, he took it.
“I’m well, thanks.”
“I think Hermione said you’re working in Herbology these days?” Blaise asked.
“Yeah, I’m at Gilly’s Greenhouse Export.”
He wondered vaguely when Hermione would have been talking about him.
“What’s it you do there?”
“Bit of this, bit of that. Operations, shipping, quality checks. Mostly I tend to the plants. I like to get my hands dirty.”
“I bet you do.” Pansy said in a teasing tone, she had joined the circle next to Blaise with a drink in hand. She gave him an appraising look.
Neville smiled faintly. “Parkinson- You’re at the papers now, aren’t you? I think I’ve seen some of your work.”
“I am.”
Neville had been shocked when he read a scathing article about former death eaters who had failed to make reparations in the Prophet written by none other than Pansy Parkinson.
“Quite fiery. I’ll be honest I was a bit surprised to see your name on the by line.”
“Good. I like to keep everyone on their toes.”
“Do you now?” It was Neville’s turn to give her an appraising look.
Draco leaned in suddenly, whispering urgently.
“Fuck-That’s Marcus Flint, just there.”
Blaise’s head shot up looking around,
“Where?”
“There by the door. He’s just come in.”
“This’ll be no good..” Pansy said, taking a drink with a grimace.
“You think he’s seen us?” Hermione backed up behind Pansy, worrying her lip between her teeth.
“Must have, he’s headed over. Didn’t know it was a bloody Hogwarts reunion at the pub today.” Malfoy said, frowning.
Blaise took a deep drink and muttered “Here we go..”
Neville took a step back, leaning against the bar near the girls.
“Malfoy, Zabini.” Flint sauntered over hand outstretched.
“Flint.”
“Been a long time.” Flint said, snapping at the barkeep “Three whiskeys.”
Pansy scoffed quietly into her drink, not looking up. Marcus didn’t look her way in the slightest.
“What brings you boys out tonight then? On the prowl?”
“Blaise might be. I’m just here with my missus.”
He inclined his head to the side in Hermione’s direction.
“I see.” The disgust in Flints face was undisguised.
Malfoy’s expression was carefully blank.
Marcus lowered his voice leaning in, “You need to be careful who you’re associating with Malfoy. Pure bloods are under attack by Potter’s lot- pushing to erase our families legacy’s from history. Blaming all of You-know-who’s stuff on the Pure bloods.”
“Diving right in, are we?” Malfoy said dryly, eyeing Blaise. Flint continued unimpeded.
“It’s dangerous times. You can’t trust what you read the Prophet- they’ve got their claws deep in it.” Marcus’s eyes had a dull lifeless quality that made Neville’s hair stand on end.
Draco shifted very subtlety putting his body more firmly between Flint and Granger.
“Hmm. You remember Pans of course-“ He gestured lazily to Pansy who had finished her drink. Her mouth set in a thin line. “-she’s recently been promoted to a head writer position for the Prophet. An exceptionally talented writer, I’m told. ”
“I was aware.” Marcus didn’t even glance at her. “Malfoy, listen to me-“ He inched even closer, crooked teeth bared, “I’ve heard all sorts of horror stories. Muggle born girls throwing themselves at men like us” his eyes shifted over Malfoy shoulder pointedly, “trying to lure us in and sully our line-.”
“That’s enough, Flint.” Parkinson cut in, she was holding Hermione’s hand so tight her knuckles were white.
Marcus just looked down at her with empty eyes.
“Was I talking to you?” He asked, his tone icy.
She stiffened but held his gaze.
He crinkled his nose at her and muttered,
“Dumb ugly slut…”
Neville moved like a viper that had been waiting to strike, Marcus’s face showed the tiniest hint of terror before-
Crack
Several girls nearby shrieked and all around them commotion broke out as people ran to get away.
Marcus fell like a stone, crumpled in a pile on the floor.
“Oh shit!” Blaise didn’t bother to conceal the excited smile that bloomed across his face.
“Alleyway by our usual pub in Brighton!” Hermione shouted over the din and grabbed Marcus by the collar and Neville by the hand and apparated away.
Neville stumbled as he appeared in an unfamiliar place with Hermione by his side and Flint in a heap at their feet. Around him the three other Slytherins appeared.
He shook out his knuckles and pulled out a cigarette lighting it immediately.
“Hell of a right hook, Neville!” Blaise praised, clapping him on the back. “Remind me not to get on your bad side. Pans- did you see how he fell? Boneless as a doll. One and done.”
Blaise mimed punching in the air.
Hermione was glowering at Draco, and he was carefully avoiding her gaze looking down at Flint.
“Bloody hell Neville. Should we leave him here or drop him off at St. Mungos?” Pansy asked staring down at the crumpled body at their feet.
Neville gave an unapologetic shrug, exhaling a cloud of smoke and lightly kicking at Flints lifeless arm.
Hermione suddenly rounded on Malfoy, raw fury in her voice.
“Why didn’t you stand up for me? For any of us?”
Draco sighed, looking defeated.
“Do we have to do this here..?”
“Oh sorry am I embarrassing you in front of your friends? I’ve never been so humiliated- sully your bloodline? He thinks I’m out to sully your fucking bloodline?” She pointed an accusatory finger into his chest.—
“Fancy a ciggy?” Neville asked, handing Pansy an unlit fag.
“Yeah, cheers- You haven’t got a spliff have you?”
Neville rolled his eyes and scoffed,
“Have I got a spliff-“ he teased in an ironic tone and immediately pulled one from a different pocket.
—“Hermione, he was talking rubbish, you know I don’t believe that for a moment-“
“Well you certainly didn’t feel the need to set the record straight!”
“Why would I tell anything to Flint? What good would that do?” —
Neville lit the spliff and Pansy took a drag. She coughed, tears forming in her eyes.
“Jesus Christ Neville. That’s…” she coughed again, “-strong.”
Neville grinned, flashing his teeth in pride.
“Grew it myself.”
—“Clearly Flint sees you as an equal so you could have set him straight, planted a new idea or at the very least grown a bloody spine and told him off-“
“And made that whole unbearable conversation ten times longer? More heated? More volatile with a man who is visibly not in his right mind..?” —
“You can’t just leave a brother out cold like this…” Blaise teased reaching a hand out to Neville expectantly for the spliff.
“Go on then.” Neville passed it to him.
—“How will he ever change his point of view if he doesn’t receive any kind of opposition? He’s was using you as a sounding board and you lulled him into a false sense of security with his moronic, completely unfounded-“
“I didn’t lull him into anything-“
“You didn’t argue either!”—
Blaise coughed violently “-it’s good.” He choked.
—“Hermione,” Draco sighed, pulling her into his arms. She allowed it but didn’t hug him back, a sour expression on her face as she looked up at him.
“I’m sorry. I didn’t speak up. He was wrong, obviously. But the odds of me getting through to him in that situation were too low to warrant the attempt. That kind of mentality can’t be fixed by one pub conversation. If he still wants to talk to me- which after tonight I rather doubt- I can try to talk some sense into him, but it’s a delicate thing. He’s so far gone.”
Hermione buried her head his chest.
“He was just so horrible. I felt so embarrassed.” She whispered angrily.
“I know. I’m sorry.” Malfoy rested his head on top of hers and stroked her hair soothingly.
Pansy elbowed Neville stifling a giggle pointing at Flint.
“He looks like a dead rat.” She buckled over fighting off a peal of laughter. Blaise started laughing uncontrollably then abruptly became serious. Neville’s lips twitched into a small knowing smile as he watched them.
“He’s not actually dead is he? Oh my god, what if he’s dead?”
Neville rolled his eyes, “He’s fine.” He cast a diagnostic over Flint that showed he was overall in good condition, a bit bruised and fully unconscious.
“Phew- thank Merlin… wait… you’re sure he’s not dead? Maybe we could check again-“
“Quite sure, Blaise.” Neville snorted and shook his head. “Couple of lightweights...”
Blaise and Pansy were tittering to themselves about something and Malfoy and Hermione had started making out.
Neville was silent for a moment, flexing his hand, cracking the bones in his wrist. He gazed off into the alleyway eyes unfocused.
“I’m going to bring him to Saint Mungos.” He said quietly, picking up Flints arm.
“You reckon?” Blaise asked
“Yeah. You all enjoy your night-“
“No, you have to come back after-!” Pansy said, grabbing his arm firmly and stepping towards him.
She was so close to him. Her eyes locked on his and held his gaze. He blinked in surprise but didn’t back up.
Intense dark eyes. Long dark eyelashes. Face framed by glossy black hair. Skin so pale in contrast…
She was so close. He’d never seen her this close up. His eyes traveled down to her lips, a soft pink, the soft bounce of her cupids bow..
He caught himself imagining for a moment what it might feel like to just lean in.
“If you’d like.” He said quietly, frowning slightly and furrowing his brow.
Pansy blushed, her eyes wide as if she’d only just noticed how close they were.
“We’ll stay here and wait for you.” She let him go and pulled away, her hand playing with the tips of her hair.
Hermione pulled away from Malfoy, looking flushed.
“Oh, yes Neville, please come back. Let’s go do something fun. Right Draco?”
Malfoy smirked at her, adjusting his collar,
“Right.”
“I’ll meet you lot somewhere once I’ve got him sorted. Where are we going?”
Pansy’s eyes lit up as a smile spread across her face,
“Let’s go dancing!”