𝗷𝗮𝗻𝗲, harry potter

˗ˋ 117

CHAPTER ONE HUNDRED AND SEVENTEEN
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-: fifth year :-

── IN WHICH THE OTHERS FIND OUT

. . .

Harry didn't know where to look. At the odd look on Jane's face or the terror on Neville's as Ron, too, recognised him stood at the end of the ward. He had all too quickly realised what he was doing there, but didn't know if his best friend had done the same, blindsided by the shock of their classmate and friend being there.

In the end he focused on Neville with a squeeze to Jane's hand as the former and his grandmother approached, the poor boy turning a shade of reddish-green at the sight of Harry, Ron, Hermione, Ginny and the girl he didn't exactly know, but had heard much about in the form of teasing and small stories. 

"Ah, yes," Neville's grandmother said as they approached, looking closely at Harry and sticking out a shriveled, claw-like hand for him to shake. "Yes, yes, I know who you are, of course. Neville speaks most highly of you." 

Harry's hand felt cold as he was forced to pull it away from Jane in order to shake Augusta Longbottom's, who looked awfully similiar to a Boggart that had been present in his third year, handbag and all. Neville seemed to be refusing to look at him but nodded and shuffled his feet a little.

"And you two are clearly Weasleys," Mrs Longbottom continued, brushing over the unfamiliar Jane and her lack of Weasley genetics, proffering her hand regally to Ron and Ginny in turn. "Yes, I know your parents - not well, of course - but fine people, fine people... and you must be Hermione Granger?"

Hermione looked startled to be recognised, but shook the woman's hand all the same. "And who are you?" Mrs Longbottom asked Jane, not imperiously but ultimately not kindly. 

"Jane." She replied, shortly, with the same odd expression Harry had seen moments before. Mrs Longbottom waved her offered hand, not for a handshake but inciting her to continue. "Jane Everleigh." 

"Ah, yes." Mrs Longbottom nodded in recognition. "I wasn't aware you were a friend of Neville's too."

"We haven't really met before." She corrected. "Um... I'm sure Harry's mentioned me before, though." 

"I see." The woman said. "Well, Neville's told me about you all. Speaks of you most highly, you in particular, Hermione. Helped him out of a few sticky spots, haven't you? He's a good boy," she said, casting a sternly appraising look down her rather bony nose at Neville, "but he hasn't got his father's talent, I'm afraid to say..." And she jerked her head in the direction of the two beds at the end of the ward, so that the stuffed vulture on her hat trembled alarmingly.

"What?" Ron blinked, and didn't seem to recognise the sharp looks of horror upon his best friend's faces, nor the alarm in Neville's eyes. "Is that your dad down the end, Neville?"

"What's this?" Mrs Longbottom asked sharply. "Haven't you told your friends about your parents, Neville?" Neville only took a deep breath, looked up at the ceiling, and shook his head.

"Well, it's nothing to be ashamed of!" said Mrs Longbottom angrily. "You should be proud, Neville, proud! They didn't give their health and their sanity so their only son would be ashamed of them, you know!"

Jane was a little green now too, the expression in her eye uncharacteristically unreadable. "Are you alright?" Harry asked her in a low mumble, as Neville attempted to get some words out. She nodded, most placcidly. It did nothing to deter the worry in Harry's chest.

"I'm not ashamed." Neville said finally, very faintly, still looking anywhere but at Harry and the others.

"Well, you've got a funny way of showing it!" Mrs Longbottom. "My son and his wife," she said, turning haughtily to Jane, Harry,Ron, Hermione, and Ginny, "were tortured into insanity by You-Know-Who's followers."

Hermione and Ginny both clapped their hands over their mouths. Ron stopped craning his neck to catch a glimpse of Neville's parents and looked mortified. Harry, nor Jane, didn't seem to react, more than knowledgeable on the situation. 

"They were Aurors, you know, and very well respected within the Wizarding community," Mrs Longbottom went on. "Highly gifted, the pair of them. I - yes, Alice dear, what is it?" Neville's mother had inched down the ward in her nightdress, arm outstretched towards them. 

"Again?" Mrs Longbottom stared at the item in her hand, sounding slightly weary and almost a little exasperated. "Very well, Alice dear, very well - Neville, take it, whatever it is..." But Neville had already stretched out his hand, into which his mother dropped an empty Droobles Blowing Gum wrapper. 

"Very nice, dear," Neville's grandmother said in a falsely cheery voice, patting his mother on the shoulder, Neville humming something that sounded like gratitude. Alice didn't move and instead edged towards Jane, holding out her hand again. "What's that?" Mrs Longbottom looked a little more sharp at the scene, when Jane reached out her arm, she too recieved a wrapper. "Well, well, she doesn't normally take to strangers, does she Neville?"

"I...well... we've met before." Jane replied. Several heads spun towards her. "When we were visiting Mr Weasley before." She added, before forcing a gentle smile and turning towards Alice. "Thank you, Mrs Longbottom." She said, and Alice took this as her sign to start wobbling back to her bed.

"I see." Augusta nodded. "Well, we'd better get back," she sighed, drawing on long green gloves. "Very nice to have met you all. Neville, put that wrapper in the bin, she must have given you enough of them to paper your bedroom by now...."

They began towards the exit and Jane, still holding the wrapper, stepped forward. "Neville, here." She passed him the wrapper with the same smile, and he took it with a short mumble of thanks before following his grandmother, tucking both in his pocket before leaving. Jane was avoiding Harry's eyes when she turned back. "I think I'm going to go to the bathroom, I'll see you back in the ward?" 

And she followed out behind Neville and his grandmother without another word.

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