Know Thyself {Neville Longbottom}

V. Yarrow

A modest plant that is best used to help heal both emotional and physical wounds.

I

looked around the rather worn down room of the Hog's Head in which everyone had gathered. I noticed the majority of those present were Gryffindor, with a few from Ravenclaw and my house scattered throughout. Not surprisingly, no student from Slytherin was in attendance.
I myself, would have invited Cece if it hadn't been for the fact she'd been frustratingly elusive for the past few weeks. I couldn't exactly berate her for spending more time with Draco Malfoy, because I had been doing the same with Neville. She had, however, blown me off several times in order to be with him, and I was quite peeved at this point. She claimed it was so they could study, which we both knew was a load of rubbish.

A part of me felt bad for not telling her about this meeting, seeing as it concerned our horrid Professor Umbridge whom we both despised. I pushed this guilt aside for the moment, and decided to focus on the matter at hand.

I looked over at Neville who was sitting next to me, his hands twitching nervously, and gave him a reassuring smile. I didn't feel that great myself, but I wanted to let him know I was ready to face whatever came our way. He smiled tentatively back, and muttered "Are you sure you're alright with him being here?"

I knew he was referring to my brother, who was sitting on the opposite end of the room by the Weasley twins. It had been a month since Benny and I had spoken, and I had no intention of breaking the silence. He knew very well that he was at fault, and there was no way I was going to apologize when I had done nothing wrong. I hadn't told Neville that he was the topic of mine and Benny's argument, opting to spare him the harsh words said by my brother.

"As long as he keeps his distance, it'll be fine." I whispered back.

Suddenly Hermione stuttered a nervous introduction, which was highly unusual for her, and everyone stopped fidgeting to listen.

I wrapped my gloved hands around the unopened butterbeer I'd purchased, eagerly clinging to her words as she explained the purpose of the meeting.

"...well, I thought it would be good if we, well, took matters into our own hands...and by that I mean learning how to defend ourselves properly, not just theory but the real spells-"

I nodded eagerly, excited by the prospect of learning actual defense magic, when Michael Corner from Ravenclaw interjected with a comment about passing the O.W.L.S. I glanced at him, somewhat annoyed, because there were clearly more important things to worry about right now than an exam. Turning my attention back to Hermione, I was shocked to hear her response.

"...but I want more than that, I want to be properly trained in Defense because...because...Lord Voldemort's back."

I swallowed heavily, suddenly wishing I had opened my drink, and noticed several different reactions among the other students. Beside me Neville gave a small yelp that ended up as a cough, and I instinctively patted his back.

'That was bold of her,' I thought gazing at Hermione in admiration, 'seems Harry isn't the only one who's not afraid to speak plainly.'

From across the room a familiar voice piped up, causing me to roll my eyes. Of course Zacharias Smith would have something to say. He was really the only one of my housemates I didn't get along with, probably due to his rude and quarrelsome nature.

"...All Dumbledore told us last year was that Cedric Diggory got killed by You-Know-Who and that you brought Diggory's body back to Hogwarts. He didn't give us details, he didn't tell us exactly how Diggory got murdered. I think we'd all like to know-"

I glared at Zacharias, appalled that he would even bring up the subject of Cedric's death at a time like this. I wasn't entirely surprised though, he had talked about it quite often in the common room the past couple months, and would tell anyone who would listen about how he thought Harry was a 'nutter'.

Potter's harsh tone caused me to jump slightly as he responded.

"I don't want to talk about Cedric Diggory, all right? So if that's what you're here for, you might as well clear out."

I turned my head side to side, expecting a few students to leave, but no one did. 'Good, at least we're committed.'

The tension in the room eased a bit after that, and Susan changed the topic by asking Harry if he could in fact produce a patronus charm. This sparked interest from the group, and suddenly everyone was chiming in with all of the remarkable things Potter had done, much to his obvious embarrassment. I listened with rapt attention, having heard some of these things from Neville and now having them confirmed by Harry himself.

A few minutes later everyone was lining up to sign their name, some a bit begrudgingly, on the parchment that Hermione provided.

I wrote mine below Ernie's, and happily handed the quill to Hannah. Nudging Neville gently, I motioned for us to leave before my brother had a chance to do anything about it.

We were walking through Hogsmeade discussing possible places where these meetings could take place, when the last voice I wanted to hear called out to me.

"Hey sis, got a minute?"

I sighed, slowly turning to face Benny who stood a ways back from us. He seemed afraid to come any closer, which I took some satisfaction in, and glanced sheepishly at Neville.

Deciding on a whim to hear him out I turned to Neville, "Go on ahead. I'll catch up with you later."

His brow furrowed in concern, and I couldn't help but smile. "It's fine really, I can handle him."

Neville nodded and waved, making sure to stare pointedly at Benny before heading off.

I approached my brother, and noticed his usual confident demeanor was gone. His eyes were strangely cloudy, as if he'd been brooding over something.

"Does Longbottom, uh, know what happened?"

I shook my head, and Benny practically sighed with relief.

"I did it for his sake, not yours." I said coldly.

He grimaced, "Right, of course...so listen Laura, I wanted to let you know that...well truth is I feel awful for what I said about him."

I raised my eyebrows in disbelief, but allowed my brother to continue.

"I was really off my head when I said those things, I mean he's in my house and all, and I should be the one sticking up for him not tearing him down. I didn't even really mean any of it, Longbottom's nice enough, and you seem really happy when you're with him."

I blinked several times, unsure of how to react to this sudden confession. Benny noticed my shock and flushed, "Anyway, what I'm trying to say is...I'm sorry."

A smile crept onto my face, Benny rarely ever apologized, and his sincerity was something I'd sorely missed for a while.

I stepped forward, wrapping my arms around him, and hugged him tightly.

His expression brightened, and he ruffled my hair playfully.

I looked up at him, "So why were you such a git then?"

He smiled, but his eyes were still stormy. "Actually, it's because of Tamera..."

I frowned, gazing at my brother in concern.

"Well...it's just that ever since we've gotten back, she's been different. She's always missing, and making excuses...I think she might be seeing someone else."

"Who the hell does that wanker think she is?"

Benny gaped at me for a moment, before bursting into laughter. "There's the sister I know."

I shook my head still irritated, but glad I could bring a smile to his face.

As we made our way back to the castle, nothing could detract from the happiness I felt at having made amends with my brother.

'Wait 'till Cece hears he actually apologized...the look on her face will be priceless.'