The Chosen One [#Wattys2016]

THE HOSPITAL WING

There is no fear when you choose love. The more you choose love, the more love is in your life. It gets easier and easier.

"That was most irresponsible of him. How he could he do that?"

"Give it a rest, Lils. He wasn't in his right mind."

"You, James Potter, are not in your right mind."

"Easy there Prongs."

"Shut up Padfoot. You deserve a thrashing. Did you have to take him on the motorcycle?"

"When will you all grow up?"

"When Moony goes to the moon."

Neville's senses were bombarded with tens of voices as he lay on a warm and comfortable bed. His eyes opened to see the lamp overhead, throwing a circle of golden light onto the shadowy ceiling. He raised his head to see the windows opposite his bed.

The Hogwarts grounds were bathed in bright daylight. Several hundred voices mixed to reach a rising crescendo as the students spent their time lazing in the sun.

"He's awake," a gruff voice said.

He turned to look at the source of noise closer at hand. James and Lily Potter, Sirius Black, Remus Lupin and Alastor Moody sat near his bed, too busy arguing that they had missed his stirring. At once, Lily got up and bustled around Neville's bed.

Feeling strangely disoriented, he asked –

"Why are you all here? What happened?"

They all looked at each other, uncertain about how to answer.

"Where's Gran?" he asked. Lily's eyes teared up as she looked away, pretending to have caught something in her eye.

The events of the night came crashing down on him as he fell into a daze. It was no use denying it now. He swallowed and looked around at the concerned faces of his elders. Lily stroked his hair and pressed her lips to his forehead.

He suddenly felt scared. Jumping up, he pushed himself away from Lily's touch, much to her confusion.

"You should go," he said.

"What?" Lily said.

"You all should go. You – you shouldn't stay near me," he said, cowering away from everyone's touch.

"Neville – " Lily began.

"No, no, don't say anything. Don't mess up my mind. I don't want any of you to die. People who stay near me die. Go! JUST LEAVE ME ALONE!" he yelled, causing Madam Pomfrey to come out running from her office.

"I will have to ask you to leave. You're distressing my patient," she said. Everyone left, allowing Madam Pomfrey to administer potions. Neville saw that they were worried, but he didn't want them to worry over him.

The day sunk slowly into night. Neville spent the day taking turns staring at the ceiling and the window. His body no longer ached, but he missed the physical pain that accompanied it. He wished there was a potion that could cure his throbbing heart like the potions that had helped his body recover.

Late in the evening, Professor Lupin came and sat next to him.

They sat in silence, both outsiders, both unaccepted by many. As the sun dipped below the horizon, Lupin said –

"When I came to Hogwarts, I was a very lonely boy. I didn't have any friends as we moved from place to place. I wasn't allowed to play with other kids my age. You see, I was sick, very sick. My parents were afraid, much like yours.They were afraid I would let slip certain things and then we would have to move again.

"And then I made friends, unexpectedly, thankfully. They accepted me for who I was. And they couldn't help but notice that I used to disappear every month."

But Neville was no longer listening. His mind had gone back to that day in the library when they had sat discussing about the possibility of Lupin being a werewolf. Avaline had denied it, but Neville couldn't help but wonder if she knew the truth and was merely pretending to disagree, protecting the secret that wasn't hers to give out.

He had never asked her. There were so many things he should've enquired about. Meanwhile, Lupin continued to talk about his childhood. Neville had realised that Hermione's observation was true even before he heard from the man in question himself.

"I was convinced by my lonely childhood that if my friends knew the truth, they would desert me, so I made elaborate lies, wild cover-up stories. I told them my mother was ill and I had to visit her to keep company. I feared that if they knew about my condition, they would leave me.

"I was a horrible liar. In my second year, they learnt the truth. I was furious. I didn't talk to them for a week, wondering if they thought I was a monster. They didn't leave and I got the three best friends I could have ever asked for. You know what they did for me? They became Animagi. It's a very complicated process. You can die if the transformation goes wrong but they persevered and in our fifth year, they succeeded. Life became easier after that."

"You were a werewolf," Neville stated, his voice hoarse from disuse.

"I am a werewolf," Lupin corrected.

"Neville, you can't stop people who love you from worrying about you. I know what it feels like to hide and push people away because you feel you don't deserve them. They'll worry more if you distance yourself from them. If you lose something, there's always a way for it to come back to you. It might not be the way you want it to be, but it will come back. The people we love live in us. They are alive as long as we remember them. Don't tarnish their memory by pushing away those who care about you.

"Pain is as important and indispensable as happiness is. If there is anything I've learnt from my past, it's that being alone doesn't make it easier for you to face pain. Being with people who love you does."

He pushed a small notebook into his hand, brushed his hair away from his forehead and left.

It's not in your blood. Your parents made their choice. Don't tarnish their memory by holding grudges. Honour it by living up to their name.

His grandmother's words and Avaline's laughter wove their way into his dreams that night.

He woke up after a fitful sleep the next morning to see Jennifer sitting next to him, staring at him tenderly.

"Hi" Neville mumbled.

"Hey!" she replied, still eyeing him apprehensively. "The headmaster wants to see you."

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Does this make you sad?
Neville's not dead. Don't worry!
Enjoy reading!