In Which Neville Avenges His Best Friend and His Parents
The new ‘recruit’ was acting a little suspicious. Neville and Ron had been invited into the Order of the Phoenix, and both happily accepted, providing even more spies for the Dark order. Though nearly all the Weasleys, as well as Severus and Minerva, were part of the Light Lord’s vigilante group, it never hurt to have the extra eyes and ears for Voldemort. Albus never let everyone know everything he was up to; however, Neville felt that he’d be able to gain the most faith from the old man, and thereby would be able to encourage Dumbledore to see him as a trusted confidante. After all, there’s only so long that Albus could hold on to secrets before they began to eat away at him. Longbottom was hoping to provide that shoulder on which the headmaster could lean, and perhaps be a sounding board for any plots or plans in the making.
So it was that they were all at Grimmauld Place having a meeting when Moody walked in with a new face. “This is Justina Belieber,” he had told everyone. “She works as an archivist in the Ministry, and has been privy to information provided to her by some of the Dark Lord’s most fervent followers. When she found out that there was a group of us working behind the scenes to end Voldemort’s campaign, she eagerly volunteered to become a part of our group, to provide us with any useful information that she could glean.”
“Can you trust her, Alistor?” Albus asked cautiously. “I’m not terribly pleased that you brought her to a meeting without first checking with me.”
“I vetted her completely under veritaserum. She’s trustworthy, Albus,” the old ex-Auror stated confidently.
“Very well,” the old man said, a pleased smile on his face. “If you will find a seat, we’ll get started.”
An amulet, spelled to detect the presence of the Dark Mark on all but those who were keyed into the magic, even if it was under polyjuice or a glamour, warmed up against Longbottom’s clavicle, where it hung from a chain. The brunet winced slightly, then met and held the eyes of Severus, who nodded imperceptibly. His own amulet, as well as Ron’s, had also heated up, and they watched the newcomer closely, to see if she would, in any way, reveal herself.
It took most of the meeting before a subtle tell was revealed, and Severus was the one to spot it. Bellatrix had this odd way of flicking her nails together, almost like a nervous tic, and the newest addition was doing just that, in exactly the same way as Lestrange. Suspicions confirmed, Severus waited until the end of the meeting to discuss the information with Neville and Ron. They left headquarters and went to a muggle café to discuss the troubling revelation to which the Potions Master had arrived. Ordering coffee and some pastries, they waited until the waitress left before putting up a privacy barrier and beginning.
“The new recruit is Bellatrix Lestrange,” Severus announced, feeling no need to sugarcoat the news. The eyebrows of both teens nearly flew off their foreheads in shock.
“How do you know?” Neville was the first to call his brain back to ask.
“I’ve been around that viper for a very long time,” Snape snarled harshly, a sneer of epic proportions curling his lips. “I’ve watched her behavior during meetings, and she always flicked her nails together in a rather unusual way. I saw the woman that Moody brought in do the same thing, in exactly the same way. It’s Bella.”
“So now we have access to the woman who had plotted with Black to kill Harry,” Ron snarled harshly, making the other two flinch slightly at the venom in his voice. “We’ll just have to figure out a way to eliminate her to keep our friend safe.”
“Leave that to me,” Neville hissed, honey-colored eyes darkening with his rage. “I owe her plenty, and it will be my greatest pleasure to end her life.”
Neville, figuring out that Bellatrix Lestrange had wanted access to headquarters for a reason, took to watching the front of Grimmauld Place whenever he had a spare moment. He’d told Luna that he had something important to deal with, and that as soon as he was finished, he’d let the blond in on what was going on. She just nodded her head, looking at all of the unseen cords connecting people and deeds; she hoped to use the time whilst Neville was completing his task to investigate those forces that would benefit the Dark Lord and their world.
A couple of weeks later, Longbottom finally saw success with his stakeout. Bella quietly crept up to stand between number ten and number fourteen Grimmauld Place, murmuring the address for Order headquarters under her breath. Since Neville was also privy to the ‘secret’, he saw the house appear, squeezing itself between the buildings on either side and displacing them as it expanded to its regular size and shape. The smirk on the woman’s face was downright evil as she ascended the stairs and entered the domicile. Waiting a scant few seconds, Neville followed after her, quietly closing the door and listening carefully to see if he could locate the intruder.
Rustling in the library had the brunet carefully striding down the hall until he came upon the only room that was lit. Lestrange was frantically going through the desk, flinging papers everywhere searching for something, and Neville had his suspicions of what it was. He waited for a few moments longer before clearing his throat, smirking as the other occupant shrieked and jumped a foot in the air. She spun around quickly, wand in hand and stared at Longbottom as he leaned against the door frame. “Looking for something?” he asked softly, honey eyes narrowed threateningly.
“I-I was looking for...for…” the woman stammered before finally giving up. “Well, if it isn’t wee wittle Longbottom. I don’t see your wand anywhere. Why don’t I do you the favor of making sure you’re properly reunited with your parents?” She raised her wand, a wide and crazed smile on her face, but before she could even begin to incant the cruciatus, Neville flicked his fingers and relieved the witch of her wand.
“You’re not doing anything,” he snarled as he snapped her wand before advancing toward her. The look of death in his eyes terrified her, and she quickly backpedaled, desperate to escape the rage she could practically feel emanating from Neville’s every pore. She came up short when she had backed herself into a corner between two heavy bookcases, but she never got out the scream that wanted to escape before Longbottom gripped the woman’s throat, his nails digging in painfully as he tore out her windpipe and esophagus. His magic had infused his hand with the brute strength necessary to commit such a barbaric act, and he watched, wide-eyed and excited, as she collapsed to the floor, her life’s blood pouring out of her in a ghastly waterfall.
Neville stood there for a long time, reveling in her death as she grew colder and colder. Finally he shook himself out of the trance that he’d been in and hissed “Adsolati sunt carnes et ossa in pulvis,”; one of the more dangerous Dark spells that Draco had taught him. Her body disintegrated into dust as he watched, and he noticed that several rather interesting things were left behind. Bending down, he saw that Bella had nicked a few things that belonged to her sister. Amongst them was a necklace with a large opal in a teardrop shape. There were rings and bracelets, and all had the Malfoy crest engraved into the gold settings, denoting them as property of Narcissa Malfoy. Also in the assorted bric-a-brac was a tome that had resized itself. It was titled Le Grande Grimoire: Malfoy Dark Magics Through the Ages, which was written by someone named Armand Malfoy. Neville pulled his wand and waved it around, dispersing the dust throughout the house before bending to pick up the many treasures that were left behind.
“I need to take a meeting with everyone,” Neville said as he stepped from the floo at Malfoy Manor. It was the weekend after he had executed Bellatrix, and he needed to explain a few things. Everyone congregated in the master study, waiting for the Gryffindor to begin. “First off, I’ve killed Bellatrix Lestrange,” he baldly announced. “I caught her sneaking into Order headquarters and followed her. She was in the library, frantically going through the desk in there, and I suspect that she was trying to locate information on where Harry has been hiding. I can only assume that she was looking to assassinate him so that she could steal the Potter legacy.”
“So that’s what you’ve been doing,” Draco said softly. He beamed at the Gryffindor, honored that this strong young man was willing to get his hands dirty on behalf of those he considered family. “How’d you do it?” the blond asked eagerly.
“I ripped her throat out, watched her bleed to death and then I used one of the Dark spells you taught me,” the brunet replied, smirking at the pride in the younger Malfoy’s silver eyes. “It was the one that dissolved skin and bones into dust.”
Draco buffed his nails on his shirt smugly and said, "Perhaps I should be the next Dark Arts teacher." Nods all around agreed with that assessment, making the Malfoy heir blush to the roots of his hair. "I was only joking," he huffed quietly, inordinately pleased at the fact that he was receiving unreserved approval from those to whom he'd given his loyalty. Lucius couldn't contain the pride for his firstborn, and gave his child an unreserved smile before what Neville had revealed had finally hit him.
“You were able to successfully cast that spell?” Lucius asked incredulously. At the sheepish nod, the elder Malfoy laughed. “That your mage magic didn’t interfere with the casting of that particular spell is a miracle. Your elemental magic is life-giving, whilst that particular spell is meant for nothing but destruction. How did you manage it?”
“I discovered my Dark side,” was the noncommittal response. When everyone glared at him, Neville smirked and continued. “I was intent on protecting Harry from her, and there was also just a skosh of righteous revenge mixed in. A wee part of me wanted her to pay for what she did to my parents, and it was that bit of Darkness in my soul that fed the spell.”
“Thanks, Nev!” Harry chirped with a wide grin, darting forward to squeeze the stuffing out of his best mate. Once that was finished, and Harry was perched back on the couch and between the Dark Lord’s thighs, the Gryffindor continued.
“I also found a few items amongst her remains that didn’t belong to her, so I’m returning them to their rightful owners.” He pulled a velvet sack from his robe pocket and handed it to Narcissa, whose eyes widened in shock. She opened the mouth of the sack and stared in at all the wonderful bits and pieces that Lucius had given her over the years. She had thought them lost; to find out that her own sister was stealing from her just made her hate the dead woman more. Longbottom then pulled the shrunken book from another pocket, enlarged it and handed it to Lucius, grinning at the shock that colored his face.
“Le Grande Grimoire: Malfoy Dark Magics Through the Ages,” he murmured as he gently caressed the cover lovingly. “I’d thought one of the Ministry raids had resulted in the loss of this. Had I known that Bellatrix had it, I would have murdered her in her sleep. Only those of the blood and their spouses may use this book. I daresay she obtained absolutely no useful information from it. It would have looked like chicken scratch when she opened it.” He looked up at his family's unexpected paladin, pride and humility shining in his grey eyes. “For this, I will endeavor to repay you, even if it takes me the rest of my life. You have returned a vital piece of my family’s legacy, and I do not know how I will ever be able to repay you.”
Luna skipped through the halls of Hogwarts, a glittering silver tiara perched upon her head. It was made of sterling silver in the shape of an eagle, wings outstretched, the feathers studded with diamonds. The body was made up of a large perfect sapphire of the deepest blue. Two more smaller stones dropped over the forehead, suspended by perfect circlets of sterling silver. Wit beyond measure is man’s greatest treasure was engraved in the band that served as the headpiece for the crown. More than one student turned and gaped at the Ravenclaw as she skipped blithely by, unconcerned at the attention she was garnering for wearing the lost diadem of Rowena Ravenclaw.
Albus was coming around a corner at the far end of the hall, and he stopped dead in his tracks, staring at the girl as she approached his location. I don’t believe it, he thought dizzily. She’s wearing Ravenclaw’s lost diadem. Where on earth did she find it? It was to have been one of Tom’s horcruxes. How did she get hold of it? “Excuse me, Miss Lovegood,” Dumbledore said, his voice cracking. He cleared his throat before continuing. “Might I ask, where did you find that?” He weakly gestured toward the tiara upon her head, still feeling a mite dizzy.
“The Grey Lady gave it to me for safekeeping,” she said dreamily, eyes following the dust motes in the air. “She told me that she trusted no one else to keep it safe.”
“Wh...erm...when did she give it to you?” the headmaster asked, fearing the answer.
“Why, as soon as I arrived here, of course,” she replied, speaking to him as if he were a simpleton. “As soon as I approached Ravenclaw tower, she appeared and dropped it on my head. I’ve kept it in my trunk all this time, but the witherwings tell me that I should wear it now, since I am a long lost descendant of the Ravenclaw clan. Have a nice day!” she chirped, waving cheerfully as she continued to skip toward the Great Hall, leaving behind a greatly confused and discombobulated old man.