The Incubus Who Lived

A/N: Sorry for the long wait. Hopefully I won't take so long for the next chapter, but I make no promises.

______________________________________________________________________________________


Neville wouldn’t have been able to keep the wide smile off of his face even if someone paid him. If he had thought that his first year at Hogwarts had been the best times of his life, well it didn’t hold a candle to the summer he had had!

With some persuasion and a lot of promises to be on his best behaviour, instead of spending the majority of the time at Longbottom manor with his strict Gran holing up in the greenhouses to occupy himself he had practically lived at Harry’s house instead. There Neville had spent the summer playing in the large black yard with Harry, creating a garden complete with home-grown vegetables (apparently none of Harry’s guardians had a green thumb whatsoever), discovering more than he could ever have imagined about the muggle world and basically being a kid. He had even had a giant joint birthday party with Harry (who had been born the day after Neville) at the end of July, inviting all the Gryffindor first years, Neville’s and Harry’s family and the all of Weasleys (since Harry and Neville had visited their house a few times at Ron’s insistence and therefore knew the whole brood except for the two oldest brothers who were out of the country).

Even the mandatory lessons on how to behave like a proper wizard and the responsibilities of family heirs that his Gran had insisted he return each Sunday for weren’t nearly as dry and boring as before since Harry had been allowed to tag along for those as well.

The summer had also changed the once shy and pudgy boy; not that Neville or Harry really noticed being the young 12 year olds that they were. Like Harry, Neville was now sporting a tan from all his time in the sun. He had also grown an inch or two and lost most of his extra fat from all his running around and the healthier diet inflicted by Harry’s adoptive aunt and uncle (they did own a private gym after all and made sure both boys knew the importance of a healthy body). Neville still had a bit of a belly, but Malfoy wouldn’t be as justified in calling him Lardbottom anymore. The dirty-blond haired boy was also more confident and assertive; he argued and proposed his own ideas with Harry for their plans of the day instead of just meekly following, and Neville no longer stuttered half as much when talking to adults or strangers though he was still very shy.

“Harry! Neville! Over here!”

The boys in question craned their necks to see through the throng of people on platform 9 ¾ catching sight of a waving Hermione. With help from Harry’s uncle Colin (who was once again seeing Harry off for another year at Hogwarts) the trio finally made their way to the bushy-haired girl and her parents. While Colin and the Granger s talked (they had already met when Ron, Harry, Hermione, Neville and their families had decided to meet up to do their school shopping together) the three students claimed a compartment for themselves and shared stories of their summer.

“So what was that thing I heard about a house elf telling you not to go to Hogwarts this year?” Hermione asked, referring to a story they had begun to tell her in a previous letter. “You said you’d elaborate once we were face to face.”

“We’ll tell you all the details when Ron gets here.” Harry replied looking out the window. “But first we should go say bye to our parents and uncle.”

Shooting the two boys a look to say she would hold them to their word, the three children left the train to make their final goodbyes. Neville and Harry shared a look at the typical Hermione behaviour before the adults descended upon them. And as Colin hugged him and wished him a good year (whispering to keep an eye on Harry so the black-haired boy wouldn’t hear) while Harry tugged impatiently at his hand wanting to get back onto the train and keep the embarrassing emotional displays at a minimum, Neville knew that he had never been so happy in his life.


____________________________________________________________________________________________


“Stupid bloody bastards!” Neville growled out as he stomped through the deserted corridor. “How dare they say that about Harry? Harry is the nicest person in the world and would never get a snake to attack them....even though they do deserve it, bloody wankers....”


His angry mutterings were cut short however as two figures suddenly appeared and blocked his path.


“Sounds like someone really ticked off good ol’ Nevy-poo.” The amused voice of Fred Weasley said.


“Indeed it does brother-dear.” George replied, ignoring Neville’s attempts to pass the two man barricade. “It must have been something good; I don’t think I’ve ever seen Neville lose his temper.”


Though Neville was usually on friendly terms with the Weasley twins, right now he wasn’t in the mood to deal with them. “Move out of the way; I told Harry that I’d meet with him in the Common Room.”


“Hold your horses,” George soothed. “We just want a minute of your time.”


“Besides,” Fred interjected. “I’m sure Harry is too busy plotting world domination to notice if you’re a few minutes late anyway.”


Neville levelled a glare at the two fourth years. “Harry isn’t a dark wizard!” He yelled out forcefully. “I’m tired of people saying that Harry’s the one responsible for the attacks just because he’s a parselmouth! So what if he is! He’s still Harry and if you c-“


“We don’t think that Harry’s a Dark Wizard.” Fred interrupted.


“The idea that sweet little Harry, who isn’t even five feet tall or 100 pounds soaking wet, could possibly be someone to fear is absurd.” George agreed.


“We might not know him as well as you do,” Fred continued. “but we know him well enough to know that he definitely isn’t responsible for opening the Chamber of Secrets and that he was telling the truth about stopping the snake from attacking that Hufflepuff during Duelling Club.”


“We actually find the idea of older, larger students being afraid of him hilarious.” George stated.


“We were actually going to use this Dark Lord Harry thing for some good fun.” Fred confessed.


“Oh.” Neville muttered, embarrassed about his previous outburst. He looked from one twin to the other. “So what did you want to see me about?”


“Well, we have a proposal for you.” George said, placing an arm around the second year’s shoulder and leaning in like he was going to share a big secret.


“We heard that you are the man to see in terms of impossible reactions and products in potions.” Fred confided, copying his twin by wrapping an arm around Neville at his other side.


Neville quirked his eyebrow in confusion. “What do you mean?”


“Well,” George said. “we heard that you guys had to make a calming solution last week and you somehow ended up with a shrinking solution, even though most of the ingredients for those potions are completely different.”


“And that when you were making a colour changing solution you somehow ended up with a potion that made whatever it touched float 3 inches off the ground.” Fred added.


Neville tried to fight back his blush at the discovery that his potion’s failures were such common knowledge among the school. With his friends’ help he had managed to pick up his grades and was at the very least average in all his classes – except potions. No matter how hard he tried or how many times he double and triple checked the ingredients, amounts and instructions for a potion he would still mess it up more likely than not.


“What about it?” Neville mumbled out, face heating in embarrassment.


“We want your potions.”


Neville’s head shot up at that. “What?! But they always go wrong!”


“We know; that’s why we want them.” Fred confessed.


“We want to open up our own prank shop when we’re older and have been trying to create new products since we’ve been able to hold a wand and yet we never get the kind of results with our experimental potions like you do!” George elaborated.


“But I don’t want those results!” Neville argued. “I want to make the potions properly, and those results just, just happen!”


“And that’s what makes it so great!” George exclaimed. “Do you realize how much you could help us?! You can make one-of-a-kind can’t-be-duplicated potions which could make our dreams come true! Please, please, please say yes and let us use your potions!”


Neville stared at the beseeching faces of the Weasley twins and sighed indecisively.


“If you make potions for us, we’ll help you get revenge for Harry...” Fred wheedled.


“What do you mean?” Neville asked, interested despite himself. Seeing that they had the younger boy’s full attention the twins shared a conspiratorial smirk.


“Well, we all know that sweet little Harry doesn’t deserve all those nasty things people are saying about him.” George stated.


“And we also know that Harry, being the kind-hearted boy that he is wouldn’t bother getting back at those people no matter how much they deserve it.” Fred continued. Neville didn’t actually believe that last statement – he knew how good Harry could be at pranks and how resilient and determined he was when it came to standing up for what was right, but Neville also knew that Harry cared more about solving the mystery of the Chamber of Secrets than getting revenge on short-sighted bullies who were targeting only himself.


“But, in exchange for your potion-making abilities we are willing to teach and aid you in the grand art of pranking.” Fred concluded. Both twins made a small elegant bow, with one hand behind their back and the other extended to Neville in offer.


Never in a million years would Neville had thought himself the prankster type, or really the troublemaking type.
True, he had no qualms of standing up for Harry or his other friends and was starting to get confidant enough to stand up for himself on his own, but to go out of his way for revenge or trouble wasn’t really his style. But looking at those extended hands and thinking over the words and actions of the majority of the school pushed Neville into action, and he boldly grabbed one of the twins’ hands in each of his and shook resolutely.
The twins felt their grins bloom into full-fledged smiles; by the time they graduated, Neville would be a whole new person.


______________________________________________________________________________________________________________

“And there’s my little man!” Geoffrey exclaimed as he finally spotted Harry amongst the throng of students and parents at the platform 9 and ¾.


After the initial hugs and greetings Allison wasted no time in checking over her adopted son to see if there was any lasting damage from the his latest adventure – she still couldn’t believe that their little Harry faced down an enormous snake that had been attacking students all year and came out of it relatively unscathed.


“I’m fine mom.” Harry huffed out, a small blush blossoming over his face at his mother’s fussing.


“I’ll be the judge of that.” Allison replied matter-of-factly, unconcerned about her actions in such a public place. Once satisfied that Harry was unharmed and in one piece she crushed him to her chest with a hug. “Goodness! A giant snake, a teacher who tried to erase your minds and students being petrified! I have half a mind to hide you away from the wizarding world forever, let alone allowing you to go back to that death trap they call a school next year!”


“Don’t worry Mrs. Broderick, I’ll be there to protect him.” Neville said, stepping up to stand beside his best friend.


Allison had to do a double take when she caught sight of Neville. It wasn’t so much the physical change that surprised her (sure the boy was a bit taller and thinner, no longer pudgy but still having some baby fat especially in his face) – that was almost expected when dealing with growing boys you haven’t seen in more than a month, let alone a full school term. But it was his stance and expression which seemed to radiate protectiveness and confidence that threw her for a loop. Where had the shy, sweet and stuttering boy from the past summer gone? In his place was someone self-assured and proud, ready to face any perceived danger.


“You ought to be more worried for yourself young man.”


The young man in question gulped as he looked up to his formidable grandmother’s eyes. Augusta Longbottom only let up her stern glare as she greeted Harry’s family, and then went right back to towering over her grandson.


“I have had more owls this past term about you causing trouble than I have had all seven years your father was in school! Defacing school and private property! Being caught repeatedly out of bounds and past curfew! And in a fight just about every second day! Just what has gotten into you this year?!”


As Neville straightened up and opened his mouth to reply his grandmother interrupted him. “No; I don’t want to hear it! Your behaviour in inexcusable and you are putting shame on the Longbottom name and the memory of your parents! No owls, no floo privileges and no outings until I can be sure that you can be in public without making an embarrassment out of yourself young man!”


“It’s not his fault!”


All three adults turned their heads as Harry stepped forward protectively, body thrumming with tension and cheeks flushed in righteous anger at the injustice of Neville getting yelled at like that.


“Neville only got in trouble because of me! The other students were blaming me for the attacks and would make fun of me and try and curse me in the hallways when the teachers weren’t there. I didn’t want to defend myself since if I cursed them back then it would prove that they’re right, that I was cursing students even if they were the ones who started it. So Neville did it for me. He was protecting me all year from older students! They were just sore losers because a second year was able to get them back, so they tattled to the teachers. But Neville didn’t do anything wrong!”


Mrs. Longbottom leaned back from her intimidating towering over her grandson before giving her said grandson a thoughtful look.


“Is that true? Were you just protecting your friend from bullies?”


Neville nodded resolutely, starring his gram straight in the eyes to say he wasn’t sorry for what he did and he would do it all again in a second. But unlike what he thought would happen, his grandmother’s look softened and something he had never seen before when his gram looked at him crept into her eyes. With a start Neville realised that it was pride.


“A Longbottom always protects that which is important to them; friends and family. It seems that your friendship with Mr. Potter was even more beneficial than I could have ever hoped; you are shaping up to be as great of a man as your father was.”


The three adults began talking about summer plans, setting up a schedule much like the summer before. Neville just watched in a daze; his gran, who had always expressed what a disappointment he was and looked upon him with barely suppressed exasperation, was proud of him. He was only brought out of his daze when two bodies pressed up against him from either side and slipped several items into his pocket.


“You wouldn’t mind holding these for us, would you Nev?”


“Good man; I knew you would help us.”


“That’s Longbottom for you; always helpful in a bind.”


“We’d have stored them in our trunks, except mom always searches through our things each year when we get home
ever since we’ve been able to go to Hogsmeade; she doesn’t like us bringing home any Zonko or other prank items and the like.”


“And imagine how far back we’d be in our inventing if mom confiscated or destroyed these!”


“It’d be terrible!”


“Indeed, it would!”


“Lee would have taken it home with him, but he’s a muggle born and we’re not entirely sure that some of these items are entirely…stable.”


“Like that last potion of yours you gave us; we still can’t make it stop spitting out bubbles every three hours.”


“And it’d be a terrible pity if it blew up on him and his mom was unable to clean it up without magic.”


“Don’t worry though, we don’t think anything will blow up on you,”


“But better safe than sorry,”


“And you’ll only have it for a short while anyway before you can owl it back to us.”


“Gotta go; our mom is waiting on us.”


“Thanks again ol’ chap; partnering with you was one of the best things we’ve ever done.”


With a last pat on the back and a quick handshake to Harry the Weasley twins were gone as quickly as they arrived. Thankfully Neville was more than used to keeping up with their fast paced conversations and understood everything said. He didn’t mind smuggling joke items for the twins; it was thanks to them taking him under their wing that he was able to beat students several years his senior and get revenge on those who were mean to Harry this past year. Indeed, becoming friends with Lee Jordan and the Weasley twins was the best thing he’d ever done – besides becoming friends with Harry of course.

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________

A/N: So, year 2 is now over and next chapter will be year 3.