Fic: It's the Choices Made - Neville Longbottom
Wow my very first try at a Neville Longbottom fic. Woot, go me :P xposted at: auswitchathon and nevillosity
Very big thanks to disparagingrant for the beta.
Title: It's the Choices Made
Author: keyne_mckinnon
Character: Neville Longbottom
Rated: PG-13
Word Count: 1,586
Author's Note: I took the idea of the movie It's a Wonderful Life and applied it to Neville's sorting.
Neville played the scene over and over in his mind, in slow motion the ball that held the prophecy dropped from his robe pocket and crashed against the stair. His heart sunk as it had that night in the Department of Mysteries. No matter how many times Harry Potter reassured him that it was alright, Neville knew that it really wasn't.
"It would have been better if I'd never been sorted into Gryffindor. The Sorting Hat debated and maybe it chose wrong, I should have been in Hufflepuff."
"Should you?" Albus Dumbledore stepped out of the shadows in the Headmaster's Office and moved to stand beside Neville. "Do you believe the Sorting Hat placed you in the wrong house, Neville?"
"I-it said I would have done well in both houses, but I wanted to be in my parents' house." Neville turned to look at Dumbledore, "If it had placed me in Hufflepuff instead, I wouldn't have been there to drop the ball and Harry would have known what was inside."
"Very true, Neville. You might not have been in the Department of Mysteries last night if you'd been sorted differently." The Headmaster gently turned the young Gryffindor toward an ornate bowl. "There is an ancient spell that will show you what your life would have been like if you took a different path." He waved his hand over the pearlized liquid in the bowl until a young nervous Neville clutching Trevor appeared. "Go on, watch how life would have changed if you'd not been a Gryffindor."
Neville swallowed the nervousness that was clutching his throat and placed his face into the cool liquid. The Headmaster's office disappeared from his senses and he was once again in the Great Hall for the first time feeling the nervous excitement of being sorted.
~*~
Professor McGonagall peered down at the first years, "The four houses are called Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw and Slytherin. Form a line and follow me."
Neville wanted to warn his younger self of what lay ahead in his life, but he knew he wouldn't be heard.
"I'd forgotten how young you all were." Dumbledore said softly as he moved next to Neville. His gaze slid over to the young Harry Potter and smiled as he saw glimpses of the wizard he was to become.
"When I call your name, you will put on the hat and sit on the stool to be sorted." Professor McGonagall unrolled the parchment and began calling names. "Abbott, Hannah."
"Longbottom, Neville."
His name being called jarred Neville out of his thoughts and he focused on the young Neville nervously sitting on the stool, wearing the sorting hat. The hat mumbled as it had when he'd originally wore it until it shouted, "HUFFLEPUFF!"
Before Neville could comment to Dumbledore, he was whisked to the Quidditch match and was surprised to not see Harry as Seeker. "Where's Harry, Professor?"
The Headmaster merely smiled and pointed up into the stands where Harry, Ron and Hermione were cheering the Gryffindors. "You weren't at the first broom lesson for Malfoy to steal your Remembrall, so Harry couldn't show his prowess as a Seeker. Even the small things in our lives change other aspects, Neville."
He nodded his head, but thought to himself if it meant saving the prophecy for Harry, Neville was glad he wasn't there to help him become the youngest Gryffindor Seeker. "But he joins the Gryffindor team later anyway, right?"
Dumbledore merely smiled before whisking them to the Leaving Feast for that year. They watched as the Great Hall erupted into cheers as the points for the House Cup were announced. "For the first time in the History of Hogwarts the difference between first and second in the House Cup were ten points." The din was loud and boisterous as Gryffindor and Slytherin knew one of them would be the winner for the House Cup. Hufflepuff had been in fourth place with three hundred and ninety-two, Ravenclaw was third with four hundred and twenty-six. "In second place, Gryffindor with four hundred and sixty-two and Slytherin wins the house cup with four hundred and seventy-two points."
Neville stared in shock at Dumbledore, not believing that his sorting into Hufflepuff had changed the outcome of the House Cup. He hadn't really earned that many points especially when added to the number that he’d lost for Gryffindor as well.
"Remember, Neville. It was tied between Gryffindor and Slytherin until I awarded Gryffindor ten points for your courage. All of the points you earned your first year increased the Hufflepuff score as well."
"These are just small changes."
Before Neville could finish his thought Dumbledore smiled enigmatically, "Are they?" With a wave of his hand the pair moved to Neville's third year.
His heart plummeted as he remembered this was the year that he'd written down the passwords and Sirius Black had come into Gryffindor Tower because of it. The boys dormitory appeared with Ron, Harry, Seamus and Dean sleeping soundly but the figure of Sirius Black still loomed over the sleeping Ron and Scabbers.
Neville turned shocked eyes to Dumbledore, "I thought he got in because of me when I wrote the passwords down."
The Headmaster smiled slightly, popping a lemon drop into his mouth. "He did the first time, but Sirius Black is resourceful. He had an invisibility cloak on and followed a few students through the portrait hole in this time line. So you see, Sirius would have entered Gryffindor Tower even if you hadn't had a list of passwords for Crookshanks to steal."
He felt a little better that his bumbling hadn't been the only reason for Sirius to enter Gryffindor Tower. That fate had played a role in Sirius and Harry being reunited lifted a small weight off of his shoulders. "As far as I can tell, nothing negates the bumbling I did as a Gryffindor. Harry may or may not play Quidditch, we didn't win the House Cup, but those things are all small compared to messing up at the Department of Mysteries."
Dumbledore waved his hand once more and they reappeared during the second task at the Triwizard Tournament. "But then there are other consequences, Neville. You weren't there to tell Harry about the Gillyweed." He motioned for the young wizard to watch as Harry struggled with a bubblehead charm. "It lasts, but he's not strong enough to get Gabrielle as well."
Neville watched as Harry dove into the water, pride filling him as he remembered how despite what the polyjuiced Moody thought, he'd found the Gillyweed answer on his own. He always felt at home in a Herbology greenhouse than he did in Defense Against the Dark Arts. His eyes scanned the crowd in search of his Hufflepuff self and smiled when he saw Cedric take a bite of the Gillyweed that Hufflepuff Neville had given him. Did that mean that Cedric's destiny had changed as well?
Dumbledore followed Neville's gaze and placed his hand on the young Gryffindor's shoulder, "I'm sorry, Cedric's fate remained the same whether he had Gillyweed or not. It was written in the stars the moment that Harry's name had been put in the Cup."
Neville nodded his head sadly as the image slowly dissolved reemerging into the current school term. They appeared in the Forbidden Forest, silently standing next to Ginny, Luna, Ron, Harry, Neville and Hermione. Shock filled him that he was still there, still arguing to go along with the others to the Ministry of Magic.
The Headmaster lay a gentle hand on Neville's shoulder, squeezing slightly. "As Cedric's fate was written the moment Harry's name was put in the Cup, your fate was written the moment the Death Eaters escaped Azkaban. It didn't matter that you were in Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw or even Slytherin. There are traits of all houses that reside in us, it's our choices that determine were we go in life. Not the house that you live in during Hogwarts. Voldemort and his Death Eaters did not learn what was in the prophecy because of your actions. It wasn't something terrible that happened when you broke the ball, Neville, it was fate taking its course."
"B-but Harry..." Neville interrupted.
"Harry knows what he is needed to know, Neville. The prophecy wasn't lost. The sorting hat didn't make a mistake in your first year, and you were placed in the house where you were meant to be." Dumbledore waved his hand a final time, returning them to the Headmaster's office.
"It's the choices that you make in life, Neville rather than the house you're sorted into. You made the correct choices and they brought you to where you are now. A confident young wizard determined to do what is right."
Neville felt heat rise in his cheeks at the compliment and mumbled a thanks.
"Lemon drop?" Dumbledore held out the sweet treat.
"No, thank you." Neville shook his head, "I'd like to see how my housemates are doing." He turned to leave the Headmaster's office and looked over his shoulder with a small smile, "Thank you, Professor Dumbledore."
The Headmaster bowed his head slightly, "and thank you, Neville. You've been instrumental in Harry's path whether you realize it or not."
He felt his ears burn in embarrassment, but he acknowledged the compliment with a smile before leaving to check on Luna, Ron, Hermione and Ginny in the infirmary. He may have done well in Hufflepuff, but he was glad he had been sorted into Gryffindor with his mates.
Very big thanks to disparagingrant for the beta.
Title: It's the Choices Made
Author: keyne_mckinnon
Character: Neville Longbottom
Rated: PG-13
Word Count: 1,586
Author's Note: I took the idea of the movie It's a Wonderful Life and applied it to Neville's sorting.
Neville played the scene over and over in his mind, in slow motion the ball that held the prophecy dropped from his robe pocket and crashed against the stair. His heart sunk as it had that night in the Department of Mysteries. No matter how many times Harry Potter reassured him that it was alright, Neville knew that it really wasn't.
"It would have been better if I'd never been sorted into Gryffindor. The Sorting Hat debated and maybe it chose wrong, I should have been in Hufflepuff."
"Should you?" Albus Dumbledore stepped out of the shadows in the Headmaster's Office and moved to stand beside Neville. "Do you believe the Sorting Hat placed you in the wrong house, Neville?"
"I-it said I would have done well in both houses, but I wanted to be in my parents' house." Neville turned to look at Dumbledore, "If it had placed me in Hufflepuff instead, I wouldn't have been there to drop the ball and Harry would have known what was inside."
"Very true, Neville. You might not have been in the Department of Mysteries last night if you'd been sorted differently." The Headmaster gently turned the young Gryffindor toward an ornate bowl. "There is an ancient spell that will show you what your life would have been like if you took a different path." He waved his hand over the pearlized liquid in the bowl until a young nervous Neville clutching Trevor appeared. "Go on, watch how life would have changed if you'd not been a Gryffindor."
Neville swallowed the nervousness that was clutching his throat and placed his face into the cool liquid. The Headmaster's office disappeared from his senses and he was once again in the Great Hall for the first time feeling the nervous excitement of being sorted.
~*~
Professor McGonagall peered down at the first years, "The four houses are called Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw and Slytherin. Form a line and follow me."
Neville wanted to warn his younger self of what lay ahead in his life, but he knew he wouldn't be heard.
"I'd forgotten how young you all were." Dumbledore said softly as he moved next to Neville. His gaze slid over to the young Harry Potter and smiled as he saw glimpses of the wizard he was to become.
"When I call your name, you will put on the hat and sit on the stool to be sorted." Professor McGonagall unrolled the parchment and began calling names. "Abbott, Hannah."
"Longbottom, Neville."
His name being called jarred Neville out of his thoughts and he focused on the young Neville nervously sitting on the stool, wearing the sorting hat. The hat mumbled as it had when he'd originally wore it until it shouted, "HUFFLEPUFF!"
Before Neville could comment to Dumbledore, he was whisked to the Quidditch match and was surprised to not see Harry as Seeker. "Where's Harry, Professor?"
The Headmaster merely smiled and pointed up into the stands where Harry, Ron and Hermione were cheering the Gryffindors. "You weren't at the first broom lesson for Malfoy to steal your Remembrall, so Harry couldn't show his prowess as a Seeker. Even the small things in our lives change other aspects, Neville."
He nodded his head, but thought to himself if it meant saving the prophecy for Harry, Neville was glad he wasn't there to help him become the youngest Gryffindor Seeker. "But he joins the Gryffindor team later anyway, right?"
Dumbledore merely smiled before whisking them to the Leaving Feast for that year. They watched as the Great Hall erupted into cheers as the points for the House Cup were announced. "For the first time in the History of Hogwarts the difference between first and second in the House Cup were ten points." The din was loud and boisterous as Gryffindor and Slytherin knew one of them would be the winner for the House Cup. Hufflepuff had been in fourth place with three hundred and ninety-two, Ravenclaw was third with four hundred and twenty-six. "In second place, Gryffindor with four hundred and sixty-two and Slytherin wins the house cup with four hundred and seventy-two points."
Neville stared in shock at Dumbledore, not believing that his sorting into Hufflepuff had changed the outcome of the House Cup. He hadn't really earned that many points especially when added to the number that he’d lost for Gryffindor as well.
"Remember, Neville. It was tied between Gryffindor and Slytherin until I awarded Gryffindor ten points for your courage. All of the points you earned your first year increased the Hufflepuff score as well."
"These are just small changes."
Before Neville could finish his thought Dumbledore smiled enigmatically, "Are they?" With a wave of his hand the pair moved to Neville's third year.
His heart plummeted as he remembered this was the year that he'd written down the passwords and Sirius Black had come into Gryffindor Tower because of it. The boys dormitory appeared with Ron, Harry, Seamus and Dean sleeping soundly but the figure of Sirius Black still loomed over the sleeping Ron and Scabbers.
Neville turned shocked eyes to Dumbledore, "I thought he got in because of me when I wrote the passwords down."
The Headmaster smiled slightly, popping a lemon drop into his mouth. "He did the first time, but Sirius Black is resourceful. He had an invisibility cloak on and followed a few students through the portrait hole in this time line. So you see, Sirius would have entered Gryffindor Tower even if you hadn't had a list of passwords for Crookshanks to steal."
He felt a little better that his bumbling hadn't been the only reason for Sirius to enter Gryffindor Tower. That fate had played a role in Sirius and Harry being reunited lifted a small weight off of his shoulders. "As far as I can tell, nothing negates the bumbling I did as a Gryffindor. Harry may or may not play Quidditch, we didn't win the House Cup, but those things are all small compared to messing up at the Department of Mysteries."
Dumbledore waved his hand once more and they reappeared during the second task at the Triwizard Tournament. "But then there are other consequences, Neville. You weren't there to tell Harry about the Gillyweed." He motioned for the young wizard to watch as Harry struggled with a bubblehead charm. "It lasts, but he's not strong enough to get Gabrielle as well."
Neville watched as Harry dove into the water, pride filling him as he remembered how despite what the polyjuiced Moody thought, he'd found the Gillyweed answer on his own. He always felt at home in a Herbology greenhouse than he did in Defense Against the Dark Arts. His eyes scanned the crowd in search of his Hufflepuff self and smiled when he saw Cedric take a bite of the Gillyweed that Hufflepuff Neville had given him. Did that mean that Cedric's destiny had changed as well?
Dumbledore followed Neville's gaze and placed his hand on the young Gryffindor's shoulder, "I'm sorry, Cedric's fate remained the same whether he had Gillyweed or not. It was written in the stars the moment that Harry's name had been put in the Cup."
Neville nodded his head sadly as the image slowly dissolved reemerging into the current school term. They appeared in the Forbidden Forest, silently standing next to Ginny, Luna, Ron, Harry, Neville and Hermione. Shock filled him that he was still there, still arguing to go along with the others to the Ministry of Magic.
The Headmaster lay a gentle hand on Neville's shoulder, squeezing slightly. "As Cedric's fate was written the moment Harry's name was put in the Cup, your fate was written the moment the Death Eaters escaped Azkaban. It didn't matter that you were in Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw or even Slytherin. There are traits of all houses that reside in us, it's our choices that determine were we go in life. Not the house that you live in during Hogwarts. Voldemort and his Death Eaters did not learn what was in the prophecy because of your actions. It wasn't something terrible that happened when you broke the ball, Neville, it was fate taking its course."
"B-but Harry..." Neville interrupted.
"Harry knows what he is needed to know, Neville. The prophecy wasn't lost. The sorting hat didn't make a mistake in your first year, and you were placed in the house where you were meant to be." Dumbledore waved his hand a final time, returning them to the Headmaster's office.
"It's the choices that you make in life, Neville rather than the house you're sorted into. You made the correct choices and they brought you to where you are now. A confident young wizard determined to do what is right."
Neville felt heat rise in his cheeks at the compliment and mumbled a thanks.
"Lemon drop?" Dumbledore held out the sweet treat.
"No, thank you." Neville shook his head, "I'd like to see how my housemates are doing." He turned to leave the Headmaster's office and looked over his shoulder with a small smile, "Thank you, Professor Dumbledore."
The Headmaster bowed his head slightly, "and thank you, Neville. You've been instrumental in Harry's path whether you realize it or not."
He felt his ears burn in embarrassment, but he acknowledged the compliment with a smile before leaving to check on Luna, Ron, Hermione and Ginny in the infirmary. He may have done well in Hufflepuff, but he was glad he had been sorted into Gryffindor with his mates.