Chapter 93 - 93- fears and boggarts (part 2)

Neville's POV

For Neville, it felt like the world stopped.

Like he wasn't in class, with a wand in his hand, while imagining Professor Snape in his grandmothers clothes.

Instead, he was standing in front of the two people he adored the most, two people he visits every holiday, yet never truly met.

He was standing in front his parents, and he was more terrified then he ever was.

You would think he would be excited, but if you saw the look of loathing on their face you might understand his fear, and if that wasn't enough, it was at that moment that they opened their mouths.

"You can't be my son." His father's look alike spit out, making Neville's eyes fill with tears as he tried thinking about something funny. "No, he is is just a squib." His mother's doppelgänger said with a chuckle that sounded extremely similar to Parkinson's.

"You should have bought a new wand, 'course don't deserve using my wand!" Hearing that, every shred of courage he had, vanished, as he ran outside of the classroom, barely hearing the professor yelling "Riddikulus", and completely missing the voice of someone running after him as he searched for a dark corner to cry at.

Harry's POV

'Well, that was something.' Harry thought as he ran after Neville. After all, even if they weren't friends anymore, he knew to draw a line between right and wrong, making someone he disliked having to experience his true greatest fear might be in the gray area, but making him traumatized? That's just wrong! He was sure that by being as prepared as he was, knowing he was going to deal with a Boggart, having a funny picture in his head, and the spell on his lips, the Gryffindor wouldn't even think before casting the charm, certainly wouldn't just stand and listen to the creature's evil words.

So while he didn't like it, he would take responsibility and make sure the trauma is minimized, especially now, as he understand for the first time why Neville hatred him after the Christmas of first year.

He could have caught up to Neville in half a minute, but he knew the boy needed the run.

So instead, here he was, five minutes after the incident in class, near the broom closet in which Neville hid, knowing on the door while asking quietly "Hey Neville, are you alright?"

"Leave me alone Marcus!" He yelled, making Harry rub his head and say "It's not Marcus, it's Harry."

The next few seconds were of awkward silence before Neville broke it.

"What do you want? Came to make fun of me again?" The venom in the voice not surprising Harry at all.

"I just came to talk."

"Leave me alone!" This time there was less venom and more pleading in the voice.

"I don't think you should be alone right now, so either you open the door or I would blow it open." He truly hoped he wouldn't have to do it, but he would, more for his conscience then for Neville.

Luckily, after a few seconds the Gryffindor opened the door.

His eyes and nose red, and probably more mucus on his robe then inside his nose.

"Well, talk."

"Can we please find an empty classroom to sit in?" He asked while secretly casting a cleaning charm.

He saw the boy's face was getting red because of his request so he quickly added "We wouldn't want a couple with free period to stumble int onto us in the broom closet when they come in here to snog."

After a few seconds Neville nodded and they started walking.

After a few minutes they got into an empty classroom and Harry casted a quick silencing charm.

"Are you OK?" Nobody ever said he beat around the bush.

"How do you think I'm?" Neville yelled "Not only did my parents just told me I'm not good enough to be their son, which I always knew, my dad just proved you were right and that I don't deserve his wand! And if that wasn't enough, they just did it in front of the entire class!" By the end of his yell he was crying again and a little bit out of breath.

"First of all," Harry started, quickly organizing his thoughts so he wouldn't say anything that might aggravate the boy. "They weren't your real parents, it was only a Boggart that transformed to your fear." He could see his words starting to have a positive affect on Neville, but it quickly changed as he said "What does it matter? It's true, my grandma keeps telling me that."

"No, it's not. You are in the top 10 in theory, you know how many in our year can say that? Only 10" the small smile breaking on Neville's face told him he was in the right path.

"As for the practical side of magic, you truly need to change a wand."

The tiny smile on his face changed to an angry look as a fist came in Harry's direction, which he dodged.

"So that's how it is? You came to play with my emotions? To make me feel a little bit better, only to make me feel even worse?"

"What? No!" Harry said as he dodged another fist. "I meant that while I'm sure this wand was perfect for your father, it's not the one that chose you! That, as Olivander says: 'the wand choose the wizard', and to fulfill your potential you need one that is right for you!"

As Neville heard Harry, he stopped trying to punch him.

"Is that why you gifted me a new wand ticket as Christmas gift in first year?"

"Yes." Harry said exhaustedly, having two 'emotional' conversations in less then a week was way too much for him.

"Well, I'm sorry." Neville said meekly. "I completely destroyed our friendship and the expensive gift you gave me over a misunderstanding."

It was Harry's chance to fix the relationship, to tell him he was willing to try again, and that he didn't completely destroyed it, that they both had a hand in it, but it wasn't something he wanted.

"Yes, you did." Harry said and the broken look on the boy's face looked even sadder.

"But that's life, sometimes you just mess things up." After he said that, there was a few seconds of silence, which made Harry even more uncomfortable than the entire conversation.

"I'm about to go back," He said making as I'm really want to see if Malfoy's secret fear is everybody learning he has a small di*k."

As Neville snorted a laugh, Harry smiled made his way out of the classroom and canceled his silencing charm before walking back to the DADA lesson with a clean conscience.

Remus's POV

Remus wasn't sure how it all went wrong, he did the same lesson to the fourth and fifth years already without any incidents.

He made sure to make the first student to deal with the Boggart has a fear he can change into something that would make everybody laugh, made sure the student was prepared, and that there wasn't anything truly emotional damaging.

Instead, after the two boys ran, one from his fear, and the other to make sure the first was okay, as he asked in the happiest voice he could master "who wants to be next?" unsurprisingly, nobody volunteered.

If convincing the next one to participate was hard, convincing the one after him was almost impossible, as the second was ms. Granger and her fear of having no friends materialized, and the children understood their insecurities are going to show up.

In the end, even Marcus was unwilling to try conquering his fear, and he finished the class early, letting the children go.

As he was sitting there, complementing what could he have done better, a knock on the door woke him from his thoughts.

"Professor?"

Seeing it wasn't Marcus, yet, a James look alike (if James was taller, younger, and had as defined body as the boy), Remus knew it must be the twin he never got the chance to meet, the one who barely had the chance to meet his family before being cast out for something he can't control, who, if Remus wasn't too afraid to lose his last friend, might have made Remus argue with James, the boy who went to Slytherin, yet surprisingly was the one to chase the crying Gryffindor.

"Yes, mr. Peverel?"

"The class is over? I could have swore there was another 30 minutes."

"I'm afraid the incident with mr. Longbottom made it hard for the other students to participate in the class."

A nod from the boy showed his understanding of the situation.

"Em....professor?"

"Yes?"

"May I try?"

He couldn't believe his ears, the boy actually wanted to try?

"Are you sure?"

At the boy's nod his entire mood changed, even if he only managed to make one student interested, it was a start, right?

"Sure, come right up!" He said as he walked to the wardrobe.

"Now," He said as mr. Peverel stood with his wand facing the wardrobe. "remember to think about something funny while saying 'Riddikulus', are you ready?" The nod from the boy made him cast the spell that opened the wardrobe.

Harry's POV

As much as he said he was prepared, he wasn't.

Sure, he knew the spell and he knew it was going to happen.

But the only thing he didn't know was what it would be.

Would he be like Neville, fearing his parents rejection?

Did he fear the Potters

Was he fearing becoming like Voldemort? Or like Dumbledore?

Yet, as he felt the power similar to legilimancy yet different, move in his mind as he took down his shields for the full experience, as the boggart changed shape to a fear he didn't considered, the terror he felt couldn't stop the tiny intrigue about how the Boggart's power worked.