Courage {Neville Longbottom} (ON HOLD)

Chapter Fifty Nine

With the summer drawing to an end, Neville knew his time with Bandile was limited and that made the boy a bit nervous. Neville thought he was growing quite a bit especially when it came to his confidence but Bandile was an excellent teacher in the sense that Neville felt comfortable around him. If he didn't grasp the concept the first time around, Bandile never ridiculed him, instead, he offered to go over it again or try wording it differently for the boy. There was no sense in making fun of a person for not being able to learn something right away nor was there any point in getting upset with the child because it would do nothing but upset the child as well.

Not that Kefira or Neville were small children anymore, both of them were entering their sixth year of Hogwarts and afterward, their seventh year would come and go. When they turned seventeen, they would both be of age to use their magic outside of school and it was a pretty scary though, especially when Bandile thought of Kefira not having any restrictions. It had certainly been a big leap to take when it came to training Kefira to become an animagus.

When she was younger, her focus had nearly been non-existent unless she truly showed interest in the subject and if the results weren't immediate, she often lost interest. There were times that Bandile wondered if he should have chosen Neville for the cause, but at the time, Neville's confidence was not where it needed to be to take on such a task. Animagus training was difficult and one couldn't hesitate with self-doubt. They had to be fully committed and ready. 

But now Neville was showing his own strengths and he didn't need to be an animagus in order to be an asset. He had proven himself at the Department of Mysteries and all those part of the Order had heard of his bravery. Of course, it helped that Neville surrounded himself with people that cared about him and made him strive to be better. Kefira had certainly pushed him past where he had drawn his limits multiple times. But it was Neville that had to give himself the final push that he needed.

While Kefira was tending to her own family matters, meaning her family wanted to spend time with her before she had to head back to school, Neville was able to spend one afternoon wth Bandile at his request. Bandile was confused by the summoning, figuring that Neville and Kefira were sick of seeing him every day. He had given them the day off for them to have their own fun. But with Kefira busy, Neville wasn't exactly having a party with Augusta, who was napping on the sofa upon the man's arrival.

"Is everything alright, Neville? Your owl made it sound urgent," Bandile said as he was welcomed into the house. The man grimaced at the sound of Augusta's snoring in the other room, but he said nothing as Neville led him towards the kitchen to sit. 

"Everything is fine," Neville answered him before offering him something to drink like his grandmother always told him to do when they had company over. Bandile declined politely as he took his seat, still curious as to why he was invited over. When Neville took his seat, it seemed there was something on his mind, something he wanted to say, but his nerves were getting the best of him for the time being.

"Come on, Neville, spit it out. I know you have something to say."

Neville glanced up and nodded his head before he opened his mouth to speak. "A couple of times, you mentioned knowing my parents," Neville said, " I'm guessing through the Order. I just...I just wanted to hear what you had to say about them. It's always different coming from someone who isn't family."

Bandile gave the boy a small smile before he folded his hands upon the table and sat for a moment. 

"I meant your parents a couple of times. They were always together, I don't think I ever saw one without the other. That was the first thing I think I noticed about them. They were so in sync with each other, they always knew what the other was thinking without saying a word to each other. I think that was their strength as Aurors, of course, they were strong and powerful on their own, but together, what a force to be reckoned with. "