Neville Longbottom and the Extinct Herb of the Lowlands

Neville Longbottom and the Extinct Herb of the Lowlands

As Ollivander's door closed behind him, Neville looked up and down sunlit Diagon Alley, pondering where to go next, glad to be without his domineering Gran. He was itching to spend the galleon that jangled in his pocket from his birthday two days back. The wand selection went well, and Neville felt that it may have been much more difficult had she been there. It was Gran who insisted that he use his father's wand when he started Hogwarts, and she was positively heartbroken to find that it had been broken at the department of mysteries. She spent the last 6 weeks trying to find someone who could it repair it, but Neville sadly knew it was a lost cause. Now that he held his wand, though, he was almost happy about the way things had happenend, because now he could feel his magic. He felt confidant and capable, two feelings that he had not yet been aquainted with.

As it turned out, his wand was more alike to his mother's than his father'. While Frank Longbottom's wand was somewhat rigid, made of yew, 11", and with a core of unicorn tail hair, Nevilles was pliable, oak, 12", with a dragon heartstring core. Alice Longbottom's wand, Mr. Ollivander revealed, was also pliable and had a dragon heartstring core. Hers, however, was made of willow and only 10 ½" long. Neville was most pleased to hear the wise wandsmith say that his wand was especially suited to healing. Neville had long dreamed of becoming a healer. Maybe with the new wand, he thought, I'll have a chance to get the NEWTs and it could really happen, if I work hard.

Walking further down the Alley than he'd ever needed to before be looked at the shops' window displays, beauty supplies and cleaning agents, toys and jewellery. He went in a tiny used bookstore called "Beukwirm's Auld and Rerr Used Books." It was extremely crowded inside, and books were stacked precariously from floor to ceiling. Dust rose around Neville as he negotiated a path to the back counter. "May I help you?" asked the old wizard without looking up.

"Do you have any books on herbology?" asked Neville uncertainly.

The wizard did not answer, but a small light appeared, hovering above one of the piles of books. Neville wound his way through the dusty towers, and examning the titles, he saw that this stack was indeed the herbology section. Neville ran his finger along the spines, reading each title; Aphrodisiac blooms by Rue Paestrum, Plant Treasures of the Sea by Acerio Marinusa, Growing Magical Plants for Pleasure and Profit by Ben Topiard, Plant Diseases and Their Cures by Tabes Morbidus, and Uncommon Uses for Common Garden Flowers by Mabel Florida. He was just about to pull out Cacti of the American Southwest by Cody Lupaty when a small blue volume caught his eye. It looked old, and the title was worn off the spine. When he pulled it out he read the title Healing Yerbs and Plaunts of the Lowlands by Dern MacCantrip. It was handwritten inside, with alot of archaic Engish and some Scots thrown in too, but he could make out most of it. There were several drawings of each plant, and at least a third of them were new to Neville. That was saying something, since he had read all the herbology books in Hogwarts' vast library.

Neville quickly purchased the book and hurried to the leaky cauldron to floo home, leaving the rest of his birthday money unspent. He was to eager to show Gran and Uncle Algie his new wand and to look through his book. Besides, it was only one month before school, and Neville had alot of work to do.