Neville as Witness (was Re: TBAY: Memory Charm Neville

[cindysphynx]

No: HPFGUIDX 38880

Elkins fretted:
 
> Oh.  I can't just *believe* that I'm doing this.  But sometimes you
> really do just have to go with What Is Right over What Is 
Interesting.
> 
> <takes deep breath>
> 
> Yeah.  Okay.  All right.
> 
> Not only is it nowhere stated in canon that the Longbottoms were 
> attacked at home, but the canon actually suggests that it did 
*not* 
> happen in their own home.  Look.
> 
> Crouch's summary of the charges against the Pensieve Four begins 
> with:
> 
> "The four of you stand accused of capturing an Auror -- Frank
> Longbottom -- and subjecting him to the Cruciatus Curse..."
> 
> Yup.  That's right.  "Capturing."
> 
> Now, you really don't call it "capturing" when somebody is 
assaulted 
> in his very own home, do you?  I mean, to my mind, "capturing"
> has quite different connotations.  If you stand accused of
> "capturing" someone, then what that implies to me is that you 
> probably snatched them off the street, or that if you did abduct 
them 
> from their own home, then you thereafter took them somewhere else.

Buck up, Elkins!  Pull yourself together!

There are lots of ways that the Longbottom torture can take place 
right in front of Neville's wide eyes, which is the only thing that 
really matters.

First, Neville is really young.  If the DEs "captured" Frank and his 
wife, then Neville is most likely right there with them.  So it 
doesn't matter whether they were captured at home or not -- Neville 
is still right there watching the whole thing.

Second, if the DEs grab Frank, his wife and Neville off the street, 
they have to have a nice place to torture them where they won't be 
interrupted.  It is quite possible that they took the Longbottoms 
back to their home, especially if they figured Frank might have 
files or whatnot that contained information they'd need.

Now, as for me, I strongly favor the Torture Begins At Home 
scenario.  After all, shouldn't it be nighttime?  Isn't it more 
dramatic if the DEs burst through the door than if they catch up 
with the Longbottoms on the street, bonk them on the head and . . . 
what, tie them to a broomstick?

Nah.  I'm not troubled by "captured."

Cindy (who seems to have misplaced her scruples)