There is a fact that most hardcore "Harry Potter" fans realize about the series, but I'm unsure if some casual readers and watchers have realized. There's something major that could have made the whole series turn out to be different. That is the fact that it all could have been Neville.
You see, Neville Longbottom was born on July 30 and Harry Potter was born on July 31. The prophecy given to Voldemort was about a born at the end of July. That description fits both of them. There's even more in the prophecy that suggests the Chosen One could have really been Neville. Neville and Harry both had parents in the Order of the Phoenix and both of the boys' parents had narrowly escaped Voldemort three times.
Of course we all know that the Chosen One is actually Harry Potter, but what if it wasn't?
I don't like to dabble with the "what if's" in my favorite books because I feel like it undermines the writing of the author, but this Neville-Harry plot twist is a good what if to ask. What if Neville had been the Chosen One instead of Harry?
Could we handle Neville Longbottom as our hero? I don't think we could.
Neville is one of the most understated characters in the Harry Potter franchise, and I don't think that Neville -- as we know him today -- could capture us and make us believe. While reading the books and watching the movies we often times wonder why Neville was sorted into Gryffindor because he just seems so timid and full of fear. But when it came down to it, Neville was exactly who the trio needed when there was trouble. Neville showed signs of bravery when he stood up to the trio in the first book and then again in The Order of the Phoenix when he faced Bellatrix head on. Neville is not the obvious hero, but he is a hero.
In the end, it comes full circle. We know that The Chosen One could have been Neville, but nothing else was ever mentioned or shown about that -- until the final book. Harry, Ron, and Hermoine go off destroying Horcruxes that Voldemort has made, but it isn't anyone in the trio who finally kills the last horcrux; it was Neville. Neville destroyed the last horcrux, which made Voldemort's soul too fragile thus allowing Harry to finish him off. Now, if you didn't know about the dual prophecy, you wouldn't think anything of it. It seems like Neville the unsung hero, but what if Neville was actually the Chosen One?
We obviously know that Harry Potter was and forever will be the Chosen One, but it's fun to play with the idea of it really being Neville Longbottom. The characters are so different in personality, yet the same in a lot of ways. As a die-hard Harry Potter fan, I appreciate the beauty of the idea of Neville.
Stay magical.
