Fabian Prewett

"No one lived after he decided ter kill 'em, no one except you, an' he'd killed some of the best witches and wizards of the age - the McKinnons, the Bones, the Prewetts - you were only a baby an' you lived"

- Rubeus Hagrid to Harry Potter

Fabian Prewett (d. 1981) was a pure-blood wizard, the brother of both Gideon and Molly. Fabian was a member of the Order of the Phoenix during the First Wizarding War. He was killed by five Death Eaters before the end of the war, along with his brother.

Early life
Fabian was born into the wizarding Prewett family, with two known siblings: Gideon and Molly. During the First Wizarding War, his sister Molly married Arthur Weasley, and the couple eventually had seven children.

First Wizarding War
During the First Wizarding War, Fabian and his brother decided to join the ranks of the Order of the Phoenix to fight against Lord Voldemort and his Death Eaters. Their sister does not appear to have been an official member, probably because she had several young children to take care of.

Death
Eventually, however, Gideon Prewett and Fabian were attacked by five Death Eaters, one of whom was Antonin Dolohov. They were described as having "fought like heroes" by fellow Order member Alastor "Mad-Eye" Moody, though both were ultimately killed. Following Voldemort's fall from power, Dolohov, and perhaps others involved in the Prewetts' "brutal" murders, were imprisoned in Azkaban for the crime.

Post-mortem
It has never been shown how Molly coped with the deaths of her brothers. She rarely mentions them, indicating that she took their loss hard, but when she does, she speaks fondly of them.

Molly gave Fabian's gold watch to Harry Potter on his seventeenth birthday, as it was traditional to give a wizard a watch when he comes of age. Harry treasured and preserved it throughout the Second Wizarding War, keeping it and wearing it well into his thirties. She also stated that Fabian was not "terribly careful" with his possessions, especially his watch, which he dented. Unlike normal watches, it had stars as the clock's hands.

Etymology
Fabian is the English form of the Latin Fabianus, which was the name given to emancipated slaves in Rome. It is derived from Fabius, the name of a very influential Roman patrician family, whose members included many politicians and soldiers. The most notable of the Fabian family was Quintus Fabius Maximus Verrucosus, who was given the epithet Cunctator, "the Delayer", because of the unorthodox strategies he employed in the Second Punic War against Hannibal. He developed the Fabian strategy of warfare.

Behind the scenes

 * While Fabian and Gideon are mentioned as having been members of the Order, their sister Molly was not, most likely because she was raising her children, Fabian's nephews, during the First Wizarding War.
 * Fabian and Gideon are portrayed by James and Oliver Phelps (the twins, who also portrayed Fred and George Weasley) in the film adaptation of Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, presumably portraying Fabian and Gideon as twins as well, though this is never stated in the books.
 * It is possible Fabian's sister honoured Fabian and Gideon with the naming of her twin sons. Fred, one of her twins, has the same first initial as Fabian, 'F'. Her other son, George, has the same initial 'G'.

Appearances

 * Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone
 * Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix
 * Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (film)
 * Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows

Notes and references
Fabian Prewett Fabian Protser