Title: Keep Counting
Author: RadioactiveLollipops
Chapter: 1 - Arriving
Rating: PG-13 for now
Summary: Neville goes through his 7th year with Luna and Ginny by his side, hoping he can survive it.
Authors Note: Yes, yes, I know, everyone and their grandmother is doing this. But I don't care! Be warned now, I have quite the cynical mind. Therefore, in the next few chapters, you'll be seeing a lot of mature themed stuff. So if your into dark, creepy stuff, this is a good story to read. If your a nun, go away.
Enjoy:
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"Can't wait," Neville mumbled as his grandmother let go of him after apparating them to the outside of Kings Cross. His grandmother said nothing, instead she led them in.
"Keep your head down, Neville," his grandmother reminded him, as if she hadn't said it thousands of times before.
"Yes, gran," Neville said in a small voice, looking down at the ground, following his grandmother. He pushed the trolley until they were in the middle of the 9 and 10 mark.
"Go on," she whispered and Neville nodded. He felt almost afraid to leave her, fearing if he did, Death Eaters would pop up and grab her. But he did, anyway, to avoid being snapped at. He ran through the brick wall to appear in a very cold place. Usually, it was filled with warm goodbyes and excitement. It was just cold and depressing.
Neville would have stayed behind if he could, but if he did, he'd be registered as one of the students who didn't join in on the train and they'd look for him and his grandmother. And they had enough to worry about without him making things worse.
Just as his grandmother appeared out of the wall, Neville spotted Luna hugging her father and kissing him on the nose goodbye. He turned sadly after Luna boarded the train to look at his grandmother.
"Now," his grandmother grabbed his arm and pulled him closer, eyeing him closely, "if you get into the slightest trouble, you send me an owl and I'll be there in a second to take care of it. You look after your two little friends, what were their names?"
"Erm, Ginny and Luna?" Neville asked quietly and his grandmother nodded quickly.
"You look after them. I like them. Though they're quite the trouble makers, I've gathered. And as one of the few seventh years returning, you look after the younger ones as well, first years, second years..."
"I know, I will," Neville nodded, grimly.
"Good boy," his grandmother patted him on the cheek lightly, "you do have potential, you know. You've showed that over the past two years. Lets hope the shine doesn't fade."
"Right," Neville mumbled as his cheeks pinkened. It was a rare occasion when his grandmother complimented him.
"Try not to get into too much trouble," she warned before letting him bend down to hug her.
"I will," Neville lied. He knew he wouldn't be able to not get in trouble. He knew he wouldn't be able to try. He always got in trouble. When they pulled away, she eyed him, warily.
"You're lying," she said, blankly. Neville shifted on spot before she continued, "but it's fine. You can handle yourself, I've seen."
"Love you, gran," Neville wrapped up the conversation when someone shouted that there were two minutes left until it left.
"Love you," his grandmother mumbled just before Neville started to walk off and board the train. He walked down the corridors until he spotted Luna and Ginny in a compartment. He stared at Ginny through the window, curiously. She now had black hair and her freckles had disappeared. He decided it was because she was a well known blood traitor. He shrugged it off and entered the compartment.
"Hello Neville," Luna smiled and Neville waved half-heartedly.
"Good summer, Neville?" Ginny asked, bitterly.
"Not particularly," Neville shook his head as he sat down.
"Is he in here?" a voice sounded and they all looked towards the entrance of the compartment. The door slid open and half a dozen students squeezed in, "don' see him!"
"What're you talking about?" Ginny asked, angrily.
"Harry Potter aint here, folks!" Zacharias Smith announced.
"Bloody coward," another stated.
"Oh, right," Ginny spat, defensively, getting to her feet, "because Harry Potter--the main enemy of You-Know-Who that is--can come to a place publicly that's overrun by Death Eaters. Dear Merlin, are you dim?!"
"You'd think they'd gathered that much," Luna chimed in as three students piled out.
"Oh, so he's just left us here to be tortured by Death Eaters, then?" a Ravenclaw narrowed his eyes at Ginny.
"If I here another obnoxious word leave your mouth, I'll hex you into oblivion," Ginny threatened and the boy backed away. Finally, all the students that weren't there before had left. Neville sighed and closed the compartment door as Ginny sat down.
"That was quite rude," Luna observed serenely, looking at the ceiling on the train.
"Bloody gits," Ginny growled angrily as Neville sat down next to her, "they expect Harry to walk in like an idiot and get himself killed instantly? I mean, come on..."
"Yes, it was quite a close call at the wedding," Luna looked back at the two with wider eyes than normal.
"Oh, I read about that in the Quibbler," Neville commented, sitting up straighter, "what happened, exactly?"
"Oh, well, Kingsley sent a message that Scrimgeour was dead and everything went to hell." Ginny ran a hand through her red hair. "Harry, Ron, and Hermione disapparated immediately and mum pulled me into the house before I could see what happened."
"Yes," Luna nodded, hugging the newest addition of the Quibbler to her chest, "I don't know how to apparate, and I'd gotten lost from daddy, so I got a good look at things." Neville leaned in towards Luna curiously. "Almost all the Death Eaters had come, minus He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named. Kingsley and the rest of the Order appeared and it was a huge mess."
"Yeah, dad told me Tonks nearly got hit with the killing curse," Ginny shuddered.
"Remus got stunned, too." Luna fidgeted with her magazine before continuing. "That was all I saw before daddy and I found each other and disapparated."
Neville sighed heavily before leaning back, "I'm sorry I wasn't there. But Gran gave one of the Death Eaters a reason to watch over her, so we couldn't go."
"Don't be sorry," Ginny rolled her eyes, "be glad you weren't there."
From then on, all was pretty quiet, the three barely spoke a word besides Luna talking about Moon Frogs for a brief moment.
"Ah!" Ginny shouted as she stumbled out of her seat due to the train stopping, though Neville had a firm grip on his seat. "What's happened?"
"We've stopped," Luna observed, peaking out the window.
"Everyone out of their compartments!" A loud voice yelled and the three looked at each other.
"Death Eaters?" Neville asked, quietly.
"NOW!" The voice yelled, again when no one came out.
"Probably," Ginny slid open the compartment door just as everyone else did and they slowly filed out. A masked Death Eater checked the compartments to make sure everyone was out.
"Mudbloods on the train!" One of the Slytherins shouted for everyone to hear from the front of the train.
"Oh, no," Ginny whispered as she, Luna, and Neville stayed tightly together, "who do you think? I hope it's not Dean.."
"No, Dean wouldn't be dim enough to come to Hogwarts now," Luna reassured just as Neville shouted.
"Terry!" Neville pointed at the Death Eater dragging Terry Boot out by the arm from a compartment. Just as Ginny was getting out her wand, one of Terry's friends managed to throw a hex at the Death Eater. He fell to the ground and his mask slid off, bringing Terry down with him.
"Oi! Rowle!" Ginny yelled angrily, pointing her wand at him. Ginny was shot into Luna and Neville after Rowle's companion shot a blasting hex at her. Before anything else could happen, the two Death Eaters stormed out of the train, dragging Terry by the hood of his robes after placing a body-binding curse on him.
"Bastards..." Neville mumbled, making Ginny look at him in surprise. It was quickly brushed off by anger.
"Lupin-Lupin told me Thorfinn Rowle was one of the Death Eaters at the little place Harry, Hermione, and Ron disapparated to!" Ginny was pulled back into the compartment by Luna and Neville before she continued. "Him and Gibbons...Merlin, I hope Terry's alright..."
"I hope so, too," Luna sighed, looking straight at Neville and Ginny, "father visited the Ministry once over the summer and I'd gone with him, and I saw them interrogating an old Muggle-born woman. It was quite brutal. A little while later she was being taken by Dementors, screaming."
"Oh," Ginny shuddered, involunteerily.
"It was quite horrifying." Luna looked up at the ceiling again. "The top of the train is completely covered in Wagglits...They're supposed to protect you from dark forces. I wonder why they didn't work."
About a half an hour of silence passed after Luna's outburst before the train had finally stopped again---at the carriages this time. All three of the children looked at each other before Ginny piped up.
"Well..." she started, slowly, "we might as well go..."
