Beginning

AlwaysPadfoot

It was days like this that Hannah wished she hadn't come back to Hogwarts. She could have taken her younger brother, Jack and ran as soon as they got to Kings Cross. However, now she'd seen the students that had tried to run from Hogwarts and had been forcibly dragged back, she was kind of glad she hadn't tried. Jack had been through enough.

The sixth year Gryffindors and Hufflepuffs had ended the day with double Dark Arts. A class in which Hannah attempted to keep her head down in, but was often coerced by Carrow into arguing and therefore landing herself in detention. That was what had happened today. That was why Hannah was currently storming down to Transfiguration classroom to meet her friends, catching them just as they were dismissed.

"You look pissed, Abbott."

"You would be if you'd just landed in detention Zach," she snapped at the blonde lad stood behind Susan, who looked exasperated to say the least.

"Do you really think it's a great idea to irritate the Carrows?" Susan muttered as Hannah fell into step beside them. She shrugged as the three continued on their way down towards the Great Hall for dinner.

Hannah hated not being with her friends in the correct year any longer. All the Hufflepuff's in the sixth year were alright, but she missed going to classes with them. Professor Sprout had allowed her to remain in the same dormitory, but even those tiny chunks of time in class felt like forever when she had to listen to the bullshit the Carrows spat out.

The Hall was quiet; it always had since the year had began. Kids were scared, and even those who weren't were lying. Hannah was scared, she could pretend over and over again that she wasn't, but she was.

"Do you think we're going to have time to get all that work done before curfew?" Ernie asked.

"You're fucking joking right?" Zach muttered. "Curfew is at seven now. Seven o'clock."

"All right," Ernie replied, holding his hands up. "No need to snap. I didn't change the curfew."

Susan and Hannah shared a knowing look. Zach's temper had floated back into the realm of dangerous over the summer. Something it hadn't really been since fifth year. Zach had always been moody, but being around Ernie and Justin and the two girls over the fourth and fifth year had softened him. Susan swore blind he'd remained more or less the same when Hannah had been away. She wasn't convinced.

Later into the night, Hannah found herself sat alone in the Common Room in front of the dying fire. She couldn't sleep; she hadn't slept properly in months let alone over the last few days. She knew her younger brother wouldn't be sleeping either, but Hannah was desperately trying to not go see if he was okay. He couldn't rely on her and God knows she couldn't rely on him. Slouching, she stared up at the ceiling that was charmed similarly to the Great Hall; it was clear, untroubled, unlike the younger residents of the castle. Hannah couldn't even look at any longer.

It was wandering along the fourth floor corridor that she bumped straight into someone. Her heart immediately leapt right up into her throat in fear for a split second until she clocked exactly who she'd bumped into.

"Hannah?"

"Neville." Hannah breathed, "Why are you out after curfew?"

Neville retracted slightly, not speaking for a long moment, until he piped up tentatively, "We're going to start up the DA again."

"I'm in," she retorted as soon as the two letters, DA, slipped past his lips.

"Really?"

Neville was looking at her warily and Hannah rolled her eyes. She knew what it looked like; she looked frail and hollow and empty, but she didn't come back to Hogwarts to hide behind the last year.

"I'm not incapable, Neville," she answered quietly.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to," he replied. "You hear a lot; I don't even have the right story. Sorry."

Hannah forced a smile at his stammering, "It's okay."

"Um. You heading somewhere in particular?" Neville said, rubbing the back of his neck uncomfortably.

"Not really."

"Want to come check out the Room of Requirement then?" he asked.

Hannah shrugged, "Why not?"

The pair headed up to the seventh floor where the Room of Requirement appeared, both of them quiet. Hannah liked having the company, it helped her feel near normal again, but she also knew Neville was too polite to ask what had happened last year even though he wanted to know.

"Ginny said that you are back as Hufflepuff Quidditch Captain," Neville said as they stepped into an empty alcove to avoid two prefects.

Hannah waited until the two disappeared, "Yeah, honestly, I'm surprised I got the position back."

"I remember you being great," Neville replied.

"Thanks, but I only captained one game," she replied. Hannah had played since third year as a Keeper and then was offered the Captain position when she started her first sixth year. Someone else had covered, Leah Bennett, a seventh year, when Hannah had been taken home in November.

They walked back and forth in front of the wall three times before a small door grew in front of their very eyes. The two shared a knowing look before they stepped through the door, Neville holding it open for her first before he followed.

The room was as it had been all the way back in their third year. It was a spacious room lit with flickering torches like those that illuminated the dungeons eight floors below. The walls were lined with wooden bookcases and instead of chairs the were were large silk cushions on the floor. A set of shelves at the far end of the room carried a range of instruments such as Sneakoscopes, Secrecy Sensors and a large, cracked Foe-Glass. Numerous books filled the shelves from jinxes to healing spells. They couldn't deny it was very well equipped. There was even various piles of things like prank sets and paint, which Hannah raised an eyebrow at. Hogwarts seemed to want them to fight back against the Carrows and Snape. If Hogwarts could fight then she definitely could.

"We're going to do it," Neville confirmed as he stood in the middle of the room, looking around.

Hannah probably felt even more determined to join the DA than she had back when Umbridge was at Hogwarts in fifth year. This wasn't just about getting rid of one God awful teacher, this was about You-Know-Who. She took a deep breath, "I'll join."

A faint smile crossed Neville's face.

"Okay," he said.

"I mean, what really could go wrong?" Hannah joked with a weak smile. Sure she had doubts, but that wasn't going to stop her. The two stood in silence, no doubt all possible problems streaking through their minds in unison. There were a gazillion possible things that could go wrong, the punishment methods were hardly standard any longer. People could get really hurt this time round.

"So many things could go wrong, Hannah," Neville worried. "But anyone who joins will know that. We'll make sure of it. We are going to protect our members."