A/N: I would recommend listening to Long Live by Taylor Swift while you read this. I obviously don't own Harry Potter, or I wouldn't be desperately trying to stay awake so I can finish my homework and get this posted.
I walked down to the Great Hall, slightly apprehensive about what was in store for us today, and over the course of the next school year. I hoped Luna had figured out how to communicate more sophisticated messages via the coins to the rest of the DA members. "She's not a Ravenclaw for nothing." I reminded myself.
I sat down at the Gryffindor table, taking in the subdued atmosphere and the missing students. Ginny had told us that Harry, Hermoine and Ron were off fighting Voldemort. Her tone was as hard and unreadable as ever, but her eyes gave away her true feelings.
McGonagall was handing out the timetables. "We have a few, ah, changes to several subjects, but with the right frame of mind, you all should be able to achieve a good career." she announced to the sixth and seventh years. "Thanks Professor. Hang on – I don't take Muggle Studies." "Weren't you listening, Longbottom?" she asked, not stopping to look at me. I wondered what garbage they would feed us, surely the reason that they were keeping Muggle Studies. I scanned my timetable and realised, with a sinking feeling, that DADA had been renamed 'Dark Arts'.
"You've seen the changes, too?" Seamus asked.
"Be hard not to notice." I responded.
"We're not going to put up with this, are we?" Ginny asked the surrounding Gryffindors.
"Of course not." I answered. "We'll make life hell for those damned Death Eaters until Harry comes back."
"You think Harry's going to come back?" Parvati asked, slightly sceptical.
"Of course he will." Ginny defended her ex. "He's too damn noble to do anything else." she said, with a trace of bitterness in her voice.
Over the next few days, we did our best to make life hell for Snape and the Carrows. None of the other teachers were too keen on punishing us, McGonagall in particular, though I suspected she knew the DA had been having meetings, despite Snape re-instating Umbridge's decree.
At the end of dinner, just two weeks into term, Snape got to his feet. The vast majority of the Gryffindors, Hufflepuffs and Ravenclaws booed loudly. "Silence!" he ordered, flicking his wand. "I'm sure you've noticed the trouble caused by several students over the past fortnight." he started, his eyes lingering on Luna, Ginny and I. "Our new heads of discipline have come up with a new form of punishment – torture, namely the Cruciatus curse."
McGonagall got to her, shaking with anger. "HOW DARE YOU!" she raged. "I SHOULDN'T HAVE-"
Snape flicked his wand once again, and McGonagall sank slowly into her seat, yet her eyes radiated fury. "Dear me, Minerva, you seem to have forgotten that you no longer wield any power here at Hogwarts."
A jet of red light shot toward Snape from the Ravenclaw table. He blocked it. "You'll have to try harder than that." he sneered, his black eyes glittering. "Back to the business at hand. The students who have subjected themselves to detention are: Parvati Patil, Seamus Finnigan, Ginerva Weasley, Neville Longbottom, Luna Lovegood…" The list was almost exactly the same as the list which had hung in the Room of Requirement back in fifth year. Once Snape had finished reading the list, he removed the silencing charm and cheers erupted once again. Ginny leapt onto the table and curtsied. "Thank you, you're too kind, thank you." she called. "I believe another detention is in order, Miss Weasley."
The next few weeks were filled with detention after detention. Luna and I frequently skipped Dark Arts and Muggle Studies to think up lesson plans for DA meetings, as well as pranks and stunts to pull. Ginny left us alone, seeing the bond which was growing between Luna and I, perhaps sensing it was something more.
Fast forward to the last DA meeting before the Christmas break. Luna and I had become somewhat of an unofficial couple, by that time.
"Hey, Neville!" Cho called across the room.
"Yeah?" I asked.
"Do you ever feel like maybe we're doing the wrong thing? I don't know, maybe we should keep our heads down, wait until…"
I think she was scared by our last stunt, where we'd practised the Reductor curse by blowing holes in the wall of Alecto Carrow's office.
"You know I once heard a Muggle quote." Luna said, with that dreamy look in her eyes.
"Are you sure now's the time Luna?" asked Seamus, sounding slightly amused.
Luna went on calmly. "One day, you'll be just a memory for some people. Do your best to be a good one."
"I think that quote sums up what we're doing perfectly." Ginny chipped in. "We're fighting to build a better future."
I glanced at my watch. "You lot had better go."
The DA filtered out, Ginny shooting me a glance as she walked out.
Luna waved her wand and the room was restored to order. I paused on my way to the door. "You don't have to do that, you know."
"I know." Luna replied. "Just habit, I guess." She walked slowly towards me until I could feel her breath on my neck. "Look, mistletoe." she murmured. "It's now or never." I thought and leant in to kiss her.
I felt like I was floating on a cloud. I had finally gotten my first kiss and it was with a beautiful and intelligent girl.
"Luna?" I asked. "Promise me something?"
"What is it?"
"If, I die, promise me you'll move on. Promise me you'll tell your future children about me, about our adventures. About how important it is to stand up for what you believe in.
A/N: I know Luna's a little OOC, but it was hard to write about her and keep her in character. Please review, it's always appreciated. I didn't focus much on the things the DA did, because I wanted to focus on Neville and Luna's relationship. I hope I didn't stray too far off of the meaning of Long Live.