A/N: Hi! I'm back, as most of you probably know. But, well, now I'm back with a "Moments" chapter too. This is for FinnFiona, because even though this was my suggestion, she was the one who told me I had to do it. And, well, since you said "pretty please", of course I had to do it. And fast. So, here you go!

Things Could Be Worse

Could things possibly get any worse, Ginny Weasley wonders bitterly. But, when she thinks about it – really thinks about it – she realizes that of course they could.

The man she loves, her favourite brother and her very good friend could have been found dead already (in reality that is, not only in her constant, terrorizing nightmares of abandoned, broken glasses, red blood mixing with red hair and staring, empty eyes).

She could have not received letters from all of her other brothers during the past week, confirming that they are still safe (well, all of her brothers except for Percy, but he's not her brother anymore, he hasn't been her brother since he didn't seem bothered at all with the fact that their dad was almost dead and possibly dying – hence, Ginny doesn't care that he doesn't let any of them know if he's okay or not, because she doesn't care anymore if he is okay or not, because he's not her brother anymore and she just doesn't care).

She could not know that her parents are safe at home, behind all the protective enchantments. Neville could have been taken from her too. Voldemort himself could be headmaster instead of Snape. They could all be dead already. And, well, that's about it. Except for those things, right now it's about as bad as it could possibly get.

The man she loves (the man whose name she can no longer speak because he's supposed to be here when she's feeling like this and he's supposed to make it all better by just existing, but she doesn't know if he even does exist anymore and if he will ever make her feel better again – hence, she has stopped pronouncing his painful name, even in her mind), her favourite brother (who should have taken her with him, everywhere, like he promised when he was five and her best friend, because she cannot stand waiting and not knowing if she'll ever see him again and therefore her mouth just can't form his name either) and her very good friend (who she maybe, just maybe, could have spoken the name of, if it wasn't for the fact that she is way too directly associated with the other two that she won't even think of) – those three have been gone for way too many months, and even if Ginny's reasoning tells her that their capture would have been all over the papers had it occurred, something closer to her heart is unable to fully trust that.

And, even if she has recent notes from her family reporting that everyone is fine, Bill's was sent five days ago and Charlie's even six. In these times, she can't even be sure about Fred and George, whose short but cheering note made her relieved laughter turn into relieved tears only yesterday (she really does seem to be losing her grip, even if she thankfully was alone in her dormitory at the time) – everything could have changed since yesterday.

Plus, Luna being gone doesn't only mean that she has lost yet another friend, but it has also brought down Neville, whose determination was inspiring and strengthening and something she depended on. These days, he seems to need her almost as much as she needs him to stay afloat through all the waiting and waiting (she never was the patient type).

But, yes, things could be worse. Even though they are, right now, pretty damn bad.

xxx

Could things possibly get any worse, Neville Longbottom wonders resignedly. The answer is that they could, he has to admit that. Worse is always possible.

Because his grandmother could be in danger too, instead of safe at home. His parents could be dead instead of what they are (and, really, this is better, even if some may not understand, because they are there, even if they aren't – and maybe, maybe, someday someone will figure out a way to fix them, you never know, right?).

Luna's death could have been announced (because it would be, right, if it had happened – why would they keep something like that a secret when they know it would only bring down their side's morale even further?). Ginny could have been taken away from him too.

They could all be without the hope of Harry, Ron and Hermione doing their mysterious something off the radar that will surely help them all in due time, right, that will help fix all this, right?

He could be dead, right now. They all could be.

Neville could have not happened to kiss Luna just hours before she was taken. He could have been too much of a coward to ever have the guts. He's glad he wasn't. He's almost sure it hurts less this way. Almost. Because at least now, if one of them dies, she'll know that he… loves her? No, she won't know that. But she'll know that he cares. She knows that. Maybe that will help her. Maybe it helps him. It sure doesn't feel that way right now, but you never know. Things could be worse.

xxx

Things are pretty bad as they are though, because Ginny's gaze is intently fixed upon the common room fire and there is something remotely like wetness in her eyes. And Ginny Weasley doesn't cry. Never.

"Hey," Neville says softly, tentatively placing his hand on her arm. It's worth the risk of her snapping at him, screeching something unpleasant and storming upstairs. She's done it before, and he can take it. She might need someone to take some of her frustration out on. Or she might just need someone to be here. Either way, he's offering. She's been suffering like this a lot longer than he has.

Ginny turns to him slowly, confused by his touch, her eyes slightly out of focus. "Oh, hi," she mumbles faintly, seemingly just remembering who he is and that he is here and that she is here and not somewhere else (probably in this very common room, by this very fire, a year earlier, sitting a lot closer to a certain someone who's nearly Neville's age to the day).

Since she doesn't look even a little annoyed, Neville can almost rule out that this is a volcano eruption day, and he doesn't remove his hand. "You okay?" he asks, still a bit hesitant, because she usually detests that question, but something is different today. And, really, his life won't be made much worse by her yelling at him now and apologizing in the morning. He can take worse than that. He has. The bruise on his upper arm and the cut on his chin prove that.

To his surprise, Ginny shakes her head. She always nods, shortly, at that particular question. He always knows that she's lying, and she knows that he knows, but something is definitely different today and she doesn't even bother to pretend. He squeezes her arm a little, at a loss for what to say now that she's not following their routine. It's probably healthy for her, for them, to break it. That doesn't change the fact that has no idea how to respond to this.

She sighs, her gaze finding its way back to the fire, as if she's hoping someone's head will appear there to tell them something, anything, that they want to hear. Like that Luna has been released now that her dad has stopped printing forbidden stuff in the Quibbler. Or that, by the way, Harry Potter has just gotten rid of Voldemort and it is now possible to breathe again. Neville looks too. No one appears. Ginny sighs again, deeper this time.

"She should be here," she whispers, her voice almost-cracked, her lips barely moving. She doesn't look at him. He knows who she's referring to and his heart wrenches as her grinning face appears in front of his eyes, waving happily at him, like when her lips had just touched his cheek for the first time (was that really less than a year ago?). "I know," he mutters, his voice lower than usual. He's staring at his knees, in case Ginny would turn her head. Just in case.

He can't speak for a few moments. He's not sure if she silences for the same reason, or if she just doesn't have anything more to say. If she's just gone again, back in time to jokes about tattoos of Hungarian Horntails and Pygmy Puffs (he knows that she misses Ron as much as she misses Harry, despite what everyone else assumes – that romantic love is all that matters). Neville overheard that conversation, as well as many others the two of them had during their time together last year. And he was thrilled for both of them. They deserved each other, Harry and Ginny. They still do. His throat closes again at the thought, just when he was about to regain his voice – because what if they'll never even get to see each other again? What if one of them, or both of them, will be dead before they get the chance? Or, what if he himself will be dead before he'll get to witness both of his friends' eyes light up again in that way that only happens when they are together?

xxx

Ginny knows that Neville stopped watching her in concern when she mentioned Luna. His hand is still warmly present on her arm, though, keeping her in this moment, keeping her from floating away again. She's not sure if she's grateful about that or not. The fantasies are a lot more pleasant, but they also make the reality seem another shade darker and colder when she has to return.

Because they're still not here. Four of the most important people to her are gone, and she has no idea if she will ever see any of them again (alive, that is, because seeing their dead bodies doesn't count, it just doesn't). Is it odd then that she prefers reliving moments of kissing in the moonlit grass, playing with the gnomes in the garden with her then so big brother (at six, seven basically seemed like a grownup), just talking to her most trusted friend, or hearing Luna saying something that could make all their lips turn upwards, almost no matter the circumstances.

Of course, Neville is still here. That's something. He's here and his hand is on her arm, keeping her here too. Well, right now she kind of drifted away for a few seconds, but she's back in time to hear him swallowing a little too hard. She turns to him, only to find his head bent down. Automatically, her hand finds his thigh. She wants to hug him, tight, but she doesn't think either of them can take that much human contact right now. Not with the common room being as crowded as it is.

Now he looks up, pain etched too clearly in his eyes for her to be able to keep her gaze steady. She sighs again, not knowing what else to do. She turns away. There are too many curious eyes in here that would just love to see her finally breaking down. Ginny Weasley doesn't cry (at least not in anyone else's presence), but seeing that hopelessness in those very eyes that are supposed to be giving her hope isn't exactly helpful to keeping that statement true. And she has to. She's not sure exactly why it's so crucially important that she keeps it that way, but it is. Maybe it's because she feels she needs to be ready to fight at any moment, and can't let her guard down. Maybe it's because she's afraid that if she opens the drain, she'll never be able to even get up again. Maybe it's because Ginny Weasley doesn't cry and that's just the way it is, and nothing they can do to her is going to change that. Because she cannot let them change her.

xxx

"Do you – do you think they're alright?" Neville asks, feeling foolish for asking, feeling stupidly insensitive because he's the one causing her eyes to gleam even more. He wonders since when his mouth got a life of its own and started speaking without his permission, just because he needs to know if she agrees with him that they would have heard something, right, if anything had changed.

Ginny starts, her hand flying off him. At first he thinks she's going to storm off to her room, that he's finally crossed the line, even today. But she sinks back down in her seat with a deep breath, determinedly putting her hair behind her ear as if to steady herself.

She opens her mouth, but no sound comes out, only a small amount of air. She makes another attempt, putting her hair firmly behind her left ear this time. This time there are sounds, if only such that are so weak that he has to lean forward to catch their meaning. "I… I don't know," she breathes, her voice clearly trembling now. "They… they have to be. They just have to," she finishes, gaining a shadow of that Ginny Weasley certainty in her eyes as they glare at him for a moment, daring him to contradict her.

He decides that he has to follow this through, that he needs to know, even if he's not sure that she can take much more of this (or that he can, for that matter). "We… we would have heard… something, right, if…?" He can't complete that sentence, it's too… well, he just can't. She knows what he means, though. She nods slowly, blinking a little too fast. "Yeah," she agrees quietly after a tense pause of just blinking, "they'd like us to know. They… they know what it'd… do to us."

He nods back, hoping that she is right (and hoping beyond hope that those Death Eaters will never get the chance to test what effect such information would have on them). She opens her mouth to say something more, but she's interrupted by an excited shout from the other end of the common room – "Hey everyone, it's Potterwatch, it's starting, come on, hurry!"

Disregarding everything else, they both jump to their feet at once. Neville's hand finds Ginny's in the process and she pulls him along, even more eager than he is. Within seconds, the corner where someone has blessedly placed a radio is packed, everyone straining to get the best possible listening spot. He still marvels at the way the common room falls silent at these times, in a way he's never witnessed it before. He hardly dares breathing himself, waiting for what is to come, wondering whose names will be read this time…

He can feel Ginny's body stiffen beside him. She, as always, closes her eyes in relief as she detects her brother's voices, still cheerful. Neville squeezes her hand. She opens her eyes again, a faint smile on her tight lips. He knows that she's thinking the same thing he is – if something had happened, they'd know. They have to believe that. They just have to.

A/N: Hope you enjoyed this. Please let me know what you thought. Next, I'm pretty sure I'll get back to "Things" and do Hannah, but after that I might get back to this again.