Chapter 7- A True Friend

Neville

Hell, I didn't think it was even humanly possible to scream that loud, but Leanette has clearly proved that wrong. Some of the other students even covered their ears with their hands.

Leanette was writhing on the floor of her cell as if she was being electrocuted; her eyes squeezed shut, and her mouth wide in her screams.

"Stop!" I shouted as loud as I could over her screams. "Please! Stop!" I begged Amycus, moving to stand in front of him.

Suddenly Leanette's screams stopped and I felt my own body on fire, and I didn't even realize I was on the ground until the curse was lifted. Looking up with watering eyes, Amycus was smirking down at me as Leanette whimpered in her cell.

"Mr. Longbottom…" He began. "Do I need to put you in one of these cells myself?" The Carrow brother glared down at me, though I could almost see a flicker of glee in his eyes that I was pitifully laying at his feet.

Looking at Leanette again she shook her head. "No, he doesn't." She choked out as she lifted herself from the floor of her cell.

The boy and girl in both cells beside her were watching the scene silently, eyes wide in terror.

With a final glance at everyone in the dungeons, Amycus grabbed my uniform shirt collar and pulled me to my feet. Shaking slightly, I forced myself to follow him out of the dungeons, giving Leanette a final glance before holding up the fake galleon to her.

She nodded just before she was out of my line on sight.

"What happened to you? It looks as if a herd of callowminis have been scurrying all over your body." Luna asked as we went into the Great Hall later for dinner.

Ignoring her odd comparison, I sighed and explained what happened to her. She didn't seem to be fazed the least by the story, but gazed at me with her usual dazed expression.

Seamus clapped me on the back. "It's alright mate, you did good. We'll figure it all out and get her in the next three days if not sooner." He tried to reassure me.

I numbly nodded, trying to put together a plan in my head. "We need to check all the guards and spells tonight. Christmas break is tomorrow, we can't let her rot in a cell that whole time." I voiced as the others nodded in agreement.

"Pardon Mr. Longbottom?" Rabastan Lestrange's voice washed over me.

At least it wasn't his inane wife. But still hearing the voice of someone so close to her gave me chills. At the same time… it made me want to just murder them. Though I could never try that on Rabastan Lestrange, I would be dead before I even blinked.

"Nothing." I murmured, my hands clenching into fists under the table as everyone looked at the Transfiguration instructor.

Rabastan just smirked and walked off.

Slowly I unclenched my fists and realized I had dug deep into my palms with my nails, drawing blood. "I hate him…" I muttered.

"You're not getting anywhere hurting yourself." Seamus commented as he examined my hands.

"Looks like we don't have to break her out." Someone commented and we all turned towards the hall to see Leanette and the other two kids in the cell with her being marched into the hall.

They all looked even more torn up then when we'd seen them so they'd had even more torture recently.

The boy went over to the Ravenclaw table to be engulfed in hugs while the same happened to the girl as she went to the Hufflepuff table.

When Leanette came over I admit that I was the first to leap on her. "I'm so sorry." I breathed.

She gave me a weak smile. "Don't be Neville. It's not your fault. They agreed to let me out for now anyways." A trail of blood ran down her face from her hairline as her blood covered hands reached hungrily for the food.

She snagged a piece of chicken and began tearing hungrily at it as everyone watched. "I'm sorry." She sheepishly lay down the chicken on her plate. "They feed us just scraps down there…"

Everyone brushed it off for her sake as she continued to tear into it like a hungry wolf.

"Glad to see you back Leanette." Luna said lightly as she just nodded, eating so fast she couldn't even speak. "Though you do look terrible…" She noted in that usual airy tone.

Leanette ignored that and after dinner she told us all about what happened down there. "…At least they finally released us for the holiday. I felt so… dead down there." She finished her tale and the room was completely quiet.

"It doesn't sound like that Aaron bloke wants to actually be there." Seamus finally spoke.

She shook her head. "I don't believe he does either, but he really has no choice."

"So you're going home for the holiday?" I asked her when everyone else had gone to bed, leaving the two of us alone in front of the fire.

"I'm sure as hell not staying here." She snorted.

Noting the fact that no one would want to besides the Slytherins maybe, I continued on talking. "Oh, Gran is really worried about us all… I don't know why but I talked her into letting me stay this final year."

It was almost as if I was talking to myself, but then Leanette answered. "She's a nice lady your Gran… Stern sometimes and a little… brutal, but she's still good at heart."

I admit it surprised me a bit that she said that. My Gran really wasn't that nice to anyone else. She would insult them; hit them with her handbag, though I suppose Leanette was right. She cared deep down.

And this just proved Leanette was a true friend.

Only a true friend would put up with my Gran.

Leanette

Neville put up with the bloody Cruatius curse for me. He put up with the prat Carrows. He stood against the rest of the school for me.

Only a true friend would really do that. Good to know who one of mine are.

Author's Note- Sorry it's been really long! I've had some writer's block on this story, trying to piece everything together…

Anyways, that's to my readers/reviewers, it's good to know some people like it!

Thanks again! :)