Disclaimer: This is a work of fan fiction using characters and settings from the Harry Potter world, which is trademarked by J. K. Rowling. I do not claim any ownership over them or the world of Harry Potter and will not receive any money or other financial profit for presenting the work on this site. The story I tell here as well as certain original characters are my own invention, and are not purported or believed to be part of J.K. Rowling's story canon.

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Chapter 37

Starting today, the DA was finally back on track with the secret DADA lessons. Neville was impressed to see that some members had made great progress, despite the break they had been forced into. He would've been lying to say that he wasn't beaming with pride at the sight of the meadow, their meadow, packed with people all willing to put their life on the line for a better future.

Throughout the lesson, Neville found himself assisting Sage rather than learning from her, because today they covered spells that had been taught to them by Harry before. Of course he understood the importance of repetition in order to maintain a certain set of skills, but.. ever since the DA had been formed Neville had never quite stopped practising. He knew these spells like the back of his hand, because he simply had to. With every day he remained at the castle, he expected to face battle. Apart from the constant stress such a mindset brought upon him, it made him determined to become a better wizard and be prepared for whatever was yet to come.

As Sage layered down some of her protective magic, the people at the meadow began to file out, still strictly sticking to the order they had agreed upon at the beginning of the year. Whilst it became quieter and quieter around them, Neville stayed by Sage's side, standing just a tad closer than he probably should have. Somehow he really didn't care though. The two of them had been forced apart for so long, he just didn't see why he should still be holding back all the time.

"Are we feeling extra lucky today?" Sage suddenly asked.

"What do you mean?" Neville asked in confusion, averting his gaze from the shrinking crowd towards her face.

"I feel like you are glued to me tonight," she explained, cheekily pinching his arm who was just far enough from her own not to touch, "Did you grow cold or what?"

Whoops. There went the better part of Neville's confidence for the day. How obvious could a single person be all the time? As his face grew redder by the second, he gave her somewhat of an awkward smile before simply shrugging his shoulders.

"Relax, Longbottom. I was just teasing," she told him, smiling in an unusual manner. He couldn't quite make out what exactly struck him as unusual about it, but he knew for sure that something seemed off.

"Maybe I should go off, and find someone else who appreciates my company," Neville threatened jokingly.

"I never said I was complaining. Just curious about what's going on with you," she explained, nudging him into his side before laughing, even if just a little.

"I just missed you is all. Sue me, I guess," he admitted with another shrug.

"Shut it! I missed you too, you know. Especially since I have something to tell you," Sage announced in excitement. Neville wasn't quite sure which of her statements he was more curious about.

"Which would be..?"

"You remember how I told you about my new battle plan for Snape and the Carrows?"

"Of course I do, except.. you hadn't really come up with anything yet."

"Well, yes. But I did eventually and presented it to the three of them yesterday."

"Really?! What did you tell them? How did it go?"

Chuckling at his reaction, Sage proceeded to tell Neville about her entire plan, about the resulting conversation and the way both the Carrows and Snape had taken her proposals. For the very first time in quite a while, Sage felt exceptionally hopeful. Whilst her instructions were not guaranteed to help any of her students if it actually came down to battle, she might have finally reached some improvement in their situation at Hogwarts for now.

"You should've seen me, Neville. I was so confident, so convincing! You would've been proud, I'm sure," she explained, nearly tripping over her words out of pride.

However, when her eyes finally met his, she saw quite the opposite of what she had expected. Neville looked at her, a frowned face, disappointment written all over it.

"What.. Why are you looking at me like that, Longbottom?" she asked, stepping back a bit to gain some distance. She didn't understand what seemed to be the problem. Why couldn't he just be happy for her?

"I just.. Don't you think your proposals were just a little too helpful for their cause?"

"What do yo mean?"

"Sage, you gave them direct instructions to brainwash the entire body of students by flooding them with propaganda," he eventually claimed, clearly uncomfortable with even suggesting a mistake on her side.

"I tried to stir them away from hurting you all the time. You remember their constant violence, right? Might help to look into a mirror if you have problems with your memory," she responded defensively, not even trying to conceal how hurt she was at his words.

"Of course.. but I'd rather get hurt than watch more people fight on his side," he hesitantly admitted.

"Neville, his name is-"

"-Don't you dare!"

"Why not?"

"Always means a risk to say his name. He could've done whatever to it. So.. just don't."

"So you are trying to tell me that people who are too afraid to even say his name will bow down to him after a bit of trash talk by the Carrows?"

"Sage, you underestimate the power of brainwashing. After Cedric was killed, people called Harry Potter himself a liar and a fraud. The Daily Prophet tore him apart and spread lies until they simply couldn't deny the return of you-know-who anymore. And people.. they lapped it up, because it was the easier truth to believe,"

"Cedric.. was killed?"

"You didn't know?"

"No.. I tried to follow the tournament, but.. Was he killed by..?"

Neville simply nodded.

"And you think.. if people hear enough of the supposed threat muggles and muggle-borns propose.. they'll end up believing it, because it's the easy way out?" she asked, already knowing what he was about to answer.

"I'm afraid so," he said, avoiding her gaze. Her pained expression must've been a little too much for him.

"Bloody hell! What have I done?!"

Sage and Neville parted ways shortly after, having agreed to await the outcome of yesterday's conversation between her, the Carrows and Snape before taking any measurements they might regret on the long run. Whilst Sage made her way back to the castle, Neville reverted to the edge of the Forbidden Forest. Ginny and Luna had obviously been waiting there for him for quite a while, though Hagrid was nowhere to be seen just yet. Sage just hoped that they would return to the castle safely tonight.

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Author's note: These two just never seem to catch a break. If only they knew what still lies ahead of them!

I'm glad to see you are back!! Excuse the unusual time for this update, I couldn't manage to upload any sooner.

Hope you enjoyed this chapter and leave me some of your thoughts!! Wishing you all the best, I'll be back in a few hours with the next chapter at the usual time!! :-)