Ron.

Harry shut his eyes and looked away, as if that would make the sounds stop.

When the scream cut off abruptly, there was silence in the room.

At Harry's side, Arthur Weasley reached out and grabbed the globe, and clenched his hand around it as if preparing to throw it.

"We are to send a reply," Dumbledore spoke quietly.

Harry turned to him, clenching his hands into fists. "Fine. Whatever they want, we'll give it to them. If they want me they can have me."

"Harry." Dumbledore looked at him solemnly.

Harry cut him off with a sharp gesture. "They can have me! I'm not going to let that go on any longer."

"Putting yourself into Voldemort's hands won't solve anything."

Harry's hands were shaking. He balled them into fists. "It will save Ron."

"Do you really think they would just let him go?" Snape sounded mildly contemptuous.

Harry glared at him instantly. "You stay out of this! This is no one's choice to make but mine! Ron is my best friend!"

"Weasley is not the issue here."

"Excuse me?" Mr. Weasley turned to Snape, fury in his eyes, the globe still tight in his hand. "I think my son is the only issue here."

"The issue," Snape retorted, "is whether or not Potter's noble self-sacrifice will do any good. They won't let your son go. You know that as well as I do."

"Then what do you suppose we do? Ignore them and let them have Ron?"

Snape glared back, not even sparing a moment to sympathize with Ron's father. "The only thing we can do is find out where they've got him and get him back ourselves."

"And how long will it take to plan something like that? To get that information? Days? Weeks? With my son being an acceptable loss in the meantime?" Mr. Weasley threw the globe to the floor and moved on Snape.

But the globe shattered at his feet, and Ron's voice filled the room again. "P-please. P-please don't…"

Mr. Weasley blanched and froze.

The room fell still as it filled with the sound of pain. Harry shut his eyes and saw his best friend's face grinning in his mind and wanted to sob in frustration.

When it silenced itself for the last time, reduced to shards on the ground, there was a hush.

Dumbledore broke the silence. "We will get Ron back as soon, and as safely, as we can."

"Which means I turn myself over to them," Harry said thickly, almost hopeful.

Dumbledore frowned at him. "The fastest way that doesn't involve putting you right where Ron is now. Severus is right – that won't solve anything."

Mr. Weasley sank into a chair, his skin so pale it was alarming. "You said we have to answer them."

A small voice spoke out from the corner behind Harry. "There's something—"

"They only want an answer. We can pretend to go along with them." Snape stood over the table, grim as always. "Once they send instructions we can find them."

"You want to ambush Death Eaters?"

Harry looked behind him, irritated, when Neville's quiet voice sounded again. "I think we're on the—"

"Longbottom. Silence." Snape glared at Neville, then to Mr. Weasley. "It's the only plan we've got."

"They won't just bring Ron with them, will they?"

"We can take one of them with us. We'll make them tell us where he's hidden."

"Professor Dumbledore?" Neville spoke up again hesitantly.

"Neville!" Harry barely spared him a glance. "Professor, this is absurd. The only way we can be sure we get Ron back is to give them what they want."

"We're not turning you over, Potter! Quit playing the martyr."

Harry glared at Snape. "Martyr? How is it being a martyr to want to save my friend?"

"They don't want you."

Harry opened his mouth to snap, but stopped.

All eyes went to Neville, sitting up in his corner.

"What?" Harry demanded.

Neville stood up and went to the table. He moved slowly, as if afraid of falling over. "They don't want you."

"Longbottom. Sit down and shut—"

Neville's pale face screwed up, and he looked at Snape. "You're wrong, and it's going to kill Ron. They don't want Harry."

"Who do they want, then?" Snape asked, his voice low and poisonous.

Neville, in school, would have responded to that voice by spilling something, or blowing something up, or falling on his face.

This Neville looked back at him evenly. "Me."

Snape's eyebrows flew up.

Harry frowned at Neville. "You?"

"Why, exactly, do you think they want you?" Snape sounded almost amused.

Neville's hands clenched into nervous fists.

Dumbledore stood up and moved around the table. He stopped in front of Neville, putting a hand on his shoulder. "Go on, Neville."

Neville took a breath. "Ron's voice on that…before he…" He swallowed. "He said 'don't listen to her'. And I think he started to say my name just before he…"

Dumbledore nodded gently. "Go on. What do you think he means?"

"I think Bellatrix LeStrange has him." Neville looked around. Though he was pale and his hands were trembling and he was deliberately not looking at Snape any longer, he was still more certain and cool than Harry had ever seen him. "He was asleep in my room at my Gran's house when she took him. She thought it was me. When she found out it wasn't, she sent the message."

Dumbledore frowned. "She's made an attempt on you before."

Neville nodded. "She said at the Ministry last year…she wants to finish the job. She wants me to follow my parents."

Harry breathed in, remembering.

Neville glanced at him. "That's what she's…doing to Ron, probably. The curse. To make him…"

Dumbledore turned and went to the table. He picked up the parchment that had come with the second globe. Frowning, he passed it to Snape. "You would know her writing better than I."

Snape frowned at the parchment. He only needed a moment. "It's her. But how can we be sure who it is she's asking for? She might want to deal with Longbottom herself, but she's working for Voldemort. He wouldn't care a thing for Longbottom if he could get his hands on Potter."

"The first note said I. 'You know who I really want.' And that was in her writing as well." Dumbledore scratched at his bearded chin thoughtfully. "It isn't exactly Voldemort's style, is it?"

Snape glowered at Neville, as if it were his fault Dumbledore was right. "No."

Harry looked between them uncertainly. "Then…you think Neville's right?"

"It makes a certain amount of sense," Dumbledore replied.

There was a pause. Harry looked to Neville.

Neville sat down at the table slowly, his hands shaking as he reached for the parchment Snape had set back down.

Harry would have felt relieved that for once, this wasn't about him. But after his arguments with Neville, his strain with Ron…

Knowing that Ron was in danger kept away any sort of relief.

***

Ron shuddered awake, looking around instantly for her.

The room he was in was as big as his and Neville's room at Black's house had been, but bare of any sort of decoration at all. No furniture, no color, no doors, no windows. It was six squares of wall. Like he was trapped inside a cube.

But she wasn't there.

He breathed out a sigh, his body relaxing with a shiver. As long as she stayed away, he was fine. Even if he couldn't sleep more than an hour at a time.

She was going to be there in his nightmares, he knew.

Maybe he was just being pathetic again. Harry had dealt with worse then Bellatrix LeStrange. He had suffered through more than the Cruciatus curse. And he still kept his head enough to survive and escape whatever happened to him.

Ron wasn't quite as smart as Harry, he knew. Still, he was going to get through this stupid mess and find his way back home. To his family, to Harry. To Neville.

He sighed to himself and curled back into the corner as much as he could. His body was stiff from being tied so tightly that every position he found was uncomfortable. Plus, the room was lit from some source Ron couldn't see, and it didn't seem to ever shut off. It was hard to get to sleep at all.

His thoughts turned to Neville. This horrible woman had been the one to send his parents into that hospital. To turn them into the hollow-faced, blank-eyed people he had met.

This woman was the reason why Neville had been raised by his cool and unemotional grandmother, not by two parents who loved him.

How different would Neville be, Ron wondered, if his parents hadn't been cursed? Was it growing up the way he had that made Neville clumsy and forgetful, and so shy?

The same question could be asked for Harry, Ron knew. But Harry had a strong will, and a rebellious spirit. Being raised by horrible Muggles hadn't tamed him at all. It had made him more determined to face life. If James and Lily Potter had raised Harry, Ron could imagine he would be much the same as he was now. If a bit happier.

A lot happier.

But Neville…Neville was a mystery. Who would he be now if Voldemort hadn't ruined his life?

Ron could see Neville in his mind a he lay there – his shy, sweet smiles. His eyes, round and watery blue, looking at Ron as if Ron were really special. Even though Neville couldn't see how special he himself was, he looked at Ron that way.

Maybe Neville would be different if he'd been raised by parents. But he wouldn't necessarily be better.

How could he be? He was almost perfect as he was.

Ron smiled to himself. Such sappy thoughts. And about Neville Longbottom. A month ago he never would have believed he'd think it.

Now he couldn't imagine thinking anything else.

He really honestly cared for Neville. He would do anything to make sure Neville didn't suffer anymore. Even survive some crazy woman and her wand and her curses.

Ron's smile faded as his mind was forcibly cast back into his current predicament.

He was terrified, and angry for feeling that way.

Still, he pressed himself tight against the walls, huddling in the corner looking out into the room so he'd know the minute she showed up.

No, he probably wasn't going to be getting any sleep for a while.

***

Neville smiled at his father and set down the small tree. It was a strange plant – something Muggle, maybe, without any sort of use except looking pretty. "Here you are, dad."

His father flinched at his voice, his eyes going to Neville for a split second before moving around the rest of the room. His constant search for danger.

It had to be tiring to him. No wonder he hardly ever got out of bed any more.

Neville sighed and turned.

His mother was smiling at him, looking for all the world like she was waiting for him to go and talk to her.

It sent a ray of hope shooting through him that he really should have been immune to by then. But he wasn't. "Mum? It's me."

She smiled and nodded, holding out her hand.

He took it, swallowing hard. "You know me, don't you, mum? Even if you don't know why, you know me."

She watched his mouth as he spoke, smiling all the while. After a moment she pulled at his hand gently and nodded to the bed beside hers.

Neville looked over and sighed. He released his mum's hand and stood. "I'll be back to talk to you," he said as he left.

He sat down at the next bed, smiling tightly. "Hullo, Ron."

Ron stared. It was all he ever did, really. He seemed to hear everything that went on, but the medi-witch said that their words were just noises. He didn't understand anything.

They also said that Neville's parents had been the same way at first. So there was hope that someday Ron might be able to turn to him, to see him and smile.

Neville would hold on to that hope.

He reached out and touched Ron's arm. It was stiff as always, unmoving. "Ron. How are you?"

Ron breathed out of his mouth, suddenly faster than normal.

Neville's spirits sunk; it was going to be one of those visits. He mentally prepared himself, and then reached to the table for some tissues.

It started as low moaning in his throat, and then tears came. Eerie, coming from an expressionless face. Neville wiped them away dutifully.

The moaning grew in pitch and volume, turning into a chilling sort of keening sound.

Neville sighed and touched Ron's hand again soothingly. "It's okay. You're safe now."

Ron did something then he never did before – he turned his head and looked straight at Neville. The tears kept coming, and the keening didn't stop. But he looked into Neville's eyes.

Neville swallowed down hope and fear. "Ron? I'm here now."

Ron's voice shut off abruptly.

Neville hesitated. "I'm here. You're at St. Mungo's. You're safe."

Ron spoke then, his voice oddly scratched and weak. "You did this to me."

And then Neville woke up, jerking himself out of sleep, the horrified denial still on his lips.

The room around him was dark and silent, but familiar.

The Blacks. He was still…and Ron was still missing. Being tortured. Just like his parents.

Neville sat up, dreading the idea of more sleep. His hands shook, and he raised them to his face and wiped at his eyes carefully.

There was no one beside him. No one in the bed next to his. No one to speak to him and smile and touch his arm and tell him everything was okay. No one to stay awake and tell him stories, as if making Neville feel better was actually important.

Neville shuddered and dropped his face into his hands.

He didn't want Ron to be one more patient at St. Mungo's for him to visit on holidays. God, he would do anything to keep that from happening. Anything.

He shook with a sob, and there was no one there to comfort him.

***

"It's just not fair!" Harry regretted the words the moment they came out. They were trite and stupid and didn't at all begin to cover how he felt.

Ginny just nodded, as if she understood.

Harry went on. Ginny was a good listener, he was starting to learn. "None of it. It's not fair that Ron get taken by mistake. It's not fair he's being…being…held by that horrible woman. Or that Neville is the one she wants, and not me. Or that…" He stopped, dropping onto his bed in frustration.

She looked at him for a moment, then spoke. Her voice was cautious, with just the hint of a waver to remind him that this was her own brother he was whining about, as if he was the only one suffering from Ron's kidnapping. "What are they planning to do?"

He sighed. "I don't know. Snape is going back to Hogwarts to wait. They're sending her a message telling her they'll cooperate, but what they're really planning…I don't know. They won't tell me."

"They won't?"

He grimaced. "No. Doesn't really have anything to do with me this time, does it?" His eyes went to the closed door, as if the object of his sudden thoughts was standing right on the other side. "It's all about Neville now."

She frowned. "I wonder how he's doing."

"I'm sure he's fine. Ron isn't his best friend. He got off lucky."

"Harry, you're being a prat."

Harry shot her a look, ready to argue.

She looked back evenly.

He sighed again. "I am, aren't I?

"Yes. I know you feel bad, but try and remember he's our family too. And he and Neville are good friends now. Neville's upset. Didn't you see him?"

Harry looked down at his hands. "Yeah. I know he is."

There was a light knock on the door. Hermione stuck her head in and smiled wanly. "I was just checking on Ginny."

Ginny stood up instantly. "I should go to bed anyway. It's late."

Harry stood after her. "I'll go with you."

"I think we'll be safe walking to our room, Harry." Ginny smiled tightly.

Harry shrugged. "It'll give me something to do for about ten seconds." He spoke lightly, but he went right to Hermione and hugged her with one arm lightly. "I'm glad you're here."

Hermione smiled at him, her eyes bright. "We never get any time anymore to just have fun. Have you noticed?"

Harry frowned. "We should have had time." He moved down the hall with them, speaking quietly to keep from waking anyone else. "If I hadn't been such a git when I first got here, we might have."

"Harry!" Hermione argued instantly. "You weren't a git. You were just…"

"A git," Ginny finished evenly. "And he knows it. He'll be having a nice long talk with Ron as soon as they get him away from that LeStrange woman."

Hermione turned to Harry. "Really?"

He nodded. "I've been horrid to him. And to you, as well. I'm sorry, Hermione."

She swatted his arm lightly. "You don't have to apologize to me. I understand how strange things must be for you, Harry. But…well, you and Ron should talk. You know how he is. He takes everything the wrong way."

He smiled genuinely, grateful she was trying to get the blame off his shoulders. But he wasn't about to let her get away with it. "It's not Ron's fault we were fighting. But I'll make it up to him."

They reach the bedroom the girls were staying in, and Harry stood in the doorway as they went in. "See you in the morning?"

"Of course. Sleep well, Harry." Hermione smiled at him fondly and began searching drawers for her pajamas.

"You, too, Hermione. Ginny?"

Ginny grabbed her own worn nightshirt. She looked back at him. "What?"

He met her eyes. "Thank you. For everything."

Her face lit red and she looked away instantly. "Forget it," she said in gruff dismissal.

She was very much Ron's sister at that moment, and Harry felt a little jump in his heart at the reminder of his best friend. His own cheeks went warm, and he shut the door quickly and moved back down the hall.

He would have to find a better way to thank Ginny. She had done a lot for him just by sitting him down and making him see how blind he was being. She had given him a family that he had been ignoring all along.

Maybe he could get her something nice at Diagon Alley when they went for school supplies later in the summer. Chances were they wouldn't get out of the house much until then, especially after Ron had been taken from under the eyes of aurors.

He was passing the room Ron slept in and his steps faltered as he heard a strange noise. He hesitated, then moved on quiet feet to the door.

Neville was in there too, he remembered. The sounds made since then – it sounded like someone was upset.

He straightened and bit his lip, glancing down the hall. Neville couldn't have heard him. He could slip back to his own room and neither of them would have to be embarrassed.

He was in mid-turn when a faint sob drifted through the door.

His stomach twisted. Neville really was upset. He blamed himself for all of this. And it couldn't have been easy to know that the woman who had Ron was the same who put his parents in the hospital.

Harry stood there uncertainly.

He had a better understanding now of who his real family was. But Neville wasn't really in that group. He was a friend from school. Would Harry make things better or worse by checking on him?

He decided a moment later.

No one should ever have to cry alone. Especially not if there were friends around.

He knocked on the door. "Neville?"

The sobs cut off with a loud gasp, and then there was silence.

Harry opened the door slowly. "Neville? Are you alright?"

A dark figured was sitting up in the bed furthest from the door. It looked like Neville was scrubbing at his face, but it was hard to tell.

"Harry?"

Harry moved in, shutting the door behind him to keep from alerting anyone else in the house. "You alright?"

"Yeah." Neville spoke fast, his voice thin. "Just had a dream."

Harry frowned – he knew what that was like. "Do you want some company?"

There was a pause. Neville spoke quietly after a moment. "You…you want to…?"

"I can stay with you. I mean, if you want. If you don't I can go."

The dark form reached over, and a moment later the small lamp between the two beds lit up. "I…you don't have to. I'll just stay awake and read or something."

"Oh." Harry hesitated. He could see easily all over Neville's drawn face how upset he was.

He thought of Ron, yet again – Ron was quick to jump into his head suddenly.

He thought of how Ron would come to his bed at night and sit with him when he had nightmares. How Ron would whisper quietly and stay with him until he was quiet, no matter how tired he was.

Yet another thing Harry had taken for granted. He never let Ron know that he was awake. He never said thanks, never said anything. Just rolled over and kept his eyes shut and craved the soothing words even as Ron spoke them.

He was so stupid.

He straightened with sudden determination. "I'll stay here as long as you're awake. We can read together or…or something."

Neville looked shocked. "You…Harry, you don't have to…you should sleep."

"I'd probably just have dreams of my own. I'd rather stay awake. Or…" Harry looked to the empty bed and shrugged. "I could sleep in here. Maybe that would be better still."

Neville stared at him, his eyes wide.

Harry went to the door with resolve. "Just let me get my things. I'll be right back."

***

Author's Notes:

Marymqc – Wow. blush Um, thanks. Gee. You're right, though. Lots of angst and Ron. There's nothing better than that, ever. G I'm glad you got the same explanation I did out of Ron's OOC behavior in OotP. He felt really wrong to me for most of the book, and I finally figured out why while I was writing this story. Go figure. Hey, thanks again. Hope you like the rest of the story.

C.L. – Hell, yeah. It's about time people gave Ron his props. I think Neville's still a bit pissed at Harry, so he wants to make sure Harry knows what Ron's done for him, you know?

SparkySparkles – Thank you, dahling. Yeah, Harry isn't a bad person or anything, not even in this story. He's just a bit self-absorbed. I almost can't blame him, since he's been through a lot, but nothing justifies being bad to my Ron. Not ever. G Don't worry. He'll get free. Though it may not be Harry or Neville that do it.

Arynnl – Thank you so much! Welcome to it! I'm glad you like. Here's an update for you. It shouldn't be long until my next one.

Miste – Hey, thanks! I'm glad you like it! I started writing Ron/Neville because I was pissed with Harry for OotP and couldn't write Ron/Harry like I usually do. And Neville was so great in OotP that I figured he deserved some props. Now, of course, Nev's edging out Harry as my second favorite character. I wonder if I should feel bad about that. Heh. Anyway, I'm glad you like it so much! Those two kids are pretty sweet, huh? G

PadawanMage – As always, darling, thank you so much. I'm glad you're an angst fan, because I never write anything else, really. I figured poor Ron sitting at the dinner table at the Burrow surrounded by his loudmouthed family, the only chance he'd talk was probably when someone asked him about Harry. So yeah, Mrs. Weasley was a bit in the dark about him. Snape…Snape is sort of a mystery to me. I have a hard time writing him as a poor, lonely man who's bitter about a bad childhood, but I also can't write him as maliciously evil.  Heh. I put the dream in this chapter just for you, honey. Like it? Don't worry, LeStrange and the room and everything will be resolved soon. Though maybe not for good. J Have to keep the story going somehow, especially if you're still reading and wanting more.

Thanks again, everyone, reviewers and nonreviewers alike. Stick with me, huh? Ron/Neville are underdogs, they need all the support they can get. G