A/N: I was going to make this chapter longer, but I decided it was a good idea to stop. Don't worry, I'll be updating again soon! I have a good amount of free time so chapter 9 will be up soon. Missmrprk, I know Neville is brave..things are explained in this chapter! :) and to Butler, thanks for your reviews! It makes me happy to know you guys like my story. Hope you enjoy this chapter as much as the last one!

onward!

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Neville dropped his fork onto his plate with a loud clang. Hermione and Ron spun around quickly, staring at his now tearful face.

"Oh Neville! Don't cry! We're all worried about Harry!" Hermione said pulling him into a hug. Ron gave him the best smile he could muster. Neville however, pulled away and slammed his fist down onto the table.

"I tried to fight him Hermione, but I just couldn't break through it like Harry could! Do you remember? When he had it performed on him? Harry could fight it! I tried really hard Hermione! I did. I just wasn't ready yet! I'm so sorry, Ron!" he yelled through his tears. Hermione stared at him wide- eyed with confusion. Ron seemed quicker to react.

"Tried to fight what Neville? What happened!? We aren't mad Neville, it's ok! We need to know what happened!" Ron said urgently, staring at Neville directly. Neville sighed and looked over to the Slytherin table, where Malfoy was seated. Draco must have though Neville was too stupid to know what was going on, but Neville wasn't oblivious.

"Last night, before dinner I was heading back to the common room. I saw Malfoy coming up quickly behind me, with that stupid grin on his face, but I figured he was just going to tease some first years or something. But suddenly I felt this burning inside me, and I couldn't move anymore. Malfoy was telling me to do things, I could hear him in my head. I knew what he was doing, so I tried to stop him. I said I wouldn't, I told him no a thousand times, but I felt myself moving toward the portrait. She kept saying that Slytherins weren't allowed into the common room, but when I gave the password she was forced to give in. I went up to the dormitories and he followed. I stayed determined! I really did, but I didn't break free quickly enough. I had already handed him Harry's cloak. I ran after him. I told myself that I would get him for doing this to me! But he just suddenly disappeared." Neville told his story this way, with Ron looking more and more furious with each sentence. Hermione jumped up quickly.

"Oh Neville! That was his invisiblity cloak! Why didn't you tell anyone?" Hermione asked.

"I did Hermione. The first person I came to was Professor Sorgs. He was heading toward his classroom. I told him about Malfoy and what he did. He said that he would take care of things. I told him he needed to tell the headmaster right away! He told me that after he had finished with Harry's detention that he would see to things right away. I didn't know this would happen! Honest!" Neville exclaimed. Hermione hugged him again and sniffled herself.

"It's ok Neville, but I think we had better tell the headmaster." she said calmly. Ron put his hand on her shoulder to stop her for a moment.

"Hermione, wait! There is something odd about all this. Why would Malfoy not perform a memory charm on Neville or something? He's just letting himself get caught!" Ron stated. Hermione sat back down and wondered about this for a moment. However, the doors of the Great Halls burst open and held their answer.

Lucius Malfoy strolled into the Great Hall, looking at nothing but at the table filled with talking teachers. Dumbledore greeted him and waited for a Malfoy speech. Every student was silent.

"Albus, I believe I will be taking Draco out of school. He is no longer in your care, but in mine. He is my child, and I do not believe it to be necessary for him to finish his studies at this...place. I'll be finishing his training at home!" he said quickly, scanning the room with a look of disgust.

"You may take Draco and leave Lucius, but you know as well as I do that he will not become a credited wizard without his degree." Dumbledore explained calmly.

"I believe I can take that up with the ministry." Lucius snapped.

"You could, but I doubt you would find the results appealing. I do not think you have been on good terms with the ministry as of late." Dumbledore replied. Lucius was furious!

"I believe I have you and the Potter boy to thank for that! C'mon Draco, lets go! I have no more patience for this fool!"

With that, Draco and his father stormed out of the Great Hall.

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"Professor, now that we have all this information, we have only discovered that Harry could be anywhere and would not be seen!" McGonagall said as Neville, Ron, and Hermione sat in the headmaster's office.

"This is true, Professor McGonagall, but I know of just the man to lead the search party." Dumbledore replied, reaching for a piece of parchment.

"Why do you not go, headmaster? Shouldn't you be out there looking for him?" McGonagall asked, a bundle of nerves. Dumbledore smiled sadly and looked at the three students from behind his desk.

"I would be the first to go, professor. I would never stop looking for Harry, but I believe my presence is needed here at my school. I think Mr. Moody is an excellent canidate for Harry's search party leader." Dumbledore answered and smiled at them all. Hermione nodded and Ron hugged her close.

"Moody can see through invisibilty cloaks with that eye of his Hermione. Don't you worry!" he said to her gently. Hermione smiled up at him.

"There are aurors positioned all over Hogsmeade. If Harry is there, no evil will get to him. They wouldn't dare." McGonagall explained to reassure them.

"Go back to your dormitories you three. Take the day off from classes. We will keep you posted on the search." Dumbledore ordered. They nodded and left the office, followed closely by McGonagall.

"We need to tell Ginny." Hermione said quietly. Ron sighed and rubbed his face with his hands.

"I suppose we do."

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Harry had been in the cellar of Honeydukes for two days. He could think of nothing but his painful position, and how he would die alone in the dark. The only thing he found comfort in was the invisibility cloak that was wrapped around him. It was like his father was embracing him, letting Harry know that a part of him was with him in that dusty cellar. Harry thought about how odd it was that a place he loved so much (for candies and sweets and fun-filled weekends) would be the place of his death. He would have preferred Hogwarts, or maybe even the Burrow, but he thought that maybe he was lucky it was not. This way, his friends would not have to see him go. His friends.... his wonderful friends.

Harry heard a noise come from the store above. 'Oh please let them save me! Oh please' he thought. He had done this for hours now. Each time a movement was made in the shop above, he prayed for his life. He couldn't speak, he couldn't move, and hunger was starting to set in. It was even worse than at the Dursley's. It was torture. Each time he looked to his left at the crates of jellybeans and hard candies, he let a tear fall down his cheek. To want something that you can't have, even though it was so close to touch was..unbearable. He watched closely as a man dressed in black robes scanned the room.

"Doesn't appear to be down here, Roy!" he yelled up the stairs.

"Call his name Jack! Open some crates that are big enough to put him in! Move stuff around at least before you give up!" a man answered back. The one called Jack kicked some crates around and called 'Hey kid! Potter! Are you around?', but Harry could not answer. Maybe there was still some hope. Maybe someone...anyone..would be able to see him there.

"Nope! Nothing down here Roy! Mad-eye says he might be some cloak or something, but if he was he woulda answered me when I called him." Jack yelled. Roy met him on the stairs.

"Thing is Jack, we've been searching for two days now! How do we even know Harry was with him? Harry coulda run away or something." Roy stated, looking around the room himself.

"Yeah, but Sorgs confessed he took him before those death eaters broke him out of the ministry. Problem is they never finished questioning him about the whole thing. They don't know where he took him." Jack replied. Roy nodded as the two walked up the stairs.

"Yeah, well maybe it's a lost cause"

Harry could hear them continue to chat as they disappeared from view. Eventually their voices faded and Harry found himself crying once more. The brave Harry Potter was crying with fear. He would die...

It was then that he resumed thinking about his friends. Ron would be furious with Harry for leaving him... it would be quidditch season soon, and they would be left without a seeker or a chaser ( tryouts had not yet been held), not to mention a captain. Hermione would be upset as well. Yes, Hermione would surely greive over the loss of Harry, Harry would miss them both terribly. Then he thought about the Dursley's and Hogwarts and Dumbledore and Cho and the Weasley's and......Ginny. He thought about Ginny. And all that came along with her. He remembered ' it's easy to focus on the negative aspects of things when living in such dark times'. Harry let more tears fall as he thought about her words. What could he think about that was positive for him?

'Something simple' Harry thought. 'How about spring? Spring time is great at Hogwarts. The air is nice and fresh, the flowers bloom. It's a great time for quidditch.' he thought. But he couldn't keep himself occupied with these thoughts. He began to get restless and swtiched to something new. 'What's my favorite color?' he asked himself. He thought about this for a long while before answering himself. 'Red. The color of Red. It's one of the colors for Gryffndor. It's the color of Ron's ears when he's embarassed. It's the color of love..it's the color of Ginny's hair' he thought to himself. 'But red is the color of blood. And red is the color of fire and anger...and red is the color of Voldemort's eyes...when he's ready to strike...' Harry continued. 'I guess everything has good and bad to it. So, maybe it's a good thing I'm stuck down here. I can't hurt any of my friends anymore. No one will be in danger' he told himself. But something inside him knew this was wrong.

'No..it would only make things worse. The prophecy says I have to kill Voldemort, or else everything will turn evil. Everything will be lost..' with this thought Harry used all his strength....all his inner emotion and power to break free. His arms and legs were gashed with deep cuts that splurted blood and stung with pain, but he could move. He could crawl...

He began to crawl back down the tunnel that he came from before. The tunnel he had been down so many times in the past. It took every ounce of fight left within him to get down the passageway, but he made it. This was only to find the way was shut, and he did not have his wand. He rested for a moment and caught his breath.

'I have to do this. I have to keep going.... for Ron, and Hermione, and...Ginny' he thought. With this last word he slammed himself against the doorway, opening the way just slightly. He squeezed himself through the crack as best as he could, causing his wounds to gush more blood as he went. But he had made it past the statue. He was back at Hogwarts.

By the look of things it must have been late. Harry hadn't bothered keeping track of time while he was bound. He crawled toward Professor Dumbledore's office. He had to make it! But it was all too much for Harry to handle. He was just too tired. He collapsed in front of the statue that led to the headmaster's office. It made no difference anyway! He couldn't guess the password without the ability to speak.... his eyes closed and saw no more and he drifted off to sleep.

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Filch was up early that morning. He mopped the floors with a steady motion, the same way he did each morning. But something was different about this day. He stared at the blood stains that coated the floor. something was terribly wrong. He followed the trail until he ended up at the headmaster's office, but nothing was there. Mrs. Norris did not appear to agree. She hissed at the ground at the end of the tracks, a large puddle of blood lay there. He immediately said the password and ran up to Dumbledore's office.

"Something's wrong headmaster! Come quick!" he yelled. Dumbledore, weary as ever, followed Mr. Filch down the stairs and out into the corridor. It was there that he found Harry, lying in a puddle of blood.

"Fetch Madmam Pomfrey! Quickly!" he yelled. He pulled the invisibilty cloak off of Harry's body and examined his wounds. A single tear fell down his cheek. What had happened. He quickly wiped this away and checked on Harry's pulse. It was a steady beat..Harry was alive! He smiled at the young boy, his heart beating wildy. This boy had lived again...through everything Harry always stayed strong.

"There appears to be a more powerful wizard than even myself in this world," he mumbled quietly to himself, "though I have passed through many years in my lifetime."

Madam Pomfrey ran down the hall to where Dumbledore and Harry waited. She gasped at the sight of wounded Harry and shook her head as she cried.

"The poor dear! He's alive! Oh my! I'll have to treat him right away. Headmaster sir, could you please carry him down to the hospital wing?" she asked. Dumbledore nodded and lifted Harry into his arms. He followed Madam Pomfrey down the corridor and set Harry into a bed by the window.

"These are terrible cuts. It'll take at least two days to heal. Will you inform the school of his return?" she asked. Dumbledore thought a moment before shaking his head 'no'.

"I can't have them all flock down here to ask him questions and get in the way of his treatment. I will let Harry speak for himself when the time is right. For now, keep him hidden and let no patients near. Lie if you have to. Things will be settled." he answered. Madam Pomfrey nodded and smiled down at Harry.

"You truely are a wonder Mr. Potter. The boy-who-lived comes back to us again"

**************************************************************************** ********** A/N: I changed some things thanks to reviews. Uh, the name of the chapter for one. For another, uh the whole Professor Lupin imperius curse thing was wrong. (i need to brush up..stupid me), so I just cut that bit out. Oh yes, and I know that it says that neither can live while the other survives in the prophecy, but it didn't say Voldemort had to kill Harry, just that Harry was the onyl one that could kill Voldemort. At least I think that's right....so Harry can still think he'll die. At least for the sake of this story. lol. Hope that covers everything. :)