Neville had heard many whispers of excitement about Dumbledore's Army throughout the halls but nothing could've prepared him for the number of people in the Room of Requirement that had joined them the following Wednesday night. He was speechless when he walked in and saw the wide range of Gryffindors, Hufflepuffs, and Ravenclaws, all of varying ages. Luna had told him that she and Ernie had monitored the door as people were filing in and turned away any students under the age of fourteen who had come to participate. They were all huddled in small groups composed mainly of people from the same houses. Some bore looks of curiosity, others of skepticism. Ginny, unable to stop the satisfied smile from spreading across her face, stepped around Neville to greet the crowd.
"Welcome," she said in a loud voice, causing all eyes to fall onto her, "to Dumbledore's Army." She spread her arms wide and grinned. Immediately, the tension was shattered and excited voices rose from the crowd as everyone began to clap. Jimmy Peakes and Andrew Kirke whistled through their teeth as they cheered.
"That graffiti was amazing," a fifth-year girl with thick, curly dark hair said loudly above the voices. Neville recognized her as Romilda Vane.
"Wicked," a fourth-year Ravenclaw agreed eagerly.
The original members of the DA broke into smiles as they received a wave of praise. Seamus gave a small bow to the crowd.
"Hello everyone," Neville gave a nod to the crowd once everybody had settled down. He squeezed his hands into fists to stop his fingers from shaking. "Thank you for coming. Right now a piece of parchment is being passed around for you to sign your name on if you wish to be part of the DA."
Sally Anne Perks, who was currently holding said parchment, paused, quill poised above the paper. "We aren't going to break out in boils if we sign this, are we?" She asked suspiciously.
Neville allowed a smile to play across his lips at the reference made to Marietta Edgecombe. "No, nothing like that. Marietta deserved what she got, but this paper isn't charmed."
"Then why are we signing it?" Megan Jones tentatively asked once Sally Anne had finished signing and passed her the quill and paper.
"It's your contract," Ginny spoke up with a shrug. "We ask for nothing more than your loyalty, take that as you will." Her answer settled well with the crowd and soon the paper was being shuffled from person to person.
"Well, welcome, everybody. Whether you heard about the DA from your friends or saw our messages to the school, we thank you for coming. Some of you may know us as Dumbledore's Army, which formed two years ago while Umbridge was in charge. While the namesake of our group is no longer with us, we're keeping his spirit alive. Our founders may be gone, but that's even more motivation for us to keep the DA alive. Our goal is to protect this school and, more importantly, stand up for our beliefs."
"Where is Harry Potter?" A girl who barely looked older than fourteen piped up from the front of the group.
"Did he really break into the Ministry?" Jimmy Peakes asked hopefully, referring to the headline of Daily Prophet earlier that month.
Neville gulped, for he didn't want to talk about Harry. He looked to Ginny, who was biting her lip. "We don't know for certain. But I'm sure we're all hoping that he's out there, alive and well. I'm sure that whatever he's doing right now will eventually save us."
"So what? We're just going to wait around for Potter to come back and rescue us?" Jack Sloper shouted as the crowd of people began to whisper back and forth.
"Absolutely not," Neville said icily, holding his hand out to prevent Ginny from answering. "Harry Potter's gone right now. He may not be dead, but he's not here. We're just going to have to survive without him. We've done it before and we can do it again. Right now, we don't need him." He winced at his words how harsh his words had sounded. Ginny stopped glaring at Sloper and turned her fury onto Neville. His guilt grew when he saw tears threatening to spill from the corners of her eyes.
"Who's going to lead us, then?" Ginny asked him loudly, crossing her arms.
"Neville will, of course." Parvati stepped in between them, gently tugging Ginny away from him. "He's done a fine job so far."
Neville went scarlet as murmurs of agreement sprung up. Ginny looked back and forth between him and Parvati, a surprised look on her face.
"I concur," Seamus said loudly, putting his hand up in the air. More voices joined in as the idea of Neville as a leader bounced around the room. The original members of the DA were also in agreement as they smiled at Neville and nodded. Neville watched Ginny turn her back to wipe the tears out of her eyes with her sleeve.
"Oi, everybody shut up and let our leader speak." Michael stood up and waved his arms to silence the group. "The floor is yours," he nodded at Neville.
"I appreciate your nomination, Parvati. However, I think we'd do better if each house had a leader. They would preferably be a seventh-year student who's been around for longer. I also want these leaders to be selected by their own house." He looked to a now dry-eyed Ginny, who gave him a tentative nod of respect. "This person should be a leader who embodies the values of your house."
"Well, you have my vote for Gryffindor," Seamus said, breaking the silence as people contemplated their choices. Almost immediately there were voices of the younger Gryffindors in agreement.
"Mine too," Parvati and Lavender said in unison, smiling.
Neville looked at Ginny, hoping for her blessing. Her hard expression softened and she smiled. "Congratulations, leader of Gryffindor."
"Thank you," Neville addressed the crowd as everyone clapped for him. He smiled bashfully, finally getting a taste of what it was like to be in Harry's position. "Hufflepuff is next."
The group of Hufflepuffs all shared the same surprised look on their faces as if they never expected to be given a choice. There were shared mumbles between them until Oliver Rivers stood up. "I nominate Ernie," he declared confidently. Ernie, in turn, turned a deep red that spread to his ears and down his neck.
Hannah jumped to her feet as well, her sheet of blonde hair swinging. "Well, I nominate Susan," she said with her hands placed on her hips. Neville willed himself not to stare.
"Girl power!" Sally-Anne hollered in agreement, pumping her fist up in the air. Immediately, the Hufflepuffs broke out into disagreement. Susan and Ernie shared a guilty look as their house members fought. The discord caused by the Hufflepuffs sent a wave of discomfort through the rest of the students.
Finally, Ernie shouted, "Enough!" That was all it took to silence the room. He cleared his throat. "As grateful as I am by some of your nominations, I believe that Susan is far more qualified for such a position." He looked to her and smiled fondly. "After all, I wouldn't have joined if she hadn't dragged me along to the first meeting. And I'm ever so grateful that she did."
Susan turned a bright maroon but smiled widely once the surprise had worn off. "I'm honored, thank you." The Hufflepuffs cheered loudly for the blushing girl as Neville looked at the Ravenclaws expectantly
"I nominate Terry," Michael immediately blurted out at the exact same time Terry stated: "Michael has my vote." The two glared at each other and then laughed.
"But seriously, Mike's the best leader you'll get out of our house," Terry said, pushing Michael forward gently.
Michael turned around and punched his friend's shoulder. "I'd have to disagree, mate. You'd fare far better than me in a position of leadership."
Neville chuckled at the bickering pair. "What do the rest of you lot have to say?" He asked the rest of the Ravenclaws.
The Ravenclaws looked torn between the two nominations. Luna gently raised her hand and stood up. "No disrespect towards Michael but Terry is more level-headed. He has my vote." More voices rose from the Ravenclaws until everyone was in agreement.
"Congrats, Terry," Neville said as everyone clapped.
He smiled humbly. "I won't let you down."
"Congratulations to all of us. We've just taken a significant milestone and this is only the beginning," Neville said and was met with another round of cheers and applauding. "It's getting late now and Slytherin patrol activity will pick up in the next half hour. We should all head back to our houses."
Ginny nodded. "Agreed."
Voices of protest rose up from the crowd and Neville smiled. "We'll be meeting back here next week, same time and same place. No need to worry."
The Ravenclaws left first in groups of twos and threes. Michael, Terry, and Anthony all patted Neville on the back on their way out the door. Luna left with the last group, taking up the rear. She smiled at Neville and waved at Ginny as she passed by.
The Hufflepuffs were next as they shouted goodbyes on their way out. Hannah lingered in the back of the crowd, waving on her expectant friends. As she left with the final Hufflepuffs, she gave Neville a hug as she passed him. Her arms quickly snaked around his neck. "Thank you." She whispered before running to catch up with Susan.
Neville stood there, frozen in place as he stared after her. Lavender, Ritchie, and Seamus wolf-whistled while Parvati and Demelza giggled. Ginny laughed and linked arms with him, dragging her dumbstruck friend out the door. "Come along, loverboy."