"What's going on here?" Roxie asked. "Where's Harry?"

"I don't know. Why don't you ask this." Ron jerked his head at Malfoy. Roxie looked at Malfoy.

"Polyjuice potion. That's what you used isn't it?" Hermione asked. Malfoy just laughed. "Last night I saw that Harry's…or your hair looked a little pale, but then after supper, when you obviously drank some more. I didn't see it anymore. I should have said something then. When did you start this?"

"After DADA. Although I had been planning it for a while." Malfoy seemed to be ready to tell them everything, he was proud of it.

"That means it was you with me up here. It was you who tried…" Roxie trailed off. She wasn't ready to admit that she had almost had sex with Malfoy in front of all of these people.

"That's right babe. And wasn't it fun?" Malfoy laughed again and he sat up in bed.

"Nothing happened!" Roxie gave him a contemptuous glare. "So tell me what you did to Harry."

"Well you see, I had been planning to use Polyjuice for a while…"

"Not for long," Roxie whispered, recalling Malfoy's words.

"Smarter than you look. Yes that's what I meant. But I couldn't figure out how to get Harry away so that I could assume his appearance, you two were always together. But then yesterday, my opportunity came. As I was walking out of DADA I saw that you two were hanging back, so I hide behind a corner. I heard Potter tell you that he would wait for you outside, so when I saw that the door was closed I used a simple spell to knock him out and I yanked out a few of his hairs. Then I hid his body and made my way back to the classroom, but you were already gone. I didn't know where the Gryffindor tower was, but lucky for me a couple of first years were walking by at the time, so I just followed them into the common room, where I met you and then, well I believe you know the rest." Malfoy gave a smug smile.

"You bastard! Where is he?!" Roxie shouted at him.

"Give me a little kiss and we'll talk."

Roxie whipped out her wand and pointed it at his chest. "You tell me or I swear I will curse you to oblivion!"

"He…He's in the dungeon," Malfoy stammered. Roxie pulled her wand back and then smacked him hard across the face before rushing out of the room. Ron and Hermione followed her.

"She reminds me a lot of you," Ron said. "You did the same thing to him in our third year." They arrived at the dark dungeon. It reeked of damp, decaying things. "Over there!" A body lay, huddled in the corner. Roxie rushed over. Harry's green eyes were open, but they had lost their sparkle. His hair was matted with blood in the back, from where he had hit the floor when he fell.

"No! You're not allowed to die!" Roxie shouted, shaking him.

"He's not…dead is he?" Hermione said, her eyes welling with tears. Roxie grabbed his wrist. After a few moments she felt it, a pulse, faint, but at least it was there.

"No, he's alive, but barely. We need to get him to the hospital wing." Ron ran over and flung Harry over his shoulders.

"He's a lot heavier than he looks," he panted as he was running up the stairs.

"Mr. Weasley what are you doing?" Professor McGonagall rounded the corner.

"Harry's hurt Professor, we need to take him to Madam Pomfrey," Ron wheezed.

"Here, let me." She waved her wand, conjuring a stretcher and Harry was levitated onto it. An odd procession then commenced. Harry floated eerily along; Roxie clung to his hand beside him. Ron followed the stretcher, trying to catch his breath and comfort Hermione at the same time. She was sobbing into his chest, forcing her to walk practically backwards. Bringing up the rear of the group was Professor McGonagall, who had an odd expression on her face, halfway between worrying and confusion. The door to the hospital wing burst open before Harry and Roxie. Madam Pomfrey stood, spooning a potion into an argumentative student's mouth.

"If you don't take this, then you'll get more of those nasty purple bumps. And I can guarantee you, they will be in more unpleasant places. Sitting will be most uncomfortable. Oh dear!" She had just caught sight of Harry. The spoon fell from her hand and hit the floor with a clatter, but Madam Pomfrey didn't do anything about it. Instead, she rushed over to the stretcher. "Nasty head wound. Concussion perhaps. Let go dear." She jerked Harry's cold hand from Roxie's grip. An empty bed stood to the right of the group, so Madam Pomfrey removed Harry from the stretcher and laid him on it. Roxie started to move toward him, but Madam Pomfrey shook her head and then pulled the curtains closed around the two of them. Murmurs could be heard and flashes of light shone through the thin curtains, creating a kind of Aurora Borealis. Abruptly, the murmurs and the light show ceased and Madam Pomfrey appeared from behind the curtain.

"Is he going to be ok?" Hermione asked anxiously.

"I think so. I've done all the healing I can do, the rest is up to him. He's very weak though. What happened to that poor boy, Professor?" Madam Pomfrey turned to McGonagall for answers.

"Why don't we ask these three. I was on my way back from a meeting with Professor Dumbledore when I ran into them. Potter was already knocked out." Then McGonagall turned to the three students her expression as stern as ever. She thinks we did this. Roxie started to explain, but she couldn't find her voice. Ron spoke up.

"Well I woke up this morning and…" The door to the wing opened. Headmaster Dumbledore gracefully moved through the door and toward the crowd. Great, just what I need, the Headmaster thinking that I attacked a student. When Dumbledore had joined them Roxie looked him up and down. She hadn't seen him since the start of term feast, but then she hadn't noticed how impressive he really was. He had long, silver hair and beard. His eyes had a twinkle that was magnified by the half-moon spectacles that he wore perched on his crooked nose. His face bore an expression of great wisdom. I know why the Dark Lord fears him.

"Headmaster I didn't…" Roxie began to defend herself and the others, but Dumbledore held his hand up.

"I know everything that happened, my dear. Mr. Malfoy is sitting with his head of house at this moment, discussing his…options for punishment. Now students if I may…"

"Excuse me Headmaster, but do you think that you could fill myself and Poppy in on this..er…situation." Professor McGonagall seemed to have shocked herself by interrupting the Headmaster.

"I thought that Mr. Weasley had explained everything to you…no? Well then, Mr. Malfoy, for who knows what reason, decided to use Polyjuice potion to assume Harry's appearance and life. He easily obtained the ingredients for this potion by staying late in Severus's class, they are close you know. And then he knocked Harry out as he was waiting outside of Ms. Pravus's class. He placed him in the dungeon. Unfortunately for him, Mr. Malfoy failed to take his potion every hour last night, so while he slept, he transfigured back into his own self. Mr. Weasley, and the other boys in his dorm, found him this morning, asleep in Harry's bed. He shouted, alerting Miss Barker and Miss Granger here. They ran upstairs and through a little, ah, convincing on Miss Barker's part," as Dumbledore said this he turned to Roxie. She swore that she could see a mischievous glint in his eye. "they managed to find out where Mr. Malfoy was keeping Harry. They then proceeded to try to get him up here." He made a gesture at the wing. "I believe you know the rest of the story."

"You mean another student did this to him?" Madam Pomfrey gasped.

"Unfortunately, yes," Dumbledore simply said.

"Surely he'll be expelled!" McGonagall was furious.

"That is between him and Severus."

"Are you joking? Snape loves Malfoy! He'll get off with nothing more than a slap on the wrist!" Ron was indignant.

"First of all, Mr. Weasley, I would appreciate it if you would show Professor Snape a little more respect. Secondly, I have confidence in Professor Snape's judgment. I believe Mr. Malfoy will get more than a…slap on the wrist. Now Minerva will you please take them to breakfast. It's almost over, but I think you have time for a bit of toast before class." McGonagall began shepherding the three out.

"I want to say with Harry," Roxie said, finally finding her voice.

"Headmaster would like you to…" McGonagall said. Roxie gave Dumbledore a pleading look.

"Miss Barker may stay here," Dumbledore informed.

"Do you think it wise?" McGonagall asked.

"Miss Barker may stay here," Dumbledore repeated a little more sternly. McGonagall shooed Ron and Hermione out quickly, as though she were afraid Dumbledore would let them stay too. "May we see him Poppy?" Madam Pomfrey seemed as though she didn't want them to see Harry, but she reluctantly pulled back the curtain.

"Twenty minutes. He's too weak and he needs quiet."

"Thank you." Dumbledore nodded to her. Roxie stood, awkwardly beside Harry's bed as Dumbledore towered over her. After five minutes of silence, Roxie spoke.

"Headmaster, how did you know about…everything?"

"When you get to be as old as I am, you have a few tricks up your sleeve. I know more than you think I do, Miss Barker." He looked down at her, with an indistinguishable look on his face. Roxie lowered her gaze, unable to look into his penetrating eyes any longer. "I'll leave you two alone. Take care." With a swish of shimmering, gray robes, Dumbledore had gone.

Roxie sat down on the edge of Harry's bed and held Harry's hand. Roxie gasped suddenly, for she had just recognized the look on Dumbledore's face, it was a worried look. Does he know? He did say he knew more than I thought. "I wish you knew. Then there would be nothing between us. Well, except for what I have to do. Harry, I don't want to do it, but He'll kill everyone if I don't. What should I do?" No, it couldn't be. Roxie thought that she had felt a gentle squeeze on her hand. She bent down low over Harry. "Did you hear me?"

"It's time for you to go." Madam Pomfrey had pulled the curtains back so quietly, Roxie hadn't heard her come in.

"Just five more minutes."

"No, out now. You do want him to get better, don't you?" Roxie sighed and slowly trudged out of the wing.

Did he hear me? Does he know? Would it be better if he did? Would it be worse? Roxie was so caught up in her thoughts that she didn't see the object in front of her, until she tripped over it. She looked down to see a body, strewn across the corridor. The face was covered by the robe. As if of its own accord, a white and trembling hand shot out of Roxie's robe and reached for where she assumed the head was. She pulled the robe back and the round, white face of Neville stared up at her. His eyes were wide open and his mouth was agape. Oh no, oh no. Roxie fumbled in her robe. Her fingers closed around her wand. What was that spell that Ms. Pravus taught us to revive people. Damn it why didn't I listen? She pointed her wand at Neville's chest, ready to try anything she could think of.

"What do you think you're doing Miss Barker?" Roxie turned her head to see Snape saunter around the corner. As Roxie moved her head, he caught sight of Neville, lying on the floor. "Oh dear, what have we here?"