Things were soon left at a standstill for the next few months. Not much could be done and the enemy seemed to have the upper hand, sending the wizarding community further into its state of terror, which was slowly turning into paranoia. More people died each and every day and the Order of the Phoenix seemed to have scattered in the winds. And more importantly, Harry Potter was nowhere in sight.

Harry sighed heavily as he sat by the window of his room, watching the snow fall. According to Dobby, who has been flitting between Hogwarts and Grimmauld Place, Death Eaters were now stationed at the Ancient House of Black, guarding its entrance, and Ron and Hermione were trapped inside. Harry should have known that Voldemort would send people to watch over that building even if it could not be seen by anyone except its Secret Keepers; it seemed like the most obvious thing to do in the world.

The wind outside blew harder, making the snowflakes swirl faster and the windows rattle. Harry unconsciously traced the serpentine 'S' on Slytherin's locket with his fingertip as he held the golden object in his hands, pondering over his conversations with Dumbledore. The late headmaster had been hinting at who knew what and Harry had so far been unable to catch on. Finally, after weeks of giving out clues, Dumbledore had decided to be straightforward and had said, "Look behind things and you will find what you seek." And which of those objects Harry was looking for would that be?

The Chosen One had made it his task to find out. He had begun with his own room, tearing it apart in a way that would have made Aunt Petunia faint with horror. But he had found nothing; Harry was not even sure what he was looking for. Certainly, he had told Dumbledore that he was searching for a mean to destroy Horcruxes as well as the other Horcruxes but knowing Dumbledore, there might be something else that Harry was meant to find. Dumbledore's hints could have gone in either direction.

Maybe he had hidden the other Horcruxes in the office as well? If that was the case, Harry would have to go berserk on the late headmaster for sending him on a wild goose chase for no reason. The Chosen One had assumed that Dumbledore had not known about the locket in his office, which was why Harry had not been angry with him. Why else would Dumbledore drink that terrible potion and weaken himself? But if the cup and the diadem were also in this office, someone will have to restrain Harry from attacking Dumbledore's canvas.

Or, by some chance, Dumbledore had hidden the key to the lock of the glass case containing the sword of Gryffindor. Dumbledore had revealed that the sword was impregnated with basilisk venom, a very destructive substance. The lock on the case could not be undone with a spell so the key was the only silent way of getting the sword out. Harry had taken his solitude as an opportunity to go through Dumbledore's countless spell books and learned a duplication spell. Snape wouldl never know where the sword had gone.

Harry got to his feet and went downstairs. He ached to go outside and watching the snow fall certainly did not ease his need. He had to continue his search for whatever he was looking for. The biggest part of him was hoping to find that key; he just wanted to get rid of the piece of Voldemort's soul that was now stuffed in his pocket more than anything. It was bad enough to see into the Dark Lord's mind without carrying a part of him everywhere he went.

Harry had just set foot in the study when he heard the doorknob in the office door turn. He dove underneath the desk, and felt his scar prickle slightly but he paid no attention. He cared more about being caught wandering about in the office. Snape now had a new rule: do not leave the bedroom while he was absent. Harry did not know what the older man was playing at; it was not like he could go anywhere. But at least he was still alive and unhurt. For now, anyway.

The door swung open and Harry held his breath, listening intently. The door clicked shut and soft footsteps moved around the office. Harry gripped his wand from within his robes in case he was discovered.

"That was a neat little trick with the door. A Muggle invention, I suppose?"

Harry froze. Neville?

"Yep. Fred and George have learnt lock picking ages ago and they've passed that knowledge on to me."

Harry inhaled a sharp gasp as his heart nearly failed him. He knew that voice from anywhere. Ginny, he thought, trembling slightly.

"Looks like no one's here. Let's take the bloody sword and get out."

Seamus too? And they were trying to steal the sword? As much as Harry appreciated what they were doing, he couldn't let them go through with their plan. He needed that sword.

"How will we open the case? Should Ginny do that Muggle trick again or should we smash the case open?" Neville asked.

"Lock picking might take too long. I say we destroy the case," Seamus replied eagerly.

"And attract attention to ourselves? Are you mad? We're picking the lock," Ginny said determinedly.

Harry couldn't take it anymore. He crawled out from underneath the desk and stood on his feet.

"What are you guys doing, standing around here? If Snape catches you, you're all dead and I mean that in the literal sense!" Harry exclaimed urgently.

The looks on his friends' faces went from completely serious to utterly shocked. If the situation had not been so grave Harry would have found this very funny. But he needed them to leave the office and return to Gryffindor Tower on the behalf of their own safety.

Ginny was the one who recovered first. "Harry!" she cried. She rushed toward him and threw her arms around his neck. Harry gave her a quick peck on the lips before focusing his attention on Neville and Seamus.

"Blimey, Harry! What are you doing here?" Seamus inquired in disbelief. "Shouldn't you be on the run?"

"I would have been if it hasn't been for Snape capturing me and locking me in here with no way out," Harry replied as Ginny released him and took his hand.

"How the bloody hell did Snape catch you?" Neville wanted to know.

"Never mind that. It's a long story and I don't have time to explain it. You guys have to get out of here; Snape could be back any minute."

"No way. We're not leaving without that sword or you," Ginny said defiantly.

"What –?" Harry began, nonplussed. "I have to stay. Dumbledore," he turned around and gazed at the late headmaster's empty portrait, "has hinted that he has left things for me to find in this office and I have to stay in order to look for them," Harry added.

"No, you're not," Ginny told him sternly. "You're not staying. You can come back for those things later."

"But –"

"Ginny's right, mate," Neville intervened. "Snape's obviously keeping you in one piece for You-Know-Who and who knows when Snape will get the order to deliver you. It could be in a couple of months as much as it could be tonight. You have to stick with us for your own good."

"He cares more about our welfare rather than his own," Ginny commented.

"And for a good reason," Harry said, frowning at her. "Look, I don't know –"

"Harry, please, for once be a little more selfish and think about your own safety," Seamus chimed in reasonably.

Harry met the other boys' grave expressions and then he caught Ginny's gaze. Her pleading eyes bored into his and Harry felt his resolution break. He sighed in defeat and Ginny squeezed his hand, causing him to smile a little. She knew him well.

"Fine, I'll come with you but you'll have to hide me good," Harry said, "and find a way to break in here again."

"We can do that," Neville said, smiling. "Now, what about the sword? We can't leave without it?"

"Let's just break the glass. I know a good spell that can blow this baby up," Seamus added as he pointed at the case, visibly proud of his ability to make things explode.

"Or maybe you can leave it intact."

Ginny gasped as Harry shielded her with his body. Snape had entered the office unnoticed by either of them. His pallid face was livid and his teeth were bared. It was a scary sight.

"Decided to have a small party while I was gone, Potter? I knew that breaking the rules is a specialty of yours but I did not think that you would be stupid enough to drag other people into your fight," Snape sneered coldly. "As for you three," he added, addressing himself to Ginny, Neville, and Seamus, "you know the consequences for disobedience. I will have to send a message to one of our new professors."

Snape took out his wand but Neville was quicker: he pulled out his own wand and yelled, "Expelliarmus!" Snape's wand flew out of his hand and he looked momentarily astonished. Harry used his former professor's brief lapse in concentration to his advantage and pointed his wand at Snape, yelling, "Stupefy!"

But he wasn't the only one who had shouted. Three other voices had joined his and four Stunners hit Snape, sending him crashing into the wall. He then fell to the floor, where he laid unmoving. The portraits of headmasters and headmistresses past cheered as the Gryffindors stared at what they have done.

"Well, if we're not dead now we'll certainly be later," Neville said.

"Is he dead?" Ginny asked in a small voice.

Seamus bent over Snape and took his wrist.

"Nope, he's still got a pulse," Seamus replied, straightening up. "He's just knocked out cold."

"Well, what are you waiting for?" a voice said from above, making them jump. They looked up and discovered that it was the portrait of Professor Armando Dippet that was speaking to them. "Get out of here!" he exclaimed urgently.

"He's right," Harry said. "Let's go."

They were all almost out of the office when Harry paused at the threshold, remembering something.

"Hang on," he said. Pointing his wand, he added, "Accio, Sorting Hat!"

The Sorting Hat flew off its shelf and it zoomed toward Harry. He expertly caught it with one hand and went down the spiral staircase.

"What do we need the Sorting Hat for?" Ginny asked curiously as Harry joined them in the corridor.

"I'll explain later," Harry replied hurriedly. "But right now let's get out of sight."

The others nodded and they rushed down the corridors as silently as they could. Harry, despite being elated at finally being freed, couldn't help but notice how gloomy the castle seemed to have become. With a sinking feeling, he realized that Hogwarts had changed much more than he had anticipated, making him even more determined to end this war once and for all.

Sorry it took so long to update! With exams and the holidays, I was a bit busy.