"When you walk away, I count the steps that you take. Do you see how much I need you right now?" -Avril Lavigne (When You're Gone)

"Are you allowed to be taking people off of the school train?" I asked curiously as the Death Eater dragged me from the Hogwarts Express. We stood on the side of the tracks as the train started to move again.

"We can do anything we want," the Death Eater said.

"Where are you going to take me?"

"None of your business," he answered.

"Well, that's not very nice, but actually, I'd like to know where I'm going to be kept."

"Stop asking questions."

He glanced at the other two Death Eaters and shared a nod with them. The three of them Apparated together, taking me with them since the one Death Eater was still clasping my arms behind my back.

I looked around at the place where we appeared. We were standing outside of a large, almost creepy looking house that loomed just beyond the black metal of a gate that blocked our way.

"It's very gloomy here, isn't it?" I asked pleasantly. Nobody answered me. I was dragged towards the gate and just as we reached it, one of the Death Eaters waved his wand, turning the metal into smoke that let us pass through easily.

When we reached the front door, one of the Death Eaters knocked three times. The noise was loud and booming in the silence. After a moment or two, the door creaked open a crack and a face peered out. I recognized the one heavily lidded eye that I could see through the crack. The last time I had seen it was about six months ago when she had been part of attack on Hogwarts.

"Who is it?" The voice of Bellatrix Lestrange was exactly how I remembered it. Slightly raspy and entirely eerie.

"It's us, obviously, and we've got the Lovegood girl." The Death Eater grasping me arms gave me a little shake and Bellatrix opened the door a little wider. I could see her whole face now and she was grinning widely.

"Excellent," she said, looking at me with an evil smirk that I didn't like very much.

"When can I go back to school?" I asked.

Bellatrix cackled, throwing her head back as she did so. "Oh, you won't be going back to school any time soon. You have your father to blame for that. He hasn't been behaving lately. Supports Harry Potter too much."

"That certainly sounds like he's behaving to me," I said calmly.

Bellatrix's smirk dropped right away. "Bring her downstairs," she snapped at the Death Eaters. "She's got a nasty attitude, this one."

"I wasn't giving you attitude," I said, shocked that she had taken my honesty for rudeness. Although, on the other hand, she deserved every bit of rudeness that came her way and I don't say that about anybody. "I was just being honest."

"Crucio!" Bellatrix screeched.

The Death Eater dropped me and I hit the floor, trying not to scream, but it was impossible. It was terrible and the pain seemed to go on forever. I wondered how long Bellatrix was going to keep this up for and what would happen to me. I wondered if I would go insane like Neville's parents. I knew I couldn't do that, so right then and there I decided not to. I told myself that I would not leave Neville permanently. I would not give in the curse and the pain. I told myself that I'd find a way back to him eventually. I wasn't going to die here and let Bellatrix Lestrange take away another person close to Neville.

Finally the pain stopped. I stayed where I was, trying to catch my breath as I waited for something else to happen.

"Pick her up," Bellatrix ordered the Death Eater. "Bring her to the basement, but take her wand first."

"Already took it," the Death Eater said.

"Good," Bellatrix answered. "Look in her pockets. Make sure there's nothing she can use to escape."

"She won't be getting out of the basement without a wand," the Death Eater chuckled.

Bellatrix glared at him before aiming a kick at my side. "Empty your pockets," she demanded.

I did, but all that was in them was a pair of Spectrespecks and a Butterbeer cork. I was planning on starting another necklace and giving it to Hermione. I had already given Ginny one as a Christmas present. After the items were confiscated, I was roughly dragged to my feet, down the hallway and down a flight of stairs. I felt weak and slightly dizzy, but I heard the Death Eater opening a door before tossing me into a room. I hit a floor, presumably stone, and felt my head crack against it before hearing the door bang shut again.

"Hello?" I heard a frail voice call out from the corner.

I forced myself to a sitting position. "Who's there?" I asked. The room was cold and very dim. I could hardly see at all. There weren't any windows which was understandable. Bellatrix had said to bring me to the basement.

"Ollivander, the wand maker," the voice said. It was coming from behind me, so I turned around and sat up on my knees. Sure enough, Ollivander was huddled in the corner.

"I'm Luna Lovegood," I said, slowly crawling over to him.

"Ah, Luna Lovegood, yes," he said weakly. "I remember you. Your wand was quite a unique one. It was very lovely."

"Yes, I was really quite attached to it, but unfortunately it's gone now. Even if I get out of here, I'm not sure I'll get it back."

"I will gladly fashion a new one for you. If I make it out alive, that is." He coughed feebly.

"You don't look good at all," I said quietly, taking in how frail and pale the man looked.

Ollivander chuckled. "Neither do you, dear girl. You're bleeding just above your left eye, did you know that? And you're extremely pale."

I reached up and touched the spot just above my eye. It stung and when I pulled my hand away, there was blood on it. "They used the Cruciatus Curse on me," I said.

Ollivander nodded. "They used it on me as well. He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named tortured me especially horribly not too long ago."

"He's been here?" I asked.

"Every so often," Ollivander answered, trying to shrug. He ended up wincing and letting out another cough.

"Why did he torture you?" I asked. "And why is he keeping you captive here?"

"He wanted information." The old man fell silent as if afraid to say much more in fear of getting trouble. I didn't press the subject.

"I'm here because my father was supporting Harry Potter in the Quibbler," I told him. "I knew something seemed strange when he didn't print at the usual time this month. I expect he's either not going to print at all now or start putting out wanted ads for Harry because that's what the Death Eater's want. We'll be left alone if he does what they want and the Death Eaters might send me back." I sighed. It was sad to think that my dad could be trying to print articles that went against Harry. I felt like that would tarnish the Quibbler.

"Surely your father doesn't want to do that," Ollivander said.

"No, of course not, but he might feel that it's the only way to get me back. I wish there was a way to contact him and tell him I'm alright and that there's no reason to panic. I'll get out of here once the war's over."

"There's no way out," Ollivander said. "There are no windows and the door is always locked unless one of them comes down."

I didn't have to ask who he meant by 'them'. "I know that, but once the whole war ends, we'll be let out."

"How can you be so sure? We might die before we get let out and besides, He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named may very well win."

I half smiled. "My boyfriend said the same thing. I just think we have to stay hopeful. It's the best thing we have right now."

Ollivander didn't answer, but coughed a few times instead.

"So, Mr. Ollivander," I began, "where exactly are we?"

"We're in Malfoy Manor," Ollivander explained.

"Oh my," I said. "It's a lovely place. Well, it would be with some better decorating. Maybe some brighter colors and some new paint. Perhaps this is why Draco was always so miserable at school. These dark colors are enough to bring anyone down."

"The Malfoy boy hasn't been at Hogwarts this year," Ollivander said. "He's been here. I've seen him."

"Yes, I noticed he wasn't at school. Who else lives here?"

"The Malfoy boy and his parents are always here, obviously, because it's their house. Bellatrix Lestrange is here most days and a grubby little man who goes by the name Wormtail has been staying here as well, I believe. Death Eaters are always popping in and out as well as You-Know-Who himself on some occasions, like I said earlier."

"How do you know all of this? Do they ever let you out of the basement?"

"I can hear them." The old man lifted his head towards the ceiling. "There are always lots of footsteps and I can hear their voices. They're the clearest when they're in the drawing room, which is right above us. The only time they ever bring me out is when they torture me for information. Other than that, I've been down here alone for months."

"What do you do?"

"Nothing. What can I do? I've had no company until now. I sleep a lot. The torture has made me very weak. They bring food three times a day, but I'll warn you right now, it's not a lot."

"Do you do anything else?" I asked. "You know, to keep you occupied."

"No," Ollivander said, looking surprised. "There isn't much down here."

"Well, you can always find something to do, even if you have nothing." I said. I crawled over to the wall and rested my back against it while I looked around the room and thought. "For example, you can count the stone blocks that make up the wall." I pointed to the wall on the other side of the room.

"That would take days."

"We've got time," I answered. "Have you ever tried daydreaming?"

"Daydreaming? No," Ollivander answered. He sounded surprised again, as if he had never heard of daydreaming.

"I do it all the time. Actually, places like this basement are great for daydreaming. So are windows, but there aren't any in here."

"What do you daydream about?"

"I like to daydream about lots of things. Whatever's on my mind, really. Sometimes I'll think about the future or I'll daydream about where I'd like to travel. I'll daydream about Neville, my boyfriend, or the rest of my friends. A lot of the time, though, I daydream about my mother. She died when I was nine."

"Oh, yes, I do remember her," Ollivander said. "You look a lot like her."

I smiled. "My dad says that, too. I'm really pleased to look like her."

Ollivander smiled. "She was a lovely lady."

"She was from what I could remember."

Ollivander's face crinkled in thought. "I remember the day she came in for her first wand. I also remember when she came in a few years later for a second wand."

I giggled. "She broke her first wand."

"Yes, I believe she said something about sticking it into the lake to make ripples and the giant squid came up and snapped it right in two."

I grinned. "Yes, I remember her telling me that story. I made her tell it over and over for as long as I can remember. I thought it was funny. I don't think she ever got sick of telling it either. If she did, she never showed it."

Ollivander gave me a sympathetic smile. "I'm glad that I finally have someone to keep me company while I'm down here, even if the reason why we're here is very cruel."

"I'm happy to have you here, too," I answered. "Even though I wish you didn't have to be."

"Even if I wasn't here, I have a feeling you would have passed the time perfectly fine on your own. I'm sure you would have managed to count all of the stones in the walls."

"I'm sure," I answered, leaning my head back against the wall. We both fell silent then and my mind wandered to Neville and Ginny. I really hoped that they were okay. I was already missing Neville terribly and for the first time in a while, I actually felt like crying. The only thing that kept me from doing that was the fact that, from beside me, I heard Ollivander counting the stones under his breath. He made it to seven before he fell asleep. It actually made me smile.

"We've got to go."

"Neville, stop pacing for a second. You're going to wear a hole in the ground," Ginny said, trying to stay calm.

"How are you so relaxed and calm about this?" I yelped.

"One of us has to be and it's clearly not going to be you."

I ignored her. "We have to go. As soon as we get back to King's Cross. Or sooner, really if we can."

"Go where?" Ginny asked.

"Where do you think, Ginny? To get Luna! We have to rescue her."

"I don't think that'll be possible. Besides the fact that she was taken by Death Eaters, we don't know where they took her and even if we did, I'm sure there will be lots of security and obstacles making sure we can't get to her. The Death Eaters took her for a reason and they're going to make sure she can't escape until they're done with her."

"When they're done with her, their probably going to kill her," I said, continuing to pace around the train compartment furiously. "If you won't come with me, then I'll go alone."

"Neville!" Ginny said furiously, standing up. I actually froze and looked at her. "You're not going anywhere alone. And didn't you hear what I said? We don't know where they took her. She could be anywhere."

"I'm sure we can find where the Death Eaters hang out…" I began, but I trailed off as Ginny shook her head. What she was saying was finally sinking in. Neither one of us knew where Luna was. She really could be anywhere. She could even be dead already. I swallowed. I didn't want to think of that. Luna was so full of life and I was so in love with her that picturing her dead would just be unbearable.

"Neville, the best thing to do," Ginny said, taking a deep breath, "is to just hope for the best. Isn't that what Luna would tell us to do?"

"Think positive," Neville said. "She's always reminding me to do that."

"Right, so let's do that." Ginny sat down and I sat across from her, resting my hands in my lap and looking down at them.

"So, we have to just tell ourselves that she'll get out of there. Maybe her dad will do what the Death Eater's want. Maybe he already has and they'll return her tomorrow."

"Maybe," Ginny said, but she didn't sound too sure.

I sighed. "Either way, she'll get out. She'll be okay."

"What if she doesn't?" Ginny asked. I almost smirked. Ginny's voice was nearly cracking with tears, but her question was testing my earlier statement the same way I always seemed to be testing Luna during her times of intense positivity.

"If she doesn't," I began, trying to think of something. "If she doesn't-," my voice cracked as a lump formed in my throat. I couldn't think of anything positive. "I don't know," I finished in a whisper.

"She'll be with her mum," Ginny said quietly. "If she doesn't make it, that's one positive thing."

"Oddly enough, it's not making me feel any better," I whispered, burying my head in my hands. I felt the seat next to me sink a little as Ginny moved to sit beside me. She leaned her head on my shoulder and after a minute I sat back and rested my cheek on top of her head. It was just the two of us now and we were going to need each other more than ever.

A/N: Sorry for not updating in a while. I got about a third of this chapter finished before I went into about a week of writer's block. Anyway, I hope everyone likes the chapter and don't forget to leave a review!