A/N: You are all going to hate me for what happens with Neville and Astrid in this one! Sorry, but good things come to those who wait...and there are some REALLY good things coming up soon! You might find Neville to be a little OOC in this one, but if you really think about it, I can almost see him making the same decision. Any who... here's part 8!

Astrid's POV

Even though I wanted nothing more that to stay put in that courtyard, sobbing over the loss of Professor Dumbledore, I knew that I couldn't stay there much longer. Michael leaned down and threw his arm around me, pulling me up to stand next to him.

"Come on Astrid, you've got to pull yourself together…" Michael spoke softly to me. "We need to find out what's happening, it sounds like a full on battle is going on in the castle." Michael took my hand and together we began running back into the castle where there was indeed a full scale battle waging on. There were so many Death Eaters, and luckily the Order had shown up to help fight with the few students who had answered the message on the D.A. coins. I looked all around at the sight before me and immediately laid eyes on Fenrir Greyback who was hunched over another body, viciously attacking the poor person. I ran over towards Greyback and stunned him which made the cruel werewolf fly back and knock into a wall. I ran over to the body lying on the ground and saw that it was my cousin, Bill.

"No! Bill, can you hear me?" I put my hand on his chest and felt his heart faintly beating.

"Astrid, watch out!" I heard Michael yell, I looked behind me and saw that Greyback was a mere five feet away and was bearing down on me fast.

"Well aren't you a pretty little thing, just like your mother." He snarled; I grabbed my wand and pointed it at him, but he quickly disarmed me. "I don't think so puppet. You're mine now." He grabbed me by my neck and lifted me off the ground, my airways were tightly constricted and I was beginning to see black spots in my vision. Greyback leaned into me and was heading straight for my neck; I clamped my eyes shut, preparing to be bitten.

"Petrificus Totalus!" I was instantly dropped to the ground and began gasping for air as the werewolf was stunned with a full body-binding curse. I looked around and saw it was Harry who had cast the spell and potentially saving my life. My throat was hurt too much at the moment from being strangled that all I could do was nod and smile my thanks at Harry who then took off after Snape and the other retreating Death Eaters.

"Astrid, are you okay?" Michael asked as he knelt down next to me, having just stunned another Death Eater.

"...Ye...ah." I managed to get out painfully. Michael helped me to my feet and we looked around noticing that the Death Eaters were retreating out of the castle and onto the grounds. We ran after them, but there was no way we could catch them. We froze in horror as Hagrid tried to stop them as well, only to have his hut set a blaze by Rowle. We then watched as Harry went after Snape, calling after him.

"Kill me! Just like you killed him!" Harry screamed, chasing after the man. "Come on you coward!"

"DON'T CALL ME A COWARD!" Snape yelled as he spun on his heels and blasted Harry back with a spell. The dark figure glided quickly over to Harry who was momentarily stunned on the ground and spoke nastily to him. Unfortunately we were too far away to hear the brief conversation. Just as quickly as the battle had started, it ended with Snape, Malfoy and the rest of the Death Eaters disapparated just outside of the Castle Gates.

I looked around and saw that everyone had moved out into the courtyard below the Astronomy Tower. I grabbed Michael with one hand and led us to the front of the crowd where I saw Dumbledore's body lying on the ground. Dumbledore's eyes were shut, and at first I had hoped he was only sleeping…but the peculiar angles his arms and legs were set at proved otherwise. Despite lying in an unnatural manner, Dumbledore looked rather peaceful. I stood there in shock looking at the man who to so many of us was a sort of grandfather figure, a major safety net here at Hogwarts. I felt someone grab my free hand and looked up to see it was a rather solemn looking Neville. I gave him a weak smile and stepped closer to him, leaning my head against his upper arm.

The entire crowd stood still for what felt like an eternity, gravely looking at the body of our former Headmaster. I stayed there, Michael holding one hand, Neville the other, my wand tucked into the waistband of my skirt as I let silent tears fall down my face, mixing with the rain. After a few more moments, the crowd parted next to us as Harry made his way over to Dumbledore's body. Harry knelt down next to Dumbledore and stared in disbelief for a few seconds. Harry then reached over and straightened the half-moon glasses on Dumbledore's nose before smoothing out his beard and placing a single hand on his chest, right over the heart, as if to confirm Dumbledore's death. Harry leaned over the body and began crying softly. Ginny slowly made her way over to Harry and embraced him, attempting to comfort the grief stricken boy.

I let go of Michael's hand and turned to Neville, wrapping my arms around his middle and burying my face into his chest. I felt him encircle me in his arms and hold me as I cried against him, soaking his sweater vest completely through. We stayed like this for a few moments before I felt him raise his wand arm; I pulled back and saw that him, Luna, McGonagall and Hermione had all raised their wands, the tips shining brightly as a tribute to Dumbledore. I remained leaning against Neville with one arm still wrapped around him as I pulled out my own wand out of the waistband of my skirt and pointed it straight up towards the sky. Eventually all the students in the courtyard had raised their wands; the sky was still cloudy and dark, but the light from everyone's wand had slowly sent away the Dark Mark.

THIRD PERSON POV

Over the next few days it was impossible to find a smile at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. The entire school was filled with grief as they mourned the death of their former Headmaster, Albus Dumbledore. Even though the entire school, except for maybe a few Slytherin's, was depressed over the death of Dumbledore, it was hard to imagine anyone being more effect than Harry Potter and his closest friends. Astrid found it near impossible to eat and hardly slept without having to wake up in the middle of the night from nightmares. One the night after Dumbledore's death, a particularly nasty storm was over the castle. Astrid had just awoken from a horrible dream that involved being bitten by Fenrir Greyback while being forced to watch Dumbledore fall from the Astronomy Tower over and over again. Astrid was shivering in her bed as the dormitory lit up with flashes of lightning.

Astrid had always been afraid of lightning every since she was a little child; in her first year, she was so scared that she ran down to the common room where there was only a few tiny windows instead of the numerous large windows in her dormitory. When she had run down the stairs, she managed to collide head on with Neville Longbottom. From then on out, they would spend every stormy night in the common room together until around the end of their third year.

For some reason, this storm scared Astrid more than any other had in the past. Maybe it was because in her mind she would see Greyback lurking in the corner of her room when lightning would light up the room. After nearly ten minutes of lying awake in bed, Astrid jumped up, wrapped her dressing robe around herself and made her way downstairs. As she reached the bottom of the stairs and looked into the common room, she stopped in her tracks when she saw Neville sitting on the couch by the recently lit fireplace.

"Can't sleep either?" Astrid asked as she made her way over to the couch.

"Blimey Astrid, you scared the hell out of me." Neville exclaimed after nearly jumping out of his own skin. He looked up at the redhead and noticed how drained she looked; he patted on the couch next to him and she slowly sat down. "I still come down here whenever there's lightning." Neville said quietly while gazing into the fire.

"I haven't been down here since third year…" Astrid replied.

"I know, every time I come down I always hope you'll join me again. It's rather lonely down here."

"I had no idea Neville…I would have come down if I had known."

"Its fine, I've gotten used to being by myself."

"Don't say that Nev…you've always got me."

"Yeah, right…"

"And you've got Hannah now." There was an uncomfortable silence between the two. "Neville, do you love her?"

"…No, I don't. I don't even fancy her that much really."

"Then why are you dating her?" It took a while for Neville to find the right answer and build up the courage to say it aloud.

"Because I don't want to be alone." He said softly, "I was tired of always seeing everyone all matched up, it broke my heart to see you with Michael." The two were once again enveloped in a silence. Astrid had felt her own heart ache as Neville had told her why he was dating Hannah, how could she have been so blind?

"Neville, will you hold me?" Astrid asked timidly.

"Come here," Neville held out his arms and Astrid scooted over to him, nestling into his lap and curling up against him.

"Neville, do you love me?" Astrid asked after a few minutes. "Because I think I love you…" Astrid looked up and saw Neville was staring down at her. They sat there, just staring into each others eyes before Astrid leaned up and place a soft, yet loving kiss on Neville's lips. Neville slightly gasped at the contact between the two of them; this felt nothing like it did when he was kissing Hannah. There seemed to be an electrical spark between them, and though it was a rather quick kiss, it felt as if the world had stopped spinning and there was nothing but himself and Astrid. There was no Voldemort, Dumbledore wasn't dead and all was right in the world. As they pulled apart the world came tumbling back onto the pair and it felt as if their senses had been sharpened by the kiss. They were completely attuned to one another. As much as Neville loved Astrid and wanted to be with her, he knew he would forever hate himself for what he was about to do.

"I can't do this Astrid." Both Astrid and Neville's heart shattered as soon as the words left Neville's mouth. "I can't hurt Hannah like this." Neville brushed Astrid off his lap and stood up.

"…but you don't even like her Neville!" Astrid countered, standing up in front of Neville.

"I know, but she loves me and I can't do this to her...she's already depressed by her mothers death, this would kill her. I'm sorry Astrid, but you're just too late." Neville turned off his emotions and made his way back to his dormitory. Astrid stood there for an eternity, looking into the stairwell where Neville had just disappeared before she slumped down onto the couch where she and Neville had just shared their first kiss and began to sob.

ASTRID'S POV

It was now the very beginning of July and I hadn't spoken or ever looked at Neville since the night I kissed him and he had turned me down. I didn't have the guts to face him; I knew it was my fault for not realizing how I felt about him sooner, and now I had to live with the consequence…but it still didn't seem fair. Of course Neville just had to be the amazingly considerate guy I love and felt it was more honorable to stay with Hannah than to break her heart and be with me. I didn't quite understand it, and I thought it was kind of mean to Hannah since Neville really wasn't in love with her; however I kept my thoughts to myself and Hermione, who swore not to tell anyone, not even Ron and Harry.

Since Dumbledore's tragic death, the entire school year seemed to come to a halt. Teachers no long held class and it was as if the whole school was in a standstill, not really sure what to do next. Dumbledore's funeral was to be in a few days and there was talk about sending the students home before the funeral, but both me and Harry felt it was wrong to do so.

"I really think there's no point in having the students here, it's not as if we're going to have classes now." McGonagall spoke. Harry and I were talking with several professors, including McGonagall, Sprout, Flitwick and Hagrid.

"I agree with you, the students should go home and mourn with their families." Flitwick said.

"You should at least wait until after his funeral to send us all home." I suggested.

"Yeah, she's right." Harry spoke up, "The students should be here for the funeral, so they can have a sense of closure…"

"And to say goodbye to Dumbledore." Sprout piped up.

"It wouldn't be right to send them home before the funeral, Professor McGonagall."

"I suppose your right…" McGonagall sighed in agreement. "They'll stay for the funeral, and then the train will take them home the day after."

Just like that it was all decided and soon it was the day of Dumbledore's funeral. People of all sorts came from all over the world to be at Hogwarts for Dumbledore's funeral. I had just finished dressing in a simple black dress with lace tights and gloves before I grabbed a black hat and slipped on a pair of black Oxford's. The other girls in my dormitory were also busy getting dressed for the funeral that would start in about an hour. I looked around and didn't see Hermione, so I went down to the common room where I saw her sitting with Ron and Harry. I went over to them and sat down next to Harry, wrapping a supportive arm around him.

"I can't believe he's gone…" Ron said sadly.

"I know; it seems so surreal." Hermione agreed.

"It all happened so fast. One moment Dumbledore cast a body bind on me and then next thing I know Snape's killed him." Harry said.

"It's so hard to believe someone can have their life taken from them so suddenly." I said while shaking my head.

"If only he hadn't cast that spell on me…I would have been able to fend Snape off and Dumbledore would be alive!" Harry said angrily.

"Or you could both be dead…Dumbledore cast that spell to save you, Harry. Don't blame yourself over his death; he wouldn't want you to do that." I spoke to my friend. "Dumbledore would want you to continue on and finish what he started, what you both worked on that night." Harry had told Ron, Hermione and I about their mission at the cave to find a Horcrux that ended up being a fake…switched by a person known as R.A.B.

"You're right Astrid…but it's hard not to blame myself."

"I know Harry, we all understand and we know it's not your fault at all. No one blames you, Harry." I told him. We all sat in silence for a little while before Hermione stood up.

"We should probably head down so we won't be late for the ceremony." Hermione said, we all stood and made our way out of Gryffindor tower and onto the grounds near the lake where the ceremony would be held. Hermione, Harry, Ginny, Ron and I all filed in and sat down at the end of a row, right next to the lake. I looked over to the lake and saw the merpeople coming to the surface for the funeral; just past the lake I also noticed a line of centaurs gathered at the edge of the forest, half hidden in shadow. I didn't recognize most of the people in attendance, but I was glad to see that my cousin Bill was well enough to leave the Hospital Wing and attend the funeral. He glanced over at me and smiled sadly before returning his gaze to Fleur who was holding his hand in her lap.

I continued to look around and saw Percy, the Minister, and several other people I recognized from the Ministry all seated in the front row. A few rows behind mine I connected eyes with Aunt Molly who had blood-shot eyes from crying so much. I also saw several students including Neville and Hannah who were sitting by each other, holding hands. Once I was done people watching, Hagrid slowly made his was down the aisle, carrying Dumbledore's body which had been wrapped in purple velvet that had gold stars all over it. Hagrid was crying loudly as he walked forwards and let out a great sob as he placed Dumbledore onto the white marble table that stood at the front of the gathering. Next, a small ceremony official walked up in front of the crowd and delivered the eulogy. I leaned into Hermione and we held each other, crying our eyes out silently as the man spoke about the life of Dumbledore and the effect he had on so many people.

Once the man finished, he returned to his seat and the table Dumbledore's body was on caught fire as Fawkes flew by, singing out his lament. The merpeople in the lake began to sing a slow mourning song as the flames grew to the brink. Once the flames slowing grew smaller, it was revealed that a white tomb was now in place where the table had been. The centaurs, including Firenze, who had been standing at the Forbidden Forest's edge raised their bows and shot off arrows in tribute to Dumbledore. Once the fire was extinguished, people began to rise and file our slowly. Harry, Ron, Hermione, Ginny and I were among the last to leave. We all walked towards his tomb and Harry and I both placed our hands on top of the tomb to say goodbye to Dumbledore. We then turned and left our beloved headmaster in peace at his final resting place.

It was the day after Dumbledore's funeral and we were all aboard the Hogwarts Express, heading to King's Cross Station. The whole train was fairly quiet; the only noise being that of idle conversation. I was sitting in a compartment with Harry, Ron and Hermione and we had yet to speak throughout the entire ride. The silence was a comfortable one though, as no one felt the need to really disrupt the peacefulness.

"I'm not coming back next year…" Harry spoke, breaking the more than hour long silence.

"What do you mean? Why not?" I asked.

"The horcruxes…I need to finish what Dumbledore started and continue to find them all then destroy them. It's the only hope we have of defeating Voldemort. I don't know where it will take me, but I'll find a way to let you all know that I'm safe."

"I've always admired your courage, Harry..." Hermione spoke, "but you really are daft sometimes. You don't actually think you can find all those horcruxes by yourself, do you? You need us Harry."

"She's right bloke." Ron replied smiling halfway.

"I know." Harry said, "She always is."