Chapter 26: …Unafraid of Toil
A/N: Ok. Here's the deal. I ship Neville/Hannah, because it's canon. Not to say that Neville never had a crush on Luna or they aren't the best of friends. In my opinion, Neville and Luna are more like Harry and Hermione. Just so we're clear on where I stand in the shipping world. Not to mention Hannah Abbott is a Hufflepuff, like myself. Thus, you got a Hufflepuff chapter. Sort of.
"Those patient Hufflepuffs are true and unafraid of toil." - The Sorting Hat
Minerva McGonagall watched her students mingle in the Great Hall. Four years ago, even one year ago, she would have barely been able to hear her own thoughts over the roar of conversation. Now, she had nothing to drown out the turmoil in her mind. The students spoke in the lowest of whispers. Some even were reduced to communicating through stolen glances and hand signals.
The Gryffindor table had been began to dwindle in their numbers. Not that there weren't students disappearing from other Houses, but her Gryffindors had been hit particularly hard. Although it was Luna Lovegood had been the first to disappear. When Filius came to her with his fears after the young girl had not returned from Christmas break, it hadn't taken Minerva long to find out she was being held in the Malfoy Manor. Not that there was anything she could do. She had a part to play and it was breaking her heart, bit by bit.
She had once told Snape that she was afraid of hurting her family. Her Hogwarts family was falling apart. After Ms. Lovegood had disappeared, Ginny Weasley was the next to go. Then Neville Longbottom. Her throat clenched at the thought of Augusta's grandson in danger. But then again, maybe he was safer wherever he was hiding out, which she hoped was. One by one, students were going missing. Minerva hoped they were still in the castle somewhere, like Neville and Seamus had said. At least, here, she could attempt to protect them from harm.
Very little news was trickling in from the Order of the Phoenix. Most that she heard was bad. Innocent people were dying. Muggles, Muggleborns, Squibs, Half-bloods and Purebloods alike. Her eyes fluttered shut as she thought about a time in when Lord Voldemort would have spared a Pureblood's life. Not anymore. Anyone who stood between him and his prize would meet the end of a death stick. Ironic, seeing as his blood was more 'tainted' than some of the witches and wizards he was damning to death.
A random thought came to her mind, one that had not plagued her for some time. If she was to die when Tom met his doom, would she know? Would she feel death coming? It was an interesting notion. Since she was living on borrowed time, would she just simply die? It had a occurred to her that she could suffer. If the spell was simply holding off the inevitable, would she return to the moments of pain that led to her death in the first place, in that fiery hell where she lost her daughter? Or would she die with Tom, in the same way that he will meet his fate?
"Minerva?" Pomona Sprout's hushed voice brought her from her dark sentiments. The other woman's hand reached out for a moment, as if to caress Minerva's arm, but she stopped suddenly. The slightly trembling hand rested back on her soil stained robes. Minerva looked over at her, but as soon as their eyes met, Pomona looked away. As much as she tried to act like it didn't hurt, Minerva felt the knife lodge itself a little deeper in her heart.
"I'm sorry, I was lost in thought." She tried to keep her voice neutral. There was a bitter taste in her mouth. Was this really what a conversation between two friends had come to?
Pomona cleared her throat and whispered back, "You have an owl." Minerva blinked twice in surprise before looking at the dark brown Eagle Owl in front of her. It had dark eyes that were watching her intently.
"Who on earth…" she muttered to herself. She couldn't think of a single person who would want to be in contact with her or would risk sending an owl. Surely no one in the Order would be that stupid, especially since she had essentially broke all ties with them. Perhaps one of her missing students…no, they were smarter than that too.
She reached out and took the letter from the beautiful owl's strong grip. It was thick stationary, grey and green in color, and felt expensive. Turning it over, Minerva knew exactly who it belonged to when she saw the embossed M.
It was quite the risk Narcissa was taking, writing to her at Hogwarts. Unless of course, there was nothing dangerous in the letter. But people tend to underestimate the youngest Black sister. Oh, Bellatrix Lestrange née Black will always be infamous for the crimes she has committed and Andromeada Tonks née Black will be remembered for abandoning her pureblood family for a Muggle. But Narcissa Malfoy née Black married an upstanding man (although the majority of his crimes had come to light), had a perfectly normal son, and lived a rich life. But Narcissa was quite conniving in her own way. Quiet and astute, she had learned the best traits of her elder sisters and Minerva had been right in making her a close ally.
Although Pomona wasn't making direct eye contact with her, Minerva knew she couldn't read the letter at the table. It would lead to far too many questions she wasn't prepared to answer. Pomona and Filius were trying their best to not judge their old friend, but her shady dealings were slowly coming to light. It was hard to hide interactions with Severus and the Carrow siblings from them and as much as her dear friends wanted to trust her, it was hard after the events at the end of last year. Not to mention, she had already admitted she no longer had contact with the Order.
With a bit of shame, she excused herself from the table, not meeting either Pomona nor Filius' eyes. But her head was held high as she walked through the Great Hall past her students. Everyone was in so much pain. But they were the adults, the leaders, they had to be strong.
Her aberrant hearing picked up the sound of light footsteps following close behind her as she reached the stairs. Pausing halfway up, she turned slowly, trying to figure out who could be tailing her back to her quarters. Surely no one had seen the letter from Narcissa…
"Hello, Professor." All of Minerva's fears were brushed away at the sight of the petite blonde haired Hufflepuff standing before her. Hannah Abbott smiled at her gently before motioning to the Transfiguration book in her hands. "I have some questions about the homework you assigned last class and was wondering if you have time to go over a few things."
Minerva raised an eyebrow. To her knowledge, she hadn't assigned any homework yet this week. Nevertheless, she replied, "Of course, Ms. Abbott. I was just heading to my office."
They walked in silence up the several flights of stairs it took to reach her office. Hannah had a bit of a skip to her step, which was unusual for the young woman. Ever since the devastating news of her mother's death took her out of Hogwarts last year, Hannah had been quiet and withdrawn. Something had happened- something very good. When they finally entered the office, Minerva placed a finger to her lips, before shutting the door and placing a small number of silencing charms around the office.
"Now, Ms. Abbott, what can I help you with."
"I have news from Dumbledore's Army." Light brown eyes searched the elder woman's face, as if momentarily trying to decide if she had made the right decision. Swallowing hard, Hannah continued, "Neville, Seamus, Dean, and Ernie have been bickering constantly about whether or not to tell you what we know, so I made the decision myself. Can we trust you?"
Minerva blinked at the brazen comment. "Ms. Abbott-"
"It's a simple question, really. Can we still trust you, Professor? Because frankly, you've been missing in action all year."
"It's much more complicated than that…" Minerva brought her hand momentarily up to the Hogwarts' Crest that rested on her chest. Hannah stared her down intently, patiently waiting for an answer. "Ms. Abbott, I am in a very difficult position here. And I can't disclose why."
Gentle words followed, "That wasn't my question. We have a lot of work to do if we are going to win this war and we all have to work together. And I have a feeling you are way out of the loop. So, I'm going to ask again, do you want to defeat You-Know-Who?"
"Yes."
"Good," replied the young woman matter-of-factly. Before Minerva could open her mouth, Hannah began to speak. "Obviously, nothing is ever written down. Neville learned that lesson a long time ago. Something to do with Sirius Black…anyway, everything is passed from mouth to ear. Of course, this is a bit inefficient, but it's all we've got to work with. Have you heard of Potterwatch? No? Ok, the next password is Prewett. Remember that-"
"Prewett?"
Hannah continued as if she hadn't spoken. "Now, all the students who have 'disappeared' haven't gone far. They're still around and well taken care of. I can tell you worry. I've tried to convey this to Professor Sprout, but she can't stop worrying, it's just in her nature. We just got word that Luna, Mr. Ollivander, a goblin, and Harry, Hermione, and Ron just escaped from the Malfoy Manor, which has become some sort of a Headquarters for the Death Eaters."
"Escaped?" Minerva fingered the letter she had just received that rested uncomfortably in her pocket.
"Yes. And they are safe somewhere. We don't know where. It's safer that way." Hannah tugged her Transfiguration book closer to her body, as if suddenly shy about how the conversation had gone. Obviously, Professor McGonagall was still an intimating character and it had probably taken all of the poor girl's courage to confront her in this way.
Deciding to grant the young woman some mercy, Minerva asked "Is that all?"
"For now. Just know we're on by your side," replied Hannah simply. Sensing the end of the conversation, Hannah turned curtly on her heel and walked quickly to the door, leaving her Professor with a bemused look on her face.
Green eyes stared at the door as it shut as she tried to process what had just taken place. In fact she stood in silence for several minutes, marveling in her student's bravery, until her hand brushed up against the letter she had just received. She removed it from the pocket and slowly ran her fingers over the M. A wave of magic opened it swiftly and to her surprise, it was only one line.
I protected your children, please take care of mine.
-BREAK-
Hannah took a deep breath before entering the Room of Requirement. She knew they were going to be angry with her, but that didn't matter. What was done was done. Her hands were shaking as she pushed open the door. Funny that she should be nervous to face her friends than Professor McGonagall. It was relatively quiet when she finally entered the room. The boys were gathered around a table playing cards. She smiled to herself. Some days they were men fighting a war; others they were school boys once again.
"Hannah!" It was Ernie who noticed her first. "What are you doing here?"
"Did something happen?" asked Neville in concern. As if he had room to talk. He still sported bruising from weeks ago. And he needed a haircut.
Might as well get it out. No use beating around the bush, she figured. "I spoke with Professor McGonagall."
Stunned silence met her in response. Hannah resisted the urge to roll her eyes at the looks on their faces. Neville's eyes bared into her, but he wasn't the first to try to berate her.
"I thought we agreed-" started Seamus with venom in his voice.
"No!" She shouted. The ten or fifteen people who shared this room as home now looked in their direction. Crowds had always made her nervous and she tried not to think about her audience as she spoke to her friends. "Remember how you and Ginny used to complain that Harry was trying to fight You-Know-Who on his own and how stupid that was? Well you lot have obviously spent too much time around him, because that is exactly what you're doing!"
"This is different- we don't actually know if we can trust her," argued Dean.
This only seemed to anger Hannah more. "If we can't trust McGonagall, we can't trust anyone. She was Dumbledore's biggest supporter. And Ginny said that McGonagall saved her and Hermione from the Death Eaters. That must count for something!"
"Hannah, that's not what he meant," reason Neville steadily. He pushed Seamus back into the chair he had risen from. "What did she say?"
"Nothing really, now that I think about it. But she seemed relieved. And I believe you when you say she's keeping a secret." Neville nodded at the information. Hannah looked to her shoes, suddenly very aware of the attention she was getting. "Look, we need help. We can't fight this alone. We need a strategy. And we need experience. But we're just students- barely adults. No matter how much heart we have, we're at a disadvantage."
Neville considered her words for a moment. Then he turned back to the table and poured her a glass of Butterbeer. "I have faith that McGonagall will come through for us in the end. Just like Harry. So we have to be ready to fight beside them when they do."
Seamus, Dean, Ernie, and the rest of the occupants of the room settled back to what they were doing before she had entered, although she could hear a whisper of McGonagall's name sweep through the room. Her trembling hand gladly accepted the cup from Neville and brought it to her lips.
Neville was watching her intently, still standing in front of her. Hannah decided it was best to break the tension. "I'm glad Luna is alright."
"Luna?" Neville looked confused for a moment, but then caught himself awkwardly. "Luna. Right. Yeah…it was good to hear from her- well good to know she was alright. You know? Of course you know. Right."
His response surprised her. Neville and Luna had been the closest of friends since the beginning of Dumbledore's Army and she had always imagined them to be something more. But perhaps…perhaps friends were all they were. Clearing her throat and motioning towards the table, she said, "So, a plan. You know, for when we need to fight?"
He grinned and replied smartly, "Always ready to work, aren't you?"
Relief swept through her as she sat down at the table. This was the best she had been feeling in a long time. They were the brightest witches and wizards of their age. If anyone could survive this horrible war, it would be them. Together. When Neville reached over and squeezed her hand with a smile, her heart warmed. Yes, together they could do this.
Preview: Surrender
The castle was in chaos. Students ran right and left; teachers shouted orders and tried to gather their children to safety. The shield was lasting, but it wouldn't for long. The Order of the Phoenix was here, but not in great number- their own have been scattered by the war. In time more would come, but time was not something they had in abundance. Pomona Sprout was in Greenhouse Three gathering the plants that would be most helpful for fighting as well as healing. Neville had organized an assembly line to get the plants they selected back to the castle quickly.
By fate, Pomona raised her eyes to the edge of the grounds just in time to see a tabby cat running along the edge of the green house. It stopped suddenly, as if sensing her there. Green eyes met hers and the regal cat bowed its head gracefully before running toward the Dark Forest. Her heart clenched and she was overcome by the dreadful feeling that this would be the last time she would see her dear friend alive. Tears brimmed her eyes as she watched the cat dash into the night, but she wiped them away with the back of her dirt covered hands. They had a job to do.