A/N: Hi guys! I'm really sorry about how late this chapter is. I wanted to put one up this weekend, but I had several final exams this week, and I just finished them today. But I'm finally finished high school! It feels really weird saying that… Anyways, here's the chapter J

Chapter 39

Luna sat across from her friends Neville and Ginny on the ride back to Hogwarts. It had been a quiet holiday for herself and her father as after the death of her mother; her father seemed to have lost most of his spark. He kept his eccentric behaviour, which made it easy for Luna to relate to him. However, quiet holidays were in no way boring.

She had spent the holidays with her father conducting research on a rare species, the Keftlers. From what she had found, they tended to live in warmer, sunny climates, which meant that they would definitely not be tolerant of the cool, rainy English weather. She and her father were planning on voyaging over to Australia during the summer, however based on how the war faired by then, there was a good chance the trip would be cancelled. She was loyal to her friends, and while she may not be of age, she still wanted to do everything in her power to help them out during the fight.

Ginny and Neville were currently chatting animatedly, about their separate holidays. Neville was in the midst of telling them both about his grandmother's reaction to stealing the sword.

"I've never seen her so charged about something, and knowing my grandmother, that's a first," Neville said, shaking his head. "She was so proud of what we tried to do, and kept telling everyone about how her grandson has backbone for stealing from that 'lying, traitorous filth of a bastard, masquerading as headmaster.'"

"Well she has a point in calling him that!" Ginny said with a laugh. "It must feel good to have her praise you so much, over the last few years."

Luna bit her lip. While Neville hadn't had a bad childhood, she knew how hard it must have been. When she had first met him she had been shocked by how unconfident he was in himself, and it hadn't helped that his grandmother kept comparing him to the parents he would never get to know. Neville was brilliant, and she was proud of everything he had accomplished, but most importantly, that he was starting to recognize it for himself.

Neville had a shy smile on his face, "I'm glad to know that I'm finally making her proud, you know?"

Luna reached out and grabbed his hand. "As long as you're happy, Neville, that's all that really matters."

"I am," he said softly, as he squeezed her hand gently.

She loved Neville. He and Ginny were both the siblings she had never had. They had been there for her throughout all the times she was picked on for her beliefs, and Ginny had personally cursed anyone who mocked her. They might not be the Golden Trio, as Harry, Ron, and Hermione were, but she still found them to be tighter than anything she could have ever dreamed of having; a Silver Trio, if you will.

"The Burrow was so quiet this year," Ginny said softly. "With Ron gone off with Harry, and Bill choosing to stay with his family this year, it just isn't the same."

Luna couldn't say she could relate. She knew what small felt like, but not like Ginny. The Weasley family was so warm and loving, that even the loss of two souls would take away from the spirit.

Luna was about to say something, when she felt the train come to a sudden halt. The momentum threw her out of her chair and straight into Neville.

"OW!" she exclaimed, as she felt her heart race from being jerked. She lifted herself from Neville, and straightened her clothes. Luna looked out the window to try and place the reason for their stop, but couldn't see anything. They were nowhere near Hogwarts, and still had another hours drive.

"What's happened?" Neville asked worriedly. In the current times, anything out of the normal was usually not a good sign.

Ginny peered out of their compartment, and saw that several other students were doing the same thing. The train was nowhere near as packed as it had been during her previous five years, but with everything going on, she couldn't say she was surprised.

The lights began to flicker in the train. On and off, on and off, on and off. Then, without any warning, the lights went off completely.

"What's happening?"

"Where are the lights?"

"I can't see anything!"

Luna heard voices screaming out from around the train. She didn't know what was happening, but it was not good, not good at all.

"Lumos," she said in a soft voice, and her wand's light filled the compartment with a dim light. She saw Neville and Ginny do the same, and eventually the younger years caught on. Those who didn't know the spell stayed near to those who did, and the elder students held those younger than them, close by.

The train shook suddenly, and Luna very nearly lost her balance. She heard shouts from outside the train, and began to panic. There were cries of terror and shrieks of pain and Luna couldn't see where the attackers were, as the sound seemed to resonate around the train.

"Luna," Ginny said quickly. "They're coming! We should split up, the three of us, and take different ends of the train. Neville, you go to the front. I'll go the rear, and Luna, you stay here. That way, we have all ends covered, and should be able to fight them off. Whoever sees them, give a shout and the other two will run to their aid."

The two of them nodded. This is what they were waiting for. It was what she had trained for in her fourth year; a chance to fight. She was scared, to say in the least. But she was also brave. There were younger year students in danger from this sudden attack, and as upperclassmen, it was their job to try and protect them

She exited her compartment, and watched as Neville and Ginny ran off in opposite directions, their wands out and ready to strike. She felt her heart race and the adrenaline coursing through her veins. She would be ready for them.

"Where is she?" A gruff voice called out from the end of the nearest compartment. They must have entered from an area closer to her, and thus avoided both Neville and Ginny.

The student currently being thrashed against the wall, a first year, shook with fear, as they attempted to answer. "I-I-I don't know who you're talking about," the boy stuttered.

The Death Eater tossed the boy roughly against the wall and moved on to the next kid. "You, Boy! Where is Lovegood?"

"I haven't seen her!" The girl cried out. She was lying of course. The girl, also in her year, had made a point of coming into her compartment earlier and picking on Luna earlier for her weird behaviour. It was nice to know that even though she wasn't liked by her classmates, she was still valued enough not to be thrown to the dogs.

"You're lying!" the Death Eater hissed. "You see, Girl, I know when people lie to me, and I don't tend to like it very much. But I make them pay, very dearly. So you might want to rethink your answer."

The girl stammered nervously, and Luna knew it was her turn to protect the girl.

"Leave her alone," she said loudly and calmly. This got the Death Eater's attention right away.

"Oh yeah? And who's gonna make me?" He said, as he walked over to her haughtily.

"I am," she said simply.

The Death Eater was mere steps away from her. Luna raised her wand slightly, but the Death Eater simply pushed her arm away. He grabbed the bottom of her face and pushed her roughly.

"And who might you be?" he said, and she could smell his putrid breath on her face. She was tempted to turn her face away from him, but did not. She would not be giving him the upper hand.

"Luna Lovegood," she said. She heard the others in the compartment whisper, and the girl who had attempted to protect her, bowed her head down. From the corner of her eye, she could see a young boy slip out of the cabin, and she hopped the boy would get other students to protect everyone. While the Slytherins would be no help, the others had not entirely given in to the 'new' Hogwarts regime.

"Are you, now? Well, Love, you're just the girl I'm looking for," he said with a smirk. "I'm afraid you're going to be coming with me."

"No," she said quietly.

"What did you just say?" he growled.

"I won't be going anywhere with you today," she said slowly.

He grinned widely, and she saw his decrepit teeth. "Oh, Love, I think you will be coming with me. You see, if you don't come willingly, I will murder each and every person on this train, and then I will take you. So we can do this one way, or the other. But either way, you will be coming with me."

She hesitated. She could not in good conscious be responsible for the death of so many innocents. Her life on the line was one thing; if she had to die, she would go down fighting. But she could not risk so many others. Luna knew that she could call his bluff, and hope he didn't kill anyone, but it was far too dangerous. She weighed both her options, but she already knew in her heart what she had to do.

"Fine, but if any innocent people are harmed, don't think I will hesitate in fighting you," she said seriously. "So much as a broken finger and you will regret it."

She knew he wouldn't take her threat as one that should worry him, but he could tell from the flame in her eyes that she was serious.

"I knew you would see it my way. That's the thing about your side; you're a bloody noble lot. See, we wouldn't care about anyone else, we would take was we want and not worry about the others. But you lot, you risk your skins for others. That's what's going to make you lose this war," the Death Eater said smugly.

"No," she said firmly. "Our compassion is what's going to win this war."

He saw how her words seemed to impact the others in the cabin, and knew instantly how her words of courage would spread. She would be gossiped about in whispers in dinner, and even if no one did anything to fight, her words would at the least inspire them.

He scowled at her, and drew out his wand quickly. Before she could react, he had already cast a stunning spell on her. She heard Ginny shouting her name in the distance, but she was already surrounded by darkness.

Ginny stared in shock at the train. Members of the order had immediately come to their aid once they had heard about the attack on the Hogwarts Express, but it was far too late; Luna had already been taken.

She had a light blanket wrapped around her shoulders and was currently sipping a cup of water, but it didn't make her feel any better. It was her stupid idea that the three of them split up; it was her fault that Luna was left all alone with no one to help her.

As soon as she had reached the end of the train, she knew something was wrong, and started running back. She could feel the dread in every cell of her body. And then a boy had rushed into the compartment she was making her way down, yelling how the Death Eaters were after Luna Lovegood, and she was terrified. Ginny was scared for her friend, and what would happen if she didn't reach there in time.

Why her? Why would they want to take Luna Lovegood? She's harmless and hardly a danger to Voldemort. She isn't even Harry Potter, who poses a threat. Ginny wondered briefly if it could have been as a result of their late night activities; all the graffiti definitely would piss off Snape, but would it be enough to attack a few students?

Ginny felt herself tremor in anger. If only she had been better, or stronger. She didn't even know what they were doing to Luna right now, and it frustrated her beyond measure.

"The train has to continue now," Her mother said, coming up behind her. "I don't know how much Snape will like it if we held up the train, so it's best to let them go on their way."

Ginny nodded, knowing that her mother was right. The Carrows would probably personally punish anybody who attempted to help in any way or form. She shuddered, thinking about the poor children who would have to suffer at the Death Eaters' hands.

"I should go then," she said standing up. She took the blanket off her shoulders and handed it to her mother.

"No, you won't be going back, Ginvera," her mother said firmly.

She stared at her mother. "What do you mean? I have to go back! I have to finish studying, even if it is under really poor circumstances."

"No. Not after this. Not after they snatched a student, especially someone so close to us, in broad daylight. I know I preached the importance of education to Ron, but I refuse to allow you to endanger yourself. I'd rather you stay at home, where I can keep you safe. And if it means I have to teach you myself, then I will gladly do that, but I cannot let you go back there, Ginny."

She opened her mouth to argue. She wasn't a child anymore, yet just because she was the youngest of her siblings, she was treated like a kid. Ron was barely on the edge of adulthood, and she was months away from seventeen herself.

"Please, Ginny," her mother begged her softly. "I can't lose you too. Ron is already gone somewhere, and I need to be able to keep you safe. Even if it's just for a few months, I need to know that you're safe. After everything that's happened, I don't want to lose my family."

She could tell her mother was trying hard not to cry, so Ginny wrapped her arms around her mother, and brought her into a hug.

"Okay, Mum. I'll come home with you, but under a few conditions. Once I turn seventeen, if the war is still going on, I want to be allowed to fight. And once this is all over, I will do what I want, within reason of course, but I want to be able to be an adult, and grow up. I want to return to Hogwarts with my friends, and finish my education, and I don't want to be forced into a life of being a housewife. While the lifestyle suits you, I cannot have that sort of a life."

Mrs. Weasley simply nodded. "I understand. I knew that since you were a little girl. You always preferred playing Quidditch with your brothers, than playing with dolls. And if that's the sort of life you want, I will gladly support you. And I cannot stop you from fighting once you turn seventeen. I wish I could shield you from all the dangers in the world, but I have long learned to pick which battles I want to fight, and this isn't one of them.

Ginny smiled. It felt like after an eternity, she and her mother had finally reached an understanding. She would go home with her mother, but she would also keep track of what was happening in the Wizarding World. She refused to be cut off from everyone, and it wasn't like the Daily Prophet was actually reporting news anymore. No, they needed something reliable. They needed something which could tell the people on their side what was actually happening. They needed a broadcast system to communicate attacks and deaths, so that no one would walk into a massacre, and if someone went missing, then others could be on the lookout. And she knew just who to talk to about it.

Blaise stood in the shadows of Malfoy Manor. He was supposed to be long gone, but he had heard that there was going to be a raid today, and he wanted to know who the unfortunate victims were. He had felt awful for the last few days after watching Theo get tortured so extensively. The Cruciatus curse had been used on him more times than he could count, and it made him physically sick. He wanted to help, but he knew that it would get nothing done, other than him being killed, and Theo being continuously tortured.

He heard the door open, and he peered around the corner. He had a disillusion charm on him, but with Death Eaters prowling the halls, there were never too many precautions that a person could take. He saw Greyback and Yaxley bringing in a girl. At first he couldn't identify her, but as they drew closer to where he was, he felt his face pale once he recognised her.

It was the Lovegood girl. The same one he had run into those months ago, and who had convinced him not to submit willingly to the Death Eaters.

'Big help that's been,' he thought bitterly. Something inside of him snapped as he saw her look so helpless and fragile. He knew then what had to happen. He couldn't just watch idly as people he knew got tortured brutally. It simply was not right. He had to do something, or at least try. He had to get them out somehow.

It wouldn't be easy; but hopefully if he planned it well enough, they would all live. But for now, he would simply stay in the shadows, waiting for the right moment.