I AM SO SORRY THAT THIS IS SO LATE! I have been BEYOND busy with finals and moving out of college and I am terribly sorry that this update is so late! Here is a new update though! OH, and…..the battle is coming up real soon so keep reading. :)

o.O.o.O.o.O.o.O.o

Emolly quickly drank the thick liquid. Her face twisted into a look of pure disgust as the vile smelling (and tasting) potion made its way down her throat. She had the sudden urge to vomit but Aubrielle had told her that it was crucial to fight the feeling and keep it down. It was simply her body reacting against the multiple foreign ingredients. She clasped her hand over her mouth and dropped the glass goblet onto the stone floor, shattering it into thousands of pieces. She took her other hand and gripped onto Dean, who was standing next to her with a concerned look on his face. He braced himself and steadied her against him as she fought her stomach's constant retching. This was absolutely miserable! After a minute or two the pain subsided and she was able to take a deep breath. Now all she had to do was wait 24 hours to see if it worked or not. She wasn't allowed to use magic in any form until than. She would either be healed, or feel the wrath of the side effects.

Twenty-four hours later…

Emolly was hunched over a toilet in the prefect's bathroom, her flowing tears mixing with her constant puking as her body rejected the potion time and time again. Aubrielle silently cried behind her friend as she held her long blonde hair back for her. Emolly was part of the unlucky forty percent. Her magic was never going to be as strong as it once was and fighting in this war was now going to be more life threatening than before because she would most likely be marked as an easy target. Aubrielle wasn't about to tell her that though. Bottom line was this; Emolly's magic was never going to be the same, all thanks to Blaise Zabini.

o.O.o.O.o.O.o.O.o

March rolled into April even slower than February had rolled into March. The spring season at Hogwarts was miserable, to say the least, and the skies never seemed to be clear or sunny. It was the same thing every day, cloudy, dark, gray, and dull. It was enough to put students in a gloomy mood, that was for sure. Aubrielle and Nielah still had not heard anything about their mother, not really to their surprise, but the Song sisters were still hoping for some speck of news, something that could hold them over. But, alas, nothing. Nielah cried some nights, sometimes Aubrielle did too.

It was sometime in late April when Neville finally decided to give Aubrielle her small vile of Doua Sansa. The reviving potion was in a crystal container and attached to a long leather string so that the Ravenclaw could tie it around her neck and wear it as a necklace. The witch was making her bed one Sunday morning when her boyfriend approached her with a serious look on his face. She raised a curious eyebrow at him and he gently kissed her temple.

"Sit down for a second, yeah?"

"Oh…okay."

She sat down on her cot and fiddled her thumbs. This was weird, really weird. Why was he acting like this? Why was he acting so…suspicious? He sat down next to her and put his hand on her exposed skin between the hem of her skirt and the top of her knee high socks. Without looking at her at her he simply said, "Don't freak out, please."

"This sounds good."

"I have something for you. A gift of some sorts."

The Ravenclaw giggled. "If it's a gift than why would I freak out?"

"Because it's this…" The Gryffindor reached into his pant pocket and pulled out the familiar liquid. Aubrielle's eyes widened as he uncovered it, just as he suspected.

"Is that…"

"Doua Sansa."

He took the necklace and placed it in the palm of her hand and curled her fingers around it. She looked at her hand before looking back at him. Her nightmare came back in flashes as she remembered why she had woken up with tears covering her pillow. Nielah was barely alive; she pulled out the liquid and revived her before carrying her into the Great Hall. Then she went and saw Neville lying on the cot, cold and dead… Before she could say anything, however, he explained himself.

"Please, don't think about this too much. After you told me about your dream, your nightmare, I couldn't help but think about this war. I just want you to be safe; I want you to live. If you don't make it out alive, I'll… I d-don't know w-what I'll do and…"

He was choking up and his words started coming out in sputters. He didn't want to get emotional, he had promised himself that he wouldn't, but he couldn't help it. The thought of losing the person that he loved most was just too much for him. Aubrielle looked at her hand and than back at her boyfriend. It was so rare to see him cry like this and she knew it was him putting another wall down. She thumbed away a stray tear that was falling down his cheek.

"I know Neville. I know. I don't want to lose you either."

She took the lanyard and put it around her neck before tucking the vile under her shirt. She knew that this meant a lot to him and at this point, she had completely forgotten about her nightmare that she had had months prior. She took his face and cupped it in her hands.

"Thank you. I love you."

She left a passionate, lingering kiss on his lips, silently telling him that she would try as hard as she could to live. She would do everything in her power to make it through this war and she would fight until the very end. She was going to do it for him, do it for Nielah, do it for her mother, and do it for herself. She would make it. She had to. She didn't have any other options, not in her mind.

(Luna Comes Back)

The radio was turned on high as a bunch of students started dancing in the center of the Room to some old vaudeville sounding music. It was a humid Friday in the castle, but for the first time in a while, spirits were somewhat high. The school year was winding down in a sense and with Snape being more easy going with the rules; life inside the school seemed to be easier. Aubrielle was giggling as Neville twirled her and spun her, and occasionally dipped her down to lay a kiss on her lips. Neville had always been a talented dancer, especially after fancying it so much during their fourth year when the school hosted the Yule Ball during the Triwizard Tournament. Dean was also trying to get Emolly to lighten up. The Slytherin had finally accepted the fact that her magic needed time and she hadn't performed any in three weeks or so, which made Aubrielle extremely happy. The blonde was finally starting to smile when Dean started making a fool out of himself by doing absolutely ridiculous dance moves. She was laughing hard now and got up to join him. Katie Bell and Oliver Wood were also having a blast along side Seamus and Lavender. There were some other younger students dancing as well, not necessarily in couples like the seventh years, but just letting loose and being kids for once. It was a beautiful sight.

Ariana loudly cleared her throat in the portrait. For such a quiet girl, she always made herself known. Neville reluctantly left his pouting girlfriend and walked over to the portrait.

"What is it Ariana?"

"You have a visitor."

With those words, she swung the portrait open. When Neville finally got a glimpse of who was behind it, tears started flowing freely down his cheeks. Screw being manly; it was someone who he thought could possibly be dead.

"LUNA!"

The entire Army turned to see if what they had heard was correct. Sure enough, standing in the entryway, with her hair in long, wild blonde curls was Luna Lovegood. Other than a small black eye, she looked healthy and untouched. Neville knew not to jump to conclusions though. The witch had most likely gone through a lot in the past 4 months. The Ravenclaw walked down the jutted stones with trunk in hand as the Room filled with gasps, whispers, cheers, claps, and the sounds of crying. Apparently, people had missed her. She set down her luggage and was immediately wrapped into Neville's arms. He was really crying now, letting all the fear and worry that had been pent up inside of him be released. He was just so happy to see her alive. He pulled away and looked into her crystal blue eyes. She was crying too.

"I have so much to tell you."

"As do I."

(Early May. Harry Arrives.)

The Room of Requirement was packed with Army members when Ariana called out for Neville. He walked over to the portrait and looked at the young woman.

"Is Ab coming through?"

"No. He needs you to come to him."

"What?" Neville had never traveled through the portrait before! What was this about?

"Come. He says that it's a surprise."

Neville glanced back at Aubrielle, who looked extremely perplexed and distraught. She did NOT want her boyfriend leaving the grounds because she knew that there were way too many dangers out there. She went over to him and kissed him hard.

"Be safe."

"I will."

He slowly walked up the stone stairs as the portrait swung open. His hands were lightly shaking from nerves as he peered down the long, dark, and damp hallway. It was really eerie looking. He tentatively started walking and jumped a little when the picture clicked shut behind him. It was suddenly a lot darker. He quickly whipped out his wand. "Lumos!" The little light helped brighten the passage way and he continued on his way. It seemed as if he had been walking for a while. It had to be a couple of miles at least. How long was this anyway? He finally reached the other side and gently pushed open the door with his wand ready. He had no idea what was on the other side.

"NEVILLE?"

There, in front of him, was the Golden Trio.

"HARRY! HERMIONE! RON!"

He jumped down and engulfed his friends in a bear hug. He was beyond excited to see them again. Words couldn't even express how happy he was at that moment in time. He pulled away to see a tear in Hermione's eye. She was always emotional like that.

"What the bloody Hell are you three doing here!"

"We need to get into the castle." Harry ran his fingers through his surprisingly long hair. Neville smiled at his fellow Gryffindors.

"Follow me than."

They walked through the dark hallway, Neville leading the way, as Harry pelted him with questions.

"What passage is this? It wasn't on the Marauder's Map."

"Ab made it and connected it to headquarters. As far as I am concerned, this is the only way in or out of the school."

"How is Hogwarts now? How's Snape?"

"Never see him. He is always locked away in his office. The real people to look out for are the Carrows."

"Carrows?"

"Brother and sister death eaters. They're bloody brutal. Amycus is in charge of punishments. He's a big fan of the Unforgivables."

Hermione squeaked, "The Unforgivables!"

"Oh yeah. He used the Cruciatus Curse on Aubrielle and I when he figured out we were dating."

Hermione gasped as Ron searched for her hand in the dark. She immediately took it in her own and intertwined her fingers with his.

"But why would that matter that you two are dating?"

"There was a new rule set in at the beginning of the year. You weren't allowed to talk to anyone outside of your house. It made it bloody difficult to form the Army again."

"You started it up again?"

Harry was in disbelief. Sure, Neville had always been a great friend and Harry knew that the Gryffindor had courage in him, but he didn't think it was enough to start Dumbledore's Army again!

"Yeah. Gin, Luna, and I got on that as soon as we could. We recruited a lot of new members too."

"Speaking of Ginny-"

"Oh you'll get to see my sister soon enough lover boy!"

Ron rolled his eyes even though no one could see it.

"Harry never shut up about her. Never. 'Oh! I wonder if she's okay! I just want to hold her and kiss her and blah blah blah…' It got real old, real quick."

Neville chuckled. For being the Chosen One, Harry was pretty sappy. They reached the other end of the tunnel and Neville put out his wand.

"Nox. Now, stand behind me. Lets have some fun, yeah?"

He pushed open the portrait to see the Army anxiously waiting for him. They were all concerned as to why he had to travel to the other side when, normally, Aberforth was the only one who did so. He smiled down at them, especially making eye contact with Aubrielle. Seamus looked up at his friend.

"What's going on Neville?"

"I've got a present for the lot of you."

"Yeah? What's that?"

He stepped aside to reveal the Golden Trio and the Army members immediately erupted in applause. There was an immediate atmosphere shift as hope and joy filled every single student there. In private, Luna had told Neville, Ginny, and Aubrielle about the Trio and what had happened at Malfoy Manner. The Army leaders decided to keep it between them, however, so the rest of the Army had no idea about the current state of their classmates. Therefore, their arrival was not only unexpected, but it was rejuvenating as well. Harry was still alive, he could still kill the Dark Lord, and this war can still be won. While the four Gryffindors made it to the floor, something dawned on Neville. Something absolutely terrifying. Before he could pull Harry aside, however, the Chosen One started talking.

"Hello all. I, err, need your help finding something."

Lavender smiled, "What is it?"

"I don't know. I, well, it has something to do with Ravenclaw house. It's something that would be a symbol of Rowena or the house as a whole. I don't know anything about Ravenclaw though…"

Nielah turned to Aubrielle and Luna, who were standing next to each other. The fifth year mouthed the word, 'diadem' to them. Luna's eyes lit up and she turned to Aubrielle.

"The lost diadem."

"OH!"

Harry turned to the girls, "what? What?"

"The lost diadem of Ravenclaw! That's got to be it!"

Cho cut in and caught Harry by surprise. What was she doing here? She graduated last year…

"It's called the lost diadem for a reason. It's been missing for centuries. Rumor has it that no one alive has seen it."

Ron looked frustrated as the girls went on talking. "What the Hell is a diadem?"

Hermione giggled. "It's like a crown. Well…a tiara."

"Okay. So how the Hell are we suppose to find something like that?"

Luna stepped foreword, "Well since no one alive has seen it-"

The familiar sound of the doors appearing echoed throughout the Room of Requirement as Ginny came running in in a tiff. She looked disheveled but relieved as she ran straight into her boyfriend's arms. He picked her off the ground and buried his head into her. He was so elated to see her that he couldn't hold back the tears that were threatening to fall. This just felt so right to him, her being in his arms, and he didn't want this moment to end. He hadn't seen her for months so this was his heaven at the moment. She pulled away and landed a fiery kiss on his lips. She loved him so much.

"Snape knows you're here. He heard about what happened in Hogsmeade. He wants everyone in the Great Hall…now."

The students immediately started running around, putting on their full uniforms and cloaks. Neville quickly pulled Aubrielle aside. That burning fear that he had realized earlier was happening right now.

"The war is coming here. Now. This war is about to hit us Aubrielle. You-Know-Who is going to go to wherever Harry is, and that's here."

Aubrielle's eyes widened as she came to terms with what her boyfriend was saying. He was right. This was about to hit them like the world's most powerful storm. She reached into her trunk and pulled out her Doua Sansa necklace. She quickly put it around her neck and tucked it under her shirt. She looked up to try and find her sister but instead found her best friend. Emolly, who hadn't used magic in a month. Emolly, who was still extremely weak and had no idea what kind of magic she could even perform. Emolly. She turned to her boyfriend.

"Tell Dean and Emolly. She doesn't know what magic she can perform and-"

"Got it." He kissed her quickly before running off towards the couple. It was mass chaos in the Room. Students were running out as soon as they had their uniforms on and the noise was deafening. Nielah came running to her sister with her wand in hand.

"This war is coming, isn't it?"

Aubrielle reached for her little sister and pulled her into her chest. "Yes. It is. We're going to be okay, though. We're gonna get through this, you hear me?"

"Y-yeah I h-hear you."

The fifth year was holding back the sobs as her worst nightmare came true. She was about to fight death eaters and even more, fight for her life. This was about to be the longest day of all their lives.

Again, sorry that this is so late! I know it moved quickly, but the actual war is going to be broken up into numerous chapters! Review!