A/N: This chapter was ready for a long time, but I had to wait until I built the story to a point before posting it. I hope you will like it.

Ch23: Revival

Neville seemed very sad during Herbology. Lilly noticed also that he looked distracted. She was sure that it was not a reaction to something at school, yet she couldn't even guess what caused his mood. She noticed Neville talk with Minerva during lunch and then leaving promptly. As soon as Neville left the hall, Lilly approached the headmistress.

"I'm worried about Nev... Professor Longbottom."

"Why are you worried about him?"

"Well, I've known him as my parents' friend of for most of my life and I've never seen him so sad and distracted."

Minerva smiled sadly. "I appreciate your concern and I'm sure he would appreciate it as well, but unfortunately there's nothing we can do for him right now."

"Can you tell me a bit more?"

Minerva walked with her to her office. "Do you know anything about Neville's parents?" she asked the girl.

"He never really mentioned them. I know they were friends with my grandparents, so they must be about the same age as Lady Black. I've heard they have been staying at the hospital for many years, but I don't know why."

Minerva sighed deeply. "I'm not sure if I should tell you..." She thought for a moment. "Well, you already know most of it, so it may be alright to tell you the rest..." She thought some more. "After the Dark Lord was defeated by Harry when he was still a baby, some of the Death Eaters believed he was just captured and held in some hidden prison. Neville's parents used to be aurors and were friends with your grandparents. Some Death Eaters managed to attack them and then tortured them, trying to make them tell where the Dark Lord was kept. By the time the torture was relieved, they already lost their mind. None of the healers could restore their mind. They have been staying at the hospital ever since."

Lilly was appalled at the story. "I hope those monsters were caught and punished!"

"They were, although some managed to do some more evil deeds when the Dark Lord returned. None of them escaped justice eventually," Minerva told her.

"But nobody was able to help the victims," Lilly noted bitterly. She kept thinking for a moment. "Maybe I can help them?"

Minerva seemed utterly surprised. "You? How can you help?"

"You know I healed Andrew without ever learning how to do it. I may just try helping them as well..." She suddenly seemed to recall her original concern. "You haven't told me why Neville is suddenly so upset."

The headmistress sighed again. "He visited his parents during the weekend, only to find out that they are now refusing to eat. They never ate too much since arriving at the hospital, but now they refuse to eat anything. The healers are still able to feed them by sending liquid food directly into their stomachs, yet this is not something that should be carried for more than a few days. Neville is now worried that they may soon die."

"Then I must try to help! Please tell him I need to see him. Please…!"

Minerva sighed, looking fondly at the young girl. "I'll tell him, but do keep your hopes low. There's very little chance you can do anything about it."

"I know... I may have to ask for Dianna's help, though."

"Why?"

"We seem to enhance each-other's abilities when we work together and I may need her support."

Neville was surprised to hear about Lilly's request, yet he talked with Lilly soon after Dinner. "I want to visit your parents and see if I can do anything to help them," she told him.

Neville didn't need much persuasion. He was already desperate and willing to try anything to save his parents. He wasn't too surprised when Lilly grabbed his hands and apparated them both to St. Mungos. He stopped at the door to the ward.

"The people living here are severely injured mentally. It may be quite difficult to watch them. Get out if you feel overwhelmed. This is not something I'd like a child your age to see."

Lilly smiled reassuringly at Neville, held his hand and walked in. Neville led her to his parents. They were sitting on their beds facing each other, yet their eyes looked unfocused. They didn't even seem to notice the visitors.

Lilly took a chair and sat between the beds. She then grabbed their hands, the ones closest to her, and held them in her hands, closing her eyes. Neville looked at her, not really knowing what to expect. He saw Lilly's expression becoming somber and then her complexion paling to almost white, before she let go of his parents' hands and opened her eyes.

"So much pain," she whispered, "and so much cruelty… Nobody should be subjected to such!" Neville noticed some moisture in her eyes, yet her face looked determined. "I'll need Dianna's help at this," she told him, "and I must also contemplate the best way to help them."

"Are you sure you can help them?"

Lilly sighed as if she was much older. "I wish I could be sure." She was silent for a moment, apparently thinking about it. "There is a barrier in their minds. It is like each of them is hiding behind an immense wall as a way to escape suffering. They only glimpse through that wall once in a while and they apparently don't find a cause to step out. I could demolish that wall, only it would be no good. The shock of becoming exposed may turn them completely catatonic and forever lost to the world. I want to try something else. I want to cover their minds with love and acceptance so that they would finally want to step forward and come back to the world. It must be done with them both, so I can use one's love for the other and also because if one of them returns only to find the other in the current situation it could be quite harmful as well."

"Where did you learn all that?" Neville wondered.

"I just looked through Mom's books whenever I had a chance. It looks like the muggles have much better understanding of human mind than any of the magical healers."

It was difficult for Neville to grasp the wealth of knowledge this girl had. While most of it was just theoretical, coming from reading books and from nothing else, her mind was finding new ways to use that knowledge. He couldn't help but hope that whatever she decided to do would help his parents as nothing else seemed to help them any longer.

"Shall we go back now?" Lilly suggested.

"I'd like to stay with them a bit more. Can you return to the same spot that we left from?"

"Sure!" she said.

Before he could even respond she was no longer there. He looked at the space she had occupied a moment before and his mind was reeling. He had been told of her tremendous powers, yet she apparated as easily as she was breathing!

They returned the next evening along with Dianna. "Can you make them lie in bed? I'd like them to relax or even fall asleep before we attempt anything."

"I'll ask the healers."

Neville brought two healers who cast a sleeping spell on the couple and then helped them into their beds. Lilly moved her hand and the two beds moved closer. Lilly stood between the beds, holding hands with her patients, while Dianna stood behind her, just holding her waist in a tight embrace.

The girls closed their eyes. Lilly started humming some soothing melody while her face showed concentration. A few minutes passed with nothing happening. Neville was already considering stopping the girls, when Lilly started glowing. It was only a tiny glow from her face at first, but it soon moved to her hands as well and then the sleeping adults started glowing as well. The two girls and the two adults seemed to be immersed in shimmering waves of blue and yellow, yet nothing seemed to change. The glow soon diminished until it disappeared. Nothing seemed to change about his parents, only the girls looked exhausted. Neville helped them sit down and then made the healers bring some tea to help them recover. The healers ran some of their tests to assure the girls were fine and checked to make sure their patients were not worse than before.

"They will sleep until tomorrow morning, at least," Lilly said, after drinking most of her tea. "They will be hungry and will need a lot of food for a few days, while their minds get restored, hopefully."

Dianna was already dozing on her seat. "I'm sorry I can't take you back. I'm too exhausted for side-along apparition," said Lilly. She then made Dianna wake up enough to apparate back to Hogwarts.

Neville was missing from school for the next couple of days. When he finally arrived he went directly to Lilly and Dianna. "You've brought my parents back to me," he told them with tears in his eyes.

"Can you tell me what happened?" Lilly asked.

"They slept almost until noon of the next day, as you expected. When they woke up they looked quite confused, not really understanding where they were and why they were there. They didn't recognize me, of course, but they asked if I could ask the elves to make them a larger breakfast. The healers then served them a large breakfast in a separate dining room. They didn't really want to talk with anybody. They only held each other's hands and talked with each other almost silently. By dinner they became more aware of their surroundings. They soon found out they were in St. Mungo's and they remembered staying there for a long time. Then Mom started talking about her baby and of how much he must have grown by now."

Neville eyes were shining moist as he was talking. "I was no longer able to stand aside. I walked to them and told them that they have been staying at the hospital for many years and that their baby is a man by now. I then introduced myself."

Lilly looked worried. "Were you sure it wasn't too early to do that?"

"I wasn't sure at all. Mom looked at first as if stunned and I was starting to berate myself for acting foolishly, but then she smiled at me and looked at my father. 'I really thought he looked a lot like you, only you don't have any brother,' she told my Dad. Then she hugged me and started sobbing for all the years of my growing up that she had missed. Dad joined the hug. We spent half the night just talking, until the healers told them they should sleep in order to recuperate if they wanted to finally go home. Granny joined me the next day at about noon. She was so excited that the healers had to give her a calming potion. She will continue visiting them each day until they are both physically and mentally back to normal, which should only take a few more days, according to the healers."

He was looking at Lilly with unashamed admiration. "The healers would also like to meet you again and learn what you did and how you did it, hoping this method can be used for others as well. My Granny will also like to thank you, and my parents want to as well. Both you and Dianna acted in the most unselfish way and practically saved my parents."

"You are my family's friend and I consider you my friend as well, and so does Dianna. We just wanted to help our friend…" Lilly shrugged the compliment.

Neville, though, had a different opinion. "I don't know how I can ever thank you enough. I do know one thing, though: from now on you are both distinguished honorary members of the Longbottom family."

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