Draco paced his room, feeling utterly frantic.

He still didn't know if Neve was okay... if she was even alive.

Nobody was telling him anything; the whole lot of them were busy celebrating Dumbledore's death instead.

He felt sick when he remembered how he had stumbled across her trying to crawl up the corridor away from the chaos. He had been desperate to help her, but Snape was having none of it, grabbing him forcibly and pulling him away.

"She'll be fine, Draco, now come on!" He had spat, barely even glancing at Neve who was soaked in her own blood.

He should have tried harder to fight Snape off, Draco thought to himself afterwards. He should have tried harder to help Neve instead of leaving her alone and bleeding to death in the corridor.

But he had been in shock himself, and his head had been full of frightened fuzz.

He was a coward.

Draco span round at the sound of the furtive knock at his bedroom door, which opened immediately, revealing his mother.

He strode over to her at once, searching her face for any clue of her news.

"She's in St Mungo's," she said at once, and the relief Draco felt upon the news that she wasn't dead came at him in such a strong surge, that he had to steady himself for a moment.

"It- it's not good Draco, I'm afraid," his mother said, causing his short lived relief to be replaced with a feeling of horror.

"What? What is it mother?" He asked, his heart pounding fearfully.

"They had to remove her womb," she said slowly, and Draco was shocked to see that his mother actually had tears in her eyes. "The poor girl will never get to bear her own children."

But this news didn't have the emotional affect on Draco that it seemed to his mother. All he cared about right then was that Neve was going to live. He felt nothing but relief.

It must have shown on his face because his mother shook her head sadly at him. "I know you're too young to understand the full impact of this right now. But for a woman to be ripped of that choice..." She tailed off, as a tear rolled down her cheek. "You say you love her, Draco," she continued. "I just want you to understand what this means for you if you devote your life to her."

So what? Draco thought. They won't have children. He seriously didn't care. His only concern at the moment was getting through this war alive. The idea of creating life was almost laughable. Who would want to bring a child into this cruel and twisted world? All he wanted was Neve, and the fact that she was alive was all that mattered to him.

"I want to see her," Draco hissed, suddenly desperate to hold her in his arms and tell her that he loved her.

"You can't Draco, you know how risky that could be. And with the Dark Lord currently residing with us, we must presume that our every movement is being watched!"

Draco felt angry. He wanted to kick something. He wanted Voldemort to fuck off and leave them alone.

But no, they were prisoners in their own home and he had no idea when, or even if, he'd ever get to see Neve again.

*****

I was released out of the hospital a week before I was to return to Hogwarts for my seventh and final year.

And all I could think about was Draco. I had no idea if he would be there or not. And not having heard from him all summer, I also had no idea if he was even okay.

"Neve, I've been thinking you should stay at home with me," Gran said fretfully after we discovered that Snape was taking over as headmaster. "I do not like the sound of what's happening there one bit. It's being run by Death Eaters!"

I agreed, but only for the reason I wanted to stay and look after Gran. Despite the fact that I had been the one who had major surgery, it was Gran who looked weak and frail.

And I wanted to keep Trevor safe at home too.

However, the Ministry decided to change the law so that attending Hogwarts was now compulsory for every age appropriate British witch or wizard; arrests would be made for any parent or guardian who tried to keep their child home without good cause.

And, upon learning that two more Death Eaters were going to join the ranks as teachers, I decided on the heartbreaking decision not to take Trevor with me.

"You'll be safer here with Gran," I wept tearfully as I kissed him goodbye. "I love you so much, Trevor."

And I did, I loved him like my own child... a thought that brought a painful lump to my throat.

I pushed down the unbearable sadness that threatened to engulf me.

Stop it, stop it, stop it, I screamed over and over in my head until it had gone away.

I didn't want to think about it; to face the reality of what had happened to me. People were dying all around me so it felt too self indulgent to be upset about losing something that never existed in the first place.

"It's okay to be sad about it," Gran had said to me one night after I'd silently walked out of the living room when the programme Gran was watching on the television showed a woman holding her baby for the first time.

But I swallowed the sadness down, because there were bigger things to worry about. And getting my loved ones through this war alive was one of them.

The journey to Hogwarts was bleak. There was a fear in the air, and it soon became apparent that Harry, Ron and Hermione would not be attending.

"We haven't seen or heard from them since the raid on my brother's wedding," a fraught looking Ginny informed me as the train trundled us north. "We just have to have faith that they are out there somewhere fighting for us."

"I'm sure they are," I said reassuringly, giving her a small, hopeful smile despite feeling utterly desolate and afraid myself.

"I just wish there was something I could do!" She said fiercely, pounding her fist frustratedly into the palm of her other hand. "I hate sitting around doing nothing whilst Harry is risking his life for us!"

"But there is," Luna blinked, her voice it's usual dreamy and serene self. "We have Dumbledore's Army, remember?"

I sat up straight. I hadn't thought of that. My heart fluttered in excitement.

"We'll keep it going," I agreed. "There's still the Room of Requirement. Once we get the lay of the new system, we can call a meeting and discuss strategies. We will not allow the Death Eaters to take over our castle! They can take away our Defence Against the Dark Arts classes but they will not take away Dumbledore's Army!"

"Here, here!" Luna and Ginny cried simultaneously.

I sat back feeling a warm glow inside my chest that I was finally doing something productive.

We would not let the bastards get us down. Not on my watch.

*****