Chapter 23

The next morning Harry woke up very early and after washing and pulling on fresh and clean robes, went to the infirmary where Hermione was still sleeping, though her cheeks seemed less pale than yesterday. Harry sat with her for a few minutes and walked down to the Great Hall for breakfast and found only the Herbology professor there and hardly any student.

All of them were in their beds sleeping late because there would be no class today Harry realized. He could not sleep because of his worry over Hermione and Snape had not returned and nor had he activated his earring. Harry was loath to do so because he was scared he would distract Snape. Harry had a leisurely breakfast and he got up and walked outside.

Contrast to the weather yesterday, today was a beautiful cloudless day. The air was sharp and rather chill but the sun was already creeping out and was valiantly trying to shine brightly. Harry walked around aimlessly before sitting down by the lake under a huge oak tree, the same tree he had sat down for hours as he came to terms with the death of Sirius.

He was there for almost an hour peacefully contemplating on his various themes as he had dubbed them and in between worrying about Snape and thinking about Hermione and the Weasleys.

Arthur had proved to be very tough and showed enormous tenacity when it came to helping them. He brought all kinds of information from the Ministry where he started snooping a lot more. He gave the information to Snape first and allowed Snape to advice him on how much he could tell Dumbledore.

He was also trying to chat up Amelia Bones, on whom he had seen a very distasteful expression when she had seen Dumbledore walking away at the ministry. He saw her and her deputy, Brian Wheeler make faces that clearly showed they did not like Dumbledore. From then on, Arthur Weasley was going out of his way to get them to Harry's side.

Harry smiled to himself as Snape told him that during their nightly chats. He felt sad and great all at the same time as he knew Arthur Weasley had not and most likely would never get over what his three children had done, but at the same time he was fiercely fighting against the evil that was not only Voldemort but also Dumbledore.

Arthur Weasley and because of him everyone was now referring to their team as Harry's side. Harry had felt very angry at first and had protested to Snape, Arran and the others who had teased him by calling him their own Lord and Master but Snape had calmed him down and later speaking to Harry he had told him not to panic just because all of them cared and would help Harry fulfill the prophecy and also improve the world they were living in.

Snape had not given earrings to Arthur initially because he was scared Molly would find out. After strict instructions about never speaking in the home unless it was an emergency Snape had given him and the others earrings and all of them were now connected.

But in spite of all this Arthur Weasley was very cold inside as he suffered everyday about the treachery of his three children. The fact Molly would come to know of this gave him nightmares and he knew Molly was worried and he was forever thankful he had made the vow not to reveal anything to anyone, to Harry. It would take him the rest of his life to overcome that and now he and the other Weasleys were doing their utmost to reduce the betrayal the three had caused.

Harry sat there still watching the lake when he heard steps coming down. Looking up he saw Ron and Ginny coming to him. He looked up at Ron, ignoring Ginny and after a moment he turned to gaze at the lake again.

Ron went red with anger at the intended insult and Ginny nudged him again to calm him down and then Ron and Ginny sat down on either side of Harry.

"Mate I am sorry for yesterday." Ron told him in a low voice.

"Why?" Harry asked him, his eyes still on the lake in front of him.

Ginny placed her hand on Harry and looked at him smiling sweetly. She was alone with Harry at last and wanted to do something to kick start her campaign with him. "Harry Ron never meant all those words he spoke yesterday. Please forgive him."

"Ginny there is nothing to forgive. Ron spoke what he felt. What is wrong there?" Harry asked her smoothly.

Ron and Ginny gaped at him. "Harry you were so angry yesterday." Ginny told him uncertainly as she tried to understand him.

"Yesterday I was already feeling the chill of the dementors and their effects and with the tension of the game I really was not in a position to act very calm I'm afraid."

Harry got up and brushing off his robes, smiled at the other two, "I am going inside. Coming?"

'Harry?" Ginny called out very softly to him even as Ron smiled uncertainly at Harry, feeling very relieved when Harry smiled back at him, "Harry?" Ginny called him again and he looked at her even as he began to walk away with Ron. "Yes Ginny? What is it?"

"Let Ron go. We can stay here some more time and enjoy the beautiful atmosphere around here." She said softly trying to look alluring and fluttering her lashes at Harry.

"Yes mate. Stay here with Ginny." Harry turned and looked at him enquiringly, he blushed, and "I need to use the bathroom. I will come back soon. You stay here with her. She, kind of likes you mate." He mumbled looking down his face all red.

Ginny spoke as well, she would never get a chance like this. "Yes Harry. You are my hero. I have loved you for as long as I like and," she sighed as he gazed up with a look of adoration at her hero.

Harry felt nauseated inside but looking very calm on the outside, he misunderstood deliberately, "Ginny that is very kind of you. But I am no one's hero Ginny. I am an ordinary boy. Come on."

He almost turned to walk away but on a whim decided to peep into her mind as she protested. "No Harry I really love you." What she was thinking was, "The fool is so thick headed. A love potion would be the best. Yes. Mixed in his butter beer, that would be for the best. Or better still would be a spell; yes that is the answer. I must discuss this with Ron and get going and finish it before Hermione wakes up and suspects something."

Seeing Harry look intently at her, she fluttered her eyes at him and watched with satisfaction as Harry flushed. Harry was flushing with anger and not with happiness as he walked away but both Ron and Ginny who to Ron's surprise allowed him to walk away from her, thought he was flushing with pleasure and embarrassment.

Harry went straight to his dorm on the pretext of taking out some books and closed his curtains, which had a privacy charm and a silencing spell on them and activated his earring when he realized Snape had not come yet. He decided to try anyway as he was so angry, he was shaking.

"Severus?" he almost hissed in his anger.

Snape who had just entered Hogwarts did not answer and a few minutes later Harry heard the password to the Headmaster's office.

He calmed down unintentionally as he listened.

Snape in the meanwhile was going to Dumbledore's office to report to him before going to his rooms and speak to Harry, when he actually felt Harry's anger through the link as Harry activated the link. Worried he rushed to the Headmaster's office and went inside.

"Ah! Severus, come in. Tea?"

"Yes Albus, most definitely. The Dark Lord is getting more and more paranoid as the days goes by."

Dumbledore poured out the tea and there was silence for some time.

"Go on Severus." Dumbledore's voice was unusually serious as he looked at his spy who looked very tired and ragged.

Snape sighed, "What am I to say Albus? The Dark Lord did not say a word to anyone about these attacks. He suddenly orders more than a hundred of them to kiss and kill as they like except the blasted boy, whom he hissed was his to kill. They, the dementors I mean were to bring back Potter unharmed.

"He refused to let me go saying that no one in the Inner Circle would leave with the information until the dementors and along with them Potter came back. I was at my wit's end and after some time I hesitantly told him that while it was a good thing that Gryffindors would be kissed the Slytherins along with them would have their souls sucked as well.

"And among the Slytherins were the children of the death eaters who would help the Dark Lord when they left School. So I volunteered as Head of Slytherin House to go along with the dementors and guide them."

Dumbledore made a sound of appreciation at that. "But he wouldn't let me go Albus. He said he could not let anyone with the information of the attack be let out of his sight. Five minutes later, just as the dementors were about to leave he called Mulciber and five others and told them to make sure the Slytherins would not be harmed and if they would fight as most of the brave ones would because they would consider it a test as their fathers would not have told them about the attacks, they were not to be harmed. Did they fight?"

Dumbledore nodded at that his eyes beginning to twinkle. He had been worried about the Slytherins fighting with Harry and this must be the reason why. "Draco, Bulstrode and Nott fought alongside with Harry, Miss Granger and Miss Lovegood."

Snape started at that. He had included that statement only to excuse Draco, Pansy and Blaise's helping the others. But Nott and Bulstrode? That was alarming and astounding.

Dumbledore smiled. "I too was very worried Severus. But this must be the reason why they fought alongside Harry. Please go on."

Snape told him briefly about how the dementors had come back and how Voldemort had blasted all of them and then stormed away inside. "Even Bellatrix was scared Albus. None of us went inside and we stayed there the whole day not even daring to talk. He came today morning and shouted at all of us to get out and we simply ran for the door."

Dumbledore smiled at him and told him what had happened here and then sent Snape to sleep his tiredness away. Snape billowed out of the room and almost ran to his quarters and went into his bedroom and called for Harry.

"Harry? What happened? I could feel your anger but could not respond." He asked Harry very worried.

Harry who had been listening to Snape's safe return with relief now felt his anger boiling again. "Sev today for the first time I could peep into someone's mind without their knowledge." Harry told him tightly.

"Well that is good news isn't it?" Snape asked Harry bewildered.

Harry's "NO!" almost made Snape deaf and he winced. Something was very wrong here. "Harry," he said softly pushing his tiredness down. Harry had not even asked him how he was. He was that bothered and upset.

"Oh! Sev!" Harry's agitated voice came shakily as he told Snape all that had happened since yesterday when Snape had given him the news.

Snape was stunned at Ron's callousness and amazed at the fighting and the reaction of Bulstrode yesterday night and became almost as angry as Harry when he heard about Ginny's thoughts.

"What if she manages to dose me or spell me Sev? I would lose all purpose after that and become their lapdog."

"You certainly won't. I will be checking you everyday as will McGonagall and remember I have a monitoring spell on you. Now allow me to talk with Minerva and plan to do something about this; you go out and act normal. Go on Harry. You can do this. Don't allow them to disturb you like this child."

Harry slowly calmed down and the he realized he hadn't asked Snape anything about what happened and he apologized, "Sorry Sev, here you are so tired and I was being so selfish and could not even ask you how you were before I started off," Snape cut him off there, "If someone would call you selfish Harry that would be the day I treat Albus and Moody as my best friends. Stupid child. You were terrified and rightly so. Now move on and let me handle this."

Feeling very relieved Harry relaxed and instead of going out, settled down to sleep. An hour later Ginny and Ron came up stealthily and walked up to Harry's bed. All the beds were empty as was the room. Harry was sleeping very soundly. In the discussion they had by the lake Ron had been against Ginny using the love potion as Harry swooning all over her would be very obvious and sudden.

Ginny had been thinking the same thing and they had put their heads together and come up with a spell. Not any spell but the imperious. They had decided to cast it together as Harry would not be able to fight a double spell and then inform Dumbledore to ensure that if they were found out they had him on their side and if he was against it they could always remove the spell and then try something else.

What Ron and Ginny did not know was Snape had cast a monitoring charm on Harry to tell him at any point if a spell would be cast at him. Any spell that would hit him, Snape would know. He had cast it after Harry had been hit with the seeping curse. That day they had been fortunate because Snape had kept his earring activated as had McGonagall.

But they would not be so fortunate always and so Snape had taken precautions. He had monitoring charms of Draco, Harry and Blaise and McGonagall had those of Hermione and Pansy.

Snape after listening to Harry had now spoken to McGonagall and both of them had decided to do the same with potions as well. Snape would give Harry and the others a potion he had developed that would act as the monitoring charm in the body. It would alert Snape and McGonagall if any potion was given to these five students, even potions like the pepper up.

So Snape had gone to rest. He would have hardly slept for about ten minutes when the monitoring charm went off in his head. It was Harry's.

Ginny had done the unthinkable. In her anxiety that she had not even got to first base with Harry, in fact Harry was not even aware there was a person by name Ginny, she and Ron had decide to make Harry fall for Ginny. "Imperio!" both Ron and Ginny cast it together so that Harry would not be able to repel it.

Had Harry been awake he would have repelled it but he was asleep and the spell hit him square on his back.

Those words woke up Snape in a hurry. He cursed as he was very tired but in a second went to alert as an unforgivable was being cast at his Harry. He had the ring activated and called Minerva and told her to activate her earring to Harry. He could hear the clear voice of Ginny Weasley as could one Albus Dumbledore who was startled and was about to floo to the Gryffindor common room when he heard Ginny's voice and stopped.

"Harry wake up." Harry woke up and she cast the imperious once again along with Ron on him, "Imperio! You will fall in love with me and you will be best friends with Ron. You will listen to both of us and professor Dumbledore who has your best interests at heart. You will date me and go out with me and fall wholly and completely in love with me. You will forget this conversation now and go back to sleep." And hit him with a sleeping charm.

Harry smiled a confused smile and with an 'okay Ginny I really love you' flopped back on his bed and went to sleep.

"That was a bit over the top Gin." Ron grinned.

"Of course. The git wasn't even looking at me Ron and today you saw how cold he was towards you. What else can we do? You tell me if you have a better plan. We are almost into February and in a few months we would have finished this year and Harry had yet to speak a whole sentence to me. Professor Dumbledore told me I had to win Harry's affections by this year."

"Well don't say git and the like to the boy who is about to become your boyfriend and drop Dean else it could get messy." Ron warned her as she smiled and both of them walked out of the room not noticing a horrified boy who had been about to enter the room to take his bag and hearing the words 'imperio' had stopped with his wand at the ready. When he realized who it was he had backed into a corner and cast a quick disillusion charm and a notice me not charm on him.

As soon as they went out Neville went in and got his bag and still with the disillusion charm looked at Harry. Harry was sleeping peacefully and Neville bit his lips in worry and then slowly went down. He need not have worried as both Ron and Ginny had gone to the Headmaster to get official sanction for their unforgivable.

The moment he saw they were not there he ran like he had never run in his life and reached the office of McGonagall who was still talking very angrily to a furious Snape. Hearing the knock on her door that looked more like someone was breaking it, she called an irritated 'come in'.

"Professor," Neville gasped for breath as he held his side and weakly sat down without invitation in the chair in front of her desk. She looked at him with unconcealed irritation.

"What is it Longbottom?" Neville gasped for breath and after a minute McGonagall conjured a glass of water that he gulped his water gratefully and he looked at her with terror.

"Professor please don't take my name in this." He asked her and shook just a little with fear as she literally scowled at him.

"Longbottom," she barked sharply making the already frightened boy cower in his chair, "I am very busy here." And scowled as she took in her clean and paperless desk, but fortunately for her Neville was looking at her and so did not notice the small charm that made a few papers appear on her desk. "Tell me what the matter is and I will look into it and I will decide whether I should take your name in anything or not."

"Professor, I was on my way to my dorm to get my bag to go to the library for studying when I heard someone cast the imperious curse." Here Neville trembled as he worried about whether McGonagall would chew his head for even thinking about the fact that it had been Ron and Ginny who had done so.

McGonagall stopped breathing as did Snape as they heard Neville's words. "What are you saying Longbottom? In your dorm? By whom and on whom?"

Neville started shaking, "On Harry professor and by Ginny Weasley and Ron was also there. They said professor Dumbledore had ordered Ginny to win Harry's affections by this year and as he did not care for Ginny in that way, they really had no choice. Ginny also ordered Harry to be very loyal to Ron. I swear professor, I heard them. I swear, I swear, I swear." Neville repeated those words again and again thinking no one would believe him over Ginny Weasley and Ron Weasley.

Suddenly the door opened as McGonagall kept staring at the trembling boy who was so scared but was willing to be disbelieved and ridiculed and shouted at about his findings but still had the nerve to report it. This was why he was in Gryffindor she realized. He was the truly brave, fighting even in the face of fear, terror and ridicule.

Neville squeaked as the door opened and his eyes almost popped out in horror as he saw Snape come inside and ward the door. He turned back to the Head of his House and with his eyes pleaded with her not to tell Snape.

"Longbottom," Snape called out to him softly. Neville looked at him his mouth agape and his whole frame trembling.

"I want to thank you first Longbottom for coming to McGonagall with this. Yes I heard the whole thing and no; no one else heard it. And yes I believe you, and so does professor McGonagall."

Neville did the only thing he could do under the circumstances where McGonagall was barking at him and after he told her why he had hurried to her had stared at him totally unnerving him and then Snape of all people being so civil to him and thanking him. Neville's brains did not move beyond that point and he fainted.

Now Snape stared at him and then he looked at McGonagall tiredly and smiled when she told him, "Severus you just thanked him and spoke to him politely. See the reaction you have on my poor Gryffindors." She smiled back at him as he smirked at her and enervated Neville.

He woke up and promptly squeaked as he saw Snape looming over him and looked to McGonagall who was smiling at him, her bad mood apparently gone and pleaded with her through his eyes for help.

"Longbottom, look at me." Snape commanded him. Neville stood up and turned to look at Snape. "Sir," he said his voice quivering, "what I said was true Sir." Neville was totally bewildered as his brain processed the fact that Snape in his dungeons could hear what was happening in McGonagall's office, unless he was here when Neville rushed in and but wait! his brain told him, but Snape had come from outside.

Then did he go out when he, Neville had come in? Neville felt his head spinning as he stood there not able to understand.

Snape's face softened as he looked at Neville. "Sit." Neville sat.

"What you said was completely true. Both of us believe you Longbottom." McGonagall told him softly and watched Neville relax. The first step was okay.

"Now I need your help." Snape told him.

"Yes Sir."

"I want you to do two things. First never mention about this to anyone other than Potter and Granger. You may tell them but only when you are alone with them and have taken the precaution of privacy and silencing charms."

"Yes Sir."

"The second thing is never to talk anything in your dorm. That room has spells placed by the Headmaster to monitor conversations. So no discussion there."

Neville stared at Snape and then frowned at him in confusion at that. "But Sir then won't the Headmaster know of this and punish them, Oh no! She said professor Dumbledore wanted them to get friendly." He looked up at Snape in horror and then turned to look at the Head of his House.

She nodded her head in anger. "Yes the Headmaster is involved."

Suddenly Neville lost it. All this was a bit too much for the boy whose life until then was very simple. He drew his wand and faced both his professors. "Just what is happening here? To Harry?" he shouted forgetting this was Snape and the head of his House and they could have killed him right there and used him as potions ingredients.

"Someone comes and places an Imperio on him and both of you seem to know it before I came and told you and now you say Dumbledore is involved. Well I am not going to allow anything to happen to Harry. Got that? I am going to take him away to my Gran's and put him straight on everything and take care of you, you, goons as well." He finished with a shout his whole body trembling. Snape was going to hit him with a calming spell when Neville acted suddenly.

Without warning Neville cast a stunner at Snape and he was going to do the same at McGonagall, when she removed his wand from him and locked the door as he tried to rush through it. She enervated Snape and Neville stood there like a boxer his fists closed and ready to take one powerful witch and one powerful wizard without a wand.

"Harry is my friend you get that. He is my friend, my friend." His voice almost broke on that word before he carried on, "My only friend. I would die for him. He had lost too much. Now both of you let me go and I will not say a word of what happened here to Harry. Just tell me the counter for the curse. Please." His voice broke on the last word but he stood still his hands fisted and eyes darting between McGonagall and Snape.

Snape stood there his mouth wide open and McGonagall was no better when Neville suddenly leaped on Snape and tried to take away his wand. He and Snape rolled on the floor and Neville tried to hit him with his fists and take away his wand when Snape disarmed him wandlessly and petrified him and very gently placed him on the chair.

There was only silence and the sound of heavy breathing from Snape and Neville. Snape was looking at him with an expression akin to admiration, only Neville was too scared to understand.

"Fifty points to Gryffindor." He said softly. "I would award more but it would look suspicious. There is no doubt that you are a Gryffindor Longbottom, as only one of you would even try disarming me when Minerva is right here backing me up."

Neville stared at him quite unable to do anything else.

"Wait here Longbottom. Minerva hide him if Albus would come here." Snape took out a vial and charmed off a hair of Neville and mixing it in the potion, drank it up. In a moment he became Neville Longbottom and the real Neville was almost choking in an effort to remove the binds.

Snape left the Transfiguration office and went to the Gryffindor dorms and went through it. Ron and Ginny were no where to be seen and Snape walked swiftly to the dorms and stopped. Dean Thomas and Seamus Finnegan were there chatting about something.

"Hey Neville where's the fire?"

Neville looked around uneasily as he pointed to his throat. "Hurts. Can't talk properly."

"Whatever did you do?" Seamus asked him.

Neville shrugged as if he did not know and keeping his wand well inside his robes, he flicked his hands and cast nifty spell that made Dean want to use the bathrooms right now.

"Hey Seamus, coming I need to use the loo very urgently. Come with me."

"But you were fine a minute ago." Seamus was bewildered as he followed his friend to the bathroom.

The moment he left Snape set to work. He cast a repellent at the door so that everyone would want to be away from that door and turned and went to Harry's bed and found him sleeping peacefully.

He removed his wand and cast many spells on Harry's curtains and closed them, making them see through. Then he woke up Harry, petrified him and stared at Harry who looked at Neville in astonishment, suddenly wanting Ginny and Ron with him.

Snape read that in Harry's mind and gritted his teeth. He then started chanting and pointing his wand traced the curse in Harry and slowly removed it. Harry jerked and broke through the petrificus totalis and lunged at Neville as his senses cleared.

"Harry it is I Snape who has come here polyjuiced as Neville. Now come with me to Minerva's office where he is waiting for you. I will explain everything there. Now hurry as I must leave before the polyjuice wears off."

Harry looked at him suspiciously and Snape sighed. He was really very tired. "I destroyed a horcrux with Regulus." He said softly.

Harry fell into his arms hearing those words and felt like crying.

Snape simply put a finger to his lips and dragged him away from the dorm, carefully removing all the charms, except Harry's on the curtains. He cast a notice me not charm on both of them and they swiftly ran to McGonagall's office. She was sitting there with a petrified Neville who was looking pathetic.

Harry looked at Neville and was about to ask Snape when Snape spoke swiftly and told him everything. Harry flushed and then his anger started spiraling out of control all the things started rattling, Snape to the horror of Neville went over and hugged Harry, talking softly to him and calming him down.

It took a good ten minutes and then Harry with a flick of his wand removed Neville's bind and smiled sadly at him.

"Thanks a lot Nev. These two are on the up though and yeah I knew Ron and Ginny were not really my friends. I would like to talk to you so are you free now?"

Neville was now trying to come to terms with these facts. It all seemed a bit too much for the boy. He nodded his head and said hesitantly, "Harry the curse is removed and Snape did not hurt you did he?"

Snape snorted as Harry glared at him. "What? Harry he stunned me and was about to stun Minerva and after I enervated him and took away his wand he jumped on me trying to hurt me and take away my wand."

Harry looked at Neville in astonishment as Neville blushed and dragged him, "You said you will tell me. Come on. May we go?" he asked Snape and McGonagall both of whom grinned at him and almost gave him a heart failure and nodded at him.

"You did not mention the fifty points you gave Neville Severus." McGonagall teased him as Harry's jaw hit the floor and Snape scowled.

"I can still take it away from my Golden Boy you know." Snape told her snidely and sneered as she burst into laughter. Harry shook his head and suddenly grinned at Snape who flushed when McGonagall told him the story about the points. Snape knew Harry would tease him mercilessly from now on.

Harry and Neville left McGonagall's office and walked far away and went behind the trees and casting many spells Harry told him briefly about what had happened. Neville listened without a word and when he heard about the Slytherins and the oaths they gave and the Weasleys and how they had agreed to help him he stared at Harry openmouthed.

There was only silence after Harry told everything to Neville and both the boys sat there for a long time. Harry was planning to ask Neville to promise him before they left so that no one would be able to pry this information out of him when Neville smiled and very shyly looked up at Harry, "I Neville Frank Longbottom swear on my magic and my life to stand by the side of Harry James Potter in all his endeavors, to keep all his secrets and fight alongside with him to make our world a better place to live. So mote it be."

A beautiful golden whirl came out of Neville's wand and went straight to Harry. Harry was very touched as he said, "I accept the oath given by a friend and promise to do as he does. So mote it be."

"I accept." Both of them smiled at each other and after sometime Harry and Neville walked away and Neville found his heart bursting with joy. He had made his parents and Gran proud. He knew.

-------------------

Snape and McGonagall and indeed all the others had heard Harry's and Neville's conversation, except the Weasleys. Snape decided to tell them privately. All of them were shocked at Neville's oath and McGonagall was very proud of her Gryffindor and could not stop smiling. Two of them were very bad but there were students like Harry and Neville and Hermione too.

Snape an hour later called Arthur Weasley and the others and told them what had happened and Neville's inclusion in Harry's side. Arthur was unbelievably angry as he sat in his office. He cast a privacy charm and spoke to Snape almost frothing at the mouth.

"I wish to pull them from the School Severus and,"

"Will you shut up." Snape hissed to the very angry man. It had been a horrible half hour for Snape. First he had told all the Weasleys and all of them had almost bitten his ears off and it had taken the combined efforts of Snape, McGonagall, Arran and Harry to stop them from coming over to Hogwarts and kill Ron and Ginny right then.

After all the hoarse yelling that made him wonder how they were not caught at work and sent home, Arthur had wanted to disinherit them from the family. Then Snape had to very acidly remind him of his beloved wife.

Now it was pulling them from School.

"You wish to inform Albus of our activities, fine then. But for doing so you need not deprive your children of their right to education." Snape had sneered and had bestowed pearls of sarcasm and everyone had snorted unanimously at him.

"Speak the King's English man." Arran had told him and stopped to lighten the thick atmosphere when he heard a sob.

"What are my children doing Severus? What have they become?"

No one could answer that and Arthur deactivated his earring and put his head into his hands wondering what he and Molly did not teach to the three children that made them so different.

"Bill, please take a day off work and see to your father." Snape softly told the eldest child who went at once to request some time off. Harry had written to the goblins that Bill was working with them and the goblins promised to never question his requests for absences until the war was over.

Snape told the others not to call him short of another imperious and crashed for the rest of the day getting up only for dinner.

That night Hermione and Nott were released a day before they should have as they seemed very fine. Harry had avoided everyone like the plague and had holed himself in the Room of Requirement for the rest of the day coming out only for dinner and he was thrilled to see Hermione.

Harry beamed at her and she beamed back at him and after enquiring if all was well with her, Harry sat down to eat and Neville who stuck to Harry like glue also grinned at Hermione and soon all of them were chattering away.

They had almost finished when Ron and Ginny ran into the Great Hall and stopped in amazement as he saw Harry there.

"Harry," Ron said walking on eggshells and looking very warily at him. Harry smiled at him and Ron at once beamed back.

"Hey Ron, where were you? We are all finishing here and going straight to the library to study. Hermione wants to catch up on her studies. Will you finish and come along?"

Ron did not know what to answer to that very normal query and he nodded as a matter of habit. Harry as usual did not look at Ginny and looking casually at the staff table saw the frown on Dumbledore's face as he registered Harry was not even acknowledging Ginny.

Harry looked away and saw Nott sitting at the Slytherin table and looking at him. He nodded once and to his surprise Nott nodded back. Then Harry followed the same routine as 'The Gang' laughed and chatted as they went along.

Ron and Ginny were baffled and Dumbledore was even more perplexed as the three of them wondered how Harry could break four imperious curses. McGonagall and Snape smirked to themselves and kept a straight face.

Hermione came to know what had happened in the two days she had been recovering and she was furious. "No more going to The Burrow Harry. If they can do this here I cannot even imagine what they will do to you in their home. Even with Mr. Weasley and the others around, they could try something. Alright?"

Harry agreed and they said their good byes and five minutes later Harry's earring activated.

"Are you asleep Harry?"

"No Sev what is the matter?" Harry asked him with worry when there was loud laughing and McGonagall's voice saying all of them were stupid over the laughter. Before Harry could ask more a chorus sounded.

"Whipped, Potter. She has you right where she wants you." And all of them laughed and Harry blushed like and idiot and huffed and snarled at them but there was only more shouting and laughter and Harry left it giving it up as a bad job.

Snape had not called the Weasleys as he knew today they would not be in a mood for jokes. They said their good nights for real this time and went to bed.

Harry had spelled his curtains with many spells this time and he had made sure he would know if one of them were breeched or broken by tying the spells to him.

Then he went to sleep thinking not about Hermione and the others teasing but about Neville and his oath, a warm feeling inside him.

The next day was a very baffling and a very fearful day for Ron and Ginny Weasley. They kept looking at Harry expecting him to react but Harry acted as he usually did. He did not speak a word out of place and the new thing was Neville, Hermione and Luna was always with him. Harry himself was slightly perplexed by Luna's behavior but he had since long stopped trying to figure her out.

Dumbledore was even more puzzled at this new development. Had Harry known he knew about being Imperiouised Harry would have made enough fuss to bring the roof down? So he did not know, but the Weasley brother and sister had cast four imperiouses on Harry. How did that not affect him? Moody when told of this had no answers except to gruffly tell Dumbledore that Harry must be closely watched.

So the days went by and none of them could find anything suspicious about Harry or his actions. Harry had also cast a repellent charm at his curtains and also on Neville's so Ron never came to him once Harry drew the curtains together.

Harry had kept quiet only for Molly's sake. He would have kicked up a lot of fuss otherwise. He knew how upset the Weasleys had been when they had come to know and Arthur had been reduced to tears once again. If Harry had openly accused them, then Molly Weasley would have known and it would have simply destroyed her.

Another reason Harry kept quiet was that he did not want to tell Dumbledore he had been able to throw off four imperious spells cast at him because that would make Dumbledore check him very thoroughly and Harry had wanted to escape that. So the Weasleys and Dumbledore stayed baffled and watched Harry very closely.

Soon the spring holidays came by and Harry point blank refused to go to the Weasleys and in fact urged Ron also to stay at the castle so that they could study. While Ron was removed from his Runes class Harry was still going to take his OWLS and he had insisted that he stay in the castle, quite loudly.

Ron had agreed to stay at Hogwarts along with Harry but an owl from Arthur came three days before Easter and he asked Ron and Ginny along with Ginny's books to come home as they would be visiting with Charlie. Not able to refuse, Ron and Ginny went home to The Burrow very reluctantly leaving Harry and the rest of 'The Gang' at the School to enjoy a very peaceful holiday.