Red Tide Rising

Neville stood as straight as he could manage. His throat was parched, and his knees felt to give way.

Taking a deep breath, he cleared his throat and pointed his wand at his throat. "Sonorus," he said. Pausing to peer down at the teeming mass of students of every size and House, Neville felt his heart stop for a moment. They were all looking around at him, whispering and pointing. This was the last thing Neville wanted to do.

"Quiet!" Neville demanded, his voice echoing off the walls with much more confidence than he felt. "Quiet, everyone, please, this is important." The whispering only got louder, more nervous. They were scared, Neville knew, having been dragged from bed and ordered to the Entrance Hall at three-thirty in the morning. And here, who do they find in charged? Not a teacher, or a prefect, no. Neville Longbottom! What could have happened to put that bungler in charge?

"I SAID QUIET!" Neville roared down at the crowd, and several first-years quailed. "Listen to me, now, and no interruptions, no whispering, don't even move until I tell you to!" Neville warned the mass. Not a single person took a breath until Neville started up again. "Death Eaters are attacking Hogwarts as we speak- I SAID NO INTERRUPTIONS!- and certain things must be done."

"The teachers are already out in the Forest, laying in wait, but there aren't enough of them. As well, the school itself must be defended. So, I want all sixth and seventh years over there-" Neville said, pointing to one side of the hall, "all fourth and fifth years- except Prefects- over there-" he pointed to another corner. "All first, second and third years, at the base of the stairs, please, and fifth year prefects will take you to the Library.

"Move. Now!"

Neville made his way down the stairs to the Hall proper as the prefects began leading the younger students up the stairs. He stopped Ginny and Colin.

"Keep them away from the windows, and don't let them get hysterical, yeah?" Without waiting for a reply, Neville kept on down the stairs. In the Hall, the Head Boy, a Slytherin, made a beeline towards Neville.

"I say, what do you think you're about? Why didn't Dumbledore come to me, hmm? This is silly, all of it, You-Know-Who would never attack Hogwarts! I want answers!" demanded the brown-haired boy.

Instead of defending himself to the boy, Neville merely drew his wand and shouted, "Silence!" at him.

"I did not give you permission to leave your corner, or to speak. Get back over there!" Neville growled pointing at the corner he had come from. "Now, all Defense student's, get into your Squads. Morag, Justin and Padma, you'll be my deputies in this, all right?" Students began to move together. Morag, Justin and Padma came to flank Neville, scowling out at anyone who dared to speak. With his Squad members behind him, Neville felt much more calm.

"Harry, Hermione, Ron and Draco are already out on the grounds, doing early reconnaissance. We'll set up a central command in the Library, and third and fourth years will protect the interior of the school, the passageways and such. They'll also be helping Madam Pomfrey, who is setting up the Hospital Wing now for severe injuries, and brewing Awareness Potions and Sleeping Draughts and what not. Fifth years and up, except the fifth year prefects, will be out of the grounds, defending the school.

"Now, here, is a map of the grounds," Neville said, and he concentrated on the map he had in his mind. The floor of the Entrance Hall became a large map. "You lot go here, you here, you here..." he began dishing out positions and orders.

"Professor Dumbledore gave one order: Do what ever you must! Now get going, I'll send replacements as soon as it's feasible. The password is... Bloody Baron." The door opened, and silently, half the students poured out. "Now, you who're left over, follow me." Neville lead them up the stairs heading towards the Library and the Hospital Wing on the seventh floor.

"Neville," Padma whispered. "I've an idea. I'll be right back, yeah?" Neville looked at her. Her eyes were wide in fear, her sister had just marched out of the school possibly to her death, and yet, she had an idea.

"Yes, but take Justin with you," raising his voice, he announced, "nobody is to walk the halls alone!" Padma and Justin veered off towards the History corridor.

"Here, Neville," Morag said, walking at his side where Padma had been. "I made a list of the students you sent out on the grounds."

"Thanks, Morag. Quick thinking, that," he said, glancing over the list as he opened the doors of the Library. "Where are all the first years, Ginny?" he demanded.

"Sent them with the Ravenclaw and Slytherin prefects to help Madam Pomfrey with the preparations. Madam Pince is speaking with the House Elves," she nodded towards the fireplace, "to arrange meals and such up here. The second-years are clearing off the benches so that we can use them for planning and what not."

Neville nodded, taking in the sight of dozens of scared and tired children working furiously to clear off the tables of anything they considered useless to the cause of defending Hogwarts. Not one of them spoke as they grunted under the burden of huge tomes. Madam Pince was on her ancient knees, speaking into the kitchens, discussing the problems of arranging food and drink in the Library, something she'd refuse to allow under any normal circumstance. Morag crouched down beside her and began listing off numbers and details of what would be needed.

Neville had no idea what to do now. He'd been left in charge of a huge operation, something more important than anything he'd ever imagined before. He hadn't thought at the time, the immediate plans had just come to him through the training Professor Gryffindor had given him that year, but now that it was started, he had no idea what to do. Think ahead! Dumbledore chose you...

"Morag!" he called, and she magically appeared at his side, leaving whatever she'd been doing. "Set up twenty cauldrons on that table, and set the second up with the ingredients for Awareness Potions, that's second-year curriculum. Third years, fourth years, on me," he called, using the term Gryffindor had used, to have the students gather around him. "In your squads," he amended.

He set the groups of four up, and sent half of them to protect the secret passages he knew of, or the halls of certain floors. He set four groups around the Seventh floor, to protect the command station. "If the Library should catch fire, all of Hogwarts will burn!" he told them.

"Yes, Captain," Dennis Creevey called as his group went to protect the entrance to the passage to Honeydukes. Several students allowed themselves to grin as Dennis and his squad all snapped hearty salutes and jogged out of the Library, passing Padma and Justin on their way out.

"Neville!" Padma cried. "I was right, and it's fantastic!"

"What is?" Neville asked.

"The Room of Requirement! It's set up with a huge Marauders Map and two-way mirrors and everything! You have to come," she declared, tugging his arm. Leaving Morag in charge, Neville and Padma rushed down the hall, Justin clearing around corners before them. The came across one group, and gave the password before they could continue. It didn't bother Neville at all.

"Look!" Padma cried, opening the doors to the Room of Requirement. Neville's heart leapt in his chest. A huge map of the grounds, sub sectioned with blueprints of the school and dotted with black and red blobs, covered one entire wall. Another wall was a window, showing a pre-dawn sky filled with billowing clouds. The wall with the door had fireplaces lining it, titles above it reading 'Library', 'Hospital Wing', 'Dungeons', 'Kitchens', 'Entrance Hall', and 'House Dormitories'. The fourth wall had shelf filled with Self-Scribing books, all scratching furiously, small silver instruments puffing smoke and several portraits of old witches and wizards.

"Blimey!" Neville whispered as he took it all in. "It is fantastic." Heading towards the books, he leant down to read what they were righting; it turned out to be a blow-by-blow account of the struggles going on. "Phyllida Sprout- hit, Jelly-Legs Curse, curser Steven Kirkyard. Countered. Steven Kirkyard- hit, Expelliarmus Hex, hexer Phyllida Sprout. Steven Kirkyard- unconscious." Glancing towards the map, he found Professor Sprouts name, in red, moving away from Steven Kirkyard, in black.

Rushing towards the fireplace marked 'Library', Neville tossed a handful of powder into it, and shouted, "Morag? Change of plans!"

Four hours later, Neville had just sent out replacements, buoyed by Awareness Potions and heavy cloaks. Somehow, for the middle of June, the day was freezing, with a cold mist and chilly rain covering the area. Madam Pomfrey had asked that the fourth and fifth-years begin making Warming Draughts and Pepper-Up Potion. Injuries had been light and handled immediately, as fourth-years, armed with the proper supplies and two-way mirrors, had been directed through the skirmishes to the injured people. Death Eaters found injured or unconscious had their wands snapped and were left tied up. They would be dealt with if it were possible.

Harry, Ron, Hermione and Draco were sitting in the Room of Requirement, now a comfortably bustling Command Centre, allowing the effects of Pomfrey's last portions of Pepper-Up Potion to take effect. They had refused the drink at first, insisting everyone else get theirs first.

"How many Death Eaters are there? We counted nearly a hundred," Hermione said through chattering teeth.

"There's well over two hundred. The Ministry should be here by now, so I'm going to assume they can't break through the Death Eaters lines," Neville said, taking a seat across from them. "We'll continue as if we're on our own."

"Injuries?" Harry asked.

"Four serious injuries, a dozen sprains and such," said Neville with a shrug. "Zacharias Smith, Parvati Patil, Stephen Cornfoot and Terry Boot won't be returning. Pomfrey refuses to let them, as they were all hit with the Cruciatus Curse by," Neville consulted the logbook, "Milan Colshannon or Bildger Dusker. The others are all ready to rejoin the fight."

Draco nodded. "So were down four. And the attackers, how are they doing? Has Voldemort shown up yet?"

"No Voldemort yet. Thirteen are dead- three to Gryffindor, four to Snape, two to McGonagall, Flitwick and O'Neill each. Twenty-one wands have been snapped, and several seem to have minor injuries," he said. "But I'd say that they're much better organized than us. They're much better prepared, as well. They must have been planning this for a long while.

"How'd you think to make those trees explode, Hermione? The slivers really wrecked some bodies," Neville said, admiration glowing out of his eyes. Hermione was so clever.

"Well, I just realized that the sap inside must be frozen. So I boiled it from the inside, and the trees exploded. It wasn't so much the slivers, but the Bowtruckles that caused havoc," Hermione answered.

"Well, it was brilliant," Morag said, setting a tray of tea and sandwiches down. "But now you're to eat, drink and sleep some, because you've only a few hours until your back out there."

"Neville!" Justin's voice cut through the hushed din of the room. "Dementors are closing in on Gryffindor and O'Neill, four of them." Neville and Harry ran toward the map. Sure enough, Dementors were nearly on top of the Professors.

"Ginny," Neville called to the girl sitting at the desk with the two-way mirrors, "tell Dean and his group to remove themselves from their position, and advance six hundred meters north. Tell them there are four Dementors. Morag, send a group of fourth-years out with chocolate and mirrors for the Professors. This is mad, we can't communicate with the Professors."

Neville watched, his heart pounding, as Dean, Seamus, Blaise and Susan moved quickly- they must be running all out- toward the Professors and the Dementors. Before they arrived, Gryffindor had destroyed one Dementor, but Frank Trewilliger announced the journal listed Gryffindor as 'Demented'. As soon as Dean's squad arrived, though, the Dementors were driven off, another two destroyed into vapour.

The fourth-years arrived and Gryffindor was quickly recovered. Through her mirror, she told Neville to "Sod off! I'm staying out here," and disappeared. The entire Command Centre roared its approval.

Ordering Ron's squad to the Hospital Wing for some rest, Neville turned to the reports on his own desk. Ernie's report was long and overly detailed. Dennis's report, mainly suggestions for better defending the passage to Honeydukes, was helpful, and Neville sent a second-year to the new squad with a list of orders.

At ten in the morning, just after he replaced the replacements with the original squads, Morag and Padma came at him. "You have to rest as well!" nagged Padma.

"You'll be absolutely useless in a few minutes. Go take a sleeping draught, and we'll wake you in a few hours. If there's a problem, we'll wake you earlier," Morag said.

"No, I shouldn't."

"Yes, you should. Neville," Morag exclaimed in a bossy voice more akin to Hermione than the light-hearted Slytherin, "we can manage for a few hours. You forced us to rest. Now we're doing the same. Go!" she cried, pointing her finger at the fireplaces.

Grumbling all the way, Neville reached the Hospital Wing, and fell asleep immediately, without any help from magic. A first-year shook him awake at one in the afternoon with tea and a hearty stew. Quickly, Neville returned to the control room. Morag, Padma and Justin, along with Ginny, were holding things together quite well.

After a quick briefing, in which he learned the injuries were becoming increasingly severe, Neville returned to his desk, reading the detailed reports of the last group.

A few minutes later, Justin announced quite calmly that twelve Death Eaters had entered the castle on broom, through Gryffindor Tower. The first squad defending the corridor outside the dormitories had removed the picture of the Fat Lady, hoping anyone would be trapped in the Common Room without the portrait to release them. Unfortunately, that was not the case.

"Send everyone not otherwise engaged!" Neville had commanded, running out of the room to reinforce the corridor. The Gryffindor Common Room was also on the seventh-floor, with the Library, Hospital Wing and the Room of Requirement, and the youngest and most vulnerable children were there. He could not allow the Death Eaters to reach the Infirmary.

The battle was fast, furious. India Invermere was attacked with the Cruciatus Curse, but Neville managed to expel the Death Eaters wand in time. Several students, though they greatly outnumbered the Death Eaters, were unconscious or whimpering in pain. After what seemed like hours, but was only minutes, finally every Death Eater was under control. Neville went around, tearing off masks and tying the assholes up. Snapping wands gave him a nearly sick pleasure, and he refused to allow the Death Eaters into the Hospital Wing.

"No, send our wounded first. Take their cloaks off, and hitch them up by their robes outside on the pikes. Let the enemy know they were unsuccessful, and let our own know that we were infiltrated."

When Neville returned to the Control Centre, he attacked the reports, trying to find a situation in which one of his fighters would have been able to give away information about the castle defenses- the Death Eaters had not bothered trying to open the Gryffindor portrait hole, they had immediately blown through the wall.

Someone had told them to. That someone was Voldemort's ally.

Dusk was settling in when he finally gave up. It was hopeless, there was just too much to go through. Later, when this was over, he'd figure it out.

"Er- Captain? You should come look at this," Padma insisted. He joined her at the map, and squinted at the place she was pointing and turning to read the Self-Scribbing book that matched Ron's group. "Ron Weasley- hit, Bat-Bogey Curse. Yvonne No'ope, flailing about." "Gregory Goyle, Sr- hit, Hiculario Hex. Draco Malfoy, minor injury." "Lucius Malfoy- hit, Cruciatus Curse. Hermione Granger, agony." "Gregory Goyle, Sr. - hit, Diffindo Charm. Draco Malfoy, minor injury." "Draco Malfoy- hit, Expelling Curse. Lucius Malfoy, disarmed." "Draco Malfoy- hit, Inoculus Curse. Gregory Goyle, Sr, extreme injury." "Harry Potter- hit, Impeding Jinx. Warren Crabbe, minor injuries. Harry Potter- hit, Incendiary Charm. Warren Crabbe, extreme burns."

Then everything stopped, the journal was no longer giving any information. "What's happening?" Neville whispered in horror. Morag and Ginny were glaring at the map, as if demanding it told them something. "What's happening!" Neville shouted. The journal was still silent.

"I think I understand," Padma said quietly. "See how Mr. Malfoy and Ron's dots are on top of each other?" Everyone nodded. "I think Malfoy may be holding Ron hostage."

Neville's eyes grazed the map, looking for the closest squad. Pansy Parkinson, Su Li, Lavender Brown and Hannah Abbott. "Send Li's squad, reconnaissance first, tell them we need to know what's going on," Neville called to Natalie MacDonald, who was manning a table of mirrors. MacDonald nodded, spoke the order to Li, and they waited anxiously. And then-

"Oh- my- God!" Morag shouted. "The whore, the little whore! I'll kill her!"

Li's squad journal was writing quickly. "Pansy Parkinson- hit, Confundus Charm. Lavender Brown, Confounded. Pansy Parkinson- hit, Conjuctivitus Curse. Su Li, blinded, temporary. Pansy Parkinson- hit, Reductor Curse. Hannah Abbott, unconscious, severe injuries." Pansy cast spells to chain her group members to trees, and continued toward Ron's group.

"Oh, Merlin!" moaned Neville. He knew now that Pansy was an ally of the Dark Forces, knowing that she had never shown that level of skill in Defense classes. This was so stupid! "We can't send anyone else, they're all busy!" Pansy's name was no longer a red dot, indicating a friend. It was black now, and heading quickly towards the clearing. "Morag, should we recall all groups with Voldemort sympathizers?"

Morag shook her head. "Pansy's the only person who would allow Hogwarts to fall for principle. The rest are-" she was cut off by Justin's panicked voice.

"Wait, now. Who's that? They're alone," Justin said, leaning close to the map. "Galloping Gargoyles!" Justin whispered, his eyes bulging in shock. Neville leaned to peer over his shoulder. The map read, 'Adam (Malfoy) Scratch'.