Lizzie's POV:

"Room of Requirement. 4 o'clock," Neville murmured to me as he bumped shoulders with me in the corridor as I was on my way to Potions class.

"What?" I asked, snapping my head around to try and catch him before he disappeared, but he kept walking with his head down.

"Is there a problem, Miss Samuels?" Alecto Carrow asked, her pudgy face menacing as if she were begging for a reason to punish someone. She and her brother had the horrible talent of being in the wrong place at all the wrong times, procuring more students for punishment.

"Of course not, ma'am," I replied quickly, watching Neville disappear around a corner. I saw Alecto's face visibly droop in disappointment.

"Then get to class," she grumbled, gesturing down the hallway with her wand.

"Yes, ma'am," I returned with a nod, walking away quickly.

The Potions classroom smelled of old parchment, peppermint, and lavender, helping me relax after the encounter with Alecto and Neville. I took a seat in my usual spot in the back of the room, which was full of Hufflepuffs and other Slytherins. Slughorn was leaning on his work table at the front of the classroom, eyeing each student walk into his classroom.

"Alright boys and girls," he sighed as the last student sat in her chair, "Today we will be working on a fairly simple potion that I'm sure all of you are familiar with. Can anyone tell me what that is?"

A Hufflepuff on the left side of the room raised his hand.

"Yes, Mr. Wortman?" Slughorn pointed to the black-haired boy, who dropped his hand and glanced around the class a bit nervously before answering.

"Is it Amortentia, sir?" the boy asked.

"It is indeed. Would you mind telling the class how you knew that?"

"Well, I can smell it, sir," the boy explained, gesturing into the air.

"What do you smell, Mr. Wortman?"

"I smell..." the boy took a deep breath, "I smell freshly baked pancakes, and mud, and wet paint, and... and vanilla perfume." His face tinged pink as a few Slytherins sniggered.

"Thank you, Mr. Wortman. 15 points to Hufflepuff." Slughorn stood up and waved his wand so the door to the store cupboards opened. "Brew a cauldron of Amortentia and submit a phial with your name on it to me by the end of the class."

Chair screeched on the floor as people stood up and made their way towards the store cupboards to collect their ingredients. As usual, I started my fire up before getting the ingredients, letting the initial rush die down.

Into my arms, I pulled a small phial of pearl dust, rose thorns, Ashwinder eggs, powdered Moonstone, and peppermint.

When I returned to my cauldron, I dropped three rose thorns into the base of dragon saliva and stirred it twice clockwise. I then sprinkled one ounce of powdered Moonstone, stirring thrice counterclockwise before adding the six leaves of peppermint and letting it simmer for eight and a half minutes. The potion slowly turned an olive green as the peppermint leaves sank into the solution. The smell of lavender wafted towards my nose along with the faint smell of peppermint.

After the eight and a half minutes passed, I placed four frozen Ashwinder eggs into the potion and stirred it six times counterclockwise. I then let it sit for another eight and a half minutes as the potion turned chartreuse.

When the eight and a half minutes passed for the second time, I peppered five and a quarter ounces of pearl dust into the blend and it immediately turned an angry shade of pink, signaling that it was done. So, I dipped a phial in, careful not to get any on my hand, and wrote my name on the side.

Lizzie Samuels

I took a long breath with the phial in front of my nose, revelling in the ambrosial feeling that spread throughout my body with the comforting aromas coming from the potion.

I walked it up to Professor Slughorn, who was scribbling on an essay and looked up as I approached.

"Here's my Amortentia solution, sir," I spoke as I held out the corked phial for him.

"Already? My, my, Miss Samuels. You are a quick worker," he gave me crooked smile. His plump fingers closed around it and placed it in a storage container.

"I enjoy brewing potions, so can brew fairly quickly," I explained.

"Have you decided on what you would like to do after Hogwarts?" he asked.

"Well, I wanted to be an Auror, but I'm not sure that's what I'm want anymore." I frowned. I hadn't thought about life after Hogwarts in a while, as I had been too busy trying to survive the next five minutes.

"Have you ever explored the idea of teaching?" he queried, folding his hands over the essay he had been grading.

"Sir?" I furrowed my eyebrows, not quite sure what was asking of me.

"Well, my dear, I'm an old man. I'm planning on retiring here sometime soon and I'm going to need someone to succeed me." His mustache moved like a wave as he spoke.

"Sir, are you asking me to teach Potions?"

"Of course you'll need at least three years of after-school life experience before you could apply, but I'm planning on retiring around that time." I remained silent, speechless due to the thought of teaching Potions. "Think about it, my dear," he laughed. "I'm sure Headmaster Snape knows what an exceptional student you are from teaching you for all of those years, but I could put in a good word with him as well."

"I'll think about it, sir," I replied. "Thank you." I nodded my head and returned to my station, where I cleaned up the small mess I had made.

-----

I need to see Neville.

I need to see Neville.

I need to see Neville.

I paced in front of the expanse of wall in the seventh floor corridor that revealed the Room of Requirement, asking to see Neville.

The snakes of iron slithered across the stone wall, showing us the door to the Room of Requirement.

I opened the door with an air of caution, peeking around the wood, not sure what would be awaiting us on the other side. But the other side of the door seemed free of threats, revealing only Neville, Ginny, Luna, and a few other students I recognized.

"Hi, Lizzie," Neville grinned as I fully entered the room, leaving the door open behind me. "I wasn't sure you would come."

"I- uh," I stuttered, "I hope you don't mind that I brought a friend." I saw Ginny cross her arms, already catching on.

"Oh, no, I don't mind," he replied. "Who is it?"

"Erm, Draco...?" I spoke, my voice coming out as a question. The boy came in behind me and stood defensively beside me after shutting the door.

"Oh, hell no," Ginny snapped, drawing her wand and stomping towards Draco. I quickly stepped between the two.

"We're here to help!" I argued, closing my fist around my wand in my pocket, preparing to shield both Draco and me. "We hate this Death Eater rule as much as you do. We want to help you."

"Really, then?" Ginny sneered, her face turning red as her hair. "Roll up your sleeves."

My stomach dropped into my shoes, but before I showed her my weakness, I retorted, "Fine." I ripped my left sleeve up to my elbow, showing everyone in the room the Dark Mark that was inked into my skin. A collective gasp echoed around the room along with offended whispers. "I told you how I got this. I didn't choose it."

"Your turn, Malfoy," Ginny barked. Draco slowly pulled the sleeves of his robes up, also revealing his Dark Mark. "You're Death Eaters. You're here to spy." She drew her wand and pointed it in our direction. "Get out."

"Ginny, I've expl-"

"Get out." She spoke with a deathly calmness that scared me. The knuckles gripping her wand were white.

"Stop it, Ginny," Neville grunted, grabbing Ginny's wand from her.

"Neville!" she protested.

"No, Lizzie told us what happened and she said she wants to help us. We can use all the help we can get. If you haven't noticed, the D.A. has shrunk rather significantly." He spread his arms, gesturing to the small group surrounding us.

"I don't trust them. Especially Malfoy." She snapped her head in our direction and glared daggers at Draco. "Don't you remember all those years he taunted us?"

"Of course I do, but I trust Lizzie, and she trusts Malfoy," he replied quickly.

"That doesn't mean shit!" she flared.

"We are letting them help, Ginny." Neville turned towards us with a steely serious expression. "As long as you both promise you are here to help and not spy."

Before I could reply, Ginny cut in excitedly. "Make them take the Unbreakable Vow."

"We can't make them take the Unbreakable Vow, Ginny! Do you even know what you're saying?"

"I do! And it's brilliant! This way they can't go blabbing to Snape or the Carrows about what we're doing!" Ginny's face was now red with excitement instead of rage.

'We don't even know how to cast it!" Neville countered.

"Do any of you know how to bond an Unbreakable Vow?" Ginny asked, turning desperately to the group of students behind her and Neville. Most of them shook their heads, the rest looked confused, but one boy raised his hand.

"Erm- Actually, I do," he said hesitantly.

"Michael! Yes!" Ginny pumped her fist into the air.

When Neville gave the dark haired boy an odd look, he shrugged and explained, "I read a lot."

"Get over here, Michael!" Ginny commanded excitedly. "Neville, you take Malfoy's hand. Lizzie give me yours." The ginger girl held her hand out for me to take. Neville heaved a great sigh and held his hand out to Draco, who gave me an odd look, but took the boy's hand. I grasped Ginny's.

Michael approached us with his wand in his hand. "I'll just- erm- do Neville and Malfoy first." He placed his wand on their connected hands and a thin tongue of flame wrapped itself up Neville's and Draco's arms.

"Draco, do you swear to help Dumbledore's Army to the best of your ability?" Neville asked.

"I do," Draco answered. Another tongue of fire wrapped around their arms.

"Do you swear never to tell another soul of our actions without the direct permission of either Ginny or me?"

"I do." Another wire of fire.

"Do you swear to aid Harry Potter and his rebellion against He-Who-Shall-Not-Be-Named?"

"I do." Another wire of fire.

"Do you swear to protect your fellow members of the Dumbledore's Army to the best of your ability?"

"I do." The flames brightened to the point of forcing me to look away and then disappeared completely.

"Is that it?" Neville asked, releasing Draco's hand.

"That's it," Michael replied.

"Now us," Ginny commanded.

Michael walked towards us and placed the tip of his wand on our connected hands. The same tongue of fire that winded its way around Draco's and Neville's arms wound around Ginny and mine's arms. I expected it to be hot or at least warm, but it was surprisingly cold, sending chills down my spine.

"Lizzie Samuels, do you swear to help Dumbledore's Army to the best of your ability?" she asked, narrowing her eyes at me.

"I do," I spoke. Another flickering wire of fire wound its way around our arms. I could feel the connection between me and Ginny strengthen.

"Do you swear never to tell another soul of our actions without the direct permission of Neville or me?"

"I do." One more tongue twisted around our arms.

"Do you swear to aid Harry Potter and his rebellion against He-Who-Shall-Not-Be-Named?"

"I do." Another.

"Do you swear to protect your fellow members of the Dumbledore's Army to the best of your ability?"

"I do," I spoke with a sense of finality. The flames brightened and disappeared.

"Welcome to Dumbledore's Army," Neville grinned at us.